Video help

You are going to need some sort of video digitizing card in the computer that has some sort of video input, such as S-video, composite, etc. Basically the video signal from the camcorder has to be digitized in the computer then written to the hard drive.

I am assuming that your camcorder is not a Digital Hi-8. If it is you may have a Firewire (or IEEE 1394) port on the camcorder. Then you would need the same port on your computer. Windows Moviemaker (assuming you have PC) or iMovie (if you have a Mac) can then handle the video.

Bottom line is, I don't think there is a cable that goes from your camcorder through to USB (USB isn't fast enough), with out some sort of hardware digitizer in the loop.

 

When we bought our cameras, a cable 20" long came with it, and a disk to download the software along with a manual. If you bought one used, you may have to order the accessories.

Our Fugi camera also came with a plug-in power supply so we could "fiddle" with photos with out using up battery life. That is a real saver. On the Olympus camera, we were always having to re-charge batteries.

 

My Sony Hi 8 came with software and and a cable to download video to a PC. It's a USB cable, I've never tried it though. Heck, I barely use that silly camera.....what a shame.

 

I'm using Studio 9 Plus with my SONY. I believe you need a Firewire port but I will have to double check

 

I transferred some analog VHS stuff using Microsoft Moviemaker, which is usually resident in MS software packages. I never have figured out how to get it onto the net. I'm sure more software is required. When you guys figure it out, please share with all of us.

 

Examples of my very first efforts

MPEG File (40M): {Don't try this with Dial-up unless you are willing to wait awhile}
http://www.railimages.com/albums/Georgetown_Loop_2004/acp.mpg

Windows Media File (168K) :
http://www.railimages.com/albums/Georgetown_Loop_2004/acq.wmv

and yes, it took a firewire card and cable...

 

Hi 8 video is an analog format. Computers require digital information. It is possible to buy analog to Digital, or D to A, converters. What you are wanting to do is commonly refered to as video capture. For this you need a capture card. ( D to A converter)

I googled up this product comparison chart with the words "video capture". Printing that out, and going to a computer store with it will help you get a first hand demo of various products out there.

NLE software is short for non-linear editor. Think of an NLE as a word processor for video images. It allows you to cut and paste scenes together just like you would a printed document.

Codec stands for Compression/Decompression. The codec is how the video is stored digitally. There are many formats. DV is the common format used by digital video camera's. MPEG stands for Motion Picture Engineers group. (a bunch of folks who got together to try to make universal codecs for video storage on computers) Both those are standard formats.

DVD's require an MPEG2 encoder. Either your NLE needs to have the encoder or your DVD software needs it.

http://www.videoguys.com/vidcap.htm

For the record, I am a huge proponent of macintosh products. This is the standard package for consumer use on a mac. http://www.apple.com/ilife/

With ilife you can make movies, and create DVD's.

http://www.apple.com/imac/

I realize most people cannot afford to buy a new computer, but I always like to show people their options. when it comes to video editing the mac is a major option.

[ 05. January 2005, 03:14: Message edited by: traingeekboy ]

 

This is why I like STUDIO 9 as it takes footage from many sources.

See Pinnacle Systems

 

There is alot to be said for groups of people using the same software packages: compatibility, user support, etc. You may want to check out the software stourbridge is talking about, especially since you guys actually live within a afternoons drive of each other.

I took a peek at that MPEG. I think my heart rate just shot up a bit. Thanks Stourbridge.

 

I grabbed this frame from that video using the same software too so now I use my video camera as my regular camera too.

 

Here is another frame grab...

 

Anyone know of a good machine that will convert analog VHS tapes to digital DVD disks while allowing you to watch on screen, so it can be edited? I have a bunch of VHS tapes that have some footage of family and some of trains all on the same tape. I want to convert all the train stuff off each tape and collect it onto a DVD disk as I go, so it will be necessary to "Pause" the DVD and VHS as needed.
Suggestions?

 

A DELL running Windows XP with the above software. You will need the right card to allow you to hook you VCR to in the it will suck in the entire video and you can pick and choose the pieces you want, edit them, add effects, naration, etc. and the publish it back out in various formats. I know I sound like a salesmen but it is what I us at home.

 

I would advise using a real camera as video is only 72 DPI. Print media is generally around 300 dpi. You don't notice it till you try to print a hard copy of one of your images.

You will also run into interlacing issues with your images from time to time.

I only know this because I tried exporting a bunch of rail images to photoshop and basically ended up with garbage.

 

There is very solid truth to that and why my wife still has a 35mm and looking at SLR to move into digital. I still have my 35mm plus a 1MP Digital but often I'm using the video why the wife handles the stills. I add her stills into my final video and she pulls various frame grabs that my zoom can get that she doesn't have or missed/blured shots from to much motion that the video didn't miss into the photo albums.

 

The thing about what you want to do is that it may be a little bit sloppy. There are DVD recorders out there that can do what you want to do. If I was doing what you are trying to do I would go with a system like stourbridge has.

A basic video capture system would allow you to capture the entire VHS into a digital format on your computer and then edit what you want onto your DVD's.

The thing to remember is that if your video's have important memories on them they will degrade over time. If you make them into a digital format you can then burn multiple copies on DVD's and also keep the raw, non DVD, files as backup on a data DVD.

 

Thanks guys. I have a View-Sonic A70 Super Fine Dot Pitch (for superior images) 80gig HD running Windows XP with 580 RAM and a HP DVD writer 300i and a CD and the floppy drive.

What card do I get?

Best Buy has an RCA converter, but if I understand how it works, it only burns the entire VHS tape onto DVD at one pop.

THIS ONE:
RCA Progressive-Scan DVD+R/+RW Recorder/4-Head Hi-Fi Stereo VCR Combo - Silver

Model: DRC8300N

This space-saving combo makes transferring your VHS material onto DVDs as easy as a touch of a button. Progressive-scanning and time base corrector features combine to make the DVD playback incredibly sharp.

DVD recorder and 4-head hi-fi stereo VCR in a single, space-saving chassis.
Easily transfer VHS tapes onto digital quality DVD+R or DVD+RW discs with a touch of the button.
Progressive-scan video output (DVD only) maximizes the picture quality when used with a digital TV or monitor.
(I think this means I could only see the DVD on my computer, but not on my TV.) Right?


I have a couple of hundred tapes, some of which have train clips and family mixed all on one tape. I need to separate them and save onto two different DVD disks.

I do not have the capabilities to dub VHS to VHS anymore either.

A few are VHS tapes I made from my Dad's 8mm movie film (which is crumbling away now) so these I am most anxious to save onto DVD.

Because of the crumbling of the film at the time, I had to run film strips as I came to them, (some were only 3" long) they were destroyed as they went through the projector even after being soaked in Ed-Wall solution. One of the tapes is sections of movies of me as a boy, starting in 1935 when I was 4, and going on up.
These VHS tapes are about three years old now.

[ 07. January 2005, 19:46: Message edited by: watash ]