Hi--


Thank you for answering my questions concerning
holding the vx2000 steady. I ordered a vx2000 today
and am excited to start using it. Thanks again for
the outstanding information you have posted. I was
able to make an informed purchase thanks to you. I'm
really disappointed by the sales staff at the local
camera stores - 80% of the time they don't even have
charged batteries so you can try the equipment! They
also don't return the camcorder settings to program
mode so you have some basis for comparison (it took me
awhile as a newbie to realize this, and many times the
salespeople didn't know how to return the camcorder to
program mode!) Sorry for the ranting, but there are
undoubtedly thousands of newbies like me who have
learned a great deal from your site and appreciate the
knowledge you share.

Thanks for the comments. I found sales people (and others...)
also unhelpful when starting, and had to "buy to try"...

I have a few more questions (sorry if you've
already answered these and I've missed them in reading
through your site) Do you use graduated filters for
bright sky situations with video?

No.

Once when I tested
the VX2000 in bright sky conditions, it seemed to
underexpose the landscape to a greater extent than the
TRv950 or Canon GL2 even with the landscape
constituting the majority of the frame. The ND
filters didn't have much effect.

They won't have any effect on overall exposure, just
in the shutter-speed/aperture used...

This exposure
sensitivity may have been due to manual settings of
which I was unaware at the time, but I was wondering
if you use graduated filters for such situations.

No - the overall contrast of the VX2000 is lower than
others, giving better highligh and shadow detail than others
(see www.David-Ruether-Photography.com/vid_pict_characts.htm, "contrast" - the three
examples are VX1000, TRV900, GL1 - with the GL1 showing the
excess contrast and burned-out highlights of one-chippers;
the VX2000 is, if anything, lower-contrast than the VX1000...
I dislike graduated filters (and skies "print" with the
VX2000 without them, anyway...) for their artificial look.
I have one I never use...


Concerning microphones, I was thinking of buying
a Sennheiser or a Sony ECMHS1 shotgun zoom microphone
for recording singers at tourist events on trips and
maybe speakers at work (I'm not looking for great
quality here - just want to pick up the singers
reasonably well from 30'. Maybe the built-in mike is
good enough?) In reading through the postings, it
seems that there are some problems using external
mikes on the VX2000. However, I might have
misunderstood. Do external mikes work O.K. on the
VX2000 as long as you leave the AGC on? Or, do you
need something called a "pad" to make the external
mikes work properly regardless of whether the AGC is
on or off?

Read about this in the VX2000 review, at
www.David-Ruether-Photography.com/sony_dcr-vx2000.htm. Avoid the poor HS1.
If you can find an ECM-Z157, this is a good short-shotgun
mic (mono), as is the Sennheiser MKE-300 (get the new
"digital" model), though the old one does need a "pad"
or the AGC is overwhelmed due to mis-matching of sensitivities.
I use these mics in pairs, slightly pointing away from each
other, with foam windscreens added (the Senn. is better in
wind, but a Radio Shack windscreen on the camera's mic
is great in moderate wind, unlike most mics...


What is a "pad"?

It knocks down the voltage from the mic = about 6db
is about right for many mics (1/2 voltage, with a
restor divider, using 500-ohm resistors and a 120 mfd
capacitor to block the camcorder's low "phantom power"
output...


The Sony shotgun mike
uses the VX2000's "intelligent shoe." Does this
feature make any difference in the sound problems
mentioned above?

No.

Does the Sony mike (which is much
cheaper then the Sennheiser) work O.K. as is with the
VX2000?

It is a poor mic - avoid it.

Also, I'm thinking of doing some on-camera
speaking and it seems that a small hand-held or lapel
mike with a cord to the camera might be best for this
if the built-in mike isn't sufficient. Do you have a
recommendation for such a mike?

The $25 Azden lapel works well, as does the Sony ECM-908c,
mounted backwards on the camera (stereo, omni).

Concerning beltpods Is this a homemade device or
is it for sale somewhere? If homemade, what do you
use as the pole with the ball head - a light monopod?
What do you use as an inverted "u" clip and how is it
attached to the pole?

Figure out yourself, alas, if homemade, though they are offered
commercially, if hard to find... (a light monopod with a "U"
attached should suffice, though...).

Concerning the L-shaped flash grip attachment as a
steadying device for the VX2000 Do you have a
specific recommendation of a grip that works
particularly well with the VX2000 to steady it?

I like the "hurky" Stitz, but almost any works well.
I also like the folding "L", since this easily turns into
a longer flat bar, when useful (though they generally have
less comfortable grips).

Sorry for all of the newbie questions. I'm going
to start with the camera, protection filter and larger
battery and see what I need for other accessories
after using it awhile. It saves time to know what the
experts have found useful though. Thanks again, Mark
Johnson Linda Bourgeois

You're welcome...
A wide-angle is also soon useful (WD-58 Canon, $180)...