Choosing an HDV camera
by Jayant Sarin
on
Aug 29, 2009 at 9:24:16 am
Hi
I am in the process of making a short film.. Ideally i wanted to shoot of super 16mm but due to budget constraints i will have to settle for HDV. Since HDV rentals are pretty cheap in India, the kind of camera can be any.
What i need:
a) i am looking for a lot of high speed shots.. so variable frame rates
b) i plan to put a 35mm adapter on so inter changable prime lenses
c) Final output on Digi-Beta
d) During Post will convert the footage to black & white. Is there any camera which would give me close to a true black and white as i tried converting diff footage during post and there is always a blueish tinge
e) Also a camera which is capable of taking a lot of available light
f) I have filmed on the Sony Z1 and there were huge time-code breaks.. as a result somehow some shots were missing... Is that true with all HDV's?? Any camera that can prevent that.
g) Ideally would like to use tapes
Re: Choosing an HDV camera by Brian Louis on Sep 1, 2009 at 12:30:21 am
[Jayant Sarin]"a) i am looking for a lot of high speed shots.. so variable frame rates
b) i plan to put a 35mm adapter on so inter changable prime lenses
c) Final output on Digi-Beta" With those requirements you are getting out of the range of most HDV cams
[Jayant Sarin]"e) Also a camera which is capable of taking a lot of available light" A cam with at least 1/2" imaging chips
[Jayant Sarin]"f) I have filmed on the Sony Z1 and there were huge time-code breaks.. as a result somehow some shots were missing... Is that true with all HDV's?? Any camera that can prevent that.
g) Ideally would like to use tapes" If you want to avoid possible dropouts, tapeless is a better option
Re: Choosing an HDV camera by Micah McDowell on Sep 1, 2009 at 4:11:41 pm
You might want to consider the Sony EX1 or EX3.
They have variable frame rates, 1/2" CMOS chips for more controllable depth of field and good low light performance (the larger the chip, the larger the photosites can be on the chip which allows them to gather more light with less video noise). Adapters for 35mm prime lenses are available for the EX cameras too. They're also tapeless (can even be used with cheap SDHC cards in certain situations).
Re: Choosing an HDV camera by Mike Allen on Sep 2, 2009 at 9:42:50 pm
I agree, after looking over your specifications, I would advise a EX1, EX3 or Z7u. The Z7u does not have 1/2 inch chips, however it does preform well in low light conditions and will also record to cheap cards or cheap tape (considering the options). It also has interchangeable lens options and very good image quality for the money. If you want to even save more money and can do without changing lenses, get the Z5u. Bang for the buck, it is very hard to beat. Read some reviews and you will see what I mean. If I were buying today, it would be one of these 4 cameras. If I could wait a few months, I would have to strongly consider the Red Scarlet. The Red will be in the same price range, but it should capture a higher quality image with a much better compression format. If it is as good as it looks to be, I feel it will be a game changer in todays camera market.
Re: Choosing an HDV camera by Mike Allen on Sep 10, 2009 at 3:52:59 pm
The EX1 shoots progressive, as does the Z7u and the Z5u. However, you will need the card adaptor for the Z5u if you want to shoot native progressive, the tapes will capture 24p in a 1080 60i stream, so not real native 24p without adaptor. The Z7u ships with the adaptor.
