What Camcorder Should I get?

[mjdougherty]

I have an editing software which is Magix movie editing 15 plus.

I usually just use my editing program to make small short music videos. It is just a small hobby but I want a good camera so my images on my videos are not so low quality. I want to also get a camera to broaden my film taking. I was asked to video tape a wedding over the summer and having a good camera would be great.

I want
SD card camera.
HD
Still photos are not my main priority on this camera. (I have a digital for that)
works well inside and out
stabilization
easy to upload to Windows Xp or 7.

Also I have a laptop not sure if that matters...

Anything else you want to ask before you suggest let me know

[edDV]

I have an editing software which is Magix movie editing 15 plus.

I usually just use my editing program to make small short music videos. It is just a small hobby but I want a good camera so my images on my videos are not so low quality. I want to also get a camera to broaden my film taking. I was asked to video tape a wedding over the summer and having a good camera would be great.

I want
SD card camera.
HD
Still photos are not my main priority on this camera. (I have a digital for that)
works well inside and out
stabilization
easy to upload to Windows Xp or 7.

Also I have a laptop not sure if that matters...

Anything else you want to ask before you suggest let me know

http://www.camcorderinfo.com/ratings.php

You will probably need to upgrade your software and computer to at least a fast Core2 quad (i5/i7 preferred).

http://www.amazon.com/Movie-Edit-Pro-17-Plus/dp/system-requirements/B003WT1KIC/ref=nor...534&s=software

• Minimum Requirements for AVCHD/HD Editing
• Intel Core 2 quad processor with 2.83 GHz (Intel Core i7 recommended)
• 4 GB RAM
• DirectX 9.0c-compatible graphics card, min. 512 MB graphics card memory and Pixelshader 2.0, ATI X300 and better, NVIDIA GeForce 6600 and better
• Blu-ray burner for creating Blu-ray Discs

[MJA]

whats your budget?

if it's under $500 check the Panasonic HDC-TM55K $350(I ordered mine few days ago. back ordered 1 to 2 weeks) good reviews


http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/674739-REG/Panasonic_HDC_TM55K.html

Canon VIXIA HF M31 $499

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/671647-REG/Canon_4353B001_VIXIA_HF_M31_Dual.html

The Panasonic doesn't have a an external mic input.The Canon does
from the reviews (This going to be my 1st Panasonic Cam) The Panasonic preform better than Canon in low light

[mjdougherty]

No more then $700

Would a new camera with HD recording not work with my editing program?
And if I don't get a new computer will it just run slow?

[edDV]

What make/model is your laptop?

Try to find some AVCHD sample files and try to edit them.

[mjdougherty]

Toshiba Satellite p205d s8804

and where do i get AVCHD files?

[edDV]

That notebook is unlikely to play AVCHD files at 1X. The Radeon Xpress X1200 does not hardware decode h.264 and the CPU is low end. See the Magix system requirements for Core2quad minimum (Intel i7 recommended) for editing AVCHD.

Google for and download some AVCHD sample files and try to play them or edit in your current software.

[Knightmessenger]

Having a manual focus option is a must on any video camera if you want to shoot something that is not constantly blurry. Unfortunately, I don't know of many new cameras these days on the consumer level that even have that feature, much less make it easy to use.