Camcorders are so simple to use these days that they encourage seat-of-the pants videography, which isn’t always the best idea. Just grabbing your camcorder and hastily shooting may be fine if you’re shooting the UFO that happens to be flying overhead,...

Although modern camcorders are small and easy to carry around, you’ll probably find that most of your shots benefit from a tripod or other method of stabilization. Even the cheap $20 tripod that you got for free with your camcorder purchase is better...

Most digital camcorders provide automatic aperture control (often called exposure). The aperture is the part of the camera that controls how much light is let in through the lens. It expands and contracts depending on light conditions, much like...

After spending hundreds if not thousands of dollars for a high-tech digital camcorder, you may be frustrated by the so-so quality of the audio recorded by the built-in microphone. The problem is that the camcorder’s mic is prone to pick up a lot...

Separate sound recorders give you more flexibility, especially if you just want to record audio in a certain location but not video. Many professionals use DAT (digital audio tape) recorders to record audio, but DAT recorders typically cost hundreds...

If you want to connect a better microphone to your camcorder, the best place to start is with your camcorder’s manufacturer — you’ll need a really long cable. (Just kidding.) Usually accessory microphones are available from the manufacturer. These...

Few pieces of digital video gear are as underappreciated as camcorder accessories. Beyond the obvious things like a camcorder bag and spare tapes, there are a couple of extras which I feel are critical whenever you shoot video.These includeExtra...

When you go shopping for a new digital camcorder, you’ll be presented with a myriad of specifications and features. Your challenge is to sort through all the hoopla and figure out whether the camera will meet your specific needs. When reviewing...

Although MiniDV has become the predominant standard for consumer digital camcorders, many other formats exist. In addition to Digital8 (described in the previous section), the available alternative formats include these:CD-R/W (Compact Disc-Recordable/reWritable):...

Until recently, MiniDV tapes were expensive and only available at specialty electronics stores, so Sony developed the Digital8 format as an affordable alternative. Digital8 camcorders use Hi8 tapes instead of MiniDV tapes. A 120-minute Hi8 tape...

MiniDV has become the most common format for consumer digital videotape. Virtually all digital camcorders sold today use MiniDV; blank tapes are now easy to find and reasonably affordable. If you’re still shopping for a camcorder and are wondering...

Remember back in the old days when many personal computers used regular televisions for monitors? In the early 1980s I had a Commodore 64 hooked up 4:3 16:9 (widescreen)to a TV — it made sense at the time — but these days it’s hard to believe, especially...

You may already be familiar with image aspect ratios, but did you know that pixels can have various aspect ratios too? If you have ever worked with a drawing or graphics program on a computer, you’re probably familiar with pixels. A pixel is the...

The aspect ratio of a typical television screen is 4:3 (four to three) — for any given size, the display is four units wide and three units high. To put this in real numbers, measure the width and height of a TV or computer monitor that you have...

InterlacedPr0gressiveA video picture is usually drawn as a series of horizontal lines. An electron gun at the back of the picture tube draws lines of the video picture back and forth, much like the printer head on your printer moves back and forth...

A lot of new terms have entered the videophile’s lexicon in recent years: NTSC, PAL, SECAM. These terms identify broadcast television standards, which are vitally important to you if you plan to edit video — because your cameras, TVs, tape decks,...

It is the springtime of love as John and Marsha bound towards each other across the blossoming meadow. The lovers’ adoring eyes meet as they race to each other, arms raised in anticipation of a passionate embrace. Suddenly, John is distracted by...

Digital camcorders — also called DV (digital video) camcorders — are among the hot consumer electronics products today. This means that you can choose from many different makes and models, with cameras to fit virtually any budget. But cost isn’t...

A lot of video editing involves finding exactly the right spot to make a cut or insert a clip. The ability to easily move back and forth through video precisely, frame-by-frame, is crucial, but it’s also not terribly easy when you are using the keyboard and mouse. For years, professional video-editing workstations have used knobs and dials to give editors more intuitive, precise control — and now you can get that same level of control on your computer. A multimedia controller such as the SpaceShuttle A/V from Contour Design (www.contouravs.com) connects to your computer’s USB port and makes manipulating video a lot easier.I have used the ShuttlePRO (another controller from Contour Design) extensively with Adobe Premiere,...

Computer monitors and TV screens may look similar, but the two have profound technological differences. The most important difference involves color. Computer monitors can display more colors than TV screens. Also, computer screens are non-interlaced; TVs are usually interlaced (interlaced displays draw every other line of the picture on separate passes, whereas a non-interlaced or progressive scan display draws the whole picture at once).The important point is that the video you preview on your computer monitor may look a lot different when it’s viewed on a TV. To address this problem, many video editors connect a video monitor (that is, a TV) to their computers so they can preview how the video looks on a real TV. Fortunately,...

If you don’t feel like ripping into the innards of your computer, you may want to consider an external analog video converter, such as the Dazzle Hollywood DV Bridge. These devices usually connect to your computer’s FireWire or USB (Universal Serial Bus) port. You connect your VCR or analog camcorder to the converter, connect the converter to your computer, and the analog video is converted into digital video as it is captured into your computer.If you buy a USB converter, make sure that both the device and your computer use USB 2.0 (a newer, faster version of USB). The original version of USB could only transfer data at 12Mbps (megabits per second), which is not quite enough for full-quality video capture. USB 2.0, however,...