Canon VIXIA HF G40 Full HD Camcorder

fabulous camcorder, that takes incredible hi def 1080p video, and especially shines in low light situations, with noiseless video, the stereo mic's burt in to the top of the lens of the camera, do a wonderful job, of picking up the slightest word spoken, and play extremely clearly......the camcorder is large, and very well built, but i like that, i don't care for those dinky little camcorders that feel like a toy. The touch screen on the oled screen , is large very colorful, and responds to the touch very well....I like having the dual sd cards, where you can, either set up the wifi, of the camera, or do what i do, just remove the sd card that your using, and download the video, directly to your computer .......!!.its that simple......all in all, I"m very glad that i purchased this top of the line camcorder from canon, its feature rich.......with excellent still photo"s as well that can be taken with a touch, on the viewing screen.......I also forgot to mention, that it has a viewfinder as well!!...........which is something which has been eliminated from a lot of camcorder manufacturers !!.......may i also mention the big reason I bought this camcorder over its predecessor the HFG30.is that the HFG40 has a much larger digital chip,then the GFG30, although they look alike, the video results are not going to be the same... as so for much better video results.....i highly recommend the HFG40.......I love mine,

I used this camera twice within a year and actually really liked it. However, the third time I tried to use it, the screen went out and it would not work. Canon was not going to fix it for free seeing that I paid $1299 and it was 8 months of ownership. I did not drop it, shake it, or misuse this camera (it was $1299!!!!!), in fact not a scratch on it. I like canon products but this has turned me off. I will say that Amazon has been amazing with their customer service and refunded me really quickly upon return.. Amazon is the best thing going for online shopping!!!

Great camera!I am a canon enthusiast and I needed a new camcorder since my older one stopped working.It was between this and the XA30. I opted for this because I already have a separate tascam field recorder and I simply added a aluminum handle with a riser and wala. Saved myself an additional $600The picture quality is good for a 1/2" sensor camera and works well in low light. Still can get a bit noisy but overall this is a great video package. When I can I shoot with a 5D m2 (35mm) sensor so it works very in low light but it cannot film continually for more than 12-15m. I also have a G7x (1") sensor, work very nice and crisp in low light but this is a pocket camera I also use for filming (for less than 15m segments.)The G40 will make a nice addition and can simply be left recording until the card is full. The picture quality wont look near as sharp and clean as the 5D, G7x but it is a great camera for all types of filming.If your'e on the fence between this and the XA30, it's the same exact camera. Minus the XLR inputs and the IR night vision. If you dont need night vision and no need for XLR or already have your own field recorder, then save your $$ slap a fomito or movo handle, your field recorder, hot shoe cube, mic and away you go!

I run a Youtube channel that is completely a one man operation and for a couple of years I used a DSLR camera that did alright, however the autofocus on it was really terrible. I decided to upgrade to this camera earlier in the year and it was the best investment I've ever made. Video is crystal clear and very detailed. I've filmed roughly 20 videos with this thing and it works wonders. I just wish it came with an extra battery or two, but beyond that it is a must have for any serious Youtuber out there.

For my purposes, I need good quality video shot at 30p. A few weeks prior I purchased the Panasonic x920 but the 30p files were of unusable quality, only the 60p files had great IQ and converting the 60p files to 30p didn't help, only made the quality worse, so I sold the x920. The Canon g40 was the only camcorder that fit my requirements of good 30p files that was in my price range, (as well as my other requirements of f1.8-2.8 lens and minimum "1/2 sensor)so I purchased the camcorder even though I was concerned about buying a Canon sensor having had bad experiences with image quality of their sensors in still cameras. I had migrated to Nikon and have two d750 which have excellent image quality for stills and video. But I wanted a camcorder with good video AF and unlimited shooting time. Since only this Canon camcorder had the file types with all the rest of the specs I wanted , I ordered the camera.The camera is really enjoyable to use overall except that the display changes when I start shooting and the manual controls ( gain, aperture, shuttter speed...) disappear. This is terrible as I need to dig into the controls every time I need to change the exposure. I hope I can find a solution to this with the custom buttons. Otherwise, the camera is a joy to use. The touchscreen is very responsive. And the rocker zoom is awesome.The AF is not bad but not as quick as the Panasonic x920. But it's pretty ok, I wouldn't not purchase it because of the AF unless I shot sports.I like the size and form factor of the g40 over the x920 for pro use as it looks more substantial ( but it's not bulky at all) and impressive on commercial shoots compared to the tiny x920.The g40 does not have much grain in low light, which is wonderful, but it is still not as good for low light as the x920 ( a camcorder almost 3 years older than the g40). I don't use any gain on the g40 because +3db barely makes a difference, +6db makes a little diifference but it's not worth it because it degrades the quality a lot. So I just add lights if I need to. On the Panasonic x920, I had no issue using up to +3db. Adding +3db on the x920 was also more effective than adding +6db with the g40 and it didn't ruin the IQ.But I do really love the image quality of the g40 in non-contrasty scenes with sufficient light. I think it's nicer and better quality than the x920 in low contrast scenes. It's a bit soft ( it is a 1/2" sensors after all) but the softness actually looks nice, like stills edited in Lightroom with lowered clarity adds a beautiful softness to portraits, this is how this video looks, the softness it's actually nice, it has a cinematic feel. I also like it better in darker scenes than the x920( not to be confused with gain usability which is better on the x920) because the video has a more natural look and feel.All in all, the Canon Vixia G40 is a very nice camcorder for everyone, including pros.Edit: I did some research and found the Custom Function button in front of the camera that could be set to either shutter speed, aperture, OR gain. It's not good for a pro who needs access to all three. As I leave the gain at 0db and 1/60 shutter speed at all times, I only need to change the aperture, so it works for me.The manual is pretty bad. I personally don't mind the very, very basic instructions as I usually don't have a problem figuring these things out myself, but I can see people being frustrated about it. But the big issue is the fact that it's missing a diagram of the external parts of the camera! I understand you can download a more comprehensive manual, but the external dails and controls of the camera must be illustrated in the manual the camera comes with!