Customer Reviews

Sony HDR-FX1000 High Definition MiniDV Handycam Camcorder

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I purchaized FX1000 form Amazon two months ago to videotape theatrical performances at home. I have chosen it because of good low light specification (1.5Lux) and made the right choice. With correct manual settings (most important - maximum gain <15dB) it produces excellent picture for poorly lit scenes as well as for scenes under artificial (pure red, blue, green) lightling. Low-light noise is slightly worse than for VX2100 that is known champion for such conditions (1.0Lux). However, resolution is much better than for VX2100: I can hardly see pixelization or any artifacts on 6ft x 4ft screen (using Sony HD projector).
The only drawback is very small menu wheel that is difficult to use (much worse than in VX2100).
Otherwise, after 30h of videotaping in very demanding conditions it works wery well. Definitely this is not point-and-shoot camera. It has tons of knobs and switches (nicley described in the manual) and you have to invest some time and patience to get amazing results.
Although this is my first HD camera (I owned Sony VX2100 for 2.5 years) and I have nothing to compare it with, I give it 5 stars because I do not see any serious drawbacks.
August 2010 addition: Now I own it for 17 months, have taped ~60h of video and camera works great.

This camera is fantastic, especially given its price range. The lowlight, with manual settings, is fantastic. The picture quality is awesome as well. The largest negative is the location of the hot-shoe in relation to the lcd screen. If you have a mic (a must) or light or whatever, it blocks your ability to close or open the LCD. Otherwise, this is a camera to surpass the Canon XH-A1, which has previously been top of the class at this price point in HDV 3-chip cameras.

Having had this camera for only a few days, this review is somewhat preliminary but I have owned a couple of Sony cameras (TRV900 and FX2100)and my first impressions are generally good.
First of all, it feels good in your hand and the unit feels solid. The hi res lcd screen is great, I just wish they'd make it as big and bright like the 3.5" on the TRV900. The lens is great with a nice wide angle of view, but it does have a bit of barrel distortion. The tele-extender does not have a smooth transition from optical to digital like most zooms, it's a tele-extender on the lens, making it more of a telephoto zoom. I was surprised by this design, it seems a digital zoom beyond the regular optical one would be better since it would give you a continuous 30x zooming range.

The left side of the camera is cluttered, more so than it needs to be. I think Sony sometimes changes things that don't need changing, like moving the scrolling wheel to the side where it's lost in a maze of buttons. This may sound nit picky, but when you're in the field shooting you want simplicity. The less you have to think about the controls, the more you can concentrate on composing. I do like the iris ring on the lens barrel(one less reason to try to find that scroll wheel!). The built in mike actually sounds pretty good but a Rode Video Mike or similiar would probably be worth it.

I played with the "cinematone" stuff and the jury's still out for me. Video does not look like film. I've seen too many cameras with 24p, 30p, Progressive scan, etc that just looked like jerky video, not film. I think it can be a useful feature but it doesn't turn your footage into "instant film". Anytime I've tried to make my footage look like film, I've had to do each scene in post, separately.

Anyway, the low light capability is very good, and the resolution is stunning if you're going to hi def for the first time. Supposedly, HDV is a less efficient codec than AVC(with more artifacts)but I have not noticed any, even in low light. Tape has it's limitations(1hr recording, dropouts) but I haven't had any. I'm using the regular Sony tapes not the fancy HD ones (and they're cheap)! Tape is also an great archive format.

That's all for now, if i have more thoughts as I go along I'll update this review. Hope this helps.

Recently shot a wedding with this cam and it worked great. The 20x zoom came in very handy during the ceremony considering I couldn't move around. The auto focus worked perfectly 95% of the time allowing me to concentrate on composition. The built-in mic provided good sound quality. I did use a wireless with an external XLR adapter during the ceremony that worked very well.
Overall, I think this camera offers a very good bang for your buck in picture quality if you can live without the XLR inputs but you'll need to get used to finding the scroll wheel. Highly recommended.

I previously purchased the Sony HDR-FX1 a couple of years ago and when it was time to purchase a second camera to add to my growing video company, I bought the HDR-FX1000 since it was advertised as a better version of the FX1. The very first thing I shot with this camera was an indoor awards ceremony where the lights in the auditorium were pretty dim. I shot this event with both cameras. Because the FX1000 has a lower lux rating I expected this camera to be able to give better and brighter images in the low light conditions. In fact, the footage from the FX1 looked MUCH better. While the FX1000 image was brighter, this increase in brightness came with a tremendous increase in the amount of "grain" in the image. The FX1 image was a slight bit darker but the image was significantly cleaner. Given the trade off, I decided that the cleaner image in the long run was more important for me and returned the FX1000 for another FX1.

RLN

I purchased this camera about two months ago to replace my Sony VX2000. I have shot two events so far with the FX1000 and I am very pleased with its performance. The camera has tons of manual settings ( still learning all those ) which most people will never use. I did purchase the Rode VideoMic to use with the camera because we all know how well on board mics work ( FYI, very good stereo shotgun mic ), I do wish the FX1000 had XLR inputs. I will be shooting a short film next month with the camera and then a feature film in a few months, I am looking forward to really testing this camera out.

For the most part, this camera is easy to figure out coming from using a Sony VX 2100 to this. But, my problem with it so far is that it sounds faintly like a coffee maker in record mode, and gets louder the longer it is recording.

The first one that was sent to my house was so loud that I returned it in exchange for a new one. This one is not quite as loud, but still does sound somewhat like a coffee maker especially after 5 minutes of recording. At first, you can only hear it up to your ear. Then, after a few minutes, you can be 2 feet away from the camera and hear it.

So far, that is my only complaint. I have only shot one wedding with it so far and have not edited the footage to see the difference in picture quality yet.

As a "pro-sumer" photographer with many years of experience, I recently gave up my quest to cover competitive soccer club action with my DSLR, long telephoto lenses, and 5 frame per second captures. As it happened, with many of the new DSLRs incorporating a 1080p video capture function, I started to dream about playing in the HD video arena.
Bottom Line: This advanced SONY camcorder actually allows me to exceed the creative vision that was in my mind's eye. It's just that good.
The HDR-FX1000 camcorder has a 590mm long end on it's telephoto lens assembly. It covers the far reaches of the field with ease.
The shutter speed can be set as fast as 1/10,000 sec rendering 30p footage in razor sharp clarity.
The 3 CMOS sensors are sensitive enough to work reasonably well for night matches under the lights - allowing fixed sustained shutter speeds in the 1/350 sec. to 1/750 sec range.
Posting YouTube 1080p HD video clips recorded in the 30p mode has been a real joy that has been heartily embraced by our team families. The novelty of seeing such clearly rendered pro-quality video simply does not wear off easily among viewers.
Working with the inexpensive and easily-archived HDV mini-cassettes has been an unexpected joy, as well.
I also recommend the purchase of SONY Vegas HD Movie Studio Platinum 10.0 for it's enhanced video capture and rendering/export abilities. The SONY VCT-80AV tripod is also a must own item and a best buy.
Unfortunately, this advanced SONY camcorder with broadcast quality HD capabilities is not for beginners. But for those that have already paid their dues mastering the creative manual overrides afforded by complex cameras, this precise optical device is a true joy to behold.

It's a very good camcorder with some issues. With respect to video quality and low light conditions it outstanding although the camera mode selection and function button are poorly placed. I happened to know this prior to my purchase and with the price tag fitting my budget I didn't hesitate acquiring my camcorder.