There are lots of different kinds of video cameras out there. As of this writing, there are quite a few smart-phones and “point-and-shoot” digital cameras that can shoot creditable video. You may already have one of those. This article of for the person who doesn’t yet own a camera, or may have a camera that doesn’t give them the flexibility or creative range they want.
In this article, we’ll look at the capabilities and features you might want in a video camera, and what those features and capabilities mean when it comes to shooting and editing.
As you might guess, in general, the more sophisticated the camera, the more costly. This article will not tell you which camera is best for you. In the end, only you can determine that. What I hope to do is give you some things to look for and questions to ask before you drop your hard earned cash on that new camera.
One of the first things to think about is the kind of video you will be shooting and the locations in which you’ll be shooting it. In those times you’ve wished you had a video camera, what was it you wanted to shoot? In what situations have you wanted to shoot? Have you been indoors our outside? Have your subjects been brightly lit or in dim light? Have you been shooting fast action (like sporting events) or something relatively static – like your child’s choir concert at school?
The good news is, with the advent of HD video on cell phones like the iPhone and some point-and-shoot digital cameras, you can get acceptable home-videos from a variety of modestly-priced devices.
Cell Phone Video
For portability and readiness, it’s hard to beat the video you have built into your telephone. You have that device with you most all the time. The video is easy to use, and is great for capturing something impromptu. The quality of the video in cell phones continues to improve.
If you expect to shoot primarily short clips and don’t expect to use your camera more than a couple of times a month, you can probably get by with shooting on your cell phone or digital camera. The advantage of this approach is the low cost of the equipment. Cell phones that shoot acceptable quality video can be had for under $200. You can purchase a digital camera that shoots 1080p for less than $200 as well.
There are some trade-offs you’ll have to make when using a cell phone or digital still camera for capturing video. The first is the quality of the audio you can capture. For the most part, you will be limited to the audio you can capture from a very small microphone. You will likely notice the audio has a “tinny” quality and that you will pick up a lot of background noise. The microphones in cell phones and digital cameras are typically omnidirectional. In other words, they will record sound coming from all directions. They will also tend to boost the gain (electronically increase the volume), thus making otherwise quiet sounds loud enough to be distracting.
Cell phones are also pretty difficult to stabilize (though as of this writing, there are some attachments for the iPhone that will let you put it on a tripod). Unless you have a really steady hand, shooting freehand can result in some unpleasantly jumpy videos.
Most cell phones don’t allow any kind of serious editing inside the phone. If you want to use cell phone video, it can be challenging to get the video from the phone into your computer in a format that you can edit. In addition, the compression required to allow video to fit in the cell phone’s memory can result in very grainy video when viewed on a larger screen.
Currently the best of breed for video in a cell phone (based on video quality and ease of use) is Apple’s iPhone. It can capture 1080p at 30 frames per second. If you manage your apps well (and don’t store a lot of other stuff on it) there is enough storage space to store a reasonable amount of video until you can off-load it to your computer. There is rudimentary editing on-board, so you could shoot, edit, and post your video all from within the phone.
Video in Point and Shoot Cameras
As video (and still image) quality in cell phones improves, there may be a market shift away from point-and-shoot cameras. Still, if you have one, most point-and-shoot cameras have the ability to capture video. The utility of the camera as a video capture device varies widely with the quality (and cost) of the camera. The price ranges of point-and-shoot cameras vary widely from $150 to several hundred dollars.
If you are looking to buy a point-and-shoot camera that you can also use to capture video, look for a model that has a good quality lens and a higher optical zoom. Avoid using (or depending on) digital zoom as that will result in a grainier and more pixelated video.
Purchase a camera with the largest number of megapixels you can afford. More megapixels usually translates into better images.