Sony created the perfect intermediate camera for the recreational user. Stabilization works great while tracking horses running around barrels and weaving through poles at youth rodeos. Be sure to get a UV filter to keep dust out of the BOSS system, and also get the Mennon DV-S (16:9) lens hood to keep sunlight and rain away, without vignetting. And YES, a good quality UV filter will have inside and outside threads that will accept this lens hood! For extra stability, buy a 6" screws-into-the-camera handle and people will think you are running your own auto speed trap!

I love this camera so much! Films in 4k, zooms really far while maintaining clarity and has a built in stabilizer which is a super plus. The audio on it is 2 channel and pretty good, but I added an external mic for 5.1 surround to capture live music and you get really clear (not distorted) audio. The AX33 has a nighttime setting to film in low light, which looks surprisingly crisp. The camera itself feels pretty durable and the touchscreen menu is easy to use once you learn what the icons mean. One thing, if you're going to be filming in 4k, be sure to get a computer that has a fast processor to compatible with the Xavcs format. If 4k doesn't matter to you, the settings can be set to full HD and honestly it still looks really great. (Pictured below with lens hood and microphone on tripod.)

Really great camera. I was looking for something with an eye piece so I could shoot outdoors. This one has that feature, and the image quality is outstanding. I wish the eyepiece had a piece that conforms to your face, to keep stray light from messing up your vision. Because it has moving parts inside to stabilize the lenses, I bought the extra extended warrantee from Best Buy. And I'm glad I did. The camera got knocked over from a height of about 3 feet. It survived, but an error message came up on the screen. It was returned to Best Buy, who sent it off for repairs. They were unable to repair it, so they refunded my money. I immediately bought a second camera of the same model. It is the best video camera I've ever owned.

I returned this camcorder because it has vastly inferior image quality compared to the AX53, but even compared to my Panasonic VX870 the image is poor. The thing that I could not stand was the heavy noise in the shadows even when shooting in daylight. The other major issue is that Sony consumer/prosumer camcorders advertise manual controls but DO NOT TELL YOU THAT ONLY ONE THING CAN BE MANUAL AT A TIME. Iris, shutter speed, focus, etc. will be switched back to "auto" if you pick any one of them to be under manual control. That means you can't set a 1/50 shutter and f/1.8 iris for "the film look," but far worse is that focus and exposure can't both be locked using their auto/manual switches! There is a workaround which involves setting them using the spot focus/spot metering setting instead of the normal manual settings. In the end, I realized that I would be far better off getting another Panasonic VX870 camcorder than to keep the AX33. If you are going to buy the AX33, just spend the extra money on the AX53 instead. It's way worth the extra cost. The attached photo is a blown-up and contrast-boosted section of a shadowed area in an otherwise strong daylight shot, showing the crazy amount of excessive shadow noise. AX53 footage is both sharper and far less noisy.

I love the simplicity of this camcorder as well as the amazing video/picture quality.