Video camera facts for kids
A video camera is a special camera that records moving pictures. It also captures sound at the same time. Early video cameras used an older type of signal, but most modern ones use digital signals. Analog cameras made signals that worked with old TVs and could be saved on magnetic tape. Digital cameras create digital images that are easier to use and share.
Video cameras were first made in the early 1900s for television. By the end of the century, people could buy digital video cameras that showed images almost instantly. Video recorders, which could save images on magnetic tape, appeared in the mid-1900s.
At first, video cameras were very big and expensive. Only professionals used them. But as technology improved, cameras became much smaller and cheaper. Tiny electronic parts like transistors and microprocessors replaced large vacuum tubes. Now, many mobile phones and other gadgets have video cameras built in. There is also lots of software to edit or shrink video files.
What Are Video Cameras Used For?
Modern video cameras come in many shapes and sizes. They are used for lots of different things.
- Professional Cameras: These are used for making TV shows and sometimes even movies. They can be used in a studio or taken outside for filming. These cameras give the person using them a lot of control, often more than automatic settings.
- Camcorders: These cameras combine a camera and a recording device (like a VCR) into one unit. They are easy to carry around. People use them for TV production, making home movies, and reporting news. Some digital camcorders are:
- Pocket video cameras: These are small enough to fit in your pocket.
- Security Cameras (CCTV): These cameras are often used for security, watching places, or monitoring. They can usually pan (move side to side), tilt (move up and down), and zoom in. They are designed to be small, hidden, and work by themselves. Some are built for tough places, like factories, where it's too hot or dangerous for people.
- Webcams: These are video cameras that send a live video feed to a computer. Larger video cameras can also be used this way. They might need a special device to change the signal so a computer can save it or send it over a network.
- Digital Cameras in Devices: Most video cameras today are digital cameras. They turn the video directly into a digital file. These cameras are often very small, even smaller than security cameras. Many are built right into computers or phones.
- Special Cameras: Some video cameras are made for special uses, like scientific research. For example, they are used in observatories to study space or on satellites and spaceprobes. Some are made to see things humans can't, like infrared (for night vision or heat) or X-ray (for medical uses).
Video cameras also have other special uses. Some are used at the finish line of races to time events. On some toll roads, cameras take pictures of license plates if a car doesn't pay. Computers then find the drivers and send them a bill for the missed toll.
Images for kids
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President Barack Obama and Small Business Administration Administrator Karen Mills shown onscreen during an East Room event in the White House in 2009
See also
In Spanish: Cámara de video para niños
