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HD Camcorder Buying Advice

A

augustshultz

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jun 24, 2011
3
0
Hello intelligent and attractive Macrumorers,

I am currently in the market for an HD camcorder. Because this is a fairly significant purchase I would like some advice from people that I trust, as much as I can trust people that I have never met on the internet. So, who has some advice? Is anyone extremely pleased with a camcorder they own? I don't have a really firm budget for this, however I do not want a RED camera, think $1000ish, or less.

Thank you all.
 
simsaladimbamba

simsaladimbamba

Guest
Nov 28, 2010
22,670
31
located
What do you want to film with it and what do you want to do with the footage afterwards? Do you have experience with camcorders or SLR cameras?
 
A

augustshultz

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jun 24, 2011
3
0
simsaladimbamba said:
What do you want to film with it and what do you want to do with the footage afterwards? Do you have experience with camcorders or SLR cameras?
Click to expand...

Oh! Should have mentioned that. My first use of the camcorder will be a trip to India this winter. I will be filming a number of different things, then creating a short film documenting my time there. I do have some experience with camcorders. I helped start a film club at my high school, we used a Canon SSD Camcorder. Also, at my current position I help professors film and edit videos for their classes. I am fairly proficient in Final Cut Pro 7, however I will not be purchasing that for personal use. I have never really used iMovie but that is the program I intend to use. As for SLRs, I currently own a Canon 10D, no video. I hadn't considered a DSLR with video, but if anyone has experience filming on a DSLR, and enjoyed that experience....
 
H

handsome pete

macrumors 68000
Aug 15, 2008
1,725
259
I'd stay away from DSLRs for the kind of project you're describing.

You can get some really great results with them, but they're still extremely limiting (especially if you only just have a body and kit lens). They don't really lend themselves to run and gun shooting right out of the box, so you'd likely have to look into some support gear that would certainly put you over budget.
 
B

boch82

macrumors 6502
Apr 14, 2008
328
24
augustshultz said:
Hello intelligent and attractive Macrumorers,

I am currently in the market for an HD camcorder. Because this is a fairly significant purchase I would like some advice from people that I trust, as much as I can trust people that I have never met on the internet. So, who has some advice? Is anyone extremely pleased with a camcorder they own? I don't have a really firm budget for this, however I do not want a RED camera, think $1000ish, or less.

Thank you all.
Click to expand...

For your purposes the canon vixia might work out well. Fairly inexpensive and small enough to lug around. The quality is decent, especially if you are looking just to do web video which is my impression.
 
Z

Zwhaler

macrumors 604
Jun 10, 2006
7,094
1,567
If you're lucky you can find one of these for around $1,000. If not then go with the HF-S20 also by Canon. I own one and it is really great for the price. Here's an example of how it shoots using the built in mic.
 
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