What's the 720p video like on the D5000?

[MikeHunt79]

Right now I have a D60, and I'm more than happy with it, but I'd like the ability to do video also.

Now, I could either buy a HD camcorder, or sell the D60 and get a D5000. Would I be right in thinking the D5000 would give better picture quality compared to a £200-£300 camcorder when used with a good lens? Are there any limitations of the D5000 in video mode? How does it deal with 2gb+ filesizes?

Also, how does it deal with sound, does it have a mic input?

 

[Snapshot]

This page of the review at dpreview should help. It has a built-in mic but no input socket.

 

[BruceLee]

In my limited use of the D90 video I would have to say that although quite useful its harder in practice to use, I dont believe the d5000 has autofocus in video mode like the D90 which makes composition a lot harder. Saying that if you are prepared to live with the short comings of that then you can make some nice videos on the camera. I would probably suggest a tripod for it.

One thing I have noticed is that due to the onboard mike the noise is transferred from manually focussing into the video.

Rolling shutter is quite noticeable so you have to be aware of that.

I am still happy enough with it, I will be playing more with the settings to get the best out of my camera. I wouldnt really want to lug a camera and a video recorder around with me on trips out.

 

[MikeHunt79]

Thanks for the link, it does look like it does have some big limitations (5 min max time for a single take) but I guess video isn't the primary use for the D5000 (or D90!).

I think I'm gonna stick with my D60, and pick up a cheap HD camcorder.