Remove Counter

[Mark-Leon]

I have been sent a bootleg DVD of a very rare concert from 1971 and I'd like to clean it up a bit, rip it to .avi but, most importantly, remove a time counter across the top of the screen. This may be so old that it is embedded in the film. So, my question is in two parts: 1) If it is a file in the TS folder, which one would it be? 2) If the time counter is embedded in the film, how can I disguise it.

I read the general forums and some software was recommended but it seems to be all Windows software. It there any software for Mac that can blur a time counter? I'm hoping to be able to remove it because it is in a very awkward place.

Thanks in advance for your help.

Mark.

[terryj]

Using Final Cut Pro, if the timecode is stationary and doesn't change
places throught the film, you could set up a matte of color
that masks the timecode when it appears onscreen.

1. If copy protected, rip film to HD using MTR.
if not, simply copy the disc in Finder to your HD.

2. Open MpegStreamclip w/ QT Mpeg-2 addon,
and open the main VOB ( VTS01.vob though VTS05.vob for example).
Fix Time Code Breaks, and the export the film as DV Stream.

3. Open the film as DV Stream in FCP, and follow the steps outlined
here.
You'll be basically instead of making a transparent mask, be making a mask
that matches the color of the area underneath the time code.

[Mark-Leon]

Thanks very much for the tips and instructions. I am trying to get hold of FCP now and I will give it a try.

Is it possible to do anything in ffmpegx or Visual Hub?

I have included a screenshot of the video.

Mark.

[terryj]

no, because you need to know the exact position of the
timecode and be able to see it to mask the timecode.
FFMPEGX & VisualHub are converting apps; FCP is an NLE.
an NLE lets you view and mask; a converter just transcodes
from format to format.

[Mark-Leon]

Using Final Cut Pro, if the timecode is stationary and doesn't change
places throught the film, you could set up a matte of color
that masks the timecode when it appears onscreen.

1. If copy protected, rip film to HD using MTR.
if not, simply copy the disc in Finder to your HD.

2. Open MpegStreamclip w/ QT Mpeg-2 addon,
and open the main VOB ( VTS01.vob though VTS05.vob for example).
Fix Time Code Breaks, and the export the film as DV Stream.

3. Open the film as DV Stream in FCP, and follow the steps outlined
here.
You'll be basically instead of making a transparent mask, be making a mask
that matches the color of the area underneath the time code.

These instructions seem to be for merging two videos. How does this explain the process of covering a time counter?

Mark.

[TooLFooL]

they are merging video with a still frame. this still frame is what you will use to mask or cover the counter.

[terryj]

correct Tool.
The tutorial gives you basics to handle the HOW Mark.

The footage that the OP (Mark) posted in post 3, if this is the exact
positioning of the time code in EVERY frame of this concert,
what I would be inclined to do is is to simply take the footage
and make it appear
to be widescreen ( placing a black matte top and bottom).
You'll lose picture somewhat, but it will look "correct"
in final playback, and as I am assuming the footage changes,
would be much easier to do than creating matching stills
of fleshtones, etc throughout, and or better than a blurred
(ie. feathered) still over foreheads and faces obscuring the
timestamp.

if the position of the stamp changes, and in better places (not on faces),
then a still frame is best.

[Mark-Leon]

First of all, thanks to those who have tried to help me with this project.

The problem is, I have never used Final Cut Pro before and I find these instructions very hard to follow. It seems I need to go back to the beginning to understand the terminology and how to use FCP to understand what it is talking about. I found MPEG Streamclip easy enough to use. Other software would have sufficed though.

This is the exact place where the time counter is throughout the entire video. Even over the opening credits. Naturally, it is video so, sometimes it appears over her head and sometimes in an innocuous position. I tried exporting in widescreen - 16:9 but all it did was stretch the video. The full frame was still visible including the time counter.

Masking seems to be the only way to go but, are there any step by step instructions for doing this in FCP for "dummies"?

Mark.

[tomlee59]

You seem to misunderstand even how the timecode is a fundamental part of the image, or you wouldn't have tried exporting in widescreen. The timecode is not a separate image layer on top of your video; rather, it is part of the video image itself. So, stretching the video will stretch...the video. And that includes the timecode.

As others have endeavored to explain, you need an editor. That's what FCP is. Tools like ffmpegx will only convert from one format to another, which is not what you need to do. Ditto for MPEGstreamclip, which as an editor is only able to perform simple cuts and splices, not operations within a video frame.

You will be masking out the timecode, not removing it to reveal the video "underneath", because there is no underneath. That is, you can replace the timecode with a black rectangle, or other image of your choice. But you won't be recovering the video that is obscured by the timecode, because it is gone.

[Mark-Leon]

You seem to misunderstand even how the timecode is a fundamental part of the image, or you wouldn't have tried exporting in widescreen. The timecode is not a separate image layer on top of your video; rather, it is part of the video image itself. So, stretching the video will stretch...the video. And that includes the timecode.

As others have endeavored to explain, you need an editor. That's what FCP is. Tools like ffmpegx will only convert from one format to another, which is not what you need to do. Ditto for MPEGstreamclip, which as an editor is only able to perform simple cuts and splices, not operations within a video frame.

You will be masking out the timecode, not removing it to reveal the video "underneath", because there is no underneath. That is, you can replace the timecode with a black rectangle, or other image of your choice. But you won't be recovering the video that is obscured by the timecode, because it is gone.

I do understand that the time counter is part of the video but I believe it was terryj who suggested making it widescreen. As I expected, it did stretch the video so, I'm not sure what the purpose of that exercise was.

I also got the message regarding ffmpegx being a conversion tool so I'm not sure what the point of repeating that information is.

As I have stated, I am new to video tools and I am looking for a step by step guide to creating a mask. I have not yet used FCP and I find the instructions too hard to follow. It seems to assume some knowledge.

I'd be glad to hear from you if you have something constructive to contribute. Otherwise, it's pointless to repeat previous messages.

Mark.

[tomlee59]

The reason for repeating information is that you seem not to understand what the reason underlying this information is. Instead, you just go through random motions, which is a waste of your time, and ultimately ours as well.

Terryj's suggestion for widescreen was motivated by a desire to simplify things for you, in acknowledgment of your self-professed newbieness. By *properly* widescreening the clip, you would move the timestamp out of frame. That operation would be the simplest thing you could do to produce a video without a visible timestamp, but at the expense of losing a lot of the video. It's the equivalent of cropping out all but a central rectangle, and then zooming the latter to fill the screen. Now that you perhaps understand what the MEANING of the exercise was, you might want to consider whether that's what you would want to do. You just have to do it correctly (not merely stretch horizontally, which is evidently all you did in your one experiment). But if you go this route, it will be VASTLY simpler than learning how to use FCP to perform the masking operation you originally considered.

So don't be impatient with repeated information. We're just trying to educate you.

[TooLFooL]

and actually, terryj didn't imply 'stretching' the video to make it widescreen.. he suggested placing black bars at the top and bottom, creating a 'letterbox' type widescreen effect, which would cover the counter, but would also cover a stripe along the bottom.. possibly not desirable to you though, as you would be losing quite a bit of video.. (like her mouth in this example)

[tomlee59]

and actually, terryj didn't imply 'stretching' the video to make it widescreen.. he suggested placing black bars at the top and bottom, creating a 'letterbox' type widescreen effect, which would cover the counter, but would also cover a stripe along the bottom.. possibly not desirable to you though, as you would be losing quite a bit of video.. (like her mouth in this example)

A wonderful illustration of why repeating information is helpful. If the message wasn't properly received, then retransmission is often useful. Thanks, TF.

[AlanHK]

some software was recommended but it seems to be all Windows software.

Well, if you do want to go to the dark side:
This is the result of using the Xlogo filter:



Xlogo tries to blend in the surroundings to fill the masked area; usually it's less obtrusive. Unfortunately, having the logo (it's not really a logo, but can be treated as one) on the face is about the worst possible place.

See https://forum.videohelp.com/topic333648.html for the gory details.

The script used was:

AVISource("picture8.avi",false)
xlogo("time_x_154_y_26_2.bmp", X=154, Y=26, alpha=0)

with a simple mask that covers the timecode area: