The Sony Z5s and Z1s

During our lessons with Paul we have learnt about the Sony Z5s and Z1s HDV camcorder. The Z5s has many different components. Some of which we learnt. The features we did learn about were the
white balance feature, the shutter speed, the iris and depth of field.

The Sony Z5s record onto DV tapes and can be easily changeable. The camcorder only requires one battery per camera and it can record onto high definition and standard definition.







Depth of field

The depth of field is the distance between what you are filming and the camera. The depth of field feature can either focus the foreground or the background for a particular effect or the depth of field can focus both the foreground and background.

White balance

The white balance feature on the Sony Z5s is there so that it can be used as a reference point which can be used so the camera can pick up a colour which represents white. The white balance can then calculate all the other colours based on the particular white point.

Shutter speed

The word shutter means a mechanical gap between the camera lens and the film. When a photo is taken with the camera lens for an instant the film is exposed to incoming light. The purpose of the shutter speed feature is that it can be varied by a scale. The faster the shutter speed, the period of time the shutter is open is shorter and therefore meaning the less light which falls onto the film. The lower the shutter speed the more the cinematography is blurred and the slower the motion is.

The purpose of the iris in the camcorder is that by opening the camera lens the camera lets in more light and vice versa by not opening the iris less light is let in. The use of the iris is for slight adjustment.

Stabilising equipment

During Paul's lesson we also looked at the different pieces of equipment which you can attach the Sony Z5s and Z1s to. The aim of the different equipment is so that you can stabilise the camera so that there is no shaking and so that all in all you get a better finished film which looks a lot smoother and proffesional. The pieces of equipment we looked at were;

• The tripod
• A dolly track
• A steadicam

As well as the stabilising pieces of equipment you can obviously also film handheld without any equipment to keep it steady. This if course gives the film a different look and can also be reffered to as the 'cinema verite' effect. This effect is often used in horror films because it gives an often more unique and sinister style. The Blair Witch Project is a famous horror film which uses this effect.