Re: Will current HDV and HD cameras die soon?

Old comedy bit I think I remember seeing on Rowan and Martin's "Laugh-In":

"New Soviet pocket video camera a leap forward in portable technology"
"That still looks big, Dan."
"Well, you have to wear the special pants with it".
The visual part of the gag; a full-size tube camera and turret lens, stuffed into the special leg-length pocket of the pants like an enormous goiter.

That's what this thread reminds me of. People listening more to marketing propaganda than common sense. There's always something new coming around the corner that may or may not make your existing rig obsolete, but "obsolete" is a relative term. People are still buying up old Auricons and 'blads and whatever else from Ebay and using them. Did they not get the memo the cameras are too old?:-)

I would say the bigger problem is that the continued fracturing and mutation of formats and standards means that you just can't tell clearly when anything is past it's prime or not. Maybe you don't need to. The DSLR as a motion cam, well, heck, they've been using that at Aardman for Wallace and Gromit movies for years already. Of course, their actors hold still for long periods of time, but you get the idea. I understand this new one can shoot real time motion in a new way, but as has been mentioned "not all accessories included, some assembly required". Not everything barely out of the lab is ready for prime time, and unless it really offers a unique benefit for your specific needs, there's no reason to panic. The camera is just a tool to tell the story with: if it still does that to your satisfaction and you can make money with it, it's not obsolete.

You can sit paralyzed with fear of buying "the next MII" all you want, but it doesn't get any work done or stories told. Plan on making back the price of any camera purchase in the first year, whatever that takes, so that it pays for itself every time thereafter, and stop distressing yourself over might-have-beens and things to come.

This race is not a sprint; it's a marathon, and you have many laps to go yet.