Hello everyone!

Does anyone have any experience with Bell & Howell camcorders? Specifically, the HD Night Vision camcorder.
Do you own one? Have you ever used one? Etc...

My first take is that they look cheap and I'm not so sure the IR light really works well in total darkness.

Thank you in advance for your feedback!


Chris

Chris,

Undertaker has one. The pro's on this unit are price, video quality, light-weight.

The con's are that the built in light source is very weak. You'll want an external or multiple external light sources for IR. These are available on the internet or you can make one yourself.

It does not have an optical zoom, but honestly for what you're using it for that is fine.

I've never, personally, used this camera, but it did get some good reviews. Ghost Stop has a good full spectrum HD video camera for $300.

Thanks folks! An acquaintance in the biz just sent me a video using the camcorder in question.
My verdict...is a thumbs down.
I already use shoe mounted IR lights and was trying to avoid the bulk, weight, and cost.
Oh well. I may just take a look at the full spectrum HD's. Thanks SRECORD~

Chris i have the Bell and Howell 900 hd. The details cc are very accurate. Very good cam but the lught source is low. I am getting a external ir device to help. But other than that it is a super camera.

Chris,

One thing I would caution about. I've been looking on some of the Ghost Equp. sites. And many have "Full Spectrum HD" cameras. And some come with a full spectrum light claiming to be across all ranges. But please read closely, that includes the visible light range. True full spectrum means all spectrum including visible "White" light.

That somewhat defeats the purpose of night time operations. What you generally are looking for is just the Infra/Ultra bands. The ears of the the spectrum outside of the visible range. There are low lux cameras which work well in very low light situations, but there are no truely No-Lux or total darkness cameras which do not require a light (infrared or ultraviolet, or white) to illuminate the area. The only camera which I know which does not require any light source at all is a FLIR, and thats because it measures ambient thermal radiation. It means the heat (light) which is produced by objects themselves. Rather than reflective light.

Thanks UT & CC.

I did get a chance to read up on the Full Spectrum cameras and found out about the need for a light source. I think I'll stick with the 0 lux Sony's for now. I'm very interested in a Canon from B & H that is in there Pro-Consumer line. Now if we can scrape up the $1900.00 greenbacks, I'll have it made!

Chris,

We deal with B&H a lot in my "Day Job". Great company, great prices. But I'm wondering what the goal is with that unit? The high end video units are great, but I think at least for this field that money may not get you more of what you are looking for. I think with an investment of that magnitude I would start looking towards a small hand-held FLIR instead.

I just purchased some keychain cams (3 of them) and will do the IR conversion on at least one of them once I get it. They're HD (1280x720) and can hold up to 32Gb microSD cards. I'll try it and post some video, may be a much cheaper alternative.

You can mount those directly to a tiny IR source and strap them to your head for a POV cam.

crystalcross

Have you posted video from the key chain cam yet? I am looking around for it.... also what is the price of the converted unit?

Thanks

Sorry about the delay. Yes I've taken several videos with the keychain camera.

www.ghostsnhaunts.com/videos/viewvideo/8...ation-917-ircam.html

www.ghostsnhaunts.com/videos/viewvideo/8...-1-2123-to-2143.html

www.ghostsnhaunts.com/videos/viewvideo/8...-1-2021-to-2115.html

I can show you how to make one if you like. I sell the converted cameras with a small IR LED mag light you can use with it and a 4gb microSD card for about $65. About $50 without the microSD card. And about $30 without the IR LED flashlight.

But like I said before, I would be happy to show you how to make one yourself.