Sony Release HVR-Z5 Camcorder

Sony release the HVR-Z5

Sony chose the 2008 International Broadcasting Convention (IBC) to present their new flagship camera, the HVR-Z5. This is an important one for Sony - it's being touted as the replacement for both the hugely popular HVR-Z1E and the even more popular DSR-PD170P. Despite the Z1 being a great camera, many people continued to use the PD170 - even though it didn't shoot HDV, it was nonetheless deemed to be better. Replacing two respected and renowned models with one, brand-spanking new number is a very tall-order indeed for Sony.

Although the Z5 looks and weighs about the same as the Z1, the newer camera is better balanced (the Z1 being too front-heavy has been a common complaint amongst its users). This means that if you're taking a lot of handheld shots and your arms are really spindly and sort of 'regal-looking' (like mine) then the HVR-Z5 is somewhat easier to handle!

The Z5 is equipped with three 1/3" ClearVid CMOS sensors, dual XLR inputs and a dedicated iris control ring on a 29.5mm wide-angle lens. The new 'G' branded lens has a 20x optical zoom with an aperture range of f/1.6 - 3.4. The Z5 is also capable of recording video natively at HDV1080/50i/25p, DVCAM, and DV SP 576/50i (PAL).

A big feature of the new Z5 is its lens. Personally, I never had a problem with the Z1's lens but it did have a few critics - particularly for its low light performance. The Z1's Carl Zeiss 12x optical was capable down to 3 lux. Despite being a great lens it took a lot of flack on this point, not least because the already-established PD-170 was capable down to 1 lux. In order to truly supersede both the Z1 & the PD-170, Sony really needed to sort this; and they have. The Z5 G-Series lens is good down to 1.5 lux - no mean accomplishment for an HDV cam of this size.

Another common criticism levelled at the Z1 was the control of focus - focal length and exposure. For a semi-pro camera it seemed to be on the wrong side of the 'semi'. For example, the focus ring spins endlessly and so manually adjusting focus in a shot is a precarious affair. The zoom control was very slow and, even worse (especially for users coming from a PD-170 background), not at all responsive. It was like a binary response, a 0 or a 1; either it was moving or it was stopped. It didn't matter how hard or soft you touched the trigger, the response wasn't variable. The iris wasn't controlled on the lens ring but on a wheel underneath it instead - not the end of the world, but having control of exposure separate from focus and focal length just isn't consistent with other pro-range cameras.

Sony have definitely taken steps in the right direction with the Z5. As well as the focus wheel, the lens has two other wheels on it; one for focal length and one for exposure. Although the focus ring is still spinning endlessly, the overall set-up of the Z5 is much better than the Z1, providing superior and easier control of focus, focal length and exposure - all important factors in camera work, even for a 'semi' pro! Other clever changes include the audio level controls having been moved from the rear to the side of the camera and more audio functions having been made adjustable by switches instead of the menu system.

The biggest development with the Z5 is its potential to record in solid state. Although generally producing tape-based cameras, Sony are soon to release a memory card reader (the HVR-MRC 1K) which will be compatible with Sony's Professional 306x CompactFlash card. The recording times on 8GB and 16GB CompactFlash cards in HDV, DVCAM and DV format are approximately 36 and 72 minutes, respectively. This optional piece of equipment will give you the option to shoot and record to both tape and solid state simultaneously. Welcome to the 21^st Century!

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