Steps in converting VHS to DVDs
Transferring analog videos to digital videos serves to backup copies of the VHS tapes. Editing is also easier this way. Digital video tapes have their own time code and device control which makes it easy to edit and cut some parts of the video. Analog video must be converted to digital video format so that it can be used in a computer. Analog to digital video converters are the only means of importing videos into the computer.
1. Hook up the digital video camcorder to the PC. Connect an IEEE 1394 Firewire cable from the computer to the camera, converter box or VCR. Digital video cameras are already equipped with Firewire connection for audio transfer. It is able to receive video transfer from a TV or VCR through its Firewire connection. The PC needs to have a Firewire connection to get connected also. The Adaptec FireConnect 4300 is a Firewire card and is one of the better cards known. Firewires are cheaper than video capture devices. All you have to do is hook up your camera to the PC. Then transfer the video using the software provided by your camera or Firewire card. Getting video to the computer from a VHS or analog source needs the use of a video capture device or digital video camera. Please note that not all video editing programs uses USB transfer.
2. Hook up the digital video camcorder to the VCR. The A/V cables must be connected from the camera to the VCR. Hook up RCA cables to VCR’s jacks on the video capture card or device. Transfer of analog video is done mainly by the use of an RCA cable and plug. Please use their corresponding colors as guide to make sure they are connected to the equivalent output connectors of the VCR and they go into the IN jacks of the camera. Red is for the right audio jack. White is for the left audio jack. Yellow is for the composite video jack. Use both VCR and DV camera S-video connecters to improve quality. S-videos produce a cleaner, sharper image than RCA jack. Make sure the camera is configured to receive video. Check if it was not in the output video mode. Older VHS analog video signal shall then be converted into digital format.
This can be done by installing an analog to digital video capture in the PC. An outboard video capture device can be used to connect the PC via USB or Firewire. This converts the analog signals from the recorder into the computer’s digital audio and video standards. Analog videos refer to the ordinary video from VCRs or old camcorders. Note that video cameras contain ports that can be plugged into a television. These ports shall be used for recording video by plugging the cables into the VCR’s video outports. Instead of the television, we used the VCR video outports. Most digital video camcorders have an analog video input. This gives them the ability to digitize analog sources like videotapes. One may send it into the digital camera and out into the computer. Check again if the S-video cable has been plugged out from VCR was plugged in to the S-video port on the digital camcorder.
3. Recording the video. First insert the blank miniDV tape into the DV camcorder while the VHS tape is being inserted to the VCR. Enable analog audio capture settings. Check the proper audio service selection for recording in the system tray. Go to volume control then properties. Right click the speaker icon and go into the recording properties. Enable line-in or whatever jack is receiving audio from VCR. Audio must be turned up on the digital video camcorder during capture and preview. Use compressed audio on DVDs. Uncompressed ones takes up a lot of space. Note that most digital videotapes won’t hold more than an hour’s worth of footage. It would be wise to connect the camera to the PC through a Firewire cable. Then use the computer video capture software that is already included in the digital video camera or Firewire card to capture the video to the PC.
Playback the VHS tape in the VCR. Press the record button of the digital video camcorder. Also press the blank button that is placed next to the record button. These buttons can be found at the top of the camera. The camera will then taped whatever the VCR plays. Please use the LCD screen to monitor the taping process. This will also make you mark the parts that you need to edit and make some plans regarding the digital video output later during the editing process. Now the old VHS recordings are now recorded in the digital MiniDV disks. With a MiniDV camcorder and IEEE 1394 compatible computer, one may record digital video and audio. Then transfer the digital video to the computer for editing. The contents of the VHS tape were now copied to the digital camcorder using the tape format used by the digital camcorder.
4. Install the video editing program. You may want to first install the video capture program. Video capture software captures and formats the video frames that one plans to transfer to the computer. Please make sure it supports Firewire.
5. Capture the video to the PC. Capture the VHS video that was recorded at the digital video camcorder to the computer video editing program. Import the contents of the digital video tape to the computer. This is made possible by the use of the computer’s Firewire ports. Capture the video to the computer and compressed it to MPEG-2. The normal DVD video resolution is 720 x 480. The software is also able to convert the video to a suitable MPEG format after which it can be burned to a DVD using the Easy CD creator or Nero software packages. The base process of video transfer from the digital camcorder to the computer requires a fairly fast system and much memory. This is very important when one wants to add special effects to the video like add slow and fast motion effects, sound effects and trackbacks or even edit scenes to the millisecond.
Capturing video in a digital format requires compression. This is because of the huge amount of space that video storage needs. Codecs essentially squeeze the incoming digital video data into a more compact form. This makes it easier for the hard drives to keep up. Record the video to the computer. Check if the digital camera was already set to VTR mode. Insert the tape that you want to capture or transfer to the computer. Set the digital video camcorder to standard playback speed. Open the video editing software and select capture. Check if the capture quality setting was set to full quality. Other programs must be closed now. The antivirus software must be temporarily shutdown also. The antivirus software might interfere with the speed because it normally accesses processor cycles and the hard disk. Click the start capture button of the video editing program.
6. Editing the video at the PC. The editing process is sort of a clean up which you see is necessary. You then have the option to add the background music, transition effects or text. Use the video editing software to cut scenes from the video, rearrange scenes or add fancy transitions between scenes. Titles and subtitles can also be added along with the music soundtrack. It covers nonlinear editing, photo and graphics manipulation. It provides the means to make one’s video dreams a reality. Video editing works better when the computer’s RAM and processing is dedicated to it alone.
7. Encoding the video
MPEG-2 is the encoding format used for DVDs. Encoding is essential to be able to transform from one format to another format. This compresses large videos to be able to save it to DVD and decompresses it when viewing.
8. Author the DVD
Author the DVD by creating menus and by associating video audio and still images with buttons. Place active buttons over video streams to give it a menu-like interactivity. These are referred as button highlight markers which defined the start and end location of button highlights that occur over MPEG video streams. This dramatically minimized the interruption of the flow of the video. Markers also defined the entry and exit point of each story segments. Save and enter an output filename under Finished Movie in the task pane. As a rule, video files need to be enclosed in MPEG-2 format to create a DVD. Experimenting on free software products is not advisable. Though it is a good learning process, the commercial software is better which is selling at reasonable prices. When you get the insight of how and why things are being done in a certain way then you will grasp the importance of what’s just been said.
Authoring is the process where one gets to collect audio, video, menus, subtitles, chapters etc. Authoring is accomplished in an interactive manner that makes the DVD playable. The DVD authoring tool may give you DVD professional features such as chapters. This will enable you to skip through large video files. Menus provide a way to quickly locate scenes in the DVD. Menus are MPEG files with subtitles. Subtitles produce the menu buttons. Chapters within a menu allow one to quickly find a particular scene to watch or locate the part you stopped watching. Chapters are easy to make. Double click the part of the video where you want to put one. Move the mouse along the timeline. Double click each portion where the chapter is to be inserted. An orange line will appear. This point represents the chapter.
Press the preview button. Check if the audio and video were synchronized. Watch the video in full or at the beginning, middle or where you want to click the chapters. Use the buttons to check all portions of the video. Close and return to the main program. The ability to design a DVD to meet your needs is what makes it more attractive and convenient. One may just capture the video and arrange it as clips on the menu. Spending time to author the DVD will guarantee you a good presentation that runs smoothly and is user friendly at optimum quality.
9. NSTC DVD standards
These are specific requirements that shall be complied in order to view your finished product on a stand alone DVD player.
a. 720 x 480 resolution
b. audio type 48 KHz sampling frequency
c. 29.97 fps frame rate
d. maximum bitrate of 9800 bps
10. Burn to DVD
Click start, then all programs, select myDVD and then click create/ make DVD. Then click prepare and burn. Select your saved finished movie in the desktop. Burning multimedia files to a DVD is essentially similar to burning regular data. Multimedia files are large files that include video such as wedding tapes or converting old VHS tape to DVD. Simply follow the prompts of the DVD burning software you have. Check for error messages. Some reencoding may be necessary if you see the error messages.
11. Test DVD
Pop your DVD into your DVD player and see if it works.
12. Delete raw data at computer
When you are happy and satisfied with your DVD then delete raw data at your computer. It has already taken a very big space.
13. Defrag hard drive
Each time you finish converting VHS to DVD transfer you must defrag your hard drive. System maintenance will keep the system running smoothly.
Steps to follow:
a. Click Start.
b. Select Programs.
c. Click Accessories.
d. Select System Tools.
e. Click Disk Defragmenter.