How to convert analog video to digital

ericfabre · August 1st, 2009, 15:03

Hey, guys. Anyone of you knows of a program, software or hardware that i could use to convert analog videos to digital? I am planning to make my own L&C videos. Unfortunately my video camera is analog.

I would appreciate any advice you could give me. Thanks a lot.

dendrin · August 1st, 2009, 17:22

If its analogue you will have to buy a video capture card. Most TV cards have this ability and come with the software to do it. Although VirtualDub is a free third party program to use preferred by most.

Here is a popular PC TV card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16815293006

The main problem with analogue is the conversion time, it has a moderate learning curve to do good conversions, and takes hours to encode video even on fast computers. If you plan on shooting alot of video its a worthwhile investment to get a digital camcorder, which can output the video directly to a digital format.

ericfabre · August 2nd, 2009, 07:55

Quote:

Originally Posted by dendrin

If its analogue you will have to buy a video capture card. Most TV cards have this ability and come with the software to do it. Although VirtualDub is a free third party program to use preferred by most.

Here is a popular PC TV card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16815293006

The main problem with analogue is the conversion time, it has a moderate learning curve to do good conversions, and takes hours to encode video even on fast computers. If you plan on shooting alot of video its a worthwhile investment to get a digital camcorder, which can output the video directly to a digital format.

Thanks a lot Dendrin. I know now why photo encoders charge me so much just to convert a short analog video to digital. I thought I'd do it myself. Maybe I should buy another video camera, a digital one.

filmguy · August 2nd, 2009, 09:22

Just a heads up before you buy a new camera. While you can get a digital camcorder for a few hundred dollars at your local best buy, you need to do some research abut what kind of video quality you want.

You're going to shoot L&C videos? If you want it to be professional quality, you're going to have to spend a lot more for a camera, as a little consumer cam ("one chip") is great for home videos, but not so great for making videos you intend to sell. Nothing irritates me more than paying for a clips4sale clip only to realize it's basically shot on a cellphone. A good professional camera (Cannon XL) will run at least 6 grand for HD, and around 3 grand for SD (Cannon GL2). In comparison, an HD consumer camera will be around a grand, but the difference is noticeable.

The most important thing you need to know, regardless of camera, is that video takes a TON of space. You WILL need to buy at least a 500gig external harddrive to store the footage you digitized. That'll allow you to edit it (if you have the software for that), make clips, etc.

Stuff like this takes a LOT of capital to start off. I think a reason so many of these companies fail is because they fail to comprehend how much work and money goes in to shooting, digitizing and editing decent quality video.

phoneman · August 2nd, 2009, 16:05

Filmguy, thanks for the informative and insightful comment.

filmguy · August 2nd, 2009, 23:54

Quote:

Originally Posted by phoneman

Filmguy, thanks for the informative and insightful comment.

You're welcome. Hopefully I didn't discourage the OP from starting his l&c production company, if that's what he really wants to do.

August 1st, 2009, 15:03	#1
ericfabre VIPOS Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Philippines Posts: 1,916 : 0 For This Post 21,943 Total	How to convert analog video to digital Hey, guys. Anyone of you knows of a program, software or hardware that i could use to convert analog videos to digital? I am planning to make my own L&C videos. Unfortunately my video camera is analog. I would appreciate any advice you could give me. Thanks a lot.

August 1st, 2009, 17:22	#2
dendrin Administrator Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 4,007 : 0 For This Post 11,031 Total	If its analogue you will have to buy a video capture card. Most TV cards have this ability and come with the software to do it. Although VirtualDub is a free third party program to use preferred by most. Here is a popular PC TV card http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16815293006 The main problem with analogue is the conversion time, it has a moderate learning curve to do good conversions, and takes hours to encode video even on fast computers. If you plan on shooting alot of video its a worthwhile investment to get a digital camcorder, which can output the video directly to a digital format.

August 2nd, 2009, 09:22	#4
filmguy STANDARD Join Date: Mar 2009 Posts: 71 : 0 For This Post 57 Total	Just a heads up before you buy a new camera. While you can get a digital camcorder for a few hundred dollars at your local best buy, you need to do some research abut what kind of video quality you want. You're going to shoot L&C videos? If you want it to be professional quality, you're going to have to spend a lot more for a camera, as a little consumer cam ("one chip") is great for home videos, but not so great for making videos you intend to sell. Nothing irritates me more than paying for a clips4sale clip only to realize it's basically shot on a cellphone. A good professional camera (Cannon XL) will run at least 6 grand for HD, and around 3 grand for SD (Cannon GL2). In comparison, an HD consumer camera will be around a grand, but the difference is noticeable. The most important thing you need to know, regardless of camera, is that video takes a TON of space. You WILL need to buy at least a 500gig external harddrive to store the footage you digitized. That'll allow you to edit it (if you have the software for that), make clips, etc. Stuff like this takes a LOT of capital to start off. I think a reason so many of these companies fail is because they fail to comprehend how much work and money goes in to shooting, digitizing and editing decent quality video.

August 2nd, 2009, 16:05	#5
phoneman Administrator Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 2,716 : 0 For This Post 3,093 Total	Filmguy, thanks for the informative and insightful comment.