I've been playing with this camcorder for a few days now, and I must say that I am overall satisfied with its performance, especially for the price. The camcorder records in 16:9 (widescreen) aspect by default, although you can switch to 4:3 (normal) if you like.This camcorder is small--easily fitting in your hand--but it's not too small. I don't have any trouble using any of the buttons or switches. It is also light, which is a big bonus if you plan to carry it with you regularly.
The zoom is more than sufficient at 25x Optical / 1000x Digital. However, as with all camcorders, it is almost impossible to use the camera at anything over 100x unless it is sitting on a solid tripod. Even at 50x, the image quality noticeably degrades. For optimal performance, keep it under 25x and do not use the digital zoom (you can turn off the digital zoom in the menu system).
The ZR700 includes a "video light" for low-light situations; however, it is a single LED bulb that emits very little light. In fact, it is pretty much useless unless you are in pitch darkness, and you need to film something that is less than 2 feet in front of the camera.
And speaking of low lighting, this camera uses a new image sensor that is smaller than those used in earlier Canon camcorders, and smaller sensors are typically less sensitive to light. While in normal daylight situations the new sensor is fine, once the lights start to dim, there is noticeable grain and noise in the image. Unfortunately I've found the noise to be a problem in most indoor situations, which means many home movies will have less than amazing image quality. And unlike many other camcorders, there is no low-light infrared mode (e.g. Sony's "NightShot").
The ZR700 provides three different methods for transferring video-RCA, USB and Firewire. The RCA and USB cables are included, the firewire cable is not. In addition, the ZR700 model allows for analog-digital pass-through. This means that you can hook up an old VCR to the camcorder, then hook the camcorder to a computer so that you are able to transfer video from the VCR through the camcorder and into the computer. This is a nice feature if you want to digitize old VHS tapes.
Finally, this model has a SD card slot for taking digital still pictures. While this is a nice feature, the resolution of the photos is quite low (~1 Megapixel). This is fine if you want to email the photos, but the quality is far too low to have made into prints. If you are hoping to have photos that you can print, you should certainly stick with a digital still camera--this camcorder is not a replacement.
Overall, I'm satisfied with the ZR700. It's a nice camcorder for a low price. It is the perfect camera for taking on vacations or just out on a picnic or sporting event. The picture quality is too low for anything other than personal use. If you're looking to film important events (weddings, etc), then you should probably look for camcorders with better low-light performance.
This feature is fabulous and dramatically easier to use than other methods I have tried. I did not discover it during nearly 1 1/2 years of owning the ZR200. I inadvertently came across a terse mention of such transfers in the owner's manual. (See Canon ZR200 owner's manual at page 79 for instructions, or page 72 for the Canon ZR700 unit with similar capabilities.)
Suffice it to say that the transfer process is very easy, assuming that one has kept the original cabling which came with the ZR200 (or ZR700) camera. It produces a video image which is superior to any other method I have tried. And I have tried a number of methods, including transferring video to a high-quality external video capture card to DV and ultimately to Mini-DV tape using iMovie on an Apple computer.
Upon careful comparison of like clips, this complex, multi-step approach produced good results, but only a nominally clearer image and it has tiny diagonal stripes running across it and a curling upper left edge from the video recorder heads; overall not as good. The color quality and image clarity that results from direct videotape to Mini-DV-tape method using the ZR200ZR700 built-in features is overall, smoother, cleaner and produces a full screen image without diagonal lines or the jagged tape-head artifact in the upper left corner. Direct transfer appears to eliminate this visual nuisance entirely, or at least it did so for me. This significantly improves the image appearance and eliminates an otherwise very distracting visual distortion.
In transferring 20-year old V8-tapes, I was stunned at the improved image clarity and vivid color, in some instances as if the tape had been shot the day before! It was a real pleasure to see clear images from the past now I only wish I had had slightly better camera skills.
I also recommend buying a cleaner for the heads of any video source you might use; Sony makes a good head cleaner for V8/Hi8 and for Mini-DV. As I cleaned the heads of the video source, the image quality and clarity quality improved significantly.
Overall, the ZR700 is an excellent camera and has some delightful hidden features, including 16x9 widescreen and direct video to Mini-DV transfer.
Five stars.
May 8, 2008: Strong Caveat for Apple computer users who plan to use Final Cut Express or Final Cut as the program to extract video streams: this camera does not seem capable of laying down a steady time-code on DV tape. While this does not have any effect on iMovie based extraction of the video stream, it makes the camera essentially unusable for Final Cut Express or Final Cut where the time code signal is critical for proper video extraction.
While this will affect only certain users, it is worth knowing in advance. One easy work-around is to extract video using iMovie as full DV and then import the clips into Final Cut Express or Final Cut. However, this does not produce the best possible quality as would be the case in a direct extraction.
On the whole, Canon makes good cameras so far as I can tell, but the time code feature of the ZR700 needs significant improvement. My ZR200 does not suffer from this problem and has been very satisfactory.
A large capacity battery is a wonderful addition. For a relatively small amount of money, a large battery will improve the utility of the camera considerably.
Buy Canon ZR700 MiniDV Camcorder with 25x Optical Zoom Now
We purchased this camera for taping live music shows. Our biggest problem has always been trying to work in low-light conditions. After reading reviews which were critical of this camera's low-light performance, I expected it to be similar to my old 8mm camcorder. The first show we taped was in a really dimmly lit club, and this camera captured it with no problems. This digital format is a big step above standard analog 8mm, so for me this is a very impressive camera. Technology has come a long way. Also, the still-image features are very useful. I've seen reviews bashing the photo quality as grainy, but since our photos are mostly for web pages anyway, it isn't that critical.The feature is great for our purposes. It even lets you put a screen capture on the memory card from the tape. Totally cool. This is my first digital camera after working with a standard 8mm for 25 years. The difference is night & day. I am very impressed with this camera.Read Best Reviews of Canon ZR700 MiniDV Camcorder with 25x Optical Zoom Here
This is a great product. First of all, it is TINY! So small, and light... you really want to take it everywhere with you. While some people complain about grainy picture in low-light or indoors situations, I really don't have any complaints; the video quality is amazing. The menus are easy to use, and quick to figure out... and quite a few options are available. Also, the ability to capture in widescreen is nice, but what is even nicer is that this camera has easy-to-use modes to help use different video sizes depending on what kind of television you are hooking it up to. And, I love the fact that I can convert analog video (VHS, etc) to digital. Also, this camera worked very well with my macintosh computers, and iMovie... and it was even usable as a webcam in Yahoo messenger.Overall, this is a great camera, and it is worth every cent. It is the perfect size, so you won't feel like you are "lugging" the camera along just to capture those special moments... and you can send things to VHS, or your computer for dvd... this is a great deal, and I would recommend it to anyone. I own many other canon products at home, and they are all great, and have lasted me many years.
Want Canon ZR700 MiniDV Camcorder with 25x Optical Zoom Discount?
I have been very pleased with this camera. Other reviews will talk about the lack of this or the lack of that on this equipment, but lets be realistic, if you're looking at this camera, you most likely will be videoing small family moments not huge productions. And for that reason this is a great little camera.I use a Sony Handycam HDR-FX1 HD Digital Video camera which has features that will blow you away (but a price tag to match) for work and this Canon has plenty of function and capabilities to keep me busy. The capabilities are awesome for the price, and the ability to transfer my old vhs-c tapes to digital for download onto my computer is what sold me.
I've always been hesitant to purchase electronics over the internet without physically getting my hands on the product, so this was a bit of a stretch for me but I'm glad I did. Would have given 5 stars, but like others said, the light doesn't do a whole lot of good. No problems with playback or transfer via firewire (which would be nice if it were included, but those are the breaks).
No comments:
Post a Comment