gary d
what is a hybrid comcorder.
what questions should i ask the salesperson when i go and buy one.
I am looking to spend no more than $600.
any suggestions??
thanks
Answer
Key Features
Screen: Having a large LCD screen built into the camcorder lets you more easily see what you're recording and facilitates playback previews. Be careful when considering a camcorder's screen, though--some don't work well in bright sunlight, an environment in which you'll often use the device. Most camcorders come with both an LCD screen and a viewfinder, giving you the option to use either. The viewfinder can be useful if you can't see the screen in bright light; it also uses less power than the screen, extending the camcorder battery's life. Also, if you are considering purchasing a camcorder that can shoot in wide-screen (720-by-480-pixel) format, look for a camcorder with a wide-screen LCD, which won't crop your view of the video you're shooting.
Lens: Every camcorder comes with a zoom lens that lets you get closer to your subject. Camcorder manufacturers don't always distinguish clearly between digital and optical zoom. The spec for maximum optical zoom is the more interesting figure: It denotes the maximum zoom that the camcorder can achieve by moving its lens elements. Most modern camcorders have at least a 10X optical zoom, which should be more than adequate for general purposes. A digital zoom, on the other hand, magnifies after the optical zoom is fully extended, and the camcorder then enlarges part of the image to fill the screen. This method leads to grainy, pixelated, and generally unpleasant-looking images. At higher digital zoom settings, the quality is so poor that you often can't see what you are taping.
Image stabilization: All camcorders offer one of two types of image stabilization--optical or electronic--to reduce jittery video caused by shaky hands. With optical stabilization, the camcorder's lens mechanism moves to compensates for external movement. With electronic image stabilization, the image captured by the lens "floats" on the CCD, and the camcorder uses internal circuitry after the image has been captured to interpret the video. Optical stabilization usually provides the best results; in the past it was typically found in more expensive camcorders, but these days some moderately priced models have it too.
Batteries: The amount of recording and playback time you get out of a battery varies, but most camcorders should be able to record for at least an hour with the included battery. Additional higher-capacity batteries typically cost from $50 to $100.
Microphones: Sound is almost as important to a video as the images. We've found that camcorders with microphones mounted in the front tend to produce better sound than those with microphones on the top of the unit; top-mounted microphones often pick up the voice of the person operating the camera, drowning out everything else. Some camcorders offer zoom microphones that emphasize the subject's voice when the zoom lens is used, and some also come with a socket for plugging in an external microphone. Either type of microphone can be very useful when you're recording presentations or speeches.
Still photography: Many digital camcorders can serve as digital cameras, saving still images to a memory card or to tape. Some can save images at the same resolution as a 5-megapixel camera (but watch out for models that produce interpolated high-resolution images from lower-resolution CCDs). However, none of the camcorders we've tested has performed as well at taking still pictures as a dedicated still camera--they don't provide the same level of control or the same image quality.
Controls: We have found that smaller camcorders can be a little more difficult to use because their controls don't naturally sit where your fingers fall, particularly if you have large hands. Of course, heavy, bulky models can get tiring to carry, so strive for a balance.
Low-light modes: Many camcorders have the ability to film in very low light, whether with the help of an infrared light (which you can't see, but the camcorder can), a special slow-shutter mode that makes the most of ambient lighting, or built-in illumination from one or more LEDs. Some models offer all three methods. These modes can be very useful in poorly illuminated settings, but video captured with these tools enabled won't be as good as video captured in well-lit settings. For example, slow-shutter modes may cause moving subjects to smear or ghost.
Format: Most camcorders use the MiniDV and DVD formats, but models that capture to small onboard hard drives are becoming more common; others write to flash memory. MiniDV models still capture the best-quality video.
Hard-drive models: These camcorders' main advantage is that they give you near-instant access to any footage on the drive. Rather than having to fast-forward or fast-reverse to find the scene you want, as with a tape-based camcorder, you can go to a scene by clicking on a thumbnail in the camcorder. But once the drive is full, you must stop shooting until you can offload the footage (with a MiniDV- or DVD-based model, you can just pop in another tape or disc). Also, like DVD camcorders, hard-drive models capture in MPEG format, which requires much more computing horsepower to edit; in addition, not all editing applications will accept MPEG footage.
Wide-screen shooting: Several camcorders now allow you to shoot in the 16:9 aspect ratio used by HDTVs, even if the camcorders still shoot in standard-definition resolution. Note that some camcorders use a CCD with a native 16:9 orientation, so you get the full resolution of the CCD when you shoot in wide-screen format, whereas others use a CCD with a traditional 4:3 orientation and use only a portion of that CCD when shooting in wide-screen.
High-definition recording: Several models record in either the HDV or the AVCHD high-definition format. Because both are highly compressed, they require a very powerful computer to decode their files and a compatible video editing application to edit them. (AVCHD is a newer format; only Pinnacle Studio 11 and Corel Ulead VideoStudio 11 recognize it at this writing.) Even a powerful computer will take much more time--hours, not minutes--to render HDV or AVCHD files than standard-definition, DV-format files.
I'm trying to buy a mini dv camcorder can someone tell me what I need to look for in one like all the specs..?
I need to know what type of resolution, how many megapixels and stuff like that like what I need to look for when I go to purchase a mini dv camcorder.
Answer
In buying a camcorder, you need to prioritize the following:
Screen: Having a large LCD screen built into the camcorder lets you more easily see what you're recording and facilitates playback previews. Be careful--some screens don't work well in bright sunlight, an environment in which you'll often use the device. Most camcorders come with both an LCD screen and a viewfinder, giving you the option to use either. The viewfinder can be useful if you can't see the screen in bright light; it also uses less power than the screen, extending the camcorder battery's life.
Lens: Every camcorder comes with a zoom lens that lets you get closer to your subject. Camcorder manufacturers don't always distinguish clearly between digital and optical zoom. The spec for maximum optical zoom is the more interesting figure: It denotes the maximum zoom that the lens itself can achieve without enhancement. Most modern camcorders have at least a 10X optical zoom, which should be more than adequate for general purposes. A digital zoom, on the other hand, magnifies after the optical zoom is fully extended, and the camcorder then enlarges part of the image to fill the screen. This method leads to grainy, pixelated, and generally unpleasant-looking images. At higher digital zoom settings, the quality is so poor that you often can't see what you are taping.
Image stabilization: All camcorders offer one of two types of image stabilization--optical or electronic--to reduce jittery video caused by shaky hands. With optical stabilization, the camcorder's lens mechanism moves to compensates for external movement. With electronic image stabilization, the image captured by the lens "floats" on the CCD, and the camcorder uses internal circuitry after the image has been captured to interpret the video. Optical stabilization usually provides the best results, but it's typically found in more expensive camcorders.
Batteries: The amount of recording and playback time you get out of a battery varies, but most camcorders should be able to record for at least an hour with the included battery. Additional higher-capacity batteries typically cost from $50 to $100.
Microphones: Sound is almost as important to a video as the images. We've found that camcorders with microphones mounted in the front tend to produce better sound than those with microphones on the top; in particular, top-mounted microphones often pick up the voice of the person operating the camera, drowning out everything else. Some camcorders offer zoom microphones that emphasize the subject's voice when the zoom lens is used, and some also come with a socket for plugging in an external microphone. Either type of microphone can be very useful when you're recording presentations or speeches.
Still photography: Many digital camcorders can serve as digital cameras, saving still images to a memory card. Some can save images at the same resolution as a 5-megapixel camera. However, none of the camcorders we've tested has performed as well as a dedicated still camera--they don't provide the same level of control or the same image quality.
Controls: Owning the fanciest camcorder in the world won't do you any good if you can't use it. We have found that smaller camcorders can be a little more difficult to use because their controls don't naturally sit where your fingers fall, particularly if you have large hands.
Night modes: Many camcorders have the ability to film in very low light, whether with the help of an infrared light (which you can't see, but the camcorder can), a special slow-shutter mode that makes the most of ambient lighting, or built-in illumination from one or more LEDs. Some models offer all three methods. Night modes can be very useful in poorly illuminated settings, such as when you're recording a camping trip or capturing on tape the creatures that wander into your yard after nightfall.
Format: Most camcorders use the MiniDV and DVD formats, but a few other formats are available, such as Sony's Digital 8, MicroMV, and flash memory. A Digital 8 camcorder records digitally to Hi-8 videotapes and can also play back videotapes recorded on analog camcorders; the downside is that camcorders that use Hi-8 tapes are typically larger than miniDV models. MicroMV camcorders (such as the Sony DCR-IP1) use a type of tape that is smaller than a MiniDV tape--and the camcorders that use such tapes are smaller than MiniDV models. Flash memory-based camcorders are smaller still, but their recording times are limited by card capacity.
3CCD models: Some MiniDV camcorders record video using three CCD sensors instead of one. They record reds to one CCD, greens to another, and blues to the third. The camcorder then combines the footage into one stream. This process is supposed to give you better video quality, and in our tests camcorders with three CCDs have performed well. (The CCD wasn't the only factor in the overall performance score, however.)
Wide-angle shooting: Several camcorders now allow you to shoot in the 16-by-9 aspect ratio used by HDTVs, even if the camcorders still shoot in standard-definition resolution). Note that some camcorders use a CCD with a native 16-by-9 orientation, so you get the full resolution of the CCD when you shoot in wide-angle format, whereas others use a CCD with a traditional 4-by-3 orientation and use only a portion of it when shooting in wide-angle format.
High-definition recording: Two or three expensive camcorders record in a high-definition format called HDV. Sony's HandyCam HDR-HC1 is one such camcorder. Because HDV is highly compressed, it requires a very powerful computer to decode the files and an HDV-compatible video-editing application to edit them. (Few consumer video-editing applications support HDV right now.) Even a powerful computer will take much more time--hours, not minutes--to render HDV files than standard-definition, DV-format files.
Go to http://www.bhphotovideo.com to get the cheapest camcorders and accessories.
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