Comparison between Hpx300 & PDw335 !

B

Big Brother

Carbonite Member
Hi All, are there any test footage comparing the results of HPX300 vs PDW335 !

I know
- 1/3 vs 1/2
- AVCintra100 vs MPG2 35mbps
- Solid State vs Rotating circle media
- 1/3" standard mount vs new non standard 1/2" lens mount
- what else has to be prooven thru Footage TEST !
- panasonic vs SONY

Hoping some more analysis !
 
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Doesn't the PDW-F335 retail for about two times the cost of the HPX300? (I know the list is $15k but I don't think it is discounted as much as the 300 seems to be and the 300 is retailing for $7,700.00 with lens - how much does a good 1/2" lens for the Sony cost? Also, does anyone offer 1/2" CAC lenses for the Sony?) The XDCAM discs versus P2 are two totally different workflows and philosophies. I guess it would depend on if you are a freelance shooter who needs to hand of footage to producers immediately after shoots? It kind of boils down to buying removable one shot media versus buying P2 cards, then lots of hard drives.

The codec in the 300 wipes the floor with the Sony codec. AVC Intra is pretty impressive. We are cutting a show right now that I shot on the 300 and the director and editor are in love with that codec, it looks amazing. But the codec isn't everything as we all know. Picture quality is a lot. Ergonomics and workflow count.

I wrote a story on Troy Wilson, a PDW-F350 shooter in Arizona for the latest issue of HD Video Pro Magazine, the article is called, "Everyday HD People", you might learn some good reasons why he bought it. I am not sure what the differences are between the PDW-F335 and the PDW-F350, perhaps a Sony fan can enlighten us?

I have seen footage from the camera, have never shot with it though. Footage looks good. Here is a B-stock from Overstockpro.com http://www.overstockpro.com/item.php?k=PDW-F335&id=276&gclid=CNTLtZ2TlJoCFRwDagodUgxCNA

Let us know what you learn.

Dan
 
$7800 street price vs. $13,000 street price
Free lens, vs. $7600 lens
(or, put another way, $7800 with lens, vs. $20,600 including lens)
 
Thanks for clarifying that Barry, since I sold my BVWD600 years ago, I know nothing about Sony cameras, other than the EX1/EX3 I shoot with still. They introduce new models every week and I can't keep up ;-)

Dan
 
Dan,

Did you go ahead and order the HPX 300, or are you in a holding pattern ?

I'm in a holding pattern (temporary ?) for the time being.
 
While I really liked the HPX300, I have to approach this is as businessman. I have three projects booked at the moment. None of them will care or will benefit if I shoot them on my HPX170 vs. an HPX300. I will probably do what I should be doing, wait until I have a project that will pay for it. In the meantime, that is about $40k worth of projects that I can do with my 170 that is already paid for.

So holding pattern. I am just happy that there is work right now. As far as my stuff, I am also hesitant to shoot more than just pilots/sizzle with the 300 because if we actually sell a series, I doubt if they are going to let us shoot on the 300, it would more likely need to be a 2/3" camera.

It is tempting though, it is so inexpensive and such a good deal.

Dan
 
Similar story here.

Similar story here.

puredrifting said:
While I really liked the HPX300, I have to approach this is as businessman. I have three projects booked at the moment. None of them will care or will benefit if I shoot them on my HPX170 vs. an HPX300. I will probably do what I should be doing, wait until I have a project that will pay for it. In the meantime, that is about $40k worth of projects that I can do with my 170 that is already paid for.

So holding pattern. I am just happy that there is work right now. As far as my stuff, I am also hesitant to shoot more than just pilots/sizzle with the 300 because if we actually sell a series, I doubt if they are going to let us shoot on the 300, it would more likely need to be a 2/3" camera.

It is tempting though, it is so inexpensive and such a good deal.

Dan
Click to expand...

I'm in a similar position. Although I'm sorely tempted, I don't have any work in the immediate future that would benefit from the 300 over my paid for 170. Given the economic circumstances that are prevailing (and most likely will intensify), the 300 is a bit of a stretch to justify as a "must have " camera... quite yet. If the economic climate was different, there would be little to hold me back from taking the plunge.

The only other remaining concern is the concern with objectionable skew. It appears that a fix is no longer in the works from Panasonic, so it's a matter of determining if I can live with the skew, or if I would regret buying the camera as a consequence of this issue. For now, I'm going to absorb as much data on the issue ( watch footage) and see what comes of it.

Speaking of skew...

Some here have voiced concern that it becomes evident even during hand held shooting, more specifically under even moderately rough verite shooting . During your transit shoot did you see anything to validate this concern?
 
thx for quite some info. I wish if someone could have done a parallel tech comparison easing the whole swallowing process for me. As I am bit confused between these two cameras. Budget wise i will have to stretch for 335 but then i stand to gain the CCD advantage but also will loose the AVC/Lots of $$$/ etc so its a winsome-loose-some situation.
 
I've thought a lot about what to do right now. Since my main event to shoot is this November, I've decided to wait. For what? Either a Canon/Sony response, and of course the Red Scarlet. When I purchased the HVX200, it was a no brainer. However, today we can see that the Pandora's Box has been opened (Canon 5d Mark II, Sony EX3, even Panasonic Gh1, etc.). We are very close to a very considerable jump in Quality in the below 12k price point.

While the HPX300 is a wonderfull camera, capable of excelent broadcast results, its probably not what I aim for in my next purchase. I'll go to HK to test it again next week, but I'm fairly set on waiting.
 
Comparing the HPX300 with a camera at least twice the price? Even the HPX500 is less with a decent lens than the PDW335.

I would rather consider the 500 vs pdw 335 as it has:
2/3" cs 1/2"
Dvcprohd 100 vs mpeg2 35
4:2:2 vs 4:2:0
2/3" bayonet mount with a lot of lens choices vs 1/2"
P2 Vs Xdcam
 
i want o make a pure technical/quality comparison. between these two cams as both are within my budget. But i want to decide sensibly.

Cox HPX300 has only ONE MAJOR ISSUE ---- ROLLING SHUTTER a curse for event shooter in strobe lights, fast disco lights, etc etc.
 
Big Brother said:
Cox HPX300 has only ONE MAJOR ISSUE ---- ROLLING SHUTTER a curse for event shooter in strobe lights, fast disco lights, etc etc.
Click to expand...

Panasonic has compensated for the Rolling shutter problem for strobes via a firmware update, that is no longer an issues at all. To even the trained eye, that issues is fixed.

The problem is NOISE and SKEW... now those are problems!
 
Giuseppe Pugliese said:
Panasonic has compensated for the Rolling shutter problem for strobes via a firmware update, that is no longer an issues at all. To even the trained eye, that issues is fixed.

The problem is NOISE and SKEW... now those are problems!
Click to expand...

Oh WAOH, Have you seen & have any footage shot on HPX300 with the FLASH BAND COMPENSATION update yet ?

it shall mean a lot to me :D
 
Jan demoed it for the Fresh DV guys at NAB. Research it on the Pro Video Coalition or the Fresh DV website. Looks pretty cool.

Dan
 
http://provideocoalition.com/index.php/freshdv/story/nab_2009_panasonic_hpx300/

Waoh, seems pretty impressive. I think this is what event shooter have been dreaming on for this camera. i feel i dont have any thing to compare between 300 & 335 except for the PIX quality

Earlier the cameras had resolution lines but in HD realm how does one understands PIX quality between 300 & 335 units. Which camera will give much sharper pix & other components.

But i still wonder how do it works. cox a flash is in just one frame not necessarily spread over two frames. So what makes the FBC update work it out ??? Couldnt get much from what JAN was trying hard to explain. May be m bit HARD nut & need some more boiling.

:D
 
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Re question on difference between PDW-F335 and the PDW-F350? One has variable frame rate (over/under cranking) I believe. I also think it has more video output options. Been a while since I looked at them though. BD
 
interesting comparison

interesting comparison

1/2 inch to 1/3 inch chips Cmos to CCD. I am looking at buying a 300 but a used 350 is also a possibility. For me though DVCPRO 50 vs DVCAM is a big deal as a lot of my work is still SD and I am done with DVCAM ! CMOS I can live with cause my shooting style is a little more static and I don't shoot much sports.

I don't know what the DOF difference between 1/2 inch and 1/3 inch are though, coming from 2/3 inch I am not sure how these two sizes differ.

I am also not a fan of long Gop after editing many HDV projects, DVCPRO HD and AVC INTRA are much easier to work with and time is money.
 
DVCAM = 4:2:0 color space
DVC Pro50 = 4:2:2 color space

Bottom line is DVCAM is Mini DV at a faster transport speed. DVC Pro50 is basically the equivalent of Digital Betacam. Big difference there. If you shoot mostly static compositions and not a lot of sports, the 300 may be an ideal camera for you. Do you shoot where flashes are going off a lot? The Flash Band Compenstion looks pretty good to my eyes.

Dan
 
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