OK i know this ssue has been discussed to death, but I need some real advice from camera owners.

I've shot several short films. I've shot on a DVX , 16mm , and the hand held dv that I own. I don't nearly have the money to invest in a new dvx 100b or Canon xl. I'd jump for a used dvx 100a or a gl2, but I don't trust buying something like a camera from ebay. I have an account with bestbuy so I've been leaning toward a Canon HV 20 or a Sony HDR SR1. My main concerns:

Mic jack
Headphone jack
24p mode
Reliable controls (i.e.) focus, exposure, white balance
General reliability

Somebody please drop me some advice. My last film was 48 minutes and I'm planning one more 5-10 minute short and then a feature I've been writing. I really want to make a strong impression.

Thank you

Joe

I've never used the HV 20. But I owned the HDR SR1 for a brief period before I returned it for a cheaper and better (in my opinion) HC1. I really hate the AVCHD format, so I would suggest you not buy the SR1.

Just stay away from ebay when ic comes to those sortaa things...

I just bought an HV20 yesterday, but I haven't had a lot of time to shoot anything with it. I plan on messing around with it more tomorrow, and I'll try to get some footage up here if I can. But so far I've been really impressed. The footage is pretty damn crisp on our hdtv. The manual controls are a little strange, but aren't all that bad after a half hour or so of messing around. Just make sure you buy a miniSD card so you can view the exposure info. Also right now Best Buy has it online for $935 which is the cheapest I've seen it. I'll try and get some footage up here sometime soon, and post more info on how it is to work with.

The HV20 is a great camcorder, that shoots 24 frames per second at 1080p/i (not exactly sure which...) Anyway, it produces great results and if you ever feel the need to put a 35mm adapter on it, it produces even BETTER results.

For professional results the HV20 is a much more used camera and has the potential for excellent image quality. If you want to make an impression visually, the HV20 is the camera for you.

-Kegan

Hey

Thanks for the responses everyone. HV 20 is probably the ideal option for me.

What exactly is a mini SD card and are they available at Best Buy? I've never had to use one as the digital cameras I've shot on have always given exposure info automatically.

Thanks again for your help

Joe

Yeah you can get the cards at Best Buy. The smallest they had was a 1 gig, which is over kill since I don't plan on using it for stills really, but it was $35. Here's an article on controlling the HV20's exposure. I'll try to get some footage up soon. It's been raining here all day, and I've been a bit busy. Hopefully tomorrow I'll get a chance though.