Which camcorder?

[phyllosc]

Hi all

I am thinking of upgrading my camcorder and was hoping to canvass some advice. HD seems to be the latest development but I cannot seem to find one with a decent optical zoom. They all seem very low, typically x12, while I would like something around x30. Does anyone know of a HD machine with a big enough zoom?

Also, there seems to be a trend of manufactuers to dispense with a viewfinder, making the user rely on the fold away screen. I always imgine this must be difficult to use in strong light. Has anyone got experience of shooting this way?

I don't use my camcorder for videoscoping. I tend to use it more on holidays to record the birds and places I visit and I'd be interested to learn about the preferred camcorders others use.

Kind regards

Dave C
Suffolk, UK

[Joe stockwell]

depending on what you want to spend the only one i know of is the Canon XHA1 High Definition Mini DV Camcorder

this has 20x

but i dont really know what else

[birdboybowley]

Hi Dave
I was thinking of doing the same last year and came across the same probs as you - .... optical zooms, no viewfinder and the worst was the lack of a manual focus. I could only find 2 top-end Sonys that had manual focus - and that was only a push up and down button rather than turning a lens - and they were retailing for just over £900! Eek! So in the end I've stuck with my 25x optical zoom (with 2x converter on it) Hi-8 Sony!! Even the guys at the shop said the playback picture quality on the Hd's still wasn't as good as tape so I'll stay with mine till it dies completely. Maybe manufacturers will have sorted by then. Sorry it's not practical help, but at least you know you're not alone!!
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[michael23]

if you are prepared to spend a lot of money, eg £2500 on the canon xha1 or £2050 on the sony equivalent your will not get anything close to that zoom ratio. the main reason is quality, the longer zooms in the cheaper end of camcorders cant match the quality of hd camcorders, yet!!
i have used a panasonic mx2 for years it has a leica lens and only 10x optical zoom, i decided to compromise and go for better quality than a longer zoom, but this camcorder is quite old and the quality of camcorders has got better, my advice would be go for one of the main manufacturers like canon sony panasonic or maybe jvc,. i recommend panasonic just on what i have used myself and from what i used to sell, there are a lot of camcorders out there, take time to look at each and every one, shop round and you could get a higher end model which is soon to be replaced at a bargain price. hope this helps

[phyllosc]

Many thanks for your replies and advice. I have a mini DVD Panasonic at present and with a x30 optical zoom would only reply for better quality images.

I'm not sure about mini DV tapes. I used to use a mini DV Canon but it would often fail if it want anywhere humid. Air con was also a problem but this could be partly resolved by keeping the camcorder in a plastic bag in the car/hotel room. Has anyone else experienced similar problems with tape format machines?

Dave

[birdboybowley]

That was another reason i was looking at changing - the problems with humidity especially. That's why I looked at a HDD camera as in theory there aren't any moving parts (or tape!) to get hot 'n' sticky. My digital camera never has suffered on any trip so far. Keep looking I guess.

[AndyB]

There is also this thread:
http://surfbirds.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3460

Canon has a range of HD video cameras ranging from £480-£680:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Canon-Definition-Camcorder-Optical-Widescreen/dp/B000P4SZ80/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1220312124&sr=1-1
which have only 10x optical zoom, but if you're interested in a holiday camera, that's more than enough. If you have or think you might get an HD TV, hook the camera up to your TV and you'll get seriously better looking results than a regular camcorder.

My HV20 (which uses mini HDV tapes) does also double up for birding and I added a 1.7 teleconverter which gives good results on its own or I also videoscope with it easily. Wouldn't recommend the camera as a still camera for digiscoping as there are no manual controls, instant auto focus main issue. Maybe some of the newer models give you more manual control for still images in which case you just need one camera for all your holidaying and birding needs.

The HV20 takes stills if you put in a memory card and the results of a Black-crowned Night Heron with a Kowa scope are attached plus a butterfly with just the convertor. Video of the night heron through the scope is here:
http://surfbirds.com/video2/view_video.php?viewkey=35c32e34f46a71175850

To compare to a regular camcorder. all my videos posted since Nov '07 are with the HV20 and most are without attaching to a scope just using the 1.7x teleconverter. Videos from Oct such as Nelson's sharp-tailed Sparrow, McGrath State Beach California and Royal and Elegant Terns are all shot with a newer Sony camcorder. You can see the resolution gain with HD.
http://surfbirds.com/video2/uvideos.php?UID=4&type=public

[Brian S]

Come on Andy, surely you can identify the butterfly as a Gulf Fritillary
Agraulis vanillae!:err:

Very nice too.

Brian S

[AndyB]

Thanks! I'm so lazy.