Still no footage that I would consider attractive. I really want to like this camera, but the footage is not looking as nice as I'd hope.

I have the firmware updated Convergent Design Odyssey 7Q+. It has the ability to DownRes 1080P with various frame rates from 4k. This made a huge difference with my A7s. Even ProRes LT is better than internal recordings.

I assume using the 7Q+ would give similar "enhanced" results with the LS300.

JVC HM200 samples

• http://www.ixbt.com/divideo/jvc-gy-hm200/compare/4k-30p-150mbps.mov
• http://www.ixbt.com/divideo/jvc-gy-hm200/compare/fhd-60p-50mbps-4-2-2.mov
• http://www.ixbt.com/divideo/jvc-gy-hm200/compare/fhd-60p-50mbps-4-2-0.mov

http://www.ixbt.com/divideo/jvc-gy-hm200.shtml

I recently took delivery of a JVC GY-LS300, and made a portfolio on Vimeo for downloadable test footage:

http://vimeopro.com/fallenstarfeatures/jvc-gy-ls300-tests

I uploaded four comparison videos, all shot with the LS300. Same subject in each shot, an outdoor scene with sunlit highlights and dark shadows. I used a Sigma 50mm f1.4 lens at f10 and 1/60 second shutter, 5600K white balance, and Standard Color Matrix and Gamma settings. I set the exposure a bit hot to evaluate the LS300's handling of superwhite highlights. My aim was to improve on the LS300's default 1080p image quality, by post-processing and downsampling a customized 4K video down to 1080p. Each file is five seconds long and downloadable from my portfolio (streaming versions have been re-encoded by Vimeo at reduced bitrates):

LS300 Default 1080p EC-0.mov - Original unedited footage shot at 1080p with Default settings, Exposure Compensation: 0

LS300 Default 1080p EC-3.mov - Original unedited footage shot at 1080p with Default settings, Exposure Compensation: -3

LS300 Post Process 4K.mp4 - Processed footage shot at 4K, gamma corrected and downsampled to 1080p

LS300 Pre Process 4K.mov - Original unedited footage shot at 4K, settings customized for post-processing

@DrDave I'm looking to the LS300 to serve as a 4K upgrade to the AF100, and I need a reliable workhorse with pro audio and ND's that can handle a wide variety of lighting conditions. For this shot I wanted to see how recoverable the LS300's superwhites were, and adjusted the highlights to range all the way up to 108%, and the highlight knee to start at 100%. After loading the 4K clip into After Effects, I used Color Finesse to lower the master gain down to 100 IRE, and lifted the brightness back up with gamma adjustments. This produced smooth beige gradients on the swing cushions, all the way up to 100% white. That satisfies my requirements for a live event camera capable of recovering details from the occasional blown highlight, something I could never rely on the AF100 to handle predictably.

Overall, the LS300 strikes me as the most flexible and configurable stand-alone 4K videocamera currently available at a readily affordable price. However, you'll need to use extremely sharp lenses and a tripod to get fine details out of its 4K video mode (and don't expect OIS to help at all). At the default setting, the LS300's built-in Detail control produces heavily over-sharpened edges, and should be dialed down to -10 or even turned off completely. You'll then have a detailed but soft, artifact-free image that compresses well, but will need to be carefully sharpened in post. That was not an issue for me, since I intended to zoom, pan, and downscale within its 4K frame to produce a 1080p cut anyway. If you want something better than that, you'll need a 4K ProRes or RAW camera, or an external 4K recorder with considerably more bitrate than 150Mbps.

Thanks, @lpowell, controlling the highlights is usually the number one issue for me.

@lpowell whats about its dynamic range? I think it's not a great value. Maybe 10/11 stops?

@paglez I find technical specs of little value in judging dynamic range, because so much depends on how you define 0% black in terms of sensor noise levels. Equally important is effective color bit-depth, which naturally decreases at lower exposure levels and is highly sensitive to H.264 compression. To evaluate these factors for yourself, examine a frame from my "LS300 Pre Process 4K.mov" video above in an editor like After Effects, which can decode the image into a lossless 32-bit floating point workspace without remapping or clipping the 8-bit H.264 values. You can then use gain, gamma, and pedestal controls to amplify the shadow details to the point where noise, artifacts, chroma shift, and gradient discontinuities become clearly visible. That is where the limits of the camera's practical dynamic range are found, regardless of how many "stops" it is said to possess.

Looking forward to seeing the log footage this camera puts out.

These features should give more worth to a great camera. Great support from JVC. Hopefully they improve HDMI to fully support 10 bit 4:2:2

I own this camera. I hope JVC log increase dynamic range. Up to now its DR is limited. Perhaps 10 stops.

From JVC's press release: "With the new JVC Log mode, the GY-LS300 delivers wide latitude and high dynamic range – up to 800 percent – to rival the look of film."

Well, 800%, as I understand it, may not be that great from a DR perspective. By comparison, the Sony F5, F55 or FS7's S-Log2 claim up to 14 stops of dynamic range, which is said to be equivalent to 1300%. Sony's original S-Log delivered a dynamic range of 1000%. As such, JVC's log of 800% would appear to be rather lackluster so I wouldn't expect too much improvement. Of course, the JVC's IQ may be good enough for a wide variety of applications -- particularly when you consider it's half the price of the FS7.