Canon camcorders are beloved by both home videographers and aspiring auteurs alike. These camcorders offer long battery life, durability under stressful conditions, and many auto and manual focus options. Canon also supports a great customer service program. The Canon Optura 500 is a great lightweight camera with extremely clear resolution and a sharp design. It's also intended to be a digital camera, so this camcorder is both affordable and flexible. However, many reviewers recommend getting an extra 64 MB battery to be on the safe side. Alternatively, you could try the Canon Elura 90. With a surprising amount of zooming options and a tiny size, this camera is great for toting on vacation and making miniDV cassettes. It's a good idea to invest in the optional FireWire connector, though, for easier integration. During the 2005 New York Canon Expo, company executives announced the release of several high-profile camcorders, including the XL H1 with 1080i. With extremely rapid frame scanning of 24 per second, an XL lens mount, and a plethora of color customizations, the XL H1 Canon camcorder is one of the best reviewed cameras in the entire Canon arsenal. This Canon camcorder comes standard with everything you might need to film a documentary or even a fictional film, and it provides jacks for every possible purpose. You can install a microphone, headphone, a firewall, S video, component video, and much more. With its Focus Help feature, you can magnify and repair an image before you begin shooting. An intuitive peaking line allows you to stabilize the focus. One of the hallmarks of the XL H1 high-definition Canon camcorder camera is its 20 times removable lens. This offers image stabilization par excellence. When you use a nonlinear editor to review the footage shot by the XL H1, it should appear identical to film shot on a true 24P camera. However, even though this Canon is fast, it's not quite as good as the $10,000 plus cameras you'll find in other classes. The XL H1 wins a distinction for including Canon's latest processor, the DIGIC DV II. If you are new to shooting with this camera, it's smart move to practice and master the customizations. The intuitive interface should help you along the way, and you can also get fast customer assistance from Canon. | 
