See the PMW350 at AbelCineTech Next Week

[Andy Shipsides]

We are having a 350 event next week in New York. Please RSVP if you would like to come. We will be having another in Burbank on Dec 15th (stay tuned for an invite link) Here is the invite for the NYC event:

A First Look at Sony’s PMW-350

Join us Thursday, December 3rd at Abel's New York location for a first look at Sony's PMW-350 2/3" XDCAM EX camera.

Abel's Camera Technology Specialist, Andy Shipsides, and experts from Sony will be on hand to unveil Sony's first 2/3" CMOS camera. Besides the larger sensor size, the EX350 offers the quality and flexibility of professional B4 mount lenses, ultra low-light performance and a shoulder-mount form factor, all at an affordable price point.

DATE: Thursday, December 3

TIME: 6pm - 9pm
Refreshments will be served.

LOCATION: Abel Cine Tech / NY
609 Greenwich St., New York, NY 10014

RSVP: Claire Orpeza, rsvp@abelcine.com
(212) 462-0100

Event Details:
Sony EX350 First Look, Dec. 3

This is a free event, but space is limited, so RSVP early to ensure a spot.

XDCAM 350 Camera Details:
Sony PMW-350K 2/3" XDCAM EX Shoulder Mount Camcorder with Lens :: Broadcast Cameras :: Cameras :: Equipment Sales :: Abel Cine Tech

[Paul Cronin]

Sounds great Andy see you there. Appreciate you putting together the event. Will we be able to see the camera with other lens options?

I am on the pre-order list with Abel.

[Paul Cronin]

Thank you to the whole staff at Abel for running a fantastic event. What a pleasure to attend an event with passionate fun shooters sharing information freely.

The new PMW-350 was on hand to power up and check out all the great features along with the new EX1R.

The speakers: Andy Shipsides, Ben Bloodwell, and Dennis Dillon bring a wealth of real field knowledge on how to deliver the highest quality (wide latitude) footage at the best cost for the shooter and client, with the XDCAM Line.

There was a great discussion lead by Dennis on archiving with the Sony Optical disk from the camera or the Convergent Designs Nano flash recorder. If you have not looked into this option I highly recommend you check it out. It changed my mind on archiving, no more Raid 1 for me. Sony Optical Disk: 50 year shelf life, proxies, meta data, for the same price as using two hard drives that we all know fail. If you have listen to Dennis speak he can be very convincing as well as entertaining.

Now to putting my PMW-350 hard at work hooked up to my Nano. Moving forward

[Cris Daniels]

I am seriously thinking about this camera, is the video quality noticeably better than the EX1/EX3? I already have the Nanoflash so that is covered.
If anybody knows thanks in advance, I have seen that the signal to noise ratio is like 54db for the EX1/3 and 59db for the 350, that is a fairly significant difference on paper, 5db is no joke and I am wondering if it is visible in the final product.

[Tom Roper]

According to Alister Chapman, it's some of the best video he's seen from any 2/3 camera, fully on par at least with the 700/800's, and really good sensitivity. I pre-ordered one.

[David Heath]

Originally Posted by Cris Daniels

I have seen that the signal to noise ratio is like 54db for the EX1/3 and 59db for the 350, that is a fairly significant difference on paper, 5db is no joke and I am wondering if it is visible in the final product.

Having seen one recently, what is impressive is how much gain can be used without it becoming too objectionable. Even 24dB looks like severe film grain - just about usable in an extreme case, and I can't think of any other camera I'd say that about. If your final product involves a lot of filming in low light, then yes, I'd say you would notice a difference.

[Paul Cronin]

Cris I think low noise is one of the great features of the new chip set from Sony. And at 2/3" combine with the low noise the picture will be a sharp. Time will tell but early reports are very promising. You are in NY take a trip to Abel they might still have the camera. Either way it is a store worth visiting.

I did not see the camera at high gain but it sounds impressive what David is saying at 24dB of gain.

I agree with Tom, Alister Chapman seems to have the most time with the camera so far and he is raving about the picture quality.

[Paul Inglis]

Originally Posted by Paul Cronin

There was a great discussion lead by Dennis on archiving with the Sony Optical disk from the camera or the Convergent Designs Nano flash recorder. If you have not looked into this option I highly recommend you check it out. It changed my mind on archiving, no more Raid 1 for me. Sony Optical Disk: 50 year shelf life, proxies, meta data, for the same price as using two hard drives that we all know fail. If you have listen to Dennis speak he can be very convincing as well as entertaining.

Can they do all bit rates from the nanoflash or is it just 50Mbps? I was asking this question in the CD forum.

[Paul Cronin]

Paul good question I asked the same question Thursday. The clips will have to be put on the XDCAM 422 50Mbps time line if shot in anything but this bit rate and then rendered out so it can be stored on the Optical Disk for play back. But if you want to just store the files on the disk at different bit rates you can do that since the Optical disk will store files. But I will using the Optical disk at their Native 422 50Mbps until Sony raises the bit rate which will come. For archiving it is a great solution.

[Paul Inglis]

Thanks Paul! I wanted to use this method apposed to the Delkin Archival BDs as I believe Sony will support this over a longer term. Now I just need to order a PMW-U1 then!

[Paul Cronin]

I agree Paul Sony Optical Drive is here to stay with the new 700 and 800 supporting this drive. Listening to the plus side of the Optical Drive for archiving, playback, and sending to high end clients i was convinced. So I am in the same boat as you. I will be purchasing from Charles Rowe at Abel Cine Tech in the next week.

[Cris Daniels]

on par with the 700/800 is saying something. It sounds like a total winner with the 4:2:2 capability afforded by the Nanoflash.

I need something that will let me use true Zeiss cinema lenses, either B or PL mount. I dont want to go the Letus route with the EX3, I just want a sharp 21mm or 25mm prime (35mm focal lengths). So it is the 350 or a RED, still up in the air, although admittedly the RED will cost more once rigged out.

[Paul Cronin]

Cris having owned a Red One it is all about your workflow and what you shoot. The Red One did not work for me but that does not mean it won't work for you. If you shoot 35mm and have the workflow setup and your clients can afford the added cost then maybe it is your option. But you should rent first which is a mistake I made. That would have showed me in a week rental that it was not for me.

As for lens options on the 350 they are endless well a lot, with the B4 2/3" mount. There are some very nice very wide lens options. I plan on going through a list I am compiling for specific jobs and renting these options from Abel and seeing what works for my business. There are a few that are not worth buying but just renting for specific clients.

I think the stock lens is worth purchasing just to have it for the money. Renting till you know what really works is the way to go with nice 2/3".

[David Heath]

Originally Posted by Paul Cronin

Listening to the plus side of the Optical Drive for archiving, playback, and sending to high end clients i was convinced.

Leaving aside all the "quality" issues that get endlessly chewed over, it was the flexibility of the camera that impressed me, the range of options. For example:

Optical drives may indeed be the way to go for some, but this system gives other options. For example, shoot to SxS, then copy in camera to Memory Stick or SDHC, and send that to clients. Worried about reliability? Make two copies - and keep one until the client verifies it's arrived (and been transferred) safely. It's pretty impressive just how quickly it can copy an entire card - no laptops, no extra equipment.

Radio mics - the integral slot will accept either the current range OR the new two channel digital models. That could be very significant with the new frequency allocations due to come in.

Resolution, bitrates and codecs get endlessly chewed over (and I do wish it offered the 50Mbs mode), but there's a lot more to a camera choice than purely those.

[Paul Cronin]

Agree David options are great.