How to Shoot Video with a Digital Camera

Shooting video from your digital camera is much different than shooting from a digital camcorder. Newer digital cameras allow you to take video clips, which are saved on a flash card for downloading or viewing from your computer.

Here's a quick overview of how digital cameras work and what features they have:

• Most digital cameras allow you to store short video clips, ranging anywhere from 20 seconds to three minutes, enabling you to shoot to the capacity of your flash card.
• StashSpace accepts many video formats including the most common digital camera video formats .avi and .mov digital video formats.
• Digital cameras shoot the best video in bright, sunny conditions. Be sure that you have plenty of natural light as well.
• Recent trends in digital video are the ability of digital cameras to have a zoom function during video capture. We recommend against it, (especially if it is digital zoom and not optical zoom), as you will most likely introduce video digitization into your clip.  Focus on keeping the camera steady, we recommend using a mini tripod or setting the camera on a stable surface.
   

Choosing a Storage Card

Because storage cards come in many sizes and shapes, it is important to take your time when deciding on what type to buy. Here are some tips on how to go about buying a storage card:

1. Make sure the storage card is compatible with your digital camera. Read the manual to your digital camera to find out which card is right for you. Some common types of cards include:
• CompactFlash
• Secure Digital (SD)
• Memory Stick
• Microdrive
• XDPicture Cards

 

2. Determine the storage-capacity-to-price ratio.
   The larger the storage capacity of your memory card, the more pictures or videos you are allowed to import.  But naturally, the more storage on the card, the higher in price it will be. Depending on how much video or pictures you copy to your computer and then delete, you may want balance the convenience of fewer cards with the cost savings of multiple lower capacity cards. The cost of storage cards has come down a lot, 1 GB cards are most common.
    
3. Know the speed of the storage card.
   The speed refers to how fast information is written to or from the card. Generally, a faster storage card speed is better and costs more, but is worth it in the long run. Faster storage card speeds work well for shooting video as they will capture the maximum frames per second (fps) for smoother motion
    
4. Considering the different storage card manufacturers.
   There may be little difference in quality between highly priced storage cards and those produced by well-known (but cheaper) manufacturers. Any differences that do exist most likely will affect features such as speed, performance and longevity. It’s very important that you read the warranty before you purchase a digital camera storage card. Also research the company website for technical and customer support levels.
    
5. When in doubt, shoot video with your camcorder!
   Consider taking your digital camcorder with you. Although convenient, camcorders are by far the hands down winner of recording video memories. Unless you have knack for still photography, your best bet is to invest and use a digital video camcorder anywhere you go!

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