$2,000 Dollar budget! What to do?

[ktan7]

You should invest in at least a Canon Mark II if you plan on shooting videos in the future. Don't buy something cheap and upgrade later. You will be wasting ton of money instead of saving!

 

[FreshFromTheGrave]

Umm, well I don't want to sound silly, but if your main interest is video, wouldn't your money be better spent on a dedicated pro video camera? Just saying...

I work in post production for broadcast and we have directors shooting their commercials (and not low budget stuff either) on 5D's over broadcast cams more and more often now. In fact when comparing the footage off a 5D vs that off a Sony HDVCam which is actually more expensive, the 5D is the obvious winner. Actually I hate Sony HDVCams, footage is noisy, nasty, it doesn't key, there's no colour depth - they should be banned from studios!

So don't assume that a video camera will automatically be better than a DSLR at the same or even greater price point I think I'd probably prefer DSLR footage over anything else up until Arri and RED level. But those will break several banks

 

[JohnTrav]

I have a 7D and the video on it is amazing. I don't do too much shooting of video anymore since still imaging really captured my interests more.

Also you could always put Magic Lantern on your CF card for the 7D and install it when you use it. It has some great features in the menus for shooting video that canon doesn't offer in their menu on the 7D. I also believe they have Magic Lantern for 5D's as well.

You can definitely get a 7D used and the 24-105 L used and stay within your budget. I seen 7D for as low as 800 used.

Also keep in mind though how fast you want the video to shoot fps. I know the 7D does 24fps at 1080p and can do 60fps at 720p. I am not sure what the 5D is capable of. I personally always shot at 24fps at 1080p but I never slowed my video down to slow motion too much in post production.

 

[Tailgunner]

Umm, well I don't want to sound silly, but if your main interest is video, wouldn't your money be better spent on a dedicated pro video camera? Just saying...

I work in post production for broadcast and we have directors shooting their commercials (and not low budget stuff either) on 5D's over broadcast cams more and more often now. In fact when comparing the footage off a 5D vs that off a Sony HDVCam which is actually more expensive, the 5D is the obvious winner. Actually I hate Sony HDVCams, footage is noisy, nasty, it doesn't key, there's no colour depth - they should be banned from studios!

So don't assume that a video camera will automatically be better than a DSLR at the same or even greater price point I think I'd probably prefer DSLR footage over anything else up until Arri and RED level. But those will break several banks

Audio on DSLRs is an issue, the controls are non exsitent or noisy and you need to fork over the extra coin for an external mic and software. The software alone could run an additional $200-300.

 

[DGMPhotography]

I'd say you have several options here, the Panasonic suggestion being the best of course. I personally have my own plan for video which I'd be glad to share. This is more for those who are on a budget, or for you if you want to save a little more. For images I have my Nikon D5100 and kit lens which cost me about $500 all together. The video isn't BAD, but the audio could definitely use some improvement, like an external Mic. As for software, I just use iMovie which suits all my needs. My camera can record up to 20 minutes at a time which would be more than sufficient for something like a music video. Anyway, that's not my point. I do realize my DSLR's video limitations, so I plan to, at one point, purchase a flip cam. They go for around $100-$200, and are GREAT quality. You may still want to get an external Mic, but these things were made for video with a variety of options and of course, shooting at 1080p. In the end, you'd be saving yourself about $1300 with this setup with perfectly satisfying results. Just my 2 cents. Do some research! Let us know what you decide, and post some results!

 

[FreshFromTheGrave]

Umm, well I don't want to sound silly, but if your main interest is video, wouldn't your money be better spent on a dedicated pro video camera? Just saying...

I work in post production for broadcast and we have directors shooting their commercials (and not low budget stuff either) on 5D's over broadcast cams more and more often now. In fact when comparing the footage off a 5D vs that off a Sony HDVCam which is actually more expensive, the 5D is the obvious winner. Actually I hate Sony HDVCams, footage is noisy, nasty, it doesn't key, there's no colour depth - they should be banned from studios!

So don't assume that a video camera will automatically be better than a DSLR at the same or even greater price point I think I'd probably prefer DSLR footage over anything else up until Arri and RED level. But those will break several banks

Audio on DSLRs is an issue, the controls are non exsitent or noisy and you need to fork over the extra coin for an external mic and software. The software alone could run an additional $200-300.

But you may end up needing to do that with a video camera anyways depending. Not all of them have capable shotgun mics and the ones that do tend to be quite small I think? Could be wrong I've never seen a broadcast camera on shoot with a mic attached. You may be right about the controls though, pretty much every shoot I've been on that has even had audio was done with a separate sound guy with a boom mic completely disconnected from the camera. Which isn't a problem but it could start getting overwhelming logistically for an individual to do separate audio streams and have to sync it back up when there's lots of shots.

Doesn't Magic Lantern help out with audio controls though or is the audio hardware just not cutting it on these cameras? The other interesting point about filming on DSLR is your easily available and relatively cheap choice of lenses and accessories. But I'd just record audio separately if quality was an issue recording to camera (with something like a Tascam DR-40 not a boom mic!). As long as you keep yourself organised and have the same number of audio recordings as you do shots it's no problem putting them back together again

 

[DGMPhotography]

Tiffany Alvord uses a DSLR with Mic attachment for her videos!

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?...86853439.36754.123457944345887&type=1&theater

It would appear to be a Canon 600D, and Rode Videomic Pro!