Michael Johnston
Forum Replies Created
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I hope you’re right but I know of many if the higher end production companies that produce well known tv programs are STILL shooting on tape (HDCAM and DVCProHD) are stubborn about even going tapeless let alone adopting new codecs.
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These two cams are basically identical. HPX250 has a fixed lens. That’s the only real difference. Forget the Nikon lens. Only ENG lenses will work with the 370/371. You’ll have serious issues trying to use a DSLR lens. I prefer the smaller cams but it really comes down to how big a zoom range you need. 250 had 22x optical, 371 has 17x with the stock Fuji lens so I’d only go with the 371 if you plan on spending big bucks for a better lens with a 2x extender. Zoom on the 250 is EXTREMELY SLOW. I’ve used both and prefer the 250 but it does take some getting used too. It’s got a very “plastic” feel and I’m not sure how well it would hold up in extreme conditions. I also have a Sony NX5U and its solid, metal casing, a bit heavier, but very robust and holds up great.
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Well, just as a reference, all of my comments are always in reference to the United States only, not any other international markets.
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I’m excited about microp2, however, considering AVCIntra has yet to catch on industry wide, AVC-Ultra is only going to be used for in-house turn key situations until its more widely accepted among NLE’s and the bugs get worked out. DVCProHD will still rule the day so AVCUltra is not a selling point on the PX5000.
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Corrupt hard drive or the card finally crapped out. How full is the hard drive. For some reason when you copy BPAV folders, the system needs twice as much space as you’re copying. So if the card is 16GB and is full, you need a minimum of 32GB of free space to copy.
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Bill Parsons,
What NLE are you using and are you shooting HD or SD? Editing HD or SD? We had a demo 250 in the shop today and everything shot in HD looked amazing until loaded into Avid. Then it looked soft and horrible. Turns out the issue was not the camera but Avid. We still edit and air in SD. AVID’s scale down if HD video to SD was the issue. When we changed the Avid project settings from DV25 to AVC Intra100, everything was crisp and perfect. We learned a valuable lesson today because, in the short term, we had planned on shooting and archiving everything in HD but downconverting to SD for air by transcoding HD clips to DV25 in Avid. We now know that won’t work as planned.
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Just a side note, all 1/3″ cameras are crap below f5.6. Best results are to open the iris as much as possible and then use gain, ND filters, and shutter to get to the desired exposure. 1/3″ sensors need all the light they can get to get great images. Going below 5.6 causes focus issues in just about every small sensor camera.
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The HPX cameras do NOT have built in GPS so there is no way for it to capture GPS coordinates in metadata. I have a Sony HXR-NX5U that DOES have internal GPS that is recorded in metadata and you can pull it and add it as a text to the clips in the NLE. Very few cameras have the ability to capture real time GPS coordinates while recording. If you don’t want to replace the camera, the only option is to carry around a GPS and write down the coordinates everytime you move your shot and add it later in the editor.
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When it comes to the 370 I’ve set up several of them for users who claim to have focus issues. A couple of notes. First, using anything other than a 1/3″ lens is a waste of money. Better/bigger glass does nothing for this camera due to the censors and alignment. The stock 17x Fuji lens is crap. The best images will come with the stock Canon 14x lens. It’s a perfect match for the camera. However, most buy it with the Fuji for the longer zoom. If you have the Fuji, there is a 1/3″ lens for about $14k that is a great match but the costs means you might as well go for a different camera to start.
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/542783-REG
Second, you MUST set up a picture profile in the camera’s menu. The default setting is very flat and will produce a soft image. It’s not a back focus issue. There are a few settings in the profile such as DETAIL that need to be maxed out to address the perceived focus issue.
Basically, the 370 CAN be a wonderful image producing camera IF you become a complete expert on the camera’s inner workings and limitations of the censors. It really takes a knowledgable expert to get the best out of this camera. Personally, I think it’s a waste of money because there are many other 1/3″ cameras that cost much less that produce better images at half the effort. What you’re paying for is the shoulder mount professional look and nothing more. If the best image at a budget price is your goal, then it’s a no-brainer to go with the 1/2″ chips EX1 or PMW-200 over the HPX370.
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The NX5U is PERFECT for weddings. Just be sure to get a good LED top light and I recommend paying a little more for the FMU128 Flash Memory Drive.