Hey! So i'm finally readyto begin work on my first film with my new DVX-100a. I was wondering if there is anything I need to imput into the camera befoe I shot. I'm looking for the best quality possible. Is this correct?:

1. Turn on camera
2. Set it to P5
3. Put in tape.
4. Film

Thats it right?

Also., I have 3 filters, a UV, an outdoor,and a indoor, does the outdoor filter really help that much?

thanks for the hlep!

Having a DVX100 is one thing, but a cheaper camera like a gs400 used manually can potentially kick its arse if the DVX100 is not used to its maximum potential.

To achieve the best possible quality you must shoot completely manually. Focus, Appeture(sp), shutter speeds, white balance, etc.

A lot of people think of quality in pixels, this is the wrong approach, quality is in how the image looks, and to get the best looking image you should be shooting manually, not just in point and shoot mode.

Just my 5 cents.

Depends on what location your shooting, to have the filters matter that much. If your shooting inside with an outdoor filter, it tends to have a discolored glow from the lights, instead of white it's usually yellow. can be a pain sometimes, shooting outdoors with an indoor filter on, not remembering to change them. just try and pay attention to what your doing before you start filming the hell out of everything you see.

I disagree about shooting on manual (sometimes I think its fine) but its more fun to mess around with the color (or if its black and white mess around with how much light you can take away while filling in blacks)

quote:

I disagree about shooting on manual (sometimes I think its fine) but its more fun to mess around with the color (or if its black and white mess around with how much light you can take away while filling in blacks)

Huh? You can't add any data that isn't recorded on tape. The only time when you *wouldn't* want to shoot in manual mode is if it was a sporting event or something similar with a lot of fast movement, where you wouldn't have time to execute exposure changes and focus each shot without missing critical footage. If it's a narrative film, there's absolutely no reason not to use manual.

You can leave the UV filter on permanently as a lens protector also. The DVX is a pretty nice camera - make sure you also have a decent tripod (and use it) and possibly a decent mic.