Video Editing Questions.

If you don't mind the difference in camera size you can go with Digital 8 for cheaper than MiniDV (about $400-$500 for a mid to upper range Digital8). It's still digital, you can still go Sony, and it works the same as MiniDV. As far as I can tell there's not really a noticable difference in quality.

My only regret about going Digital8 is that my camera is just that much [does the universal finger symbol for 'that much'] too big to stuff in my jacket pocket.

Oh, but the tapes are between $1 and $2 cheaper a piece compared to MiniDV.

------------------
- John
Dag, yo
Support Rob in the Great DDR Challenge!
*** This post was edited by Michael Darling 3/22/2003 2:13:36 AM ***

Yeah, and it's the future Betamax! ;)

------------------
Jeff - Webmaster/Admin - CoasterBuzz.com - Sillynonsense.com
"The world rotates to The Ultra-Heavy Beat!" - KMFDM

But it doesn't matter. The Digital-8 recording format is IDENTICAL to Mini-DV, so if you have D-8 and want to upgrade to Mini-DV, all you need is a FireWire cable and a stack of cassettes to clone (not dub!) the D-8 tapes to DV. Even better, you can use all the same editing tools for D8 that you can use for DV. And in theory, D-8 should be less succeptible to drop-outs and other tape-related problems because the tape is 50% wider than the 1/4" DV tape, suggesting a larger recording surface and a wider track pitch.

So Digital-8 may never gain much popularity compared to Mini-DV, but because it is an acquisition format, that doesn't really matter anyway. And the upgrade path doesn't involve throwing out a whole production system...only the acquisition camera.

Of course, all of the current video formats are going to be obsolete in a couple of years anyway. I just hope that the industry figures out how to adapt Mini-DV to high-resolution recording...!

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

Go with a MiniDV camera, totally. They arent as expensive as youd think they are...especailly if you can work out a deal with a wholeseller on Ebay. I got a MiniDV cam, 2 lenses, 3 filters, 4 yr plan, and a tripod for $450. I used to use a 8mm camera, which I used to make my last video. It was a PAIN IN THE ASS, the MiniDV is so much better to use and looks so much better. I was very disappointed at the video quality i got (everything was fuzzy & grainy) and it was also hard to import to the computer. Go with Digital8 or MiniDV....to get analog at this point is putting you at the end of the road to start, and it would just be a total waste of your money. As for video editing on the computer, if you dont wanna spend any money there are a lot of video editing packages for under $100. The Pinnacle one is easy and works fine, and there was another one a friend of mine recommended to me that I cant remember. Otherwise get ready for some learning and use Adobe Premiere 6.0 or 6.5 I find these to be the best programs...along with all other Adobe products for anything graphic.

------------------
SFGAm Viper