The Canon FS10 – My Latest Favourite Thing

After all the researching and agonizing, I finally bit the bullet and bought my very first digital camcorder, the Canon FS10 Flash Memory Camcorder with 8GB Internal Flash Memory and 48x Advanced Zoom. This is just a test post that I am using to determine whether or not I have been successful in my first video upload attempt. I uploaded this test footage to YouTube and now I’m attempting to add it here.

: : : : : : : : : : : : UPDATE : : : : : : : : : : : :

As can be seen from the short clip below, the upload was successful. I just received this camcorder last night (approx. 17 hours ago), so I can’t actually provide a proper review, but I will say that this seems to be one tight little camcorder that does quite a bit for the low price and it has received well-above-average reviews from several users. On the positive side, this baby is very small (about the size of a soda can, fits into the palm of my hand) and extremely light weight. It boots up immediately, has many nice features (including fantastic zoom capability — 2,000x digital, 48x advanced), is fast on all commands, comes with a remote control (very handy) and is quite easy to use (very low learning curve).

At the moment, I’ve noticed only a couple of negatives. First, there are no lens threads for attaching a lens filter. Though the camera does have a built-in lens cover that closes automatically when the camera is turned off, without a traditional protective filter, the camera could be damaged or possibly ruined if something (dust, dirt, sand, moisture) gets into it while it is in use or if liquid or fine particles penetrate the built-in cover even when the camera is turned off. How Canon missed (or perhaps ignored) such an important feature is beyond me, but in my opinion, this is a design flaw that should certainly be corrected. Mos def!

The second thing is that the video is quite grainy and somewhat off-colour when recording to the internal flash drive in “Easy Mode” (automatic) under low light conditions. But then again, how much can one expect from a pocket-sized camera in this price range. These two issues notwithstanding, I am definitely enjoying this camera and it fits my current needs quite well. Hopefully, this graininess will be minimized as I learn more about this little silver cutie (I’ve already named him Sterling) and how to operate it better.

I believe I read somewhere that, for some reason, the image quality is better when recording to a flash memory card. I’m not so sure about that, though. I haven’t bought a card yet, but I have seen footage from other users on the Web who used an SDHC card and the image quality of their videos is much clearer than what I’ve experience so far. But then again, many of them used manual settings (which I haven’t learned — yet) and perhaps some also used post-production processing techniques and hacks.

Since I have only spent about 3 hours working with Sterling and reading the manual, I am well pleased with my technical progress thus far. Now all I have to do is go out and shot some decent footage, get a better video editing software package and learn how to produce decent videos. I can already see that, though the built-in microphone works quite well, I will definitely purchase an external mic and learn to incorporate music, which I plan on doing within the next week or two.

Now I do realise that this camera is not, by any means, a major player in the video game. I simply needed something to get me started and for the price, it’s a pretty decent piece of equipment. Because I am completely new to video and have soooo much to learn, I just wasn’t willing to invest a lot of money at this stage. Once I get the hang of “film making” basics and master this little cam, I plan to step up my game and purchase a more advanced, high definition model. But for now, the FS10 will do just fine for practice and I am quite excited to have it!

More to come….