| If you're new to PC video editing then knowing where | | | | using the old analogue camcorder then you will also |
| to start can be a bit daunting, so hopefully this guide will | | | | need an analogue to digital converter, see the section |
| point you in the right direction.To start with you will | | | | on video editing cards below.Speed?Its worth |
| need a few items of equipmentCamcorders/Video | | | | considering your Pc's Processor speed, the speed will |
| DecksDepending on your requirements or aims there | | | | effect the rate your video will encode, encoding is |
| are number of different solutions to discuss, so i will | | | | where your DV video clips are converted into a more |
| split these up into separate sections.1. If you are | | | | compressed format, for example DVD's are encoded |
| starting from new then i recommend buying a new | | | | to MPEG2. So the faster the better really. Also |
| digital camcorder, this will give you superior video and | | | | consider the amount of RAM in your PC, 256Mb |
| sound quality as well as making getting started in video | | | | would be the minimum.Extra Hard Drive StorageIts |
| editing very simple, so ideal for the beginner. There are | | | | worth considering having an extra dedicated drive for |
| thousands to choose from catering for various types | | | | your video footage, remember that five minutes of DV |
| of budgets.2. You may already have an old video | | | | footage uses 1GB of hard drive space so consider a |
| deck or camcorder which uses the old analogue | | | | large capacity hard drive such as an 80Gb or 120Gb, |
| outputs such as composite or s-video (be sure to | | | | also consider the disk drive RPM, at least 7200RPM |
| check first what outputs you have). | | | | would be recommended. |
| For this kind of setup you would need a capture card | | | | If your PC supports it (most new ones do now), then |
| analogue to digital converter, this is discussed in more | | | | a Serial ATA (SATA) drive will offer increased date |
| detail further on in the article.A PC for Video EditingIt is | | | | transfer rates of up to 150MB/sec compared to 100 or |
| now possible to easily capture footage from your | | | | 133 offered by the IDE drives, you may also consider |
| Digital Camcorder directly to your PC and edit it. | | | | a SCSI drive if you're PC has an SCSI adapter as |
| If you looking at buying a new PC or building a new | | | | standard.DVD/CD BurnersIf your planning on putting |
| one then the currents spec's are more then powerful | | | | your film onto CD-ROM (VCD), or DVD then a CDRW |
| enough, a typical spec PC these days is a P4, 512Mb | | | | or DVDRW is an essential piece of kit, most new pc's |
| Ram, 80Gb HDD, Windows XP or something along | | | | may have a CDRW or DVDRW as standard, to burn |
| those lines. | | | | your DVD, you'll need DVD authoring software.Video |
| You could always use your existing PC if you have | | | | Editing CardsIf you have and older analogue video |
| one, but i wouldn't recommend using anything below a | | | | camera/deck then an analogue USB or PCI capture |
| PIII 600.Additional HardwareWhen transferring video | | | | cards will suffice.These dedicated analogue to digital |
| from your camcorder to your PC there are a number | | | | converters take process of conversion away from |
| of additional things to consider depending on the type | | | | the CPU and therefore speeds up transfer.If worth |
| of camcorder your using.If you're using a digital | | | | getting a quality capture card as the cheaper cards |
| camcorder then all your need is a firewire card (also | | | | can produce mixed results,The Video Editing |
| known as an IEE1394 card), a lot of current PC's have | | | | SoftwareThis is where all your creative work starts |
| these as standard now, otherwise you will need to | | | | and the creative work starts, you can capture video |
| purchase the card separately. Some of these will | | | | from your camera, edit the captured clips, arrange |
| come bundled with editing software such as Adobe | | | | them into a sequence, add transitions, credits and a |
| Premiere but this really depends on which card you | | | | soundtrack, titles and when your ready export your |
| buy and how much you spend, once your camcorder | | | | movie back to the camera or a suitable encoded file |
| is connected to your firewire port windows will | | | | format (DVD, VCD etc). |
| automatically recognise your Digital Camcorder.If your | | | | |