Canon XH-A1 review

[crabpuffful]

that camera is awesome but it cost $2,649 so im using my hfr 20 SD camera and its pretty good.

[oneeyedgeek]

@crabpuffful To each his own. I use one like that for videos of my friends at the pub. They do shoot to cards rather than tapes, which I wish the XHA1 did though.

[patcism]

@oneeyedgeek thanks for the response. Yeah, I'm going to buy this camera in a few months, and I will need a good tripod for it. What tripod are you using?

[patcism]

Do you think the camera is heavy? I often hear complaints that the camera weighs a lot.

[oneeyedgeek]

@patcism It's quite a bit heavier than any of my other cameras. I had to buy a new tripod (and later a monopod) when I got it. It's not as heavy as some of the big broadcast cameras though.

[patcism]

@oneeyedgeek Thanks for the reply! I'm excited because I decided to order the camera and it will becoming in on Tuesday! Thanks

[patcism]

Do you think that Mini DV cameras are better than SD Cards, or hard drive cameras?

[oneeyedgeek]

@patcism I have never used a camera with a hard drive so I can't comment on that. Tapes tend to get a lot of "pixel artifacts" in the image, especially with HD. I have only used a camera that records to SD once so far and the quality doesn't seem too bad. Capturing from a card is A LOT easier and faster than capturing from a tape though. All of them are highly compressed though, in order to fit a large amount on a small tape/drive/card.

[oneeyedgeek]

@patcism The best solution is to record directly to a hard drive with a program like Adobe OnLocation.

[rainerfilm]

@patcism it is not.

[phatstud55]

@patcism SD cards all the way. Although most of them Shoot to AVCHD there are a few out there that shoot to other codecs as well. If you intend to manipulate the image quite a bit in post avoid AVCHD at all costs.

[flylEe401]

Can You record Footage Directly to the sd card?

[oneeyedgeek]

@flylEe401 No. It only records to tape. The SD card is used to store presets and settings. You can then take the card out and load the settings into a second camera so that their images are identical.

[NoSevenProductions]

does it use tapes

[oneeyedgeek]

@NoSevenProductions Yes, miniDV HD tapes.

[Dispositionist]

@oneeyedgeek don't buy hd tapes minidv is the same image quality. hd's have fewer dropped frames but i shoot on sony dvc premiums for 2 dollars a pop and they've never failed on me

[patcism]

Do you like your camera? What don't you like about it? Would you recommend it?

[oneeyedgeek]

@patcism I love it, the pic quality is great, and I highly recommend it although there are newer models available now. I think the only thing I don't like about it is that there are some items accessable only in the menu that I would want as a button. I think the "s" model fixed some of these.

[patcism]

@oneeyedgeek Have you ever had the problem with Auto Power Off?

[oneeyedgeek]

@patcism Yes, I think everyone does at some point. But I know a lot of people just disable it if they're going to use the camera a lot. (in the menu)

[wdhughes52]

piece of crap canon

[matthewTpeet]

tighten the strap and ur fingers will fall on the zoom the way u want.

[oneeyedgeek]

@matthewTpeet Thanks, but it doesn't matter. I always use a tripod or steadycam.

[VIM97]

TRIPOD

[SubFamilyOfficial]

does it come with the cord or "fire wire" as you called it to get the footage on the comp

[oneeyedgeek]

@SubFamilyOfficial I think so, but you can find one in any camera or computer store. They are used with almost all HD cameras.

[baseballboy725]

does this thing use tapes if so how to i get the fotage from the tape to comp

[oneeyedgeek]

@baseballboy725 Yes it uses miniDV tapes.  You transfer the footage by hooking it up to the computer via firewire.

[javieralza]

does hdp2 mean double the size, 2k???

[oneeyedgeek]

@javieralza hdp2? Do you mean an HD camera that shoots P2? I think P2 is a Panasonic format that is recorded to cards, similar to SD memory cards. No prosumer camera shoots 2k, which is 4 times the size of HD. (I could be wrong on all of this since I've never used P2 or 2k.)

[javieralza]

@oneeyedgeek no 4k is 4 times the size, hd is 1080, 2k is somewhere around 2000

[oneeyedgeek]

@javieralza If 2k is twice as high and twice as wide, that means it is 4 times the frame size. Simple math. (I would add a diagram if I could.)

[javieralza]

@oneeyedgeek lol'z jaizes, so then 4k is like almost 6 and a half sizes biger than hd

[surfandsk8]

@oneeyedgeek 2k isnt twice as high and twice as wide as HD. Its a resolution of 2048 x 1080. its a 17:9 aspect ratio used for film. if it was twice as high and twice as wide itd be 3840 x 2160. And the Red Scarlet (a "prosumer" camera) will be capable of shooting 2k, if red ever decides to release it fully.

[oneeyedgeek]

@surfandsk8 Thanks for that. To be honest, I don't know anything about 2K or 4K, and I will probably never get a chance to use one of the Reds. I was only going by what I had read elsewhere.

[surfandsk8]

@oneeyedgeek no problem ha. You still using the xh-a1? I really like the look of the new canons that just came out, the xf305 and xf300.

[oneeyedgeek]

@surfandsk8 Me too, but I'll be using the A1 until business picks up again.

[surfandsk8]

@oneeyedgeek i know what you mean, im using a sony fx7 right now, trying to save some money for a canon 7d though. long way off.

[KennyGkienan]

dude the friggin lcd on the top!!! review it retard!

[oneeyedgeek]

@KennyGkienan I mentioned it @ 4:44. You want a review? It's small and sucks. Is that better? I had to buy an external 7" HD monitor to use instead.

Thanks for watching!

[KennyGkienan]

@KennyGkienan sorry dude lol i got mad alil bit but nice review!! too

[jandearabier]

Can you chance the lense?

[oneeyedgeek]

@jandearabier You can't change or remove the main lens but it is threaded so that you can add lenses, like a telephoto, wide angle, or 35mm adaptor. (72mm)

[shazam75]

top review - thanks!

[oneeyedgeek]

@JohnnyCockrillProd It is HDV and shoots on miniDV tapes. I use HD Pro quality tapes, but you don't have to.

[oneeyedgeek]

@JohnnyCockrillProd No, it only shoots to tape. It does save photos, settings, and presets to an SD card though. I think the Canons that are coming out this year do shoot to the cards, but I haven't seen one yet.

[MatsVidar]

About the zoom thing, where u fingers dont fit, I see how that might be a tiny problem for some, But i bet when your getting more proffesional your going to use full manual settings, and you wont be using the electic zoon, u'l be using the zoom ring :) Saving up for this camera now :)

[oneeyedgeek]

@MatsVidar You are right, and it didn't take me very long to figure out. The camera is too heavy to do much hand-held stuff, so I have only every used the zoom ring. (and I have been shooting "manual only" for years)

[MatsVidar]

@oneeyedgeek Ok, Great camera :) Hopefully il get mine in 6 months~

^^

[conewells]

Nice. What 35MM lens can be fit into this cam?  If not using lens, then what's the BEST way to give it that 35MM cine-look? . (Not counting the 24P)

[oneeyedgeek]

@conewells It has a 72mm size lens, so you need an adaptor before adding any 35mm lenses. I don't have either, but you can still get a shallow DOF by zooming all the way out and opening the iris up all the way. It even has a preset function so you can do great rack-focus shots. You can also get a good cine-look by taking it into After Effects and adding grain and a slight vignette. Shooting in 24fps does help too.

[TylerSaysTV]

can you upload the footage from this camera to a mac if so is it complicated? and how

[oneeyedgeek]

@TylerSaysTV Of course. All you need is capyuring software, like iMovie, Final Cut Pro, or others, and a Firewire cable. A new version, due out later this year, uses SD cards I believe.

[metric25]

Heya, does it have a usb cable or a fire wire to transfer vid to the computer?

[oneeyedgeek]

@metric25 Firewire of course.

[metric25]

oh I see, I have a 1394 port in my computer would that be appropriate?

[oneeyedgeek]

@metric25 Firewire can have a couple of different ends on them, so mack sure you get a cable that matches both the camera and the computer port.

[kd5gua]

Look for a combo deal that includes fingernail clippers on your next purchase, geeze. lol

[oneeyedgeek]

@kd5gua Thanks Mom! :)

[kd5gua]

@oneeyedgeek Was a good useful review, btw.

[THEKK17]

1:09 mmhhhhhaaaaa

[FroeFilms]

god get a tri pod

[oneeyedgeek]

Thanks for watching, but if you had had the volume turned up you would have heard me say that I was using a tripod, but 1 that was not built for such a large camera. I now have a pro model.

[koldstudios]

does it record on a mem card or like tapes?

[oneeyedgeek]

miniDV tapes, but I sometimes use Adobe OnLocation to record directly to a laptop.

[mmlight]

See my video on the issues with this camera. Basically Canon does not support any 3rd party decks to transfer tapes to edit. You have to use the camera as a deck.

[adamdieter1204]

i am debating on the vx2100, panasonic dvx100b, or the canon XH-a1

any pros and cons from anyone

what would you guys get?

[RkFxOfficial]

the a1!

[bouchandre]

the xha1 is the only hd one

[KlasicKumputerz]

You should use this camera with a Steadicam Merlin since it is a big & heavy camera.

[Filmerciuvak]

cut your nails

[MortallicA91]

what do you think is better and why between this canon xha1 and your sony pd150? :)

lowlight conditions, focusing, quality etc :)

nice review, i'm going to watch the test video now

[OneEyedProd]

Thank you.

Until recently, I didn't know enough about low light conditions and got poor results with both cameras. I have done some low light stuff recently with the Canon and it works quite well (don't use it's low light mode tho). Focusing was hard with the tiny lcd, so I bought a 7" external monitor. Overall quality is really good. It just took getting used to because it's quite different from the Sony.

[OneEyedProd]

Watch the road trip video I made with this. I have 1 more that I haven't finished editing yet that I'll post here (SUBSCRIBE!) and I just posted a few more on my other channel: OneEyedProd (SUBSCRIBE TO THIS ! TOO! lol)

[ForeverMods]

Nothing is perfect bro LOL. I like your unbiased informative review.... makes me smile at times..."run out of bullets haha"

Thanks for sharing buddy

[TheunforgivingCam]

what tapes does it use? mini dv and hd?

[oneeyedgeek]

miniDV, and I think you can get HD formats as well. I use Panasonic,DVM63PQ (the PQ is Professional Quality) I also sometimes record right to my laptop, with Adobe OnLocation.

[formaset]

This cam SUCKS in low light. I own one. Took it to a wedding. A disaster. VERY NOISY at only 6db!!! Sony Z series cams are clean at 12!

[oneeyedgeek]

Was the wedding at midnight in a cave? I never use the gain. Any camera will produce grain & noise if you use the gain. Rely on your other settings first.

[yeeyeeyeeyee1]

really interested on this beauty of a cam, but would a macbook pro 2.5GHz intel core 2 duo handle the canon ok??????

[oneeyedgeek]

I've never used a mac, but that's similar to what I'm using at the moment, and it's just a little slow.. I hope to upgrade to a 3GHz quad core with 8GB RAM by the end of the year.

[oneeyedgeek]

I ended up getting an Intel i7 2.6GHz quad core, with 12GB of DDR3 RAM, with Windows Vista 64-bit Home Premium. Runs as smooth as silk, even when editing HD (Premiere Pro CS4)

[Bertziethegreat]

Well son of a bitch.

[Dutchley]

Just yesterday I was at a store called Lens & Shutter, finding out about the H1 and A1. Both seems to be pretty similar except the H1 has a interchangeable lens (as the main difference)... but I really don't think I'll be fiddling around much with that.

Unfortunately, I live on Vancouver Island and they can't even bring in an H1. The A1 is MUCH cheaper anyways. I really gotta get my butt to Vancouver by the end of this year and explore the film industry there.

Good video!

[oneeyedgeek]

My old Sony PD150 had an interchangable lens too, and it was great. But the A1 has a much bigger lens, so now I need to buy all new filters, wide-angle, tele, etc.

[drakept]

Hmm, Image stabilizer would be nice in this footage

[oneeyedgeek]

...and a buddy of mine moved to Vancouver a year ago (uses the A1 too) and he's never been busier than he is right now.

[newacepro]

for the lens hood issue you can get a new matte box off ebay for like 90 bucks and you can slide in filters and such, i think can fit the xh a1 not sure tho, but its worth checking out if its an issue for you

[Bertziethegreat]

Have you tested it with the SD memory card? or just with tape?

[oneeyedgeek]

Just the tape so far.