Sony HDR-HC9

I spent a month shooting this camera in Indonesia and am absolutely delighted with the camera, battery length, and final product. It uses miniDV tapes, which I'd rather have over a hard drive built into the camera. It shoots well in ambient light and very well with video lights.

The only thing I didn't care for was the fact that the wide-angle/telephoto buttons are on the flip-out screen and not on the top of the camera, so if shooting on land, it's almost impossible to zoom in or out without moving the camera, even if on a tripod.