If you’ve been wanting to transfer your performance videos onto DVD and wish to shoot new footage for a promotional video, you should consider buying a MiniDV camcorder. These camcorders make it easy to shoot video and import it into a PC where it may be edited and burned onto DVD, or converted into video for use on the web. And the prices keep coming down.
In the old days, just a few years ago, you had to purchase a special video capture system for your PC that could convert the video from your camcorder into a digital file that your PC could use. Unlike the VHS, S-VHS, and Hi-8 format camcorders that store video in an analog format, MiniDV cameras store video as a computer file on a tape cassette. And because the video already exists as a file, it's easy to transfer it from the camera to a PC via an IEEE-1394 interface (also known as "FireWire" and "I.Link"). This interface is standard on new PCs and Macintoshes and you can purchase FireWire interface cards if your PC doesn’t already have one.
Analog to Digital
In addition to supporting FireWire, MiniDV camcorders come with conventional audio and video jacks that support older video equipment, including most VCRs and televisions. This way, you can play your old videos and record them onto a MiniDV tape, and then import the video into your PC. I’m told that some MiniDV camcorders even have “pass-through” capabilities that let them accept video from almost any source and immediately convert and transfer it to a PC.
When you transfer MiniDV from a camcorder to a computer, there's no loss in quality. In contrast, converting analog video from an old camcorder and transferring it to a PC by way of a capture board was an arcane process. Every time you converted the video, the quality deteriorated. MiniDV is like a digital image or music file-you can copy it hundreds of time, and each copy will be top quality. Also, video on MiniDV tapes don't degrade with each playback the way it does on analog tapes.
In addition to working with a PC or Mac, the MiniDV format offers twice the resolution of analog formats such as VHS and 8mm, and 25 percent more resolution than that offered by Hi-8. MiniDV also offers stronger color reproduction.
Taking Pictures
MIniDV camcorders can also record digital pictures much like a digital camera. However, these pictures pale when compared to the detailed pictures from the latest mega-pixel cameras. Unless you're planning to take low-resolution digital images for use on Web pages, still pictures from a DV camcorder will have limited use.
These days, if you want to shoot video, make sure that you’re using a MiniDV camcorder. It will serve you well as you put together your promotional video.
-Wayne Kawamoto
