CCTV Systems for low budget movies

[Creon]

Hi All, I was toying with the idea of filming some dramatic work with a security system similar to one in the link below. Would you be able to get around the split screen, so you'd basically have 4 cameras filming in real-time?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/CCTV-SECURITY-CAMERA-SYSTEM-500GB-DVR-HOME-RECORDER-KIT_W0QQitemZ160372649246QQcategoryZ48632QQcmdZVie wItemQQ_trksidZp4340.m263QQ_trkparmsZalgo%3DSIC%26 its%3DI%26itu%3DUCI%252BIA%252BUA%252BIEW%252BFICS %252BUFI%26otn%3D10%26ps%3D63%26clkid%3D7770967676 127777438

[videoswitchboard]

as long as you didn't want to move the cameras while filming, didn't mind the bad image quality and lenses, if you're ok with the quarter size resolution and if you're up for re-encoding your files from a crappy mpeg type compression capture for editing (if that's what you want to do)... then: YES.

otherwise, you'll be better buying 4 second hand dv camcorders or even digital cameras.

how long is the piece you're aiming to capture?


dav

[visualove]

You might look at the film Timecode, 2000, Mike Figgis, which used 4 cameras. Editing is a challenge and deciding which camera to follow with the sound is too.

[seex]

I'm sure you can't get around the split screen, and record four video streams. The price tag is a giveaway. Basically you will be recording less than youtube quality or one camera in poor video quality.

You are looking for a capture card or system that can cope with 100 fps of video at once. Just a PCI card that will do this costs twice as that, let alone a whole system.

So if your concept is not built around multiple cameras, the best way to go is the standard. Script, sketchbook and one camera. You will find it difficult to setup lights for all the cameras. So if you are aiming for quality picture forget it.

Perhaps it could be a good way to develop the screen play, I'm sure the actors would like the idea for rehearsals. But as a tool for sketching the camera angels and scene scouting a photographic camera is better.