Camcorder advice

JazzBlack

Been using sony z1's and looking for a camcorder for my own project.

Whilst i can use a camera im not an expert on them and i dont really know what to look for when buying.

Basicly i want a cheaper alternative to a z1, on a student budget so i realise i wont get as good quality as a z1. I just want a good camcorder that has a focus ring for easy pull focuses and a good zoom. Will be using it for documentaries so would like it to be decent at picking up sound aswell.

Donovan Puppyfucker

What about a DSLR that can record 1080p at a good framerate? The better ones can also use proper mics.

And for the price of a z1 you can pick up a really nice DSLR, a couple of lenses and a bunch of other gear as well...

JazzBlack

have you got any in mind? idealy on the cheap side of things. One which can use a propper mic would be good but if its to expensive i could always do the audio seperatly and sync it to the video in editing.

Djeet

DLSR's, because of their large sensors, can give very good image quality; one problem you might have is their continuous autofocus for video is usually not as fast as a pro/prosumer camcorder, also the AF motors on these things tend to be louder than on camcorders. So long as you can adjust to that I'm thinking you're going to want to look at the Nikon D5100 and the Canon T3i, as they'll both do HD video and have a 1/8" or 3.5mm mic input. Both companies make excellent gear, and the main strike against the D5100 is that if you want AF then the lens needs to support it as there's no in-camera AF motor. That said if you're buying new glass as well, most Nikon glass made in recent history has built-in AF. Another limitation is that there is usually a time constraint (20-30 minutes) or file size constraint for video capture, so your shooting will have to accomodate that.

I think the Canon T3 also does HD video and can be had a little cheaper, but is more constrained in modes/manual control w/r/to video capture. For more money you can score the Canon 60D or Nikon D7000 which are more "pro-oriented" and will get you better build quality and a few more features. Panasonic, Sony, Pentax, and Samsung have DLSR (or ILC, Interchangeable Lens Compact) offerings that have HD video capability (not sure about the mic), but I'm not familiar with them. Canon and Nikon mounts tend to have the broadest spectrum of lenses, so unless youre already invested in glass I'd probably go with one of them.

If you cannot drop at least $700-800 on the body alone (you'll still need lens(es) and a mic), you might want to look used or in the consumer camcorder market proper.

JazzBlack

Been looking around and quite like the look of the Nikon D90, i think im going to have to film audio seperatly. Built in mic slot might be a bit to much, where as i think i could get ahold of a decent voice recorder and just sync it during edit.

Was looking at some of the videos on vimeo and it seems good to me. im just concerned with which lens id have to use to acheive similar effects (as i said im not an expert on cameras) and also how much footage id get at a time.

http://vimeo.com/channels/bestofd90

Anyone use a D90? or have a DSLR similar that can achieve similar effects?

EDIT: id be definatly looking at a used camera and price range of about £300 - 400 seems about right for what i want to spend (not including mic)