Testing Sony Handycam DCR-HC52

[AlexBright99]

That camera sucks and it has no high quality

[seeaddy001]

@AlexBright99 i agree, and it sucks in all lighting.

[payaning2x]

so how much your digi sony???

[EFER0CI0US]

how do i get rid of black frame around my video????

[ryanmercer317]

You'll have to manually go in and crop the resolution and lose some of your frame... and number of software suites should allow you to do it. @EFER0CI0US 

[Alex1M6]

What render settings are you using as my footage shot with the same camera looks terrible on youtube.

[ryanmercer317]

@Alex1M6 I just uploaded it raw

[Alex1M6]

@ryanmercer317 surely that must take ages? it is just I am trying to get my videos rendered in vegas to look good but they always come out looking like crap,

[MrAndrewskates]

does it have a place to put a usb card? 

[ryanmercer317]

@MrAndrewskates nope, no place for a usb card. The camera lacks many features it really should have. If you want a good camera there are lots of newer ones far better, especially for easy digital editing and uploading. Firewire is basically dead at this point, as are DV tapes.

[westbabylonbangin]

i have that camera but idk how to get it hq when i upload stuff

[Curtisstewartt]

when you save a video on your computer from your editor, render it in HQ.. You can even do this with Windows movie maker

[sherdakooky]

Did you use an external microphone or the one that is internal?

[ryanmercer317]

That is internal.

[Klingonmastr]

How do you like the video quality of this camera? I have a Hitachi DVD Camcorder with 1/6 inch CCD. If you get a flash based camcorder 1/6 of an inch is the usual size of the CCD sensor you will find in these video camera. You can get a Panasonic camera with 3 CCD sensors or a Canon with a slighty better CCD sensor but you will pay more.

[ryanmercer317]

It's great for what little I've used it for... there is only one recording I did with it that isn't in this youtube account, and it's 40 some minutes of footage of people partying before a race... so some parts aren't youtube friendly. Other than that everything I've shot with it is here on youtube, so as you can see I haven't used it terribly much.

[rockiesheryl]

how did u transfer Minidv to COmputer please let me know asap. i have got all videos in MiniDV

[m4ttymoj0]

You need to buy a firewire/ DV cable. they can be found in most hardware shops :)

[ryanmercer317]

Yeah you'll need a firewire cable and a firewire card, then your video editing/capturing software of choice.

[kevinmakesvideos]

Is this 4:3 or 16:9?

[ryanmercer317]

16:9

[kevinmakesvideos]

Okay, thanks

[justhi10]

I have this camera, but for some reason I'm getting blue lines whenever I'm capturing off my camera to the computer. I think it may have something to do with the tapes, but I'm not sure. Just check some of my videos on my channel and you will see it. I"m not really sure what to do.

[ryanmercer317]

Hrmm, I have no idea. I've never had that problem before.

[baker3v]

ok ryan i got a sony handycam dcr-dvd810 and i can get the videos onto my computer using usb, but when i put it into windows movie maker, it reads the file as audio, and when i put the videos on the timeline it shuts down windows movie maker. and ideas?

[ryanmercer317]

Read the other comments. You can NOT transfer video via usb... you have to do it via firewire... about a dozen people have asked this already. I'm tired of answering it.

[purplewon1]

where did u get ur usb cable???? plz reply any1

[ryanmercer317]

Why do you want a usb cable. For the umpteen-millionth time... YOU CAN NOT TRANSFER VIDEO VIA USB. You must use firewire!

[purplewon1]

where u get firewire then???

[ryanmercer317]

Ever heard of this thing called Google?

[purplewon1]

btw ur very rude i just didnt know

[ryanmercer317]

I'm not rude at all, if you go through the previous comments, people have asked the same question NUMEROUS times. You are rude for being LAZY.

[chrize08]

i bought sony handycam DCR-HC54E  and i dunno how to use it just got it yesterday i dont even know how to transfer the videos to my laptop!! it really pisses me off.. can someone tell me how to transfer videos from my camcorder?? i have tried usb it wont work..my cam has this mini tape and i dont know how to transfer its fuckin videos in my laptop,,..

[ryanmercer317]

You could try reading other comments here... or the manual... or google... and you'd clearly see you can NOT transfer video via USB. You need to do it via firewire, and you need to have software to capture the stream.

[dayboyy24]

Just bought mine over ebay! cant wait to get it (: yeuhyeuhyeuh

[ryanmercer317]

Cool, if you want to capture the video to your computer you'll need a fireware card, or firewire ports (if you have a mac... probably has firewire, pc I doubt it) and then you will have to be a firewire cable too (most cards don't come with a cable, and hardly any devices come with one). If you are gonna use a pc to cap the video... I'm using CyberLink PowerDirector, it's the easiest out of a handful of software suites I've used.

[Epiphonefan]

my pc has, its a hp media pc:D HOW LUCKTY! im buying that cam maaan,

[puupydoger]

I like the camera and the bunny!

[TheNinja4]

how do u even upload a video i have the same camera and i dont know how to upload or even plug it in the pc because i dont know what cord i need to buy could u help me plz?

[bumbledown08]

you need to buy a firewire cable that fitsyour camera

[dayboyy24]

where can you get one of those? and whats firewire what do i need to look for

[MasterMarkovich]

BUNNY!

[Gatoso2009]

ki nada !! Eu naum sei ler ingles mesmo!!

[RioNilo09]

If I save directly from camcorder to the hard disk and then on youtube, it will take one thousand years to finish everything!

My pc is a amd 3.0 64, 1gb ram and 256 with 3.5mb conection vga = (

[ryanmercer317]

Yes, I don't compress it at all. 2 minutes shouldn't be 300mb... My Singles Awareness Day video is 236mb and 3:55 long.

[RioNilo09]

I capture the video, but in the middle of the recording has a delay of image and movement is not perfect. But without the descompression the video is too large for upload, (2 min 300MB!) My connection is 3.5 mb.

You uploading 300MB? How long does it end?

I use Google Translator...........

[RioNilo09]

Which option should I choose for it is in HD mode on youtube? What is the final size of the video? In the final edition has many options for image quality, which do you choose?

[ryanmercer317]

I don't mess with the HD for youtube, besides our camera doesn't do HD, at least mine doesn't. I don't compress my video at all for uploading to youtube. I use the cyberlink powerdirector and just capture the video from the camera and upload it as is right now.

[solobaka]

that means for this clip the file is quite large ?...I use Adobe Premiere CS3 to capture my video and they are large files. do you get this too ?

[ryanmercer317]

My "Singles Awareness Day" video on here is 236mb and 3:55 for example. I have many many terabytes of storage so I don't worry about size, and the upload time doesn't bother me at all, doesn't take long for me and any quality loss is from youtube, not me. :)

[RioNilo09]

Hey, take a look at my video "Without Título_0007" I saved directly to the C:/ and did the upload. What was with that bad quality? It has 70 mb!

I have not edited anything, just got the video and did the upload directly to youtube.

=(

[ryanmercer317]

I am not sure. Sometimes youtube makes things a poor quality on it's own.

[RioNilo09]

firewire cable does not need cd, its plug and play. if your win is 98, you need.

[RioNilo09]

What configuration you choose for your video is with this quality? You use movie maker?

[ryanmercer317]

No, I don't use movie maker. I use cyberlink powerdirector and I upload completely uncompressed.

[RioNilo09]

Hey thanks!

[ShyamShiva]

hi, i have the same camera and i got a firewire cable too. But the comp does not recognize anything. Is it supposed to be plug and play like usb devices? and did u have to install any drivers? thx

[ryanmercer317]

You will need software to capture the video with. I will message you with a link of reviews of both paid and free software

[SpAnKy92595]

how did you upload this? i just got the same camera but it didnt come with a chord to plug into my computer

[ryanmercer317]

You need to buy a firewire cable.

[babyapple930]

LOL!! "Come back Peter Cottontail" that was too cute and funny. P.S. I just got this camera yesterday!! Loves it!!

[ryanmercer317]

:) It is a pretty nice camera. If you want to use it for youtube stuff, CyberLink PowerDirector works nicely.

[NOLIMIT331]

is there any way i can transfer my film to the computer without the firewire cable?please reply

[ryanmercer317]

Not that I know of

[FlorinU]

The firewire transfer is THE best way to do it. Why would you want another way? This kind of transfer ensures that the movie is transferred at the best possible quality. If you have a desktop, a video capture card with a firewire port is really cheap (between $3 - $10). If you have alaptop and it's not readily equipped with 1394 port, you can buy an external capture device.

[melbourneSTORM4eva]

hey i just got this and i dident get anything to up load it to the pc with so can u please help me and tell me wat i need to put my videos on the computer???,like wat did u use,thank u very much!!!!!!

[DEADleafNINJA]

srry i got one and my videos look bad

how did you get it to look so good?

what did you render it in?

what program?

what type of file avi?

[gardensk878]

does it use a usb cord?

[ryanmercer317]

Firewire is ideal, the usb can't transfer video

[leloby]

After seeing this review and others, I'm going out to buy one right now. Thanks.

[inesamilanesa]

can this camcorder capture images or pictures?

[ryanmercer317]

No, and in my opinion any camcorder that doesn't isn't worth buying as camcorders are for video, not still image.

[sniperGasMask]

I'm considering buying this camera. Would you recommend it overall?

[ryanmercer317]

It's alright :)

[independentruck4life]

oh crap not a rabbit

[BoxLineProductions]

how did u render it?

do u use wmm or any other editor?

[ryanmercer317]

Pinnacle Hollywood 6.0 FX for Studio 11... however I did SEVERAL videos the exact same way, uploaded them here... and this is the only one that actually shows up with video. The rest will not show video for some reason and I can't for the life of me figure it out. The video works fine until I load it on youtube.

[FilmerDaniel]

just got one today:D

[lekzhiyang1994]

I've just bought this camera recently, and i fell in love with it. The quality is great, the functions are cool, everything is inside. My first and favourite video camera. I wouldn't advise using Hard Disk and Memory Sticks etc for storage because they compress the video to mpeg 4 quality. There is thus a lost in quality. If DV tapes are used, there is no loss in quality. A sad thing is that cameras that record on DV tapes are phasing out... I would recommend this camera to everyone.. It rocks!!

[jaggturkey]

Im gna ask for one for christmas :P

I was, at first, put off a bit due to the low quality of the video but, after I watched in high quality, Im dead set on getting it :)

[Jacestarwind]

Yeah the quality is alot better than you see it and also if you get it from the camera stright to tv [using the cables it comes with] It looks nearly flawless! its a great camera

[jaggturkey]

AWESOME

I actually can't wait to get it for Christmas :)

[joetheducky]

peter cotton tail is back from the dead

[cvoliver]

i want to buy but i dont know if it is easy to connect to your computer

[ydrjtt]

holy shit

it looks great on high quality

[BradCopia]

the quality is awsome, im buyin this camcorder in a couple of days.

[ryanmercer317]

It's a really good camera, I'd have more up with it but youtube isn't liking my uploads for some reason, so I gave up.

[theoryskate929]

ok help me im thinkin of buying this camera i dont get wat the tapes r for and r the reliable

[ryanmercer317]

The tapes are for... get this... recording.

[theoryskate929]

once a tape is used it can be transfered to a computer with a firewire right

[ryanmercer317]

Correct.

[theoryskate929]

so when the tape is full can u erease all the shit on it and reuse it or do u have to buy a new one and r they reliable

[ryanmercer317]

You could film over it, but I wouldn't I'd ust buy a new tape. And yes they are reliable they've been around for nearly 2 decades now.

[3Z3K13L08]

Nice quality. I'm getting one of these camera next week. I used some old Sony mini-DV cameras when I was in high school and they were great. Unless you get a $1000 camera or above, there isn't too much separating the low end to budget cameras. Sony know how to make good digital equipment :-).

[FaithfulCharity]

Hi there~

I recently bought a DCR-HC62 but I'm having trouble importing my videos. It seems simple enough. I installed the software and connected with the provided USB cable, turned it on set it to play/edit mode then selected 'stream'. But all I got was "Cannot find the Handycam (Tape). Check the i.LINK connection to the Handycam." I don't see how I can do that seeing how it didn't provide me with a Firewire. Please help!!

Thank you in advance~

[ryanmercer317]

You just said the problem USB cable... you can only use the usb cable to transfer still images. Need a firewire cable to transfer video. Also, the camera needs to be in view mode. Also, you need to have a battery in and the power adapter plugged in.

[FaithfulCharity]

alright, thank you very much~

[Josephwarr]

you should try getting the panasonic vdr-d50 great price for what it is

[3Z3K13L08]

Kinda hard seeing as he already has the DCR-HC52. It's about taste and need really. I'm sure the DCR-HC52 is all he needs so he chose wisely :P. The VDR-D50 uses mini-DVD's and they aren't the best medium. Plus you can pick up the Sony for $300 cheaper...

[bigbzon]

Don't just stand there, grab a showel and hit it!

[KlasBenny]

What movie file format did you upload? cuz ive tried a few formats and most of them looks terrible for me. What do you suggest?

[ryanmercer317]

I did this as an avi... however, everything I"ve attempted to upload since this video... always appears black on youtube with just audio... the video plays fine on my computer... but somewhere between getting uploaded from my computer and then converted by youtube... all video goes black and I can not for the love of me figure it out.

[3Z3K13L08]

I upload all videos as a WMV (I know, but YouTube likes them). I set the Bit Rate to 1 Mbps (I render everthing in Sony Vegas 8, it have many, MANY options) and it keeps most of it's quality when converted. If that doesn't work too well, change it down to 800 Kbps.

[Zoom72unn3r]

haha peter cotton tail

[unrealtournamentguy]

I seriously don't get this... I borrowed a Sony handycam off my cousin yesterday and he gave me the USB cable and a charger, Nothing about "Firewire" was even mentioned to me and he used to make youtube vids with it!! how do I get videos OFF my camera ONTO my computer, PLEASE someone post some SIMPLE instructions that I CAN FUCKING FOLLOW!!

[ryanmercer317]

Without a fireware cable, and software... you simply can't. Period.

[3Z3K13L08]

+1

Firewire is THE was to transfer video. USB uses a variable transfer speed and Firewire (IEEE 1394) uses a set speed which is crucial to transfer audio/video. Lots of computers don't come with Firewire ports as companies don't think the average user will need one.

[13Phinfan13]

Does the firewire cable come with the camera?

[ryanmercer317]

No, firewire cables rarely come with items... usually they come with the firewire cards, and by themselves.

[13Phinfan13]

all right, I think I found a good one at radio shack

thanks

[redskins4life3]

I mean i have the firewire but the camcorder says i have an error

[ryanmercer317]

You have to have the camera turned on to the play/view mode, have a battery in, and the power adapter plugged in.

[redskins4life3]

I know but it still says that i have an error but i will keep trying

[ryanmercer317]

Dunno then.

[XvHaLoFreaKvX]

PLEASE RESPOND where do i get a firewire cable!!!!

[IndianaWarsStarJones]

Holy jesus. It's me. Your Nephew. Hmmm.....JAred of Nintendo,....I never heard about this stuff, you sneaky devil.

[ryanmercer317]

You can only upload photos with usb... to upload video you have to go firewire.

[wutsupmane]

how do you upload videos

[redskins4life3]

I got my camra a while a go and i still cant find a usb cable to upload to utube

[flash178]

There is no USB CABLE to fit the dcr-hc52

You Require a FIRE WIRE cable.

It's not USB and the manual has no information on it.

You can connect to the computer via a fire wire port. IT works similar to a usb.

[djmelucho]

Ese mismo pedo tenia mi DCR-HC28, al grabar se escuchaba a veces un zumbido y eso que la mia lo hacia nuevecita al igual que la de este cuate.

[ryanmercer317]

I am a lousy cameraman.