RustyB
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Jun 2, 2008, 3:37 AM
Post #2 of 3
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Sony knows exactly what they are doing with their products/pricing. 
For me PERSONALLY (full time wedding videographer), here's a couple of things that come to mind. I've owned the FX1 and FX7(60i consumer version of the V1U), and shot with..well...just about every prosumer cam. 
FX1
PRO's: 1/3" CCD's...not bad in low light...very nice image (1440x1080).
doesn't need a wide angle adapter.
Nice big LCD.
Very nice manual controls.
CON's: 12X lens is too short for weddings. (I shoot alone, and much of the ceremony from the back aisle of big churches).
No XLR inputs (shooting alone, I need both audio channels...one for wireless...one for on-cam mic...and I hate XLR adapter boxes).
V1U (I own the FX7 consumer model, but am going to replace it with the V1U when I can afford it)
PRO's: the 20X lens is awesome...perfect for weddings...WITH the wide angle adapter which I never take off.
XLR inputs, if you're like me and need two inputs (wireless+on camera shotgun) without clunky adapters.
24p...no explanation needed.
3.5" LCD, in the traditional location...which I kinda like over the FX1.
Full 1920x1080 60p
CON's: Requires an expensive wide angle adapter(IMHO). The Sony model with lens hood for the V1U (which I have on my FX7) brings the price of the FX7 cam up to damn near that of the FX1...and would bring the price of the V1U way up there. (But it makes the lens range PERFECT for me...and I do nothing but weddings.)
1/4 CMOS...tiny sensors suck in low light. It's teaching me to make the best of existing light, which is a good thing and my videos are benefitting from it, however, there are some circumstances (dark chapels/ceremonies) where there's not much I can do other than go ask the venue manager to turn the lights back up a wee bit.
SteadyShot OIS will "jump" and "wander" like what I've experienced with Canon HDV cams (Canons actually wandered way more than the Sony, but didn't have the crazy "jumps" like the Sony FX7 does), when shooting at the long end of the lens. No big deal...I don't really need OIS most of the time...I'm not shooting home videos. It just wasn't an issue with the VX2000/PD170, so I never thought of turning it off before.
Other:
The manual controls on the FX7/V1U are a matter of opinion. Not really as good as the FX1, BUT, the programmable exposure wheel on the FX7/V1U, for me, makes quick and ideal work of run-n-gun wedding shooting...I really like it. I use the default iris+gain setting on the wheel, and a +12 limit on gain when in auto-gain mode (get's pretty noisy at 15, yucky at 18) Other controls are typical of Sony cams...I wish I could white balance without stopping recording and having to wait for the 15 minutes required to start recording again with HDV.
The benefits of having a separate 3-way toggle switch for gain, as on the FX1/Z1U, is a matter of personal preference. I like the FX7/V1U's exposure wheel better. With the huge depth of field of video cameras, I really don't know why I need to add gain when the lens isn't wide open.
That's just a few things off the top of my drunken head.
I'd like my next cam to be a V1U, but if they made a Z1U with 24P, 20X lens, and included a WA adapter, it would be great.
Now, if they dropped the EX1 1/2" sensors in the V1U...without raising the price...all would be right in the universe for me.
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