[Roosh]

So I need some advice on whether to buy a DSLR or camcorder. I want a better tool than my point-and-shoot for making youtube videos.

Definite requirements:
-Hot shoe connection to add shotgun mic or LED lights in the futures
-LCD screen that can face me while I'm filming (so I know where I am in the shot)

The camcorder I'm looking at is the Canon G20. It does everything I need for shooting video. ($900)



The DSLR I'm considering is the Canon Rebel T3i. It has a max recording time of 30 minutes assuming the sensor doesn't get too hot. ($600)



Three issues:

-I have a feeling that the DSLR will have a longer learning curve, and I can't just point-and-shoot video like maybe with auto mode on a camcorder. Is that correct?

-As of today, I only need a camcorder, but I have a feeling that having photo capability will be useful, and I doubt I will need to shoot more than 30 minutes in one take.

-The T3i is $300 cheaper.

At first I was leaning towards the camcorder, but the DSLR seems to be a more logical choice. It does everything I need currently and is cheaper.

What do you guys think?

[RexImperator]

I would go DSLR. Not that hard to learn, really. Plus if you eventually put a nicer/faster lens on it the image quality will be much greater.

I should add, that with the DSLR you'll certainly want an external mic, so factor that into your cost.

[Espresso]

Go for the DSLR.

You can do video in auto mode at the push of a button. Just press record. So I wouldn't worry about the learning curve.

You can also create a shallow depth of field (the blurry background effect where you are in sharp focus and the background is out of focus) with a DSLR much better.
Get yourself a canon 50mm 1.8 lens ($125 on amazon.com), and you're good to go.

I don't see any real advantage for you (and most people) to go for the camcorder option vs DSLR.

[samsamsam]

The dslr will be harder to learn. Not super crazy hard but just needs a little time.

But there are advantages like price and small size. Quality of image. Another thing to deal with is focus. It doesn't autofocus well (I don't think at all) in video (while your recording). So you need to have it framed before recording if you are setting it on a tripod and just recording yourself. If you found a guy to work with you, then he can adjust focus manually during recording.

I have seen the t3i as low as 340ish recently. Canon refurbs (direct from Canon) are good. One year warranty.
Here is an old deal from a couple weeks ago.
http://slickdeals.net/f/7122784-canon-eo...ipping?v=1

Check these training videos (happens to be for a T3i) if you think you want to deal with it. This guy Dave Dugdale started knowing nothing and has become quite good.
http://vimeo.com/23940421
vimeo.com/24057433

Interviews shot with T3i
http://vimeo.com/82550148 (not sure if he used stock lens) - I think it is a good look.

Also, T3is do have pretty good resale if you don't like it.

Edit: I have seen the 50mm 1.8 refurb from Canon for $75 bucks.

Get a backpack photo bag - not the one with the handle and strap, I find it annoying wish I had the backpack. Make sure it has a slot for a laptop. Something like this. http://www.amazon.com/AmazonBasics-DSLR-...o+backpack

Get Class 10 SD cards don't cheap out on them, crappy ones will lose your data or record to slow which can mess with recording quality.

Rode videomics are pretty popular which goes in the hotshoe. Unless you are going lav.

This would be a decent hotshoe light if you needed it. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004TJ6...2HWN25N4G7

Another f'n edit: This kid shoots on a T3i with a vintage prime (which is like 50 bcuks the one he has). He shoots some nice shit I think. Not interviews - scenic footage. But if you are out and about you could just shoot some stuff of the city you are in and slap some music to it. I think some of us (like me) would appreciate some images of the town you are in. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPN6pwf...Gn-TB7qFYQ

[JJ Roberts]

The T3i

I spent last year travelling the US shooting a Sex 3.0 documentary with a T3i. Great piece of kit (with the right lens).

Had it until it got stolen off a bus in Costa Rica a couple of months ago. I so was pissed off!

[Espresso]

Roosh, if you want it to autofocus in video mode (you don't need this feature if you are shooting videos like the one's you've been doing so far where you stay in the same place relative to the camera) then you can go for the Nikon D5200 instead. It also has a flip out screen just like the Canon T3i. Cost is similar. $600 for the body, and about $200 for the 50mm 1.8 lens. And it's a better camera than the T3i anyway.

Also, second what samsamsam said regarding buying refurbished body and lens. An easy way to bring the cost down considerably with little downside.

[rudebwoy]

DSLR - go for a Canon model above the rebel series.

[samsamsam]

(08-22-2014 10:41 PM)Espresso Wrote:  

Roosh, if you want it to autofocus in video mode (you don't need this feature if you are shooting videos like the one's you've been doing so far where you stay in the same place relative to the camera) then you can go for the Nikon D5200 instead. It also has a flip out screen just like the Canon T3i. Cost is similar. $600 for the body, and about $200 for the 50mm 1.8 lens. And it's a better camera than the T3i anyway.

Also, second what samsamsam said regarding buying refurbished body and lens. An easy way to bring the cost down considerably with little downside.

Outrageous!

To be honest, I don't know anything about Nikon. But I will say this, you never hear of movies being shot on Nikon. Canon has cameras that have autofocus but the price rises. I'd go T3i - Roosh is a smart guy he can figure it out.

rudeboy is right that something like a 7D would be nicer for a variety of reasons including weather proofing but they use the same sensor. You can get the same image. It just comes down to cost. The best cost benefit play is a refurbed T3i.

I'll stop blabbing now.

[HawkWrites]

DSLR. You have more flexibility with your recording medium.

[Switch]

In my experience still photos taken with a camcorder are better than videos taken with a dslr. Since video is the main focus, I'd go with the camcorder.

[Roosh]

Say I want to shoot a video blog in my apartment. Will it be hard to manually focus on myself with the T3i if I'm alone?

[RexImperator]

I don't own the T3i but I think you should be able to autofocus once at the beginning of the shot. It's the "continuous" autofocus that some of these cameras are lacking in video mode.

[RexImperator]

^^^ Edit: I forgot how old the T3i is... I would look at a newer model, since it's mostly in video mode where these cameras are improving. The newer EOS cameras use STM lenses with (built-in) quieter motors for video use.

[monster]

(08-23-2014 06:12 AM)Roosh Wrote:  

Say I want to shoot a video blog in my apartment. Will it be hard to manually focus on myself with the T3i if I'm alone?

no, aperture controls depth of focus, so a smaller aperture the more the shot will be in focus (foreground to background). This is assuming manual not automatic, but auto technology should sense the main focal point.

[DaveR]

(08-23-2014 06:12 AM)Roosh Wrote:  

Say I want to shoot a video blog in my apartment. Will it be hard to manually focus on myself with the T3i if I'm alone?

- definitely get one which can autofocus during video recording.

- you'll hear a lot of cult-like stupidity about why Canon is better than Nikon or vice-versa. In reality there is little difference between them - just choose whichever works best for you in terms of price/features.

- some cameras can be controlled remotely from a computer. If you're shooting solo, that may make it easier to get your exposure and focus settings right. Example here: http://www.controlmynikon.com

- don't worry too much about the hot shoe. On-camera is rarely ever a good location for a light source. In any case, you'll need to place the camera a lot further away than the mic if you're shooting with a 50mm or 85mm lens.

-a lot of the result has to do with lighting, so you might want to investigate some cheap collapsible reflectors and soft boxes. I would even go as far as saying that the lighting should be the priority, not the camera. Good lighting shot with an iPhone can produce better results than bad lighting with an SLR.

[germanico]

(08-23-2014 06:12 AM)Roosh Wrote:  

Say I want to shoot a video blog in my apartment. Will it be hard to manually focus on myself with the T3i if I'm alone?

The way I do it is set a short timer, take a picture, then checking its on focus and if so I start filming.

Get a sturdy tripod too. Get a full lenght one so you have more flexibility, as opposed to a desktop one.

[Tuthmosis]

I, for one, have not been impressed with the video quality on the Rebel series (t3i), especially indoors, in less-than-ideal lighting conditions. My vote is for the camcorder, or a better dSLR model with a tilt LCD screen.

It'll be better than the point-and-shoot, but why not take a couple of steps up instead of just a marginal improvement?

This doesn't look all that pro to me, especially at bigger dimensions than this embedded size. Maximize it, and see how noisy and/or soft the image is:

[Luvianka]

Buy the camcorder -it's easier to handle, also if you do some shooting at exteriors.

[Espresso]

(08-23-2014 06:12 AM)Roosh Wrote:  

Say I want to shoot a video blog in my apartment. Will it be hard to manually focus on myself with the T3i if I'm alone?

No.

Where you'll have a problem is if you are using a shallow depth of field (so you are in focus and the background is out of focus) and decide to walk back a couple meters down the hallway for some reason to maybe demonstrate something or do a little dance, and then come back to where you were sitting, then you have a problem because when you walk away from the camera you will go out of focus and it will not re-focus on you automatically. You will come back into focus when you come back to your original location. But if you are staying in one place for the duration of the video, or if you are using a large depth of field (so you don't have that blurred background effect and everything in the shot is in focus), there is no problem.

(08-23-2014 10:10 AM)DaveR Wrote:  

In any case, you'll need to place the camera a lot further away than the mic if you're shooting with a 50mm or 85mm lens.

This is a good point. I don't have experience with shotgun mics but I think they only work well from a distance of up to around 3-4 feet or so, after which the sound quality will start to degrade. If you are using 50mm your camera would likely need to be further back than that to get everything you want in the shot (if you place it at 3 feet it will be 'too zoomed in' for your liking). So you might want to get a 35mm 1.8 instead of the 50mm 1.8 which will give you a frame that is less zoomed in. It's probably best to use a boom to hold a mic just out of shot though to give you more flexibility. So yeah check the working range of the shotgun mic you want to get, and compare it to how far you want the camera to be.

If you want to know exactly how big the frame of the shot will be use this online calculator tool: http://www.tawbaware.com/maxlyons/calc.htm
The section that says "Dimensional Field of View Calculator". Put in the focal length of the lens you want (35mm or 50mm), 'focal length multiplier' is 1.6 for the Canon t3i, 'distance to subject' whatever you want that to be say 4 feet between you and the camera. And it gives you the exact size of the frame you will have. If it's too small to fit you in, then you'd need to move the camera further back and it might be too far away for the shotgun mic to work well.

Additional notes:
- Check reviews online about the sensor overheating issue. See what people say - does it actually give you up to 30min of recording, or is it typically less because of the sensor issue? Also, how long does it take to cool back down, and what if you are doing multiple takes? I suspect it's just fine for your short videos but worth checking.

- You might need some sort of adapter (XLR adapter?) to be able to use your shotgun mic. So be sure to check that as well.

[Roosh]

Informative video on the differences:

[theoogabear]

if it's full frame, DSLR.

i work in a multimedia shop as a photographer in the Air Force and our video-ographers will borrow our DSLRs for shoots because they're easier to use and since it's full frame you can do way more with it.

[samsamsam]

(08-23-2014 06:12 AM)Roosh Wrote:  

Say I want to shoot a video blog in my apartment. Will it be hard to manually focus on myself with the T3i if I'm alone?

http://vimeo.com/23940421

It shows what he had to do.

Once you set frame, you should be ok. But you just have to focus. It would take maybe a couple tries until you figured it out. But it is like that with everything in life (not trying to be an ass - just saying it is rare to just nail it the first time).

Lighting is important. People rave about low light capabilities but often times the image difference in quality has to do with lighting and how it is shaped (gels, diffusion, flags etc.)

There will be little things to figure out when you first use the DSLR. The camcorder was intended to do video so I imagine the controls are a bit more clear. But it won't be that hard to learn. And walking around town with a DSLR will be less conspicuous than a video camera. A lot of people shoot films without permits and when they get asked they say they are taking photos - you can't really say that if you were talking around with a Red Epic.

Edit: If you are not going lavalier, then the rode video mic is a pretty good solution. You don't really wanna try and rock some major shotgun mic, especially since many of them need phantom power and that is another issue altogether.

Another issue with good sound is reflections, if you shoot in a room that has a lot of reflective surfaces and tight space you might have echoes/muffling sounds. All this can be corrected but just takes a little trial and error.

[Roosh]

Quote:

Check reviews online about the sensor overheating issue. See what people say - does it actually give you up to 30min of recording, or is it typically less because of the sensor issue?

It's actually 12 minutes if you record in HD (30 minutes in 480p). That could be a problem.

[kbell]

Which one can you get a remote for? I would think you should be able to control telescopic vs wide angle lengths and possibly focus with a remote.when I was using camcorder back in college you got about an hour of footage with a mini dv cartridge. Back than having the color split in 3 colors was a huge deal called 3 ccd. Now it might be done on one chip. It looks like the sensor are a hell of a lot bigger so the DSLR will probably have better picture in low light (your apartment) and you can do photos. If you ever decide to moving video, you might need an external image stabilizer like they had in the video, but I doubt you will need it since you tend to stay in one spot in your videos that I have seen.

What is the size of the storage that gives you 12/30 minutes of recording? How much does it cost compared to the camcorder storage? You will need more than one storage card to avoid running out of space while shooting.

[samsamsam]

(08-23-2014 02:29 PM)Roosh Wrote:  

Quote:

Check reviews online about the sensor overheating issue. See what people say - does it actually give you up to 30min of recording, or is it typically less because of the sensor issue?

It's actually 12 minutes if you record in HD (30 minutes in 480p). That could be a problem.

Ii guess the question is will you be filming yourself by yourself? And how often will you go 12 mins? If you are controlling the camera, this guy has a simple solution (just watch the 1st min).

http://vimeo.com/32915628