Picking out a good video camera?

Question

Ok, well me and my friends are looking to make a short movie. (just for fun) but we need to find a good camera to film it with. Any sugestions? The only requirements I have it that it can be plugged into the computer for editing, has good sound capture or a port for a microphone, and is not extremely expensive. Thank you!

Also is Windows Movie maker a good program or is there something better?

Answer 1

The least expensive camcorders with a mic in jack (but not manual audio control) are the Canon ZR800, ZR900 and ZR930.

The least expensive camcorders with a mic in jack and manual audio control are the Canon HV20, HV30, Sony HDR-HC7 and HDR-HC9.

Any of the camcorder listed above can be connected to your computer if your computer has a firewire (IEEE1394, DV, i.Link - all the same thing) port. If your computer does not ahve a firewire port, then add one. MiniDV tape will not transfer DV format (best quality) video over USB.

Next best video quality comes from hard drive and certain flash memory based camcorders. Finding one with a mic-in jack or manual audio control will be interesting.

PLEASE do not get a DVD based camcorder. Worst possible video quality.

Sony Vegas or Adobe Premiere as WAY better than MovieMaker, but also cost some $ - for a freebie, MovieMaker is OK - too bad it can't handle HDV (like Apple iMovieHD does).

Answer 2

Filmmaking depends a lot on your story.  Some stories can be as simple as randomly filming a lot of footage and later using piecemeal 'plug and play' editing to create whatever stories you can from different arrangements of the segments.   It can also be as complex as creating a battle of 10 fake robots in one scene with actual cars and humans mixed in (not to mention the mixture of fake and real water, sand, and smoke effects) in a movie like Transformers.  During this kind of complexity, one might often see editors desperately searching for a drink or cigarette as they come out of the editing room for a much needed break.

More importantly, filmmaking depends on how you wish to film the situations, locations, and conditions you require so the editors can assemble the story into the way it should be told to your audience.

- Will most of the story happen close to the camera or is it somewhat distant?

- Will the entire story take place in solid lighting or does some of it take place in low light?

-  Does the camera need to physically dolly while recording (change location or move across ground with the actors) or will the camera always film from a stationary position with little movement?

- Do you have access to the right location, or will you have to create one?

The single most important factor on how you film your story (and normally the first issue you must cover) is Distribution.  How do you intend to share this story your audience?  DVD, Internet, cell phone, iPod, Sony PSP, or some other new idea?  The distribution format will decide how you frame and light your shots, and it can also decide how long your movie is or what format in which to export it.  Distant shots and anything in the aspect ratio of 16:9 won't be clear on cell phones and iPods.

All these things will pretty much dictate what personnel, equipment, locations, and editing you will require.   In your particular situation, you are on the right track in that you are not only looking for the right camera, but you are also looking for the right editing.  -Good Job in figuring that out.  Most forget that part of filmmaking until they find out they shot the wrong footage for edit into their particular distribution format-  Budget, experience, learning ability, and current level of understanding also come into play, but everyone knows this already.

* Since we don't know the basic details of your filming requirements, we will try to cover common ground that every filmmaker covers and provide the best general advice.

The next important part of filmmaking is the Camcorder.  It is the sole item that transforms your story into something the audience can watch later.  As far as the audience is concerned, if you don't have a camera, you don't have a story.  

* You don't need top of the line if you don't want top of the line results - sometimes you want your film or part of it to have that 'old' or 'not up to date' feeling.  If you already have a camcorder with firewire that you want to use, then use it; otherwise....   You will probably want a 3 chip High Definition miniDV camcorder with a CMOS imaging system.

- MiniDV is re-usable, cheap, easy to use, and easy to store for long periods.  We use the Panasonic AYDVM63PQ 63/42 Minute Professional Quality Mini-DV Digital Tape, 10 Pack http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000ANC... - twice the quality at half the price of Wal-Mart.

- CMOS requires half the power and a lot less room than CCD, so the camera is usually much smaller in shape, size, and weight.  You will also be able to shoot longer on smaller, lighter, and with less batteries.  CMOS also has superb color and clarity, and it does not suffer from vertical smear issues when pointed at bright light sources.

- The Sony Professional HVR-A1U CMOS High Definition Camcorder with 10x Optical Zoom http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000ENO... would be your best bet.  It is a professional camera in the size, shape, and weight of an everyday consumer camcorder.  If necessary, you can remove the professional audio system and matte box(which has 2 additional XLR inputs), and you would still have everything necessary to record (including a twin set of embedded mics on top of the camera). It is light enough in both full or compact configurations to hold still and carry while moving, but the shotgun mic makes the camera nose heavy.  The HVR-A1U only has one CMOS chip but provides resolution comparable to a 3 chip system.

- If that is out of your budget, you might want to look at a camera like the Sony HDR-FX1 3-CCD HDV High Definition Camcorder w/12x Optical Zoom http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00068J... (you can find them as low as $1,000 online), or you might prefer the Canon VIXIA HV30 MiniDV High Definition Camcorder with 10x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00114P... (its image stabilization and instant autofocus systems re superb).

- There are a multitude of camcorders with a variety of options that are more economical than the Canon mentioned.  Your choice will be up to you and your requirements.  Do your research, and don't be afraid to make an educated guess.  Any choice of consumer camcorders will be fine for general filming - it just might not have every feature you want (and this is fine).  If you need to be very economical, the very botom of your list will probably be the RCA "Traveler" Small Wonder EZ210 Digital Camcorder with 4 Hour Recording and 2GB Included SD Memory http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0014CU... (for the price, it has very good battery life, takes very good video, and includes an SD memory card slot if you need to increase the storage memory).

*By the way, ALL camcorders since 2000 come with firewire for video capture to any of today's computers

Now for editing ... If you computer can play videos from YouTube and MySpace without problem your computer should be able to handle the editing process.  If you have improved your main cpu, motherboard, and RAM situation for playing high end games, this is even better.

- If you only have the RAM that came with the computer at purchase, you might want to invest in extra ram for your computer.  If you have at least 1gb, you are fine for now.  Extra RAM will shorten the rendering process.  It can also make capture much easier in some cases.   * but adding ram is NOT always necessary; however it is Highly RECOMMENDED

- You will definitely need an editing program.  Windows Movie Maker comes free in Windows, and iMovie comes free on every Mac.  These two programs are what most consumers use for home videos.  Additionally, you can install Final Cut Pro on a Mac.  You can also get Adobe Premiere Pro CS3 for both Mac and PC, and Adobe will let you try a full version free for 30 days - no limitations.

- Depending on how much free space is currently on your hard drive, you may want to invest in a much bigger hard drive.  You can purchase and install a new internal drive, or you can purchase an external USB, Firewire, or eSATA drive.  You will need at least 250gb of continuous free space for capturing your tapes and saving various edits.  A one hour HDV tape normally captures to a 12-13gb HDV video data file, and the same tape is normally twice the storage space if saved in an intermediate or uncompressed format.

* If you want to be able to move the editing project easily between your computer and a friends, get the basic USB 2.0 drive.  You will be able to edit your project almost anywhere you find a computer with the same editing software.  ** Just be sure to save backup copies of the main editing file (the project work file) on your own computer before you go.  If you lose your data, (and you are using tape like we told you to), you only need to repeat the capture process and then copy the backup project file to the appropriate place.  You project will return the same state you last saved it.

Depending on your choice of camera, you may want to consider additional accessories, such as external mics, wireless mics, lights, and extra batteries. (which you obviously have already considered).