Cinematography : Cameras Galore! by Bhavnisha Parmar

In my opinion, the camera that you are looking to purchase should reflect the kinds of films you want make. Are you filming narratives or documentaries? Some cameras are popular for news programing and simple commercials and others for filming features. I would advise to seek out cinematographers & videographers who are willing to share their expertise's on camera models, sensors, lens and overall full manual controls. I recommend that you check out RedShark News, http://www.redsharknews.com/ for starters to get a good insight on what is on the market at good prices and good article reviews.

I agree with Omar get a camera that reflects what style of films you want to make. There are many good camera's out there at different price points. I recently directed a short film on a RED scarlet and that was an awesome experience. See if you can befriend some DP's and am sure they will be happy to lead you in the right direction. Take care and all the best!

It's crazy isn't it? So may cameras with very minor tech differences. Both Moses and Omar said what I want to say; you need to define what you mean by "shoot some great footage". And what you want to do with the camera. Do you want to be a DP? Do you want to shoot some great personal footage? Do you want to direct movies and be the camera operator? There are currently two types of cameras typically used at the beginner level: the DSLR and the "camcorder". All DSLR's are basically the same within a price range and all camcorders are basically the same within a price range. Don't get bogged down in the minor tech specs. The Canon Vixia HF R42 is a great started camcorder - it has everything you need and is easy to use allowing your to grow.

Don't knock filming on a smartphone it films in better quality than some of the cameras I started out with. Really play around with yours to make sure getting a camera is what you want to do. Since getting a camera won't automatically turn you into a Director/DP. I have a few friends that have created wonderful short films and footage on smartphones. Here are the examples to help inspire: Love Loss Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AsRqNZ1W7RE -- Shot entirely with Smartphone How to make a Film on an iPhone: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ETc3vhsKzqo If you're are 100% sure you want a camera, you can start with an affordable DSLR like the Canon Rebel T2i. I own a Canon 5D, Sony NEX 5N (affordable!) and BlackMagic Cinema Camera. I prefer Canon but you can find a lot of great starter cameras with Nikon too.

Ms. Tiffy Diamond is correct about modern camera phones being able to produce better imaging than some of the old digital betas from yesteryear. Now if you are planning to test the waters in using an IPhone for short films, Filmic Pro from itunes store is the best film recording app for the IPhone bar-none. Filmic Pro may have an app for the Android platform. The Canon 5D that Ms. Diamond has is a better choice because of its universal lens versatility. Now ask yourself if the camera that you choose to purchase will use for long form event recording as well as filming short scenes, or will it be use for filming short films only. If you are only shooting short films, then just get your feet wet with a HD-DLSR with a clean HDMI output, DTE from companies like, Atmos - http://www.atomos.com/, AJA - http://www.aja.com/, or Convergent Design: http://www.convergent-design.com/. Get yourself XLR audio input converter from Juicedlink: http://www.juicedlink.com/. Beachtek is okay, but the signal to noise level is horrible. Keep Busting

Thank you for taking your time out for these posts, I really do appreciate it. All these nuggets of knowledge will help in my research and filming for sure!

Actually the Digi-Beta cameras had better actual resolution than DSLRs do in video mode.

That is why I said some digital beta cameras. Not all the digital beta camera where equal in their resolutions. I would never use a dlsr internal video recording codec. I would always use a DTE with clean hdmi output. Nevertheless, use a camera with an alternate highrez output.

Shoot a resolution test, the results are quite clear.

Bogging down in tech details...

Canon EOS 70D is a good cam.

Thank you again for all your advice. I was actually looking into the Canon 5D Mk II. But I am still trailing through the search. I think with my filming genre being primarily documentary footage, a camera like this would work well.

The DSLR has challenges when using it for documentaries. Those can be overcome with the proper accessories. More expensive - but doable.

I THANK YOU ALL as well, this helps me out a lot.

Check out Nikon's D3200. 24.2MP and not all that expensive, around $700 w/lens.

buy the new iphone 5s i hear the recorder is PHENOMENAL

Hey Parker, thanks for the advice. What kind of problems were you thinking of? Also Bill, I will check this out. Armando... great idea but with some cameras at around the same price as the new iphone... I will have to think twice, ha.

i must say, you are Correct haha.

Hi Bhavnisha, choosing a camera can be daunting to say the least in today's market. Here are a few tips that might help. The first thing is to ask yourself what kind of filming am I pursuing at this time in my life. Who are my clients and what type of shooting am I doing for them? Once you know the answer to these questions you will eliminate a lot of camera possibilities. Your choice of camera should fit the demand of your work for the type image and workflow you are seeking. Next get the best image quality you can afford with your camera choice. Anticipate the growth in your abilities as a cinematographer and buy one step up from where you think you are currently at so you won't have to trade up anytime soon.That being said Dslr's are a good starting point for image quality, but they can be fidly and require a lot of extra's to make them cinema rigs for filming. Such as external recording devices, cages and etc. I started with a 60d and a Gh2, then sold the 60 d for a 5dmark3 and added a C 100. I do mostly event shooting,commercials,and run and gun documentary and narrative short films. If I need a Red or something for a particular shoot I can rent the more expensive cameras. With all of this said, content is still King, sound is Queen,and your horsemen are your cameras. Cameras are an important part of the equation, they are to be used to help tell your story, but the passion that is unlocked thru the story is still number one in the Kingdom. Best to you Gary

Gary, really appreciate this advice! Some really nice points made. I like the analogy too, helps with the overwhelming search. I think the more advice and research I am gathering the more I am coming to know what product it is that I am looking for. Like all things in life a balance of patience and haste is needed to be effective and efficient when making a decision. Thank you again!

Grab a consumer camcorder with a few manual adjustments like the older "M" series or as Parker mentioned. Ebay and 200 will get you an "S" series canon. That is a Great starter cam. The lens is a decent 28mm = with a good zoom for closer shots,nice manual adj. Here is the thing. CMOS is a hidden secret in the industry the good ones will boast of 3 mos sensor, the others will not mention it; and boast of HD and Frame rate. I am sure that is part of your confusion/dilemma. After shooting for a year you will find what you like and settle into a style of shooting and or format you want to go after. Then you are getting close on landing on a camera that will fit you. For the next couple years. DO NOT get sucked into Mega Pixels and or DSLR! Ughhh.....Go into the box store and the rep is all about 32mp the old is only 18mp. Here is the dealeo read about a Pro Series Sony or Panasonic. Broadcast quality. Should be around 6-10k that camera will give you what you ultimately will be gunnin for. Or you may find that shooting is not your bag and editing is.... Start reasonable and do not try and buy a camera that will be future proof. IF you are wanting to shoot video, buy a video camera. If you want to shoot stills buy a still. Still confused? http://pro.sony.com/bbsc/video/videoChannelSearchResults.do?submit.x=0&s... this starts half way thru it is the one I bookmarked start at #1 this link is #3

Thank you Simon, for taking the time out for your advice. I will look over the links when I get chance. I think for me at the moment the format of shooting will be either be still on a tripod or moving around a lot too. Being very new to this I was not sure whether there would be a good camera that would suit both needs :)

I use two cameras, I always have a 14mp still cam and a video cam for video. Check out this guy's blog...KenRockwell.com great photographer 30+ years doing it and unbiased. He owns many types of cameras and is sponsored by none. The best advice I got from him was the size of a DLSR Vs a point and shoot. There is an S series by Nikon ($350) I think it is. where you have manual control of your Apeture/ F stop on the lens ring, Real cool for learning the value of that, as well as having at your finger tips, opposed to being in a menu hidden. Back to the size of DSLR, Do you want to bring a backpack and pack it in there as you cruise through a site or on the way, etc due to size, accessories? Switch lenses to miss a shot. Not using it all the time and being unfamiliar with it? Or do you want it to fit in your cargo pants or purse? Most media footage today we see on splash pages etc, are being done with Iphones. Not because they are superior, because they are in hand and have a mega pix bigger then 3 that is more then needed for Video. BTW. Then comes video, if you are not shooting video to make videos, then that once in a while video capture on any of these point and shoots will suffice. 14mp at 720p will be fine for most any application including Bluray out.

Thanks for that link, a real help! I will read over properly tonight. As for the size, I was hoping for it to be as compact as possible. I know that I may down the line want to carry a decent external mic however and other accessories. I think for me I am trying to get around the technological terms and functions. I think once I get a hold of those then I will be able to make a better decision. Everybody has been so helpful so far, I guess just I just need to fill in my own gaps. Thanks Bhav

http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/recommended-cameras.htm#pocket Do not try and future proof your purchase. Buy with what you are shooting with TODAY. When you learn everything in that Canon S then take a look at other things. Video cam for video, still cam for stills. Your video cam will come with what is needed for sound, except a decent mic. That is another topic.

P.S if you are wanting to learn to shoot Video / motion and not stills, as I had thought orig and then noticed your topic heading / category. Try and bag a used CANON Camcorder VIXIA HF S100 ebay or the likes of. This is a fine camera to get your feet wet with. NO you won't be getting paid jobs with it, but you will be up off the couch shooting. Here is the real deal Video cam if curious: http://www.adorama.com/SOPMWF3KRGB.html?gclid=CKukwP72zroCFUThQgodmSMAUA Then there is reality, for those starting and this would shoot a fine INDY and can be played back on Bluray, which BTW is an acceptable format for festivals... http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=&sku=854243&is=REG&Q=&... OR http://www.ggvideo.com/pan_agac130.php

Here check this one out.... http://shop.panasonic.com/shop/model/HC-X920K

Thank you Simon for all this info! I really appreciate you taking out the time to send all this through! Thanks

Take a look at here http://beginnerdslrcameras.com/

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