The team at Video2DVD pride ourselves on being able to offer you a reliable and effective Mini DV to DVD service, as well as providing you with some handy tips to get the best out of your home videos. In between offering you these helpful articles, we think it’s important to take a little look at the world outside of home videoing and take a peek at what’s occurring around the globe.
2015 Keeps on Getting Better: Films That We Are Still Looking Forward To This Year
2015 has been a phenomenal year for movies. So far we’ve enjoyed fantastic films that we think will remain on top of our all time favourite list for a long time. This includes blockbusters such as Mad Max: Fury Road, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Jurassic World, and Spectre.
We can’t see anything topping these movies but since we’re only just in November, there is still time for more to make their way onto our list.
2015 hasn’t failed to deliver yet and we’re excited to see what the remaining two months have in store for all us movie buffs. Here are just some of the films that are already on our ‘must watch’ list.
Saving Video One Incident at a Time
How many times during your VCR life did you hear that terrible crinkling noise and leap to recover your beloved film from the player, only for a battle to ensue? How many times has retrieving your video tape turned into a full blown rescue mission?
Too many, it would seem.
The miraculous advancements of technology has meant we’re able to successfully transfer our beloved VHS to DVD, saving home movies from a number of unpleasant and potentially irreparable issues.
Transferring Videos to DVD
There have been plenty of incidences where a video has been sent into the great beyond of the video player only to find itself a hostage of cogs and coils. This has been the case of many favourite videos. Despite their hard casings, the VHS is so fragile that video players were constantly eating tapes which, ultimately, ruined your favourite movie for good.
We’re sure you remember the devastation of fighting to pull out your video, unreeled tape trailing behind it. We’re sure you remember the difficulty of trying to wind up your videotape without damaging the film, only to find that your treasured home movie never plays the same again. The beauty of transferring your film to DVD eliminates such problems once and for all!
Saving Snapped Films
A slightly different battle took place with videos we were helpless to prevent; snapped films. These stealthy wars popped up out of nowhere and, sometimes, for barely any reason. Caught on the cogs of our video player, trapped between the plastic of the video casing or even accidently torn in our attempt to wind everything back into place, once snapped there seemed to be no going back.
Luckily technology has allowed us to fix these minor video injuries and, because we want you to enjoy your videos in all their glory, we’re able to splice the damaged sections of your tape together in order to get a fully functioning film again!
Caring for Cracked Casings
How many times have you heard that deafening crack of your video casing? It’s a sad day when we can no longer play our home movie or favourite film because of one simple accident.
Luckily we’re here to help. Our services include finding a brand new home for your film so that you can carry on enjoying your video time and time again.
We believe in preserving your dearest family films for years to come, whether that means taking care of your original video cassettes, or transferring your videos onto a long lasting DVD for you to watch over and over without fear of damage. If you’d like to find out more about our services, please don’t hesitate to contact us today on 0800 592433.
Capturing Your Video in Low Light
One of the main reasons we are proud to offer our video to DVD service is because we love the feeling of knowing we’re enabling the future enjoyment of such memories long into the future. However, we quite often find that many people’s videos suffer from having poor lighting, and with the onset of the darker nights this trend only looks set to increase! So, let’s tackle inferior video quality once and for all by tackling camera’s biggest foe; poor lighting.
Add Lighting
OK, this may seem obvious, but if there is the option of switching on a light, or lighting up the occasion, then your future-video-watching-self will appreciate it! If you are indoors then this may be a little easier, but for those outdoors, the obvious solution is turning on your camera light. Alternatively, you can go pro by opting for reflector panels, mirrors and a range of lighting, which will certainly up the production value of your video.
For those who have this capability on their camera, it is recommended you slow your shutter speed. This means that the shutter is essentially open longer, thus allowing a greater amount of light in through the lens. The negative here, however, is that you can end up with a motion blur, so try using this tip alongside a tripod, or other supporting device.
Reduce Frame Rate
Again, this may be a feature which your camera lacks, but it can be of great help if it is available to you. A slower speed allows more light into the camera, which enables a brighter image. It may however be a minor increase but even the smallest bit of light can boost the image significantly.
Post-Edit
The proper application of appropriate post editing can make or break a video. Here you can attempt to repair footage through the application of lightening filters or plugins, however, it is worth noting that post-editing effects don’t have the same level of quality as if you were to capture the video the way you intended on your first attempt.
If you would like to speak to one of our friendly team and discuss our services, then please don’t hesitate to get in touch. You can contact us on 0800 592433, where we will be eagerly awaiting your call to help breathe new life into your nostalgia.
Spread the Love with Multiple DVD Copies
It’s been one of the best days of your life so far.
You might have been walking down the aisle, butterflies in your stomach as you catch the gaze of your other half. You may have been comforting your child as your family and friends celebrate their Christening. You might have even taken those few excited steps towards your University Chancellor, your entire future set out before you. Whichever the case, you’ve made a memory to last you a lifetime and you deserve to share your experience with those you hold near and dear.
Highest Grossing Films of All Time (Adjusted for Inflation) (Part 2)
In a previous post, we spotlighted some of the highest grossing films of all time and even went the distance to adjust it for inflation. The list included such classics as Gone with the Wind and Star Wars, with the addition of the recent Avatar, directed by James Cameron, which would have made the number one spot had we not adjusted our list for inflation.
Making Memories Immortal: The Camera That Changed the World
While on the technical side of things, we specialise in things such as Betamax to DVD transfers, on a personal level, we help make your memories last a life time. But have you ever wondered where the first handheld came from? If you have an event coming up, maybe a milestone birthday, or a wedding, you can just go down to the nearest tech related shop and pick one up. There are countless different models, all with their own unique special features and effects. With these cameras, you can effectively make any part of your life immortal; sculpting your memories into something physical which you can hold on to forever, meaning you can effectively re-live any of your memories forever.
Tips For Making a Great Home Movie
We love being able to play a part in capturing your precious family memories through transferring video to DVD, giving it the longevity it deserves for future enjoyment. With so many ways and means of capturing video, there is an increasing leaning towards being frivolous when it comes to committing your most important moments to permanency.
It’s great being able to use your mobile phone to be able to capture the blowing out of a birthday cake, but many forget to back it up or even try to get a good quality filming in the first place, so beyond watching it again on your phone, there is little quality or definition to it. At Video2DVD we would like to help you capture these important videos well through providing tips on how you can begin to make great or improve the quality of your home movies.
Planning
Equipment Needed
Firstly, it may seem unnecessary, but planning can be your solution to guaranteeing you are receiving the greatest volume and quality of video. Initially, you would benefit from planning what type of cameras may be necessary. Some cameras are better for close-ups, where as others would be best utilised from a distance. Also, if you desire to capture top quality sound, multiple microphones placed in different locations – further from and/or closer to the action – may be your best solution.
If you are filming an event you know is occurring in advance, as opposed to a spontaneous occurrence, there are certain sequences of events that you can anticipate – so plan for them! If you were to consider undertaking the filming of a birthday, your footage would benefit from taking into consideration certain factors such as, where would be best to stand to capture the blowing out of the candles, or where to position yourself when games are played? Also, maybe opt for a tripod to get extra professional and motionless footage.
Other cool little additions, to capture the full atmosphere of the event, may be filming the guests as they arrive or even capturing the decorating of the cake. One cool little idea would be to interview people before, during and after, so as to intersperse them during the editing process. It will aid in providing a real sense of completion and narrative to the footage.
Filming
Shoot Test Footage
One way to guarantee your camera is up to the challenge of filming, and that it is set up correctly, is through shooting some test footage. Here you can check that you are acquainted with the camera as well as checking the camera is shooting correctly, that the footage is looking sleek and also that the sound is correct. If you have all those boxes ticked, then you are good to go!
Film too much, you can always edit it down, this way you guarantee that nothing will be missed by your awesome camera work. Also, shoot wide, close and at different angles where possible. It may be excessive – although totally worth it – but maybe opt for the use of multiple cameras and angles. If you can find someone as dedicated to capturing the event as you, draft their help. You can make the home movie as blockbuster or as lacklustre as you desire!
Editing
This is where you can really let your artistic flair flow. Not only can you edit down the footage into super entertaining little chunks primed for ordering, you can tie it together with music, opt for special effects, change the camera lens – it’s up to you! Through interspersing your interviews, you can create a running narrative to the event, adding a further sense of completion.
Editing a video may sound like something reserved for the pros, but there are so many fantastic editing tools out there that make the job super easy; you’ve probably got one pre-installed on your computer! So give it a go, you can only impress yourself!
The consequence of succeeding with your filming mission is totally worth the effort. Imagine having a professional looking recording of some of your family’s most treasured memories, all through a little bit of careful planning and dedication. Also, what more a fantastic gift could you give someone than a wonderfully captured memory?
We expect you have many cherished memories committed to video that you would like to experience long into the future. If so, our video to DVD transferring service is perfect for you. Preserving your treasured memories is what we do best, so give us the chance to give your videoed memories the longevity they deserve. You can contact us on 0800 592433 today, where one of our friendly team members will be eagerly awaiting you call.
Football and Cinema: The Ultimate Team
When it comes to video transfer we are your one stop shop for converting your treasured memories to DVD. However, in between conversions we like to keep our finger on the proverbial pulse of the moving media industry; be that TV, be that film, we love it. Furthermore, with the onset of the new Premier League season it seems very apt that a new football film has hit the news, and to those fans who don’t remember the 1970s it could initially be seen as an unlikely topic.
Best of British: From TV to Cinema
Through our professional video to DVD transfers we help to give your nostalgia a more permanent platform from which to enjoy them time and time again. We love seeing the old regenerated as new, allowing a whole new audience to appreciate the things we were able to appreciate the first time around.