Canon HF G10, XA10, XF100, XF105 Owners Thread - Page 127

Took the cam out today (HF G10), for some wildlife shooting. Really cool place to visit. Enjoy.

http://m.youtube.com/index?client=mv...?v=b6syzM1qjgQ

YMMV indeed, everyone's needs can differ drastically.
So it's always wise to put most weight into your own needs when selecting a camera and not go strictly by what other people say in forums like this in terms of camera comparisons.

In my case my clients don't really care much about the actual video quality or production values, it's all about the content and the on-camera talent. And everything is destined for the web.
Web based doesn't have to equate to "amateur" either, in my case I'm now a professional video blogger who shoots web content.

Technically my old $400 Sanyo HD-1010 was "good enough" in technical terms, but just let down in a few logistical and usability areas (and in some way a bit of "credibility" too. Hence my upgrade to the Canon HF G10 which should work a treat for a long time to come.

So as a "pro" in my field I consider the HF G10 more than adequate for my needs. Yet conversely I know unpaid "amateurs" who would consider the HF G10 a kiddie toy and totally unsuitable for their needs.

Video is big wide world!

Dave.

True. I just made some decent coin shooting an industrial for Columbia University using my nx5u and a cx550 as a "b" cam. I shot using avchd. It was originally supposed to be just for their website but they liked it so much they did 2 screenings on campus in a small auditorium with a projector.
It held up very well and we got tons of compliments afterwards.
It might be easier to edit using other codecs but I have no problem with my settup.

Where the other codecs are better are for broadcast ready standards. Like the xf100 and xf300. But broadcast is getting less and less necessary these days as a young band or filmmaker is much more likely to get noticed or buzz via YouTube or the web which is how it should be.

Well, from a pure video perspective, I have the advantage of having owned the Z1 several years ago and currently the Canon XA10. Although the Z1 had great PQ for the time, I find the PQ of the the Canons much better in terms of sharpness, color and low light (despite the old 3-chip vs 1-chip argument). Yes, the Z1 was more impressive in terms of size, weight and control flexibility, but for picture quality I'd take the XA10 every day of the week. My Z5 was a definite improvement over my Z1, but the XA10's picture is still better than my Z5 even though lacking many of the controls and user friendliness.

The HDV format was certainly more editor and processor friendly, but the dated 1440x1080 resolution shows against the more impressive 1920x1080 of good AVCHD cams. The additional picture detail of the Canon is hard to miss. Additionally, the low light of the Z1 was impressive for it's time, but the low light of the XA10/G10 together with it's color retention is certainly better.

The biggest issue IMO with the XA10 & G10, from a professional standpoint, is not so much the PQ but convincing the buyer that a tiny cam like that can do the job. I'll confess I'd be a bit embarrassed going to a client with any camera that size, but I'd surely not be embarrassed with its PQ. No excuses need be made. However If the powers that be can't deal with the AVCHD format, that's another story, but I'd think that many of the more sophisticated outfits should have no problems. AVCHD is no longer the immature, new kid on the block and without a doubt both editing software and processors have caught up with the 'new kid'.

Interestingly, I've read that many broadcasters will not accept HDV and others will, but the HDV component can't compromise more than a relatively small % of the total footage. It's a tough crowd out there!

@Steve,Ken and Altzone...You guy are absolutely correct... it probably is good enough for web and possibly dvd...didn't mean to demean All the entrenched editors I deal with sill like dv for speed and having a back up. For ME I need 2 things on cam: focus and iris (and nd filters for any outside).This stuff is shot as much realtime as possible (once the action starts). No time for lcd fiddling! Avchd is still the bastard as our industry uses mostly hdv,xdcam (EX-1's) and the pani p2's. as I said ymmv..the web based stuff IS changing the landscape. Streaming etc.

Also @ Steve....always release forms BEFORE shooting. Agree on something and THEN shoot it

@ Steve...best of luck my friend

Steve, why would you insist on distribution rights as a shooter or are you actually doing the editing too? If that's the holdup, can't you just strike that clause? For a first shoot, I'd just try to get the job.

Steve, best to take your time and fully cover your butt

I know I'm new and it might've already been covered so hopefully I don't annoy anyone. I got a Canon HF G10, and I consider myself to be at the intermediate level when it comes to filming and advanced when it comes to editing. So I read about the weird hoops you have to jump through to use the little scroll wheel on the back to adjust aperture, exposure, shutter speed etc. However mine won't work, or at least I think it won't. I'm sure I'm doing something wrong which is why I'm here. Can someone who owns a G10 walk me through adjusting those three things? Thanks for any and all help

Yeah I just always Leave mine in full manual mode. I adjust white balance first with the touchscreen then use the rear button and wheel

thanks for the help. how do I make sure it's in manual mode?

Kerry
I might add that if you are shooting in P (Program Mode autoexposure), the button & wheel default setting is for exposure adjust/exposure lock.

While in P mode, if you push the button the exposure will lock and display "0+/-" on the screen. If you rotate the wheel you can adjust lower or higher exposure values and the screen notation will show the amount of adjustment.
When you push the button again, the camera goes back to AE and the +/- display disappears.
I often shoot in P mode, and this is the super quick way to fine tune my exposure.

Dave, did you ever decide on getting the 100?

Hiya Ken. I still haven't decided. I currently have 5 cams which is way overkill. Want to downsize to 2.
I just did a big video shoot in jersey with my partner on the Columbia gig and we used 4 of them.

The nx5u. The g10. My hacked gh1 with pancake lens and the hx100v.

Surprisingly right out the camera the hx100v looked the best out of all the cams. Really surprised. But since you can't control shutter speed or exposure other than + or - from the auto exposure it's just really limited. We are using it for slo mo, slowed down from 60p to 24p.

The g10 looked second best and is really nice.

The nx5u was the flattest with the custom shooting profile I used and is the most versatile for different looks grading wise but out of the camera looked flat. (but that's actually good and one reason I would look at the canon 100 since it has the custom PPs.)

The gh1 looked the most filmic.

So altogether we have tons of stuff for the edit. A 3 minute music video. We have over 2 hours of footage.

I have also been seriously considering the Sony fs100uk as that is getting rave reviews by users. That plus the g10 for a b cam might be the ticket.

@Dave. How are you cutting the different formats 108060p and 108060i on the timeline and rendering when you edit. I was looking at the sony fs100 with a nikon adpt because I have a ton of nikon lens. But I think for ease of editing I would get the canon xf100 that would match better with the hf g10.

Hi gso.

We didn't use 60i for this. The client wanted 24p so we shot at native 24p on the gh1, the g10 and the nx5u and shot 60p for the slo mo on the hx100v, slowed down to 24p in the editor.

Actually the xf100 uses a different codec than the g10 so while the footage will really match up nicely, it might throw the editor for a loop mixing very different codecs in the same project. Depends on the editor maybe?
I want the fs100 so I can use any lens and get the shallow DOF when i need.
Also it does 1080/60p which the xf100 doesn't and can overcrank in camera at that rate. Huge timesaver.

Dave, that 100 can be embarrassingly good. It has no right to be that good!

My wife and I were out at the Jungle Safari at Great Adventure over the weekend. She was using the 100 for stills, but occasionally I would grab it just to shoot a quick clip or two. When we viewed the footage, the 100 was very comparable to the XA10...now what the heck is that all about???

It's true that you have very limited control over the video, so as long as the conditions aren't demanding in such a way that you need a lot of control over the camera's functions, it's far better than it has any right to be.

IMO the 100's video impresses me far more than the CX700 ever did. Go figure.

Exactly! I was really surprised! The hx100v completely KILLS the 700 and compares well to the g10. And costs 1/3 the price of the 700. But it is indeed pretty limited. I am keeping it for those odd moments i might need like for slo mo or the full zoom. And the stills are pretty incredible too.

I tool these stills out the window hand held. Uncropped.

Great shots Dave! Yeah, the still pix on this thing are razor sharp when we throw them on my plasma. It's the best way I've found to really enjoy stills. I make sure the camera is set to a 16:9 AR so that it displays fully on an HDTV.

When you see them on an HDTV, it kind of reminds you of when you used to take slides and display them on a screen. It's that kind of depth.

Thanks! And great idea also if I want to use any stills in a video to already be 16x9 for framing purposes.

I was shooting today with my HF-G10 and noticed that the internal camera mic is not that bad compared to most cameras...What are some external mics you all have been using?

I am getting ready to shoot a documentary in a few weeks and thinking about shooting it in 24p with a shutter of 1/48 since most of the shots will be outside.

I know that the finished product will be distributed via Vimeo but if I need to burn the documentary to dvd will 24p with a shutter speed of 1/48 be ok? or should I shoot and edit in 60i and then make a 24p version?