What camera would you recommend for an aspiring filmmaker?

Question

I dont know HD, DV what would be best to start that is less than 6000 dollars?

Answer 1

Under $6,000 your choices are not limited at all. I would recommend going HD, at that price range it'll be hard to find something that isn't HD.

I'll recommend what I have, which is perfect for amateur filmmaking. It's a semi-professional camera, meaning it's relatively small and compact yet has all the features you would expect from a professional camera. It's a Sony line of amazing products.

I have the HVR-A1U, which fits my needs perfectly. It films on MiniDV tapes for best quality, comes with support for balanced audio through XLR, has manual exposure, focus and zoom settings (zoom and focus can even be controlled through a ring around the lens instead of the rocker)...basically, it has all the great features an aspiring filmmaker would need.

Depending on your budget, you can also consider the HDR-FX1, another good camera in the line. This one features a 3-CMOS sensor design for even better quality.

So that's my opinion. Sony really are the best for bringing amateurs and small-budget professionals the best tools.

Answer 2

a nice simple DV camera with a manual focus ring and preferably a manual exposure as well.  You don't need a big fancy camera at all.  Your main thing will be lighting properly to get your best results.  If you don't know how to light, the best camera won't save you.  If you do know how to light then you'll be able to achieve good results with a mediocre camera.

Look more into lighting and a cheaper camera.  You can get some great lights on Ebay.  Look for Arri, Mole Richardson, Colortran, Disisti, ianiro, and Lowel.  All great brands and you can get them for pretty decent prices.

Answer 3

I'm a big fan of Panasonic's AG-HVX200.  Used it for stuff back at school, and it would be among my first choices if I had the opportunity to buy a camera as you seem to have.

It doesn't shoot in HDV, a highly-compressed and watered-down version of HD.  This camera uses DVCPRO intraframe compression, which is really sweet.  You also have the option of starting out in MiniDV at standard definition, and then jumping to HD via P2 cards or a FireStore drive.

It's a really nice little machine, with rave reviews throughout the industry.  That's why I dedicated about $5,000 of an organizational budget to buy it for that organization.  I'm very pleased with it.

Give it a good long look, it's been a giant throughout the industry.  Get a look at the newly released AG-HVX200a as well.