CONSUMER-LEVEL CAMCORDERS
Panasonic PV-GS65
What makes the PV-GS65 such a good camera is its three 1/6'' CCDs one each for red, green, and blue. It's the same technology used in pro-level cameras, and it creates videos with 540 lines of resolution. Not quite high-def, but as sharp as you'll get on non-HD equipment. (And extremely high-quality for the price!) The camera uses a 10X zoom lens, which is the equivalent of a 42 420mm film lens. A special Digital Electronics Image Stabilizer (D-EIS) compensates for shaky movement, virtually eliminating blurry pictures. And here's something else. Want to shoot close-ups without capturing too many unflattering facial details? Then turn on the PV-GS65's Soft-Skin mode, which automatically detects skin tones and then softens the focus in that area of the picture. The result is the kind of soft-focus effect that you see in the movies very complimentary for your subjects. The PV-GS65 offers lots of other bells and whistles, of course. You get three white balance settings, macro zooming, and a 2.5'' swing-out LCD. You can even use this camcorder to shoot 1.2 megapixel still digital photos at the same time you're shooting movies. The still photos are recorded onto SD memory cards. Outside of the outstanding picture, the thing I really like about this camcorder is its ease of use. Most operations are controlled via a small joystick, which you can operate with one finger. Instructions appear on the LCD screen, which means you don't have to take your eye off the action to adjust the controls. And, as an added bonus, you can also operate the camera via wireless remote control a good way to put yourself in the picture!
Canon ZR100Canon's ZR100 is my pick for best entry-level camcorder. You get a number of pre-programmed shooting modes, various gee-whiz visual effects (fades, wipes, sepia tone, and so on), and a special Night shooting mode. You have your choice of 4:3 or 16:9 aspect ratios, and there's a very cool Multi Image Screen, which divides the picture into four, nine, or sixteen separate pictures great for capturing sports or other fast-moving images. Not bad for the price!
Sony DCR-HC42Sony's DCR-HC42 is a compact MiniDV camcorder with a very nice Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar 12X zoom lens. The neat thing about the DCR-HC42 is the Handycam Station a convenient docking device that provides a quick and easy connection to your TV or PC no need for connecting messy cables.
Panasonic VDR-M53What's unique about this camcorder is that it doesn't record to tape it records directly to DVD-R or DVD-RAM discs. You get all the standard features, of course, including image stabilization, but it's that DVD recording that sets this camera apart from the rest. Shoot direct to disc, then watch that disc immediately in the nearest DVD player. Cool!
JVC GZ-MC200JVC's GZ-MC200 is a cube-shaped camcorder that doesn't use any removable media no tapes or discs. Instead, it records directly (in MPEG-2 format) to a 4GB hard disk. The MicroDrive holds 60 minutes of video, which you can then transfer (via USB 2.0) to your computer for editing. It's an interesting approach, and makes for a much lighter unit than you're used to.
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EAN: 2147483647
Pages: 126