Good results with Cheap stuff?

[BlackCaptain]

Has anyone had good results with using a low-end consumer DV camera like in the 400-600 dollar area...I recently saw a panasonic 3 chipper for about 500, and I was wondering if anyone has had any luck with something that cheap?

[AJ]

You will be able to get 'good' results with almost any camera, the quality of your production depends more on your choice of shooting conditions, camera angle, lighting and production design.

You will need a camera that has manual exposure control and manual focusing controls, try to get one with a decent lens too.

If it's a small 'palmcorder' or similar, then try to shoot using a good quality tripod, and also make sure you disable any so-called 'steady shot' functions (they cause you to shoot at a lower resolution).

Also make certain that you are using a good sound set-up, it is almost never a good idea to utilise any kind of on-board microphone, you need to have a seperate sound operator with a portable mixer. Otherwise you will be spending a great deal of time in the foley room

So, basically, a cheap camera might not have all the fancy features of a prosumer model, but it'll have more than adequate picture quality if you shoot carefully.

Good luck with your shoot

[BlackCaptain]

Thanks for the feedback...I have been having quite a hard time trying to find a consumer camera that has manual anything, but I am still looking...I might just decide to wait it out and go prosumer...we'll see. Anyways, thanks.