Go the Mark route or HDcam route?

Hey all.

So, my wife and I are going to take a trip across country in a year as we head out to LA to live. We plan on shooting a documentary style horror film while we travel...something along the lines of Paranormal Activity...but totally different. Basically, using the same formula and style, but with a totally different concept...

Anyway...

For most of the trip, it is going to be just her and I. We'll have written a script with a through-line and a ton of dialog 'givens', but we plan to keep it mostly improv. Now, the question is...should we get a Mark still camera, or a smaller HDcam?

If we go the Mark route, we'll have a really nice look, with DOF, as well as be under-the-radar in terms of shooting in public (bare in mind, we realize that we have to shoot around most people and locations because we won't be bringing too many release forms with us).

If we go the HDcam route, we'll have a more 'documentary' look, and more importantly, we won't have to worry about focus as much. Most of the time, we will be shooting each other hand-held, however there will be times when we put the camera on sticks and shoot us both. We realize that with the Mark camera, we will be much more constricted to move, as we don't want to fall out of focus...however, we would like the convenience of size with the Mark, as well as the nice 'film look.'

Also, we have the issue of sound. If we go the Mark route, we'll need an external sound device and a boom pole/stand. If we go the HDcam route, we can use the onboard (if we are close enough to the camera), or we'll need a pole/stand also. Would it be worth investing in lavs?

What do you guys recommend? Any thoughts? Thanks in advance.
 
Bumpzilla!

Hey, sorry to bump this, but could someone please just throw me a bone. Maybe I'm just too wordy with my questions?

Maybe you guys don't care?

Maybe you guys hate the fact that my wife and I are going to do this?

:)
 
I'm a big believer in the DSLR revolution, but for what you're doing, I'd go with a small HD camcorder.

1. What the DSLR gives you is a nice selective focus. But that will actually make your film look odd, since we don't associate that look with mocumentaries.

2. The DSLRs are not good for run and gun. They can be awkward to hand hold for video and should be on a shoulder mount. And there goes your incognito factor. Plus, as you mentioned, the focus becomes an issue.

3. If you get a small camcorder, people will think you're a tourist. Both cameras have a nice low profile, but the 7D is starting to get recognized more. I did some shooting at my cousin's wedding and was approached by several people about my camera, including their actual wedding photographer!

4. The 7D has no XLR inputs. Some camcorders have this option, so even if you do go with lavs or an external mic of some kind, you have more options with a camcorder in a docu-style production.
 
Howdy

I recommend you to look Sanyo Xacti VPC-FH1 -series; they produce Full 1080p HD Video (60fps) which is very crispy image, video format is MPEG-4, H.264, and you can attach Tele, Wide, Semi-Fisheye to it as well. It is extremely light weight with large 3" LCD display. I have Sanyo Xacti VPC-FH1 myself.

Below is copied from Sanyo's website:

http://us.sanyo.com/Dual-Cameras/VPC-FH1ABK-Full-1080p-HD-Video-and-8MP-Digital-Photos

"Sanyo's new FH1A is the world's first camera to adopt the new iFrame video format. This computer-friendly video format is designed to dramatically simplify the process of working with video with your camera. With iFrame, the video in your camera is the same format you'll edit, so importing video is fast and file sizes are small. You'll be able to start editing and sharing your movies right away across multiple platforms and devices. "

Check out the videos made with this camcorder from YouTube for example, they are impressive and picture quality is even better than what some prosumer camcorders produce. Downside is that you will need to get external voice recorder if you want use external mics. But it is really up to you how you want to do it.

Get one of two 16GB Transcent SDHC card(s) and MacBookPro + FCP to edit your documentary on the road.
 
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