Kodak Z612 Movie Mode

[Aquarius89]

I've noticed two problems with the Z612's movie mode and am wondering if there is a way to correct this.

1) When zooming in or out, focus is lost and movie is completely blurred.

2) When zooming in or out, sound becomes very faint, and is not audible.

Any ideas??? This actually really has ticked me off.

[Aquarius89]

No one has any ideas?

[kdc41]

1). Make sure you have the Auto Focus set to Continuous when shooting a movie.

2). The Kodak ultrazooms (P850, P712 and Z612) have noisy zooms - either you can't hear the environment sounds because of the zoom noise or they turn down the record level on the Z612 when zooming to avoid recording the noise.

[Aquarius89]

The focus is set on continuous.

[kdc41]

In normal conditions it goes out of focus briefly after zooming but should refocus immediately after that. If it remains out of focus with continuous focus it might be defective...
Have you tried setting the focus to center zone or spot? It should focus faster than in multi-zone.

[Aquarius89]

It does refocus, but then constantly goes in and out of focus even if the camera moves an inch.

[kdc41]

It does refocus, but then constantly goes in and out of focus even if the camera moves an inch.

When you move the camera, the subject on which it focuses can change dramatically (for example if you use center spot focus a small movement can make it switch from a close object to a far away subject). As this camera's focus motor is not very fast, it takes a little bit to refocus. A way to avoid it is to switch to manual focus (this way the camera maintains a constant focus all the time) - I tried to do that on my P850 but I couldn't figure it out, so it might not be possible

You may wish to take a look at some other cameras (like the Cannon S3 or Sony H2/5) if this feature is really important to you.

Ken

[gerrydee]

I've noticed two problems with the Z612's movie mode and am wondering if there is a way to correct this.

1) When zooming in or out, focus is lost and movie is completely blurred.

2) When zooming in or out, sound becomes very faint, and is not audible.

Any ideas??? This actually really has ticked me off.

Make sure you set the IS to"OFF" or you will get that low background screechy noise.
Do you also hear the clicking noise and color artifacts when panning from highly contrasting areas?

[gerrydee]

When you move the camera, the subject on which it focuses can change dramatically (for example if you use center spot focus a small movement can make it switch from a close object to a far away subject). As this camera's focus motor is not very fast, it takes a little bit to refocus. A way to avoid it is to switch to manual focus (this way the camera maintains a constant focus all the time) - I tried to do that on my P850 but I couldn't figure it out, so it might not be possible

You may wish to take a look at some other cameras (like the Cannon S3 or Sony H2/5) if this feature is really important to you.

Ken

There is no way to set to manual focus. The camera is automatically set to AF in video mode.
The video mode is what turned me off the Z612. I returned mine after a month.
I wanted an "all in one" and I settled on the Canon S3 IS as my choice for doing both best and for only $150.00 more.
IMO, the Canon S3 is the closest you can get to a dslr than any other camera so far released including the Sony H5.

[tinman9898]

I've noticed two problems with the Z612's movie mode and am wondering if there is a way to correct this.

1) When zooming in or out, focus is lost and movie is completely blurred.

2) When zooming in or out, sound becomes very faint, and is not audible.

Any ideas??? This actually really has ticked me off.

I emailed Kodak and they supplied this response...



"Thank you for your e-mail regarding zooming feature not being of the greatest.



Unfortunately there is nothing that can be done with regards to correcting the focus during zooming in on video. The noise disruption is caused by the lens retracting in and out. One thing certain digital cameras would not be as perfect as a video camera."



In my opinion it is not the best idea of Kodaks to put a funtion on a camera which they know doesn't work properly and use it as a selling point.

I think they will have a lot of z612s returned because of this.

Also I have had a lot of trouble trying to obtain a spare Klic 8000 rechargeable battery. Contacted Kodak and they said they didn't have any in stock and it would be a back order. That was several weeks ago and I am still waiting. Comet, currys and local independents do not stock it either. Even the online retailer I bought it from doesn't stock the batteries...

Another mistake of Kodaks not to make it compatible with normal metal hydride batteries as well as lithium ion.....