Camcorder Problem

TheBody

Hi everyone.

I'm making short maths videos for my classes (I'm a teacher) with a regular camcorder on a tripod. Each video is typically 5 ish minutes long. The problem I'm having is that the picture goes out of focus (typically once or twice over a 5 min video) just for a second. It happens at different times in each video. The camera is set up on a tripod in my office and is pointed at a small whiteboard. The lighting isn't great in the room and I'm guessing that this may be a couse of the problem.

The camcorder is a Panasonic SDR-H85. It has done VERY little work and has never left my office.

This is a picture of the camera here:


Any ideas what could be causing the problem folks? Thanks in advance!!

bnt

The short answer that came straight to mind was indeed light, so I think you're right about that. Can you provide some more? Many autofocus systems rely on a decent light level to judge focus, and if it suspects it's lost focus, it will re-focus as you're seeing.

TheBody

bnt wrote: »

The short answer that came straight to mind was indeed light, so I think you're right about that. Can you provide some more? Many autofocus systems rely on a decent light level to judge focus, and if it suspects it's lost focus, it will re-focus as you're seeing.

Thanks for that. I had a feeling it'd be a lighting issue. I'll have to see if I can do something about it so.

Sleepy

Never underestimate how poor indoor lighting is compared to daylight. We don't tend to notice it most of the time (as our eyes adjust) but daylight is far, far brighter than the lightbulbs in an average office.

Technocentral

TheBody wrote: »

Hi everyone.

I'm making short maths videos for my classes (I'm a teacher) with a regular camcorder on a tripod. Each video is typically 5 ish minutes long. The problem I'm having is that the picture goes out of focus (typically once or twice over a 5 min video) just for a second. It happens at different times in each video. The camera is set up on a tripod in my office and is pointed at a small whiteboard. The lighting isn't great in the room and I'm guessing that this may be a couse of the problem.

The camcorder is a Panasonic SDR-H85. It has done VERY little work and has never left my office.

This is a picture of the camera here:


Any ideas what could be causing the problem folks? Thanks in advance!!

Impossible to get pro results using autofocus, set the focus manually for much better results.

TheBody

marry324 wrote: »

Follow this link: http://www.probux.com/?r=mary23

Is this spam? I don't see how this has anything to do with my problem.

ScumLord

Break out the manual, let it autofocus then switch to manual focus so it stays at that setting. There may even be a lock settings switch you can use.

This can happen to even the most expensive cameras and I'd say the whiteboard isn't helping the autofocus either.