More Canon HV20 Goodness

After my last post about this little HD wondercam, I came across a bunch of other stuff that would be quite beneficial to anyone (like me) considering one. I am still planning on getting it myself (and writing about it here), but my transmission is slipping, and some of the money saved for the camera is going to have to fix my car (drat!). The good news is that this camera is very affordable at $1000, so saving up for it again shouldn't take very long.

The guys at FreshDV recently interviewed filmmaker Bruce Allen on their podcast. Bruce has had some good experience with the HV20, likes it, and has lots of interesting things to say about getting the best image possible from it (among other things). He also talks about using 35mm lens/depth of field adapters for the HV20, a topic that is very, very interesting. These include Redrock Micro's M2, the SGPro, and Cinevate's Brevis35 (check out the HV20 sample footage!). If you want to build one, try this link.

Speaking of Redrock, they were also showing off a nifty prototype rig at the Cinegear Expo just recently. The rig uses an HV20, the M2, a Canon eyepiece, a follow focus and a cool cage reminiscent of the RED camera. It will probably cost more than the camera itself (no price or availability as of yet), but while (as Bruce points out) cameras will come and go, but this rig could be useful for years.

For some more random sources of information on the HV20, check out the DVXuser forum here. Also see this video tutorial for some great tips on getting the best image. If you didn't read it last time, go look at Barry Green's article on setting exposure.

More and more filmmakers are hopping on the HV20. I realize it may be obsolete in a year or so, but if you need a good camera right now, and don't have a lot to spend, this seems to be the best choice. Enjoy all the link love!