As we all do, when in question of something then we come here for everyones expert knowledge. Between us all we truely know it al!!!!

I need suggestions.....

I am going to get a DV cam soon,
Thinking probably a DVD format, this way I can carry a spool of DVD's and record all weekend, then edit them when I have time.

My needs/wants
good built in light
external microphone jack
Good white balance
OIS (Optical Image Stabilization) (EIS will work, if it's good software)
Threaded lens for common filters.

Most of the time it will be mounted on the Ski pylon on the boat, or hand held on the back of a waverunner. So I want something not very expensive incase it does get droped/lost in the lake. Around $500 would be nice.

I glanced at some HD cams, but all I can find is 1080i, I'd rather 720p becasue I'm going to be doing ALOT of action shots. They started out at $800 and I'd be alright paying that for one if it was 720p and if I could find one with a large enough hard drive to hold atleast 6 hours of video, (we are back at the dock atleast every 6 hours so I can download to laptop while we are taking lunch/dinner breaks. Or if it was disk and interchangeable DVD and HD-DVD (when available) formats.

Brand preference:
Panasonic (or Quasar) >=< Canon >=< Sony

 

I am looking at camcorders as well and I am currently thinking about getting the Canon zr850. It is a MiniDV recorder so it does not record directly to the camera or to a DVD, but I guess it can be connected to the computer and then burned to DVD from there. It is not as expensive as the HDD and DVD camcorders and that is the part that I like. HD would be nice, but way too expensive. I really just want something to record when the baby gets here in a couple of weeks.

So, basically I am hijacking the thread and looking for any recommendations as well.

 

High jack away, I am just looking for thoughts......

 

I just got back from Circuit City and Best Buy. One thing I will say, if you aren't thinking about shelling out the cash for a high definition camcorder, don't look at them. They will definitely make you want to pick one up since they are so much sharper than the regular digital camcorders.

I still like the Canons and I looked at the Sonys as well. I will probably end up getting the model that I mentioned previously. One of these days though, I will have a HD model when the price goes down.

 

Here is a cannon High Def for $900

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/cont...goryNavigation

they have this sanyo for $579
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/cont...goryNavigation

but it uses SD or SDHC cards... which SDHC you can get up to 8GB in size (thats 2 DVD's). I'm considering it but it does not have a built in light other than a flash strobe for still mode. This will not be my still camera EVER..... and it does not have an accessory shoe.

eww ouch... just looked on circuit city and they have a 4 gb SDHC which is the same as a dvd, but it's $199!

Think I'll pass...... one stick and I'd be spending as much as the canon HD cam..... and it uses mini HDV tape which a pack of 5, Sony brand at Best Buy is only $26.......
But then I'd have to record it to DV edit then to DVD when I get home....

Think I'll stick with a regular DV cam of some kind, probably DVD this year.

 

You've definitely got me looking outside my original price range. It might be nice to have a good HD camcorder. I just wish that I could win one in some kind of contest.

 

Sorry didn't mean to blow your budget...
If I could find one below $1000, that took an acceptably priced digital media. Something I can pull out of the cam and go directly to pc with. Then I would consider it.

 

I had an miniDV 3CCD camera, and was attacked by a sand storm while in Moab. After that, I use a HDD camera and will not use a miniDV camera. The HDD is so simple to use for transferring and finding files. I use the camera for outdoor stuff, where space is either limited or a great chance of damage can occur. Having only to protect the camera and not tapes is a nice feature with the HDD camera.

Here is a website for the vids that have been made with the HDD camera.



http://www.okrubicon.com