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Connecting Your DV Camera to your Computer and Capturing Clips

What others are asking on this topic:

  • Are tapes rewritable? – Posted by iScrap about 1 year ago

    Thank you for the kind complement. Mini DV tapes are re-writable. You can record over them as many times as you wish. I wouldn... (continued)

    Reply
  • Didn't Come With A Cable – Posted by LilFlower about 1 year ago

    You need a firewire cable, probably a 4 pin (camera end) to 6 pin (computer end) unless you are using a laptop. Some times lap... (continued)

    Reply
  • Difference in Firewire Cables – Posted by teresa about 1 year ago

    There is a difference in cables. The end that plugs into your camera is going to be a 4 pin. The end that plugs in to your com... (continued)

    Reply
  • DV camera as web cam? – Posted by melody about 1 year ago

    Sure, if you plug it in using the firewire cable your computer should recognize it as a camera device. I have used mine before... (continued)

    Reply

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  • Overview
    Connecting your Mini DV camera to your computer is a fairly straight forward process. Joshua demonstrates what the cables should look like, and where they should plug into both the camera and the computer. After connecting the camera Joshua explains how to begin capturing your video from the tape inside your camera.
  • Do You Have Firewire?
    Mini DV cameras all come with a firewire port (Sony calls it iLink). Digital 8 cameras also come with a firewire port as do some of the newer cameras with onboard hard drives or memory cards. Older cameras like Hi8 or VHSC don't have firewire ports, if you have those cameras then skip to the video "Getting your VHS video onto your computer via an analogue conversion device."
  • 4 Pin to 4 Pin or 4 Pin to 6 Pin?
    If your camera didn't come with a firewire cable you can buy them on line or at a local electronics or computer store. Check the type of connection you have on your computer before you buy a cable. Cameras always have the small 4 pin type of connector but desktop computers usually have the larger 6 pin connection while laptops can have either.
  • No Firewire Port?
    If your computer doesn't come with a firewire port then you will need to add one. See the video "How to install a firewire card" or take your computer to a reputable dealer and have them install one for you. It shouldn't run more than $80 for the card and installation. You also have the option of using an analogue conversion device that plugs into your USB port. Costs for these devices are similar to adding a firewire card and the quality of the video capture is not as good so we advise adding the ports if you already have a camera with a firewire port.
  • Where Is Your Project?
    Always pay attention to where you save your project. This file represents all the editing work you have put into your video. When you want to return to a project you started earlier, just open the folder where your projects are and find the one you are looking for and double click.
  • Why DVD Disc?
    We suggest you use the project preset for creating a DVD. We say this because even though you may be planning to make this video for display on a blog or another website like You Tube, you should always make a master copy of any video to DVD to archive.
  • Label Your Tapes
    Naming your tapes is very important. Be sure that what ever name you type into the computer, that same name is written on the tape it self and the tape case it is kept in. This will help you in the future when you want to go back and get a certain shot from a certain tape. Another tip is you should always label your tape as soon as it leave the camera. Take a quick second to write down whatever it was you just shot and the date. You have to write pretty small but that tiny writing will save you hours later on because you won't have to fast forward through mountains of unlabeled tapes looking for a particular event.
  • Don't Overfill Your Hard Drive
    Do pay attention to how much space you have on your hard drive. Video files are huge and can fill up a hard drive quickly. You might need to do just one editing project at a time. Capture all the video you will need, edit that video, make DVDs and one full resolution backup of the final movie, and then delete all the raw files from your computer to free up space before you start the next project.

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