Video camera purchase... before the budget ax falls
I was just informed that I am able to spend $1,000 to purchase two digital video cameras for our school. The catch is that the purchase must be made within two weeks. Any suggestions for a video camera appropriate to introduce middle school students to the concept of developing video projects.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Lorna Costantini on
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Hi Jeff I don't know what the pricing structures in the $US but I recently bought a Sony handycam HDR CX12. The resolution on published video is extremely clear. The media files are stored on a an SD card, Surround sound gives excellent reproduction results and you can add an extra bluetooth microphone for remote recording. It is difficult to find many video cameras that have an external microphone jack so you are limited in the ability to record good audio. However, you cannot stream live video. Currently only tape based camera have the firewire capability required for live streaming. I have seen the Flip camera is very inexpensive ($150) in action - gets good results - you can buy considerably more cameras for that $1000.00 It does run on AC batteries so that is an ongoing cost. The seedlings crew used this camaera for their k12onlineconference presentation.
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Permalink Reply by Jeff Lahr on
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Thank you Lorna for your insight. I didn't know about the bluetooth microphone. I've got a lot to learn!
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Permalink Reply by Kevin W on
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Hi Jeff,
First decide if your school would benefit more from 2 lower priced cameras or 1 higher priced camera. I would NOT recommend buying a DVD based camera as these are not usually desiged for video editing. So, either go for a HD (That's HD for Hard Drive ... not High Definition) or Digital Tape camera. They both have their strengths/weeknesses. For example, a HD camera generally can hold a lot more hours than a tape-based camera (of course it depends on the size of the Hard Drive). The problem is that if you aren't able to download your content right away, your drive may get full and then you are out of luck. On the other hand tapes have a lot less time (usually 60 minutes to 90 minutes), however, you can easily swap in another tape if you have extras on hand. Of course, sometimes the tapes or tape heads can get dirty.
Last year I was teaching video editing. We used a cheap $350 tape-based camera. While it wasn't the greatest camera, and didn't produce the sharpest of video or audio (we didn't have an external mic), the students were still able to learn what was required to produce a video. We also used the free video editor Cinelerra which worked quite decently for our needs.
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Thanks for comparing the HD (which I thought stood for High Definition) and the tape machines. I'm leaning to the HD. At school we should never be far away from a quick download, and I like not having to worry about tapes.
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I will definately get at least on flip camera to experiment with! Thanks.
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Just to clarify, sometimes HD (or HDD) stands for Hard Disk Drive, other times HD stands for High Definition, so you can't know for sure either way until you look at the actual specs of the camera. Now that High Definition is becoming more common place, HD probably more often does refer to High Definition.
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Permalink Reply by Brandt Schneider on
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You can buy 5 Flip HD cameras for that. They work great.
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Permalink Reply by Anne on
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Our department is considering purchasing a few flip cameras. It appears that you would need the tripod for any recording in the classroom. It appears to small for a steady hand while recording. What difficulties have users had with the camera?
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Permalink Reply by Kathleen Kinney on
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Hi Anne!
As part of our Technology Across the Curriculum at my college, we purchased 65 Flip Video cameras this fall and distributed them to each of our faculty members. We have had amazing results with many of our faculty utilizing the cameras in their teaching. The only difficulties we have experienced is the tripod issue. As part of the package we supplied everyone with a small, inexpensive desktop tripod and they work really well. I personally use a regular tripod (a very cheap one!) and get great results. I am amazed at the quality of the video and how much sound the internal microphone picks up. I highly recommend them as an inexpensive and easy way to implement video into your teaching.
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Permalink Reply by William Sattelmeyer on
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Hi, Anne,
I'm a colleague of Kathleen Kinney, in the Digital Media Design program here at COTC. I purchased an HD Aiptek just before we received the Flips. The Aiptek (around the same price) has the advantage of shooting in High Def/Wide Screen to an external chip; plus, it has the usual swivel-able monitor. On the other hand, it's for people who understand how to plug in and work with video. I find that I'm using the Flip more and more for my classes than I am the Aiptek.
As for you concern that it's too small for hand holding... it's so light that if you can hold a cup of coffee steady, you can hold the Flip. In fact, it's so easy to use, I sometimes just hold it out at arm's length, facing me, and use it to shoot a short intro to a presentation. It practically seems to point itself.
And, unlike the Aiptek, which has the microphone on top of the camera, the Flip's mike is in front and pointing the same direction as the lens. The zooming is digital, so you'll want to just stay wide, but it's an amazingly versatile camera. If I have to use a tripod, a $20 Sunpak or similar works just great.
By the way, before dedicating myself to teaching, my profession was filmmaker, so I'm familiar with high end video and at home with complex equipment. And the Flip is everything I could want for my courses.
Run, don't walk, to get a Flip.
Bill
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Jeff,
See my reply (below) to Anne. The Flip (recommended by others below) is incredibly easy to use. Combine it with iMovie (or something similar on the PC) and your middle school students will love what it can do. When I buy DV-based cameras for my video classes here in the Digital Media program, I look for a camera that has an external microphone plug. They're rare, but you can find them on the cheaper Canons (under $300). Video is good on most any camera, but audio is always an issue. I search at B&H Photo Video for cameras under $300 with microphone input should get you a list.
By the way, despite what Lorna says in her reply, the Flip runs from two AA batteries. And they seem to last forever. I used the flip to capture myself shooting a lesson for my Photography class. It was 17 degrees outside with a brisk wind, and when I was done 40 minutes later, the Flip was still chugging away. And the batteries weren't even new.
The limit is that the video is 640x480, but that ought to be just fine for middle schoolers. It uploads to YouTube just fine.
Bill
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Your comment about the microphone is very important when you decide to use ustream with to broadcast live.
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