A few people have asked me what camera I’d buy and from which store. I’m not quite on the market for a camera because my old Panasonic is good enough, but here are some tips (don’t worry- I may be making money from online video sites but I have no stake in camera manufacturers.
One caveat: I do make money if you go shop at Amazon via this link. Some guy bought ink cartridges via this link once and I made $5.
How to pick:
Before I purchased, I’d identify a model favored by PCMag, ZDNet, CNet or Consumer Reports (although their models are often outdated). Previously I wrote about this Canon Elura that looks nice. And here are some decent action cameras I reviewed last month.
Where to buy:
To purchase I’d check Amazon, BestBuy and Circuit City. I’d also check out B&H. I’ve never purchased anything from the company, but the folks in the VideoMaker blog seem to favor B&H for price and service. Can’t tell you whether there’s a connection between B&H and Videomaker or whether these comments were “stacked.” But it looks like a decent place to buy higher end gear.
P.S. I hyperlinked Amazon, BestBuy and Circuit City all to Amazon via my affiliate fee because I’m a greedy manipulative bastard. Have a nice weekend.
Kevin,
Good choices here, I’ve dealt with them all and have had positive experiences. Oh, and nice blog. Can’t wait to check out the videos this weekend.
I want to clarify for the record that there’s no relationship between Videomaker (the company) and B&H other than what’s publicly known, which is they advertise in our magazine. The comments you have linked to actually belong to our forum users and not the company. Interestingly, B&H, from what I’ve heard from long-time videographers, started their business doing a lot of grey market equipment. Things have changed for them (for the better) and they’re one of the best mail order businesses around. Watch out for their holiday season, however, because they shut down everything for several weeks.
Kevin –
I’ve purchased from B&H. Good company, fair prices, great selection, & knowledgeable staff.
They may have been a bit shady in their earlier days, but I wouldn’t hesitate to buy from them know.
I know a few video guys who shop there exclusively.
-joe
http://www.WebVideoZone.com
i had an elura and it broke down. when i read up on it i realized it happened with a lot of people. i am strictly a sony guy.
Thanks, Mark. Appreciate the clarity. It seems Joe (a regular poster to this blog) has also known about people that shop at B&H exclusively. I was most struck by a comment from one person that he doesn’t even shop around- just B&H.
Out of curiousity- how did you find this post so quickly?
technorati.com. I’m always searching for videographer bloggers. It’s amazing how hard it is to find them. I’m slowly collecting RSS feeds so I can watch whats happening out there in the blogosphere related to video technology, video sharing (youtube, etc) and video production.
As soon as I find a decent amount I’ll probably publish it to our mag, although it would make sense to do electronically (i.e. blog or forum).
Hey, I currently watching your videos. Great stuff. I’ll probably e-mail soon about them. I’ve got some questions.