Top 10 Camera Essentials

Before you begin shooting, it's important to learn about your camcorder. You need to take time to get acquainted with it. After all, you'll be spending a lot of time together.

You don't have to read the camcorder manual from cover to cover, but you do need to know a few of the camera's most basic functions. Of course, over time, you may decide that reading the camcorder manual is much more exciting than you would have guessed! (That's when you know you're hooked.) Your manual has a lot to tell you about this powerful piece of equipment.

The following sections describe the top 10 fundamental functions you need to learn.

1. On/Off

You should find out where the On/Off power button is and learn how to use it.

2. Record/Standby

Record/Standby is generally a red button on your camcorder that you push to start. When you're powered up, you see a signal on your camcorder that you are in standby mode. When you push the Record button, the signal turns to red, and you're recording. Push the same button again, and you are in standby mode.

3. Widen/Tighten

The Widen and Tighten controls are usually labeled W and T. You use these controls to zoom the camera lens in and out. You need to find out how the W/T rocker bar or controller works and then avoid the temptation to use it while you are recording. Constantly zooming in and out is one of the most obvious, irritating, and often repeated sign of a bad home movie!

4. Inserting Tape

You need to find out how to load tape into your camcorder. Do not force the tape loading mechanism. It is very delicateand it is very expensive to fix if you break it. I have done this, so I speak from experience.

5. Autofocus and Manual Focus

Most cameras have autofocus, which is a wonderful feature for many situations, but sometimes it can get in the way. Often, the only manual control you should really get to know is manual focus, so you can choose when you want to use autofocus and when you want manual focus. (You'll learn more about manual focus later in this chapter.)

6. Batteries

You need to find the feature on your camcorder that tells you how much battery life is in your camera batteries. And you need to learn how to charge the batteries. If you have extra batteries or a separate battery charger, you should make sure you can charge them. And you should find out how long it takes to charge them, too.

7. Camera Case

It is important to keep your camera in a case and protect it from extreme temperatures and moisture. Keeping your camera in a nice, protected camera case is a very good way to protect your investment. You can also store all your accessories with it in the case, so you will be ready to shoot at a moment's notice.

Tape Handling and Organizing Tips

While it may sound too trivial to talk about at first, handling tapes is actually a pretty important part of the process of shooting a movie. So it's worth a minute of your time to review these basic tape handling and organizing tips:

• Unwrap tapes It's a good idea to unwrap tapes before you need them so you're not frantically trying to remove the cellophane wrapper when you want to be shooting. It's no fun to miss the important action because you are stuck trying to get your fingernail under that pesky wrapper that just won't come off quickly.

  In addition, unwrapping the cellophane wrapper makes noise, and if you're in the middle of a school concert, the rest of the audience will not enjoy the "sounds of cellophane" symphony you've introduced into the program. Be polite and unwrap tapes before the event begins. Unwrapping during an interview also creates an interruption in the flow of a taping session; it's bad enough to have to change tape, so minimize your tape change time by having tapes ready to load if you think your first tape is going to run out.

• Label tapes It's a good idea to label tapes so you know what's what. You can even pre-label tapes if you are getting ready for a shoot; professionals often do this. You don't want to have to shuffle through tape after tape when you go to edit your tapes because you didn't label them. Sometimes you don't get around to editing your footage until long after the shoot. You'll be shuffling around enough footage for real editing work; don't make extra work for yourself by not labeling your tapes.

• Use the Record/Save tab You need to learn about and find the Record/Save tab on your tapes. This is the black slider near the tape edge of the miniDV cassette tape. The tape comes ready for recording, with the Record/Tab slider in the Record position. You need to push the tab to the opposite side after you've finished shooting to prevent it from being erased or recorded over. You should get in the habit of pushing this tab when you take tape out of the camera. If you've ever recorded over a precious event tape, you know just how heartbreaking it can be to lose valuable footage.

• Make "lock and label" your motto You should lock the tape's Save tab and label your tapeevery time you take a tape out of the camcorder. If it becomes automatic, you won't have to worry about losing the footage you've shotat least not for a really preventable reason.

You should store your camcorder and your tapes in a cool, dry place. Don't leave your camera in the car for months at a time, in a hot or cold climate, thinking you'll have it in case you need it right away. Aside from preventing theft, you need to keep it safe from extreme temperatures.

8. Tripod

If you have a tripod, you should put the camera on the tripod and practice using it. If you have a tripod with camera controls on the tripod handle, you should practice using the controls on the tripod handle to control your camera.

9. External Microphone

If you have an external microphone, you need to learn how it connects to your camcorder and test it. You should make sure the microphone battery is working properly and carry an extra battery in your camera case at all times.

10. White Balance

In your camcorder manual, you should find the section about white-balancing your camera. What is white balancing? Your camcorder reads white and then calculates all the other colors from it. The camera has to find white in the scene it sees.

Shooting under incandescent light (which makes images yellowish/orangey) or fluorescent light (which casts a blue tinge on images) changes the color temperature of the light, so what should be white is not read by the camera as white.