Using your camera in manual mode is optimal if you want to experiment and learn. But when you shooting commercial photography and videography, you need the highest quality in the shortest time. In these cases, you’ll want to rely on your camera’s features to improve your workflow. If you often find yourself reviewing products and creating videos about them, you may want a camera with the Product Showcase feature.
What is Product Showcase Feature?
The Product Showcase feature was first introduced by Sony, starting with its ZV series. By default, the setting is assigned to the Custom 2 (C2) button.
The feature is designed for vloggers who record videos in which they present products and need the camera to focus on the product rather than their faces. When the speaker places an object in front of the lens and close to it, the Product Showcase feature creates a smooth transition from the speaker’s face to the product. When the product is removed, the speaker is back in focus. It pairs with the Background Defocus feature (the Custom 1 (C1) button), which switches between f/1.8 and f/5.6 apertures and changes the depth of field in an instant.
The Product Showcase feature prioritizes objects in the foreground over other objects, including faces. It’s an innovative idea because most cameras—Sony cameras included—have advanced eye and face detection and tracking systems that lock the focus on people. Everything else is blurred, which is not what you want when you are showing off a product. Before the Product Showcase feature, the only option was to block your face and make sure the camera didn’t catch your eyes, or switch to manual focus.
Who Should Use This Feature?
Product Reviewers
Vloggers who produced product reviews are the main users who will benefit from the Product Showcase feature. It allows them to show details, such as text, labels, thin edges, and so on. It also helps the viewer have a realistic perspective of an object without losing the connection with the speaker.
Beauty Vloggers
However, the Product Showcase feature can be used by other types of creators. For example, someone recording beauty tutorials may want to emphasize how a lipstick should be held, allow the viewer to read the label on a product, underline the characteristics of a brush, or place the focus on the foundation’s shade. In this case, the creator doesn’t want to cover their faces and needs a smooth, controlled focus shift.
Creative Visual Storytellers
You may want to consider the Product Showcase feature whenever you record a scene in which the focus needs to swiftly shift from background to foreground. When you need the camera to drop eye and face detection and prioritize objects closer to the camera, this is the feature to have.
For example, you may film an interview and smoothly shift the focus from the person in the background to a family photo print in the foreground to add more detail to the story. Or you may film a yoga-at-home tutorial when the house cat decides to be the star and enters the frame to smell the camera. Then, you can use the Product Showcase feature to put the cat in focus for a short while. These smooth transitions allow you to add detail and create an atmosphere.
Cameras with the Product Showcase Feature
Sony ZV-1F Vlogging Camera
Why We Chose This Camera: The ZV-1F is compact, portable, and easy to use by anyone looking to create video content.
Camera Details:
- Lens: Ultra-wide 20mm focal length
- Sensor: Exmor RS CMOS sensor
- Resolution: 20.1MP still images and 4K videos
The ZV-1F is a compact camera designed for vlogging. It features a ZEISS Tessar T lens with six elements in six groups and a 20mm focal length that provides an ultra-wide shooting angle, eye AF for humans and animals, a maximum aperture of f/2.0, image stabilization, and, of course, the Product Showcase feature.
It also has a built-in directional three-capsule microphone and the possibility of adding an external microphone. The side-articulating touchscreen LCD allows you to take selfies or shoot vertical videos effortlessly.
The camera aims to offer natural-looking skin tones, an accurate auto exposure mode, and a beautiful bokeh effect thanks to its one-inch sensor and large maximum aperture. It also includes dedicated buttons for defocus background options (DeFocus and Clear), ten creative styles for in-camera editing, and a dedicated slow-motion button.
Sony ZV-1 II Compact Vlog Camera
Why We Chose This Camera: The ZV-1 II has a general-purpose zoom lens that provides versatility and improves the workflow.
Camera Details:
- Lens: Ultra-wide zoom 18-50mm focal length range
- Sensor: Exmor RS CMOS sensor
- Resolution: 20.1MP still images and 4K videos
If you need a little bit more versatility in terms of lens capabilities, the ZV-1 II is for you. It’s still compact and ergonomic, but it features a zoom lens with a focal length range of 18-50mm, a maximum aperture range of f/1.8-f/4.0, and a built-in neutral density filter that controls light exposure by three stops. The camera is designed for all types of content creators and aims to deliver beautiful still images and videos.
The ZV-1 II features an intelligent microphone that automatically captures the sound coming from the front of the camera when it detects a human face, eye and face recognition and tracking for people and animals, built-in image stabilization, and touch tracking. It connects to a smartphone for fast sharing and offers video streaming via a USB13 port.
Sony ZV-E10 Mirrorless Camera Body
Why We Chose This Camera: The ZV-E10 features a large sensor, interchangeable lenses, and real-time Eye AF and AF tracking.
Camera Details:
- Lens: Interchangeable Sony E Mount lenses
- Sensor: APS-C CMOS sensor
- Resolution: 24.2MP still images and 4K videos
The ZV-E10 is a mirrorless camera with interchangeable lenses, meaning you can use any Sony E Mount lens you want. It features a generous 24.2MP sensor and the fast BIONZX image processing engine and provides exquisite image quality, details, and clarity. Nonetheless, Sony’s specific features for video recording, Product Showcase, Background Defocus, and Face Priority AE are present in this model.
The AF system has 425 phase-detection points and covers around 84 percent of the sensor area and the real-time AF tracking system is powered by AI. As a result, the camera is smooth, fast, and efficient in following the subject. But if you need slow motion, the ZV-E10 is up for the job too—thanks to its S&Q (Slow & Quick) Motion modes that allow you to record from 5x slower to 60x faster. As with all Sony’s ZV models, the camera has a built-in directional three-capsule microphone and a windscreen. The camera supports RAW shooting, internal and external video recording, WiFi and Bluetooth connections, and quite a lot of customizations.
Sony ZV-E1 Mirrorless Camera Body
Why We Chose This Camera: With its AI-based features and advanced five-axis in-body image stabilization, the ZV-E1 is a professional level camera for photography and videography.
Camera Details:
- Lens: Interchangeable Sony E Mount lenses
- Sensor: Exmor R sensor
- Resolution: 12.1MP still images and 4K videos
If you are looking for a professional camera, the full-frame mirrorless ZV-E1 is a good option. Thanks to its 12.1 MP full-frame sensor and state-of-the-art BIONZ XR engine, the camera provides 4K video recording at 120fps, low noise, accurate colors, and a wide dynamic range. It also features AI-based subject recognition, auto-framing, and real-time AF. And if you’re shooting into the dark hours, the S-Log3 shooting mode will adjust the ISO sensitivity to the brightness of the scene automatically.
Furthermore, you can create or import LUT files for in-camera editing, embrace the Cinematic Look setting, and navigate through the camera’s menus using intuitive touch icons. Like in previous Soy camera models, the side-opening LCD touchscreen is a real help when shooting selfies and vertical shots. The zoom lever allows you to operate compatible zoom lenses or enable the Clear Image Zoom option for prime lenses.
Conclusion
The Product Showcase feature helps to create smooth transitions between subjects in the background and foreground using a single camera without interrupting the shot. The good news is, you don’t have to compromise on other features because Sony’s ZV Series offers a broad range of models—from compact cameras to mirrorless ones.
