HD Monitor

[Matt Box]

Hi all,


On a recent Varicam shoot I had the chance to use the little Panasonic BT-LH900 LCD monitor. While at first I was not happy to have to use an LCD after a week of use I came away very impressed with the image the little thing puts out. One of the best features was that it seemed to power for a long time off an Anton Bauer trimpac. It also had a built in waveform monitor that while I'm sure is not precise was nonetheless nice to have. If you got a HD shoot coming up and have the chance give it a try.

Which monitors do you all find yourselves using on HD shoots these days? Any other recommendations?

[Baltimore Shooter]

Thanks Matt for that review. How much is that monitor and will it work w/ SD and 4:3 formats too?

Warren

[Matt Box]

It's around 3-4 k street price. Yes it does seem to have SD inputs although I did not use them. Not sure if it does 4/3 but I would assume it does. The control knobs are a bit plasticky and cheap feeling but at least it had all the ones you need. Like other HD monitors it seems to be a bit menu heavy and I didn't really get into them that deep. I forget if it had multiple inputs for watching a second camera but I think it does.
I used it with one of those noga "Israeli arms" so I could mount it to camera/dolly/jib during the shoot but I think it was just a bit over the weight the arm could handle. I really had to crank down on the arm's knob to tighten it.

It also came with a porta brace case that did not fit it well at all so I didn't use it. The shoot was inside a dark studio so I cannot comment on using the monitor outdoors and glare problems.

[Run&Gun]

I've used this monitor extensively and it's a great looking monitor for HD. Also, it's a 4:3 monitor and it letterboxes 16:9. I have run SD content into it before and it's not very pretty because it's having to uprez the SD video for the higher resolution of it's LCD panel.

[ED Scott]

Since I picked up the LH-900 Monitor, I use it almost exclusivly on shoots both SD and HD. I would recommend getting a Manfrotto Ball Head http://optics4birding.com/bogen-484rc2mini-ballhead-2656.html This set-up makes mounting the monitor on the camera simple and easy to view.

I would also recommend gettting a hoodman http://www.hoodmanusa.com/high_definition_hoods.asp

For some reaon, Panasonic, Kata or Petrol do not make a hood for this monitor. Porta-Brace Makes one, http://www.portabrace.com/product_detail_A.php?id=2977 but it's very cumbersome and is not user friendly IMHO.

[Hiding Under Here]

Scott -- private note. They lowered the price of that 20X lens at BPCValue. It's now $13.5K.