Quick Review Camcorders : Canon Optura 40

At our bright light equivalent light level of 3000 lux in the testing tent, the Optura 40 does well and produces great colors and grayscale, aside from the yellow tile which is a bit muddy. Overall, for a camcorder with a CCD this big (relatively), we expected and good great bright light video performance.

The smooth automatic controls of the Optura 30 remain on the Optura 40. Automatic adjustments are available for focus, shutter speed, iris, white balance, and audio levels. In automatic focus the Optura 40 softens skin tones when they are zoomed in upon. This can help minimize the minor imperpections on your zitty face; however, for those who desire the verist look, manual focus eliminates this function.

The manual control on the Optura 40 is probably the most you'll get from any camcorder in its price range. Aside from the lack of manual gain control, the Optura 40 has a focus ring which is extremely rare and manual audio level adjustment with four channell recordering. On top of this the regular manual adjusters of iris, shutter speed, and white balance are available.

Aside from the skin tone issue of the focus, the Optura's focal adjustments are smooth and fluid, and the focus ring offers superb manualability. The only noticeable problem with the focus was a slight issue with image stablization which can be fixed with a tripod. Exposure is controlled manuall from -11 to +7. There are also preset windows of performance for shutter speed and iris control. They include: Sports, Portrait, Spotlight, Sand & Snow, and Low light. Shutter speed itself is available for manual adjustment from 1/60-1/2000 and at the lower shutter speed levels of 1/15 and 1/30. White balance options are standard and include manual, auto, indoor, and outdoor.

The Optura 40 has the same still capabilities as the Optura 30, with a max resolution of 1632x1224. Like many Canon camcorders, the Optura 40 has some additional still photo options, such as rapid fire, and exposure bracketing.

While the Optura 40 does offer some more night modes than the Optura 30 and includes a LED to help in low light situations, its performance isn't exactly stellar. Canons have been having trouble with low light this year, and while the Canon Optura 40 does do well at 60 lux (within the window of normal indoor lighting), 15 lux is pretty bad, yielding virtually unusable footage. If you plan to shoot outside of dark coniditions, the Optura 40 is definitly a good camcorder worth buying, if not, I'd suggest looking into other manufactures.

Canon Optura 40 Compared to the...