Decent camcorders for aspiring filmmaker?

Hi there,

I'm a film lover and I want to shoot some no-budget short movies with a couple of friends. Consequently, I need a camera. My budget is really tight, 500 dollar tops. I've been reading reviews for a whole day now, but to be honest, I'm still where I started. I understand that I can't expect much with my budget - probably a better point'n'shoot camcorder. I don't care about the format, as long as I can transfer footage easily to my computer. So here's what I'm looking for:

- of course best video quality my budget can afford
- good low-light quality would be good, since I'd love to do some, well, low-light shooting
- manual controls, such as gain, shutter speed, focus, etc. I heard that Panasonic camcorders offer a lot of manual controls
- some possibility to record sound, but I guess every camcorder has that

Mostly, I've been looking at Panasonic camcorders. Problem is that pretty much every review has another opinion. I've read like 20 of them, and I still don't have a clue. And again, I know that I can't expect much with my budget, but at least I want to get the best possible camcorder.

So, camera buffs, could anybody point me in the right direction and suggest some camcorders I should lookt at? I'd really appreciate it, since I'm kinda lost right now. Thank you!

[redsox_mark]

I'm not sure how prices for camcorders in Switzerland compares with the UK, but I assume we are looking at models around £300 or less here.

MiniDV (tape) will give you the best quality for the money in this price range.
Panasonic GS230 is a good one in that price range. Also consider the Canon MD101. It's much less than your budget, but it has an external mic input, which could be important for a filmmaker. Quality is good for the money. It has manual control of shutter, exposure, white balance, focus, etc.

Thank you for the answer, Mark.

The GS230 sounds promising, but I think I found one that's even better: Panasonic PV-GS180. What do you think? It's similar to the GS230, but it has a mic input. Unfortunately, both aren't great at low light. And they don't have optical image stabilisation (at least the GS180). But do I need that?
Now, if I were to expand the upper range of my budget, what else could you recommend? You know, a little (really only a little) more expensive, but reeeally worth its price?

EDIT: All camcordes have a socket for a tripod, right?

[redsox_mark]

Yes, the GS180 is similar to the 230, previous model with a mic socket.

Electronic image stabilisation is OK. The only problem with the 180 is that the image stabilisation doesn't work in widescreen mode.

If you can spend a bit more, the GS320... or if you can still find one the older GS300 (which has the mic input).

Mark... you rock. Thanks a lot!

So, what's the big difference between the 180 and the 320 (except for the mic input)? Because it boils down to these two choices, since the 300 is kinda expensive.

Oh, and they DO have sockets for a tripod, right? Because i couldn't find any info on that.

[redsox_mark]

Actually the GS230 also has an external mic input.

The differences between the 180/230 and the 320 are: The 320 has a better lens and optical vs. electronic image stabilisation. But it doesn't have a mic input.

[redsox_mark]

Oh, and yes, all camcorders will have a tripod mount.

Thanks again, Mark.

So, I made up my mind, and it boils down to GS230 or GS320 (I just found out that my store doesn't have the GS180). Mic and HP input are in the GS230 are sweet, but is the image quality much worse than that of the GS320? Because if they're similar, I'll stick with the GS230. Manual controls are pretty much the same, I guess.
Oh, and one more thing: I read somewhere that these camcorders automatically add gain when the light is too low. Can I override that?

[redsox_mark]

The GS320 is better, but it's not a difference which is easily noticable in my opinion.

And yes, you can use manual apature/gain and shutter speed manually.

[senu]

Originally Posted by awe

Oh, and one more thing: I read somewhere that these camcorders automatically add gain when the light is too low. Can I override that?

Yes

Thank you, senu and Mark!