Digital Video For Dummies

So you have a camcorder and visions of being the next Spielberg. But how do you progress from shooting so-so footage to showing your own finished movie? Digital Video For Dummies, 4th Edition gives you the know-how and the show-how! Find out how to shoot and edit great movies, using iMovie, Windows Movie Maker, or Adobe Premiere Elements to add the finishing touches like special effects and your own soundtrack. With the latest information and lots of illustrations and screen shots, this friendly guide walks you through: Getting your computer ready to work with digital video (complete with information about FireWire) Choosing a camcorder, including features to look for and features that are useless Digitizing old VHS videotapes to preserve memories Purchasing other movie making gear, including audio and lighting equipment Shooting better video, with tips on lighting, panning, using the zoom, and recording better audio Creating your own sound effects such as footsteps, bones breaking, fire, thunder, insects buzzing, and more Capturing digital video using iMovie, Windows Movie Marker, or Premiere Elements Editing, including understanding timecode, organizing and previewing clips, and assembling clips in Storyboard and Timeline Adding transitions, titles, and special effects Importing and integrating video from phones and digital cameras Using audio rubberbands in iMovie, Premiere Elements, and other editing programs Adding narration, importing and working with CD audio, and adding a music soundtrack Keith Underdahl has extensive professional video production experience developing kiosk and marketing videos for Ages Software. Realizing that you’ll want to polish and premiere your movie, he includes information on: More advanced video editing, including animating video clips, improving light and color, compositing video (bluescreen or greenscreen), and more 13 categories of video effects, ranging from blur and sharpen to transform Working with still photos and graphics Sharing your video online using QuickTime (/QT), RealMedia (.RM), or Windows Media Video (.WMV) Making tapes or burning DVDs in 9 steps With a handy cheat sheet of keyboard shortcuts, a chart comparing 10 video editing programs, a glossary, and more, with this guide you’ll soon be saying “Lights, camera, action” and producing your own movie attraction.

As an aspiring videographer, one of the most exciting decisions you can make is to upgrade from a standard camcorder to digital video. Sophisticated software programs enable you to edit your work creatively and produce professional-quality video -- without spending a fortune! Explore all phases of digital video, from recording and shooting to editing and distribution, with Digital Video For Dummies. In no time, you can turn your digital camcorder and personal computer into a high-tech video studio. Author Martin Doucette has broken down the process in clear steps; easy-to-follow instructions take you from understanding how digital video works to experimenting with advanced editing techniques: Take a look at light and sound, and see how your digital camcorder's lens and electronic features reproduce these elements with astounding accuracy. Read about the basics of video production planning and scene direction. See how your computer's operating system can be your best friend throughout the editing process. Investigate distribution options for your completed video: lay it on a CD, upload it to the Web, or transfer it to a tape. Turn ordinary photos and videos into extraordinary three-dimensional presentations. Visit Web sites full of valuable resources, tips, and information. The enclosed CD-ROM introduces you to popular graphics software, such as Adobe Illustrator 8.0, Adobe Premiere 5.0, Adobe After Effects 4.0, and Adobe Photoshop 5.0. The CD-ROM also offers instructional examples, video samples, ready-to-use media clips, and more!

Digital media sales represent a growing market in consumer technology; in previous editions, this book has been the top-selling reference for digital video beginners Fully revised and completely focused on consumer digital video users and editors who have little to no experience with the equipment Walks readers through the basics of selecting equipment, installing software and hardware, shooting good video, getting files into a PC, editing, and outputting to the Internet, videotape, or a DVD CD-ROM includes trial versions of the editing software covered in the book as well as other digital video tools and sample files

The easy way for kids to get started with filmmaking If you've been bitten by the filmmaking bug—even if you don't have a background in video or access to fancy equipment—Digital Filmmaking For Kids makes it easy to get up and running with digital filmmaking! This fun and friendly guide walks you through a ton of cool projects that introduce you to all stages of filmmaking. Packed with full-color photos, easy-to-follow instruction, and simple examples, it shows you how to write a script, create a storyboard, pick a set, light a scene, master top-quality sound, frame and shoot, edit, add special effects, and share your finished product with friends or a global audience. Anyone can take a selfie or upload a silly video to YouTube—but it takes practice and skill to shoot professional-looking frames and make your own short film. Written by a film and video professional who has taught hundreds of students, this kid-accessible guide provides you with hands-on projects that make it fun to learn all aspects of video production, from planning to scripting to filming to editing. Plus, it includes access to videos that highlight and demonstrate skills covered in the book, making learning even easier and less intimidating to grasp. Create a film using the tools at hand Plan, script, light and shoot your video Edit and share your film Plan a video project from start to finish If you're a student aged 7–16 with an interest in creating and sharing your self-made video, this friendly guide lights the way for your start in digital filmmaking.

Rebecca Harding Davis was a prominent author of radical social fiction during the latter half of the nineteenth century. In stories that combine realism with sentimentalism, Davis confronted a wide range of contemporary American issues, giving voice to working women, prostitutes, wives seeking divorce, celibate utopians, and female authors. Davis broke down distinctions between the private and the public worlds, distinctions that trapped women in the ideology of domesticity. By engaging current strategies in literary hermeneutics with a strong sense of historical radicalism in the Gilded Age, Jean Pfaelzer reads Davis through the public issues that she forcefully inscribed in her fiction. In this study, Davis's realistic narratives actively construct a coherent social work, not in a fictional vacuum but in direct engagement with the explosive movements of social change from the Civil War through the turn of the century.

“Save it in the edit” is a common saying among filmprofessionals. Editing makes the difference between boring vacationmovies and exciting travelogues…between the whole dull newsconference and the highlights on the evening news. Whetheryou’re a budding Spielberg, a proud parent who wantstwo-year-old Junior’s every feat documented for posterity, ora band that wants your music video to rock, Final Cut Pro HD ForDummies tells you what you need to know to edit regular digitalor high definition video like a pro. It covers the basics ofcapturing, importing, and editing digital videos, with detailedhow-to for: Organizing your media Navigating the audio and video Timeline tracks and selectingclips and frames on the Timelines Getting fancier with split, roll, ripple, slip, and slideedits Working with audio, including mixing, editing out scratches andpops, and using filters to create effects Using Soundtrack to compose a musical score, even if youdon’t know the difference between horns and strings Apply transitions such as 3D simulation, dissolve, iris,stretch and squeeze, and more Adding text for captions, opening titles, and closingcredits Color-correcting video Compositing, rendering, and outputting your final product totape, CD, DVD, or the Web Three bonus chapters online go into more depth about rendering,customizing the interface, and managing media so you can refineyour skills even further. Final Cut Pro HD For Dummies was written by HelmutKobler, a Los Angeles-based filmmaker, owner of K2Films, and afrequent contributor to Macaddict Magazine. Having this book nextto your editing equipment is the next best thing to having him sitnext to you and guide you through the editing process.