Muleyman Posted January 31, 2010 Report Share Posted January 31, 2010 Hey guys. I got a camcorder in the city the other day. It is a Panasonic SDR-S26. It has 70x optical zoom. Now I will be able to show you guys some of our hunts. The ones that I am the most excited to show everyone is the gopher hunts with bow.lol.. This spring we are going on a bear hunt up north so we will be able to show everyone our bear hunt. I can't wait to start showin everyone some of our hunts. If there is any tips that you guys can give me that would be great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diamond Archer 01 Posted January 31, 2010 Report Share Posted January 31, 2010 Congrats on the new camera Carson. Can't wait to see some of your videos. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BowJoe Posted January 31, 2010 Report Share Posted January 31, 2010 The only time you should do a free hand camera shot is when you're tracking the animal you killed. Other than that, I'd always us a camera mount that attaches to the tree or a tripod on the ground. Nothin worse than a shaky camera shot especially when zoomed in tight. Frame the scene, not just an up close shot of the kill zone. Get as close as you can to the animal as long as it's steady and you get the whole animal in the shot. Over the shoulder shots are great with a close animal. Other than that, I'm just saying what I like and don't like. I'm sure the pros on here can tell you much better than I can. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muleyman Posted January 31, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 31, 2010 Thank you. I appreciate the advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bowhunter56 Posted January 31, 2010 Report Share Posted January 31, 2010 Sounds good, use a tripod or arm when you can... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woolybear Posted January 31, 2010 Report Share Posted January 31, 2010 You'll never want to leave home without it. Can't wait to see what you record. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hammerforged Posted January 31, 2010 Report Share Posted January 31, 2010 Congratulations, looking forward to the vids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TBow Posted January 31, 2010 Report Share Posted January 31, 2010 I agree with the posts regarding using an camera arm or tripod to secure your camcorder. I took my new camcorder moose hunting last fall and took all free-hand videos. You'd darn near get motion sickness trying to watch it after. And even though you have 70X optical zoom, if you can get the picture using a lower magnification, do so as it will improve the quality of the video or snaps. And this is one of my pet peeves. If your videoing an animal or another hunter, don't keep zooming in and out, in and out. That's just plain annoying to watch. And if you do use the zoom feature occassionally, zoom in or out slowly. It will enhance your viewing pleasure afterwards. When you go north to go to bear camp, do they have a generator that will allow you to charge your batteries or do you have extra battery packs? Sure would be awful if you ran out of juice part way through the week before you tagged a big bruin. And what about memory in the camera? Got lots? Do you need to take an extra memory card with you? Or do you take a laptop that allows you to download pics and video every day? What kind of accomodations will you be staying in? I once stayed in a slide-in camper in the back of a pickup. I kept my camera gear in a cupboard in the camper. The inside of the cupboard was right next to an exterior wall and it sweat like mad. My camera got wet and damaged it costing me big bucks to fix. Take precautions to safeguard your gear. Happy videoing! TBow Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muleyman Posted January 31, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 31, 2010 There is a generator there to recharge the battery. I will probably bring a few memory cards. I will be staying in a cabin. Thank you very much for the tips! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dawg Posted February 1, 2010 Report Share Posted February 1, 2010 That's cool Carson, I bought the Panasonic SDR-H80 friday night. Looking forward to seeing your vids! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bugleward Posted February 1, 2010 Report Share Posted February 1, 2010 camera pod Hey muleyman: The tripod tree-arm advice is good advice. However 90% or more of these guys are filming hunts from stands or blinds. When in a blind or stand that is an easy task to accomplish. The difference is when you are hunting or stalking instead of waiting in ambush, it's just not that feasable. You will miss a lot of important footage and even could miss the kill shots if you are mounted on something stationary. My advice to you is to make sure you use the image stabilization device and run off your shoulder. Be sure to practice a lot at holding it steady. You can get three points of contact to keep it steady hand holding. Sink the eyepiece into your eye socket as much as possible then hold with a wide handle (elbows out) as much as possible with both arms. There are also shoulder pods available that will fit any camcorder. You can find them on ebay from time to time. That can give you four points of contact and you can get very steady (with practice). It does take some work and practice to get steady without a tripod or tree arm, but it can get you footage you will miss with the solid mounts. All that being said... Absolutely get the tripod and tree arm and keep them in your arsenal. They really are a necessity. And always if at all possible get your camera on a solid mount. Shoulder shooting will never be as steady or as professional looking as tripod shooting but with some effort and practice you can do very well so that you do not miss the good stuff. Another thing, if at all possible get your own editing software and make your own movies or videos. Then watch your own stuff with a very critical eye. Also watch all the TV shows you like on outdoor programs and try to duplicate the things you like and eliminate the things you do not like. My big thing is the stupid walk up shot where the hunter comes waling up to the dead trophy and says "Oh there he is," and then proceeds to poke the trophy to see it the animal is dead. Cmon now guys thats just not acceptable. I do however try to film the walkup but try to portray the realism by filming while I move quickly around the animal to get the expression on the face of the hunter while he walks up for the first time. You also will not be out there with more than one camera usually. So with that I feel re-enacting something that truly happened is OK. However be very accurate to the truth in the re- enacting. Always tell the truth no matter how real or phony the truth appears. Always tell the truth with your camera. If at all possible try hard to film the kill shot and then pan back to the hunter without a cut in the video. Of course the best way is to film over the shoulder during the shot if at all possible. Best of luck to you. Just remember always tell the truth with your filming. The folks nowdays are much more sophisticated that they used to be. They will find out if it's not the truth. Another thing to think about. Lately some of the film producers are trying to make their filming a bit edgier. They have taken to filming some of the hero shots or the how-to segments while hand holding and moving around the subject and going in and out and up and down to change the camera angle. Every person I have asked and there are lots of them. Absolutely hate it. Including me. Some careful and steady movement during that type of segment looks pretty good. Again, try to duplicate the stuff you and your friends like. Do everything you can to eliminate all the stuff you do not like. There is more to do with a hunt than just the tree stand and the kill shot. Film it all. Flat tires, gas stations, convenience stores, fast food, the hunter sleeping in, anything you do to make the hunt possible. Game recovery is another thing that could be interesting. Good luck and post your results. There are lots of folks that will give you an honest opinion. Bugleward Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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