Should I make a TM700 look "professional" or just buy the HMC40?

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dslr_sc

Active member
I'm in the market for a new video camera and was looking at the HMC40 but with the TM700 costing about $800 less I'm wondering if I really need all the extras in the HMC40. I'll be using the cam to record interviews, shoot sporting events and a few other paid jobs (but not weddings). Image quality is most important to me but second most important is, well, the image the outside of the camcorder projects.

Because the TM700 looks like a typical consumer handycam I'm afraid paying clients might not take me seriously if they see me using one. The HMC40 looks more professional, I think, because of the t-handle and lens hood.

So the thought occurred to me of adding a lens hood and shotgun mic to the TM700 to make it look more professional. Doing so would still keep it hundreds of $$ less than the HMC40.

I'm posting here to see if anyone else has done this and if so, do you have photos you can share of your "pro looking" TM700?

By the way, if you think I should forget my TM700 idea and just get the HMC40, please share your reasons.

Thanks!

PS: I know the TM900 is out but I don't see a huge reason to spend the extra dollars for it when supposedly its so close to the TM700 in image quality.
 
With the HMC40 you have easier control, better build, 1080 30 p, 720 which is better for down scaling to DVD, Lanc control
Not to mention the look which makes the TM700 look amateur.
The TM700 in the right hands can produce nice footage, but as a camera is far from the HMC40.
 
The HMC40 has the better control of the image AND if you know what you are doing (understand how to adjust the controls), you can get a better image. As for audio, an XLR adapter is a must have. True, people shoot without one, but XLR is the standard for professional audio.

The HMX80 costs a bit more and because of its larger size, will not be confused for an amateur camera. With the HMC80, the XLR is built into the camera. It's another camera to consider and if you want to shoot in SD directly, the HMC80 supports that.


Bob Diaz
 
The TM700 costs $750, so-so ergonomics, no XLR, issues related to color shift even in manual WB mode (google for "TM700 bondi blue"), built-in fan. The HMC40 costs $1,200-$1,300 on eBay, if you get lucky like me you will get XLR thrown in. Much better handling, tons of professional functions, but still small enough to use it as a hobby-cam.

I would not kit out the TM700 just to make it "look more professional", this is silly to me. The image it produces in 1080p60 mode is outstanding (save for WB shift issue), the image in 1080i mode is just ok, its 24p mode uses pulldown, so you will have to remove it if you want to edit it properly.

I vouch for the HMC40 for sheer ease of use, but if you shoot in controlled environment and do not have to rush things and can take time to focus and set up exposure and things like that, then the TM700 produces great video.

JT_Productions said:
Plus, the HMC40 provides excellent slow motion: http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?240113-Nerf-d-An-HMC40-Slow-Motion-Test
Click to expand...
The TM700 is even better because it is proper FullHD :2vrolijk_08:
 
Thanks for the feedback everyone. My decision was made for me today when I was in an electronics store and saw a floor model TM700 on sale for $550. I couldn't pass that up and got it. Been playing with it a little tonight and am very impressed so far. I may go ahead and order a lens hood and add a shotgun mic and if so I'll post a photo here so you can decide how "pro" it looks. LOL

When the time comes for me to get a second cam I'm thinking it will be a HMC40 so that I have the best of both worlds.

BTW, I forgot to mention in my original post that my idea was based on what Sony did with the CX550... adding a lens hood and shotgun mic to make it the more pro looking (and more expensive) model MC50.
 
$550 is a great price for the TM700, congrats.

The TM700 is more pro out of the box than the MC50 will ever be. The MC50 is just the CX550 with a hood, what a joke, and Sony dares calling it a professional camera. This is not a replacement for the HVR-A1, which is pro version of the consumer HDR-HC1.

I have the SD600, which is a simpler version of the TM700. Same lens and thread diameter. I have a 52mm hood attached through 46mm-to-52mm step-up ring and I see vignetting. You will need a rather wide hood for your TM700 I think. Older Panasonic camcorders as well as the HMC40 have removable housing with lens doors. The TM700 does not have it, so you cannot move the hood closer to the lens like you could on older models.
 
Compared to the TM700, the TM900 does offer a higher resolution LCD screen, better stabilizer and better cooling system.
It's too early to comment on the low light and color quality when you compare the 2.

I just wouldn't have necessarily ruled out the TM900.

Still, $550 for theTM700 isn't a bad price at all. Sometimes things like that will make your choices quicker. I wanted to get the TM900 badly just because of some of the advances we know so far but seeing Amazon putting a $300 price tag on the SD600 made me take the plunge.
 
CMcMahon said:
Get the TM700, strip it down, and rattlecan it flat black. Voila. Instant prosumerish camcorder.



I'm more than a bit confused as to why you'd shoot 1080i60 for a slow-motion test, when 720p60 looks significantly cleaner...
Click to expand...

It was more so a music-video type thing
 
I bought the TM700 awhile back and have used it quite a bit in places I wouldn't have used a larger camera. I don't shoot pro, but I do shoot for myself, and my company videos. Having used my DVX100a for a number of years, I really appreciate the absolute controls I have with it, but I can also say I absolutely love the simplistic shooting offered in the TM700. It presents a very good look of "real life" which I find I like alot, sometimes more then I would a well setup shot in some instances.

Here's a little footage edited down, shot from a recent gold prospecting outing I took with some of the fam. It was a very fun outing and we actually found a bit of gold. Good keepsake video.

Here's some easy links:

Colorado Mountain Gold -Part One-
(HD) http://youtu.be/Uy8z6n2OgEk?hd=1
(SD) http://youtu.be/Uy8z6n2OgEk

Colorado Mountain Gold -Part Two-
(HD) http://youtu.be/MppyVMmjAk4?hd=1
(SD) http://youtu.be/MppyVMmjAk4

Post a comment and give "Like This" if you care to.

Thanks for the looksee.

-Rodger
 
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