SECAUCUS, N.J. – Production company Bray Entertainment has added the Panasonic AG-HPX250 P2 HD handheld camcorders with 10-bit, 4:2:2, full 1920 x 1080 resolution AVC-Intra recording to its equipment arsenal.
Principal Chris Bray was also a co-creator of the History network series “Pawn Stars,” which is shot with Panasonic AG-HVX200As, and he used this experience in evaluating acquisition options for his new company. Bray and Executive Producer David Miller, elected to continue with P2 HD handhelds.
“We liked the AG-HPX170’s balance, size and controls—ideal for run-and-gun shooting—its ease of use and functionality,” said the company’s Executive In Charge of Production Will Chandler. “Moreover, the P2 workflow was familiar and more desirable than other options.”
The first major assignment for the HPX250s is a new documentary series for the Lifetime Networks that will begin to air in the first quarter of 2013. The series is being shot in AVC-Intra 100 and edited on Avid Media Composer 6.
The company has recently begun uploading P2 footage to hard drives in the field with Panasonic’s AJ-PCD30 three-slot P2 memory drives with USB 3.0 interfaces. “The PCD30 has cut our offloading time by 75 percent,” Chandler said.
The Panasonic AG-HPX250 is a lightweight, ergonomic-designed camcorder that incorporates high-sensitivity 1/3", full-HD 2.2 megapixel 3-MOS imagers and a 20-bit Digital Signal Processor to capture high-resolution images.
The HPX250 includes genlock, timecode, HD-SDI and HDMI input/outputs for multi-camera operation and monitoring, as well as a color viewfinder. It is equipped with a 22x wide zoom (28mm to 616mm) HD lens with three independent adjustable rings (Zoom/Focus/Iris). The lens also features an Optical Image Stabilizer function.
The HPX250 offers international HD/SD formats and frame rates. In addition to AVC-Intra 100 recording, the HPX250 also records in AVC-Intra 50, industry-standard DVCPRO HD, as well as standard definition in DVCPRO50, DVCPRO and DV. In addition the HPX250 offers variable frame rate capability in 1080p up to 30fps (17 steps) as well as 720p up to 60fps (25 steps) to create fast or slow-motion effects.
