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Filed under: Cameras •

Review: Sony HVR-Z7 & HVR-S270 1/3” 3-CMOS HDV camcorders

Conclusions

With these two cameras, Sony has clearly indicated that they take HDV seriously as a professional format. The cameras are richly featured and highly tweakable, they have the speed and sensitivity to equal their competitors, and their CMOS sensors render images with nearly the detail of a full-res 1920x1080 camera. The interchangeable lenses and the included CF card recorder are simply the icing on the cake.

If you’re a handycam aficionado, the Z7 is hard to beat. Yes, it could be lighter (like the V1), but it packs interchangeable lenses into a well-behaved, comfortable, handheld package: how cool is that?

If you’re a shoulder-mount fan, the S270 is the only serious, fully-featured HDV camera in that form factor. True, it lacks genlock, TC in, and multicore capability, but on the other hand, an HDTV camcorder with 4 channels of audio and 4.5-hour tape loads for under $12,000 isn’t too shabby.

Both camcorders let you shoot to tape or to CF card, or both at the same time, so you can work with the familiar tape-based workflow or the solid-state file-based workflow as you see fit.

Both camcorders handle standard-definition DV and DVCAM as well as 1080-line HDV, so you’re able to handle SD and HD gigs with equal ease.

If you need full-resolution 1920x1080 recording, 720p, variable frame rates, and/or higher-quality recording formats than HDV, then you’ll need to look beyond these cameras. If their prices are too steep, there are other HDV cameras for less money. But if you’re serious about 1080-line HDV, these are serious cameras well worth looking at.

Since they have identical core components, feature sets, and performance, which one you choose depends on the sort of camera you feel best fits your operating style and workflow.

Also, consider that you can mix ‘n’ match Z7s and S270s on gigs (for example, have an S270 handling back-of-the-room, nonstop event recording, while a handheld Z7 scurries about getting closeups and cutaways) and never have to worry about matching the images. Sometimes, wallet allowing, the best answer to “which one to get?” is “both”!

Pros

• Interchangeable lenses with standard 1/3” mounts.
• ISO 400 sensitivity.
• 800+ TVl/ph resolution with smooth, natural detail.
• DV, DVCAM, and 1080-line HDV recording.
• Interlaced and true progressive modes.
• Killer EVF and very good LCD; good peaking control.
• Best-in-the-business viewfinder data displays.
• Unique in-viewfinder tilt indicator.
• Z7: well balanced and easy to handhold.
• S270: no-nonsense, full-sized shoulder-mount camcorder; 4 channels of audio; 4.5 hour record times.
• Sensible ergonomics on both cameras: controls are where they should be.
• Sony Steadyshot.
• HVR-MRC1 CF card recorder included.
• Comprehensive Picture Profile tweaks, most with 15 steps of adjustment.
• Very good shotgun mike included.

Cons

• Stock lenses have only average chromatic aberration performance.
• Resolution drops with increased gain.
• Smooth Slow Motion clips have low resolution, many compression artifacts.
• Lens iris ring isn’t labeled or calibrated.
• Fastest power zoom isn’t very fast.
• MRC1: buttons lack a “hold” switch and are subject to inadvertent activation.
• MRC1: no single-frame mode in interval recording.
• S270’s placement of MRC1 on the “invisible” side is problematic.

Cautions

• 25 Mbit/sec HDV can break up when heavily stressed.
• Progressive modes not playable on older gear; may not yet be accessible in all NLEs.
• S270: channels 3 & 4 not playable on older gear; not accessible in all NLEs yet.
• S270: No genlock, RCP interface other than LANC, TC IN, or multicore connections.
• S270: No power adapter, battery, or tripod plate included.
• CMOS rolling shutter.

Other Resources

Sony’s HDV site with lots of information on these and other HDV cameras.

Direct link to HVR-Z7 / HVR-S270 / HVR-M35 / HVR-MRC1 info.

Direct link to File Transfer software for Windows and FCP for HVR-MRC1 files.

Anthony Burokas’ review of the Z7 and S270 at TechThoughts.org

Marshall Levy’s CF card tests using the HVR-Z7, also at TechThoughts.org

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