JVC HM100U+ promo work in nightclubs anyone doing this? Need advice on 3ccd or CMOS

[mac*Kiz*convert]

hay i have a job doing pro mo work in night clubs and have been using my five year old canon dv cam which is ok but wanting to upgrade big time. been looking at all the pro and prosumer cams for the job and which is better for low light settings in the clubs but can also handle the club lights. still not sure if 3ccd or cmos is the way to go? the JVC HM 100U seems the perfect cam for the job due to size, pro settings, XRL outputs for interviews ect but been told its not to hot in low light? cant test one out where i am. anyone here doing promo work in nightclubs?

what cam do you use?

any advice gratefully received

Kiz

 

[TH3D4RKKN1GH7]

hay i have a job doing pro mo work in night clubs and have been using my five year old canon dv cam which is ok but wanting to upgrade big time. been looking at all the pro and prosumer cams for the job and which is better for low light settings in the clubs but can also handle the club lights. still not sure if 3ccd or cmos is the way to go? the JVC HM 100U seems the perfect cam for the job due to size, pro settings, XRL outputs for interviews ect but been told its not to hot in low light? cant test one out where i am. anyone here doing promo work in nightclubs?

what cam do you use?

any advice gratefully received

Kiz

SONY EX1/EX3 maybe? Or you can even go DSLR, get a Zacuto Rapid Fire, Z-Finder, Rode Directional Mic or maybe even a Zoom H4N(records two channel audio plus has 2 XLR ports) for proper sound. It's a lot cheaper than EX1/EX3. I say EX1/3 cause I hear they're good at low light for cameras in their price range (5K-8K)

 

[Gymnut]

I've had the Panasonic HMC150 and it's phenomenal under low light settings. It's not as sharp as the XHA1 I had prior to the HMC150, but it still puts out a very clean image when adding gain. The EX1/EX3 are great cameras, although I've never had the opportunity to use one, but I have heard they are front heavy and a pain to use handheld for extended periods of time.

I really liked the HM100U for its size and Panasonic even came out with a clone of it with their HMC40; I think that FCP friendly format is a great way to go with the JVC, although there are a number of ways to handle AVCHD via one of many ProRes flavors or using Cineform's codecs. I felt that the 1/4" CCDs used in the HM100u were a tad too small for me.

 

[TH3D4RKKN1GH7]

Yeah get a rig for the EX1/3 or one of those shoulder mounts for it, don't sacrifice quality. But for what you're doing I'd really recommend the SLR option.

 

[anthemus]

This last spring I shot a fashion show in a night club with average club lighting. You can ask them to bring the lights up some while your shooting or to use more lights on the floor. Also do some tests at your house with low lights, figure out shutter, iris, etc. Screen the footage on your edit system to determine of the quality is good enough. What works and what doesn't.

If your shooting a booth or at the bar don't be afraid to use some extra lights. Just let the people know your shooting so there ready for the light change. Also diffuse your lights so your not creating harsh shadows.

For a low light camera a Canon 7D or similar DLSR will give you some great results. Shutter at 30, Aperture at 1.8 with an ISO at 1000/1250. With DSLR don't go above 1250 otherwise the footage could become grainy.

If you have the camera the night before the shoot maybe swing by and tell them your doing a site survey. Test the camera in the lights.

 

[ChemiosMurphy]

EX-1 is a good cam. CMOS, so be weary doing quick whip pans or anything with strobes. Good piece of glass on it and XDCAM is a good codec.

the JVC probably sucks. I work at a university that has GY-HD110s and 200s, and they are garbage. Lens doesn't go wide enough and the image quality is absolutely terrible. Look elsewhere

 

[mac*Kiz*convert]

nightclub cam

hay thanks for all the advice guys ill do some research and get back to you.
was concerned about using a DSLR due to the sound option but ill check it out. cant really ask them to change the lighting as it not for one particular event its for dance music nights where the constant change of lighting they use ads to the atmosphere so cant ask to bring the light up. external light may be the only way to go but would rather not if i could get away with it so that i dont alert 2many of the crowd to my presence. and ya my concern with CMOS is that it might not be the best for run and gun as it takes to long to configure when moving? only other thing is that i want to use this cam for short docs and educational vids. ill have a look and tell you what i find.