Interactive DSLR Camera Guide

My good friends at B&H have taken the time to create a cool little interactive guide to video-capable HDSLR (High Definition Digital Single Lens Reflex) cameras. HDSLR is the hottest new thing on the indie film scene, but there is a lot to understand before you drop $2000+ and dive-in.

Everyone seems to be rushing out to get these affordable new cameras, but the HDSLR format and shooting style definitely has some major disadvantages and some unique benefits depending on genre, budget and crew experience/size.

Check out B&H's advice and save yourself some heartache and headaches BEFORE you dive all the way in.

The B&H HDSLR Camera Guide

New Excerpts from Ant's Guerrilla Filmmaking Crash Course

I have a confession to make...I am a dedicated film and video maker and have been for more than a decade now, but my current reality is that I have actually come to enjoy teaching others what I've learned through the years more than actually doing it.

Don't get me wrong, I still stay on my video and filmmaking grind and I still like it, but teaching it, inspiring others and making light bulbs go off in new filmmaker's heads really gets me fired up and I love doing it. I could (and have) done it for 8 hours straight many times. Hence this entire Down and Dirty DV project that's developed over the last few years.

So to that end, here's a few quick tidbits of FREE and valuable (words rarely seen together) guerrilla filmmaking advice that I offered in my last Guerrilla Filmmaking Seminar at the B&H Event Space.

There's only so much time on the radio show and blog to get into specifics, but in the seminars and products I can break things down in more detail. If you like what you see and want to get he whole presentation including all the illustrations, slides and inappropriate humor, this entire seminar is available on DVD HERE.

Also, it's still in the discussion stages, but I think I'll be teaming up with the good people at B&H again in the very near future to offer an unprecedented educational opportunity for knowledge hungry guerrillas. So stay tuned for an official announcement in the coming weeks.

For now enjoy this newly released video clip...

FREE - Interview Bootcamp at B&H Aug.6th

Once again I will be rolling out some new premium seminar material at B&H Superstore Event Space in midtown Manhattan. This time up I will be giving a thoroughly engaging Interview Bootcamp. See event description below:

Down and Dirty DV's Interview Bootcamp - Weds. Aug. 6th - 11am -2pm

Come join us at the Event Space to hear the talented Anthony Artis give an A-Z overview of all the facets for conducting a successful interview from the technical practices of camera, audio and lighting to the practical techniques of planning and conducting interviews. This class is perfect for aspiring documentary filmmakers, small businesses, corporate videographers, and video journalists who are looking to expand and sharpen their skill set. After attending one of Anthony’s classes, you’ll walk away with a wealth of information and burst of motivation.


Joining Anthony will be Eric Drucker, from Lowel Lighting, who will be discussing different types of lights and how to control them so that we can use them to our advantage. Eric will demonstrate a range of lighting concepts using multiple techniques that will have you feeling confident about lighting interviews of different types.

Please understand that this is the first and last time that you will be able to get this full seminar live and in-person completely for FREE. Before I charge people for anything I like to test it out and tweak it to make sure that it is a superior value just like "The Shut Up and Shoot Documentary Guide", so if you snooze, you lose. (I'll still be giving this seminar in the future, just not for free again.)

This is essentially much of the very same info that I teach to students in the Sight and Sound Documentary class at NYU's reknowned Tisch School of the Arts- only instead of over a full semester and at a cost of tens of thousands of dollars, I'm gonna stuff and jam all the most important, succinct, and practical interview tips I can think of into your skull in the space of a few hours and for free...Not only that, but as an added bonus trainer, Eric Drucker from Lowel Lighting, will be there giving an interview lighting demo.


The B&H Event Space continues to be one of the best-kept little secrets around town. Every single month they give tons of free classes and seminars in various topics in photo, video, and multimedia. It's an incredible resource, especially for those of you who are self-teaching. All you have to do to go to any event is register. (Non-registered attendees will be permitted as space allows.)

Anyway, I hope to see you there. There will be a Q&A and booksigning of "The Shut Up and Shoot Documentary Guide" to follow.

Location:
The B&H Event Space is located on the second floor of the B&H Super Store, located at 420 9th Ave, New York, NY 10001. If you are registered, please arrive at the Event Space entrance 5 minutes prior to the scheduled start.

Ant's Consumer Camcorder Guide

I recently gave a quick crash course in choosing a consumer camera for the Fox Business News Channel at the B&H Photo Video Superstore in Midtown Manhattan. I also gave a quick overview of some of my personal picks for the best consumer-level camcorder bargains out there.
These cameras are primariliy for non-professional filmmakers- regular ol' people - who want to shoot personal home movies, vacation videos, or who may have some very simple business video needs.

If you are an aspiring filmmaker on a really tight budget, the models below with mic and headphone connectors will get you rolling until you can upgrade to something a little more professional in the $2500+ price range. (If you are a filmmaker in the market for a more advanced prosumer camera, make sure you sign up to our mailing list at the top right of our blog and check out my 2 part podcast on How to Choose a Camera - part 1 & part 2.)

The first thing you want to consider in a consumer camcorder is image-quality. How good will the picture look?

HD vs. SD
HD video cameras will give you a much clearer, sharper picture and a more cinematic widescreen format. However, if you don’t own an HDTV or if you want to get more professional camera features at a bargain, you may want to go with a standard def camera, which costs less and will look just like the images you are already used to on any non-HD television.

IMAGE SENSORS
The other image-quality factor to look for is the size of the camera’s image sensor. Now image sensors, or image chips, are essentially the video equivalent of a photo negative- the bigger the sensor - the better the image quality. So a 1/3” sensor would give you a better image than a 1/4” sensor chip, and so on.

CCD vs CMOS
There are two different kinds of image sensor technologies out there - CCD chips and the newer and cheaper CMOS chips. When it comes to CCD chips, 3 chips is better than one. However, most cameras at the consumer price point are gonna be single chip cameras- and that’s perfectly fine for the home moviemaker.

ABILITY TO SHOOT IN LOW LIGHT
Another factor to consider is the camera’s ability to shoot in low light. Look at the specs for something called the lux rating of the camera. The lower the lux rating the better the camera will perform in low lighting conditions. (7 lux or lower is fine, but a camera rated at 3 lux or lower will perform great in low light.)

RECORDING FORMAT
Mini-DV tape is still the most established consumer format, but there are now many choices of recording media out there including hard-drive, DVD, and flash memory-card based cameras.

Some of these newer formats you will find still have a few quirky performance and compatibility issues when it comes to reliability and editing, but they generally offer greater convenience, flexibility and savings in tape costs over mini-DV tape. My advice to you would be to spend a little extra time researching possible issues when purchasing any non-tape based camera.

CONNECTIONS
Also check the specs for the type of connections or ports the camera has to hook it up to other devices such as your computer or tv. A Firewire and an A/V connection - which goes into the little yellow, red and white plugs on your tv - should be standard for any model.

For the best quality playback, also look for S-Video connectors or HDMI or Component connectors on HD model cameras. In addition to getting a picture out of the camera, a few consumer models may offer audio connections to plug in a pair of headphones or a microphone, both of which you’ll need if your filmmaking ever becomes more serious.

ADVANCED FEATURES
As home filmmaking becomes more accessible, more and more pro features have been creeping into consumer cameras in the last few years. Now almost anyone can get more professional results using the same tricks as the pros.

The most valuable advanced feature is manual controls- specifically manual focus, exposure, shutter speed and white balance will all give you much greater control over image quality when you are ready to switch out of full-auto mode.

An optical image stabilizer to help improve shaky camerawork is always a great feature to have. And if buying HD, look for a focus-assist function to help you focus those ultra-sharp HD images on that tiny LCD screen. A touch screen LCD, photo-capture, time-lapse recording, and 16:9 wide screen mode are also great advanced features to find in a consumer-level camcorder.

So now that we talked about the basic things to look out for, I wanna point out 3 different consumer models that pack in some great features at recession-friendly prices. So check out the all-new first time ever...


Price-Buster Consumer Camcorder Picks!!!!!
Ant's personal camcorder picks for the home movie crowd - all under $1000. Help out the economy by spending your recession tax relief check on one of these video camcorder bargains...










Panasonic - PV-GS320 - $320.00

• Standard Def mini-DV camcorder
• 3x 1/6” CCD sensors
• 1 lux min. light
• manual focus
• S-Video Out (w/ special cable)
• No mic or headphone jacks
  
  
  

Canon Vixia HV-30 - $750.00

• HD mini-DV camcorder
• 2.7” CMOS sensor
• .2 lux min.light
• manual focus and exposure
• optical image stabilizer
• mic/headphone/HDMI connectors
• very simple controls
• HV-20 is a great substitute model

Sony - HDR-HC9 - $900.00

• HD mini-DV camcorder
• 2 lux min. light
• 2.9” CMOS sensor
• touch-screen interface
• exposure histogram

(*All prices are as found at B&H Photo Video Superstore in Manhattan, NY at the time of posting. Prices vary from market to market.)