I haven't had any issues with my Flip HD. Then again, I got the newest generation, so perhaps they fixed the sync problem.
Record an hour long video and record the audio separately with a different device.
Other cameras sync perfectly. The Flip's video gets ahead by about two seconds per hour. It's only a problem if you are syncing audio to video. I'll have to do something clever to get around it for now.
Otherwise, the Flip is really only good for capturing events. The fact that I can't charge/shoot at the same time and the limited battery/record time is an annoyance.
People say those don't work as well with editing suites. I'm researching still.
How are you going to be editing? With what software, with media stored on the boot disk or an external drive? The HV40 is an excellent choice for picture quality, more than enough for what you guys need. However the HDV codec is indeed a bit of a fuck - but cameras in this range of quality/cost range will use be shooting HDV. I can only really talk to you about working on a Mac because that's the way the whole industry works, but I'm guessing it's pretty similar. For the kind of editing you'll be doing (single layer of video) then on the cheapest macbook pro (convert specs as applies to whatever computer you're using) you could edit it natively without stuttering either using the boot drive or a FireWire 800 drive for media. I used to have an HV20 back in the day, and at that point you could only capture via FireWire. I'm guessing that has changed now, but double check you have the required ports.
The 5D/7D are terrible choices for you. This is the kind of quality you need if you're making actual films. The quality is so high that you can only shoot 12 minutes at a time before the SD card it records to fills up. And the files are HUGE, and really not meant for editing at all. Whoever suggested this doesn't know what they're talking about.
Also pro tip AVOID TAPES! The time that you will use to transfer footage from tape to the computer is going to drive you mad, take it from someone that figured this out the hard way...
So I'm in the market for a sub-$300 camcorder to record panels with because my old camcorder has stopped being very reliable. I'm looking at these two: Canon Vixia R700 Sony HDRCX440 The Canon is cheaper and has a larger sensor, but less effective pixels than the Sony. The Sony, on the other hand, has more bells and whistles (can live stream directly from the camera), and records at a higher bitrate, but is an older camera (released last year vs this year).
I'm not sure which to choose or if there's another option I've not looked at. Thoughts?
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Canon VIXIA HV40 HD HDV Camcorder w/10x Optical Zoom - 2009 MODEL
Money also isn't really a concern...
Other cameras sync perfectly. The Flip's video gets ahead by about two seconds per hour. It's only a problem if you are syncing audio to video. I'll have to do something clever to get around it for now.
Otherwise, the Flip is really only good for capturing events. The fact that I can't charge/shoot at the same time and the limited battery/record time is an annoyance.
The 5D/7D are terrible choices for you. This is the kind of quality you need if you're making actual films. The quality is so high that you can only shoot 12 minutes at a time before the SD card it records to fills up. And the files are HUGE, and really not meant for editing at all. Whoever suggested this doesn't know what they're talking about.
Also pro tip AVOID TAPES! The time that you will use to transfer footage from tape to the computer is going to drive you mad, take it from someone that figured this out the hard way...
1. Get upper-end prosumer HD camera.
2. Use said camera.
3. Get second lower-end pro HD camera.
4. Step up game.
5. Profit.
6. Third for-real camera.
For step one, I'm now thinking of either of these:
Canon VIXIA HF S21
Panasonic HDC-TM300 Twin Media HD
Is there anything around that level that blows either of these out of the water?
1. Get as Popular as Penny Arcade
2. Hire Film people to do your video work
3. Profit :-p
Panasonic HDC-HS700K Hi-Def Camcorder with Pro Control System & 240GB HDD
It was either that or a scale recreation of the WTC twin towers with an approaching aircraft.
Too soon?
I'm looking at these two:
Canon Vixia R700
Sony HDRCX440
The Canon is cheaper and has a larger sensor, but less effective pixels than the Sony. The Sony, on the other hand, has more bells and whistles (can live stream directly from the camera), and records at a higher bitrate, but is an older camera (released last year vs this year).
I'm not sure which to choose or if there's another option I've not looked at. Thoughts?