So I've got some sketches I'd like to record, I've even got Sony Vegas Platinum to edit, but I've only got a Canon IXUS digi cam, which is all good for short clips but I'd like a decent digi video camera to shoot sketches that I can stick on YouTube for some ritual abuse.
What do people use? Any suggestions?
If you're only putting it on YouTube it doesn't really matter what you use. I use the webcam on my laptop to film the majority of my stuff. What matters is the script and the performance. No one walks away from a great sketch saying, "Sure, it was funny as f**k, but the production values were way under par."
Yep, the Slaggs use a well-dodgy Samsung MiniDV that has a broken viewfinder and possibly the worst score in an online review (I kid ye not). On uploading, YouTube will convert your file, making it even worse than it appears on your own screen, free-of-charge.
So don't worry too much about the quality of the image, as long as it's viewable. Look forward to seeing your stuff.
How come some videos lose more quality than others, when you upload them onto YouTube, that's what I wanna know.
There's videos on YouTube that are really sharp and clear. Like this one:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uxi8dbRVshI
Although that is on the BBC's YouTube account. Are they getting preferential treatment or something?
A couple of videos I've uploaded have looked like that BEFORE i've uploaded them, but as soon as I do upload them, they go all fuzzy and pixelated.
I think its the format that you upload it with. When I converted something I recorded off the TV on Media Centre I used the DivX format and the quality was very high although the sound was a bit off. You should probably try uploading using different file formats to see which is the best one.
Also if you're watching YouTube videos from a cheap camera phone the quality will always be shit.