Shooting weddings with small handicams

Noa Put · July 19th, 2013, 05:56 PM

ok, one more before I go to bed :)

better example here, all church footage (incl slidershots), indian ceremony and speeches is cx730, steadicam is canon 550d. you might not notice but the speeches where done at 21 to 24db gain as I had to zoom in and it was dark, you can see some motionblur as some shots where at 1/25 shutter)

Also the balcony shot in church was a sony xr520, again shooting at high iso as it was dark in the church.

James Manford · July 19th, 2013, 06:08 PM

Yep seen these videos, didn't realise most of the footage was from the CX730 ... with your creative vision, this tool is all you need Noa !

James Manford · July 19th, 2013, 06:10 PM

No video light ? do you use the video light at any point ? I was also suprised by how bright this little LED light actually is !

Noa Put · July 20th, 2013, 12:47 AM

I have used the inbuild videolight but think only twice or so since I have the camera, it's not dimmable which makes it too bright in some occasions.

James Manford · July 21st, 2013, 03:16 AM

Noa, another question, in the video above (indian wedding).

The slider shots you initially do in the church. Do you turn of image stabilization for these? as I noticed the footage is clean without any choppiness. I was told when ever using a camera on a tripod or stabilization device to turn of image stabilization for a smoother look.

And do you film everything in 50p ?

Noa Put · July 21st, 2013, 09:27 AM

I am not sure anymore but I think it was still on, when the lens is fully wide the ois doesn't have much negative impact but when you are on a tripod and zoom in you could end up with a unusable image if you pan or tilt and leave the ois on, the image will bounce all over the place trying to correct when you stop panning. It's actually easy to see, just try it out and you"ll see what I mean, the further you zoom in, the worse the camera will try to correct. I have ois set to a touch button on the lcd screen so it's quick and easy to have it on or off.

I do film in 50p only now.

Chris Hewitt · August 6th, 2013, 10:58 AM

Noa and James, I have managed to get a CX730 and it's a great camera. Can either of you suggest the best render setting with footage shot at 1920/50P....I'm using Sony Vegas Pro 11.
In comparison to my Panasonic AC160 in a side by side half screen test, the pans on the 730 have a fair bit of strobing as if it had been shot at 24 or 25P. That's not happening with the Ac160.

Peter Rush · August 7th, 2013, 04:39 AM

I am looking to replace my Panasonic TM900 cameras for next season for Sony cams to match up with my EA50 and VG20 - i cannot find CX730 cameras anywhere at all. I love the low light of the TM900 cams but need much tweaking in post to match my Sony cams

According to Amazon they have been replaced with Sony PJ650

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sony-PJ650-F...keywords=cx730

Anyone had hands-on with this camera? Slashcam rate it better than the CX730

http://camcorder-test.slashcam.com/c...vergleich.html

Steve Game · August 7th, 2013, 07:09 AM

Peter, I have the 730 and it certainly fits the bill for me. I see that the camera is unpriced on the Sony UK website so I imagine that they regard it as discontinued. The PJ-650 is a lower spec camera than the 730 so not sure what Slashcam are claiming. The 650 has a 1/3.9 inch sensor (quarter inch then!), whereas the 730 has a 1/2.88, (bigger than 1/3 inch and almost twice the area).
To get 730 optical performance, you need the PJ-780 which also brings 32GB internal memory and a projector. The mic. system has also been redesigned.

Clive McLaughlin · August 7th, 2013, 07:49 AM

Peter, when I got mine on ebay about a month ago, the only place I saw it was £860on Tesco Direct. I can't see it anymore, so maybe the last remaining stock in the UK just sold in the last few weeks.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news!

Peter Rush · August 7th, 2013, 08:43 AM

Well I'm happy to keep using my TM900 cams for the rest of this season and will look around in the new year for replacements

Pete

Peter Riding · August 7th, 2013, 12:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Peter Rush

Well I'm happy to keep using my TM900 cams for the rest of this season and will look around in the new year for replacements

Pete

Same here, though if I were buying again I probably wouldn't bother with the version with the onboard solid state drive as 32gb class 10 Sandisk cards are only £25 each.

It appears that some TV stations are now equipping their journo's with similar models. Looks ominous for the cameraman sound guy director and journalist crews.

Pete

Noa Put · August 7th, 2013, 12:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Peter Rush

According to Amazon they have been replaced with Sony PJ650

the cx730 is not produced and sold anymore, the pj 780 replaced it, should have the same performance but appears to have a much better on board microphone.

Noa Put · August 7th, 2013, 12:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chris Hewitt

Noa and James, I have managed to get a CX730 and it's a great camera. Can either of you suggest the best render setting with footage shot at 1920/50P....I'm using Sony Vegas Pro 11.

I edit 50p in a 25p timeline in edius, then export as a hqavi file for further handling in tmpgenc authoring works, works fine for me, no abnormal stutter is visible during pans.

Chris Hewitt · August 7th, 2013, 01:02 PM

Thanks Noa, I'll try that. I noticed that the camera wants to default to a shutter speed of 50 on it's best quality setting although I can set it for 100 but using manual exposure seems to overide it.
I was thinking of trying a shutter speed of 100 to overcome motion effects when panning but haven't had the chance yet.

July 19th, 2013, 05:56 PM	#211
Noa Put Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Belgium Posts: 9,510	Re: Shooting weddings with small handicams ok, one more before I go to bed :) better example here, all church footage (incl slidershots), indian ceremony and speeches is cx730, steadicam is canon 550d. you might not notice but the speeches where done at 21 to 24db gain as I had to zoom in and it was dark, you can see some motionblur as some shots where at 1/25 shutter) Also the balcony shot in church was a sony xr520, again shooting at high iso as it was dark in the church. Vimeo

July 19th, 2013, 06:08 PM	#212
James Manford Trustee Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: London, UK Posts: 1,393	Re: Shooting weddings with small handicams Yep seen these videos, didn't realise most of the footage was from the CX730 ... with your creative vision, this tool is all you need Noa ! Last edited by James Manford; July 19th, 2013 at 07:33 PM.

July 19th, 2013, 06:10 PM	#213
James Manford Trustee Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: London, UK Posts: 1,393	Re: Shooting weddings with small handicams No video light ? do you use the video light at any point ? I was also suprised by how bright this little LED light actually is !

July 20th, 2013, 12:47 AM	#214
Noa Put Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Belgium Posts: 9,510	Re: Shooting weddings with small handicams I have used the inbuild videolight but think only twice or so since I have the camera, it's not dimmable which makes it too bright in some occasions.

July 21st, 2013, 03:16 AM	#215
James Manford Trustee Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: London, UK Posts: 1,393	Re: Shooting weddings with small handicams Noa, another question, in the video above (indian wedding). The slider shots you initially do in the church. Do you turn of image stabilization for these? as I noticed the footage is clean without any choppiness. I was told when ever using a camera on a tripod or stabilization device to turn of image stabilization for a smoother look. And do you film everything in 50p ?

July 21st, 2013, 09:27 AM	#216
Noa Put Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Belgium Posts: 9,510	Re: Shooting weddings with small handicams I am not sure anymore but I think it was still on, when the lens is fully wide the ois doesn't have much negative impact but when you are on a tripod and zoom in you could end up with a unusable image if you pan or tilt and leave the ois on, the image will bounce all over the place trying to correct when you stop panning. It's actually easy to see, just try it out and you"ll see what I mean, the further you zoom in, the worse the camera will try to correct. I have ois set to a touch button on the lcd screen so it's quick and easy to have it on or off. I do film in 50p only now.

August 6th, 2013, 10:58 AM	#217
Chris Hewitt Major Player Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Broadstairs,Kent, England Posts: 225	Re: Shooting weddings with small handicams Noa and James, I have managed to get a CX730 and it's a great camera. Can either of you suggest the best render setting with footage shot at 1920/50P....I'm using Sony Vegas Pro 11. In comparison to my Panasonic AC160 in a side by side half screen test, the pans on the 730 have a fair bit of strobing as if it had been shot at 24 or 25P. That's not happening with the Ac160.

August 7th, 2013, 04:39 AM	#218
Peter Rush Inner Circle Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: UK/Yorkshire Posts: 2,069	Re: Shooting weddings with small handicams I am looking to replace my Panasonic TM900 cameras for next season for Sony cams to match up with my EA50 and VG20 - i cannot find CX730 cameras anywhere at all. I love the low light of the TM900 cams but need much tweaking in post to match my Sony cams According to Amazon they have been replaced with Sony PJ650 http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sony-PJ650-F...keywords=cx730 Anyone had hands-on with this camera? Slashcam rate it better than the CX730 http://camcorder-test.slashcam.com/c...vergleich.html

August 7th, 2013, 07:09 AM	#219
Steve Game Major Player Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: London, UK Posts: 353	Re: Shooting weddings with small handicams Peter, I have the 730 and it certainly fits the bill for me. I see that the camera is unpriced on the Sony UK website so I imagine that they regard it as discontinued. The PJ-650 is a lower spec camera than the 730 so not sure what Slashcam are claiming. The 650 has a 1/3.9 inch sensor (quarter inch then!), whereas the 730 has a 1/2.88, (bigger than 1/3 inch and almost twice the area). To get 730 optical performance, you need the PJ-780 which also brings 32GB internal memory and a projector. The mic. system has also been redesigned.

August 7th, 2013, 07:49 AM	#220
Clive McLaughlin Major Player Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Belfast Posts: 823	Re: Shooting weddings with small handicams Peter, when I got mine on ebay about a month ago, the only place I saw it was £860on Tesco Direct. I can't see it anymore, so maybe the last remaining stock in the UK just sold in the last few weeks. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news!

August 7th, 2013, 08:43 AM	#221
Peter Rush Inner Circle Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: UK/Yorkshire Posts: 2,069	Re: Shooting weddings with small handicams Well I'm happy to keep using my TM900 cams for the rest of this season and will look around in the new year for replacements Pete

August 7th, 2013, 01:02 PM	#225
Chris Hewitt Major Player Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Broadstairs,Kent, England Posts: 225	Re: Shooting weddings with small handicams Thanks Noa, I'll try that. I noticed that the camera wants to default to a shutter speed of 50 on it's best quality setting although I can set it for 100 but using manual exposure seems to overide it. I was thinking of trying a shutter speed of 100 to overcome motion effects when panning but haven't had the chance yet.