First time post - Thank-you Everyone! (legal video question at the end)

[Sladerz]

I wanted to first off thank everyone who has posted to this forum for so generously sharing their knowledge and experiences with the HMC-150 and the video community in general. This site enforces what the internet was intended for, in my opinion, the free exchange of valid reliable information. It has been invaluable to me and others as well.

Starting out literally at ground zero, from discovering this forum and trying to soak up as much as I can, I feel have graduated from the 0.0 to the 0.5 level and have a long and exciting way to go.

I am in no way a professional, but I may be speaking for a segment of amateurs that found this site and are absorbing fantastic information and have yet to post. There are a lot of things discussed here that I don't fully comprehend, yet, but I value every post I have read.

Being uneducated in this arena, one could argue that I should have started with something less than the HMC-150, in case I didn't like it as much as I thought I would. I feel I got exactly what I wanted and do not regret my choice whatsoever. It is a great camera and my only drawback is that I need to learn how to be great with my camera. I think it is exciting that I'm learning more and more about this new field of endeavor I now have.

A little bit of background on me here. I had been recording my church services with a Best Buy special. In November,a member had asked me to record their daughter's wedding in January. After refusing to hear my plea for them to get a professional to record it, I reluctantly accepted. I scoured the net for the information needed to properly do a wedding and I avoided a lot of mistakes, errors and self-created problems.

During the process of recording and editing the video, the bug bit me. This was something I thought I wanted to do as a sideline. I knew I had to get a professional camera that did HD. Initially, I fell in love with the HVX-200a with P2 cards but not with the price tag. Further searching brought me to the HMC-150 and I purchased one in Feb.

As I was not a photographer nor videographer to start with, it has been a steep learning curve to understand the basics of zebra stripes, vectorscopes, pedestal and all the other features that are not on a Best Buy camera. I'm anxiously awaiting Barry's book to be on the market so that I can have a 'real manual'.

On top of learning HMC-150, I'm also learning Sony Vegas Pro 9 along with Wavelab Studio 6 for my audio enhancements. It has been an exciting several months.

Please keep in mind that I'm just a neophyte when you see a question posted from me (and use itty bitty words if you respond):grin:

I did have a question and I apologize for rambling on like I did before getting to it. When I was going through the literature on the HMC-150 prior to purchase, I remember reading a paragraph about the time-stamp feature of the camera that made it an excellent choice legal videography (recording depositions and such). From thw National Court Reporter Association, my understing that could be a lucrative sideline after retiring (or getting laid off before I'm ready). I did a search of the forums here and did not find anything. I know that many of you here are Cinematograhers, Independent Filmakers and Event Videographers. Does anyone here use the HMC-150 for legal work? I've gotten interested in that aspect of video as opposed to doing weddings.

 

[AGMedia]

Contact your local courthouse and find out your local requirements. Things vary by both state and jurisdiction. In some places you need to be a "notary," in others you need other stuff.

I have no idea what kind of cash flow is involved -- but I can't imagine a more relaxing job relative to "vidoegraphy." Heck -- you could probably use that "HE" mode and get six hours on a 16gb card.

Good luck! Enjoy the journey!

 

[Allen Ellis]

I remember thinking the reason they probably touted it for legal work was because it has the option to burn-in timecode. I figured that's for interviewing defendents and whatnot, making it easy for anyone watching to refer to a specific moment.

Good luck - thanks for sharing . Looking forward to hearing more from you.

 

[Mike Harvey]

I used to do legal deps. I use the HMC150. Not necessarily together, though

First, legal deps, while they can pay well, are mind numbingly boring (I was told by an attorney once that was from Boise that his normal videographer out there even had a pictue of him asleep behind the camera... as a joke, of course... on his business card). The outfit I went through charged around $100 an hour I remember (this is Seattle, and the owner was well established... your local rates will be different). They supplied all the gear. Shot everything on a Sony DSR-250. I also used a small Mackie mixer for all the mics (usually four). Plus a light or two. Really not that hard, just keep the witness being deposed properly framed... but there was a definite process that *HAD* to be followed for legal reasons.

AG is right, contact your local jurisdiction or Bar association about your local legal requirements... but I have a hard time not seeing this camera useful give the long record times in HE mode (it doesn't need to look great, just not look like absolute crap).

 

[Mark Whalen]

I did have a question and I apologize for rambling on like I did before getting to it. When I was going through the literature on the HMC-150 prior to purchase, I remember reading a paragraph about the time-stamp feature of the camera that made it an excellent choice legal videography (recording depositions and such). From thw National Court Reporter Association, my understing that could be a lucrative sideline after retiring (or getting laid off before I'm ready). I did a search of the forums here and did not find anything. I know that many of you here are Cinematograhers, Independent Filmakers and Event Videographers. Does anyone here use the HMC-150 for legal work? I've gotten interested in that aspect of video as opposed to doing weddings.

I do primarily legal videography with some corporate work thrown into the mix, so I'll chime in if you don't mind.

Date/time stamp is a must when recording depositions, as Federal (and many state) rules require it. The HMC150 and the pending HMC40 do have the ability to burn date/time on the video image, and I can confirm that first hand.

When evaluating a cam for legal work, you should look at the typical delivery medium your customers will need. If it's discovery depositions, you'll generally be producing DVD's; trial testimony may be on DVD, but could also be MPEG files for synchronized playback through trial presentation software. In my experience, many if not most clients will request DVD's. But if you're contracted through a court reporting firm to record a depo (with the reporting firm doing the production of dupes), they may ask for MiniDV tapes. Because of that I use different camcorders depending on the requirements, with a PD170 for depositions (to provide tape) and an HMC when shooting Day In the Life and settlement documentaries. The HMC is great for the run and gun style of documentary shooting, while the PD170 and Firestore gives the option of tape with the redundancy of digital files. Because you only get one chance with depos, redundancy is key.

Even though HD is becoming commonplace in the general market, it seems the legal arena may be slower to adopt it. Additionally, trial presentation software packages currently accept MPEG and/or small sized Windows Media files (I'm talking generally here, as there are some packages that can use a variety of video formats). That said, the HMC can downconvert to SD when it's connected to an external device via the A/V jack, and simultaneously record to its SDHC card for digital files. That way you can shoot for the typical delivery format, and have backup should media fail in either the external recorder or the camera.

Sound is a huge factor as it's probably the single most important aspect of recording depositions. Since your question addresses the camera end of things, I'll simply say that you'll want to invest in several good lavaliers, boundary mics and a multi-channel mixer, too.

So in answer to your question, sure the HMC150 will do for legal work. Just keep in mind there are a number of factors above and beyond just the camera itself. It's only a single part of the equation.