C300: Buy a used C300 or New C100 MK II???

F

fcmcreative

Member
Some advice on what to do...

So now that the new Canon C300 MK II is on the market, brand new C300's are selling
at B&H for $6,500 or Dual Pixel models at $7,000.

Used C300's are going for even less. The New C100 MK II is $5,500.

Given that this is about the same price as a used C300, what are the pros and cons?

I've already owned a C300 and of course really loved it. But what is the smartest choice based
on the two cameras since I could build a multi camera system with a great discount?

Thanks for your input!
 
In simplest terms if you shoot for yourself the C100II will give you more creative options with 60p. If your an owner operator looking to get hired by other production companies then the C300 is your best bet.
 
Frame Farm,

Yup, we're a private group doing mostly our own productions.
We will rent it out, but not in masses, mostly to collegues who need a better camera.
 
Then I'd say Frame Farm nailed it. The main advantage of the C300 is its' rentability to other productions, or if you need a "broadcast-quality codec" like it shoots. If you don't need those things, get a C100II.
 
The C100 Mark II shoots AVCHD and MP4. Not "broadcast-approved," as they say. (You can, of course, shoot broadcast material with it, but many productions require a codec approved by certain networks.)

The C300 shoots the Canon XF Codec (4:2:2 Color / 50 Mb/s), which is approved for broadcast by most networks I'm aware of.
 
I have a c100 mkI and am thinking about getting a 2nd cam or just upgrading to a c300. So I am sort of in the same situation.

Like alohype said, the c300 having "weather sealing" is a good point.

One thing I do prefer about the c100 is the location of the audio pots. It seems awkward on the c300 in a run and gun situation.

The $7,999.00 combo for the C300 DPAF and the Zacuto Z-finder recoil rig sounds like a good deal.
Considering that the zacuto rig is over $2,000 new, one could say that makes the c300 only $5,999.00.
 
fcmcreative said:
If we add a Atomos Ninja or other external recorder can we accomplish the broadcast approved Codec?
Click to expand...

I'm just learning about broadcast, I've never broadcast anything but am currently shooting my own projects with the aim to, so I've based this on what I've put together from Aussie TV channel specs, so some feedback on this would be great:

If broadcast is defined as: at least 75% of your footage must be 50Mbps+, 4:2:2 with a large pixel count sensor and minimal compression artifacts, then the C100 + Recorder will do it.

The lowest setting on the Atomos recorders is ProRes LT which is ~100Mbps, which is OK for broadcast, and they go up from there.
You can also record to Avids' DNxHD if you need to give footage directly to your broadcaster in that codec.
Great youtube video here regarding the AVCHD/ProRes differences: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E92jDQpou4Q

The upshot is, if you are doing web video with a small amount of colour correction/grading then AVCHD is great, if you want to broadcast then you need a recorder and you might as well use ProRes 422 HQ because it offers the best quality, but which is only really noticeable in certain circumstances (pixel peeping, high movement etc).

I've been recording to ProRes HQ because ... why not (and I think the days of worrying about file sizes are over).
 
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