Need a Video camera for loud music in low light

[geoff_hartwell]

Hi guys-

Looking for a camcorder for loud music in low light. Certain times I'll use synced audio from a different source, but I'd like to have an adjustable input level in any case. And of course needs to be able to handle dimly lit bars/clubs easily. Using a mac, so firewire prob. Flash memory preferred, and definitely not moving-parts hard drive.

Any winners out there?

Geoff

[zenmindbeginner]

Consumer level camcorders all have notoriously bad low light performance and rarely do they come with an adjustable volume control that can be adjusted with the simple turn of a dial. I wish that Canon, Sony and Panasonic were serious about their "prosumer" lines. The big three basically abandoned the "prosumer" market in favor for smaller and lighter cameras and using alternatives to DV tape.

The last "prosumer" camera that Sony made was the HDR-HC1000. It has PHENOMENAL low light perfomance but lacks a front volume dial. You're gonna have to search high and low for one of those (onboard volume dials)... Sony most DEFINITELY has the best audio quality over Panasonic and Canon though. If you can afford it, maybe you should consider the VX series from Sony. The VX series was the entry level camcorder in Sony's pro line and all have excellent low light and have a front mounted adjustable volume dial that you are looking for.

For what it's worth, the new HD models' low light performance increases dramatically when leaving SD mode and entering HD... a 24 frames per second "film" effect that is usually paired with HD camcorders these days can also increase the usable images in low lux situations. Editing HD footage is another story... you had better have a pretty strong computer or you will be waiting forever for the video to process.

I would also urge you to consider becoming friendly with video noise reduction. I don't know what software you use, but most video editing software comes with some rudimentary video noise reduction that will surprise you in their effectiveness. It runs similar to audio noise reduction but can be much more complicated. A mastery of video noise reduction software can really give grainy and shitty footage a new lease on life.

I use Neat video's video noise reduction program within After Effects... it is the most powerful consumer level noise reduction program on the planet. It is however, difficult to use and rather cumbersome with it's steep learning curve. When I don't have time to deal with the ins and outs of the program and just need to reduce the noise in some low light clips ASAP, I just use Corel's Videostudio which has en AMAZINGLY effective and simple to use "Desnow" filter that tames most of the visible noise and grain without smearing the image and does so with a minimum of aliasing. I'm a PC guy, so you might find more effective video noise reduction within the Mac family of software though... I have no idea what Final Cut Pro's video noise reduction capabilities are.

As far as a camcorder goes, you can't go wrong with a used Sony VX-1000 on the Bay. It's the best bang for your buck... if you have a little more dough, swing for the newer VX-2000 model, you can find them used at fairly reasonable prices (they haven't depreciated like the VX-1000 has yet). Good luck Geoff from another Geoff!