PC Magazine Guide to Digital Video [With CDROM]

This book is a must-read for anyone trying to create DVDs from analog videotape! His chapters on cameras, capturing video, working with audio, choosing software, and creating DVDs are indispensable!

I have been shooting video as a hobby for over 14 years and editing on the PC for over 9. I have to say Jan Ozer makes all the proper recommendations to beginners from type of equipment to purchase to the type of software that will suit your needs. The book also includes a CD with trail versions of MyDVD, Pinnacle's Studio, Ulead Video Studio and more. I would highly recommend this book to anyone that wants to make great video.

1. This book covers basic, though fairly advanced digital video topics. The progression of the book is smooth, and easily followed. The author does not assume the reader is a `dummy', yet he does not frustrate us with overly-technical prose. He explains digital video with plenty of hands-on applications to get you up and running quickly. 2. This book also cuts though the marketing hype associated with digital video products. The author frequently provides a product comparison matrix to help you decide what product or feature set will work for your situation. 3. Reading this book beats standing in front of a retail rack of product boxes, with wildly varying prices, claims and features. Now, you can shop with confidence because you'll know exactly what to look for, and why. 4.The chapter on the Basics of Shooting should be required reading for any new parent - just knowing how to frame my shots and manage camera motion has improved my videos immensely... and you can ask my wife!

This book covered all the bases and left no stone unturned. Its kind of funny, as I was reading it, I realized how much time this book would have saved me if I had it just one month earlier. All the countless hours I spent on the web (consumer reports, pcmag.com, etc) doing the research on the proper gear and the must haves to go along with it. This book answered all my questions and a lot more that I had never even thought of. One of the interesting things that I can think of off hand was the audio setting during recording. After reading the manual that came with my camera, it suggested that I left audio setting at 12bit. They claimed that this would allow room for more audio tracks. After reading this book, I realized that most of us aren't going to feed an extra audio track into our cameras, we will more than likely do it post recording in pinnacle or other editing software. So I switched to 16bit and it will stay there. Also another misconception that was pointed out was recording in 16x9. Most of us think that 16x9 will capture more video, when in fact this is true for professional movie makers with cameras most of us cant afford, but not so for just regular consumers. The fact is 16x9 captures less video, then the standard 4x3. This is great book for those considering home video and those well established in the home video arena. I highly recommend this book to those in seek of answers to everything video.