Help with video camera

by **Kurith** » Mon Dec 06, 2004 9:30 pm

This place is known for computer/tech savy people so I'll try my luck.

Alright here's the scoop. I have an assignment for a film class. I need to ofcourse film something and then edit it using Windows Movie Maker 2, simple enough except my video camera is not digital and I have no idea how to get the video from my camera to the computer. My graphics card supports it I'm pretty sure, and if not I have a relative that has one.

My trouble is my camera is "analog" as I was told and it records on a tape instead of saving it to memory so I have no idea how to get the video to my computer. Another thing came up about an "S" cable. I have no idea what that is, but apparently I might need one. Any help is appreciated.

by **gowhitesox99** » Mon Dec 06, 2004 9:32 pm

you can buy digital converters that convert analog to digital via usb... i'll get a link for you

S cable is talking about an S-Video cable, it gives a better picture than rca cables (red white and yellow)

by **gowhitesox99** » Mon Dec 06, 2004 9:38 pm

you can search, ebay, tigerdirect, bestbuy etc... for something like this

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?id=1077629691913&skuId=6539604&type=product

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?id=1095941349358&skuId=6872565&type=product

by **RCglider** » Mon Dec 06, 2004 10:03 pm

You need a video card with capture capability, or a stand alone capture card. The ATI AIW works fine for this.

The question always comes down to how much do you want to spend if you need to buy and add-on card or stand-alone device.

I have a Leadtek Winfast 2000 Deluxe available at Newegg for around $50 (?). I see they are out of them at the moment. I think the Expert version is similar.

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.asp?submit=manufactory&catalog=47&manufactory=1280&DEPA=0&sortby=14&order=1

I have converted both from an analog camcorders and VHS with good results. At work we use Canopus, but they are very expensive.

There are other brands such as Hauppauge, Pinnacle, ATI TV Wonder etc.

By far the Leadtek is the most popular and at the time I bought it IMHO the best for the money and will do what you are wanting to do. Do your homework since I've had mine for quite some time.

What are your hardware specs? That makes a difference. If you have an Intel with Hyperthreading, beware that the ATI card had problems, but I would think they likely fixed it by now.

Again, the bottom line is, how much you want to spend, which translates into video resolution.

Edit: the Plextor AV100U posted by gowhitesox from Best Buy is a good price, and is an external model. I'm not real familiar with that model, but looks like it may be a good choice for that price for your application.

Good luck.

by **Tommy Boy** » Tue Dec 07, 2004 9:41 am

does the school not have equipment that you could use instead of buying it? That would be an option that you should explore before shelling out your own cake.

Good luck...

Help with video camera

Help with video camera

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