Uploaded October 2011 | Updated September 2026, 2 hours ago
***READ ME*** These days you can still find some models of camcorders that lack the ability to plug in an external microphone, and that would normally mean you could not improve your audio without upgrading to a more expensive camera, and in this economy that's not always possible.
Current camera shoot fairly good video without video lighting, and outstanding with video lighting, but when it comes to audio in most cameras, it's.. well, less than good. if separate lighting is acceptable to improve your video quality, then you should be open to capturing separate audio, so you can greatly improve your audio quality.
This is simple these days just by buying a Zoom H1 recorder, and plugging in a simple lapel microphone (the better the mic the better the audio) and the H1 will not only capture the audio, but it also will allow you to monitor it in real time if needed, as well as act as an amplifier.
***READ ME*** These days you can still find some models of camcorders that lack the ability to plug in an external microphone, and that would normally mean you could not improve your audio without upgrading to a more expensive camera, and in this economy that's not always possible.
Current camera shoot fairly good video without video lighting, and outstanding with video lighting, but when it comes to audio in most cameras, it's.. well, less than good. if separate lighting is acceptable to improve your video quality, then you should be open to capturing separate audio, so you can greatly improve your audio quality.
This is simple these days just by buying a Zoom H1 recorder, and plugging in a simple lapel microphone (the better the mic the better the audio) and the H1 will not only capture the audio, but it also will allow you to monitor it in real time if needed, as well as act as an amplifier.
