Digital SLRs With Video

Page updated: September 2009 Share on Facebook

There aren't very many digital SLRs with video - let's get that statement out of the way first, so that it's perfectly clear.

Despite the fact that a video capture feature is available in many low-end digital cameras (and even cellphones) it's not a common feature of SLR cameras.

There are two reasons why:

1. One is technical: since a huge number of SLRs don't include the feature, adding it to a camera requires extensive re-enginnering on the part of a manufacturer
2. One is practical: since SLR cameras were for more "professional" photographic pursuits, there was not a lot of demand in the marketplace for video

But the times, they are a-changin'.

Today, with the popularity of sites like YouTube and Hulu, video has as much of a presence on the web as still images.

With that in mind, media outlets are asking their reporters to capture BOTH when covering a newsworthy story. Still frames can be extracted from the video, or they can be captured independently.

Regardless of the mechanism, the need is increasing for multi-purpose digital devices that can capture high-quality still images and video.

Live View Paves the Way

For a long time a standard feature on compact digital cameras - the ability to compose a photo using the LCD screen on the camera's back - didn't exist on any digital SLR.

When using a digital SLR, you had to compose all of your photos by looking through the viewfinder.

But then Olympus had a breakthrough with their E-330: they found a way to change the technology so that you could use either the LCD or viewfinder to compose images. Live view was born.

Today, live view LCDs are quite common on all new digital SLR cameras.

Once the cameras had the ability to display a "live" image on the LCD screen, it was not that much more of a leap to capture that live image as a video clip.

Benefits of SLR Video

One of the nice things about having a digital SLR with video is that it can capture motion and sound when a still image just won't tell the entire story.

I've taken hundreds of photos of my son dancing around the living room to music, and a few of them do capture the essence of his performance.

But there's one thing missing: the music itself.

With the video option on the Nikon D90, I was able to grab some still images of him jumping about, and then quickly switched to video mode for full motion and sound.

Clearly, some subjects will benefit more from video capture than others (landscapes don't DO very much).

A second benefit of capturing video with a digital SLR is somewhat less obvious.

Since you are able to change the lens on a digital SLR (something you can't do with a standard video camera) you can capture some VERY interesting shots.

This is especially true when you use specialty lenses: extreme wide angle, extreme telephoto, or macro.

For example, with a macro lens, you're able to get up close and personal with even the smallest subjects. Imagine being able to capture your very own nature documentary (Ants at Work) right in your backyard.

Or, maybe you're really into surfing.

With an extreme telephoto lens attached to the camera (and a really nice tripod) you can capture the action as if you were sitting right in front of the wave.

Limitations of SLR Video

Since digital SLR video technology is in its infancy, it's not without limitations.

If you decide to get a digital SLR with video right now, there are two things that you'll have to deal with:

1. Focus is manual ONLY - the high-tech autofocus system in the camera won't work during video capture
2. Movie duration is limited - as the sensor captures video it gets warmer, so time limits are placed on video capture so the sensor doesn't overheat

The first issue is definitely a limitation: it's not easy to maintain focus on a moving subject, and a lot of your initial videos taken with an SLR will likely be quite blurry.

While you will eventually get the hang of constantly adjusting focus, it takes a lot of practice.

The second issue - limited video capture time - is perhaps more of a blessing than a real drawback.

It forces you to think carefully about the clip that you're about to capture, and it also means that you capture shorter video segments that are more interesting to watch.

No more boring your in-laws with hours of footage from your latest vacation.

Current Digital SLRs With Video

Since this is a relatively new technology for the digital SLR camera market, there are only a handful that include video. Due to the overwhelming positive response, expect to see video included in many more cameras soon.

Note: cameras are listed in chonological order of release.

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