Selling DVX100b and Canon XSi to purchase DSLR

E

endlessmug

Member
Hey DVXForum,

I'm looking to sell my DVX100B and Canon XSi to purchase a DSLR w/ video capability.

I have an interview coming up w/ Brian Chippendale and I want to do it right. There are two recent interviews I want to try and emulate the visual style of shallow depth of field, low-light capability that the DSLR's offer.

http://vimeo.com/13005809 and http://vimeo.com/11084953

Both were shot on the 5D, which I assume I won't be able to afford even after selling my DVX and Canon. But I know the right lens makes a big difference. Would you say the T2i is in my price range and offers what I need?

Audio is also very important for me - as I will be filming low-light performances by bands. I realize I need to purchase an external mic and was wondering your recommendations? Does the T2i have a jack for monitoring audio? Most likely I'll want a cardioid mic for music performance and a lavalier for audio interviews.

I will also be using this camera / audio setup to (in the summer) shoot some volunteer footage around the world for the organization Global Volunteers. So I want to make this decision right.

My budget is very limited to the amount I make off selling these items and whatever I can scrounge up after.

Please, any help with this decision is key. My interview is scheduled potentially for FEB sometime so I need to make the right decisions soon.

Thank you,

- Graham
 
endlessmug said:
Hey DVXForum,

I'm looking to sell my DVX100B and Canon XSi to purchase a DSLR w/ video capability.

I have an interview coming up w/ Brian Chippendale and I want to do it right. There are two recent interviews I want to try and emulate the visual style of shallow depth of field, low-light capability that the DSLR's offer.

http://vimeo.com/13005809 and http://vimeo.com/11084953

Both were shot on the 5D, which I assume I won't be able to afford even after selling my DVX and Canon. But I know the right lens makes a big difference. Would you say the T2i is in my price range and offers what I need?

Audio is also very important for me - as I will be filming low-light performances by bands. I realize I need to purchase an external mic and was wondering your recommendations? Does the T2i have a jack for monitoring audio? Most likely I'll want a cardioid mic for music performance and a lavalier for audio interviews.

I will also be using this camera / audio setup to (in the summer) shoot some volunteer footage around the world for the organization Global Volunteers. So I want to make this decision right.

My budget is very limited to the amount I make off selling these items and whatever I can scrounge up after.

Please, any help with this decision is key. My interview is scheduled potentially for FEB sometime so I need to make the right decisions soon.

Thank you,

- Graham
Click to expand...

You'll need to hack the t2i to get decent audio and monitoring. Most folks here will recommend an external recorder like the zoom h4n, and then sync the audio in post.

You can get perfectly usable audio in the camera (I've done it), but not without the magic lantern hack. Something to keep in mind...
Might want to just buy an external recorder if you are nervous.
 
endlessmug said:
How does one sync the T2i and Zoom H4n. Software?
Click to expand...

Ideally, the same way they do it Hollywood- ever wonder why they use those clappers with the scene written on it, and say the name of the scene outloud? The idea is then to sync the film reel with the recorded audio, matching the sound of the clap with the frame of it hitting.

Now, using a DSLR makes it easier because you can use audio from the camera's mic to match up the external recording with. There is actually software designed to do exactly this, called Plural Eyes. I have not tried it myself, but lots of folks here swear by it. I've synced up tons of footage by hand, though. Its not hard once you get used to it, but it is an extra step I'd rather not have.

Most of my shoots are docu-style with a wireless lav, and for that kind of audio, the Magic Lantern hack works a real treat. No syncing or external hardware required.
 
OK I got the T2i, the 50mm lens, and the Zoom H4n.

I need a flash card now for the T2i. I'd like to be able to store a good amount of video on it because I'll be doing long interviews. Though I'm willing to take breaks to put footage onto a computer if need be. The problem is I'm broke now. I can sell my old flash card (that doesn't fit the T2i) to see how much I can get - but I'm supposed to be shooting something live soon...

Please, any recommendations for a card that's going to fit my needs, both for the video storage + financially?
 
Magic lantern and a $5 adaptor will allow you to do what you need, no need to sync it later.

As for the card, you can get a 16GB SDHC card on ebay for $25. This will hold roughly 49 minutes of 1080p video at 24fps
 
I decided I don't mind syncing audio manually in Final Cut. I'd rather not do any software hacks to my equipment.

I'll be shooting 720p. How many hours would a 32GB card hold for 720?
 
endlessmug said:
I decided I don't mind syncing audio manually in Final Cut. I'd rather not do any software hacks to my equipment.

I'll be shooting 720p. How many hours would a 32GB card hold for 720?
Click to expand...

The camera does not shoot 720 24fps, it only does 720 at 60fps which is a totally different look. Finally a 32gb card would give you about 96mins of record time ( maybe a little less)
 
Shoot 1080p, even if you want to finish at 720p. Trust me. The picture will be cleaner. It has to do with aliasing, pixel binning, and moire. Search the forum for more information.

I got a Transcend Class 6 32GB card, and it's worked great in my T2i.

A separate recorder is the way to go. Don't settle for anything less :)
 
OK thanks for the info! I got a 32GB Transcend card Class 6.

I have noticed though already that randomly it's stopped recording "recording has been stopped automatically". Is it overheating? This is before the 12min limit.
 
Hmm, that's a little surprising! Mine works just fine.

If your camera overheats, you'll see a temperature icon, that's a different error message. Luckily I've only run into that once, while shooting out in the sun for a long time in the middle of summer.

You might try doing a low level format of the card, and keeping deletions to a minimum while shooting. In theory, that might fragment the filesystem less and increase throughput.

Good luck!
 
The Magic Lantern wiki for the T2i says "THIS IS DANGEROUS PRE-ALPHA SOFTWARE. USE AT YOUR OWN RISK. IT WILL MODIFY YOUR CAMERA. NO WARRANTY. NO SUPPORT."
 
Also, since I am recording a musical performance tonight w/ the zoom h4n. What is your advice for working within the 12min clips?

Hopefully most songs will be under 12min. I guess I could clap in front of the frame each time...
 
endlessmug said:
The Magic Lantern wiki for the T2i says "THIS IS DANGEROUS PRE-ALPHA SOFTWARE. USE AT YOUR OWN RISK. IT WILL MODIFY YOUR CAMERA. NO WARRANTY. NO SUPPORT."
Click to expand...

That's the reason I opted to get a 60D when somebody offered to buy my 550D. I hear great reviews about Magic Lantern but I wouldn't risk it with paying projects.

If you have external audio it is far better than the 550D or the 60D internal audio anyway.

You may run into overheating with the 550D. Get some 3rd party batteries and keep then standing by in a cool place like in front of an A/C blower (Not on ice). If you overheat, a cold battery will get you up and running quick.
 
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@endlessmug: What you've got there is a buffer overun problem. You probably should have gotten a cheap class ten card (16gb class ten Transcend is only about $20-$30) which should avoid your video stopping randomly. That's what I'm shooting on, and what a ton of people use, and it seems to work great.

For your live recording, you're definitely going to need some kind of audio "spike" to sync to in post (basically just lining up the audio from the camera, with the video tied to it, with the audio from the zoom.), especially in a noise club environment. Clapping should work just fine for this, or if you want to look cool, go out and grab a cheap "clapper." :D

As for magic lantern, I've been using it on my T2i for a bit less than a month, and I've had no problems yet. I just couldn't live without proper audio monitoring and all the other little extras you get (focus peaking, kelvin color adjustment, incremental ISO settings, etc.). This DOES NOT mean that it's absolutely safe, but I've been able to use it just fine with no hickups, other than learning how to use it properly. Just don't install it right before a live shoot, or you'll really be in for a wild ride trying to figure out settings.

Good luck man, it sounds like you've got some awesome projects going on!

P.S. Be really aware of whether your camera is recording or not. I filmed a live talk, and it was quite plainly awful having my video cut out every 12 minutes. (That's another thing magic lantern does; It allows you to automatically restart your video).
 
Wow people are giving you some bad advice on this thread. Seriously.

You need to do more research and put some more time into all this before shooting your stuff (especially interviewing a higher profile person).

First off

Nifty 50 sucks! Do a thread search. In conclusion most people find the Canon 28mm 1.8 way more useful. Nifty fifty is cheap cheap but also cheaply built with an almost non existent focus ring.

Second buy the highest quality brand storage card you can get. You should have at least 5 32 gig for a good paying gig. Transcend - don't think so. Try ScanDisk Extreme III (try to get the fastest). You will mind unloading to a laptop. Trust me. Way better to spend up money and buy plenty of cards so that you don't have to waste time doing this.

3rd get used to starting and stopping for the 12min limit. If it is an event you will not be able to use a clapper. If using final cut use plural eyes to sync.

4th don't use magic lantern. And don't use the canon audio, especially for client paid jobs. Just use it as a reference.

I'm sorry but it seems like you are eager to have a good looking product but overeager you seem. You can't just run out and buy up a cheap low budget kit and try to shoot something without putting time into testing the camera out for weaknesses and strengths.

I'm sorry but you need to spend on the essentials starting out when you build up your DSLR kit. You will find spending money on a good lens and good storage card is essential.

Lastly I don't think DSLR is what you are looking for, for what you do, maybe in the image yes but in the production workflow needed.. no. You'll see. (meaning the concert footage especially since you said audio is very important to you) If that is so then you'll be doing a lot of work in order to get audio to work with your DSLR shoots.

On all I said above do a thread search for this and any questions you might have.

Let us know how the shoot goes and hopefully post up some footage.
 
@draven4,

You know mate, I'm not sure you've tried the 50mm f1.8 (pardon me if you have). I find it to be quite good, with a decent enough focus ring that I can get smooth pulls on it. Provided you have to be careful, so it might be more suited to an application where you can get a few takes (eg. film) rather than event video, but it's quite sharp, and gives you excellent depth of field effects, if you want them. Overall, I find it givesthe footage a very "live" presence (in very subjective terms).

Second, Instead of buying an expensive Sandisk Extreme III 32gb, you could buy at least 3 32gb Transcend cards. For people without the money to pay for that kind of luxury, they somehow still work fine (even at higher than stock bitrate settings).

Just curious, why would you need the data rates provided by the Extreme 3 cards? The T2i only puts through ~50 megabit at most stock (do correct me if I'm wrong).

Now, about magic lantern, it's not just for audio (have you used this either?). It actually provides a number of useful features, such as focus peaking, which, I can attest, is really helpful in some situations. If you are using it for audio, I really should have mentioned that you need quiet preamps. If you're doing a job for pay, draven4 is definitely right that you shouldn't be using the onboard preamps; However, if you get an external preamp setup (such as the ART USB Dual Pre, its preamps are as quiet as the H4n's in my experience), then it works quite well to record directly into the T2i, provided you have gain set to zero in magic lantern.

Anyway, draven4, I'd really advise testing some of these things yourself before dismissing them out of hand. If you have tested them, I'd love to hear your thoughts about it!

Edit: About the SD cards again, I myself experienced a buffer overflow error or two on the Transcend card. However, I did a low level format of the card on the camera, and I haven't had that problem since. So just to make it clear, I'm not saying that you'll never run into a speed issue, I'm just questioning the relative likelihood of an unfixable issue vs the cost of, say, a Sandisk Extreme card.
 
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