Best Video Camera

[Wayne]

What is the best video camera to buy for quick and easy editing. Quick and easy are the key words. I need something that is compatible with all of the main editing software, that won't give me any problems.

[milepost13]

most cameras are going to fall into that category. I'd suggest a "mini dv" camera made by one of the big names, Canon or Sony.

Nate

[travisvwright]

Unless you are trying to do the editing on the camera, I think you are actually looking for the easiest software. In which case most any camera is going to work to get you the video, then you'll need software for producing.

[Nathan Hamblin]

My church just bought the Panasonic HVX200. It records in P2(DvcproHD) and is brilliant, 24p. Premiere Pro CS4 loves it. Only problem being P2 packages are so expensive so we bought a Firestore, which is a HDD that attaches to the HVX.
we also just bought the Canon 7d, brilliant! A bit pricey though.
The Panasonic HMC150 is also really nice, I've been using it alot lately, only about $3,000. AVCHD, really small file size, incredible quality.

Although I wouldn't go DV tape, for the reason of being "quick & easy", going solid state saves you all of that capture time.

But really "quick & easy" depends on your software, your experience, and your computer.
What are you editing with (Computer/software)?

[amprodirect]

The Panasonic image is beautiful, no doubt. The P2 cards and readers are a bit pricey. I recently purchased a field kit using the JVC HM700 and 100 models. They shoot on High Capacity SD cards and use a $10 card reader, furthermore, they can record in native Final Cut Studio format. From what I can tell, this is absolutely the easiest way to getting from shooting to an end product.

[jessiethompson]

well what is your price range? are you making movies? because, some of the cheap cameras do just as well at the bigger movie cameras. i had to use a cheap camera for a production and it was not as bad as i thought it would be. cheap dose not always mean bad or crap. just research the product well, read reviews and ask filmmakers that have used it. i would love to get a 3,000 dollar camera but i just don't have the money right now. its all up to you in the end.

[Rocky Presley]

I would look into DSLR unless you are willing to spend over $6k. Canon 5d and 7d are great cameras that record HD and have amazing depth of field. The JVC HM700 is a good camera. We have 3, but have found that for field shooting, the Canon is a much easier instrument to wrangle. Editing is as easy as transferring files into your editing platform. Our next step is the Panasonic AF-100. I am very excited about this camera because it gives us the narrow depth of field and similar handling of a DSLR and the functionality of a traditional camcorder. We shoot allot of music videos, and it should shine in that scenario.