NX5U suitability for shooting stage shows and dance presentations at DVinfo.net

John Vasey · March 10th, 2010, 08:48 PM

I'm looking at how suitable the NX5U is for shooting dramatic plays (which can have areas of dark with actors in a spotlight) and dance...which can at times have moody and dark lighting. From what I seem to be hearing on the Internet, the -3db setting on this camera may be equal to 0db on other cameras. In the past my old Sony PD-150 had sufficient low light quality for me to capture these presentations with a minimum of noise. I am wondering how the NX5U will hold up for the same kind of shows. Noise in the blacks is an area of concern.

For those that may have shot these kind of stage shows with the NX5U, I would greatly appreciate hearing how clean your images are and what you've been using for your gain settings.

Many thanks,

John

Adam Gold · March 10th, 2010, 09:38 PM

Just came back from shooting the final dress of the musical we are shooting Friday and Saturday, using 4 Z5s, which are, overall, quite similar. They're great and can virtually see in the dark. It's almost noiseless up to 9dB of gain. Spotlight mode helps. I would think the NX5 performs similarly.

I tend to crush the blacks so the cam doesn't try to lift them into a noisy grey. Others do the opposite.

March 10th, 2010, 08:48 PM	#1
John Vasey Regular Crew Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 75	NX5U suitability for shooting stage shows and dance presentations I'm looking at how suitable the NX5U is for shooting dramatic plays (which can have areas of dark with actors in a spotlight) and dance...which can at times have moody and dark lighting. From what I seem to be hearing on the Internet, the -3db setting on this camera may be equal to 0db on other cameras. In the past my old Sony PD-150 had sufficient low light quality for me to capture these presentations with a minimum of noise. I am wondering how the NX5U will hold up for the same kind of shows. Noise in the blacks is an area of concern. For those that may have shot these kind of stage shows with the NX5U, I would greatly appreciate hearing how clean your images are and what you've been using for your gain settings. Many thanks, John

March 10th, 2010, 09:38 PM	#2
Adam Gold Inner Circle Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Woodinville, WA USA Posts: 3,467	Just came back from shooting the final dress of the musical we are shooting Friday and Saturday, using 4 Z5s, which are, overall, quite similar. They're great and can virtually see in the dark. It's almost noiseless up to 9dB of gain. Spotlight mode helps. I would think the NX5 performs similarly. I tend to crush the blacks so the cam doesn't try to lift them into a noisy grey. Others do the opposite. __________________ "It can only be attributable to human error... This sort of thing has cropped up before, and it has always been due to human error." Last edited by Adam Gold; March 10th, 2010 at 11:09 PM.