Another New AVCHD-based Camera

Sony has released the new NEX FS 100, an AVCHD camera that seems to be aiming its sites on Panasonic's AF100 with its large sensor (S35), ability to interchange lenses, real video controls on camera like iris, gain and volume control as well as XLR audio inputs.  There is already some varying opinion on how good or mediocre this camera might be.

Here is a clip from FSTOP Academy with their positive review:


And on the more negative size is this rather in-depth look from DVuser. This reviewer was definitely not blown away by the camera's feel, build, etc.  But he does compliment the quality of the video.

The FS 100 features its LCD screen on top of the camera body which is a bit unusual, but depending on how you use it/shoot with it, it might be placed in the right spot.  I'm used to the side LCD screen, so it might take some getting use to.  And like the AF100, the FS100 only has 8-bit 4:2:2 out of the camera via HDMI.  This at least allows you to bypass the AVCHD processing in-camera, but many will be yearning for 10-bit out.  The FS100 also allows you to screw-on a hand grip with a built-in mic as well as a eyepiece viewfinder to make the camera have a more traditional video camera feel and form factor.

Here's more information from the ProVideo Coalition. 

So here's another contender in the battle for "combine the DOF abilities of a DSLR but with the ergonomics and controls of a real video camera".  It will be interesting to play with one of these at NAB.

Premiere CS5 and the New Apple Mackbook Pro

The new Apple Macbook Pros seem really impressive to me with their quad core processors, 1 GB video cards, and the new Thunderbolt port, but one disappointing aspect for some is the fact that the video card is ATI and not Nvidia.  So how does it play with Adobe Premiere CS5?  Adobe seems to notice that the word on the street is you MUST have a CUDA-enabled card to get great performance.  Adobe says this isn't true, and that their Mercury Playback Engine's software mode is more than capable, with the right machine, of great performance.

So thanks to some tweets I found the above clip showing off Premiere CS5 on a new 17" Macbook Pro.  This makes these brand-new laptops even more intriguing.

To read more about this, follow this link to Adobe's Blog.

SmallHD

One of my favorite vendor stops last year at NAB was SmallHD, the maker of - get this - small HD screens that are perfect for your DSLR rigs.  One of their biggest strengths are resolution.  Many similar LCD screens around this size don't offer 720p resolution, but SmallHD does.  It also features a HDMI port, perfect for connecting to your DSLR, DVX, HMC, EX1r, etc.

Matt Jeppson over at FreshDV has a great write-up on using a SmallHD for a live music shoot he did in New York.  It sounds like the monitor did a great job and could be counted on for an accurate representation of what the DSLR is capturing.

Read the article here.