Great pics and good video?

[overlord20]

I am looking for a camera that I can get used for around $400. I really like the design of the micro fourthirds cameras but am having trouble with them..

I will be using the video and photo for events and reviews. I will probably also be using the photo and video for capturing mountain biking and snowboarding.

I was looking at the lumix gf2 but I read it doesn't take action shots worth a damn.

Advice would be helpful! If I micro fourthirds exist that can do the described that would awesome. DLSR is just a little bigger then what I currently want as I am a beginner in this. Currently using my iphone or a dv recorder for video and my crappy sony w310 for photos.

Thanks in advance.

 

[UnknownSouljer]

Micro-Four Thirds are great, the only real limitation with them is their auto-focusing capabilities and speed shooting. For slow moving or not moving stills they're great with excellent picture quality. To be honest, I haven't looked into them much for specifically video use.

I would probably recommend the Canon G12. It fits your budget, but it doesn't have a removable lens which may be desirable if you don't want to have to purchase a bunch of lenses. It can shoot wide to low telephoto lengths, 28-140mm. Does 720p video.
It's good for learning camera basics if you want to (the exposure triangle especially) as it does offer manual control of aperture, iso, and shutter speed. Features Aperture Priority and Shutter Priority as well. Program mode (full automatic) for dummies. Of course with added features comes added complications. But it would be the same with a u4/3 camera.

Review to see if it has the features and requirements for you: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/CanonG12/

 

[overlord20]

I kind of want to go with a m4/3rds because of the interchangeable lenses.. I am willing to learn the ins and outs of everything.

What would you recommend out of all them?

 

[UnknownSouljer]

I probably can't help you there as much as someone else can. I can look around a bit at some u4/3 systems, but hopefully someone else can step in. The Olympus Pen E-PL3 seems like an excellent candidate, but it also seems out of your budget. It has Olympus' new "fast" AF.

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/olympusepl3/

I do want to mention this however: make sure you spend time looking at the way the cameras are controlled. One of the big advantages of the G12 is that it has physical controls for almost everything. That might sound like it doesn't matter much, but I remember picking up a Nex 5 (for example) and being frustrated by having to go through digital menus to manually control the camera. That is slow, not convenient, and makes learning manual control difficult.

 

[overlord20]

I think I am bumping my budget up to so I can go with a T2i from canon.

Ebay they around 400-600 and I was told they have really good video.

 

[UnknownSouljer]

DLSR is just a little bigger then what I currently want as I am a beginner in this.

I think I am bumping my budget up to so I can go with a T2i from canon.

Ebay they around 400-600 and I was told they have really good video.

Oh, I didn't know we could ignore your first post! Well in that case then.

As a small side note, be prepared for the additional cost of lenses. Be sure you're factoring that in with your purchase. It's not a problem for me because I love the stuff, but if you're dabbling it can be daunting.