Polishing up your act: hot accessories for shooting pro-quality videos.(Cover Story)

Low-light-capable camcorders, wireless mics, camcorder stabilizers, portable soft lights--these are some of the tools that event videographers demand, and the sharpest and smartest are on display at WEVA EXPO's trade show.

Each year, thousands of event videographers descend on Las Vegas for the Wedding and Event Videographers EXPO. Now in its 14th year, WEVA EXPO conducts more than 60 seminars and workshops for event videographers, and the exhibit floor has become the showplace for hot, new camcorders and cool accessories for videographers on the move.

We combed the WEVA trade show floor for cool tools--unique accessories that will help extend the capabilities of your camcorder and stretch your imagination, so you can make creative videos without limitations.

MATTE BOX GIVES CAMCORDERS THE CACHET OF HOLLYWOOD

You may have seen those large, square lens hoods on pro camcorders. They make video cameras look almost like big motion picture cameras. Called matte boxes, the ones used in Hollywood are costly and heavy. CoolVideoStuff. showed a folding matte box ($150) that fits on any camcorder with a 58mm or larger lens filter diameter, and it attaches to your camcorder lens with elastic straps and Velcro. It makes the camcorder look larger, but more importantly, it acts as a shade to keep stray light off the lens.

Studio matte boxes usually come with a French flag, an extension of the top of the matte box that further eliminates lens flare when lights are aimed toward the camera, or outside when the sun is low in the sky. The CoolVideoStuff matte box has an optional French flag that attaches with Velcro and folds up for storage.

Professional matte boxes also accept special rectangular glass filters to modify the colors or diffuse light. The lightweight CoolVideoStuff matte box is designed to accept those same filters, opening up a world of opportunities for unique filters not available as screw-on filters.

GET SOME HEIGHT WITH HI-POD

Event videographers frequently need to get shots from over people's heads. HI-POD came up with a unique invention: a 15-foot monopod that allows you to pan, tilt and zoom your camcorder from the ground. With the $2,995 HI-POD you can capture shots from over fences and above barricades, and never be limited by crowds. The unit includes an eye-level LCD …