Which HD camcorder for howto films? HF100 good?

S

sphinxracer

Stay with miniDV or go to HD? HF100 good?

Hello,

I'm new to filmmaking, and currently own a Panasonic PV-GS150. It has an mic and headphone jack which is awesome. It is a miniDV camera, and I'm planning to shoot, a Yoga DVD for a local business.

I'm not sure if miniDV video will look good on DVD, which is why I'm thinking about upgrading to an HD camcorder. My budget for an HD camcorder would be around $500-$700.

Please help me decide if I should just stick to the minDV camcorder or spend $500-$700 on an OK HD camcorder? I really like the HF100 by Canon, thoughts?

I just want to make some decent DVDs, people can watch and learn yoga with. With the money I make from it, I can invest in a better HD camcorder hopefully.

Stick to minDV and guy a better HD camcorder later, or buy an HD camcorder now, and invest a MUCH better one later.

-Sphinx
 
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With your budget I'd stay with a mini DV. If you get a good 3 ccd mini dv you should be alright. I don't think that you can find a good prosumer HD for less than about $1700 for a used one.

Chris
 
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Mini-DV is fine for yoga instructional videos. Actually it's more than fine, HD would be overkill. When you can afford HD then go for it if you want.
 
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HD Camera Guide

If your looking for information about cameras, I have a great website for you. It's dedicated specifically to HD cameras but it has alot of info about cameras/lenses/accessories etc. The site is www.hdcameraguide.com

I would also love to hear your feedback if you visit the site.
 
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I use 2 Sony VX2100s (SD, 3CCD), and they are minidv, and along with the PD170 have the very best low-light tolerance (lux rating), they are the only ones right now with a lux rating of 1, the higher the rating, the worse they are with low-light.

I also use the Sony HD1000u, with a lux rating of 4, as a backup camera at weddings. However, brand new from BH it is 1500 or 1600$, and is actually quite nice if you just give it sufficient lighting. It uses minidv, captures 1080i, and actually looks great on our 50inch 1080p TV.

Minidv really does work out great, just go by the quality, minidv can provide just as good SD quality as anything "better" can, and it does handle HD pretty well, in fact, sony's new HD Z7U model (first HDminidv with a great lux rating from anyone, was actually an answer to wedding videographer demands) records 1080p to minidv, and they actually showed it off at a WEVA conference this summer in Orlando, on a huge HD screen, looked outstanding! So don't worry about minidv, it's far more capable than many have imagined.

The thing to worry about is the capabilities of the camera itself, not so much the media, as long as its not a crummy consumer hdd model or SDcard model.

I actually would recommend, as long as you manage lighting well, the Sony HD1000u as it is at a great price point for prosumers, and sports the spot focus feature, where you can touch the portion of the screen you want the focus on-very handy! It also sports 2 accessory shoes, so you could use one for an on-camera light, and the other for something else. It is a large, on-shoulder camera, pretty nice feel to it.

Hope that helps you out!
 
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