Home movie to DVD conversions
When transferring your movies, the advantages of DVDs outweigh those of VHS tapes. VHS film can degrade over time and the cassette casings are prone to damage also as well make the tape useless. Storage is easier with DVDs since they take up less space than videos. In addition the quality of the footage and sound is higher on DVDs.
So how does one convert VHS tapes to DVDs to salvage them for the future? There are many options. For starters, you could use a VHS to DVD business that will do the transfer for you. We are one of those companies. Visit our conversion page today at http://www.vintagevhs.net/vintagevhs_services.html
But if you are computer savvy you can do it yourself, and even though we are in the converting organization , we also like to help out where we can and share the information we know, so you know.
The computer savvy will use their computer to transfer their family videos to DVD. It requires copying the video to a digital file on the desktop using an analog converter. The file gets reduced to MPEG-2 format before being burned onto a DVD. This task takes some time, but it allows you to make changes to the footage , like special effects or songs , before you copy it . Depending on the burning program that you use, you possibly could add a menu or other special features. The process can be a long one because you have to transfer the file twice: first from the video to the computer and then again from the comp to the DVD.
To save on time and effort, you can copy the video to a DVD without the use of a comp. There are two possible ways to do this:
The first involves getting a DVD recorder that allows input from another source. Simply connect your VCR player by cables to the DVD recorder and while the movie plays, it records.
The second option is to purchase a combination DVD/VCR recorder. It does the same thing as the previous option without needing to connect any cords.
If you do the conversion yourself, be sure that you have cleaned the heads of the VHS tapes between replicating videos. Old tapes carry a lot of dust or other particles that could block up the VCR. And because you are duplicating directly from the film to the DVD, any picture quality issues you have with the video will show up on the finalized DVD. Knowing that if you have movies which are recorded at S.L.P. you will not get the exact quality of recording onto a DVD as if the video was recorded at S.P. If you find the quality is not acceptable for you, consider changing your method of converting.
For more help visit our blog at http://www.vintagevhs.net/Video_Editing_blog.html
Converting family movies from VHS-C cassettes present only minor problems. VCRs and VHS or Hi-8 camcorders are with R.C.A. modulation footage and sound outputs that can be easily connected to a DVR or a DVD Recorder as well as to a computer port such as U.S.B. using an adapter and video program.
Unlike VHS and Hi-8 tapes viewed on VCRs and camcorders, older reels of home movies present a different obstacle to convert them to a digital formats. The older 8mm projectors do not have movie video output jacks. The older film projectors never converted the movies to any analog signal, what they did was just to basically pass the images on film in front of the projector screen. There's no simple way to directly copy this content to a digital format.
Consider using Vintage VHS conversion services to transfer the videos; just $10 a reel this month!!
8mm Conversion to DVD
Based on how many 8mm reels you have and your budget, getting a professional to do it may be the best option . Family members might usually are more than happy to chip in for the conversion if they end up with copies themselves. Getting a group of contributors could make this option even more affordable.
