After reading a review on the HC7 and watching the footage from http://www.fxsupport.de/21.html - it is clear that the HC7 is probably worse than HV20 in low light.

However, I have not seen any low light footage comparison between the HV20 to the HC3/5 yet.

I tend to like the Sony colors than the Canon but low light performace is also important to me.

I will appreciate if anyone can point me to such a comparison with footage to support the results.

Thanks in advance,
Asaf.

Hello Asaf,
I don't have any side by side footage yet, but I'll tell you my experience.

Specifically in low light party/reception situations, the HC7 picture does not hold up. Footage of dancing and conversation in a white tent illuminated with a few strings of white lights hung around the roof produced useless footage. Similarly outdoor footage lit with a few candle lanterns and ambient light was useless. The PD170 produced useable images, as did the HV20 set to 24P with shutter at 1/24th.

The HV20's images were darker than the PD170's, but still useable. As you may notice from my signature block, I decided to sell the PD cams in favor of the overall pleasing performance of the HV20 in low light, the increased level of control offered by the HC7's spot metering and spot focus, and the generally more beautiful imagery available with HDV.

That's a quick summary. Let me know if you have specific questions. I'll have some frame grabs later once I begin working on the projects.

best