Panasonic AG-HMC40 AVCCAM HD Camcorder

Comments about Panasonic AG-HMC40 AVCCAM HD Camcorder:

Haven't been let down yet by this camera. One thing for sure, though, is to learn all the functions as soon as you get it, or you'll regret it. It has most of the features for shooting video you'd want from, say, a DSLR with video capabilities, but you have to spend a little time and poke around to get to use them.

If you plan on shooting a lot of stuff in low-light, I'd recommend getting an LED panel or something similar to plop on top. As far as video cameras go, it's only average in darkness and doesn't have a whole lot to boost that up well.

Definitely love the onboard audio quality--it's a lot better than what jaded people like myself have come to expect from that sort of feature. And it defaults to 5.1 Dolby whether you plug in external mics or not (note: sometimes. obviously if you change the settings or a couple of other things, it won't.) which isn't even a huge space-waster or a hassle when editing.

It's also very light and handy to carry around. I get broadcast-quality controls and video and audio from a camera that fits in my DSLR bag. One thing, though: definitely splurge on the XLR adaptor if you plan to use external mics even infrequently. It's worth the money. Although, if you also plan on using phantom, go for an upgraded battery, too. I've seen my battery life drop a whole hour--when it only started at three to begin with--because I switched on the phantom. So beware of that.

Construction is pretty solid. I've never felt like it was made cheaply or I felt like it was falling apart, and I've used it heavily for about a year now. The flip-out screen flickers every once in a long while, but not often enough to be an issue, and it's not like it affects the video itself.

Overall just an affordable and great, yet professional, video camera. Do buy if you plan on doing telecom-eqsue video or journalism, or want an all-purpose awesome video camera. Do not buy if you want a theatrical look--it's not built for that kind of thing.

Comments about Panasonic AG-HMC40 AVCCAM HD Camcorder:

It is a little early to tell, but we purchased this product to shoot a documentary. Thus far we have been very happy with the features. All basics are covered, and there seems to be a considerable amount of bonus features. To me, Panasonic has always been a trusted source. So far, so good.

Comments about Panasonic AG-HMC40 AVCCAM HD Camcorder:

i like it, is so small, so light and the video is great on HD, great resolution, some of my partner on the video industry told me that they want to buy it, i use it to commercial announcements and weddings

Comments about Panasonic AG-HMC40 AVCCAM HD Camcorder:

I can't say enough good things about this camera. Coming from an outdated camcorder bought 5 years ago for $800, I am beside myself at this modern day HD prosumer stand-out.

1) I researched prosumer cameras for several weeks and time and time again, I kept coming back to this well reviewed Panasonic model. Over and over online reviewers praised this camera near the top of their ratings of models for the year.

2) I've had the opportunity to take the camera to tape my kids at the park and was floored when I inspected the footage at home. I was using Auto mode which basically takes over all the settings for you. Nonetheless, this is the best quality footage I've ever shot and let me tell you, if you are a stickler for quality video, this is the one you want.

3) The camera feels solidly built and fits well in your hand.

4) There are so many features and options for this camera, if you are coming from a non-prosumer world like me, you will soon start playing around with the settings and duplicating effects you've seen on tv over the years.

5) Warranty - Panasonic extends the warranty to 3 years. None of my other cameras ever got that much backing from the manufacturer.

6) The battery is pretty powerful and at full charge can run more than 3 hours. My previous camera ran for exactly 1 hour on a single charge so this is refreshing.

As others have mentioned, the one downside I discovered was the size of the LCD/touchscreen. I wish it were about an inch larger. Sometimes your hand winds up hitting the wrong area because the button is tucked too much into the corner.

I can still get around this however and would give the camera an outstanding review.

Comments about Panasonic AG-HMC40 AVCCAM HD Camcorder:

I use this for a combination of projects from shooting independent films and TV shows to creating wedding videos. The camera has great image quality in most lighting conditions, but gets grainy in very low room lighting. Typical office lighting is more than enough for a clean image. The color produced by the three chip system is accurate and vivid, in fact better than most of the high end single chip DSLR cameras.
The integrated Leica lens produces crisp, sharp images corner to corner with no perceptible chromatic aberration (a color fringe problem on many lenses of this type). But the lens is not removable, and it's focus-by-wire system is never as good as a true mechanical focus.
The XLR adapter is imperative for film production, as it negates the need for second system audio and all the added chores of syncing audio and video files together in post production. There is a 1/8 inch external mike jack too, but the XLR produces much cleaner audio.
This is a big enough camera to look professional to the average wedding guest, but in a film environment, it looks too small to do the job well. For film work, it lacks the shallow depth of field of a typical DSLR, but produces a much crisper image with less visual artifacting than a DSLR. You can get shallow depth of field, but you need a screw-on ND filter to do it.
The electronic viewfinder and the LCD screen are a weak link in this camcorder, with neither offering crisp enough imaging to obtain critical manual focus. The camera does have video peaking to aid in manual focus mode, and you'll need to rely on it.
In summary, the image quality in properly lit situations is nearly as good as any other professional camcorder in the 2000 to 6000 dollar price range and is up to the task of any TV or indie film production. The optional audio XLR adapter is a must for this type of professional work and it's 300 dollar price should be taken into consideration when comparing prices to other cameras. It is the menu driven controls, the electronic focus and the poor LCD displays that really detract from the otherwise stellar performance of this camcorder and prevent a five star rating.

Comments about Panasonic AG-HMC40 AVCCAM HD Camcorder:

Good camcorder generaly speaking. Good images. Very poor viewfinder. Poor lcd screen. Hard to focus small objects. Insuficient zoom. Poor controls. Hard to take stills.

Comments about Panasonic AG-HMC40 AVCCAM HD Camcorder:

I use turno Camera for filming events as weddings, the quality is gray and it is very light I don't need to rely on my tripod, now I can take better angles. What I would recommend is to get the shotgun microphone as the recording audio isn't to advanced

Comments about Panasonic AG-HMC40 AVCCAM HD Camcorder:

i just made 6 mini movies in a contest with 30fps in full HD 1920 1080 very very nice
this is realy for normal filming.but not so much for low light you just getting alot of noise on your screen,and is not fun in anyway trying to remove that when you edite.focus ring is ok but not the best
but cool love my AG-HMC40 .

Comments about Panasonic AG-HMC40 AVCCAM HD Camcorder:

Great in low light conditions... very easy to operate

Comments about Panasonic AG-HMC40 AVCCAM HD Camcorder:

This camera has is much better than we expected. We use almost daily for professional videos. We added many additional items along with the xlr adapter for mics. It is very easy to use if you have limited experience with camera's.
We were originally concerned with low light recording, but has proven to be very good in low light shoots.
Great product.

Comments about Panasonic AG-HMC40 AVCCAM HD Camcorder:

We use it to produce videos for a college campus and it has many more features than we ever utilize. It is simple to use and recording to sdhc cards makes transfer a snap.

Comments about Panasonic AG-HMC40 AVCCAM HD Camcorder:

A fairly compact camera with many career options, but not all are outside the camera, very good picture quality, much improved screening, perfect look, focus ring a bit delicate and weak, colors and light receiving sensor very good low light performance with very low, but with good lighting very good image.

ideal for recording documentary and field work.

Comments about Panasonic AG-HMC40 AVCCAM HD Camcorder:

it is very easy to use. This video camera is high quality performance. I sugest to everybody to buy a camera like this. Not expensive and does more than the other more expensive video cameras such as good sound, clear picture and very easy to transfer files in my computer.

Comments about Panasonic AG-HMC40 AVCCAM HD Camcorder:

[...] The camera itself is awesome. Super clear picture, excellent color in medium to high light. The only thing i dont like is the screen and eye piece on camera have terrible resolution and color reproduction.

Comments about Panasonic AG-HMC40 AVCCAM HD Camcorder:

This little brother in the Panasonic line-up is able to stand on its own and perform to a very high standard. I have taken it out in the rolling seas, to hot humid music festivals, in pristine art galleries and it remains sharp, gives perfectly rendered color, steadies any camera movement and stands up to the elements. I am impressed!!!
The menus are fairly intuitive, the buttons easily accessed, its battery usage is minimal and it is neither too simplistic nor too complex so that a wide range of video producers can make it very useful.
I use it along with the 150 and sometimes the 40 outshines the bigger brother.
I am thrilled with this purchase...enough to order a second one.
GO B ROLL!!!!!!

Comments about Panasonic AG-HMC40 AVCCAM HD Camcorder:

When I bought this camera 18 months ago, I needed to make sure I could get a clean image with surprising great color and sharpness, at the same time DSLR video was growing like foam, So I decided to buy both this camera and a DSLR video camera.
Now I'm so happy I did it that way, I think this camera will stay with me, for years to come, mean while DSLR has been changed 4 times in 18 months and still loaded with problems, this camera is great, as with any photo process get good lighting

Comments about Panasonic AG-HMC40 AVCCAM HD Camcorder:

My biggest beef with this camera is the ridiculous process to change the shutter speed. Six steps are required to change the shutter speed so if you are shooting outside in changing light conditions beware, you will spend too much time messing with the Navi screen.

The other oddity is that the iris wheel also controls the gain. This took some getting used to. It's not a big deal but if you are not paying attention it might be easy to slip into gain territory without realizing it.

If you are serious about sound you have to buy the XLR adapter.

Comments about Panasonic AG-HMC40 AVCCAM HD Camcorder:

I am a still photographer who is just learning to use video. This small camera has made it a less difficult process. The resolution is excellent and Auto functions better than I expected. The white balance and focus are good.
It has a unique feature in that it will shoot actual photo files. I found the photos to be very sharp, although there is a slight shutter lag. I will be able to pick up a few detail shots at events using that feature.

Comments about Panasonic AG-HMC40 AVCCAM HD Camcorder:

I needed a camera to record weddings, church mission trips, business training videos and small concerts. The camera is so easy to use. The controls are easy to use. That's it.

Comments about Panasonic AG-HMC40 AVCCAM HD Camcorder:

The camera is great for almost any project that you can think of as long as there is light, low light is not something the camera does well with. But otherwise it works great as long as you know how to use it (I.E. user errors dont mean anything about the camera) But simply put, good camera especially for the money