How To Transfer VHS To DVD Using
Windows Movie Maker on Windows 7
Windows Movie Maker is a video creation and editing package that is included in Windows ME, XP and Vista operating systems. This package not only allows for the complete creation and editing of video but also the inclusion of effects, such as transitions, titles and timeline narration.
This program was first available in the Windows ME operating system and was eventually included in XP and Vista. Development ceased after the introduction of Vista to be replaced with a newer program, Windows Live Movie Maker. Unfortunately, Windows Live Movie Maker lacks many of the features seen in Windows Movie Maker, such as the ability to overlay text on a video. While the Live version is more suited for making and uploading videos to YouTube, many of us require more serious capabilities in our video editing software; such as can be found in the classic version of Movie Maker.
Fortunately for Windows 7 users, Windows Movie Maker is available for download from the Microsoft web site and is fully compatible with Windows 7.
Transferring VHS video to DVD in Windows 7
To transfer your VHS video to DVD in Windows 7 you need to have several things in place before you can start burning your DVDs. They are:
1. A video capture device. This is needed to convert the information on your VHS tape to a file that can be stored on your hard drive. Windows 7 easily recognizes a wide range of capture devices, from capture cards to USB devices, so this setup should be relatively easy.
2. Windows Movie Maker. As this is not part of the standard Windows 7 installation, you will have to download from the Microsoft site and install it. The Live version, even though it is a later version, lacks many of the features found in previous versions.
3. DVD Burning and Authoring Software. If you would like to play your videos on a DVD player, you will need some DVD Authoring Software to author and burn your videos onto a DVD.
First Step: Connecting the Capture Device
The first step is to install and configure your capture device. As Windows recognizes a wide variety of devices, this should be an easy step provided you have the correct software and drivers. It should be a simple matter of consulting the accompanying documentation to ensure a proper installation.
As there is a wide variety of hardware that Windows 7 recognizes, it will be impossible to cover all the possible configurations. But you have nothing to fear as the latest Windows OS is designed to make installation as painless as possible.
Second Step: Download and Install Windows Movie Maker
To take advantage of Windows Movie Maker's features in Windows 7, you will first need to download the application from the Microsoft web site and install it on to your system. Once installed, you will be able use and take advantage of its many features.
Third Step: Setup the Recording
Once you have connected your VHS to your capture device, you are ready to transfer your footage to into Movie Maker. This can be done with relative ease through Movie Maker's main feature, the Record Dialog Box and this is the starting point from which you set everything.
The Record Dialog Box has several features that you may find useful. Before you start recording, you can set Movie Maker to either record video only, sound only or both at the same time. You will probably want to capture both video and audio, when transferring your tapes to DVD but there may be some editing scenarios where you may only want to capture audio or video; Windows Movie Maker allows you to do so.
Next, you will want to choose the capture device. This is particularly important if you have more than one capture device attached to your computer. This can be done by clicking on the Change Device button. A pop-up widow appears and you can easily select your capture device from the drop down menus.
You can set a Record Time Limit. This option allows you to set a maximum recording time limit and when that limit is reached, Windows Movie Maker will automatically stop recording and save the file. This option can be helpful if you only need to record a certain portion of your VHS tape or you don't plan on sitting in front of your computer and monitoring the capture process. If a record time has not been set you will have to manually stop the capture process.
Next, you will need to set the video capture quality. The higher the video and audio quality of the capture the larger the file size and Windows Movie Maker will ensure that you have enough disk space to save your file before it starts capturing. If you choose a quality setting that is too high and you won't have enough disk space to save the file, Windows Movie Maker will automatically choose the next lower quality capture for you so that you can save the file to your hard drive. You may also choose to save the file in another location, possibly another attached hard drive.
Ideally, you want to record either using the Medium or High quality settings. Both settings capture a frame size of 320 pixels by 240 pixels but the High quality option captures at 30 frames per second while the Medium quality option captures at 15 frames per second. This means there will be a significant difference in smoothness of your video between the two options.
The added advantage of choosing the High quality setting comes from audio quality. The High quality option records audio at higher bit-rates and thus will have much better audio quality.
Some Special Tips
Some capture devices use a lot of computer resources during the digitizing process. One way to reduce the work load is to Disable preview while capturing. When you select this option, you will not see a preview in the capture pane of the Record dialog box. This has the advantage in that your system won't be wasting resources displaying the video during a capture and will result in less dropped pictures.
You may also wonder why not always choose the High Quality option over Medium Quality. The answer to that lies in the size of the output file. High quality uses approximately twice the disk space that Medium quality does and is best suited to videos in which the scenes changes quickly and there is a lot of motion. So when choosing between these two options, you have balance between file size and scene content. A video of everyone gathering around for a portrait and smiling may be recorded at Medium quality with no noticeable loss in motion quality but on the other hand, your recording of a car race will. The car race contains far more motion; your camera is panning and scanning as it follows cars about the track and if recorded on Medium quality will appear to be "jerky."
You will also need to consider video quality. Chances are that many of your VHS tapes have been lying in storage for several years in less than optimal condition, which has resulted in a degradation in video quality. Sometimes capturing at a lower setting may remove some of these artifacts and improve overall picture quality.
Fourth Step: Record
Once you have set everything up, all you need to do is press the record button on the Record Dialog Box and let Windows Movie Maker do its magic. If you have set a time limit and the automatic file name generation option, Windows Movie Maker will do everything for you, including the saving of the video file.
Once the video has been captured and saved to your hard drive, Windows Movie Maker has several editing options that can not be found in Windows Live Movie Maker. As a result, Movie Maker remains a far better option to the standard package found on Windows 7.
Fifth Step: Burn to DVD
The files stored on your computer are not compatible with the format used on a DVD disc and Windows does not natively support the DVD format due to licensing issues. A DVD authoring package is needed to both convert your video into the proper video format and place all the videos, menus and other information into the proper file structure so that it can be read by your DVD player.
Many standard DVD authoring packages will allow you to create menus and chapters as you author your DVD and there are a myriad of programs that can do this job for you, so many, in fact, that it will go beyond the scope of this article to cover them all.
Conclusion
Windows Movie Maker offers more editing features than its newer counterpart, Windows Live Movie Maker. As this program is fully compatible with Windows 7, it is advisable to download and install from Microsoft's web page. Once installed, a Windows 7 user can take full advantage of its features to transfer VHS tapes onto a DVD provided a DVD authoring application is installed.