VIDEO TIPS FOR STILL PHOTOGRAPHERS

DESPITE THE BEAUTY OF ITS image capture, a DSLR makes a great addition to, not replacement for, your camcorder. Here's how to get the best video with the technology we have now:

■TAKE YOUR CAMERA WHERE VIDEO NORMALLY CAN'T GO.

Some of photographer Chase Jarvis' favorite videos with the Nikon D90 were shot in ways he'd never try with a high-end HD video camera. Namely, rolling on his skateboard or clamped to the outside of his car.

■WORK WITHIN ITS LIMITATIONS. If you're shooting fast-moving action, you may want to stick with the camcorder for now. Rapid panning or following the motion of, say, a speed cyclist will cause what's known as the "rolling shutter effect." We'll spare you a long technical explanation, but what you get is a picture that wiggles like Jell-o.

■BRING YOUR NEUTRAL- DENSITY FILTERS. The great light sensitivity of a DSLR's sensor is perfect when conditions are dim, but even at the lowest ISO, bright sunlight may force you into using the smallest aperture, killing your dream of film-like shallow depth of field. Control it with an arsenal of overall ND filters.

■TRY LOTS OF LENSES. One of the special things about DSLR video is that you can shoot with any lens you can get your hands on. What could be cooler than HD fisheye or HD tilt-shift? And if you have image-stabilized lenses, try those first. They'll help out when you're trying to pan. But make sure the lens is set to single-axis stabilization, which steadies only up-and-down shake.

■STAGE IT. If you can, plan your shot. Mark the floor where your actors should pause, and use tape to mark corresponding spots on the lens ahead of time so you don't have to figure out where to focus when you're in the middle of a shot.

■SET IT TO MUSIC. Can't deal with the headache of the audio? Forget about it! DSLR video is excellent with a musical soundtrack, and music makes a fantastic complement to your photos in a multimedia HD slide show.

■IF YOU HATE MANUAL FOCUS, HOLD OUT A LITTLE LONGER. We've only had limited time with a preproduction unit, but the Panasonic Lumix DHC-GH1, a Micro Four Thirds camera with an electronic viewflnder, will be the first interchangeable-lens still camera to shoot HD video with continuous autofocus. You can autofocus at any given moment by choosing a focus point and pressing the asterisk button on the the Canon EOS Rebel T1i or the AF button on Pentax's new K-7.