Digital cameras 101

[is_hara]

Hello.
I have a Fujifilm J 100 camera (http://www.fujifilm.com/products/digital_cameras/j/finepix_j100/specifications/).
I had a problem while recording movies at a concert. The sound is barely discernible , especially when the amplifiers are very loud. At the beginning , when the intro was soft (just a bagpipe, a keyboard and drums) , the sound was recorded ok. Then, when the music got louder , it sounded more like background noise than music ; one cannot understand anything from it.
I discovered that somebody who recorded the same song with a Canon managed to get a much better sound (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ea-6C6CpXAs). He says his camera is mono. Does this make that much of a difference ?
Or does it have to do with the brand ?
As far as I know , 'volume control' settings can be accessed only in Play Mode , not in Recording.
Does the distance matter ? Or one's position from the speakers/amplifiers ?
Can you please give a few tips ?
Thanks a lot.
Best wishes.
Ionela

[bdery]

Hello and welcome!

For the record, your camera too has "mono" sound, which simply means that it records with one speaker. It's the opposite of stereo.

You are correct in some of your suppositions. Distance from the source of the sound will matter, as will its pitch (bass, mid, high), and many other parameters. Your camera might be configured to capture the sound of a conversation near you, but will not perform well for sounds that are far away, reverberating, for instance.

It is not a matter of the quality of the camera. It is more about the limitations of your particulr model, which will not perform well in every situation. You have to remember that your camera is not designed to be a camcorder, nor a profesional recording device.

Some tips that might help : try to avoid nearby sounds if the source that interests you is far away. Try to be at the center of the room, at an equal distance from speakers if there are any. Try to hold still, as funny as it sems it can help with sound capture. Make sure you don't cover the microphone with your hands.

I hope this helps!