| Entry level NLE offers cool features for the price |
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Ulead Systems has wrapped its VideoStudio 6 editing application into an 8-step, workflow style metaphor and targeted the application to beginning video editing enthusiasts. Similar to some entry level scanning interfaces and image editing applications, the workflow style makes it easier to create a finished video, complete with special effects, titles, audio and transitions.
The interface is built around a task-oriented system, with each step in creating a video clearly defined with a tab at the top of the screen. The eight tabs are Start, Capture, Storyboard, Effect, Overlay, Title, Audio, and Finish. VideoStudio takes this recipe-style approach to editing and outputting a finished video, which is perfect for the entry-level video editor. [an error occurred while processing this directive]
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| The VideoStudio Interface |
While higher end editing applications, such as Ulead’s Media Studio Pro are primarily timeline-based, VideoStudio offers you the capability to edit your projects in Storyboard mode or Timeline mode.
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| The Timeline window |
The Storyboard mode lets you assemble your project in a way that represents the order of events that you want to showcase first. For entry-level editors, this type of editing can be easier and faster than the traditional Timeline mode, which enables you to tweak each clip as well as the effects that you wish to add to your video. Timeline-based editing enables you to more fully refine your project. The Timeline mode features five separate tracks for media: Video, Overlay (for overlaying video), Title (for adding titles or end credits), Voice (for narrated voice overs), and music tracks (for adding a music track to your project). The Timeline view gives you access to frame accurate editing, and gives you the capability to add titles, sound, and overlay tracks to overlap more than one video track.
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| The Preview window |
Getting video into your PC
If you have an IEEE 1394 (aka FireWire or i.LINK), port on your PC, and a digital video camera that has an IEEE 1394 port, then you have the capability to capture DV into your PC. Many PCs today ship with an IEEE 1394 connection as standard equipment. If your PC is not equipped with an IEEE 1394 connection, then you will have to purchase one of the many available FireWire cards that are currently on the market. These cards are PCI-based and usually sell for around $100. If you have an analog video camera, then you will need a video capture card that converts your analog signal to digital.
Some companies offer USB-based capture devices. While they can indeed get video into your PC, most DV cameras have standardized on the IEEE 1394 protocol, so stick with DV cameras and IEEE 1394 cards. The USB-based cameras have a better role for video conferencing and the like than video movie making.
VideoStudio offers several video formats for editing video.
MPEG-Direct Capture automatically converts any DV you bring into the computer into MPEG format, eliminating the step of having to convert an existing DV file to MPEG after it is captured to your computer’s hard drive. Before you capture direct to MPEG, you can adjust the settings of your capture based on the quality and file size that you desire. Batch Capture enables you to select the parts of a video that you wish to edit, without having to capture the non-essential elements.
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Related sites: • AV Video • Corporate Media News • Digital Producer • Digital Video Editing • DV Format
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