Upgrading from Canon Xf100. Looking for low-light quality and 20x zoom

[Mysticpuma]

Okay, the budget £2000 maximum.

So looking around I can get an Canon XF200 for around £1900 and that is what I am intending to do, but, rather than jumping in I'd like to ask if anyone has any suggestions for another camera.

The XF200 uses the same .xmf code as the xf100 and to be honest I have been happy with it and the latitude it offers is generally good enough although the xf100 in low-light is okay, nothing special.

£2000 is the top of my budget and 'saving up' isn't an option.

So are there any cameras out there that others would recommend that have a 20x zoom, good in low-light and have any other features that may be worth considering?

Thanks for the advice, cheers, MP

 

[rogs]

I get the impression that the price of cameras like the XF200 could well fall in the near future... so maybe a short wait might get you a better deal?...

As 'tech' moves ever onwards (as it always does!) newer cameras - like the new Panasonic DVX200 for example - offer much better specs for relatively little extra money. Without VAT (I don't know if you're registered as a business?) that new model - which shoots 4K and has a 4/3 sensor - is about £700 over your present budget.
A much better low light performance than the 1/3 sensors, and at 4K resolution.
That has got to affect the price of the current range of HD prosumer cameras, surely?....

 

[chrishull3]

Yes i would have agreed 100% with that but it seems the DVX200 is having problems,loads of things like this paste on various forums.
[We just got our DVX200 and did an in office test under fluorescents with Scene File 1. Same yellow cast over everything and seriously contrasty, noisy image at MOV codec 1080 24p 50MB/sec. We need to start a four day shoot in a classroom under fluorescent lighting, so anyone who had a good set of settings for that let me know.

Just saw this on twitter ‏@TereAguirreHaro has some serious issues with the DVX200
Panasonic DVX200 another AF100 fail? Panasonic DVX200 another AF100 fail?]

 

[Mysticpuma]

Thanks for the reply gents. Looking at the Panasonic footage in comparison to the Blackmail the difference is incredible!
This is going to sound weird but having the xf100 I generally use it for interviews and occasional work and the main thing I miss is the range of zoom (I like shooting at airshows too), if I had the ability to have working auto focus using my 5d mkiii and 7D Mk2 (7D does have auto focus but very hit and miss) then I could probably do without one.
Features I really like on the xf100 are 4:2:2 codec, built in time lapse, auto focus, long record times, ease fo use! They seem like minimal features which can be beaten by the stills cameras, (apart from codec and record time) but so-far looking at making the stills cameras work as well as a dedicated video camera does, involves so much money it seems counter productive.
Wonder what a 5d MkIV will bring to the table

 

[12harry]

In general folks like DSLRs because they already have several lenses and want to use them, esp in shallow DoF situations. All other considers are left aside, I believe.
For ease of use a Camcorder will be far better; but for Airshows...? Won't you need a sun-proof EVF and a very expensive zoom....?
I attended one recently and got very poor results - any wide shots didn't show the 'planes and as I zoomed, keeping them in-frame was all but impossible - perhaps I got better as the show went on, but the "turns" were more spectacular and therefore more difficult to track. I didn't use AF it was all on Infinity and I tried not to use the 55x Zoom setting. I saw some stuff from the pros and that was very good/close/steady/etc. I guess they knew what they were about and had to gear to prove it. With 'planes approaching from different angles how do you get them both?
I suspect too that some pros were paired.... with One taking "safety shots" and the Editor switched between them. Ah well....