Insert the image of a vid's timecode onto the picture itself ?

December 17, 2004 1:39 PM

How can I insert the image of a video's timecode onto the picture itself ? [MI]

I have lots of footage from a department in our company on non-timecoded format that is to be included in a presentation.

What I'd like to do is to capture each tape, burn a DVD of the captured footage with a cohesive timecode displayed on the screen so the person chosing the footage can take the DVDs home and come up of a list of clips referenced by time rather than description.

Currently, I'm using Adobe, but am not adverse to using other programs.

posted by bryanzera to technology (8 comments total)

Cohesive timecode? Is that stuck to the outside of the tape? And I think you mean averse.


What kind of non-timecoded formats are we talking here? The usual answer to this problem is to dub them to a format that does have timecode, and then capture with the timecode display turned on, on the playback deck.

Final Cut has an effect that will generate visible timecode but it takes a loooooooooong time, on account of it having render every single frame of video.

What kind of equipment do you have access to?
posted by mzurer at 2:22 PM on December 17, 2004

Oops.

I had put "funny" tags noting that I was being snarky, but apparently I made them look too much like actual tags, and then I did not catch in the preview that they are invisible.
posted by mzurer at 2:25 PM on December 17, 2004

Hey, mzurer, for all you know he really isn't behind any other software!
posted by shepd at 2:32 PM on December 17, 2004

Touché
posted by mzurer at 2:36 PM on December 17, 2004

I think the dub-to-dv-then-record-with-timecode-displaying would be OK, but since it's a firewire connection to the computer, only raw video is sent (i.e. no display picture).

Looks like I'm going to have to sit down with someone to pull these clips.
posted by bryanzera at 2:42 PM on December 17, 2004

Depending on which deck you are using, there may be a way to turn on timecode display to show up through the firewire connection... If you haven't monkeyed around with all the settings yet, that might be worth a few minutes.

Barring that, unless you can convince them to take a VHS screener instead of DVD, or you have a couple of decks to daisy chain to make the capture with visible timecode, I think you may be out of luck.

Making a dvd and having them use the counter also would be useful, if not precise, but it would get you into the neighborhood and you would not need to sit through the whole screening process.
posted by mzurer at 2:57 PM on December 17, 2004

If the tapes have a timecode track, would it be possible to import them over analog with the timecode burnt in? Then use firewire to import the bits you need.
posted by cillit bang at 4:07 PM on December 17, 2004

If you're using a professional format (Beta) or a prosumer format (DV) you'll get the TC when you digitize -it's part of the clip info.

On software based systems, you'll need to add a filter (that you'll have to render) that reads that timecode...and specifically display the tape TC, not the timeline TC.

Alternatively, there are hardware TC readers that you could dub the tape down one generation and add window burn in.

This is for HD, but a bit of poking around will find the one you need for SD.

http://www.evertz.com/products/HD9010TM.php
posted by filmgeek at 8:17 PM on December 17, 2004