HD 100E Possible dead pixel!

[jon-uk]

(JVC GY-HD100E) I've only just bought one of these second hand over here in the UK. I'm totaly new to this pro type camera. However the picture quality is stunning even in DV mode. That is, except for an annoying white dot in the frame that I think might be a dead pixel? (didn't notice it at first)

I understand that there is supposed to be a way of masking this, but I dont know how to do it, and the manual does not give you any info. I have heard someone mention it on one of these sites. If you can help, please let me know.

Thanks.

[Barry_Green]

I know the procedure was outlined on dvinfo.net, you might try there. Tim Dashwood can tell you the procedure.

[jon-uk]

I've tried the procedure for pixel blanking, but unfortunatly it has not worked. I've tried it several times. I'm guessing its a bad pixel as it is the size of a pixel. However there is a very tiny mark, or foreign body on the lens. I've tried carefully to remove this, but it won't come off. I don't want to mess the lens up. I had a filter over the lens which I tried to clean with lens cleaner and its just made the filter look worse. So I'm afraid to try and clean the lens in any major way.
Does anyone know the proper way to clean a lens or filter, without it effecting the coating?

Jon.

[Evro]

Hey Jon,

Firstly the JVC forums here are pretty much dead, the biggest JVC community is actually on DV-Info so you might want to get on there.

I've had dead pixels on my JVC too and my experience has been that they can fix themselves, however you first need to make sure it is a dead pixel by covering up the lens. Does the white dot appear and where are you seeing it, on the LCD/EVF or on the captured tape?

If it's a stain on the lens or filter, you should be able to rub it off with a water moistened cloth and don't be too precious about the damaging it. It's not that easy to wipe the fluorite coating off unless you physically scratch it off with something hard.

Good luck mate!

[jon-uk]

Thanks for the info. It seems to appear as the camera warms up. Saying that, I have used the camera again yesterday, and I didn't see it at all. You may be right that they fix themselves sometimes.

Jon.

[pixelator]

Thanks for the info. It seems to appear as the camera warms up. Saying that, I have used the camera again yesterday, and I didn't see it at all. You may be right that they fix themselves sometimes.

Jon.

I bet it's still there. Depending upon temperature it will make it's ugly apperance. Try not to blank the pixel till after you've had it on an hour in the sun in the summer. Then do the blanking procedure. I don't remember exactly how to get to the hidden menu, but DVinfo.net has a good thread. I think even a sticky in the JVC section. Just do it when it's nice and warm in the sun and been on. That way a couple of the other pixelas that are probably bad show up at the same time, and you can mask them then. Mine shipped from New York to California and on a hot night it looked like I was looking a the milky way. ran it outside for an hour in the sun, masked the pixels.. no problems since. Well other than drooling over a HPX500 that is.

[jon-uk]

You may be right. It was a very hot day when I used the camera, and that was when I noticed it. I will watch out for it again. (I think its a bit bad of JVC to have expensive cameras like this that suffer this problem, don't you?)

For anyone else wanting to try pixel masking, this is the procedure:

let the camera warm up for an hour or so (apparently this is best.)
put the camera in 24p mode
hold down the status and focus assist buttons for 6 seconds.
select camera 1
now select picture comp.

Jon.

[Evro]

I agree with you somewhat John. I'm quite disappointed with my ProHD camera as well, especially with the low quality stock lens and the various other intermittent problems these cameras seem to exhibit - wait till you start getting a row of "DDDDDDDDDDD" characters appearing intermittently in your LCD display!

I seriously think JVC did a Microsoft Windows on this series of cameras, releasing them with a buggy operating system and several design faults. I've never experienced these sorts of problems with any of my other cheaper Canon, Panasonic or Sony camcorders.