Absolute Beginners Guide to Upgrading and Fixing Your PC

Application #4: Editing Movies from an Analog Camcorder

If you have a VHS, VHS-C, SVHS, 8mm, or Hi8 camcorder, you're working old school and creating analog, not digital, video. Because you can't connect an analog camcorder to a digital input, you'll need to install a video capture card or an outboard video capture device. You connect your camcorder to this card or device, as shown in Figure 13.2, and it converts your camcorder's analog video signals into digital audio and video, all ready for editing.

When it comes to connecting your analog camcorder, most video capture cards provide a variety of different inputs; which input you use depends primarily on which outputs your camcorder has. If your camcorder offers them (and most don't), use component video connectors; this is a grouping of three RCA-type jacks, typically labeled Y, Pr, and Pb, that delivers extremely high-quality video signals with improved color accuracy and reduced color bleeding. Next in order of preference (and more common) is an S-video connection, followed by composite video (normally labeled simply as "video"). The least preferable connection is the RF or antenna connection; most video capture equipment doesn't even support this type of connection because the image quality is very low.

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Of course, you'll also have to make all the system upgrades discussed in Application #3. Here's the list of what you need to do:

Upgrade Checklist for Digital Video Editing

Video capture card or external video capture device (see Chapter 9)

80GB or larger dedicated hard disk (see Chapter 4)

512MB or more RAM (see Chapter 6)

64MB or 128MB video card (see Chapter 9)

Large CRT or LCD monitor (see Chapter 9)

Optional second monitor (see Chapter 9)

VHS, VHS-C, SVHS, 8mm, or Hi8 camcorder