Used throughout the BBC and beloved by broadcasters, film and documentary makers everywhere, the Canon XF300 range are professional HD cameras that uses the MPEG-2 MXF full HD (4.4.2) codec to record at up to 50Mbs to low cost CF cards (hot-swappable for continuous filming).
One of the stand-out features of the XF300 range is the use of a stunning Cannon L-series (‘Red rings’) 18x wide angle HD video lens that delivers jaw-dropping optical quality. Chromatic aberration is prevented through the lens’s Ultra-low Dispersion (Hi-UD) glass construction, and separate rings allow precise, independent control of Focus, Zoom and Iris.
Elsewhere, the 3 x 1/3” CMOS sensors provide full 1920x1080 full HD, and have been optimised with a flat reader to minimise the rolling shutter problems that can plague CMOS sensors on other cameras. Capture rate can be altered thanks to a wide choice of variable frame rates (from 12fps to 50fps), and the 10.1cm with high (1.2 million dot) resolution LCD with built-in Waveform Monitor (WFM, to check exposure and other vital parameters, can positioned on either side of the camera to provide convenient viewing with a sharp picture. If you prefer, a 1.3cm Electronic Viewfinder (EVF) is also available.
The BBC has officially approved these cameras for a good reason. They provide superb picture quality (which is what really counts) in a relatively easy to use ‘point-and-shoot’ package, and with 6-bit linear PCM audio at 48kHz, they can also record professional broadcast quality audio (or microphones can be plugged into the two built-in XLR sockets).
If you need professional level video footage, the Canon XF300 range is a superb choice.