Camcorder Advice

If it were me, I'd just buy the best digital camera I can get for the money I want to spend. A good digital camera can do what a camcorder does, and more.

I've got an older Canon digital camera that has 7 Mpix and image stabilization (A570is) that shoots video, that I paid less than $200 for. Here's another example with more features and options, and a bit pricier than the item you're looking at; but there are less expensive cameras around that you could look at:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Canon-Digital-Camera-incl-18-55/dp/B0020MLKF0/ref=sr_1_443?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1301751887&sr=1-443

Here's the newest version of the camera I have:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Canon-PowerShot-Digital-Camera-Megapixel/dp/B00400OK5C/ref=dp_ob_title_ce

I have a Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ3 digital camera which can record video. It's a great camera but the video functions are limited, for instance, I can't use the zoom in video mode. I was hoping I could do better with a dedicated video camera.

I own a Lumix ZS3 and I use optical zoom 12X with HD video all the time. Good thing about panasonic is the AVCHD format which allows me to record more than hour and a half HD 780P video on an 8GB card with stereo sound.

I hope I am not too late to the party but I have a recommendation. I owned the TZ3 and now own a newer version called the ZS3 (TZ7). It is a fantastic little camera. Watch one of my videos in 720p: video

As you can see, it allows you to zoom while recording and has quite a bit of zoom (12x). I am very happy with it. I've had it for a year and a half now so a newer version has certainly come out.

It takes great stills on the macro and zoom levels and records pretty good videos. Also, since you own a TZ3, you can pick up this camera and go because you should be familiar with it.

Good luck with your purchase.

-Adam

The video is good quality.

It seems like every time I get some advice here my choice gets more difficult. I keep looking at different cameras & each has a feature that I am adding to my wish list. The 3CCD cameras seem to offer the best colour reproduction but seem to be poor in low light conditions & generally have limited zoom. They are pricey but I think I could stretch to the compact versions. Panasonic & Sony seem to have the best image stabilisation.

Other desirable features are instant turn on, pre-record for those events with a sudden start, this records constantly & keeps the few seconds before you press the record button. Time lapse is good, it can be set to take images at predetermined intervals to create a high speed playback & motion detection.

I'm not going to rush into this so a bit more research is called for.

It really depends on what you want to do with it. The camera you selected is fine for home use. Probably one thing you would want to look at if you were looking for something better is a 3CCD camera which would give you better quality images.

I had a quick look at 3CCD but could only find 1 which was under £1000, all a bit out of my price range.

My subjects, apart from general family use, would be either motor racing or fireworks. I use my still camera for motor racing but, because of the shutter delay end up with lots of pictures of empty track.

Fireworks are a tricky subject, the sudden change from dark to very bright image throws the camera sensors. They also have trouble capturing the colours properly & the scale of displays makes it hard to capture everything. This is made worse by my being involved in the displays so being very close to the action.

First decision must be to go for HD or not. If you go with HD, you need HD software tp edit the material in a good way, maybe you need a faster PC if your PC is old, a new TV if your TV is not full HD.

Which is why I decided to NOT go HD a few years ago, the camera I bought has a 30 GB tiny Hard Drive and is from Sony, but there are many makes around.

It can also be used as a stills camera and has flash and 12x zoom.

It is probably now a REALLY cheap model to buy today if still available due to completely lacking 3D and HD today.....

I do recommend a camera with Hard Disk, the batteries run several hours for each charge, they hold their charge for many months too......

Onboard a yacht with no 220 volts for charging for a week, I had no problems in doing all my photography for the whole week, with power to spare with two large and one small (the original battery), the large ones are about 1.5 x 0.75 x 1.3 inches approximately from memory - still very small......

Buy also a wide angle lens for working inside a house and a toplight!!!

Get one with a good long guarantee.....

Have fun.

I think I would agree that HD is not necessary, I don't have an HD TV & have no plans to buy one.

Interesting comment about hard drives, I had sort of discounted these but perhaps I'll take another look.

I recently bought a FujiFilm HS-10 digital SLR and am totally delighted with it. This camera can also be used as a camcorder (up to 45 frames per second, though it's limited to 10 FPS for full screen pixels....and features a 30x zoom and stabilization, to list a few features) and is PACKED SOLID with features (too many features to list here). Easy to use as well, although I am still learning how to use it! Too many features to learn overnight!!!

I found it to be a better buy than most of the others on the market, like Nikon (and I'm a huge Nikon buff from way back...own no less than (14) Nikon 35mm SLR film cameras, 3 Nikon digital 35mm SLR's, and nearly 100 Nikon lenses of all types) and Canon. This camera will rock your world, so to speak!

This is not the first FujiFilm SLR that I've owned. I have an older (6 year old) S602Z 35mm SLR that was a winner from day one, and I'd still be using it if only I hadn't accidentally dropped it onto floor at a plastic modeling show last October!

Bought the HS-10 from an Ebay Seller located in NJ for $339 USD and free shipping. That was a bargin, as most Sellers want full MRSP or nearly so + large S&H charges....bunch of crooks!

If you are interested in this HS-10 camera, you may even want to wait until May when FujiFilm releases their brand new HS-20 digital SLR, which is even more capable than the HS-10. Be forwarned that it will set you back roughly $549 USD (and they're taking pre-orders now and as a result are now backlogged). I would have waited to buy the HS-20, but I really need to replace my broken camera ASAP.

Incidentally, when my best friend showed up on my doorstep a week ago Saturday, I handed him my new HS-10. He was absolutely totally blown away after playing with it for a half hour. I swear to you that he was thinking of stealing it from me after I noticed the wide evil grin that appeared on his face!!!

Just Google Search FujiFilm and check out the HS-10 or the HS-20. I promise to you that you won't regret one moment purchasing either of these cameras.......and I'm an old school Photog from way back when....started photographing with my late dad's old German made 35mm Kodak Retina (circa 1948-49?) when I was 12 years old....I'm nearly 53 now and an old fart, but I know my cameras and camcorders (having owned 6 of them over the years...mostly SONY). OKAY GROUP, SAY BUDWISER!! CLICK!!!!

I bought a Creative Vado from an ebay dealer which is high res 4 gb pocket sized with good results. I am happy with it. Taking video with a camera is a poor alternative in my opinion since they are not shaped for the job.

I have a Canon SX200IS that I am very happy with.

For an inexpensive non-HD camera I'd say get the best Panasonic 3CCD offered. 7-8 years ago I'd use them with software called Dartfish for product repeatability studies. Back then we paid about $400 per camera. The 3 large sensors made it the best camera for the money at the time, really good in low light too. The nice thing about them is the ability to turn the shutter speed up really high which is nice for evaluating high speed motion.

My personal camera is a Canon HD Vixia HFS100. I was sold based on personal user reviews on A/V message boards.

I have looked at quite a lot of these, Samsung, Panasonic, bla bla bla. I actually went to stores and used them to see how one worked better than another. I didn't want anything that did not have HD, Image Stability, and solid media storage (no tapes). I finally settled on a JVC unit. It was by far the best. I bought a refurb for $200.00 where new it was $450.00.

JVC do seem to be pretty good. I'm trying to settle on a model or two before I start searching for the best bargain.

It's pretty hard to beat flip video. I have the flip ultra HD, it shoots 720p video and can store 2 hours at a time on board on the model I have, and it has a USB arm that plugs directly into my computer for offloading video. The software that comes with it is super easy to use. You can make still images from live video, stitch video clips together and make movies, and the flip software integrates with facebook, youtube, and email, so you can easily share videos with friends and family. The software installer is on the flip cam itself, so you can install it on any pc while on the go to dump video. I bought mine just over a year ago when my daughter was born. I have shot and shared well over 1k videos to share with family as my daughter grows up. I also purchased the water proof case for it, which we use at the pool for shooting under water. They are available at the flip website.

Here is a sample video of my daughter on youtube you need to select 720p on resolution, default is 360.

usual disclaimer -- i do not work for flip, etc. blah, blah, blah... they just make a decent easy to use product for about $200 that's pretty hard to beat

Cute daughter (and dog). Video clips like that are OK on my existing camera but I think that I need a better device for more demanding applications.

Well, I made my choice & spent my money, should have the camera in a day or 2 so I will see if it lives up to expectation. The winner was the Panasonic SDR-70, I also ordered a 16Gb SDHC card & will get a spare battery when I have the camera to check the type.

As always the choice was a compromise. I looked at 3CCD cameras but they were all very limited on the functions. I looked at the version of the Pansonic with a hard drive but the extra bulk made it uncomfortable to hold & operate.

I might post a video when I have had a bit of practice at getting the settings right.

Thanks for all the helpful advice & comments.

Dude!, optical 70x is HUGE....

Do let us know your first hand experience with zooming, may be send a link.

Happy shooting!

I wanted to get close to the action, I plan to use a mono-pod to support the camera for the long zoom otherwise it could get a little twitchy, even with the stabilisation.

Great! This is the camcorder I am considering because of the 70X zoom. I'm looking forward to a comprehensive review.

I had a play with it in the local store & was impressed. I'll try to give some useful feedback but I hope you won't be put off by my total lack of skill.

I received the camcorder today & 1st impressions are good. It does what I expected & the controls are fairly straightforward to use. My 16Gb SDHC card says it has just under 8 hours of recording space available at standard definition.

I've uploaded a small video clip, this is straight out of the box with no attempt to optimise the settings really just to show the optical zoom. Please excuse the poor shaky camera work. I've played this clip with the camera connected to a 32" LCD TV & the quality was reasonable.

Nigh,

Thats very impressive, the amount of zooming.!

Comparing it with my 400mm lens on a 1.6 crop sensor SLR with 1.4x converter, this way much more.

I guess I will be looking forward to get this camera.

Do send more clips, may be try with a tripod and zoom slowly. You can really create aw-some clips with that kind of zoom.

How close can you get to the subject and still use the entire zoom range (the minimum focusing distance)?

The handbook claims that you can focus to within 1cm of the camera but I haven't tried that yet. It also claims that the digital zoom is 2600x which is ridiculous.

I'll upload another clip or 2 when I've mastered the camera a bit better.

Quality of the picture and the zoom factor is really good.

Do not ever use (much of) the digital zoom though, you will NOT be happy the results (at least on every camera of ANY type I have seen with digital zoom!). It does of course depend upon the number of pixels in use, a higher quality may use more pixels and then you can maybe use the first few levels of digital zoom with only a slight loss of quality.

I video always in the highest quality when videoing as you can always step down in quality later if you wish, but stepping up may cause further quality problems....(sh*t sentence, sorry!)

I agree completely, I would not use the digital zoom.