Capturing conference: dv deck, firewire capture, dv rack, or...

smhontz wrote on 12/3/2004, 1:23 PM
I work for a church where twice a year we have a big conference with several general sessions. We videotape the general sessions and then make them available to those who could not attend the sessions. Currently the setup is a live two-camera shoot into a VHS VCR; we take the VHS tape, load it into FCP or Vegas, add titles, and then print back out to VHS tape. The tapes are then sent to be duplicated.

Obviously, I'd like to have a much cleaner flow - straight into a DV tape or maybe directly into a firewire drive? and then out to a DVD instead of a VHS tape. So, I'm looking for suggestions:

- Should I look into purchasing a DV deck? recommendations?
- How about one of those direct-capture firewire drives?
- Or, DVRACK directly into my laptop? (I played with the demo, but don't own it...)

Ideas? Being a church, the cost is obviously a big issue. We would need to capture about 12- 20 hours worth of material in a conference.

Comments

jetdv wrote on 12/3/2004, 2:24 PM
At our church we capture the weekly service LIVE into the computer. Setup is cameras via S-Vid to the mixer, mixer via S-Vid to a deck, deck via firewire to the computer. Ready to be edited as soon as the service is over.
smhontz wrote on 12/3/2004, 2:58 PM
What kind (make/model) of deck are you using? And what do you have running on the computer to capture the firewire feed? Just Vegas capture, or something else?
rmack350 wrote on 12/3/2004, 6:11 PM
The advantages of DVrack would be that it can be started and stopped by the camera trigger, that it can be connected to a huge hard drive, and that it can capture a buffer before you pull the trigger.

If you've got the personpower then it'd be cheaper to have someone just start and stop a plain capture app. Assuming you aren't paying them, of course.

Regardless, you have to get from your switcher to 1394. Also, it'd be really good to capture to DV tape AND capture into the computer simultaneaously. After all, a backup is a good thing.

Rob Mack
Spot|DSE wrote on 12/3/2004, 6:29 PM
The capture part, can be managed by Vegas. However, as Rmack says, DV Rack will start/stop with the cam, plus you have instant calibrated field monitor with safe zones and thirds clearly marked. Plus, you get the notices for any color, exposure, or audio problems too.

If you're not run n' gun, DV Rack is da BOMB, IMO. We've used it on a number of video projects.
jetdv wrote on 12/3/2004, 8:42 PM
We are using a Panasonic AG-DV2000 and using Scenalyzer for capture (simply because it's easier for ANYBODY to use - just double-click the icon and then click on Capture) but Vegas Capture would work just fine as well.