[Jon Leyse]

Thanks for the feedback.
I like the way primes look but have never filmed an interview while switching lenses or moving the camera. I will be shooting internationally with potentially low light and nasty backgrounds. This makes fast primes very appealing so I can shoot in low light and pull the background out of focus.

If I had a 28mm, 50mm and 85mm Nikon primes, I think I could cover most single person interviews. The problem being I have to change glass or move the camera in the middle of the interview which can break up the flow.

As far as shooting the b-roll or “on the street” videos, I need a zoom and a wide angle lens to finish out my kit. The reviews on the Tokina 11-16 look pretty good for a wide angle. The Panasonic 7-14 could be tough to use indoors because it is so slow and it is kind of expensive for an f4.

Has anyone used the Panasonic 14-140mm F4.0-5.8 for indoor shooting with natural light?
Jon

Jon Leyse

[Jon Leyse]

Scott,
When we first started using the 700 I noticed the noise in the blacks right away. Here are a couple of steps that have significantly helped:
– Make sure you have the latest firmware update (available on the JVC website)
– Shoot in 720p instead of 1080i (if possible)
– Lower the master black in the camera to minus 1

I wouldn’t say that the black are clean now, but they are much improved to the point where it doesn’t bother me anymore (unless I’ve just gotten used to it).

Jon

Jon Leyse
Crash 31, LLC
http://www.crash31.com

[Jon Leyse]

Keith,
The 700 can only record 2 channels of 16 bit audio at time, so you can’t have 2 channels of stereo audio recorded on to the camera (which would be 4 channels of audio). You can have two mono channels of audio. Once you get the files into FCP, select all your clips and then un-check “stereo pair” which is under “modify > stereo pair”. Then pan all your audio to the center which is under “modify > audio > pan center”. This will give you separate mono audio files both panned to the center which you can then adjust the levels separately.

One thing to keep an eye on is phase cancellation. When you have two separate recordings of the same audio source, they can sometimes cancel each other out and you will end up with a very “weak sounding” recording even though your levels are strong. I would only push up the crowd mic when you need to add some audience feedback. Otherwise, I would keep the crowd mic very low or off altogether.

Hope this helps. Feel free to call me if you are still stuck.
Jon
260-223-1922

Jon Leyse
Crash 31, LLC
http://www.crash31.com

[Jon Leyse]

Bob,

We bought the JVC GY-HM700 last summer and have been very pleased with the outcome. We are using FCP so the work flow is very seamless. I’m so glad to be done with tape. The SDHC cards have worked great and are very affordable. I also agree that with this camera the 720p image is much crisper and easier to work with than the 1080i.

I researched the Panasonic AG-HPX300 and the Sony EX-3 as well. Each camera has it’s strengths, but my priorities were:
– full size camera I can sit on my shoulder
– price of the media (SDHC vs. P2 or SXS)
– Work flow with Final Cut Pro
– Camera/lens Price

There are great discussion about chip size, CCD vs. CMOS, compression codecs and a lot of other technical issues that are over my head. I tried to make my decision based on things I understand like
– can I hold the camera on my shoulder and get a good shot in a run an gun situation?
– How much additional cost will the media add to the cost of the camera?
– How much time will I spend logging and transferring files before I can start editing?
– How many jobs will I have to work before this camera has paid for itself?

For my situation, the JVC 700 was the best fit and I would still agree almost a year later.

Hope this helps,
Thanks
Jon

Jon Leyse
Crash 31, LLC
http://www.crash31.com

[Jon Leyse]

I’m currently still in standard mode.

Jon Leyse
Crash 31, LLC
http://www.crash31.com

[Jon Leyse]

David,

I’ve used the GY-HM700 in some extreme temperatures.
– In a Texas stone quarry in 100 degree heat and direct sun with a rain slick on to protect from dust. The camera was almost to hot to touch and it worked all day. The photographers still camera kept powering down due to the heat.
– I just filmed outdoors for over an hour in 19 degree cold and the camera worked great.

I haven’t yet worked in extreme humidity but I am taking it to SE Asia in a couple weeks, so I may have something to report on in March. The overall big difference is that the 700 is not tape based so there are no heads and tape mechanism to be effected by temperature and humidity. Overall, I would say it will perform much better than the 100 because it is shooting on cards instead of tape.
Thanks
Jon

Jon Leyse
Crash 31, LLC
http://www.crash31.com

[Jon Leyse]

Alan,
I talked with a JVC rep and he recommended the follow setup in the Camera Process:
– Drop the master black to -1
– Adjust the knee to manual and set at 90%
– Bump the Color Gain to +3

I’ve been using this set up for a while and like it better than the defaults. I have noticed that when you blow out the highlights they still turn yellow, so I’d be interested if you find a way to overcome that.

Thanks
Jon

Jon Leyse
Crash 31, LLC
http://www.crash31.com

[Jon Leyse]

Mary
I have used this camera a lot but not with a green screen yet. I would not think it should be any problem if your lighting is good. If none one else answerd, you could check the Sony EX forum the see how this codec holds up to keying. Half inch CMOS vs. Third inch so definerly not apples to apples but it might help.

Jon Leyse
Crash 31, LLC
http://www.crash31.com

[Jon Leyse]

Keith
I have had good luck with Transcend 16 GB and 32 GB cards. Much less expensive than Sandisk. The size does not really matter because you can hot swap out of the unused slot. A 16 GB card will hold 56 min at 1280×720 60p. If you need to get an hour on one card then you will need a 32 GB.
Jon

Jon Leyse
Crash 31, LLC
http://www.crash31.com

[Jon Leyse]

Keith,
I’ve had the best luck shooting with the JVC 700 in 720p60. I do all my editing in HD at 720p60 and then let Apple Compressor down convert to mpeg2 for DVD. This to me looks better than converting to SD in FCP.
To my knowledge, the camera will not shoot in SD. But the files aren’t that much bigger than shooting in DV (35 megabits per second vs. 17 for DV) So double the size but it is not like some other formats that are 100 mbs.

This also gives you an HD master in case the client ever asks for it. And it allows you to put together a HD demo reel.

I’ve also filmed in 1080i60 but was not as pleased with the image. The camera is set up to best shoot in progressive at 1280×720 so unless I have a client that specifically wants 1080i, I always shoot in 720p60.

Hope this helps.
Jon

Jon Leyse
Crash 31, LLC
http://www.crash31.com