Canon EOS 550 HD

[Paul Brenno]

I just bought a Canon EOS 550D DSLR. I love the HD camera, but am going to try to buy a attached viewfinder for the HD monitor. Has anyone shot HD footage with this and are DLSR cameras good mainly for wide or still shots, but not for zooming or adjusting focus ??

[Hal Smith]

Rather than a video monitor for my 7D (very similar to a 550D when shooting motion) I use a Zacuto Z-finder. It's light, doesn't need power, and fits my KISS style of shooting (KISS? Keep It Simple Stupid)

 

http://store.zacuto.com/Z-Finder-Accessories/

 

 

PS: Don't worry about picture quality. If you learn how to stay within the dynamic range limitations of a Canon, you'll be able shoot drop dead beautiful video. The best previous experience is shooting color reversal slide stock in a film camera. That teaches one how to think in terms of shooting with a stock that has very good definition and color rendition but also has a limited dynamic range. When I shoot 35mm slide film, I shoot Kodak EK100VS (same emulsion as Kodak 5285/7285 movie film). It can produce beautiful pictures but you've got to be right on the money with your exposures and always thinking in terms of limiting the range of light to dark in compositions. You do a lot of filling shadows and knocking down highlights...which is exactly how you get good pictures with a Canon HDSLR.