Tag Archives: HVR_Z1

Sony V1

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Adam Wilt at DV Magazine, is taking a first look at Sony V1.

Sony V1

In a typical SAT fashion: with V1 Sony has upgraded the Z1 “prosumer” camcorder the same way it upgraded the revolutionary Sony FX1 to Sony FX7. If you’re already familiar with the FX7 or you’ve already read the comparison between FX1 and FX7, you’ll find relatively few bits of new info.


At the same time, Sony V1 is significant because it confirms Sony’s dedication to putting CMOS sensors on its prosumer line of camcorders instead of CCDs. This is an important change of direction as it affects light sensitivity, vertical resolution, and more importantly the “full 1080 HD” of FX7 and V1.

Let’s go quickly through Adam’s points:

  • Design and form factor: Sony V1 is smaller than the other HDV camcorders and its form factor is close to Sony’s smaller DV models like the PD150/170. It’s also lighter than all previous prosumer models. The top handle has been moved a bit to the front which balances the camera perfectly. The LCD is on the side and has changed very little in practical terms.
  • Controls: Here Adam seems to be enthralled by the new Sony: “This tight grouping of shooting controls puts them readily within reach of your focusing hand… In my opinion, this is the best Handycam control layout Sony has done.
  • Audio: There’s little difference from Z1 and PD150 when it comes to audio. The camera features two professional XLRs.
  • Video: The 1/4″ CMOS sensor is less sensitive to light but offers increased resolution (full 1080 HD). It also offers true 24 frame progressive mode – highly sought after by wannabe filmmakers who strive to shoot filmlike video.

Again, it’s a “sideways upgrade” because you lose some, you gain some. Here’s Adam’s conclusion:

Sony squeezed out some features in the quest to put HDV into a PD170-sized package: analog-in recording, 50 Hz/60 Hz switchability, low-light capability, and standard video connectors on the camera body. But the result is a compact, lightweight Handycam that shoots sharp, clean HDV while offering the best laid-out controls found on a small Sony, and true progressive capture to boot. Rolling shutter will be an issue for some, but overall, the V1 looks like a worthy addition to the choices available to HDV shooters.

I’m considering switching from my web cam to this baby. Here’s a short guide on how to select a web cam.

Steve Jobs on Sony HC1

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Steve Jobs have captured hearts and minds with his Macworld San Fran 2006 presentation (I got it as a torrent for iPod). I’ve seen posts about it all over the place, some praising his presentation skills (Guy Kawasaki), some commenting on the Intel insides of the new MacBook Pro.

There’s a ton of new stuff coming from Apple, but the interesting bit is below. Steve Jobs included one HDV camera in the presentation: the Sony HC1 .

Steve Jobs presents ... Sony HC1

More robust cameras like Panasonic HVX200 and Canon XL H1 shouldn’t feel threaten though. I’d imagine Steve included it because HC1 is an ultra-affordable HDV cam at the $1,500 range, truly a remarkable achievement for Sony. Apple should really look up to Sony – I want them to take one of Sony’s LCDs and put it on the next generation of video iPods, so that they play movies.

As to Steve, what can I say… great minds think alike. I did a review of the Sony Hc1 just a day before Steve :)

Update: Kevin Smith touts HVX200, so Sony HC1 is not the only “winner”.

Four-camera shootout

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Barry Green (from DVXuser) has been teasing us for some time now about a four-camera shootout. The four cameras in the shootout are:

I expect that by the end of the week, Barry will be done. Disclosure: Barry is one of the people behind DVXuser so he faced some “suspicions” from some of the posters there. They expected his report will be skewed in favor of the HVX200. That’s why he has some “witnesses” to verify his findings.

Update: There’s been a major forum war on the finding of the four-camera shootout. As far as I’m concerned, there’s no winner-loser. If you want the raw 40 pages of posts, I have two links: DVX forum and Dvinfo forum.

Wedding Videography 2: Dude, where’s my Dad?

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Yesterday I reviewed several HD cameras with a specific regard to shooting wedding videos in HD. Thinking about it again, I’m not sure it’s such a good idea… here’s why:

HDV has native support for 16:9 and naturally wedding videographers would want to utilize that. This might lead to the problem once you transfer to SD for those relatives that still don’t have Blu-Ray. I’ll call it:

Dude-where’s-my-Dad-syndrome

Wedding videos in HDThe syndrom is most pronounced when guests tend to line up in a way that’s very horizontal (see ancient photo on the right).

I’ve put question marks where all the missing relatives will be… once you transfer your work to SD.

There are two “solution” that are equally unacceptable: use a pan-and-scan transfer or put your picture in a letterbox (black bars above and below).

Fortunately, you won’t have to consider these post-production options, if you’ve done some pre-planning. On shots where the guests have lined horizontally, you can do a pan making sure you got everyone (at 4:3). If you’d like to avoid pans (amateur look), you might do two shots: one at 16:9 and one at 4:3. The 4:3 might be a pan. When you later edit the video, you’ll be able to create a 16:9 and a 4:3 version.

Wedding videos in HDJust for the record, the question mark on the left (see arrow) is her Royal Majesty, the Queen (UK!). If you could go back in time, and you were invited to the wedding, and you had an HDV camera, and you’ve read this post, you might have done a shot that includes the Queen. Voila.

Later, when doing the sound track, you might put Sex Pistols singing “… God save the Queen, she ain’t no human being…” Gotta love punk rock.

If you have any questions or comments about wedding videograhy and HD, post them below!