camcorder?

[swingchickie]

anyone have any recommendations for a good, but not super-expensive, digital camcorder? i've been wanting to get one for a while, but i'm clueless (i've never owned one)... and i don't want to spend like $700 on one. i just need something where i can tape stuff and then upload it to my iMac for editing.

Comments

[mattstratton.livejournal.com]

All you need to be sure of - is make sure you get a DV camera that has Firewire. That's what you'll need to connect it to your iMac.

I don't know much about the lower-end cameras; my "fuck around" camera is a Sony TRV22 - it's a really nice little camera, but might be more than you want to spend. Amazon has it for about $499 new. The nice thing about that camera is that it has a really good lens, which can make a big difference. It lists for $699 new (I paid $399 because it was an open box at Radio Shack).

You also might want to check out the Canon ZR200. I'm a big fan of how Canon handles color, and the ZR200 is pretty cheap and high on features. Amazon's got it for about $375 right now.

Good luck!

[swingchickie.livejournal.com]

ooh, the ZR200 looks good, actually. i'm such an idiot -- i didn't even realize that you record onto a memory chip, i was wondering where the DVD-R goes... *chuckle*

[mattstratton.livejournal.com]

Wrong. You record onto memory chip for still photos. You can't fit DV video on memory chips without them being mega-huge; these cameras all record onto MiniDV tape. Even the big honkin' $7,000 cameras :)

I recommend against getting the cameras that record directly onto DVD; I don't think they have the bandwidth to record well, and you actually have more trouble getting the video imported onto your computer to then edit.

[swingchickie.livejournal.com]

hrm. trying to imagine how you get something on tape into my computer... god, i'm such a tech idiot. *chuckle* thanks for setting it straight, i might have bought something totally wrong!

[mattstratton.livejournal.com]

You connect the camera to your computer via Firewire.

Then you use iMovie to import the footage from the camera.

[mattstratton.livejournal.com]

Also, go buy this book:

iMovie 4 & iDVD: The Missing Manual

It will answer all your questions. Even before you buy a camera; they'll talk about cameras in there.