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HVX-200 Will you buy one?
I am curious to know if other Varicam owner/operators are interested in the new plam sized Varicam. Anyone concerned it will hurt business?–I remember how the DVX killed the Betacam.
I am excited about this product… It’s like an Arri-S or Aminima for the Varicam. Second camera for interviews/tight spaces/low profile… looks like consumer palm camera.
My hope is that it will help solidify DVCPRO HD’s position in the market, adding longevity to the Varicam.
Chris Bell
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5 Replies
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I am definitely curious to see what is has to offer, especially for doc work and like you said as a second camera. I don’t really believe it will hurt the varicam much, probably mostly in the lower end independent film market. I think it will have a larger effect on the DV market. I will probably look at picking one up when they become available.
Joseph Farris
Director of Photography
Visions of Light, Inc.
Office: 312-829-8244
Pager: 800.808.8244
Mobile: 630.306.8244
Fax: 630.690.7678
http://www.visionsoflightinc.com
joe@visionsoflightinc.com -
Chris,
As an owner of two Varicams, I’m also very interested in the new mini-model. I won’t be getting to NAB until Wednesday, so if anyone reading this attends on Monday, please fill us all in on the news about this new camera!
Thanks,
JS
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This is one product I went to the show really wanting to like. However, its reliance on the very expensive (at least for the present) P2 cards, the limited dvcpro hd capacity of same, and the practical necessity of purchasing a proprietary hd to which the cards can be dumped, make it not a viable option for me at this point. I’m guessing that the practical investment would be well over twice, maybe even three times the advertised 5995. If it could record directly to a hard disk I would buy one in a minute, despite some ergonomic flaws.
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Yes….an interesting camera, but the cost of the P2 workflow may be prohibitive.
At NAB they did not show a working camera…just one encased in glass (leaving one to speculate that the product is not ready for market). It holds two P2 cards which, at 8Gb, are approx. $2000 each. At 720/24p, this should be around 15 minutes total record time. This means that you will have to buy the P2 hard drive to offload the cards during shooting (they are hot swappable) to the drive and then rerecord over the cards (for DV, there is an onboard DV vtr). The P2 is also approx. $2000. That makes the whole kit and kaboodle about a 10k investment.
What I like about the cam? The ability to choose DVCPRO25, 50, or HD is very nice. Also, it is supposed to support variable frame rate (in HD) from 4-60fps. And lastly, recording as data means that your record time is directly related to the frame rate and resolution…no more copied frames to accomadate a 720/60p vtr. And since the codecs are exactly the same, you needn’t worry about post…it’s still DVCPRO.
What I don’t like? Other than the obviously price problems, the camera still retains the crappy, undetachable lens with endlessly spinning ring that the DVX has (something JVC actually got right on their ProHD…worth a look, too). I don’t see any Post houses or rental houses getting equipped with P2, so purchasing what you need to handle the entire workflow is going to be a must.
It’s great technology for ENG or owner/operators…just need the prices to come down.
Regards,
Robert A. Strait
Plus 8 Digital NYC -
As a second camera, risk shots and crash camera it
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