Tools & Tips

When copying slides or movies from a screen, it's best to get the projector and camcorder lenses as close together as possible to avoid alignment problems. But this usually makes it very difficult to access the controls of either machine, and you can never get perfect alignment anyway. But if you look through the ad pages of Videomaker, you'll find a number of ads for items like candid mirror scopes. These are right-angle mirror boxes that screw onto your camcorder lens. You can also use these devices to get a perfect 90 degree angle on your projector. This allows plenty of access room to work, as well as excellent alignment.

Jack Harney
Ontario, Canada

Seen any mysterious flying objects in your video lately? Here in south Texas, we have an abundance of wind, and no matter how securely you dock your lens cover to its bracket, before long you'll be seeing UFOs. One solution uses two 3/4-inch pieces of velcro, the kind with a stick-on backing. Place one piece on the back of the lens cap and the other on the bottom or side of your camcorder. Presto! No more flying objects. Even inside where there is no wind, this looks more professional than having your lens cap dangling from a string.

James Venard
Corpus Christi, Texas

I read in your magazine that re-packing new Hi8 tapes before use will help eliminate dropouts. What I do is to record green or blue (any color will work) on the entire tape, and then rewind it. Any device that will generate color will work. This packs the tape. More importantly, if I shoot scenes with gaps between them, the color will fill the gap, and the real time counter on my VCR will not lose its count.

Patricio Hunt
Republica, Argentina

Here's a way to get 1/30th of a second accuracy for your musical sound track. Copy the music you wish to use to the audio tracks of a new videotape. Simultaneously, record visual time code on the video portion. If you can't generate visual time code, shoot the face of a moving stopwatch. Now, use this newly-made videotape as the music source while editing. You'll be able to locate the exact frame of music, down to the note, by listening to the music and noting the visual time reference on the tape. You will need an extra monitor to do this.
This will work especially well if you have jog/shuttles on your VCRs. To maintain accuracy, you'll have to experiment to find the right lead time for your deck (the time it takes for the VCR to come out of pause and begin playing).

Bill Burkhead
Louisville, Kentucky

One of your articles suggests shooting stage plays from the back of the theater as a wide shot. I've found it's far more useful if the camera can follow the action from a 3/4-shot to a head-and-shoulders shot. These shots resemble most TV sitcom shots, and they're better at capturing the intimacy of the acting.
To shoot this way, you must know the blocking of the play so you'll know which actor to follow. You must shoot with two camcorders, preferably from two sides of the stage, or shoot two shows. This will give you the best coverage, and make editing easier. If you're going to tape a play, do it in a way that's a learning experience for the actors and yourself. Otherwise, what's the point?

Tim Truby
Los Angeles, California

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