Today, Matt and I went out riding to film some stuff for our next movie. Being the geniuses we are, we lost the camera. We left the camera somewhere by accident, and came back later to find that it was gone. So, I’m looking for another camera.
I’m looking for a camera that’s under 200 bucks (preferably about 150). I’d like it to have sound (but that’s optional), and I want it to have a 640x480 setting.
I’m not completely sure about the fps though. I don’t know what it was on the old camera, but whatever it was, it worked well enough for movies. What’s an acceptable fps for clips with fast movement in them? Would 15 fps work alright? I’ve found a camera (Canon PowerShot A400) that lists this as it’s video capabilities: 640 x 480 / 320 x 240, 15 fps. It’s $180, and looks fairly decent.
Another one, the Canon PowerShot A530, is 30 dollars cheaper, and lists this for the video: 640 x 480, 320 x 240, 20/10 fps
Any tips/comments from you unicyclists? All help is appreciated…thanks.
Canon has manuals for all of their cameras online in PDF format. The manuals tell you what capabilities it has and what the fps is for each movie mode.
A400:
640x480 @ 10 fps with 30 seconds maximum clip length
320x240 @ 15 fps with 3 minute maximum clip length
160x120 @ 15 fps with 3 minute maximum clip length
A530:
640x480 @ 10 fps can continue till memory is full
320x240 @ 20 fps can continue till memory is full
160x120 @ 15 fps for a maximum of 3 minutes
Needs a high speed memory card to keep up with video
A540:
640x480 @ 30 fps or 15 fps can continue till memory is full
320x240 @ 30 fps or 15 fps can continue till memory is full
320x240 @ 60 fps with 1 minute maximum
160x120 @ 15 fps for 3 minutes
Needs a high speed memory card
You’re looking for a high speed SD card. 16MB will get you nowhere as a real-world card, and cameras should probably stop including dinky cards with their cameras. Check these out: http://tinyurl.com/y6acvo
The one from Silicon Power (never heard of 'em) says “80x” so that’s an example of one that’s supposedly faster than “regular.” Not sure what the x represents, or if those numbers can be used misleadingly.
If I were you I’d bite the bullet and go straight to this one:
That’s what I use, and they work great.
Also be sure to read the specs on your chosen camera to see if the zoom function is disabled while shooting video. It is on my Casio, and I think it is on the Canon S-80. This may be true for others as well. I also recommend 640 x 480 @ 30fps. If you can’t afford one of those cameras at the moment, it’s better to save up than by something that will make lamer videos.
mine takes SUPER GOOD quality video!
none of the frames are blurry like on my old camera
its 640x480 VGA quality(whatever that means) 30 FPS … it makes a huge difference
it is a samsung S500
$130 I think
you might want to look into the S600
i don’t know how much it is!
I’m also looking into buying a camera to film some street/trials uni.
Wheel Rider and Skrobo, could you please post some clips that you’ve recorded with you camera, I want to see the quality. If it’s possible, can you please record a short one with some movement in it and post it without compressing it, I’m really interested in the quality of the picture and motion.
I have only tried video once or twice with my Canon A620 and that was just to see if it worked. Let me play with it over the weekend and see what I can do. However, with my dial-up internet connection it is not likely I will be sending any big files.
Steve’s Digicams is a great site. More than you ever wanted to know about any of the camera’s they’ve reviewed. You know, at some point you have to stop asking the unicyclists and go to the experts on the topic you’re asking about…
This is the A520 at DP Review, another excellent camera site:
