Student Computing Services (SCS) maintains a
collection of
digital still and video cameras which faculty and
staff may
borrow for academic and business purposes.
These are the same cameras, and this the same
system, formerly managed by CIAT. Faculty
and staff can expect the same high quality of
service, but in a new location (CK-35) allowing
expanded hours. This page provides
answers to the following questions:
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How Do I
Reserve a Camera?
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Use our online reservation system to request
a camera for a specific date and time—or, if
you prefer, you may call 410-704-5151 or
visit CK-35. You
will receive an email message confirming
your request. Once SCS approves your
reservation (usually within 2 business
hours), we will send you another email
confirming your reservation. If for some
reason the camera you have requested in
unavailable, we will call or email with
advice.
 For
a preview of the camera reservation
procedure, check-out our brief movie
tutorial:
Requesting a Digital Camera from SCS - An
Overview. While this overview addresses
a student audience, it is nonetheless a
useful resource for faculty and staff.
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How Long May I Keep
the Camera? |
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Our standard faculty/staff loan period for
all cameras and accessories is 7 days.
At
our discretion and if no faculty or staff
are waiting
for a camera to be returned, we may extend
this period upon request. If we are unable
to extend the loan, you must
return the camera on time and make a new
reservation for the earliest available slot.
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What If I Can't
Return the Camera On Time? |
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We depend on the timely return of cameras
when we make reservations. Your delay in
returning a camera might very well prevent
another person from completing an important
project; further, it might start a
cascading effect and inconvenience many more
of your colleagues. Consequently, we take return times
very seriously and ask that you call us
immediately should an emergency situation
prevent you from returning the camera on
time.
 SCS retains the right to deny
future loans to anyone who returns equipment
late or in an abused state.
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What Kinds of Cameras
are Available? |
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SCS maintains the following
cameras and accessories for faculty and
staff.
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VC-1
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This section is under development, thank you
for your patience. |
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What Accessories Are
Included? |
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This section
is under development, thank you for your
patience.
Each camera
includes a protective camera bag
and the following accessories:
Still & Video Cameras
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Two batteries; one in/on the camera and a
spare in the bag
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One AC Adapter w/power cord for recharging
batteries or powering the camera from a 110V
outlet
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One USB cable for transferring digital
images/video to a computer
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A basic user's guide
Video Cameras Only
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One A/V cable (with RCA-style plugs) for
connecting the camera to a television or VCR
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One infrared remote control w/battery (handy
for taping yourself)
Although not included automatically, four
tripods (shown above) are
also available for reservation. Tripods
provide support for the cameras that
invariably leads to sharper images and
steadier video. SCS maintains two full-sized
tripods and two tabletop tripods.
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Will I Need to Supply My Own
Tape? |
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We strongly
encourage clients to use their own MiniDV
tapes. As a matter of practice, we do keep a
tape in each of our camcorders, but we can
offer no assurance that these tapes will be
reliable and produce quality video
recordings. For reliability and image
quality, it is best to use a new tape for
each recording.
Not withstanding that , it is acceptable to
record over a used tape; but it is important
to know how many times a particular tape has
been reused and stop using it well before
you lose valuable—even irreplaceable—video.
MiniDV tapes are readily available at
grocery, photo/electronics, office, and drug
stores.
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Thanks for your interest in
this SCS service! |
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If you have suggestions
toward its improvement, please let us know
by emailing
scs@towson.edu.
As we retire old
equipment and add new equipment, we will
update this page. Be sure to visit every
semester to see what's available.
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