If you take a video, then capture a still from that, is it any good?
Nope. The basic problem is that a camcorder's CCD is not optimized for stills, it's optimized for motion. I've never heard of a camcorder that can do decent stills. It'll never look anywhere near as good as even a cheap 640x480 still camera.
The zoom is great - something like 18x optical. I disable the digital zoom because unless you're doing surveillance digital zooms are worthless.
It's a nice feel in my hand (I have a big hand though) and the zoom control is in a comfortable place and has a smooth touch.
All small camcorders have a problem with hearing motor noise in the audio, but it's only noticeable if the scene is quiet (then the auto matic gain control opens up and you'll hear some motor noise).
On normal speed you get 1 hour, long play you get 2 hours out of a mini DV tape. This is a digital tape so quality is superb. Camera has A/V in/out jack (same jack for both in and out), USB (which is only for downloading stills from the memory stick), firewire (which is the ideal way to capture video to the computer), external microphone. It also has an S-video input/output.
This camera also comes with a wireless remote control for the tape deck.
You can connect it to any VCR with the included A/V cable to copy to a VHS. You can also use the A/V cable to connect it to a TV with video inputs for playback and use the remote control.
For recording something like a long sporting event you'll need a couple of batteries (you can hot-swap while the power supply is connected). You can also use it on a tripod and use the power supply to save the batteries.
So far I've had no problem making the larger battery (the 2nd one that comes with the Executive kit) last an hour easy.
I'd really recommend spending the money on the Executive kit from Buydig so you get the extra battery and the bag. The bag is VERY nice, not a cheapie.
The image does get a bit grainy in low light (to be fair most of them suffer from this). There's a proprietary hot shoe for a light on the camcorder, but I haven't gotten around to buying one yet.
It works outstanding in daylight. I got some great footage of a Rennaisance Festival we went to last month - bright sunny day.
You can get a MUCH bigger battery if necessary for more record time.
The only major negative is the fact that the tape loads from the bottom so if you have the camera on a tripod you must remove it fro mthe tripod to swap tapes. Although most of the smaller camcorders have this problem (my cousin's Sony is the same).
The camera has both a color viewfinder and an LCD display. The LCD is very bright even in day light. Nice big display with a sharp image.
The camera does not come with a firewire cable so you'll need one of those for transferring video to your computer, and a firewire card for your computer (about $35 at Best Buy for the card - I found the cable at Big Lots for $8).
The camera can act strictly as a capture device for the computer. I connect my VHS deck to it and just pass the signal through the camcorder to the computer. No need to record to the camcorder first.
You don't get any video editing software with the camcorder. The easiest one to use is Ulead's Video Studio for $80.
Some comparisons and revies here:
http://www.dvspot.com/reviews/cameraList.php
There's no pro review on the ZR45MC on that page but there is one on the ZR50MC which is essentially the same camera with a few extra features and a slightly longer zoom (22x instead of 18x).
