Download video from your camera to your computer
The first step toward creating great home movies is to download your video from your camera to your computer. Once you download your video, you can edit it into an exciting movie that you can share with friends across the Internet or watch on your TV.
Depending on your camera and connection, there are several different ways to download video from your camera to your PC:
How to download video using an i.Link/FireWire/IEEE 1394 connection
An i.Link cable is the quickest and easiest way to download your video to your computer.
To transfer your video
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Connect your digital video camera to your computer using an i.Link cable. For more information, read How to connect your camera to your computer |
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Turn your camera on, and set it to playback mode. When prompted, click Capture Video using Windows Movie Maker. Then click OK. |
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Microsoft Windows Movie Maker starts the Video Capture Wizard. On the Capture Video Filepage, type a name for your video. Then click Next. |
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On the Video Setting page, accept the default settings by clicking Next. |
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On the Capture Method page, click Next. It's easiest to capture the entire tape at once; if sections remain that you don't need, you can delete them later. |
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The Video Capture Wizard rewinds your tape and then begins capturing it. While the tape is being captured, you'll see it playing in the Preview window and you'll be able to hear the audio through your speakers. After the tape is captured (this usually takes about an hour), the wizard will stop automatically. It always scans the entire tape, even if you have just recorded a few minutes of video. If you reach the end of your recording before it reaches the end of your tape, click the Stop Capture button, and then click Yes. |
How to download video using a USB or analog connection
Though a USB cable or analog video connection is not as easy to use as an i.Link connection, you can still download video to your computer by manually rewinding your camera, pressing the play button, and then starting the capture.
To download your video
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Connect your digital video camera to your computer using a USB cable or analog video connection. For more information, read How to connect your camera to your computer |
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Start Movie Maker by clicking Start, pointing to All Programs, and then clicking Windows Movie Maker. |
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In the Movie Tasks pane, under Capture Video, click Capture from video device. |
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Movie Maker starts the Video Capture Wizard. On the Video Capture Device page, click your camera. Then click Next. |
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On the Capture Video File page, type a name for your video. Then click Next. |
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On the Video Setting page, accept the default settings by clicking Next. |
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On the Capture Video page, use your video camera to rewind or fast-forward to about five seconds before the start of the clip that you want to download. Then press the play button on your video camera, and immediately click the Start Capture button in the Video Capture Wizard. It's okay if you start capturing too early, because you can trim the beginning of the clip later. |
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Click Stop Capture at the end of your clip. It's also okay to capture the entire tape at once, because you can break it into shorter clips later. |
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Repeat steps 7 and 8 to capture other clips. When you're done, click Finish. Movie Maker automatically breaks your movie into clips and adds the clips to a video collection with the name you provided.
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