4K/30p Capable DSLR with external mic plugin?

[Ethan_NLHW]

I'm starting my own tech channel and want a high quality camera to start. I purchased a Nikon B700 to get started but found out that it did not have an external mic input. Trying to find a reasonably priced DSLR that can do 4K30 that also allows for external audio. Really trying to punch above my weight to start off. Looking at the Sony a7 iii, but man the price tag is nuts. Wondering if anyone knows of any alternatives that are a little cheaper. Any help is appreciated.  

[AqHu]

If you're looking to do only video work with your camera, maybe look at a Panasonic... The Canon M50 is also an option, but there is a significant crop in 4K.

This video might be helpful to you:

 

[another random person]

4 hours ago, Ethan_JL said:

I'm starting my own tech channel and want a high quality camera to start. I purchased a Nikon B700 to get started but found out that it did not have an external mic input. Trying to find a reasonably priced DSLR that can do 4K30 that also allows for external audio. Really trying to punch above my weight to start off. Looking at the Sony a7 iii, but man the price tag is nuts. Wondering if anyone knows of any alternatives that are a little cheaper. Any help is appreciated.  

So like @AqHu mentioned, the Panasonic range of mirrorless cameras are something you should seriously consider since those cameras offer robust video quality for a reasonable price. 

For now I would stay away from Canon cameras, especially the m50 in terms of video performance. That is because as much as the 4k function is advertised, the actual performance of it's supporting features are quite limited. One such example is the crop meaning that you would have to get quite a wide lens or have the camera placed a significant distance away from you to get a reasonable frame. Not to mention the fact that DPAF (Canon's famous in sensor focusing system) is disabled for the 4k shooting resolution. (No bias as I am a canon semi-pro shooter)

A camera to consider would be the GH4 which I believe is on offer currently at BH photo 

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1028453-REG/panasonic_dmc_gh4kbody_lumix_dmc_gh4_mirrorless_micro.html

Considering your former choice was a Nikon B700 I'm assuming that the focus is on video and less so photography. 

 

Though if you wish to be able to do more serious photography sony's range of APSC mirrorless cameras from the a6300 to the a6500 are reasonably priced and offer 4k as well as plenty of photography features.

And yes all the cameras mentioned above all have external mic line inputs and some have clean HDMI output for external recorders down the line. 

Though if you are looking to grind and narrow fully into videos and have a slightly larger budget, the BMPCC 4k is worth considering.

 

[GDRRiley]

a GH-4 or GH-5

[YellowJersey]

I can really only second the GH4  and GH5 recommendations. That said, the A7 III is actually incredibly affordable when you look at its feature set.

[cc143]

Try out the fuji xt3, it doesn't have ibis, but its a pretty well rounded little camera and lenses are much cheaper than in the Sony system. 

 

You could also look at a used 5d4, I've seen way too many go for much cheaper than the sonys and thats not including savings in glass, which is even coming down, although, the crop is an issue. Another option is a used eos r, they tend to sell at significant discount and coupled with an adapter and cheap ef-s glass, you'd ened up paying less than for a sony and overcome the crop issue. 

 

The panasonics are also great, but significantly lack continuous AF capability.

[MandicReally]

Panasonic G7 is what I use.  I film 4k/24 but it does 4k/30 (I hate how 30fps looks personally).  Auto-Focus is meh, but it works. I find myself manual focusing more and more as time goes on.  DSLR Video Shooter (Caleb Pike) has an affordable guide for the camera that really helped me get the basics of the specific camera down and figure out my own style after that.  For $500 I don't think you can beat it if you want 4k video. 

 

Lens are where you will really make some image quality improvement and where $$ starts to rack up.  A couple good lenses will cost you way more than the camera itself but make big improvements to image quality, in my experience anyway.  I still cannot afford to have all the lenses I want but the 25mm F1.7 from Panasonic was the best investment I've made.  A Photographer friend actually thought I bought a new camera entirely when I started using the 25mm for my B-Roll and Interview style shots.  That lens is only $200 but every other lens I want is $800+.  I rented them for SEMA 2018 and they were well worth it, I just can't justify them quite yet for purchase.

[Ethan_NLHW]

Wow. You guys know your stuff lol. I am a total noob when it comes to cameras and lenses. Definitely one of the reasons I want to start on this endeavor is to learn about these things. Could anyone give me a quick rundown on what lenses are for what specific shots. And yes I am speaking almost mostly in terms of video. I recently signed up for a year of Adobe Creative Cloud, so Premiere and Photoshop will be what I'm working with the most. I will be doing stills for social media and the like, so that is also a factor.