Video Camera for Stake Conference

Our stake has an old VHS camera that we use to transmit stake conference video to our overflow rooms in the stake center. We have done extensive research, but can't get rid of the irritating text overlay (indicating light level, zoom, etc.) that is common on consumer cameras.

We have considered purchasing a low-cost CCTV camera (see:
http://cctvspecialty.com/built-in-audio ... -67ad.html)

and a 20x zoom lens (see:
http://cctvspecialty.com/5-100mm-vari-f ... mount.html)

However, although this camera has automatic iris adjustment, the lense requires a manual focus along with the zoom.

What are other stakes doing to overcome these problems and limitations?

Thanks!

We've been using a consumer JVC DV camera for years with no such problems. The display on the unit shows the on-screen indicators, but the video output is clean.

My suggestion is to head to the store with a small video monitor and cables and seeing what you can do with the demo units.

For many years, I used my old full-sized consumer-grade VHS camcorder on a consumer-grade camcorder tripod (a little viscous damping but nothing very fancy). The tripod's feet were duct taped to the top of two classroom tables duct taped together. For zoom, I wired up a 3-conductor jack in parallel with the zoom buttons on the camcorder, and plugged in a small project box with four pushbuttons on it (fast vs. slow, in vs. out) that I called a "zoom box". For smoother panning, I duct taped a piece of funny pipe (1/2-inch black plastic pipe normally used for lawn sprinkler risers) to the end of the tripod handle to provide some mechanical low-pass filtering.

HTH

shadfiel wrote:Our stake has an old VHS camera that we use to transmit stake conference video to our overflow rooms in the stake center. We have done extensive research, but can't get rid of the irritating text overlay (indicating light level, zoom, etc.) that is common on consumer cameras.

On our camera (A Panasonic) you have to press the DISPLAY button twice and all the on screen writing goes away.

Sorry to resurrect an old thread, here, but this is right along the lines of what I need to find out. I was using a home video camera, but in addition to the text overlay, the darn thing kept shutting down every five minutes. So I am now in the market for the purchase of a good and decent video camera. Any suggestions? I recognize that we aren't suppose to recommend specific products, but if someone out there has a camera that does exactly what they need it to, I would appreciate hearing about it...

dan.skousen wrote:the darn thing kept shutting down every five minutes.

We use a JVC mini-DV camera, a model probably long out of production. As long as it's powered by the adapter and has no tape in the machine, it will stay on forever.

The shutdown usually comes from one of two reasons: To save battery power, or to save the recording heads.

When powered by the adapter, saving the battery is not a concern. Many camcorders while on, are in "pause" with the heads spinning. The shutdown is to save wear and tear on the heads and the tape. If you are recording, it will stay on as the tape is moving instead of the heads spinning at one spot on the tape.

Standard disclaimer on brands: It's just something we got. It's not endorsed by the church.

If you are not in a hurry to purchase, the church is evaluating several devices and in a short period of time will be coming out with some recommended models for stakes to purchase that will also be supported by GSD.

If you have needs in the short term you might consider borrowing a members camera and then you can purchase one that you can receive support for. Just a thought
Troy