What is a best way of storing the DV-AVI footage?

[fluffyshy]

Since capture mini-DV and VHS tapes to DV-AVI takes up a huge amount of HDD space(13+GB per 1hr) what is an alternative video format I can save them in, after I edit the videos? (saving them to DVD or Blu-ray is not an option).

[Richard_G]

Just keep the tapes, you can always re-capture again if you need to. I keep the tapes and save the edited versions as DVD compliant mpeg2.

[Cornucopia]

I guess it all depends on one's idea of what "HUGE" means. Lately, to me, HUGE would be something that taxed the size of a single hard disk when working on just a few projects. Since run-of-the-mill HDDs these days are ~500+GB, I would in NO WAY consider DV to fall into this category. That's 38 hours worth on a single <$100 drive! Huge? You've got to be kidding me. Huge would be single files being 100+GB each (more than the size of uncompressed SD 4:2:2 versions).

So, if you care about your footage more than you care about disc storage space, get more hard drives when you need them, and put the DV-AVI files on them (in addition to the tapes, which I agree you should never throw out/lose/recycle). This way, you would have it "backed up" in 2 different forms (and hopefully 2 different places).
If disc storage space is such a burden for you, just keep the tapes and make MPEG2 or h.264 "distribution master" quality copies. Still "Large" at ~ 1/5 - 1/10 of the DV size, but probably manageable for you.
If you really can't be bothered with even that, then I have nothing more to say to you because it is clear that you don't value your own DV footage at all. (hopefully this last option is NOT the one you are inclined to)

Scott