Mastering Camcorders - Advanced Techniques

The next footfall and application avant-garde techniques
To abutment this new begin beyond of purpose, camcorder architecture has undergone a huge arrangement of changes in contempo years. While you still accept the basal aggregate of lens, CCD, processor and accumulator medium, you now get all sorts of accoutrement alignment from a assortment of video encoding options advised to aerate angel above or size, sockets to awning every advantage from arena footage on a TV to artful it assimilate a anamnesis card, and accessible accoutrement advised to do aggregate from cutting out your shots to capturing beaming smiles.
High analogue camcorders accept alien the best appearance from your computer and DSLR.
Focus Peaking / focus assist
Combine able abilities with hi-tech functions and you'll banish exceptionable focus abhorrent ups
Most able camera operators will tend to zoom in, set their focus afresh zoom aback out again, as this makes it easier to get the angel nice and aciculate and it will not abate as you acknowledgment to your advised attempt length. Today camcorders accord the user the functions that gives the accomplished angel that able look, like Zebra apery modes that advice you get your vulnerability correct, In contempo years we've apparent added and added camcorders activity a agnate activity to advice you get your focus appropriate Focus Peaking modes access the adverse of the angel displayed on your camcorder's LCD awning after accretion the adverse of the footage getting recorded to your band or card, The added adverse on your awning will acquiesce you to see the edges of the altar you're cutting far added intelligibly, authoritative it easier to ascertain if they're a little down-covered and out of focus.
Some camcorders will even mark cautiously bendable edges aural the attempt with a aglow binding to accomplish abiding you can't absence them The ultimate footfall in focus peaking is the focus abetment mode, which zooms the angel as able-bodied as axis on focus peaking, so you can't absence a thing. Focus Peaking can be acclimated as you shoot to advice accumulate the activity sharp, while Focus Abetment will advice you set up your shots afore hitting the red button.
Optical Zoom
Another archetype of a automated band-aid that is bigger than its agenda analogue optical zooms should be at the top of your arcade list
As continued as Optical Angel Stabilisation is an archetype of an old adjustment getting cautiously bigger than its avant-garde counterpart, An optical zoom screams its ahead from the rooftops through a loudhailer. That's not to say that there aren't times if a agenda zoom comes in absolute handy, but the aberration amid the apparatus of an optical and a agenda zoom is generally the aberration amid acceptable and bad above footage as well.
An optical zoom works in a agnate appearance to a telescope, by altering the ambit amid lens elements or, in a lot of cases, the lens and the COD in adjustment to adapt the focal breadth and bend of appearance in the shot, burden the beginning to accompany abroad altar closer, A Agenda Zoom, on the added duke artlessly magnifies the account detail that has already been recorded, overextension the advice independent on one pixel over several. This has the advantage of accumulative an angel after the charge for a huge lens butt for the lens elements to move about in, but aswell has the disadvantage of overextension the aforementioned bulk of account advice over a beyond area, consistent in a accident of resolution that starts off about unnoticeable, but will eventually broken your shots into something that re5embles bendable focus footage of a Lego village. Agenda zooms can be advantageous in moderation, and the big numbers (500x agenda zoom etc.) complete impressive, but an optical zoom produces a far above image.
Mic Attenuation
Improving the above of camcorder microphones has created new challenges
In the accomplished microphone seemed appear beyond to be an afterthought. Even on the big-ticket flagship camcorders, the microphones themselves would generally be amazingly poor, complete from inexpensive, defenseless apparatus and decumbent to hissing and spitting as if every bit of footage you recorded came beyond as bad.
The choir of aggressive videomakers were heard over time, and manufacturers boring began convalescent the above ot camcorder mics until we accomplished the point today area camcorders can almanac in pseudo-surround sound, or zoom the analeptic arrangement of their shotgun mic to almanac bigger continued ambit audio, You can even abandon the onboard mic absolutely and bung in a top above alien Unfortunately, the aftereffect of all this is that while we can now almanac decidedly bigger sound, it has aswell become abundant harder to do so.
Camcorder microphones were consistently apparent as the anemic hotlink in abounding camcorders and aggregate of babble far greater than the camcorder's chip can action after overloading; fortunately, there are all sorts of appearance that will advice out, a lot of conspicuously in the anatomy of Mic Attenuation. In the simplest terms, Mic Attenuation just seems to about-face down the aggregate of your camcorder, but in absolute actuality switching your Nic Attenuation on is bottomward the microphone's acuteness by as abundant as 30Db. Area a aggregate auto abatement would get rid of the quietest of noises, Mic Attenuation works by authoritative abiding that the loudest of noises recorded break aural the altruism of the camcorder's circuitry, acceptation that you abstain baloney or complete audio blackouts from massive audio peaks, Mic Attenuation is accessible in situations area you wish the aftereffect of Audio Gain Control after the annoying of ecology the audio, but it absolutely comes into its own at concerts and date shows area you'll be recording your audio from a abnormally able antecedent such as an alien microphone or by cable from a bond desk.
Advanced Appearance Mini Buyers' Guide
When it comes to optical zoom ratios, there are some camcorders that by traveling that added millimeters.
lOx is the accepted deepening on a camcorder, and the a lot of accepted admeasurement of an optical zoom by a landslide,.Until recently, it wasn't aberrant to acquisition the casual camcorder with a 22x or 25x zoom as its arch business point, and even in these canicule of ultra-compact camcorder anatomy you can still acquisition the odd archetypal that goes a little bit added than lOx. Camera operators use their zoom as a agreement device, an aid to focusing, for arresting aftereffect or artlessly just to abutting the ambit amid them and their accountable Whether you're filming play from the aback row, accomplishing a bit of continued ambit wildlife photography or artlessly aggravating to blast zoom for effect, actuality is our aces of the 5 camcorders that go that little bit further.
Sanyo Xacti VPC-TH1
While the VPC-TH1 has the everyman genera account of all the models in this annular up, it offers far and abroad the a lot of ability for your batter if it comes to allotment a camcorder or it's zoom ratio. The TH1 will set you aback £18O/ $260 quid, for which you'll get a bazaar arch 30x optical zoom,
Canon Legria HF200
Next up is the HFZOO, a Canon cam that becoming itself an awards for it's accomplished architecture and angel quality, but which aswell offers you a absolute absorbing 15x optical zoom,
Sony HDR- XRS2O
One of Sony's flagship models, the XR25O is arranged to base with top end appearance and it aswell has a 1 2x optical zoom.
Sony HDR-CX520
The CX520 complements it's accomplished video and stills angel above with an arrangement of advantageous features, not atomic of which is a 2x zoom.
Panasonic HOC H5300
A 12 x zoom is just one of the affidavit why the HS300 becoming top array for features, administration and performance,