Forums » General Questions

1. maverick
   Member

   

   Hello all.

   I run a small business and want to produce an instructional DVD for marketing to my customer base on the web. Since I know my trade well but know very little about producing a DVD, I hunted around and found this forum. I have the idea all sorted out. The next step is to figure out the proper camera set up to get and what accessories I'll need to go with it. I guess what I'm looking at is getting a bunch of raw "film" together that I can bring to someone who can then edit it into the finished product. Unless, of course, this would be too expensive, in which case I'd have to figure a way to edit things myself. The production of the actual disc is still a hurdle also. I also have no idea how to forecast the demand for this because it's never been done in my area of expertise before. The market may welcome it with open arms.

   In researching camcorders, it seems the number of variables is off the scale. Is digital better than film, and if so, why? I don't know what half the terms mean so I have to ask for help. The last thing I want to do is tie up a lot of capital in equipment that won't meet my needs or will not perform the way I'd like. I'd like a decent level of quality but I don't want to be George Lucas. That's not necessary. There will be some long shots, some close ups and I'd like to be able to add high res photos in certain spots of the process.

   I have no idea how much capacity I'll need also. How do you judge how much has been recorded versus how much storage is left?

   Lighting, storyboards, microphones, batteries, ease of use in handling and transferring all the info that's filmed along with how to polish the look are all subjects I'm interested in exploring.

   Any feedback you can offer to a total noob would be greatly appreciated.

   Cheers,

   Maverick 

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2. maverick
   Member

   

   Since the editing will be critical, does digital mean I'll lose video quality when I go into edit mode? I've read that the digital camcorders compress things and editing becomes problematic. Is film the better way to go for editing purposes?

   Anybody???

   Bueller? Bueller? Bueller?

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3. chrisColorado
   Member

   

   Welcome to the forums! Sorry nobody has answered you. Being a videomaker is not an easy life. I had a weird day at work today. Here's some answers. I'll try to use layman terms.

   I produce using digital video because it's cheap and I'm broke. I haven't seen anybody actually use real authentic old-time film except on big websites in their little tutorial videos. Everybody I know uses Digital Video which is what you shoot on those cameras at Best Buy, circuit city, B&H and everywhere else. If quality is lost when you edit digital video, it's inevitable and slight enough that I don't care and i've never heard of anyone on these forums or anywhere else complaining about it. It's what happens.

   I guess what I'm looking at is getting a bunch of raw "film" together that I can bring to someone who can then edit it into the finished product.

   This is what I do, but we call it footage as in video footage. The most popular way to edit is using software and there's all different brands of software. I know most of the bigger ones, Avid, Final Cut Pro and Sony Vegas.

   I would highly recommend exploring this topic, as your planning to. Make rou own practice stuff, read this website, skim the other forums, ask more questions as you learn. Videomaking is my favorite hobby and my job. I love it!

   You could read "The Art of Video Production" by Leonard Shyles  and google mediacollege and read the video adn audio tutorials.

   Good luck! Chris of Colorado

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4. maverick
   Member

   

   Thanks for the input.

   When I said film, I meant minidv (I think?) ...... isn't that a cassette tape the fits into the camera?

   They certainly don't make this easy. I know what I wantr to do and I have no way to be sure I'm choosing what will work best for my application.

   Another question- are there outfits out there that produce the finished DVD that I can then sell? I've made some inquiries but haven't heard back from anybody yet. Is it better from an editing standpoint to have tape or a memory card?

   This is going to be an instructional video that I want to market. I'm not going to do weddings or porn. :/

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5. chrisColorado
   Member

   

   MiniDV is a tape that some cameras use. There are other formats instead of MiniDV like Flash Media, HDD(hard disk drive) and DVD(cameras that can burn to DVD). Flash Media, HDD and DVD all use hard drives so you can hook up your camera to your computer with a USB cable and then pull your files off your camera into your computer hard drive. I personally like Flash Media the best. study up on these and figure out the one that works for you. The best way is to actually shoot with different formats and then upload to the computer. MiniDV is my least favorite, because you have to capture your footage off the tape with a "firewire" cable. I like USB better.

   The way i usually make DVDs after editing is using Sony DVD Architect which comes with Sony Vegas. you render your movie out of Vegas, import into DVD Architect, put a blank DVD in your computer's disk drive and then tell DVD A where to burn your movie. It's very simple, no extra "DVD burners" or other complicated "outfits". Just using software and your computer's disk drive.

   Good job on not doing porn. There should be more movie makers like you. I don't either.     

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6. maverick
   Member

   

   Cool.

   I know what I want the finished product to look like. the difficulty I'm having is trying to learn how to get there without making a $12,000 mistake.

   One thing I can't seem to find out a lot of info on is helmet cams. Part of my insrtuction will be going through the task at hand from a distance followed by a user eye's view of the same procedure so they can actually see what they're going to be doing up close and personal. I'll need some sort of remote lens that looks where I look and that I can attach to my head with a strap or headband of some sort.

   I've figured out that not all cameras will offer this feature. I'm assuming it's called "video in" and requires some separate equipment. Any thoughts?

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7. ralck
   Member

   

   I'm not entirely sure of your situation, but is this 1 DVD you plan on making, or a series of DVD's?

   If it's 1 DVD, you might want to look in your area about local videographers who you could contract to shoot, edit, and author the DVD's for you.  They will already have equipment, and the know-how to do this, which could save you a lot of time and effort (and possibly even money!) in the long run.  I recomend, if you take this route, make sure you see some samples of their work to help find the best videographer for your needs.

   If it's a series of DVD's you're going to have to weigh the costs of doing it yourself (don't just think cost of camera and accessories, think your time, etc) vs the cost of a videographer doing it for you.

   In either case, it can't hurt to start doing as much reading as you can.  I recomend doing some google searches about film basics to get a good start.  You'll be able to quickly pick up on some of the technical aspects of film which should help you decide your starting point for film equipment.

   Just to expand on what Chris was saying, miniDV, HDD, DVD, and Flash cameras are all recording digitally.  Most people say that miniDV offers better quality (and easier editing) because of they type of compression it uses vs the other formats, though this isn't necessarily noticable (in the end, the camera and format type is simply a tool you use and it's more important how you use it).  I would say digital will probably be the easiest and cheapest for you since you'll be putting this on a DVD.

   I threw a lot of info at you without much organization, so I hope this isn't too confusing.  Cheers!

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8. maverick
   Member

   

   If the first disc sells, I'll be making a series of them.

   That's the decision I have to make- do I hire someone or do I jump in and teach myself? I'm leaning towards doing it myself because of timing and scheduling. I want to be able to work at 2am if I choose to. Freedom is a good thing.

   It's a lot of money to invest. Equipment costs some bucks and you get what you pay for.� I just don't want to buy the stuff that will send me in the wrong direction.

   Thanks for your help.

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9. butterflyguy
   Member

   

   I'd defintely take a video class or course if you've never done this before.

   Go to the library and read all the books.

   There's a lot to it, but it's very interesting.

   You are going to need to invest a few thousand dollars if you don't have anything.

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10. atiff
    Member

    

    Hey Maverick,

     Let me make this easier for you.  I'll give you two very good sources.

    One is www.markapsolon.com , his dvd's are good for learning and very cheap.  Grab all 4 of them, its only like 80 bux for all 4 and will really help you out.

    The other source is www.bmyers.com .  Bill is the king of producing How to videos and his site is excellent and costs only 10 bux a month to join.

    That should be just right for you since you are just starting out.  No need to panic my friend :)

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11. maverick
    Member

    

    Many thanks.

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12. ValleyKnitter
    Member

    

    Hello there!  I just joined this community myself and am in a situation somewhat like Maverick's.  The twist is, I know how to edit.  I am a retired news/doc editor whose last experience with NLEs was the very first of the Avid systems.  Now that you know how old I am, let me tell you what I want to do. 

    Our church, a small rural congregation, is celebrating its 125th anniveersary next year.  I want to help the younger members of the congregation produce a video oral history of the church, interviewing the older members and getting their stories.

    I have looked at a few sites that sell camcorders and software, and am aware that we will need to purchase a dedicated hard drive (will 500 G be big enough?) but I would be very interested in input on the tradeoffs involved.  As you have probably guessed, small, rural = no money to speak of.

    Here are a few questions:  Will I need a new PC with a blazingly fast processor?  Again, how much storage?  I know from real life experience that the answer to that is "there's never enough," but I'm hoping to teach discipline along with production techniques.  In addition to camera, tripod, mic, editing software, storage drive, am I missing anything -- such as format conversion capabilities?  Does most editing software include the ability to key titles?  Let me know, I'm all ears.

    Thanks 

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13. Ryan3078
    Member

    

    Well, I can tell you what has worked for me, and hopefully that will help you in your decision.

     I've got a total of 3 hard drives that equal about 600GB of space.  I have never used more than 70GB on one project to date, including 30 minute documentaries edited from hours of footage.  You could complete this project with a separate 120GB hard drive just for your church project.

    I bought a $600 Dell in 2006, and I still use it.  It has 1GB of RAM and a Pentium 4, 3 Ghz processor.  By now this is starting to become old, as most new computers use dual core processors and 2-4GB of RAM...

    However, the computer I described above has no issues with editing DV, burning DVDs, creating 3D animations, and video projects with many layers and effects.  I can't even think of any editing software that DOESN'T include titles.  It's standard.

     Depending on what exactly you purchase, you could get your computer, software, accessories, etc that can do the job for $1000.  You could also get the video/audio equipment for another $1000.  This will end up being middle grade computer gear and consumer/slightly prosumer video gear...but seeing as how you are starting out with personal digital editing it will be a great starting point.

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14. ValleyKnitter
    Member

    

    Good info, thanks.

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