With all the different models of camcorders coming out on the market today, how do you pick the best unit among them? We won’t try to deal with the more technical stuff here, like lens specs and video recording formats. Let’s leave those options to the pros.

As a regular consumer looking for a handy video camera to use for your home videos and special occasions, a quick look at the features of the camcorders will give you an idea of what to buy. Here are the cool and essential features you should look for in a camcorder:

10. Still Photo Capability

Wouldn’t you like to have a camcorder that can also function as a digital camera? While the performance of a digicam is far superior than camcorders when it comes to still photography, such a feature is a welcome addition if it does not take much of a toll on costs.

Imagine if you’re covering the birthday party of your son all by yourself, you wouldn’t be able to operate two gadgets at the same time now, would you? With a two-in-one gadget on hand, you’re good to shoot both stills and videos.

9. Memory Card Slot

If your camcorder has a still photo function, you would naturally need a drive to store all those digital files. So far, the only primary recording media in camcorders that can hold both stills and videos are DVDs and hard drives. If you choose to purchase a cassette-based camcorder, then a media card slot is an added benefit.

Aside from storing your digital photos, most camcorders also allow recording of videos on memory cards. This feature is useful for recording short, directly digitals video that can easily be transferred to your PC.

8. USB 2.0

How do you transfer the digital files from your camcorder to your PC? The easiest and most common way to go about this task is by using the USB cable often supplied with camcorders. Digital photos can instantly be viewed on your monitor and stored in your computer hard drive in the same way that you use flash drives.

USB 2.0 is also capable of transferring videos, usually in models that use recording media such as DVDs and hard drives since they support drag-and-drop functions. Video transfers through USB may not be possible for a camcorder with recording medium that needs to be played while capturing, like MiniDV and V8.

 

(And if you ever thought that the USB was as dull as nuclear physics, check out the coolest, weirdest and most personality-filled DIY USB drive mods!)

7. Large LCD

A large LCD is not only a desirable feature because it is more aesthetically pleasing, but it also provides you with a larger view of what you’re shooting, which is beneficial in many ways. For instance, larger LCDs make it easier to tell if your subject is out-of-focus or underlit, which would be barely noticeable with a smaller LCD.

Less effort is also required on your part to set your camcorder when working with a large touchscreen LCD. For one thing, you won’t find it hard to read what’s on your camcorder menu. There are also less chances of pressing the wrong buttons, provided the extra space of a larger LCD does not bring more clatter to your touch screen menu. (For more information on LCDs, read The Guide to LCD displays)

6. External Mic Interface

An external microphone is one of the common camcorder accessories people invest in. Before you think about securing better audio, though, you have to make sure that your camcorder supports an external mic. A camcorder that claims it doesn’t need a mic to record good audio is probably making up for its obvious deficiency.

An external mic may be plugged in an interface that resembles headphone port. Better camcorders have dedicated accessory shoe, where you can mount external microphone or light. The accessory shoe also provides power for the mic or light coming from the camcorder’s battery.

5. Manual Settings

New models of camcorders are often referred to as point-and-shoot technology since all you have to do is direct them towards your subject and the adjustments are made automatically. Auto-mode is really a good feature, but it does not mean that we have to use it all the time.

There are cases when we’d rather use the manual settings of our camcorder. For instance, if you want to keep the mood of a scene by keeping it’s lighting low, you can set your camcorder’s aperture smaller. Auto-mode is likely to open up your aperture to make the scene well-lit.

4. FireWire

If you are unfamiliar with the term, FireWire is an external bus capable of fast data transfers. It was developed by Apple, but it can now be installed in any brand of computer. It works and transfers data like USB, but it is more suitable for video transfers.

Since 1995, manufacturers of camcorders have included a FireWire connection in many of their models. Still, there are camcorders that do not have it. It is best that you look for a model that has both a FireWire and USB connection even if you intend to get a DVD or hard drive camcorder. (Learn how to connect firewire)

3. Image Stabilization

Many manufacturers of camcorders today have been able to develop a technology called image stabilization that minimizes camera shakes. You may think steadiness is only applicable to still photography, especially if your video subject is moving to a great extent.

Image stabilization is very important in videography. Aside from preventing your spectators from throwing up due to extremely shaky shots, it it also eliminates frame-to-frame jitters. You may not see this while recording videos, but the jitter is highly visible in playback without image stabilization.

2. Optical Zoom

What’s the difference between optical zoom and digital zoom? Optical zoom makes use of your camcorder lenses to magnify the image. On the other hand, digital zoom is done by stretching the pixels of the scene you’re shooting. So which is better? Definitely the prior!

When looking for a camcorder, don’t be fooled by the gigantic 700 times digital zoom of some cameras. They will only distort your shots heavily and will result in a poor, over-pixelated image. It is the optical zoom feature that matters more, since it can expand an image with virtually no fallout on quality.

1. Low Light Efficiency

Notice how in the old models of video cameras, the image can easily have noises or grains in low lighting conditions? Newer camcorder models can shoot high-quality videos despite minimal amount of light in the background.

You should look for a camcorder with more sensitive sensors rather than one with features like slow shutter or Sony’s Night Shot. Slow shutter only reduces your shutter speed for longer exposure to light, but results in a jerky image. Night Shot is powerful even with extremely under lit scenes, but the resulting image tends to be monochrome.

These are the most basic features to look for in a camcorder to ensure the quality of the videos you’ll be shooting. The rest of the more fancy features like video and photo effects, backlight, and transitions should be secondary to these ten items.

 

So now you have your very own camcorder with all the right features! But if you don’t know the best methods and techniques to use your cool device read Top Ten Tips For Using Your Camcorder Effectively!