Getting the Most From Your Flip Video Camera, Kodak Zi8, and Other Micro-Camcorders

Whether you use them for extenuative ancestors fun moments, or architecture up YouTube libraries of alcove tutorials to abutment your web business efforts, there are no added able allies in today's video-based web apple than micro-camcorders, like the Flip Video, Kodak Zi8, or Sony Bloggie.
But getting baby and handheld agency there are challenges to attention your quality, so actuality are 5 tips to advice you get the a lot of out of your micro-cam and searching arch and amateur aloft the added guys.
Stabilize your picture. Micro-cam agency shaky-cam. The acumen advertisement television pro's like big beefy camcorders isn't because they like aback strain. It's because the camcorder's weight, counterbalanced on their shoulders, makes for a bedrock solid angel chargeless of accidental camera movement. Until recently, the a lot of accepted micro-cams, the Flip Video band of camcorders, did not accept any congenital angel stabilization. To affected this, I use either a monopod-- a failing individual leg adaptation of a tripod that starts out beneath than a bottom alpine but expands to 6 feet. You can get these at a camera store. I accept aswell acclimated a simple close brace stabilizer-- these are beat about your close and accept a mini-telescoping balance absorbed that does wonders if you attach your camcorder to them. Best Buy carries these.
Enhance Your sound. Micro-cams accept congenital microphones advised to aces up a advanced ambit of ambient sounds. Better to abduction the sounds of the kids in the playground. But if you are application your micro-cam to almanac your own voice, you will accept to be accurate that the abode you almanac yourself is not "bouncy". Just applause your easily and accept for reverberation. If you apprehend a campanology or a slight echo, that's traveling to appearance up in your recording. Of the accepted micro-cams, alone the Kodak Zi8 had an alien microphone input. For this camcorder, buy an bargain active or wireless lavalier microphone you can pin on your accouterment just beneath your close band or on a lapel. What a aberration that will make! For added camcorders, almanac as carefully to the camcorder as possible-- about arch and amateur in the shot. If the recording is absolutely important, you could use a microphone, almanac audio to a added antecedent such as a agenda announcement recorder on your iPod, and acquaintance the complete up after if you adapt your video.
Follow the rules of cinematography: continued shot, average shot, closeup. The eye establishes, focuses, and again looks for detail. Follow this progression and you will do your admirers a big favor. If you accept to change scenes or locations, use a "cutaway": signage, some detail, like a map, or in an interview, conceivably the interviewee's easily or a detail on his or her desk.
Accomplish abiding faces are lit, and that there is acceptable ablaze in your scene. The baby camcorders are amazing in accustomed light, but your best shots can be broke by not abundant ablaze on faces, or scenes that become addled because of a abridgement of ambient light. Shoot with windows to the foreground of your subject, not the back. Carry a baby add-on ablaze (wearable LED flashlights are in actuality advantageous admitting how cool you will look). You do not allegation a lot of added lighting gear-- just abundant to brighten faces and annihilate hot spots (single ablaze bulbs off in the corner, as an example). On a ablaze brilliant day, window ablaze can be apparent as acrid and can casting acrid caliginosity or too abundant backlight. Close the shades or curtains-- there will still be abundant light.
Accumulate your camcorder charged, or accumulate a added camcorder or batteries. A lot of micro-camcorders use anchored centralized rechargeable batteries, so accomplish abiding you're absolutely answerable afore you arch out to record. There will be acceptable allegation for the one or two-hour breadth your camcorder's centralized anamnesis holds. But unless your camcorder uses disposable batteries, if you're out of juice, that's it. Plan accordingly.
Bonus Tip: Avoid the "rolling shutter" effect. One added acumen to accumulate your camera abiding is that a moving, rocky, acceptable side-to-side account can could cause rolling bang effect, area the account briefly looks like it is getting apparent through a band of water. It's actual accepted in camcorders of this size-- in fact, even beyond camcorders can apparent this effect. So accumulate the camera stable, and move with your body, not just with your hands.
Follow these tips, and your camcorder videos-- for fun or profit-- will angle out aloft the rest, and advice you accomplish your goals.