What are the best Pro Video Cameras today under 12K

[Craig Seeman]

Eric, where’s your sales pitch.

Here’s my thoughts from what I’ve read about the camera
1/3″ that’s a minus compared to 1/2″
3MOS seems to Panasonic speak for CMOS. That’s a minus compared to CCD
I’d think a choice between 1/2 CMOS and 1/3 CCD stronger options.

AVC-Intra – that’s a plus. A great I frame codec easier to decode than GOP

P2-E less expensive than P2 but still way more expensive than SDHC which I can archive or hand a master to a client after a shoot. P2-E a minus but less of a minus than P2. Record time vs card cost is a toss up since it’s the price you pay for Intra vs GOP.

Apparently 1080p24 is with pull down (standard or advanced). That’s a minus IMHO compared to 24p native . . . which the camera apparently does in 720p24

3 second pre-record in HD. That’s a plus. JVC does that but Sony EX does not.

Full Size shoulder mount – that a plus for many shooters.

BTW shooting with the camera is always good but often not possible for some without finding a rental house or a really good VAR that has all competitive models. Also feature awareness is critical.

While I see 20 step interval recording from 12fps to 60fps I don’t see any mention of interval recording.

[Eric Addison]

[Craig Seeman] “Eric, where’s your sales pitch.”

When Panasonic pays me, I’ll give more of a sales pitch. Until then, it’s just my two cents…

—Eric

[Pat Mcgowan]

The best Pro Video Cameras today under 12K are: SONY, PANASONIC, JVC and CANON. They are all good and they all have pros and cons.

[Tim Kolb]

Premiere Pro supports the EX MP4 files natively…no conversion is necessary. I do it all day long.

TimK,
Director, Consultant
Kolb Productions,

[Tim Kolb]

Just to add to John’s post, robustness in the structural components is definitely a factor to consider. For me, the EX1 can be put into the overhead compartment of a Canadair Regional Jet…which is what about half of my recent flights have been on. I can squeeze it into a Kata CC-191 (it’s tight) and it fits in the Snoopy-lunchbox-sized overheads on these commuter jets. Saves me serious dough on checking a baggage-handler proof pelican or thermodyne case when I have to check other gear as well.

I’ve only used the camera a couple times, and it is certainly made from plastic…but it’s a half inch sensor, 1920×1080 camera (35 Mbits HQ) for under $7K. I don’t think the HPX 3000s have anything to worry about, but this little EX1 has impressed me with it’s image quality and light sensitivity.

My .02

TimK,
Director, Consultant
Kolb Productions,

[Carl Battreall]

The Sony ex1 and ex3 are some of the only cameras under 10K that are “approved” for broadcast by many “big” networks. That speaks for itself.

But the industry is about to change, just like the still photography world did a few years ago. The prices of video cameras are so inflated it’s disgusting, and they know it, Red Cinema has proven this. When the RED Scarlet becomes a reality, all the bid boys will need to change their entire systems.

They all have the technology to create world class cinema and ENG cameras at about a tenth of the price,but they will milk their insane profits to the bitter end. So even if you have no interest in RED and their cameras, you should pray for the Scarlet because that will be when the big boys will start to change their ways.

Invest in a new system at your own risk (but if you have to, I would go with the XDCAM EX cameras).

[John Reynolds]

Thanks Carl for the educated info on the changes to come. I use the EX 1 and love everything about it except the bad ergonomic design.

John

[Rafael Amador]

Get yourself an EX-1/3 and the NanoFlash.
Under-under 12K you will be able to record an amazing 1920×1080, 422, 8b, 160 Mbps Intraframe.
What else can you dream?
rafael

http://www.nagavideo.com

[Michael Palmer]

Yes the Nano Flash is the secret to unleash almost any cameras potential. Mike Schell called me and told me that the Nano Flash prices have finally been set and I believe the MSRP is now $2795 so depending on your supplier you could see it for about $2500.

For me finding the best camera starts at the front end with features like removable lens and the largest image sensors with the highest pixel count. And now you add the recording device yourself that goes way beyond the limits of the camera.

By simply recording @ 50 Mbps you are already at the latest XD Cam HD codec level with 4:2:2 color spacing, this is a major step and you will have 80 minutes of record time using a 32 gig CF card that are below $80 now. If you raise the bit up to 100 Mbps you will reduce the record time in half to 40 minutes per 32 gig CF card. This is still a bargain with recording quality better than HD cam.

I’m receiving box number 00001 very soon and I can’t wait to permanently mount it on my EX3 just like Sony did for their latest high end camera at NAB.

Good Luck
Michael Palmer

[John Reynolds]

Thanks so much Michael Palmer for this informative response to the previous response. Very grateful to you and all the other forum responses to this post. Thanks guys