Am I an idiot to buy a canon hf s20?

G

gutterball321

Well-known member
i currently have a dvx100b and I am looking to get something HD. I was planning on getting a GH2 or even a GH1 with the better kit lens, but I am starting to think I would be better off with just a smaller HD camcorder.

about 80% of my filming is just comedy sketches for youtube. 10% is for sports videos and 10% is interviews/web commercials i do for freelance work. I also film weddings every once in a while. Since i move the camera around a lot and usually have no crew, i feel like getting a dslr and a separate audio recorder will be a huge pain in the butt both setting up and in editing.

Does it sound like the HF s20 would be better for me? is the GH1/2 that much better quality? I feel like i am choosing a home video camera over professional gear and that I might regret this later. Is there anything about the HF s20 I would need to know before buying?

I dont know much about xlr adapters... Would something like this:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ...XA_2T_DXA_2T_Universal_Compact_Camcorder.html
work with the HF s20? After plugging this in would it work just like my dvx xlr inputs?
 
Well, Both the HF s20 and the GH1/2 will have issues that you'd need to work around. Both can produce nice images, but both will be more challenging for sound input than your DVX, but that Beachtek should work fine. For the GH1/2 you'll need something like the Zoom H4n to record audio.

Personally I'm starting to drool over the Canon xf100, little more cash, but great codec and built in audio. I've used the HV20 for years with a Beachtek and a 7D rig with a XLRs. I'm finding I don't need shallow DOF for most of what I do, and that having a total package is ideal.
 
a JuicedLink CX211 will produce better audio with the HF S20 for the same price as that beachtek
 
I second Goetzpd's recommendation. That new sensor looks very impressive.

I still have and use a pair of Canon HF100's that do "fair" in night street scenes where there is usually enough illumination to work with (if you know what you're doing with available light), but the link he gives is tempting me to sell them off and get one of the new Vixia line with the new sensor.

For most video work I now use Canon DSLRs with an EF 24mm f2.8, and both the EF 28mm f1.8 and EF 50mm f1.8 lenses, but there are some projects where I have to work by myself sometimes both operating the camera and getting out in front of it. A camcorder with good autofocus and simple rapid handling is much more convenient in these settings. And in many cases even audio can get simpler using an external mic and extension cord to get it in closer to speaking talent.

So you might consider something like that HF M400 for now and as you can look at adding a DSLR to your gear.
 
Hey. I shot the below faux trailer with the Canon HFS20. It went on sale at futureshop and I decided it was too good a deal to pass up. My plan is use it for the time being to shoot movies since it has 24p, then switch it over to be the behind the scenes cam once I get a more cinematic camera.

Here are some thoughts on my first experience with it:

Using it in auto mode, u can pretty much just go ahead and shoot. And with 32gb built in you can shoot forever (*except for needing batteries which I'll discuss later ). The built in stability comes in handy as it shakes so easily because it's so light and small. I also bought the Cowboy Studio Shoulder Support which worked great with it. Focus can be an issue. It's easiest to use the touch screen, but if zoomed in, anytime the camera moves the focus can lose itself.

It looks quite nice in good lighting. Even ok lighting. Bad lighting or low light and it looks as crappy as any camera. It also didn't seem to like the Fluorescent lighting in my kitchen. No matter what I tried it looked bad.

We ADR'd most of the film. That was the plan going in, but I had also had thoughts of using this cam to make a micro budget web series. Haven't tried the beachtek or Rode mics yet, but for a pro sounding film it may be wise to go separate audio. We left source audio in 2 of the scenes. 1 being the kitchen the other the interrogation scene. The kitchen sounds poor, the interrogation pretty good.

The zoom is quite good, and covers a fair distance... but it isn't very wide angle on the other end. There were many times I had to find other ways to shoot than I'd imagined just because I couldn't get the frame I wanted.

The BIGGEST onion in the ointment is the battery. It comes with a tiny little battery that lasts max 2hrs. You may be able to buy bigger batteries, but I went to futureshop and all they sold were the same small batteries. 2 batteries later and the deal I got on the camera had lost it's luster. Now here's the really s**tty part: The batteries do not come with a wall charger. You need to have a battery on the camera and the camera plugged into a wall in order to charge it. *maybe you can buy larger batteries with their own chargers at a specialty store, but I couldn't at a major electronics store. So whenever we'd have down time between shots, I'd plug it into the wall to try and make sure we never ran out of power.

I'd suggest buying it from a place like Futureshop or Best Buy where you have a 14 day window to return it. Buy it put it through it's paces then return if it isn't up to snuff.

 
I don't know about the new Canon sensor....other than the fact it's designed just for video (not high mp stills), which is a good thing. However....I was just shooting with my HFS 200 indoors with just normal lights and gain limited to 7db....and the picture is great. I'm blown away by this thing every single time I shoot with it. Don't judge these cameras by "test" footage - most of the clips don't do justice to what you actually get, esp. if you adjust and experiment and test your settings/wb/color.
At the prices the old Vixia line is selling for, trust me...you can't go wrong. Even if you end up with something more expensive down the line, the HFS series will make great B cams.
As far as the Sony's backlit CMOS....a lot of the guys at DV info swear by the high end consumer Sony's for clean low light shooting.
 
I second that the Canons are great cameras. You will not have all the controls on the cam that the dvx has, but if you know how to use it, and light a scene half way decent, you will get a much better image than with the dvx. Not saying the DVX is a slouch, it's not, and it too can produce amazing images. Just not as amazing as the Canon hd cams. I still use my hv30 from time to time, Although it's primarily my deck. I still like to shoot with it. There's something about the way it renders blacks that appeals to my eyes.

You may want to condsider selling the dvx, and adding the scratch to your savings, then step up to a used xha1, they can be had for around 2k. their a fantastic camera.

Now as far as Sony goes, I have always disliked sony until the ex1, ex3, f3, and now the fs100, which im buying as soon as they take the preorders. I feel like that camera was built for me. As far as their consumer cams go, I have never even looked at them, nor would I want to. Canon will get my money when it comes to consumer throw away cams.

The canon camcorders also resolve more resolution than the dslr's, they don't have the aliasing, and moire issues anywhere near as bad as the dslr's do. so thats something to consider to. you will not have the 12 minute limit the canon dslr's have either, which is a pain in the ass. The Gh2, doesn't have that issue. Now that I think about it, the only dslr, remotly close to a camcorder is the gh2. The only thing that bothers me about it is the size, their very small if you have a big hand. Only if they had a battery grip.
 
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