Z5u?

K

killmaster

Active member
I'm new to this market but really need to get a camera that I can count on. I've been researching it a little and am considering waiting for the Sony Z5U with compact flash unit.

Originally I was thinking of the Canon XHA1 which I know is considerably cheaper.

I'll be shooting mainly documentaries and am interested in having a camera that does well in low light. Interchangeable lenses is not an issue really.

The main issue is finding an affordable tapeless camera. I doubt I could pay more than $5,000.

Is Canon planning on releasing a tapeless camera anytime soon?

Any cameras to look at or look out for?

thanks for any recommendations,

Greg
 
I forgot to mention that the reason I posted to this thread is that I'm also considering the V1U though I'd really like to have a tapeless system...
 
Z5u

Z5u

I have heard from a few people that this camera is going to be quite a bit like the Z1U. i don't know for sure, but, i'm going to be working with one of these in October. i'll let you know how it is.

still does HDV though. :p

tapeless canon? Vixia HF11... if you don't mind AVCHD... just import it as apple prores 422 and you should be ok. (i'm sure this info is elsewhere on this site)
 
The HMC150 is tapeless (records AVC HD to SD cards, not dissimilar to HDV) and I've heard it does reasonably well in low light.
 
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I'm also considering a Z5U. The camera is unique in that you'll get both tape and tapeless recording simultaneously. Also, it is said to perform very well in low light.

You might also take a look at the Z7U, since it includes the compact flash unit and has been on the market a while. Its price has dropped slightly.

It's time for Canon to update the XHA1. But so far, nothing has been announced.
 
Lens On HMC150

Lens On HMC150

HMC150 is an amazing camera with great image quality but it has its minuses. The biggest problem with HMC150 is the lens mechanism, they had the right concept of making a manual zoom lens but the way they built it is terrible. There is a gap in the gears so when you turn-wiggle the zoom ring when it is connected to the motor you can feel it and see it on the screen. Not only that, the little rod that connects the zoom glass to the zoom ring also has a tiny gap which is not that significant as the zoom ring itself provides the tiny resistance to the zoom glass which gives a nudge to the gap in the gears, creating a noticeably hard zoom starts and stops. Most notisable in the middle of the zoom range, when zoomed in then zoomed out. Also the slowest zoom speed is a little fast for my taste.

If smooth zoom is important to you, don’t consider the HMC150, because there is a way around the codec but not that many options around the bad lens mechanism.
Has anyone else noticed that? Does anyone have any suggestions around that?
 
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