I am using my new computer as a non-linear video editor workstation; the dual monitors are quite practical when editing video; I may add a third monitor. My audio recording studio setup is also proving to be very helpful for getting good quality audio.

I needed a video capture device which would function as a webcam and for recording directly to computer disk. I also needed this device to work with a wide variety of software. I am using the following software:

• Sony Video Vegas 7.0b
• Sony Sound Forge 8.0
• Sothink Video Encoder for Adobe Flash
• WordPress

Sony DVD DCR-403

My first thought was to use my camcorder to video myself for introductions, bridges, etc. I have a Sony DVD DCR-403 camcorder which I purchased from VideoOnly. The retailer was not able to help me select software and did not stock very many Sony accessories. You can read about my previous experiments with this camcorder in an older blog posting.

The Sony DVD DCR-403 camcorder does not provide streaming video via USB, nor does it provide i.Link/FireWire out (contrary to the online product description published by Sony.) It does provide continuous video monitoring on the output plug located at the front of the unit. The camcorder is supplied with a video cable that terminates in RCA jacks; I purchased a similar cable (Sony VMC-15FS) which provides S-Video output for better quality from the Sony Store.

Video capture

I considered two video capture devices, and you can read about my experiences with them:

1. ADS DVD Xpress DX2
2. USBGear analog and video capture devices

High resolution webcam

Having had no luck with the two video capture devices I had considered, I thought I'd give a high-resolution webcam a try. I wanted a webcam with the following characteristics:

• Ability to provide an 800x600 or 720x480 NTSC signal @ 15 frames per second
• Good color control
• Wide angle not desirable; if a wide angle lens is provided, I wanted the ability to zoom in to a tight head shot without obvious pixellation
• USB 2.0 or FireWire interface
• Windows XP compatibility

Most of the 'high resolution' webcams I looked at only had 640x480 pixels. USB 2.0 cannot handle ultra high resolution streaming video at high frame rates, so FireWire would have been a better choice. Unfortunately I did not find any FireWire webcams.

Microsoft LifeCam VX-6000

The LifeCam VX-6000 saves in .WMV format, which Video Vegas imports happily. The LifeCam supports the USB Video Device Class Specification.

Some of the comments I found online complained about image quality of this unit, however I discovered after playing with the webcam that Microsoft had placed a very small menu which allows for adjusting every conceivable video property.

The Audio and Video Settings... menu item allowed me to select an external microphone.

Selecting the Properties and Flicker menu items both bring up the same menu:

I was able establish the exact settings I needed in order to obtain a good quality image.

Product suggestions

Update: I have just downloaded LifeCam v1.4, and have not updated this document yet.

Microsoft, are you reading this? I have a few suggestions which would make this good product even better:

1. Allow settings/properties to be saved. Because I use half a dozen different lighting techniques, the ability to recall previously established settings quickly and easily would allow me to switch to the appropriate collection of preset values.
2. Allow numeric values for settings to be typed in. The sliders are very sensitive!
3. The capture utility resets the camera's zoom and pan every time it starts. Instead, I would like the ability to select from one of the following scenarios:
   1. leave the zoom and pan settings intact when starting the capture utility
   2. store the zoom and pan settings with video properties; this would allow the camera to restore the appropriate settings depending on where it is pointing
   3. reset to powerup state
4. Each time a video capture begins, the camera seems to take about 3 seconds to reset the parameters. This causes the color balance to fall apart until the camera settles down. Is this reset really necessary?
5. Either update the CD included with the device, or publish the URL of the updated software on CD. Currently customers must first install the software on CD, plug in the webcam, then update the software. The new software (v1.21.113, ~40MB) has been available for many months. After some searching, I discovered a newer version (v1.30.175, 117MB) - wonder why it wasn't installed when I updated, or discovered when I checked for updates? I do not see any new features with this latest software.

VBlogging with WordPress

I followed these instructions (and these instructions as well) and had limited success with transcoding to Flash using Camtasia and the Flash 8 Encoder. I am now trying the free Riva encoder.

Comments?

If you have any comments, or would like to share your experience with other video capture devices, please visit my blog.