:: 08. Movies

Since photographs are still images, it stands to reason that they canÕt capture movement. But there are many instances in which a single image doesnÕt begin to describe the wonders of the underwater world. For example, what if you encounter an octopus, it wraps itself around you and squirts ink at you? Similarly, wouldn't it be easy to find a certain type of fish with a peculiar movement if you can see an example of its dance pattern when you are underwater? Or if you want to look for shrimp and crabs, it is easier to learn the techniques if you can see them in a movie.

To shoot a movie, simply set the camera to movie mode, press the shutter button and follow the subject as you would with a movie camera on land. ItÕs good to have a supplementary light source, such as an underwater video light, for this purpose.

As with panorama shots, the thing to remember is to keep your position relative to the bottom. It is easy to lose yourself in filming and float up or down. In addition, be aware that your air bubbles may create loud noises throughout the movie if you hold the camera too close to you.

Setting the Camera to Movie Mode	Replaying Movies with Player Software
Read your camera's user guide carefully in case the white balance and exposure compensation settings for movie mode have to be set separately from the still image mode.	You can view the movies you shoot with your Canon digital camera using the ZoomBrowser EX or ImageBrowser software provided with the camera. All you need do is click the movie thumbnail within either program to start up the player software and run the movie. Other compatible player software is also available as a free download from various websites.

What is Motion JPEG?

Movies shot in movie mode are saved in the Motion JPEG format, which expresses motion by rapidly displaying a series of small JPEG images using the principles of animation. A movie comprises a large number of images up to 640 x 480 pixels in size. Although the movie file size is larger than that of the same-sized images recorded in the MPEG format, which compresses them, the image quality is higher. Recent versions of Windows and Macintosh operating software are bundled with software that can play the Motion JPEG format.

This section has been extracted from Canon Japan on how to prepare your digital investment.

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