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Shoot Expertise: Hands-on HPX

Jul 1, 2007 12:00 PM, By D. W. Leitner

Putting the Panasonic AG-HPX500 to the test.

This year's NAB saw the launch of two new full-size P2 HD progressive-scan 2/3in. camcorders from Panasonic: a four-slot AG-HPX500 and a five-slot AJ-HPX3000. Both bring now-familiar P2 advantages such as instant-start recording and IT-based workflow, as well as 24p and 60Hz/50Hz versatility for worldwide use. Both introduce a new Chromatic Aberration Compensation (CAC) function to counter flaws in 2/3in. lens design (more below and in next month's issue). Despite shared features and size, however, you can buy three-and-a-half HPX500s ($14,000 each) for the cost of a single HPX3000 ($48,000). How can this be?

Moreover, the HPX500 offers a feature the HPX3000 doesn't: 11-step variable-frame-rate recording.

A little history

To recap P2's trajectory for a moment: Panasonic initiated “Professional Plug-in” Flash memory recording into the NTSC market more than three years ago with a pair of full-size, 2/3in. 520,000-pixel 3CCD, five-slot, standard-definition camcorders: the AJ-SPX800 with 24p/30p ($19,500) and later the “cost-efficient” interlace-only AJ-SPC700 ($13,000). The basic rap on the SPX800 was that it was an AJ-SDX900 ($28,000) — a wildly popular Panasonic camcorder — whose DVCPRO tape drive had been replaced with P2. The SPC700 was conceived as a low-cost ENG camcorder. It touted a “newly developed gamma curve for news.”

When word broke of the world's first P2 HD camcorder — an altogether new design combining a palmcorder's compact form with both 720/24p and Varicam-like variable-frame-rate recording for $6,000 — an iPhone-like frenzy exploded on the Internet. At NAB 2005, Panasonic confirmed the details: 13X built-in Leica zoom, progressive-scan 1/3in. 3CCD, 24p/30p or up-rezzed 1080i60, two slots, color viewfinder, and all in a package weighing less than 5lbs.

After the AG-HVX200 arrived in the field by the end of 2005, however, one detail remained murky. What were the CCDs used in the HVX200? It was well known at that time that Sony's HVR-Z1U had used interlaced 960×1080 CCDs to subsample 1080i horizontal resolution by half. (Full 1080-line horizontal resolution is 1920 pixels.) Sony made no bones about it — or the fact that HDV, like HDCAM, recorded only 1440 horizontal pixels to begin with. Canon's XL H1 boasted 1440×1080 (also interlaced but output as progressive-like “24F”). Only the single 1/3in. CMOS sensor in Sony's tiny HVR-A1U went the full 1920×1080 distance. JVC's GY-HD100U took a different tack, capturing instead full-res 720p with three 1280×720 progressive-scan CCDs.

Eventually, it came out (as it always does) that the HVX200's progressive-scan CCDs were 960×540 pixels. Panasonic had employed a common “pixel shift” technique to both horizontally and vertically offset by one-half pixel the position of the green CCD relative to the co-sited red and blue CCDs. At first glance, this would seem to double pixel counts along both dimensions — assuming combined red/blue pixels could capture the same luminance detail as the offset green pixels — which, of course, they can't. Instead, a half-pixel spatial offset boosts effective resolution by a factor of 1.5 along each shifted pixel axis. It's worth noting that ever since CCDs replaced analog tubes, pixel shifting has been used to create finer resolution to minimize aliasing.

In fact, having fewer pixels holds an advantage. CCD sensitivity and dynamic range are functions of the surface areas of individual pixels. The larger each charge-generating photodiode, the greater the charge created when exposed to light. Panasonic maintains that for a given CCD size, fewer pixels translate into larger pixels. Anyone who has used an HDV camcorder will confirm that because of smaller, tighter pixels, an HDV camcorder is never as sensitive to light as a DV camcorder is.

In designing the HVX200, Panasonic made thoughtful compromises (What is camera design but trade-offs?) and then intentionally obfuscated the HVX200's pixel count to evade the rabid obsession with camcorder metrics that characterizes Internet bulletin boards. Panasonic argues — and this writer agrees — that the only metric that counts in the end is how pleasing an image appears to the eye. Legions of Varicam, SDX900, DVX100, and HVX200 users will attest to the aesthetic advantages of Panasonic's choices.

What does this have to do with the HPX500?

That whopping price differential between the HPX500 ($14,000) and HPX3000 ($48,000) boils down to this: The HPX500 is an HVX200 repackaged as a full-sized 2/3in. camcorder, while the HPX3000 is a P2 HD flagship with 2.2-megapixel CCDs (the same pixel count as Sony's F950 or F23) and advanced AVC-I compression (H.264 MPEG-4). The HPX3000 is also 1080-only — a first for Panasonic — and the first camcorder from anyone to record full 1920×1080. (HDCAM is 1440×1080; HDCAM SR is 1920×1080, but no one-piece camcorder exists to record it.) The HPX3000 joins Panasonic's other full-size, 2/3in. P2 HD camcorder with AVC-I, the $27,000 HPX2000 (1-megapixel 3CCD) announced last November. Both merit their own future review.

The HPX500 in the real world

Like the HVX200, the HPX500 uses three standard-definition progressive CCDs, only a larger 2/3in. type similar to those found in PAL versions of the SDX900 and SPX800. (The PAL versions have 600,000 or 620,000 pixels instead of the NTSC version's 520,000 due to higher line count. Practically speaking however, they're the same.) The HPX500 produces 620,000 pixels, via a newly-designed CCD/DSP. Compared to an HVX200, this confers the advantages of even larger pixels, a larger anti-aliasing filter, and B4-mount 2/3in. lenses in general, including their better depth-of-field control and interchangeability. If you’ve ever had a hankering to mount a nonpareil Zeiss DigiPrime on an HVX200, here’s your chance.

To the HPX200 engine under the hood, the HPX500 adds HD-SDI with embedded audio and genlock. There are four P2 slots instead of two, which filled with the latest 16GB cards offer 64 minutes of 1080/60i or 720/60p, or 128 minutes of standard-def DVCPRO 50. Menus such as gamma and scene file settings are mostly the same as the HVX200, as is setup for variable-frame-rate recording.

Further connectivity includes timecode in/out and outputs for FireWire, USB 2.0, and analog component along with four (count 'em) audio XLR inputs — two in front and two at the rear. Not even the HPX2000 or HPX3000 have four XLR inputs.

I shot informal tests in the bright daylight of Manhattan streets and in the gloom of Gramercy Park's National Arts Club, an 1840s Gothic mansion with dark cigar-stained interiors. As expected, compared to an HVX200 (or any HDV camcorder) the HPX500 demonstrated significantly better sensitivity, less noise, and smoother latitude. Images shot outdoors looked terrific. I wasn't crazy about 1080i images, in particular, shot in the dim, low-key National Arts Club (albeit with key lights) — they were noisier than expected in shadows. The HPX500 is, after all, a half-megapixel camera, not a Varicam.

The HPX500 I reviewed for this article came with a Fujinon 17×7.6 (7.6mm-130mm) zoom with 2X extender — one of at least four Fuji or Canon CAC-compatible lenses designed to electronically interface with cameras such as the HPX500. (With more CAC lenses on the way, other cameras will soon introduce this feature, too.) CAC is a new camera function that compensates for a classic lens flaw called lateral chromatic aberration, which appears to the eye as a color-registration error. The presence and shifting degree of this error are predictable throughout a lens' zoom range based on its particular design, so a profile of this shifting error can be stored in a CAC-compatible camera such as the HPX500 and applied whenever the camera electronically recognizes that particular CAC lens. In realtime, the CAC-compatible camera manipulates the geometry of the three digital R, G, and B color records in its DSP to compensate. Amazing stuff. (See digitalcontentproducer.com for Barry Braverman's take on CAC.)

There is on/off menu control of the CAC function in the HPX500, although the one I reviewed automatically recognized the Fujinon 17×7.6 as a CAC lens and wouldn't let me turn off the CAC function. (No matter.) This smart lens also communicated its f/stop to the HPX500, which displayed it in the viewfinder. Other smart features I admired about this lens are a simple knob that controls maximum zoom speed; a button that zooms instantly to telephoto for focus check then returns to the original framing; and a memory button that, used in conjunction with the speed knob, can quickly create repeatable robotic zooms. Well done, Fujinon.

Unfortunately, the 17×7.6 breathes (magnifies the image upon focusing). I mean, a lot. A consequence, perhaps, of “affordable” HD lens design, and maybe acceptable for ENG, but unthinkable for drama focus-pulls.

Which brings up another issue: user interface in the HPX500. The HPX500's viewfinder is standard-def (you read that right), and Panasonic has come up with another gimmick to ensure proper focus. It's not candy-colored peaking or a focus-assist button such as that of the HVX200, which magnifies the center of the image. That particular feature is missing on the HPX500, replaced instead by a dedicated button also called focus assist that inserts into the viewfinder one of the oddest, most useless graph displays ever. Panasonic says it's a frequency distribution graph that aids in focusing. What you see is a twitchy, down-slanting bar graph that extends further to the right in the presence of high-frequency detail — i.e., purported sharpness.

Like the equally abstract histogram found in other cameras (which displays distributions of pixel brightnesses), the HPX500's focus assist doesn't relate directly to image content. Is it center-weighted? Who can tell? And what high-frequency detail is it registering, exactly, anyway? (In low-key lighting, it registers almost none, even when clearly in focus. If a bright object moves through the frame, the graph dynamically shifts — although focus shouldn't.) If we must suffer a graph superimposed on our viewfinder image, why not give us something long-overdue and truly useful, such as a luminance waveform display?

The list of what I dislike continues with the black-and-white viewfinder. I don't mind so much the fact that this viewfinder is standard-definition as I mind the fact that this is 2007, and that a digital camcorder this advanced can offer nothing better than a tiny, high-voltage monochrome CRT — a throwback if ever there was one. (Similar complaints have been made about the HPX3000, which also has a B&W viewfinder.) This viewfinder could have been taken from a camcorder of 20 years ago. Turn up the peaking (necessary for focusing), and what do you get? Menu text that blooms to the point of unreadability.

As anyone who reads these pages knows, I reject the argument that professionals desire a B&W viewfinder to better see sharpness. Color is a key determinant in composition. B&W in a viewfinder is little more than sensory deprivation. As I've said in print for years, even Ansel Adams viewed a color finder. This professional, for one, no longer finds a B&W viewfinder acceptable under any circumstances. The viewfinder is where the camera operator's eye lives. Where it kisses the camera. It is the operator's most intimate interface with the camera — sometimes for hours on end. If what I see in the viewfinder is glorious, I'm uplifted. If what I see is disappointing, I'm bummed. If a broadcaster hands me a camcorder with a B&W viewfinder, I'll have no choice but to use it. But given a choice, I'll walk away from a B&W viewfinder every time.

Similar inadequacies plague flip-out LCD screens — in the case of the HPX500, regrettably moved to the rear of this full-length camcorder. Who wants to stare at the butt of an ENG camcorder — even for tripod work? It's true that the operator's head covers the mid-body LCDs of other shoulder-mount Panasonic camcorders, but the rear of the operator's head obscures this new placement too. When operating an ENG camcorder, the action is forward, where the viewfinder is. That's why Sony's placement of a high-res flip-out at the front of the handle of its Z1 HDV camcorder was brilliant. It works great whether the Z1 is on a tripod or handheld, especially at low angles, and has also freed users from the need for a separate HD monitor (never cheap) with its cabling and power needs. (I've had this conversation with dozens of fellow professionals who use the Z1. They all report the same experience.)

Lastly, the utility of the HPX500's user-selectable buttons could be better. One cannot, for instance, select safety zone as a button option. You have to go into the menu to display or turn off the safety zone. (The line weight of the segmented HVX200 safety zone found also in the HPX500 feels thick and ugly for a high-def camera, and peaking makes matters worse.) Another example: Instead of super black or ATW, you get consumerish choices of blackfade and whitefade. Wait, I forgot — unlike HVX200, the HPX500 has no auto-tracking white balance, handy for chasing those celebrities from courtroom to courthouse steps.

Placement of data in the display is often heedless. In the bottom right of the viewfinder I found the following: Z00B50%. What the heck? Turns out that Z00 (those are zeros, not O's) represents the percentage of zoom travel, from 0 percent to 99 percent, data that the smart Fujinon lens provides. B50% represents the charge state of the hi-tech Anton Bauer Lithium Ion battery. Now, that's useful! But why not a space between the Z00 and the B50% to separate them clearly?

The bottom line

A note about actual costs: At NAB, Panasonic announced an MSRP of $14,000 for the HPX500, and popular New York discounter B&H Photo Video has listed a lower “street” price of $13,000. This gets you a body only. Add in the four necessary 16GB P2 cards, and B&H's package price rises to $16,500.

The HPX500 I reviewed for this article came with a Fujinon 17X (7.6-130mm) zoom with 2X extender and a tripod quick-release adapter. The B&H package price that includes these basics is $21,850. The review camcorder also came with a single Anton Bauer Digital Dionic 90 Lithium Ion battery ($430, B&H), Anton Bauer Titan 70 single-battery charger/power supply ($500, B&H), and Panasonic ENG-style AJ-MC700 front mic with mounting kit (about $1,000, negotiable at B&H). This gets the full cost of the minimally outfitted review camcorder up to around $23,700. It doesn't include a carrying or shipping case, extra batteries with a multiple charger, or taxes and shipping charges — not insignificant costs, which easily add another $4,000 to your outlay.

In total, an unprecedented price for a professional HD P2 worldcam — if somewhat beyond the reach of most who inhabit Internet prosumer bulletin boards.

If you're a young creative, you have to ask yourself if the added cost of the HPX500 justifies what you give up by not simply using the light, compact HVX200 in the first place. Panasonic touts the HPX500 as 8.2lbs., but that's without the added weight of battery, viewfinder, and lens. On the other hand, if you own and operate a local ENG operation and are uncomfortable with the idea of day-in and day-out field use of palm-held or feather-weight camcorders, perhaps the HPX500 is your discount ticket to both P2 and HD.

At NAB, Panasonic sweetened the HPX500 pie further by announcing a unique limited five-year warranty on all full-size P2 HD camcorders (excluding the popular HVX200). This program includes free software updates and information through the P2 Asset Support System website (see panasonic.biz/sav/pass_e).

The HPX500 succeeds in marrying the innovative P2 HD workflow to an industry classic — the 2/3in. ENG camcorder — at a cost comparable to the standard-definition gear it will replace. Whether significant compromises in user interface and layout make it ideal for more creative endeavors remains to be seen.

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For additional perspectives on the Panasonic AG-HPX500 see our HD Focus article Field Testing the Panasonic AG-HPX500.

To comment on this article, email the Digital Content Producer staff at feedback@digitalcontentproducer.com.

© 2008 Penton Media, Inc.