[Probes]

I know virtually nothing about video cameras. Other than the usual crap ones on small cameras. I was looking for something cheap (less than 150), that won't eat batteries (that can be left running for say half an hour) and that has a decent amount of memory. I'm wanting one for making fairly decent videos.. gig & climbing footage, mainly for posting online. Any ideas thankyoup.

[lagerstarfish]

worth thinking about the IXUS 220 HS for something that gets a reasonable picture and sound - also has a reasonably wide lens

£140 plus a memory card

not bad

not sure how long it can film in one go

[Paul B]

If its for a gig I'm guessing it'll be low light. This might be more hassle than you imagine and you'll need either good high ISO performance or a fast lens (or preferably some middle ground). Unfortunately neither of these come particularly cheap.

Compacts such as the S95 ad LX5 produce nice, sharp, vibrant footage and although they have fairly poor high ISO performance (compared to the bigger sensors of crop and FF dslrs), they do have nice optics. Having said that you can pick them out a mile away when they're combined in videos using better tech.

If you go down the video camera route it might be worth looking at the HV20/30/40 range from canon and some form of F mount adapter for faster lenses. With this combination you get manual control and memory isn't an issue as it records to mini-dv. Also, with the appearance of HD Dslrs, these are likely to be bargains (is Adam Lincoln selling one?).

[lagerstarfish]

if you don't mind 720p instead of 1080p, then you could get 2 or 3 Canon A1200 cameras - Currys selling them for £50

28mm wide lens and you can compensate and lock exposure in video mode - also some control over colour settings

being able to shoot from 3 places at once in 720p with exposure lock would help make a decent video - all for £150

video quality here


and here

[Paul B]

How far can you exposure comp out of interest? The 5d mk II only allows 2EV in semi-auto modes which isn't enough some of the time.

[lagerstarfish]

don't know

but I have just read that max clip length is 10 mins...

http://www.cameralabs.com/reviews/Canon_PowerShot_A1200/

[Adam Lincoln]

(is Adam Lincoln selling one?).

That i am....

[lagerstarfish]

worth thinking about the IXUS 220 HS for something that gets a reasonable picture and sound - also has a reasonably wide lens

£140 plus a memory card

not bad

not sure how long it can film in one go

ignore that

I meant to suggest the Canon SX220 HS - available for the same price (ex-display) on ebay

lots of manual control  (I think focus can be locked as well as exposure - be good for gigs if light isn't too bad)

[lagerstarfish]

SX220 HS for £130 delivered on ebay

what it does without putting in some artistic effort




I know it doesn't shoot much more than 10 min clips, but it's as close as I can think to match the original question/spec

[tomtom]

For bouldering 10 min clips has never been an issue for me - my dslr will only take 5min ones and its never been a prob. An excuse to have a rest and do something else whilst waiting for the arms/skin/ego to recover...

[lagerstarfish]

and your i'mafreindofdorothyPhone does timelapse for if you need a longer perspective on things

[andy_e]

Can anyone recommend a decent camcorder (as opposed to a still which can also video)? I'm after:

• Cheap
• Good optical zoom
• Tripoddable
• Full HD

Cheers!

[SA Chris]

How cheap? How zoomy?

Pretty much any will have a thread in the base for a tripod mount and full HD is pretty standard now

[andy_e]

30x + for zoom. >£150.

[Stubbs]

>£150.

That gives you quite a large range to chose from, how about this?

http://www.red.com/products/red-one

[andy_e]

Doh.

<£150.

[SA Chris]

http://ukbouldering.com/board/index.php/topic,20864.0.html

Are you not considering Guy's anymore?

[SA Chris]

You might struggle to find 30x optical zoom for under £150?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/search/ref=sr_in_-2_p_4_42?rh=n%3A560798%2Cn%3A%21560800%2Cn%3A560834%2Cn%3A1104372%2Cp_4%3ASanyo&bbn=1104372&ie=UTF8&qid=1352895180&rnid=419150031

A few for not much more than £150. I really like mine, compact, easy to use, good quality recording.

Downsides; battery life is limited, but batteries are really cheap so can carry a spare, and records in MP4 which might be a problem if you have an old version of MS Movie Maker for editing.

[SA Chris]

Maybe there are a few cameras with close to 30x zoom for that much, look on amazon, tick the well known brands and sort by price.

[SA Chris]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Canon-LEGRIA-Definition-Digital-Camcorder/dp/B0032JTPGG/ref=sr_1_3?s=photo&ie=UTF8&qid=1352895819&sr=1-3

Amazon has "Black Friday" week next week, keep an eye out for daily deals, and grab them early.

[andy_e]

Cheers Chris, I'll keep an eye out (but I'll leave it in its socket). I'd presumed Guy's had been flogged as that was a while back!

[lagerstarfish]

as opposed to a still which can also video

why?

advantages of video cams include

1  can leave running for 60 mins (if recording on tape)

2  better automatic focus during shooting

3  reasonable optical stabilization for handheld shots

if you do get one, you'll probably want to get a wide angle lens as well. the widest setting of video cameras tends to be not very wide at all which means placing the camera far away to fit in whole boulders

I've banged on about it somewhere else, but I've been impressed with our canon sx 220hs compact - the auto follow focus isn't too bad, exposure can be locked/adjusted, 28mm wide lens, 14x zoom, pretty good stabilization whilst hand held, 1080 HD, shoot 29mins clips (I think), colour/contast/sharpness/white balance control - you can even do manual change of focus during filming with a bit of software magic - £80 or less second hand. If I get a chance to kick the kids off CBeebies/Skyrim/facebook on my computer I might get a chance to put up some footage. If you want cheap (and small/light) this is a good option - you could get 2 and impress your peers with multi-angle jiggery

http://ukbouldering.com/board/index.php/topic,20683.0.html

[Johnny Brown]

What on earth do you want a 30x zoom for? Climbing stuff generally needs a wide view.

[Jim]

exactly what I was thinking. You got a fit neighbor across the road who likes leaving their curtains open?

[Wood FT]

as opposed to a still which can also video

I've banged on about it somewhere else, but I've been impressed with our canon sx 220hs compact - the auto follow focus isn't too bad, exposure can be locked/adjusted, 28mm wide lens, 14x zoom, pretty good stabilization whilst hand held, 1080 HD, shoot 29mins clips (I think), colour/contast/sharpness/white balance control - you can even do manual change of focus during filming with a bit of software magic - £80 or less second hand. If I get a chance to kick the kids off CBeebies/Skyrim/facebook on my computer I might get a chance to put up some footage. If you want cheap (and small/light) this is a good option - you could get 2 and impress your peers with multi-angle jiggery

http://ukbouldering.com/board/index.php/topic,20683.0.html

+1 For trippoding, can't go wrong

[andy_e]

What's the sounds quality like?

You got a fit neighbor across the road who likes leaving their curtains open?

I used to but she was a student so moved out after a year