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Computer & Camera Advice

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I'm going into college next year (younger than you might have thought, huh?) and am in the market for a laptop computer. Basically I just want a computer that will take care of all the basic stuff, and also be a good machine for video editing. My dad and I have done the research and pretty much decided on this one.

Since it's going to be my computer for a long time to come, we want to get a top-of-the line machine. And I really want to stick with Windows, although I know many would recommend an Apple. I'm also going to be getting a digital camera, and have way too many options for that. Not only will I be editing existing multimedia, I will also be doing quite a bit of filming of my own. I'd prefer to use tapes over the DVDs, but is there really that much of a difference? Any advice in that area as well would be greatly appreciated; I figured you guys would be good people to ask.


Thanks,
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As a film editor myself I have to tell you right out. Apple is a better choice for that.

Having said that I can also say; you can get an avid setup for your windows PC fairly cheap. Or if you wanted you could use Premiere so that your final edited product can be imported into After Effects with no problems. I use a plug-in for Final Cut Pro called "Automatic Duck" which costs around 500 bux but it works great. Premiere can do that without the need for a plug-in.

The one problem you will run into is the render times. If you’re doing a lot of heavy editing and rendering you’re really going to bog down your computer to the point of a crawl. (At times) Just keep that in mind and be ready for that.

As far as a camera it comes down to how much money you have. "Picture quality is just a matter of price. The question is how good do you want your film to look?"

I work with some higher DVPRO50 equipment but then again it's not coming out of my pocket. For my own personal camera I have a GL2 and a XL1 (Both Canon cameras). I could go on and on about cameras but really it's a little like speakers in the respect that it's all relative to how you view things and how your final project looks. By that I mean that even with a little 400 dollar MiniDV camera (both cameras above are MiniDV by the way) you can add enough effects and filters over it to make it look great. Picture "Man on Fire" and think of how that film looks. It never had accurate colors in it. It was always shifting in hue and saturation. This can be done easily with After Effects (I do it in Final Cut Pro). If you do that your little film will great.

If I was to recommend a camera to you I would say the GL2.

I hope this helps. It's more of a ramble on my part than anything.

“You know, when you think about it, the Ewoks probably just crap over the sides of their tree-huts.”

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I'm also an editor and I have to concure with Mackey. An Apple would be best and can go a long way for you. He's right about the avid setup being cheap for the Windows-based user. I recommend going to Journey Education's website and looking around. They give great software to students for cheaper prices. Mind you, the software licence you are purchasing there is a student licence and not a full retail. Go to Avid's site as well. On the Mac side, you could get a small powerbook for about $1,200 and you could pic up Final Cut Express for around $250 I think. The machine you're leaning toward looks good, but I recommend going to www.pixelmonger.com and check out the reviews that Scott gives about the Sony. I think it was pretty positive if I recall... Premiere is good as well, so you've got alot of choices. I also prefer tape over DVD's, then again, it depends on what kind of tape we're talking about. That's a whole technical thing that I won't get into right now. Just keep in mind that it's all about compression.
As far as cameras, I'd have to say The GL2 is good. It really depends on your budget and how far you want the look to go. pixelmonger also has reviews on all these cameras. Just keep in mind that Scott is gearing his site towards acheiving a film quality image with video gear.
I know that this post is long, but I hope it help you. And Mackey, we should swap stories and stuff.
"Who's scruffy-lookin'?" - Han Solo
"I wish my lawn was emo so it would cut itself." -sybeman
"You know, putting animals in the microwave is not a good idea. I had to learn that one the hard way." -seanwookie
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Thanks for the input guys, I appreciate it. As for the laptop, the plan is to get it tomorrow, but keep our options open with the camera, as there's still research to be done in that area. Your suggestions, while top notch, are a bit out of my league. Do you have any recommendations in the ballpark of $500, give or take a couple of hundred bucks? Or is that too low?
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hey yeah i have done multi media work on both platforms windows and apple, and i have to say even thou i use a windows that apple is much better.the computer you haave there is great though, its a good find.

as for camera what kind of pictures you plan to take. cause if u want really good professional stuff your going to need to go over a 1000, but if its just for everyday stuff i would recomment a camera that is 3 or 4 mega pixels. and if u look in the right place you should find some good ones that are around 3 or 400 dollars. what i have found with cameras is either u go all out and get a really good one, or you just go for and average one that is around 300 dollars or less. i'm not an expert but i dont think that you'll find that much of a difference between a 300 camera and a 600 camera. dont get 5 mega pixels i find that they just waste memory you find your pics will be like a megabyte each and if you want to share them with people you'll need to condense them for file transfer. you'll want to spend your money on a big memory card so you can take lots of pictures and store them.

i jsut finished my first year and last year this exact time i was doing the same thing as you. the camera i got was a really cheap 2 megapixel one, and i have been really pleased with that one so far.
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"dont get 5 mega pixels i find that they just waste memory you find your pics will be like a megabyte each and if you want to share them with people you'll need to condense them for file transfer."

That's what USB keys are for (I love my new 1Gb key ) Besides, you can always turn down the resolution for everyday stuff, and crank it up for special shots.

While I will agree that Apples are better for this stuff overall, I've been using PCs far too long to even consider switching over. I just know them too well, and I've put a lot of money and effort into upgrading my dual-rig setup. The laptop looks great, though personally I would hate to do video editing on a laptop - keep in mind, though, that I do quite a bit, and for someone like you who is presumably just starting out, this shouldn't be a real concern.

Be sure to come back and let us know about your projects.

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<span class=“Bold”>Go-Mer-Tonic: I can’t say I find that very disappointing.</span></span>

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yeah doing it on a lap top is not the best but whatever.

still though for what your prob going to use it for at uni u dont need 5 mega pixels. at least thats what i found, and i was taking pictures of sun sets. i have some pics that are good enough to be published, and all that with a 2 mega pixel.
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jedi's you're right about a laptop not being the best, but at the moment it's all I've got. I'm saving up for a g5 rig. If everything goes to plan, I may be able to get it by christmas. If things don't go to plan, well I'll be able to get it sooner, but you have to keep in mind that I am trying to get fired from my job. Long story...
"Who's scruffy-lookin'?" - Han Solo
"I wish my lawn was emo so it would cut itself." -sybeman
"You know, putting animals in the microwave is not a good idea. I had to learn that one the hard way." -seanwookie
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I am happy to announce I post from the above mentioned computer!

Again, I appreciate the advice, but I already have a still digital camera. I'm now in the market for a digital VIDEO camera in the ballpark of $500+.

Also, I have a friend who can hook me up with some video editing software, so considering my machine and what I have to work with, any thoughts on what would be best for me at this point? I have experience with Final Cut Pro, but I don't think there's a Windows version of that available. I've heard good things about Adobe; is it a comparable program? And what about capturing video from DVD and VHS? Should whatever program I get dictate what hardware I should get for that?
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Originally posted by: Switch Radic
jedi's you're right about a laptop not being the best, but at the moment it's all I've got. I'm saving up for a g5 rig. If everything goes to plan, I may be able to get it by christmas. If things don't go to plan, well I'll be able to get it sooner, but you have to keep in mind that I am trying to get fired from my job. Long story...


why not quit.
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"why not quit?"

that's part of the long story.

My parents pressured me into taking the job. If I quit, they'll just nag me for quite a while. If I get fired, they'll be like "well you gave it a try."
"Who's scruffy-lookin'?" - Han Solo
"I wish my lawn was emo so it would cut itself." -sybeman
"You know, putting animals in the microwave is not a good idea. I had to learn that one the hard way." -seanwookie
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ah ic. yeah thats a good plan then. lol
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mackey, what is the name of that plug-in for after effects to work with Final Cut Pro, and where can I find it?
"Who's scruffy-lookin'?" - Han Solo
"I wish my lawn was emo so it would cut itself." -sybeman
"You know, putting animals in the microwave is not a good idea. I had to learn that one the hard way." -seanwookie
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It's called "Automatic Duck". If you do a google search for it the very first one should be the company web site. (automaticduck.com ? maybe). I know the website has a slick video of it in action you can watch.

The down side is it's a 500 dollar plugin. Work has it so I only use it there but man if I had the money I would get it for sure. It's pretty slick if you know anything about After Effects you can really make your work look good. No matter what camera you shot it on.

“You know, when you think about it, the Ewoks probably just crap over the sides of their tree-huts.”

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cool thanks!
"Who's scruffy-lookin'?" - Han Solo
"I wish my lawn was emo so it would cut itself." -sybeman
"You know, putting animals in the microwave is not a good idea. I had to learn that one the hard way." -seanwookie
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For those interested, this is my final decision on the camera:

http://www.compusa.com/products/product_info.asp?product_code=319455&pfp=cat3