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Capture Cards
Could someone explain why you need a capture card? When I edit in FCP I simply use Firewire and digitize my footage. Is that compressing the image too much? I mostly edit small time projects for my self but I want to expand and begin to make it a commercial enterprise. Would I need to get a Kona or AJA like people talk about for broadcast quality work? And if so where is a good place to go read up on what hardware I would need?
Thanks,
Chris
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3 Replies
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Go to the product websites and that should give you what you want?
Why get a capture card, if you use DV you probably don’t need it, but if you need capablities like monitoring without the camera, the abilty digitize many formats, hardware support for editing…. the caputre card is very useful…
Now which one you get depends on what you want to spend and what you need…
Simon Carlson-Thies,
Digital Light Graphics And Animation -
[cjahrens87] “Could someone explain why you need a capture card? When I edit in FCP I simply use Firewire and digitize my footage.”
You are not digitizing footage, you’re “capturing” it. Digitizing involves changing analog footage like Beta SP to digital, which incidentally, requires a video capture card.
You need a capture card (and speedy drives) for non DV/HDV/DVCPro50-100 Footage, like uncompressed footage. You may only be familiar with the DV format, but there are literally dozens of other formats that you may not be aware of.
[cjahrens87] “Is that compressing the image too much?”
DV Footage is compressed as soon as you shoot it. It’s about 5:1 compression.
[cjahrens87] “Would I need to get a Kona or AJA like people talk about for broadcast quality work? “
AJA makes Kona so it’s the same company. Yes, this is a good card for doing higher quality work. You will need faster drives than you have right now as well. However, certain compressed formats are considered broadcastable including DVCAM, DVCPro 50 and DVCPro HD do not require a capture card and can be acquired over FireWire.
[cjahrens87] “And if so where is a good place to go read up on what hardware I would need?”
I would just ask around here, if I were you.
Good luck.
Kevin Monahan
Take My FCP Master’s Workshop!
fcpworld.com
Pres. SF Cutters -
[cjahrens87] “And if so where is a good place to go read up on what hardware I would need?”
Do a search on this forum for Capture Card, it’s been discussed a ton. Also visit the Kona and Blackmagic forums and read up in there. Then visit their websites.
Capture Cards allow you to capture just about anything into your system and put anything out. Each card varies on the specifics of what it can do. If all you are doing is DV in and out, you need nothing at all. If you need to bring in / output to anything other than DV, such as DigiBeta, HDCAM, BetaSP, etc… then you need a capture card.
I personally run the AJA Kona series and they’re just the best product out there for me. They capture everything in / everything out and support is second to none.
Walter Biscardi, Jr.
https://www.biscardicreative.comDirector, “The Rough Cut”
https://www.theroughcutmovie.comNow Posting “Good Eats” in HD for the Food Network
“I reject your reality and substitute my own!” – Adam Savage, Mythbusters
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