On 22 Feb 2003 05:32:26 GMT, notjustjay <notxjustxjay@yahoo.com> wrote:

>Paul Tauger <ptaugerspamtrap@cox.net> wrote:

>> I use my camcorders for exclusively for travel videography. I've recently

>> returned from India, where I shot 10 hours of video with my new VX2000. I'm

>> in the process of editing now, and I constantly find myself thinking, "Damn,

>> that looks good!" as I view the results on a monitor. The quality

>> improvement over what I used to shoot with the TRV20 justifies the higher

>> cost, the heavier weight, the larger form factor, the greater cost for wide

>> angle adapters, etc.

>A quick question. I know that a lot of pros and semi-pros use the VX2000,

>and it's most certainly got the features for them -- manual control of

>pretty much anything, etc. But what about a guy like me -- someone who

>would rather just leave everything in Automatic mode and just pick up and

>shoot? I just don't always have the patience or time to get a correct

>manual white balance or pick the right iris or aperture to shoot with or

>manually compensate for overexposure.

>

>I know I would not be using the camera to its fullest capability in its

>Auto mode, so I'm just wondering how well the camera takes care of itself.

>Were you actively playing with settings when in India, or did you just

>turn it on and shoot?

>

>Of course, if I end up with a VX2000, I'm almost definitely importing one

>from the States. I can't believe the price difference (Canadian vendors

>almost ALL sell for $4999, which is about $3200 US, almost a full $1000

>more than what Profeel is asking. I could buy a second -- well, in

>my case it would be a fourth -- camera with that).

>jay

The VX2000 has probably the VERY BEST auto controls around,

permitting a different mode of operation from the usual

all-manual or all-auto choices: auto with biases applied.

(More on this at: www.David-Ruether-Photography.com/sony_dcr-vx2000.htm.) This offers

the best of both: auto-control for ease of use and coverage

of changing conditions, with selectable variation from

"normal" to meet specific needs for shifts in WB, exposure,

and color saturation, with AF focus possible in manual mode

with a push button (though I rarely go out of full AF with

this camera...). It is easy also to go from full program

mode to AE-A and select a particular stop (to optimize

sharpness with or without a lens converter, for DOF reasons,

etc.), and this also (when "auto-shutter" is enabled)

removes the need to switch ND filters (I have seen little

problem with using very high shutter speeds, unless there is

a small bright light source near or in the image area).

In other words, I know of no better camera than the VX2000

for automatic-control use, especially since its excellent

auto controls can be biased for particular needs. Learn

to use its "custom controls" in conjunction with its auto

controls (easy), and you will be amazed how easy this

camera is to operate and control for optimum results...