VIDEO CAMERA CARE & MAINTENANCE

Many families have memories of their father or grandfather bringing out an 8mm video camera during family get-togethers. Even without sound, the images captured bring back magical memories.

Until recently, most video cameras were too expensive for most people to own, costing upwards of $3000. Today, with costs being so reasonable, many homes in the U.S. now have them. Now almost everyone has the chance to capture their special memories and the growth of their family on tape.

In addition to family events, video cameras can be used to record images of your valuables for insurance purposes, send video greetings to family members in other states or even to interview elderly relatives to keep a family genealogy.

With the growing usage of video cameras, it becomes more imperative that you care for your video camera properly. Here are tips in caring for your video camera.

Helpful Tips for Video Camera Owners

Never leave the tape in the camera when the camera is not in use.
On most cameras, the tape will develop slack when the camera is turned off. When powered up, the arms and mechanisms of the camera engage, allowing the slack to be quickly loaded and tightened. This can bend the arms and slap the drum, throwing them out of alignment.

If you have a digital camera, it’s even more important to remove the tape. If you don’t, you will eventually get error messages and video pixilation during playback (pixilation can be detected as small squares or streaks in the recorded video).

The moral of the story: When the camera is not in use, take the tape out.

When not using the camera, disconnect the battery. If you power down the camera and leave the battery attached to the camera, it will drain the battery faster than if you disconnect it after each use. In addition, never charge the battery until it is fully drained. If you have one battery bar or brick left, use the camera until the battery is totally drained, then recharge. You can extend the life of your battery and save money in the long run.

Clean your camera! Buy the factory-recommended head cleaning tape and follow recommended cleaning intervals. If you do not know the recommended intervals, clean your camera at least four times per year, more often if you use your camera often (as much as once per week). Follow the directions for use in the head cleaning tape. Radio Shack, Best Buy and Circuit City all sell head cleaning tapes if your brand-specific/recommended cleaning supplies are not available.

Invest in a tripod. How often have you become seasick watching family videos? A tripod helps alleviate that problem by holding the camera steady to get a nice steady shot. Tripods come in various styles and price ranges, so shop for the one that best suits your needs and budget. Any tripod is better than no tripod!

For the more advanced user, learn to use your camera in manual operation instead of automatic. There are three settings you need to be aware of – focus, iris and gain.

The focus allows you to focus on the subject manually. In automatic focus, the camera may move in and out of focus if the subject is in low light or is moving in and out of different light values. In manual focus, you can adjust and leave to avoid constant adjustment.

Iris adjusts the amount of light the lens allows in. In automatic, it sets the picture based on the amount of light source. If shooting a subject that has a lot of light behind it, then the subject will appear dark because the camera is automatically adjusting to the brightest light in the shot. You should always try to shoot with the light source behind you. When you can’t, then manually adjust your iris to best view your target, not the light in the background.

There is also the gain. Most modern cameras have a gain control for taping in low-light situations. Picture a birthday cake with candles. There’s not enough light by itself to videotape without some gain applied. Adjust your gain in accordance with your iris setting; in other words, don’t boost the gain and lower the iris. Adjust the iris as best as you can, then add or subtract gain to fine-tune the picture.

Hopefully these tips and techniques have helped. Please send any feedback or questions to: ed@ primeauproductions.com

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