HD camcorder with high quality of photos

michaelt wrote on 8/30/2010, 2:26 PM
Currently I have Canon HV20, and totally love it for videos. However, I hate its low-resolution 3MP photos. So I carry with me a high-end compact P&S camera for the photos. I am wondering if I can find a good camcorder that also takes high-quality photos.

Please recommend a camcorder that can produce high-quality photos, especially in low light. Please do not change the subject to compact cameras or dSLR - it absolutely MUST be a camcorder.

Thanks in advance.

Comments

Eugenia wrote on 8/30/2010, 3:46 PM
First of all, the HV20 pictures *are* high quality. Examples:
http://eugenia.queru.com/2009/07/25/meet-fade-the-best-hv20-photographer/
http://eugenia.queru.com/2009/04/05/still-pictures-with-the-hv2030/
How big do you print your pictures and so your camera must be bigger than 3 MP? Unless you print bigger than an A4 size paper, then you don't need a better camcorder in terms of still pics. If you never print your pictures, then you're just itching to spend money as there's no real reason to upgrade.

If you do must get a new camcorder, the HF-S11 is the best in the market. However, it's not great in low light. See, when camcorder manufacturers are shoving more pixels in these tiny sensors, low light WILL suffer. So you must choose between lower megapixel and better low light, or lots of MP but sucky low light.

If you want both, sorry, but it has to be a dSLR. See how it goes?
michaelt wrote on 8/30/2010, 5:32 PM
Eugenia,

what are your thoughts about Sony NEX-VG10 ?
richard-amirault wrote on 8/30/2010, 7:24 PM
Neither "high quality" nor "low-resolution" are absolute terms. They are *relative".

If you want a camcorder to take a still image that is higher in resolution than the video it takes .. you are out of luck.

If you want to take still images with high enough resolution so that you can zoom and pan that image and still have quality equal to your camcorder ... you will need to use a seperate, still camera.
Eugenia wrote on 8/30/2010, 10:30 PM
This is not true. New camcorders have native high megapixel count, and they resize down internally for HD video. The problem is not to find a camcorder with a native high MP count, the problem is to find one that is also good in low light in that case, since the pixels are cramped in small sensors.
Eugenia wrote on 8/30/2010, 10:32 PM
About the Sony NEX-VG10: more expensive than an HD dSLR, possibly even bigger too. And we don't know how many controls it's got.
Byron K wrote on 8/31/2010, 12:37 AM
What is your budget??
originalbob wrote on 8/31/2010, 4:54 AM
Review of Sony NEX VG10 video camera by Luminous Landscape. especially: "Convergence. The marriage of still photography and video in a single device."

luminous-landscape

Bob
michaelt wrote on 8/31/2010, 11:29 AM
The budget is under $2K.

> About the Sony NEX-VG10: more expensive than an HD dSLR

The MSRP is $2K, it includes the 18-200 lens that alone cost $900, the built-in high-end microphone (probably $150-$200 if you buy something like that for dSLR), and Vegas Movie Studio 10 (another $100 or so).

So in terms of price it needs to be compared to a ~$800 dSLR body-only. I definitely would not bring the price point.

> possibly even bigger too

I highly doubt that from looking at the top picture from http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/camcorders/vg10.shtml

More importantly, its ergonomics are specifically designed for videos. Their promotional video shows it perfectly. The review from the link above underscores this, as well as its incredible stabilization:

"The top handle makes the camera both easy to carry in one hand and also is very convenient for when shooting video at a low angle."

"The 18-200mm is the first lens of its type and size to incorporate Active Stabilization, and my experience with it is that it is exceptional. The first time I started using it with the lens racked out to 200mm (300mm equivalent), I was astonished at how stable the image was, even when panning. It puts to shame just about every other camcorder stabilization system that I've seen to date, including those in much more expensive cameras and lenses. "

So I would neither bring the point that it's bigger (or bulkier) than dSLR. The ergonomics of dSLR with lenses is just terrible.

I don't like the idea of buying a dSLR when you shoot a lot of videos (even when it's 50-50). The video mode in dSLR is designed as a bonus, the primary focus is on photos no matter how you look at it.
Eugenia wrote on 8/31/2010, 12:03 PM
>The video mode in dSLR is designed as a bonus, the primary focus is on photos no matter how you look at it.

This is not true for the new dSLRs. The only thing missing is continuous autofocus. Everything else is as it should be.
michaelt wrote on 8/31/2010, 2:15 PM
Sony is coming with A33 and A55 dSLRs. Their continuous autofocus feature is a major breakthrough in dSLR use for videos.

Yet even A33/55 can not compete with a dedicated HD camcorder, and the reviews mention that. Sony understood it very well, and that's exactly why they come up with NEX-VG10.