corrupted clips, used an Avid Nitris Symphony and that also compounded the problem. We could scrub through the clips but some would not play.
Any EX1 regrets?
- Thread starter TheMusician
- Start date
corrupted clips, used an Avid Nitris Symphony and that also compounded the problem. We could scrub through the clips but some would not play.
Stevet
Veteran
The only way YOU will really know is to find users in your area that have these cameras where you can actually check them out yourself.
I can't count the times I've bought something only to find out there was something else I liked better that I should of bought.
Having said that, having access to have an own cameras from Sony, Panasonic, and JVC, I can't say that I wish I bought something else. Again, that's me. Like yourself, others may agree and disagree. The EX1 is quite the camera. Very clean sharp image And most important, it still holds detail with ARTIFICIAL enhancement known as sharpening OFF.
When you compare, that's one real test to try on other cameras. Some look too soft without artificial enhancement on.
I can't count the times I've bought something only to find out there was something else I liked better that I should of bought.
Having said that, having access to have an own cameras from Sony, Panasonic, and JVC, I can't say that I wish I bought something else. Again, that's me. Like yourself, others may agree and disagree. The EX1 is quite the camera. Very clean sharp image And most important, it still holds detail with ARTIFICIAL enhancement known as sharpening OFF.
When you compare, that's one real test to try on other cameras. Some look too soft without artificial enhancement on.
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TheMusician
Well-known member
Stevet, I was recently at B&H in New York to check everything out and I would have to say that I was pretty disappointed by their service. They had none of the tripods on the floor that I was interested in (Cartoni Focus, Sachtler FSB-6, Vinten Vision 3, Gitzo 1380, Miller DS20) When I asked to pick up the EX1 to see how it felt handheld and how I delt with the ergonomics, they told me that it was locked down and they had no way to release it. 90% of the cameras were all in a bin using the same Sony monitors, but the EX1 was set alone hooked up to a cheap monitor of a different brand that people had obviously adjusted as well as dialing in absurd picture profiles. So it was very difficult to compare the look of the EX1 to the HVX200a. From what I saw that day, even the XH-A1 (which is a fine camera) looked a ton better than the EX1. And to cap it off, the store employees were not supportive of the camera at all saying that they would prefer almost any other camera to the EX1.
I would love to get a second look to convince myself that the EX1 would work for me, but I live in Indianapolis and there is nobody here who sells it on a showroom floor. Anybody know of anyplace close to Indianapolis? Any EX1 owners in Indianapolis?
I would love to get a second look to convince myself that the EX1 would work for me, but I live in Indianapolis and there is nobody here who sells it on a showroom floor. Anybody know of anyplace close to Indianapolis? Any EX1 owners in Indianapolis?
Daniel Alexander
Active member
I've decided to stick it out and make it work for me to be honest, plus the £200 would soon mount up when having to buy p2 cards, a decent field monitor for critical focus etc. Theres always tradeoffs, but like everyone (nearly everyone
)says, its a beautiful cam and does the job
TO OP. I think someone mentioned camera choice is about trade offs, camera a has this, b doesnt and vice versa, its never going to be any different. I love the Sony high res, less saturated look for some things. I love the Pana saturation and look for others. Sure glad theres more than one choice out there. Im talking Sony in general here.
But to the EX, great sharp images and FWIW, I think DO think have a really nice filmic quality, if the cam is set up right, but thats the same as the Pana.
You mentioned youre a wedding shooter. This is one area I think you may need to look hard at the HPX170 as a tool. People always say we know all about rolling shutter and how to get around it, I say well some people dont and some situations dont allow for it. At a wedding, shooting an exterior daylight shot, no matter how many flashes, you wont see the issues. In a reception with dim lights and flashes, Id say irrespective of how your cam is set up, your going to see something.
Let me qualify this a bit, if someone said - heres a 170 and an EX, we want you to go to NYC and shoot daytime wide shots of buildings and people. I think Id probably pick up the EX (not having seen the 170 in action though). Why? Because, Id want max resolution I could get my hands on and the edit would be pretty much straight cuts.
So now someone says go shoot a wedding, heres a 170 and an EX1. Id take the 170. Why? Because I dont know if I am going to be free from a rolling shutter issue, and that could effect me in a few ways. If it does show up, and is noticeable, well client may be unhappy - and that effects future work and knowing it could be an issue, I would probably alter my shooting style to avoid and in doing so, may not get shots I know I am capable of - talking ME here. In addition to low light performance the 170 has a dynamic range stretch function, that will give me more when I am faced with low light situations. And in addition to that, shooting a building I can take a moment to adjust my exposure to perfection, at a wedding sometimes its rush rush rush, 170 has a waveform and vectorscope that, when you know how can get your exposure spot on and in a hurry. And to edit, Im a FCPS user and I find to ingest footage, I dont find it harder or easier to ingest from the EX or from P2. The p2 requires more disk space - so if thats your consideration then there you go, the EX footage takes longer to render - so if thats your consideration then there you go. A wedding though is usually stylised somewhat with effects and that can take considerable more render time with the EX footage. EX footage and FCP's Color give me a headache.
I think you will find few people will have tangible regrets when you ask do you regret buying camera a or b and will side with their decision, its emotional so of course they will. I think you need to be open to getting the best shots for your client based on circumstance, and sometimes that means regardless of what cam you OWN, you will need to rent another cam to do that.
Good luck with your decision.
But to the EX, great sharp images and FWIW, I think DO think have a really nice filmic quality, if the cam is set up right, but thats the same as the Pana.
You mentioned youre a wedding shooter. This is one area I think you may need to look hard at the HPX170 as a tool. People always say we know all about rolling shutter and how to get around it, I say well some people dont and some situations dont allow for it. At a wedding, shooting an exterior daylight shot, no matter how many flashes, you wont see the issues. In a reception with dim lights and flashes, Id say irrespective of how your cam is set up, your going to see something.
Let me qualify this a bit, if someone said - heres a 170 and an EX, we want you to go to NYC and shoot daytime wide shots of buildings and people. I think Id probably pick up the EX (not having seen the 170 in action though). Why? Because, Id want max resolution I could get my hands on and the edit would be pretty much straight cuts.
So now someone says go shoot a wedding, heres a 170 and an EX1. Id take the 170. Why? Because I dont know if I am going to be free from a rolling shutter issue, and that could effect me in a few ways. If it does show up, and is noticeable, well client may be unhappy - and that effects future work and knowing it could be an issue, I would probably alter my shooting style to avoid and in doing so, may not get shots I know I am capable of - talking ME here. In addition to low light performance the 170 has a dynamic range stretch function, that will give me more when I am faced with low light situations. And in addition to that, shooting a building I can take a moment to adjust my exposure to perfection, at a wedding sometimes its rush rush rush, 170 has a waveform and vectorscope that, when you know how can get your exposure spot on and in a hurry. And to edit, Im a FCPS user and I find to ingest footage, I dont find it harder or easier to ingest from the EX or from P2. The p2 requires more disk space - so if thats your consideration then there you go, the EX footage takes longer to render - so if thats your consideration then there you go. A wedding though is usually stylised somewhat with effects and that can take considerable more render time with the EX footage. EX footage and FCP's Color give me a headache.
I think you will find few people will have tangible regrets when you ask do you regret buying camera a or b and will side with their decision, its emotional so of course they will. I think you need to be open to getting the best shots for your client based on circumstance, and sometimes that means regardless of what cam you OWN, you will need to rent another cam to do that.
Good luck with your decision.
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thefilmaddict
Veteran
No regrets. I've owned the HVX200. The switch was worth it for me.
TheMusician
Well-known member
Noel, that may have been one of the best posts I have read in awhile. Thank you for your valued input. I have been following these boards for years and enjoyed your past work on both the XH-A1 and the HPX500.
As I mentioned in an earlier post, I live in Indianapolis. Unforunately, it is very hard to rent cameras here in this price range(only broadcast camera are easy to get), so I am really shooting for the "best-bang-for-the-buck" - or in the case of videographers, the "most-situations-covered" camera. Thanks again for your thoughts.
As I mentioned in an earlier post, I live in Indianapolis. Unforunately, it is very hard to rent cameras here in this price range(only broadcast camera are easy to get), so I am really shooting for the "best-bang-for-the-buck" - or in the case of videographers, the "most-situations-covered" camera. Thanks again for your thoughts.
philip bloom
Veteran
No regrets for me. Selling my HVX and buying an EX1 was best thing I ever did. It isn't Magic Bullet Looks that makes my footage look like it is. It's a combination of many factors. I have done some lovely stuff out of a naked EX1 too, not just with the Letus...
TheMusician
Well-known member
Phil, it is always great to get a reply from you. I hope you were not offended by my mention of Looks, because we all know what beautiful images that you have produced and that a lot more is involved in getting them. I realize that it is a combination of many things like DoF, lighting, picture profiles, composing, post, as well as many other things that make your footage truly professional. But your images do have a warmer, fuller feel in the color than most EX1 footage I've seen and I remembered you saying that you color correct with Looks which is why I mentioned it. To hear that you have had no regrets is very reassuring and I appreciate you taking the time to post.
I suppose it would be highly unlikely that you have shot a wedding with the EX1/EX3, but if you have shot any concerts or venues with a medium amount of flash photography, I would love to hear how much of an issue it turned out to be for you (you got me pretty excited when you posted about the firmware upgrade improving flash, too bad it didnt turn out that way). Thanks.
I suppose it would be highly unlikely that you have shot a wedding with the EX1/EX3, but if you have shot any concerts or venues with a medium amount of flash photography, I would love to hear how much of an issue it turned out to be for you (you got me pretty excited when you posted about the firmware upgrade improving flash, too bad it didnt turn out that way). Thanks.
I've been struggling on this too. Ex1 or HPX170.
However, I'm a very happy HVX200 user. After much tought... I will skip the current generation of HD cams (ex1, ex3, HPX170) and wait for the "Scarlet Generation".
If I had no camera, tough, I would probably go... HPX170. Like a fellow DVXuser used to say in his signature, the HVX/HPX is "the swiss army knife" of videocameras. It shoots in DV, DVCPRO 50, DVCPRO HD 720p and DVCPRO HD 1080i/P, it has variable frame rates, is absolutely wonderful in post-production. (Two years ago the HVX, P2 and DVCPRO HD where the best possible transition from my former SD workflow- could still use my G4 and PowerMac G5 for edit realtime without the rendering issues of HDV- and I missed the HDV format incompatibility phase which affected all NLEs)
I, however, do a lot of varied work, from TVC's to Event Coverage, so I need a camera that is not probably the ultimate performer, but a reliable all rounder that keeps up in every scenario of video production. The EX1 undoubtedly excels in DOF, Video sharpness, Lens and Low Light. Which means that I f I was only to shoot narrative/ filmmaking projects, I would go EX1. But it does have its issues and limitations. I tried an EX1 and couldn't provoque a rolling shutter shot that I consider unnusable, but it exists and In cities full of Neon and flashes like Asian cities, its a gamble I can't take- at least if this was to become my only camera.
As an HVX200 owner tough, If I had the money to buy a new camera now, it would be the EX1. Since I already have a "swiss army knife", I would keep the HVX for certain jobs, and would use the EX for Indie filmmaking/Documentaries. However, the jump is just too "little" from the HVX to the EX1. So "Scarlet"- a year away, I know- it is
.
However, I'm a very happy HVX200 user. After much tought... I will skip the current generation of HD cams (ex1, ex3, HPX170) and wait for the "Scarlet Generation".
If I had no camera, tough, I would probably go... HPX170. Like a fellow DVXuser used to say in his signature, the HVX/HPX is "the swiss army knife" of videocameras. It shoots in DV, DVCPRO 50, DVCPRO HD 720p and DVCPRO HD 1080i/P, it has variable frame rates, is absolutely wonderful in post-production. (Two years ago the HVX, P2 and DVCPRO HD where the best possible transition from my former SD workflow- could still use my G4 and PowerMac G5 for edit realtime without the rendering issues of HDV- and I missed the HDV format incompatibility phase which affected all NLEs)
I, however, do a lot of varied work, from TVC's to Event Coverage, so I need a camera that is not probably the ultimate performer, but a reliable all rounder that keeps up in every scenario of video production. The EX1 undoubtedly excels in DOF, Video sharpness, Lens and Low Light. Which means that I f I was only to shoot narrative/ filmmaking projects, I would go EX1. But it does have its issues and limitations. I tried an EX1 and couldn't provoque a rolling shutter shot that I consider unnusable, but it exists and In cities full of Neon and flashes like Asian cities, its a gamble I can't take- at least if this was to become my only camera.
As an HVX200 owner tough, If I had the money to buy a new camera now, it would be the EX1. Since I already have a "swiss army knife", I would keep the HVX for certain jobs, and would use the EX for Indie filmmaking/Documentaries. However, the jump is just too "little" from the HVX to the EX1. So "Scarlet"- a year away, I know- it is
.
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philip bloom
Veteran
actually I shot my best friend's wedding 3 months back on two ex1s. Looked superb but the flashes were bad, the new firmware def improves the problems but doesn't eliminate it!
Would be great to have this, especially if it includes 4 channels of audio. Any idea when?
philip bloom
Veteran
first i have heard of it. But everything is possible and more than that v likely. The competition is hotting up from unexpected corners and there are also problems with certain major HD broadcasters refusing to accept 4:2:0 35mpbs so am sure it would be in Sony's interests to bring out a camera which does what the broadcasters want...After all SXS can record 50Mpbs 4:2:2 as proven by the add on for the new 700 XDCAM camera.
TheMusician
Well-known member
Phil, I imagine being your best friend, that they were likely more aware of video issues than most. Did they notice or comment on the half frames, did you point them out, or did you choose to edit them out?
philip bloom
Veteran
No, she is not technical. Nobody noticed them and I left them in. I could have "fixed" them if I had more time but I didn't!
TheMusician
Well-known member
SPZ, I am in the same exact boat as you are. If the Scarlet was available today, then this post would not exist(at least not from me) But I have to buy a camera in the next couple of weeks for some upcoming work, so I really can't wait. But when Scarlet arrives, I will be there.
philip bloom
Veteran
when is the big question...with them starting again from scratch it will be some time before we get to play with Scarlet MK2! Can't wait of course as am sure it will be full frame 35mm with interchangeable lenses. it will have to be to compete with the burgeoning DSLR video market...