Videoing Wildlife

[Craig Taylor]

Have been videoing wildlife for several years, mostly in eastern forests where light levels are often low. I am now considering purchasing a high-definition camera, price range $1,500 -$2,500. I need a durable, full-sized camera for hand held steadiness, good low light performance, a color view finder, an external micophone with gain control and an external manual/automatic focus control.

Have used mostly Sony cameras in the past, but I am currently using a Cannon GL2 which is the right size and has the right options, but is poor in low light conditions and has had "processor?" problems. However, it has usually been tape deck failures that killed my cameras, so I am open to a non tape-based camera if it has reasonable capacity.

Despite the price range limitation, I am primarily interested in video quality.

Internet product reviews are helpful, but don't address the somewhat obscure requirements of a wildlife videographer. Any help would be appreciated.

[zoobie]

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