DVX100 still got the power?

I've been searching and saving for a decent budget camcorder for a while now. My budget is around about £1000.

The Internet loves the DVX100a/b models. But I can't help feeling it might be getting older now... Even when I search on Indie Talk for "dvx100" most of the posts are at least a year or two old now.

The lack of HD isn't a massive problem for me as the features to shoot a scene really overpower the need for a few extra pixels.

The sound options are great. I have good quality microphones and the fact that the camera has XLR ports is something of a god send.

As far as lenses go I've seen adapters for the dvx100 so I can get (cheap) 35mm+ lenses to attach to the camera.

I'm posting out of the night-before nerves really as I've now saved up enough money and am going to purchase one in the next few weeks when a good deal appears on eBay.

Out of the hundreds of cameras I've looked out (couldn't remember the names of many now tbh) the dvx100 always stood a head and shoulders above the rest for my price range. But I just wanna check really that I haven't missed a diamond in the rough. So are there any cameras for my price range which you guys think are better than the DVX100a/b?
Cheers, Sam
 
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The dvx100 was, and is, a great camera. It's a very old camera, but is still widely used today. It has everything you need in a basic camera, and would do you justice.

Don't worry about the camera, worry about the story.
 
I think if you aren't worried about HD, it is still the best camera out there of its kind. I used a few different models at school, jvc and canon brands along the same lines and I still vastly prefer the panasonic ag-dvx100b
 
^not if your starting out. HD just makes mistakes look worse. And being a new filmmaker, it'll make your lighting/costume/make-up/ect. look worse if it's not done correctly.
 
CDC hit the nail on the head....

Also, if you look at my previous threads scattered around, I preach about story being the key to a successful film. People need to worry less about what equipment to use and how to make their movie look like film and worry more about writing a damn good story...

Camera/etc. comes later.

Right now your tools of importance is pen and paper, or laptop with screenwriting program, or typewriter. Whatever. That's the important tool.
 
I think with the internet being part of the distribution model as well the need for the best equipment and the standard has gone down. Especially if you are shooting documentary, but even if you aren't a lot of narrative films are incorporating that style. "Rachel Getting Married" comes to mind because I saw it recently. It was very "home movie"
 
CDC hit the nail on the head....

Also, if you look at my previous threads scattered around, I preach about story being the key to a successful film. People need to worry less about what equipment to use and how to make their movie look like film and worry more about writing a damn good story...

Camera/etc. comes later.

Right now your tools of importance is pen and paper, or laptop with screenwriting program, or typewriter. Whatever. That's the important tool.

You guys are right about story. But what if he just wants to be a DP or director and not a screenwriter?

Wouldn't that start with buying equipment and learning how to use it well?
 
You have a point but great cinematography is still about good composition that communicates something, right? And that doesn't always have to mean HD. I would say if you can afford a camera on par with the AG-100 that is HD, you can, I used the P2 model (but in SD to match earlier footage) and it was great but you won't get as good a deal as with the AG models right now. You can also go with a cheaper HD camera that will give you the resolution but it won't compare at all to the inputs and features available to you on the panasonic ag-100's.

Another thing to think about is whether or not you have the capacity to edit in HD as well.
 
Thanks for the comments guys. Writing and stories are my strong point. The camera is a way for me to tell my stories, so it sounds like I'm on the right track.

I'll go HD when I can afford to hire a DP, eh? :)
 
while we're on the topic, does anybody in the UK know a good place to buy a DVX100(a/b) for a decent price?

ebay is by far the best I've found with the prices ranging between mid-800's to 1100's.

But it does have a few dvx100's that are from america too, what would be the implications of using an american model in and around the uk?
 
You guys are right about story. But what if he just wants to be a DP or director and not a screenwriter?

Wouldn't that start with buying equipment and learning how to use it well?

I'm a director and I probably couldn't figure out how to TURN ON the camera I shot my last two movies on. All I care about (and need to know about) is what I see in that monitor. Now that being said, I have learned a bit about lighting, lenses, etc... to allow me to communicate with the DP, but no desire to learn how to operate a camera.
 
Still using my DVX100

I've been searching and saving for a decent budget camcorder for a while now. My budget is around about £1000.

The Internet loves the DVX100a/b models. But I can't help feeling it might be getting older now... Even when I search on Indie Talk for "dvx100" most of the posts are at least a year or two old now.

The lack of HD isn't a massive problem for me as the features to shoot a scene really overpower the need for a few extra pixels.

The sound options are great. I have good quality microphones and the fact that the camera has XLR ports is something of a god send.

As far as lenses go I've seen adapters for the dvx100 so I can get (cheap) 35mm+ lenses to attach to the camera.

I'm posting out of the night-before nerves really as I've now saved up enough money and am going to purchase one in the next few weeks when a good deal appears on eBay.

Out of the hundreds of cameras I've looked out (couldn't remember the names of many now tbh) the dvx100 always stood a head and shoulders above the rest for my price range. But I just wanna check really that I haven't missed a diamond in the rough. So are there any cameras for my price range which you guys think are better than the DVX100a/b?
Cheers, Sam



I'm still using my DVX 100. For my current project, an independent feature length film, I did some testing between the DVX 100 and some high end consumer HDV cameras. Although the HDV cameras were "HD" the DVX100, up-converted to 720P looked a lot better, more detail and a more "cinema" look. I'm thinking the main reasons are that the DVX100 has a much better lens than the consumer cameras. And possibly the CMOS sensor is bit more noisy compared to the CCDs in the DVX100. I also shoot on a Canon XL2, most often when I need that long lens. I need to go HD by the end of the year, most likely it will be a mid priced Panasonic. If you are buying new, in that $2500.00 range, the DVX100 is a very good choice. I'm using the anamorphic lens adapter which is a much better choice than any of the electronic squeeze modes that a lot of cameras use. The lens on the DVX100 is a really good lens, don't know if you need to use one of those adapters unless you need a really shallow DOF, and you will still be shooting through the DVX100 lens anyway.
 
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Rachel Getting Married was shot on a Sony HDW-F900R, looked it up on IMDB.com. This, my friends, is a $70,000 dollar camera. I haven't seen this film yet.

THere is a film called Once. This film was shot on either the Canon XL or the Panasonic DVX. I have a DVX myself and the real reason I want to trade up has to do with the import time. Many of the new HD cameras record to disc, like the Sony EX series. Since there is practically no real time importing, you can start editing in minutes. But since I am still paying off the DVX, I won't be getting a new camera any time soon. Other than that, I love my DVX and wouldn't trade it.

As for the difference between an American camera, if you are in the UK, yes there is a difference. American cameras shoot in different encoding. American cameras are NTSC, UK cameras shoot in PAL. I wish I could tell you more about it, but it will probably make a difference in how things are recorded or in the look of you video, so you might want to look it up just so you know.

I should look it up as well, just so I know :yes:

-- spinner :cool:
 
Thanks for the comments guys. Writing and stories are my strong point. The camera is a way for me to tell my stories, so it sounds like I'm on the right track.

I'll go HD when I can afford to hire a DP, eh? :)

Since writing/directing is your focus, I'll but in a "devil's advocate" vote for partnering up with an aspiring (and/or student) DoP in your area who has some gear (or access to it) and is willing to work with you on your projects, then spending your coin on getting your films made rather than buying a camera. Heck, you could even offer them a small token stipend.

Of course that's just an alternative. When all is said and done, the DVX-100 is a great camera that still gets tons of use for all sorts of applications.
 
Since writing/directing is your focus, I'll but in a "devil's advocate" vote for partnering up with an aspiring (and/or student) DoP in your area who has some gear (or access to it) and is willing to work with you on your projects, then spending your coin on getting your films made rather than buying a camera. Heck, you could even offer them a small token stipend.


Or maybe the two of you could become a team like the Farrelly Brothers (The Matrix) or the Coen Brothers (Fargo) or the Raimi Brothers (Spiderman) or the Hughes Brothers (Book of Eli).

And I make this suggestion because the one thing I am finding is that when you are an independent filmmaker, you live or die by the people you work with. Start making some "professional" friends now.

-- spinner :cool:
 
Or maybe the two of you could become a team like the Farrelly Brothers (The Matrix) or the Coen Brothers (Fargo) or the Raimi Brothers (Spiderman) or the Hughes Brothers (Book of Eli).

And I make this suggestion because the one thing I am finding is that when you are an independent filmmaker, you live or die by the people you work with. Start making some "professional" friends now.

-- spinner :cool:

I like the cut of this guys jib.

I like the cut of his hair.


I'm down! If only I had the means to fly out to the UK. ;)

I'll skip the blatant self promotion until more of my stuff is viewable online. That said, I'm not quite as "professional" as I sometimes try to sound - only been freelance AC for just over a year, and only just now really gaining momentum and still working the low-rate territory. My non-pro experience goes back farther though.
 
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DVX 100 and client needs

At least for my business; educational films, corp. training, web commercials, weddings, and a few indie films,, I still have not had a request for an HD shoot. I have some clients that specify 16x9 but not HD. So until HD can make me money, I will still be shooting with my DVX 100 and Canon XL2.
 
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