Camcorders - Does anyone acctually keep using them?
Discussion
Our little girl is now 1 month old and I thought it would be great to start capturing some good movie footage as well as pics.
I must admit that I do enjoy looking for gadgets, and making sure I go through the features of each one which has lead me to the Panasonic v520. Now I am wondering if this is just going to be one of those fad gadgets that never gets used apart from the odd occasions when its close by and I can easily run off and fetch it.
So I was wondering if anyone else has brought one and acctually uses it still, or is this something that gets used for a few months and then ditched.
Another option would be to upgrade my camera (prob close to 8 years old and it only a bridge type camera) and opt for an SLR with video features.
I must admit that I do enjoy looking for gadgets, and making sure I go through the features of each one which has lead me to the Panasonic v520. Now I am wondering if this is just going to be one of those fad gadgets that never gets used apart from the odd occasions when its close by and I can easily run off and fetch it.
So I was wondering if anyone else has brought one and acctually uses it still, or is this something that gets used for a few months and then ditched.
Another option would be to upgrade my camera (prob close to 8 years old and it only a bridge type camera) and opt for an SLR with video features.
I bought a panasonic hdc-sd700 for the same reason when my boy was seven months. We still use the camera to video him and quite a lot on holidays. It is pretty good at capturing him smiling, too (auto detects and takes a snapshot).
The quality of the recordings is a world away from any of my phones video output, both in terms of actual picture quality and steadiness.
The quality of the recordings is a world away from any of my phones video output, both in terms of actual picture quality and steadiness.
Don't underestimate the results acheivable with iPhone4S (and later) stabilised video. Very convenient for candid family stuff when you can do without long lenses, low light capability and shallow DoF. Easy to upload straight to Youtube via wifi. You do of course still have the option of syncing footage to a computer and investing time editing when time permits (possibly years later!). DSLR video can be fun but high production values are not easy to acheive/sustain as you need to consider expensive tripods, external mics and ND filters (to manage shutter speeds in bright conditions).
P.S. I am not a fanboy and may be out of touch but are any of the other smartphones offering image-stabilised video that matches or beats Apple? Doing it in post defeats the simplicity objective but may have its place.
P.S. I am not a fanboy and may be out of touch but are any of the other smartphones offering image-stabilised video that matches or beats Apple? Doing it in post defeats the simplicity objective but may have its place.
Edited by MogulBoy on Tuesday 13th August 16:11
aizvara said:
I bought a panasonic hdc-sd700 for the same reason when my boy was seven months. We still use the camera to video him and quite a lot on holidays. It is pretty good at capturing him smiling, too (auto detects and takes a snapshot).
The quality of the recordings is a world away from any of my phones video output, both in terms of actual picture quality and steadiness.
I would say exactly the same, for the same camera. Brilliant bit of kit for the money. We use it to capture growing up of our new Grandson. I would have preferred a viewfinder but that's just a function of age and familiarity.The quality of the recordings is a world away from any of my phones video output, both in terms of actual picture quality and steadiness.
Having said that; the iPad is pretty good.
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