This is the second thread concerning digital media products. I am looking for a small yet sturdy camcorder to take on my WDW trip in May. If you have any suggestions please let me know.
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Digital Camcorders
- Thread starter JackSkellington
- Start date
There are so many on the market! Maybe repost his in the forum Digital Media & Photos?
Anyhow, what I looked for was:
small and light (obviously)
decent viewfinder (NOT LCD screen - you don`t want that
showing on certain attractions!)
manual exposure (don`t use auto exposure outside - any bright lights or sky will ramp down the exposure, giving a sillhouete effect on darker objects - usually buildings! And you want to be able to boost the exposure in darker attractions. Same for fireworks - any bright bursts ramp down the exposure)
manual focus - in dark rides the focuswill get `lost` resulting in a blurred image, and sudden changes in contrast (rides and fireworks) will also throw it. A good tip is lock your focus manually to infinity BEFORE entering an attraction - that way anything inside, no matter how its lit, should be sharp (assuming its more than a few feet away)
Good battery life and availability of extra batteries and fast charger
Lens attatchments - my wide angle converter makes SUCH a difference to fireworks.
Stay clear of digital zooms - they only degrade the quality - look for a good optical zoom instead (10-15x)
If you can, get miniDV format - the quality is much superior to S/VHS/C/Hi8 and you can firewire direct into your PC to edit.
Check where the (stereo) microphone is - some cameras have them pointing backwards, or too close to the lens/transport motors. A socket to plug an external mic in is a bonus.
Finally, again if you can afford it, go for a 3 CCD chip model - again the picture quality is so much better than single chip cameras.
As I said, also post in the media forum - you may get more `tech` replies there!
Anyhow, what I looked for was:
small and light (obviously)
decent viewfinder (NOT LCD screen - you don`t want that
showing on certain attractions!)
manual exposure (don`t use auto exposure outside - any bright lights or sky will ramp down the exposure, giving a sillhouete effect on darker objects - usually buildings! And you want to be able to boost the exposure in darker attractions. Same for fireworks - any bright bursts ramp down the exposure)
manual focus - in dark rides the focuswill get `lost` resulting in a blurred image, and sudden changes in contrast (rides and fireworks) will also throw it. A good tip is lock your focus manually to infinity BEFORE entering an attraction - that way anything inside, no matter how its lit, should be sharp (assuming its more than a few feet away)
Good battery life and availability of extra batteries and fast charger
Lens attatchments - my wide angle converter makes SUCH a difference to fireworks.
Stay clear of digital zooms - they only degrade the quality - look for a good optical zoom instead (10-15x)
If you can, get miniDV format - the quality is much superior to S/VHS/C/Hi8 and you can firewire direct into your PC to edit.
Check where the (stereo) microphone is - some cameras have them pointing backwards, or too close to the lens/transport motors. A socket to plug an external mic in is a bonus.
Finally, again if you can afford it, go for a 3 CCD chip model - again the picture quality is so much better than single chip cameras.
As I said, also post in the media forum - you may get more `tech` replies there!
Allright. However that DV cam you are using is probably very expensive. Right. But I will keep your advice in mind. Thanks.
mickhyperion
Active Member
I just picked up a Sony Mini-DV camera - a DCR-TRV22 for $599 - that has all of the handy features Marni mentioned. I have already used it at Disneyland and it did a great job capturing day and night shots, including inside It's a Small World and Fantasmic.
I'm very happy with it, as I usually am with Sony products. They're very intelligent, ergonomic, and stylish, not to mention dependable. The camera is tiny - easily fitting into one hand and just barely bigger than my still camera. In fact, it fits in the same case which saved me money on a second case since I only take one camera out at a time anyway.
I'm very happy with it, as I usually am with Sony products. They're very intelligent, ergonomic, and stylish, not to mention dependable. The camera is tiny - easily fitting into one hand and just barely bigger than my still camera. In fact, it fits in the same case which saved me money on a second case since I only take one camera out at a time anyway.
Well, I have less that 500 to spend, but I will keep an eye out for those products mentioned here.