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A Mac running Final Cut Studio will allow you to edit, do some
efx, make DVD?s and upload to the web. Fully equipped Mac?s are
used by many professional post production studios.

The format will likely need to be miniDV because of your budget
range.

The TYPES of equipment you need depends on what you will be
shooting. But for a general list, yours is fine. Lights are
important and you might want to consider an audio recorder. That
might not be needed and considering your budget range probably
not doable. But the basic essentials of a camera, tripod, mic,
lights and editing software will get you started.

Depending on what and where you will be shooting renting equipment
is a viable option. Grip equipment is expensive and takes a lot
of storage space - so does lighting equipment. But good grip
equipment and lights can make a shoot easier.

What's the market like in Florida? Is there a need for video production
companies where you are? What kinds of work will you do to make
a profit?

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The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but progress.
Joseph Joubert, essayist (1754-1824)

Thanks certified instigator. Yeah, from everything I've read so far, it seems that operator's skill and lightning trumps camera quality every time. With the lens sometimes playing a bigger role than the camera itself?

I tried to sent you a private email, but it got ninja'd by the anti-spam program. ?:D?

Off-topic, when my email was stopped, the text read as follow:

"A copy of this message has been sent to the forum administrators. If it's contents are deemed to be spam, your profile will be removed immediately."

When they read it and see that it's not spam, will they forward it to you?

thanks
David

The lens is very important. No professional camera comes with an attached lens.

I know that many DV camera owners are going to dislike that statement, but when
you look at any 16mm or 35mm film camera and the higher end DV cameras you
will see none of them have a fixed lens. Many consumer DV cameras have nice fixed
lenses, but when you have the option to rent really high end lenses it just makes
your camera more versitle.

Regarding e-mail: I really don't know the answer. I often get messages sent through
this site. Now I wonder if some aren't getting through....

if you want to go direct certified_instigator at yahoo will do it. Make sure you use the
underscore between words.

=============================================
The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but progress.
Joseph Joubert, essayist (1754-1824)