Camera choice for filming in Africa

olsonbock623

olsonbock623

Active member
I am going to West Africa this summer with a church group to explore potential service opportunities in Ghana and Togo. I am going to capture footage that will likely be used for the web, DVD, and maybe small digital projection. I own a dvx100a that I was intending to take, but someone in the group suggested that the church organization buy an HV30 and bring that instead because it is smaller and lighter, less conspicuous, and has better overall image quality. Of course, I have a personal bias and emotional attachment to my own dvx100a, not to mention I am comfortable and confident with its manual controls. I have heard that the HV20/30 is not good for documentary work because it is a pain to override its automatic settings. How big of an issue is this? Would it be worth it to bring an HV30 for the reasons above, especially since it would not be my money invested in the camera? Or should I bring my own trusty dvx100a?
 
I had some problems with customs at the Nairobi airport a couple of years ago bringing my DVX in but nothing too bad. I think you want to make sure you don't look too much like a pro and you'll be fine with some prosumer stuff. My DVX was very reliable during a couple of trips to Africa with some pretty dusty conditions. Unfortunately I had a HV20 stop working on a recent trip to China so I'm fairly down on the Canons. However, the issue I had was with the tape drive which, of course, isn't a problem with the HV30. Although, it produces a nice picture when it did work. Finally, I did find the 10x lens on the DVX to be slightly short for wildlife if that's part of your trip.
 
I'd take your DVX because, as mentioned, you are going to capture the sound as best you can. Having spent many years in many parts of Africa I would say that what you hear is as important as what you see. I don't think the conspicuousness of the camera is really an issue. I shot with my DVX in parts of Johannesburg that were considered very sketchy but, at the end of the day, people were awesome- friendly, helpful and entirely willing to be on camera.

Good luck.
 
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