My friend/film partner is selling a used DVX 100B which has only really been used by him and I, and which I am extremely familiar and comfortable with.

My question is this; Should I buy it for $1500, or continue to try and save up money for an HD camera? I'm leaning towards buying the DVX strictly because I love the camera, and it's only $1500 in perfect condition. I asked my film professor and he told me to buy an hd camera, but those are like 3000 or more at the lowest.

So, what do you guys think I should do?

I am going to have to go with your professor on this one. Standard definition is on the way out... Even Youtube has HD now.

The DVX is a great camera, and it can give some great images, but i think that your investment won't have that great of a return. I am planning on getting rid of my DVX100A in a couple months (after i shoot my next 2 projects), because I don't use it enough, and it is going to depreciate in value a whole lot in the next year (i predict).

It depends what you need a camera for, but SD will be a lot harder to sell in the near future.

Evan, how much do you think you'll sell your for?

I don't really know. I'll probably go for $1300 obo, maybe a bit less..

On a mildly related note... I have shot one of the aforementioned projects !

those are canadian dollars btw

Haha I don't mean to hog AaronClaude's thread, but that's about $1,127 USD? Can you shoot features with that camera, is it very good? Why do you think it will depreciate so much?

Yeah, That seems like an accurate exchange rate. You could totally shoot a feature with it (many films have, including some very beautiful ones).

My main thinking behind the whole depreciation is the fact that it only has SD resolution. While it produces great images, it seems like the only real reason to use SD video in the (not so distant) future will be for internet videos and aesthetics... and even the internet is moving towards being HD.... I also don;t think that the value of the camera itself will depreciate a HUGE amount, but I think that trying to make money as a videographer with an SD camera is going to be tough now that HD cameras are so available.

My decision to get rid of it has more to do with the fact that i want to take on more ambitious projects, but i have a grand tied up in a camera... Renting makes more sense for me as a director.

Why rule HD out so quickly? Canon's Vixia HD line of cameras offer 24p recording and 1080i HD *and* they're affordable, costing between $500-$700. The new HV40 even records native 24p (no pulldown). The manual controls take a bit getting used to, and it's definitely more "consumer" than your average $3000 HD cam, but if you're one of those people who care about results rather than how impressive your equipment looks, then it's quite a nice investment. And it's cheap enough so that if you do decide you want to get a "pro" HD cam, you won't have to save up another five years to get one. Look into it, and while you're at it, come visit the HV20.com forums as well.