It’s not just whether the camera fails at one of these dozen requirements, but, if the camera passes, just exactly what are the practical limits in each area? Under what conditions can the camera actually be used for filmmaking? For example, I’m not expecting that the camera will have a usable exposure under every lighting condition. What camera does? But I do want to know under what conditions I can get a decent exposure, and under what conditions I shouldn’t even bother trying. Because that’s going to tell me when I can use the camera for filmmaking and when I have to change my plans.
All this rushed through my head in that instant. And then finally, I realized that if the camera failed in one of these 12 areas, it was still going to be a pretty cool handycam for family and social events. “It’s worth a shot”, I reasoned. And that is how, for the next four weeks, the Canon VIXIA HF10 became my “B” camera, shooting side-by-side on the set of “Mountain Mafia”, a film in production by JustUsLeague Films, directed by Cherokee Hall.
Overview of the Canon VIXIA HF10
The HF10 has many features that make it a great personal camcorder. There is a button on the side that says “EASY” and lights up in blue when the camera is in Easy mode – all automatic settings. You can even set an option in the menu so that the LCD panel becomes the “go switch”. You open the panel and a second later it starts recording, and then close the panel to stop. You don’t even need to push a button!
The camera will record still images in HD 1920x1080 format. Of course I didn’t spend much time on the still camera features of the HF10, although it was clear that there were plenty of features to handle my vacation needs.
Most of the controls are accessed through a joystick and push buttons on the LCD panel. In fact, other than the power button and the record button, all the other settings are accessed through the panel controls. One button is labeled “FUNC” (function) and it brings up basic controls. On the bottom of the list is an item labeled “MENU”, and selecting this with the joystick brings up the more advanced features and settings.
During recording, a simple overlay menu appears in the lower right corner of the screen. Toggling down using the joystick enables you to access settings quickly, and to make changes by rocking the joystick to the left or right. For example, there is an exposure adjustment that works this way, as well as manual focus, and the ability to lock both exposure and focus.
As I explored the camera, learned it’s features, and discovered which options were easily accessed and which were buried in menus and submenus. One overwhelming thought occurred to me: “Somebody was thinking here.”
The camera has an automated door covering the lens that opens when the camera is powered up and closes when the camera is powered down or put into “standby” mode by closing the LCD panel. You can’t lose the lens cap or accidentally put a finger print on the lens. Definitely one of my favorite features. The lens is a Canon HD lens with 4.8 mm to 57.6 mm range and a 12x optical zoom. The optical zoom is controlled by the rocker switch on top. You can also enable digital zoom that blows up the image past the 12x for those home movies. It is off by default and for filmmaking you’ll want to leave it off.
Connections
The camera has four plastic tabbed doors that cover all of the connections. It features every kind of connection you could want (sans firewire): Component, Composite, HDMI, and USB. On top of the camera in the back, there is a sliding door for a mini shoe mount. This is where you can mount a shotgun microphone or a small light.
Sound
Beneath the lens are directional stereo microphones. It’s unbalanced audio. There is even a “Wind Screen” setting that cuts low frequency noise. I wasn’t too concerned about sound quality, although it seemed to be fine. We usually shoot with a second sound unit or dub audio in post, so the camera sound is just for reference or backup.
