David Jones wrote:
> I don't need the full HD, but 720 HD would be nice.
>
At the highest settings, the Zi8 does exhibit some weirdness with
motion. Fine for talking heads, not good for action.
> Any comments on the Zi8 for video blogging?
> Anyone know of any other pocket video cams with an external mic jack
> like the Zi8?
>
Has a strange issue with the mic jack. If you pull out the plug while
shooting, you get a weird high pitched squeal that doesn't go away til
you cycle the power. Also I haven't gotten the hang of the VU meters
and adjusting the incoming audio. I used the Zi8 on a shoot with a
mixer feeding into it, and I should have gotten pristine audio according
to all the meters, and yet my sound was a little overmodulated.
One of the things that really gets me with all these pocket cams is that
there is no headphone jack so you can hear what the camera is getting on
its mic jack. I used to tell my students, "you wouldn't shoot withouth
looking through the viewfinder, why record audio without monitoring it?"
> My current cam is an old Canon Optura60 DV (NTSC), not exactly a
> stand-out performer, so I figure a good pocket cam today will likely
> beat it.
>
Not really. Your DV cam is 720 x 480, while most pocket cams are 640 x
480 and an image sensor that probably isn't as good. Pocket cams all
have this image lag thing I was referencing above with fast-moving
subjects. The sensor isn't fast enough to keep up with horizontal
moves. Test this by pointing the camera out the side window of a moving
car. You'll see the image shear, making everything look tilted. DV
cameras don't do that.
I'm using pocket cams more and more for my work that doesn't need really
crisp image quality, and the convenience of having a camera with you at
all times can't be beat. But editing on that footage is a bear. It's
compressed so darned far that by the time I've uploaded to Blip, it
looks like I've shot on a VHS camcorder... I've still got to get that
figured out. ;)
--
Bohus Blahut
(BOH-hoosh BLAH-hoot)
modern filmmaker
------------------------------------
Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/videoblogging/
<*> Your email settings:
Individual Email | Traditional
<*> To change settings online go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/videoblogging/join
(Yahoo! ID required)
<*> To change settings via email:
mailto:[email protected]
mailto:[email protected]
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
[email protected]
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
