Video cameras are rapidly dropping in price and are possibly the
ideal way of recording the family. I like to see a few good
stills though !

The video camera is much more delicate than a still type. It has
so many moving parts and electronic circuits that a relatively
minor bump, or any moisture can spell death.

Protect them as best you can. Filters on lenses, polythene bags
etc. Don't put them down on the beach - I've seen it done !

It's difficult to keep batteries fully charged, and whilst it is
recommended to always fully discharge batteries before
recharging, that is not always possible.

For example, a holiday at Disney in Florida tends to mean you
should recharge batteries every night to ensure you have full
power for the next day. I have a discharging device, only about
£15, but it does need time to discharge a battery - possibly
several hours, then you must add the recharge time.

I have 2 batteries, plus an emergency pack that will take 6
Alkaline HP7 and run for about 1 hour - but I've NEVER used it.
Perfectly good replacement NiCads can now be bought for well
under £20 each.

Take plenty of tape and, if somewhere like Disney, shoot
EVERYTHING. You can always edit when you get home.

The family use the camera on 'AUTO' but, as a keen photographer,
I find that I can generally get better results on the limited
manual if I have time. This is especially true of focusing.

I zoom the maximum, focus, then zoom back to the correct
composition. The results are definitely usually sharper than when
on auto.

Don't zoom much during filming, it can look terrible. Watch
professional TV and analyse what they do. Treat the zoom lens as
a variable focal length - set the focal length as required, then
shoot the full scene.

In general, hold he camera STILL and let the subject move. It
looks better.

Any movement of the camera should be smooth and general. NEVER
wave it about !

Panning should be smooth. Tilts - up and down - should also have
no jerkiness.

Good video is not as easy as good stills. Unless you use care,
you get a lot of unrelated bits and pieces. On the other hand,
planning holiday shooting too much can ruin the holiday for
everyone else.