Fundamentals of Video Making

[technext]

Hello everyone,

Please help me with the fundamentals of video editing. I have learned a lot of good things about video editing from this forum, but I am not able to connect the dots. Probably I have not understood the basics of it. Here is what I have learned to do:

Capture/copy the video from my Panasonic PVGS 15 miniDV camcorder to the laptop through a firewire 1394a cable. I use WinDV to capture/copy the video to my hard drive in the DV-avi format.
Once the video has been copied to the hard drive, I use TmpGenc to encode it to mpeg1 so as to make a VCD out of it. I follow the steps given in this link https://www.videohelp.com/tmpgenc.htm


Now my question is:
When should I edit (add flavor/spice up) my video (delete scenes, add background music, create chapters, add titles, etc.). Should I do it after I have copied it to my hard drive, or should I do it after I encode the video.

Can anyone please post the order that I can follow for making the video. Also if possible can anyone please list the names of the softwares/applications next to the task.

For example:

Step1. Capturing from miniDV camcorder to hard drive using firewire cable - WinDV, DVIO.....
Step2. Encoding from DV-avi to mpeg1 or mpeg2 - TmpGenc, MainConcept....


Your help will be highly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

[GilbyGood]

I would think that the editing would be on the AVI to gain the highest quality. Then encode the file.

[gadgetguy]

Yes, editing should be done in the DV-AVI format before encoding. There are many options as to which software to use and each have their advantages. I personally use WinDV to "capture", VirtualDub and AviSynth and sometimes Ulead Video Studio for editing. Then I use TMPGEnc to encode to mpeg1 or QuEnc to encode to mpeg2.

[edDV]

Why VCD? that is an obsolete MPeg1 format that takes your 720x480 (not really) video down to 352x240/288 at half the temporal resolution (30/25 vs 60/50). For camcorder acquired video this seems silly unless there is a compelling reason for CDR.

...
Now my question is:
When should I edit (add flavor/spice up) my video (delete scenes, add background music, create chapters, add titles, etc.). Should I do it after I have copied it to my hard drive, or should I do it after I encode the video.

transfer the DV and edit in DV.

Can anyone please post the order that I can follow for making the video. Also if possible can anyone please list the names of the softwares/applications next to the task.

1. Capture DV,
2. Edit DV (many solutions)
3. Save the DV edited material at full quality back to DV tape (highest quality).
4a. Encode and author for DVD (very good quality).
4b. Encode and author for VCD (very low quality) as an alternative.

For example:

Step1. Capturing from miniDV camcorder to hard drive using firewire cable - WinDV, DVIO.....
Step2. Encoding from DV-avi to mpeg1 or mpeg2 - TmpGenc, MainConcept....

but to MPeg2 and DVD not VCD.

[technext]

Thanks,

GilbyGood, gadgetguy & edDV for your comments.

Why VCD?

This is because I do not have a DVD burner on my laptop.

3. Save the DV edited material at full quality back to DV tape (highest quality).

Does that mean that once I am done editing, I should save the project on my hard drive in a DV format ?

Thanks.

[technext]

Another small thing that I forgot to tell you guys,

When I capture the video using WinDV, it says "0 frames dropped"

Does it mean that the video is being captured as is without any loss of quality ?

[edDV]

Another small thing that I forgot to tell you guys,

When I capture the video using WinDV, it says "0 frames dropped"

Does it mean that the video is being captured as is without any loss of quality ?

That it does.

Can't you afford a DVD recorder? They are very cheap now.

[technext]

Can't you afford a DVD recorder? They are very cheap now.

I am planning to buy one.

But being a student, my budget is a little tight

[lordsmurf]

Then I suggest holding off on this work until you have money for the DVD burner. You can buy a normal internal drive for about $40 off newegg.com, and then build your own external USB or firewire enclosure rather cheap ($30?).

[daamon]

@ technext:

I do pretty much similar stuff to you (holidays and friends weddings to DVD, not VCD). Here's what I use:

Transfer: WinDV (free)

Edit: Adobe Premiere Pro v1.5.1 - there are other tools, look in "Advanced Editing" in the "Tools" section.

Encode: TMPGEnc Plus (US$37). Good encoder to MPEG2 (used for DVDs), but not the fastest. There are others that are considered in the top bracekt: Canopus Procoder, Mainconcept MPEG Encoder, Cinemacraft Encoder

Author: TMPGEnc DVD Author (US$70). A good place to start if you're not familiar with authoring, but can be restrictive if you want to be more creative. That said, has good menus.

Burn: TDA has a burn engine that won't let you burn faster than the disc is rated etc. But Nero will do the job too.

Enjoy: Sit back and watch your DVD whilst enjoying a fridge full of beer...


If it's any consolation, I went through similar pains while I was learning the pitfalls and tricks to getting DV to DVD. But, I persevered and am really pleased I did.

Stick with it and you'll get there. Feel free to ask questions, especially as it sounds like we've got similar goals.

[lordsmurf]

Edit: Adobe Premiere Pro v1.5.1 - there are other tools, look in "Advanced Editing" in the "Tools" section.

If he's only doing DV work, 720x480, then Adobe Premiere Elements is cheap too. Regular price $99, but I've seen it on sale in the $50-80 range in some places too.

[daamon]

@ lordsmurf: Good point. I did read that (s)he's a student, but had forgotten this by the time I'd pasted the text... D'Oh!

@ technext: By way of making amends, there's also the following which sound like they'll fit the bill (in no particular order), and are either free or inexpensive:

1) Avid Free DV
2) Zwei-stein
3) AviTricks
4) Vegas Movie Studio
5) Ulead Videostudio
6) Pinnacle Studio

There are loads more, but these are regularly mentioned in these forums. Have a read, trial a few and make your decision. I'd be inclined to give Adobe Premiere Elements, Avid Free DV and Vegas Movie Studio a go first. But it's your call...

Good luck and enjoy...

[technext]

lordsmurf,

thanks for your input !

daamon,

I am very pleased to see your descriptive reply. This is exactly what I was looking for. This will make life easier for me.

It does seem like we both are in the same boat

Thanks a bunch !

I have a couple of quick questions for you guys:

1. When I capture the video from miniDV tape using WinDV through firewire cable, it says '0 frames dropped'. Does that mean I am getting the exact same quality what the camera is recording ?

2. Does the quality of the already captured DV-avi video improve if I encode it into mpeg2 (DVD format) ?


Thanks in advance.

[edDV]

Qualified students can get major discounts on video editing/authoring software.

See
http://www.academicsuperstore.com/?page=Category&category_id=244293&TOKEN=dda7c5d63d6b...d749464e8d851e

all products
http://www.academicsuperstore.com/?page=Category&category_id=244304

[gadgetguy]

1. When I capture the video from miniDV tape using WinDV through firewire cable, it says '0 frames dropped'. Does that mean I am getting the exact same quality what the camera is recording ?

Yes. Although dropped frames has nothing to do with quality. Zero dropped frames means that you did not lose any of the video in the transfer, but if you had dropped frames, the quality of the frames you received would be identical to what was on the tape.

2. Does the quality of the already captured DV-avi video improve if I encode it into mpeg2 (DVD format) ?

No, encoding will always reduce quality, but a properly encoded video can be almost indistinguishable from the original. Having said that, there are filters and tools available for editing that can often make a poor source video appear better than the original.