January…saw some ugly picture of the new Canon XF305 as I said…

“This is rumoured to be the 2010 1/3″ solid state AVCHD camcorder by Canon Pro Video, the Sony NX5 is very similar in spec and looks to the new Canon and sadly for Canon the Sony is already available ! This is a major disappointment for everyone who thought Canon was building a film like large 35mm sensor camcorder to compete with RED, personally I think Canon have lost the plot after 17 months with no new model to bring out a hand held solid state camcorder that there is little to no market for. The camcorder above (LEFT) looks like the bad marriage of a domestic camera (back) rammed into a XH-A1 20x fluorite lens (front). If this is Canon’s solid state offering for 2010 don’t bother leaving the factory.”

As it turned out the Canon XF305 was a far nicer looking camcorder than has first been depicted and produced fantastic 4:2:2, 50Mbs pictures it’s a bit like Sony’s NXCAM cine-like camcorder due out mid 2011…the mock up looks positively ugly.

February…enter the Sony NX5

“I did not know what to expect with this camcorder but after Mondays shoot looking at the pictures side by side with the 350 I am still reeling from shock at the fantastic pictures this camcorder produces compared to the 350. In other words and I can’t quite believe I am writing this but there is little to choose between the two cameras. Don’t get me wrong the 350 produces stunning pictures but so does the NX5…I am not sure if Sony have put a spell on this camcorder but apart from lower light situations this AVCHD codec is stunning.”

March…The HDSLR Storm is Brewing

“If you want my opinion, then it has to be that the Canon’s are close, but still a mile away. The aliasing issue is a biggie. Sort it out and the skew, jello and overheating can be worked around, but if you have to worry about simply having a piece of wood in focus and whether it’s going to exhibit rainbows of colour or whether cobble stones will twitter and change colour (At 00.35 and this is from Canon) then it will limit what you can do. Are HDSLRs suitable for professional use…not YET in my opinion, the BBC, SKY, National Geographic channel etc will not accept footage from them…that’s got to ring alarm bells if you are hoping to use them professionally.”

April…Remember that Volcanic Ash

“As a cameraman I need my eyes to be A1 for obvious reasons but I do think there may be some milage in an upsurge of irritated eyes being down to fine volcanic ash. I would be interested to hear from any other UK or European cameramen/women with similar findings. I now wear a set of clear lens BLOC glasses when I am outside to prevent pollen/ash entering my eyes.”

April…Also noted for the new Sony PVM-740 OLED field monitor

“Thanks to the nature of the OLED display panel and Sony’s Super Top Emission technology, the PVM-740 offers outstanding high-contrast images – for example, the deep black of a night scene can be accurately displayed and the black portion of an image is not raised even in a low-illumination edit suite. As the black color is deep, peak brightness becomes higher and can brilliantly express sparkling town lights and stars in the night sky.”

May…Was a short bloging month but for all the wrong  reasons

“Sorry for lack of content recently but I have a trapped nerve in my right shoulder which is affecting my hand making computer work very painful so if you don’t mind I will need to give it a rest for a week or two…”

June…The Video companies fight back with announcements of the Panasonic AF101 and the Sony F3

“Only at NAB this year did the worst offenders open their tightly shut lids to reveal two film like camcorders in development, Panasonic and Sony. This was a first for both Japanese companies revealing products in advance of the statutory preliminary data sheet. Panasonic have revealed further details only last week and a proper picture of the up and coming AF100 camcorder.”

So there you go the first half of 2010 and what a roller coaster year it has been with some serious still unresolved issues with the DSLR to the announcement of the cine-like shallow depth of field camcorders from RED, Sony and Panasonic.