JVC DV Player/Recorder & Sony AX2000e camera

[Willy]

Many thanks for your instructions, Tom. An other few months and then my sony NX5 is my dearest friend.

The problem is that the user-manuals that we receive in Belgium when buying new cameras, editing machines, washing-machines, computers, cars etc... are always in English and sometimes in French or German. Our mothertongue is Dutch which is spoken by 16 million Dutchmen and 6 million Flemish Belgians, but also in South Africa and the West Indies. Sorry to tell you this : the English always think that everybody in the world understands and speaks English well. Actually that would be a good thing.

Hopefully my English is not too bad, but I sometimes struggle with English technical language in user-manuals. I asked the shopkeeper to have a Dutch translation of the casablanca-manual, but he didn't have one. Actually that's not fair. Maybe I will visit you once and bring my camera. You live in London, don't you? "When you tired of London, you are tired of life!" an English author once said. I love London. It's time to go back. Only 2 hours by fast train from Brussels.

No, Dave is right, you don't have to encourage me to come to Britain. I am 65 now. My first journey to Britain was a hitch-hiking trip to the Ben Nevis which I climbed. That was in 1966! Now we are 45 years later. In the mean time I must have crossed the channel more than 250 times x 2 = 500 times.

My first travel movies that I filmed with my canon super 8-films are somewhere in my cellar under dust. They were about Scotland, about Cornwall, about the Isles of Scilly, a film called "Old World Charm" (about East Anglia), etc... I must know Britain better than ... I have a thick neck you know. My club chairman has promised to show these film during an evening of nostalgia. I am looking forward to it. I had like to hear the noise of an old Bauer or Elmo-projector again.

[Willy]

I'm flabbergasted that you say. 'You cannot see the difference with high definition images with the naked eye'. I've just done a demonstration to a London video club and by the end of the evening every single person could see the huge difference between SD and HD.
tom.

Hi Tom,
You know that I bought my sony NXR-NX5 about 9 months ago. Maybe you remember that I was a bit confused the first few months. I had my doubts about the quality of my camera. Having spent so much money and ...

The most expensive camera is not always the best one. One of my clubmates bought a panasonic for 600 euros (about £570). He went to Peru and made a fantastic holiday film. His picture quality is superb. I thought to myself ... Oh, what have I done ? On my new NX5 there are two many "toeters en bellen" on it (=Dutch/Flemish expression), buttons that I don't need.

But now, I am happy with my new NX5. It's a matter of getting used to it. In the mean time I have made a reportage film, two one minute movies and one dramatized documentary (=almost finished). I have filmed at daylight and also in the dark.

With my sony2000 I always filmed in manual function. Now with my NX5 I take my shots in "auto focus", but I also followed your advice, Tom (see your last message).

In "Film andd Video Magazine" you recommended the NX5, Tom. You gave it 8 out of10. I would give it 9 out of 10 now. Not 10, because the little LSD-screen is always dirty and it is difficult to clean it. I think you told us in FVM. But that's a detail. I am also very happy because the NX5 has the right weight for my heavy Libec tripod. A 'match box camera' would have been too small for such a tripod.

I bought sony SD-cards (32GB) quality 10. Price : 125 euros (£118). One of my friends said : why don't you use TDK-cards in our local supermarket? The quality is 6. But you don't see any difference and they are much cheaper. So I did. Last week I bought two TDK-cards 16GB. Length : 90 minutes each. Price : 25 euros (£22) each. I watched my rushes on TV. Excellent quality. Another relief.

I am only struggling with my new casablanca now. The dealer didn't want to help me. I got very angry and I sent messages to some friends. I complained about the only casablanca-dealer in Flanders (=Dutch speaking part of Belgium). I also sent them to the dealer. He replied. Maybe he was worried. He asked me to come to his shop with my casablanca S6000. His shop is in a town near the German border. A long daytrip but it is worth making it.

[tom hardwick]

Hi Willi, you say you bought 'Sony SD (32GB) quality 10. Price : 125 euros (£118).'

As far as I know Sony only make Memorysticks (in various sizes), but of course these work in the NX5 in the same way as SDHC cards. I hope that £118 price was for two of them.

What you call 'quality 10' is in fact simply a read/write speed, and has nothing to do with the card's quality. I use Transcend 16gb class 10 cards in my NX5 and SD900 and Extreme Cam and 60D and they're less than £1/gb on Amazon, delivered to your door.

tom.

[Willy]

I hope that £118 price was for two of them.
What you call 'quality 10' is in fact simply a read/write speed, and has nothing to do with the card's quality.
tom.

Sorry, Tom, it was not 'quality 10' but 'class 4'. Many thanks to tell me that it has nothing to do with the card's quality.

I still have the receipt and invoice (date : 26 March 2011). I looked at it a minute ago. I wanted to be sure of the price. I bought it together with my sony NX5 camera. So, only one card.

It says : "SDHC CARD 32GB CLASS 4", but the price was even .... : 131,40 euros !!!! On the website of the shop called Format C Merksem you can read that the price is now 125 euros for such an SDHC card.

I know that sometimes it is better to buy things in Luxembourg or in the Netherlands. Things are cheaper there. But maybe it is even a better idea to buy SDHC cards in England.