Panasonic AG-HPX500 HD Camera

Customers have been asking for a mid-priced camera that can use true production quality interchangeable lenses. This is that camera! Customers have been asking for a camera that has 2/3” CCDs so that better low light performance and latitude can be obtained. This is that camera! Customers have wanted an HD-SDI output from the camera. This camera has it! Customers have been asking for tape-less, solid state reliability and more P2 slots so they can extend their record time. Well, this camera does that. Customers have been asking for 4 individual audio inputs that are controllable and yes, you guessed it, this is that camera!

Here are 5 major points regarding the AG-HPX500 camera:

• 3 2/3” CCD Quality for increased performance in resolution, low light and dynamic range
• Solid State P2HD Reliability, with 4 P2 Card Slots
• Variable Frame rate, for under-crank and over-crank, fast-motion, slow-motion
• Multi-format, 50Hz/60 HZ, NTSC/PAL switchable, DV/DVCPRO/DVCPRO50/DVCPRO HD
• 4 Independently controllable audio channels

And that is just the start of this amazing camera. Capitalizing on the menu structure and the ease of use that the AG-HVX200 offers, this camera does virtually everything that the HVX200 does and then it does more. The AG-HPX500 is able to switch between 50-60Hz, making it more flexible in the rental market and it is the first camera in this price range to do this. The fact that it has so much in common with the HVX is also a first. The innovations of a smaller camcorder have been designed into a full-sized camera, maintaining menu structure and functionality. Many HVX200 owners will want to buy this camera and use it as their new primary camera and the HVX as the second camera.

Starting with the fact that it utilizes 2/3” interchangeable lenses, this camera uses 3 progressive 620,000 2/3” CCDs that offer low light performance while keeping the price of this HD camera affordable. Panasonic is getting an HD picture out of this camera in the same way as they do it with the HVX200 - Advanced Progressive Technology.

Because this camera has a full 2/3” CCD, it will have better dynamic range than ½” CCDs and it will accept all of the industry standard 2/3” HD lenses that are currently manufactured.

There is however a reality when it comes to inexpensive HD lenses, and that is, Chroma Aberrations are an inescapable reality with all lenses. Compensation techniques employed in high end lenses cannot be afforded in lower cost lenses and consequently the magnitude of their aberration will be slightly higher. Recognizing the importance of cost-effective camcorders and lenses, Panasonic Engineering and the two leading lens manufacturers, Canon and Fujinon, have collaborated in a technology called Chroma Aberration Correction. The dynamic of each lens is recognized by the camera and an algorithm is applied to the video signal to dynamically correct the aberrations before it is recorded. This means that the circumjacent (areas around the periphery) resolve the majority of the issue. Sounds like magic, but it is quite an amazing function. It does come at a small increase in price over the least expensive HD lenses but it is worth every penny. Take a look at the simulated pictures below. The reason they are simulated is that you cannot turn the function on or off with the same lens so these pictures are taken with different lenses one that has the capability and one that does not. If the camera sees the ability to have a handshake with the lens, it automatically does a lookup on the CAC table and sets the correction in motion. This technology is primarily taking place within the camera.

This camera comes equipped with 4 P2 card slots and with that we mean extended record time! Using 16GB P2 Cards and working in DVCPRO HD at 720P/24PN means 160 minutes of recording, all wrapped around the beauty of P2, which is the ease of use, the speed of transfer, and the concept of no moving parts. Keep in mind what Stan Hooley, Director of the Iditarod said about the P2 cameras in Alaska, “The P2 encountered snow and ice storms with wind gusts up to 60 miles per hour, creating wind chills down to 60 below zero. Not one camera froze up. Not one camera failed to capture the shot along the 1,100 mile Iditarod Trail. These cameras did what no other camera has been able to accomplish along one of the most unforgiving trails on the face of the Earth.” And none of the cameras wore the Camera Polar gloves we purchased for the purpose.

Located in the P2 Card area is the SD Card slot which is useful for loading scene files, uploading metadata to the recordings, and downloading firmware changes. This slot and the P2 cards are all well protected behind a latching sliding door.

Another very useful feature on this camera is the four independent audio channels of audio. Levels can be set independently and can be isolated for checking. All inputs can be supplied +48 Volts Phantom power if desired. The rear channels can also take in line level inputs if desired. This is the first camera to sport 4 independent inputs at 16 Bits uncompressed recording.

Of special interest is the placement of the the LCD. Notice that the LCD can be fully viewed even while the camera is on the cameraperson’s shoulder. The LCD is where the audio meters show up and so with the full use of the volume control knobs and the meter display you are going to show your production customer the ultimate flexibility on this camera. A lot of the production community looks to the audio guy to monitor and control the audio section of the camera and now that is possilbe with the placement of the LCD.

The LCD works the same way as the HVX200 in that for the Thumbnail display it uses the full 4:3 nature of the LCD. When shooting 16:9, the data about the picture is placed in the black area to the top and bottom of the letter-boxed picture. The choices for the display are virtually the same in the camera as they are in the HVX200 camera. There is a key difference with the LCD however and that is its ability to have the image flip for those that wish to use the inexpensive 35mm adapters. It is a menu driven choice so it cannot happen by accident. It does not record the image this way however so the task of flipping the image in the rcording has to happen in post much like it does now, but at least on set they will be able to frame their shot on the LCD with everything looking right-side-up.

At only 8.2 pounds, the HPX500 features a high-performance digital signal processor (DSP) with 14-bit A/D conversion and 19-bit processing that handles HD/SD format conversion simultaneously -- ensuring spectacular images in all video formats for applications ranging from news acquisition, independent filmmaking, corporate video, sports and much more. To give your productions tremendous flexibility, the HPX500 records in over 32 HD and SD formats.

In the name of keeping it simple, Panasonic has chosen to redesign how the AG-HPX500 is sold into the market place. Panasonic has decided to make only one package, a Camera Head with Viewfinder, a tripod plate and a very nice Portabrace Camera Bag. Then you can choose a lens and mix and match the needed accessories along with the desired accessories.

The case they are including with the package is the newly designed P2HD Case made for Panasonic by Portabrace. It is a very nice case and it is included at no charge. Note that one of the pockets has been designed to fit the P2 Gear and next to it can be the AC Power supply and hard drives for the footage. There is also a nice pocket for the Tripod plate. On the back there are a couple of mesh pockets perfect for cables and such.

The new HPX500 package is called the HPX500-EFP. It consists of the Camera Head with Viewfinder, a tripod plate and the Portabrace Camera Bag. Every other accessory is ala carte.

• Records in 1080/60i, 50i, 30p, 25p and 24p; in 720/60p, 50p, 30p, 25p, and 24p; and in DVCPRO50, DVCPRO and DV
• Excellent low-light performance and a high sensitivity of F10
• Equipped with eight gamma modes, including CineGamma, for different shooting situations
• Like the AJ-HDC27 VariCam camera, variable frame rates in 11 steps between 12p and 60p allows undercranking/overcranking for fast- or slow-motion effects
• Users have immediate access to P2 content with clip thumbnail view and advanced recording features including hot swapping, loop record, shot-marking, pre-record functions (three seconds in HD and seven seconds in SD), one-shot and interval.
• Key interfaces include IEEE 1394, USB 2.0, HD SDI/SDI, genlock, built-in SMPTE time code, independent TC-IN/TC-OUT terminals, composite video, analog component and four audio XLR inputs
• 4-position Neural Density filter
• Low power consumption of 22 watts (when 3.5" LCD monitor and 1.5" viewfinder are in use)
• 3.5" color LCD screen (with image flip function) located at rear of the camera
• Chromatic Aberration Compensation function allows the camera to automatically compensate the registration error that is caused mainly by lens chromatic aberration and minimize the circumjacent blur.
• Remote controllable with AJ-RC10G (via 10-pin RCU terminal)

• Supply Voltage: DC12V (11V to 17V)
  
• Power Consumption: Approx. 23W (when 1.5"CRT viewfinder, 3.5" LCD monitor used)
  
• Operating Temperature: 32°F to +104°F (0°C to +40°C)
  
• Keeping Temperature: –4°F to +140°F (–20°C to +60°C)
  
• Operating Humidity: 10% to 85% (no condensation)
  
• Weight: Approx. 8.4 lbs (3.8kg) excluding battery and accessories
  
• Dimensions (WxHxD): 5-9/16" x 10-7/16" x 12-9/16" (140 x 261 x 318 mm) excluding handle and prominent parts
  

Camera

• Pick-up Device: 3CCD (2/3-inch interline transfer type
• and progressive modes supported)
  
• Lens Mount: 2/3" bayonet type
  
• Optical Color Separation: Prism system
  
• ND Filter: 4 position (Clear, 1/4, 1/16, 1/64)
  
• Gain Selection:
  • 60i/60p/50i/50p mode: 0/+3/+6/+9/+12/+18 dB
    
  • 30p/24p/24pA/25p mode: 0/+3/+6/+12dB
    
• Shutter Speeds
  
  • [Slow Shutter Mode, Gain fix (0dB)]
    
  • Shutter Speed (Preset): 60i/60p mode: 1/60 (OFF), 1/100, 1/120, 1/250, 1/500, 1/1000, 1/2000 sec.
    
  • 30p mode: 1/30(OFF), 1/50, 1/60, 1/120, 1/250, 1/500, 1/1000 sec.
    
  • 24p/24pA mode: 1/24(OFF), 1/50, 1/60,1/120,1/250,1/500,1/1000 sec.
    
  • 50i/50p mode: 1/50 (OFF), 1/60, 1/120, 1/250, 1/500, 1/1000, 1/2000 sec.
    
  • 25p mode: 1/25(OFF), 1/50, 1/60, 1/120, 1/250, 1/500, 1/1000 sec.
    
  • Shutter Speed (Variable): 60i mode: 1/60.0 to 1/249.8 30p mode: 1/30.0 to 1/249.8
    
  • 24p/24pA mode: 1/24.0 to 1/249.8
    
  • 50i/50p mode: 1/50.0 to 1/249.8 25p mode: 1/25.0 to 1/249.8
    
  • Shutter Speed (Slow): 60i/60p mode: 1/15, 1/30 30p mode: 1/15
    
  • 24p/24pA mode: 1/12 (720p mode only)
    
  • 50i/50p mode: 1/12, 1/25 25p mode: 1/12
    
• Variable Frame Rate : 60 Hz mode: 12/18/20/22/24/26/30/32/36/48/60 fps (frame/sec)
  
• 50 Hz mode: 12/18/20/23/25/27/30/32/37/48/50 fps (frame/sec)
  
• Sensitivity: F10 (Typical) at 2000 lx
  

Video P2 HD General

• Sampling Frequency: Y: 74.25MHz Pb/Pr: 37.125Mhz
  
• Quantizing: 8 bits
  
• Compression: Compression ratio 1/6.7, DCT + variable length code
  
• Recording Bit Rate: 100Mbps
  
• Audio P2 HD General
  
  • Sampling Frequency: 48 kHz
    
  • Quantizing: 16 bit/4CH
    
  • Head Room: 20 dB
    

Memory Card Recorder

• Recording Format: DVCPRO HD/DVCPRO 50/DVCPRO/DV selectable
  
• Audio Recording Format: PCM digital recording 48 kHz /16 bits
  
• 4ch (DVCPRO HD / DVCPRO 50), 2ch/4ch selectable (DVCPRO / DV)
  
• Recording Time*1: 8 minutes with one AJ-P2C008HG (DVCPRO HD, 4CH)
  (Approx.) 16 minutes with one AJ-P2C016RG (DVCPRO HD, 4CH)
  
• P2 Card Slot: 4 Slot (4G, 8G, 16G, 32G Card)
  
• SD Card Slot: SD Format standard (MMC not used)
  
• 1 Slot (Camera setup, Reading/Writing)
  
• Recording File: MXF File
  
• File System: FAT32
  

Input/Output Signal

• Gen Lock: BNC x 1, 1.0Vp-p, 75Ω,
  
• Component Out: D4 terminal (Component) , Y: 1.0Vp-p, 75Ω, Pb/Pr: 0.7Vp-p, 75Ω
  
• Video Out: BNC x 1, 1.0Vp-p, 75Ω
  
• SDI Out: BNC x 1, 0.8Vp-p, 75Ω
  (HD:SMPTE292M/296M/299M/ SD:SMPTE259M-C/272M-A/ITU-R.BT656-4 Standard)
  
• TC In: BNC x 1, 0.5 to 8Vp-p, 10KΩ
  
• TC Out: BNC x 1, Low impedance, 2.0 ±0.5V p-p
  
• IEEE 1394: 6 pin, Digital In/Out, based on IEEE 1394 Standard
  
• DC In: XLR x 1, 4-pin, DC12V (DC11.0 to 17.0V)
  
• DC Out: 4-pin, DC12V (DC11.0 to 17.0V), max 1.5 A.
  
• Remote: 10 pin
  
• Lens: 12 pin
  
• EVF: 20 pin
  
• USB 2.0 (Device): Type-B, 4-pin (USB ver2.0)
  
• Audio lnput
  
• MIC IN: XLR x 2 (FRONT1, FRONT2), High impedance, +48V compatible
  
• MIC: –40/–50/–60 dBu (Switch on Menu)
  
• AUDIO IN: XLR x 2 (REAR1, REAR2), High impedance,
  
• LINE/MIC/+48V switchable
  
• LINE: 0 dBu, MIC: –50/–60 dBu (Switch on Menu)
  
• Line Out: Pin Jack x 2 (CH1/CH2), Out: 600Ω, 316mV
  
• Phones: Stereo Mini jack (3.5mm diameter)
  
• Internal Speaker: 28mm round shape x 1
  

Monitor and Accessories

• LCD Monitor: 3.5", LCD color Monitor, 210,000 pixels, 4:3
  
• Supplied Accessories: 1.5", CRT B/W Viewfinder (4:3 CRT, NTSC/PAL switchable), Component Video Cable, Shoulder strap, P2 card software driver (CD-ROM )