This is the new Sony FX30, Sony’s most affordable Cinema Line product yet,
but its definitely not lacking in features.
Essentially, the FX30, is an FX3 but with its full frame 12MP sensor swapped out for a super35mm 26MP
sensor. This keeps the cost down of course, and is the main reason why the FX30 costs
nearly half the amount of the FX3, but it isn’t just a cost saving measure. It does come with a
whole list of pro’s and con’s compared to the full frame sensor in the FX3. We will look at
its changes in image quality in a minute, which is the main area where there are some drawbacks,
but there are two main advantages of this sensor vs the FX3s one. Firstly is the resolution,
its a 26MP sensor, which means its capable of 6K resolution. You can’t record that 6K directly,
but it uses it to oversample for its 4K recordings. The second advantage is that it
opens up the world of super35mm lenses. This means there are so many more lens options on the market
for you in all kinds of styles. If you want small lightweight stills lenses at a good price, theres
lots more choice. If you want cinema zooms, theres a lot more choice. Plus as a whole the lenses are
smaller and lighter, which does make a difference when you are working with this kit day in day out.
The sensor has a dual native ISO of 800 and 2500, and Sony claim
14 stops of dynamic range which is not bad at all for an affordable camera like this.
And it has the same fantastic hybrid autofocus system
Apart from that new sensor, the camera feels identical to the FX3. All the same buttons,
in the exact same places. Its a bit lighter though, at 562 grams without the top XLR handle,
while the FX3 is 640 grams. It has the same 5 axis stabilisation that the FX3 has, same
two card slots which accept both sd cards and CFexpress type A cards. The same ports as well,
like a full size HDMI which you can use to output RAW video. Theres a headphone jack and 3.5mm mic
input, USB-C and the MI shoe which connects to any of Sony’s normal MI shoe accessories, or of course
this top handle from the FX3 which you can buy with the camera and is a real must have for most
kinds of work. It gives you something to hold onto of course, but also gives you two full size XLR
ports and proper audio controls. Just like the FX3 though, theres no EVF on the top of camera
like there is on their alpha cameras, which, some people don’t care about, but I do miss personally.
So lets look at recording formats, and Sony definitely don’t disappoint here. We
essentially get everything we are used to on the FX3 and A7s III. XAVC-S, S-I and HS for long-gop,
all-i or HEVC recording options. 10 bit 4.2.2 colour space. The Cine-EI modes
that we recently saw added to the FX3, plus regular Slog3 and S-Cinetone options as well.
In 4K you can get up to 120p but with a slight crop, and in 1080p you can get up 240p which is
very impressive, particularly having 4K 120 in a camera at this pricepoint is very welcome indeed.
We did some side by side tests comparing the FX30 to the Fx3 and Blackmagic 6K Pro
which we are going to make into its own video for people trying to choose between
them. But in this video I want to focus on the FX30’s super35mm sensor and how it performs,
especially compared to the full frame sensor in the FX3. And.. its surprisingly similar.
I think its ever so slightly more detailed than the FX3, and slightly noisier as well,
although like most sony cameras it does like to be overexposed a bit.
Interestingly in these tests I did see some quite bad moire patterns on Ciarans shirt on the FX3
footage which was completely gone on the FX30, perhaps because of that in camera oversampling
process. But overall, both cameras look fantastic, and really quite similar, you will easily be able
to match these if you are using both in a multicamera environment which also means the
FX30 will match well with the A7s III and FX6 as they of course share the same sensor as the FX3.
At higher ISOs the FX3 is much better though as you would expect.
The FX30 isn’t anything particularly impressive here. Which is to be expected, not only is it a
smaller sensor with smaller pixels because of its higher resolution, it also has a much lower second
native ISO at 2500 instead of 12800. So at the same ISO, the FX30 is far noisier than the FX3.
I wouldn't say its bad at high ISOs, but its definitely only average, If particularly good
low light performance is really important to you then its going to be worth upgrading.
The dynamic range in our latitude tests seems pretty good though, heres 4 stops over exposed
which we were easily able to bring back down to normal without clipping anything at all, which,
I don’t want to spoil our next video for you but wasn’t the case on the Blackmagic Pocket 6K.
Heres 4 stops underexposed, graded back to a normal exposure, and its very noisy,
as nearly all cameras are by this point of course, but the FX3 does perform better here.
Overall though, I certainly wouldn’t say the FX30 performs like a camera which costs nearly
half the amount of the FX3. This is definitely a level of image quality that competes well with
other cameras at a similar pricepoint like the Blackmagic Pocket 6K and the Fujifilm X-H2s.
So, the main question of course is who is the FX30 for? Well I want to
split that into two sections, whether you are picturing this as an A camera,
your main camera, or as a B camera to go alongside a higher end camera.
If you are looking for your main video camera on a budget, the FX30 is probably going to be
one of the most practical choices for you on the market. It has very good image quality, very good
frame rates, image stabilisation, incredible autofocus and even some higher end features
like CineEI mode and timecode. With its XLR top handle it also has an audio system that is far
more practical and comprehensive than most of the competition at this price point from any brand.
But there are lots of features to be gained by stepping up to larger cinema cameras like
the FX6, C70, C300 III, or the URSA 12K for example. ND filters, Internal Raw recording,
SDI ports, false colour, you won’t even get waveforms here which is quite disappointing.
But all of those are cameras that cost significantly more money than the FX30.
The value for money you get with this camera is exceptional, especially once you consider the
lenses. E mount is one of the most widely used lens mount systems on the market now
with a huge amount of fantastic third party options for it and of course because its a
super35mm sensor you get an even wider selection of lenses to choose from.
For small production companies, corporate companies, wedding videographers,
anyone trying to make high quality work on a budget, the FX30 seems a very sensible choice.
I also think we will see the FX30 be chosen a lot as a B camera to cameras like the FX6 which has
been our bestselling camera pretty much since it launched. Yes it doesn’t have the same full frame
sensor like the FX3 does, but for many people the Fx3 is that little bit too expensive to just use
as a second camera in an interview for example. And although the FX30 has a different sensor,
they do seem to match very well indeed and it has the same autofocus system which is a big plus.
You are going to miss the ND system though, if only Sony could find a way to get their
electronic ND system inside these small cameras, then they would really have something special.
But its easily fixed with a variable ND on the front of the lens.
At the end of the day, Sony have long had one of the most practical video systems on the market
for owner operators, whether thats the good old FS7 and FS5, or the new FX6 or A7s III and FX3,
these cameras have all been hugely popular for very good reason. And now with the FX30,
we get a camera that sits perfectly among them, with much of the same strengths,
but a much lower price tag attached. I think the FX30 is going to offer incredible value
for money for a lot of people. But what do you think? If you want to buy an FX30 for
your own work head over to Proav.co.uk with the link down below and we will be
releasing some more indepth videos on the FX30 comparing it to other cameras
very soon so stay tuned for that. Thanks for watching, and i’ll see you in the next one.