What kind of camera do I need?

[caffiend]

This is a good question and a good place to start. My experience is that a good miniDV camera is easiest to use for a beginner. I started out with a Canon ZR60, which can be found on Ebay for less than $100 now. It had decent optics and a really good mechanism. It was easy to use and even had some features that some more expensive cameras didn't.


Got a better suggestion? Let us know!

[antwanp]

For those that want to venture into HD filming, yet don't want to spend the mega-bucks for a 1080i/p camera, Aiptek makes a great 720p flash camera.  It's on Amazon for about $130.  Buy it together with a 4 GB SD card for $14 more, and you're set.  Here's the amazon link: http://tinyurl.com/5dro8v

During the daylight, it's great.  Full 720p HD quality, great action shots, etc.  However night shots... let's just say an external lighting source is necessary for decent shots.

This is a great alternative if you're on a small budget, interested in making quick YouTube films, or don't want to deal with mini-DV tapes.

-Antwan L.

[antwanp]

Here's another great Flash HD choice. (http://tinyurl.com/5d54la)  It's another 720p "point and shoot", but made by Kodak this time.  It was basically designed for YouTube, but with the ability to shoot 720p @ 60 fps.  Comes with a 2.4 inch screen, rechargeable batteries and proper HD video cables.  It also has a tripod mount adapter at the bottom for great steady shots (or build your own home-made steady-cam [more on that later!])  That's just good times there.  Not bad for a camera that's only $180.  I saw it live at a QuakeCon pre-party, and it looked pretty damn good.  (Just stock up on SD Cards... they're cheap now!).


-Antwan L.

[caffiend]

This year we'll be adding JVC GZ-HD3 cameras to our lineup.  We're hoping to go as tapeless as possible to shorten the turnaround time for editing.