thinking of getting a new camera for production work. its between the panasonic HVX 200 and the Sony HVR V1?

Question

the camera is to be used for shooting documentaries, indie stuff, shorts...etc. have used and like the panasonic DVX 102B. but i've been given funding and wanna upgrade. looking for ruggedness, durability, and a camera that can get me as close to 35mm film look as possible.

Answer 1

The HVX200 is DVCPro25/50/HD. It must use expensive memory modules (P2 cards) to manage this large amount of data. You cannot record HD to tape with this camera, and must either use P2 cards or a connected portable hard drive (such as Firestore). The workflow is more complicated than recording direct to tape, but the image is very nice.

The HVR V1 (and other prosumer Sony cameras) is HDV, a highly compressed mpeg recording format, which was designed to be used with existing MiniDV tapes. In general, the HDV format is considered to be inferior to DVCPro25/50/HD, although it is easier to shoot as you can record HD on the tape and not deal with the all-digital workflow of using P2 cards or Firestore drives (the HVX200).

Ultimately, its up to you. But the general concensus is this: If you can make the HVX200 fit your needs: do it. Otherwise, HDV (Sony, Canon, etc) format is for you.

Answer 2

The Panasonic seems to have more bang for the buck BUT the Sony has HDMI outputs which the panasonic doesn't (for direct play on HD tiv sets)

AND I couldn't find any specs on the Panasonic CCD chips as to effective pixels.

SONY uses CMOS with 1,000,000 pixels, which is a little shy of what you need (about half.

ALSO the SOny is 1/4" while the Panasonic 1/3"

The Panasonic has more recording options and filming speeds.

I don't think either of these will come close to 35mm ECN at 100 ISO

But both are very good.

HD TV is 2 MP

The Sony is 1MP

The PAnasonic didn't state.

That panasonic offers a wealth of feature.

It, however, seems the Sony uses DV CAM tape sizes, while the Panasonic seems to use Mini-DV

Again this wasn't clear.

Neither made it TRULY clear if they record 4:2:2

Even though they CLAIM to be DV CAM it's DV CAM50 which I think is still 4:1:1

But let's face it you're not going to get better without goint to twice the price.

Understand DV CAM50 is still a 3-5X M-JPEG compression

The stuff that compares to film is a 2 MP 1/2" or larger CCD or CMOS that records to disk or tape in RAW 4:4:4 or 4:2:2 format with NO COMPRESSION.

That's in the 15-20K level.

Answer 3

First off, I have never used either camera before, but when I get the money, I am definitely getting the HVX200. The HVX200 records in DVCPRO HD, 24p Native recording (not 3:2 pulldown), has over- and under-cranking, and a 4:2:2 color space. Personally, I don't see why anyone wouldn't want this camera. And also, since you've used the DVX100B before, it'll be easier to use the HVX200, because it's essentially an HD version of the DVX100B. And the HVX200 pretty much offers all the film-look options you can get, plus it shoots in 1080p. Hope this helps!

--------------EDIT--------------------
Once again, I have no idea what Earl D is talking about. Panasonic made it very clear that it is capable of 4:2:2, and although it has the OPTION of recording in DVCPRO 50, anything you record in HD is going to be DVCPRO HD @ 100Mb/s. Not 50. And since you're going to be making films with it, who cares if it has HDMI ports or not? At least I wouldn't, considering all the other plusses. Also, Earl D has no idea what the HVX200 records on. MiniDV tapes? Yes, for SD, but not for HD. All in all, I think you should go with the HVX200. It's an awesome camera for the price, offers the best quality, and beats the Sony hands down. Again, I've never used either camera, but it's just my opinion.

Answer 4

I always trust any SONY product, they're much more durable and work great