Camcorders still relevant?
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Anonymous
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Expecting a new baby and want a convenient way to capture video memories. I guess I could always up the storage on my phone, but is there a better alternative for capturing (and storing) longer videos (think more than a few minutes, like on Christmas morning)? I'm not technically savvy but hear traditional camcorders are on their way out. I was thinking the GoPro may be a good option but hear battery life is garbage for these purposes.
Also, does anyone have storage/organization recommendations for the boatload of photos we're about to take of our baby? TIA - all recommendations welcome! |
Anonymous
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In principle, yes, you want a video camera that is designed to be a video camera. The controls and ergonomics will be correct for the purpose. The problem right now is the lack of a long-term storage medium for video (assuming that you want to be able to keep what you shot for years into the future). Modern video cameras record to solid-state media, not tape, and the expectation is that the recordings will be stored as data. The problem is that those data need to be maintained over time, and converted to new file formats as such things change.
The whole situation is really horrifying for anyone who wants to preserve these recordings. I can still project the home movies that my grandfather shot on 16mm film in the 1940s, but the chances that someone will be able to watch "home movies" made today in 2084 is approximately zero. I suppose that you could just get a 16mm camera (yes, film and lab services are still available), but most people won't want to go to the trouble. Same for still photos. Shoot them on film or else have actual silver-halide prints made. These will store nicely in a dark box that is kept at room temperature. Fiber-base B&W prints will last for centuries, but even modern color silver-halide prints will last for decades. I work in IT. We don't have any good storage medium or file format that will survive for multiple decades at this point. Long-term data storage requires active management, which is something that most people lack the time and knowledge to perform. We are going to lose so many amateur photographs and home movies in the coming decades, and it makes me sad. |
Anonymous
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Congratulations on the new child.
Digitally speaking, as mentioned above, one of the major concerns will be the management of these images over the LONG term. I mean decades. I recommend an "onion" system of backups, i.e. layers. I keep everything on an external hard-disk. This is my working disk. That hard disk is cloned (daily) to a second hard disk, the primary backup. A third hard disk is made every six months and kept at a separate location (i.e. my office) in case of a fire or something at my home. The emergency backup. A fourth, online backup is made using Backblaze.com. This is the mega-backup for real disasters. Hard disks are swapped for new units about every two to three years given the HD reliability issues. I have over 100,000 photos and over 5,000 video clips. We are talking TBs of data. As for the camcorder, you are right they are falling by the wayside. Have you considered a DSLR with video capabilities? You won't have the ease of use of a camcorder but you can take some pretty good quality videos with a Canon or Nikon or Sony. Most photographers agree on one point though: the best camera is the one you have with you when you want or need to take a photo. I'd recommend a nice camera for the Christmas card photos and other more formal events (birthdays, etc) and then the iPhone or Samsung in your pocket for the "come quick and look at what the baby just did" photos. |
Anonymous
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I understand why you'd want a camcorder. I had what was then a high end digital camera when my daughter was born back in 2010. I made sure to have extra batteries and SD cards so that I wouldn't miss a moment. I underestimated just how little I'd use that thing. I was exhausted from the stress of a newborn. I was always lugging baby bags and stuff around. When she became mobile, I was terrified of her getting her hands on it or knocking it over. That entire first year, I took maybe 10% of my pictures/videos with it. The rest were taken with my iPhone. They move so fast that I found myself taking ten pictures trying to capture one moment before running to say "stop, come back here, don't touch that, get that out of your mouth!" LOL. Like the other person said, the best camera is the one you have on you.
I take pictures and video all the time. My stuff automatically uploads to Google Photos for free as soon as I connect to a wi-fi network. I also plug my phone into my computer once a week and copy all the pictures to my computer. Once a month, I grab my external drive out of my safe deposit box and copy the files over just in case. I also still have the free storage I got when I opened my Dropbox and Amazon Prime accounts, so I have the really important things (the day she was born, holidays, etc) stored there as well. |
Anonymous
| I agree that I would suggest against a camcorder. A good cell phone with a camera like a Pixel 3/4 or recent iPhone that uploads to Google's free storage should be sufficient and easier to manage. We've got 2 kids under 10 and have thousands of pictures and videos with Google and no storage concerns. The grandparents can get at easily too. We used the camcorder on our honeymoon (it was wedding gift) and then never again. |
Anonymous
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Yes this is a zombie thread
What is the best way to get videos which are still on a cassette that plays on a device such as a Sony handcam ( video recorder camera) into some other format for easier viewing? |
Anonymous
| We used CostCo to have ancient Super-8 movies converted to DVD. Worked fine. Took maybe 6 weeks. |
Anonymous
Do those DVDs still work? And do you think those DVDs will still play five to ten years from now ? |
Anonymous
Assuming you keep them safe and in a somewhat climate controlled environment, DVDs will last 10 years and 30 years is not unheard of. Of course, you can easily copy the contents of a DVD to any other digital medium you want including storing an encrypted copy on the cloud so that you can have multiple copies in case of a disaster. If the video codecs become obsolete, there will always be someone to convert them for you. |
Anonymous
30 years is unheard of for the DVD-R and DVD+R formats because neither has existed for that long. DVD is an access format, not a preservation format, particularly when burned (as opposed to pressed) disks are involved. If you kept the original film (as you should have), you could have an HD scan made now. |
Anonymous
They still work. We have backups |
Anonymous
Camcorders and real cameras are good for putting on tripods for recording better quality videos, without the Blair Witch earthquake style of effect. Also will sometimes have better quality lenses and more editing features, but that's a bit moot in this day and age as cell cameras have advanced a lot. Also, non-connected camcorders won't be immediately snooped on by cell phone corporations, if that's a concern with recording some things. |
Anonymous
| My husband bought a camcorder when my oldest was born (oldest heads to college next week). He took six videos on it. By contrast we’ve taken literally tens thousands of photos and videos of our kids on our phones and we store them all on an amazon photos account so we have unlimited storage. |
Anonymous
DVD's are rated to last 100 years if properly stored in 40-50% humidity and around room temperature and kept out of UV light sources. They are considered the longest lasting digital material for archiving materials, according to the National archives, so that's a pretty glowing recommendation. |
Anonymous
| Oh my word NO. No one is going to want to look at baby videos in 30 years anyway. Those will go straight to the dump when you die. |