I just moved back to the awesome Upper Peninsula of MI and put down a doe and a smaller 6 point. It was nice to get back to hunting again...out of it for pretty much 8-9 years. The buck was one that I would have normally passed on but....the fever got to me and he stood at 15 yards perfectly for almost an eternity it felt like...so I let the arrow fly. Anyways enough about my life update on to the real deal at hand! My brother and I have access to several hundred acres of private land and about a 900,000 acres of Hiawatha Forest public land that we are going to start hunting. With that being said I want to start capturing these moments and sharing them with those who have a few minutes to check it out!! My end goal would be to eventually post on a show not to name any spots but Bowhunting.com would be my first pick haha. My budget at this time to get the ball rolling would be in the area of $1,500. Luckily I have 2 GoPro's for additional angle shots as well! So with my end goal in mind and budget throw out any suggestions you have!!!! I did find this and was wondering about thoughts on it as well??? Canon VIXIA HF G30 Refurbished | Canon Online Store
The G30 is a great camera. Basically an XA-20 without the XLR audio inputs and carry handle. I would not worry about buying a refurb direct from Canon either. I bought a DSLR camera (SL1) a year ago direct through Canon's refurb store. It has been flawless. In some ways it is better than new, as it has had a Canon tech go through it and make sure everything is good to go. You won't go wrong with a G30.
I think that is the best possible bang for your buck your going to find. $400 off the price of a new one, and I'm sure it will come with a warranty. Like Derek said, basically it's the XA20, less the professional audio inputs. I've actually recommended this camera recently to someone wanting to take up filming their hunts. That camera would leave you quite a bit of room for a mic, camera arm, fluid head and a a tripod to get you started and stay within your budget.
Now the G30 does work with a LANC controller right?? On the site it does not say LANC compatible but I could swear I have seen posts of people using the varizoom with them. Camera arm is going to be homemade so got that covered! Also have a tripod from my Rebel! Big things remaining would be Mic, Remote, and the fluid head!
Got my fluid head off of EBay just now WOOT WOOT!!! I got the Manfrotto 701 lightly used...hopefully that is true haha. Canon G30 from above ordered!! Mic and remote remain for now!
For that camera, get a Rode Video Mic with the Rycote suppression system. Great mic for the money. I have one that I use with my DSLR set up. Rode VideoMic with Rycote Lyre Suspension System VIDEOMIC-R B&H
The G30 arrived today and she looks brand new!! Those of you who have been doing this for awhile will chuckle but I can not get over how small and compact this camera is....had to take pics of course. It is about the size of your everyday tumbler! Anyways I can NOT wait until spring hits for some turkey footage!! Best part is I wake up in the morning and listen to them gobble in my backyard!!
It is a sweet cam man, you will love it! Just getting into this myself and purchased a G30 last year. That is a real nice fluid head you purchased, looking at upgrading to something like that myself. You mentioned a lanc controller and the one I bought and really like is the VariZoom VZStealthLX. Are you going to run a wireless mic at all?
That's because Canon doesn't sell "refurbs". As in, they don't sell cameras that were broke and then fixed. They only sell cameras that were returned with no issues, or excess stock shipped back to them. I bought my 5D's as a "refurb" and they were brand new. (source) The G30 was a great choice! The Rode mic has served me well, and I'm a fan of using it when we run and gun!
Well the old lady is gonna kill me but everything is ordered!! She got her first bow as a Christmas present this year so hopefully catching her first turkey kill on film makes it all worth it....but until then I may be in the dog house haha. Went with the Rode mic above and a VZ stealth remote!! I was gonna try and hold out to catch a few things used but said to heck with it!!
Well that lightly used and good as new 701...failed me. I got the head looked it over and it must have fell victim to a drop or the guy cranked the camera lock lever a little hard and snapped it. Of course he did not offer returns but the Ebay Money Back guarantee will have my back on this one. He did not mention the damage and the super glue repair in his posting and made sure it was not in his photos that he posted. All is not lost though I have a new one on the way, also a 701 for less than I paid for that one anyways!!!
That sucks. Hate it when a seller isn't on the up and up. Luckily it doesn't happen that often. I've never had to put in a claim.
Already heard back from the seller and he was very apologetic about withholding the info or in his case he "forgot" to mention parts were glued on. He did offer a full refund though so it all seems like it will work out!
