An open letter to JVC and everyone @ the DV Info Community

[Heath McKnight]

I don't like the ghostly effects. I figured it was the little flip out monitor.

heath

[Ken Freed JVC]

We can not confirm such a comment whatsoever. And I really mean what-so-ever. This camera is being manufactured and shipped and sold still in a backorder situation. It is not being changed. There is not a hold on the product

May I ask a contact in New York or how can I speak to such a JVC rep?

You can understand it is one thing to have a camera that has certain attributes. It does certain things and some people can work within those limits and some cannot.

It is an entirely different matter to have things floating around the internet from un-named sources. If we know where such a thing comes from we can correct any misunderstanding or misinformation.

This is why I always have my name and company in plain sight.

[Chris Hurd]

Ken's reply above is in reference to this statement in Heath's post at the top of this thread:

<< my friend said his company cancelled two camera orders (HD10, of course) because, allegedly, their JVC rep told them (this is a quote from my friend): "they halted shipping due to many dissatisfied professionals and were attempting to rework the camera for a later release date." Obviously, it's a rumor until we find out the truth from JVC, hopefully by Monday July 7, 2003. >>

Well, there you have it, directly from Ken Freed at JVC, that there is NOT a hold on the camera, and unless that anonymous source can be identified by name, then it has to count as one of unfortunately far too many unsubstantiated rumors floating around on the net... exactly what I started this board to avoid. Hope this helps,

[Michael Hyun]

Hey guys, i'm new to this forum, but as an HD1 owner (for the past week) I can proabably participate a bit in these discussions.

First off, I have to admit I was a bit peeved when I found out these exposure controls weren't fully manual. If you look at JVC's website, it pretty much tell us:

"Shutter speeds range from 1/15 and the filmic 1/30, all the way up to 1/1000 sec. Iris can be set in the range of F1.8 through F22.0 plus Iris Lock function."

I don't know about you, but this led me to think that it was fully manual, not shutter/iris priority only. When calling their #

Professional Support Hotline: (800) 582-5825

I complained and inquired about a frimware upgrade, and was told that the camera is NOT malfunctioning and there is 0% chance that JVC will do anything to this current model. They did say that our complaints may be taken into consideration on future models.

As I am stuck with this model (I'm NOT gonna pay some 15% restocking fee), I guess I'll have to live with this limitation. I do agree that the auto exposure is pretty right on, so keeping it in shutter priority with iris compensation is not that bad a compromise.

If other owners are kinda peeved like me that you were kinda mislead maybe u should give the above number a call too. It might not do anything, but it will remind them that you exist. They take notes on the coversation and send them to engineering for future consideration.

[Heath McKnight]

I stand by what my friend Jon said, but I could never substantiate what the JVC rep allegedly said (don't forget I've been using alleged because, as Chris said in an earlier post, it's a rumor until we can confirm it). This never was a rumor found on the net; I mentioned to my friend I wasn't happy with the HD10's iris function and he said he and his company recently cancelled two HD10 orders, because of what this rep allegedly said. He doesn't gain anything by lying to me; I hope to rent his company's CineAlta for my next film!

I'm about to call Ken Freed, per the company who sold me the camera, to see what I can do before I return it. Hopefully it is a quick fix, and won't be something that may or may not work, as has been the case with some tips. (At least for me.)

Tonight, I try one last time with steve mullen's latest post on what to do with the S/A button on the lit set at my TV station (lit for hd, fyi). If things look good, I'll live with the S/A button. If people no longer look like ghosts, I'll be HAPPY!

Thanks to Ken for his honesty and straight-forwardness. It's appreciated.

Heath McKnight

[Steve Mullen]

<<<-- I got a little excited when Steve told us what to do, until it dawned on me that outside, light changes ALL the time, and I'll have to go through that damned thing over and over again as the sun disappears behind a cloud. -->>>

OH, you wanted to shoot your movie outdoors? :)


I believe you must lock shutter-speed. Then you must live with AE. Thankfully it is acurate. But without being able to quickly lock -- I think it's going to be very hard to avoid minor iris changes in a dynamic situation.

Having said this, I'll bet 75% of DV shooters use a AE and don't lock. So I'm not sure it really matters -- or is just a debating point. Looking at real footage -- I rarely see a fluctuation. Just spot on exposure.

However, just like a real filmmaker you may need fill lights or reflectors. And, you need to keep highlight areas under control -- just like the first TV shows where a spray was used to damp bright reflections.

In other words controlling light is part of the deal of getting the results you want. And IF you have control -- you won't have folks walking in front of the camera. (And, esthetically I wouldn't be zooming or panning either.)

Somehow, I suspect you are spending more time worrying -- because of the deadline -- than shooting and watching. Once you watch on a big screen -- your viewpoint shifts.

[Paul Mogg]

Actually you make and interesting point there Steve. One thing that hasn't been mentioned is that the HD1OU's iris changes are very smooth changes, not sudden jumps like on an XL1 which are very visible on the footage when you turn the wheel to change f-stops. In this regard it is a much better auto iris than on most DV cams.