A recent iPhone Pro or high end Android phone.
I wouldn’t recommend getting into more complicated setups until you’ve tried a recent phone. They’re really quite extraordinary.
Ask HN: Which low-budget camera would you recommend for recording podcasts?
11–20 of 45 posts
Re: Ask HN: Which low-budget camera would you recommend for recording podcasts?
#12A used Sony a6000 + kit lens + cheap HDMI to USB dongle. The nice thing about this sort of setup is that you can upgrade the lens as needed without having to redo the whole system. As for lighting, DIY some diffusers for and stick them on some lamps.
On the HDMI-to-USB front, beware of dongles that oversell themselves.
A blue USB connector just means a blue USB connector, it doesn't necessarily mean it's USB 3.0 (they might use weasel words like "USB 3.0 compatible").
Most have an integrated scaler, e.g. will accept 4K input even if they only capture at 1080p - the listing will likely emphasize the former rather than the later.
The MS2109 chip will do 1080p at 30fps, over USB 2.0 (mjpeg).
The MS2130 chip will do 4K at 30fps (mjpeg), or 1080p at 60fps (yuv), over USB 3.0.
Re: Ask HN: Which low-budget camera would you recommend for recording podcasts?
#13You may have better luck if you specify what low budget means to you. The latest iPhone Pro is better than some of the entry level cameras, especially if you weren't planning to splurge for a nice prime lens.
I think the cheapest you should go is the Sony EV-10 plus Sigma 16mm 1.4 lens. If those are more than you want to spend, stick with your phone camera because you won't see enough improvement to make it worthwhile.
In either case, watch some YouTube videos about podcast lighting because that will matter more than your camera.
Re: Ask HN: Which low-budget camera would you recommend for recording podcasts?
#14A used Sony a6000 + kit lens + cheap HDMI to USB dongle. The nice thing about this sort of setup is that you can upgrade the lens as needed without having to redo the whole system. As for lighting, DIY some diffusers for and stick them on some lamps.
On the HDMI-to-USB front, beware of dongles that oversell themselves. A blue USB connector just means a blue USB connector, it doesn't necessarily mean it's USB 3.0 (they might use weasel words like "USB 3.0 compatible"). Most have an integrated scaler, e.g. will accept 4K input even if they only capture at 1080p - the listing will likely emphasize the former rather than the later. The MS2109 chip will do 1080p at 30…
Some Sony cameras support acting as webcams natively over USB now too, so you can skip the HDMI step. Not sure about which specific models though
Re: Ask HN: Which low-budget camera would you recommend for recording podcasts?
#15Use your phone and spend your money on lighting and audio (mic and interface). You can make your video look very professional with good lighting. Bad lighting + expensive camera == amateur looking video. No matter how good the image is, with poor audio no one will watch it.
Re: Ask HN: Which low-budget camera would you recommend for recording podcasts?
#16A used Sony a6000 + kit lens + cheap HDMI to USB dongle. The nice thing about this sort of setup is that you can upgrade the lens as needed without having to redo the whole system. As for lighting, DIY some diffusers for and stick them on some lamps.
This is my exact setup and it's great. Several pros:
- Relatively cheap since the a6000 is an older camera
- The a6000 doesn't have the 30 minute hdmi limit that some other cameras have (this can be fixed with gphoto, but you have to redo it every time you connect)
- When you're ready you can buy more lights, and then eventually a nicer lens if you want
Re: Ask HN: Which low-budget camera would you recommend for recording podcasts?
#17If your budget is tight, use your phone for video, and sort out the audio equipment first. Folks will watch mediocre video with excellent audio. They will not watch the reverse.
Re: Ask HN: Which low-budget camera would you recommend for recording podcasts?
#18Sorry,I'm confused. Aren't podcasts audio by definition? Unless your audience is going to be mainly on a video platform (and even then, the following advice will apply) you should focus your budget on audio equipment, and possibly build a recording booth.
There are a lot of podcasts out there and no good discoverability outside of large platforms. YouTube has some of the best discoverability out there, but YouTube viewers expect video. If you want to run a successful podcast in 2024, recording video and uploading it to YouTube is a must
Re: Ask HN: Which low-budget camera would you recommend for recording podcasts?
#19Sound is much more important - even if you consider your podcast video first (in which case it’s not a podcast but that’s another topic) sound is more important. Take whatever smart phone you have and use that for the video and then spend any money you have for the camera and spend it on a decent mic.
People will watch lower quality video with good sound for far longer than they will watch good video with bad sound.
Source: listening to podcasts now for 15 years and grew my own to 5k listens a month across 100 episodes.
Re: Ask HN: Which low-budget camera would you recommend for recording podcasts?
#20Use your phone and spend your money on lighting and audio (mic and interface). You can make your video look very professional with good lighting. Bad lighting + expensive camera == amateur looking video. No matter how good the image is, with poor audio no one will watch it.
Your last sentence is super true, but the audio interface is relatively unimportant. Even onboard headphone jack audio interfaces are 10x more than adequate. Main things to focus on (no pun intended) are mic placement and mic quality.