HPX300 in use - Behind The Scenes videos

Jason R. Johnston

Jason R. Johnston

Well-known member
Hi, everyone! I've been using the 300 quite a bit since I got it and finally got to use it on a fun project: a TV spot for a local film festival. The premise is a guy running through several genres of movies to promote the film festival's 36 hour film race. Part of the spot requires a zombie horror scene and a Vietnam War action sequence.

The link below will take you to my blog with the videos. The video about the horror shows the 300 in use as I give timing cues to a female zombie and undercranking a hand-held "hero approach" shot ala Evil Dead. There's more info in the blog post, but feel free to ask away right here with any questions.

The point is: the Panasonic 300 is taking a LOT of abuse (I finished a beach shoot with it yesterday) and it works flawlessly (as flawless as the 300 can be) and I like it very much.

http://jasonrjohnston.wordpress.com/2009/08/03/behind-the-scenes-cinesol-2009/
 
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I'd love to see the finished shots in HD !

Looks like a fun project .. zombies are always a good
shoot ;-)

jeff
 
I enjoyed the link. I am considering purchasing a 300. Sounds like you really like the camera! Any issues?
 
jmarkham said:
Looks like a fun project .. zombies are always a good shoot
Click to expand...

We weren't planning on a bunch of zombies, other than the girl that attacks our hero. But, at the location there was an actual teenage girl slumber party happening and some of the girls volunteered to be made up. I did the makeup and had no idea what I was doing! It was a lot of fun!

I'll put the finished 60 second Director's Cut of the spot online in HD as soon as it airs.
 
Doc said:
Sounds like you really like the camera! Any issues?
Click to expand...

None so far, other than what has already been discussed about the camera (rolling shutter and all that). As it is, I'm not zoomed in enough for that to happen, and I upgrade firmware religiously so there's been no banding issues or anything like that. The 300 is an awesome, very efficient camera, that when used properly will give you some great images without busting your wallet.

I come from much heavier full-size cameras so the lightness of the 300 is fantastic. My Zacuto rod support mount just arrived and I'm looking forward to the added weight brought on by the mattebox. Weight=stability, as we all know. And since I have a belly, I can balance the 300 quite well for shots that need a dutch tilt, as the video shows. :)

Compatibility with the R-series and new E-series P2 cards is exceptional; again I'm keeping the firmware up-to-date.

The full rig has shot hand-held war footage and been used on the beach in a matter of hours without complaining. Sand is everywhere and the seawater gummed up the rubber but the camera works fine and the rubber seals work splendidly. It's putting up with pro abuse very, very well.

The Fuji lens performs well in the field. Manual controls are exactly what they should be. Feels familiar in my hands. Easy to adjust quickly in the field while "under fire".

Even with the LCD out 99% of the time, the 300 sips on Dionic batteries very efficiently.

If I had a complaint, I'd think that the weight of the full rig might not be heavy enough for dolly shots on DIY dollies without an operator riding with, but that's what sandbags are for.

I bet the 300 works awesome on a Steadicam. I'm going to find that out pretty soon.
 
Jason, thanks for the info! I am glad to hear that you enjoyed working with the camera and that it handles being appropriately abused. I shoot natural history and wildlife /environmental field research docs, here in SE Alaska. A major concern that I have is how the 300 would hold up to working in the field under less than ideal weather conditions. Sounds like with the proper weather mitigating gear, it would work just fine. Thanks again for taking the time to share your experience. It was most helpful!

Doc
 
Finally took time to see them. The only problem shot was the right to left pan in the zombie segment. RS was very evident. Other than that, excellent.
 
My original HPX301 is now four years old and still a superb working camera, it is now being put into service in SD mode for our new local TV service but has done all sorts of work from UEFA champions league soccer in SD and HD to full feature drama production.

It still has a years warranty on it and I just love the way it all works and even though it's SD the DVC Pro workflow from P2 to an old powerbook G4 running FCP 5.04 is a dream for fast turnaround local news and features operation.
 
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