Re: First Look, Panasonic AG-AC90 at DV Expo
 

I have mine a few days now....lots to learn. Different than my AG AC-130 due to the touch screen menus.



Check out a very fast test....look at the lowlight capability....no electronic grain.

Re: First Look, Panasonic AG-AC90 at DV Expo
 

How does it compare to your ac130 Lou? Does it have less noise at higher gains and can it produce a cleaner image in very lowlight?
The youtube compression doesn't show it that good but how is the highlight handling, I saw that in the snow recording the highlights in the snow seemed blown out.

Re: First Look, Panasonic AG-AC90 at DV Expo
 

Hi Noa

The big difference with this camera is the backlit sensors and a very efficient noise reduction!! The image is actually remarkably sharp at 24 db gain (which on my HMC's would be full of noise) and according to Barry Green who is writing the AC-90 book and has done tests (obviously) on the camera the image at 30db is quite usuable ..it's still noise free which is amazing but the image does go a little soft at that gain.

I don't think I could even use footage that I shot on my HMC's at 30db gain (I start getting unacceptable noise from 18db upwards) so the low light is going to be a big selling point.

When the PAL models come out I will definately grab one and use it for my Realty shoots as it's less tiring than the shoulder mount cameras and then I can also try it at a dull and dingy wedding reception. As you already know receptions are the pits for low light so I think the 90 with an LED light just to brighten the highlights will be pretty magic. So far all that have one have had no negative comments at all which is brilliant.

It would be interesting to see how it performs against your little Sony (there has been rumours that they use sensors from Sony but that's only a rumour!!)

Chris

Re: First Look, Panasonic AG-AC90 at DV Expo
 

The 130 appears to be sharper in higher gain but the AC-90 has No visible grain in the lowlight conditions albeit somewhat softer. The 130 is not menu driven like the 90. Personally, I will probably use the 90 more due to the size and form factor. However, I think the 130 is a more pro camera. Both cameras compliment each other. It is really a tough call.

The snow blew out as I had it on auto while trudging through the snow. I am a manual shooter and use my zebras. I also think this camera may need an external ND filter by virtue of the small chips vs. contrast.

Btw: No time stamp for legal use. No way to save scene files to a SD card. No way to write the name of the scene files either. Basically. This camera is the little brother.

Re: First Look, Panasonic AG-AC90 at DV Expo
 

Re: First Look, Panasonic AG-AC90 at DV Expo
 

Hi Lou

Brilliant fall footage there!! I do notice that the background trees in the wide shots seem to look "smudgy" and the big expanses of lawn also look the same...I'm assuming that on original footage they are sharp as a tack and the effect is simply YouTube compression???

The stabilizer certainly works well doesn't it?? I could almost ditch my stedicam and just handhold the camera for walking movement shots..on a rig it would probably be even smoother as the OIS wouldn't need to work so hard!!

Nice test!!

Chris

Re: First Look, Panasonic AG-AC90 at DV Expo
 

LOL! I knew someone would pick the smudge. My fault. That was my fingerprint on the ND filter. I saw that during editing. With that said. I think half of visual issues is associated with YOU TUBE compression.

I also deinterlaced the 60i. I will try to post true progressive in the future @60P.

Re: First Look, Panasonic AG-AC90 at DV Expo
 

lol I thought it was my 10 year old laptop.

Re: First Look, Panasonic AG-AC90 at DV Expo
 

Hi Lou

Were your scene files set at default or did you tweak them first? I found using the 130 on F1 (at default) with everything set to zero as the camera is shipped the image is really awful!!!

The thing that still concerns me greatly is recording live music that's LOUD!! With the AC-130 set on ALC the level is simply kept high and the audio board just clips the top of the waveform ..All the HMC cams actually reduce the signal without clipping set on auto level. On ALC the 130 audio really sucks big time and at weddings trying to keep a manual level with constantly varying ambient and music levels is almost impossible. If the 90 uses the same audio ALC as the 130 then it's a no go in my books as I don't want clipped audio during the dancing!!

Chris

Re: First Look, Panasonic AG-AC90 at DV Expo
 

I used STYLIN. A custom setting located on the Panny website or the 130.

The first scene file or the default setting is muted to allow correction in post.

Re: First Look, Panasonic AG-AC90 at DV Expo
 

Hi,

Can anyone tell me when you set the AC90 to Standard Def, what type of file is created? Mpeg2? etc.

Thanks
Rob

Re: First Look, Panasonic AG-AC90 at DV Expo
 

Hi Rob

I looked on my suppliers site and it just lists the format as 9mbps AVCHD ..surely that's not correct??
My HMC82's do SD and the files on the card are AVI and they are huge ..a lot bigger than the AVCHD files

I think Sony tend to use MPEG for their cameras that shoot HD/SD but so far Panasonics all should be AVI files ..then again the AC-90 might be different!

Chris

Re: First Look, Panasonic AG-AC90 at DV Expo
 

Robert, I thought it was mpeg but I just looked it up in the manual and the way it reads it's AVCHD.

Tim

Re: First Look, Panasonic AG-AC90 at DV Expo
 

Thanks Tim. I thought that might be the case. Im basically looking for a camera in the $2000 range that can record Standard def wide screen to an mpeg2 file. And has two SD slots. I currently use a Sony nx5u and need a backup for it. All the Sony cameras in the $2000 and under record in mpeg2 but have only 1 sd slot

Thanks
Rob

Re: First Look, Panasonic AG-AC90 at DV Expo
 

Hi Guys

After speaking to Chris (on another forum thread), I am really liking the look of this camera. Am I to assume that my Rode videomic pro cannot be used with this camera (or can i use a converting connector to xlr)?

Also, will I need to purchase any accessories i.e. the suppliers website has 32gb SDHC cards at £135 which seems a little expensive to me?

I need a quick purchase and turnaround as I may have to use this in 2 weeks time for interviews (indoor)

Thanks

PS forgot to say, I have a zoom H4N so maybe I could use that on the camera to record audio and sync it with internal audio in post edit?