On the fence, EX1 owners look at this!!!

[Jon Neely]

ok, im tiered of debating, please users of dvxuser that own EX1's and have a little extra time to make a test video, I was going to do it, but I cant get a tester from bandpro (they are sending me one for free) till late july! so in the meantime, can people with an ex1's do theses tests;


~X+Y pans and variable speeds and frame rates, and showing the "workarounds" for the rolling shutter,

~24p 1/48th and show some human movement that is not slown down to see if it has a "film" 24p, most people know what I am talking about then I say film 24p, there is filmic 24p look and there is video 24p, I would like to see some examples, and it would be good to see some med. and wide shots, plus if the person know how to light, that would be great.

~Running with a the cam, or maybe with a steadicam, keeping a running/moving object in frame, but having background pass by, I hope people know what I mean. I would like to see skew examples and how people are trying to counter it.

other than that, thats all I can think about... if anyone else has Ideas or would like to comment on this, that would be good, this would be very helpful for the people like me that are torn between the ex1 and the HPX170, soo that would be awesome, and please to CC your footage to cherry it up, leave it raw and real time. Thanks guys and gals that can help us out, if not I'll do this in july, but I would like to get this over with before.



Jon

[dandobi.com]

ugh, dvxuser isn't youtube where you can just type in what you want to see and BOOM there it is, nor do i think people going to STOP what they're doing and run these tests for you.

this camera has almost been out for a year now ... spend a few bucks, rent it for a day and do these tests yourself. that's probably the most honest way of seeing the results.

also - your thread title is a little deceptive. :/

[matthew77]

Here you go - and it's on youtube.

This was shot entirely on the EX1.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1l_v1K3GwUc

I agree with all of dandobi's points. Rent one and test it. Or buy one and sell if you don't like it.

[rainermann]

Seems in the States it's the same situation as here in Germany.
People who don't own the EX1 mostly are the only ones who complain about rolling shutter, shuttering movements, artefacts (!), "only 4:2:2" and so on and so on. People who actually own the EX1 love that cam, the wonderful images, the "mechanical" lens, know about the issues like said above but it has not much to do with their actual work and filming. I own the EX1 and I don't see why I should spent much time to do some "test" because now I know that camera is great and gives me results I really dreamed about one year ago!!! Yes, there are half-lighted frames in some shots with flashes but only visible if I watch the footage frame by frame. And even it would be visible: Who cares? And since I got my Apple 30" display I love that camera even more... Here in Germany there are still people who think the HVX200 and the EX1 are almost equal in picture quality, it's just the "right setting" - come on, I shot an event with both cams in lowlight. Watching the stuff on my 30 display I just hate to intercut the interpolated semi-HD pic of the HVX with the chystal-clear-full-1920x1080 EX1 stuff and whenever possible I take the EX1 footage.

[esturm]

... camera is great and gives me results I really dreamed about one year ago!!!

I fully agree to this statement! A bit sick and tired of all these arguing about disadvantages. Im am aware of these, but they do not affect my work with this brilliant cam.

Cheers,

Eva

[kubalsky]

ok, im tiered of debating, please users of dvxuser that own EX1's and have a little extra time to make a test video, I was going to do it, but I cant get a tester from bandpro (they are sending me one for free) till late july! so in the meantime, can people with an ex1's do theses tests;


~X+Y pans and variable speeds and frame rates, and showing the "workarounds" for the rolling shutter,

~24p 1/48th and show some human movement that is not slown down to see if it has a "film" 24p, most people know what I am talking about then I say film 24p, there is filmic 24p look and there is video 24p, I would like to see some examples, and it would be good to see some med. and wide shots, plus if the person know how to light, that would be great.

~Running with a the cam, or maybe with a steadicam, keeping a running/moving object in frame, but having background pass by, I hope people know what I mean. I would like to see skew examples and how people are trying to counter it.

other than that, thats all I can think about... if anyone else has Ideas or would like to comment on this, that would be good, this would be very helpful for the people like me that are torn between the ex1 and the HPX170, soo that would be awesome, and please to CC your footage to cherry it up, leave it raw and real time. Thanks guys and gals that can help us out, if not I'll do this in july, but I would like to get this over with before.



Jon

Send me $100 and I will do all of the above. hehe.

[ezpop]

... spend a few bucks, rent it for a day and do these tests yourself. that's probably the most honest way of seeing the results.
:/

that's what I do all the time, and that's what I'd recommend you;
I wouldn't make my camera changing decision on anybody else's tests results

[RDykmans]

I've been lurking around this forum and the one on DVi for the last couple of weeks and just made the jump, picked up a mint used EX1 yesterday that popped up locally. Thanks to everyone that helped me make the decision.

As a past HVX200 owner I was reluctant (was going to wait for the hpx170) but the obvious quality differences I kept seeing and the fact that no one who actually uses an EX ever complained about having any real issues won me over. (a decent deal on a used one didn't hurt either)

Anyhow all I'd like to add to the above is the footage is all out there in it's glory if you take the time to look. I did, made my decision and I'm stoked!

Vortex sells a DVD with RAW EX1 files on it as well which at $35 (over priced IMHO) but it did give me a chance to ingest/edit the actual camera files and see what I was in for from that respect.

[Steve Shovlar]

As a previous HVX200 owner, I have never looked back. The EX1 is leaps and bounds better than the HVX200 IMO. The EX1 murders the HVX200 in low light, strangles it in image quality and absolutely kicks it in the arse when it comes to card record times.

Sure the flash issue is a pain the the backside as I have to go through the footage and put in a flash filter to cover the half frame, but THAT is the only issue I have had with it. Really. My issues with the HVX were as long as my arm.

If you want this camera for shooting stars outside theatres at world premiers, forget it. But other than that its a totaly brilliant camera for the money and kills anything in a similar price bracket.

[Kholi]

As a previous HVX200 owner, I have never looked back. The EX1 is leaps and bounds better than the HVX200 IMO. The EX1 murders the HVX200 in low light, strangles it in image quality and absolutely kicks it in the arse when it comes to card record times.

Sure the flash issue is a pain the the backside as I have to go through the footage and put in a flash filter to cover the half frame, but THAT is the only issue I have had with it. Really. My issues with the HVX were as long as my arm.

If you want this camera for shooting stars outside theatres at world premiers, forget it. But other than that its a totaly brilliant camera for the money and kills anything in a similar price bracket.

Disclaimer: This is not to perpetuate an argument, but to clear up misconception.

Is the EX-1 leaps better than the 200, yes. 200A? no.

And I HAVE done side-by-sides with both. It's no longer a murder situation. The only thing the EX-1 has, image wise, is more resolution. The 200 is garbage, the 200A is a different ballgame altogether.

In fact, the 200A is faster in 720p than the EX1 in 720p. Oops.

Just had to mention that.

[Huy Vu]

Doesn't this just reminds you of all the XH-A1 vs. DVX vs. HVX threads a while back? I mean really these comparison threads are just beating a dead horse over and over again. Somebody will say something that cause someone else to jump in to defend their camera, and it goes full circle. We should really ban all the "versus" threads for a few months after each new camera come out so we're not subjected to these useless arguments over and over.

[Buck Forester]

I wish I had time to do some tests and upload them... I've been doing my own tests based on what I can expect with the type of adventure footage I'll be shooting and allz I can say, as I have so many times, that I'm blown away by this camera. I also like to point out I'd probably be blown away by the HVX200a too, but I also know, for what I'm doing, the HVX200a wouldn't quite have the resolution required for some of my markets.

If in the next couple of weeks I can get some time to do so, I'll upload some clips that may fall along the lines of what you're specifically asking. I can do some pans for you at various speeds and settings, and I can run both with and without a steadicam (I'm actually waiting for the new Italian thingamajigger, I haven't heard any consistent good reviews about other handheld stabilizers for the EX1 yet).

A couple disclaimers -- I'm not after the "film" look so I'm not really savvy on the 24p stuff but I'll try (I'm actually after the high-def crisp look, the 'wow' factor for nature/adventure stuff). At this point I'm all head knowledge (limited at that too) and green with experience on video cameras (been lugging my still camera around for years though, and still will).

I think there's a general consensus that the resolution and "wow!" factor is pretty consistent as a response (a few people naturally will say otherwise), so then in my opinion it's a matter of 'camera work' and skillfully shooting to keep it that way. You have to do some fairly extreme (is that an oxymoron?) stuff to have rolling shutter an issue (excepting perhaps lots and lots of bright frame-filling flashes). I've run with the camera handheld chasing my boy and it looks amazing, no jello for me, even while doing things I normally wouldn't do (shake the camera, purposely run heavy-footed, etc.), but admittedly I didn't shake the camera like a freaky madman or wobble so fast I was concerned about shaking something internally loose from my camera.

Sometimes I find it hard to sleep at night I'm so excited about the potential of this camera! Seriously... I have scenes running through my head and I can't wait to HIT THE TRAILS!

[Buck Forester]

We should really ban all the "versus" threads for a few months after each new camera come out so we're not subjected to these useless arguments over and over.

When I was first deciding, I found these types of threads helpful. I would actually Google things like, "XXXX vs YYYY" to see what people think. After a while it's pretty clear which comments are honest evaluations and which are fanboy comments. It's nice to know the pros and cons and why people think the way they do.

They're also typically very popular threads going by viewcounts and number of posts, even though I agree, it gets quite redundant quickly. But I don't think banning such threads is a good idea and of course we don't even have to look at these threads. But you know most everyone still does. :)

[Huy Vu]

Well, not "official" ban, but people should have some self-restraint when either starting a thread like that or posting in one. An amazingly large percentage of those threads get locked eventually because the signal to noise ratio went way down and then we descent into fanboyism. Everybody wants to defend "their" investment or their perceived "best" camera and even when they start out with the best intentions, the bickering soon becomes hard to take. But what annoys me the most are thread starters who refused to DO A SEARCH and just rely on the generic "Which camera is the best?" thread titles to start the argument over again.

So in the future if we already had an extensive "versus" type thread (which we've certainly had for the EX1, HVX etc.), then we should just reply to each new thread by linking to the old one instead of repeating what's already been mentioned.

[Buck Forester]

Can't argue with you there. Dang it. GIVE ME SOMETHING TO ARGUE ABOUT, OR GIVE ME DEATH!

[Steve Shovlar]

Disclaimer: This is not to perpetuate an argument, but to clear up misconception.

Is the EX-1 leaps better than the 200, yes. 200A? no.

And I HAVE done side-by-sides with both. It's no longer a murder situation. The only thing the EX-1 has, image wise, is more resolution. The 200 is garbage, the 200A is a different ballgame altogether.

In fact, the 200A is faster in 720p than the EX1 in 720p. Oops.

Just had to mention that.

I wasn't rrying to force an argument with an HVX user, just giving my opinion of the two cameras, one I now own and the other I owned. I can't so much comment on the 200A as I have never used it. I was comparing the orginal HVX200 with the EX1. And the EX1 murders the HVX. But then it should as it's newer and a bit more expensive.

[Jon Neely]

Doesn't this just reminds you of all the XH-A1 vs. DVX vs. HVX threads a while back? I mean really these comparison threads are just beating a dead horse over and over again. Somebody will say something that cause someone else to jump in to defend their camera, and it goes full circle. We should really ban all the "versus" threads for a few months after each new camera come out so we're not subjected to these useless arguments over and over.

OK HOLD ON!!! Alright, this thread was NOT meant to be a vs thread or it would have said it in the title, it was specifically meant to be a thread where people like me, that dont own the camera, and want to find out more about it with out spending cash could go a find stuff out. This Forum is meant to help others out, if this is one way of doing it then dont down play the thread. all I asked was someone that is kind in heat to do these test specifically to shut up all of the vs. threads and the people who dont own an ex1 downplaying them with the rolling shutter. If we had a good true test, there would be no room for arguments anymore, views could see what the camera does, and that could be the end of it. I know there are examples of he rolling shutter around but there are no videos showing the "fix" or the workaround I have heard about with the ex1 to counter some problems. Please dont jump all over me, I am simply looking for information, not an argument.
~for everyone else that has put in info, thank you. Kholli, your comment confuses me right when I was feeling like I was on track....lol :)




Jon

[Kholi]

I wasn't rrying to force an argument with an HVX user, just giving my opinion of the two cameras, one I now own and the other I owned. I can't so much comment on the 200A as I have never used it. I was comparing the orginal HVX200 with the EX1. And the EX1 murders the HVX. But then it should as it's newer and a bit more expensive.

Didn't think you were, Steve. Just had to make sure that the 200A got it's deserved comparison. It's not so clear cut anymore, trust me. I was after an EX-1 myself for a job that came up, that job went away (turned to RED actually, they decided if they were going to have Rolling Shutter then they had better get something more out of it) so I'm keeping my 200A until the 170 comes out.

I did have a chance to do Side-by-Side real world comparisons with the EX-1 and HVX200A, which involved getting into situations where the EX-1 would fail and it's not that it FAILED at all, it's that these issues exist no matter what.

The 24P looks EXACTLY the same on both cameras. There is no difference.

The HVX200A looks a lot more "organic" than the EX-1, Renders better colors than the EX-1. The EX-1 retains much more detail than the 200A and has a better LCD.

The 200A costs 5299, the EX1 costs 6999.99.

As far as all the CMOS nonsense I'm not too worried about it, I want a Panasonic SD100 specifically for action, which means fast pans etc. Go figure.

[TheMusician]

Kholi, it was nice to hear your thoughts on the EX1 and the HVX200A. You are a professional that has used a lot of different cameras so I always value your opinions. The one thing that you did not include was a noise comparison. What are your thoughts on the levels of noise and low-light capabilities of the 200A with respect to the EX1?

[Buck Forester]

The 200A costs 5299, the EX1 costs 6999.99.


I paid $6449 for my EX1, and B&H has it listed currently at that price too (U.S.).

[Kholi]

Kholi, it was nice to hear your thoughts on the EX1 and the HVX200A. You are a professional that has used a lot of different cameras so I always value your opinions. The one thing that you did not include was a noise comparison. What are your thoughts on the levels of noise and low-light capabilities of the 200A with respect to the EX1?\

The Noise level of the EX-1 is still slightly cleaner than the 200A, with emphasis on slight. I made sure to test both and for the 200A to be as clean as it is it's astonishing, the EX1 still has a slight edge in that department.

In all, I think it's DVCproHD's fault and not the camera itself. The EX-1 being Full Raster probably helps in this area.

The 200A is DEFINITELY cleaner than the 200 by miles, though. So to the point that +9dB of gain on the 200A is a totally acceptable image. This is similar to what I found with the EX-1, where pushing to about +6 or 9+ was still acceptable for practical usage. This makes both cameras theoretically faster, and is a great tool for 35mm Adapter users. In fact, both of these cameras are a 35mm Adapter users dream. Freeing up the light loss from an Adapter allows you to choose the ones that once lost "too much" light. So it's a good place to be at, either camera.

The 200A and EX-1 in 1080 mode are the same as far as lowlight goes. Neither was brighter nor darker in the same situation, same shutter, etc etc. I A/B'd footage from both cameras and saw no immediate/apparent difference in lowlight performance. In 720p the HVX200A was faster. For some reason (this is probably user Error) the EX-1 in 720p is pretty yuck. I couldn't see ever using 720p from the EX1, but then you have such a nice 1080p and HDV-1440 for longer recording times, why would you use 720p?

With the 200A 720p is a time saver, there's no HDV flavor so it's one or the other, with the EX-1 you can save time by using the non Full Raster recording mode which I find rather appealing.

Also, I hope noone assumes that I'm Panasonic ONLY. By no means. It's true, I love me some Panasonic but have plenty of valid reasons why. I'm making another attempt at putting together one of my own shorts here and I'm pretty much decided on using HVX200A + Letus Ultimate instead of the RED ONE based purely on cost and technological issues. With as much action and vfx as I want to do the RED ONE will probably add a bit of complication that I can't afford in the literal sense. Just as well, it takes more money to get one operating up to spec (rentals) than realized.

It would be the same deal if I had an EX-1, I just wouldn't want to risk tracking, panning and incompatible lighting anomalies on project that's thousands deep out of my own pocket. This only means that it's not the right tool for the job, and I've found that the HVX200A sometimes isn't the right tool for the job either. People want to use the RED for it's dynamic range and resolution, and that counts no matter WHAT your delivery format is.

Right tool for the right job peoples.

[Buck Forester]

...the EX-1 in 720p is pretty yuck. I couldn't see ever using 720p from the EX1, but then you have such a nice 1080p and HDV-1440 for longer recording times, why would you use 720p?

Slow-mo. And what I've shot in slow-mo so far is mind-boggling gorgeous!

[TheMusician]

Kholi, thanks a lot for your impressions of noise and low light between the two cameras. I think that I am in the same boat as you for my next camera as I am trying to decided between the EX1 and the HPX170+Nano. At first, I did not want the 170 for the simple reason that I occasionally shoot in low light and I really did not like the noise on the HVX200. But your impressions of the HVX200A may have put this worry to rest. I too have the thought that although it may be a very small gain, that bypassing DVCPRO and recording out the SDI may give me more resolution, and reduce noise perception. If this were the case, and the noise levels turn out to be similar to the EX1, I think that the HPX170 would eliminate worry about rolling shutter issues until that technology matures. After following a thread on REDuser, I believe that the new mysterium X upgrade is going to make strides in improving CMOS shortcomings, in which case I will defininately be getting a Scarlet. But DANG, that EX1 makes some seriously beautiful pictures!

[Jon Neely]

oh man... I hate decisions, why cant these cameras cost $5??? lol, Buck, when you can, get some of those vids up, if not, I may just have to wait till july.


Jon

[Kholi]

It's a very hard decision and I understand where you're coming from. There just is no perfect solution right now, and that's not under 10k, under 100k or anything. There's just NO PERFECT CAMERA in existence right now. If it's got everything you want, the friggin' package is too big to do small work with. Which means you take yourself out of a market where there's definitely a nice amount of money to be made.

If it's small enough to go nearly anywhere, it generally lacks SOMETHING in the image arena. Be it the HVX/HPX170-500's resolution or the EX-1's rolling shutter.

So it's very very very hard to make a choice, man. I still CRAVE the EX-1's resolution. I want it SO bad but without a having a job that I know I can make at least half of it back immediately I can't commit to it. Ideally because I would want to grab an HPX170 to have as well so that bases are covered in the No-Budget Market-- where 35mm Adapters reign.

If I were you and it were that important I would definitely just pay to rent one for a weekend so that you can do the tests on your own. That and a 200A since it's highly representative of the image you'll get from the 170. I had a chance to play with the 170 at Cinegear and it's the exact same image overall.

Rent 'em, Jon. Be the best way to find out where you want your money to go.

[kubalsky]

Kholi, thanks a lot for your impressions of noise and low light between the two cameras. I think that I am in the same boat as you for my next camera as I am trying to decided between the EX1 and the HPX170+Nano. At first, I did not want the 170 for the simple reason that I occasionally shoot in low light and I really did not like the noise on the HVX200. But your impressions of the HVX200A may have put this worry to rest. I too have the thought that although it may be a very small gain, that bypassing DVCPRO and recording out the SDI may give me more resolution, and reduce noise perception. If this were the case, and the noise levels turn out to be similar to the EX1, I think that the HPX170 would eliminate worry about rolling shutter issues until that technology matures. After following a thread on REDuser, I believe that the new mysterium X upgrade is going to make strides in improving CMOS shortcomings, in which case I will defininately be getting a Scarlet. But DANG, that EX1 makes some seriously beautiful pictures!


What kind of stuff will you be shooting? I would search/ask around for low light screen grabs of the HVX200A before deciding.

[Tom Roper]

Below is the link to some MTF50 resolution tests I performed on the EX1 for the other site. These numbers were about the same at 60i as the Canon XH-A1, but considerably better at 24p/30p, probably owing to the native progressive sensor. I used the exact same test method for both cams, so the numbers if not comparable to other published numbers on the internet, are still comparable to each other.

At the bottom of the linked page are the screen caps from the Imatest software I used to make the measurements.

I agree that camera A versus camera B topics are generally not helpful.

Resolution Tests (http://dvinfo.net/conf/showpost.php?p=886735&postcount=1)

[Jon Neely]

thanks tom for the comparison, kholi, I too where at cinegear, the hpx was nice alright. Well as soon as Wayne hooks me up with the new achro for the Sg, I will give BandPro a call and get my hands on an ex1 and see what it is all about. I just nagged Wayne with a pm, so hopefully he replies with some good news, this short I will be doing is a vietnam war film, so hopefully these pieces of equipment mate well for it.


Jon

[DCSensui]

For what it's worth, here's what got me to switch from an HVX200 to an EX1.

-- Record time. I shoot nothing but 1080p30 and a 16 gig card on an HVX is 16 minutes. On an EX1 it's 57 minutes. I carry three 16-gig cards and an 8-gig card, and I'm good for a full 9-hour day on a charter boat or following fly fishermen on the reef.

-- Full 1920x1080 square pixel images with the EX1. It's 1440x1080 with the HVX and it doesn't look quite as detailed.

-- Low light. The EX1 is more sensitive than the HVX. I would say two stops but others have argued otherwise. All I really know is that with the EX1 I can get images in situations that the HVX would be dead in the water... and with a fishing show, "dead in the water" is a bad thing :-)

-- Great dynamic range. How great? I haven't measured it. But I can get details in the brightest parts of cumulus clouds in hard sunlight, and still get faces under the bills of baseball caps.

My experience with it so far is that it does a nice job. The frequent comment from people who have watched the show is, "It looks so clear."

I do a fair number of whip pans and crash zooms to get the camera looking where the action is, and I have yet to hear a single comment about slanted lines, jello-cam or anything out of the ordinary. To the normal TV viewer who doesn't put the show on pause and start going through things one frame at a time, it's just nicely shot fishing action. That's what they care about.

Some of my shooting is done at night under difficult conditions. You're sleeping on rocks without a tent. And when the bell goes off, everyone's scrambling to figure out whose pole is got the fish. Now I fully sympathize with firefighters who have to be ready at a moment's notice. By the way, you have to enjoy living like this to do this kind of work. Whiners need not apply. Low light isn't an option. And with headlamps at all sorts of settings, along with the on-camera light, there's no such thing as "slowing down" the hot spot. The EX1 can often handle those situations without too much trouble.

A recent trip included getting drenched by salt water and blasted by 40 MPH winds. Everything held up nicely. I did have a Petrol (edit: it's a Kata RC-15, not Petrol) cover over the camera and a Lightwave EQ wind fur over the mic. But despite a difficult situation, the images and audio came through nicely, and told a fun story. If I get a chance I'll post part of the show.

Searching the internet for nit-picking anecdotal gripes isn't going to provide a good sense of what the camera can or can't do for any particular application. As many have suggested, the best option is to get your hands on one and use it under the conditions that you expect to work. No camera is going to give you exactly what you want. Not at this price level. But if you can find something that can capture what you need to tell a good story, then there you go.

[Sumfun]

Thanks for the testimonial Dean. If anyone is going to get jellocam, it would be you, because you're on the water a lot. Do you use any stabilizers?

BTW, the native resolution for DVCProHD is 1280x1080. 1440x1080 is the resolution for HDV.

[Simon Höfer]

BTW, the native resolution for DVCProHD is 1280x1080. 1440x1080 is the resolution for HDV.
Only for the ntsc version of the hvx.

[doofalot]

Slow-mo. And what I've shot in slow-mo so far is mind-boggling gorgeous!

dude no offense but you've been saying for weeks or longer that you don't have time to upload any of your footage, but you hope to find time, yet you're in here defending the EX1 to the death 24/7. you could totally have posted some of that footage in a tenth the time you've spent defending the ex1. sorry man not trying to start anything but when i read again in this thread how you wish you had time to post some of your amazing footage, i had to start wondering...

[Buck Forester]

I did have a Petrol cover over the camera


I've been waiting for the Petrol rain cover for the EX1 but I haven't seen it available to purchase yet. Where did you get yours?

[DCSensui]

I've been waiting for the Petrol rain cover for the EX1 but I haven't seen it available to purchase yet. Where did you get yours?

Ooops. My bad. It's a Kata RC-15 Compact Rain Cover. Got it from B&H. I got it for the HVX but it also fits the EX1 nicely.

I like it better than some of the others because it slips over the camera quickly yet protects it very well.

I had a Petrol (which also came from B&H) but sold it when I got the Kata.

[Buck Forester]

dude no offense but you've been saying for weeks or longer that you don't have time to upload any of your footage, but you hope to find time, yet you're in here defending the EX1 to the death 24/7. you could totally have posted some of that footage in a tenth the time you've spent defending the ex1. sorry man not trying to start anything but when i read again in this thread how you wish you had time to post some of your amazing footage, i had to start wondering...

doofalot, I can see why you'd say that, not knowing my situation. I work out my house doing commercial insurance inspections so I spend half the day in the field inspecting properties and then much of the day/evening writing up reports.

The other "rep" for our company in this area left and they didn't replace him so my work load right now is insane. Any time I post on the forum is while I'm working on my reports (read, SHOULD be working on my reports, ha!).

I also make a substantial part of my income through licensing images and selling prints from my still photography, as well as some photo related writing for publications. Watch for the September issue of Outdoor Photographer magazine for a full page photo and article on McWay Falls/Big Sur.

My wife stays at home here with our 2 year old boy and is due in two weeks with our second boy. So working 2 jobs (soon to be three with video!), and being a husband and dad is pretty taxing on my time.

I have shot quite a bit of test video with the EX1 (mostly of the neighborhood and family) and I view it on my large displays, but to be honest with you I have no idea yet how to use FCP or edit footage, much less resize it and get it uploaded to a website. I have a HUGE learning curve ahead of me (although it'll probably make sense pretty quickly since I'm familiar with the digital photography workflow and editing in Photoshop).

I used to spend a good part of each year in the wilderness, exploring and fishing the most wild areas in the lower 48... northern Rockies, high Sierra, Lost Coast, etc. I used to take the entire summers off for years to do this, it's what I love. Then I got married a couple of years ago, had a kid, nuther on the way, gained 40 lbs, and now get out about twice a year! Here it is almost July and I haven't even camped this year, much less backpacked or kayaked.

I make good $$ through photography but I could make even more if I could get out more so I'm looking for a lifestyle change, combining photography with high-def videography. In the meantime I have to make a steeeeenkin' living while trying to learn this stuff. I am surrounded by boxes of cool stuff I haven't even opened yet! I'm going into this thing full-bore.

And it appears I spend more time than I do in here because I type re-he-he-heeeeeally fast. Over 90 WPM with gusts up to 120. But mostly when I'm typing it's because my mind is in videography and my body is trying to do boring insurance reports. :)

That's the short version, if you want I can give you the detailed version. NOOooOOoooOOooOOoo!!! AHHhhhHHHhhhhh!

[Buck Forester]

Ooops. My bad. It's a Kata RC-15 Compact Rain Cover.


Cool... I'll look into that one. I don't wanna take my EX1 into the wilds without protection.

[DCSensui]

Thanks for the testimonial Dean. If anyone is going to get jellocam, it would be you, because you're on the water a lot. Do you use any stabilizers?

BTW, the native resolution for DVCProHD is 1280x1080. 1440x1080 is the resolution for HDV.

No stabilizers except for the one that's built into the camera. I do have a CAVision shoulder mount that keeps the yaw and pitch under control.

I'm considering trying a KenLab gyro sometime soon for the shots from boat-to-boat. The drawback to that is the significant increase in weight. It's already nose heavy with the Sony wide angle adapter. I'm gonna have to start doing some weight lifting!

Only once did I notice an odd rolling shutter effect. It was a close up of a fisherman's hand shaking the fishing pole to make the bait slide down the line (it's a technique called slide baiting where you cast and anchor the weight from a cliff, then slide the bait & hook down afterward). The pole was bending slightly as he was shaking it. But I only noticed it because I was aware of the rolling shutter. I doubt the casual viewer will see it.

[doofalot]

doofalot, I can see why you'd say that, not knowing my situation. I work out my house doing commercial insurance inspections so I spend half the day in the field inspecting properties and then much of the day/evening writing up reports.

The other "rep" for our company in this area left and they didn't replace him so my work load right now is insane. Any time I post on the forum is while I'm working on my reports (read, SHOULD be working on my reports, ha!).

I also make a substantial part of my income through licensing images and selling prints from my still photography, as well as some photo related writing for publications. Watch for the September issue of Outdoor Photographer magazine for a full page photo and article on McWay Falls/Big Sur.

My wife stays at home here with our 2 year old boy and is due in two weeks with our second boy. So working 2 jobs (soon to be three with video!), and being a husband and dad is pretty taxing on my time.

I have shot quite a bit of test video with the EX1 (mostly of the neighborhood and family) and I view it on my large displays, but to be honest with you I have no idea yet how to use FCP or edit footage, much less resize it and get it uploaded to a website. I have a HUGE learning curve ahead of me (although it'll probably make sense pretty quickly since I'm familiar with the digital photography workflow and editing in Photoshop).

I used to spend a good part of each year in the wilderness, exploring and fishing the most wild areas in the lower 48... northern Rockies, high Sierra, Lost Coast, etc. I used to take the entire summers off for years to do this, it's what I love. Then I got married a couple of years ago, had a kid, nuther on the way, gained 40 lbs, and now get out about twice a year! Here it is almost July and I haven't even camped this year, much less backpacked or kayaked.

I make good $$ through photography but I could make even more if I could get out more so I'm looking for a lifestyle change, combining photography with high-def videography. In the meantime I have to make a steeeeenkin' living while trying to learn this stuff. I am surrounded by boxes of cool stuff I haven't even opened yet! I'm going into this thing full-bore.

And it appears I spend more time than I do in here because I type re-he-he-heeeeeally fast. Over 90 WPM with gusts up to 120. But mostly when I'm typing it's because my mind is in videography and my body is trying to do boring insurance reports. :)

That's the short version, if you want I can give you the detailed version. NOOooOOoooOOooOOoo!!! AHHhhhHHHhhhhh!

heh, cool bro, sounds like you got your hands full. if you think raising a kid is challenging, wait until you start video editing! :)

[Jon Neely]

Thank you all for your input, It seems to be the case of where I dont want to test the EX1 w/o my sgpro working with it, So I must wait for wayne's machine shop to get me one of the newest achros, which is like end of july early August. I kinda want to wait till then cuz I am more interested in the results w/ an adapter than w/o one. If anyone can post the tests I originally asked for, that would be awesome, in the mean time, keep all of us non-owners informed!



Jon