Sony HX99 Pocket Cam Test and Aviation Video 9Jan19

The Sony DSC-HX99 Cyber-shot pocket camera is a mighty powerhouse in a small package. Here's our first use of the HX99 for aircraft video and still photography at the Boise, Idaho, airport in January 2019. The HX99 fits in a shirt pocket, yet it has an equivalent 35-millimeter zoom range from 24-720 mm. The Sony HX99 brings some great features, including the ability to shoot in RAW and simultaneously capture jpegs. And it has one feature that is a must for our kind of videography -- an eye-level viewfinder in addition to a swing-up glass screen.
With a smallish 1/2.3" Exmor R CMOS sensor of 18.2MP and BIONZ X image processor, the HX99 can't match more traditional still cameras with larger sensors. And its Optical Steadyshot stabilization, while good, is not as remarkable as Sony's full-up Balanced Optical SteadyShot used in some dedicated video cameras. But don't let that detract from this pocketful of miracles. That sensor size is necessary to keep the package small, yet with fantastic optical zoom range.
The day we used our HX99 was wintry and overcast. And we'll admit to being newcomers to this type of camera, so some camera movement may be due to the operator. We expect continued use of this small cam will yield ever better results. But still, what we got was interesting. While the HX99 can shoot in 4K, we kept it to 1080P at 120 frames per second. That gave us some nice slo-mo opportunities in post-production, as you'll see on the video.

If we have a gripe about the HX99 it would have to be the lack of a jack for an external microphone; you will occasionally hear some scratchy wind noise on this video from the HX99's small mic ports on the top of the body.

We tried the HX99 with a screw-in tubular hand grip, and also by itself. For now, we're thinking it actually does better with no grip. We shot this left-eyed, and we found it necessary to firmly plant the camera against our face to hold it rigid while we panned with moving aircraft.

One never knows what kind of flying things will be seen at the Boise airport, situated where the city meets the wilds of Idaho. We were pleased to spot a bald eagle, and we recorded it as the majestic bird flew past (at about 11:20 in the video timeline). All things considered, it came out quite well for our first attempt.

We'll be taking the HX99 on a lot of rides because it can just disappear in a pocket. And as an experienced photographer once said, the best camera is the one you actually have with you. For our regular forays to gather video and photos for Airailimages, we will use our larger-sensor Sony cameras for still imaging and video. But for back-up, and ease of carry, and maybe even vlogging, the little Sony DSC-HX99 meets our needs. We are excited to have it. Take a look...

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