Sony DSR PD170

Sony DSR-PD170 is an ideal professional camcorder for those who demand great color tones and the flexibility of videotaping in places where lighting would be a challenge. Dimly lit meetings or interviews where supplemental light setup would be a hassle is remarkably adequate for the PD170 delivering broadcast quality color saturation and tones that should please any field footage producer. Any professional would find this camcorder to be quick to setup, easy to integrate in a multi-camera shoot, and auditorium sound system connection friendly right out of the box. If portability and quality are the need, you will be very pleased with this camera’s value.

The PD170 is the evolution of Sony’s previous run-and-gun favorite of news professionals the DSR-PD150. Optically, these two cameras produce a resulting picture that is almost identical and could mix well in a multi-camera shoot, both do very well in low light, although the PD170 can work with slightly less. A comfortable new feature that the PD170 has over the 150 is a thumb-rocker zoom control on the carry handle in addition to the one on the side of the body shared by both cameras’ similar design.

This is a somewhat large camera, but which films easily from tripod. The manual control is excellent. This camera can operate in low light settings; and as I am filming dance performances, that is a help. The spotlight feature turns out to be very useful for a stage performance so highlights are not bleached out. With colored lights changing the white balance works best on auto. If lighting stays consistent you can get a good reading focussing on a page of white paper. The batteries last a long time; but the cassettes are relatively short, so you need to be prepared to switch cassettes. Sound is excellent.
The paricular auction had a relatively new camera, a wide angle lens, a tripod and a solid carrying case which were the accessories I wanted. As mentioned I needed the low light capability and manual control.