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MillimeterPanasonic AG-HMC40 Review
Sep 29, 2009 12:00 PM, By Barry Braverman
Diminutive camcorder works the mosh pit.
Tuck it under your arm or Velcro it to a dashboard; the Panasonic AG-HMC40 packs a lot of punch in a small package.
From the outside, the Panasonic AG-HMC40 may seem to be just the latest budget entry in Panasonic's AVCCAM lineup, but don't be fooled. It offers remarkable bang for the buck: a built-in waveform for easy lighting of greenscreen; adjustable zebras from 70 percent to 105 percent for exposure evaluation; an intervalometer; two focus-assist modes; and comprehensive image-control settings including detail, gamma, knee, and matrix. With robust metadata support, the compact HMC40 is a mini-powerhouse with many professional features. Of course, as with any economy camcorder, there are compromises to be made. I will discuss some of them here, but there is also an abundance of sprit evident in the HMC40 that is very compelling.
Tale of the SDHC card
The HMC40 is a 2lb. AVCHD camcorder that records to inexpensive SDHC media. At bit rates up to 21Mbps (24Mbps including audio), the camera offers impressive performance—albeit with somewhat less precision than the company's higher-end AVCCAM and P2 models. The main advantage of AVCHD long-GOP compression is the reduced file size and bit rates that allow recording to cheap SD memory. The main disadvantage is the increased risk of artifacts in scenes with lots of motion, complex color, or fine detail. Long-GOP formats, such as AVCHD and XDCAM, also tend to be less efficient in postproduction. The minimum decodable unit in these formats extends over multiple (usually 15) frames and increases the complexity of decoding and restoring the individual frame units, which in turn complicates common post processes such as color correction and compositing.
The 3-CMOS 1/4in. imager delivers decent if not great performance at 1920x1080 native resolution. The tiny sensor size limits low-light response and dynamic range, two areas of compromise that go hand in hand with the camera's diminutive footprint.
Given a native resolution of 1920x1280, the HMC40 performs best at this frame size, operating at 1080i60, 1080p30 (over 60i), and 1080p24 native modes. The latter format will be particularly relevant to narrative-style shooters looking ahead to output to Blu-ray Disc and digital cinema. For optimal compatibility with other camera systems, the HMC40 will also shoot 720p at 24fps, 30fps, and 60fps. Note that 24p native frame recording (rather than over 60i) is available at both 1080 and 720 resolutions, effectively multiplying the recording time of the SDHC media by 2.5.
Into the mosh pit
In September, I had the opportunity to try out the HMC40 amid the wild music fans at the All Tomorrow's Parties Festival in Monticello, N.Y. Such groups as The Flaming Lips, the Boredoms, and Shellac filled out the three days of nonstop reckless abandon on the property of the old and now mostly decaying Kutsher's Country Club.
The small, versatile camera provided just the right profile to infiltrate the densely packed crowds. Maneuvering backstage before or after a set is never easy at such events, but in this case at least, I could be relatively unobtrusive. Given my all-access pass and the good will I wished to maintain with the artists and management, there could be no whacking folks in the back of the head with a full-size camera rig. The HMC40 is reassuring in that way; the camera is not likely to decapitate a passersby, which nearly happened on a feature set a few years ago when a pretty production girl ventured too close to my blind side and was promptly clocked across her forehead when I swung my Sony HDW-F900 around a bit too energetically.
Continue the discussion on “Crosstalk” the Millimeter Forum.
