HD Documentary Camcorder Suggestion for AT Hike
by Kelvin Lucas
on
Nov 7, 2009 at 3:02:37 am
Hi, I'm Kelvin. I am planning on thru hiking the Appalachian Trail and am planning on doing a documentary on it. I was wondering what suggestions there were on an HD documentary camcorder that can work well both in low light and outdoor lighting. I would also like it to get good sound if possible. It would of course need to be durable as well. Thanks!
Re: HD Documentary Camcorder Suggestion for AT Hike by grinner hester on Nov 7, 2009 at 2:24:08 pm
You can grab an FX1 for as litle as a couple of grand now. I can't tell ya how durable this camera is. While I've had to replace the lens, I have not managed to kill it. It remains my favorite camera for stuff like this.
Re: HD Documentary Camcorder Suggestion for AT Hike by Gord Stephen on Nov 10, 2009 at 7:08:01 am
Hi Kelvin,
Speaking from a lower budget perspective, I've shot a few backpacking/paddling trip docs with consumer cameras, most recently the HV20/30. They worked alright - there wasn't much low-light shooting happening though. The HDV tape archiving was useful.
Right now, my personal camera of choice for that kind of project would be the Canon 7D - fairly small and light, actual manual control (as opposed to a consumer cam), you don't need to carry another still camera as well, and it has better weatherproofing than your average video camera too. It'll do better low-light than a 1/3" sensor video camera too.
For sound, you'll want to plug in an external microphone - I'd recommend a Rode VideoMic for your purposes, but I also know that Seinheiser makes a fairly small shotgun which might take up less room in your pack. Either way, you'll want a windscreen for it too.
