Canon ZR850 - Camcorder MiniDV

Comments about Canon ZR850 Mini DV Camcorder:

Used for personal recording of wildlife. The zoom is incredible. The program / easy switch makes it easy to taylor your settings, yet have the ability to go back to automatic quickly.
There is noticeable noise from the drive mechanism when your subject is quiet.
Otherwise an excellent camera for the price.

Comments about Canon ZR850 Mini DV Camcorder:

I use this camera primarily for capturing video into Final Cut. I sometimes take this out when I'm shooting family stuff etc. Surprisingly this camera takes some very good images.

Comments about Canon ZR850 Mini DV Camcorder:

I had a much earlier version of this camera and was really glad for the upgrade. I like the quick start feature, which allows you to be able to turn the camera on and off with the touch of a button, instead of switching it off, and having it power up again before you can use it again. Also, I really like the "joystick" on the viewer screen that allows you to fast-forward and rewind at a touch of a button. Great zoom too and clear picture.

Comments about Canon ZR850 Mini DV Camcorder:

I use this camera to achieve multi-camera footage for many applications. Its small size and light weight makes an excellent backup. I own two ZR850's and a ZR950 which has the same 1MP CCD.

The video quality from these is about as good as you're going to get without an HD or 3 CCD camcorder. If the camera is configured properly in ample light it can produce video quality that is almost as good as that of a Canon GL2 which costs 10 times as much. The ZR850 does not do well in low light, and interior shoots suffer without the use of studio lighting.

(The built-in LED light is great in a pinch, but the LED light looks like a flashlight beam on the subject, has a blueish cast, and is totally useless if the subject is more than six feet away).

The camera is relatively simple to use, and has loads of features for an entry-level camcorder. Unfortunately, most of these features are only available through the menu, so there's a great deal of selecting and button pushing to change settings.

The camera's tiny size makes it very hard to hold steady. A tripod or a large handle-type grip makes a huge difference. The IS (Image Stabilization) makes some noticable difference in shakiness if the camera is hand-held. However, turning the IS on reduces the number of effective pixels, and therefore lowers the video quality.

The lens produces very sharp images, color reproduction is excellent, focus speed is good, except in low light. Some CA can be seen at telephoto, especially in high contrast or light/dark compositions.

The audio is perfectly acceptable for general use, but like the rest of the Canon ZR series, (and most cheap consumer camcorders) an audible whine from the tape motor can be detected in quiet environments, or studio shoots. Because this model lacks a microphone jack, serious and pro videographers will find it necessary to either process the digital audio on the computer with a noise reduction filter, better yet, use either a pro-level camcorder or auxiliary audio recording system to get your audio.

I recommend this camcorder, or ANY MiniDV media camcorder over a DVD camcorder. MiniDV produces a better picture, and your video does not skip if the camera is moved, bumped or tapped.

All in all this is a great camera for the price. The video quality is excellent, it has loads of features, and it's very easy to use. Just remember a tripod or handle grip is essential for steady shots.

Comments about Canon ZR850 Mini DV Camcorder:

Make films family and put the old mini DV to computer.

Comments about Canon ZR850 Mini DV Camcorder:

I mainly "used" to use it as dv encoder/decoder thru firewire, but when I changed from a G5 1st generation to a G5 dual core 2.3ghz, it was never compatible with it. My computer would just crash every time I hooked it up to it.

Anyway, as a normal camcorder I think it's got good all in all features and good picture quality for hobbist stuff, mainly family moments.

Only 2 things I dislike about it is that it's easy to accidentally open the minidv compartment with a little toggle from the hand belt, and the lcd screen is pretty low res.

So yes, for the money I think it's a good buy after all, only thing I hate it's the weird compatibility problem with my G5 as a dv decoder

Comments about Canon ZR850 Mini DV Camcorder:

I have not tried it's still photography feature. But I did shoot some video outdoors. The video images came out crystal clear, sharp detail, with excellent color. Can't wait to try a few stills.

Comments about Canon ZR850 Mini DV Camcorder:

I HAVE PARKINSON'S SO THAT THE IMAGE STABILIZATION FEATURE WAS A NECESSITY. CANON HAS PERFECTED THE IMAGE STABILIZATION IN THEIR ZR850 TO THE POINT WHERE ANY AND ALL SHAKING IS NOT NOTICABLE. THE BUTTONS ARE EASY TO USE, AND IT IS A PLEASURE TO HOLD AND USE THIS LIGHTWEIGHT FULL FEATURED CAMCORDER.

THE PICTURE ON THE VIEWING SCREEN IS REMARKABLY CLEAR, EVEN IN BRIGHT SUNLIGHT. I USE THE CAMCORDER ON MY SAILBOAT WITH THE SUN DIRECTLY OVERHEAD AND THE RESULTING IMAGE IS NEVER WASHED OUT.

THE POWERFUL CANON LENS DOES A MOST SATISFACTORY JOB.

YOU CAN'T GO WRONG WITH CANON. I AM ORDERING ANOTHER ZR850 AS A GIFT FOR MY DAUGHTER.

Comments about Canon ZR850 Mini DV Camcorder:

This camcorder does what it is supposed to do. If you want to capture family events where there's a sufficient amount of available light, then you will be happy with this cam.

Transfer from the cam to the computer using firewire is seemless. The orientation of the camera buttons are intuitive and are simple enough that just you will probably only need to consult the manual once.

If you are seeking more, i.e. audio input, Hi-Def then you are need to check out the Canon HV-20 or above line. Good value.

Comments about Canon ZR850 Mini DV Camcorder:

Excellent for a family camcorder - Easy to use - Great value

Comments about Canon ZR850 Mini DV Camcorder:

I have had my camcorder / camera for about 2 weeks. I love the functionality of taking pictures and DV Video. My only downer is that I should have bought the larger life battery and a 4 pin fire wire at the time of purchase. Other than that. Great camera. I now have 2 of them, one for business and one for home use.

Comments about Canon ZR850 Mini DV Camcorder:

Bought this for my wife. Easy to use, good quality, and very compact.

Comments about Canon ZR850 Mini DV Camcorder:

I use this camera to film short movies. I like the quality of the picture and sound. One thing I did not like was that it did not come with the cable I need to upload the videos to my computer. I can only upload pictures, which is useless to me.

Comments about Canon ZR850 Mini DV Camcorder:

I use the camera primarily for recording my daughter growing up. I have done some nature shooting too. Its a nice camera. I haven't had time to explore all of the features yet, but there does seem to be some that I won't ever use. The IS doesn't seem to work too well and the camera gets very shaky when hand-held with maximum optical zoom; a tripod is a must.

Comments about Canon ZR850 Mini DV Camcorder:

needed something to get mini dv into mac - for editing college recruiting footage for my hs baseball team; very inexpensive cam, does exactly that, in a package that i won't mind when it gets trashed after 3 seasons of dust and rain, etc.

only downside is the joystick control of playback etc. remote doesn't actually work 360 degrees around camera, you have to be right in front. (these are minor issues)

nice cam overall. very cost effective

Comments about Canon ZR850 Mini DV Camcorder:

Good for family use. Intuitive controls

Comments about Canon ZR850 Mini DV Camcorder:

After ours died on a recent vacation, we were in need of replacing our camera. We love this new camera! I could not find a camera with an equal optical zoom for anywhere near the price! It was such a good price, I was able to get and extra battery and car charger and still be within my budget!!!

Comments about Canon ZR850 Mini DV Camcorder:

We bought this camera to take footage of our 8 month old daughter as she becomes more active. Set up took about 5 minutes and once the battery charged we were using it within an hour of opening the package. It is extremely easy to use, feels good in hand, and has just enough features to make it seem like an "advanced" camcorder even though it is more functional than fancy. No complaints so far - since we aren't expecting to make Academy Award winning footage, no need for a more expensive, feature laden camcorder.

Comments about Canon ZR850 Mini DV Camcorder:

The size of the camera is perfect. Fits right in the hand. We've used the camera to film the kids around the house and at their sporting events. More than enough functions. It easily connects to our television for all of us to enjoy. Only disappointment is we don't have a firewire connection to the pc.

Comments about Canon ZR850 Mini DV Camcorder:

I got this camera because I wanted to have my own mini DV camera instead of my dad's Hi-8 camera.

The image quality is good when the lighting is good. The picture is grainy when the lighting is not right, but the image is usually good.

The camera can't be used for greenscreening because the image gets all grainy on the green.

The white balance is very easy to adjust.