Best Camera for under $300?
- Thread starter Kira1
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mirrorlessNY(youtuber)
I Love YTtalk
Hi, welcome to the forum & congrats on 1st post. I would suggest to just use the cellphone & concentrate on content rather then gear. I started with cellphone - videos still there 
good memories though. If you persist on a camera, I think the most capable used is a6300, it has negatives like lack of selfie screen & no IBIS, but got superb 4k, autofocusing & mic port. Under$300? try a6000/a5000 they are outdated, no 4k, no mic, but are good budget choices & you have a state of the art upgrade path like a6600.
good memories though. If you persist on a camera, I think the most capable used is a6300, it has negatives like lack of selfie screen & no IBIS, but got superb 4k, autofocusing & mic port. Under$300? try a6000/a5000 they are outdated, no 4k, no mic, but are good budget choices & you have a state of the art upgrade path like a6600.
ThriftyAV
Well-Known Member
A few minutes ago I clicked "buy it now" on a refurb Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ300 on Ebay for $297 plus tax, putting it just above your price range. Yes, it will shoot 4K video, but I picked it up mostly for it's still camera features.
Yes a phone will work as long as it has a decent camera, but when I started out on YouTube, the simple auto-everything nature of a basic camcorder helped me concentrate on content, not production, and looked better than my old HTC phone's camera.
I started with a Panasonic HC-V180 that I found for $150. It shoots 1080p, has "intelligent auto" and good stabilization, but I was not always happy with the built in microphone, so I stepped up to a used Panasonic HC-V770 that I got for $275. It has an external microphone input, better manual controls, wifi connectivity, and other features, but again, 1080p.
I eventually went 4K with my Panasonic HC-X1000, but this is beyond your budget.
I know a lot of folks think camcorders are outdated, old school tech, but they make shooting video super easy, and this is important when you are first starting out.
Yes a phone will work as long as it has a decent camera, but when I started out on YouTube, the simple auto-everything nature of a basic camcorder helped me concentrate on content, not production, and looked better than my old HTC phone's camera.
I started with a Panasonic HC-V180 that I found for $150. It shoots 1080p, has "intelligent auto" and good stabilization, but I was not always happy with the built in microphone, so I stepped up to a used Panasonic HC-V770 that I got for $275. It has an external microphone input, better manual controls, wifi connectivity, and other features, but again, 1080p.
I eventually went 4K with my Panasonic HC-X1000, but this is beyond your budget.
I know a lot of folks think camcorders are outdated, old school tech, but they make shooting video super easy, and this is important when you are first starting out.
mirrorlessNY(youtuber)
I Love YTtalk
Camera market is shrinking rapidly due to cellphones being so capable for everyday/average use, I assume that hybrid cameras are the obvious cost effective solution since they can be good at both high quality photography & video, while still being able to swap lenses. Sony a7iii is a perfect example in terms photography capabilities with it's 24 megapixels full frame sensor & superb 4k quality which is actually a result of 6k downsampling. Generally speaking, manufacture 1 camera = make everybody happy = save$ = stay afloat in this shrinking market.
LandyVlad
Super Poster
I have an FZ200 - I'm confident you'll be happy with the 300.
Look up GRAHAM HOUGHTON 's youtube channel he has heaps of instructional vids for these cameras. Cheers