Well, if she gets a lot of repeat customers...

Kren, I saw the 7th Birthday video in your Vimeo account,was that shot using the HD1000?

@Jacob - thanks, no directions from us ..just catching the moments... we try to be always aware of what's transpiring.. don't really like shooting what the photographer is doing.. as for lights no barn doors , what we got was colored black already , we only use either Bounce Sheets or Parchment paper for diffusers..(it also makes it smell nice :) Oh yeah we also use on camera Sony Lights most couples don't want to drown out the mood of the party with the worklights.

@Noel - that's correct HD1000u certified..

Congrats on your purchase. I really like my 1000U but would highly recommend you invest in an on-cam HD monitor 7 inches or greater to really push it. Lighting is a good idea but often customers will balk at large or overly bright set-ups. A monitor you can use every time you shoot... Good luck and happy shooting!

That's quite a stretch there Adam.

But since the tape would have already have been "tested" by the same person who was re-using the tape, I think that person could make the argument that he knew what he could expect from the tape because he had already "tested" it once... the second time ought to be just as good.

Jeff

Okay, let me get this straight. We should only marry a hooker we've "tested" personally?

One more question, hookers aside, a friend of mine has a cheap car dvd player with a slave screen I could use. It just has audio left/right and the single yellow video in (composite?). I'd really like a Marshal HD monitor with peaking and false color, etc. but I need to pay off the HD1000 first... would a (relatively) low resolution 7" LCD from a DVD player offer any benefit for focusing over the HD1000's stock LCD and eyepiece?

Not to belabor this, really, but that is just preposterous, because each and every use degrades the tape further and dramatically increases the chance of a dropout or mechanical problem. The very act of "testing" it makes it *less* reliable.

Jacob,

Here's a different set of lights that isn't rugged professional, but are pretty effective if you don't need to control the light (no barn doors, just flood the area):

AIM Studio Professional Photo Light Kit w/ 8 26W 5500k Daylight Balance Light Bulbs $129.99 Deal - Best Price Cheap Sale Items Review Wholesale Sale Discount

I have purchased 3 sets of them. They are lightweight, reliable, and more presentable that work lights. Eventually you'll want to get some nice lights with some type of rolling carrier, but you'll probably be spending north of $2,000 for anything approaching professional. $129 is a bargain.

The resolution of the HD1000 LCD is only 123k pixels, so compare that to the pixel count on the LCD from the DVD player. It's probably pretty close, but a larger screen does help too.

One thing I'd like to know, is how Sony figures the HD1000 is "professional camcorder", yet the FX1000 is merely an "advanced amateur camcorder" (their exact terms used on the Sony Style site). Where's the logic in that one?

Keep in mind that the FX1000 has a "professional" counterpart, the Z5. While the HD1000 is all by itself, yes it's built on one of their consumer cameras, but the body alone defines it as a professional camera.

If they position the FX1000 as a "professional" camera it be competing with the Z5 and the V1U.

This is correct Adam (though I'd question your adjective 'dramatically'), but applies to all the mechanical things you own - your toaster, your car's gearbox, your front door lock. Testing them starts to wear them out, but you'd not trust any of them until you'd tested them that first time, would you?

The original design intent for Mini DV back in the mid 90s (pre NLE systems) was to record in the 12 bit mode, rewind countless times, audio dub, rewind, record tape to tape using cue and review, pause record, stop, start and so on.

This is tough on the little tape, but as I say, that was the design intent. Nowadays we treat tape gently. One rewind, one play into the computer. And I am living proof that such use doesn't, 'dramatically increases the chance of a dropout'.

Onwards, good people.

tom.

I would guesstimate there would be some improvement but not much. The benefit in this scenario would be seeing it separate from all the feedback icons and slightly larger. I have an Ikan V8000HD and I can tell you that when i hook up with s-video, it is better but to get the real advantage I need to be hooked up via component to get the true HDV signal. Now Ikan has the v8000 with HDMI. Also you might check the thread on here about the "smallHD" monitor. The price point is incredible for the feature set.

Marshall is great but the pricepoint is often difficult for me to swallow...

You can put lipstick on a pig...

I'm not trying to knock the HD1000, yet I don't really consider it a "professional" quality camcorder either. I do find it amusing how we can be so influenced by superficial appearances. If I were to hire someone to shoot video for me (like in the extremely unlikely event I were to get married ...even to a hooker!), I don't care if the cameras look like toys and say "Mattel" on them, so long as they indeed shoot premium quality video.