Pablo Gaiger Posted August 13, 2009 Share Posted August 13, 2009 Hello everyone. This is my first post here, after reading many others - that have helped me a lot, by the way. I currently own a JVC GY-HD110U, and it has done wonders for me already, but I sense it's time to move on. So many companies are expanding their technologies, so I don't wanna fall behind with my productions. For me, right now, the issue with my camera is the use of tapes - I know, that is not the only issue technology-wise (the 110U doesn't do Full-HD, for instance). I've been reading some reviews and looking up some prices and so far, the Sony PMW-EX3 and the JVC GY-HM700 seem to be alright, as they appear to do what I want them to do. But I've never had the chance to hold either one and test them out myself. So, if any of you could please point me at the right direction, speaking up what are your impressions of the cameras, it would be really great. I use my camera to shoot movies (features and shorts), video-clips, documentaries and enterviews. So, basicaly, I need a camera that does what I want it to do. Please, feel free to point me to other cameras. I all open to suggestions, of course. Also, know that the camera should be under $10k. Otherwise, it would be easy to point out the Red One, or a Arri D-21, right? Thanks for the attention! Pablo Gaiger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Adrian Sierkowski Posted August 13, 2009 Premium Member Share Posted August 13, 2009 Pablo, I'm an EX(1) kinda guy. In that price range I think the EX cameras are a good bet, primarily because they have a slightly larger chip @ 1/2 inch which means you need slightly less light for 'em. Also the full 1920x1080 chips are nice and the codec pretty resilient and easy to cut on even a modest computer (macbook pro for example). That being said, they have issues with flahes and some fast motion due to the rolling shutter akin to what one would experience on RED or Film to a certain degree. This being the case, it's not the best camera to document on a red carpet runway or where there are a lot of strobe lights going off that you can't really control. Under all other circumstances my EX1 has never let me down and the EX3 is a step up from that especially if you're dealing with multicamera. I highly recommend, though, perhaps renting one to tool around with for a day or so before you buy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Brown Posted August 13, 2009 Share Posted August 13, 2009 Greetings Pablo, Have you considered the purchase of the upcoming AJA Ki Pro? It would allow you to record 10-bit full-raster Apple ProRes 422, a true upgrade over the onboard tape/MPEG2, through the uncompressed outs on your 110. It would eliminates the need to digitize footage and greatly increase record time, although you will have to deal with some ergonomic challenges. Supposedly AJA is working on this issue however. Details can be found here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pablo Gaiger Posted August 13, 2009 Author Share Posted August 13, 2009 Greetings Pablo, Have you considered the purchase of the upcoming AJA Ki Pro? It would allow you to record 10-bit full-raster Apple ProRes 422, a true upgrade over the onboard tape/MPEG2, through the uncompressed outs on your 110. It would eliminates the need to digitize footage and greatly increase record time, although you will have to deal with some ergonomic challenges. Supposedly AJA is working on this issue however. Details can be found here. Tim, It would be nice to have one of those, but I'm really looking forward another camera, due to all the technological advances and media changes. Thanks anyway. Pablo Gaiger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pablo Gaiger Posted August 14, 2009 Author Share Posted August 14, 2009 Pablo,I'm an EX(1) kinda guy. In that price range I think the EX cameras are a good bet, primarily because they have a slightly larger chip @ 1/2 inch which means you need slightly less light for 'em. Also the full 1920x1080 chips are nice and the codec pretty resilient and easy to cut on even a modest computer (macbook pro for example). That being said, they have issues with flahes and some fast motion due to the rolling shutter akin to what one would experience on RED or Film to a certain degree. This being the case, it's not the best camera to document on a red carpet runway or where there are a lot of strobe lights going off that you can't really control. Under all other circumstances my EX1 has never let me down and the EX3 is a step up from that especially if you're dealing with multicamera. I highly recommend, though, perhaps renting one to tool around with for a day or so before you buy. Yeah, I see everyone saying good stuff 'bout EX1 and EX3. But never saw nobody saying anything about the JVC one. Because I'm so used to JVC, I think it might be a nice option, but I never had the chance to test it, nor the EX1 and EX3. I will see if I can find anyone that rents it around here, so I can see if I like it. As for the JVC, have you tested it yourself? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Adrian Sierkowski Posted August 15, 2009 Premium Member Share Posted August 15, 2009 Can't say that I've used the JVCs too much. I've seen some good footage off of the 110/250 but, again that's all secondary to me. Worst to worst, just contact some rental houses might even be able to fire 'em up without a rental if you play your cards right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pablo Gaiger Posted August 15, 2009 Author Share Posted August 15, 2009 Can't say that I've used the JVCs too much. I've seen some good footage off of the 110/250 but, again that's all secondary to me. Worst to worst, just contact some rental houses might even be able to fire 'em up without a rental if you play your cards right. Adrian, Will do! I'll see if I can find one. In Brazil, though, it might be hard... Thanks for the help! Pablo Gaiger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pablo Gaiger Posted October 28, 2009 Author Share Posted October 28, 2009 Sadly, I can't seem to find any rental that works with JVC HM-700. I have read some more reviews and I'm starting to lean towards the EX-3. The FullHD CMOS give me more DOF control, from what I can tell. Plus, the over/undercranking feature is a huge plus to video-clips and movie productions. The main advantage I've been reading about the HM-700 is that it sits nicely on the shoulder. For me that doesn't mean much, as I really care about image quality. But I have not made up my mind yet, and until I'm able to find a HM-700 to rent, I will rely on you guys. Pablo Gaiger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew McCarrick Posted October 30, 2009 Share Posted October 30, 2009 (edited) Panasonic HPX300: 3 CMOS 1920 x 1080 native AVC-Intra 50 and 100, DVCPro HD (Far clear codecs then XDCam in my opinion.) It can also do SD in DVCPro 50, DVCPro and DV. About $8500 including lens (at B&H) http://catalog2.panasonic.com/webapp/wcs/s...Model=AG-HPX300 Edited October 30, 2009 by Andrew McCarrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pablo Gaiger Posted November 4, 2009 Author Share Posted November 4, 2009 Panasonic HPX300: 3 CMOS 1920 x 1080 native AVC-Intra 50 and 100, DVCPro HD (Far clear codecs then XDCam in my opinion.) It can also do SD in DVCPro 50, DVCPro and DV. About $8500 including lens (at B&H) http://catalog2.panasonic.com/webapp/wcs/s...Model=AG-HPX300 Does it do slow motion while shooting, like the EX-3? I also hear the codecs used by Panasonic make the file pretty big. Thanks! Pablo Gaiger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew McCarrick Posted November 5, 2009 Share Posted November 5, 2009 (edited) Does it do slow motion while shooting, like the EX-3? I also hear the codecs used by Panasonic make the file pretty big. Thanks! Pablo Gaiger Yes in 720P you can do slow-motion and fast motion (12, 15, 18, 20, 21, 22, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 30, 32, 34, 36, 40, 44, 48, 54, 60). Files sizes depend on frame rate and format. DVCPro HD is upto 100mbps (depending on frame rate) and has a 4:2:2 color space but is only 8-bit and is an older codec. AVCIntra 100 is also upto 100mbps (depending on frame rate), 4:2:2 color space and is 10-bit. AVCIntra 50 is upto 50mbps (depending on frame rate), is 10-bit, but has a 4:2:0 colorspace (much like XDCam). So the AVCIntra 50 format is similar to shooting XDCam (EX3) but with the HPX300 you get the option of shooting a higher format (AVC Intra 100). The 4:2:0 color space can be limiting for shooting chroma key stuff... so you also have the option to bump up to AVCIntra 100, if you need to shoot green screen for a AVCIntra 50 project. AVCIntra 50 is said to be similar in quality to the DVCPro HD format, because of it being 10-bit codec, but is half the file size. The draw back on AVCIntra 50 compared to DVCPro HD is the 4:2:0 color space of AVCIntra 50. The 100mbps formats will get upto about 1 Gigabyte per minute in size and the 50mbps formats will get upto about 500 Megabytes per minute in size. Nowadays though, you can get a 1 TB external harddrive (which would be 1000 minutes with the 100mbps codecs.) for about $125. Basically the HPX300 gives you SD to HD formats, so you have plenty of choices for a given situation. Edited November 5, 2009 by Andrew McCarrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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