What format should I record in?

Avoid i, use p.

interlaced is of no use in the 21th cent.- * (why see below)

teamrusnac wrote:

... when setting the camera up in 60p, it gives me a warning that I cannot shoot JPEG stills while in that setting, and it automatically sets the video quality to the 1920x1080 FX. It also prevents dual recording in HD and MP4 format in this setting. Can any one explain to me why?

I'm no Sony engineer, but I could imagine, that the sheer amount of data while using 1080/p needs all proceesing power of your device, so no 'parallel processes' allowed.. just an assumption.

* if you're really interested why:

interlaced was a 'hack' in the 40ies of past cent, when arial broadcast of TV was enabled - the processing powers of 'tubes' were not strong enough to handle 25/30 frames per second. So, the picture was split into halfs/fields: a frame contains 480 lines, so first the even ones (2-4-6-8-..), than the odd ones (1-3-5-...) were transmitted.The picture originated on a tube, which has some 'after glow' = the two half pics were 'mixed' beforre your eyes.

back to the future: flat-screen, computer monitors = no after-glow; so - how should your poor telly handle those two, in lines split fields? With tons of electronic, mathematics and other stuff = by all means, those nasty 'combs' should be avoided! So, poor telly mixes the fields by 'blending' them; blending means loss of sharpness - which could be WANTED, when it comes to fast, horizontal action, such as football.

So, to create a stutter-free action video, interlaced could offer on final display a 'better' picture 😮

But the many disadvantages of interlaced vs. progressiv make that antique format obsolete.

.. hope, that was easy enough - but honestly: forget all that 'info', shoot p = future proof, done.

Of course, every eye is different and the best way for you is to try several options and burn them to dvd to see what they offer you. Having said that, Karsten's comments above are great. I would only add that bit rates are important, and your camcorder (from the Sony page):

• Video Resolution : HD:1920x1080/60p(PS),60i(FX,FH), 1440x1080/60i(HQ,LP)
• Movie Recording Rate(Average Bit Rate/VBR) : HD PS:Approx.28Mbps/FX:Approx.24Mbps/FH:Approx.17Mbps/HQ:Approx.9Mbps/LP:Approx.5M bps; MP4: Approx.3Mbps
• Video Mode : HD: MPEG4-AVC / H.264 AVCHD 2.0 format.compatible; STD: MPEG2-PS; MP4: MPEG-4 AVC/H.264

records in differing bit rates. The higher numbers means more info is gathered and presented in the video, and motion looks smoother.

I have found that shooting in the highest bit rate possible translates into better dvds, even though the dvd is no longer HD but is standard definition.

Hugh

Hello. Man, hoping i can get some help here too. I just got this same camcorder and so far its bumming me out. Like the original post says the instruction manuel is TERRIBLE. Let me start by saying im on a mac mini with a super drive. So, the quality is terrible when i put video into imovie. Ive tried the standard, high and highest quality and it still looks grainy and not sure crisp. The highest quality does look better but not great. Will setting it to highest take up more memory? To the original poster, did you have an quality issue when put into imovie? This digital stuff is all new to me. Ive never used imovie or idvd and im finding it to be a real challenge. I can get the clips into new events on imovie (lower box of window) but then i cant get it into the project window of imovie (upper left box). Im a mess over here...lol. Then trying to get it into idvd, no clue. All i want to be able to do is record some video and then put it on a dvd, no edits, nothing fancy, just put it on a dvd as is. Is there no easier way? Thanks.

I would say both of the answers marked helpful would apply generally. Progressive is almost always preferred unless you're delivering for broadcast. And higher data rates mean at the very least that the video will hold up better after recompression. And yes; higher quality usually means files that take up more space. Progressive is also perfectly acceptable for DVD specs. If you're ever going to the Web, square pixels are best.

Hard to say what the issues are with the video quality. Could be the original material. Can you play it from the cam to a TV to check?

BTW, why are you posting here, rather than in the iMovie forum? Lots of very informed folks there.

Russ

Sorry, Russ. I just saw that the original poster had the same camera and I got carried away. I have since posted in the appropriate place. Thanks.

I just got the camcorder yesterday and first thing I did (as when buying anything electronic) is to go to manufacturer site to see if more docs available online.

I addition to the short operating guide that is included in the box, was a "Help Guide" - over 300 pages. Here is the link:

Printed:

docs.sony.com/release/HDR-CX240_PJ270_PJ275_guide_en.pdf

Interactive:

docs.esupport.sony.com/dvimag/2014/HDR-CX240_PJ270_PJ275_guide/en/index.html

Look at p 200, 250-254. Personally, I would just shoot in 1080p mode to get BEST image quality, then if I need a still from video I'd use another software to grab it, and if I need mp4 to upload to YouTube, I'd use a converter software. If you have 720p TV then guess1080i is okay. Yes, just make sure you have enough memory cards for your project.