What should I get?

Hello I am new to the world of pro equipment.

I am trying to shoot a documentary but I need a camera first. I want a camera I can shoot in low light quality.
Also must be good in normal environment. I would also like to attach a shotgun mic.
My budget is $2000. This is the model I was looking at let me know what you guys think thanks.

Canon XA10
 
Having the mic on the camera is probably the worst place for it to be. You need someone to swing the boom, or wire up the people you're interviewing with lavs. And, depending upon which camera you get you may have to get an audio recorder as well.
 
If your budget is $2000, you'd blow the entire budget on the camera itself.

You certainly need some sort of audio gear in addition to the camera. For documentaries, lav mics make a lot of sense. As Alcove mentioned, you don't want to mount the mic to the camera, if you're going to go the shotgun mic route, put it on a boom and have someone (preferably someone with experience) operate the boom.

What about other supporting gear? Tripod, for example? Do you already have one? Do you already have a _good_ one?

For lower light performance, you'll likely want to look at a larger sensor camera. Though I would strongly suggest you reconsider that desire for low light shooting and actually light your shots whenever possible.

On a $2000 budget, my suggestion would probably be something along the lines of this:

Sony NEX 5 ~$650 (amazon) (Note: This has virtually the same sensor as the FS100, quality and performance are pretty great)
Tripod with good fluid head ~$130 (amazon)
A basic LED camera light ~$30 (something like this)
A basic 3 point light kit

Then spend the rest on audio gear.. including a recorder, for example the Tascam DR100

This would get you a very basic setup, but with high quality audio and video capability, AND lighting. Obviously you could easily spend more than $2000 on gear, but you absolutely should stretch that a lot farther than just covering the cost of the camera alone.
 
Where is this documentary going to be seen at?
Who's going to be watching and listening to it?
Film festivals?
History channel?
Public broadcast?
National Geographic?
Church membership?
Civic organizations?
Who?
 
Back
Top