Why does the quality of my digital camera's sucks at night??

Question

I have JVC GZ-MG555 DV Camcorder. I bought it but nobody told me that is so bad when recording in the evning or at night even when the lights on. Does all hard drive camcorders do that
? Is there a way to improve the quality of the recording?

Answer 1

The problem is light, simply put. All digital cameras and camcorders have a sensing device, either a CCD or a CMOS sensor, which responds to light. Each pixel on that sensor needs a certain amount of light hitting it before it will respond.

The amount of light needed is based on two factors -- the size of each pixel, and the electronic gain used to boost the signal from each sensor. For the same light level, you can get a better signal by increasing the size of the sensor. Sensors are measured based on a standardized diagonal measurement. I have two fairly good HDV camcorders, which have 1/3" and 1/2.7" sensors, respectively. Some high end pro camcorders will have 2/3" sensors, and thus, respond to light much better. Some consumer camcorders run 1/4" or even 1/6" sensors, and thus, offer less light sensitivity. Your JVC has a 1/2.5" sensor, which is very good for a consumer camcorder (one of the largest available, many pro camcorders use smaller sensors, though usually three of them).

It's also based on pixel size, so for example, a plain old DV camcorder with a 1/3" sensor will have better low light imaging than my HDV camcorder with its 1/3" sensor... fewer pixels convering the same space, each pixel gets more light.

So now, the next issue is gain. The signal from each pixel in your camcorder is very small, so it gets amplified before it's turned into a digital signal. At some point, the level of the signal is close enough to the natural level of electrical noise in the system, and so, as the amplification increases, you start to see noise in the image.

Another thing to mess around with is shutter speed. Many camcorders will default, in automatic mode, to 1/60th second or higher. But better units can go to 1/30th or even sometimes less, and naturally, if you open the shutter twice as long, you get twice as much light. So I recommend you read your manual and lean about manual settings... I believe your camcorder can be run at 1/30th second (assuming you're not already doing this).

Bottom line, though: camcoders are not so great at lower light settings... even fairly high end professional units will offer poor results without a decent light source. Your camera is well above average for a single CCD consumer oriented unit.

Answer 2

It probably has a small lens on it. If you have a small lens less light can get in. I look for camcorders with bigger lenses such as the Panisonic PV-GS83 I got it on ebay for $140. It does pretty well in low light, but it uses mini dv tapes instead of a hard drive. Look for camcorders with bigger lenses next time.

Answer 3

Digital recordings need light. Since they are taking in light from surroundings and turning it directly to signal, they need more light to do this properly.

First, check your camera for a setting to take pics at night. This would allow more light in and make your pics better. Many times people forget that these cameras have so many adjustments thta they forget they can adjust for nighttime shots.

If that doesn't work, find a camera light which will attach to the front of your camera and add more light to your subject.

Answer 4

all personal cameras/camcorders suck at night, you can try adjusting the aperture if your cam has a setting for it

Answer 5

complex issue. research at google. that will will help!