Supplementary camera
 

Hi
Does any of you carry a supplementary digital camera for taking pictures to be put in your videos?
I am thinking of buying this camera: http://www.canon.co.uk/For_Home/Prod...t_G9/index.asp

Your thoughts are appreciated.

Stelios

It depends on the type of work involved. If it's a larger production, sometimes a set photographer is hired to take pictures on set of all the goings-on and uses their own gear. I may have an AC take pictures of camera/lighting setups to note for re-shoots, or sometimes to do some preliminary coloring in Photoshop to communicate to the editor the type of color/mood I want. As a DP, you're usually busy doing other things than worrying about capturing picture stills :)

Do you have a specific situation where you would need the photos in the video? Knowing what they're for might help us better recommend you some gear or process to accomplish your goal.

You see, I did an event the other day, sponsored by the European Union, "Researchers Night" and they had an art exhibition as well. So I wish I had a descent camera then to take some pictures of the paintings to include in the DVD I did. In any case after researching a bit (thanks to Google) and Camera reviews sites, I ordered the Canon Powershot G9. Just what I needed.
http://www.digitalcamerareview.com/d...n+powershot+g9

Stelios

Ah well you said the DVD--that's not really "in the video." In that case, by all means capture those kinds of things.

If it's something stationary like an art exhibit, you could easily go back another day (or hire somebody else) and shoot it when there aren't so many people around.

Nothing is said about its ability to take widescreen pictures, you will have to crop. On the other hand, a decent DSLR starts from $500 for a usable kit (body+lens), and the pictures will be much better.

I've been really impressed with my Pannasonic LUMIX DMC-FZ8k

http://www2.panasonic.com/consumer-e...00000000005702

7.2 Migapixels, Leica lens. ANd the 'idiot mode' lets me hang it on my neck, bring it up and shoot something quick and go back to shooting if I need to. At $250 it's a real bargain.

This camera can shoot widescreen as well. You can even shoot 1024x 768 and 640x480 video as well!

Stelios

Remember that anything over 3MP or so will create a image that is bigger than 1080x1920 (HD) and much bigger than 720P (HD) or 720x480 (SD).

This can be a good thing though, as it gives you scope to pan, scan and crop.

I use a Nikon 5.1MP then do my pan and scan work in AE.

Just FYI, if you drop full images into a video project, you might find the apparent resolution of these components looking diffrent than the adjacent video material. Even when I do my stuff in AE (where basically I have a 1080x1920 window, soemhow these components look much sharper than my HD video either side.

The resolution that I have on my Canon PowerShot G9 is:

a) 4000 x 3000
b) 4000 x 2248 Widescreen
c) 3264 x 2448
d) 2592 x 1944
e) 1600 x 1200
f) 640 x 480

Which one do you think is better for inserting images onto HDV and SD?

Stelios