Q. I've just bought a Kogan video camera (new Australian brand, not well known) that from my limited experience of camcorders is somewhere in the middle of the video camera spectrum (definitely not lousy, but nothing special either) and I"ve tried several times filming in a dark room with Night mode with very poor results. I can't actually tell the difference between normal and Night mode.
Do you have experience with video cameras that film well in low light? I made a bit of money recently and considering doing a trade-in somewhere.
A. Hi Steph:
Let's boil down this whole discussion into two things:
1) Your AU$399 (~USD$425) Kogan camcorder (which tells us your original budget range). That's no where near the "middle" of the $50 - $100,000 USD video camera spectrum.
2) The phrase "how do professional cameramen film... so well?"
It all boils down to spending good money for good equipment. The professional camera crews use equipment that costs thousands more than what you have now, plus --if you are not talking just InfraRed shooting in total or near-total darkness-- their cameras have multiple gain-boost settings for low light.
If you are trying to compare home camcorder footage of any kind with professional broadcast TV shows, just stop it. Their gear is way more advanced, plus (as others have mentioned) they also have post-production signal processors to help boost image parameters and quality.
The pro's also have access to "image intensifiers" they mount between their lens and camcorder (or on the front lens in cheaper cameras), like the AstroScope, which for around $6,000 USD will work for even a consumer camcorder or SLR. These can create an image using only starlight from the sky.
Your Kogan brand is not highly rated in picture quality to start with (see CNet Australia's review: http://www.cnet.com.au/kogan-full-hd-1080p-video-camcorder-camera-339293191.htm ). If you happen to have a more-expensive Kogan model, I apologize, but not much. A not-well-known brand that's in Australian K-Marts says a lot in itself. If you do trade-up, go for a name brand that's done this for awhile & has a track record for image quality as well as construction quality.
If you really have an interest in "Ghost Hunters" style IR shooting and not just poorly-lit parties, get a good used Sony Handycam that has true Sony "NightShot" features (the older consumer NightShot models could also "see" through certain garments, so Sony crippled newer Handycams' IR features).
The professional IR camera crews also use "bright" (but invisible to the eye) InfraRed spotlights mounted on the camera tops.
hope this helps,
--Dennis C.
How can I get night vision/mode on my camcorder?
Q. I have a JVC- Everio, and I can't seem to find the "night mode" on it, even though the guide says it has it. How do I activate it?
A. unfortunately most camcorders either come with it or don't if yours does not have it then your out of luck also most night vision for camcorders suck your better off buying some lighting equipment to film at night.
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