i probably wouldnt use my hvx200 for weddings because of the low light issue.. i just wish panasonic would not have come out with an hvx200 until it fixed the low light problem.. i feel a bit like an idiot now that the hvx200a is out, i know things are constantly being improved.. but low light is something of a basic in an expensive camera.. i think it should have never been an issue, anyway apart from that.. i love my hvx its an amazing camera is all other aspects..
HPX170 for weddings?
- Thread starter TheMusician
- Start date
ProfessorU
Veteran
The HVX is rated at 320ASA, as sensitive as the RED One, for example. The 200a only adds a 1/2 stop, it's not like the HVX200 is garbage now!
I have seen the HVX200 used as a "second-unit" style wedding doc cam, and it did amazingly well. Getting full-frame slow motion can be really slick on a DVD.
puredrifting
Major Contributor
You obviously never shot with a BVP-70 back in the day. Top line camera with killer images, about an ASA 200. Very slow as were most of the older technology.
None of the sub-$10,000.00 cameras do what I would term great in low light. You need bigger chips, which are present in broadcast cameras. Even the EX-1, which is better slightly than the HVX-200a and HPX-170, isn't what I would call GREAT in low light.
Dan
I don't know the BVP 70 but I have been shooting a lot with the Sony DXC-D30. I don't have the ASA, but they were at least 2 stops better than the HVX200. You hardly ever needed gain at all, while with the HVX200 my lowest gain setting is 9dB when I shoot for tv - you have to use it as soon as you shoot in a tungsten-lit surrounding. Normal room lighting, not extremely dark. You never needed gain for these situations with the D30...
I can remember when it was really dark I sometimes used 6dB gain so that I could use 2.8 instead of full open, because with full open the DOF was just too shallow for wide shots. LOL, good old times...
Last edited:
i agree 100%! my main complaint is just that a camera in the price range of the hvx in my opinion should not have low light problems.. and for panisonic to come out with a 200a model shows that it was a concern for a lot of people.. apart from that i know the capibilities of the hvx and how you can get very very professional looking pictures from it, i use it mainly for short films and scenery footage in which it does an amazing job & i constantly receive comments on how great the quality of the footage is.
There's a lot more to the 200A/170 that totally redefines the camera's image, but let's talk lowlight:
1/2 a stop faster and (this is an odd way to measure but...) about 6 to 9dB cleaner means the HVX200A is theoretically 1.5 stops or so faster than the HVX200 when considering noise, which is an issue.
You could shoot CineD and 6dB of gain all day and never realize that your gain is on. This is such an extreme situation for the HVX200 but for the 200A and 170 it'll be incredibly common I bet.
I wouldn't hesitate, now, to shoot a Wedding with a 35mm Adapter and HVX200A. In CineD and with 9dB of gain if I needed to eck the extra light So long as the taking lens was moderately fast, I'd do it in a heartbeat.
I personally wouldn't with an HVX200 but the 170 and 200A? No doubt.