Canon HV30?
 

I see Canon has a new compact camera out, I am thinking about adding this as a 3rd camera to my 2 XH A1's. I like the insurance to have one more tape of the critical things, and nothing wrong with having another audio source for emergencies.

I really wonder if this wouldn't be the ticket for my steadicam Merlin. I know the XH-A1 is supposed to work in it but its tough, or for me so far it is.

I can easily justify this purchase if its a good choice for the steadicam and as a play back deck.

Any thoughts?

Absolute no brainer, go for it for those purposes-- understanding, of course that this is a cmos chip camera, and can have some wobble in certain situations.

I'd wholeheartedly agree on the HV30. It matches well with the A1, gives something else to capture footage from and really is a brilliant little camera. It's also bloody cheap at the moment.

Not to be a conspiracy theorist here, but I don't think these bargains will last. Although I don't know Canon's manufacturing costs on the unit, they can't be making much money, if any at all. Given the trend in consumer cams toward hard disk, min-DVD and memory cards as recording media, the window on the HV30 may be closing.

I keep the HV30 on the Merlin and can cover the bridal prep without fatigue...its very light and excellent in good light. The low light performance is MUCH worse than the A1 (which is terrible to begin with)...so keep that in mind if you plan on using it as 2nd camera in dark venues.

Also, the on-board mic picks up motor noise..as do many of the smaller cameras. Its okay when the ambient sounds are loud, but needs to be filtered in post for quieter segments.

During the ceremony, its mounted on a clamp arm or tripod for unmanned use. Matches well with the A1 (if a bit more saturated out-of-the-box). If you need more convincing, head over to the extremely active HV20/HV30 forum to get all of your questions answered (please use the search function first, or you will get a minor spanking from the moderators).

Amen to that!

Thanks guys, I just ordered it from B&H, got free 2 day air.

Denny

Question about HV30
 

Can HDV footage (on miniDVD tape) taken with an FX1 be played back for capture purposes with the HV30?

I believe that's been confirmed multiple times (FX1 playback on HV30). FX1 is pretty plain vanilla HDV.

Denny,

Let us know what you think when you get it. I'm in exactly the same boat: 2 A1s using one on the Merlin, but I find it's a real pain, being it's on the heavy end of the spectrum for the Merlin.

Thinking of adding the HV30 for Merlin and third camera in a stationary position. Looking forward to hear your first impressions.

first impressions are great, I like this more than the HV20 I had, looks better and could be me but LCD seems sharper. Great camera, I would have paid that price for use to play the DV tapes and save on my A1's, the fact that its another camera is a HUGE bonus. I will try it out on the merlin this week, but am sure it will be fine. I know the footage on the A1 is probably better, but I end up not using the merlin with the A1 because of the time to set it up and then take it off and put on a tripod. Knowing I can just leave this on the merlin I know I will use it more, I will just do some moving shots with the merlin, and some with out, hand holding the A1, hopefully this will give me enough moving shots to make the videos more exciting.

I'm ordering the HV-30 as a third cam for my FX1000 at some point. I played with one at circuit city and fell in love immediately. I love having a tiny cam that will fit in the same case as my larger ones.

The size vs. quality of image is amazing to me. At the price it is almost a throwaway.

I will mount it somewhere unobtrusive as backup audio/video, preferably at the rear of the altar when possible.

In low light it is almost worthless, but again, at it's price point I got to have me one.

I want a personal camera that will fit in an overnight back for recording family stuff, and it will really fit the bill.

No, you are not imagining things Denny. The LCD is an upgrade. Enjoy!