MiniDV recording of 'baby growing up' in 16:9 or 4:3?

[c627627]

Current high end TVs are 16:9. I don't have one yet but I'm guessing most of TVs will be 16:9 in 10-20 years.

Should I record long term stuff like "baby growing up" in 16:9 instead of default 4:3?


The miniDV camcorder has a USB, Firewire and S-Video out.

I have an ATI All-in-Wonder 9600XT which has an S-Video in, should I use S-Video to capture miniDV tapes and use USB/Firewire to transfer still pics?

So: record 4:3, capture 4:3
or record 4:3, capture 16:9
or record 16:9, capture 16:9

Thank you for your opinions.

[TOMMO]

Record at 16.9 on DV camera.

Capture via FIREWIRE as DV AVI. Defiantely NOT USB.

Encode and author as 16.9.

Good luck.

[c627627]

Thank you for your reply.

I have Firewire ports that connect to the motherboard and are installed where PCI cards go (they just don't go into PCI slots.) It would also be nice to connect miniDV camcorder Firewire cable to the front case Firewire connection but:

I have an Antec case which has a front Firewire port that has 6 pins. The cable has 6 pins on the other end but my nForce2 mobo has 8 (smaller) pins. 6 pin case Firewire cable is not compatible with 8 (smaller pin) Firewire nForce2 motherboard connection.

How do I connect those, with a special third-party cable?


Thank you for telling me to avoid USB and capturing through S-Video. I was going to use Sony Vegas to capture, from miniDV tapes to make DVDs, is there perhaps a better program you would recommend if cost was no object + (sorry for the newb question) but the program captures video and audio through the Firewire cable then and this is encoded into AVI format (I prepared a 120 GB drive just for that) which is then edited and encoded into MPEG2 to make DVDs from, that about sums it up?

All encoding should be done 16:9 (not letterboxing but 16:9 anamorphic instead, right?)

[TOMMO]

I cannot advise on the front Firewire connections, just use the ones at the back. The Firewire connections you have at the moment are supplied on a D Bracket. These should do just fine. My firewire connection is connected all the time to cable, I simply plug it into the camera when needed.

Go ahead with Vegas 5. It is excellent. No need to look for an alternative. Premiere Pro is good but Vegas is rock solid.

1. Connect your DV Camera to your PC using the existing firewire connection you have. Turn the camera on.

2. Start Vegas and in the preferences select your capture format etc. For DVD make sure you have the audio set to 48000hz. (and on your camera if you have such a setting. (on mine the choices are 12 bit and 16 bit - I use 16 bit).

3. Capture you video as DV AVI.

4. Edit, add titles, transitions etc.

5. Render as - MPEG2 16.9

6. Author using DVD Architect (Sony). Excellent program. (So is Encore).

I know exactly what you want to do as I am a parent 4 times over. So it is important. Practice like hell so you master it before the shoots are critical.

Have fun though - dont go for the big huge project first. Use small projects first. Also - do not judge what the finished project looks like on the PC, check the results on you TV>

[c627627]

All right, much obliged. This is an excellent idea:

My firewire connection is connected all the time to cable, I simply plug it into the camera when needed.

[TOMMO]

No problem - dont hesitate if i can help further.

[TOMMO]

Have read your first post. USB for transferring still pictures - YES.

[thecoalman]

I have an Antec case which has a front Firewire port that has 6 pins. The cable has 6 pins on the other end but my nForce2 mobo has 8 (smaller) pins. 6 pin case Firewire cable is not compatible with 8 (smaller pin) Firewire nForce2 motherboard connection.

How do I connect those, with a special third-party cable?

I'm assuming that the internal cable that you are refferring too has a regular 6-pin external plug on it.

I'm not positive but I think the pin assignments vary according to mobo so you won't find a third party cable that you will be able to just plug in. On the other hand the internal cable on my Antec case came with individual labled plugs for each pin. It was simply a matter of matching the plugs to the correct pins. You should be able to find a similar cable but will probably have to remove the front panel of your case and know the pin assignments on the panel and your mobo.

Personally I'd send Antec's support a e-mail, they will probably have a solution for you as it can be connected. Another idea is if the cable is long enough you could always run it out the back of your case and plug it into the port on the back, not very practical but just a suggestion.

As far as recording I prefer 16:9, like you said all TV's will be widescreen in the furture which is the same way I think. No sense recording in 4:3 now because you will onl regret it in the future. Use firewire to capture.

[c627627]

I'll post Antec's opinion here when I get it, meanwhile:

Hm. Which one should I choose here
CINEMA, SQUEEZE, or D.WIDE:


WIDE MODE:

[OFF]: Records with no change in the screen ratio. For
playback on a TV with a normal screen ratio.

CINEMA: Inserts black bands at the top and bottom
of the screen. The indicator appears. During playback
on wide-screen TVs, the black bands at the top and
bottom of the screen are cut and the screen ratio
becomes 16:9. When using this mode, refer to your widescreen
TV’s instruction manual. During playback/
recording on 4:3 TVs/LCD monitor/viewfinder, black
bands are inserted at the top and bottom of the screen
and the image appears like a letter boxed 16:9 movie.

SQUEEZE: For playback on TVs with an aspect ratio
of 16:9. Naturally expands the image to fit the screen
without distortion. The indicator appears. When using
this mode, refer to your wide-screen TV’s instruction
manual. During playback/recording on 4:3 TVs/LCD
monitor/viewfinder, the image is elongated vertically.

D.WIDE: The indicator appears. The zoom range
is extended beyond the maximum optical zoom wide
angle range. This mode’s wide angle setting is equivalent
to using a 0.7X wide conversion lens. Zooming is
possible from 0.7X to 10X. This mode is suitable for
shooting in a small room.


JVC GR-D230u

[thecoalman]

SQUEEZE: For playback on TVs with an aspect ratio
of 16:9. Naturally expands the image to fit the screen
without distortion. The indicator appears. When using
this mode, refer to your wide-screen TV’s instruction
manual. During playback/recording on 4:3 TVs/LCD
monitor/viewfinder, the image is elongated vertically.

Not positive but that sounds like the correct one to use the full resolution of the cam. It will look funny when played from cam to regular TV but that can be fixed when you edit and author to DVD and still get the most out of the cam.

Cinematice sounds like it's just taking a 4:3 video and masking the top and bottom which is really useless if you want to take full advantage of the cam. That can be done in software but there really is no need.

[daamon]

Hi c627627,

This recent post of mine might have some useful tips in there for you - especially the ones early on, on shooting the footage.

A lot of the other stuff will either be irrelevant or repeated because of the software you're using.

Good luck.