AMATEUR NEEDS GEAR ADVICE!!!

R

rml5071

Hello...
I work for a company doing graphic design and some basic, amateur video edits. Since this discovery, we're doing more internal videos within the company. We're looking to get some better gear (than a FlipVideo) for this new endeavor. This is the situation:

- Taking Video of Employee Testimonials
- Taking Video tours of the inside and outside of buildings/campus
- Taking Video of Meetings (large and small)
- Taking Video of doctor visits, working in lab
- In-house editing of video
- Target audience would be the staff

Any advice as to what type of camera I should look into getting? I'm battling between getting a handy camcorder or a professional camcorder. I think the budget is between $1000-$2000 but it may be flexible.

Thank you in advance for any help!
 
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You won't be getting anything professional for $2,000. But there are some really solid cameras in that price-range.

Based on your intended purposes, I'm gonna venture to say that it'd be best to usually have a shotgun mic attached to your camera. I'm guessing you probably won't have the luxury of a boom-op?

If this were me, I'd spend no more than $1,000 (or close to it) on the camera, and I'd get a camcorder. I'd use the rest on a decent shotgun mic, an XLR adapter, a good, solid tripod, and a DIY light-kit. As for specific model numbers, I'll have to leave that advice for others to give, but this is the general strategy I would follow.

I assume you've already got a decent computer and editing software? Not all footage is compatible with all software, so that's something you've got to research before making the purchase.
 
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rml5071 said:
Any advice as to what type of camera I should look into getting? I'm battling between getting a handy camcorder or a professional camcorder. I think the budget is between $1000-$2000 but it may be flexible.
Click to expand...

Panasonic AG-DVC20
Sony HDR-CX550V
Sony HXR-MC50U
Sony HVR-A1U
The Sony NEX-VG10
Canon HF G10
Canon HF S30

My favorite (but a little more then two large) is JVC GY-HM100
 
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If you are going to record audio to camera you need a budget of about $600; otherwise set aside about $1k. On the technical side poor audio kills more projects than any other factor.
 
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