Digital Video Camera

P

PearlJam

Expert Member
Joined
Jan 22, 2006
Messages
2,181
Reaction score
15
Location
Johannesburg
I am in the market now for a camera and would like some recommendations. It must have a hdd and pref. not be more than R6 000. What is the options and what should i look out for (features, etc.)
 
I would suggest this one:

http://www.makro.co.za/ProductDetail.aspx?cat=-1&prod=31777&SKU=000000000000103152|EA

You can't go wrong with a Sony really. The Big 3 (Sony, JVC and Canon) all have hard drive models out now, but according to the reviews the Sony comes out on top.

Just be aware that the video quality is not quite as good as the MiniDV type due to the higher MPEG-2 compression. If you are not a professional, this will not matter much - I doubt that you will even notice it.
 
What are the disadvantages of a HDD and advantages?

Also what should one be looking for in a video camera?
 
Last edited:
I've got the Sony 805E. Although it is not a HDD model, I am extremely happy with it :-)
 
Thanks, but what is improtant to look for? I have never owned a video camera of any sort and would really appreciate some advice. I don't want to fall for those nice-to-haves that you never use and miss out on the real stuff.
 
Khyron said:
I would suggest this one:

http://www.makro.co.za/ProductDetail.aspx?cat=-1&prod=31777&SKU=000000000000103152|EA

You can't go wrong with a Sony really. The Big 3 (Sony, JVC and Canon) all have hard drive models out now, but according to the reviews the Sony comes out on top.

Just be aware that the video quality is not quite as good as the MiniDV type due to the higher MPEG-2 compression. If you are not a professional, this will not matter much - I doubt that you will even notice it.
Click to expand...
true, but the big three are Sony, Canon and Panasonic. Pana doesn't have a HDD model tho'.... and I haven't seen one from Canon...
 
Canon all the way

I've had a Sony, JVC and Canon MiniDV Camcorder and I can honestly say that Canon was by far the best of the lot.

Canon = Exellent (Image / Colour and sound are fantastic)
Sony = Good (Especially for night filming)
JVC = OK (Colour and sound are no where near that of Canon and Sony)

Don't get excited about digital zoom, Optical zoom is the important thing! Can't really comment on HDD models as I've never owned one.
 
I just bought one of these and loving it so far. Picture and sound quality is awesome!

SONY269C.JPG
 
PearlJam said:
I am in the market now for a camera and would like some recommendations. It must have a hdd and pref. not be more than R6 000. What is the options and what should i look out for (features, etc.)
Click to expand...

I'm certainly no guru on cams, but

Personally I wouldn't go for a hdd model. Hard drives crash. You have to buy new ones. They're expensive (in the form factor that a cam would use - i.e. 1.8") Sure it's nice to have lots of storage available, but given the choice I'd much rather lose a tape (1 hour of footage and a cost of R30) than everything on a 30GB drive (7 hours of footage and a cost of Rthousands?)

I'm very happy with my R4,500 digital cam.

my 2c
 
Look at the optical zoom, as this means more than the digital zoom. Higher optical zoom means you can zoom in without loosing quality. This is about as far as my knowledge on video cameras go :D
 
What is the difference in quality (video) between the tapes and hdd? How does it work to get the video onto the PC? Is it normal capturing or transfer of file from the tapes?
 
nfi about difference in quality. What I get off my (digital) tapes is too high to store on computer (1GB for 5 minutes - resolution of 720 * 576) ... I can't imagine a need for higher resolution for home use.

for my cam, I just connect via firewire and capture in real-time. You don't need a capture card - just need a piece of software that can capture from the firewire port. Some cams (read: more expensive ones) might provide a "file transfer" method ... mine doesn't.
 
I think i'll go for the tape one then. The Sony HC-26 or bigger models look to be the ones i'll go for. Any other ones to consider? I have to go buy and learn how it works before the weekend
 
masticore said:
nfi about difference in quality. What I get off my (digital) tapes is too high to store on computer (1GB for 5 minutes - resolution of 720 * 576) ... I can't imagine a need for higher resolution for home use.

for my cam, I just connect via firewire and capture in real-time. You don't need a capture card - just need a piece of software that can capture from the firewire port. Some cams (read: more expensive ones) might provide a "file transfer" method ... mine doesn't.
Click to expand...


More expensive video cameras, like the AGDVX100, use the same principle.
Programs like Adobe Premiere and Final Cut Pro use firewire to capture
video from the camcorder onto your harddrive in this way too. :)
Only the newest AGHVX200 uses 8 minute P2 memory cards which are $700 apiece.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top
Sign up to the MyBroadband newsletter
X