What Camcorder would suit me best?

[pearlee]

I have spent pretty much the whole day searching different camcorders,would like one that i can use to make my Photoshows for DVD, also i have 2 family weddings coming up so picture & sound quality is most important,i have been looking at high Def /hard drive camcorders at £600/£800 although i'm told i should be able to get the quality i want from less expensive camcorders,is this true? I have nero 9 editing software that i'm hoping to use with it.
Can someone please advise.Many Thanks in advance.

[chrishull3]

Originally Posted by pearlee

I have spent pretty much the whole day searching different camcorders,would like one that i can use to make my Photoshows for DVD, also i have 2 family weddings coming up so picture & sound quality is most important,i have been looking at high Def /hard drive camcorders at £600/£800 although i'm told i should be able to get the quality i want from less expensive camcorders,is this true? I have nero 9 editing software that i'm hoping to use with it.
Can someone please advise.Many Thanks in advance.

Yas there are plenty of models that give good hd pictures at lower prices than you give,the cheaper cams lose out on some options ie viewfinder, mic input etc, if you are going to be making dvds from your cams footage a lot of the quality will be lost.Have a good look through the models including specs and reports.
Camcorder Ratings - Reviews, Ratings & Comparisons

[pearlee]

Thanks so much for your help & Link..did not realise that images would decrease in quality when putting onto DVD,so thats been a great help.I dont feel so daunted now.Thank you once again.

[senu]

Originally Posted by pearlee

Thanks so much for your help & Link..did not realise that images would decrease in quality when putting onto DVD,so thats been a great help.I dont feel so daunted now.Thank you once again.

Loss of quality when making DVDs is ( in many ways) related to the sofware you use to make the DVDs and how you use it
The mpeg2 format that DVDs uses a reasonably clever codec to retain quality whilst reduciing file size.. It is exactly the same as DVDs from Blockbusters use , so there is some merit in starting with very good quality footage
Im by no means taking you to the " dark ages" of MiniDv tape( which I still use happily) but quality for buck , you wil get best starting quality from there.. How it eventually turns out on DVD depends on how you produce your DVDs
As for HDD / SD card video camcorders , the cheaper ones are not exactly cheerful and this will be even more evident when the conversion to DVD video is made
With a budget of £6-800, you would do worse than look at the few remaining Hi def MiniDV models ( HDV)
Otherwise any mid to higher spec consumer AVCHD camcorder will be fine.. just post up your shortlist for comment
Be aware that the advantage of instant acess an transfer will be negated by slower encoding to SD video on a PC ( and loss of all that lovely Hi def Quality)
This is true of tape to an extent too
Certainly the advantage of tape is the ability to make decent quality Standard Def DVDs from a hi def source fairly quicky and if you wanted to ed up with Standard def you could capture as SD in real time " on the fly"
Ironically the dsadvantage is the fact of tape ( a perception of older technology) and , needing real time transfer to PC using firewire

If you do get an AVCHD model , It would help to have a decent Quadcore PC with generous amounts of RAM as AVCHD is not kind to modest PCs

[chrishull3]

Originally Posted by pearlee

Thanks so much for your help & Link..did not realise that images would decrease in quality when putting onto DVD,so thats been a great help.I dont feel so daunted now.Thank you once again.

Your welcome, yes images from high def decreases a lot when making dvds no matter what the camera, hdv is easier to edit i still pefer it but i doubt you will get a new sony or canon hdv cam for much below £800,avchd is more demanding on edititing but if you have the pc to edit it dvds can be made with much cheaper cams that have very good pq good luck.

[pearlee]

Thank you for your comments they have been very helpful.
My son has lent me his Sony handycam 242520 to play with as this will be a first for me and then i will be able to get some sort of idea of what i will require to get the best for my footage.
I have been looking at two camcorders at the moment..
JVC Everio GZ-HD40 & Sony HDRXR105E.CEH(think i got that right lol)
also in the back of my mind im thinking Canon HG10 40GB but im told is not such an easy Camcorder to use,just want to do the best i can when it comes to the wedding footage..Thanks again for your comments,going to have a little go on my sons Sony to see if i can work it out...wish me luck!

[961]

Couple of things....

Whatever is said, a viewfinder is a valuable asset particularly in bright sunshine. They are increasingly rare but worth seeking out. Some camcorders are unuseable when the sun is high if you are relying on the screen

Although tape is regarded as stone age, the simplicity of editing compared with current formats is mega. And the quality at the finish is not to be rubbished, especially when you consider what is being used to view the result!

[PDP-434HDE]

See if you can find a JVC Everio GZ-HD30 for £279.97 from Currys!

Job Done.

I got one, I have a Sony HC-3 HDV camcorder too. You have no worries, its good. doesn't have a viewfinder, but its under £300, HDV, AVDCD, 60G HDD, can record to MicroSD. I'm going to use it as my Camcorder of choice from now on, save my well used Sony HC-3 for playback duties.