I've done a bit of research, and it all comes down to what you want to do with the camera.
1) you want to shoot the best quality at the lowest price
- Canon T2i or 550D - $800 body only, $900 with 18-55 lens - it's basically a 7D in a plastic body - T2i-s are selling like hotcakes now
- Canon 60D - available at the end of sept 2010 - $1100 body only - this is my recommended buy along with a 50mm 1.8 EF lens (it's about $100 for one, spending $350 on a 1.4 50mm is well worth it too) - the swivel LCD is a dream come true - you will need to purchase an lcd monitor to use the T2i for some shooting situations - so all in all, you will spend the same or more for a T2i with the extra LCD and bracket, than the 60D with the built-in swivel LCD.
DSLRs are limited to about 12 minutes of continous shooting - plan on having at least 2 fast (class 6 or better) SDHC cards (or SDXC cards), and a laptop or a photobank drive ready to unload them (this is the major drawback of DSLRs). You also need a fast computer with plenty of ram to edit 1080p video.
If you have more money to spend, spend it on good prime lenses or a good L series zoom lens with the range you want. Spend only on a more expensive camera if you can afford it along with the good lenses. If you have the cash, the 5D mark II is used on the tv show 24, and House, among others. The 7D is a T2i in a metal alloy body.
The reason for the prime lenses or the L series is that you need a fast lens to get the shallowest depth of field (DoF) - shallow DoF along with 24p native on the Canon DSLRs makes your video look like film.
DSLRs are for hardcore filmmakers - plan on reading a lot of filmmaking books to make the most of them.
2) if you want something that can shoot documentaries as well as short or long movies, and won't break the bank
Canon Vixia HF series is a good buy. From about $500 for the HF10 to $1400 for the HF S11. The problems with the vixia are the quality of the image - which is great, but not so good in low light. In comparison the DSLRs shoot excellent video in low light due to the larger sensor and better optics of the lenses. The battery life is also pretty abysmal - you will have to purchase additional batteries for any serious work.
Canon Vixias HF10s were used for shooting some scenes in Crank 2 (there's an article about it in
indie mogul).
The advantages are - if you get the hf10, it will be very cheap, great quality, and you can probably edit in a not-so-good computer without too much trouble.
If you don't know what to buy, then $500 spent on the HF10 will be well spent, and by the time you outgrow it you will know exactly what you want from experience. Being able to shoot continously without having to constantly stop to unload sd-cards is a big advantage if you're learning how to make movies.
If you're worried about image quality or grain, I suggest you watch Lars Von Trier's Breaking the Waves. It's grainy, the camera is unsteady throughtout the whole movie (on purpose - dogme 95 influence), but it won a Cannes Palm D'or. Why? Because of the absolutely fantastic way the story is told with great actors and an amazing screenplay.
If you have more than $2500 to spend, then your options are much wider. There are great cameras in this price range from Sony and Panasonic, among other brands.
The XH A1 was also used for filming crank 2. It's about $3,600.
Besides a good camera - you would do well to invest in a good video tripod, some sort of steadying mechanism, and a portable video LED light for shooting in low light situations (for documentaries). A stereo external mic is also a great investment, and you can easily turn it into a boom mic.
My Recommended low budget setup for an aspiring filmmaker:
1) spend $100 on good filmmaking books such as - the grammar of the shot, on directing film by mamet, the grammar of the edit, and any syd field book on screenwriting - the more you spend here, the better your films will be (if you read the books of course) - you can also check your local library - it might have all of these books and more
2) Canon Vixia HF10 - around $500 refurbished or used
3) Stereo Shotgun Microphone - $90 on ebay
4) Ravelli AVT Video Camera Tripod with Fluid Drag Head - $80 on amazon.com
5) Manfrotto 585 ModoSteady 3-in-1 Camera/Camcorder Stabilizer and Support System - $90 on amazon
6) Ravelli ATD Professional Tripod Dolly for Camera Photo and Video - $33 on amazon
7) Opteka Micro Director's Viewfinder - $99 on amazon or ebay
8) BP-819 battery on ebay (buy from a top seller only) - $15
9) Sima SL-20LX Ultra Bright Video Light (Black) - $29 on amazon
Grand total = $1036 + shipping of items
With this setup there's a huge amount of stuff you can do. Read the best books you can find. Then read some more. Then go practice and see if you understand what they are telling you.
If you wanna spend more money than that, invest in good lighting equipment (books included). Lighting a scene properly is the difference between pro-work and amateur unwatchable footage.
A continuous light fluorescent kit is about $150-$200 + shipping on ebay. These usually screw 4 fluorescent bulbs together for a good amount of light with low heat. If you are swimming in money, then go ahead and buy some litepanels (LED light panels).
My recommended extremely low budget setup for an aspiring filmmaker:
1) spend as much as possible on books - but find good books with good reviews (amazon.com top sellers are usually good) or find them at a local library, local used books store or fellow filmmaker
2) Opteka Micro Director's viewfinder - $99 or just cut out a 3cmx4cm window on an expired credit card (cut a rectangle hole with the aspect ratio you want 3x4cm is 1:1.333 tv video)
3) any still digital camera or your cell phone's camera
with this setup, read read read, then read some more, then read the books again. Go around and use your director's viewfinder everywhere and anywhere that you can - frame shots, look through it, practice composing shots and making camera movements. Annoy the heck out of people, they will understand you're a crazy aspiring filmmaker. Make storyboards with digital still shots and practice putting them together in a video editing program. Watch films without any sound and study what the director and the editor have done. Use de video function of the digital still camera if there is one and see if you can cut things properly in a program.
Another thing I almost forgot is to buy a really good acting book such as Acting for Film by Cathy Haase. Student films are notorious for really bad acting and if you read this, and can have your talent read it too or at least tell them a few things your film will be much better.
I hope this helps you somehow, as I too am an aspiring filmmaker.
Regards,
Will Bae
My first short
