Videomaker – Learn video production and editing, camera reviews › Forums › Cameras and Camcorders › Consumer Camcorders › What Camera Should I Get? › John, you get what you pay
maxheadspaceJohn, you get what you pay for, but I understand budget constraints all too well. My recommendation is to look at used HDV cameras. Most of what’s coming out now in the under-$1000 bracket are MPG4/H264 type. Highly compressed video. HDV uses MPG2, which is not as compressed. My suggestion is a Sony A1 camera (A1U in the USA). You can still buy then new, last time I looked, but they were in the$2000 range.You should be able to geta used one under $1000 if you shop well. It has external shotgun mic, great white-balance control, and a rich selection of image enhancements built in. I have a pair of them that I use togenerate 3D video. Only one imaging chip, but picture quality is very good. Good luck!
Max
