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I've owned a Sony 2/3" DSR-450WSL DVCAM camcorder since they first began shipping last Summer. I'm a freelance shooter working primarily on corporate productions, and some broadcast, too. My clients use most of the DSR-450WSL's shooting modes (60i, 30p, 24p, 24pA, and 16:9 and 4:3). I enjoy using this cam very much, and it's well on its way to being paid for.

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  • 3 weeks later...
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DVX100a

M2 35mm adapter

Nikon 15mm, 28mm, 55mm, 80-200mm

 

I started off and still shoot micro-budget music videos. For 5k there wasn't another camera that would allow me to shoot music videos/ shorts. Film at that point wasn't an option. Now that I am slowly getting work with higher budgets my package is paying for itself.

 

I am shooting a feature with it this summer but I'm buying a super16 soon.

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  • 3 weeks later...

I started out with a BVW300AP the block eventually went and I had it replaced with a 400AP block and kept that for a few years and then to renew my contract with Sky I had to provide a DVW790WSP which I sold after 5 years, I went freelance about 3 years ago and for the last couple of years have been shooting on HDCAM, Digibeta, DVCPRO, HDV.

 

One of my main clients now shoot for the International Olympic Committe and this work all has to be shot with Panasonic gear as they are a major sponsor of the olympic games, for the first time in my career I'm considering buying a Panasonic! I like the sound of the HDX900 that was anounced at NAB.

 

To keep too much of my money from going out to hire companies I've collected various grip and lighting kit over the years and have found this kind of investment to be a slow but steady burner as far as returns go.

 

I now really need a 970, 750/900, and a Varicam! I just hope that a practical disk based workflow will arrive soon, the P2 looks good on paper, but I'd like to see the faces of my broadcast clients when I hand them a box full of P2 cards at the end of a day's shoot.

 

Nick Bennett

www.astateofmind.co.uk

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Cameras I've bought, in chronological order:

 

Panasonic DVX-100A

- Digital is so much easier to get started with. It helped me learn the art of filmmaking without the costlier mistakes of film. I used this camera for some music videos and it earned its cost back after about 2 videos.

 

Bolex H16 EL

- My first foray into the world of film. Got this for about $2k off eBay. Shot one music video and some clips to cut in with my DVX footage. I've started to only accept projects which can pay for the cost of shooting film as I would like to use more of film in my work. I'll go back to video only for low to no budget stuff and even then only for projects which I believe strongly enough to want to even bother doing.

 

Nikon R10

- This cheap Super 8 camera I use to get those cool flashback moments. The Super 8 format is nice and I'll use this anytime over video. This one I don't even think about the cost since it's so cheap.

 

 

That being said, even though I love film so much, I am also still very much a tech geek and am eagerly awaiting that RED camera which 'promises' to revolutionize the world of filmmaking. Yes, hope I shall and if it works as good as it sounds, it will most probably be my fourth camera.

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Guest richcam1

Wow Jm,

 

You ask a tough question. I own 8 cameras. Moviecam Compact super 35mm, Arri3 35mm, Sony F900 HDcam, Aaton 16mm, 2x Panasonic SDX900, Sony Beta SP, & Sony Digibeta. (& soon Red One hopefully)

 

The biggest question is what can you afford now?

 

My first camera was the aaton 16mm! It now collects the most dust (it's standerd 16mm)! I am happy i bought it! I bought it because I was afraid of not shooting film. I wanted also to be a music video shooter (I've shot 75+ music videos, 500+ commercials) I wanted to learn to be a film shooter, and it worked. People assume if you own a film camera you can shoot it!

 

Ask your self what do you want to shoot?

 

Owning a camera is good! Keep it well maintained (factory maintained!), updated and tricked out; and it will get you work. It will also make you money! My labor is usually 30% of my total invoice!

 

Prost,

Rich

 

 

 

 

many of you own their camera.

what cam did you purchase and to do what?

explain us why you thought it was the best choice and with the time was it finally the best choice?

 

rolling this thread can help those who want to purchase a camera to take advantage of the experience of the others

 

personally i'm thinking of buying an A-Cam to film music videos

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I own an Eclair ACL Super-16 package and a DVX100. I've owned a Eclair NPR and them moved up to an Arri SR I. Sold the SR and bought the ACL. I consided selling my all my film cameras and getting the HVX200, but I love film and can't give it up.

 

The DVX100 has paid for itself through work. I haven't had the ACL long enough, but I may have a feature coming up which would cover over half what I paid for it. (I got if off Ebay cheap.)

 

Scott

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  • 1 month later...
buying cameras... I've been toying with buying a broadcast camera recently but there are many factors that made me hesitate, obviously the initial cost is the biggest one but also importantly as technology is changing so fast you might buy a camera and 6 months later it is getting obselete. I'd go and buy the best camera you can if you knew you could pay for it in hire costs otherwise I'd be very careful. I decided to invest more in lighting gear as this can be hired again and again.

 

- 'Though the great thing about owning your own camera is that you can test it every which way and also know that it is being looked after! If you don't own a camera then you need to develop a relationship with a rental company who'll let you test and try things out - this is great except when they're busy and all the cameras are out!

 

... I know a guy whose recently invested in digi-beta kit because he has a on-going deal with the BBC - but now the BBC has (unbelievably) decided to shoot most of its mid-range shows on DSR's! - he's now left with a mortgage he'll be lucky to pay back!!

 

All the best,

 

Rupe W

 

Thanks everybody to write your experience in this thread. It is very interesting and I learnt a lot. I would like to buy a camera not very expensive. Gradulally I will buy other gears, eg. lenses, mini-35 etc.. I live in Bangladesh and here the available rental camera is :

 

1. BetaCam SP

2. Digi Beta

3. Sony DV 400, 450, DSR 570 etc

 

My purpose to buy :

 

1. To shooting my TV serials and documentary

2. To shooitng my TV commercials

3. To give rental

 

Can anybody suggest which camera should I buy?

 

HDV : JVC or Sony or Canon and WHY ?

HVX : which one and what is the differnce with DV or HDV

DV : which model?

 

Here in Bangladesh usually camera rental is USD 45/day. So I have to think about my ROI also.

 

Should I need to buy matte box? how this will help in the shooting, quality aspect.

 

Pl help me in this regards.

 

pardon me for my poor knowledge.

 

Warm regards to all of you.

 

Best wihses to your success.

 

Dream Merchant

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  • 2 months later...
Guest nicolas veuthey
phil it's absolutly not reserved to film, that why i posted in the cinematographer section and the way you all respond is exactly what i was interested about :

 

what to buy?

when?

and did the equipment paid for itself at last?

 

yesterday's purchased were more S16 as i expect today's to be more sd or HD and maybe still S16 or 35

i met a guy in Paris who baught a 15/70 home made in belgium!

 

I bought a kinor35H a few months ago, with a complete package (tripods, fluid head, a complete set of lomo lenses and even a MOY gear head B) ).

It was all for a reasonable prise, and most of all I knew the guy who sold it to me, and the guy whom he bought it from a few years ago. This way I could track the whole "history" of the camera.

I knew I wasn't diving head first in some crappy deal...

The camera is starting to make it's money back... So I don't regret it, and see no downside to it... It allowed some projects to be shot on 35 rather than HD, which is the best thing...

 

Nicolas

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A CP-16a (purchased earlier this year)

and

Krasnogorsk-3 (owned it about 2 years)

 

and I love them both to death, granted they both have short comings but I've never run into any serious problems while shooting. Thinking about adding an eclair to the mix, as well as a konvas 2m for small 35mm projects.

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my first gear was DXC3000AP which i owned 3 of... the whole deal, with the U-matic back and 12 pin cords. Started off with docos then moved into basic studio production, practising vision switching with a board i still own... got few shows out of it on a community TV (which suggests the quality of it all :))

 

then came my 16mm BL on ARRI sticks, which is a beast.

 

Collecting primes, blimp houses, and or any other extras became a hobby to a degree, as it meant being active on eBay as well as making few relationships overseas - with people that also collected. I shot few shorts, some video clips and thats about it... it paid itself off within the first two jobs; Just the same though, i think it makes for a great suvenir and a great items collector. it is still active and i migh consider shooting something with it again one day... although i rent these days and have not touched it in a while...

 

i also got a camera stabilizing system, glidecam v20 that does great work. I dont Op it myself no more but rent it out to those that know how to use it, due to my neck injury (car accident, not v20).

 

through a personal company with partners, we also got 1 pd170 and 1 Fx1;

i also got heaps and heaps of stage lighting, mixers, smoke machines, etc etc... i can rig up an entire concert for a band for around 1000 people or more, including the set-up of the stage itself (wooden placks)

further more i got some sound gear too, basicly a shot gun mic with some HDD recorder.

 

next camera? Who knows... i might stick to renting till i know for sure... i like that GY-HD100 though, cause of its interchangeable lenses.

 

 

A friend who recently bougth some 35mm gear: 2 x ARRI3s with high speed base, BL3, 2 sets of primes Mk1 & Mk2, sticks, matt boxes, etc etc had the idea to rent and pay off the loan which wasn't as easy as anticipated. I am not sure how it is going right now, it could have picked up but i remember the begining was though - breaking into the already existing renting market, even though the gear was wonderful condition!

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I've owned an Arri BL for almost 20 years, it has certainly paid for itself but doesn't work as much as it used to. Independent features now go HD so often, they don't shoot on 35mm as much as they used to.

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I've owned an Arri BL for almost 20 years, it has certainly paid for itself but doesn't work as much as it used to. Independent features now go HD so often, they don't shoot on 35mm as much as they used to.

 

Take heart dear brother there are those of us out there in the indie world working on micro budgets that still shoot 35mm.

 

I can make a very compelling argument to explain how 35mm is actually CHEAPER than HD, including HDV.

 

We can save that for another day, but the straight across comparison is far too over simplified.

 

R,

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Before finishing school a year ago i put everything I had (12G) into an Aaton LTR 7 w/ a full set of Optar Illumina lens-8,9.5,12,16,25,50-so that I could shoot my BFA senior project. I did this because the school cameras were fairly banged up and constantly caused unforeseen problems on set. I also used it to shoot other student films and continue to do so. I don't get high rental fees for it because I still have to compete against the school cameras-about 150-200 a day for the camera and myself - but it was a great purchase. I have worked on numerous films I otherwise would not have had the chance to and have been able to shoot a good portion of those. So far I've made back about half the money and gained a lot of experience. I would recommend it to anyone in a similar position. I could easily sell it on ebay and make my money back, or, as I plan to do, shoot another 4 films a semester over the next year and a half until I apply to grad school for further education.

Donald Mckinnon

Erie, CO.

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Before finishing school a year ago i put everything I had (12G) into an Aaton LTR 7 w/ a full set of Optar Illumina lens-8,9.5,12,16,25,50-so that I could shoot my BFA senior project. I did this because the school cameras were fairly banged up and constantly caused unforeseen problems on set. I also used it to shoot other student films and continue to do so. I don't get high rental fees for it because I still have to compete against the school cameras-about 150-200 a day for the camera and myself - but it was a great purchase. I have worked on numerous films I otherwise would not have had the chance to and have been able to shoot a good portion of those. So far I've made back about half the money and gained a lot of experience. I would recommend it to anyone in a similar position. I could easily sell it on ebay and make my money back, or, as I plan to do, shoot another 4 films a semester over the next year and a half until I apply to grad school for further education.

Donald Mckinnon

Erie, CO.

 

I see that we are neighbors, Donald! If my guess is right, then we probably both got our BFA degrees from the same university just a few miles to the west of us . . . :)

 

Here's a list of the cameras that I own and love with all my heart:

 

Film cameras: Eclair ACL 2 (Super 16); Eclair NPR (Super 16); Bolex SBM (factory Super 16).

 

Video cameras: Sony PD-150; Sony PDX-10.

 

Still Cameras: Nikon FE; Nikon FE2; Nikkormat FT2; Canon A1.

 

Geez, I really should sell some of this stuff and concentrate on some better lenses!

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hi

 

mine is a krasnogorsk-3, bought it from eBay and was shooting my first movie on film for a course here in Hungary. since then it is just having a longer shelf-life than it deserves as everything regarding film processing is just too expensive. using the camera is huge fun, i really enjoyed those days back in March. (in case someone is interested of the Krasnogorsk film look (kodak 7231 it was) shot can be seen on http://youtube.com/watch?v=NYxHEOjyMA0)

 

no critiques please as there were no professionals/prof equipment used at all

 

cheers

Balázs

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Hello,

 

I own and shoot with an ARRI 16BL, XL1S and work with various video formats like DVCAM. Owning a camera is a good thing depending on your circumstances. Pay off the investment in equipment and paying for maintenance are the usually two major concerns when you own equipment.

 

Bill

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Hi,

 

My cameras are -

 

16mm: Canon Scoopic 16M

 

Super 8: Canon 1014 XL-S

 

DV: Sony PDX-10

 

stills (35mm): Pentax SL, Pentax MX, various lenses

 

Planning to add an Arri 2C and a Hasselblad to my collection, eventually.

 

Personally, I find myself sorely tempted to acquire 16mm and 35mm sync-sound gear, but have to keep reminding myself that the costs of upkeep and insurance make such an investment impractical for me. I think that owning MOS cameras, plus a tripod, filters, etc. is a good compromise, in that I can still shoot my own small projects whenever I want (though not often enough, unfortunately!). When I decide to shoot a bigger, sync-sound project, I can always rent quality gear. Until then, I'm happy to work on other people's projects and learn from their mistakes. I am steadily acquiring a bunch of AC gear, though.

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I bought a JVC GY-DV500 in 2002 to get started shooting pro-bono shorts. Gorgeous picture but 60i 3:4 only. Sold it to a newbie filmmaker this summer.

 

Since then, I've avoided cameras. I've not felt confident to buy a film/HD camera with the rapidly shifting market and feel my career isn't ready to buy a $100,000 Sony/Panasonic HD package. Clients come to me either with their own camera deals (not having asked me what we should shoot with) or I'll be using any one of twenty different rental camera packages as I recommend for each project.

 

I put my money into a one-ton G/E package plus dollies, jib arms, etc. Every set needs these tools and they have served me well - on my set and as rental income. Of course they take up a lot more room in my garage too.

 

I'm waiting for Red One. :)

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I own a JVC JY-HD10 progressive scan high definition camcorder. I think this camera is better than the Panasonic DVX-100 but of course the new Panasonic high definition HVX-200 is better yet.

 

As far as people criticizing the $500 a day rates that the other forums charge, yes $500 a day seems to be steep for a Panasonic HVX-200 cameraman with only one years experience. But I think $500 a day would be a fair price for a Red Digital Cinema cameraman even if he has limited experience.

 

Far too often people invest in nice equipment like Panasonic HVX-200 or the JVC GY-HD100 and are told that they can only get $150 a day which doesn't even cover the camera rental rates. Yet if they show up with a less expensive camera like the JVC JY-HD10 they are told to get lost.

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I own an Arri 435ES with a set of Cooke S4 prime lenses. I do music videos, TV Spots and even feature films (Second Unit). It is a very expensive camera package so I also rent it to other DOP's all over the country.

 

I wanted to get serious in the business so I put all my savings on it, and so far has been a good choice. I don?t recommend other people to follow if they don?t have the right contacts to move the equipment and to get projects, because video 24p and HD are taking over. Still I love the film as a medium and 35mm is the best choice to get the most beautiful images on a screen.

 

Contact me if you want more info.

 

 

I am looking to buy a used 435ES camera or 435ES advanced. Even a xtreme will do. Can you help?

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hi

I own an arri 2c 35mm camera, an arri bl super 16 camera, an eclair npr super 16 camera a sony dxc d30p

with dvcam deck camcorder a sony fx1 camera and a jvc gy hd 111 .

this makes me working in any kind of projects tv spots feature films short films documentaries events

also makes alot of bucks from rentals. At the past i owned other cameras like dvx 100 panny and 537 + ppv 3 betasp but i sold them out when techonogie goes by. I am sure that there is not need to bying a lot of camera but the clients want always what ever is easy for them. If there is not sure that the equipment bring money i thing just a small personal camera is perfect or the most a cheap super 16 and anew hdv cam.

 

sorry for my english :blink:

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I own an Arri 16bl eq. That is the sync sound model of the 16bl

 

For me it was between that and an Aaton, i can't remember the model.

 

I chose the Arri because it is heavier, which is something some people might be surprised at, but i like that

 

Also i liked it better aesthetically, which is unrationally important to me.

 

The Aaton is quieter but the Arri is quiet enough.

 

And the Aaton was twice the price.

 

I bought it rather than rent, because i am an art student (not film) working on my own projects, so i can use it whenever i want and have not time restrictions which is good for me.

Edited by Oscar Godfrey
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