SLR vs HD Camcorder

[Vafinator]

so i'm in the market for a HD camera and housing...looking to spend $4000 max
i was thinking of the Sony HDR-XR550v HD camcorder...a friend of mine also recommended the Canon Eos D7...now i am going to be using this setup mainly for VIDEOS...if u have any comments or suggestions on these 2 options that would b great...much appreciated !!

 

[Tienuts]

I've used both.

I took the XR550 in a Light & Motion Bluefin housing to Cayman and got some great footage with it. Its a nice package if you can afford it. You get lots of recording time on the 550, and a super easy, one touch white balance on the Light & Motion housings. The problem is the Bluefin housing is expensive, and the Fathom 90 lens, which I consider essential when shooting, is just as expensive

I've just purchased a Canon 7d in a Nauticam housing. The 7d does outstanding video, and shoots 1080 at 30fps. The best part of this setup is interchangeable lenses - something you can't get on a consumer/recreational level camcorder. That's worth it's weight in gold right there. The Nauticam housing is super ergonomic, and easy to use.

The downside of the 7d - the white balance process is a bit more cumbersome, and is certainly not 'one touch.' The other major drawback, if you're using if for video is the memory cards - you need to use a super fast one. Also, if you record too much, the card will heat up, and a little thermostat icon will appear in the LCD. The card does physically get hot.

Overall IMO, the 7d is the way to go. You get the best of both worlds with HD video and dSLR. The ability to change lenses puts the 7d over the top. Film students are buying these en-mass for their projects, and the Canon 5d mk II was used in the filming of the TV show House, and the movie Iron Man II.

 

[Larry C]

Interesting article on this in the latest issue of Dive Alert magazine (DAN) written by Howard Hall.

 

[orm]

Interesting article on this in the latest issue of Dive Alert magazine (DAN) written by Howard Hall.

Do you have a link?

 

[Larry C]

Alert Diver Online

The article is "Convergent evolution" by Howard Hall. You'll have to create a user ID to access it online.

 

[muzikbiz22]

I agree with the DSLR option. If it's good enough to shoot "House" and the new "Hawaii Five-O", it's probably good enough for the rest of us ! Here is an inteersting little docu-clip discussing both Sony & Canon, click here

 

[ronscuba]

I agree with the DSLR option. If it's good enough to shoot "House" and the new "Hawaii Five-O", it's probably good enough for the rest of us ! Here is an inteersting little docu-clip discussing both Sony & Canon, click here

I have 2 DSLR's and they are great to shoot topside video, especially when I can plan my shot, get the camera manual adjustments perfectly set and re-do the shot if I don't get it right the 1st time.

House/Hawaii Five-O Director: cameraman you ready ? actors wait, cameraman ready ?..... action role camera. CUT, stop camera. reshoot...... repeat as necessary.

Apply that to underwater. The DSLR can shoot great UW video, but it will also miss a lot of shots a camcorder can easily capture.

 

[muzikbiz22]

I have 2 DSLR's and they are great to shoot topside video, especially when I can plan my shot, get the camera manual adjustments perfectly set and re-do the shot if I don't get it right the 1st time.

House/Hawaii Five-O Director: cameraman you ready ? actors wait, cameraman ready ?..... action role camera. CUT, stop camera. reshoot...... repeat as necessary.

Apply that to underwater. The DSLR can shoot great UW video, but it will also miss a lot of shots a camcorder can easily capture.

Very good point(s) ! Nice videos, by the way

 

[orm]

I have 2 DSLR's and they are great to shoot topside video, especially when I can plan my shot, get the camera manual adjustments perfectly set and re-do the shot if I don't get it right the 1st time.

House/Hawaii Five-O Director: cameraman you ready ? actors wait, cameraman ready ?..... action role camera. CUT, stop camera. reshoot...... repeat as necessary.

Apply that to underwater. The DSLR can shoot great UW video, but it will also miss a lot of shots a camcorder can easily capture.

There's no reason why this should be the case, especially if you use Auto ISO.


I work as a videographer and am looking at moving over to HDSLR for these reasons:

Ability to shoot (great) stills.
Un-equalled (for the price) Image quality
Huge dynamic range
Small form factor


The things I'm gonna have to live with:
No auto focus (sort of negated if you use a super wide)
You can't really pull the zoom while filming
Smooth auto features (which isn't always the best approach)


I figured that the minuses are functional to some degree but the positives are all about image quality, which when it's all done and up is what you're gonna get judged on. I already have a 5d2, so the cost of housing this is a fraction of what a really good HD cam would cost with housing that would get anywhere near touching the IQ of this camera. And then it's the size of a small car.

 

[ronscuba]

There's no reason why this should be the case, especially if you use Auto ISO.


I work as a videographer and am looking at moving over to HDSLR for these reasons:

Ability to shoot (great) stills.
Un-equalled (for the price) Image quality
Huge dynamic range
Small form factor


The things I'm gonna have to live with:
No auto focus (sort of negated if you use a super wide)
You can't really pull the zoom while filming
Smooth auto features (which isn't always the best approach)
......

To each his own. I respect your opinion. The items you list as having to live with, can end up in lost video footage. That is my main negative against DSLR for UW video use. As a vacation diver, my UW video opportunities are limited. I would rather have a quick easy to use system that maximizes my opportunity to capture quality footage.

I noticed you live in Riviera Maya. If I were in your shoes and had the opportunity to dive almost everyday, a DSLR for video makes sense.

I agree with you that in the end it's the quality of your video footage that matters.