Well for me it is between the Sony cx500v and the Panasonic TM700.
I want the 12X zoom of the Panny & the cleaness of the low light Sony.
Looking online I see there are several comparisons between the two but they seem biased
as there is the Panasonic group & the Sony group, much like Canon & Nikon! (See my Signature)
Has anyone zoomed to a stage at 10X from the back of an average arena?
Would it be all the stage only or could you get to a single performer? (obviously not kees to head but enough that they would be the highlight?)
I shot a few shows with my Sony TRV-350 Digital 8 and it had a superb 20X Optical zoom, but it's not HD, that's for sure.
Is there any one thing that would trump one or the other that I am missing?
Thanks,
datfly
Honestly, I'm not convinced that the Sony is gonna look any better in low light. I'm not saying the Sony is bad, just not better. In terms of sensor, the sony is 1/2.88" @ 4.15 megapixels, and the Panny is three x 1/4.1" @ 3.05 each. Smaller sensors, but smaller pixel count on each too. And then you have, like I said in my last post, a true progressive mode allowing slower shutter speeds, and a faster lens throughout the entire zoom range. Seriously, unless anyone can prove me wrong, I would not expect for a second that the Sony is better in that respect.
The Panny has a viewfinder (seriously man, I'd be LOST without one), one of the most comprehensive range of manual controls you can ever find on a small amatuer camcorder (including a focus ring. I'd kill for a focus ring TBH), and the zoom actually goes up to 18x (with some trickery). Not digital zoom, just cropping the full sensor resolution image down instead of resizing. There shouldn't be any degredation with this, in theory, but I've never experienced it first hand.
Even discounting that, bear in mind that the Sony starts off wider angle, so ends at a wider angle too. The longest end of the zoom stops at the equivalent of 300mm. The Panny goes up to 420mm with just the 12x optical, and 630mm with the extra zoom. If you're shooting from opposite the stage in an arena, you'll need all you can get. It does start getting hard to keep steady past 400mm ish though. Yet another reason to use a viewfinder - hold it against your face, your face stabilises it.
I'm sure the CX500/550 is a perfectly fine piece of kit, but if I were you it's a no-brainer