Does the HMC150 handle as well as DVX100B in low light?

[awomias]

Hi all. I am VERY close to taking the plunge and getting the HMC150. I mainly shoot weddings and events using 2 DVX100B's. Will the HMC150 work well in low light conditions? Also my final output will be an SD DVD using Final Cut Studio 2 on an 8 core 3.2GHZ MacPro 10G Ram etc. Will this give me much better DVD's than my current DVX's? Thanks for any input.

[Mike Harvey]

I own a DVX, but not a HMC150. I have played with one, however, and if you look around you can find low light footage. Search Vimeo for the hmc150 and you can find some, mostly from folks on this board.

My impression is yes. It handles low light better, but the noise from the gain is much better in my humble opinion over the DVX.

As to whether this will give you better DVD... I dunno. Depends on the software you're using (I'm not a Mac person, so I can't speak one way or the other about it). I would have a hard time thinking though that down-rezzed HD would look worse than straight SD.

[seven.b]

I think the general consensus is that the HMC150's low light capabilities are at least as good as the DVX100b/HVX200a. As more tests/footage and more people get their cameras, a definite answer will emerge.

In my experience with HD-->SD DVD (with an HV30), the DVDs look a whole lot crisper. They still have that HD look to them, but of course, are not. So yes, it is a very marginal difference.

[mcsmooth]

This subforum says: "HMC150 footage only", think this post is in the wrong place.

Check out Barry's post where he compared the two:

http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showpost.php?p=1384345&postcount=379

There wasn't a direct comparison to 60i so that still needs to be tested (if you rely on 60i), but the 150 is less noisy in all cases. Compared to my 100a, the 150 spanks it. I keep cranking the gain up to 12db wondering where the noise is. I used to use gain only in desperate situations but am not afraid to use it with the 150.

[Thomas Lew]

http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=148386

handles EXTREMELY well

[Alan Bradley]

betta baby!

[awomias]

Ordered my HMC150 today. Should receive it by Tuesday!! I can't wait! Thanks for all your help.