Sony Announces their ZV-1 Vlogging Camera

[VidThreeNorth]

Is it "just in time" to announce a "vlogging camera"? I doubt if that really was a thought for Sony. I know that the decision had to be made a long time ago, and maybe finalized a few weeks ago, and probably they just felt that "they might as well get it done."

Anyway, everything points to a lot of thought, such as the new special mic array which focusses forward (despite not being obviously pointed forward) and the side extending screen. And the price tag is "only" around $800 US, with a June 2020 projected availability.

I really like the shoe mounted "dead-cat" fur.

"Sony ZV-1 revealed: A high-powered RX100-styled camera tailor-made for video creators",
posted 2020/05/26 by William Brawley, imaging-resources.com

"Sony ZV-1 revealed: A high-powered RX100-styled camera tailor-made for video creators"

 

[VidThreeNorth]

I am surprised that the early reviews have been "all over the map" for this camera. Most are favourable, but not without some criticism, but a couple have been surprisingly negative. The main reason I have little opinion about it is that I really do not like the vlogging style in general. There are few people who include footage of their faces in this style of composition where I do not say quietly "oh heck, point it somewhere else". The best camera review videos have someone else holding the camera for the talk sections.

For those who think about such things, this is not Sony's first at a addressing this market. This was the goal of the a5000 and a5100. I was curious about this late last year and early this year and went looking to see if those cameras were used by vloggers. I had no assistance to gather accurate stats (I would probably need co-operation from YouTube or others), but it appeared to me that the a5100 had been popular. The a5000 was used too, but from what I could tell, not as much.

I would say that the ZV-1 is a better "entry level/serious" vlogging camera than the a5000/a5100 based on the specific features that they are pushing. But the drawbacks noted by the reviewers are significant -- like the fact that the lens crop for their best level stabilization means that really, Sony should have used a wider lens.

As for the timing, this camera should also be good (in the long run) for work at home video conferencing, which actually makes it potentially huge. I thought about that immediately, but I kept thinking that "I'll bet there is something wrong with it". And in fact, there might be: Sony has special support software coming out for live use, and at this point, we don't know what that will do. So for now, they do not seem to have that covered.

 

[VidThreeNorth]

Looking at the early reports of the ZV-1, the first thing I thought of was to look for a wide angle adapter, and it is no surprise that others have already gotten around to trying it. From what I have seen though, I would advise against using them. It appears that you cannot get a "really good" one that does not weigh a lot. The stresses on the motors and other parts is more than I would be comfortable with. But if you want to try it yourself, that's your choice:

"Wide angle lens for the Sony ZV1?"
posted Jun 15, 2020 by "Ben Bjurstrom"
""

 

[Derrel]

Good video.

 

[VidThreeNorth]

Thanks Derrel!

This video shows another wide angle adapter. It looks lighter than the Panasonic in the previous video, but I can't say where the image quality sits compared to the previous video, and I don't know how the weight compares.

"Sony ZV-1 How to Adapt a Wide Angle Lens? | ZV1 Camera for Vlogging",
posted Jun 19, 2020 by "Christophe Langlois", [length 3:44]
""

 

[cgw]

Wonder if there’s a cat video model in the works?

 

[VidThreeNorth]

One last Wide adapter:

"How to GO WIDE with Sony ZV-1 on the CHEAP! Use ACTIVE and VLOG WIDER! Quick & Easy!", posted Jun 26, 2020 by "Steve Huff Reviews", [length 6:45]
""

Unless Sony themselves come out with something, I'm not going to post another of these. So far I do not have any comparisons between any of the products by the different posters. However, so far the best looking image quality seem to be the first one and this one. But the 2nd one looks the lightest, and everyone is warning of potential damage to the camera.