I just videotaped my serve

[Rickson]

and I found out I need to keep my tossing arm up and that I don't follow through all the way. The serve has good form and speed otherwise. Does anyone know how to convert VHS to digital? I already know what to correct, but I don't mind sharing the serve video with you all, but I need to convert it. Does anyone else tape themselves for analysis? This is a good way to improve form.

[Kirisaki]

ah, ask dimethyl sulfoxide. i am not sure like you. if possible please convert to quicktime format. i think it is .mov extension.

i do not use pc, so quicktime work much better. also you can view videos frame by frame easily.

did google find anything?

[Rickson]

ah, ask dimethyl sulfoxide. i am not sure like you. if possible please convert to quicktime format. i think it is .mov extension.

i do not use pc, so quicktime work much better. also you can view videos frame by frame easily.

did google find anything?
You again? Would you quit acting like you're not Becky/Kana/Meat. Dude, you need to use one ID and stick with it and stop acting like a girl, you sicko.

[Kirisaki]

i am not a girl. i am not kana/becky/meat. why wont you just take information in post, do you need to scream much?

i said in other thread, i did not do any wrong on forum. so i will stay. is it very hard? i try to help with your question, thats all.

[zAllianceBmx]

cause your a fake kirisaki. read what you just wrote and read your teach the slice thread post you made. "i am still learning english. so please bare with.......... shut the hell up and stop with your fake self. im on your side with this one rickson

[Rickson]

cause your a fake kirisaki. read what you just wrote and read your teach the slice thread post you made. "i am still learning english. so please bare with.......... shut the hell up and stop with your fake self. im on your side with this one rickson
Thanks, bro. Where in LI are you? I just played on the clay court at Hempstead Lake Park today. Is Exit 18 on the Southern State too out of your way? Come out for some hitting practice.

[zAllianceBmx]

im all the way in suffolk. exit 65. medford. i'll be playing in the freeport level2 tournament august 12-14. i think thats closer to exit 18. not sure where it is though. you live on LI i suppose? where on LI? maybe if im ever by you, i'll come hit.

[Rickson]

im all the way in suffolk. exit 65. medford. i'll be playing in the freeport level2 tournament august 12-14. i think thats closer to exit 18. not sure where it is though. you live on LI i suppose? where on LI? maybe if im ever by you, i'll come hit.
I live in Queens, but I play in New Hyde Park. I play at North Hempstead state park's rec center aka Senator Michael J Tully park. Look it up and see if you can get out there. I hit around with the poster called KingBugsy before.

[Potito]

You need of an analogyc capture board. With an S-Video cable you can connect VCR (or VHS camera) with your PC and download images on hard disk. Than this video can be compressed in different formats with an editing software (.mov - .asf - .wmv - ecc....).

[KingBugsy]

Hey Rickson! Just stumbled on this post... (after a bit of a break from the boards) I still would like to get together again and hit. Been doing a lot of traveling as of late (out in Chicago as I type), and also moved to a new place. (suffolk LI) So sorry for not contacting you sooner about playing.

Anyway, let's try and set something up in the next week or two! Hope your tennis is coming along. I have been doing some great private lessons at Long Beach Tennis center. Getting better...

[gscone]

I live in Queens, but I play in New Hyde Park. I play at North Hempstead state park's rec center aka Senator Michael J Tully park. Look it up and see if you can get out there. I hit around with the poster called KingBugsy before.


Small world eh? I play at Tulley park sometimes. What level are you? I'm about a 4.0 or 4.5 on a good day. Perhaps we can hit sometime..

[dakels]

err getting back on topic if you need to covert analog (VHS) to digital (DVD/computer/AVI/MPG etc) I would just recommend taking it to either a service (you can find many online) or a friend who has the equipment. If you want to do it yourself it requires a significant cost investment anywhere from $200-1000 for the cheapest setups.

Basically you need to have some type of conduit from your VHS system (VCR, Camcorder) to a computer/DV bridge(Digital video). Easiest way to achieve this is to have a miniDV camcorder which records to a tape and converts the signal for you to a digital source like your computer's USB or Firewire input.

Another way is an analog to digital media dock/input device. This can be a stand alone system that connect to your VCR/camcorder then converts the signal to digital video format (like AVI/MPG) to your computer, or many video cards have capture systems built in to accept a S-Video or composite (S-video being much better but the VCR/Camcorder must have a S-video out).

Other things to consider is that you will need huge amounts of Hard drive space as raw video can be as much as 1mb-10mb or more per second of video. HD's are very cheap nowadays though so you can get a 200gb drive for video editing for $80-100. Also you will need software to import and edit this video (either seperate software like Premier, Final cut (Mac), Pinnacle, etc), or the media bridge will convert it automatically and/or give you editing software. Also your computer has to be fairly up to date. Slower computer, low RAM, HD space won't cut it and/or you will lose alot of frames/quality.

The better the export and import system you have, the better the quality of video you can make. If you are using a VCR, remember that the image going to the capture device si the same going to your TV, so if that looks bad, its only going to look as bad or worse when it gets to the computer. A New VCR with clean heads will make a big difference. Once you get the video in digital format you can convert to different codecs like AVI, MPG, QT (quicktime), WMP (Windows media), etc. and frame size and bit rates which help change the overall size and quality of the file.

Overall there is some money to be spent and alot to learn if you want to get into Digital video, especially conversions. If you don;t want to get into all that, either take it to a friend who can do this, or pay for a service to do it. (average costs can be $20-50+) per VHS to DVD conversion (much much higher $ if more work needs to be done like image cleaning, media titles, etc).

[POGO]

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm....doesn't wondows xp already have a builtin software called "windows movie maker" that will convert analog to digital movie files? All you need to get is a DV card and install in one of your PCI slot in your PC. The card will allow you to plugin firewire, or RCA plugs so it can be transferred into your PC. Not hard at all. The card range about $30 and up. Go to newegg.com

[dakels]

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm....doesn't wondows xp already have a builtin software called "windows movie maker" that will convert analog to digital movie files? All you need to get is a DV card and install in one of your PCI slot in your PC. The card will allow you to plugin firewire, or RCA plugs so it can be transferred into your PC. Not hard at all. The card range about $30 and up. Go to newegg.com

Yes but Windows movie maker is extremely limited but there are ways to get around alot of it's short comings but it takes a fairly decent amount of knowledge and use of software (sometimes free).

There are very inexpensive capture cards out there like
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814100005
But these are pretty crappy (low resolution, FPS, audio), but honestly, if all you want to to do is just capture some of your tennis stuff then you should be fine.

Again if your VCR is bad then at least clean the heads or consider getting a new one. Also you may need a extra hard drive, RAM, etc if you comp is older and low specs. Importing/converting video is one of the most demanding things your computer can do.

Pogo is definitely right though, at a absolute bare minimum you could probably get away with using Windows Movie maker or another cheap program and a $30 capture card.

[panatta]

How are you dressed in your video? :--)
Please.. help Rickson!

[Potito]

dakels, are you a videomaker? For work or only for hobby? Great passions, tennis and video! ;)

[dakels]

Potito: I work with alot of multimedia type stuff for work. I am no expert, just been around alot of projects which have many different aspects including video, audio, CGI, etc. I am more of a project manager but I have handled alot of video editing equipment, and I used to DJ a long time ago so I am familiar with audio equipment and recording equipment.

A few years ago I used to have a GL1, Sony NLE deck, and a pinnacle import card but I sold that all to a friend who was getting into more serious video editing (He went to film school and I wasn't using this stuff at all). Now I just use my MiniDV camcorder firewire right to my Mac G4 laptop with Final Cut/Premier/After Effects. It supports my needs alot better and alot easier then the other more advanced set.

You don't need all that expensive equipment to get going on small projects though. A decent computer with a cheapo capture card/VIVO video card ($30-100) and a DVD burner ($50) is all you need to put together some decent digital home video. If you want to take it farther with more menu controls and editing features, you need to get decent software. Hardware only limits quality and speed and most of the cheapo stuff can handle PAL/NTSC frame rates and standard TV resolutions(Some can handle DVD 720res, Not higher HD). Everything else like menus, formats, editing, is handled by the software.

The one thing that really gets video newbies though is the fairly complex format systems and technical jargon. While it can be really simple to just plug a compatible DV camcorder into a mac with Imovie, once you start running into problems, or trying to understand size/format/quality ratios, it becomes alot more complex. For web type movies you may notice that some people who knew what they were doing can show a 20 second clip that's pretty good quality and say 5mb file size. While another 20 sec clip may look bad, audio is not synced well, chunky graphics, and be twice as large of a file size. All depends on how well the person knows all those technical details to output a video clip/movie.

A short sports/tennis clip is a great way to start IMO. It doesn't require super high quality, it's fairly small sizes and easier to work with without spending alot of money.