There is more than one way to incorporate video into a Camtasia Studio project. First, I will discuss the video cameras.
THE VIDEO CAM-COMPUTER CONNECTION
I strongly recommend against using an older analog video camera that uses outdated formats such as Hi-8 or VHS. Even the professional models cannot stack up against today's entry-level digital models. Digital cameras range from very basic and low-resolution models that connect via USB, such as most webcams, to high-end professional models. The webcams are designed for very informal video, typically with a small image size. When incorporated into larger formats, like a full-screen presentation, image quality suffers. The high end professional cameras used in today's HD broadcast programming cost tens of thousands of dollars and are overkill for computer-based presentations of any kind. In the middle are digital cameras that record to Mini-DV format tape, small diameter DVDs, or directly to memory. These are the best type of camera to use when incorporating camera-recorded video into a Camtasia Studio project. Excellent quality models can be purchased for around US$500. My Panasonic Mini-DV GS-350 does a fine job, with professional-looking results. Color recording is excellent as this model is a "3-chipper," which means it captures video signals using three separate Charged-Coupled Devices (CCDs). Three video capture devices are better than one and results in a sharper picture with better color definition.
This type of camera is connected to your computer using USB or IEEE 1394 (Apple calls it "FIREWIRE"). Either connection will provide fine results, whether streaming video live into the editing program, or capturing the video stream as an AVI (stands for Audio-Video Interleave, the most common Windows-based video file format).
There are two methods of which I am aware and which I have tried to import video into Camtasia Studio projects.
1. Stream Video into Camtasia Studio Live
In this process, you can attach any live video source (such as one of the cameras described above) to your computer where Camtasia Studio is installed. The video signal will be detected by Studio and is available for capture.
HOW TO DO IT:
a.) Connect the camera as directed by the maker.
b.) Start up Camtasia Studio.
c.) Select menus Edit > Record Camera... (or select the same function from the Task List). You should see your camera listed on the dialog and just click [Start Recording].
RESULT: Whatever your camera sees and hears will be placed in the Camtasia Studio clip bin for editing.
2. Record Video separately and then import the AVI into Camtasia Studio
This process involves making your movies, capturing both video and audio on a camera. This video is then imported into the computer as an AVI media file, which can be included in a Camtasia Studio project.
HOW TO DO IT
a.) Record your video and save it on the camera as directed by the maker.
b.) Connect your camera to the computer where Camtasia Studio resides and import the video using whatever video capture software you have available. Your camera's user guide should have instructions for doing this and I won't go over it here, as this is a whole new subject.
c.) Open Camtasia Studio and import the resulting AVI media file into a new or existing project.
RESULT
Your video media content, imported from the camera from a previous recording, will be available in the Camtasia Studio clip bin for inclusion on the timeline and editing into your overall project.
HIGH-END EDITING SOFTWARE
As a side note, I use Adobe Premiere Pro CS 3 for some video editing from the video camera. I prefer the second method listed above for importing previously-recorded video into Camtasia Studio, and with a high-end video editor, you can make your video content much more professional than typical raw video footage. Premiere, for me at least, is the easiest way to trim out bad frames, improve video and audio quality, add professional looking titles, etc. This is another whole topic and again, I will not belabor the point here. But my advice is, if you are including post-capture video into Camtasia Studio projects, and if you want that video content to look really professional, consider using Adobe Premiere to prepare that video before including it in the Camtasia Studio project. Camtasia Studio is not designed to provide the type of high-end video editing features most professional projects would require.
4 comments:
Hello,
I saw your writing on the use of DV camera's. We try to use a DV camera to connect directly to Camtasia Studio as you describe. Unfortunately, the result looks like an interlaced video. Capturing with other software such as Windows Movie Maker works fine. Do you happen to know how to solve this?
I apologize for the delay in response. Been busy on projects....
I received an email with the same question, so perhaps it was from this poster. The best way to incorporate DV-sourced footage is to save it as something else. On Windows, save as WMV at the DV resolution (720 x 480). On Apple Macs, save as MOV. Then import those converted streams into Camtasia Studio. This generally works well but may require "tweaking." Good luck!
I found your post while scanning for some advice on Camtasia and thought you might have some advice on an AVI import problem. I'm using Camtasia 6.0.3 and have a large AVI I'm trying to work with (294 mb for about a 30 sec clip). Once I get it into my screencast, I can't edit it... the smooth animation skips (though when I produce the video it is fine). Is the problem the file size (if so, any advice on how to make this file more palatable to Camtasia)? Other tips for working with this huge clip.
You don't mention where the AVI originated so I assume it was made outside of Camtasia Studio. If that's the case, it might be a codec problem. There are many versions of AVI format, and I've mentioned a few in my post (DV is one). The huge size suggests it is uncompressed and Camtasia will have a problem displaying and editing such a file. My advice is to save the file in another format if you have the option, then bring it into Camtasia. The supported imports are all listed in Camtasia's help system. By the way, 30 seconds of video should not be more than about 5 MB at the outside when compressed. Camtasia is really not designed to edit huge full-motion video files.
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