[MacDV] In the market for a new Camcorder

[Derek Roff]

> Basically, Cameras that record to disk may or may not use some form
> of compression. Cameras that record to tape do not, just like SD
> tape cameras.

I disagree with the above statement.  All video formats are 
compressed, even the ones that are called "uncompressed" (whose video 
is compressed by technology limitations, including intentionally 
blurring lens elements and low-resolution sensor circuits, rather 
than by mathematical algorithms).  The differences lie in how the 
compression is done, and the impact that has on the workflow and the 
video product.  The mini-DV tape that has carried the digital 
camcorder wave of the last decade, recording Standard Definition in 
the DV25 encoding, is compressed by both technology limitations (lens 
quality, sensor size) and algorithms.  HDV records High Definition to 
mini-DV tape in MPEG-2 encoding, which is more highly compressed 
(mathematically) than DV25.

Although this is the twilight of tape, I would still pick a tape 
camera today.  The current market for consumer tapeless cameras is 
rather chaotic, with many lousy codecs and encoding schemes (or is 
that "lossy"?).  I don't expect any of them to last five years, 
whereas DV25 and MPEG-2 will be supported in editing software for 
longer than that, because of the massive amount of archive material.

People often tout the speed of file transfer to the computer as an 
advantage of the tapeless formats, but that speed advantage is 
compromised by the time it takes to transcode or expand the format 
into something editable.   The higher compression rates of tapeless 
camcorders result in lower quality video, with more artifacts.  That 
is why I prefer tape, at present.

Someday soon, a decent tapeless codec/encoding will appear, and we 
will be able to say goodbye to tape.  For the moment, I, too, like 
the Canon HV30 as a consumer-level camera with nice features, good 
video quality, and the ability to shoot HD or SD video onto mini-DV 
cassettes.

Derek

Derek Roff
Language Learning Center
Ortega Hall 129, MSC03-2100
University of New Mexico
Albuquerque, NM 87131-0001
505/277-7368, fax 505/277-3885
Internet: derek at unm.edu