What camera are you using for recording random shit in the studio etc.?

[Erkan]

I'm thinking if I should invest in a camera because it would be great fun to document some parts of my project which I'm soon starting with. I don't want to spend several hundreds of dollars just for that though... come on, as audio guys we know we'd rather buy a good mic or something more useful than a camera! =)

Anyway, do you need an expensive camera or will a budget one do? Shooting in Full-HD for example seems like a complete waste since the main source for these videos will be YouTube anyway, so that functionality might not be the best to aim for. What tips do you have, what do you use to document your studio experiences?

I stumbled upon this JVC GZMS95 camera for example... but it seems to be complete shite or what?

 

[updog]

Recording random shit? I'd say any digital camera with a reasonable amount of pixels

 

[Morgan C]

Agreed.. my camera (camera not video camera) that is about 4 years old and only takes 4megapixel photos has decent enough quality video for YouTube. You could even do it with some of the phones that are coming out now.

 

[cloy26]

yah anything halfway decent. You could always get two and mount one (if you have one) in a vocal booth or something. I always though that looks cool.

 

[Loren Littlejohn]

I kind of want a flip.

 

[Erkan]

Hmmm... so maybe it would be better to buy a normal camera which can record video as well but if I buy a camera for taking still pictures, I'd like to get a really nice one so it kind of feels like a waste to get one of those cheap ass "vacation cameras". Ah well, I have until tomorrow to decide, should be cool!

 

[spioraid]

I'd get a cheap hd camcorder from wall-mart and spend the extra cash on a halfway decent NLE (non-linear editor). You can change your export settings, more control over the video, lots of room to pull pointless pranks on fellow musicians (like motion tracking a toilet lid over the drummers face...always hilarious.)

IMO.

 

[Erkan]

http://www.camcorderinfo.com/content/JVC-Everio-GZ-X900-Camcorder-Review-36765.htm

I found a deal on a swedish online store where I can get it for about 390€ as opposed to the 890€ that camera costs in other stores. I don't know how it is possible for them to pull the price down that much but there's only 2 stores in sweden with that low price according to the swedish version of pricerunner. I don't care how they did it... it benefits me haha =) Anyway, that camera seems to be pretty worth the money but the only bad thing about it is that it sucks ass in low light conditions according to reviews. In good light conditions however, it kicks total ass. I'm not sure about the lighting in my rehearsal room... but it's definately not dark so it should be good enough to document some random shit from my projects.

Anyone have that cam? It's apparently considered a high-end model but for 390€ it sure as hell feels like a budget thing... nice!

 

[AdamWathan]

I have a Flip Mino HD that I bought for like $100, thing is pretty awesome for random bullshit videos. 60 minutes of 1080p video all built into internal memory, press the button on the side and a USB plug pops out to connect it straight to your PC. Pretty rad.

 

[Erkan]

You know... alternatively, I could imagine buying a newer phone if there's any with great cameras built-in. Anyone have any recommendations? I suck at cell phone knowledge.

 

[Metaltastic]

I'd just get a good digital camera dude, they all have video with audio capability! (the audio quality isn't great, of course, but you can also get a good digicam for like $150)

 

[Everybody]

Idk if these are worldwide or not, but the Sony Cybershot DSC-H20. Its a camera, and a camcorder for $220 new. It shoots 720p HD video, and all the youtube videos done with it look great...and for under $300 for an HD cam, thats pretty bad A. Im about to go pick one up!

 

[jrt12]

yea, there are some standard consumer digital cameras today that already capture great video. i've had a Canon Powershot Elph for a little over a year, and it takes great video. esp if youre final version is intended for youtube, its more than enough. if you want an HD video made for large screen TVs, well that might be a diff story. but you've got some great options with Canon (highly recommend) and Sony, and you get a great digital camera as bonus all for under $150-200, its a great deal

 

[JonWormwood]

some HVC HD thing Idk

 

[monolithsound]

Zoom Q3. Like the Flip, but with good quality audio.