Wanting more movement

[DigitalVideo]

When I do events I’m pretty stationary. I use a tripod and monopod. I use a Canon Gl2. What do you guys out there use for keeping mini cameras steady? I feel I’m losing alot of angles because of camera shake when moving around. I like the big shoulder mount cameras for mobility and steady shot when moving but do not own one yet.

Side note:
I go to alot of weddings with my wife and asked clients if I could view there videographers finished product. Some are real good but others look like there kids did the shooting and editing. The sad part is alot of people thought what I think is crap looked good. People are more into cheesey transitions than the quality of the video.
I remember one videographer used 7 cheap video camers put all around the wedding. 3 around the alter(one hand held), 2 one on each side, 2 in the back. The qaulity of the image was poor, sound quality was horible. Beyond that think about the time involved in editing 7 cameras. The sad part was the clients thought the video looked good.
Another videographer was talking while shooting and left his voice in the finished product. It must be alot of potential clients care about price over quality.
Michael

[DigitalVideo]

With my Gl2 I believe the LUX is aroung 4 1/2. In low light I set to aperature priority to let the most amount of light in.(Does not improve quality but makes me feel good.) When I set to aperature priority and set it at the lowest point(think it’s 1.6 can’t remember) I still can’t blur the background. Everything is in focus. I know with cameras the lower the aperature the shallower the depth of field. So can someone tell me why I can’t blur the background? I can shoot my wife’s camera with a lens of 5.6 I can blur the background out. If I use her 2.8 lens I can have 2 people standing next to each other and one person is out of focus.
Michael

[DigitalVideo]

With the 1.6 aperature I put in manual focus and was able to blur out the background alittle. Not sure if eveything will be soft. Hard to tell until I burn to disk. As for the 4 1/2 Lux I can’t remember if this is correct but I do have a hard time with weddings done inside. The viewfinder looks ok but the final image is dark.
compusolver,
What would be a wireless mic that does an excellent job. I was recomended Sennheiser in the 500$ range for a good quality wirless mic combo. What do you recomend? One more, Lighting kits – What ajustible kit do you recomend in the up to 50 watts?
The problem now is whenever there’s money for equipment my wife pulls out her photography dream list.
Thanks
Michael

[DigitalVideo]

Hank,
This is what B&H has B&H Kit
Sony Price : $ 2,299.95

DCR-VX2100 3 CCD Mini DV Camcorder, 12x Optical/48x Digital Zoom, Color Viewfinder, 2.5″ LCD Screen

System NTSC

Format Mini DV (6mm Digital)

CCD 3 x 1/3″ CCD 380,000 Pixels (340,000 Effective Pixels)
Advanced HAD CCD Technology

Audio PCM Digital Stereo
12-bit/32kHz/4ch, 16-bit/48kHz/2ch

Zoom 12x Optical, 24x or 48x Digital

Lens Aspherical Lens 6.0-72.0mm f/1.6-2.4
43.2 – 518.4mm (Camera / Memory Mode)

Filter Size 58mm

Image Stabilizer Yes, Optical Super Steady Shot

Lux 1 lux

Viewfinder Large Precision Color Viewfinder with 180k Pixels

LCD Monitor 2.5″ Precision LCD with 211,000 Pixels

Manual Controls Focus (ring)
Exposure (19 steps dial)
White Balance
Zoom (ring)
Shutter Speed (1/4-1/10,000)
Iris
Mic. Level.

Date & Time Yes

Time Code Yes

Edit Protocol Yes, Control-L (Lanc)

A/V Dubbing Yes, Audio Dub in 12-bit Mode

Inputs Digital – IEEE-1394
Analog – S Video or Audio Video Input (RCA)

Output Uses the same jacks as inputs

Digital Still Mode Allows the capture of still images onto a Memory Stick

Card Slot Memory Stick

Special Effects 6 Mode: Slim, Stretch, Solarization,
Monotone, Sepia, and Negative Art

Digital Effects 5 Mode: Old Movie, Luminance Key,
Flash Motion, Still, and Trail

Fader Black, Overlap, Wipe
Monotone and Random Dot

Titler 8 Preset & 2 Custom Titler

Built-in Mic Yes

Microphone Input Yes, (Mini Stereo)

Headphone Jack Yes, (Mini Stereo)

Built-in Speaker Yes

Accessory Shoe Yes, Intelligent (Hot Shoe)

Built-in Light No

Tape Loading Side – Top Loading

Power Consumption 7.2w, AC 110-240v 50/60Hz

Dimensions (WxHxD) 4-3/4 x 6-3/8 x 15-1/2″ (120 x 159 x 393mm)

Weight 3 lbs. 6 oz. (1.5kg)

Specialties Color Bar Generator
2-Position Neutral Density Filter
Digital Program Editing allows you to select 20 scenes (you can easily select and rearrange up to 20 scenes)
5 Mode Program AE
Zebra pattern 100%/70%

Step-up from DCR-VX2000 Enlarged Handle with Mounted Zoom and Recording Control
Larger Viewfinder, Larger Eyecup
Enhanced LCD Monitor with 211k pixels
Built in Lens Cap
1 Lux Low Light

The sony said 1 Lux is this correct? Is the quality of this camera really this good? How would it compare to my Canon GL2 6 Lux, 0.37 Lux (slow shutter at 1/8 of a second)?As for a church where no other suplemental lighting can be used does this camera do a superior job? How does this camera compare to the Sony DSR-PD170 3-CCD Mini DVCAM? They both shoot at 1 Lux. Can quality get any better than 1 Lux in low light? Sorry for all the questions but I’m a novice trying to do it right.
Thanks
Michael

[videosaurus]

Digital Video Wrote:

With my Gl2 I believe the LUX is aroung 4 1/2. In low light I set to aperature priority to let the most amount of light in.(Does not improve quality but makes me feel good.) When I set to aperature priority and set it at the lowest point(think it’s 1.6 can’t remember) I still can’t blur the background. Everything is in focus. I know with cameras the lower the aperature the shallower the depth of field. So can someone tell me why I can’t blur the background? I can shoot my wife’s camera with a lens of 5.6 I can blur the background out. If I use her 2.8 lens I can have 2 people standing next to each other and one person is out of focus.
Michael

You don’t say what focal length the lens is at or what distance you are focused at- both of these have influence on depth of field, in addition to the aperture.

You may be a f1.6, but if you are at extreme wide angle, focused at infinity, it almost won’t matter. Get close to your subject, focus close (obviously) and aperture will have a much more significant impact on depth of field.

One of the things I find lacking on camcorders is a depth of field scale- but I’m new to video (I’m an old still photog) so maybe I just haven’t purchased a camera with that engraved on the lens yet!! 😀

All of my still camera lenses have a depth of field scale engraved on the lens along with focus marks, etc. But with 35mm still photography, you couldn’t preview depth of field (except on very expensive cameras) before taking the picture (since you looked through the viewfinder at maximum aperture)- you didn’t see the effect until the film was developed. So the scale needed to be on the lens to assist. Electronic video and still cameras have a huge advantage in that regard.

MM

[DigitalVideo]

videosaurus
I’ll try that that idea later. I’ll set up and zoom in to try to blur the background.
Thanks

[DigitalVideo]

Hank,
How would you compare the Xl-2 by canon to the Sony VX-2100? Canon is almost 2,000$ more but is the interchangable lens really worth the investment? I know with photography it’s not the camera, it’s the lens which gives you creative control. Do you have any experence with the XL-2? Does the sony VX-2100 do true HD TV?
Thanks
Michael

[i43Productions]

Neither the XL-2 or Sony VX-2100 do HD (or HDV). to get HD you need to look at either the Sony HVR-Z1U, HDR-FX1, HDR-HC1, HVR-A1E, or some JVC camera or the new Canon XL-H1.

Personally, i’m partial to sony products so i’d look at the Z1U if you want professional options (i.e. xlr jacks and all) but also the PD-170 is very good for non-HD use. As is the XL-2. The removable lenses are really cool, but not very useful unless you’re going to be doing sports or something that requires you to change lenses. for your uses, that particular feature doesn’t really apply. BUT the XL-2 has a lot of other really great features that make it very good for you.

[Author]

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