It's been a very interesting couple of weeks in the equipment department for video producers... what makes it most interesting in my mind is the new gear at both ends of the price 'scale' - we've seen new models and application in the more expensive professional models as well as more affordable (read inexpensive) cameras.
Side by Side Comparison between Canon 5D Mk II and Apple iPhone 4S
First Official Music Video Shot on iPhone 4S in 1080P - Cellophane Sky by The Turnback
And then last week I posted an article on the newly released Go Pro Hero HD2 high-definition video camera that has provided some awesome video and should further capture the attention of sports & extreme action video enthusiasts around the world. But I know of several colleagues who have used the Go Pro mini-cameras in 'regular' videos, from weddings to commercials. A couple of links for your to become more familiar with this new camera:
GoPro® Launches HD HERO2® Camera
To cap it off, I saw (and shared on my Facebook page) the incredible sale that Tiger Direct was running for a few days this week - the Flip Mino (1 hour capacity) for $29. A great little pocket video camera for an amazing price (sale is no longer available, now back up to $62 on Amazon ).
Then there was the battle between the 'big boys'. Both Canon and RED announced their new high-end cameras, just hours apart from each other this past Wednesday.
Canon announced it's new Canon EOS C300 - which is an HDSLR (High Definition Single Lens Reflex) camera which sports 3 on-board processors (essentially mini-computers, one dedicated to auto focus alone!).
This camera is clearly designed for high-end digital film-making - in fact I had a friend who attended the premiere of the new Canon camera, which was done in Hollywood and among the presenters was director Martin Scorsese. Here are a couple of links to learn more about this camera:
Canon is at the Forefront of Tackling Filmmaking with the EOS C300
And literally a few hours later the company named RED unveiled it's new high-end camera called Scarlet X. The RED cameras have captured the attention of independent and commercial film producers for the last several years with their ability to capture what is referred to as 4K, the extreme full resolution of 4096×2160 - by comparison most High Definition video cameras record 2K or 1920x1080 resolution. Here are some links to learn more about the Scarlet X:
Scarlet - All Grown Up (press release from RED)
RED Officially Unveils Scarlet-X Movie Camera
These two newly announced cameras would set you back somewhere between $16,000 and $20,000 US and should be available by Spring 2012.
Now an astute reader would be asking me by now -- "Chet, I thought your website at Your Video Expert and this blog 'News and Views' I thought you were focused on the video producers who are creating video for their home, family, community or local business"?
To that reader I would say,"why yes you are correct!" and then I would add "my point in sharing the news about these new high-end cameras is to give you a breadth of the development in image capture technology. And to point out that even though there are these very expensive video and film-making tools, what matters most is the idea behind the lens....there will be folks producing the next blockbuster on the new RED and Canon c300 next year but there will also be tons of folks creating good videos on their Smart Phone or on their Go Pro HD cameras.
I continue to believe that the right tool for the job does make it easier, but it's the story that matters the most. Now go and work on your next story idea and bring it to life!
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