Sony PXW-Z280 & PXW-Z190 4K cams

[Andrew Stone]

Hi Doug,

Do the cameras have the original Cinegammas or equivalents to match up with the EX series cams? Also is the Venice-like profile in these cameras or is there an intention to provide it in a future firmware update? I know the FS5 mkII has this profile included. For those of us who do multi-camera live-edit shoots with Sony cameras having Cinegamma equivalents would obviously be a boon.

Thanks for all of your info and knowledge that you are dispensing here (and what you have done in the past).

[Doug Jensen]

Does anyone know if the Z280 has a WFM? I can't find that info on the Sony website.

Yes, down in the right-hand corner just like the FS7 and other cameras. Histogram and vectorscope, too.

[Doug Jensen]

Hi Doug,

Do the cameras have the original Cinegammas or equivalents to match up with the EX series cams? Also is the Venice-like profile in these cameras or is there an intention to provide it in a future firmware update? I know the FS5 mkII has this profile included. For those of us who do multi-camera live-edit shoots with Sony cameras having Cinegamma equivalents would obviously be a boon.
Thanks for all of your info and knowledge that you are dispensing here (and what you have done in the past).

Thanks, Andrew.
The cameras offer Hypergammas not Cinegammas. HG4 is the one I recommend and was the one I used on both cameras at NAB, along with a few other custom settings. The default look is not nearly as good.

Don't get me started on the FS5M2. As I understand it, whatever it has in common with the Venice is just when you turn it on in the factory-default mode. Basically, the camera just offers a better default look out of the box for customers who are too ignorant about the paint menus to bother doing anything else. If someone just wants to turn the camera on and start blasting away, maybe they'll get a better look? But I wonder if that level of customer would really see the difference anyway? As soon as you choose a PP memory bank and start building a custom profile from scratch, as I highly recommend that anyone do, whatever the camera had in common with the Venice is gone and a FS5M2 will basically look identical to an original FS5 that has the same settings. The new Z190/Z280 cameras don't get involved in that stuff. You need to turn them on and paint them so they look great, just like every other XDCAM that came before them.

[Andrew Stone]

Thanks Doug. Two small follow-up questions on colour management on these cameras. Are the paint controls on the cameras in question similar to the controls on the XDCAMs of the past? Finally, are the 3 different SLOG gamma modes along with Cine EI available in these cameras as well?

[Doug Jensen]

Thanks Doug. Two small follow-up questions on colour management on these cameras. Are the paint controls on the cameras in question similar to the controls on the XDCAMs of the past? Finally, are the 3 different SLOG gamma modes along with Cine EI available in these cameras as well?

I wouldn't go out on a limb and say the menus are identical because I didn't have time to look through them all, but yeah, they are pretty much all the normal paint menus you'd expect to find on an XDCAM.

The Z190 has several variations of HLG, but not does not have S-LOG. Which is good because it's only an 8-bit camera in 4K anyway. On the other hand, the Z280 has the same HLG options as the Z190 plus S-LOG3. It does not have S-LOG2 and it does not have a CINE EI mode. S-LOG3 is handled a little differently on the non-cinema cameras such as the Z280 and Z450. That's all I can say at this point because I haven't had a chance to use the camera in S-LOG mode yet. But I have no reason to think it won't look very good, but the workflow will be different in post than for a camera that has a true CINE EI mode -- and I you won't have any MLUTs onboard the camera.

[bengiles]

and I you won't have any MLUTs onboard the camera.

I'm hoping they'll put a "Gamma Display Assist" (what I'd call an MLUT) on there, similar to the A7 cams - ideally, I wouldn't want to monitor the SLog3 signal.

Ben.

[Doug Jensen]

I think that is exactly what you are going to get. The camera definately has GDA.

[Doyle]

I've got a few questions on the z280 for anyone who might have used it at NAB:

1. Can the digital zoom be used like other cams in HD where it seamlessly passes from optical to digital during a zoom?
2. Is the zoom speed super slow (like my PX270's from Panasonic)?
3. Is there an equivalent PTZ cam that would match quickly without too much painting?

I mostly shoot corporate presos, dark theater performances, and live streams (and IMAG). I don't need 4K yet but it's nice to know it's there for crop-ins. Someone said the SDI output latency is almost non-existent. This thing looks like a winner as an upgrade.

[Andrew Stone]

Good questions Doyle.

In advance of anyone with direct knowledge of PTZ question, this looks like the closest PTZ camera in Sony's lineup to match the EX cams with 3 1/2" sensors and paint controls.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ..._hd_3cmos.html

[The Fog]

My biggest beef with the Sony EX3 (which I still own), is that I was so used to the ENG way of putting my left hand over the lens to zoom and focus, and right hand on the tripod handle when shooting performances. At work, sometimes I might use a Panny 170 where I can shoot that way. I hope the new cam will have space underneath the handle where I can shoot that way again (without changing the tripod arm of course)
Also, will the lens be able to slow zoom without the stuttering that Sony ex3s had been known for?

[Andrew Stone]

Libec made a zoom controller for the EX3 that removed most of the judder when doing a creep zoom. If you intend to use the EX3, you will probably be able to pick up a cheap used one.

[Asaf Blasberg]

Hello,
The EX1 had a very serious problem of IR contamination - lapels on tuxedos turned muddy brown instead of their true color of black. I wonder if Sony finally addressed this issue with the PXW-Z280. Anybody from Sony know?
Thanks!
-AB.

[cyvideo]

Correct IR contamination was bad. So bad that Tiffen sold a lot of 77mm IR filters that were designed with the EX1 in mind. The EX3 suffered the same problem. Not well known is that the EX3 evolved into the EX3/2 were this IR issue was addressed. This is correct as I have one of the last EX3/2s and it hasn't exhibited any of the old EX1 IR issues . Used it on a job this weekend in fact. First time in quite a while. Still a great camera for its time. No personal experience but I believe that the EX1R was also supposed to have addressed the problem of IR contamination. FWIW the PMW-200/300 and the PXW's haven't displayed any IR problems when I have used them. On that basis I would be be very surprised if the Z280 has any IR issues of note. With a totally new generation of sensors and ten year newer tech I think Sony would be shooting themselves in the foot it this problem raised its head again.

Chris Young

[andykwilkinson]

Chris is correct about the IR question. I had an EX3 which was launched in 2008 and still have its effective successor in my kit, the PMW-300 which was launched in 2013. No IR issues on the PMW-300... so Sony sorted that issue out a number of years back!

[BrianMurphy]

For what its worth, I also had a PMW 300, never had an IR issue, have a Z150 and no issue. I use a Varizoom controller with my Z150 and it works well.