Switch from HVX-200 to 7D?

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PAULNGUYEN

New member
I've read quite a bit about the 7D and have fallen in love with what it can produce in capable hands. My dilemma lies in leaving the HVX behind for the 7D. I have left shooting Broadcast behind for fashion/artist editorials and promo pieces. Is there any reason to hold onto the HVX? I have read users pro's and con's lists but indulge me here if you will. Thanks in advance.

Best,

Paul
 
Go forward, a friend of mine shot on HVX many years. He hired me with a 7D job. He says: Wow, your footage is a different league.

Go forward. Leave the HVX behind.
7D is a bit challenging (sound, ergonomics etc.) but absolutely worth your while.
 
I bought a 7D and I must admit, the learning curve was a bit steep but there is a lot of help here and elsewhere on the web. As an owner, I'd still like to get my hands on an HVX because of the variable framerates it offers, but I they are only 720P.

Check out this image that I found comparing the two with greenscreen footage. The compression is so different it looks like he's wearing a different shirt and this is from a camera costing 1/3 as much as the other.

7D_HVX.jpg
 
If you had an HMC-150, I'd say keep both.
It is good for anything long form.
The HVX-200 was/is P2 card limited (You can only shoot for as long as you have cards)
Unless you have 16 gig cards or better, you will be changing cards anyway, so it would be very similiar to pressing start on the 7D (only pressing start is faster than changing cards)
The HMC150, you can shoot for longer periods of time, and don't have to constantly change cards.

Good footage on the 7d looks amazing.
Handheld footage does not look so good.

Yeah, I had an HVX-200 and it has been long gone, never missed it because I bought an HMC150 to shoot longer things.

I just bought a 7D, and it is great, but will take longer to figure out how BEST to shoot with it.
You really need to stabilize the footage, which is why I am considering the stabilized lenses, and not going for the zeiss lenses others are using.

Zeiss lenses have great contrast, but seem soft in the edges to me, and are not stabilized, which defeats the reason for buying them for use on the Canon cameras, in my view.

Yeah I don't really see a need for the HVX-200 today, although that camera shoots a very distinct look. In 2010, there are too many alternatives, and the card swapping/runtime of P2 is both too expensive and short to make it a consideration.
 
I sold my HVX200 kit to build a 7D kit and haven't regretted it one bit. There is a whole different work flow, especially with audio, but there are many, many things I like the 7D for that the HVX200 just couldn't do:

1. It is a much smaller setup which means I can be much more discrete while filming. As well I don't have to lug near as much weight in gear around if on foot.

2. Much, much better in low light. My HVX200 was brutal in lowlight compared to this.

3. Shallow depth of field... I love having this option in my repoitre

4. The money I made on selling my HVX200 kit allowed me to outfit a 7D with lots of gear including audio solutions, z-finder and follow focus.

Also I'm guessing that the market is going to press futher and further into this type of shooting, which means money I invest in lenses and gear will retain their value longer, even as I change camera bodies down the road.

I have no regrets in selling my HVX200 for the 7D.

Mark Fogarty
 
If it's not a big deal to keep both, Id hang on to the HVX as it records great audio.

Not the best reason to keep hold of a camera of course, but still would come in handy!
 
i don't own either, i have an hmc150, and have to agree with the greenhornet.
i've been thinking a lot about dslrs and have considered selling my hmc for one, but i know the hmc will be such a useful camera for a long time to come, that i'd rather wait until i can afford a dslr without selling it off.
however, if you know exactly what your needs are (and your needs seem very clearly defined and focused) it sounds like a good decision to sell the hvx and make the change.
i think for your purposes you'll be so thrilled with the increase in production value that you'll look back and laugh about ever doubting it!
 
Look, I was a die-hard HVX200 guy, I did not want to let go. But I did and so far I do not regret it. I was terrified about the learning curve but I PM'ed a few people here and got some honest answers. The HVX is still a dope cam If I did not absolutely HAVE to sell mine I would have kept it. But I start a feature film in 6 weeks and I will let you know if I can get used to the form factor. I say GO FOR IT. You only live once If you don't like it sell it and go back.
 
I think there's a lot of talk about the aliasing with 7D, and obviously there is aliasing as others have proven. However, all video cameras have lots of aliasing, and/or compression artifacts, especially the latter. it's more noticeable than the 7D on stills for virtually any other video camera, pro or otherwise, that I have ever seen. Short of, of course, a Red, which costs 20K plus, or the other high end professional gear in that price category, and much, much more expensive.

Correct me if I'm wrong here, (I'm rebutting the only major complaint I've seen about image quality), but in terms of looking at a frozen video still to analyse it to death, the best quality I've ever seen is ordered as follows:

1) Film (70mm, 35mm, etc.) obviously high bit depths can be extracted in transfer as well.
2) Red cinema, which might change places with above when Epic comes out
3) Other high end gear like Sony F35, Viper, new Arri stuff, Panavision stuff, etc.
3a) Broadcast cameras for sports, don't really count.
4) Then, the 7D
5) Below that, I'd place some medium-end pro high-def equipment from Panasonic, Sony, etc. which costs a lot more than the 7D
6) All the prosumer Sony, Panasonic, Canon, etc; seriously look at a video still from them - compression artifacts, tiny sensors, lack of serious lenses, etc. etc. Almost all of it costs more than the 7D.

Most everything below the 7D is 8-bit depth, same as the 7D, as far as I know.

There are major operational issues with the 7D compared to video gear, such as heat, usability, etc. but most of those problems have fixes (some kludgy), but most of the shooters and artists are willing to do the fixes in exchange for better image (and cheaper price).

My .02, it's hard to go wrong. Might want to get the extended warranty, though.
 
i think it depends on what you shoot mainly. i shoot news, action sports, weddings, commercials and some short film stuff. greatest use, to least use in that order.

in my bag is a 7d and an hmc150. i did have an hvx, it was a great camera. but p2/firestore wasn't the best scenario for what i needed.

for breaking news, 7d stays in the bag. action sports, i mix between the two. weddings, mostly 7d with hmc150 for ceremony stationary cam. commercials, mostly all 7d. short film stuff, 7d.

and of course i've got a full audio rig for when rolling sound with 7d.
 
I sold my HVX200 and got a 7D. It's been fun, I'll tell you that much. Both have limitations. Both have advantages.

Carefully examine work from both cameras for the type of work you intend to use it for. The decide which you think has the most potential based on your confidence in your own technical prowess.
 
I have an HMC 150 and a 5D Mark II (the 5D is technically my wife's photo camera but I'm sorta borrowing it...a lot). I'm still working out the kinks with the 5D (e.g. sound, workflow) but am pretty much set on selling my HMC (with only 6 hours on it!) and getting either a 7D or a 2nd 5D.
 
PAULNGUYEN said:
I have left shooting Broadcast behind for fashion/artist editorials and promo pieces. Is there any reason to hold onto the HVX? I have read users pro's and con's lists but indulge me here if you will.
Click to expand...

I took a look at your latest work (http://vimeo.com/7720238) on Vimeo and I think that you are better off the HVX200... the 7D doesn't handle strobe lights and flashes very well at all. If you are going to be shooting fashion/artist promo video... it's nice to have the option.

I am in the same dilemma right now, but there will be crazy lighting on some of my shoots and I NEED them to look good. My HVX always handled strobe lights gracefully.
 
clumsy_cool said:
I took a look at your latest work (http://vimeo.com/7720238) on Vimeo and I think that you are better off the HVX200... the 7D doesn't handle strobe lights and flashes very well at all. If you are going to be shooting fashion/artist promo video... it's nice to have the option.

I am in the same dilemma right now, but there will be crazy lighting on some of my shoots and I NEED them to look good. My HVX always handled strobe lights gracefully.
Click to expand...

That hurt my eyes a little bit.

But you have a very good point. Flashes and strobes are not on terms with the 7Ds sensor and require some fixing in post.
 
try to get both. u'll have a short form and long form camera. Ideally it would be an hmc150 and the 7d though.

but as stated...7d isnt for everything. and if u have both it will still give u time to keep doing jobs with ur hvx while u learn to use the 7d properly. I mean the fact is u may end up hating the 7d workflow and then what?? sell it and have downtime with no camera? Or u may get the 7d and it will take a while to get the image u want and the workflow down, but u cant be doing that on people's jobs...so keep the hvx for a while, while u have the 7d (if u can).
 
I really appreciate the feedback and personal testimonial here despite the common topic.

I've read quite a bit in the last week on the variables involved with the 7D in terms of workflow, lens selection, rigs, recording audio, transcoding/post production, etc.

The 7D's strengths for me are the endless lens options, output and footprint.

What also excites me is better familiarizing myself with prime lenses which will translate well when working with 35mm cinema later.

My main concern with the 7D is capturing and sequencing audio but I'm sure I'll find a reasonable way to achieve this. The majority of my work is dubbed with music anyway.

In regards to my latest video on my Vimeo, I won't be working with strobes often or at all in the future so that is a non issue but I appreciate the point.

I may spend more time with pre-production and time learning the 7D but I've fallen in love with what it is capable of producing.

I'm going to post my HVX up for sale.
 
For the type of work that you're talking about, yes, I would be comfortable suggesting you switch to a 7D.

I recently sold my HVX so that I could jump into a 7D package - and most of the work I do is indie film. It's a VERY different way of shooting...so make sure that you have some time getting comfortable with the workflow and the post process as well.

The form factor is something you really need to get used to. There is no one way to outfit a 7D.

I'm beginning to show up to some of my client gigs with the 7D...it has scared more than one person, but once they see the footage they're happy. But, I do still have my HPX500 for when I need to just "look" the part of industrial video guru.
 
Before you switch, take a 7D and strap it to an HVX. Do some handheld shooting, then whip the cameras back and forth fast. Then whip them back and forth slower until you think both images are about equal. Watch the footage full screen. Shoot some footage of brick buildings, complex fabric patterns, and again compare the results. And of course compare the audio between the two.

Anyone who says you can replace an HVX with a 7D is kidding themselves. They are both capable of great results but the more I shoot with it the more I appreciate what an HVX and EX1 can do. I can shoot with a prosumer camcorder and not worry at all. The 7D requires an incredible amount of care to avoid getting burned by those moments when the aliasing rears its ugly head.

I would use both, because the 7D definitely shines on the shallow DOF shots. I would not go into a job using the 7D as the only camera. You might get away with it and not get burned, but at the end of the day it's not a pro camera, it's a still camera that happens to have a nifty video feature tacked on that's suitable for very specific situations. Perhaps the next generation will eliminate these issues, but for now the more I shoot with CMOS the more I miss and appreciate CCD technology.
 
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