Camcorder and video editing Frequently Asked Questions

Panasonic nv-gs50 video camera
always in a pose mode, when you want to record
gives you a black screen.Does anyone know why?
Pls repost this in the general forum . Ill remove it shortly
 
Can someone suggest a good Video Editing Software for Windows 10 ,64 bit ?
One that does not cost an arm and a leg and is straight forward to use ?
Something that can be viewed on you Tube ? thanks ...
 
Am running Windows 10 64bit.
I have used Corel VideoStudio Pro for a number of years. (currently £61 from Amazon)
There are plenty of tutorials (see Gripps on YouTube) including a number from Corel for beginners.

Originally bought it following some spectacular crashes using Pinnacle Studio (old versions). After the usual learning curve found it very flexible and relatively robust. It is not the worlds most sophisticated editor but is excellent for editing videos together, easy to learn and has all the normal "bells and whistles" you would expect from an editor. You can do all the obvious, add voiceover and music, chroma key and picture in picture, titles and subtitles and so on. Do check the web site.

These is an update every year but the basic program stays the same. There is an Ultimate version which is exactly the same basic editor but with extra effects.
 
I've used several versions of Movie Studio Platinum (formerly owned by Sony/SCS, now MAGIX). If you're interested in the current version #14, read the honest independent review here and use the free 30-day trial first (recommended with any video editing software).
 
Hope to read that Review, but earlier versions were 32-bit, so moving to new version means a new PC - and I'm mixed about Magix LT support as they already had a Video-Editor. +Cheers vkmast... Seasonal Greets.
 
Can someone suggest a good Video Editing Software for Windows 10 ,64 bit ?
One that does not cost an arm and a leg and is straight forward to use ?
Something that can be viewed on you Tube ? thanks ...
Davinci Resolve 14. It is free for a fully functioning lite version. It is what the big boys use in movies and tv. Has the best defacto standard color grading built in. Insane motion tracking. Only thing is it is built to edit editing formats. So you will want to transcode your mp4 and h.264 files to much larger editing formats such as dnxhr on windows or Linux or prores if you are on a Mac.
 
That Resolve software may be free . . . but no use to majority of amateur film-makers, unless they are on a professional shoot. It has limited input file-types and whilst it is an excellent piece of software - it will take a long time to get to grips with.
andjarnic suggests changing the file-types (=essential) but the resulting files mean the 64-bit PC will need greater power - I think they suggest RAM=16Gb as a starting point.

+For something under £100 there are several Video-Editors about . . . these accept the output from Consumer Camcorders and will (mostly) create perfectly acceptable movies after a few Tutorials. My v12 Sony Movie Studio includes very good TUTs which you have to follow precisely to move-on. This is a very good technique IMHO - but Sony never did any shouting, concentrating only on the output ( which everyone expects, anyway). It's possible the latest version has this.... and the 30-day trial versions...?
....Good Luck....
 
Hi Folks,
I am new to this forum. I have a question about importing from a camcorder...
I have a Panasonic NV-GS250 ( over 10 years old). I have a selection of tapes created over the years, which I would like to view on my laptop without having to import them as humungous .avi files. ( Typically over 10 Gb each). Is there a converter that will sit between the camcorder and the laptop that will generate a mp3/4 file that I can view directly on my laptop screen? Doesn't look like movie maker can do it as it seems to require a physical file.
 
— As an Amazon Associate, AVForums earns from qualifying purchases —
Hi Peeps. I wonder if someone can help me. I have an old JVC GR-DVL100 camcorder and lots of kids tapes. My old computer runs Windows professional 7 and I've installed a firewire card to connect to the DV out on the camcorder. the card is installed and working properly but for the life of me it will not capture or even see the camcorder no matter what lead or anything I do so I would be grateful for any help out there.

Peter.
 
Thanks for taking the time to reply Mark I will be giving it a whirl tomorrow evening and will report back!
Peter.
 
Hi Mark Thanks for the help, managed to set up the legacy driver no problem but, unfortunately still does not recognize the camcorder! It doesn't even pop up in devices connected. So we move on and thanks once again for your help.
Peter.
 
hi there guys, I've just bought a canon dc20010 camcorder and the mode switch function doesn't seem to be working. Anyone happen to know if this is me doing something wrong, whether its easily fixable or if this is properly broken. many thanks,

Luke.
 
That Resolve software may be free . . . but no use to majority of amateur film-makers, unless they are on a professional shoot. It has limited input file-types and whilst it is an excellent piece of software
it will take a long time to get to grips with.
It took me 1/2 a day and some youtubes to learn to do basic editing good enough for Youtube. I am not sure what the file restrictions were, in fact I found almost the opposite, it was the least restrictive of all of the free packages as it was one of the only packages that had no problems with AVCHD files.

It has two main restrictions over the licensed version, it wont render in 4K and it doesnt offload to the GPU where the paid version does
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Regarding Davinci Resolve, it's now on version 17 and has been optimised to run on lower specced machines.
It can look daunting, but the recently introduced "CUT" tab is a lot more simple than the "EDIT" tab.
Recent optimisations mean that it will work better with MP4.
It's growing popularity due to it still being FREE mean that there are lots more beginners tutorials on YouTube.
If you stick to the basics you can't go wrong and gives you more than of the other free pro NLEs such as Avid MC First & Lightworks.
 
I have tried just about all of the free trial" downloads but I have yet to find one that will render in 4k to test it as the ones that I have tried only allow 1080 hd before you buy.
I don't care if it is watermarked as I just want to find one that I like and then I would buy it
 
Last edited:
The only absolutely "free" editing software that will do most formats as well as 4k is "Video Proc Vlogger" is is slow but it does work.
 
I brought

= Wondershare Filmora
= Movavi Video editor Plus 2022 version

what one doesn't have the other does
 
I often get asked how I can pick out and film a close up member of a group playing when I am either standing in one position or moving about yet still keeping the whole group in frame. I can use several fixed cameras but they take a bit of time to set up and can be moved by people bumping into them or (as happened several times) actually standing in front of them !. It can be done in final editing but you can lose quality when enlarging parts of a scene if it is being filmed and rendered in the same resolution. I can just turn up to a gig and use this instantly without any hassle. The GoPro is on a 3 axis gimbal that is set in the locked position and being wide angle I can leave it fixed on the complete group on stage, I can then zoom in on various people or instruments with the main camera either on the stage or even turn round and film the audience while the GoPro is still filming the group, I then edit it all together with a separately recorded sound track.
 
Last edited:
With that vertical hand grip does it foul the flip out screen on that same side I wonder.
No it just leans against the stabilizer upright and misses the handle completely when the stabilizer isn't fitted. That particular side handle mount (made by Hama) is very well made and folds flat, so it fits in a small gadget bag. I don't think that they make that model anymore ? Incidentally you mentioned a screen sunshield the other day. I have had one for ages as I certainly need it in Spain where we spend half the year.
Screenshot (1598).png
 
Last edited:
I have looked at several of the mini tripods in the past and decided to get a Ulanzi MT33 that cost a massive £18 ! a couple of years back. It claims that it will hold up to 2Kg, you can fit it to almost anything that the legs will fit round and will hang upside down as well as free standing. It has a ball head that will swivel to 90deg also a cold shoe mount and a built in phone mount ! It is very well made and if you zoom into the picture that I took that is holding one of my camcorders you can see the quality. I use it some of the time to hold an audio recorder or a GoPro if I can't find a fixing for one of my "Smallrig" clamps when filming bands.
Screenshot-1113.png
 

The latest video from AVForums

Is 4K Blu-ray Worth It?
Subscribe to our YouTube channel
Back
Top Bottom