Sony has today launched the 4K-ready PXW-X70, the first compact XDCAM professional camcorder ever produced. Expanding the popular file-based XDCAM family to a new smaller form factor and lower price point, Sony has combined stunning picture quality, speed of shooting and robust performance into a package which is ideal for a wide range of applications from news gathering and documentary to events work.

The PXW-X70 features a 1.0 type Exmor® R CMOS Sensor with a resolution of 20 megapixels. The sensor, which is even larger than the Super 16mm film frame, delivers high resolution and fantastic low light performance, as well as offering more depth of field control as demanded by today’s diverse shooting requirements. The new camcorder has the ability to record High Definition in XAVC Long GOP, enabling 422 10-bit sampling at 50 Mbit/s. This in-turn supports a broadcast-quality workflow, increasingly adopted by productions in many different professional applications.

This addition to the expanding next generation XDCAM family follows the recently announced PXW-X180 and PXW-X160 and builds upon Sony’s successful heritage of compact professional camcorders. The PXW-X70 is the first professional compact camcorder from Sony to include Wi-Fi-enabled control via Smart Phone or Tablet using the Content Browser Mobile application. An upcoming release will also provide customers with the ability to upgrade the PXW-X70 to record in 4K Ultra High Definition, with file transferring, and live video streaming capabilities.

“This first compact member of the XDCAM family brings the performance and workflow benefits associated with XAVC to an even wider range of shooting scenarios,” said Robbie Fleming, Product Marketing Manager, at Sony Professional Solutions Europe. “Over the past couple of years we’ve seen the broadcast industry really embrace the picture quality benefits associated with large sensors; the one-inch sensor at the heart of the PXW-X70 sets a new standard for colour, depth and texture in a professional compact camcorder. Coupled with the ability to upgrade to 4K, this represents a multipurpose, future-proof option for customers looking for a tough camcorder which doesn’t compromise on image.”

Key features of the PXW-X70

• 1.0 type Exmor® R CMOS Sensor and Carl Zeiss Vario Sonnar T* lens for stunning picture quality. High sensitivity and fantastic resolution with 14.2 million effective pixels delivers striking detail and colours, even in low light conditions. The lens offers a 12x Optical Zoom, which can be increased to 24x with Clear Image Zoom while retaining full resolution thanks to Super Resolution Technology. Zoom performance can be doubled at any point with a Digital Extender by up to 48x.
• Compact, lightweight XDCAM camcorder packed with adaptable professional functions. The PXW-X70 weighs less than 1.4kg, including the XLR handle unit, battery (NP-FV70), lens hood and large eye-cup. It offers professional interfaces such as 3G-SDI and HDMI output connectors plus an XLR x 2 handle unit with zoom lever. Other professional features include a manual lens ring that can intuitively control zoom and focus, ergonomic palm grip with large zoom lever, two SD memory card slots for backup, simultaneous and relay recording, and a three-level switchable ND filter.
• Breadth of recording format capabilities. Provides multiple choices depending on application required, including XAVC, AVCHD and DV® file-based recording. When recording in XAVC, the PXW-X70 uses the MXF file format, efficiently compressing full HD (1920 x 1080) resolution using the MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 CODEC. Image sampling is 4:2:2 10-bit with high-efficiency Long-GOP compression at 50 Mbps, 35 Mbps or 25 Mbps.
• Built-in Wi-Fi control functionality for monitoring and remote control versatility. Near Field Communication functions enable easy, one-touch wireless LAN connection to a smartphone or tablet, while the Content Browser Mobile application allows confirmation of shot angles and operation of the camcorder by remote, including field angle setting, spot focus and iris adjustment.
• Upcoming announcements to add even greater, future-proof functionality. Sony is set to make upgrades to 4K and file transfer and streaming by Wi-Fi function available for the PXW-X70 in the coming months.

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Watching the Commonwealth Games on a 4K TV is breath taking especially one thats the size of your living room wall…full report tomorrow.

Coming out of the Science Centre I heard a familiar sound…Wet Wet Wet, wee Marti was given it Laldie as they say in Glasgow, at 49 his voice is still packing in the crowds.

Local BBC sports celebrity Chick Young was on hand to capture the ambience.

Not quite sure why this was being filmed but the lads were doing a grand job.

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I spent 3 days last week filming around the city centre of Glasgow, mainly at the Merchant city capturing the essence of the Barr’s Pop up Shop. All profits from the shop go to support a new Hospice for Glasgow.

The city has never looked better, very cosmopolitan.

All footage was shot on my Panasonic GH4′s though I do have to admit using the YAGH with a gun mic does slow up the whole process.

1080 50p @ 200Mbps…fantastic !

Scottish sisters Kimberley and Louise Renicks came to the Barr’s Pop up Shop to show off their well earned gold medals.

Here is my wee documentary…enjoy.

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These CAMBO eyecups are proving to be very popular so much so they have temporarily sold out, they are exclusive meantime to HD Warrior and only sold via our on-line shop.

You can pre order an eyecup and I will only take your money when its back in stock. eMail hdwarrior@me.com

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Here is a range of pictures taken with the GH4, this is a very capable photographic camera and with a speed 3 class 10 SDXC card inserted you can run 12fps for about 7 seconds…fantastic.

The picture above was caught with a 35-100mm f2.8 Lumix lens set at 100mm @ f2.8 shutter at a 30th sec at 12fps

 

All the pictures above used the Lumix 35-100mm f2.8 lens with the action shots set at 12fps auto tracking.

 

 

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As Glasgow enters “Commonwealth Games Mode” the city has been transformed, this 4m video shot with Billy Connolly one of the Commonwealth ambassadors is a great tribute to a great city.

PS. If you shot this let me know , any background info and pics greatly received.

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Working this morning I had the telly on in the background watching the live inserts for the Commonwealth Games when I noticed this 2 shot.

I suspect its from an unmanned dome camera but the perspex or camera lens was filthy, this is certainly NOT the quality of pictures you expect from the BBC.

It’s slack and poor production values that cause this type of picture to appear on mainstream television…did no one check or care that the picture was substandard or as I suspect the damage was inside the lens.

In fact looking at this again it’s the main camera you would not dare use a remote dome camera as a main live camera so the lens was dirty…shocking.

Get your act together BBC filthy lenses is a total lack of care and NOT ACCEPTABLE !!!

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Video reviews can not only take a while to produce but editorially you can’t include everything, my reasons for leaving some information out like future features and flaws are this blog and making the review watchable.

I decided this time to let you see a variety of shots and situations and leave the nitty gritty to a blog post.

Flaws

Strangely the YAGH stops the LCD from swivelling and can cause your tripod locking mechanism problems though Manfrotto do give you the ability to overcome this with a locking nut you can adjust.

The sound monitor output is set to REC SOUND only when a micro HDMI or the YAGH is attached causing a small delay in the sound, this may be fixable in a future firmware upgrade. (This was explained in the video).

The rolling shutter is worse in 4K mode, this does not surprise me as the chip is at its outer limits of its own technology in order to deliver an internal 4K recordable image.

The GH4 is noisier in higher gain than my previous Canon C300, once again in my opinion you are asking a lot of the technology to record fantastic pictures at 4K without something suffering. I do realise the Sony A7s with its full frame sensor does exceed low light expectations but is flawed like the C500 by not recording 4K internally.

The micro 4/3 sensor is by its nature not as good as a full frame sensor for shallow depth of field but the inclusion of the 42.5mm f1.2 Leica lens is hard to beat.

Future features

As a video tool it would help if you could disable the back thumb wheel or have the ability to lock the shutter, the GH4 like it’s sister the GH3 is all buttons and wheels with your thumb hitting most of them at the least appropriate time.

I would like a smoother more responsive aperture, adjusting the exposure during a live production is a nightmare. Unlike a professional video lens the GH4 uses photographic lenses that are made for photography rather than video so racking up or down the aperture is very noticeable.

I would prefer some indication from the back of the camera that I was in record mode, how easy would it have been to add a front and back tally light to the YAGH.

A definite feature for the 10bit GH5″ must be a second SD card slot this would be very useful and the exclusion of the tiresome 30 minute record restriction.

With 2 SD card slots you could also copy your cameras picture profile allowing you to use it on a second “GH5″ saving a ton of set up time while using 2 cameras.

A major pain is the cameras lack of information during record mode, please stop the LCD information from timing out after 19 seconds in a firmware update.

Like all DSLRs the GH4 being no exception the lack of ND filters is a major pain during a sunny day especially as you want to keep your shutter to 1/50^th of a second. Panasonic could take note by adding a slot behind the lens as was used in the 16mm Eclair during the 1980s.

HDW : These were scripted and recorded but not used as I decided it would extend the video beyond 20m and would make the back end rather boring.

 

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The opening sequence was filmed with a 7-14mm f4 Lumix lens at the 14mm end making sure all the action is in silhouette. This “User Review” has taken an age to film and edit and I only concentrate on the video capabilities of the camera.

98% of all footage was shot with 1-2 GH4′s and the odd cutaway shot with the GH3. Although the camera is more than capable viewfinder wise, sunny daylight shots are certainly improved with the use of a loupe, something I was not in favour of before I saw the “light”.

On the whole we used a Cambo loupe which was a pre production model that needs some tweaking to fit the LCD screen.

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Now I am better informed here is a more factual account…BBC employees wages have been frozen by austerity cuts for many years now whilst we continue to see executives, managers and senior ‘government appointed’ BBC trust members help themselves to salaries and benefit packages that would make Donald Trump jealous, this is primarily why BBC employees are hacked off and threatening strike action.

Why I no longer belong to a union ?

I was once in the ACTT and while working in Radio Clyde we were called to a union meeting in the board room…”STV are out on strike how do we plan to follow this” was the battle cry of the union leader…then Jimmy Gordon entered the room the MD of Radio Clyde and said “If anyone from this station goes out on strike you will be dismissed” and walked out the room.

Deathly silence then Colin the union rep stands up and says “OK lads it’s clear none of us want to lose our jobs so we will write to STV and tell them they have our full sympathy but unfortunately can’t follow them with strike action”.

That was the last time I attended any union meeting and had nothing but admiration for Jimmy Gordon for bringing a potentially bad situation to an abrupt halt, this was thirty years ago  seemingly this would not happen today.

Conclusion… 

BBC Employee “As to the timing of this proposed 12 hour walk out, unfortunate maybe, but threatening coverage of high profile events WILL make management take notice, threatening transmission of the 9 O’ Clock news and Eastenders WILL NOT.”

HDW : This blog started off very biased towards union touting “we want more money” greedy workers to a more informed blog about an ordinary, overworked workforce who have watched management take the cream while the technicians etc get the scraps.

Sadly this happens all over industry, the managers get the Audi’s, bigger salaries and all the perks while the under appreciated workers get a bus home, the BBC like the NHS has an abundance of overpaid management levels stuck in their rooms with never-ending pointless meetings trying to justify their right to exist.

It’s poor in 2014 when a workforce is so undervalued that the word strike and unions raise their ugly heads less than a week before the Commonwealth Games and worse still having to use the games as your only bargaining chip…WAKE UP BBC MANAGEMENT….TALK TO THE PEOPLE WHO MATTER…AND STOP HIDING BEHIND COMMITTEES AND MEETINGS !

UPDATE : BBC strike called off pending a successful day of renegotiations. Union members to be consulted regarding new pay offer. So the Commonwealth Games opener will be transmitted as normal.

 

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