Camcorder & Computer Video articles from May 2003

Camcorder & Computer Video archives from May 2003

At last--HDTV for the rest of us! (Editor's Report).(JVC GR-HD1 and others)
May 1, 2003... In case you've been wondering when we were finally going to get Hi-Definition television, the answer is, now! What, you say you haven't seen it? That's undoubtedly because of the cost and the complexity involved. I was recently at my...

LL-T18A1. (Zoom in: cool gear to take your videos to the next level).(from Sharp)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2003... What is it? A dual-input (analog and digital) LCD monitor from Sharp. What does it do? The company says it offers a high-performance TFT LCD that achieves a wide viewing angle of 160 degrees, horizontally and vertically. Special...

DataLifePlus 4X DVD-R and 2X DVD-RW discs. (Zoom in: cool gear to take your videos to the next level).(Brief Article)
May 1, 2003... What is it? It's the latest line of write-once and re-recordable discs from Verbatim. What does it do? Using the 4X DVD-R media, you can transfer data up to 5.54MBps and write a complete 4.7GB disc in about 15 minutes. With the 2X...

Edge 4: drums/rhythms/pulse. (Zoom in: cool gear to take your videos to the next level).(royalty-free music from Sonic Desktop Software)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2003... What is it? The latest in the Edge Series of original, royalty-free music from Sonic Desktop Software. What does it do? It offers a wide collection of 20 rhythmic tracks, spanning musical genres, such as Industrial, Jazz, Electronica, New...

GoldX powercore system. (Zoom in: cool gear to take your videos to the next level).(JDI Technologies)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2003... What is it? A stackable solution that lets you connect all your cables, adapters and devices hanging from PCs into one neat system from JDI Technologies. What does it do? With it, you can easily expand the number of Ethernet, USB, FireWire...

Muvee autoProducer. (Zoom in: cool gear to take your videos to the next level).(muvee Technologies)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2003... What is it? Automatic video-editing software from muvee Technologies. What does it do? autoProducer lets you simply pick a file, select music, choose an editing style, personalize it with titles and credits, fonts and colors, and then save...

USB 2.0 DVD creator. (Zoom in: cool gear to take your videos to the next level).(Digital video capture device from Belkin)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2003... What is it? Digital video capture device from Belkin. What does it do? It lets you capture and edit video from analog sources, such as camcorders, PC cameras and VCRs. Special features? Video Studio 6.0 is included in the package, so...

DVD publishing kit. (Zoom in: cool gear to take your videos to the next level).(A content distribution service by CustomFlix Labs)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2003... What is it? A content distribution service by CustomFlix Labs. What does it do? It provides independent videographers an easy way to customize text and a streaming trailer for their project's CustomFlix-powered online store. Once indies set...

MP4205. (Zoom in: cool gear to take your videos to the next level).(42-inch plasma display from Cornea Systems)
May 1, 2003... What is it? A new 42-inch plasma display from Cornea Systems. What does it do? Sleek and stylish, the MP4205 includes a built-in television tuner and features picture-in-picture capability and multiple inputs for a variety of video sources....

MovieBox USB. (Zoom in: cool gear to take your videos to the next level).(external capture device for analog video from Pinnacle Systems)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2003... What is it? An external capture device for analog video from Pinnacle Systems. What does it do? It connects to a PC via USB, and supports both USB 1.0 and high-speed USB 2.0. Special features? The system includes-Pinnacle Studio 8...

SR-T03. (Zoom in: cool gear to take your videos to the next level).(DVD optical disc drive from Samsung)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2003... What is it? A multifunction DVD optical disc drive from Samsung. What does it do? It lets users burn their home videos and other data to high-capacity DVD discs. Also lets users record MP3 files onto CD, watch DVD movies, and play CD and...

FirePower. (Zoom in: cool gear to take your videos to the next level).(desktop hard drives)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2003... What is it? From SmartDisk, it's a new line of desktop hard drives that connect to Apple computers using the higher-speed 800-mega-bit-per-second FireWire standard. What does it do? With capacities up to 200 GB, FirePower can store...

Pristine nature. (Zoom in: cool gear to take your videos to the next level).(Native Light Productions)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2003... What is it? A collection of royalty-free nature scenes from Native Light Productions. What does it do? This specialized library of nature footage takes the guesswork out of using stock footage by organizing each subject matter into...

Shoot-out! How the Panasonic AG-DVX100, Canon XL1s, Sony DSR-PD150 and JVC GY-DV300 compare.
May 1, 2003... There was a great deal of excitement the prosumer level when Sony introduced the DCR-VX1000 and again when Canon presented its XL1. No question, these two cameras were a big part of what has been referred to as the DV revolution. JVC followed...

Re-edit your DVDS: editing your disc a second time.
May 1, 2003... Until now, DVD authoring has been a write-only process: you assemble your video clips and other assets, lay them out in DVD menus, and then the authoring tool converts them into DVD format and burns the result to a disc. But, what if you...

Staying focused: the new lens systems that power today's camcorders.
May 1, 2003... Have you ever inadvertently put your finger on your camcorder's lens? Almost everyone has, at one time or another, and left a smudgy fingerprint. Yes, we all felt bad about it. No, it's not the end of the world, because it can easily be...

Almost a no-brainer: quicker, simpler and cheaper video editing.(camcorders are cheaper w/ more options)
May 1, 2003... If you've gone shopping for video gear recently, you may have noticed some minor changes to camcorders. DV camcorders are, indeed, a bit cheaper and have a few more bells and whistles, batteries may last a bit longer, and DVD camcorders have...

Digital audio: techniques for getting better sound. (Amplify Your Audio).
May 1, 2003... If you are recording with a digital camcorder (DV or Digital8), you are recording digital audio on the tape. You probably know that CDs and DVDs have their audio recorded digitally and that nearly every sound that comes out of your computer is...

Mic it up: tips for recording solid audio. (Amplify Your Audio).
May 1, 2003... When making a video, what your object says is equally as important as how he or she looks on-screen. During recording, I always use a shotgun microphone as opposed to the on-camera mic, which tends to pick up ambient noise that can camouflage...

Ticks, hums, hiss and pops: how to get rid of common audio distortions. (Amplify Your Audio).
May 1, 2003... When it comes to putting together your video productions, audio quality generally takes a backseat to video quality. In our rush to create the perfect visual, we sometimes forget about the quality of the audio. Sadly, however, nothing can...

Band in a Box: using Band-in-a-Box and Music Studio 7 deluxe. (Quick Soundtracks).
May 1, 2003... From the swelling chords of the opening credits to the funky riffs at the end of the show, movies are full of music. Music can set the overall tone of a production. Music can cause an emotional response in a viewer. Music can smooth over quiet...

Sony CCD-TRV318: quality home video.
May 1, 2003... Sony's CCD-TRV318 represents a middle position in a camcorder series of seven models that are so similar only one manual is needed for them all. The continuum ranges from a step below, the TRV 118--one of three models that use the Hi8...

Caught on tape: life as a modern-day geisha. (Money-Making Video).
May 1, 2003... This is the true story of how an American backpacker bought a cheap video camera from an electronics store in Japan and then sold two minutes of footage she shot with it to a television network back home for more than $5,000. ABC used her...

Getting on cable: taking advantage of free facilities. (Money-Making Videos).
May 1, 2003... Do you long to be part of the world of video production but lack the experience or the bucks for all of the equipment it requires? You may be in luck. Thousands of people all across this country are producing videos every day by taking...

C.S.I. video: how to shoot forensic video. (Money-Making Videos).
May 1, 2003... An inexpensive Hi8 camcorder, Radio Shack mics and a mixer, a VCR and a small monitor--that's about all the equipment that Oakland, CA's Televideo Production Services uses to videotape depositions. When we caught up with this well-established...

"Hot new Dou Cams, apple's latest PowerBooks and more". (Camcorder insider).(International Consumer Electronics Show)
May 1, 2003... We've recently returned from the 2003 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. It was the biggest ever (estimates of up to 125,000 in attendance!). Even I was overwhelmed by the staggering number of companies displaying a...

Shooting in the dark: rig your Camcorder for fireworks and other low-light videos.
May 1, 2003... With the huge range of low-cost, low-lux camcorders on the market, nowadays anyone can shoot great night video. Although entry-level video cameras may need considerably more light than the high-end models, professional results often depend on...