Approximate price? I disagree somewhat with huggywell. While the brand name certainly isn't everything, it *is* an indicator of the equipment's overall quality, and how readily available support and service may be if something goes wrong. There *is* a difference in the picture you get from a $100 Aiptek camera and a $200 Canon, and it's not just in how many pixels the camera takes--it's how the chips process the image, how the gizmo handles various lighting conditions, how quickly you can go from taking one photograph to the next, and so on. Yes, there are exceptions and aberrations here and there, but generally, you do get what you pay for. Do your homework; peruse some forums like camcorderinfo.com for video camera information. Just remember that there *are* more important things than a checklist of features.
What you can get, of course, varies depending on your needs and your budget. I did my homework, taking to account my own needs, I'm very happy with my Canon s60 as a still camera--it's got fantastic image quality. It's a little bulky, more of a jacket pocket than a shirt pocket camera, but that's not an issue with me; for those who do have an issue with it, there are smaller cameras that are available.
For a camcorder, I can't help but recommend Panasonic's 3-Chip GS line. With a number of models below $1000, they're the most affordable cameras with 3CCD's, the standard among prosumer/professional cameras--three separate chips sense the colors separately, resulting in great color fidelity. These kinds of cameras don't do as well as single-chip cameras in dim light, but again, for my needs specifically they're great, and I do recommend them who want their home videos to not look so "home video-ey" and more like a professional recording. First decide what features you want by looking at loads of camers and camcorders online. Make a list of those features. Decide what you can afford and then do another search to find a camera with as many of the features you want on it and within your budget. It may be an idea not to go for the bigger named brands as you often just pay for the name. Go for a less well known brand and you will probably get more value for money! Buy Sony, best lenses for Video. Buy Olympus and Sony for photo. Tried and tested for me. |
