Canon M300 Review

Posted on October 17, 2011 by marsaliss

The main thing about the Canon M300 is that it is an excellent camcorder when used at manual settings. It’s not a digital camcorder for point-and-shoot users.

If you’re used to using Canon video cameras on default program settings, then you’re in for some disappointment when you use it indoors. This camcorder uses a rapid shutter speed of 1/60s at default settings, which results in terrible noise even in moderately bright indoor conditions. It’s fine to use for bright outdoor conditions, though, if you want to leave the settings at the default “Program AE” mode.

For indoor use or other dim lighting conditions, it’s best to set the Canon M300 on the following manual settings to get the best video quality:

Shooting Mode: Select Shutter Priority at 1/30 shutter speed since 1/60 and higher is good only for outdoor daytime conditions. The slower speed will let in more light and won’t make the camcorder jack up gain control (AGC) to maximum setting.

Auto Gain Control (AGC): This HF M300 setting is similar to ISO in a digital camera. Set this to 16dB or less on the Canon M300. You’ll get brighter videos at higher settings but the visible trailing noise will also increase terribly. At 16dB or less this HD camcorder limits noise levels to manageable levels, and produces natural looking (grainy) videos instead of ghastly blotchy ones at high AGC settings of 18dB or higher.

Picture Mode: Adjust the Canon M300 to these settings by choosing the “Custom” mode to get better retention on color and detail.

Brightness: +1 – to get more shadow detail

Color: +1 – to increase color saturation since setting brightness to +1 will lead to desaturation

Contrast: -1 – this will lessen highlight clipping (this also creates desaturation, but the color setting of +1 compensates for this too)

Sharpness: 0 – this improves video detail and adjusts noise traits from “blotchy” (-1) to “grainy” (0)

What is the Canon M300

Posted on September 7, 2011 by marsaliss

The Canon M300 is an HD digital camcorder that is a little more affordable version of the Vixia HF M30. The two Canon HD camcorders have nearly identical cylindrical designs except that the HF M300 is silver instead of black. It has 15x zoom HD lens, a 3.9 megapixel CMOS sensor, and a 2.7 inch LCD touch screen with Dynamic SuperRange optical image stabilization.

It comes with a standard MIDI jack, but you’ll also find a Dolby Dig Digital 5.1-channel microphone just under the lens. The Canon M300’s touch panel LCD screen is hinged on its left side. You won’t find an optical viewfinder on this HD camcorder because its rechargeable battery has taken its place. Shooters will be able to track and focus on their subjects through the touch screen on this video camera, thanks to Canon’s Touch&Track system.

In addition to the Canon M300’s Dynamic SuperRange optical image stabilization, users can enhance this camcorder’s stable imagery through Power IS, which is activated using the touch screen. This digital camcorder offers 1080p HD video capture at 24 frames per second through the Digic DV III image processor inside the unit. Its focusing system is Canon’s Instant Auto, which makes use of an external sensor to decrease the time needed to find focus.

The Vixia HF M300 can also be used as a 3.3 megapixel digital camera with auto focus, built-in flash, and burst shooting at 5 frames per second. Using Video Snapshot Mode, shooters can use the Canon M300 to capture short clips of highlight videos before each shot, and compose them into a single video. Face Detection technology enables this HD camcorder to automatically track 35 faces at once, with 9 visible detection frames. This Vixia HF M300 model supports both SDHC and SD memory cards.

Canon M300 VS Canon VIXIA HF M30 Full HD

Posted on August 30, 2011 by marsaliss

The Vixia HF M3x series is made up of the Canon M300, Canon M30, M31, and M32 HD digital camcorder models. This Canon video camera series offer an excellent blend of high quality video, performance, and features for your money, though some people may wish their battery life to be much longer, and their touch-screen interface to be more user-friendly. The best deal for this series is the Canon M300.

Canon’s HF 200 series, the company’s previous mainstream flash HD camcorders, have built a reputation for reliable performance and excellent video quality, and these qualities remain in HF M3x series. The Vixia HD M3x series have small and lightweight bodies that are well constructed, even if they’re plastic. Canon installed a real knob for switching between full auto and manual modes, and some settings on manual can be retained if you set them in the advanced manual mode.

The interface layout on the Canon M300 and its siblings is logical, and the menus have a straightforward structure. But the scrolling design presents a challenge when using it because, when your finger slides along the inside edge, your hand will block the display when you scroll. The multi-touch scroll operations also make it difficult to move a single entry at one time accurately. It takes some getting used to.

These M-series camcorders have a similar feature set to the HF200 models. Both the full menu system and frequently used settings can be pulled up or down using a virtual function. Menu settings include image effects, white balance, digital effects, still photo size, video quality, program, and some scene modes. Vixia HD M-series video cameras provide shutter speed range of 1/6 to 1/2000 second with real shutter and aperture priority shooting modes. Their aperture options range from f1.8 to f8 so you get greater control over depth of field than what you usually get from a compact, consumer model.

Canon’s Cine Mode is also available in the Vixia M3xx models. This controls color and gamma adjustments and tandem with their 24F progressive modes. Metering and drive mode are available in still mode also. Variable zoom speed, three fixed, x.v. Color mode, and other high-end features can be accessed through the menus as well.

The Canon M300 and its siblings are solid HD camcorders that are competitive in their price range. They are a very good midrange choice if the touch screen interface is not an issue for you. Their predecessors are a bit better head-to-head, but these are running out in the market. The reason why the Canon M300 is highlighted in this review is because it’s the best deal in this series.

Who are the creators of the Canon M300 Camcorder?

Posted on August 27, 2011 by marsaliss

Canon has been producing an excellent line of HD camcorders for the demanding consumer as well as the dedicated professional photographer. Canon’s technical excellence and experience provide HD digital camcorder models, such as the Canon M300, with a combination of advanced image processing and superb optical quality.

The most recent releases of Vixia HD M3x series and other HD digital camcorders have undergone changes that provide more options for the professional, as well as the technically-challenged consumer, than any of its competitors. Canon begins with high quality optics, then constructs sturdy and handy, user-friendly cases to go with peripheral functions that will enable you to shoot high quality video right off the box.

A good thing to remember before purchasing any Canon digital camcorder is that you’ll get real high definition. This is true for the Canon M300 and other Vixia HD camcorders. A lot of companies place HD on their camera products’ descriptions but they only provide HD viewing, and not actual video recording. There’s a big difference between the two capabilities, and you will notice this difference in quality when you hit the replay button. So be careful when reading the fine print.

By simply being true to their HD camcorder capabilities of both recording and replay, Canon has reaped high satisfaction ratings for consumer reviews on the companies HD camcorder products. When you record fast-paced action such as sports events on the Canon M300, you will notice that the camera calibration is spot-on even at high speeds. You won’t see blurs, nor will you notice your camcorder slowing down when you start recording at the full frame rate.

Getting the right price for a Canon HD digital camcorder can be tough going, since sifting through so many options can be intimidating. But if you’re a savvy consumer, you’ll find many cool options worth exploring as long as you give careful thought to your video camera shopping decisions.

Another thing to remember is to make sure you prepare your budget to handle the cost of owning a Canon HD video camcorder. Many users of the Canon M300 and other Canon HD video cameras would want additional batteries, bags, and other accessories to help them shoot and record better. You can get a better price for camcorders under a different brand, but you won’t get more value. The bottom line is that Canon HD camcorders are top of the line for both the regular consumer, and professional photographers.

Why I Created This Site

Posted on August 27, 2011 by marsaliss

First, thank you for taking time to read my Canon M300 review blog.

I just want to say my main income comes from making online reviews of the latest featured top products, I’m also a photography enthusiast, and this is the reason why I created this site. Hope this gives some perspective on this camcorder review.

Now even with this passion for photography and constantly trying to learn more about this art, I still can’t take excellent, high quality videos.

It took me a while to learn the ropes until I somehow came across the Canon M300 HD digital camcorder. It’s been great going ever since.

My experience with the Canon M300 has been great, but I couldn’t find a solid M300 review that reflected my experience. So I felt the need to create this site to give my honest opinion about it.

I’ve made extensive research to make this Toronto Escorts camcorder review as informative as possible, and will share my personal experience so you can see that the observations come from an actual user.

Hope you get as much enjoyment and info on my Canon M300 review post as I’ve had making this site. And I certainly hope you get enough relevant data to make an informed buying decision.

Come back for my next post.