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Community Newsletter: Q&A: Easiest way to transfer MiniDV footage to PC and edit it
- 9/18/08 9:21 AM
Easiest way to transfer MiniDV footage to PC and edit it
by Lee Koo (ADMIN) - 9/18/08 9:21 AM
Question:
Hi. I have a desktop, which is more than six years old, running Windows XP Professional with the latest service packs. I also have a six-month-old laptop running Vista Home Premium, with 2GB RAM and a 200GB HD. I know the laptop is the better choice for this, but I am still fumbling on how to get this done.
Having taken a lot of hours of movies with my MiniDV Sony camera, I need to do two things. First, transfer the footage to DVDs. The laptop has a DVD burner built-in, so that makes it the better choice, again. And second, once I have transferred the footage, I will want to edit it.
How can I make the transfer as easy as possible first, to the laptop's hard drive, then burning the movies to DVDs? I am guessing that DVD-RW is the best medium, so that I can move things back and forth while I edit and refine the movies I have taken. Can you suggest the best ways to do these tasks? Move the movies from the MiniDV to the Laptop's HD, and then edit the movies. Thank you all, very much.
--Submitted by Alex H.
Here are some featured member answers to get you started, but
please read up on all the advice and suggestions that our
members have contributed to this member's question.
Converting your MiniDV to DVDs --Submitted by Watzman
http://forums.cnet.com/5208-10149_102-0.html?forumID=7&threadID=307400&messageID=2850659&tag=forums06;posts#2850659
Mini Digital Video (DV) to DVD--Submitted by surfingtheweb
http://forums.cnet.com/5208-10149_102-0.html?forumID=7&threadID=307400&messageID=2851235&tag=forums06;posts#2851235
First the basics--Submitted by slappie
http://forums.cnet.com/5208-10149_102-0.html?forumID=7&threadID=307400&messageID=2852885&tag=forums06;posts#2852885
If you have any additional advice or recommendations for Alex, please click on the reply link and submit it. Please be as detailed as possible in your answers. Thanks!
Can you give a little more info?
by massassi - 9/5/08 9:11 PM In reply to: Easiest way to transfer MiniDV footage to PC and edit it by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Hi Alex,
Can you give a little more info? Specifically, what are the specs on the desktop, the laptop, what kind of ports do they have (USB, Firewire, PC Card, etc.), and does the MiniDV camcorder have a firewire port (most do, but you never know).
Transfer & Edit Movies
by cesareDH - 9/5/08 9:23 PM In reply to: Easiest way to transfer MiniDV footage to PC and edit it by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
"Hi. I have a desktop, which is more than six years old, running Windows XP Professional with the latest service packs. I also have a six-month-old laptop running Vista Home Premium, with 2GB RAM and a 200GB HD. I know the laptop is the better choice for this, but I am still fumbling on how to get this done."
Put a good DVD Burner on the desktop and add a large HDD for storage, RAM if you need it. Now all you need is The USB connection from the camera to the computer so you can transfer the movie files, and a good editing program to edit your movies. There a number of good editing programs available like VideoStudio 11 or Pinnacle or any number of others.
This is just personal: I hate Vista. I have upgraded numerous machines for friends and family from Vista to WinXP Pro. I have a friend who has his own computer business and retail site, he teaches computer stuff to others and does computer repairs and upgrading in half of Oklahoma, and he switched his machines over from Vista to XP Pro, also. If it were mine, I'd do the same to your laptop and have a much better machine. Again, that's just personal stuff.
sony vegas,, try it, its magic
by iriantoivan - 9/12/08 10:37 PM In reply to: Transfer & Edit Movies by cesareDHhelloo...
transferring or capturing miniDV to Laptop then burn it to dvd, may as a simple as we think.. hehe
i used to use sony vegas 6.0 to do that job, transfer from camera to laptop then edit..then render it to mpeg2..
after that, we can burn it to dvd with other software, e.g nero(specially nero vision express), dvd architect, or other burning program..
why i used to edit by sony vegas, coz its the friendliest editing software to ur laptop, hehe i think.. u can edit anything you want, cropping, coloring, or even mastering the audio, without loosing power/energy ur laptop.. ehhehe
n if ur interest.. with vegas u can use network rendering, i mean if u in a hurry, u can use three laptop at the sometimes to render the video..
just share,, sorry such a bad english huh?
The best computer for the job depends on several factors
by Jim Morris - 9/5/08 9:51 PM In reply to: Easiest way to transfer MiniDV footage to PC and edit it by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Alex, the thing you have not told us is whether or not either one of your computers has a Firewire port to connect the camcorder to. This is the only way to transfer digital video from a MiniDV camera to your computer for editing. This has to be a factory built in option on your laptop. On the desktop PC you can buy a card for about $30 to $40 to add the capability. Oh - note that Firewire is also called IEEE-1394, and iLink by Sony.
Assuming you have the right connection, Windows XP includes "Windows Movie Maker" which is very basic editing software, and I am sure Vista includes something similar. Other low cost editing programs are available, but all will work in a similar manner. You will copy video from the camcorder to the camera, ending up with multiple video clips that you then edit into your finished "movie".
The big issue for you will be that it takes 1 hour to copy 1 hour of video to the computer, AND each hour of MiniDV footage will take 13GB of hard drive space.
Due to the size of the footage, even a single MiniDV tape would take 3 DVD-R or DVD+/-RW discs to store! Once you "encode" the video to a DVD, its no longer in an editable format unfortunately. The DVD encoding process to produce a 2 hour video DVD on that 4.7GB DVD-R disc is lossy, and the video has to be extracted, again very time consuming, if you want to ever do anything with it again - and that is at a loss of quality.
Your long term best bet is to purchase a large hard drive - I use a firewire hard drive that I can daisy chain with my camcorder, and I use it for most of the video capture and editing. This way you do not fill up your main hard drive with video. (Note that most USB drives will not sustain the throughput to capture video - firewire can). Edit and work on your projects, and when finished, burn your finished DVD, and then delete the big 13GB worth of raw footage. If you ever need it again, you can get it from the original tape.
I hope all this helps. Good luck!
Jim
My thought was in addition...
by Kegtapper - 9/12/08 5:55 PM In reply to: The best computer for the job depends on several factors by Jim MorrisWhy not burn 2 copies (sets),and store the second- by the time you will need to record again, and by today's standards your PC may look like a betamax the next time you need to do this - when you really think about it.
And youngsters will forward to asking, "What's was a mouse used for?"
wrong...in part
by cdcguard - 9/16/08 8:00 AM In reply to: The best computer for the job depends on several factors by Jim Morris"This has to be a factory built in option on your laptop."
If your laptop has a PCMCIA port (as most laptops I've seen in the last decade), you can add firewire. It costs a bit more than it does to add a card to a desktop but it is certainly "doable".
Transfere Mini DVD
by Ned Neflow - 9/5/08 9:52 PM In reply to: Easiest way to transfer MiniDV footage to PC and edit it by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Invest in Scenalyzer Live to capture your video.
I've used it for years instead of the packaged capture programs in Premiere et al. It's inexpensive, portable, tight and clean.
Then you can cut, edit and do whatever you want.
Look at
http://www.scenalyzer.com/main.html
Ulead studio editor
by moonfighter - 9/13/08 6:19 AM In reply to: Transfere Mini DVD by Ned Neflowi think that,,,, the easiest way to transfer the dv ,have to use the ULEAD VIDIODSTUDIO EDITOR and follow the instructions, but it takes longtime.
Video camera
by rmailman - 9/5/08 9:58 PM In reply to: Easiest way to transfer MiniDV footage to PC and edit it by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I think this is pretty easy. Windows Movie Maker (free from Microsoft) will play your movie from the camera and then transfer it to your hard disk IF you camera is not too old and has firewire or mini-USB connectors.
1. Make sure the camera is on the charger (or has a fully charged battery).
2. Turn on the video preview mode, and cable the camera to your notebook. Wait for the usual new hardware messages to stop.
3. Open MovieMaker and select Import, From VideCamera from the top of the menu choices. Voila!
4. Moviemaker can then be used as an editor if you wish, and also to publish the files in a variety of formats.
just get Windows movie maker????
by duopodcast - 9/13/08 5:30 AM In reply to: Video camera by rmailmanLike, how?
It's not a separate program. It's part of XP professional.
Windows movie maker download location
by svhayes - 9/13/08 7:39 AM In reply to: just get Windows movie maker???? by duopodcastA 5 second Google search resulted in...
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/downloads/updates/moviemaker2.mspx
I've used both Movie Maker 1 and 2 and they work well.
Just to add
by DADSGETNDOWN - 9/16/08 5:50 PM In reply to: Windows movie maker download location by svhayesGood Link.
It is part of Windows XP Home, W/ SP2.
It's in the SP2 Update, it CAN also be downloaded seperately.
Movie Maker 2.1 is available for download with Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2).
You can also download SP2 and Movie Maker 2.1 from Microsoft Update. If you cannot use Automatic Updates or download SP2 via Windows Update, order a CD.
Reply to Mailman - movie maker
by Katcee1130 - 9/14/08 7:20 AM In reply to: Video camera by rmailmanyou said a variety of formats from Movie Maker. That is what I am looking for. And please explain each format and hot its used.
Thanks !
Transferring MiniDV to your PC
by berryjooks - 9/5/08 10:04 PM In reply to: Easiest way to transfer MiniDV footage to PC and edit it by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
There are a couple of different ways to transfer DV to your PC.
The best way is to use a hardware video capture card and video capture software. Plugging a device into one of the inputs and turning it on cause’s Windows to open the video capture/editing software.
If your PC has a Firewire port, you’ll want to use it for digital video transfer. This is the most desirable method as it keeps the video in a digital format start to finish. You can use the RCA (Composite) jacks but you will be converting the camera's digital data into analog to use this connection, then back into digital on the PC, and this will affect the picture quality.
For software I use InterVideo WinDVD Creator. I’ve found it to be a very powerful tool and easy to use, but there are many options (Pinnacle, Ulead, etc., features and prices vary widely). You can add video, stills and music to the storyboard, and then add titles and transition effects. There are options for editing and stretching both the audio and video, capturing stills and setting the length of time a still frame is shown. Once you’re satisfied and are ready to burn it to DVD or a file, the software will render your project into whatever output format you choose.
If you don't want to install a video capture card, you can purchase an RCA to USB video capture device that will come with drivers and capture software for about $40.
One last thing. Video editing and rendering is time and resource consuming. For instance, recording a 1 hour tv show on my pc uses about 6 Gigabits of disk space (DV tapes (avi files) are even larger). Editing that same show ie: trimming out comercials, taking snapshots or screen caps of the video to use on the title pages, etc. can take quite a while, depending on how Spielbergesque you want to get, and finally the rendering and burning to DVD part of the process takes about one and one half hours for every one hour of video.
Also, you need a pretty high end machine to have the processing power and speed to create good videos, and even then you'll need to stop every other process, including your antivirus software, before you begin. The most common problem encountered is choppy video or audio in the finished product. This can be quite frustrating if you've just spent 4 or 5 hours working on it.
Hope I didn't scare you off. It can be a lot of fun, and you can really turn out some slick productions.
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