Digital Video Forum

Digital Video Forum Discuss camcorders, HD video, HD DSLRs, video editing, DV software, and video techniques. Your DV forum moderator is Skyman.
Read and Write Camcorder Reviews >>
Results 1 to 3 of 3
  1. #1
    Junior Member
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Posts
    1

    First Camera for Dance Group

    Hi all-

    I apologize for the generic "which camera should I buy" question, but I have really tried to research on the net, and it's all going right over my head...

    I've never had a video camera before, and actually only used them a few times in my life. I manage a dance group, and would like to have a camera for recording performances, and possibly eventually, a commercial DVD.

    I assume there are different features for low-light (indoor stage performances) and hand held to reduce movement (outdoor festivals, etc) which are both important. Sound quality would be nice, but not if it breaks the bank. I might just invest in an external mic anyway. A decent zoom- would be GREAT.

    The thing that concerns me the most is the low light level. I've tried friends' before, and none of them could capture the subjects in low light. I can't quite figure out what constitutes a "quality" camera, or where the standards are for a commercial DVD, but I think we'd like at least that.

    Our budget right now is pretty low.. 4-500 is what I was thinking. If it's really worth it to get what we want, we can wait a little while and spend more.

    Thank you so much in advance for all of your help!!

  2. #2
    Moderator Skyman's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2004
    Location
    Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
    Posts
    1,507

    Re: First Camera for Dance Group

    welcome to the forums.
    I don't know if everything you want will bring you in under budget, but i will attempt to help it all make sense!

    There are many Different formats for cameras these days, mini dvd, mini dv, hdd the list goes on, and you can choose from normal or high definition. all of these formats have consumer and broadcast cameras. A broadcast camera typically has manual control (although most also have automatic) the ability to alter or customize elements of the camera such as lenses and microphones and most importantly are 3ccd (this means they have one sensor for recording each colour, red green and blue) whilst a consumer camera has a single sensor.

    In terms of formats. digital tape still seems to be the best way to go. without going into an explanation of codecs and compression etc mini dv is still the best option here.

    as for standard or high definition, a consumer mini dv camera is better than dvd quality, so unless you have access to high definition editing and people wanting to watch things on blu ray or hd dvd then you should be ok. a 3ccd mini dv would be better but will probably blow your budget.

    many cameras will talk about having zero lux (no light) recording and on some of them this will mean using infra red light which will give you a green video. on others this means electronically boosting the image and this will give you a washed out grainy video (the pros call it "gain grain") the only way to overcome this is to have a camera that will let in a lot of light. the way to check this is to look at the specifications and see the f numbers of the lens. the lower these numbers the more light they can let in. the f number will often change as the lens is zoomed to they might write it as f.18 - f4.5.

    In terms of zoom, the bigger the zoom the harder the camera will be to hold steady (the professionals tend to try to zoom out but move the camera closer wherever they can) anything above 20X is going to be seriously hard to hold steady (and make sure that this is optical zoom not digital zoom) if the camera has an optical image stabilizer even better, but either way a tripod is nearly a must have.

    go talk to your local camera shop and if they will let you, try a couple of cameras. try to create a shadow or find a dark corner of the shop to mimic your stage and see how you go.

    not all cameras come with a mic input these days so if you are thinking of adding an external mic make sure it has one. that said for most people the mic on the camera does a pretty good job. the only thing is it tends to pick up things like you pressing the zoom and the sound of the tape winding so if you need crystal sound you would have to look at additional mics.

    oh and have a look at the reviews on this site and once you have had a chance to play with it feel free to ask any questions about techniques etc to get the best out of whatever you get.

  3. #3
    MJS
    MJS is offline
    Digital Video Moderator
    Join Date
    Apr 2004
    Location
    Miami, FL
    Posts
    1,390

    Re: First Camera for Dance Group

    I shoot about 8 dance recitals a year and have been very happy with the Sony PD-150)170 series. Last year we shot one of he recitals in HD with the Sony HVR-Z1u and it came out great. They should both be in your range, depending on where you live. The Canon XL and XA series, along with the Panasonic 3 chippers are also great cameras, I just have the most experience with the Sony line.
    Michael
    Nikon Samurai #8
    Avid Editor
    Sony Shogun

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •