Sony HDR-FX7 3CMOS HDV 1080i Camcorder

Comments about Sony HDR-FX7 3CMOS HDV 1080i Camcorder:

I purchased the FX7 just to get familiar with HDV and editing capabilities before deciding if we go XDCAM or HDV in the future. I wasn't expecting much. It reminds me of the VX1000 and PD150/170 (a good thing). I have been very happy with the quality and functions. Assign features and picture profiles work well. HDMI output allows me to plug and play into a plasma or LCD HDTV. Was Leery of CMOS chips but don't do much existing low light work and am satisfied with CMOS light response for the type of work we do (cultural docs). Good camera to get your feet wet with and see if HDV works for your application.

Expertise: Public TV station manager/engineer, 39 years working in broadcast.

Problems Encountered: I'm not sure of the smooth slow motion feature, looks odd to me in playback. The Anton Bauer ClipZ battery pack is plastic and there is some slop on even a good tripod. In high wind or with the lens at 20x, difficult to keep smooth. I may try to figure a way to mount the battery someplace other than under the camera so that the camera can be attached directly to the tripod. If your tripod doesn't have a front/back adjustable balance, the battery makes balancing impossible. Histogram is helpful but doesn't seem to show the same data as zebra indicates. Gain up does get ugly real quick. All that said, however, for the price, I am quite happy.

Previous Equivalent Item Owned: Sony VX1000, Canon XL-1

Items I Recommend: Sennheiser or other hot shoe shotgun or wireless lavalier.

Comments about Sony HDR-FX7 3CMOS HDV 1080i Camcorder:

I got 1 of these from B&H and it works out of this world perfect. I 1st got the Sony FX1 which looks cool with the LCD mounted onto the handle, but when i would pan left or right the image was very much unclear. Would be clear if i pn up or down but how many times do you pan up or down. If a person walked into view from the side and cam- was on tri pod the person was blurry. So i returned it. But the Sony FX7 is perfect in any condition panning. I love it. I wish all the buttons on the FX7 where on the body of the cam- but i have to go into the CLD monitor to get to some of them. That's a pain if you in a hurry.

Problems Encountered: No problems i have found yet.

Previous Equivalent Items Owned: None

Items I Recommend: none