Over the past couple of issues I have introduced some ideas for how digital video could be used in different curriculum areas and outlined choices of hardware and software. Last issue featured a basic ‘How to’ guide to using iMovie HD (on the Apple Mac). This article is the equivalent guide for PC users, in the shape of MovieMaker, a program that comes as part of Windows XP. It is very easy to use and most people tend to pick it up very easily.
1) Filming.
The basic principle of digital video recording is that each time the record button on the camera is pressed, an invisible ‘mark’ is made on the tape. When the camera’s content is imported into MovieMaker it appears as a series of clips delineated by these marks. This means that pupils should be clear from the planning stage that they are filming a series of clips that they will put together to make their finished film. The process can be helped by using a storyboarding sheet to facilitate planning. You may find it helpful to use a digital camera to take still photographs for storyboarding. In general I recommend using a tripod for most shots (as this avoids ‘camera shake’) and only using the digital zoom for framing shots, i.e. not when filming.
2) Load MovieMaker.
First load MovieMaker by doubleclicking on the MovieMaker icon (which looks like projector reels). This can usuallybe found off the Start Menu, All Programs branch. This will load MovieMaker and the screen will look like so:
3) Importing footage.
In order to be able to edit a movie, it is necessary to transfer the footage (clips) from the camera to the computer. This is done by connecting the DV Out socket on the camera to the firewire port on the computer. Not all PCs come with a firewire connection, particularly slightly older or lower-spec (cheaper) machines. It is possible, however, to buy plug-in firewire cards, either PCI for desktop machines or PCMCIA for laptops. Once the camera is connected, switch it to VCR or playback mode and wait. After a few seconds, Windows XP will note that it has detected new hardware and in time the video capture wizard appears. If this doesn’t happen, then try closing down MovieMaker and re-loading. If still no success, try turning the camera off and on again, and if that also fails then you should check cable connections.
Following the instructions on the wizard prompts us to enter a name for the ‘collection’ of clips and specify the location to save them to. It is worth giving the clips collection a relevant name, as it is very frustrating later to be ploughing through lots of collections in order to find footage that you want to re-use. It is also worth making sure that all collections are saved to the same location on the computer as it makes file management easier later.
DIGITAL VIDEO
Clicking ‘Next’ and following wizard instructions prompts to choose ‘Video Setting’ which basically tries to balance quality (big files) with available disc space. The choices made here will depend on the final plan for the project (e.g. will it be exported back to tape or viewed using a computer?). Clicking next again calls us to ‘Choose captur method’. Selecting ‘Entire tape automatically’ rewinds the cassette and captures the footage, splitting into clips as it goes. Selecting ‘Capture manually’ allows us to choose when to begin and end capturing the clips. In general I use ‘capture automatically’ unless I started recording partway through a tape.