Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with video and DV

Why must my MiniDV videos look like home movies?

iamisaid — Sun, 03 May 2009 18:57:46 -0800

Why exactly do videos shot on consumer grade MiniDV camcorders generally look like bad home movies as compared to that of high-end professional MiniDV cameras? What are the relevant differences between them? I've dabbled in MiniDV recording for a while now, always with lower-end Canon camcorders. And regardless of the lighting or anything else, the videos they produce always have a certain "home movie" quality, in that they're somewhat fuzzy and grainy, and just lacking that film-like quality. However, I know this is not a limitation of the format, since plenty of decent looking indie movies are shot on MiniDV. Of course, they're using much more expensive professional grade cameras.

So, in layman's terms, what exactly is it about the more expensive cameras that makes the footage look so much better? The lens? The resolution? Something else?

Lastly, the two cameras I often see recommended as the cheapest entry into professional grade MiniDV are the Panasonic DVX100A and the Canon XL2, which I realize are both SD and rather old models at this point. Is that still the best recommendation for a semi-affordable camcorder that will let me escape the home movie look? Or is there a newer and cheaper alternative?

I'm on a shoestring budget, and although I mostly make videos for the web at the moment, I'd like to have the option of submitting to short film festivals and the like down the road.

Best Bang for the Buck in an Inexpensive Digital Video Camera

Alabaster — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 15:51:17 -0800

Best bang for the buck in an inexpensive digital video camera? I'm looking to replace a 10-year-old Sony MiniDV camera which was lost. My wife (a teacher) uses it primarily for making film projects with her students. These are burned to DVD for the students and sometimes projected onto a large screen.

We're on a tight budget and are looking for a consumer-grade camera, preferably in the $2-300 range, although this could stretch to $500 if absolutely necessary).

-Video quality must be roughly equivalent to the MiniDV (or better).
-Storage must handle at least 1-2 hours of video at this quality (compression isn't a problem unless it's noticeably degrading to a non-expert's eye).
-Must have decent zooming capabilities
-Storage medium is negotiable. She's accustomed to MiniDV but I think flash/card/hard drive storage storage would be faster/more convenient for sorting through footage and transferring to PC.
-PC interface is also negotiable -- firewire, USB, memory card, or DVD would be acceptable -- again, convenience and speed for transfer and editing (in Premiere Elements) are priorities.
-Built-in mic is necessary, but the option to connect an external mic would be appreciated.

Any suggestions on a small camera that will give us the most bang for $2-300 bucks? Thanks

MiniDV camera research

mwhybark — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 15:36:43 -0800

Suggestions and research sites for DV camera? I am beginning a for-work acquisition research quest to determine the best route to go for getting a video camera. We have already ruled out high-end, 640x480 is fine. We do need advanced fiddly controls - white balance, exposure, that sort of thing.

A digital connection that allows us to direct-capture to hard drive is a requirement. On or off-board audio recording does not matter, but I would tend to err on the side of audio-in-jacks for outboard mics. Mini-jacks are fine.

We will be using the camera to create short marketing-support videos which will not require outside shooting or the use of models or actors. Think simple product demos.

First decision point: should we even look at still-and-video point and shoots? I lean away, thinking that the fiddly controls won't be sufficient.

Second decision point: any pointers to that evergreen of the obsolescence-oriented geeks-n-gadgets publishing market, the current-models comparison for miniDV cameras?

Thanks very much and I look forward to your wisdoms.

How do I record live video directly from DV to PC?

russ9595 — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 04:14:44 -0800

I'd like to record live video directly from my FireWire DV camera using Windows XP. Is this possible? I can transfer already recorded video stored on the FireWire DV camera's tape, but with the live video I just get a black screen.

I know this is possible with Windows Vista, but can't find a Windows XP solution.

Help capture stills from a DV Camera.

TheDukeofLancaster — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 18:07:20 -0800

Looking for a windows method to take stills from a DV camera. I have a windows PC and a DV camera that connects VIA firewire. Are there any good pieces of software to capture still images at set intervals? The plan is to use this as a security device that uploads to a web server in real time. Creative solutions are encouraged, I'm not adverse to using Linux, but I'd prefer to work with what I have.

Professional transfer of 16mm movies to digital?

Dave 9 — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 15:11:55 -0800

I inherited some 70-year-old, 16mm home movies (not 8 or Super 8) and am looking for a reliable expert to transfer them to digital video. Many vendors say that they can do this. Can you comment on any from personal experience? (I have seen this thread and the links therein.) Are there any issues I should particularly look out for? Thanks.

Capturing DV video straight to MPEG2?

eatcake — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 23:17:59 -0800

I have a project coming up where I will need to capture (digitize) a full 8-10 hours of footage (to be captured on DV tape) and make DVD copies for 3 people by the end of the next day. Ok, so I know how to go from DV to MPEG2 via either Final Cut Pro (v. 5.1.4) or Avid Xpress. What I'm wondering is, is there a way to bypass capturing the footage to DV (then converting to MPEG2) and going straight from the tape to MPEG2 so I can save myself hours of encoding from DV to MPEG2 and then burning discs? I have Final Cut Studio 5, an Intel iMac 2ghz w/2gigs of RAM, in addition to a Dual Processor G4 (which I'm hoping to use to multi-task), enough external storage (I figure I will have around 120 gigs of raw DV footage) and enough coffee to keep me going for a while.

I'm open to software and hardware recomendations within reason, meaning with what I have or minimal (under $150 or so) expense.

Thanks.

Help my daughter look better on the screen.

oddman — Sun, 19 Aug 2007 13:44:17 -0800

I need a lot of help with DV cameras. I've got a Panasonic PV-GS320 with one tape's worth of video, my dad has a rather large amount of movies saved to his hard drive. We are both having a lot of problems getting our movies (my tape, his old files) to look good on DVD's.

Long story short, I have a ton of questions (why do my movies look jaggie, why are so many frames dropped, why are his forced to be full screen, etc.) and no one to go to for help.

So, I'm hoping to find a forum (or more than one) where I can go to post all of my small, neophyte questions.

Where do you go on-line for help with your video capturing, editing, and burning questions?

Short story adaptation on a budget - and camera too?

nervestaple — Sun, 13 May 2007 23:47:15 -0800

What stories (short or otherwise) are begging to be adapted into a low-budget film? And, what camera should be used to film it? With a lazy summer ahead, I'd like to try my hand at making a movie. What short stories (or books?) are begging to be adapted? I won't be selling it (I don't imagine it will be any good) so I'm not really worried about film rights. Science fiction has always been a passion of mine, but it's difficult to find a science fiction story you can tell on a low budget, without many special effects. Primer is a good example of the kind of story I'm shooting for.

On a more technical note, are there any digital video cameras on the market today that get even close to looking "professional"? I'm not sure how to describe what I mean by professional, but think about the ineffable quality that studio films have and amateur films lack (besides acting). Something about the way they look seems more real. With a budget of under 1000 dollars, I probably can't get anywhere near that professional quality, but at least a good approximation would be nice. Researching DV has been a confusing muddle of CCDs, megapixels, and zoom lenses, so it'd be nice to hear from somebody knowledgeable on the subject.

Encoding DV for computer playback?

kamelhoecker — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 09:52:53 -0800

What's the best way to encode DV for playback on Mac and Windows? I'm editing in Final Cut and would like output that doesn't mess with the aspect ration (no fat/squished heads), no interlacing jaggies, and can play on a G4 ibook or Pentium4 without stuttering. (Bonus points if the file size is smaller than DV!) Final Cut outputs .mov files that contain the DV. The problem with these files is that by default "high quality" is off - so you need Quicktime Pro to go into movie options and check a box and resave. (if you don't, you only see half the resolution.) Another problem is that quicktime on windows cannot play the file at high quality without stuttering (Pentium4 mobile). Media Player can play it - but only in low quality (it ignores every other scan line and looks terrible.)

Exporting from Quicktime (6.5 Pro) always gives me nasty interlacing jaggies. (i tried sorensen 3, h263, apple mpeg4...) I can't believe Apple doesn't provide any way to de-interlace.

Are there other options?

Also, if I can squeeze in a related question: What is the correct aspect ratio for NTSC DV on a computer screen? I know DV has rectangular pixels and computers have square pixels - so some conversion is required. 720x480 looks a bit wide (fat heads) and 640x480 a bit too narrow (squished heads).

What's my must-have software for my Sony DV cam?

phearlez — Thu, 01 Mar 2007 09:35:50 -0800

So I've come to own a Sony DCR-HC38 DV camera. What's my best options with regards to inexpensive software? I had some gift cards and wanted to use the on something I'd never spend my own money on and this caught my eye in Best Buy. It may or may not have been the best quality or deal but after my gift cards and a discount cluepon it ran me $7 with some tapes.

So now what? It came with software but I have no reason to believe it'll be any better than typical Sony quality so I'd just as soon stick with 3rd party stuff. However simply plugging it into the computer's USB port has not yielded any auto-discovery so I suppose I'll need something else.

What's the best thing for an apathetic videographer to aquire? It'll be used very sporadically - my interest runs more to still photography - but I'll want to pull video over as quick as possible and do minor edits. I expect VirtualDub will do fine for the edits, but I'm open to other suggestions.

How do I need to change my workflow and FCP configuration to work with 24p DV footage?

tweebiscuit — Sun, 01 Oct 2006 16:49:14 -0800

DV / Final Cut Pro question: We just upgraded cameras to a Panasonic DVX100B, largely for the ability to shoot in 24P. However, imported footage still appears interlaced in FCP, and it's unclear to me what our new configuration should be. How will we need to change our workflow in order to edit in 24P? (More specific inside.) On an unrelated note, we just imported a tape which appears to be corrupted. Can it be salvaged? (More details inside.) Regarding the progressive setup, I basically just need some stronger working knowledge about what we can and can't do working with 24P footage. Some specifics:

1) Do we need separate capture settings? "DV NTSC - 24" is a sequence preset, but not a capture preset -- there is, however, a capture setting called "DV NTSC 48 kHz Advanced (2:3:3:2) Pulldown Removal". Is this what we need to use?

2) Can we capture the 24p footage on a different DV camera that does not have a 24p mode?

The confusing part: We did two projects shot in 24p before realizing that we couldn't use the default DV settings anymore. The footage so imported looks fine, but it's interlaced. (In addition to using the default, interlaced 29.97 sequence setting, at least some of the footage was also captured on a non-24p camera.) The part I don't understand is why it doesn't look worse -- since 24p footage has a different timebase, I can't imagine it being displayed sensibly in a 29.97-timebase sequence. Or is Panasonic's 24p method backwards-compatible enough that it cleanly displays as interlaced 29.97 footage when captured as such? (Of course, it's possible that the footage from these projects has problems that we haven't noticed -- we publish directly to the internet, so we don't pay as close attention to footage quality as broadcast folks do.)

As for the corrupted video: The video on the first two shots is divided into 6 or 8 horizontal bars, half of which contain no video signal. FCP crashes upon trying to import. I am pretty much resigned that it was a tape-writing error that's unrecoverable, but figured I'd ask -- is there any chance to salvage this footage? It was on a clean tape, the corruption ends precisely when the last corrupted shot ends, and it displays as such in two different cameras, both of which have had their heads cleaned recently.

Short film from Resfest 2004?

shortfuse — Tue, 29 Aug 2006 09:26:36 -0800

Where online can I find "Daydream" (or "Day Dream"), a short film by Su-Jin Kwon shown at Resfest 2004 in the US? The catalog describes it as "Hockney-esque collage of buildings, street scenes, and alleyways... cleverly assembling single images into complex, exaggerated pictures of a larger object..."

I loved it when I saw it and now I'd love to find it online. I can't find it thru Google and neither YouTube nor Google Video seems to have it. I found a Korean Resfest page for the film but no link to a clip.

Was it on any Resfest DVDs? Maybe Korean MeFites could better luck with local search engines? Help is much appreciated.

Archiving strategies for DV?

evil holiday magic — Mon, 22 May 2006 03:02:13 -0800

Final Cut Pro users: What do you do with your bulky collection of project and video files when you're ostensibly done with the project?

Guerilla chroma key

prostyle — Wed, 26 Apr 2006 12:30:17 -0800

DV Film Effects: Techniques & Tips I've recently been shooting some short instructional video clips. I've got a GL1, some basic flourescent photo lights and a handful of shielded photographic bulbs. I've rigged up a lazy susan with a circular top on an old dust collection barrel and covered it in a blue photo background paper. This paper also hangs behind that assembly for good measure. I center an item on the circle, filming it while I spin it around slowly to produce a very quick intro view of the item. I've backlit the subject and covered it from three other angles to reduce shadowplay, in general lighting is not a problem.

However, most of these items I am attempting to shoot are constructed of very reflective materials: black phenolic, aluminum rails and colored HDPE to name a few. I've got my bag of tricks for shooting print resolution catalog photos of these materials, but pulling a good key off this video material seems to be very difficult. I'm using AE 7 with the Keylight plugin. I've been generating garbage mattes to reduce the amount of calculations that need to be done but I still think I could get better results on the final key - it's not horrible, but it's not perfect.

So I call on all MeFi video mavens, what say ye? How have you overcome technical issues in your video projects and still accomplished the task on the cheap? I don't think expensive muslin or special chroma material will help, as the subjects are inherently reflective in varying degrees and will always pick up a slight color cast from the nearest object.

Anything else you'd like to mention about shooting DV material at a sub-professional level is certainly welcome, thanks for listening.

Alternate video format other than DV

cowmix — Tue, 21 Mar 2006 08:08:58 -0800

What is the best alternate video format to archive DV video. I have about a terabyte (85 hours) of DV footage sitting on my harddrive. I would like to render the footage into a lower footprint (yet high quality) format for storage. My ideal would be if I could use my 300gig external drive for this purpose. I would like to use a format that FCP could later consume and edit with ease too.

12GB per hour = too much

Silky Slim — Fri, 03 Mar 2006 00:38:21 -0800

can someone recommend an app for recording video on a mac from dv input, but in a format more compact than dv? i used to use an app called "gcam", but apparently it stopped workin gcorrectly under tiger. it allowed me to record video in real time as mp4 as well as other formats.
thanks!

DV Compression Quality Differences?

squirrel — Wed, 21 Dec 2005 12:53:57 -0800

DV video compression question - Do I have to recapture all these tapes?! In anticipation of the demise of my digital-8 DV camcorder, I'm capturing all of the tapes I shot with it, (about 40) into 20-minute (4.4GB) QT movies in DV/DVC Pro format. I'll be exporting those files to DVD for archival storage.

Here's my problem: I'm about 20 tapes in and I've discovered that each time I relaunch my capping program, myVCR, it returns the compression settings to the default, (DV compression; 29fps; 720x480; medium quality; 16:48 sound). The problem is that I want high quality and I fear that I've capped over half my tapes at the medium quality settings.

As I understand it, DV compression has a constant data rate of 3.6MBytes/sec, reagrdless of any settings. Is it possible that the quality slider in the video compression dialogue doesn't really do anything? What would ever be the point of compressing a fixed 3.6MB/sec stream at any quality other than the highest?

The bottom line is this: is there a difference in playback quality between a DV stream captured at Medium Quality and a stream captured at High Quality, if both output files have the same data rate and the same file size? Are other factors changed by the Quality setting? Frame rate?

Thanks for reading all this, and extra thinks to those who actually understand what I mean.

Panasonic or Canon?

pmbuko — Sun, 02 Oct 2005 23:58:44 -0800

Help me decide between two MiniDV camcorders (please?) Let me explain. No -- there is too much. Let me sum up. Parents gave me $500 to buy a video camera so I can furnish them with grandchild videos. (Apparently the photo site I set up doesn't cut it!) Spent the last few weeks reading reviews and getting my hands on some cameras. It has come down to two: the Canon Optura 40 (dvspot review link) or the Panasonic PV-GS150 (dvspot review link). The main differences are the 3 CCDs on the Panny vs. 1 on the Canon (although they've been reviewed as having comparable video quality), and the A/D converter (to import video from analog sources such as VHS or TiVo) on the Canon only. I don't really care about digital effects/fades/editing since I'll be doing all that on my Mac.

I am leaning toward the Canon for that once in 5 years time I might want to use the A/D converter, but I am still unwilling to commit. Is there anything you, an owner of either of these cameras or an otherwise knowledgable consumer, can tell me to help push me off the fence?

How to find (or make) a DV reference movie?

danblaker — Tue, 13 Sep 2005 19:30:46 -0800

I'm looking for a reference movie for testing video codecs, or tips on how to create my own. I'm preparing a comparison of various video codecs, and I need a reference movie to use as a source. Specifically, I'd like one or more sample AVI movies in 1080p resolution that present all of the major codec challenges (e.g., moving from light to shadow; wide spectrum ranges in a frame; rapid movements, etc).

Through google I've found a bunch of static test patterns, but not much in the way of moving pictures. SMPTE has a variety of test movies, but they seem to be focused (no pun intended) on theater projector calibration and are damn expensive. DisplayMate Video Edition seems to produce the kind of stuff I'm looking for, but it can't export movies to uncompressed AVI. I realize these files would be huge, which might explain their absence from the internet; but you'd think they'd be available on a DVD or something. If not, any ideas on how to make my own?

vector graphics perspective effect in Final Cut Express

planetkyoto — Sat, 06 Aug 2005 05:06:39 -0800

Mac Final Cut Express and vector graphics, maybe Flash: How to make a vector graphics motion sequence to be incorporated into a Final Cut Express video. I am making a kind of travel guide video (final destination DVD and web) and want to animate a vector graphics city map that I am making (in Fireworks). I want to have the map skew from flat overhead view to a foreshortened perspective as shown here. I know I can make a sequence in Flash and import it to FCE. This kind of skew is simple to do in Fireworks or Photoshop, but in Flash (me not so good) when I choose "skew" it just tilts the graphic sideways.

Is there a way to do this in Flash that I am missing, or is there a free or cheap OS X program I can use to edit a sequence like this. Bonus if I can then zoom in to show a single city block or intersection.

Looking for a camcorder

karen — Fri, 07 Jan 2005 13:12:20 -0800

Looking for a camcorder. [mi] My husband and I are expecting our first baby in a month and we wanted to buy a camcorder before the baby comes. We've looked at many different ones but can't seem to decide on one.

We've also considered the new jvc ones that may or may not be available right then (link1, link2)
but they are so new that they are still quite expensive so we were thinking it might be worth buying a mini dv format for a year or two until these digital ones are more widely available and thus cheaper.

Any recommendations are welcome since we've never owned a camcorder and don't know where to begin shopping for them.

Is there something I can use to open, edit and save MPEG-1 and MPEG-2 files in OSX?

erebora — Wed, 25 Feb 2004 09:04:54 -0800

Digital video: Is there something I can use to open, edit and save MPEG-1 and MPEG-2 files in OSX? Bonus question: What would I need to render said files from After Effects, Final Cut Pro, etc? I've spent some time downloading and testing various freeware/shareware solutions, but none of them are giving me the functionality I need. Any suggestions welcome.