Video noise

H

helloworld

Active member
Okay all:

Does a 35mm adapter cause a lot of noise in a camera, or is it just because of shooting in low light conditions? Does shooting with a very consumer camera create a reason for a lot of noise in not well lit areas? Thanks.
 
I am no expert so this is just my opinion. Noise is inherent in most small CCD or CMOS camcorder and this problem is noticeable when shooting in not well lit area. In fact I don't think there is any camcorder with small ccd or cmos having no noise. I have checked out one of Sony's high end prosumer camcorder with 3 CCD (HD format) and there is still some noise. You don't get noise when viewing tru an adaptor. But because of light loss, less light is received by your camcorder and if your camcorder is a consumer one, chances is the noise level will be much more than if you don't use an adaptor. Look for camcorder with large ccd or cmos (1/3 inch or 1/2 inch). These are prosumer level camcorder and hence more expensive.

A well lit area will help but if too much light is used, then the scene will not look natural. Hope that helps.
 
Definitely helps! Thanks for clearing that up for me!

I have a Samsung SC-D80 (look it up)... and well, it's HORRIBLE. So much noise it's ridiculous. I am still able to use an adapter (and a very good one at that), but the camera noise makes some shots not very sharp and just ugly.

Would upgrading to a Panasonic PV-GS250 be a good choice? Of course it's still a consumer camera, but it is 3 chips (and bigger chips) in comparison to my 1 chip horrible quality camera.
 
3 CCD camcorder gives better colour and tone throughout the video shots. Having a large 3 ccd camcorder will give both better colour and tone and less noise. But not all camcorders are made the same. You will find that some large 3 ccd camcorder will produce video with more noise compared to some single ccd camcorder. If all you want to do is shoot with a consumer level camcorder and you want low light ability, I would suggest going for camcorder that has a 1/3 inch single ccd or cmos (by the way, most camcorder these days have cmos sensor as oppose to ccd). I have no clue which camcorder will do a good job. Try checking out consumer camcorder review at www.camcorderinfo.com. They have very good reviews including low light performance. I own a panasonic mx500 and I have to admit most panasonic camcorders except for the top range have poor low light performance. I wouldn't go for 3 ccd camcorder if low light is what you want. A 1/3 inch single ccd or cmos camcorder will do a better job in low light condition.
 
Alex0607 said:
A 1/3 inch single ccd or cmos camcorder will do a better job in low light condition.
Click to expand...
Nope. It depends. Actually most video cameras nowaday are still using CCD and only recently with the V1U did Sony stepped up with the first 3 chips CMOS solution (even then it's only 1/4''). Low light performance is really a combination of chip size and hardware implementation with the camera (for example the VX2100 improves on the low light capability of the VX2000 despite having essentially the same chip). CMOS in general will perform better with a lot of light but worst in low light, but it's impossible to say on the basis of the chip size alone how good a camera low light capability is.

If you're looking for an SD camera that's good in low light then several excellent choices are the VX2100 or the PD170. Both are several year old models that have proven themselves in term of having low noise and good color reproduction in low lights. Certainly with the focus on HD cam these days it's unlikely that a camera will come out that can challenge these two in low light performances.
 
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Hi Jade,

Agree with you totally. I meant to say SOME 1/3inch ccd camcorder will do a better job. I think helloworld is looking at a cheap SD solution. I think the VX2100 and PD170 will be out of that price range. In fact are they still available in the market? Maybe can buy them as used then in that case they may be affordable. I wouldn't place GS250 next to VX2100 or the PD170. I have an MX500 panasonic and my experience is that noise is an issue with this camcorder and night shot is impossible without raising the gain.
 
Why not look at a used VX2000. I have one and I think the low light performance is pretty good. At some point though you have to settle for what your budget allows or borrow something better from someone else willing to let you borrow...
 
I think VX2100 can be found fairly cheap now. Recently I saw one on the Marketplace for $1200! If I had the cash back then I would have snap that up. I do the occasional live event work and it would have worked perfectly as a B-cam. What a shame that we can only expect the future cameras to snap up more lights instead of less than these older models.

I would really recommend helloworld to save up for the VX or something similar. Part if the reason it's so hard to control noise on the single chip cam is because most of those cameras offer very little manual control to begin with. Bump the exposure and it automatically pumps up the gain. The only 1/3'' single chip solution I know of are for HD cameras, which will actually perform worst in low light.
 
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Well Helloworld, you've got your work cut out for you. I myself is getting more confused as to which camcorder will be good for low light. Read the reviews at the website I posted earlier. I think it will help you to narrow down the choices.
 
I agree.

I'd buy a better camera (thousand plus) but only have 4-6 hundred dollars. GS-250 or 320 looks good I think.
 
heck yes!! lets get an adapter section on here, it's not like people don't talk about it enough.
 
Sorry to drift off topic ;), but does anyone know if the lower end 3 chip cameras are adequate in low light?

And yes, a 35mm adapter section would be great.
 
All the center shots of this dance performance (the top video) was shot with a GS250. The dance was very underlit through the first half and overall it performed surprisingly well. The footage was intercut with an FX1 side cam and the two cameras matched up well under low light, with the GS250 being somewhat softer. I suspect that's because the autofocus of the camera couldn't adjust very well under lowlight. When the lights was turned up in the last half of the dance you can clearly tell that the FX1 came out on top in term of sharpness and color reproduction.

http://youngsterproduction.com/projects.html
 
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I think that in comparison to what you are currently shooting with, any '05-'06 3CCD will be a noticeable step up. However, Panasonic has been stripping it's consumer models of mic and headphone jacks, so watch for that (the 320 has neither).

Also, since you use an adapter and are willing to spend $600, why not save up a bit more and get an HV20? 1920 x 1080 cmos sensor, 24p, supposedly rated for 3 lux. The adapter frees you from having to deal with the camera's poor zoom/focus controls.

Might be worth a look.
 
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