Digital Video: Features of Camcorders

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Digital VideoFeatures of Camcorders

• Brianne DeVenney
• ECE 101 Project
• 9 December 2006

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Parts of a Camcorder

• Camera
• View-screen
• Storage Medium
• Lens
• Must have the ability to adjust the focus
• Auto-Focus
• Optical zoom
• Digital Zoom
• Visual Severe Aliasing
• CCD
• Measures light
• Creates video picture
• Detects light levels
• 3 is better than 1

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Image-Capture Formats

• Interlaced
• Alternating lines (either even or odd numbered)
• Field one set of even or odd lines
• Frame consecutive pairing of two opposite
  fields
• Progressive-Scan
• Entire still frame
• Broken into two fields
• Higher cost, but greater reward

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Recording and Editing

• Editing with a Computer
• Can be edited on a personal computer (PC)
• Final Cut Pro (Apple)
• Adobe Premier
• Extremely time consuming!
• Easier to edit as you go along

• Recording to a Computer
• Type of camcorder output
• Cable
• Doesnt always come with the camcorder

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MiniDV Camcorders

• Most popular
• Resolution of 500 lines
• Compact
• Records up to 90 minutes of video at standard
  speed
• Many brands
• Canon, Samsung, Panasonic, Sony, Sharp, JVC

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Digital8 Camcorders

• Hybrid Analog Digital
• Studio Quality with 500-line resolution
• Large body and less expensive than MiniDV
• Records up to 1 hour of video at standard speed
• Only through Sony

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DVD Camcorders

• DVD
• Records directly onto a 3-inch disc
• DVD-RW
• DVD-RAM
• DVD-R recording
• Write-Once
• Disks dont degrade with repeated playback
• Convenient for archiving
• Up to 1 hour of video at standard speed
• Compatible with most DVD players
• Brands Hitachi, JVC, Sharp

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Hard-Drive Camcorders

• Records onto a built-in hard-disk drive
• No disks
• Can burn DVDs without a computer
• Small body
• 720-line resolution
• USB-to-computer access
• Records for a long time
• 37 hours for 30 GB
• Many brands
• Sony, Panasonic, JVC

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Recommendations

• MiniDV (recommended by Best Buy)
• Canon MiniDV Digital Camcorder with 2.7"
  Widescreen Color LCD Monitor
• Digital8 (recommended by Sony)
• Sony DCR-TRV280 Digital8 Handycam Camcorder
  DCR-TRV280
• DVD (recommended by Best Buy)
• Samsung DVD Camcorder with 2.7" Widescreen LCD
  Monitor - Silver
• Hard-Drive (recommended by Sony)
• Sony DCR-SR80 60GB Handycam Camcorder DCR-SR80

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References

• Lecture on digital imaging, pictures, video
• www.Wikipedia.com
• www.HowStuffWorks.com
• Best Buy and www.bestbuy.com
• www.sonystyle.com
• www.hitachi.us/tv/index.shtml
• www.jvc.com