I shot the Canon XH-A1 side-by-side with the Panasonic DVX100, a native SD camera. The above image was taken using the XH-A1 in widescreen standard definition (DV) mode. The quality of the lens and the resolution of the HD sensors produce superior detail and sharpness. I don’t prefer the muted tones and magenta cast of the factory preset. I magnified the SD images to study the detail, much as I did with the HD images. The XH-A1 was just plain sharper. And it showed none of the digital artifacts under extreme magnification.
Image Quality Conclusion
The image quality of the Canon XH-A1 is superb in both color and detail. To get the kind of image I would want for filmmaking, I would have to use custom presets, either developed by others or I would have to create them myself.
In a side-by-side comparison of the image quality of XH-A1 and the HVX200 in HD mode, I would say they produce comparable images. I wouldn’t be swayed to use one camera over the other based solely on image quality.
In a side-by-side comparison of the image quality of the XH-A1 and the DVX100 in SD mode – there was no comparison. The XH-A1 images were better. If money was not a consideration, I would most certainly choose an XH-A1 over a DVX100 today. Even though the DVX100 shoots rich film-like images straight out of the box, I know that the XH-A1 can do the same thing with custom presets. The superior 20x zoom lens on the XH-A1 can’t be beat. And then, of course, the XH-A1 also provides HD
Part 2: Filmmaking Features
a) Frame control
b) Motion control
c) Blur control
d) Image control
Frame Control
The XH-A1 provides Standard Definition DV recording in 4:3 and 16:9 (widescreen) mode, and High Definition 16:9 HDV. The 20x zoom lens enables flexibility in framing a shot. One benefit of the 20x zoom is that you can get very close shots from far off so long as the camera is mounted on a tripod. This would be ideal for documentary and event videography where you can zoom right in on the action without having to carry the camera so close.
I have a friend who shoots in HD for DV projects. The extra resolution enables him to simulate camera moves like pans and dolly’s in After Effects – moves that he couldn’t have performed during the original shoot. That’s another reason to purchase the XH-A1 for standard definition work over any DV-only camera.
I can only imagine some of the amazing framing that can be achieved by shooting a medium close-shot in HD mode for an SD project. Shooting in this mode should enable graceful close-up moves in post that would be impossible to achieve during an event or documentary. For indie filmmaking, this is cheap insurance. It’s so hard to get good dolly and pan shots – smooth motion and so forth.
Motion Control
60i, 30f and 24f modes
60i is 60 interlaced fields per second. 30f and 24f are full progressive frames (not interlaced) at 30 frames per second and at 24 frames per second, respectively.
Interlacing and frame rate determine how motion is represented in the video.
Imagine a basketball being passed between players across the screen. The ball moves so fast relative to the frame rate that it has actually crossed some noticeable distance from one frame to the next.
If that scene was recorded in 60i, the upper field (every other line) would show the basketball at one time and the other lines would show the basketball 1/60th of a second later. Depending on how fast the basketball was traveling, the edges of the basketball will have a stair-stepped or “comb teeth” appearance.
If that scene had been recorded in 30f, the entire image (both fields) would have been captured in order at the same time, eliminating the “comb teeth” and replacing it with a slight blur at the edge of the basketball.
At 24f, the edge of the ball would have been much more noticeably blurred. 24f is the same rate as movie film. And it is often used in filmmaking because the blur it produces is characteristic of film and it gives the illusion that the images were shot on film and transferred to video.
The camera has optical image stabilization, which reduces shake in handheld camera movement without costing image resolution.
It also provides for variable shutter speeds that enable tradeoffs between exposure and motion.
