When I first read about this camera, I couldn't wait to get one. Interchangeable lenses, big sensor, tiny size, HD, 14MP stills and more for 2 grand. It sounded to good to be true, and it was.I will say that the shot footage looks great, if there's adequate light. But if you shoot something with a busy, repeated texture, moire patterns show up very annoying. Other Sony camcorders in this price range show a very useful zebra pattern in areas of blown-out whites, Sony decided to omit that in this camera weird.
Another strange omission is in the still pictures yes it takes great stills BUT doesn't save them in RAW format, just JPEGs. The lesser cameras in the NEX line save in RAW. Why would Sony do this? It makes no sense. If this thing shot in RAW, Sony would have the hottest camera on the planet.
Controls -you can control most of the functions manually, but you have to go through an array of odd menu functions to do it. I understand that an upcoming firmware update will make this much easier, but for now it's just a pain. Another pain you have to leave the monitor door open all the time to access the controls you can turn the monitor off and just look through the viewfinder (thankfully).
Glass the included 18-200mm lens is very nice good quality glass with just enough drag on the zoom to keep it smooth-I don't miss a motor zoom at all. I bought the wide-angle 16mm lens-which I also like and it's a bit better than in low light than the included lens. I probably won't get the 18-55mm lens (it seems kind of redundant). Sony has promised more lenses in the E-mount line. Lens changing is fast and easy.
Mac Users
Sony and Apple what a sad story that is. You can import footage into Final Cut Pro with Log (Lag? and Transfer, but you won't like how it looks or performs. There are conversion and "wrapper" utilities out there that work, sorta. You're better off using Adobe Premiere Pro CS5 with files from this camera. I prefer FCP, but files from this camera look and work better in Premiere Pro. If you only use FCP, this camera is not for you until Apple and Sony can settle their differences and FCP is updated. Windows users have more options with Sony's own Vegas program, Avid and others.
Sound-The onboard mic is pretty good, and there is a mini jack for an external microphone (no XLR input) but Sony decided to omit manual level control only automatic levels for sound. Once again Sony omitted something that its other price-class camcorders have. If you have to use the onboard audio, everything sounds OK-until you hit a quiet spot then the auto gain pumps up and whatever room noise there is hits you at multi-decibels which means you'll spend a lot of time in post ducking room noise. If you're serious about sound, you'll have to use an external sound recorder. Zoom makes some good ones)
Camera Strap Holders The designers at Sony did not think this through. Really really bad placement. If you have a $2,000 camera in your hands, you have to put a neck strap on it. Sony put the strap holds in a place where your strap will cover the record button AND interfere with the open monitor door. It wouldn't be as big a deal if you didn't have to keep the monitor door open to access the controls. I've tried putting both strap clips on just the front holder-which is a little better, but still a pain. Why didn't Sony put the holders on the bottom of the camera, where they would not interfere with the controls? A mystery.
No memory card is included with this camera. If you order it, you'll need to buy cards so you can actually use the camera. Buy the fastest biggest cards you can afford. Memory is pretty cheap these days, and it's odd that Sony didn't include at least a 1 gig card. Not a big deal, but odd.
This unit has the potential to be a great camera for it's price. The annoying menus, the lack of RAW file storage, the auto-only audio levels, the moire patterns, no zebra pattern and the strap holders keep it average. Sony could fix many of these problems with firmware updates and perhaps they will. I'll add to this review after the upgrade comes out.
If you buy this camera for planned shoots (like indy films or web videos) and have an external audio recorder-you'll like this camera a lot. You can get beautiful work done on it. The glass and the big sensor can give you some of the best-looking footage possible in a camera in this price range.
If you're a live event shooter this probably isn't your camera, yet.
Event shooters would love to have a great hybrid video/still camera. No RAW files and the menu access to controls just won't make it for those who dream of the perfect camera.
One of these days, Sony or Cannon or Nikon or Panasonic or somebody will put it all together the right way and shooters will literally fight with tooth and nail to get their paws on that camera. The rest of the industry will then rush similar products to the market.
C'mon manufacturers! Which of you is willing sell us what we really want?
FIRMWARE UPDATE
All it does is provide auto-focus for Sony Alpha-mount lenses. Nothing more than that. I don't own any of those. Sony did provide a MAC version of the update, which is nice.
FURTHER THOUGHTS (after a month with the camera)
Another problem: the covers over the various ports (power, USB, etc...) are held on with plastic hinges, rather than the rubber "plugs" used on some other Sony camcorders. Not good. I'm really careful with my cameras, but still managed to rip off the one that covers the power supply port. On my older Sony cameras (some are more than 10 years old with heavy usage) this never happened.
This camera also has one of the loudest shutters I've ever heard (when you take a still shot). I've been informed (by rzero21) that it's a true mechanical shutter, so there's no way to turn off the sound. I hope that Sony can fix this in future cameras. Sometimes the photo/video guy doesn't want to be the loudest person in the room.
I really want to love this camera, I've shot many hours on it now, plus taken 100s of stills. For the most part, it all looks great. I've gotten used to the cranky menus (sorta) but I still don't like them. I use an external sound recorder, but I wish I didn't have to sometimes. If it shot RAW still files and had manual control over the audio, I'd buy another one. If Sony's lesser NEX cameras allowed longer shooting times, I'd buy one of those today. The NEX 3 and 5 also suffer the loud "shutter" problem.)
There are lots of folks out there writing Sony and asking (pleading, begging) them not to cripple their cameras. So far it hasn't been too effective. I'm guessing that some marketing genius decided that customers would be thrilled to pay more for an intentionally crippled camera.
TO SONY'S MARKETING DEPARTMENT:
Take a look at the NEX VG 10 user groups on Vimeo and other sites, plus take a look at the comments your own site. I know you've sold a lot of these cameras, but I guarantee that you won't be able keep them stocked if you just fix a few of the firmware issues that your customers are asking for. You could have the hottest camera in the world! Isn't that what you want? (Maybe you could release a few more e-mount lenses while you're at it?)
ONE YEAR LATER
I've grown more fond of this camera over the year but all of the things I mentioned above are still annoying. I see Sony will be releasing the NEX VG 20 in November, and it fixes my biggest beefs audio control and RAW stills. Plus it will have some manual controls that you can access without having to have the blasted monitor door open all the time. Interesting. When it comes out I'll either buy it or the costlier pro version of the same camera. The VG 10 will become my backup camera or a wide-angle camera for 2-camera shoots.
Video cameras, because of their typically small image sensors, shoot footage that has a very deep depth of field and a limited color range. In recent years many videographers have taken to shooting on DSLRS which have much larger sensors and can produce footage which is far more "filmic" with shallow depth of field and richer colors. The problem is that DSLRs are much better still than video cameras. They are typically limited to shooting for about 12 minutes. They generally do not have auto-focus and sound can be problematical.
The NEX VG-10 is a DSLR that is designed to shoot video. It has the same sensor as the Sony NEX 5 DSLR. Unlike most DSLRs, it does have auto focus. The quad mike is quite good and it is much easier to shoot handheld than a DSLR rigged out for video. The steadyshot stabilization is really nice. The 18-200mm E-mount 11x Zoom is a very good lens that sells for around $800 on its own. I plan on buying the 16mm f/2.8 Wide-Angle lens as well.
The real magic in the camera is the 23.4 x 15.6mm Exmor APS HD CMOS Sensor. There is simply nothing like it in a video camera in this price range. The shallow depth of field is beautiful. If you are used to a camcorder which is always in focus because the small sensor gives you a very deep depth of field, the VG-10 might take some getting use to. If on the other hand you want to be able to keep the subject of your shot in sharp focus with the background softly blurred, this camera can do it, whereas all the older pro and prosumer video cameras can not. The only video cameras out there now (or soon) with this sort of large sensor are the Panasonic PMW-F3 and the soon to be released Sony FS100 NXCAM Super 35mm, both of which cost over $6,000, without lenses.
I agree that I would like zebra stripes and more audio control would be nice, though I still can use my shotgun mikes with or without a Beachtek adapter. The menu system takes a bit of getting use to but isn't bad. I would like built in ND filters but can live with external filters. The camera shoots a native 30P. 24P would be good but I can do that in post. I am not convinced most viewers can tell the differences in most settings.
The VG-10 can also be used as a 14MP still camera, though it does not have a RAW setting. I was looking to buy a video camera, so having one that can double as a DSLR is a bonus.
Overall the NEX VG10 is a remarkable camera that shoots great video. It is not perfect and it is not for everyone. That being said, I am very happy with the camera and video I can shoot with it.
Buy Sony NEXVG10 Full HD Interchangeable Lens Camcorder (Black) Now
I have used this camera over the course of the last month and I would have to say that in general I am quite disappointed with it. However to begin with I would have to say that there are a number of aspects that relate to this camera that are very pleasing. In relatively low light it has produced an excellent picture and the quality of the microphone is very good. If you use the camera on a tripod it is very good but its use in other contexts is feeling much more problematical.I think that in some ways I am surprised at Sony. I have had great pleasure from a good number of Sony products and that makes me inclined to purchase more of the Sony range. At the same time I have a hard drive high definition recorder that is a pleasure to use from Sony but does not produce the quality of sound nor is it as versatile in low light.
With the camera you do get the Vegas premium software which is excellent, though I did purchase the Vegas pro which is a superb piece of software.
There are a number of issues with the camera that I cannot even vaguely understand. The balance in holding the camera is very poor and it is very heavy in the front. So that if you are filming and pointing forward and move towards the vertical the lens unwinds itself. Now I was trying to photograph some old photographs and had these on the ground and I had to physically hold the lens to prevent it from zooming out.
My other Sony has the pleasure of a touchscreen and this has an unbelievably awkward system of manipulation to try and get to the screen and activities you want.
The sound system does not allow you to control gain and this means that periodically you land up with other unpleasant noise that gets picked up when the microphone suddenly becomes very sensitive. This simply adds to editing hassle or no conceivable value.
It does not come with a strap and I made the mistake of buying one. It has to be the most awkward placement of any strap that you can imagine. It is right in front of the buttons and if you do have the camera on the strap it has to be the most awkward feel that you can imagine.
As a still camera I would have to say that it is excellent, but I do think that the designers that are very poor quality job in releasing this camera so prematurely. The battery housing in the back is so awkward, and there is a very tacky icky piece of plastic to cover the awkward back. My impression is that they want to produce a video camera did not have the courage to make it the same shape as a still camera. They still feel that people must have a video camera that looks like a video camera. However you now end up with this awkward system that is neither fish nor fowl. It is awkward to hold and not pleasant to use.
I first Sony still camera SLR was a similar premature release of a concept where it was not finished off properly.
Sony in many ways produces many outstanding products. At the same time it does do a number of inscrutable things with products that it does release. This camera has the feel of potential excellence, but has a serious lack of resolve from the developers to produce a proper finished product. My impression that they released a half baked concept that relies on the technology but fails on the industrial design and consumer test side.
For it to be a satisfactory camera it needs to have properly regulated sound, the balance needs to be sorted out and the lens cannot behave as it does. The battery needs to be easily accessible and the back needs to be sorted out. If it does need to look like a SLR, so be it! It must have touchscreen.
Read Best Reviews of Sony NEXVG10 Full HD Interchangeable Lens Camcorder (Black) Here
Recently, I went to Disneyland with relatives and shot with both the NEX-VG10 and the HDR-CX550V. While each has its unique advantages, I found I had more fun editing the NEX-VG10 footage. I actually want to watch it over and over, maybe because of the strong bokeh effect, I feel like my work is closer to what we see in movies and TV.I wanted to support the reviewer before me, that this camcorder isn't as bad as people are making it out to be. Really wish I had this during my film school days... my dream camcorder is the upcoming NXCAM FS100, but not all of us can afford the $5850 retail price tag. Thanks to Sony though, for making the lenses compatible with both models.
Sound quality: I'm very satisfied with the NEX-VG10's microphone. The tiny fur cover is great, I can just leave it on, and the sound isn't muffled at all. One of my main gripes with the HDR-CX550V is that the microphone is too sensitive to wind. The NEX-VG10 doesn't have that problem.
My recommended accessories for the NEX-VG10: a high capacity battery (specifically, Opteka's cheaper NP-FV100), a spacious camera backpack (especially if you're going to get more lenses), 16GB SDHC memory card, 67mm polarizer filter, and quality lens cleaner supplies.
Some minor problems: in bright sunlight, it can be hard to see the LCD, which I prefer over the viewfinder. But if you attach a sunshade to the LCD, it blocks the side controls. Also, I find that the autofocus is a tad slow. Focusing manually is much more efficient. I encountered some moire in shooting rooftops and a chain link fence. Since I bought mine used, I had the misfortune of some weird residue on the sensor. Had to take it to Samy's Camera for a professional cleaning, but it was good as new afterwards (for only $35!).
If you look me up on YouTube, I have some sample videos that you can check out. I think one of the best ways to choose a camcorder is to see what it can do and if it fits your specific needs. For me, ultimately, it's storytelling. There are some NEX-VG10 videos out there that impressed me so much... the sheer emotion that you can evoke with its cinematic shots. Looking forward to making sweet, sweet art with this baby!
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i've had a mini dv for the last 10 years, it did a nice job. it finally died and gave me an excuse to buy a new video camera. i love shooting with a digital slr camera, exchanging lenses and so forth, so i love the idea of being able to do that as well on a video camera. i've taking video outdoors and the results are incredible. i recently shot video of my daughters birthday party at a skating rink, low light atmosphere. this camera still managed to take gorgeous video in low light. i've not played around with any of the manual settings, just left it on auto. i've not been disappointed at all so far, it's a huge improvement over my minidv camcorder. i'ts a bit pricey, but if it last me at least 10 yrs while my daughters growing up it's worth it.
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