Sony PXW-Z280 4K 3-CMOS 1/2 Sensor XDCAM Camcorder
UPC's:
Barrel distortion and soft edges on wide angle
Full test images:https://qq0u.app.link/e/y5D6YbLi5R I have owned many Sony video cameras over the years, but I usually dont scrutinize them. But when I pulled the 280 out of the box and fired it up, I immediately saw severe barrel distortion on door jambs in my house. I got curious and starting researching, hoping that I had received a lemon. Other people reported similar issues, and a Sony rep told me that Japan said that the distortion was in... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Excellent camera, with a few caveats
This camera is an excellent addition to Sonys lineup, which is huge, so thats saying something. It fills a gap in 4K capable cameras that have three sensors, do higher end codecs, and do not have a detachable lens. It has many professional features such as 3G and 12G SDI output (although, strangely it will not do 6G), timecode in/out, genlock, electronic ND with auto adjustment capability, and many, many more. I think what makes it a solid prof... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
I dont want to give it 1 star. But I have to.
I wanted to love this camera. I am pretty much stuck with it at this point so I have tried to talk myself into still loving this camera. I dont love this camera. How is it that other cheaper cameras can keep straight lines straight at their widest field of view, but the engineers that created the PXW-Z280 couldnt? I pointed my camera at a large classroom white board with my focus chart taped to it in order to re-calibrate my back-focus (more on... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Auto Electronic ND, and Facial Recognition Focus
Just starting to get comfortable with the menus and buttons of my new Z280, practicing a bit every day so that I can changes settings "by feel" in a darker theater or reception venue, places where I film frequently. It was a short learning curve for me having come from the EX1 to the EX1R to the PXW X200, and now to the Z280. The overall menu layout and the user buttons on the left side of the camera felt very familiar to me. The three featu... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Pretty Impressive
Been shooting with EX1's and EX1R's for the last 10 years. I have had the 280 now for about 2 weeks. Spent most of the time trying to make sense of the manual and familiarizing myself with the layout etc. Also doing tests to see which codecs work best with my memory cards and Editor. Got a lot more work to do but here are my preliminary thoughts. The engineers have done a nice job improving the menus while keeping to many of the EX1 layouts lik... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Good camera with one issue and Sony repair dept is HORRIBLE
I have had several cameras in this Sony line including the two predecessors such as the PXW-x200. Though the optics and specs are similar my initial observation is that is camera is better in low light. This says a lot because the x200 was also great--and this one is even better. The thing I hate about this camera is the zoom. I film a lot of professional dance. I need very slow and smooth zooming. Generally I set the handle zoom's control t... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Wow! Lots of improvements in this flagship 3 chip Camcorder
This camera is the latest evolution of the Sony 3 chip 1/2 inch compact camcorder line. It appears Sony listened to user suggestions and wishes.The capabilities are a smorgasbord of features.Discarding the conventional analog lens remote for LANC gives this camera a wide range of remote control features. The CMOS sensors get better and better so even with 4k worth of pixel sites their three chip performance tends to be better than larger single s... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
An impressive workhorse hampered by small imperfections
I wanted to wait and use this camera for a while before weighing in on its quality. There is a bit of debate whether this Camera is worth the money and if the issues people are experiencing are as severe as some reviews make them out to be. Honestly, I think the fervor is a bit over the top. The issues with this camera when compared with its sensor output, usability and multiple formats feel about justified. The largest two concerns people have... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Power consumption in the PXW-Z280 is bad.
Power consumption in the PXW-Z280 is bad! My batteries, SONY BP-U60, drain fast and life meter is not accurate . It says 230 minutes when I first put in the battery, only last one hour ,60 minutes. I was shooting a wedding and the camera powered off at 50 minutes of life in the battery. That was not cool!!! IALL my batteries did it too not just one. So not the batteries. I checked and every thing was turned off (wifi ,GPS, etc) My PMW 200 gets th... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Had to return it - not pleased with this camera
I had the same issues as the others that have posted 1-star reviews. I tried and tried to like this camera, but it has a few major weakness. Great features, menu, codec options etc. But in these days where phone cameras are shooting 4k and you have technologies that combine multiple sensors with computational imaging, you would expect that this camera would at least match them. Features aside, when shooting 4k, everything is much more noticeabl... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Great Camera!
Yes, there is some minor barrel distortion at the extreme widest focal lengths, but nothing I find out of the ordinary or alarming. In fact, you really have to have a scene with a lot of vertical lines (and be shooting full wide) before youd probably even notice it. To me it is a non-issue and it never even crosses my mind while shooting, but it would be incorrect to say there is no distortion at all. It kind of reminds me of when people were all... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
One of the best cameras of all-time
I've owned my Z280 since September 2018 and I absolutely love it. It is by far one of the best cameras I have ever used, especially when you consider the price. Even though I also own an PXW-FS7 and a PMW-F55 ($30,000) I find myself using the Z280 as my primary camera, mostly because of the speed and convenience of having an excellent 17x f/1.9 lens. In my opinion, the complaints about barrel distortion and other issues mentioned in some of the ... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
On second thought
This camera needs serious firmware updates and Im not sure that can correct all of its flaws. I was very excited (in paper) about this camera but now I realize I shouldnt have trusted the hype by the manufacturer. This camera cannot reliably auto-focus in good light/daylight! In manual focus it is not parfocal. The zoom by the rocker is not smooth, worse by a remote. Then there is a barrel distortion issue. The video is soft overall. My ten-year... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
First Thing Outta The Box - Back Focus
A year down the road and seven countries later confirms the Z280 as a workhorse. When all you have is access to ONE camera, the Z280 will quickly prove its worth. You must remember like all camera systems to check the back focus - it's simple and will answer any of the soft focus comments immediately. I use adapters with sony qxd cards and the xavc-i looks gorgeous. 4 channels of audio and built in ND with variable adjustment makes shooting in al... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Sony needs to fix soft lens issue with a firmware update
This is an update from my previous post. After 7 months of using this camera in a professional environment, I have to agree with the negative reviews of the image quality coming out of the Z280. Nice codecs and versatility aside, the camcorder does not look good at all right out of the box on the wider angles - and it should for $7K. Wide angle sharpness is a disaster especially when in 4K and you are never quite sure that what you are shooting i... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Focus and low light issues
I bought 2 of these camera,Im a wedding videographic and I didnt get the chances to edit the video until weeks after I got the camera. First the image is not as good as my PMW200s, I looks grainy and when shooting live in low light it looks good. but editing the video is way darker that the histogram and monitor looked live for both cameras at the same event. Focus is off, I zoom in, get my focus and zoom out and it is still out of focus. Might ... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Additional from my prior reveiw
Still no response from Sony on registering. The varizoom remote that B&H sold me is poor in that it cant creep the zoom as good as the rocker on the camera. The Waveform is fantastic, however I believe the histogram is wrong. Does not show proper histogram graph. Maybe they can fix that in an update. The vectorscope is also unusable. Still trying to figure out the scene files... is that a new word for picture profiles? I agree with an... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Lens 1.9 throughout
I just received my Z280. My main concern was about the lens. I am relieved to find out that it is 1.9 throughout the range, like EX1/EX3. Because Sony does not list it clearly on it's website and B&H does not have the full specs (as of August 3, 2018) here, there has been some confusion. Rest assured it's 1.9. Beautiful! I am looking forward to selling my EX1 and EX3 and buying one more of this baby :)
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Nice camcorder
The z280 is pretty good in low light, has a fast lens and lots of improvements on audio controls. Based on shooting with it for a week, the image quality is very nice and the ability to gain up with little noise is a nice feature.
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Not so fast, 1.9 :)
Somebody in the Q&A sections says the Z280 ramps down to 2.4 at the tele end (even though the display remains at 1.9). Used in a live situation I felt it might. Further testing needed before assuming anything.
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
You cannot use a LANC and get slow zooms--ever
The slowest minimum speed with the handle zoom or external LANC controller is far too fast for most uses. Sony says they will most likely never address is issue.
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
