Camcorder advice

[Anon-x]

I am looking to buy a camcorder. Any thoughts on the Panasonic NVDS12B ?
Any recommendations, should I go for digital?

[Stick Flying]

Anon.
We have the model before that one. I think the only change is to low light filming. Find the film quality exceptional.
The question about digital is basically what would you use it for. As I see it there is a better transfer when you use the I-Link digital interface but the other transfer modes are analog. I use a capture card for video capture from the S-Video connector (but that is analog anyway so you dont need digital for transfer to the computer).
There is also a certain amount of editing you can do to the film afterwards.
The digital zoom is also quite good but you sure need a steady hand for it to do justice.
Hope that actually clarifies things.
Stick

[Anon-x]

Thanks Stick Flying. Much appreciated.

[spannersatcx]

Anon-x, I also have an NVDS11B, and find the camera excellent. It has i-link or firewire connection that allows uploading of video to a pc. However in the UK they are not DV in enabled , apparently it would add an extra 200GBP to the prive as it would then come under a different taxation band or something. Anyway you can get around this by buying a DV in 'widget' around 80GBP, this enables you to download your video from your pc after editing adding titles etc etc. I use a 30GB hard drive for this and also use a Pinnacle Studio DV package around 100GBP mail order. Results are excellent, you can then make Video CD's if you wish as well as recording back to the DV camera. I think it's great, so do the family.
Have fun it's worth it.
Try this link for a forum on DV camera stuff
http://www.dvdoctor.net/cgi-bin/Ultimate.cgi?action=intro&category=1&BypassCookie=true . It's part of www.computervideo.net (http://www.computervideo.net) which does a monthly magazine.

[Squiddley]

Not sure about Panasonic, but I have a Canon MV20i (or Elura which is the NTSC version) and have no complaints whatsoever. In Europe it's the MV20, so the only difference is the "i" which means IEEE1394 in/out port is present/enabled.

It has all the "necessary" plugs for video out, IEEE1394 etc as well as a remote control, battery charger and such like - a very small compact body too.

The low light function is good, but the playback is a tad jerky where the camera has worked hard with what light was available.

Normal light conditions gives smashing video, and there are 6 presets covering sport, snow, bright light, overcast etc. These are fine too, but you can control it manually (exposure, white balance etc. if need be.)

It will take still pictures, but they are more like video frame-grabs. They're stored on the DV tape instead of a memory card which seems to be a better solution. However, I don't care for stills with a video camera.

The supplied battery only last for about 30min of filming with LCD, so a high capacity is a must! Probably the same regardless of camera.

The optical zoom is very good, likewise the digital image stabilising. the digital zoom is also good, but the "shake" is more noticeable, and the autofocus tends to have trouble at real extremes. (There is a manual focus option, but equally hard to master.)

There is a newer version now, the MV30i, but I'd suggest a look if you haven't already decided.

Oh, 2 family members have a JVC (don't know model) which is amongst the smallest around. It looks good, has a a built in stills flash (missing from the MV20i) and uses a compact flash card for stills.

I found this enthusiast's site useful:

http://members.tripod.com/vincent_ysc/index.html


Cheers!
Sq

(Ooops! JVC, not Fuji)

[This message has been edited by Squiddley (edited 20 November 2000).]

[Anon-x]

Thanks Squiddley and Spannersatcx for the info. Must now save up my pennies!