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|| SportsShooter.com: Member Message Board
Personal Video Camera
Michael L. Palmieri, Photographer
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Barnegat | NJ | USA | Posted: 7:37 AM on 07.28.09 |
->> My fiancee and I are soon to be married. We are looking to buy a video camera to bring on our honeymoon and to have thereafter. Any thoughts?
I have zero video knowledge, but I think that it would be foolish to not buy an HD capable model. I know that some models use flash memory and that some use internal hard drives. Which is better? Why?
Our budget is really no more than $800. Any suggestions? |
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Eric Seals, Photographer
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Detroit | MI | United States | Posted: 8:45 AM on 07.28.09 |
->> If you want to go on the low end of price but really good quality HD video and good audio go for the Flip Mino HD.
Small enough to fit in your pocket and it comes with good movie software of course it's not Final Cut Pro but it's not bad.
I have one that I use often and I'd totally recommend it plus you can buy it now for $179 at Costco. It has a fixed 35 mm lens with a digital zoom (not the best) but for the price it's worth it.
Here is a link to a review of it
http://theilife.com/2009/03/25/flip-mino-hd/
Good luck and congrats on getting married!!
Eric |
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Debra L Rothenberg, Photographer
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New York | NY | USA | Posted: 8:54 AM on 07.28.09 |
| ->> contact member Robert Caplin. He has a great Sanyo Xacti HD camera for sale. I tried it out and then was given one and I am very happy with it. It's pretty small and has a nice lens and good sound quality. It also takes an SD card |
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Jim Colburn, Photo Editor, Photographer
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McAllen | TX | USA | Posted: 9:59 AM on 07.28.09 |
->> "Our budget is really no more than $800. Any suggestions?"
You can pick up a Canon HV-30 HDV camera these days for around $600. It'll do your honeymoon videos well and will be good enough to do more expansive things later on. |
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Jeff Mills, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Columbus | OH | USA | Posted: 10:57 AM on 07.28.09 |
->> Do you want a dedicated video camera or would you be willing to consider a still camera that can also shoot video ? What are your specific needs ?
I personally can't say enough about the Panasonic zs3. Its a great little compact 12meg point and shoot thats small enough easily be carried in your pocket yet has a 35mm equiv range of 25-300mm.
It also shoots AVCHD Lite, 720p HD video and whats really unique about it is that it allows you to zoom and AF during video recording.
It has stereo mics as well that really deliver great audio quality as well, far better than anything I've heard on any DSLR or other combo cams.
Only cost $400 as well and the video footage I've shot honestly exceeds the quality a lot of dedicated consumer video cameras I've of friends. Its not going to rival the best HD systems on the market costing $3000 and upwards of course but for personal movies I think its fantastic.
I've been taking in on various trips and outings for personal enjoyment and its just proved really useful. Being able to get 300mm reach from something I can easily carry in my pocket really comes in handy as does the video ability. I didnt think I'd really use the video at all but find I'm gettting a lot of use from it and specifically shooting video clips and working to learn a bit more about how to shoot intresting footage.
I'd suggest you check one out, it could meet all your needs and at half your budget. |
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Jeff Stanton, Photographer
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Princeton | IN | USA | Posted: 11:52 AM on 07.28.09 |
->> I saw this at Robert's on Monday. Not only does it fit inside the palm of your hand, it records in 1080P and MPEG. Very, very lightweight. Plus, it has a built in 5 MP still camera.
/www.robertsimaging.com/cmItemDetail.jsp?pid=16336 |
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Michael L. Palmieri, Photographer
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Barnegat | NJ | USA | Posted: 1:48 PM on 07.28.09 |
->> Both my fiancee and I have P&S cameras that shoot video (I have a G9 and she has a Samsung something or other). However, we are looking for a dedicated camcorder.
I researched Canon's line of video equipment and was considering the VIXIA HF200. ( http://tinyurl.com/c9zfas )
Are the Canon HD camcorders good units? Would something comparable from Sony or another manufacturer offer more bang for the buck?
Also, what about storage? Is on-board flash memory (with SD expansion) the way to go? |
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Baron Sekiya, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Keaau | HI | USA | Posted: 6:41 PM on 07.28.09 |
->> I've got the Xacti HD2 and although it has produced some nice videos, along with drag-n-drop into Final Cut its stabilization and build quality aren't the best, though I still use it all the time.
You can check Amazon's returns store for some great deals. http://warehousedeals.com/ |
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Doug Holleman, Photographer
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Temple | TX | USA | Posted: 7:03 PM on 07.28.09 |
->> I just got a refurbed Canon HV30 for $450 from Samy's. I think they're out of stock now, but Tigerdirect.com has a few left at $499. Shop around and you may find a few more in that range.
I have two HV30s now. I loved my first one so much I bought a second one to try some two-camera shooting for concerts and stuff. The video quality is fantastic, and you have 24p and 30p framerate options for a more film-like look. I also like having the original video archived on DVC tape, which is very inexpensive, as well as the digital capture. |
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Robert Hanashiro, Photographer
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Los Angeles | CA | | Posted: 7:27 PM on 07.28.09 |
| ->> G10 |
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