by Alexia Alexandria

Created on: June 16, 2008   Last Updated: March 20, 2011

A camcorder is a portable electronic device with built-in camera and recorder capabilities. Before explaining how to use a camcorder, it is important to know that there are different types of camcorders.

Types of camcorders

• VHS

This type of camcorder uses full-size VHS cassettes that can be readily placed into a VHS VCR. Because they use full-size tapes, these camcorders tend to be large and have unsatisfactory sound quality.

• VHS-C

Compact VHS are used by this commonly camcorder. The compact tape can be placed into an adapter so that it may be played back in a VHS VCR. If an adapter is not available, the camcorder can be connected to the television or VCR with AV cables.

• 8mm

These camcorders are more compact than VHS camcorders and their tapes cannot be played in a VCR. It is necessary for them to be connected to the television for playback.

• MiniDV

Digital images are recorded onto tapes thinner than VHS. The tapes are incompatible with the VHS VCR and must be connected to the television.

• Digital8

This type of camcorder records images digitally onto 8MM tapes. These tapes are incompatible with the VHS VCR so the camcorder must be connected to the television.

• DVD

These camcorders record images directly to DVD. You may playback using your DVD player, the camcorder, connecting it to the television, or by placing the DVD in your computer if it can play DVD's. There are two types of DVD disks you can use - DVD-R and DVD-RW. With the former, you can record onto it only once and you cannot edit it. With the latter, you can record multiple times and edit images and scenes.

USING YOUR CAMCORDER

When you first receive a camcorder, you should first read the manual that comes with it. After reading it, you should grasp an understanding of where everything on the camcorder is, what features are available to you, and how to use these features.

• Recording Modes

Camcorders have two recording modes: standard play (SP) and long play (LP). The SP and LP times can be found on the tape you purchased for the camera. SP and LP options for the camcorder can be found in the menu usually under "REC MODE". SP recordings have higher resolution and quality than recordings in LP mode because in LP mode, less tape is used. In SP mode, your recordings are more spread out, making the recordings easier to be read.

• Focus

Focus is important when you are filming on your subject. You can adjust the focus when you initiate the manual focus mode and you can initiate the auto-focus mode using the menu or a button on your camcorder.

• Anti-shake

Tripods and mono pods can keep shots steady, but when you are holding the camera, the camera will correct sudden movements when the steady mode is initiated.

• Zoom

Camcorders have two zoom options: digital zoom and optical zoom. Digital zoom allows you to view an object closer and tends to reduce images quality. With optical zoom you do not experience a loss of quality. It is important to keep the camera still when zooming because movement is exaggerated the more you zoom.

• Taking Pictures

Some camcorders have a button designated as "PHOTO" that u must hold down to take still images. This picture may be saved onto a memory card if the camcorder has one or to the tape.

• Night Shots

Some camcorders have a night shot mode and a special infrared LED light built into the camcorder. This mode is good to record at night. Make sure that the light is on when recording.

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