Just bought a HVX200, Now what do I buy!?!

J

jackmfs

Member
Okay so I'll be honest here, I am a college student on a strict budget (not going to make anymore excuses here!) I somehow managed to get together enough funds for an HVX and I have about $1700 left to spend, but I have no clue what I should buy or what's more important to buy first. PS. I got a HVX without the 16gb P2 card btw.

I know I need a 35mm adaptor with a flipping mechanism, a tripod, recording media (p2 card), matte box, lighting, sound equipment, follow focus ... and probably leaving out some more stuff but as I said.. I've only got 1700 to spend..

What are the most important HVX acessories and what should I focus on purchasing first and foremost?

thanks for the advice,

a newbie
 
Congrats on the HVX but $1700 won't get you too far.

You need a tripod, UV filter and a p2 card (8GB might do till you get some more money). Might be able to get a rode NTG2 shotgun mic in there too.

You don't need a 35mm adaptor, follow focus, matte box etc.

Whatever you do, don't spread yourself thin and lend up buying cheap crap, you'll regret it for sure.
 
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if you only have $1700 left, you absolutely do NOT need a 35mm adapter. when you take into consideration the adapter itself, a follow focus and lenses, you are looking at AT LEAST $3000. and if youre a student you dont NEED it anyway. there is plenty to learn with just the camera ; )

what you do NEED is:
- a decent tripod. theres $500 there at very LEAST
- 2, 8 gig cards. living on one card is a PAIN. and you can find 8gigs on ebay for $300 or so each
- a decent mic. id try the sure vp88 or a lower end senheiser. or the rode mentioned above.
 
I think a better question would be "What would I like to do with my investment?" You probably just dropped 5 grand on a camera that could've bought a car, tuition, or other living expenses. Don't be so quick to spend even more money on things that could be rented or borrowed. The video/film market always wants to sell you something else, it never stops.

Ok. I didn't mean to get preachy I just think people focus too much on equipment rather than producing their ideas or stories sometimes.

Anyway, I would definitely invest in a good tripod and something sturdy to store your gear in. Oh, congrats on getting your HVX!!
 
Spend a good chunk of that on a tripod now and I promise you will not regret it. I am thinking in the $1K+ range will get you something decent. I would then get a UV filter and as much P2 as you can afford after the other stuff.

You absolutely do not need a 35mm system. That should come last IMO, like dead last.
 
Benefit from others' wisdom...

Benefit from others' wisdom...

like most say, get a good tripod and UV filter first!!! Protect the camera and the glass. Don't skimp on the pod; make sure it's something that will serve you long and well, i.e. it will be able to handle the weight of accessories you'll likely buy over the coming few years.

Congrats, and best of luck.

x
 
Just bought a HVX200, Now what do I buy!?!
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Maybe some groceries for dinner? How about a new t-shirt, try kmart for a good deal. Its spring, maybe you need some new shorts? Not Khaki this season - its dead.

Sorry bad joke. BUY NOTHING until you need it, then check if you can rent or borrow. If you dont have a tripod, well you do need it now. If you arent shooting any HD gigs right now, shoot SD on tape.
 
thanks for all the replies and advice!!

I decided to secure a good tripod and save the rest of the cash for renting equipment.

I am stuck on the next purchase though when i do get the cash, specifically what would be most beneficial to me at this point, either HD recording capabilities (buying a p2 card) or investing in a 35mm adaptor and just shooting in SD right now..

what do you guys think? HD w/o 35mm or SD w/ 35mm?
 
Yeah screw the adapter for now because you are going to need a tripod, lav mics and some lights to make money with your camera in the short term scheme of things.
 
You do not really need a $1000.00 tripod for sure with the amount you have on hand now. There are plenty good ones for the HVX 200 out there for much less than that. Just do some research. Lights, mike, filter and of course at least one 16g P2 card you do need. In the meantime do some filming with tape, it still looks pretty cool if you use the squeeze mode for 16:9 ratio and 24p. Good luck.
 
But if he spends a lot now on a good tripod, he won't have to piss his time away with some crappy bogan and then buy something nice later. Not getting a solid tripod is my biggest regret with regards to equipment purchases.
 
Sure, buy a $1000.00 tripod, some lights, a mike, filters and a few more items and keep shooting tape for a while until you get $800 for the card much later. That is a nice way to start enjoying the HVX 200 HD
capabilities
 Experience tells me that sometimes you end up at some moment in life with only $1700.00 in your pocket and lots of equipment that you may want to buy. Unfortunately, when you add up the tab for that equipment it ends up way more than what you have. Then you set priorities, get some legs at a decent price that will work with your camera now and more importantly buy the stuff that will put image and sound inside that wonderful new camera, ie. a P2 card, lights , mike and filters. Heck, if you are strong enough you can even shoot hand held if you need to.
When I bought my HVX 200 I used an old tripod I had until I found and bought one I liked and worked for me for much less than a grand and I am mightily happy with it. I also did plenty of handheld stuff and I am not even that strong.
Best of luck with your great new camera jackmfs, it makes wonderful images.
 
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Lots of good advice here. I would add that, in many medium to larger towns, you can rent P2 cards very inexpensively. So you can experiment or you can make money on a paying job and not have it all sunk into a very expensive P2 card until your business can support it.

As others have noted, the camera makes beautiful standard def images on tape, think of it as a DVX100 with a sharper, but less sensitive, lens.
 
I do love how people crap on Bogens. I love my 3066.. and I got it used for 500. I hate the cinema style overpriced majority of tripods I've seen and used. The Sachlers and others. I just want something simple and study and fluid and that's it. Got to have a ball mount and be able to carry a tank and I"m good... A 1000 or 1500 dollar tripod isn't going to do all that much more for you.. But I'd advise against the small 501s and such.. just to flimsy all in all. get the industrial Bogens or others.


Good ideas one and all. I personally would say to get 2x4 gig cards. Should be able to get them both for 500. Will allow you to shoot continuously if you have a laptop and not cost too much.


Lav mike is awesome idea. Maybe an audio technical 835ST stereo mike. Great all around mike and it's stereo M/S so you can do the imagining in post....


Filters are a great idea. I'd get a polorizer as well. Maybe another ND. Certainly a UV for protection.

In addition... Tons of batteries. I got some great ones of Ebay for 25 bucks each and the chargers are only 15.. So I'd say to spend maybe 200 bucks and get a ton of batteries and a few extra chargers.

Monopods are great and cheap. Maybe the spiderbrace. Decent headphones. Set of inexpensive photofloods by Smith Victor. ..
 
We've got a Libec LS-38 - it's a decent well made tripod for the money. The bells and whistles of the big guys aren't there but its got all the important stuff. Levelling head, adjustable balance plate, quick release leg locks and a good spreader. The fluid action is factory set but works well with an HVX.

Don't forget an extra battery or two. I would suggest that 2 batteries is the minimum you need. I'd also concur on getting a couple of P2 cards. Two 8GB ones will get you started. For offloading get yourself a cheap PC laptop with PCMCIA slot or you can use an external firewire drive to connect directly to the camera if you can wait between card changes.

Sound gear can cost a fortune so I'd suggest renting this stuff to start with until you find out what you are likely to use most of the time. The Audio Technica AT 897 is a good entry level shotgun mic that won't cost you a fortune. However you'll need a proper suspension cradle and a blimp or deadcat for it which will push the cost up.

Most importantly, get out there and start shooting. That way you'll soon find out what you really need.

Good luck and enjoy your HVX,

Matt
 
William_Robinette said:
But if he spends a lot now on a good tripod, he won't have to piss his time away with some crappy bogan and then buy something nice later. Not getting a solid tripod is my biggest regret with regards to equipment purchases.
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whats wrong with bogen? i have one and it does the job a tripod is supposed to do
 
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