Need camera reccomendations

[Titan]

Hi,

I may be in the market for a good digital camera and a camcorder down the road (say, within the next year). I'm looking for specific things that can give me professional style results. Here's my drummed up list of requirements. Naturally I don't want to pay outrageous prices of professional grade models.

Digital Camera:
o Should be at least 5.0MP and have at least a 3x optical zoom, preferrably higher.
o Low light CCD sensor. It's fine if this is adjustable, I want a CCD that is capable of picking up low (night) amounts of light like my eyes can once they have adjusted. Imagine a clear night, full moon in the winter in VT. I'd like to be able to pickup the moonlight reflecting off the snow-covered pine trees and the frozen river.
o Adjustable shutter speed for playing around with motion blurring.
o I'd rather not pay more tha 1k on such a unit.
o I can handle lots of knobs and dials

Camcorder:
I'm really cluless when it comes to camcorders, but I know how to postprocess video on my PC and burn DVDs. I'm looking for somthing with:
o Good resolution, possibly HD but I know that can be pricey. Can be compensated for by a good zoom lens.
o Higher than 30fps. This is hard to find but a better frame-rate (like 60fps) is handy for analyzing high-speed action, like soccer games.
o Media is no issue as long as it plugs into my PC.
o Decent battery life.
o Price < 2k

TIA.

 

[dug777]

For the camera, get a CANON S2

 

[lozina]

For camera, I'm eagerly awaiting this beast

It seems to be the closest thing you can get to a professional SLR camera without actually having to carry around a bag full of specialized lenses. It has one lens which handles an absolutely incredible 15x optical zoom and a wide angle. It has manual focus rings which is a huge plus, an awesome new battery which is supposed to last longer, a gigantic lcd screen (though that doesn't really interest me).

The only thing is- it's not out yet so we can't be too sure if it will live up to the hype. It was supposed to be released in August sometimes but not out yet. Still waiting...

 

[ayabe]

Originally posted by: lozina
For camera, I'm eagerly awaiting this beast

It seems to be the closest thing you can get to a professional SLR camera without actually having to carry around a bag full of specialized lenses. It has one lens which handles an absolutely incredible 15x optical zoom and a wide angle. It has manual focus rings which is a huge plus, an awesome new battery which is supposed to last longer, a gigantic lcd screen (though that doesn't really interest me).

The only thing is- it's not out yet so we can't be too sure if it will live up to the hype. It was supposed to be released in August sometimes but not out yet. Still waiting...

Wow, that looks fantastic, but $849 is a little steep for some people.

 

[lozina]

Originally posted by: ayabe

Wow, that looks fantastic, but $849 is a little steep for some people.

indeed, it's not for everyone- besides the price it's a pretty large camera for today's standards. It's not something you can carry around in your pocket It's for us amateurs who want to pretend we're pros

luckily the OP said his limit is $1k

 

[Jeff7181]

Originally posted by: ayabe

Originally posted by: lozina
For camera, I'm eagerly awaiting this beast

It seems to be the closest thing you can get to a professional SLR camera without actually having to carry around a bag full of specialized lenses. It has one lens which handles an absolutely incredible 15x optical zoom and a wide angle. It has manual focus rings which is a huge plus, an awesome new battery which is supposed to last longer, a gigantic lcd screen (though that doesn't really interest me).

The only thing is- it's not out yet so we can't be too sure if it will live up to the hype. It was supposed to be released in August sometimes but not out yet. Still waiting...

Wow, that looks fantastic, but $849 is a little steep for some people.

not for the OP

o I'd rather not pay more tha 1k on such a unit.

 

[ayabe]

Just thought I'd throw that in, in case I'm not the only cheap bastard out there.

 

[jevans64]

Take a look at these Canon digicams.

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/specs/Canon/canon_a610.asp

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/specs/Canon/canon_a620.asp

These have swivel screens so you can shoot below or above your head.

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/specs/Canon/canon_a95.asp

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/specs/Canon/canon_g6.asp

I own the following cameras.

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/specs/Canon/canon_pro1.asp

The above makes a nice secondary camera that is portable with high resolution and good zoom range.

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/specs/Canon/canon_eos20d.asp

This is a VERY GOOD digiSLR, but you will be tied into buying lenses to fit it. It is going on the auction block as soon as this puppy is available.

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/specs/Canon/canon_eos5d.asp


I buy most of my camera stuff here ( www.buydig.com or here www.bhphotovideo.com ). They are both reputable with decent prices and selection but avoid buying the extras, like CF cards, filters, etc. since they are priced high.

 

[Bona Fide]

The Digital Rebel is good...forgot the company that makes it.

 

[jevans64]

Originally posted by: Bona Fide
The Digital Rebel is good...forgot the company that makes it.

Canon. Here.

DigiRebel http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/specs/Canon/canon_eos300d.asp

DigiRebel XT http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/specs/Canon/canon_eos350d.asp

Again. These are SLRs that require investing in attachable lenses that will only fit this brand. If you DO go this route, Sigma makes very decent lenses at half the price of the Canon lenses that fit these cameras.

For full shot coverage you'll want a 17-35mm, 24-70mm, 70-200mm, and 170-500mm lenses, which cost around $2500 for ones with good Field of View.

The bad thing about the above cameras is that they carry a 1.6 focal length multiplier. That is what I hate about my 20d, it turns my 17-35mm into a 27-56mm lens, which is useless for panoramic shots. The silver lining is that it also turns my 500mm into an 800mm, which means I can take a shot of a bird taking a dump at 200 yards. :lol

 

[gsellis]

Originally posted by: tkotitan2
Hi, ...

Camcorder:
I'm really cluless when it comes to camcorders, but I know how to postprocess video on my PC and burn DVDs. I'm looking for somthing with:
o Good resolution, possibly HD but I know that can be pricey. Can be compensated for by a good zoom lens.
o Higher than 30fps. This is hard to find but a better frame-rate (like 60fps) is handy for analyzing high-speed action, like soccer games.
o Media is no issue as long as it plugs into my PC.
o Decent battery life.
o Price < 2k

TIA.

OK, a quick primer. In NTSC land, there are 4 frame rates of interest, 24p, 30i, 30p, and 60i. You cannot afford 60p. 24p is "film look" and appeals to Hollywood folks. 30i is Standard Definition. 30p is probably the best SD rate and can also be supported for HD (720p). 60i is 1080i HDV. So, if you want 60 fps, you want an HDV camera that does 1080i. Under 2K, that would be a Sony and be 1920x1080. With 30p, 1280x720 is found in JVCs.

Based on that, you want a Sony HDR-HC1. BUT, 60i HDV may blur because of the MPEG compression (as will 720p) on fast pans during soccer (if you are at field level). I even get some blurring on whip pans because of interlacing and frame rate with my Sony VX2100 (been shooting the Atlanta Silverbacks at the end of this season.)

Oh, you will want Pinnacle's Studio 10 when it is released next month. It looks like it will be the first consumer editor to do HDV (based off of the Liquid engine - GPU matters).

 

[Titan]

Thanks for all the info guys. I'm in no rush as I'm shelling out a month's pay for a new comp right now, but I will get things down the road.

One specific question: have any of you experimented with night-photos with any of your cameras? I'm talking basically no light source, very dark, no flash because it is a scene, but I want to pick up as much light as I can. This is a key factor for me since I live in VT where it is very dark on the roads and if I see something at night I'd like to be able to pick it up. First-hand accounts would be helpful, or any technical specs I should examine when it comes to light sensitivity. I wonder if Circuit City would let me test stuff outside in the dark.

gsellis, thanks for the brief on camcorders. 60i sounds pretty good. I'm wondering if these models support streaming capture to a computer, like if I brought a good laptop with me and sent it through firewire or USB 2.0. I'm also wondering if I should wait for tech to evolve and/or prices to fall on HDV, since it seems fairly new tech.

I'm planning on getting a still camera first, then maybe a camcorder later. The S2 looks like it may fit the bill for me. The budget estimates I gave are my upper limit, but I am a bang-for-buck guy.

Thanks Again.

 

[gsellis]

Streaming directly to a laptop is possible, but this is the better solution

Firestore FS-4