My Perfect Camera… So Close

In my ideal world I would really like one camera to take everywhere. I would like to be able to capture fantastic photos of my family and short clips of video. Yes, I can use my point and shoot, but the photos are just… blah. The video is also kind of blah. I can take great photos on a DSLR and then drag along the video camera… but will I really use them both?

After my recent experiences at family events at which I would have liked both photos and video, I can tell you that no, I will not use both a DSLR and camcorder. There were opportunities for both, and I’m sorry that I didn’t take the video. But, the photos are just of such higher quality than the video, and it’s a pain to drag them both around.

So yes, I missed capturing video of my cousins first dance at her wedding. And yes, I missed video of some other cute kid moments. And it’s a shame.

The Nikon D90 is the piece of equipment I’ve been drooling over for awhile now. One camera which takes beautiful photos and video. No need for two camera bags or one really big one. But the thing, other than budget, that was holding me back, was the limitations of the video.

Yes, you could get amazing depth of field. This is so important in storytelling. You see it all the time on television. The scene opens on one character and without a cut or transition, the focus changes to the other character in the room. It’s getting a bit overdone and will probably look trendy in a few years. But hey, it’s 2010, and it looks cool now.

Well, none of that is possible on a traditional consumer camcorder; only on a DSLR with video capability. The only problem is that to achieve that super shallow depth of field, you must have tight control over the focus. And, unfortunately, there was no auto-focus in video mode of DSLR’s.

Picture this, a well-choreographed, romantic first dance. You video tape it for a friend on a traditional camcorder and absolutely everything in the room is in focus – all the family and friends in the background, as well as the bride and groom. With a DSLR, a wide angle lens, and a somewhat shallow depth of field, you could throw everyone out of focus other than the bride and groom. Provided, you had that camera on a tripod, or steady-cam, and were very carefully monitoring the focus. Imagine the look! It’s almost dreamy. It’s like the bride and groom are the only two in the room. But without tight control, it’s just a mess of people out of focus except for the few seconds when they happen to dance in front of the right spot in front of the camera.

Ok, if you’re smart, as an amateur you don’t try to capture any video of moving subjects at a wide open aperture, but it still paints a nice picture. But now, Nikon just announced the new D3100 with full time auto focus in video mode!! I still wouldn’t attempt any video at f/1.4 with a dancing couple, but that’s cool!

The D3100 is a bit gadgety for my personal tastes though and doesn’t allow for a ton of growth. I don’t personally need 19 or 25 or whatever number of scene modes. I do, however, want the ability to add remote flash and some other higher end options. Also, I shoot pretty exclusively in manual mode. So I want to easily be able to change ISO, aperture, and shutter speed. Hence my wait for a D90 replacement.

Well, according to Nikon rumors, the D7000 will supposedly be announced in a couple of weeks. 1080P video, super high ISO (the ability to take great photos in low light without shaking the camera), and full time auto focus in video mode! Santa, did you hear that?!