Author	Message
mikelepore	Posted: 22 Oct 2008 12:15 am    Post subject: Video production Any notes or questions, whether complete proposal or just random ideas, about producing videos.
mikelepore	Posted: 22 Oct 2008 12:32 am    Post subject: Various possible connections to get video from a digital camcorder into a computer so you can edit it. 1. Camcorder firewire output ... firewire cable ... computer that has a firewire input (mainly a standard feature only for Apple brand) 2. Camcorder firewire output ... firewire cable ... fireware adapter card that plugs into computer ... computer that doesn't come with a firewire input but accepts adapter cards 3. Camcorder firewire output ... firewire cable ... DVD recorder with firewire input ... a temporary DVD (DVD+RW or DVD-RW) ... read the DVD into the computer (I have been using method 3.) notes: 1. All of the following terms mean exactly the same thing and are various names preferred by different manufacturers: "firewire", "iLink" "IEEE 1394" 2. each end of a firewire cable may have a 4-pin jack or a 6-pin jack. That means there are three kinds of firewire cables: 4-pin to 4-pin, 4-pin to 6-pin, and 6-pin to 6-pin. Inspect the jacks visually and read the labels before buying a cable or a computer adapter card. photograph of a 4-pin firewire jack: http://www.deleonism.org/i/firewir4.jpg photograph of a 6-pin firewire jack: http://www.deleonism.org/i/firewir6.jpg
mikelepore	Posted: 22 Oct 2008 12:36 am    Post subject: Various methods to get video from a VHS camcorder into a computer so you can edit it: 1. VHS camcorder coaxial RCA jacks or S-Video jacks ... plug into a video adapter card ... plug video adapter card into computer. Because RCA and SVideo connecitons are analog, the result has lost some picture quality. 2. insert VHS tape into a dual VHS-DVD player-recorder ... use the VHS-to-DVD dub feature to record a temporary DVD ... read the DVD with the computer. The result has the best picture quality. (I have been using method 2.)
mikelepore	Posted: 22 Oct 2008 12:39 am    Post subject: Recording video directly from a computer that has a webcam. 1. A computer that has a built-in webcam. 2. A computer that doesn't have a built-in webcam ... buy a web-cam in a box, load the driver software that comes with it. (I never tried it before.)
mikelepore	Posted: 22 Oct 2008 12:45 am    Post subject: Editing video with software I have used these two software packages, although many more exist: 1. Windows movie editor. Comes free with most computers that have the Windows operating system. Accepts inputs from video adapters, WMV format files, and MPG format files. Writes output only in WMV format. 2. Movie Edit Pro (users give it the nickname MEP) made my Magix. I bought it in a box at the store, but I believe you can also pay online at magix.com and download it. Accepts inputs in any format and makes outputs in any desired format. Many kinds of editing (cut, wipe, fade, add titles, zoom in, adjust colors, etc.) To make a DVD from the result, just click the "burn" button. Magix has a forum for users to ask technical questions.
mikelepore	Posted: 22 Oct 2008 01:16 am    Post subject: Getting familiar with the the format of file names and directory names on a standard video DVD. The files are regular MPEG-2, but the file names and directory structure have to be changed to something specific. The right file structure is produced when when you click the software's "burn" button or a DVD recorder's "finalize" button. If you try to produce the right structure by manually naming and writing files the way you do on computer file backup day, you'll probably do it incorrectly. There may be up numerous "titles" which appear as menu items on a DVD player, used by many movie studios for the movie, the interview with the director, the bloopers, etc. If any file reaches 1 gigabyte in size, that files automatically stops writing and continues writing in a new file. So the file name structure supports this: VTS_01_0.VOB (first title, the menu only) VTS_01_1.VOB (first title, first gigabyte of video) VTS_01_2.VOB (first title, second gigabyte of video) etc. VTS_02_0.VOB (second title, the menu only) VTS_02_1.VOB (second title, first gigabyte of video) VTS_02_2.VOB (second title, second gigabyte of video) etc. So the name structure supports up to 99 titles, each having up to 9 gigabytes. A DVD has space for about 4.7 gigabytes, which is about 2 hours of video, so the actual file sizes never reaches the limits that the naming structure allows. Each .VOB file contains both the video and audio track. Files with name extension .IFO, if present, are for extra controls, such as dividing a title into smaller parts called chapters, or for foreign language subtitles, and so forth. These files will be in a directory on the DVD named VIDEO_TS Some commercial DVD's have an empty directory called AUDIO_TS. It's unused and is included only for backward-compatability with very old machines that expect that directory to be there. There may be additional files and directories that mean something only to certain manufacturers, not part of the standard. For example, my DVD recorder writes addiitonal files that will disappear when I finalize the disc. The word "finalize" for a DVD recorder means the same thing it means when you backup digital data on a computer. If you haven't yet finalized, you can add more files to the same disc on a future occasion, but you may have trouble reading this disc on another manufacturer's equipment. After you finalize a disc, you won't be able to add any more files, but any manufacturer's equipment will be able to read the disc.
mikelepore	Posted: 22 Oct 2008 01:24 am    Post subject: Pixels and aspect ratios. In the U.S., most television broadcast and camcorders will give a resulting width-by-length ratio of either 720X480 or 640X480. To preserve picture quality, save all master copies in this large size, and do all editing in this large size. When producing a DVD, burn the output in this large size. For use on the internet, most people convert a copy of the output to a smaller size, such as 340X240. Video files are huge, just a few seconds of recording time per megabyte. Note that converting from 640X480 to 320X240, half the width and half the height, is one quarter as much screen space, and therefore reduces file size to one quarter.
mikelepore	Posted: 22 Oct 2008 01:47 am    Post subject: How to set up live steaming video on the internet, instead of having the visitor download a file and play it later. I don't know how this is done.
mikelepore	Posted: 22 Oct 2008 02:28 am    Post subject: Buying a camcorder, useful features to look for: * Firewire output for a purely digital connection, in addition to the analog connections that are allowed by S-VIDEO and composite/component RCA jacks. * A jack to allow attachment of an external microphone (boo-hoo, my camcorder doesn't have this)
mikelepore	Posted: 22 Oct 2008 02:44 am    Post subject: Buying a DVD recorder, useful features to look for * if you pay about $30 more you can get a dual VHS-DVD deck (play VHS, record VHS, play DVD, record DVD, copy VHS to DVD, copy DVD to VHS) * HDMI outputs if you want to watch movies on a high-definition TV * TV recording features similar to those on any VCR, such as timer, one-touch, etc. * firewire input, to allow a purely digital input from a camcorder. Without that you'll have to use analog connections and lose some quality. * Normal capacity is 2 hours of TV recording on a DVD. I also have a picture-quality-sucks-a-little setting that allows recording 4 hours of TV on one DVD, and a picture-quality-sucks-even-worse setting that allows recording 8 hours of TV on one DVD. * you hit the format button to erase an erasable DVD and make it blank line new. But if a DVD contians several TV shows, can you erase a few of them and recover that much blank space for recording more stuff? On my machine, yes if using a DVD-RW, no if using a DVD+RW., * an edit mode, to cut titles into chapters, use the remote control keypad to type menu names for the titles, etc. * a lot of features that I'll never use, like compatabilty with DivX format video, abilty to play discs of JPEG photographs, discs of MP3 audio files, etc. * "Chasing playback during recording" -- this is a feature where you can continue recording something while you play back a different part of the same disc. Allowed only with DVD-RW discs, not DVD+RW. Useful if you're interrupted while you're watching live TV live, or if your want to see an instant replay of a scene while you're watching live TV. * My machine does not have a television tuner. It must get its TV signal from either a cable TV box, a satellite TV box, or an exernal tuner. Before buying it, be sure to read the writing on the external packaging. * I bought the Toshiba model D-VR610KU which was about $180 as of the summer of 2008.
davesearles	Posted: 22 Oct 2008 04:54 am    Post subject: Mike I was thinking that you'd put this topic up as its own forum because it's so varied.
mikelepore	Posted: 23 Oct 2008 12:24 am    Post subject: Forum category structure can be adjusted anytime. After we see that the conversation does go somewhere, and in what directions it goes, I can use the software's "split" function to move specific posts to new locations. I can't combine many into one, but I can split one into many. So this is a conservative step, beginning with the choice that's easily reversible.
mikelepore	Posted: 23 Oct 2008 12:41 am    Post subject: Begin to make a list of web sites to upload and share videos for free. Each one is added here from hearsay and needs to be verified and tested. video.google.com youtube.com imageshack.us motionbox.com dropshots.com thefreecountry.com streaming.live.com bitsontherun.com yourfilelink.com vidilife.com clipmoon.com videowebtown.com myzine.com dadooda.com TO BE CONTINUED ------------------- Sites that list or advertise video hosting sites: free-webhosts.com/free-video-hosting.php free-video-hosting.net --------------------- Sites that have tools to automate the upload of your video to many hosting sites: tubemogul.com realseo.com ---------------------- Videos that contain information about free video hosting: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8uhmPcIjgs
davesearles	Posted: 24 Oct 2008 01:29 pm    Post subject: Perhaps a good way to come up with subjects to make videos of would be to cull a list of questions from these discussions, have anyone who wants to answer the question post the answer video or a link to that video. That would make for a simplified format.
mikelepore	Posted: 24 Oct 2008 04:43 pm    Post subject: I understand what it means to make a list of questions. I don't understand what you mean by this part: Quote: anyone who wants to answer the question post the answer video or a link to that video
mikelepore	Posted: 24 Oct 2008 04:53 pm    Post subject: If anyone can record video, I suggest you just get front of it, make a quick test to see that you have enough light and voice comes out loud enough and you're not cutting off the top of your head, then start talking. One technique is to make an outline of your main points, write big, and hang it on the wall in back of the camera. Sample of an outline * Capitalism sucks * It doesn't have to be like this * How the world could be * Must organize * An objection you'll hear / the answer to it * Explain an idea that is probably new to the audience * Say something inspirational