I want to get into filming. Advice wanted for a noob.

MN_Nice

MN_Nice

Active member
Hey guys, so here's the situation.

I've been filming with my Flip HD a lot lately and I've pretty much decided it's what I want to do after high school. I'm going to be a junior this upcoming year and I've already taken two classes that deal with filming (Multimedia Applications and Advanced Multimedia Applications). I use Windows Movie Maker currently (I have a Dell, so probably no FinalCut) and I've made two short edits this summer. Check them out in my sig. Rate, comment, criticize, whatever, I want it!

I was just wondering if you guys recommend taking certain classes in school, getting a better camera, using different effects/techniques/etc., whatever. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

P.s. Sorry if theres a thread like this or even a complete repost.
 
see the sticky, answer it, and put it back in here. I know its for camera buying but it will still be helpful
 
Will do.

1) What is your budget? How much money can you spend right away, and do you think you can get more money to invest in the future?

Not too much. I'd definately work next summer and save up for one.

2) What experience do you already have with cameras? Have you ever even used one before? Have you helped your friend out with his camera? Have you owned your own?

Flip HD and a common camcorder in class. I own my Flip HD

2) What gear, if any, do you currently have? (tripod, old camera lenses, mics, etc)

No gear what so ever.

4) What are you planning to shoot and how do you want to use your camera? Are you going to use this with the sole purpose of shooting skiing? or do you think you might try other stuff as well (movies, documentaries, short films, etc)

So far anything would interest me. I would like to stick to filming skiing.

5) Do you want a camera that you can hand to your friends, that could or could not have film experience, and let them shoot you? or will you be doing all the filming?

I'd like to think I'd be filming most of the time, but it would be nice having me be shot once in a while

6) When filming skiing, how do you tend to shoot? (follow cams, leave it on record on a tripod and hike, film from a tripod, etc)

Follow cams, Still shots, and I'd love to tripod if I had one

7) What computer do you currently have/use to edit (if not currently editing, what would you most likely use)? If you can provide specifics, such as hard drive space, RAM, processor size, that would be great.

Dell Inspiron. Not sure of the specifics.

7) What program do you currently edit on? How familiar are you with it (1- just learning; 10- I can make tutorials and know the keyboard layout)

Windows Movie Maker - 7

There you go 1337!
 
Gotcha. Thanks for your help! I'm guessing a tutorial online would help a ton with working with this?
 
yeah tutorials are good and I'm very familiar with Vegas aswell, so if you have any questions just pm me.

If you're wanting to look into filming as a career (not sure if that's what you were implying), I would recommend getting a better camera for sure. Maybe a low level "prosumer" camera like these:

Canon XH-A1: http://www.usa.canon.com/app/html/HDV/XHA1/index.shtml

Panasonic AG-HMC150:

http://catalog2.panasonic.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ModelDetail?displayTab=O&storeId=11201&catalogId=13051&itemId=274232&catGroupId=112502&surfModel=AG-HMC150

There are lots of cameras in this range, those are just the two of the top of my head.
 
if yur looking for a camera i have an hv-20 in almost perfect condition that i am willing to sell. also i have a wide angle and 3xzoom lens with it. pm me if interested.
 
Yeah, that's pretty much what I was implying.

When I downloaded Vegas 9 crack, everything works except when I try to register it, the authentication code doesn't work. So now I'm stuck with this program sitting on my desktop. Help?

And so saving up for a nice camera would definately help? Is it pretty much needed for college classes too?
 
i would suggest premiere over vegas, i use premiere, friend uses vegas, seems like simple things are a lot more difficult with vegas

and look into hdslrs like the t2i
 
im not too sure, first off you will have to invest a lot of money,( lens,body,tripod,steadycam ), and it takes a lot of time to learn all about the camera, how to use it correctly. just my opinon
 
I think I'd buy the camera first, get the hang of it and in the mean time save up for some of that gear instead of buying it all at once.
 
that would be a good idea.. although to take decent shots, you may need to buy a tripod, and a better lens then just the stock, but it is not essential.
 
NO. No offense dood, but after reading about your experience you do not want a DSLR. Stick with something simpler that you can learn on without getting overwhelmed. Remember, you just learning, you don't have to go pro (pun, get it?) right off the bat.

(BTW if you're serious, don't get a GoPro. Kthxbai).

Anyway, get something thats good to learn on. If you're on a tight budget, pick up a used Hv20/30/40. Unfortunately, your Flip camera is not much to learn on, and you need to upgrade. Get a real camera and learn how to use it. Learn about white balance, shot composition and movement, colors and correcting, stabilization, focus, zooms, etc. Learn how to make your shots effective.

Find a way to steal an editing program. Its not too hard, and its way better than WMM. I was a movie maker kid for 3 years, it sucked.

Good luck dood. There's tons of threads in this forum about pretty much the same thing, so do some research on your own too. Be ready to invest TONS of money - filming is expensive. There are so many toys out there to buy, so many upgrades, so many gadgets and accessories - you could easily spend away a fortune. For the time being, you'll have to be frugal, but just know that it will eat at your income if you're serious.

Just my 2 cents. Be easy.
 
Thanks a ton dude! I'm definately ok with spending some money on this in the future. I love filming and can see a future in it for me.

Anything else you want to add in? Just get a nice, affordable camera and film a lot and get the hang of techniques and different aspects of it?
 
this is good. hdslrs are very confusing if you have limited filming expirence. get a hv30, good camera, low price and learn how to use it well. then when you think you know you can handle a hdslr, get one.
best of luck
 
Hey guys, whenever I try to look up a place to purchase a HV20, nothing comes up. Will I need to buy a used one or a refurbished one from a store?
 
i would try to get a refurbished one, if you do not want to spend the extra money on a new one. that way you will save money and you can but tripods, fisheyes, or whatever else you may want.

 
^ if you're interested in looking into hv20/30 you can find lightly used ones on CL for around 500 some time you can find em for 400. Get a tripod, super important...what you said about school film courses, my schools pretty wack and doesnt have any majors related to film or video productions, but the courses they do have, they have cameras you can use, my school loves wasting money on sony but thats just personal opinion

if youre on a budget make a dolly and steadycam on your own, they don't turn out professional levels of course but still come out legit and only cost at most 30 bucks each

also, search sony vegas 7

theres a thread from a while ago that has a link for vegas 7, tried it out and it worked perfectly
 
Yeah I think I've pretty much taken the only two classes that deal with filming in my school already, but i'm not sure. I can still take photography but thats all I can think of.
 
The HV20/30 is not in production anymore. You can't buy it new. You can find used ones around, though. If you want to buy new, you have to get the HV40.

If you want to go tapeless, the HF S200 is a decent offering from Canon; seems pretty easy to use while still maintaining some impressive characteristics, like 24p framerate, etc. Maybe check this out.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/671660-REG/Canon_4318B001_VIXIA_HF_S200_Flash.html

(IDK if this will link from my new laptop - sorry if it doesn't).

If you have any more questions, whether they be about cameras or accessories or editing, feel free to PM me - its summer time and I'm bored ;)
 
I vote for the hv20/30/40. Don't get a DSLR if you're just starting. No way. Another camera to look at is the Panny TM700. But you will need a pretty fast computer for it. Get one of the cheaper Vegas programs, unless you can find a working torrent. (If you do, hook me up with the link)
 
I think I will stick to the HF S200 that he mentioned earlier since the HV's are out of production and since the TM700 is more expensive. This is just my first one.
 
How much can you get the hfs200 for? I got my tm700 for 750. If you have any questions on it just ask!
 
I looked online and the HF S200 was 763. Where'd you find it that cheap? I googled it and it was around a grand.
 
keep on checking criagslist in your area for a good deal on a hd camera, or something like a dvx. thats what i am doing, and i found a dvx package for a killer price, although it is a lot of money, so i am looking at smaller hd cameras. just keep your options open, look for good deals and soon you will find one.
 
They made the HV40 this year. If you don't have a quadcore computer you're going to have a hard time editing AVCHD footage. The HV doesn't require as fast as a computer. It also has no touch screen (which imo is a huge advantage) and a viewfinder, which is very handy in bright situations. Now the TM700, you can get for $800 from bhphotovideo.com, a very reliable site. I would greatly consider this camera. The two big things are the 1080/60p recording, and the manual multi-function ring that controls zoom. focus, aperture, etc. It also has a pullout viewfinder. So I still say either an HV40 or a TM700 depending whether you have a fast computer or not
 
If you think you're gunna upgrade after you get used to the new cam go for a GL2. You can find them used for 500-600 and they have a simmilar weight/shape/size as a more expensive cam.

Or you could be cool and get a super 8mm.
 
btw, super 8s run from like 40 into the hundreds. Plus production companies might find the ability to use a camera that takes real rilm an asset. Who knows?
 
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