Do-it-yourself desktop video - for use in multimedia presentations - Stop Playing Games: An Entrepreneur's Guide to Multimedia - Cover Story - Tutorial

Home Office Computing, Dec, 1994 by Jan Ozer

From customer testimonials to product demos, nothing quite delivers the message like video. That's why many companies - large and small - are turning to video to help sell their products or services. You can, too. You just need to assemble the tools and start shooting.

Get in gear. When it comes time to invest in some basic video equipment, the first place to start is with a camcorder for capturing the footage. Although most home units deliver acceptable quality, they generally lack key media features. Here are some features to look for if you've decided to buy a new camera.

Start with Hi-8 or S-VHS compatibility, which offers better quality than 8mm or VHS. Then consider optical image stabilization to steady camcorder motion, a valuable feature even if you plan on shooting all footage from a tripod. The lens should zoom to at least 10X, although 15X provides a much greater range and is, therefore, preferable. Interchangeable lenses, available primarily on professional equipment, allow for flexibility and an upgrade path to higher quality and higher zoom ratios. Finally, high-end camcorders should include time-code stamping, which helps keep track of the individual video frames for editing and capture use.

A good basic camera is Sony's ([408] 432-0190,[800] 342-5721) CCD-TR101, a Hi-8 camera with Steady Shot image stabilization, time-code stamping capability, and 10X zoom. Priced at $1,899 list, you should expect a street price of around $1,500

At roughly twice the price ($4,000 list), the Canon L2 Hi-8 camera delivers 15X zoom, interchangeable lenses, and time-code stamping. In most instances, the price difference translates directly to lens quality, which allows the Canon ([516] 488-6700, [800] 828-4040) to deliver perceptibly better quality than the TR101 unit. You get what you pay for.

Hot and new - but untested for this review - is the Sharp ([201] 529-8200, [800] 237-4277 VL-H410U Viewcam ($2,499; $2,100 street), a Hi-8 camera using a color LCD view screen on its side panel rather than the traditional camcorder focus unit. With the optional Viewcamteleport VR-MS1U, users can share still images with other Viewcam owners via ordinary phone lines, providing a semblance of real-time still-image teleconferencing. The Viewcam also features 16X zoom, digital image stabilization, and a docking station that connects the camera to your television or VCR for playback or recording.

Digitize. Once you've shot the footage, the next trick is getting it into your computer. Video capture, or digitization, is when the analog video from the camcorder is converted into the digital format that your computer understands. This requires an internal video capture card, which connects via cable to the camcorder.

Requirement number one for your capture card is hardware-based capture compression, enabling the board to squeeze the incoming video stream for storage. Capture cards without hardware compression skip too many incoming frames, rendering the video unusable.

Next up is S-video input, a feature once again favored over composite video for its higher quality. Finally, the capture card should also deliver a video editing program for such functions as titling and the Video for Windows software that enables you to play back your videos and distribute your clips. Audio capture also requires a sound board (see "Adding Audio to the Mix").

By the way, the computer you use plays a role in all of this, too. You'll be happiest working on at least a 66MHz 486 computer or a 68040- or Power-Pc-based Macintosh with a minimum of 500MB of disk space, since captured video requires 20MB or more per second. Also the more RAM, the better. If you've been looking for an excuse to buy that extra 8MB of RAM, now's the time; working with video is absolutely dreary without at least 16MB.

Smart Video Recorder Pro ($570 list) features Intel's ([503] 629-7354, [800] 538-3373) own Indeo video-compression technology and ships with Digital Video Producer, Asymetrix's video editing and capture program. Other products worth considering are ATI's ([905] 882-2600) Video It ($499 list) and Creative Labs's Video Blaster RT300 ($499 list). If you prefer Macintosh, check out Apple's Video System for the Quadra 630. This $149 add-in card provides either composite or S-video input as well as recording to QuickTime format.

Shoot 'em up. When you're ready to shoot, you'll achieve the best results by using a tripod and by minimizing your motions. For example, avoid panning and zooming whenever possible. Minimize potential video "noise" with clean foreground and background objects; striped shirts and busy wallpaper are definitely out. Remember that most digital video is shown at a resolution of 320 by 240 pixels, or at a quarter screen, so close-ups are definitely preferred.

Keep clips fairly short. Four 30-second clips tied together are infinitely more interesting than one two-minute clip. Watch the evening news and note how little time the anchor talks before there are changes in the camera angle or graphics, or before the shot is switched to a correspondent. This caters to our short attention span, and your video should do the same.