Canon hv40 question

depends on the situation. if your trying to get dof in your shot, i would shoot in aperture mode with a low fstop. you can shoot in shutter mode if you want to control the amount of motion blur or to reduce light. you can use program mode if you just want to change exposure and use auto if your super lazy/bad with cameras/shouldnt have an hv40

I'd shoot in either normal HDV mode which is 1080i60, or shoot in 1080p30.  I usually shoot in Shutter priority mode with the shutter at 120 or higher, because at least for action sports like skiing I like the subject to look really sharp at all times, plus it makes it easier to slow the footage down convincingly if you shoot at a high shutter speed.  Motion blur tends to muddle any interpolation you do.  If you're not picky, auto will probably work just fine.  Out in bright sunlight, the shot will be well exposed with out any gain on auto.