First time camcorder buyer

[bluegolf]

Hi guys
I am getting married early next year and i would like to get a camcorder to film some of the day and the honeymoon and probably various other events after that.

I have never owned a camcorder before, having never felt the need for one, but now i have a good reason i feel its a good time to go for one. I know very little about camcorders but having several digital cameras i have some basic knowledge.

My budget would be around £300, maybe a little higher if the right one costs a little more, its needs to be fairly compact and light, have a hard drive or memory card facility and most inmportantly give a good image quality. Level of zoom doesnt bother me too much as usually the higher the zoom, the worse the image, although aesthetics are not the most important thing i dont want a horrible ugly camcorder, something svelt and subtle would be good. HD is not the most important thing to me as i dont have a HD tv as yet, that will change and i dont want a camcorder that is obsolete by the end of the year.

Any help and recommendations would be great as i know nothing

Thanks in advance

[chrishull3]

Originally Posted by bluegolf

Hi guys
I am getting married early next year and i would like to get a camcorder to film some of the day and the honeymoon and probably various other events after that.

I have never owned a camcorder before, having never felt the need for one, but now i have a good reason i feel its a good time to go for one. I know very little about camcorders but having several digital cameras i have some basic knowledge.

My budget would be around £300, maybe a little higher if the right one costs a little more, its needs to be fairly compact and light, have a hard drive or memory card facility and most inmportantly give a good image quality. Level of zoom doesnt bother me too much as usually the higher the zoom, the worse the image, although aesthetics are not the most important thing i dont want a horrible ugly camcorder, something svelt and subtle would be good. HD is not the most important thing to me as i dont have a HD tv as yet, that will change and i dont want a camcorder that is obsolete by the end of the year.

Any help and recommendations would be great as i know nothing

Thanks in advance

you will regret not getting a hi def in years to come and some even canons are not much above your budget.ie canon fh10 399£

[rhubarbe]

I think that one of those HDC-SD5 that Amazon are selling for £350 inc free delivery would fit the bill nicely.

[mmace]

optical zoom does not affect image quality, digital zoom does

[herbs]

Empire direct are doing the canon hg10 for £399 if you can stretch that far.
It has some good reviews and has a 40GB HDD to record to.

[redsox_mark]

Originally Posted by mmace

optical zoom does not affect image quality, digital zoom does

True, but relating to the comment "Level of zoom doesnt bother me too much as usually the higher the zoom, the worse the image", generally the only camcorders with very high optical zooms (30x etc) are budget ones with small sensors... so it is wise to not put high optical zoom as a requirement, as the camcorders it limits you too will impact quality.

[redsox_mark]

And both the Panny HDC-SD5 (Amazon) for £350 or the Canon HG10 at £399 (Empire Direct) are good choices.