Canon ZR45MC MiniDV

Hey all,

I have wanted to purchase a video camera for some time now, so I can start taking steps into fan film creating.

After searching through this, and other boards I have come to the conclusion that the 'Canon ZR45MC MiniDV' camera seems to be recommended a lot to newer film makers.

I did have a few questions about it though, to help me with my decision of if I should buy this model of camera.

1. Have any fan films been shot with this camera or perhaps the ZR50MC? Do most filmmakers use something better? I basically would like to see the quality of something shot with this camera if possible.

2. Does anyone here use this camera? If so, how has it worked for you? Any problems?

3. Do you have a issue with the tape motor sound being to loud? Many reviews of this camera on places like amazon.com say that the sound of the motor is picked up by the built in microphone and is terrible.

I'm hoping that plugging in a quality external microphone would fix this, but it can't hurt to ask.

You can see such reviews at:

Amazon.com ZR45MC page

Any comments, personal reviews or opinions are welcome.

Well, that?s all for now. Thank you for your time.

 

I've been using the ZR25 (last year's version of the 45) for about a year now with no problems. Don't know if the changed the motor, but I've never noticed the sound on mine. I basically love the camera (though I wish I had a GL2 or XL1s instead )

My fan film in progress has been shot entirely with this camera.

Also, Seth's WWII teaser was shot on the same camera.

Have fun!

 

hehe...

I have the ZR45MC and I think it's nifty camcorder for it's price. Most of the people on the boards, the ones that tell *cough* brag about their camcorders, have better ones. The ZR45MC does have the ususally DV artifacts, but the motor noise is definitely noticable. An external microphone (I have a boom mic that works great!) is a must!!!

From my experience, using an external mic for my shots has given me good quality audio and I think the video is just fine. I am currently using it to make my fan film and the preliminary footage looks just fine played back on a TV.

I'm at work right now so if you email me (Festivis7@aol.com), then I will send you some screen shots from my camcorder...

PS~ Only problem is my slow computer that won't really export really, really long stuff (but that's a computer problem).

 

Thank you both for the quick response.

I checked out the trailer and the quality seems pretty good, even though it was compressed.

Hopefully the motor won't cause to many problems, I was planning on buying a external mic anyway. I just wanted to make sure it wasn't overwhelming.

Are the DV Artifacts that show up in the recorded footage just normal as with any other DV cam?

Thats all for now.

 

As far as I can tell, the DV artifacts are the same as any other camcorder that's under $1000. Never used any of the high-end ones to compare though....