| NFC & Q3 |
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A week before the National Film Challenge started, I had purchased three Zoom Q3 pocket cameras from a local Sam Ash store to see if I could put
together a film for the completion with the new 640 x 480 resolution and X/Y microphones. The only prep-work I did was to open one of the boxes,
shoot a few minutes of video and make a DVD to be sure the camera worked.
On October 23rd the Cocoon Tales team received our genre/elements for the National Film Challenge 2009 at 7PM local time. After wolfing down a
couple of pizzas my team went to work. Christine Stoddard, a local VCU student, and Carl Roper, a fellow author and actor from the Richmond
area, put together a script by 10:30 and everyone departed.
I had a couple of locations lined-up for the shot, but the weather in Richmond did not cooperate on Saturday, so we moved east to Surry County
where the sun was shining – although the wind was blowing about twenty miles an hour through the autumn trees. During the shooting, I did notice
a few strange looks from the actors as I framed them in the Q3. I must admit that the camera does look a little silly sitting on top of a nice tripod.
We shot the movie (“Firecracker”) in about six hours and returned to Richmond where I began editing. That was when I first began to think I had put
too much faith in the untried Q3. The problem seemed to be with the MS Explore file management application. Every time I opened up the Q3
directory, the MS Explore application bombed followed a few seconds later by the Blue Screen of Death. I was feeling pretty low at that point and
tried to figure out why everything had worked the week before. Then I remember that I had been using my XP Desktop and not the Vista laptop that
was causing this problem.
Running upstairs, I plugged the Q3 into my Desktop and the Q3 purred like a kitten as download light flashed and the files transferred flawlessly. All
in all, the Q3’s video was sharp and the sound quality was superb. You are invited to take a look at the finished product on www.youtube.com
search on [writer watching fireworks]. I will say that the youtube video doesn’t have the same quality as the DVD submitted to the NFC 2009 – so
don’t be too critical MP4 isn’t DVD.
Bottom line: if you’re looking for a fun video camera, give the Q3 some consideration. Just be sure you have an XP equipped computer or can get
past the Visio Blue Screen of Death.
together a film for the completion with the new 640 x 480 resolution and X/Y microphones. The only prep-work I did was to open one of the boxes,
shoot a few minutes of video and make a DVD to be sure the camera worked.
On October 23rd the Cocoon Tales team received our genre/elements for the National Film Challenge 2009 at 7PM local time. After wolfing down a
couple of pizzas my team went to work. Christine Stoddard, a local VCU student, and Carl Roper, a fellow author and actor from the Richmond
area, put together a script by 10:30 and everyone departed.
I had a couple of locations lined-up for the shot, but the weather in Richmond did not cooperate on Saturday, so we moved east to Surry County
where the sun was shining – although the wind was blowing about twenty miles an hour through the autumn trees. During the shooting, I did notice
a few strange looks from the actors as I framed them in the Q3. I must admit that the camera does look a little silly sitting on top of a nice tripod.
We shot the movie (“Firecracker”) in about six hours and returned to Richmond where I began editing. That was when I first began to think I had put
too much faith in the untried Q3. The problem seemed to be with the MS Explore file management application. Every time I opened up the Q3
directory, the MS Explore application bombed followed a few seconds later by the Blue Screen of Death. I was feeling pretty low at that point and
tried to figure out why everything had worked the week before. Then I remember that I had been using my XP Desktop and not the Vista laptop that
was causing this problem.
Running upstairs, I plugged the Q3 into my Desktop and the Q3 purred like a kitten as download light flashed and the files transferred flawlessly. All
in all, the Q3’s video was sharp and the sound quality was superb. You are invited to take a look at the finished product on www.youtube.com
search on [writer watching fireworks]. I will say that the youtube video doesn’t have the same quality as the DVD submitted to the NFC 2009 – so
don’t be too critical MP4 isn’t DVD.
Bottom line: if you’re looking for a fun video camera, give the Q3 some consideration. Just be sure you have an XP equipped computer or can get
past the Visio Blue Screen of Death.
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