crpntr133:
So from what I am reading a Digital8 is going to be a good idea especially for editing. Going with anything higher is going to cost major dollars($1000+-) for editing programs. Also going any further may not give high quality pics. Coorect me if I am wrong.
Ok, You're wrong.... .>) Get a MiniDV camcorder.
Digital8 is Sony's proprietary format that allows you to record a digital signal onto 8mm analog tape. So it's a better signal than the 8mm/Hi8 formats. But really today most u/w videographers (not professionals) are using MiniDV which is a pure digital signal recorded on DV(mini) digital format tape. It produces a better quality signal than Digital8 for not much more money and has other benefits, like much better still captures. The only advantage to Digital8 camcorders is that Sony provides a Firewire connection at a lower cost, which is one of the best ways to capture footage during editing. It's what almost all MiniDV camcorders come with standard.
95% of the current new camcorders available are MiniDV format. Slightly higher tape costs, but much better video quality since the signal is digital. They also generally have either Firewire or USB 2.0 connections for video capture.
Sony and others have recently introduced prosumer HD camcorders that can be housed. This is where you start to get into "major dollars", thousands for the camcorder and the same - or more - for the housing. IMO everything will be shot in HD eventually as prices come down and TV stations across the country broadcast in HD. But early adopters are taking a beating to get into it now.
So if you want to get into u/w video for under $2000, get a MiniDV camera, you can buy them new for as little as $4-500 and housings from about $500 to well over $2500 depending on model/features desired. Every manufacturer on the video housings list at the top of this forum sells housings for MiniDV camcorders, so it's more a question of what features and what type of controls - electronic vs. mechanical - are desired.
I've also seen some good deals on eBay occasionally, but you have to know what you're buying as there's also a lot of old junk or housings that only fit one model of camera. A cheap way to start out is to buy an older 8MM/Hi8 camera housing on eBay and then try to find the matching camera there. I just saw an Amphibico DiveBuddy 1(circa 1995) electronic housing sell for $100, the matching camcorder (TR600) was available for $50 on another auction. It would have been a state-of-the-art package in 1995. With an inexpensive analog capture card, like a Dazzle or Pinnacle AV/DV - sub $100 - you can capture and edit footage - it works, just not as well or as easily as with MiniDV.
The cost is not really in the editing programs, there's some good ones for under $100 - Adobe Premiere Elements, Pinnacle Studio9, Ulead Movie Studio9 and others, around $500 - Sony Vegas or Pinnacle Liquid Edition, and higher - Adobe Premiere Pro, Avid etc. (or various versions of Final Cut/Pro if you have a Mac) but more in the cost of the hardware to edit with. You can't have a fast enough processor or enough memory for video editing during editing/rendering as well as monstrous hard drives to store all the captured/edited footage. Read the minimum system requirements for any NLE(Non-Linear Editing) program available - my suggestion would be to automatically double them. I've also had better results since I bought a faster DVD burner(16X/8X)
Other questions?
Steve
