Sometimes getting a slow motion camera that performs to the spec you need and at a quality you can’t compromise on; means you have to get a professional piece of gear that is used but fully working. In that market you will still not find extremely cheap cameras but it will surely cost much less than what the hardware cost’s retail if you can live with a few scuffs or missing cables.
We have found a few options that are on the secondary market that fit the bill and these cameras offer exemplary performance and should perform reliably. Note that these are just recommended for you to look at and any decision to buy is your own. We are not responsible for any malfunction or transaction you establish with the sellers. We are only shedding some light on these options. → Continue Reading Full Post ←
While the equipment is daunting to the common man and probably the rental price is equivalent to the price of a mid size sedan; it should not deter you from taking a look. High speed is especially suited to this kind of robot as the quick and rock solid movements are ideal to control every angle during a slow motion shot that lasts a few hundreds of a second to few secs.→ Continue Reading Full Post ←
Announced just last week the Sony PXW-Z150 gets a lot of right for the low end pro video market. It has 4k 4:2:0 as many in the competitive price range of $3,595 MSRP. It has 4:2:2 1080p 10 bit at 50mbit which is a good surprise and it seems to be carried to the also included 120fps full HD 1080p slow motion mode.
The sensor is of the stacked kind and it is 1″ sized, the same as the ones in the RX100 IV and RX10 II from Sony which are really good at slow motion for a low price. However those full specs are not carried through in the high frame rate mode or HFR. It maxes out at 120fps 1080p instead of 240fps on the RX series in the 1k range and the FS5 which is a tad more expensive than the Z150.→ Continue Reading Full Post ←
What came as sort of a surprise and some mitigated anger to current recent owners of the camera, JVC announced that the JVC GY-LS300 4k, HD and SD capable camcorder will now be offered at $1,000 USD cheaper from a MSRP of $3,995 to $2,995. Furthermore it has a few new features added in a free firmware upgrade to current and new owners of the camera in April.
The update brings full HD 120fps capability to an already robust camera along with “JVC Log Gamma” recording mode. The camera offers a Micro 4/3 mount for easy use of different lens mounts including Canon and Nikkor lenses which is a big strength of this setup. Hundreds of adapted lenses can be used from almost any manufacturer. The JVC Log mode is supposed to increase dynamic range by 800%. We find that claim a little on the superlative side and probably will bring 2-3 real stops improvement in DR.→ Continue Reading Full Post ←
Panasonic has released the specs of a new smaller version of their Varicam professional video camera with an S35mm sensor. The Varicam LT is the low cost version of the Varicam 35 which has higher end specs at a significantly higher price. The Varicam 35 has a 4k mode that allows up to 120fps at full 4k resolution while the Varicam LT has less power at a maximum of 4k 60fps.
The LT is mostly identical after that 4k downgrade in the rest of it’s capabilities with dual native ISO of 800 ISO and 5000 ISO for extremely clean image quality at those native ISOs. The Sensor itself is built for those opportunities that need higher sensitivity but also allow to shoot at reduced sensitivity for bright conditions. This is great news for the use of the high frame rate feature. The inclusion of EF mount and PL signify the seriousness of the product for an installed base of videographers and film makers with a growing arsenal of Canon and PL glass instead of Panasonic only lenses. They also state that EF lens compatibility will need to be tested and they will not support it directly.→ Continue Reading Full Post ←
In our last post we looked at the HSC768 high speed camera project that had great performance and ergonomics including a jog wheel design and machined case. We asked the creator of the camera David Kronstein, who runs the Youtube channel Tesla500 from Vancouver Canada, a few questions regarding the future of the project and he kindly responded with some great insight. We may have a third competitor in the HD high speed camera market to go head to head with the edgertronic camera and the yet to be released fps1000 project.
While the camera is still in the lab stages, it shows a usable design with professional looking performance and a pretty lengthy buffer. There is a touch screen interface based on a stripped down Linux OS installation and DDR3 high speed DRAM 16GB worth that can do quite a good set of frames.→ Continue Reading Full Post ←
