If you've paid attention to the recent Final Cut Pro X debacle and are wondering like so many others if Apple has either lost their mind or, given up on the truly professional editor, the answers to both should unequivocally be, "Yes".
There are a handful of posts from people with a great deal more direct-Apple information than I have, who've very simply stated two things about Apple's perspective on "pro" users.
One: Apple has always - and arrogantly - assumed that it's own direction, rather than listening to it's user-base - is the best direction, period. End of story. Apple may once in a while, give into mass-grumblings when things go really badly or if there's a widespread problem will issue a fix, but as a general rule, it's the Steve Jobs way or the highway.
Second, Apple only wants to produce things that nobody else is doing. They don't want to fortify someone else's idea, expand on existing product structures or simply "update" older software/hardware. They want to go Apple's direction only, and continue to feed the Jobs lemonade to the world.
And from the outside you'd be hard-pressed to think they've got it wrong, just recently during the week-long roller-coaster ride on Wall Street Apple was listed as *the* most valuable company in the world, with Exxon-Mobile coming in second place. Apple has billions - yes, Billions of dollars in CASH and they've gotten there by concentrating in one single direction: iProducts.
Apple has been, ever since the introduction of iTunes a consumer-centric and iProduct tunnel-visioned company and they've reaped their rewards.
So even if you're a loyal Apple customer and have been paying the bills using "professional" Apple products, and Steve Jobs decides that your current software - that being Final Cut Pro - is in need of drastic makeover and needs to be different than every other NLE on the planet, so different in fact that you no longer have a future path forward with your "old" version of Final Cut, Steve Jobs doesn't care. Not one bit.
Why? Because you're a pain-in-the-ass pro customer, and he's making his billions off the general consumer. And so he's going to finally squeeze you out of the equation by turning Final Cut Pro X into "iMovie on Steriods" and laugh all the way to the bank.
In the meantime, you're sitting left feeling less like a professional editor and more like the red-headed step-child nobody will sit next to in class. So if you're Mac-based are you now doomed to a future where you're using old technology while your PC counterparts vault ahead of you in capabilities? Of course not.
Just a few short years ago Adobe's Premiere Pro product lagged behind Final Cut and the rest of the NLE marketplace for years. Why isn't quite clear, but what IS crystal clear ever since NAB 2007 is that Premiere Pro is back, and in a very BIG way, and in point of fact trounced FCP's capabilities starting with the version launched at NAB '07.
Today Premiere Pro and it's pro suite offering, Production Premium, is so far ahead of both FCP 7 and "X" that it's almost laughable to make a direct comparison.
I've spent the bulk of this post flushing out the future of pro-apps for Apple's software lineup, but my next post will talk about WHY every Final Cut Pro user on the planet needs to take a serious look at the Production Premium bundle from Adobe, and never look back.
Reviews for Professional Editors, Producers, Camera Operators and anyone involved in the commercial filmmaking community. Often you'll find some stuff not related to filmmaking... but fun anyway.
Showing posts with label Pro Video Equipment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pro Video Equipment. Show all posts
Jun 22, 2010
HPX170 Review
Chances are if you're considering a P2-based camera you know all about the HVX200 and it's newer brother, then HVX200-A. (read my page about the HVX200 and why it's such a great camera and a worthy contender for your money).
In simple terms, the HPX170 is an HVX200-A without the tape-drive removed, making it a purely tapeless-media camera, P2 cards only. But underneath the surface there's a lot more going on worth talking about.
First, although the tape drive is gone it still records every SD format the HVX200 series does, it simply records them only to the P2 cards. This is a greater benefit than most realize, and if you've ever worked with any tape-based camera before whether SD or HD you know what a hassle the tape-capture process can be and how frustrating tape drop-outs are. So with this camera there's just no chance of drop-outs, head misalignment, "tape eating" transports, ever: a pure-solid state device from lens to cards.
Like other P2 cams the HPX170 is VFR capable with many frame-rates available, has the HOST mode direct HDD transfer and tons of configuration options for creating an in-camera "look" to suit the needs of the production.
The HPX170 and HVX200-A share the exact same chipset which is a big improvement over the HVX200 with a more natural color response, especially more neutral grays and better low-noise characteristics. But there are also some nice upgrades/improvements over the HVX200-A such as:
- A wider Leica lens that goes from an actual 3.9mm to 51mm which translates roughly into a 28mm to 368mm lens in 35mm terms.
- It's weighs slightly less at 4.2 lbs.
- A histogram display mode for more critical exposure control.
- In-camera image flip, a HUGE plus for those using 35mm lens adapters such as the Letus Ultimate.
- 4 different types of focus assist modes.
- Redesigned user-function buttons.
- NTSC/PAL switchable.
- A DVX-style joystick menu controller.
- A 6 pin lockable firewire interface.
- Gone is the S-Video out and replaced with an HD-SDI out, another major plus for those wanting the purest of HD signals.
- 8 Scene File settings.
- 3 built-in Neutral Density filters (1/8, 1/16, 1/64).
- And another huge add-on carried over from Panasonic's larger 2/3" inch cameras is DRS or Dynamic Range Stretch, which really helps bring out shadow detail without sacrificing highs. Similar to what digital still shooters do with HDR (high dynamic range) post-processing.
... and a list of other highly usable features that would fill an entire page.
Like all Panasonic cameras, one of the major benefits of the HPX170 is the actual color output of the camera. Features, chipsets, resolution etc... that's all nice and fine but at the end of the day what really matters is what the images actually LOOK like, and the HPX170 delivers very natural color, wonderfully neutral grays and a rich color palette which lends itself towards the "film look" more than any other HD camera in it's class. When you couple that with the standard 5-year warranty offered by Panasonic - just like their full-sized 2/3" inch P2 cameras - that makes the HPX170 a must-have for any serious HD production now and for the foreseeable future.
Panasonic HPX500 P2-HD camera Review
When the venerable HVX200 was released it created quite the stir in the world of commercial video and independent film production. Not only was it the first tapeless HD camcorder but it also offered a wide variety of features such as VFR frame rates and a true progressive chipset just to name two of dozens, but of course it also gave us the gorgeous richly-colored Panasonic chipset which so many came to love starting with the DVX100. But one of the HVX's biggest claims to fame was it's overall value to it's users because of it's great amount of configurability, ruggedness and total reliability when using the P2 media.
Although the HVX200 met with great and continued success many professional shooters and independent producers had been jones-ing for a logical step-up from a handheld HD camcorder to a larger 2/3" inch removable-lens system. The problem had always been that those cameras such as the Panasonic Varicam or Sony F900 were far, far out of the reach of most of these potential users simply because the cost is exponentially higher than any compact HD camera; a fully configured camera of those types pushing $200k easily.
Panasonic recognized this new market opportunity and created the AG-HPX500, released in 2007. Even today it remains the only 2/3" inch chipset/mount HD camera for less than $15,000. Competitive cameras offered by Sony, JVC are only 1/2" inch mounts and the only Canon with removable lenses is 1/3" inch.
There are good reasons for having a 2/3" inch chipset and lens mount:
1) The majority of professional video lenses on the market today are 2/3" inch mount starting with SD lenses that go back 20 years all the way up to the latest HD-spec glass costing upwards of $80,000!. That translates into a plethora of lens choices from cinema-style prime lenses to typical ENG zooms and everything in-between. The better the quality of glass the better the images look out of the camera.
2) A larger chip means more light-gathering capabilities, greater dynamic range, sharper images and, larger physical pixels which equates to far less noise than any 1/3" inch chipset.
3) Greater "film like" depth of field characteristics due to the physical distance between the rear lens element and the imaging sensors.
But bigger chips and a supreme choice of lenses isn't the only major benefit of this venerable P2 camera, it's also the audio capabilities. Most of the complaints professional shooters have about handheld HD cameras when it comes to audio is only having access to 2-channels of XLR audio inputs (all HD formats are by default 4-channel audio streams). The HPX500 has 4 discrete XLR inputs for audio with full controls over all 4 such as AGC, low-pass filters etc. This is a major step-up from any handheld camera and opens up a whole new world of audio possibilities and clearly puts you outside the "pro-sumer" world and into full-on professional capabilities.
One disappointing feature on the HPX500 however is that the supplied viewfinder is not in HD even though it is an HD camera. One reason for this was that Panasonic wanted to make this camera "affordable" and create a natural upgrade path from HVX200 users and also convert Sony or JVC users into this new camera body. If an HD-spec finder had been used it would have raised the price over the $20k mark which would put it outside it's target demographic. However to offset the lack of HD resolution Panasonic introduced a histogram-style focus-assist mode that goes a long way to aiding critical focus both in the finder and in the flip-out LCD.
And about the flip-out LCD: It's exactly the same module as in the HVX200 (as told to me by Panny engineers at NAB '07). Again, another cost-saving feature to help make the camera more affordable.
The HPX500 is similar to it's little brother the HVX200, in that the 500 is actually taking an SD chipset and using spatial-offset technology - something Panasonic has perfected beyond the typical pixel-shifting used by other companies - to create an HD-capable chipset. In point of fact, Panasonic is using a PAL version of the SDX900 chips in the HPX500. This created quite a controversy when the camera was initially released however the technology and the chips have since proven themselves many times over by producers worldwide.
An interesting side-effect of the spatial-offset is that when in HD modes there is more visible noise in the image than when shooting in SD, just as with the HVX200 and HPX170. In fact, because the chips are actually native SD-PAL, when you shoot in SD the resulting images are virtually noise-free in comparison! This made several producers opt for shooting in DVCPRO-50 widescreen (a high-bitrate and high-color SD mode far better than standard mini-DV) rather than DVCPRO-HD for straight-to-DVD productions. The resulting final output was amazingly crisp. But I've also seen HD footage from the HPX500 authored to Blu-Ray and it too was just as gorgeous.
Unlike it's little brother the 200, the HPX500 has an additional (2) P2 slots for a total of (4) and can use any P2 card currently available including the newer "R" and "E" series cards. As newer cards are released all that's required to make the camera compatible is to install free firmware that Panasonic always supplies on their support site.
In practical use the HPX500 does it's job amazingly well. Being a shoulder-mount design means no-more holding a camera in front of you and tiring out your arms; if you're used to any ENG-style camera or even the Canon XL-series then you'll be right at home with the HPX500. Main switches are all where you expect them to be and easily accessible and the entire rig is very well balanced with lens and battery mounted.
A great value-added feature offered in the HPX500 - and one worth learning about - is the CAC circuitry (chromatic aberration correction), in which the camera talks to electronics built into CAC lenses offered both by Canon and Fujinon whereby chromatic-aberrations or "fringing" as it's more commonly known, is automatically corrected for in-camera and dramatically improves the overall image quality. This CAC correction is an option you have to turn on or off depending on the lens you're using, but not all lenses offer this feature. In fact, the high-end low-dispersion and HD-spec glass won't need it since their light-transmission qualities are much better than the low-cost, affordable "kit" lenses that both Canon and Fuji offer for the HPX500.
Because the HPX500 is so unique in the marketplace - even in 2009 - Panasonic published FAQ and basic overview guides; you can get these PDF documents HERE.
If you goto my YouTube page you'll see a couple demo videos shot using the HPX500; one was done for Panasonic for the NAB '07 convention as a demo, the other was done for a client as some low-cost stock footage for their properties.
The HPX500 has been my first tool of choice ever since I shot the demo footage for Panasonic in 2007, allowing me to capture as near to the HPX2700 as possible with a far smaller budget. I've never shot nor tested any other camera at or near this it's price-range that comes anywhere close to it's usability, scalability, lens choices and overall image quality, ever. This is in point of fact, the "poor mans Varicam" and there have been several productions that simply would never have been done if it hadn't been for this camera's low-cost, high-quality output capability. It is also to date, the most enjoyable video camera I've ever used because it does exactly what ti's supposed to do with no surprises and total reliability.
As I mentioned earlier, even in Q4 2009 there is no 2/3" inch mount HD camera offered that bests the HPX500 in any category, and certainly none that can compete in price. Many consider the Sony EX3 to be a worthy contender and in many ways it is, but as I'm fond of saying, at the end of the day what matters most isn't counting pixels for measure-bating about features, it's what the image looks like out of the camera. In this respect - and for it's intended market and all the reasons I mentioned above the Panasonic AG-HPX500 has no equal.
Panasonic HPX2700 P2 2/3"rds inch camera Review
You almost never see reviews of full-sized ENG video cameras anywhere, mostly because the people who use them are in fact seasoned pros who already know and fully understand the ins-and-out's of any pro HD camcorder. Plus it's not like the manufacturers sells tens of thousands of these cameras either, so the market is quite small and specialized. However because the HPX2700 represents quite a leap forward in tapeless video camera technology, and based on my usage of it I felt it warranted space here on the site.
In point of fact, the AG-HPX2700 is the P2 version of the venerable tape-based Varicam that has been a staple of both ENG and independent filmmaking crews worldwide for years. But with newer technology also comes newer features.
One of the latest additions to the Panasonic pro-HD codec lineup in AVC-Intra which comes in two flavors, AVC-I-50 and 100 which replicates D5 master quality at half the bitrate. (AVC-Intra should not be confused with AVCCAM or AVCHD, both of which are versions of the newer consumer HD codec aimed at replacing HDV). Just like with DVCPRO-HD AVC-Intra is not long-GOP but frame independent and is a definitive step-up from DVCPRO-HD both in visual quality and full-raster color/noise characteristics. However there are 2 noticeable departures in this camera compared to it's little brother, the HPX500.
First, the HPX2700 only shoots HD formats, no SD at all, period. That means if you ever have need of a production requiring an SD output you'd either need to use the HPX500 instead or, have your 2700 footage down-converted which is not a simple nor easy workflow. Second, there are only (3) XLR mic inputs rather than the traditional (4) found on most ENG bodies. Why this was done is not clear and it only presents an oddity, not a feature benefit.
Like other ENG cameras the 2700 does offer CAC circuitry to help clean up chromatic aberrations which are commonplace in low-cost ENG lenses, but when you mount high-end ED-type glass, holy cow... this camera really comes alive with tons of detail, superb color and very, very low noise characteristics.
In practical use and especially in AVC-I-100 mode this camera's output is amazingly gorgeous and visibly better than DVCPRO-HD and most especially several steps better than any XDCAM model. No it's not a Thompson Viper nor is it an F35 but despite it's appeal to the indie market it's not intended to be a digital-cinema camera. However, when you consider that the body-only price is under $40k it represents quite a compelling option for use in digital-cinema productions especially when coupled with either the Canon Anamorphic adapter (which costs more than the 2700!) or even a B4-mount 35mm lens adapter such as the Letus Ultimate.
Just as with it's little brothers the HPX170 and HPX500 the HPX2700 represents a huge value for the money not to mention all the benefits of the P2 tapeless system and far outperforms anything by it's competitors.
HVX200 Review
Ever since the DVX100 series Panasonic has proven that they really understand the needs and wants of the indie film producer. They were the first to provide a handheld pro-sumer camcorder that not only shot at 24 frames-per-second in progressive mode but also had a chipset that captured color in a rich "film-like" appearance which spawned many productions wanting to take advantage of both features.
Back in 2003 JVC launched the first handheld HD camcorder, the JY-HD10U and Sony quickly followed with it's offering the FX1. What nobody realized until 2004 was the Panasonic had already realized 3 big limitations with HDV-format cameras. 1) They were all tape-based and because of the physical tape size (exactly the same as mini-DV) were very limited in the data-rate that could be written to tape; 2) HDV's color space of 4:2:0 was inferior to even Panasonic's SD offering of DVCPRO-50 which is 4:2:2 (see more about what color space is in my page about video color) and; 3) None of these cameras offered a real 24p mode (Sony and later Canon attempted to replicate this with "frame mode" which was an in-camera de-interlacing that caused many problems later in editing. And so Panasonic jumped ahead of the competition with it's tapeless format, P2.
Enter the Panasonic AG-HVX200: A brand-new handheld HD camcorder with both a tape drive for SD formats only and a new tapeless recording media called "P2" that could record every format the camera shoots from SD all the way to 1080 HD in DVCPRO-HD, a vastly superior camera codec to HDV and even HD-CAM. For a full listing of the camera's specs and features check out the Panasonic website HERE.
A typical full-sized ENG-HD camcorder such as the Sony F900 or Panasonic Varicam fully configured with lenses, batteries, tripod plates etc. can easily cost upwards of $200k, which puts that type of camera squarely outside the budget of 98% of independent producers and is one reason the handheld HD camcorder market was booming in 2004. I spent a great deal of time testing all these handheld HD cams that were available at that time and after months of putting every HDV through it's paces, such as the HD100, FX1 and later Z1 I found several things that made using any HDV format camera a real pain: 1) The real-time tape-capture process is extremely time consuming; 2) Tape drop-outs could kill an otherwise good take; 3) The limiting HDV color space became very evident during any high-end color-correction or green-screen clips; 4) Tape-related maintenance and possible "tape eating" episodes were a real worry; 5) The long-GOP HDV format is especially hard on any NLE as it requires huge amounts of processor power to do even simple cut edits, and back in 2004 every NLE such as Avid, Final Cut and others were literally choking to keep pace with an on-line HDV sequences. Not to mention that the Sony and Canon "frame modes" which attempted to simulate a progressive look were mostly incompatible with all NLE's requiring some form of pre-conversion before you could even start putting assets into your project. All that added up to too much work being done simply finding workarounds for HDV and a deal-killer for my own productions.
It's those main reasons above that I ended up choosing the HVX200: No more tape-based workflows or worries, a superior 4;2:2 color space and true progressive formats both in SD and HD modes. After my first session with the little Panasonic I was immediately sold and, made the decision that every video-based project going forward was going to be shot exclusively on this new camera and the P2 media, no more tape - ever. My company was one of the very first commercial production companies to full adopt both the tapeless workflow and P2wholly and I've never looked back.
But the best part of the HVX200 isn't how it beat out the competition it's how versatile the camera actually is and how good-looking the footage looks compared to anything else of it's generation. Just as it's older sibling the DVX100 series the HVX200 has gorgeous color in it's chipset and combined with the plethora of formats and frame-rates makes it a poor-mans Varicam. So what exactly does the "little Panny" do so well?
For one, it's easy to setup a "look" in-camera using the wide range of parameters available (see my page about getting a "film-like" look to the HVX200). It also shoots VFR, or variable frame-rates, which allows to to over or under-crank the camera's frame-rate to allow for in-camera slow-motion or ramped-up speed, and at the time this camera was released in late 2004 it was the ONLY handheld camera to offer this feature. Then there's a little-known but all too useful tool available to all P2 cameras called, "HOST mode" in which allows you to transfer your footage from the P2 cards directly to an external hard-disk directly and the camera acts as the disk controller. (HOST mode is NOT the same as direct HDD capture, such as devices like the Firestore would do.)
The P2 media format itself is quite revolutionary. Like a mini-RAID the P2 cards consist of SD-RAM modules arranged in a RAID-0 configuration allowing for high data-rates of 100Mb/s and just like a huge hardware RAID for a computer, the HVX200 and other P2 cameras offer "clip repair" feature allowing you to recover a clip damaged by either a power failure or user error such as removing a card during capture. And the cards themselves are nearly indestructible. I was hired by Panasonic as a P2 system consultant and at NAB 2007 myself and other Panny-people were doing really crazy stunts to offset the rumors started by competitors that the P2 cards were unreliable. We threw the cards on the ground - hard, against walls, and even purposely put them under our feet and rubbed them on the carpet to build-up a static charge - all to prove that the footage on the cards were safe. No doubt we got strange looks from people when we pulled these antics, but it clearly proved the point. And yeah, it was fun too.
The HVX200 has been replaced by it's newer model, the "A" version which gives the camera a brand-new chipset identical to the one in the HPX170 which has an even more natural color response, lower noise characteristics and a host of other new features, but the original HVX200 still does the job wonderfully and will outlast any tape-based camera on the planet. Yes, the HVX200 and it's "A" updated brother does have a mini-DV drive for those who just can't let go of tape workflows but if you really want to take advantage of what the camera can do there's no point in using it.
Because the newer "A" model of the HVX200 has been released there are plenty of used HVX200's on the market - but not for long, because those who understand the real capabilities of this camera are scooping up the best ones fast. And the best part is that since P2 cards are both increasing in speed and capacity this camera will be able to use any P2 card currently offered. A free firmware update from Panasonic is all that's required to talk to the newer "R" or "E" series cards.
Get one, be happy. And save some dough versus a brand-new camera!
By the way, if you look at my "How To" pages you'll see some great info on how to setup and use and HVX200!
Letus Ultimate review
Ever since the introduction of the DVX100 by Panasonic and the XL1 from Canon independent filmmakers worldwide have been searching for the best methods of replicating the "film look" in their video cameras. Widely considered to be the "holy grail" of the film look is having a shallow depth-of-field created in-camera by using 35mm lens adapters to mount film lenses to their cameras. (See my page about how to create the "film look" and how lens adapters are a key component in this process).
However one of there have always been two major stumbling blocks in using 35mm lens adapters on video cameras:
1) Most of them "flip" the image upside down in-camera forcing the camera operator to either use an external monitor that can be "flipped" or; get used to seeing an up-side down image in the viewfinder/LCD flip-out or; some have even modified their flip-out LCD's to "flip" the image electronically to compensate for this problem. (Some newer handheld HD camcorders like the HVX170 now incorporate image-flip options eliminating this problem).
2) Cost. Until recently the best lens adapters that didn't have an image flip were extraordinarily expensive, costing more than $12,000, which is often more than double the cost of the camera it's supposed to be used on!
Then a company called, LETUS came onto the indie scene and started making a lens adapter called the Letus Extreme, which was the first 35mm lens adapter made to a high-quality standard that brought the image into the camera right-side up and, was less than $1500 new. It used a vibrating ground-glass as it's transmission point and was an all-metal construction with various mounts to fit different cameras and various lens adapter mounts for the 35mm lenses such as Canon, Zeiss, Nikon, Pentax etc.
The Extreme was followed by the Elite, which was based around the same model but with an improved achromat lens for HD cameras such as the HVX200 and also a back-focus adjustment to fine-tune the critical focal-plane.
Today the most current and advanced model from Letus is the "Ultimate" which takes the feature set of the Letus lineup to a whole new level. Gone is the vibrating ground-glass replaced by a variable-speed spinning ground glass with improved light-transmission and grain characteristics. The back-focus adjustment remains and the achromat lens has been improved once again with a total light-loss back to the camera of less than 1 full f-stop.
But the capabilities don't stop there. The Ultimate also has companion products, a set of relay lenses which allow for connecting the Ultimate to any 1/2" inch or 2/3" inch mount camcorders making it the most versatile lens adapter available today.
When paired up with the B4 adapter for a 2/3" inch camera for example, give the camera operator an almost unknown but extremely powerful tool, a secondary iris in front of the focal plane. Why is this capability so important? One very simple reason: The secondary iris acts as a completely variable ND filter which does NOT affect depth-of-field! (Click here to see my section about aperture and depth of field.) That means the director or DP can now setup a shot exactly as desired with the right amount of DOF and the camera operator can adjust for proper exposure without affecting the overall look of the image. That one feature alone will pay dividends you can't imagine until you start using it.
And because all this weight on the front-end of the camera does require a lot of extra stability Letus makes it's own rail system which is highly configurable and works directly with all their lens adapters.
Currently, there is no other 35mm lens adapter available that has less light loss, better light transmission quality, configurability, build quality and overall usability than the Letus Ultimate. There are a handful of competitive products on the market claiming to do a similar or better job - and some of these are also much less expensive - but in point of fact the Letus Ultimate has no equal in the world of 35mm lens adapters for video, period.
(See my post about the real benefits of using a lens adapter here.)
Omni Tracker table top dolly Review
If you've ever used or are considering one of the various tracker or table-top dollies on the market the Omni-Tracker should be at the top of your list.
I was able to test-drive both the Slim-Line and Full-Body versions and am amazed at their capabilities.
Having used the P+S Skater extensively only as a rental I've always wondered if it would be possible to produce a similar device that would be affordable enough to purchase - without sacrificing usability or build quality. Warren, the brain-child and designer of the Omni has done it.
First off, this is no DIY garage project put together with aluminum I-tubes or heavy steel plates; Warren is a commercial-design engineer by trade and knows proper design philosophy and structural requirements like a NASA engineer, and his products reflects his expertise.
The build of the units is top-notch; solid with well-thought out design that takes the best concepts of the Skater and refines them. In point of fact, the Omni can do things the Skater cannot.
The price is amazingly affordable; it's closest competitor (only in cost) would be the Axis Dolly but at $2000 it's more than three times the cost of the Omni FB and, it does not have the same design philosophy making the Axis Dolly more suitable to track use than table-top. The only other "similar" device is the P+S Skater however it's $6100 price-tag put's it squarely as a rental-only since almost no indie producer could justify the cost - unless you somehow end up using it on nearly every shoot.
Using the Omni-Tracker is a dream; the wheel action is completely smooth (it's spec'd to handle 50lbs *safely* but clearly the unit can handle much more) and setting up the wheels for curved moves is fast and easy especially with the addition of the laser-guides for accurate curve setups.
As many of you know, I don't recommend anything unless I've proved that it meets mission-critical commercial standards and the Omni-Tracker absolutely does, and for less than $600 you can't make or buy anything else that comes close to it's usability or bang-for-the-buck viability.
Varizoom Rock PZFI lens controller for Panasonic cameras
This might indeed be one of the shortest reviews I've ever made, but the truth is there's not a whole lot to say about this little device from Varizoom: It just works, perfectly!
No doubt there are a host of other controllers available for the little Panasonic cameras, some separate focus from iris and zoom and one from Bogen/Manfrotto is basically the same setup but in a much larger package. However in the end what any HVX or HPX operator needs is the ability to get at iris, focus and zoom with ease when the camera is on a tripod. And in this respect the ROCK PZFI accomplishes that task very well.
When the unit was first introduced the large round knob on the left was about half the size it is now, and the larger-sized "wheel" has gone a long way to making it's controllability more precise.
There is one thing to note that disappoint most users of lens controllers for the Panasonic cameras that needs to be cleared:
The HVX200, it's "A" version and the HPX170 all share the same zoom servo controller for the lens. Panasonic did not give this servo a super-slow "crawl" speed nor did they give it a step-less motor. So if you're expecting that adding a lens controller will give you *more* control than what's available directly on-camera that's just not the case. The camera's internal electronics have complete authority over the servo speed and ramping steps and there's no way to override or change that, unfortunately. All a lens controller does is relocate the camera's built-in controls to a physically different location, but it does NOT change the characteristics of how those controls actually work.
If you want to completely change-up how the zoom or focus controls work then take a look at the manual controls available from Zacuto. That's the only way to "improve" upon what the camera servo's don't do.
As lens controllers go it's impossible to make a better one for the Panasonic cameras. The best part? Varizoom's customer service is the best in the industry. They stand behind their products and are always ready to support their customer base, without question. These days that direct dedication is hard to find and makes the Varizoom ROCK PZFI even more of a worthy purchase for your hard-earned cash.
Jun 21, 2010
Mounting options for a professional External Camera Monitor
If you're like me and using an external monitor for your handheld or studio video camera then you've probably dealt with the same frustration of trying to hold the monitor while screwing it onto to a Noga or Magic Arm. And, there are times when the camera is moved that the monitor get loosened by any quick camera moves. I've solved both these problems with a simple and effective solution: use a quick-release plate system!
Since I already have a plethora of Arca-Swiss QR plates and clamps, I mounted a typical lens plate to the bottom of the monitor and a QR clamp to the top of the Noga Arm which is on my Zacuto rails. Voila! Easy on, easy off.
I've also mounted the same QR clamp to one end of a Bogen Magic Arm which is normally used when the camera is on a jib.
The spin-off benefit is that I now can easily place the monitor off-camera anywhere I want using my Arca ball head on another tripod making the monitor height and angle completely independent of the camera itself or the camera tripod. More versatility!
This setup will work with just about any QR system; Bogen, Kirk, Really Right Stuff, Arca-Swiss etc.
Since I already have a plethora of Arca-Swiss QR plates and clamps, I mounted a typical lens plate to the bottom of the monitor and a QR clamp to the top of the Noga Arm which is on my Zacuto rails. Voila! Easy on, easy off.
I've also mounted the same QR clamp to one end of a Bogen Magic Arm which is normally used when the camera is on a jib.
The spin-off benefit is that I now can easily place the monitor off-camera anywhere I want using my Arca ball head on another tripod making the monitor height and angle completely independent of the camera itself or the camera tripod. More versatility!
This setup will work with just about any QR system; Bogen, Kirk, Really Right Stuff, Arca-Swiss etc.
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