The Sony CCD-TRV52
Jan 19 '00
If you like filming events like picnics, street fairs, and family parties AND you think of yourself as an amateur filmmaker, the Sony CCD-TRV52 is a great choice of 8mm cameras! The options which are nice on the Sony camcorder include built in video effects such as black-and-white, solarize, and sepiatone (an orangy filter like old westerns), plus the option to film in letterbox, fullscreen, or widescreen formats. The frame format is especially nice for those who think of themselves as the next Spielberg... nothing makes a child's birthday party stand out more than being presented in letterbox!
The TRV52 had a 10x optical zoom and a 30x digital zoom. Be aware that using the digital zoom at it's maximum magnification does pixelate the image (similar to enlarging an image on a computer). This loss of resolution is particularly noticeable because of the fact that the camcorder is 8mm and not Hi8. Image quality is better on Hi8, but the TRV52 does an adequate job and doesn't disappoint.
Other options to be aware of that might influence the purchase of this particular model are the color LCD screen (although the viewfinder is black and white), a stereo microphone/microphone jack, and stereo "RCA out" jacks for transferring your footage from 8mm to a VHS or other tape format. Again, for those amateur Spielbergs, the stereo option is a big sell.
The drawbacks of the unit are not necessarily huge drawbacks, but they are drawbacks nonetheless. For one, the built in title maker is pathetic to say the least... one plain all-caps font, able to be placed either in the middle of the screen, or at the bottom. No color options, no wipe options, no font options, and most likely, people will opt to create titles some other way. It is enough to label the even your shooting, but as far as creativity goes, find another way.
The other drawback, again dealing with creativity, is the use of the auto-focus versus the manual focus, and the auto-zoom. The auto-focus often takes a while to adapt to changing light conditions making it difficult to keep stuff in focus if you're "on the move." If you take the manual focus option, you'll have to use a small thumbwheel rather than a more sophisticated lens focus like on higher end cameras. The zoom also is limited. Again, a thumb-switch gives you the option of a slow zoom, or a slower zoom. Don't think you'll be shooting any music-video-esque quick zooms because it just won't happen.
All in all, this a great little camcorder. Not too heavy, decent picture quality, and some nice built-in options.
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dahoffma
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