What is causing the loss in quality? « Videomaker Community Forums

Kemper
Member

I seem to be having an image quality issue with my projects and I don't know where the problem is. I have noticed this in two areas; Video transfers & in editing a live performance. I will start a list of my equipment.Dell Precision 390 Workstation. Windows XP sp2. Intel Core 2 CPU each are 6400 @ 2.13 GHZ. 4GB (Shows as 3.25 for some reason) of RAM (DDR2 5300 ECC). DATAVideo DAC-200 Analog/Digital Converter. HP DVD840 External DVD Burner (Primary drive for burns). Adobe Premiere Elements 3.0. Memorex DVD-R Inkjet Printable discs (For finished Product) & Maxell DVD+R (Kept by me as a backup).

My videos haveÂ a pronounced shake once exported to DVD. The shake is not there before it is captured, it is still not there when viewed on my pc (on the timeline or in Windows Media Player), but when I preview itÂ or when I view the finalized disc it is shaky. I have noticed this on analog transfers (hi8 & VHS) but also with footage shot on a DVD camcorder. I never exceed 85 Minutes of footage to maximize the bit rate. Most of these projects have some content chopped out (Blank spots etc). Some have menu's added including custom backgrounds (Photoshop files). I have tried to adjust the Field Dominance but it is still there.

I recently taped a memorial service (Panasonic DVX 100b) and produced a DVD that had a great image unless I zoomed in too much in post in which it pixilated a bit but no shake at all. I also taped an acoustic performance at a coffee shop that had low lighting with the same camera and the image quality looks ok unless I make any adjustments to the size of the image. Even shrinking the image to 50% produced pixilation.

Where am I loosing quality? Is it in my pc, editing software, DVD media, or are my expectations to high? I know this was a bit lengthy but I wanted to disclose as much info as possible. If I missed anything (type of desk, personal diet, etc) let me know. Thanks in advance for any and all input.

Cole

Posted 4 years ago #
Man-KC
Member

I often had some kind of shake when ever there was panning of the camera on the clip. The pan would be smooth when previewed on tape or tv but shaky as soon as its in the computer. I had to resort to adding motion (I use adobe premier 6.0) and then setting the motion values at zero, which eliminated the problem. You could try that and see what happens. This of course being an effect means you will wait much longer in previews and exporting your final clips. Worth it to me in the end. Hope this helps as a temporary solution.

Posted 4 years ago #
brandon0409
Member

Are you doing your original filming on a Hi8 or VHS type of tape then transfering it to the computer?

If so, The analog to digital converter will often cause some pixelation.Â Also you need to make sure the settings are correct before you capture the video.

720 X 480 is the standard DV size.
350 X 256 (or something like that) is the standard VHS size.

Anything smaller will end up being pixelated.

I would say, that the first thing you should check is the settings.

Â ------

With the DVD camcorder, if you are trying to edit the DVD footage, you WILL have problems.Â Because DVD camcorders record directly to MPEG format, the MPEG uses keyframes which make it very very difficult to edit.Â Because if you edit out those keyframes then many of the other frames will be blurry.

If you are trying to just play the DVD in a DVD player and send the signal thru the analog/digital converter, I would recomend not doing that.

Just use a DVD converter (software) to convert the DVD to a manageable file format.

Many times, the DVD camcorders come with this software.

Posted 4 years ago #
Kemper
Member

Thanks for the input Brandon.

I am not filming the video on VHS or Hi-8 but I transfer tapes of these formats for others. I play their tapes through a Hi-8 Camcorder (or VCR) and convert it to digital using the Datavideo converter. I will try to find a way to adjust the setting to accommodate the difference in resolution lines. I have heard some in this forum mention a camcorder that plays both hi-8 and digital 8 allowing use of the firewire connection. The way I understand it (and my digital 8 camera works this way) is that you can record on a hi-8 or digital 8 tape but the video will be digital. It will not play the analog tape on digital footage. If anyone knows of a model that will play both I would love to hear about it.

As for the mini DVDÂ to DVD transferÂ issue, that makes sense. I figured those players had to finalize the disc in order to play it on a regular DVD player. That particular client is going to lend me his camcorder and a non-finalized disc to let me capture it before it is converted to MPEG. He mentioned something about having the option to "Un-finalize" a disc but I have never heard of that. Maybe it has something to do with the software you mentioned.

Thanks again for your time.

Cole

Posted 4 years ago #