Flexibility and Broadcast Professional Quality at an Incredible Price

Just over a year ago I purchased the DSR-250 to start a videography business, and it has proven to be the best investment I have made in my life.

I never owned a video camera in my life, but I was able to operate the DSR-250 right out of the box. Leave the "Auto-Mode" switch on, and the camera automatically corrects gain, white balance, and sound levels to create the best video and audio possible. If you know stop, record, and zoom, you already know how to use the DSR-250. You have to go out of your way and try hard to get a bad picture from this camera.

The DSR-250 goes a long way to closing the gap between prosumer and genuine professional broadcast quality. Sony took the flexibility of the consumer DV format and combined it with the picture quality of the professional BETACAM.

The result is the DVCAM format, which runs DV tape through the camera 1.5 times faster than consumer DV cameras. Sony makes full-size DVCAM tapes that last up to 3 hours in DVCAM mode. The DSR-250 also accepts the miniDV size cassettes that are widely used in the consumer digital cameras.

Making the camera even more flexible, Sony designed the DSR-250 to also record in the DV format that most digital cameras use. A 60 minute miniDV cassette lasts 60 minutes in DV mode and 40 minutes in DVCAM mode. Sony makes this camera extremely flexible by allowing recording on the same exact kind of tape in two formats.

Although the camera is ready to go out of the box, the DSR-250 is jam-packed with features that professional videographers are used to enjoying. Manual controls for white balance, gain, audio levels, focus, and others too numerous to list. Because the features can be learned as you go, you can take advantage of the features as you become more familiar with the camera.

The camera also comes with a memory stick for taking incredible digital still photographs. The memory stick comes preloaded with fun themed images that you can overlay over video as you record.

The flexibility of the DSR-250 also extends to its vast input and output capabilities. The camera has RCA composite and S-VHS input/output capabilities as well as a digital iEEE "firewire" port for no-loss computer editing on a PC or Mac.

The battery life of the camera is amazing... I get 3-4 hours of actual record time on one charge of a battery. With a push of a button on the battery and monitors on the camera, you always know exactly how much battery power is left. With an optional 12 volt adapter you can plug your camera into the wall and operate infinitely.

There are two XLR ports on the back of the camera for microphones or plugging into an audio mixer. The shotgun microphone at the front of the camera works extremely well, but you cannot use the on-camera mike with the rear inputs at the same time. Again, there is an auto-mode for audio or you can manually set the audio controls. Digital audio is incredible at normal levels, but high levels of sound get distorted in any digital format.

The cost may shy some away from buying this camera, but it's worth every penny for the quality. Although the camera only weighs 14 lbs. with battery, its size makes it difficult to transport on airplane. Because it is a professional camera, special handling and care needs to be taken to not damage the camera and keep it in good working order.

Overall, I could not be happier with my purchase of the DSR-250. I have filmed everything from parties to television commercials with this camera, and the results are consistently amazing If you own a video business or have a few extra dollars to spend, this camera is a must-have. It's proven to be so for me, since I now own two!