Hf100 Replacement

TwincityWild

Hi, I thought i would bring this question to the people in the know

I've had the HF100 from new and it's been a great camcorder but i've been  wanting to replace it for a little while after i managed to break the little thumbstick a while back whilst at a diner in the States.

Anyway i've read so much and i'm still confused. Basically i'm no professional i got the HF100 for holidays, days out, birthdays etc.

What i would like is something that does low light really well and is easily portable. The Hf100 fitted in my shorts pockets so was easily portable which was great. As for the low light...something that would capture the likes of a disney world at night (parades, fireworks and projections on the castle, indoor and outdoor rides etc) and night time skyline and out and about stuff. General Holiday stuff if you will.

I'm not worried about 4k as great as it is...I'm more than happy with 1080p. Besides I doubt my pc will be able to cope with the 4k editing.. but will check....Pc is  i7 2600k 3.40Ghz 16gb Ram Nvidia GTX 770 video card for anyone who has the answer to that.

I'm not looking to spend bucket loads of money as obviously my HF100 was pretty much used for  holidays. Quite happy with 2nd hand. I wasn't looking at Digital cameras or DSLR as i own a Sony A37 and the girlfriend owns a Hx90v but i'm open to any suggestions.

So would something like a 2nd hand Panasonic 750 do the job? or 770? or are they not far enough removed from the HF100 to really notice the difference? or any others from Canon, Sony etc

Any Help and suggestions would be greatly appreciated

Terfyn

Both the 750 and 770 will do the job. I have the 750 and, from experience, I know it performs well in low light (In a Ghost Train - pitch black except for the spooks) and the video responds well to enhancement in an editor. The 770 is an upgraded version of the 750.
The 770 is the later model to the 750 and the 770 has been replaced by the 800 (progress) You may have difficulty finding a 750 but 770s should be at a good price. Both cameras are neat an will fit well into a coat pocket. (I often carry my 750 this way.)
Both have decent zoom range, reasonable sound recording in quiet conditions, (the mic cover does work in light breezes) both have external mic and headphone sockets and both can be controlled with an App on your Smartphone (the 770 will receive pictures from a Smartphone, the 750 will not). The App will also give you control over the VW-CTR1 remote pan/tilt head.
Extra batteries are becoming less of a problem as the expensive Panasonic batteries have been joined by cheaper third party compatible batteries BUT these Panasonic cameras can be run from a 5V USB supply, this means that the camera battery can be recharged from a USB source such as a car adapter or (as I use) a Power Pack sold to recharge phones etc. (I use an AUKEY 20,000 mAh power pack which can run the camera for about 12 hours)

Both cameras are very flexible, I have a 0.45x wide angle add on lens plus a lot of filters (the 750 has a 49mm mount) They work well with external mics (shotgun, tie-clip and wireless) and have a small "phantom power" type voltage at the mic socket of around 2V, this is enough to run an electret condenser tie-clip mic without its own battery. It is a mic level input and I use an in-line attenuator when feeding it with a line level (headphones) output from my keyboard.

Hope this helps, please ask for any further clarification.

12harry

Perhaps you can say how the stills camera isn't good enough for the movies you want....
IMHO, the A37 is quite capable in HD-mode.... while the kit-zoom is a tad restricting . . . it should be fine for many  situations and avoids having to buy different kit, batteries, charger and so on.
You might spend a small amount on an Audio Recorder ( like Zoom ~£70), and maybe an extra lens 70-200 (~£200)....

That PC-Spec suggests it will do 4K...but you'll need to upgrade your Editing Software and importantly, how would you show it when finished?   
   There is free 4K software available - very capable, but not the easiest to master.
Whereas HD is quite respectable for most situations and TV's up to say 60"
Also, 4K add a huge price.

TwincityWild

Thanks Terfyn/12 Harry for getting back to me i really appreciate it.

Sounds like either then of the 750 or 770 will do what i want. That's great to hear.  I've done probably what most people do and watch comparison videos on you tube but obviously they aren't always that helpful. Also googled for all i'm worth to get as much info as possible.  The biggest thing for me is to get something better than i have (hopefully not to expensive) and more importantly something that does a better job than my canon at night. The fact that you say you used the 750 on a ghost train definitely means they are more than capable in low light. Something my canon is ok with but not that great. Good to hear about the extra battery side of things as that is always an expensive thing to buy. Will definitely have a look at the Aukey Battery pack.

In answer to your question Harry the biggest reason is the girlfriend swipes the A37 off me for stills and i end up the camcorder guy It's a great camera and i have 3 lenses for it..35mm...55-300 and the kit lense. I bought it for me...and it just seems to become someone elses property when we are out and about So as i need to replace the joystick on the HF100 and that's probably impossible..i'm going to treat myself to a new (maybe 2nd hand) camcorder. As much as i enjoy stills i really do enjoy using my camcorder and documenting our holidays that way.

I will say i have looked at going the 4k route as i intend at sometime to get a 65inch 4k OLED. But i'm more than happy wiith HD...besides with the advent of 4k all the top end consumer HD cameras will start to come down in price if they haven't already.

Terfyn

One advantage of the camcorder (and it applies to most models) is that you have both video and still capability. I use the still photo facility quite often as the 750 produces decent pictures. The on board lens goes from 29.5 – 612 mm (I presume this includes the Zoom range) according to the Spec.
Obviously the quality of the picture is important but IMO the story that the video tells is far more critical and relevant. I have a 37" Panasonic HD TV and the picture quality is excellent so, at present, I see no need to go to 4K. HD is so easy to edit and compile into finished videos using my PC.

chrishull3

All the misleading talk spoken on this forum is laughable like [Whereas HD is quite respectable for most situations and TV's up to say 60"
Also, 4K add a huge price.]This                                  was filmed with a camera under £300 new and £50 software,HD is fine if you are happy with it but telling lies in its support is not.

Terfyn

Calling me and this statement a lie is totally unacceptable. I am entitled to my opinions as is Harry.
Your views on 4K are well known but we do not need to agree with you.

chrishull3

This [Whereas HD is quite respectable for most situations and TV's up to say 60"
Also, 4K add a huge price]is what i quoted and it is not on one of yours,saying 4k adds a huge price increase  is a lie.What a lot of people dont realise is that HD rendered footage from 4K origional clips hold up very well and look almost as good s the origional,hence the great tv programn quality we get a lot now.

MarkE19

You are all entitled to an opinion, and also to express it on here. However implying that others are a liar for doing this is not acceptable, and neither is trying to force others to accept your opinion as fact.

Keep all discussions friendly or I will block anybody posting aggressive statements from the thread or even invoke time off from the forum. I do not want to do this as most on here tend to be helpful, so please don't push the boundaries.

Mark.

chrishull3

Ok if if saying that 4K is not a huge increase in expense is a fib and good  £300 4K cameras and cheap software are available whats the point.