HV30 Shopping List

After reading a lot about the capabilities and opportunities of the HV20/30 over the last few weeks, I’ve come up with a basic list of what I’m looking to buy:

• HV30
• DOF Adapter
• Tripod
• Movie Editing Software
• Movie Grading Software

When I started out I was convinced that either the Sony HDR SR-12 of Canon HF10 was my weapon of choice. Camcorder info gave both cams great reviews and the Sony one almost had me hooked with its solid construction high level of all round polish.

Left from right: Sony HDR-SR12, Canon HF10, Canon HV30

In later posts I’ll cover in detail the reasons for eventually choosing the HV30, but put simply it was a combination of AVHCD editing concerns and the limitation that a fixed hard drive put on archiving old video footage (in the past I have developed strong tendencies to hoard video “just in case”).

The DOF Adapter I fell in love with when I encountered Vimeo and the many DOF Adapter channels and user videos showcasing the enhanced look achieved by using a 35mm camera lens. It’s my belief that without considerable depth of field (ie that effect where you focus on an object and blur out the background) you really struggle to get a convincing “film” effect. Go and re-watch your favourite movies and you’ll see the effect used consistently. It looks good, it feels professional.

At first a DOF Adapter seemed like a luxury, particularly as many professional units are upwards of US$1000. Add in the price of a tripod and the camera itself, and the affordable point and shoot video camera experience I had initially imagined started getting very expensive. It’s part of the reason I began assessing video cameras at a lower price point, which included the HV20/30.

Seeing more and more video shot with a DOF Adapter convinced me that I didn’t want to produce video that without that particular “film look”. The now famous Philip Bloom HV20 Letus Mini test video (below) firmly pushed me over the edge. I felt that this “look” was the look I day dreamed about.

My tripod came in at a later stage. Of the few things I learnt in my brief stint at film school, one was the importance of a sturdy tripod in balancing and smoothing out shots. DOF Adapters tend to exaggerate camera shake, so with one of those on my must buy list, a tripod soon became a necessity. My initial point and shoot ambitions were quickly dissipating.

The first of the two software items, movie editing, is a given. I have a mac and I’ve never been truly satisfied with using imovie for serious projects. I needed something more flexible, better able to handle my newly acquired creative mastery. The grading software I’m only just finding out about. Many of the more professional videos on Vimeo I’ve noticed reference post-production “grading” (or colour fixing/enhancing) using programs like Magic Bullet. This is a bit of a luxury, but hey, it’s my list.

In future posts I’ll break each decision down to see what product in each category I decided on.

Why buy a Canon hv30?

I thought this was a good question to start with.

I am a 28 year-old PWENT (Person Who Enjoys New Technology). It’s important to state that up front as it will determine how useful this blog will be for you.

I enjoy using technology, but I don’t enjoy taking it apart and putting it back together. The last time I tried that it was upside down frowns all round for my playstation-addicted siblings.

I am approaching a potential Canon HV30 purchase from that perspective. And when I refer to the HV30, I am inevitably also referring to the now superseded HV20 which has minimal differences.

I intend to use the Canon HV30. In fact, I often lie awake at night and catch myself dreaming during the day of moving images exquisitely shot, spliced together and shared with the world.

In the past few weeks in particular, I have recognised the possible existence of a small indie film director hidden within me, crying out for the power of high definition video to be placed in his tiny hands.

The reality may be somewhat different. I recognise (as should you) that there is a strong chance of the HV30 spending more time on top of my steadily growing pile new technology than in my shaky hand.

Yes I am that kind of technology user.

The point of this blog is not to sell more hv30s (although that may be an indirect impact). The purpose of this blog is to inform others who have similar needs/desires/personalities to my own as to why I think I need this particular model and brand of video camera (or in yank: camcorder).

In the following weeks and possibly months (whatever length of time it takes to save for the inevitable purchase) I will detail why I think the Canon hv30 is for me and, after purchase, let you know my immediate and long term impressions through the use/abuse/non-use of the Canon HV30.

If you are like me, you will have spent countless days reading and re-reading blogs, reviews and forum threads seeking to pull together an evasive yet definitive answer to the question: which video camera is right for me. I’m familiar with the ever expanding trawl of those who use the Internet for pre-purchase research; the way you start out small with a definite idea of what you need and then watch as your focus bursts like a balloon – each hyperlink opening up another galaxy of opinion and rhetoric.

Over the past weeks I’ve sampled opinion from all levels of user expertise, from the excellent structured reviews of camcorderinfo.com to the nervous ramblings of a “newb” on hv20.com. I’m not going to attempt to compete with that process.

I realise if my blog ever gets read, it will get read in the context of hundreds of other websites. What I found useful in my own trawling will be documented here in blog entries and the links on the right hand side. What I found missing in my search, if anything, is harder to put a finger on.

After weeks of consistent changes doubt and indecision, illumination and hard realisation, I found the opinions/reviews/comments that meant the most to me were those that came with a story. Not what camera did I buy, more why I bought it.

What were the doubts, the concerns, the benefits, the gems of the decision making process that resulted in a final purchase.

There are far too few of these stories. I found when they did exist, they existed as fragments drawn across many sites and many threads, so that in reading them you never could be sure you were listening to the same person twice.

So enter this blog. Here you will find my story of indecision and anticipation in purchasing the Canon HV30 video camera.