Latest Video & DVD Transfer News

We're pround to announce the installation of our second Flashscan......... following a massively successful 2011 and the transfer of 2.8 Million feet of film!


www.cine2dvdtransfers.co.uk

The Christmas rush is over...

Time for a few days of well earned rest. Many thanks to all our customers for their support this year.


If your sharing a family Christmas this year and talking over old memories of years gone by..............


Dig out the tapes and cine films We're back on the 3rd of January and ready to help preserve those treasured moments captured on cine and videotape.

We are experiencing exepctional demand for our quality and value for money service.

Please order in good time if you require pre Christmas delivery!!!

orders of more than 2 or 3 tapes are now taking 16 to 18 days

Every year we get extremely busy in the run up to Christmas and already orders are flooding in.


Please remember to order in good time of you are having a DVD made as a Christmas pressie.


Currently, November 4th, we are advising a service time of 14 days on the average order.

We're back from a weekend spent at the family history show at Olympia.

It was great to see so many customers, old and new. We also made some new friends on some of the other stands.

For a taste of what they can offer why not take a look at their websites

Photo Valet for restoration of old, faded and torn photographs

Beautiful Memories Whether telling your stories, sharing memories, bringing your family tree to life, recording a legacy or capturing a special event, Beautiful Memories will create a film to be an everlasting treasure.

Sepia Quill The National Archive of Wedding & Social Photography is there to store images for the nation. The ordinary every day social images that all families have and images that very often get lost or discarded at the end of someone's life. Well we don't want that to happen and hence the purpose of this Archive to prevent the Nation's images being lost.


They all come highly recomended by us.

How we make transfer your cine film.

The first step when your film arrives is a visual check of your materials. Next your films are sorted in to any specified running order and one of our technicians will begin the process of inspecting the films and if you have supplied a number of small spools, splicing them in to larger reels on which we will return your films.

Your film is then ready for transfer.

We are proud to be using the FlashScan HD, designed and built in Germany my MWA Nova. The FlashScan takes transfers to a totally new level and moves away from using modified and so called updated projector technology.

The basis of a stable and precise transfer is a stable and precise movement of the film through the film deck or gate. In the days when cine film was projected the movement of the film was controlled by a toothed wheel/sprockets and a claw that pulled the film through the gate frame by frame. The vast majority of machines built for transferring cine to video and DVD, over the years, have still replied on this technology. Indeed for many years we used such equipment produced by ELMO of Japan and more recently Tobin Cinema systems in the US. It has always been apparent to us that whilst camera, video and now digital technology was moving at a pace film transport was not.

The FlashScan HD, after years of development and experience in the transfer of larger formats enables a radically new approach.

Your film is transported by a rubber coated capstan wheel driven by an extremely precise stepper motor that is in turn controlled by a laser which detects the sprocket holes in your film. As the film passes through the gate a flashing light source exposes each frame to a rapid burst of red light, then green and finally blue. All at a speed invisible to the human eye. By using individual bursts of each colour we can achieve superior colour from the dye layers with in your film. The light source is also scatter diffused which helps disguise any minor scratches on the film. Finally the images produced are captured by a camera which has a true native resolution of 1280x720(720p50) The output is then digitized and recorded on to our computer hard drives as large high quality AVi files ready for compression to DVD or BluRay. Should you wish we can also supply you with these files.

The whole process and operation of the machine is controlled by computer

As part of some excitting changes to the way we transfer cione film we need some large spools for customer films to be wound on to....

Our best option has been to have them made up for us.


Here are the mould being cut

If you are researching the best way to have your cine film transferred you will find an abundance of people trying to get your business and a wealth of information on the methods they use to transfer your precious memories.

Companies offering transfer services range from one man in his bedroom (who thinks he can make a few pounds), to established companies like ourselves. We have over 30 years experience in this highly specialised field. Websites can be misleading; a one man business can make himself look like a multi national organisation. Our customers will tell you that we have been in business for many many years and that we continue to offer good service and competitive pricing.

Transfer Methods
It can be very confusing when you ask how your cine film will be transferred. The most basic method used is where old projectors display your film onto a screen; a camera is then mounted beside the projector to capture the resulting images. This sounds perfectly sensible; however, the quality of the result will be affected by many factors.

Firstly the quality of the projector used: Most projectors are bought second-hand and used until they fail and as you will gather as you read this article they simply are not designed or built for the purpose of telecine.

Secondly and most important, is the question of synchronisation. The PAL TV system we use in this country operates at a refresh rate of 50HZ.. Put simply, the camera produces 50 images per second. It is important the frames per second at which the film is projected is matched to the 50Hz exactly. This requires a speed of either 16 2/3 second or 25fps. Most projectors run at either 18fps or 24fprs. This inconsistency introduces a flicker to the transfer which is emphasised
by the projectors 3 or 4 bladed shutter. This method also requires the transfer to be carried out in a totally light free environment which rarely happens.


At the other end of the Transfer scale is the "Flying Spot" system. This method is used to copy Hollywood Block Busters on to video. In fact this method is not so widespread nowadays as few movies are still shot on film. In this method each frame is scanned individually and then digitally combined.. There are only one or two specialist companies using this system, it is very expensive and the increase in quality is not always noticeable. Remember the process was designed for much larger film gauges.

Transfer technology has moved on and specialist archive company MWA Nova or Germany have released the Flash Scan HD aimed at producing archive quality transfers from 8mm film. The systme uses a sprocketless transport system that uses a laser to sense the sprocket holes of the film. This along with a high definition camera unit enables us to capture superb results direct to our computer hard drives which are then used to create a DVD of your cine films

We also use a number of Telecine Machines which are made for us in America. These machines are designed specifically for the process and, using the latest technology, have even over come the issues of synchronization. Allowing us to transfer film other than 8mm with excellent results.

Emulsion side or base side? You may come across the term Emulsion side scanning whilst researching film transfer methods. Don?t be persuaded that it?s any better; certainly don?t pay extra for it! The film emulsion (which carries the image) is coated on a crystal clear plastic base. The picture looks exactly the same from either side, unless the film base has in effect been sandblasted by unusual abuse. We might point out here that every 35mm movie print you have ever seen in a theater, and all currently made 16mm prints contact printed from negative, are shown with the base side towards the projection lens. If this routinely caused any quality problem, the situation would have been corrected 100 years ago.

Transfer firms who offer to buy your old projection equipment. This means only one thing. They use old projectors for their transfers. But surely any projector can easily be used for Telecine transfers? RUBBISH! Most projectors have too slow a pulldown cycle for this, even with the addition of a 5 bladed shutter. Besides, a 5 blade shutter is only correct for transfer to NTSC video at 24 FPS or to PAL video at 20 FPS (frames per second.) Also, for adequate speed accuracy, the TeleCine machine must have either an AC synchronous motor or a crystal motor, together with timing belt drive. Finally the average projector lens lacks the needed source diffusion to avoid hot and dark spots in the image.

Should I pay the high price for single frame at a time transfer? Put simply, NO. A normal projector mechanism gives plenty of time to capture the images when running at normal speed, if it is done correctly. Your eye is not able to appreciate it, but in normal speed running, the film is already perfectly still in the gate some 80% to 90% of the time. The remaining 10% to 20% of the time the film is being pulled down to the next frame at 5 to 10 times the average speed.


Who will handle my film?
Some would say that the most important factor when choosing who to trust your films to is the people. Transferring cine film requires a blend of technical skills, artistry and understanding of the customers needs. Don?t be fooled by the statistics some people quote. For example... Some newer companies will tell you they have transferred half a million feet of film. In reality this equates to around 650 hrs of film.

We have 3 Transfer Technicians working each day and they transfer this much film, and more, every month. The facts about our staff are that we have 5 experienced Transfer Technicians with over 25 years of experience within our company.




Cleaning your film.
Most cine film is in surprisingly good condition and only needs dusting with compressed air during the transfer. Other cleaning methods can actually do more harm than good. Several companies offer a cleaning service which involves wiping with swabs soaked in isopropyl alcohol. This will lift the dirt but will also dry the film making it more brittle and if the dirt builds up on the swab it will scratch the film.

Any one looking for an insight in to the various videotape formats from the mid 50's onwards might like to take a look at this website. http://videopreservation.conservation-us.org/vid_id/70-85home.html.

The site offers details and photos .


Jim

I'm pleased to offer our support to Jason Clark.

Jason has no previous sailing experience but is spending the next two years refitting a 22 ft yacht ready to enter the Jester Challenge. A single handed race that will take him from the UK to the azores.

A journey that will raise money for the cancer charity Christies.

Please visit his web site to learn more and donate.

Check back here for further updates on his progress and the ways in which we'll be offering support

Interestingly I had a couple of customers in my office during yesterday that got me back on a soap box. Why do so many shop assistants think that the best camcorder for everyone to buy is the most expensive and modern?

Witness my pet hate of always trying to sell HDD hi def camcorders. These are great for the techno savy but I am regularly phoned by a customer with many many hours recorded on to their now full hard drives. Who have no idea how to get the footage off them and on to a format they can readliy use and share. Often the customer doesn't even have a Hi Def TV as yet. HDD camcorders are great if you are PC literate and upto date on all your other technology.

One of my customers had been sold a TV, Blu Ray player and camcorder. She'd even had a blu ray drive added to the family PC and was happily burning Blu Ray discs from the camcorder. BUT, she couldn't understand why the disc she made were not playing for friends in their DVD players. The second customer, luckily had not bought a camcorder yet but is expecting her first baby and windering what to buy. She admnits to not being a techy. I suggested one that takes SD cards so she can easily have some one else make the transfers.

So... yes there are lots of options and some very fine cutting edge technologies out there but when researching you need to consider a number the whole process. From shooting to sharing and archiving the memories.

Check out our new promo reel shot for us by Darren at Cliff Productions.

It gives an insight in to the story behind a customers film and show some of how we work on your treasured memories.

www.video2dvdtransfers.co.uk

Amongst the many questions I get asked one that regularly crops up is the question of editing footage once it's been copied to DVD. The popularity and value of services such as ours, coupled with relatively low prices for computers and DVD drives mean that it's something that ocuurs to many people when they first out to copy and preserve all their family footage by transfering it to DVD.

There are a number of issues that need to be considered when contemplating such a project.

Firstly and to my mind most importantly is time. We don't offer an editing service to our customers and the main reason is due to time and cost. Lets say you have 2 hours of video that you want to edit down to just 1 hour of hi-lights. How long is that going to take you to do? 1 hr, 2 hrs ? Well in reality it will take you at least 3 hours.

So the first question to ask is do you really want to spend the time needed to complete the editing. After all who ever originally filmed your old cine films or Video tapes filmed them for a reason and once they are on DVD you can easily skip through them.

So you've made the decision and it's time to get down to some video production! Traditionally the practice of editing and copying DVDs has been associated with video pirates. Do a web search and you are likely to find a host of information aimed at defeating copy protection codes added to commercial discs. Luckily this is of no interest to you as our DVDs are neither encrypted or copy protected.

What you will find if you've done some editing in the past is that a quick look at the DVD in My Computer or file explorer won't reveal a list of movie files. This is because the DVD has been produced in a format that is meant to be played in a DVD player. The DVD player expects a certain structure of information on the DVD and that's what is there. Various video and audio streams, along with the menu structure are tucked away in what is aften called a VOB wrapper. It's also worth noting that DVDs use Mpeg compression. You may be used to AVI and WMV files. Mpeg can make hefty demands on computer power.

If you are working with a PC you now have two choices, based on the complexity of what you want to achieve. Option one, the complex approach that will give you full control and allow your creativeness to shine is to extract the Mpeg files from that DVD to your computer hard drive in their raw state. You can then use one fo the many videoediting packages on the market to do create your movie which is then burnt back on to another recordable DVD. To carry out this extraction you'll need to use one of many utilities that you will find on the web. Such as DVD decrypter, Magic DVD Ripper or Prism Video Converter. It's worth noting that these will also allow you to convert the video format during the extraction process which can be useful if your editing software works with different file types.

Another way to approach the editing is to use software designed especially to allow editing of the VOB files that make up your DVD. One such piece of software is Mpeg Video Wizard from womble Multimedia inc This allows simpel frame accurate editing of the Mpeg2 streams that are contained inside the VOB structure of the DVD.

You can find an article on the software here.

Thanks to the Andy at my dream designs work on the new cine transfer site is progressing well and the site will soon be up and running.

Just a sneaky little word to let you know that we've started work on a sister site to Video2dvdtransfers which will make our wealth of experience in cine transfers avaliable to our customers.


Keep an eye out for more details.

I'm pleased to announce that video2dvdtransfers has booked a stand and will be at the biggest family history event of 2010. Who Do You Think You Are? LIVE, sponsored by Ancestry.co.uk, is a live event at London Olympia. Along with the stands advising in how to research your family tree, there will be a whole area dedicated to photography and preservation of family memories.

More details of the event can be found at the official website


We look forward to meeting customers old and new and to sharing our love for preserving video footage.... creating digital memories.

Great new ordering details on the V2DT web site with per tape prices and a design your own covers option.


This has to be the simplest price structure and order form avaliable on the web....

Here's a great web site that I came across whilst surfing....


Run by a guy called Tom Genova it's a clean and clearly laid out web site that tells you every thing you could possible want to know about the development and history of TV. From early sets mounted in their beautiful wooden cases right through to HD. The number of photographs of sets is incredible and well worth a look purely to see the styles and changes in fashion


Finally the links to collections page is well worth checking out, there are some fantastic collections out their.

Did you know just how awkward our copyright laws are? Ever stopped to wonder if you are breaking the law when you load your favourite Cd on to your Ipod? or when you record tonights TV soaps so you can pop down the pub?

These are all things we do daily and don't stop to think twice. Dig a little deeper and you'll be surprised.

Broadly speaking you can sum up Copyright laws in this one sentence :-
"You should only copy or use a work protected by copyright with the copyright owner's permission.You should only copy or use a work protected by copyright with the copyright owner's permission."

You'll often hear people say that you are allowed to make one copy of a CD or DVD for your own use. Well, this seems to be an accepted standing but actually is not to the letter of the law, unless of course the piece of software or DVD you bought clearly says this in writing.

Don't believe me? Well check out the FAQ at the IPO web site. That's the Intellectual Property Office!

Here's an example


Can I copy a CD that I have purchased onto my MP3 Player?
No, this is not legal under UK law. There is no exception to copyright for the purpose of private copying. Permission would be needed from the copyright owner.
There are number of legal download websites available to the public that allow you to download music onto your MP3 player.


So you'll see now why we have to be responsible when we are asked to copy peoples favourite exercise video VHS to DVD. BUT, all may not be lost as in my experience you can usually track down the publishers and ask them to send you permission in an Email...

I am often asked if we can sort out problems with damaged videotapes. Tapes that don't play so well. These tapes are always of precious family events.

The problem with a rewquest like this is that there are so many things that can lead to poor play back of a videotape. Poor original recording, poor storage, over use and physical damage.

Using our equipment we are able to get the best reults from any given tape, but some problems and damage can not be overcome.

What is certain though is that the problem with the tapw will not get better. So if, for example, you have an edge damaged VHS tape. Continued playing of it will make the problem worse. By having a VHS to DVD transfer made you will preserve the footage before it is gone completely.


Jim

So your thinking to keep all your precious stuff by recording it to DVD. May be back up your photos from memory card to DVD or indeed use a company to copy your videos to DVD.

Well do you remember all the hype when CDs and DVds first came out?

There both great formats but please be realistic when using recordable discs. When you burn a disc in your PC, or indeed when any recordable disc is produced, a laser uses light to generate heat and burn away dye within that disc.

So what we are actually saying here is that recordable discs are sensitive to light....!!!!

Please remember to store the discs sensibly, away from direct light and heat. That way you will get the best life time from them.

Ten things to look for when choosing a video to DVD transfer company.

1. Are they really a dedicated transfer company? Check their address, is it a business address or residential. Too many internet businesses are actually just one man making a few pounds from home. Chances are they will not be insured or have the resources to make your transfer quickly and effectively.

2. Are they VAT registered? A non VAT registered company may offer a slightly cheaper price, but again this means they are not really making a living from the service they offer.

3. Do they offer transfers from all the popular video formats that have been used over the years? You can find a list of these formats here.

4. Do they offer a simple and straight forward price structure? There?s nothing worse in my mind than not being able to see what you will be paying for a product or service. Well may be there is?..

5. Are there any hidden costs. OK, so you deiced who you are going to entrust your family memories to and just as you are about to complete the ordering process they hit you with an unexpected charge. That cheap price that enticed you doesn?t seem so good now and why did they stoop to that level to get your business?

6. Are you paying for options and add on services that you may not want? Fancy menus and printed covers can be great, but are often away of bumping the price up. Look for a service that lets you chose what extras you want. This way you get maximum value.

7. Do they copy protect the discs they make? There your memories you should be free to copy and edit them as you wish.

8. Do they offer extra copies at a reasonable price? The bulk of the cost of a video transfer is for the time the initial transfer takes. Despite what you may be told by some transfer companies the only way to achieve a good transfer is to work in real time. Extra copies however take a fraction of the time and their price should reflect this.

9. Do they publish their full address? PO Boxes provide an easy way to mask a run from home business. You want to know where your precious videotapes are being sent to.

10. Do you know the name of the company you are dealing with? Beware of any one offering their services under 1000?s of different names and website. It?s one thing to have a couple of brand names but if your chosen transfer company is on the web under many many names and is reluctant to give you the actual name of their business?. Beware.

Are you constantly amazed at the speed with which technology moves? Did you used to have an early Amstard PC and wonder at the fact that you had more computing power on your desk than NASA had forteh first moonlanding? Now look at your dual core PC and think again!

So what about video recording technology. I've got two PVRs sitting under my TV that can record hours of digital TV. Particularly impressive is the Humax HDR that can even record BBC HD via the Freesat service. I don't pay for SKY!

But thinking back to when I first started working with videotape and VHS had just won the format wars and players weighed as much as a small car. Camcorders? perhaps a camera with a cable to a portable recorder that hung from your shoulder.

Here's my list of formats that have come and gone since then. In no particular order!

Format information.

Mini DV
These tapes are the smallest of the video formats. They take and maintain crystal clear images because of the nature of a digital format. Editing enthusiasts benefit from Mini DV as well, since copying between two units is done with no quality loss. That means edited or copied video looks and sounds every bit as good as the original footage. Mini DV tapes are available in 30, 60, and 80 minute lengths.

8MM
These camcorders often have many of the best features found in higher priced HI-8 units, including image stabilization, strong optical and digital zooms and innovative special effects. Regular 8mm tapes are the exact size and shape as their HI8 counterparts, but record video at a lower resolution level, and therefore, are less expensive than camcorders which product better image quality. 8mm can record for up to 2 hours and has a resolution of 270 lines

HI-8
These camcorders record their signal at about 400 lines of resolution, slightly less than Mini DV, but substantially higher than 8mm or regular VHS formats. Most often, HI-8 camcorders record sound in hi-fi stereo. Slight quality loss is suffered when copying or editing from HI-8, but a better than average image is maintained.
Tapes from HI-8 camcorders generally must be played using the camera as the source, which means the user often must connect cables to their television or VCR. HI-8 tapes can be bought in 30, 60 and 120-minute lengths.

DIGITAL8
This is a format that is far superior to HI-8 or 8MM. Sony was the first to introduce this format and has done a great job. It is backwardly compatible, meaning that the new Digital8 camcorders and VCR's will also play your 8MM and HI-8 tapes. You do not have to buy special tapes to record in Digital8. A regular 8MM or HI-8 tape will record up to 60 minutes of digital video and audio. Because of the design, using regular tapes is not a problem, but it uses twice as much tape. A 2 hour HI-8 or 8MM tape will record 60 minutes when in the Digital mode and records up to 500 lines of resolution.

VHS and VHS-C
Record at a slightly lower resolution than 8MM. A standard E180 VHS tape has a recording time of 3 hrs, and the resolution is 250 lines. Their appeal, or course, is the convenience of easy playback. The large VHS camcorders are almost a thing of the past at this point. There are still a few models available, but their substantial size and weight make them a difficult sell against smaller camcorders. VHS/C compact models, on the other hand, remain a popular choice, offering many of the same key features as 8MM camcorders, at an equally affordable price.

Super VHS
Super VHS, a full-size format with resolution similar to that of HI-8, is virtually out of the consumer camcorder market. The format still is a strong player in the industrial market, but its future may be bleak with the release of newer and better digital formats. This format is used for videographers mostly for shooting and editing. The S stands for super, as the resolution jumps from the VHS standard of 250 lines to around 400 lines. Unfortunately, most VCR's will not play a super VHS tape.

Part of what I do for a living invloves handling many thousands of videotapes...old and even older! All sorts of formats.

Over the last couple of years we have seen an increasing problem.....Mould

Are your memories at risk?


Did you know that thousands of audio and videotapes are literally being eaten alive, destroying treasured family memories? Videotape is made from a cellulose carrier tape which is coated with ferric oxide which then stores the recording magnetically. We are used to tapes becoming brittle and snapping over time. These kind of problem can be repaired and once repaired even old Betamax tapes can be transferred to DVD. More recently we have seen a massive increase in the number of tapes arriving with us that are infected with mould. Storage in damp and poorly ventilated conditions are the cause and the worst enemy of a videotape collection. The warm damp summers of the last three years have seen increasing numbers of mouldy tapes being sent to us. Once infected the spores spread rapidly and eat into the coating on the tape. This damage can not be reversed nor can the recordings be recovered. There is nothing worse than having to tell a customer that the videotape with their wedding or child?s birthday recorded on it is lost forever.

So how can these problems be avoided?

Avoid storing tapes any where that I subjected to changes in temperature, such as sheds, garages and cellars. Instead try to store your videos at a constant cool temperature away from heat sources and light.

How do I know if my tapes have a mould infection? Look for a fine white dusty powder on top of the spools of tape, these will be mould spores.

What do I do if I think my tapes are at risk? Throw away any damp cardboard cases your videotapes may be stored in, preferably substitute these with plastic cases. Remember to make a note of any information that is written on the cases before you dispose of them.
Do not try to play infected tapes as you may damage them and your video player will become infected.

It's become so much of a problem that one national newspaper has even featured an article covering the topic.

The picture at the top of this post will help you identifythe problem.