A friend and I are going to start filiming shorts. We are looking to purchase a camera after Christmas. But we have no clue as to what are some good cameras. Our budget for a camera is under 2,000$. The cameras I do have won't cut it because when I try and film with them, I cannot capture a wide shot, I can't film a bunch of people in the frame, unless I am super close up. SOmeone please help.
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What are good cameras for filming short films?
- Thread starter flm
- Start date
what is you current experience level?
What cameras do you currently have?
What do you imagine will be your first project? Genre, number of actors, etc.. Just guess..
Do you have friends with other gear? Sound etc?
What cameras do you currently have?
What do you imagine will be your first project? Genre, number of actors, etc.. Just guess..
Do you have friends with other gear? Sound etc?
Look at any camera by the "big three"; Sony, Panasonic and Canon.
Any of their cameras in your price range will be a good place to start.
Look at the Canon Vixia HF G30
The Panasonic DMC-GH4 is a nice DSLR. You will need lenses.
Out of the box you might consider the Nikon D5300 or the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ1000.
Don't forget to budget in audio. A good mic is just as important as a
camera.
Spend more of your budget on lighting and audio gear than the camera. Without good audio, and adequate lights the most expensive camera is still going to end up turning out crap for you.
I may get some flake for it, don't know, but consider the high-end point-and-shoots from Canon. I have a sx40 hs that I personally believe does amazing video. 1080/720 24/30fps. Newer models do better fps at those definitions. The only downfall is it has no audio input (if that's what you're looking for). So you'll need something stand-alone and a way to sync it afterwards. I primarily use the Olympus VN-702PC with a good lapel mic and I think it does wonderfully.
Those three combined you'd be looking at around $500, depending on where you get the camera from and if you get it new vs used.
But for what you have planned I'd recommend you get a shotgun or boom mic instead of lapel.
Those three combined you'd be looking at around $500, depending on where you get the camera from and if you get it new vs used.
But for what you have planned I'd recommend you get a shotgun or boom mic instead of lapel.
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You do?
Not to pick on you but would you recommend this camera and all it's headaches in getting the image into a computer for editing to a newbie?
I plan on getting the Panasonic G6 (seems a bit better than the EOS-M or T5i, which I was also considering)
I am currently trying to figure out what I need. I want a zoom h1 recorder, Takstar Shot gun mic, nifty fifty 50mm lens, and a (used) rokinon 14mm wide angle lens. Chances are I won't be able to get all of it.
I am currently trying to figure out what I need. I want a zoom h1 recorder, Takstar Shot gun mic, nifty fifty 50mm lens, and a (used) rokinon 14mm wide angle lens. Chances are I won't be able to get all of it.
I bought a Canon 600D (T3i) which I think you can get for around £300 now and I have been very happy with it - it's easy to use and the quality is good for its price. As others have mentioned, the camera is not the only cost to consider so if $2000 is your equipment budget make a list of all the other things you need and work out what you would have left to spend on a camera. If you need to buy sound equipment, a decent tripod or shoulder rig or any lenses they will eat into your budget. What you need will depend on what you are planning to shoot - if you're just filming in daylight you won't be needing lights yet, for example, and the kit lens would probably also be fine.
What headaches are you referring to? I just put the SD card in the SD slot and drag the videos off.
Also they've fixed a lot of the initial issues with the camera during recent firmware updates.
Black Magic cameras (the subject of this comment) shoot in a very flat profile. If left ungraded, it comes across as an unprofessional look. You want to shoot like this if possible, so long as you can also grade the footage. If you cannot grade the footage, you'll want a camera that produces a more finished look.
In addition: if you go for shooting RAW you need lots of harddrive space. Plus a RAID configuration if you don't use proxies for that.
So yes, it's not a newbie friendly workflow if you shoot flat and raw.
If you shoot ProRes it gets a bit easier.
What does this have to do with the complaint of "headaches in getting the image into a computer for editing"?
Sure, the flat profile from shooting BM's "Film" profile requires more correction/grading in post; BM does provide a "video" profile that looks a bit more more like what you'd find from a Sony Camcorder or DSLR.
Point taken about Blackmagic Cameras not being the most user friendly. I just think they they produce such nice images for insanely cheap, so I don't think they should be excluded from the conversation entirely.
Huckingfoes, a username that doesn't belong in IT by the way, you answered your own question -- a glitch was fixed.
Spanking brand new hardware and/or software comes with bugs and may conflict with older software (editing suite) or hardware (cameras). If you enjoy debugging stuff, go for it. Other people just want everything to work together smoothly so they can focus on filmmaking.
Spanking brand new hardware and/or software comes with bugs and may conflict with older software (editing suite) or hardware (cameras). If you enjoy debugging stuff, go for it. Other people just want everything to work together smoothly so they can focus on filmmaking.
Within the context of short films, which more often than not, don't have a budget for a color grader, it's a headache when the image is less than expected. Managing expectations. If you don't see it as a problem with the image for an editor, then so be it.
If they're going to do this, what would then be the benefit of shooting with BM? Their ability to shoot ProRes/Raw with high bitrates in log is their main strength, no?
Performance per dollar, they do provide decent value. To get that benefit does involve a little more work. Depending on the model, there are some down sides but on the most part, I do agree, they deserve consideration.
Out of interest, how many models from Black Magic use an SD card. The Pocket Camera... any others? Don't the rest of them use SSD drives?