Review: Hood-Pro Sock-loupe

Lots of people have said, “if only there were a viewfinder lens I could mount on the PMW-EX1‘s LCD, I’d be happy.” Palm Desert shooter Mike Stevens not only said it, he did it: his Hood-Pro hood is a strap-on LCD hood, and the Sock-loupe is, well, a sock with a +7 diopter loupe sewn into the toe. Pull the sock over the hood, and hey presto! You’ve turned the LCD into an eye-level EVF, arguably better than the one on the EX3. The floppy sock squishes up against your face, whether or not you wear glasses, providing a good seal against extraneous light, while the two-element lens provides a close-up, detailed view of the LCD.

PMW-EX1 Firmware 1.11

I’ve upgraded our PMW-EX1 from firmware version 1.03 to firmware version 1.11 and I can happily verify the following improvements…

Sony notes, 7 Oct 2008

There were a couple of unexpected surprises at VMI’s mini-Sony show today in Sunnyvale, CA. While the HVR-S270 and PMW-EX3 camcorders, the PMW-EX30 SxS recorder/player, wireless mics, and LCD displays were the main attractions, Sony also fetched along one of three prototype HVR-Z5 camcorders currently in the USA, as well as a fiber-connected studio setup for the EX3. I also saw the B4-mount lens adapter for the EX3.

Review: Sony PMW-EX3 Removable-lens 1/2” 3-CMOS HD Camcorder

The US$8320 (street price) Sony PMW-EX3 is an eight-pound, high-definition “chainsaw” camcorder with three 1/2” CMOS sensors. It’s essentially a repackaged EX1—true 1920x1080 sensors, 1080 and 720-line XDCAM EX recording on SxS cards, variable frame rates, wide-latitude cine gammas, hugely tweakable—with an interchangeable lens mount, an impressive EVF, and improved ergonomics. Like the EX1, it makes stunning HD images, and like the EX1, it’s a handheld handful.

Review: Panasonic AG-HPX170P 1/3”, 3CCD P2 Camcorder

The Japanese word “kaizen”, usually translated as “continuous improvement”, applies to Panasonic just as much as Toyota. Just as the HVX200 built on the success of the standard-definition DVX100, adding multiformat recording and multiple frame rates, the HPX170 takes the best features of the HVX200 and builds on them. The 170 makes a better picture. Added functionality, like HD-SDI, more frame rates, and Dynamic Range Stretch, makes it more versatile. Its lighter weight, refined ergonomics, and built-in waveform monitor make it an operator’s delight.

AJA Io HD drivers updated

AJA has released version 6.0 drivers for the Io HD, AJA’s external video I/O box and format converter connected using FireWire800.

Version 6.0 adds a bunch of new features:

• Support for true progressive (in addition to PsF) 1080p capture and playback.
• Support for 720p/23.98 and 525i/23.98.
• Stand-alone mode for format conversion with no Mac attached.
• “Plug and Play” on FireWire without needing to reboot the computer.
• Simultaneous component and composite outputs.
• Audio delay controls for better A/V sync.
• Io HD’s LCD can be set to show timecode instead of secondary format.
• Better active output format listings in Io-using applications.

It also fixes a long-standing bug with frame-level metadata in ProRes422 captures: Io HD-captured ProRes now shows up as 10-bit video in Shake (and other apps that look at frame-level metadata), whereas before Shake saw the video as only being 8-bit. (The Io HD’s ProRes has always been 10-bit, but it didn’t look that way to Shake without an intermediate render in FCP.) 

I had discovered the 8/10-bit issue back before NAB, and bothered the daylights out of AJA’s long-suffering support folks about it (with a tip of the hat to the unfailingly responsive and polite Rudy Van Kol), so the first thing I did when I saw the V6 driver was download it and test it. I can’t yet vouch for everything on the feature list, but I was able to install the software and upgrade the Io HD’s firmware just now without any problems, and I have verified the 10-bit metadata fix in Shake.

Huzzah, therefore, for AJA and version 6.0 Io HD drivers!

Accessorizing RED ONE

Today most of the items on our RED ONE order changed status from “Backorder” to “Completed”, so it seems like a good time to discuss kitting out the cameras for real-world use.

Review: Panasonic BT-LH1760 17” LCD Monitor

The $4500 Panasonic BT-LH1760 is a 17 inch, 1280x768 video monitor with multiple analog and digital inputs and a 100/120 Hz refresh rate for crisp motion rendering. It displays NTSC, PAL, 720p, and 1080i/p signals in both analog and digital, and offers a high-resolution waveform monitor for all video inputs, as well as a vectorscope, timecode, and audio level monitors for SDI inputs. It also has a wide selection of aspect ratio and safe-area markers available.