Capturing PAL video via QuickTime

When I record from my videocamera using QuickTime, I cannot get it to record at full size. Even "device native" is at reduced size. The frame size is 384x288 but I need it at 720x576. This is a PAL video camera.
Normally I would use FinalCut to capture the media, however there are some weird tape errors with this particular tape, and it keeps stopping recording. QuickTime allows me to keep capturing (it ignores the errors) but it won't give me the same frame size

Interestingly, that quarter size video was the same data rate as the full size video that QuickTime captures.
DV compression video data rates are basically fixed at 25 Mbps for DV (DV25) and DVCPRO25 while DVCPRO50 is twice that rate. Total data rates vary by actual audio/video content and audio bit length used (usually 16-bit/48.0 KHz).
The device is a Sony PD150/PD170 camera, using DVCam tapes. So I am guessing that when Final Cut captures, it is converting that to QuickTime as it captures?
Nearly all editors work natively in DV format since it allows "frame" level editing. Main problem routinely encountered is capturing in iMovie (or iMovie file compatible application) and then importing the file to FCE/FCP. (This requires re-rendering of the audio.) QT format may require this strategy but since it is not part of my normal workflow, I don't know for sure. In addition, the importation of other QT compatible formats automatically invokes a conversion of the source file to the DV format. HDV is additionally compressed with MPEG in order to lower the typical 100-120 video data rate to more compatible DV/FireWire data rates for capture by your editor (or user set to to downconvert to DV during export).

Similar Messages

Trouble capturing analog video using Quicktime 7 in Yosemite

I am attempting to use Quicktime 7 Pro under Yosemite to convert old 8 mm or Hi8 analog videotapes to digital .mov files. The tapes are being played through a Sony TRV350 camcorder, which digitizes the analog video, and outputs digital video via the iLink (Firewire) output, which then goes to the Thunderbolt input on my MacBook Pro using an adapter. I start the camcorder and then start QT7 Pro.
This DOES WORK - for a short while. After taking in 32MB of data or a minute (of a 90 minute video), QT7 stops capturing data with a message:
"Recording stopped because the format of the source media changed. Media of different formats cannot be recorded to the same file"
What does this mean and how do I get around it?
PS: There are not many ways to convert these old tapes. Under Yosemite iMovie will no longer accept video from a Hi8 camcorder. There is some discussion of older iMovie HD but this does not work properly under Yosemite at all.
Need to digitize these old family tapes - any help will be appreciated

One tiny wrinkle is that "Save" from Vidi gives an error message but "Save as" works fine. I suspect Vidi may also stop working with the next OS X release.
Since you did not indicate the specific nature of the error message, I don't know if this is a "fixable" problem or not. The difference between the "Save/Record" and "Save As.../Record As..." options is that the former automatically stored the captured files in a designated location using a default filename. You may wish to check or reset the preference settings here to see they are causing your issue.
Yes, the conversion of a 90 min tape does give a 21 GB file but I don't care - these family videos are irreplaceable and storage is cheap.
This sounds about right—i.e, the normal average DV-25/DVCPRO-25 total data rate is on the order of 28.5 Mbps (or about 13 GB/hour) with DV-50/DVCPRO-50 about 57 Mbps and DV-100/HDV about 114 Mbps.
One more question. Now that I have a DV file, what can I use to convert to a more compressed format that preserves quality? QT7 to save as H.264 is best? Or something else? Toast?
This normally depends on your goals and personal workflow preferences.
For instance, if you are editing content (i.e., trimming; merging; adding titles, fades, transitions, effects, etc.), I would normally use the export/share options that are available from within the editing app itself. On the other hand, for simple trims and export/share of files, I would normally use QT X or QT 7 Pro depending on the specific project needs and/or level of manual control desired. For totally edit-free conversions, I would normally use the encoder options now built into Yosemite (or Mavericks) operating system at the Finder level or the free HandBrake app. (The former basically employs a non-anamorphic approach with high/low quality or target device controlled quality options while the latter has a better graphic user interface for anamorphic strategies with more manual control for truly customized exports as needed.)
EXAMPLE 1: The family normal has Thanksgiving at my brother-in-laws home in PA so my son hosts a second "pseudo-Thanksgiving" dinner on January 1st for the relatives here in NJ. This year I wore a GoPro and within minutes of returning home created the following "trailer" of the gathering (with a total absence of any real planning or forethought) using iMovie to shared the file directly to Mail for posting to others. In this case, I used the video editor to both edit and share a "quickie" video with the rest of our relatives from the East to West Coast. I.e., it seemed the most efficient workflow for the mini-project... SAMPLE VIDEO
EXAMPLE 2: On the other hand, several yeas ago I was asked to post a "quickie" tutorial showing how to layer audio and video content. As this was a relatively simple project, I used QT 7 Pro for this project. Here is the resulting SAMPLE FILE created while making the tutorial.
EXAMPLE 3: In cases where the quality of the source file varies drastically—one video being an 80 year old cinema classic and the next a just released blockbuster loaded with special effects—and/or the source files are not "natively" compatible with QT, I prefer HandBrake for its ability to "tweak" settings over a wide range to create "universal" playback files for all mobile devices, local network streaming, and sharing via internet... SAMPLE 1959 TRAILER
EXAMPLE 4: Lastly, when I simply want to just transcode one or more QT compatible files (for any number of reasons) at the Finder level without having to open a dedicated converter utility, I simply select/highlight the files in the Finder and pass them to the Yosemite/Mavericks operating system for conversion... POCKET RECORDER SAMPLE FILE
As you can see, you have a myriad of options to choose from depending on your personal preferences, needs, goals, etc. As to H.24/X.264/MPEG-4 AVC, yes I would recommend sticking with any encoder that adheres to the JVT standard since it has become a default Mac system standard and, with different settings, is extremely scaleable with regard to use—i.e., it can handle anything from cellular streaming to Blu-ray or multi-K Hi-Def resolutions. However, for all-purpose use, I stick to High Profile (current mobile, TV, High-Speed Internet compatible) or Main Profile (older mobile device, original TV, lower-speed platform compatible) anamorphic encodes at level 3.1 which nicely covers data rates from less then 100 Kbps up to 14 Mbps or anything most users will ever need.

Best way to Capture Analog Video (via DV)

I have no issues with capturing DV video froma DV Camcorder in PRE. The process is very smooth and I really am comfortable with it. However, when I am capturing my old wedding and other personal VHS tapes (via an ADTech Pyro AV) I really hate the capture capablities within PRE ( I am use PRE 7).
I was wondering if there is any advantage to using PRE for the DV Capture for my Analog material verses using either Windows Import Video, or using some other capture program like Pinnacle Studio (which allows me to specifiy the length of the capture verses having it just run on until I stop it.) Most of my VHS tapes are 2 hours in length and I would like to be able to say capture 125 minutes then stop (so I could just run the captures at night or while I am otherwise not using the computer.) With PRE7 it will just continue capturing forever until I stop it, which creates some enormous files that then need to be trimmed.
(Does anyone know a way to tell PRE to just capture for x amount of time on a analog to DV Capture?)
Is a DV Capture the same regardless of program? Is there any advantage to actually running the capture through PRE7 verses external where I can provide better control over the length and time of the capture.

If your ADS Pyro AV Link is set up right and capturing over FireWire, you should get the same quality no matter what program you use to capture -- and that quality should be as good as the original. Premiere Elements does nothing to change the video data of DV as it captures; it just saves it as it comes in.
But I would not recommend using any program or device that captures as anything other than DV-AVIs. Otherwise you're dealing with conversion issues and possibly incompatible video files, etc.
Does that answer your question?

Captures PAL video with NTSC camera using Premiere Pro 1.5

I try to capture (download) PAL videos from a Sony DCR-HC40 NTSC camera using Premiere Pro 1.5. I can see the movie (on the camera) but none is captured in Premiere. I did it before and it worked, but I forgot the appropriate setting within the Premiere program.
I would appreciate any suggestions. Muenkey

The latter is the problem. As I hit the capture button, the tape in the camera rolls, I can see (and hear) the PAL movie in the view finder and on the LCD screen of the camera, but the capture window stays black (though the frame counter works) and nothing is captured. (This is true whether I use an NTSC or PAL project set-up in Premiere). Again, I know there is a solution. I have done it before but forgot the necessary set-up steps in Premiere.

How do I Capture Streaming video with Quicktime Pro?

In Lamonts post about converting video for the iPod, it was pointed out that one can capture streaming video (Steve Jobs Keynote speech for instance), with Quicktime Pro. I have QT7.04 Pro, but don't know how to do this simple thing. Can someone please tell me?
Smartmart

it's possible. i did it myself, after a few tryouts.
i still can't get the best result, but i got something.
first of all you have to save the streaming file(thru the save as qt movie, from CTRL-click). when you get a stream it gets cached on your computer. you might playback it even when offline. so if all that you need is a simple playback, that's ok. but it's a cache, sometime the system will erase it from your HD.
if you want to keep it as a qt file(or any other format) thats this is the deal. when you save the stream file, it saves a reference file(4kb) that reads the cache. you cannot recover them from the cache, not even by changing the termination, because the qt player won't recognize the .qtch files transformed into .mov.
open the file(reference you saved before), choose export from the file menu, and choose the setting that you want. i still don't get a good quality(i know it's incredible that a stream file has a better quality...) and i still have to export the video separated from the audio. but if you need only the moving image to edit a homevideo, and your only source is a stream, it's a start.
so if anyone feel like growing the knowledge tree, let's go ahead.

Problem capturing PAL video into FCE HD

I'm having a problem capturing video from a PAL MiniDV tape. The tape was recorded on a PAL camera during a shoot in India; when I got home with the tapes the cameraman gave me, I was unable to view them on (or capture them from) my (NTSC) Canon GL-1 to my PowerBook G4 running FCE HD3.5.1 (external hard drive).
I borrowed a friend's Sony Handycam and CAN view the tape without a problem on that, AND get a "VTR OK" message in the FCE "Capture" window (though I get color bars and a "Preview Disabled" screen). I can also control the tape playback from the FCE Capture interface.
However, when I click "Capture Now", after clicking the "Play" button, I get a dialogue box that says "This operation could not be completed as there is no video."
I have tried a number of different "Easy Setup" device control options, but to no avail.
Can anyone help? Thanks!

I'm going to correct myself ... although I was able to capture the contents of ONE tape, after that the problem returned and I cannot capture anything else (even that same tape). So it seems the "solution" was not "FireWire-all-the-way" but remains out of my reach for the moment ...

Capturing Screen Video with Quicktime Screen Recording

I've just found that Quicktime can record everything on the screen. This is very useful as I want to produce some training videos that are based on web-browsing. The problem is that I want to be able to zoom in on parts of the screen and I saw elsewhere a trick that invloved using Universal Access to Zoom in with either the mouse wheel or Keyboard. The problem is that these zooms don't appear to be recorded in Quicktime. Is that correct, or am I missing something?
many thanks

captfred--
Can you help with this from an Oct 2010 post? I'm having the same trouble in OS 10.6.8--random dropouts in QT Screen Recordings using QT Player 10.0 (131). The original poster said the problem only happens when recording sound, but I need sound. If you can help, please email me at blockard @@ iname . com. Thanks!
"Sometimes it records fine and I end up with a full recording, sometimes the middle is gone, sometimes just the end. The file size doesn't seem to matter; I have some good recordings that are nearly 500MB, and some that failed when they are only 30MB (and I have well over 300GB free)."

Simultaneous import of video via firewire and audio via in-line audio port

I have a converter that takes the S-video and audio input from my DVR then converts both to DV format, and then outputs via firewire. I hook the firewire up to my G5, open iMovieHD, and the application recognizes that as a camera and imports wonderfully.
Well, the audio comes through with a MAJOR buzz or hum. It's probably the converter, but the buzz/hum is not enjoyable.
So, I removed the audio from the converter, and the video converts wonderfully in iMovie without the audio. I have the audio coming in through my audio line-in.
I start to import my video, and iMovie starts recording the video. But I want to record the line-in audio at the same time. But when I switch to audio to turn on the input from the line-in, the video stops capturing.
When I start to capture audio first, then switch to capture video, then the audio stops capturing.
Is there any way that I can capture the video via firewire for one "track", and my line-in audio for the other "track", and have them play simultaneously in iMovie during capture??
Any help would be appreciated. thanks Adam

hey there badkitty 42,
i don't think you can do that. it sounds like your issue is electrical. try turning the plug around on each piece of gear in the chain & listen for the buzz. if it's not heard you've found the cause of your ground loop. you can also pick up some of the 3-prong orange or grey electrical adapters from Lowe's or Home Depot to see if you can "lift the ground" to get rid of the buzz. i'd try one on the convertor 1st. one last thing, do you have any flourescent lights in use on the same circuit or in proximity to where you're doing your transcoding? these are notorious for inducing 60Hz hum in audio & video gear.
good luck.

Capture card recognized but not capturing any video

Hi everybody,
I have a problem with a capture card, a Pinnacle 50dtvi.
I'm trying to capture live video via Flash, using the Camera
object. With my webcam it works perfectly.
Flash is given the permission to access the capture card,
which is recognized correctly by Flash, nevertheless it doesn't
show any output.
Any solution?
Maybe there's a problem with the fact the card has several
input sources (tv, analog in etc.) and Flash doesn't know how to
distinguish among them - this, for instance, is what happens with
softwares like vvvv, where you can select the capture device and,
inside it, the capture source.
Is there any way to make this choice in Flash via
ActionScript?
Do you know of any (possibly low-cost) capture card working
with Flash which have a in and a out?
I've seen others have similar problem, for instance:
http://www.adobe.com/cfusion/webforums/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=578&threadid=1164387&en terthread=y
Thanks everybody!

I have the same problem with other TV capture cards. I've
tried a hauppauge 150, 350, and an AverMedia card.
All show up as valid camera devices, but there is no video. I
even tried to use an external applciation to set channels, set
inputs, etc. No luck.
My application works with some camera sources, such as usb
web cams and a usb composite video capture device.
I've searched lots of different forums and come across this
problem at least a half a dozen times - never answered though.
Help!!

PAL Videos with NTSC camera

I have problems capturing PAL video played with a Sony DCR-HC40 NTSC camera. Though I can follow the movie at the camera level, nothing in captured in the Premiere Pro 1.5 program. What is the correct setting in Premiere?

I am with Steve, on not knowing how one might be able to do what you want, other than converting from NTSC to PAL. However, with PrPro 1.5, I would post to the PrPro CS4 and Earlier Forum, as many folk there do both PAL and NTSC work, and might have some nifty tips for you.
Good luck,
Hunt

Export via Quicktime Slow

Hi,
I am having a problem with exporting videos via Quicktime. Instead of taking all the cores on the Mac Pro it seems to take only ~10% of all the cores.
Is there a setting in iMovie that would allow me to actually make real use of all the 8 cores in the Mac Pro instead of having to wait 5+ hours for an hour of video to be encoded?

Michael Kalus wrote:
.. Is there a setting in iMovie that would allow me to actually make real use of all the 8 cores in the Mac Pro instead of having to wait 5+ hours for an hour of video to be encoded?
No.
iLife apps use only one core.
don't expect wonders from a 20$ app..
probably 'Grand Central', a feature of SnowLeopard http://www.apple.com/macosx/snowleopard/ , adds multi-core support..

No video when trying to capture PAL dv tape w/Sony HVR-V1U camera

Hello there,
Im attempting to Log & Capture a DV tape with "DV SP PAL" content from a Sony HVR-V1U camera using an iLink FireWire.
I have deck control, timecode, and audio but no video. Instead I see bars for video w/the ominous "preview disabled" band. When I attempt "Capture Now," I receive the follwoing message "this operation could not be completed as there is no video." For Easy Setup, Im currently in "Format: PAL; Use: DV-PAL FireWire Basic" (ive other combinations, and again best I can get is deck control but no video).
The DV PAL tape plays fine in the camera's LCD screen. Also I had no issue capturing HDV NTSC tapes using the same Sony HVR-V1U camera.
I've checked my settings and the usual obvious stuff but no luck.
If anyone has any ideas on what Im doing wrong or things I could try it would be much appreciated.
Many Thanks,
Sam

are you sure this camera is fully pal compatible? Some cameras/decks will play back certain formats but will not output via firewire. Can you shoot PAL with this camera? If not, I'd guess you can't use it to capture PAL via firewire. Might check the camera manual.

Buffering video downlowds via Quicktime, when using a HSDPA USB modem.

Hi,
Does any one else experience very poor streaming performance via Quicktime, when using a HSDPA USB modem. Every time, when using the Quicktime player and receiving data via a HSDPA USB modem, there seems to be minimal buffering of that data, so that the video quality is extremely pixelated and virtually unwatchable; are there settings that can be altered to correct this problem? This issue seems to be so petty, yet Apple is unable to offer a solution? That doesn't seem right?
Regards,
mike_biz

Is this a file that Quicktime PRO is not able to open?
Yes. Your camera's native video format is MPEG-4 and appears to possibly be "muxed" with MP3 audio.
If not, is there anyway that I can convert this file to one that I can use on my Mac?
Try installing the free Flip4Mac component. Then try playing the .asf file in the QT Player.
Is it possible to upload from my camcorder via the included USB cable and convert directly through Quicktime PRO?
If your file plays using the Flip4Mac player component, you may then wish to consider purchasing full conversion codec which will allow you to export your DXG-305V files to any frame-to-frame synchronized QT compatible format in QTPro.
ADDED: Sorry about the duplication, too slow with my response.

Capture video via usb elgato or canopus

I can't find how to change my capture source, or even where the capture preferences is.
I'm trying to capture video in FCE using the Elgato usb analog in/usb out device (same thing happens with the canopus device) .
The device works fine with it's own software, but I need to get it going within FCE, and can't find the menu window to even select the source.
I'm sure it's something simple I'm overlooking, but thanks for your help.

FCE will not capture video via USB. With the DV Converter preset you can capture from a FireWire device. This is selected in Easy Setup.

Problems Capturing Video via FireWire

I have had problems capturing video via firewire on my MacBook Pro. It is an early 2008 model. I have tried capturing video using multiple programs, cables and cameras. In both Final Cut Express and iMovie ('08 and '09) I loose the connection mysteriously. It just stops sensing my camera mid capture. I can shut the computer down, programs down and cameras down but nothing seems to work consistently in getting it to work. The weird part is that it does work some times. Recently I tried an auto capture of a whole miniDV tape through a sony handicam via iMovie '09. It got 20mins of the tape then stopped and rewound the tape. When trying it again it read "connection error". I could not get it to work. I put the computer to sleep and came back later. It worked but only captured about 10 minutes then shut down the whole camera and import completely. I switched to manual import and it will now only let me capture about 20 seconds at a time. What is going on? To me it seems like the port itself is malfunctioning and disconnecting the signal randomly. Has anyone else experienced this? What is the cause and what can I do about it?

I've been reading the forums and it seems that there is an issue with the Firewire port in general. I have an external firewire 800 HD and when copying large files or a large number of files the HD gets dismounted unexpectedly. Your case seems similar in that we are both transferring large files via Firewire. Anyone have any fixes for this?

Capturing PAL video via QuickTime

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