If it's a vacation, I'd carry a smaller cam with a good wide lens, and a monopod, but that's just me. I like to be fast and dirty. Otherwise, what starts as a vacation ends up becoming production frustration.

Thanks for the quick and helpful responses.

Hawaii is going to be an exterior experience - the truth is that even single chip cameras look pretty good, given enough light...

but since you asked...on vacation (as opposed to a job)??

take the smallest camera you've got, and then take it everywhere.
and make SURE you get plenty of family footage - twenty years from now, it's all you'll care to see...

for the magnificent scenics? buy postcards :>))

have a great time,
v

Could i suggest a UV filter might come in handy?
If you're buying one I think Sony have a UV and polarising filter kit to fit their cameras. But yes travel light and enjoy yourself, I left the camera at home this trip, I've still got two holidays worth of tapes I haven't touched.
Bob.

Salamander, I have a GL1 and a ZR60, but you know what I took to Europe recently?

A Canon Powershot A80 4MP still camera. It has only rudimentary video / sound recording capabilities, but I left the other cameras at home because I wanted to travel REALLY light---plus, I kind of enjoyed the challenge of getting decent (not great, just decent) footage with very limited equipment.

I've also learned, both as a still photographer and a videographer, that my non-artist friends and family absolutely HATE me when I'm constantly stopping to get some "must have" shot. It can really clog their vacation flow. Only other shooters really understand, and even they can get impatient.

If you plan to go to Hawaii occasionally, maybe you can make a future trip your "I'm gonna shoot everything!" trip and pack light this time. But if you think Hawaii might be a once in a lifetime thing, maybe you better take the GL2, and compromise with the family about your shooting schedule!

(HINT: I bet if you rise an hour before the sun comes up and shoot a couple of sunrises, you can be back in the hotel room with your footage and no one will even know you were gone!)

Aloha---
John

Personally, I would take the GL2. You never know what incredible shot you may stumble across and want to have for your own, personal "stock footage" library. You would be kicking yourself later for not having the absolute best looking video quality if you shot it with a single chip camera. But that's just me...

John.

Borrow Randy's! HAHAHAH!

. . I'd take my XM2 with WD and a monostick . . . G

My family used to get pretty disgusted with me for all the gear I packed along on our trips back when my kids were along. Went motor scooting in Bermuda with a full sized camcorder and a 35mm camera hanging around my neck.

Aside from being annoyed that I carried so much gear and was always stopping to take pics (pics of the surroundings and of the family), they were always nagging me to take more snapshots as opposed to video. Video we sort of looked at once (usually hooked up to the hotel room TV just before going to bed) and never again. They wanted the snaps, naturally, to hold, look at, share with friends/family.

Complaints were constant - but that was then - before the passage of all this time - before the advent of editing pakcages like Vegas.

Today, that video footage is pricesless and contains precious moments that even I had forgotten about. Aside from making great home movies, I will often print single frames that become photos that none of my family has ever before seen.

Just the other day, my son made the following comment: "I remember we were always a little annoyed with Dad because he was always taking those pictures - but, wow, now I am so glad that he was so stubborn!"

I say, take both vidcams. Unless your hotel is close to the beach, you won't want to lug the GL2 when everyone goes swimming then, excuse yourself while you run it back to the room for protection so that you can join in the fun- and for sure, you won't want to cover it with a towel and just leave it laying there on the beach while you join your family for some salt-water fun. OTOH, as pointed out above, you'll be constantly wishing you had it whenever some special picture taking opportunity presents itself .

On all of our trips, I always lugged all my stuff. Besides my family, even our friends used to poke a little fun at me. None of them are laughing now.

Because I always had along the best technology available to me at the time, my footage, though old and in obsolete formats, is still of good quality and useful today.

Yep, I say take everything you have. You won't be sorry.

Caruso

I just got back last month. Climbing Diamond Head, parasailing, several nature hikes, several walking attractions (Blow Hole, Haunana Bay, Sandy Beach, a seaplane tour); smaller is definitely better.

Take the smallest camera you've got. Unless you are on assignment, or unless the pleasure of your vacation comes entirely from your video shooting, I would think it would be a pain to lug around a larger camera. Backin in 1981, when I first started shooting video, I carried a giant camera and separate recorder that I hung from my shoulder. I also took one clean shirt and a toothbrush, since that was all the space I had left.

If you want quality AND size, then spend a few $$$ and get a TRV-950. It will feel familiar (similar to your existing one-chipper), and be almost as small. Just put it down as part of the vacation expense.

Just my small two cents:
Hawaï = Polarizer-friendly place.
Sure, if you constantly pan and tilt and move, polarizers can look bad. But what looks even more bad are those constant pans, tilts and moves so all in all... but it's only a personal opinion so...
You'll be so glad to watch these colors jump off the screen when you watch these movies... and the water ; no more reflexions. Just pure color !
The skies, the flowers...

Hey, it's sometimes painfull to shoot while on vacation ; why don't you just call me to shoot you and your family? I'd do it for free ; just the plane ticket and a room at the hotel ! ; )

Have a good trip!

Lots of sensible advice. I always think you can have a holiday or make a movie, but not quite both at the same time. So if you want to have a movie of your family having a holiday in a great location, then take the good gear. If you just want a record to remind you of the holiday you all had together in Hawaii, then very light is the only way to go. I always want to make a movie! With the interpersonal consequences described by earlier contributors.

Serena

A couple of observations:

Hawaii has many extremes of climate, depending on which islands you visit and where you are on any island. You can expect rain, humidity, dust, salt spray, etc.

You are not going in the rainy season, but some moisture absorbing packets could help to keep your camcorder happy.

Whatever you do, see Oahu, but don't spend all your time on Waikiki.
Maui is nice - definitely drive up to Haleakala and watch either the sunrise or the sunset. Invest the time to make the drive to Hana, but be aware that it can be a good 5 - 6 hour round trip.

On the big island of Hawaii, spend some time in Hilo and the surrounding small towns - a little step back into Hawaii of the 1960's, take the secenic drive north of Hilo.

Volcanos National Park is worth the visit.......

Enjoy

Salamander,
A wise man once told me that you should take what you will use with you on vacation if you plan on shooting video. Since almost everything you will be shooting will be outside in this wonderful 82 degrees, sunny weather with clear brilliant blue skies, cotton-ball clouds floating over majestic green rugged Ko'olau mountains, and cool tropical trade wind breezes blowing away the humidity and your worries along golden sand beaches while the tourquoise and blue ocean waves gently lap on the smooth clean shoreline, definitely a smaller camera is better. You'll still get great digital vid's. I have lots of excellent footage with my Sony TRV-120 (digital 8). Bring the little camera and enjoy your family vacation as a participant vice observer. Heck, if you need something great filmed, give me a call. I'll whip out my PD-170 and be right down :-). You can see some highlights of Waikiki on my web site at http://www.cr-hom-videos.com. Go to the samples page and check out the Waikiki clip. At the end is a killer sunset. Hawaii is very special. Don't miss it.
Aloha,
Randy
Hawaii Vegas Users Group
http://www.hvug.com

OK, I'm sold. I'm heading to Hawaii for the next Users Group meeting, and bringing my orange tennis shoes. I'll bring the cheap camera, you bring the PD 170. We'll meet on the beach for your famous steaks, I'll bring the drinks.
Seriously, just got one of the new Sony palm cams, the little something 20? Very impressive little cam, and not much bigger than a 4 pack of DV tape. It's even got manual focus! (but it's a PITA to use)

See! I said Randy would offer a camera! - G

Spot,

Looking forward to the next one. Got a beach cottage with your name on it.
Orange tennies...original. Can't wait to see what others come up with. Yeah, the beach BBQ is on. It will be a party week for sure.

Grazie, you really must try to make it over to one of our meetings. Ya' never know where we end up. From sail planes to jumping into the ocean off a 30 foot rock, HVUG never wants for something different to do. See what I mean here: http://www.cr-home-videos.com/samplevideos.html. Scroll down to the VASST clip. See if you see anyone you know.

Aloha,
Randy
P.S. Salamander, sorry for hijackin' your thread, done now.

Hey, I don't consider this a takeover. This is good. Some great ideas. Any thoughts on particular sites and/or events to videotape?