Video photography and editing equipment

[BuddyB309]

Originally Posted by Jeremy L

David: In my personal experience, it is not the quality of the CAMERA that makes the film good, but the quality of the CAMERA OPERATOR, and perhaps more importantly, the FILM EDITOR (I happened to be both). If you have a half-decent camera (one that when, on a tripod, shoots video that is acceptable for viewing on a TV), it should be fine. I've been managing over the years between my high school's Sony Handycam Digital 8 and my personal JVC camera which records to miniDV tape. I've found that while the quality of the video stays the same, a TREMENDOUS improvement can be made simply in the stylistic assembly of the video. I started off making crappy little montages (that I shudder to watch now because they were horrible) with iMovie, and changing nothing but my creativity, moved on to making some rather artistic movies that were fun to watch and make. Sometimes I use Final Cut Pro, when I feel like it, or Photoshop for other effects. Other than that, it was just my brain and my camera. You don't necessarily have to spend big money to upgrade your camera/computer/software unless you're really looking for super-high quality video and audio, and it might not be worth it depending on what you're going to be using the video for.

I've just violated Winston Churchill's rule: "A sentence ending in a preposition is something up with which I will not put."

I agree with everything that Jeremy just said but, If you want high speed footage, you need to buy a camera for that.

Lighting also plays a big role in making your videos look professional.

[aallen88]

iMovie has definitely upgraded itself over the years. Personally I'm in LOVE with Final Cut Pro and would recommend it to anyone. Next year I'll be converting to Avid because of the school I'll be at, which I hear is a lot like Final Cut. Anyone know much about their similarities/differences?

[Drew]

Originally Posted by David55

I am seriously thinking of upgrading to a better, more professional camera then my simple camcorder. I was thinking of the Sony HDR FX1...what do you guys think about it? anything you can say about it from your personal experience?

I can concure with the FX1 I just recently bought one in feburary. Its amazing. I havent had a ton of time to use it but I used it on my trip to India. and throught the robotics season. This year i plan on using it for a team 302 Reality series. ha that will be fun so check that out comming to our site when it is completed.

[zim2411]

We picked up a Canon HV20 as a club camera this year (along with a Core 2 Quad based editing station). My personal camera is a Sony HDR-SR1. Both shoot in 1440x1080i video. I much prefer the Sony camera though, the touch screen and 30gb hard drive beat having to deal with MiniDV tapes by a LONG shot. The Sony's build quality is also much higher, it really feels like a high-def camera, very solid construction. The Canon feels cheap, shaking it produces a nice rattle. (Not good in a $1000ish camera.)

The Canon does beat the Sony in terms of editing ease however. We have Premiere CS3 loaded on our station and it does not support AVCHD. In order to use stuff I shot with the Sony, we have to run it through Elecard's AVCHD Studio and convert it to MPEG2, or use Sony Vegas 8.0a (igh).

For DVD + website video creation we use Adobe Encore CS3, which has an awesome output to Flash feature.

[ShotgunNinja]

Just my simple little Sony CyberShot DSC-W80. But it works, due in no smal part to the fact that I don't go anywhere near the robotics place of meeting without the camera bag slung over my shoulder, the USB/video camera cable in my pocket, and the battery charger in my back pocket.

Gonna be hard at the competition with the wolf suit, though. I might be stretched a bit too thinly on the team... NAH!

[1337Nerd]

Anybody know any good video editing programs? At the moment I'm using Adobe Premier Pro 1.5 and I want to put an axe through the computer cause it freezes all the time. I have to save immediately after I add footage just so I still have it because it freezes every 5 minutes, forcing me to restart.

[1337Nerd]

Also, I'm hoping to get a new camera for our team this year and I would like some suggestions on a good camera. I'm looking for one that has a hard drive and firewire, for under $1000, or maybe a little over(preferably).

[kE7JLM]

I use a small pocket sized Olympus FE-230, It is great. It was cheap and take good quality pic/video. Good enough for you tube...

[synth3tk]

Originally Posted by ShotgunNinja

Just my simple little Sony CyberShot DSC-W80. But it works, due in no smal part to the fact that I don't go anywhere near the robotics place of meeting without the camera bag slung over my shoulder, the USB/video camera cable in my pocket, and the battery charger in my back pocket.

Gonna be hard at the competition with the wolf suit, though. I might be stretched a bit too thinly on the team... NAH!

Haha, you sound just like me!!! Switching between Bearcat mascot, videographer (although there were two of us, so that helped), student driver, engineer, scout, match keeper-upper, etc...

We use a Sony Handycam DCR-DVD300, JVC GR-SXM38 SVHS for camcorders, some Canon camera (she just bought it, don't know the exact model still), Sony Vegas 7.0e BARELY running on a HP Compaq 6515b. Couple tripods, two batteries for each camcorder, countless blank media, etc...

Question. For those with mid- to high-end cameras like the Sony HDR FX1 mentioned before, how do you buy those? Is it out-of-pocket, through the club's funds, or do you have access to that sort of equipment? Does Sony give any type of discounts? Last but not least, can somebody PayPal me $1,000 so I can get a nicer camera?

[Grogs]

i use a EOS Canon 40D to take pics and a JVC camcorder where needed...when i go skking however, i use an Oregon Scientific ATC 2000