Topics:

• Introduction
• Choosing Format
  • Video
  • Compression: Video
  • Audio
  • Compression: Audio
• The Router and Rack Equipment
  • Setting the Decks for Remote Control
• Premiere Movie Capture

Staff Support:

Art Yeap Producer, Director, Lord of the Realm

(510) 642-8155

Digitizing video is not a difficult process, as long as you have a handle on a few different considerations. A few should be obvious: is your source SVHS or Hi8? Do I want full or quarter screen? And a few are less obvious, for instance your compression settings, quality of the audio, choices based on the end result of your editing. The purpose of this guide is to lead you through the digitizing process, and give you all your options for the best capture. A good video capture might take a few tries as you play with various settings, feel free to play around. Good luck!

The first part of digitizing video is deciding how you would like to capture the video, usually based on what you plan to do with the completed, edited video.

• 720x486 (full screen)
• 640x480 (low-res full screen)
• 320x240 (quarter screen)
• 160x120 (tiny little screen)

To break down those choices, if you plan to take you completed movie and print it back to a tape format, choose 720x486 or 640x480. If you want to put your completed movie on the internet or a CD-ROM, you should choose 320x240. If you want to have your movie be viewable over a modem, you should choose 160x120. Remember that you can always crank down the resolution of your movie, so if you capture at 320x240 and later want a 160x120 movie, this will be very easy. You can also turn up the resolution from a smaller size, but this looks really bad.

Note that the 720x486 capture resolution is only supported on Rosalinda, not on Maggie. This option is highly recommended for editing video to be printed back to tape, so in this case be sure to sign up for Rosalinda.

Compression: Video
Walkthrough on Changing Video Capture Compression

When capturing and editing, you should always use the Truevision Targa hardware compression, usually MJPEG. This allows you to capture full screen without the loss of frames. Any other, software, codec does not allow the same quality as the hardware Targa codecs.

When you have finished editing and have your finished product, then is the time to use a different, multiple-platform friendly codec. But until then, stick with hardware compression.

Audio
Walkthrough on Changing Audio Capture Quality

Audio choices are fairly simple. Audio can be 8- or 16-bit, range in frequency from 11kh to 44kh, and be stereo or monaural. Basically, how you record your audio is a matter of file size concerns, and what your end result quality should be. 16-bit, 44kh, stereo is CD or near CD audio quality, but usually results in large file sizes. Generally speaking, audio for the internet can be 8-bit, 11kh, mono. But, as always, use your best judgement. Note, you should not try to capture audio at a higher rate than that at which the orignal is sampled, or you will fall victim to noisy distortion.

Note that I suggest capturing at 44kHz, 16-bit, stereo, because you can always lower the sound resolution later.

Compression: Audio
Walkthrough on Changing Audio Capture Compression

Capture audio uncompressed.

The Router (AutoMax Distribution Matrix 1YDM Series) is fairly simple to operate. First, press 'Change'. Skip over the 'Send' section, these will be selected automatically. In the 'From' section, choose the device from which you wish to send input. In the 'To' section choose the device(s) to which you wish to send the signal. In the case of video digitizing this will be 'Mac Rosalinda' or 'Fred / Maggie', and 'Rack Mon B Input'. Press 'Take' and you are finished. At any time you can press 'Cancel' to cancel out a selection.

Once in a great while all the lights just go out on the Router. When this happens, reach around the back of the rack. Pull the power plug out. Wait. Now plug it back in. At this point the Router should work again.

As far as the other equipment, there is a manual for the JVC decks in a binder on one of the shelves. Everything else should be fairly simple.

Setting the Decks for Remote Access
Walkthrough on Setting the Decks for Remote Access

Setting the decks for remote access lets the computers control the decks with software, in this case a protocol named VTR. This means when you are in Adobe Premiere with the 'Movie Capture' window open, you can press play on the window and the deck will play.

To accomplish this miracle, you must first look to the left of the shelf with all the junk in it, between the router and JVC 1. There are two big cables sticking out of slots named after the two computers. Find the cable sticking out of the slot named after the computer you are using. Plug it in to the slot named after the deck you wish to remotely control. Step One is complete!

Now you have to make the deck understand. If you are using an SHVS deck, find the switch labeled 'Remote'. Switch it to '9Pin'. If you are using the Hi8, find the switch labeled 'Remote' and 'Local'. Switch it to 'Remote'. You are done.

Note that you cannot use the buttons on the decks when they are switched to remote. You have to use the computer's controls. But switching the deck to local, and then later back to remote, is all right. Just don't try to send the deck a command from the computer until it is switched back to remote, and you will be fine.

All non-linear editing in 514 is done with Premiere. Capturing therefore is easiest done from Premiere. To accomplish this feat, you must first start up Premiere. While Premiere takes its time loading, I like to reflect on my experiences of digitizing and how I plan to make this experience better. Now that Premire is up and running, choose 'File->Capture->Movie Capture'. You do not need to have a project loaded while you capture, though you might find it useful.

The Movie Capture window arranged as follows: in the title bar you should see the actual file name of the clip you will be recording. In the first part of the window there is a record button, the actual image of what you are about to record, and to the right of those an option to name the Reel, an Auto-Record checkbox, an In and Out for the auto-record, and a few other miscellaneous buttons. The bottom of the window has VCR controls, if you are using remote VCR control, as described above.

If you are not using the Auto-Record feature, then this part is fairly simple. Click 'Record', play the tape, and stop recording when your clip is over. You can use Premiere to edit out the "smudges" at the beginning and ending of your recorded clip.

If you are using Auto-record, be sure that you have set the VCR up correctly for the remote control. Find the beginning of the clip you wish to record, and click the 'In' button. You should see the time code matching the time code for the beginning of your clip on the tape. Now find the end of your clip and click 'Out'. Again, you should see the time code matching the time code on your tape. Click the 'Auto-record' checkbox. When you are sure everything is set up properly, click 'Record'. Your tape should rewind and start recording at the appropriate place. It should also stop at the right place. Be sure to check your clip's beginning and ending just to make sure. There might be a slight amount of extra capture at the beginning and end of your clip, but as always these can be edited out with Premiere.