HPX250: Does Expanded Focus Assist Work While Recording

[David Saraceno]

I had a shoot yesterday, and attempted to use the expanded focus assist button while recording.

Unlike the HPX170, it did not work.

It did work, however, when the 250 was not recording, on standby.

Am I missing a setting, or is this a difference between the 250 and 170?

 

[Barry_Green]

Nope, doesn't work during recording. It is one of the many differences between the 170 and 250. Other differences including having to power the 250 down between recording mode changes, and the 170's ability to swap MCR format by holding down the joystick button on a red-numbered thumbnail, and for that matter, the whole thumbnail menu system -- the HPX170 can have its thumbnails turned off and then you can bring up all sorts of menus when in MCR mode, but the HPX250 doesn't work that way. All playback menus are only present with the thumbnails displayed. HPX170 has a dedicated button for EVF DTL and LCD, HPX250 doesn't, HPX250 is 10-bit output, HPX170 is 8-bit, HPX250's knee works in cinegamma modes and HPX170's doesn't, and just on and on. They're vaguely similar but there's a lot of difference between them. Let's put it this way -- I just revised my HPX book to remove the HVX and add the HPX250, so the prior book was HVX&HPX, the new one is HPX170&HPX250, and the book grew by something like 30 pages. There's a lot of difference between these two. There's enough similarity to keep them under the same roof, but there are whole sections dedicated to one cam or the other.

Old-timers are used to the DVX, then the HVX being an HD DVX, then the HPX170 being a revised HVX, etc... but the HPX250 is a different animal, running different processing, with different menu controls, and designed by a different team. The AG team designed the DVX/HVX/HPX170, but the AJ team designed the HPX300/370 and HPX250 (even though it's in the AG series, it was designed by the AJ team).

 

[David Saraceno]

Thanks Barry.

Couldn't find the setting, and for a while I thought I had a defective cam.

Kinda of like to use the focus assist while shooting, but it's a tradeoff.

 

[Barry_Green]

I definitely like to use it during recording, but it's the same way on the HPX300/370 -- when you start recording, the magnified focus assist disappears. On the HPX170 it was different, it was a magnified box within the frame so you still saw some of the screen at normal res and could see your frame boundaries, but with the 250/300/370 it takes over the full frame, so you'd have no idea what your framing was when using the magnified version.

Still, I do wish it was possible to use it during recording.

 

[soarprod]

I was confused as well and thought something was wrong because the manual states that it works during recording.

Thanks Barry.

Couldn't find the setting, and for a while I thought I had a defective cam.

Kinda of like to use the focus assist while shooting, but it's a tradeoff.

 

[David Saraceno]

I saw that as well.

It says:

"EXPANDED: (FOCUS ASSIST button)
Trebles the size of the center of the image. The status indication and the zebra pattern disappears and EXPANDED appears at the top of the screen.
EXPANDED

The EXPANDED display is available only during recording and does not work in external input mode."

Wonder if was taken out.

 

[Mike Warren]

Wonder if was taken out.

I suspect it's just a typo. It doesn't make sense for it not to be available in record-pause mode, which is what that statement would mean if it was to be taken literally. I'm disappointed it's not there too.