128GB iphone 6 plus or Canon HF G30

[DelisleBA.info]

Hello internet folks. I am a budding videographer and I currently use 2 Panasonic GH3's but was looking for an all purpose event camera. Something that new employees could use without a lot of experience. I was thinking about getting a Canon HF G30 or an unlocked 128GB iphone 6+. The price is about the same for each. The phone would be nice because I have an older blackberry phone that is showing its age. I would like the ability to have my msgs and calls routed to my mac. I like the idea of the image stabilization on the 6+ camera but no real zoom is a downer. How many hours of video can an iphone record? Is there a 30 mins clip limit or what.

The Canon HF G30 is a true video camera that has a 20x optical zoom and image stabilization. I used to have a Canon HF G10 and loved it, so I would I would be happy with the G30.

I just wanted to see if anyone had an opinion or thoughts of what you might do. Thanks for sharing.

 

[cruisin]

There is no limit. The iPhone is limited by battery and temperature (the iPhone generates a lot of heat recording, so if it is a hot location it will stop or even shutdown the phone).

Considering you want a video camera for work, I wouldn't use an iPhone. It doesn't do well in low light and of course doesn't do zoom. Plus, getting video out of the iPhone essentially requires a computer each time, while the Canon allows swapping a SD card.

Have you considered a earlier iPhone for calls from your Mac? The 4s/5/5c/5s/6 all have this feature (iOS 8 needed) and unless you need the newest iPhone you could get an older model and a the Canon. Best of best worlds, in my opinion.

 

[Dave Braine]

I am a budding videographer

The Canon. No brainer I would have thought.

 

[RCAFBrat]

Just because one can, doesn't mean one should!

 

[joema2]

Hello internet folks. I am a budding videographer and I currently use 2 Panasonic GH3's but was looking for an all purpose event camera. Something that new employees could use without a lot of experience. I was thinking about getting a Canon HF G30 or an unlocked 128GB iphone 6+...

I had an HF-G10 and now have an HF-G30, plus an iPhone 6 (non plus) but a coworker in my video production group has a 6+. It is true the iPhone 6 and HF-G10 have the same sensor size -- 1/3" (0.33" diag). See http://sensor-size.com/

However the G10 or G30 are vastly better as a camcorder than the iPhone 6.

IMO the HF-G30 is not hugely better than the G10, and I doubt most end viewers would notice the difference. The G30 does have a somewhat better lens and a slightly larger sensor (1/2.84" or 0.35" diag), but the G10 material looks good also. This review liked the G30 vs G10: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJMOz7fLp5Q

The dilemma is even the G30 doesn't look as good as a GH3 and a good lens. Any DSLR-like camera with a good lens produces lush, cinematic material. A small-sensor camcorder (even a good one like the G30) produces "videoish" material which may not intercut very well with a DSLR or mirrorless large-sensor camera.

The problem is a camcorder is easy to operate, whereas you can't hand a DSLR-type camera to a minimally-trained person and expect good video results.

There is no good answer for this, however I would definitely not suggest an iPhone. Your G10 is perfectly good and the G30 is (IMO) not a compelling upgrade.

In roughly the same price class as the G30 is the Sony CX900 which has a 1" sensor (1" diag vs 0.35" diag on the G30). However its lens doesn't go as wide or as deep, and is optically a little slower.

 

[wavespank]

Look into some of the camera offerings from Blackmagic Design.

This one is about 1k but goes on sale pretty often. It offers many lens choices and has 13 stops of dynamic range. Once folks start moving into 4k (UHD) the Pocket Cinema Camera will be available at good discounts. It records into a wide range of formats that will greatly reduce rendering times.