Is a bottom of the line mini dv camera from samsung good enough picture quality for television?

Question

I purchased one last week and wish to make a documentary and my fingers are crossed as to it being good enough for television. This starts with the camera quality i guess.

Answer 1

Actually, the camera is only part of the "system".

Someone skilled and knowledgeable about framing, audio, lighting, and who understands the limitations of the equipment they are using, editing and all the other stuff that goes into making compelling and interesting content will provide vastly superior content than someone with no knowledge/skills with the most expensive equipment available.

Some tips to practice BEFORE you start shooting your documentary:

1) Shoot in good light. Consumer camcorders do not behave well in low light. Turn the lights on or use a video light. Learn your camera's limitations and stay away from the lighting characteristics that cause poor video.

2) NEVER EVER record video when the camcorder is handheld. Humans were not built to be steady. No amount of optical or digital stabilization can correct this. ALWAYS use a tripod - a monopod if you must - but this is not recommended. Even the ground, chair or a table is better than handheld. I made a shoulder-mount (check the "SpiderBrace") out of PVC pipe and some other parts I found in the garage.

3) NEVER use digital zoom. It is useless. Disable it. If you have to get close to something, either use the optical zoom only to zoom in or get the camera physically close the subject.

4) If you MUST zoom, then zoom S L O W L Y. Wait for a LONG TIME before you reverse the zoom - better yet, don't reverse the zoom.

5) If you must pan (up/down-left/right), pan S L O W L Y. Wait for a LONG TIME before you reverse the pan or move in another direction - better yet, don't pan.

6) The next time you watch TV, pay attention to the camera shots and angles. If you want your video to look better, then do what the professionals do.

7) Script your documentary as much as possible. Capture MORE video than you need - "b-roll". Cut the bad scenes using your video editor.

8) Hopefully, the camera you got has a mic jack so you can use the external mic... or, you plan to get a field audio recorder like those from M-Audio, Marantz, Sony, Edirol, Fostex, Tascam, Zoom and others... or you plan to not use any live audio and the project will be narrated. Consume cams have built-in mics, but they are not very good - and most consumer cams do not have manual audio control (very important for very loud or very soft audio environments). Use an external condenser mic.

There's lots more, but this should help get you started.