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General discussion

Sony Nightshot Plus

Oct 15, 2011 4:03PM PDT

Hi all,
New to these forums. I am currently in the process of looking for a solid camcorder that has Sony's Nightshot Plus. So far I've looked at a lot of different camcorders and one that stands out the most is the HDR-SR11. It looks like it takes solid video when in complete darkness. Any help would be great.

Discussion is locked

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All the Sony camcorders
Oct 16, 2011 4:43AM PDT

with NightShot, SuperNightShot, or NightShotPlus have a built-in infrared emitter. When in that zero-light capture mode, these camcorders generally record monochromatic (green/white - sometimes black/white) video. The same "video quality" issues will apply as with regular visible light video. Larger lens filter diameter and larger imaging chip size = more light (visible or otherwise) in to the camcorder for recording. This is not a "low light mode" which uses a very slow (1/30 second) shutter speed to allow more visible light in to hit the imaging chip.

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Recommendation
Oct 16, 2011 8:18AM PDT

If you had a recommendation of an older Sony camcorder what would you recommend that isn't hard disk drive? Also, would the HVL-HIRL be a good choice in IR illumination for whatever it is that you recommend?

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"Older" means
Oct 16, 2011 3:04PM PDT

miniDV tape because the CX line is still relatively new...