To replace the died-in-service Sony AX-700 which in turn replaced the died-in-service Sony AX53, I considered all sorts of options, from using my or another full-frame or aps-c mirrorless camera, to relying on my bridge camera, or, in a decreasing market, to get another camcorder. I should explain at the outset that I want a video camera for my specific purpose not, as most people write about, for commercial advertising or for making wedding videos for customers. Opinions from the latter seem to dominate online.
Having tried all sorts of cameras and having retried them after the Sony died, I still find a camcorder the best for wildlife. The weight and form factor are important. The grip is ideal for holding the camera steady and the microphone does not have to dangle from a perch on top. It can also be ready to use in seconds. If I were just taking personal travel videos I would simply use my latest-generation iPhone with its state-of-the art computational photography. But for wildlife, a long-focal length lens is needed, and some camcorders fill that bill.
There are very few camcorders now being made that fit into the ‘prosumer’ category. Sony had no new models and I did not want to pour any more money down that particular drain. I have used Panasonic camcorders in the past but have always been disappointed with the autofocus, limited to contrast detection and often found to focus on something that could be focused on rather than something which needed to be focused on. In that respect, the Sony, with its on-sensor phase and contrast detection, was superb.
Then I found that last September Canon had released a new range of camcorders. Amongst them was the HF G70, called a Legria model in PAL countries and Vixia elsewhere. But I could not find a single review of the model anywhere; nothing, apart from Canon’s own marketing material (website here).
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| Canon HF G70 (from Canon Website) |
Reading the specifications I was in two minds. The Sony AX-700 hit that sweet spot of sensor size. The so-called 1-inch sensor produced relatively low noise in low light compared with the smaller, 1/2.3 inch and now, I see, 1/2.5 inch, of most camcorders aimed at the low-end and prosumer markets. Notwithstanding some excellent features, the HF G70 seemed a backwards step to a 1/2.3 inch sensor. However, it is a brand-new model compared with the Sony models still on the market six and more years since their introduction. There has been time for improvement in sensors and electronic processing of the signals over those years, so I decided to go with the Canon. Very few UK retailers had it in stock which I presume is still down to the shortage of chips. However, WEX did and were offering a free extra: a large additional Canon battery. WEX soon had it on my doorstop.
In this series reviews as I set up and use the camcorder, I will concentrate only on those aspects important for my purposes. But before that, in this first article, I should point out a puzzling mismatch between the marketing material, clearly derived from Canon, being used by some dealers, the instruction manual and the capabilities of the camera. That mismatch extends to within the list of specifications on the Canon website. The question is simple: what’s all this about an infrared or IR mode?
In the overview section on the Canon website:
A host of outputs and recording options include Infrared mode…
The overview of the camcorder’s features on the websites of a number of dealers throughout the world shows a bueelt point:
Infrared mode captures high-quality video in low light
Then the ‘Specifications’ section of the website contradicts itself. Here in the Exposure section we have mention of an |R mode:
Exposure Metering
Center-weighted average metering
AUTO, P, Av, Tv, Portrait, Sports, Low Light and IR modes
Segment evaluative metering
Night Scene, Snow, Beach, Sunset, Spotlight modes
No metering in Fireworks mode: Exposure constant
But then under Shooting Modes we see:
Infrared Shooting Mode Not supported
There is no mention in the instruction manual of an IR mode or of infrared. I have also searched the camera menus and controls for anything about an IR mode. I have tried the low light and night modes to see if there is any sign of infrared or near infrared detection being used in the imaging process even though the IR Mode is mentioned as something distinct. Again, no.
When I read the marketing blurb I assumed that there was an infrared mode, akin to Sony’s night mode which produces a green hued monochrome image in response to an infrared source or infrared illumination from the front of the camera. There clearly isn’t but what has been going on with the introduction and marketing of this camcorder? Was an IR mode planned for this camera but then ditched before release? Indeed an IR Mode is present in the 'professional range. Did those responsible for marketing not get the message or only half one? Whatever happened, Canon need to clarify what is and is not in the list of features of the HF G70. Otherwise those thinking they were going to get an IR video in the dark functionality will be disappointed.
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