My goals are simple. I like to shoot, then slap it on VHS to see. I have shot instructional tapes, funerals and the odd wedding. I had planned a trip to do a doc, but I realized I don't have the right cams and my timing was off because of all the turmoil in the Middle East. How about you? What are your aspirations?

Shooting home and outdoors, anything that may be worth remembering. Looking for unusual visuals. Burning DVDs =)

On the lookout:
-busting the mith of "flying rods" =)
-filming an alien

Shooting my home video as professional as possible. Using windscreen picture, progressive, cinema-like filters/soft and so on. Video editing, adding 5.1 surround sound and DVD mastering as result.
I’m already doing it, sometimes I do my footage even using simply screenplays. But my camcorder can’t bring me quality that I really want.

Shoot each scene in 10 seconds or less until the tape is full, play the video once or twice, rewind the tape, keep in cabinet full of desiccant, then watch again after about a year during the holidays :-)). In between, play and play and play around with whatever comes new.

Aspiration? Find enough time (and the will) to do proper editing before transferring to DVD :-))

I love to travel, and i hate being infront of the camera, mostly cos i'm hideously unattractive ;) , but cos i like to travel, there have been things i've wanted to re-live again and share with ppl that couldn't be there with me, as well as make a sort of holiday guide/doco on where i went and what i did. i have a goal of visiting every continent and as many of each of their countries as i can, my first big epic was going to be this july starting in Japan then on a ferry across to Shanghai, then through to London on trains via, mongolia, russia, finland, sweden, denmark, holland germany, switzerland, Austria, italy, france then across in channel tunnel to london.

but unforturnately that epic journey has been postponed until next year if i can find another friend to join me and be Narrator =)

hence the reason i would like a GS400, i was going to get the MX500 then i realised that Panasonic was bringing out replacement models for the NV-GS70 in the form of the GS120 and GS200, so i thought they might be bringing out a replacement for the MX500B so i though yay!!! woo!!! i'll find out what is is and hence now i am here discovering all i can about the camera. hopefully they don't bring out a 720p camera too soon after the GS400 is released cos then i'll have to sell my GS400 and get one of those =)

I only use mine for work.

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.

You know what's funny is we've got seven camcorders
sitting around the house, but when we go anywhere,
such as "visiting" out of town, we buy those one-use
disposible still cameras at Walgreens/WalMart and don't even bring a camcorder.

A lot of people use those.

I want to add that I feel that the GS400 will probably be another low light disappointment, so I would not be able to use one for my regular, bread and butter shooting. (I don't mean, run n gun.) But I am interested in a good PAL cam, one with frame mode and great widescreen, etc etc. I was looking forward to a PAL GS100, which was a no show; and the MX500 would have been fine, but d_mn, it was too expensive compared with the PV-DV953---I just couldn't make myself do it knowing I'd be spending more for a cam I'd be using less. Know what I mean? :-))

Maybe the GS400 will have surprises, but I ain't crossing my fingers.


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I'm getting too old for this. < rolleyes.gif >

I too use my camera for work, but I always wanted a video camera for traveling and memories of great times I have. Until recently I did not want to by a camera because I wanted the best of both worlds. I wanted something a little more compact and with 3 chips which hadn't been offered at a resonable price. The DV953 changed that for me and I decided to finally jump in.

I recently shot a behind the scenes video for a Trading Spaces show I worked on in Orlando. I'm in the middle of editing it now and I'm going to present it to my client and the The Learning Channel executive producer. One of the things I learned a long time ago was to edit in the camera ... it makes editing go that much faster.

As for realistic goals .... I feel there will always be something new coming out - technology is something you will never keep up with. However, like everyone else, I would like to see smaller form factor with larger chips for low light shooting. One which will incorporate the new technology that is facing all of us in the coming years. HD is here, but the cost is prohibitive right now for most. But that is where it is going and this will have to follow.

I like to run and gun for fun and recording home video but mostly just to run for exorcizing.

Allen it sounds like you've been here in Japan too long.

To satisfy my techno lust. I have quite a technical background in aircraft engineering and computers, and photography and video help me combine that with the little bit of creativity i have. For video work I prefer to shoot for other people unless it's sports related, snowboarding, MTBing, surfing etc, then I like to shoot my own stuff.