Michael Johnston
Forum Replies Created
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I’m sorry but this is a no brainer. If you are shooting news and run & gun stuff then hands down the NX5 is the best option. Not having built-in ND filters will make your life MISERABLE shooting news and/or run & gun.
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I buy my music at pond5.com or dawnmusic.com
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I warn brides up front that if they choose popular songs that isn’t licensed, they won’t be able to share it online and will only be able to watch on DVD or Blu-Ray. Every wedding I’ve done in the past two years is with licensed music because I also warn the brides they could be sued for copyright infringement by the record companies if they choose copyrighted music.
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I had the battery pop off during a recording one time. But it was an 8 min clip and it did not span two cards. After the battery came off I turned the cam off, put the battery on, and turned the cam on. After doing its thing for about 2 min, I got a message that said something about attempting to repair the clip. I selected yes. After two minutes it was fixed and all my footage was there.
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The NX5U and the AX2000 do NOT run on the same software/firmware. While the NX5 can handle 64GB cards, the AX2000 can only handle cards up to 32GB. There’s a reason why the NX5 costs more.
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Short answer is yes the footage can be recovered if you still have those cards and have not recorded anything else to them or changed the file structure. I’m not going to type it all out. The answers are in the cameras user manual which should be read in its entirety before ever using the camera. Also, if you plan on doing shoots that require continuous rolling for more than an hour, you should be using the optional FMU128 drive AND be plugged into AC, not running on a battery to avoid this very problem. That goes for any camera.
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Yes, with today’s NLE’s you can mix pretty much any formats. Just remember that doing so often increases render times when it comes to exporting the finished product. A solution to consider is attaching a recorder like the Nano Flash or Samuri via SDI to each camera and recorder to those recorders instead of the cards in the camera so everything is the same format and codec and you can take advantage of the uncompressed HD signal the cameras put out via SDI.
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Because the NX5U shoots AVCHD, the file is much more compressed and makes color grading and manipulation in post very difficult because of the color space. This really only applies if you are doing high end production work. NX5U’s are readily available for about $2800 on eBay. Don’t get me wrong, I love the NX5 but it is outdated compared to the newest crop of cameras. The 160 really is the newest NX5.
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John,
You’re right, the 200 isn’t AVCHD. It was Sony’s first attempt at using AVCHD as a professional codec. Since then Sony has begun to essentially scrap AVCHD because of its lack of functionality in post-production. What Sony basically did was upgrade the EX1 to the PMW-200 then strip the 200 of 1/2″ chips and put in 1/3″ chips and replaced the EX1 glass with the NX5 lens and called it the PMW-160 which is the NX5 upgrade. I’m betting you don’t see another pro AVCHD cam from Sony unless its a single 1/3″ chip camera to compete with say the Canon XA-10. Expect future upgrades to cameras like the FS700 to also scrap AVCHD for XDCAM.
Remember, Sony’s Z5U was a hugely popular camera but it was HDV. When all these cams started going tapeless, Sony needed a quick card based cheap camera. The solution was turn the Z5U into a tapeless camera, which became the NX5U. AVCHD was the easiest solution at the time because Sony didn’t want to use the EX1/3’s XDCAM EX format at that time because the EX1 & EX3 was the only cameras of its kind on the market at the time and Sony didn’t want to give consumers a cheaper option with the proprietary codec. Since then we’ve seen vast improvements in codec development and functionality of SD cards to a point SD cards can handle the pro codecs now. That wasn’t the case when the NX5 was released.
In the end, the NX5 was a one of a kind and the NXCAM line is slowly dying away. It’s still a great camera but seeing is how the price of a new one just dropped neary $900 to $3100, I expect the camera to be discontinued within two years if not sooner.
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Also, in reference to the NX5 focus issue, the Panasonic HPX370 has the same issue. Again, its the chips not the back focus. In very low light, set up the 370 with shutter off, filter wheel at 1, db gain at +6, and iris set to 2.8, then focus the shot. Now open the iris all the way open and you’ll notice the focus getting blurred and soft. It’s a problem with light reaching the chips, not the glass. This is why camera prices jump significantly as the chip size in the camera gets bigger. Anything less than 1/2″ will not perform well in low light and needs an experienced shooter with the ability to recognize the flaws and how to work around them in order to get a good shot. NX5 is no different. Many of these cheaper cameras are marketed to wedding and event videographers BUT evey wedding reception I’ve shot has been very low light and these cheap cameras produce a horrible image in those situations. That’s why I went from a Sony HVR-HD1000U to the NX5 for weddings. The NX5 still has its issues but I can work around them to get a great picture. Not possible with the HD1000. I also have a HPX370 and hope to have a PMW-200 soon.