The best choice for this newbie project

[alander]

I've been reading the forum for some days, searching for help on which camera to buy. I found many helpful topics, but I still can't decide what is the best choice for me. I'm an absolute beginner, but I've got a nice project in view, which is a series with real life stories that will be uploaded on the Youtube. I have wrote a considerable part of the screenplay and now I want start filming it. Even though I know few about production, I want to do it with a GOOD camera, learn to use it and try to make a more professional work. As a graphic designer I undestand a bit about the photography, so with this camera I must be able to play with composition and colors, and of course it's important to expose people and landscapes very clearly, HD and all. I will also make some interviews and record acoustic music, so it's important to have a nice audio. I have no equipment at all and I can spend no more than 1500 euros. What would you guys recommend? I'm thinking on my growth, I'm starting with a basic kit, but I want some camera that I can keep investing at with lenses, for example. Anyway, it's serious stuff and I don't want to regret. I've been considering Canon T5i, Nikon D5200 and Panasonic GH3. Each camera has a different situation of which equipments I must buy together, and which I can spend a little more and can be used on a basic kit, you know... Please, I need some advice!

 

[Alcove Audio]

I am going to quote myself from another thread...

"Professional" doesn't come from owning pieces of gear. "Professional" is talent plus experience. "Professional" is the ability to creatively and efficiently push the available equipment and available budget to the very limits.

Don't buy any gear. Direct the film. Preproduce it to death. Hire a DP and a PSM/Boom-op. They will have decent gear and know how to use it intimately. You'll want two or three really good, smart PAs. Take really good care of the cast and crew during the shoot and give them at least a token stipend. Hire someone to handle the audio post; again, better equipment and more experience.

Instead of throwing your money at gear invest it in talent. That is what will give you a professional product.

 

[photon]

Out of the 3 cameras the t5i has the best bang for the buck IMHO. The GH-3 is a better camera, but noticeably more expensive. I'd get the t5i and use the rest of the money on lenses and audio gear.

 

[alander]

Alcove, I understand what you mean, but it doesn't help. It's a series about a one year trip, so it's a "on the road" thing, everyday stuff, not anything to do with a whole serious crowd. It't real stuff with real crowd!

I'll find out if I have any talent and what I need to improve, but right now I really really need a camera and I want one that can support my growth if it happens. With a camera and basic equipment I can play and get the experience I need to make it professional. So your reply really doesn't help. Sorry, I just can't buy talent, so I go for a camera!

 

[alander]

Out of the 3 cameras the t5i has the best bang for the buck IMHO. The GH-3 is a better camera, but noticeably more expensive. I'd get the t5i and use the rest of the money on lenses and audio gear.

Thanks for your opinion! I have a question. If I invest on a GH3, is it nice to use its basic kit without having to buy lenses on the beginning? I mean, does it worth more than having a T5i with an extra lense spending the same amount? I think there would be cash for the audio gear anyway.

 

[rayw]

Have you seen other youtuber videos which displayed the video & audio quality you'd like to emulate?
Provide us with some linkso those and we might find it easier to reverse engineer guesstimate/approximate what they used.

 

[photon]

GH3, is it nice to use its basic kit

I have seen it bundled with different lenses. Which one exactly are you talking about?

 

[alander]

Ok, I have some references on Youtube!

I'd like to get close to this video quality:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5WXOoaJLioo&list=UUw_T-wN5D_NbfwFp4ztQvBA&feature=share&index=2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CzQ7SBNNXsE&list=TLY9xh3ZxzIz4ZSVcGNnXTkRIeYqaz45MW

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_6SIAb8zl0 - Nice audio and image, but can be better.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SxkI2dbqv8w - Good audio and ok image.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NQAQda4ZnY - This too, nice audio, but I guess there was no much noise around to make a good comparison.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBnXnKlt8T0 - This is the same idea of going to the streets and get real stories.

I have seen it bundled with different lenses. Which one exactly are you talking about?

Well, I don't know much about the options of lenses I can buy with a GH3. It would be nice some recommendation about it too!

 

[Alcove Audio]

With a camera and basic equipment I can play and get the experience I need to make it professional. So your reply really doesn't help. Sorry, I just can't buy talent, so I go for a camera!

Thank you for clarifying your situation, but you should have stated exactly what you would be doing at the outset. You are going to be a "one-man-band" doing everything while traveling.

I will also make some interviews and record acoustic music, so it's important to have a nice audio.

"Nice" audio is going to be relatively expensive, 25% to 50% of your budget. It's easier for me to think in US dollars, so I'll convert your €1,500 to US$2,000.

First, keep in mind that most DSLRs have very poor audio implementation, and I am not aware of one DSLR that allows for real time monitoring of the audio. Yes, there may be a headphone jack, but it's side-chained to the pre-amp, so you are not hearing what is actually being recorded. So you may want to consider an separate audio recorder. Being a "one-man-band" this may work to your advantage.

If you decide on a DSLR I would suggest the Tascam DR-60. It's the same basic electronics as the DR-100mkII and the DR-40 configured to mount between your tripod and the camera. I've read some complaints about the ergonomics, but it sounds okay for $200.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/929347-REG/tascam_dr_60d_4_ch_track_linear_pcm.html.

Your mic choice is a real issue; you want to do a variety of different things (music, interviews) and still keep your cost down. Where you are going to mount it is another. So please, even more detail about what your plans are for your filming trip.

In my youth I was a touring musician, so I know about making sure that you have everything that you need to be away from home for long periods of time. I always worked under the assumption that I would not be able to get the replacements I needed wherever I was going, so I followed the Boy Scout motto - "Be Prepared." So you are going to have to modify your budget a bit.

Get cases for everything - they keep you organized and, more importantly, they keep your gear safe; because no matter how hard you try your gear is going to get knocked around.

You'll want lots of data storage, although it's easier these days to upload the data via the internet. However, you should make a serious effort to keep your own back-ups.

You'll want headphones (Sony MDR-7506 - $100), extra cables, lots of batteries or battery packs, chargers, spare data cards, a small tool kit, and I have no idea what camera extras you will need.

My last bit of advice is what I tell my self several times a day.

K.I.S.S. - Keep It Simple, Stupid.

 

[alander]

K.I.S.S. - Keep It Simple, Stupid.

Ok, now we're talking! haha Thank you for coming back and telling me all these great useful stuff.

Please, let me explain better what I'm up to!

I am a Brazilian, moving to Germany on a few days to work as an Au-pair and travel a lot, during at least one year. When I'm not babysitting, I'm a graphic designer, musician and now getting into filmmaking. This project will be a series of 15 minutes films that will have one specific theme each week. At the video I will be narrating some poetic/funny/exciting story that I wrote about the theme - which can be "bicycle", "dreaming half-awake", "mountains beyond mountains", "social media", etc. - while you can see some nice scenes I shot, such as landscapes, the routine of a place and dynamic stuff related to the main subject. There will also be moments when I will ask questions to people at the streets, or shoot a conversation as I have a beer with someone and sometimes record myself playing guitar and singing, other times show some other musicians playing somewhere I go, can be a park or some closed place like a house - you know, Jam sessions and stuff like that!

So there will be many kinds of different situations I will be recording. I realise now that I'll need a very nice audio gear to support all that. It's actually a quite important issue because I don't only want to make this series to register my trips and sharing nice stories with others who may be interested, but also generate content for songwriting. So yeah, lots of writings there! Many narrations, interview and music. I guess it's important to say that I'll be shooting mostly (not to say only) ACOUSTIC music, not studio stuff, not concerts, not clubs, but the music as raw as it can be, so I can get the most of the quality.

Now talking about the image. I'm looking for the best camera I can have with that budget! Let's just suppose this audio gear would cost me 400 euros. I would have to pick a kit of camera that could cost no much more than 1100 euros, so that means there's no way I can have GH3 and I can consider now a DSLR one. It brings me back to the T5i and the D5200. Is there any other I should consider with that rating??

Found this http://vimeo.com/74558101 and this http://vimeo.com/74273936 from a member of the forum. It's a very good reference of the acoustic music live. I like the audio and the image quality!