Cameras under $1,000 with microphone & headphone jacks?

C

combatentropy

Veteran
I'm looking for a camera to recommend to my nephew, who's interested in doing Youtube videos about camping. I doubt his budget is more than $1,000, and he was probably hoping for something around $500.

One of the better cameras in that range that I found is the Canon M50. But it lacks a headphone jack, and I'm finding out that most cameras under $1,000 lack one, even if they have a microphone jack. I'm trying to recommend good audio solutions to him. Most cameras have good video. It's the audio that is still hard to find a nexus of easy + cheap + good.

What camera would you recommend? Would something like a used GH4 be best? These are our criteria:

  • microphone jack
  • headphone jack (madness!)
  • sideways flip-out screen (to the side like the GH4 and GH5, not above, not below, like many of the Sony's. Madness that this is so rare!)
  • decent battery life (2 hours would be nice)
 
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Panasonic cameras seem to offer a lot of bang for the buck: Panasonic G7 (mic port), G85 (mic port), GX85 (no headphone or mic jack). Maybe one of those paired with a Zoom H1n audio recorder.
 
EOS RP goes on sale for $799 sometimes.

Has a mic and headphone jack and a swivel screen. E17 batteries aren't the best (probably a little over an hour with 4K (crop), and 1.5 with HD).

Has DPAF, but Canon blocked DPAF in 4K, so can only use it in HD (up to 60p), or just use push AF or learn how to manually focus in 4K (which is the much better quality mode).

Put a fast 50mm f/1.8 (probably want something wider too) and ND filter and most beginners get very excited about full-frame shallow DOF.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1459282-REG/canon_eos_rp_mirrorless_digital.html
 
The issue is that if you buy an interchangeable lens camera, you still need to buy a lens.

Maybe he should be looking in the "consumer camcorder" section of b&h, like this $650 panasonic with lens, headphone jack, mic jack, swivel screen: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1211806-REG/panasonic_hc_vx981k_4k_camcorder.html

The only downside is that these smaller sensor cameras need a lot more light.

If he's willing to invest in more lenses in the future, I agree with Norbro that a lens like a 50mm 1.8 is a good starter lens.

If he just needs to shoot HD, he can get a used 80D with 18-135 lens for $830: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/used/1225877/canon_1263c006_eos_80d_dslr_camera.html

80D has headphone jack and mic jack and flippy screen.

There's also the iPhone...
 
if your friend can live with 1080p then the canon sl2 could be an option.

same 1080p as the 80d.

has mic input.

no headphone to monitor but there are several low cost solutions.

has canon's very nice dual pixel auto focus in video.

and since already one generation old, this camera can be had CHEAP!

pair with a canon 50mm/1.8 stm lens and you might get in under $500.

stay well.

rob
smalltalk productions/nyc
 
Thanks, everybody. Those are good recommendations. I had considered a camcorder and then ruled it out when, of all things, it looked like they all lacked shoes. But on ahalpert's recommendation I looked again and found out that it is simply removable and not portrayed in most product photos (at least for that particular model).

Right now I think his best bang for the buck would be a used GH3 or GH4. I see them $400-800. Headphone jack, microphone jack, unlimited recording, possibly the longest battery life of any DSLR or mirrorless including current models. Plus, as Imamacuser points out, they offer a bit more bang for the buck, partly due to the public's irrational belief that bigger is always better.

ahalpert brings up another good point, in that there is still a lens to buy, and they usually equal or exceed the price of the camera. I guess I'm looking at the Olympus 14-42mm, which is $224 new and maybe $150 used.
 
Is he only interested in dslr type bodies? If not there are some amazing light weight cameras out there like the sonyF3 and a simply lens that will go above and beyond the call of duty. The audio on that cameras is absolutely astonishing, and his camp videos will look 3 steps above the competition because of the quality of the f3. Batteries last 6 hours and they are tiny and cheap. The F3 once cost 16,000 dollars and you can get it now for about 800-1000 and he’ll be shooting his camp videos woh quality of the discovery channel lol.
 
To bring closure to this thread, though I doubt anyone was in suspense:

My brother got his son got a Panasonic GH3. It was in good condition on eBay for $400. They've had it for a couple months now, and he says they're real happy with it.
 
combatentropy said:
To bring closure to this thread, though I doubt anyone was in suspense:

My brother got his son got a Panasonic GH3. It was in good condition on eBay for $400. They've had it for a couple months now, and he says they're real happy with it.
Click to expand...

Smart move
 
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