what camera to buy??

[dczys]

lookinh for a video camera, have no clue what to look for.. would like to get the the most bang for my buck around 500 bucks..

[NavyDeerHunter]

Originally Posted by dczys

lookinh for a video camera, have no clue what to look for.. would like to get the the most bang for my buck around 500 bucks..

You and me both. I'm hearing some good things about the Sony DSR HC52. The one down side that I hear is that it's not so good in low light conditions...which is obviously what we need for filming deer hunting. I'll keep my eye on this thread and see where it goes.

[Iowabucks44]

The Canon HV20 and HV30 are right in that price range. HD to boot. I picked up a refurbished HV20 for around $430. Love it. You will be very tempted to buy extras. A good wide angle lens, extra batteries, tapes, shotgun mic, thats not even including a tripod or camera arm.

Do a search on reviews for these videocameras. They have picture quality that outdoes every camera in their price range. Check them out.

[NavyDeerHunter]

Originally Posted by Iowabucks44

The Canon HV20 and HV30 are right in that price range. HD to boot. I picked up a refurbished HV20 for around $430. Love it. You will be very tempted to buy extras. A good wide angle lens, extra batteries, tapes, shotgun mic, thats not even including a tripod or camera arm.

Do a search on reviews for these videocameras. They have picture quality that outdoes every camera in their price range. Check them out.

Seems like a good rig, but well above the $500.00 price range. Least expensive I could find was $630.00. Also not sure about the tape issue...seems that tapes are getting to be somewhat "old school" and on their way out.

[Iowabucks44]

Originally Posted by NavyDeerHunter

Also not sure about the tape issue...seems that tapes are getting to be somewhat "old school" and on their way out.

All depends how you look at it i guess. I was interested in a HD videocamera and realized that archiving your hunts and anything else would be easier on tape. I also thought what would happen if you dropped your HD videocamera and broke it. I would be willing to guess all that data on the HD would be lost forever, or at least for quite awhile until you got it sent away and the data recovered.

[jmnixon]

I also bought a refurbished hv20 and love it. I agree with tapes you cannot record but for so long, but I always reuse my tapes and really my camera is not running at all times so it hasn't been an issue for me. I have a wide angle lens and a rode video mic that have produced some awesome footage that I think competes with cameras that cost much much more. With a little searching you can find stuff pretty cheap. Google has a search engine called froogle (froogle.com) where you can search for any product and find the cheapest price.

[Bergcrane2]

http://hv20.com/forumdisplay.php?f=6

[Heckler666]

My vote is the Canon HV20 as well. I have a few different Canons and certainly think that is the best bang for the buck. I like my S10 better as it uses SD media.

[ragasia]

buy used, you can get a lot more camera for a lot less money. Look on ebay or at a local camera store. My local used camera store usually bases their prices on ebay prices so you can get a decent deal if the equipment is in good condition. The Nikon D200 or Canon 40D, 50D would fit in your budget with money left for a decent lens.
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[bwhunter501]

i agree on buying used if you are just starting out. also it just depends on what you want. if you would like better color quality i would say go with a sony but if you want a little better low light conditions and in my opinion more user friendly i would go with a cannon.