Mini DV is a popular standard for consumer camcorders. These cameras use small cassettes that can hold 60 or 90 minutes of recording. The recording can be viewed on the screen of the camera, monitor or TV through the video input. But in order to edit your videos, make copies or create small films with your own hands, you need to copy from mini DV to your computer using special programs and equipment.
It is necessary
- - FireWire card,
- - special cable,
- - camera,
- - a computer,
- - video capture software
Instructions
Step 1
Install a FireWire card or, as it is also called, an IEEE-1394 controller in the computer. This board is required to connect the camera to a computer. Even if the camera has a USB connector, it only serves to transfer photos from the memory card. Video from mini DV can only be transferred to a computer using a FireWire controller, which is not available in most computers.
Step 2
Buy this board and camera connection cable from a computer store. The connection cable is called a 1394A-b 6-pin to 4-pin, which means it has a large connector on one side to connect to the controller. On the other hand, the cable should have a small connector to connect to the camera. If you have no experience in installing expansion cards, you should use the services of a specialist.
Step 3
Connect the camera with the film installed to the computer. Turn on the camera and select the communication mode with the computer, if available in the settings. If not, just play the tape.
Step 4
Install a camera and video capture software. Many cameras come with a disc with free video recording and editing tools. You should also pay attention to specialized software, for example, ScenalyzerLive 4.0 or Pinnacle Studio 10 and higher. Launch your browser and enter the address https://www.scenalyzer.com/download.html - here you can download the installation file of the demo version of ScenalyzerLive 4.0 and try it out in action.
Step 5
Run the installation file of the video capture program, install it by answering the questions of the step-by-step wizard. Double-click the shortcut on your desktop and open the program. Specify the folder to save the video. Please note that you will need a lot of free space, about 50 Gigabytes per cassette.
Step 6
Select your camera from the drop-down list in the left central part of the window. This item is called Select Capture Device and is marked with a triangle. After that, in the left corner of the window, you will see the video from your camera. If a blue blank screen appears, press the Play button on the camera to start playback. Do not check the box next to enable recording, otherwise the program may erase your recording.
Step 7
Left-click the Capture menu at the top of the window. Select Start Capturing from the list to start recording video from mini DV to your computer. The process is lengthy, it takes as much time as the recording itself. It is not recommended to do anything on the computer during this time. At the end of the program, you will receive a large uncompressed DV.avi file, which is ready for editing and transcoding into any format.
