JVC Everio GZ-HD40 Camcorder Reviewby David KenderPublished on Jul 10, 2008 1:00 PM
|
Advertisement
|
|||||||||||
Still Features (9.0)Oh, so you buy a camcorder and you want it to record still photos too?! That's fine, because almost every camcorder does that these days. Of course, what the salespeople at Best Buy and Circuit City don't tell you is that just because a camcorder can take stills, that doesn't mean it can do them well. It seems like we state this a lot, but we'll say it again. We've never seen a camcorder that makes a decent substitute for a dedicated camera. This includes the JVC GZ-HD40, which does the job a lot better than some.
To switch the GZ-HD40 to still mode, flip the tiny switch on the back from the video icon to the camera icon. The shutter button to snap off photos is located on top, directly under where your index finger falls. There are five resolution sizes to choose from: 2432 x 1368 and 1920 x 1080 (both in 16:9 aspect ratio), and 1824 x 1368, 1440 x 1080, and 640 x 480 (in 4:3 aspect ratio). You can also choose between Fine and Standard qualities for any of these sizes. Because the largest size still actually exceeds the pixel count of the sensor, it's clear that this size is undergoing some kind of interpolation. Even if that's the case, it doesn't hurt to always shoot in the highest quality you can.
The manual control options in still mode are pretty good. There's no flash, which is one obvious handicap towards making this an all-in-one device. However, nearly every manual control option from video mode is also here. You have control over exposure (called "Brightness"), white balance, shutter speed, aperture, focus, Spot Exposure Control, Backlight Compensation, tele macro, and Scene Modes. You can even use the video light and the same great Focus Assist controls. There are no options for zebra patterns or sharpness. The biggest change is that the gain controls in video mode become a set of ISO controls in still mode. This makes complete sense. The difference between gain and ISO is largely a schism of nomenclature between the video and photography traditions. Both refer to sensitivity. The ISO options include: ISO 100, ISO 200, ISO 400, ISO 1000, and Auto.
Additionally, you can set the GZ-HD40 to record in One Shot, Continuous Shooting, or Bracketing mode. There is also a self timer mode of 2 seconds or 10 seconds.
When shooting, the Administrative (Main) Menu contains the following items:
| Administrative (Main) Menu | |
| Manual Settings | Adjust Brightness, Shutter Speed, Aperture Priority, WB (White Balance), Effect, Tele Macro |
| Image Quality | Fine, Standard |
| Image Size | 2432 x 1368, 1920 x 1080, 1824 x 1368, 1440 x 1080, 640 x 480 |
| Gain | ISO 100, ISO 200, ISO 400, ISO 1000, Auto |
| Basic Settings | (see Menu section of review) |
| Focus Assist | Red, Green, Blue |
| Self-Timer | Off, 2SEC, 10SEC |
| Shutter Mode | Record One Shot, Continuous Shooting, Bracketing |
Still Performance (7.26)
The still performance was tested by shooting an X-Rite Color Chart at an even, bright light, then sent to Imatest imaging software for analysis on color accuracy, noise, and saturation. At best, the JVC GZ-HD40 produced a color error of 8.26, which decent compared to the competition. The Sony HDR-SR12 had the most accurate colors in this category. The GZ-HD6 performed a little better than the GZ-HD40. The Canon HF10 produced the least accurate colors. Imatest determined that the GZ-HD40 produced a noise of 1.545%. This noise score was on par with the the Canon HF10 and Sony HDR-SR12, but was considerably noisier than the older GZ-HD6. The increase in noise is likely a product of the new CMOS chip compared to the older CCDs. Finally, the saturation measured 115.7%.
Out of the lab in a typical indoor setting, the pictures are extremely noisy. It reminds me of cheap digital point-and-shoot cameras from a few years ago. We would not recommend this as a substitute for a dedicated camera.
Still Resolution (9.84)
The still resolution of the JVC GZ-HD40 was tested by shooting an Applied Image ISO 12233 resolution chart at an even, bright light. The stills were then imported into Imatest imaging software to determine the line widths per picture height (lw/ph). At best, the GZ-HD40 produced a horizontal resolution of 744 lw/ph - with a clipping of 2.87% and an undersharpening of 14.4%. The vertical resolution measured 882.5 lw/ph - with a 1.39% clipping and a 4.11% undersharpening.
|
Advertisement
|