I have joined the ranks of the DV-equipped!

[Caustic Saint]

And maybe someday I'll join the great Pongi Army!

I got my MiniDV camcorder today! A brand, spanking new Canon ZR60. I took it out for a spin today and promptly drained the weak starter charge from the battery. It's getting re-juiced now and I've already ordered the long(er)-life battery and a universal-voltage rapid charger. Now I just need a big stack of tapes and stuff to shoot.

[Big Booger]

congrats on the purchase. Nice cam I say. Don't you wished they had a solar powered cam?

[Caustic Saint]

congrats on the purchase. Nice cam I say. Don't you wished they had a solar powered cam?

Thanks, I'm quite pleased with it. I've also done some testing at home with it, hooking it up to other A/V things and trying out the analog video input. Tomorrow I'll be out looking for a good camera bag and picking up a few more tapes.

Solar would be cool, but possibly on the bulky side. Maybe if I had a custom helmet like Rob's I could rig something up. The input on the DC jack is 8.4v, so that may actually be workable.

[Caustic Saint]

Wow, Rob! Did you just type all that or do you have a great stock of "advice" files? That's a ton of great info.

I got the camera at an absolute steal. It goes for $499 at most online and retail stores, but I found a place using Dealtime that had it for $359 + $22 for 2nd-day FedEx. Their accessory costs were high though, so I only got the cam from them. The color night mode is interesting. I tested it out in the bathroom with just a little light coming in. It turns the gain (or white balance or some other such thing) up high, so the image gets quite grainy. And if it's seriously dark there are a lot of red and green pixels in the resulting video. Not on par with Sony and Samsung's nightshot modes, but I passed on Sony for their costs and Samsung since their cams aren't compatible with OSX.

I should have the new battery (2600Mah vs. the 800Mah one that came with the camera) by the end of the week and a bag and more tapes are on my list for tomorrow's purchases. A light's on the list of "very near future purchases." I've also picked up a UV filter (both for image improvement and protecting the lens) and am on the lookout for a polarizing filter as well. (How much do tapes run you in Japan? The cheapest I've seen them, for 60-min JVCs, in the US is $4 per tape.)

I've got a tripod already, a decent 54" Sunpak one. It's not pro, by any means, but it does the job for now and it'll hold the camera nice and steady. Another cool feature of the camera is the IR remote. Set the camera where you want it and you've still got control over most of its features - record, pause, zoom - all the goodies.

I'm not headed to Japan just yet. I've got another stint in Korea ahead of me (starting later this month - assuming there are no visa snags), but then it's off to Japan! I need the time in Korea to bankroll the "getting situated" costs I'll incur once getting to Japan. But I'll be there before I know it!

[kotatsuneko]

Pongi tono hits the money shot as usual..

seriously, the dude gives great advice!

using a tripod gives much better results.. and the zoom advice.. priceless! since i took this advice, i've noticed that by not zooming you get more in the picture.. that is, with the zoom held back you get stuff in there, in the background that youd miss otherwise..

make sure you get a nice comfy bag! walk around the aisles a bit first, that suckers gonna be with you a lot so you need comfort and one that wont annoy you.. chances are you'll have your tripod bag hanging from the same shoulder, so see how it feels with that together.. then go online and order it cheaper ^^

only other thing i could add is to buy a decent dv head cleaner already, they seem to clog up quicker than the ol video 8 cams..

oh, and im sure Pongi tono mentioned this before, but do nice long shots when you can, for some weird reason many people, myself included tend to cut shots too quickly..

have fun!! it would be great to see what s korea is like!

[Caustic Saint]

Kots, thanks for the added tips. I've found a good bag, just couldn't get it today. I'm taking the cam with me to be sure it's a good fit. I'm still in awe of how small the cam is. I remember my dad's old VHS camera and the battery belt it required. Man, I love tech!

I hadn't thought of a tripod bag, since I always used to tuck it in the side of my backpack. But a backpack and camera bag could get cumbersome. My camera bag won't be very big - room for the cam, batteries, tapes and a few odds and ends. The tripod bag would be great.

I'll be posting vids from Korea and anywhere else I roam. That was part of the reason for my other thread about looking for a good web hosting service.

[Big Booger]

Pongi you should post that up in the Tokyo Tech and someone make it a stickie. that is some damn fine advice about video taping. Can't go wrong with a forum pro on the scene.

[bejiita]

...(PACINKO parlors are off limits though - you will get a big 'DAME' from them for sure!)

When I first read this, I was thinking to myself "Now why would the yakuza send a large woman out?" After I re-read it, "Oh, he means da-me!"