The 350 gets a bit of discussion on here but the 320 seems to be less popular. Are there any 320 owners here who can comment on how happy they are with the camera? I'm particularly interested in how the stock lens performs with regard to CA.

Any 320 comments from those who own it or have used it in earnest welcome!

I have the 320 and so far the only problem I have had is matching all three of my EX cameras. Ex-1R,Ex-3 and the 320. I have looked and looked for scene files designed for the 320 but all I can find is for the 350.

Anyone know or seen any scene files for the 320 that would help match it to PP files in the Ex-1R, ane Ex-3. I believe that the PPs for the ex-1R and the ex-3 are the same

Thanks

Ronnie

Hi Ronnie

At last! I was beginning to think there was nobody out there with a 320. A local dealer here tells me they haven't sold a single unit...

Can you comment on how happy you are with the bundled lens? Is it just the same as the EX1/EX3 optics in a bayonet housing? The EX1 and EX3 show significant CA on back-lit subjects, particularly in the corners when wide. Is this any better with the 320? I'm told there is some sort of electronic CA compensation on the 320 and 350. Does it work well in practice?

Many thanks

Hello Anthony: The only lens I have tried is the stock lens. It is a 16x and the lens on the ex-3 is a 14x lens.

I ordered a mechanical focus control for the 320 and I am waiting for it before I put it into service. My main complaint with the Ex-1R and the Ex-3 is the absence of the small tapped hole on the side of the lens that allows the more common mechanical speedometer cable type of manual focus control. The 320 is what I had hoped for before the Ex-3 came out.

From the limited amount of shooting I have done with the 320 I am really satisfied. I still have not been able to match the 320 to the ex-3 and Ex-1R. Starting with the default factory settings out of the box the ex-1R and the Ex-3 match pretty good. However, the 320 with the factory settings appears a tad softer. I really screwed up on one shoot. I tried to match the PPF from Doug Jenson's Doug 1 settings from his instructional DVD for the Ex-3 and "Ex-1 and over corrected it a bit and now I have to start over.

Surely someone out there in Cyberland has matched a 320 to the Ex-1R/Ex-3. If so I would like to find out what PP and scene files that they used.

As far as comfort shooting hanheld, the 320 is so much more comfortable. Last year I shot with the Ex-3 over 150 hours on one 20 week project and my shoulder still hurts. I have an after market shoulder brace for the Ex-3 and it helps a great deal but is still not as comfortable as the 320. My Ex-3 set up weighs one pound less than the 320 with the same accessories and the same battery. For some reason the 320 just fits my poor old tired shoulder much better.

I have not noticed any CA problems with any of the EX cameras that I have used even with the stock lens.
You can pick any camera apart. Each one has pros and cons. When some one is tearing down a product I usually take it with a grain of salt and try to look into what camera brand their loyalty extends.

There are many great cameras out there at this point in history and it is more likely than not that you will get great video from all of them.

Take care

Ronnie Martin

I have the EX3 and as you know it can be a bit sticky at times in slow zoom.
Whats the 320 like compared to the EX1/3.

Thanks.

Doesn't look as if there are that many PMW- 320 owners out there.

What size/diameter of a UV filter would you get for the PMW-320K.

Thanks.

Hey Guys,

I bought both the 350 and a 320 a few months ago. They are pretty much the same camera but with different size sensors. If not for the cost, I would have bought two 350s. I do have to say that after comparing images, it's tough to justify the extra cost for the 350. Since I do shoot occasionally for broadcast the 2/3' sensors are what they're always looking for and the bigger imagers also give you a shallower depth of field and a tab better in low light sensitivity.

When I set up my 320, I set it up with the same scene file setting as the 350 and they seemed to match up pretty well. Besides the scene files are interchangeable with the 320 & 350, that doesn't address matching it with an EX-1 or EX-3. Try this. In the EX-1 & 3 there are 4 Cine Gamma setting. In the 320 & 350 there are 4 Hyper Gamma settings. I believe the Hyper Gamma curves are going to be pretty close to the Cine Gamma curses in the EX-1 & 3. I use Hyper Gamma 2 most of the time on both the 320 & 350. Try setting the Ex-1 or 3 to Cine Gamma 2 and the 320 to Hyper Gamma 2 and see if how that looks. If they appear to be close you can then fine tune using all the other setting options. I also have the Master Black set to: -10, Black Gamma: -30, and Low Key SAT: -4. All other setting default.

Also, as for the hand held verses shoulder mount. I was torn between buying an EX-3 and an HVR-S270, Sony's full shoulder mount HDV camera, before the 350 came out. Granted it was a lot more money than I was planning to spend. But after shooting all summer with the S270 (which by the way, is a very nice camera) the thought of going back to hand held was simply not an option. If they would have come out with the 320 before the 350 I'm sure I wouldn't have hesitated for a second to buy it and probably never looked back.

Even though my understanding is the the 320, EX1 & 3 share the same image block. The 320 still produces a slightly cleaner image due to the lens, internal prepossessing, color matrix, etc. If you're looking for scene files and other advise on the 320 I believe most of what's out there for the 350 will also apply to the 320.

At last :)

Thanks Dan for that.
I have the EX3, I don't have the 320 but am considering changing to one.
So, you would also say (along with Alister) that the same scene file setting used in the 350 can also be used for the 320. Thats good to know.

Can I ask,
If I wanted a UV filter for the 320 what size would it need to be?

Thank you Dan.

Anthony,

Glad I could help......

The 320k & 350k both have the same lens, adapted to the camera's sensor size. Other then that, they're identical. The front filter treads are 82mm. The stock lens is very nice for what it is. Some folks my never feel limited by it, but for me it's just not wide enough. I do a lot of shooting in close quarters so a wide lens is of course essential. Unfortunate the lens I'm used to using, a Fujinon ZA 12x4.5 ($26,000), I just don't have the extra change for right now. I found a very nice stop gap for that. Fujinon makes an economically priced .8 wide angle conversion lens specifically for use with that lens, WCV-X85 $1,000. They're very hard to find; I assume because they're so good that it may limit sales of other lenses. Other converters I tried were from all the usual suspects but this one was the only true fit and hands down best image quality. As for the CA I have not had any problems except when using filters. Adding another element to the lens is something the manufactures just can't compensated for. One of the greatest aspect of the 320 & 350 is the view finder. They're so good that I've been able to pick up things like that, solving the problem before continuing to shoot. I guarantee if you buy a PMW-320 or 350 you will not only be very happy you did, you'll never look back. Adding a $3k NanoFlash to the mix, puts you in the same game with the new PMW-500 and other cameras like the PDW-F800, and I prefer CMOS sensor over CCDs.

Thank you Dan, that is most helpful.

I'm hoping to have a look at a 320 in the next 2/3 weeks.

So its 82mm, thanks.

I have the 320 and so far the only problem I have had is matching all three of my EX cameras. Ex-1R,Ex-3 and the 320. I have looked and looked for scene files designed for the 320 but all I can find is for the 350.

Anyone know or seen any scene files for the 320 that would help match it to PP files in the Ex-1R, ane Ex-3. I believe that the PPs for the ex-1R and the ex-3 are the same

Thanks

Ronnie

I still have not had success matching the 320 to my Ex-3 and Ex-1r. At this point I have over done the 320 and I need to reset it back to the default settings. I have looked in the menu and in the manual and cannot find a place to reset the camera to the out of the box defaults. It must be in there but just can't seem to find it. Anyone know where the reset to default button in the paint settings resides?

Sorry to be so dumb ...
Thanks

Ronnie

Thank you Dan, that is most helpful.

I'm hoping to have a look at a 320 in the next 2/3 weeks.

So its 82mm, thanks.

Could anyone recommend a 82mm UV filter.

I see a Hoya 82mm HMC Multicoated UV Filter for £20
or
B+W 82mm 010M MRC Nano Coated UV Haze Filter - XSDP Mount for £62

What one would be best?


Thanks in advance.

Could anyone recommend a 82mm UV filter.

I see a Hoya 82mm HMC Multicoated UV Filter for £20
or
B+W 82mm 010M MRC Nano Coated UV Haze Filter - XSDP Mount for £62

What one would be best?


Thanks in advance.

Still looking for a B+W 82mm UV filter for the 320.

Would you recommend this one?

B + W Filter 82mm UV Filter with Multi Resistant: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics

Thanks in advance.

For info the BBC report and settings for the 320 can be found here: http://thebrownings.name/WHP034/pdf/WHP034-ADD54_rev1_Sony_PMW320.pdf

Hi Gary, thanks for the BBC report. Always interesting literature. Although I think the author of this report made a typo when he wrote this: "It records full 1920x1080 images with 4:2:2 colour sub-sampling at 35Mb/s (MPEG-2)". The 320 records in 4:2:0 unless one hooks a Nanoflash or Aja Ki Pro to the HD-SDI out. Then that external recorder can record in 4:2:2.
I'll have my 320 shortly, so I'll post here as soon as I have done some testing. Meanwhile I borrowed someone's PMW500 and that will keep me busy for a while... Just hope I don't get too fond of it, because I cannot afford this beautiful beast.

Yes Luc I spotted that too and it is 4.2.0 as far I as know.

I had a look at the 500 at BVE this year and I feel that some of the switches on the pro sony camera's are getting rather small and prosumer for my liking.

P2 convert here and may never buy sony again as the 371 and the 3700 or 3100 do most of what I need and they are all BBC approved.

You have a point about the switches, Gary. Much smaller than on the optical disk camera's and the general feel is also less sturdy.

To all owners of pmw 320;
guys, can I get a user manual somewhere on the web?
many thanks!

Yep, here: Sony : PMW-320L (PMW320L) : Download Manual : United Kingdom (http://www.sony.co.uk/biz/product/xdcamcamcorders/pmw-320l/manualpopup?campaignID=13000067&sectiontype=Support&externalUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fpdf.crse.com%2Fmanuals%2F4198307121.pdf&externalLinkType=manual)

I've got a PMW 320K; it's a terrific camera and shoots very crisp pictures. It performed faultlessly for three weeks in the south of France (just finished our drama shoot) under harsh conditions. Very user friendly and nicely designed with a good HD stock lens (with manual and auto capability); accepts class 10 SD cards which we used, although over and under cranking with these is not recommended. The attached picture shows the camera on location at Saut du Moine during the shooting of "The Scenic Route" ghost film a week or so ago. I give the camera 10/10.

Cheers
Simon