My shiny new Sony Z-7 cameras
by Steve Martin
on
Nov 21, 2008 at 12:14:41 am
Hello fellow cow fans,
After renting them a few times for shoots, I have recently bought 2 Sony Z-7 HDV camcorders and am pleased with them. I need to get some accessories and thought I'd get some feedback before buying:
Shoulder Stabilizer - I've seen a few different rigs like Anton Bauer and others. Has anybody used one of these that they liked? While most of my work is on sticks, on occasion I have to shoot hand held for long days and I'm looking for something that will allow me to use the camera like a more traditional shoulder camera. Any thoughts? Opinions?
Matt Box - I have a very nice Choziel that I use with my Sony V1 and it fits perfectly on one of my new Z-7, but I'll need a second. I was hoping to buy a less expensive kit (like one made by Formatt), but have not seen it. At 1/4 the cost of the Chroziel, I'm sure it's not as good. But does anyone have any experience with it or something in the $400 range? All I need it to do is hold 2 4x4 filters (one fixed and one that rotates).
Compact Flash Cards - Sony says that a min speed of 133x is required. But I've heard of some that have had problems with cards other than Sony's 306x speed. Anybody out there have any experience with card performance with this camera?
Cases - I'm thinking about storing the cameras in decked out Pelican 1610 cases with dividers and a deck lid for the little accessories. Thoughts on better hard case options?
Comments about the camera? I've used the camera for 4 shoots so far and have been quite pleased with the results (compared to Sony V1) and love the manual controls and switches. Any comments and thoughts about what you love or hate about the camera are welcomed!
Thanks,
Steve Martin,
Omni Productions
Orlando, FL
Production is fun - but lets not forget: Nobody ever died on the video table!
Re: My shiny new Sony Z-7 cameras by Tom Pauncz on Nov 23, 2008 at 8:49:19 pm
Steve,
I have an S270, big bro' to the Z7, so FWIW...
Matte box - SONY announce a wide adapter with a built-in matte box at IBC.
CF cards - I have been using the SanDisk Extreme III cards without a hitch since I've had this camera. Recommend them highly and can't wait for the 32GB ones to be readily available. Have also heard good reports on Transcend cards.
Cases - Again, SONY announced a back-pack like case at IBC. I know it's not a hard case, but may be worth to check out.
Unfortunately I don't have links for you but I expect they would not be too hard to find on a SONY site.
Re: My shiny new Sony Z-7 cameras by Thomas A. Johnson on Nov 24, 2008 at 8:05:47 pm
Steve- Not sure on your application, but I do international traveling with our Z7's. Typically we consider the camera a carry on / gate check item for flight. As such, we opt for a middle of the road solution. I'm using a Portabrace DVO-2U. This is not as heavy as a pelican, but also not quite as strong.
I can't wait to see response on the CF cards, as I'm curious about this myself. So far, I've only used Sony 8GB cards.
Shoulder mounts- not sure of the best option. It really depends on your style. For a strange variant- you might take a look at the little wrist-brace that Hoodman makes. It gives you reasonably free handheld movement with just a little stability- This is on my neat-little-widgets-I-noticed-at-NAB list. It has it's place. Varizoom might be worth taking a look at for a full shoulder brace.
Not too many negatives to say on the cam. I've only gotten it into the field a couple of times, but it seems to perform quite well.
Re: My shiny new Sony Z-7 cameras by Douglas Spotted Eagle on Nov 24, 2008 at 8:44:17 pm
Im' a big advocate of the Z7, like it better than the EX1 for many uses. We're using a variety of cards, including the Lexar UDMA cards, with great success.
Douglas Spotted Eagle
VASST
Certified Sony Vegas Trainer
Aerial Camera/Instructor
Re: My shiny new Sony Z-7 cameras by Charlie Steiner on Nov 26, 2008 at 2:22:40 am
check the Z7 forum at dvinfo dot net for detailed discussions of all Z7 issues. I have one and it's different than anything else, takes a bit of use and reading the manual and other's experiences to get used to (for example turning off macro focus to make auto focus work at all). I love it. makes great video in HDV and also SD.
- charlie
Located in the heart of Fabulous Downtown Jersey City
