Canon XH-A1s VERSUS Canon DSLR's (60D/7D...)

T

tom1597530

Active member
Hello. I am very confused guys. Recently, I wanted to buy Canon 60D. But my buget unexpectedly went up to $4000. I was so happy, and so stupid that I ordered Canon XH-A1s, instead of Canon 60D. But this morning I woke up, and realised, what screwup I did...

Canon XH-A1s is a professional camcorder, but it's old and it records on tapes and it's quality is much worse than the DSLR's.

So I am in a confusion. I want to be doing short movies like 5 - 10 minutes long, and occasionally 30 - 50 minutes long.


SHOULD I CANCEL THE ORDER AND BUY RATHER A DSLR, OR SHOULD I TAKE THE XH-A1s?


And please tell me reasons, all cons and pros, why should I decide like that? Thank you :))
 
tom1597530 said:
it's quality is much worse than the DSLR's.
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This is a highly debatable statement. There's too many nuances for me to give definitively say that one has better quality than the other, but I would consider going with the A1S. The A1S will surely have better resolution, no moire aliasing, and more options to customize the image. But the DSLRs will have better low light performance, better dynamic range, and obviously more DOF control. For me, one of the major benefits of camcorders is that they're much more straightforward to work with than something which was not designed to shoot video. Some of the well established custom presets for the A1(S) can really help to give a less flat looking image also, to the point where in most cases, I wouldn't want to shoot on a DSLR even if I could.
 
OK, thank you very much :) I will go for the A1s. There's still an opinion to buy a lens adapter, so I can increase the quality and the DOF :) Thanks :) You helped me a lot.
 
I owned an A1 and sold it and now use a t2i. I love it. Yeah, it's not a video camera but I love how small and discrete it is; it also shoots nice stills. The DOF makes a worlds difference and the footage it produces look more "filmic". I don't regret the substitute at all.
 
Don't let anyone tell you the xha1 cannot produce filmic images. I have the xha1's and a regular xha1, I also have the gh2, and t3i. There's the thing, If you spend some time with the canon xha1, you can create a custom preset with neutral settings, this will help when color grading your footage. I also set up a low light preset that works beautifully with 6 decibel of gain, there's no noise or grain at all. You can also get a shallow dof if you zoom in the lens. You just have to move away from the subject. You can also use a dof adapter, Redrock m2 encore looks beautiful with the xha1. I use a citidisk and firestore to record to cf card, So I don't worry about the time it takes to capture footage from tape. 60D has low resolution, about standard def, but it uses aliasing to create an illusion it has more. You can only record 4 gigs on the canon dslr's which is not a wise choice for doing any type of event footage. I say keep it, give it a chance. even though it's been around for a long time, it still impresses me from time to time.

I can make a short video for you showing the capabilities this camera has.
 
WoW! :)

WoW! :)

maranfilms said:
Don't let anyone tell you the xha1 cannot produce filmic images. I have the xha1's and a regular xha1, I also have the gh2, and t3i. There's the thing, If you spend some time with the canon xha1, you can create a custom preset with neutral settings, this will help when color grading your footage. I also set up a low light preset that works beautifully with 6 decibel of gain, there's no noise or grain at all. You can also get a shallow dof if you zoom in the lens. You just have to move away from the subject. You can also use a dof adapter, Redrock m2 encore looks beautiful with the xha1. I use a citidisk and firestore to record to cf card, So I don't worry about the time it takes to capture footage from tape. 60D has low resolution, about standard def, but it uses aliasing to create an illusion it has more. You can only record 4 gigs on the canon dslr's which is not a wise choice for doing any type of event footage. I say keep it, give it a chance. even though it's been around for a long time, it still impresses me from time to time.

I can make a short video for you showing the capabilities this camera has.
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I really like your post, you give me hope, that it is a great camera even though I hear lots of pros in the DSLR's.

I would be really thankful if you would do the video. If you have time to do one, I will really appreciate it :)
 
Morox said:
I owned an A1 and sold it and now use a t2i. I love it. Yeah, it's not a video camera but I love how small and discrete it is; it also shoots nice stills. The DOF makes a worlds difference and the footage it produces look more "filmic". I don't regret the substitute at all.
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Yes, I believie it can produce beautiful video, that's why I'm confused. But all the cons - MOSTLY the Rolling Shutter combined with a HUGE Shakiness just make me think twice
 
maranfilms said:
I also set up a low light preset that works beautifully with 6 decibel of gain, there's no noise or grain at all.
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No noise at all? I know the PFVISION preset greatly reduces noise and gives way better highlight rolloff, but it comes back at 3 decibels. You might have to share that one.
 
I have both XH-A1 and 60D. If you want make a film, you must use lights. 60D is fine for closeups with shalow DOF, but for another shoots you need a better camcorder (60D has aliasing, poor resolution, problem with sound). XH-A1 is not good for me, becouse it hasn't a full raster (and picture has a lot of noise). If you need one camcorder, try XF100. It has 422 colors, 50Mbps and full raster. And you can used 600D as a closeup camcorder (7D is best, because you can have a preview on an external monitor, it is fine for right focus).
 
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maranfilms said:
Don't let anyone tell you the xha1 cannot produce filmic images.
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It certainly can, but I just love the looks of DSLR's. I think they personally look better than anything the A1 can shoot even with proper lighting. There's a reason people have been disbanding their video cameras.
 
Cancel as soon as possible!!! Believe me - the XH-A1 is nowadays a big mistake!!!

Choose for this price something like the :

1. Panasonic AF-100 or
2. Sony Nex-FS100
3. A Canon DSLR
4. Panasonic GH1 or GH2
4. Sony NEX-7

In terms of low light performance E.T.C.

everyone of the listed cams - just BEATS the XH-A1!
 
mediaplexx said:
Cancel as soon as possible!!! Believe me - the XH-A1 is nowadays a big mistake!!!
Choose for this price something like the :
1. Panasonic AF-100 or
2. Sony Nex-FS100
3. A Canon DSLR
4. Panasonic GH1 or GH2
4. Sony NEX-7
In terms of low light performance E.T.C.
everyone of the listed cams - just BEATS the XH-A1!
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A $4k budget won't cover an AF100 or FS100. And again, it's very debatable whether DSLRs (the latter 3) beat an A1S.
 
Ok, so... OMG I'M SO CONFUSED!!!

I am from Slovakia and lots of good cameras can't be bought here. I would buy DSLR's if it didn't have problems with stable footage. I don't know what stabilizer to use (I don't want the Flycam and Steadicam principle - I need a shoulder rig)... I agree, that DSLR's HAVE GOT BETTER QUALITY, but they are not built to be used as a camcorders, and THAT's what confuses me!
 
The site from where I ordered the A1s still didn't get the money I sent them, so I have few days to consider, but I need your help.

ONLY REASON WHY I WENT FROM 60D TO A1s IS THE FACT, THAT I DONT KNOW WHAT SHOULDER RIG - NOT VERY EXPENSIVE - WOULD STABILIZE THE FOOTAGE THE BEST AS POSSIBLE. NOBODY ANSWERED THIS QUESTION, SO I DECIDED TO BUY A CAMCORDER.


If you will give me a relevant reason to buy a DSLR, I WILL DO IT! But I need to know, why... 'cause I'm very confused and time is running out! I have only few days to decide!
 
Shoulder rigs exist for DSLR's. Look at these: http://store.redrockmicro.com/Catalog/DSLRShoulderMountedRigs

or cheaper setups here: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/buy/Digital-SLR-Video-Stabilizers/pn/2/ci/3926/N/4289358072+4288580242

You wont get a clear cut answer. Determining whether or not you want a video camera or a DSLR is solely based upon your needs and wants. You're right, they aren't built specifically to be used as a video camera but they've come a long ways in the past few years in terms of manual controls.
 
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Get a used Sony EX1 and you'll have a 3 chip camera with nearly twice the video resolution (and none of the moire) of any of the cameras previously mentioned, plus the video camera features you'll miss if you go with a DSLR. The EX1 has bigger sensors than the A1 too.

I still like the A1s for crane work as the CCD chips don't skew on fast pans the way the CMOS chips do, but for regular shots the EX1 is superb.

If you go with a DSLR be aware that you will need to plan around increased skew, audio issues, moire, aliasing, resolution loss, short recording times (12 minutes usually), over heating, etc. Sure there are work arounds, but you need to use every work around for most things.
 
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Duke M. said:
Get a used Sony EX1 and you'll have a 3 chip camera with nearly twice the video resolution (and none of the moire) of any of the cameras previously mentioned, plus the video camera features you'll miss if you go with a DSLR. The EX1 has bigger sensors than the A1 too.
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The EX1 is a good camera... but it just doesn't look like film. I use EX1/EX3 all the time with DSLRs and side-by-side, with the same lighting and everything, they still have that low-budget student film look. They're also just really clunky and obtrusive to use. "Video cameras" just feel like old technology these days. I prefer the new-age "motion-devices" like the DSLRs and Red-DSCM. Much more flexible and easier to shoot with. The menu system of the EX cameras is also absolutely obnoxious... there's no reason to have that many switches and dials all over the freaking body... it's annoying as hell. I want all the controls, easily accessible, at my thumbs. I also hate switching to the stupid "media mode" on the EX3... it's so slow. The DSLRs have it right in this sense... just hit "play" and all the footage instantly loads up for you to flip through.

If you're planning on doing narrative films, music videos, ad's, and such... you're really doing a dis-service to yourself by going with a "video camera". It's just simply the technology of yester-year. You'd be going backwards. Even if you're getting a camera with "technically better" IQ.

Your making films for an audience... and they're not going to care that you're EX or HVX has 200 more line of resolution. They're just going to look at the overall image and go "this looks like a History Channel re-inactment movie". ...and that's just the truth.
 
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Well, yeah. I know that. But the problem is, that I had a look at the RedRock Micro EyeSpy DELUXE shoulder rig. I was very happy, so I started the "ordering process". But after I got to the adress combobox, there wasn't any Slovakia mentioned.

This is the biggest problem - that I live in Slovakia. If I would live in US, I would definitely go for the DSLR's. But I can't find any good stabilizer, that would fit my needs.

I am thinking very hard about the XH-A1s, but I know, that it can't produce such a great image quality as DSLR's.

But then I was also wondering - what if I buy a SGBlade lens adapter? Will it look good? Will it get at least a bit to the DLSR's quality?
 
tom1597530 said:
Well, yeah. I know that. But the problem is, that I had a look at the RedRock Micro EyeSpy DELUXE shoulder rig. I was very happy, so I started the "ordering process". But after I got to the adress combobox, there wasn't any Slovakia mentioned.

This is the biggest problem - that I live in Slovakia. If I would live in US, I would definitely go for the DSLR's. But I can't find any good stabilizer, that would fit my needs.

I am thinking very hard about the XH-A1s, but I know, that it can't produce such a great image quality as DSLR's.

But then I was also wondering - what if I buy a SGBlade lens adapter? Will it look good? Will it get at least a bit to the DLSR's quality?
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Adapters have a very "filmic" type of look you are looking for. I had an SGpro before but I hated assembling and disassembling it. It was a pain in the ass and not only that, you can expect to get quite a bit of light loss. One of the reasons I switched over to a DSLR was that it already had the "look" I wanted.

As for purchasing a shoulder rig, try the BHphoto website I put in my second link. They might be able to ship to you.
 
I don't know, but I'm really confused about it. The stabilizers on that site look very, I don't know, simple. I know, that the quality of DSLR video is better, but it's file size is 3 times bigger and there are lots of disadvatages.... I need to hear another point of view from someone else... I really dont know what to do...
 
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