wrxsmo

Can anyone please recommend some pc editing software for a mini dv camcorder please.

I'm quite a newbie to this so something fairly basic would be great (& where I might be able to get it from please).

Thanks

Chris

angrynorth

Apple iMovie or Final Cut Elements.

djuk

Ive just got a mini-dv camcorder so have been looking into this. For simplicity, windows movie maker (or movie maker 2) which is bundled with windows xp is great, for something a bit more advanced and for some editing control I prefer pinacle studio 9

Hope this helps

David

Iain Young

When was iMovie released for the pc then?

Note that on the surface Pinnacle Studio 9 is ok and feature packed, however it is so bug ridden that I consider it beta quality software (you've only got to browse the Pinnacle user forms to see the number of problems people are having with it). I would not recommend it to anyone until they have been fixed - which going by Pinnacles track record could be a year or so...

I've uninstalled Studio 9 and gone back to Studio 8, and it works practically flawlessly...

Of course if you want a really powerful editing program, then you want Adobe Premiere Pro, but be warned that it is a little pricey.

Iain

angrynorth

It hasn't I was just giving him an example of an extremely easy to use editing programme

wrxsmo

Thanks chaps, I didnt realise Movie maker was inc in Xp lol, I'm just downloading Moviemaker 2 now

Altho I know understand I'll have to get a firewire cable & card for my Pc as usb wont cut the mustard ........

flat4

firewire is a must really

iMovie is very good for the beginner, i've used Avid Xpress alot too, but it's aimed more at professionals

flat4

and make sure you've got plenty of hard disk space - 80gb for about 60-90 mins or so of footage

angrynorth

I use FCPro 4 now, stunning can't wait till motion appears. I can finally get rid of clunky ol' After Effects

Nevetas

I use windows movie maker for knocking up quick and easy stuff.

Or Adobe Premiere when it all gets abit much!

Loads of clips on my site http://www.nevetas.com in the downloads section. Some very cool scooby videos in there...

djuk

As this is quite new to me too the thing that strikes me as a problem is storage. Obviously if I want to capture in full DV quality its going to take gigs of space to store a very small amount of video.

What are the practical solutions in terms of keeping video, say i want to record 5 hours worth of stuff on holiday this year (sure il manage that easily with my new toy ) what is the best way to keep it?

David

Iain Young

I capture and edit it on the pc, then burn all it to a dvd (with menus etc) so I can watch it on the telly. I keeps the original tapes in a safe place just in case I want to go back to them for some reason.

djuk

Aha! I havent got a dvd burner yet but have been considering one for a while so maybe this is a good enough reason to get one. How much footage do you generally get on 1 dvd?

Iain Young

It depends on the quality. If you encode at maximum bitrate / quality then you can get around an hour on a disc. If you reduce the quality settings a bit then you can get anything between 1.5 - 2 hours (depends on the video and how well it can be compressed etc).

Note that you can burn at the lower quality settings with little to no noticable drop in quality of the picture...

You can get a decent 8x dvd burner for around 50-60 quid these days as well, se it's getting cheap enough....

mattstant

Actually i have used usb and it didnt drop a single frame from 20 mins worth from my sony camcorder.
Try it first.
Mind you usb 2 and fire wire cards are getting ridiculously cheap.

Quick thumbs up for xp movie maker as well, there are no clever scene transitions but for a quick edit to get rid of footage of your feet/sky/inside of camera bag(my personal favourite) it is very good and very quick

wrxsmo

Cheers Matt I'll give it a go

wrxsmo

Just had to say, Scoobynet comes up trumps again.

Where else can you post a question at 11.51 & have all the answers you need & then some within a couple of hours

Chris

springbok

The Simply DV Forum is a good source for all things Mini DV etc.

wrxsmo

Thanks, I have posted there & found the guys v helpful