Seeking advice on acquiring an HVX200 for a low budget feature

ideally you can find a dp who owns his own hvx w/ some accessories. then you can rent the rest, like a 35mm adapter and lenses, dolly, etc. i would not buy a new camera and accessories. maybe buy used and rent accessories, but if you could, why not rent everything?

HV20 and M2

Hi I'm VERY new here, but I recently had the same question you did and started researching ways to deal with my HVX buy/not buy situation.

I discovered that the Canon HV20 at 900 bucks can do many of the functions I wanted (high def and 24p) and the redrock micro could give me the film depth of field. I think that runs around 1500. Plus that micro will work on the HVX if you decide/are able to move up later.

At any rate if you're looking for a way to shoot and end up with a great look there are many ways to do it, this is just one. You Tube some footage of that setup though to see for yourself.

tiramisushi said:

ideally you can find a dp who owns his own hvx w/ some accessories. then you can rent the rest, like a 35mm adapter and lenses, dolly, etc. i would not buy a new camera and accessories. maybe buy used and rent accessories, but if you could, why not rent everything?

Click to expand...

Just by skimming the estimates of camera rentals/week on the websites of the rental houses in my area it seems that it would probably just be cheaper to buy it in the end. Of course this will be a fairly quick shoot so I don't need it for a considerable amount of time, but rental prices are so outrageous I don't even see how they get any business.

cryton said:

Hi I'm VERY new here, but I recently had the same question you did and started researching ways to deal with my HVX buy/not buy situation.

I discovered that the Canon HV20 at 900 bucks can do many of the functions I wanted (high def and 24p) and the redrock micro could give me the film depth of field. I think that runs around 1500. Plus that micro will work on the HVX if you decide/are able to move up later.

At any rate if you're looking for a way to shoot and end up with a great look there are many ways to do it, this is just one. You Tube some footage of that setup though to see for yourself.

Click to expand...

That could potentially be a viable option. I'll definitely look into it.

However, at that price it almost sounds too good to be true. What are the potential drawbacks of the HV20 compared to the HVX200?

If I can't find reasonable access to a HD camera I'll have to weigh my options and consider shooting on a regular DVX100, which I have access to cheaply.

Hmm, the rent or buy thing comes up a lot.

The issues with buying are purely economic... if you think you can make back more than the price of the camera through work, then the camera is a good purchase. But, when you buy a low end camera you're stuck with a low end lens (unless you go the JVC route and then hire in a broadcast lens)

In the US that's an easier formula than here in the UK where cameras cost twice as much to purchase. So, I've only ever purchased older low end cameras for day to day work and either hired or blagged better cameras for drama shoots.

However, there is an alternative to both buying and renting.

The truth is there are lots of people out there who HAVE ALREADY INVESTED in cameras and who need to claw back some of that investment.

When I'm looking for cheap camera hire, I tend to put up adverts for DOP's with their own kit. I then scour through the show reels looking for someone with the right combination of skill and a limited CV.

You can often pick up an ambitious DOP, with their own kit, for a fraction of the cost of a dry hire.

My favorite kind of DOP is someone who spends all day shooting corporate for a larger company with oddles of great kit, who is desperate to get some drama credits. It is possible in those situations to shoot your movie on Varicam or XHD, practically for nothing.

Of course if you're wedded to shooting the thing yourself, then it is a less appealing option... but personally I'd rather sit in the folding chair with an espresso, a Malboro and a monitor than have a camera on my shoulder all day.