PXW-Z150 first impressions

[James R. Wilson Sr.]

Normally I wouldn't take a new camera out of the box, charge the batteries and immediately put it to work, but I went out on a limb with this new camera and I'm very glad I did. The menu is very similar to my X-70 and my FS/7, the form factor and general control placement felt good so I decided to roll the dice.

My experience in this industry pales in comparison to most of you here so it is no try intent to contradict anyone, but I love this camera so far. I'm digging into the footage from my first assignment with it and will have some clips for you to look at in a day or two. The shoot was challenging, as always, with lots of moving parts and changing light. The Z-150 performed wonderfully, and I'm pleased that I made the investment. I have a mint X-70 with a Samaurai Blade and extra batteries for sale.

Here are some stills to set the stage.....

[Paul Anderegg]

I am finding the Z150 to be much better at doing my active live shots, particularly the iris ring, that makes such a difference!

Paul

[James R. Wilson Sr.]

I agree Paul, the layout is much more professional!

[Paul Anderegg]

Originally Posted by Sverrir Fridriksson

I'm really excited to see more test footage out of this camera. It's a bit over my budget but I have been looking at gear like the NX100 and haven't seen anything that really impresses me. a killer cam might just have me throwing some extra cash on it. Also looks like I can use the same batteries as I have on my V1e.
I'd really like to have a see some HD footage (not downscaled 4K) as I don't see me using 4K in any of my work for the next 1-2 years. Nice to be future proofed in some way, though.

Here is some 1080p footage for you, shot in 1080p XAVC 50Mbps. Looks just as bland and lifeless as X70 footage in the dark. Every clip out of this camera is identical to my eyes to an X70......I cannot stress that enough.

Paul

Color corrected

YouTube (Short URL)

[Jim Stamos]

Pictures are the same but coming from an ex with a true focus,iris ring,that's crucial for me and worth the extra 600.00
I shoot totally manual and the focusing and little iris knob on the 70 don't cut it,especially the infinite turning ring.
I'll probably get the 150,still pondering the fs5 now that they have a fix for that 18 105 lens issue.

[Sverrir Fridriksson]

Originally Posted by Paul Anderegg

Here is some 1080p footage for you, shot in 1080p XAVC 50Mbps. Looks just as bland and lifeless as X70 footage in the dark. Every clip out of this camera is identical to my eyes to an X70......I cannot stress that enough.

Thank you for this!

[John Nantz]

With regard to the “infinite turning ring”, a possible solution might be something like the Focus-One from Edelkrone:
Home: https://www.edelkrone.com/eu/
Focus-One: https://www.edelkrone.com/eu/p/504/focus-one

It has a set of lines that can be matched up and if it’s setup so that they’re lined up when the lens is on Infinity then one would be good to go with the infinity focus.

[Frederic Berger]

Originally Posted by Jim Stamos

Pictures are the same but coming from an ex with a true focus,iris ring,that's crucial for me and worth the extra 600.00
I shoot totally manual and the focusing and little iris knob on the 70 don't cut it,especially the infinite turning ring.
I'll probably get the 150,still pondering the fs5 now that they have a fix for that 18 105 lens issue.

I am curious how you came up with the $600 difference, is it between the Z150 ($3,200) and X70 ($2,250 with 4k option)?

[Paul Anderegg]

The Z150 is infinite turning as well, but the telephoto infiniti to macro turns are only about 1/4 now, not several full rotations liek the X70.......MUCH improved there!!!


Paul

[Jim Stamos]

when i handled it at nab paul, it seemed like my ex, i zoomed in and focussed quickly didnt turn it much at all. the x70 def isnt like that.
on the 600.00, i thought the x70 was 2,000 plus 500 for the 4k upgrade. so actually 700.00 difference.
either way, id get the 150 cuz of the lens setup, thats what im used to, and that difference in money will easily be made up on one job for me.

[Paul Anderegg]

The X70 is not "tripod friendly" AT ALL......in fact, it is quite a PITA to adjust things on a pod, with that LCD tilted things get blocked.

Paul

[James R. Wilson Sr.]

Finally getting some time to look through my Z150 clips from my air to air mission last week. The camera performed remarkably well in the low light at the end of the shoot and the color and quality of the footage straight out of the camera seem very pleasing. I don't use auto focus much, but for this shoot I used it throughout, never it lose track for even a split second. Much as I like my X-70, I couldn't rely on the focus tracking, especially as the light dropped off, not terrible, but noticeable. The Z-150 followed my acrobatic subject wherever he went, and tracked the biz jet perfectly for 40 minutes.

The following day I was with The Blue Angels and I found the same reliability. By the time the sun had set on my first day with the Z-150, it had paid for itself.

[Paul Anderegg]

The more I use the Z150, the more I like it. Really gotten used to the controls, so my "active" exposure transitions in night ENG situations and really improved my video quality.......no more popping gain ups and down all the time, and no more wobbling camera as I focus at full telephoto!

I also NAILED some new custom color correction PP4 settings, for the ones posted a long time ago for the X70. I now have alterations that allow me TRUE direct from camera color correct footage, unlike my X70, which always required a bit of massaging. The changes were color 1 modification +5 instead of +7 for phase, and master phase +1. Last setting change was white balance off-set for +1 R. With those, everything just looks right, and no more greenish tint/hue. I am also running black gamma LOW +7 and master black at -1. This works amazingly well for low light where you need to see shadows next to a brightly lit subject, or keep the background from turning superblack while shooting a talking head with a camera light. Black gamma HIGH + 7 really is very bad for low light ENG work, especially with the lack of highlight handling of this sensor. May work well in the day, but not at high gain at night.

Paul

[Paul Anderegg]

Something to note, the top handle zoom rocker is of a fixed speed variety, there is no variability with pressure application. Also no top record button lock switch.

Menu note, the sound menu ncludes an on/off limiter, and a -/+ offset for level for each channel.

Paul

[Paul Anderegg]

Here is some more night ENG Z150 4K footage.......this time, the detail was left at default of 0, instead of maximum!

YouTube (Short URL)