The Epic "Which Camera should I buy?" Question

[Dan Anderson]

Hey everybody. I've reached that point where I am willing to spend some good money on camera equipment. I work mostly as a freelance still photographer and I want to branch out in the video world. My only problem is trying to decided what equipment to get.

Like most people, I really like the Canon 5D Mark II. I already shoot on Canon so I'm set for lenses. The image quality is great and I am not really hot on shooting tape so the us of CF cards would make the video conversion easy for me. I also like the idea of only bringing one camera to some of my editorial shoots. The only down side is the lack of manual exposure and audio control.

The new JVC HM100 looks near perfect, but until there are some user reviews I'm not putting the money down for it.

I've heard good things about the Canon XHA1s, but I'm don't like the idea of shooting tape.

BTW, I use all macs and plan on picking up a copy of Final Cut Express for editing. I plan on shooting video for both editorial and commercial (I already have one of my commercial clients interested, since just hiring me to shoot video for some projects would be cheaper then a production house).

Anyway, any advice would be appreciated.

[Chuck Fadely]

I think it sorta depends on what kind of video you want to shoot. If all you need to produce is pretty pictures for b-roll, the 5Dmk2 might do it for you.

On the other hand, if you need to shoot spots with interviews and need good audio, go for a real video outfit. Audio is way more important than the pictures for most stuff.

And by the way, tape is still the most-preferred format - clients like to be handed tape that their editors/production houses can deal with.

You might want to check on FCE compatibility with whatever you choose, as well.

Finally, you need to check on what the deliverable will be. If for TV, you'll need a way to deliver in whatever format they want - beta, dvcpro, etc. You'll probably need Final Cut Studio and a production house that can lay it down to tape for you.

[Dan Anderson]

I see where you are coming from. I think the 5D is almost what I need, but not close enough. It will probably come down to the JVC or the Canon.

Thanks for your advice Chuck. One question about the Canon XHA1s vs the XHA1. What am I not getting with one that I am with the other?

[David Kennedy]

I'm quite happy with my Panasonic AG-HMC150 AVCCAM Handheld Camcorder. It shoots on the little sdhd cards. Check it out.

David Kennedy
St. Louis

[Dan Anderson]

Thanks. Do the files play well with FCP?

[Chuck Fadely]

Final Cut 6.05 works great with AVCHD files from the Panasonic HMC150 or other cameras. It transcodes to larger files, which are easier to edit but eat up space. You need to have your archiving strategy in place before you run out of room on your hard drive.

Back in the tape world, the xha1s has the ability to split your audio channels, so you can have the built-in mic on one channel and your wireless on another, or you can have line-in on one channel and mic level on the other. The original xha1 couldn't. The new "s" model also lets you assign the OIS to a button, and it also lets you focus and zoom at the same time. If I were shopping, I would definitely spend the extra money for the new model, mostly because of the audio.

[Dan Anderson]

Thanks for the replies again. Honestly I'm between the canon and the new JVC. I read a review for and while it looks good its not up to par on image quality or low light shooting. It records on SD cards and is small as hell. If Canon had a model like the XHA1 but recorded to solid state it would perfect. Knowing my luck they will come out with that model after I already buy a camera.