I have a bunch of questions for the owner of a Sony HVR-A1U HD camcorder?

Question

1. what are your main problems with this camera?

2. does it have a slot for a memory card?

2.2. does it have a "photo" button

3. in your opinion, how does it react to low light conditions?

4. how is the sound quality, the directional mic vs. a regular camcorder built-in mic, is there a big difference?

5. is it worth the cost?

6. when they say it can record in 60i fames per second

can i do really cool slow motion sword fights without a lot of motion blur?

7. in your opinion, what is the best feature?

thanks!

those are most of the questions that i cant find the answers to online.

10 points to best answer... please only answer if you own, have used, or are very familiar with this camera, i need accurate answers.

Answer 1

I use the Sony HDR-HC1. It is the consumer version of the HVR-A1U which used to be the entry level of the Sony HDV pro line until the HVR-HD1000U was introduced. I have used the A1U.

1. what are your main problems with this camera?

It loads tape from the bottom. It the camcorder is mounted to a tripod, that generally means removing the camcorder from the tripod to replace the tape. There are various workarounds for this - by using a spacer between the camera and the tripod mount or using a camera bracket. I don't like that manual zoom and focus share the same ring so you can only do one or the other manually... but I've learned to work with it.

2. does it have a slot for a memory card?

Yes, but this camera as with all other Sony camcorders that  also take stills, uses Sony ProDuo memory sticks... not standard SD or other memory cards. Perhaps reading through the tech specs or the manual would be advantageous.



http://bssc.sel.sony.com/BroadcastandBus...

2.2. does it have a "photo" button

Yes. On top next to the zoom rocker switch. Because taking photos while taping can shake the camera, I would suggest using a LANC with a phot button. I got one from Sony - it is OK - has power, zoom and photo buttons... and I got a cheaper one from Targus - it has power, zoom and photo buttons AND focus. While capturing video, you can take stills at the same time and there is no interruption to the miniDV tape video capture.

3. in your opinion, how does it react to low light conditions?

It reacts the wan any camera reacts when you get past the boundaries of it's low light capabilities... it gets grainy. I have shot live music videos at clubs... the camera is focused on the band playing, on stage, with stage lighting. The video looks fine. The video gets grainy when the camera is on the audience who really are in low light. I am planning to get either a Canon XHA1 or Sony HVR-V1U to use WITH my HC1 specifically because of the low-light characteristics of those cameras is better... but they are also more expensive and larger cameras.

4. how is the sound quality, the directional mic vs. a regular camcorder built-in mic, is there a big difference?

There is no such thing as a camcorder with "great" built-in mics when they are integrated with the camera like the A1U (on either side of the lens barrel). That said, the A1U's mics are "OK"... But I use an Audio Technical AT-825 mounted in a Sabra SMM-1 universal shock mount mounted an an angled camera bracket (along with a BeachTek DXA-6 XLR adapter). I also use a NRG Research SA-568 switchable shotgun mic and Shure wireless hand-held SM-58 mics or lavalieres (clip-on) under certain conditions.

5. is it worth the cost?

That is up to you. For its size and capabilities, I think so.

6. when they say it can record in 60i fames per second

can i do really cool slow motion sword fights without a lot of motion blur?

You need to do a bit more research... 60i(nterlaced) frames per second is actually only 30fps... which is standard camcorder stuff. The 24f is an electronic version of getting to a more movie-like 24p (my HC1 does not have this). Neither the HC1 nor the A1U have the Sony "smooth slow record" function you are looking for.

7. in your opinion, what is the best feature?

I like the manual features that a lot of the consumer camcorders don't have. I like that it is relatively small. I like that it does DV (4:3 and 16:9) and HDV. I like the tic-tac-toe grid you can put up on the LCD screen or viewfinder (that does not get recorded) to help frame my shots.

I ended up with the HDR-HC1 because I did not like the "front-heavy" XLR adapter on the A1U that replaced the flash on the HC1. Since I use a BeachTek XLR adapter, and it is under my HC1, I have a flash for taking stills... though I can't use the flash to take stills when recording video. I also have the optional 2x tele lens. It works great when you are fully zoomed in on the subjected - but if you fully zoom out, there will be "vignetting" - that is, the lens will cut the corder of the frame so it looks like you are shooting from the bottom of a barrel. The vignetting goes away when the zoom is in about the 1/2 way position.

Is there something specific you are looking for in a camcorder? Any particular reason the Canon HV20, HV30, Sony HDR-HC7 or HC9 are not of interest?