I feel like a real dummy..

N

nodibs

New member
This is my first post...For a while now I've considered purcahsing the HMC 150...I've read all the lit. and user comments on this and other sites about the unit...mostly favorable...you all sound like professionals and you throw around verbiage that truthfully I don't have a clue what all that terminology and abbreviations stand for. I'm quite impressed..but, hey how about speaking english for us laymen. I simply need a quality solid state, point and shoot camera as the Panasonic ads claim this unit is. I'm going to do some commercials and tutorials. Just what kind of learning curve am I looking at? I'm hoping that I can use this unit right out of the box and get some quality material...True?
While I'm here..ie: Video editing programs. I don't think that I'll need all the bells and whisles on the CS4..what's a better option?
Thanks, Bill
 
Personally I dont think the 150 is a point and shoot camera. While the auto functions work well you will always get the best results IMO using manual focus and exposure and also learning what the scene file settings do and how to tweak them to get the picture you are going for etc.

The settings right out of the box will give you a decent looking video but there are tons of tweaks.

I'm not swaying you not to buy the 150 as its an excellent cam and i think once you learn your way around it you be very happy but if you dont have time or the desire to learn the camera then maybe its not the camera for you. I feel unless you are coming from a similar 3CCD prosumer camera the learning curve could be high depending on your experience.

The HDC-SD100 seems like a nice P&S style vidcam and will give you an excellent picture.
 
the hmc150 is a very fine camera. out of the box, point and shoot? sure, i guess. have you ever used a dvx100 or played around with semi-professional cameras? this unit has somewhat of a learning curve for newbies. can it produce some great images after a bit of practice. yes. how serious are you? out of the box, point and shoot sounds like a consumer cam to me. the v30 or hf10 will produce some great images out of the box for cheap. do you plan on audio? if so, there will be more of an investment aside from the cam. you need a tripod, batteries, cards, filter, mics. you're looking at more of an investment. if your game, then, yes, this is a great camera with a lot to offer.
 
KKeller said:
Any camera can result in great pictures from skilled hands and eyes.
Click to expand...

True, but some make it easier than others!

However, the disturbing thing from the OP is this:

"I simply need a quality solid state, point and shoot camera..."

Followed by:

"I'm going to do some commercials..."


Any camera worthy of actually doing commercials is NOT going to be point and shoot unless you intend to put crap on TV. If you want to shoot real work, then buy a good camera (like the 150) and spend the time required to learn to shoot it well.

Sorry, just tired of seeing local "Production companies" show up at local businesses to do commercials with Digibeta cameras, and no lights or mics in evidence.

Point and shoot /= "commercial"
 
I completely agree.

You cannot just buy a cam--any cam--and start shooting commercials without any prior knowledge of video production, sound, lighting, etc. I do see a lot of people these days who because technology has advanced so rapidly they believe that making a video is therefore a simple task.

It can be, IF you know what you are doing....

But if you're not even familiar with the basics, your best bet really would be to hire someone who is. Otherwise you are just headed for an excercise in frustration.
 
Its definitely not a point and shoot.

there's a lot to learn

but hey these boards are great for that
 
I'll add my two cents here:


I think you'll find that the 150 is a good point and shoot camera but as you learn more and see more I think you appreciate the manual controls much better than the full auto modes.


So I think I'll say that the 150 can be viewed as a good “starter” camera in that you can shoot without much input from yourself but as you see more you'll find pretty much all of the professional features it has can really work to make you a much better director of photography. All of this without the need to buy a cheap camera and then move up to more costly cameras as you learn.


Do it!!!!!:thumbup:


From an editor side, I just jumped ship from Premiere Pro to Sony Vegas Pro and I cannot tell you how happy I am right about now.
Vegas is faster, cheaper, less needy and I think easier to work with than Premiere Pro - all the while remaining a professional NLE.
And you don't need a freaking super computer to run it with AVCHD.
With CS3 I was trancoding but now I put my MTS files in the timeline and do what needs to be done.
Much faster rendering times too.

Download a free 30 day full copy and just play with it....:beer:
 
The Panasonic HMC-150 can be a good starting point; the camera can be set to auto-adjust for many things and the result will be OK. I say OK, but it could be better with manual adjustment. As you gain experience, you'll have a chance to learn how to manually adjust for a better video.

There are lots of things to learn; not that the information is rocket science, but without knowing some of the finer points, one could make the basic mistakes that make things look or sound bad. VideoMaker Magazine has all sorts of beginner tips and they even have classes around the country on how to shoot and edit video. Just do a search on "VideoMaker Magazine" to find them.

In many ways, think of video production like Golf. That is you learn by practicing. You can read all the books on video production and that's helpful, but you need to go out there with a camera and try it out to get the feel for how to do it. Long before you try and make any money shooting a video, try different things and see what works and what does not work. If you can take classes in video production, that will help guide you along.



Bob Diaz
 
I also agree that the HMC-150 is not a point and shoot camera at all. It might still be a good first camera though, although it will be a steep and rocky learning curve.

I really think the XH-A1 is a more novice user friendly camera because it has much more automatic control (although you shouldn't really use it).

You still have to master a NLE, that's another huge task, and IMO takes years, and that's not exaggerating. I am still learning new editing moves often, and that's after 4 years with Vegas.

And don't forget:

A good tripod - $1,000ish & up
At least one shotgun style condenser mic - $600ish
Wireless system - $650
Digital audio recorder - $500
Bag, boom poles, lights, etc.
 
Hidef1080 said:
From an editor side, I just jumped ship from Premiere Pro to Sony Vegas Pro and I cannot tell you how happy I am right about now.
Vegas is faster, cheaper, less needy and I think easier to work with than Premiere Pro - all the while remaining a professional NLE.
And you don't need a freaking super computer to run it with AVCHD.
With CS3 I was trancoding but now I put my MTS files in the timeline and do what needs to be done.
Much faster rendering times too.

Download a free 30 day full copy and just play with it....:beer:
Click to expand...


Agreed! Vegas 8.0 Pro is absolutely amazing! I like how Vegas allows you to LITERALLY drop in almost EVERY audio and video format without having to convert first. I feel that Vegas is slowly getting away from that "bastard step-child" of a NLE. I film lots of concerts and multi-camera shoots, and I LOVE that fact that the new Vegas has a "Live-Switcher" in it for editing 4+ cameras at once! Anywho...
 
After two months of solid HMC 152 use I can definitely say it is not a good point and shoot camera!! The AF & AWB are both slow, the AF drifts way too much to be useful and the AWB is totally useless. If you want a great point & shoot camera get a Canon (any model.)

The HMC is killer in totally manual mode - but to this day I'm still baffled by the inclusion of spotlight & backlight AE modes and those consumer black & white scene fades. PLEASE!!!!!!
 
Evro said:
The HMC is killer in totally manual mode - but to this day I'm still baffled by the inclusion of spotlight & backlight AE modes and those consumer black & white scene fades. PLEASE!!!!!!
Click to expand...

The EX1 has them too! I hadn't thought about those since shooting on my old VHS Camcorder!
 
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