color reproduction of the TM300/700

[Rob deJong]

Hello,
I am wanting to buy the panasonic TM700, but I read some negative opinions about the color reproduction of the TM300 as compared to for instance canon HF S11. I film nature, so good colors are priority. I own the HV20 and love the colors. I guess I am just searching for some convincing evidence that the TM700 matches the canons. Would somebody be able to supply such? Doesn't have to be footage. Just some positive experience with either the TM300 or TM700.
Many thanks,
Rob

[Paulo Teixeira]

You probably saw these already but this thread has some of the first native 1080 60p files that you can download.
Panasonic HDC-HS700 & HDC-TM700 1080p60 cams - Page 5 - AVS Forum

I never owned a 300 or 350 series camcorder but I don't think you'll get much problems as long as you occasionally white balance and expose the shot manually. Their are a lot more picture adjustments in the camcorder so you can probably have a look that's better than the intelligent Auto mode.

Panasonic did say that they improved the picture quality in the 60i and 24p modes so perhaps the colors are better in the TM700.

[Rob deJong]

Thanks for your respons.
50 or 60p is nice for slowmo's but most of the time I will be shooting in 50i. Some footage in this framerate will be highly appreciated.

[C.S. Michael]

I'm a big fan of the HV20, and have used two frequently for the past three years.

Just got a TM700.... With regard to the colors... I've only had my camera a couple of days, but I like what I've seen so far. I've noticed that the TM700 does a much better job of recording color in lowlight environments. The TM700 lowlight image exhibits much less noise also.

I especially appreciate the 35mm lens angle of the TM700 -- much wider than the HV20, and it eliminates the need for a wide angle adapter (for me, anyway).

In short, in the TM700 I've finally found a worthy successor to the HV20.

[Martyn Hull]

my hv30 may not be as good in low light but i have yet to see better outdoor colour from a pana TM 300 link.

[Paulo Teixeira]

So how's the color in this?

Panasonic HDC TM700 raw file. on Vimeo

That's actually a native 1080 60p clip that you can download.

[C.S. Michael]

Overall I think TM700 color reproduction is outstanding.

The one bit of unusual behavior the TM700 exhibits with regard to color happens when the iA mode is first introduced to a new environment (assuming no manual white balance, etc.). There's a brief moment when the camera "reads" and adjusts the color in the scene. I have seen this behavior before in other Panasonic 3-chip cameras. Once it determines the correct color profile the colors are accurate and vibrant.

[Martyn Hull]

Originally Posted by Paulo Teixeira

So how's the color in this?
Panasonic HDC TM700 raw file. on Vimeo
That's actually a native 1080 60p clip that you can download.

Very good but watching on my pcs i see nothing better than my HV30s footage which does not need manual white balance as auto and outdoor settings are fine , and i have heard the pana needs manual for its best colour is this correct.
If i was going tapeless again and in the market for a new cam this exiting machine would be top of the list as i like so much ie the lens etc, this is a small cam can it take external mics like Rode video/stereo ones,cheers

some HV footage not mine though

NEPAL INHABITANTS on Vimeo

[Paulo Teixeira]

Just for the heck of it, here's another one.

panasonic tm700 1080p 50p native cats on Vimeo

Like the first one I linked to, this one is also native. Make sure you download it!

This particular one at the bottom is from the HF S21.
I'm very surprised that it's not getting very much hits even after I added it to some extra groups.

AFRICAN MIX HD on Vimeo

None of these videos are mine by the way.

[C.S. Michael]

I'm a big fan of the HV20/30/40 series and agree that they produce nice color. Where the TM700 shines is in low-light situations. With my HV20, low-light usually meant noisy video and washed out color. The TM700 manages to capture surprisingly nice color even in low-light.

[Rob deJong]

The colors in the tiger video with the TM700 are not bad, but in most clips the yellows are too red and (more disturbing) the greens are too blue and skies get greenish. I don't say that I need accurate colors, but they should be attractive. I'ld like to see a landscape or panorama without the cold blue shine. And then I would be interested in the settings.

[Paulo Teixeira]

Here's a couple of videos with greens. The first one looks like the person is trying to show that with an external mic, the fan noise shouldn't be a problem. The second video is the oppersite in that it's trying to give an example of how bad the fan is without an external mic. At least both videos give good examples even though it looks very cloudy in the second video. You can download the original 1080 60p file in both of them.
vimeo.com/11021284
vimeo.com/11017620
I know I'm getting a bit carried away.

You can always think about stuff other than the colors. For example if the camera is going to be on a tripod most of the time than it doesn't matter that the stabilizer of the Panasonic is better. Also if you ever plan on shooting in 24p, you won't deal with the pull-down and never mind the fact that if it' very quite, you may hear the fan unless you get yourself an external mic. In Panasonic favor, you get easier manual controls and better resolution and motion only in the 1080 60p mode I believe.

[Rog Mogale]

I use a TM 300 and I have to say that to get anything useable requires you shot everything in manual mode and have a lot of patience.

You have to do a white balance for every shot, unless the colours are way off. Even then I have a colour correction setting in my NLE for correcting the TM 300’s colour. The TM 300 seems to make most shots too blue and cold. The cyan is its main problem. I have to change both the hue (to –18) and the saturation of the cyan to get a true white. If not it’s a bluey white and that even with performing a manual white balance from a white card. If you just shoot in the manual setting for sunny day or cloudy day then I find the image produced completely useable. One way around the problem is to shoot with the cloudy setting even on a sunny day as that warms the image up a bit, but on cloudy days you’re back to correcting the hue and saturation of the cyan within your NLE.

I also find the TM 300 over exposes, so set the exposure to –2. I also set the sharpness control to –1 as well to take off of the artificial sharpening that’s going on.

For me the bottom line with the TM 300 is this. If you are willing and always have the time to do a manual white balance and are prepared to set the exposure manually, you can get some incredible results from the TM 300. You still may need to make a colour correction setting in your NLE for some shots that are a bit off but the images I get from my TM 300 are stunning. It also helps that I’ve seriously pimped up my TM 300 with a matte box, twin XLR inputs, Sony wireless receiver and Audio Technica mic with Rycote wind jammer. Even with all that lot its still a very portable and compact system that travels everywhere I do.

If you want point and shoot you are better looking elsewhere. If you’re willing to put the work in then you will get rewarded with the TM 300. I can render to DVD films I’ve made with the TM 300 and you won’t tell much difference from a pro production house movie. It takes time, planning and a good dollop of magic bullet look’s, but I can fool most people into thinking they are watching something that came from Hollywood when I get the footage from the TM 300 right.

Here are some pics of my pimped up TM 300

http://www.speakerplans.com/tm300a.jpg

http://www.speakerplans.com/tm300b.jpg

http://www.speakerplans.com/tm300c.jpg

Can anyone make these appear on the screen like you can do on every other forum out there.

[Rob deJong]

Looks cool. Thanks for sharing your experiences.
I have received the pan TM700 and send it back. I shoot nature and cannot deal with the cold blue footage.
No time to manually adjust all scenes. Basis colors should be good as with my old HV20. No pan for me.