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General discussion

I need a camcorder that performs well in low-light!!

Jan 28, 2006 5:25AM PST

What I'm looking for is a camcorder that does low light shooting pretty well, which seems to be hard to find. I reeeeaaally want to buy the Panasonic PV-GS150, it appears to be an awesome camcorder (plus it's a 3CCD which I really want), but I've read a lot about it's poor low light performance and how red lines show up when shooting in low light conditions. I will be doing a lot of shooting outdoors in the light, but I go on tour with a band a lot and so I need something that I can record shows with (and it's usually fairly dark inside venues). Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Discussion is locked

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Sony DCR-HC90
Jan 28, 2006 5:32AM PST

I got the HC90 a couple of months ago. I did a lot of research. I was between the Sony DCR-PC1000, Sony DCR-HC90 and the Panasonic PV-GS250. My main concern was low light performance vs. the 3-chip color performance. The HC90 has the best low light of any camcorder I've read reviews on, but the color is not as good as the PC1000(according to other users, I have not personally tested or seen video of the PC1000). I found a website by another HC90 user that put my HC90 color worries to a rest. He has posted several video clips that show different lighting situations. I found the color of the HC90 to be true to life in his videos (check out the video of the yellow flower).

http://www.disneyfunsite.com/hc90_clips.htm

I have not regretted getting my HC90. I find it easy to use. I was surprised how small and lightweight it was. Hope this helped...Nicole

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Optura 600 Also an Option...
Jan 29, 2006 8:26AM PST

Another option may be the Canon Optura 600. It has received great reviews and is quite small. In addition, it has a pretty good still capability. However, some people do not like the "feel" of it. I tried it out in the store and I really liked it. However, you really can't go wrong with either the Sony HC90 or the Canon Optura 600, in my humble opinion.