HM700 Under Studio Lighting with Video at DVinfo.net

Donald Smith · June 17th, 2009, 11:34 AM

JVC GY-HM700 Shooting in Studio Conditions

I did a live shot for CNBC out of NBC's Dallas affiliate KXAS and rolled some footage on the HM700 to see how it looked under studio lighting.

Camera is set to Cinema Vivid and Color Gain =1. Original resolution is 1080i.

Don Smith
NewsVideo.com

Eric Deyerler · June 17th, 2009, 02:54 PM

It looks really good.
Which optic take you for this shot?

Shaun Walker · June 17th, 2009, 04:13 PM

Gorgeous, thanks for posting that.

You're clearly an experienced pro, so:

What do you think of the HM700 as far as video quality and main controls versus other HD cameras, true pro or high-end prosumer, that you've used? ... Thanks!

Donald Smith · June 17th, 2009, 04:37 PM

To answer a couple of questions...

The camera has the Fuji 17x5 lens on it.

I've been a network news cameraman since the early 80's and used Sony and Ike Betacams until not long ago. Since then, I've used a Sony HDCAM, XDCAM, Sony EX3, the other little Sony HDV cam...

Amazing to say it, but the HM700 is far better than the 40 and 50k 2/3" Betacams I've used in the past. Having said that, the 2/3" HD cameras of today are technically better than the HM700, but I dare you to find a regular person who could tell. Us geeks, seeing the video side-by-side, would note a difference, but I think the HM700 is so close in there that I'm just over-the-top happy with it. I did a demo yesterday to a guy who shoots with an XDCAM HD camera and he calls it "The Beast" because it's heavy at 25lbs and eats batteries for lunch. He gets 20 minutes from the same battery I get 3.5 hours from. Plus, the infrastructure required to use the XDCAM disc! He hates it! He covets my HM700!

Shaun Walker · June 17th, 2009, 04:48 PM

Sweet! I covet one, too :)

What do you think of the HM700 over the EX3?

Is the Fuji 17x5 lens a keeper or is their something similar in range and price that'd you'd prefer?

Does anyone even make a pro OIS zoom for a 1/3" interchangeable? Might be nice occasionally.

Svein Rune Skilnand · June 18th, 2009, 07:34 AM

Interesting reading. I too am interested in how the HM700 compares to the EX3 as I am in the market to buy one, preferably the 700 that is.

Eric Deyerler · June 18th, 2009, 09:45 AM

I ordered an HM700 with the new Canon 14x-Optic,
it shall rollout in Germany in the end of week 26 and
the customers at the beginning of week 27.

I got an EX3 (for an test), but I like the formfactor
of the HM700 really more, and the weight of the
EX3 will be heavy during longer shots.

Sean Adair · June 20th, 2009, 10:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shaun Walker

Sweet! I covet one, too :)

What do you think of the HM700 over the EX3?

Is the Fuji 17x5 lens a keeper or is their something similar in range and price that'd you'd prefer?

Does anyone even make a pro OIS zoom for a 1/3" interchangeable? Might be nice occasionally.

No OIS 1/3" lenses (yet), but I hear the 2/3" OIS lenses work with the JVC 2/3" to 1/3" adapter.

But, keep in mind that software image stabilizers have become MUCH better lately. I treated some telephoto handheld work just recently and was very pleased. With HD it's more forgiving to zoom into the image a bit.

For pure quality, I expect the 17x to be superior to the 14x, but the 14x has the slight width advantage, and is a bit more compact/lighter I think. See Tim's comparison.

Donald Smith · June 23rd, 2009, 03:59 PM

The Fuji 17x5 lens is doing just fine, thank you, but I think I would prefer the Canon lens only for the reason that it is a wider lens. On pro Betacams where the lens by itself is 18 to 20k, the doubler made up for the lens being wide. I was a little surprised at how the Fuji lens didn't focus as close as I'm used to. I have to engage the Macro function to focus closer, and of course, once you do that you can't change the focal length (zoom) of the lens and stay in focus unless you are a robot that can move the macro precisely in sync with the zoom.

I just did a commercial shoot and the resulting picture, I think, is just stunning, but I can't show you guys since it's a commercial in production. As soon as I get permission from the client, I'll post a link here. I shot a performer against limbo. The camera is in Cinema Vivid mode with Color Gain =1 and Black Compress = 3. In this case I compressed the blacks more than usual to give me a perfect limbo background by eliminating any specular variations on the black cloth backdrop. (For those of you who are learning, "Limbo background" is like Limbo; completely void of light and depth and orientation. Pure black. Read "Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy". :-) )

Simon Denny · June 23rd, 2009, 05:57 PM

I know the 700 is lighter on the shoulder compared to the larger cams but because it is lighter will this cause excess movement.

Images look great and would like to see some ENG stuff shot outside.

Robert Rogoz · June 24th, 2009, 12:18 PM

Donald, your skin colors were perfect in your settings. Much, much better compared to your first video you posted.

Donald Smith · June 26th, 2009, 12:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Robert Rogoz

Donald, your skin colors were perfect in your settings. Much, much better compared to your first video you posted.

Thank you. The skin color in the first video was too much in the edit room but looked great in the fold-out monitor on the camera. Lesson learned. This time, I didn't have the color boosted nearly as much.

As for eng shooting, that's what I did with the MSNBC live-shot video linked to above. It was all hand-held.

Donald Smith · June 26th, 2009, 01:01 PM

Just put up a time-lapse video of my daughter Deanna creating graffiti-style art on a canvass for her friend Sydni Vicious. Shot on my JVC GY-HM700 at 10 frames per second and then boosted 2000 percent in Final Cut. A 30-minute video at 10 frames per second is cut down to 1:25, the odd-number due to taking out sections where she takes a break and nothing happens.

Deanna Art in Fast Motion - JVC GY-HM700

Again, the camera is set for Cinema Vivid with Color Gain =1 and Compress Black is =1.

NOTE: Deanna put all the letters on one line at the request of the client who commissioned her, but after seeing it, the client paid Deanna more to re-do the picture with the first name on top and the last name on bottom to greatly improve readibility.

Don Smith
NewsVideo.com

Don Bloom · June 26th, 2009, 02:35 PM

Don,
just wondering though if your daughter might now wish she really could work that fast ;-)

seriously, it really held together well. very well done.

June 17th, 2009, 11:34 AM	#1
Donald Smith Regular Crew Join Date: May 2009 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 73	HM700 Under Studio Lighting with Video JVC GY-HM700 Shooting in Studio Conditions I did a live shot for CNBC out of NBC's Dallas affiliate KXAS and rolled some footage on the HM700 to see how it looked under studio lighting. Camera is set to Cinema Vivid and Color Gain =1. Original resolution is 1080i. Don Smith NewsVideo.com

June 26th, 2009, 02:35 PM	#14
Don Bloom Inner Circle Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 6,609	Don, just wondering though if your daughter might now wish she really could work that fast ;-) seriously, it really held together well. very well done. __________________ What do I know? I'm just a video-O-grafer. Don

June 17th, 2009, 02:54 PM	#2
Eric Deyerler Regular Crew Join Date: May 2009 Location: Schwabach (Germany - Bavaria) Posts: 199	It looks really good. Which optic take you for this shot?

June 17th, 2009, 04:13 PM	#3
Shaun Walker Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Eureka, Calif. Posts: 98	Gorgeous, thanks for posting that. You're clearly an experienced pro, so: What do you think of the HM700 as far as video quality and main controls versus other HD cameras, true pro or high-end prosumer, that you've used? ... Thanks!

June 17th, 2009, 04:37 PM	#4
Donald Smith Regular Crew Join Date: May 2009 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 73	To answer a couple of questions... The camera has the Fuji 17x5 lens on it. I've been a network news cameraman since the early 80's and used Sony and Ike Betacams until not long ago. Since then, I've used a Sony HDCAM, XDCAM, Sony EX3, the other little Sony HDV cam... Amazing to say it, but the HM700 is far better than the 40 and 50k 2/3" Betacams I've used in the past. Having said that, the 2/3" HD cameras of today are technically better than the HM700, but I dare you to find a regular person who could tell. Us geeks, seeing the video side-by-side, would note a difference, but I think the HM700 is so close in there that I'm just over-the-top happy with it. I did a demo yesterday to a guy who shoots with an XDCAM HD camera and he calls it "The Beast" because it's heavy at 25lbs and eats batteries for lunch. He gets 20 minutes from the same battery I get 3.5 hours from. Plus, the infrastructure required to use the XDCAM disc! He hates it! He covets my HM700!

June 17th, 2009, 04:48 PM	#5
Shaun Walker Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Eureka, Calif. Posts: 98	Sweet! I covet one, too :) What do you think of the HM700 over the EX3? Is the Fuji 17x5 lens a keeper or is their something similar in range and price that'd you'd prefer? Does anyone even make a pro OIS zoom for a 1/3" interchangeable? Might be nice occasionally.

June 18th, 2009, 07:34 AM	#6
Svein Rune Skilnand Major Player Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Fidjeland, Norway Posts: 289	Interesting reading. I too am interested in how the HM700 compares to the EX3 as I am in the market to buy one, preferably the 700 that is.

June 18th, 2009, 09:45 AM	#7
Eric Deyerler Regular Crew Join Date: May 2009 Location: Schwabach (Germany - Bavaria) Posts: 199	I ordered an HM700 with the new Canon 14x-Optic, it shall rollout in Germany in the end of week 26 and the customers at the beginning of week 27. I got an EX3 (for an test), but I like the formfactor of the HM700 really more, and the weight of the EX3 will be heavy during longer shots.

June 23rd, 2009, 03:59 PM	#9
Donald Smith Regular Crew Join Date: May 2009 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 73	The Fuji 17x5 lens is doing just fine, thank you, but I think I would prefer the Canon lens only for the reason that it is a wider lens. On pro Betacams where the lens by itself is 18 to 20k, the doubler made up for the lens being wide. I was a little surprised at how the Fuji lens didn't focus as close as I'm used to. I have to engage the Macro function to focus closer, and of course, once you do that you can't change the focal length (zoom) of the lens and stay in focus unless you are a robot that can move the macro precisely in sync with the zoom. I just did a commercial shoot and the resulting picture, I think, is just stunning, but I can't show you guys since it's a commercial in production. As soon as I get permission from the client, I'll post a link here. I shot a performer against limbo. The camera is in Cinema Vivid mode with Color Gain =1 and Black Compress = 3. In this case I compressed the blacks more than usual to give me a perfect limbo background by eliminating any specular variations on the black cloth backdrop. (For those of you who are learning, "Limbo background" is like Limbo; completely void of light and depth and orientation. Pure black. Read "Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy". :-) )

June 23rd, 2009, 05:57 PM	#10
Simon Denny Trustee Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Australia Posts: 1,409	I know the 700 is lighter on the shoulder compared to the larger cams but because it is lighter will this cause excess movement. Images look great and would like to see some ENG stuff shot outside.

June 24th, 2009, 12:18 PM	#11
Robert Rogoz Major Player Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Bellingham, WA Posts: 457	Donald, your skin colors were perfect in your settings. Much, much better compared to your first video you posted.

June 26th, 2009, 01:01 PM	#13
Donald Smith Regular Crew Join Date: May 2009 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 73	Just put up a time-lapse video of my daughter Deanna creating graffiti-style art on a canvass for her friend Sydni Vicious. Shot on my JVC GY-HM700 at 10 frames per second and then boosted 2000 percent in Final Cut. A 30-minute video at 10 frames per second is cut down to 1:25, the odd-number due to taking out sections where she takes a break and nothing happens. Deanna Art in Fast Motion - JVC GY-HM700 Again, the camera is set for Cinema Vivid with Color Gain =1 and Compress Black is =1. NOTE: Deanna put all the letters on one line at the request of the client who commissioned her, but after seeing it, the client paid Deanna more to re-do the picture with the first name on top and the last name on bottom to greatly improve readibility. Don Smith NewsVideo.com