Anyone using Sony A1 underwater?

Anyone using Sony A1 underwater. I would like to buy it for UW uses but scared about low light sensibility, maybe someone using it UW could give us some news, experiences .....

Thank you

ERIK

The A1 has the same optics and sensor as the HC1. Low light performance will be no different. I don't think the black stretch feature will give you much.

Thank you Lars for reply, i appreciate very much.

Do you like your new video system? How is the footage in HDV? How was explaning i would like to pass from DV (TRV950) to Hdv but not sure.

Quality is very better and images are good?

Thank you :-)

ERIK

Look here if you have a fast machine and wide screen capable of 1920x1080 http://www.larsdennert.com/hc1 You can download some clips. If it plays back jaggy, set the video size to 50%. If it plays back below 30fps try VLC player or your machine isn't fast enough. I have one UW clip. It was the first time UW with no lights and I was using the filter half the time when I shouldn't have. All the clips are transcoded. The raw footage is somewhat better. Then again the UW had some contrast tweaks done too.

It shoots better SD footage than my previous Canon camera and the HDV is well beyond belief. The TRV 950 is an awesome SD camera and you have to really step up some bucks to top it with another SD. However HDV just has too much of an advantage with 4x the pixels. With proper lighting, I believe it surpasses Professional SD cameras with 4:4:4 chroma.

I hope that helps.

Thank you lars for answer :-) and thank you to help me :-)

I'm still in troubles :-) I'm scared about low light sensibility of A1 but also Z1 or Fx1 are very expencives and also housings are great but really too big to travel with.... i don't knows how sony don't have maked the A1 with 3ccd like Pdx10.

I don't find one UW shot maked with A1 to check really how works on low light....

Maybe some video operator in this forum can help me :-)

I hope.

Thank you very much lars and good dives with your HC1 :-)

ERIk

Erik, there are more and more people getting those cameras as we speak. I know Dean just got his and i believe Jim has one as well. Hopefully they can post something soon to help you.

Dean still fighting housing demons though....

Yeah, I have one. But I have no plans to take mine underwater untill all of the housing are on the market and have been fully beta tested by you fine folks.

I do think the Black Stretch feature will have it's use underwater. It does some great things on land, so I'm sure I'll find use for it underwater. It's not a magic fix for the inherient low light conditions of being underwater. Just like you can't use it that way on land. But when shooting in low light, with NO gain, where you want the general exposure to be darker, it definatley helps stretch the histogram to bring out some of the darker details.

It's a bloody nightmare..

I was just on the phone to my contact for a "prototype / homemade / whatever version of the EVO when he mentioned it has no W/B facility

I was ment to starti my filming, yesterday...and also hopefully going to the Red Sea in Feb. So it looks like its outdoor setting for now. Any other ways around this apart from buying another make of housing would be appreciated . I would love to splash out, but if i cannot get along with levers, I'm Fooked.

Still there's my weekly rant.

Dive safe

DeanB

From lurking about the video forums here on WP, HD doesn't seem to be quite ready yet for primetime underwater. I do seem to hear consistently about the TRV950 and PDX10 as being some of the best SD camera for shooting u/w. I am going to wait until I know more about the recent announcement I found that SONY will be announcing at Sundance a new HD camera...

AAAAAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGHHHHH !!!!!! my poor head AAAAAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH !"!!!!!!!!

Dive safe

DeanB

Both the TRV 950 and the HC1/A1 have the same size lens. The TRV950 has a sensor area of .13" and the HC1/A1 has .09". The TRV has less wasted sensor area due to the 3 chip design and has larger elements since it has a less of them. However, Sony rates both of them at 7 LUX. They are, after all, related camera lines. I doubt there is a night and day difference between them. A good comparison would be to shoot the same footage with the HC1 in SD mode. I would think you have to move to a FX1/Z1 to see a real difference in low light.

in fact i'm considering Z1 but i think that in future (no too far) sony will put on market better small HD cam....maybe with 3CCD like Z1, i used a PDX10 DVCAM with 3 ccd :-)

Thank you

ERIK