video camera records to DVD...now how can i edit?

[mdubnik]

okay...so, i'm new at this.
got a video camera for christmas.
it records straight to those small DVDs.

it's a hitachi dz-mv730a.

now, i want to take the dvd and edit it. i film my dog at his hunt tests all the time, and i film a lot of my hunts.

i want to go in and add credits, and name tags, and mix in music...nothing complex, but have some fun with them.

how can i take these dvds and take the files off of them so i can edit them??

forgive me if i'm posting in the wrong forum...

PLEASE HELP!!

[guns1inger]

Womble Mpeg Wizard or VideoRedo are probably your best bet. They will allow you to edit, add titles etc, but will only re-encode the sections that change. Many other editors, when working with mpeg2 footage, re-encode everything, which lowers the quality.

[mdubnik]

is there a way to edit my files from the dvd with windows movie maker?

[classfour]

If there is - it'll look like it was edited with windows movie maker.

...crappy, low resolution.

Why record DVD quality if you're not going to keep it?

Gunslinger gave you excellent advice

[mdubnik]

okay, so i now have mpeg video wizard...is there a good guide to use to teach me how to use this program?

[BJ_M]

the help file is a good start - it is quite complete ..

keep in mind that cameras that record to dvd are not very good for editing (and not very easy) ... if you are serious and want to really doa lot of adding titles and edits - you should get a proper DV or HDV camcorder ..

programs from ulead and sony will edit those disks - but will recompress the whole thing ..

[GeorgeW]

programs from ulead and sony will edit those disks - but will recompress the whole thing ..

Ulead programs have the ability to "Smart Render" when possible (i.e. non-edited sections = non recompressed). Sony Vegas and Vegas MovieStudio will recompress the entire timeline...

Regards,
George