recording video erasing footage, editing problems

[movieman1005]

My hv30 should be here on fri., just in time for the weekend (in case I want to check it out). I got it from bandh, and I get a free dvd jumpstart guide on the camera, which I thought was nice. I was wondering what tapes you all reccomend for it? I see many standard ones, but on amazon there are sony ones "ideal" for high definition according to them at around $9 per tape. Are these worth getting for the price difference?
Also, I noticed something on one of my old camcorders that I absolutely HATE! If I turn it off or anything it must rewind a little, because I lose footage. Will this happen with the hv30? will i have to fast forward after every cut (like if I turn it off and on again)? Any way to avoid this issue would be nice. Hopefully since it is a much newer camcorder than this one I shouldnt have that problem, but any tips of techniques in case would be helpful, such as how you film if this is still an issue.
O, another thing, I captured my most recent project onto my computer using the dazzle dvd thing since its an old vhs camcorder, and had to use moviemaker since it doesnt work on sony vegas. I imported it onto sony vegas pro, and when I play it on the timeline it seems to not play at a regular pace, like it pauses or hesitates. Ive cut a few frames bfore where it would be just a still picture every few seconds, but theres still some of that going on. Is this a problem, or will it play better after I save it? Thanks for the help!

P.s. Special thanks to people who helped with camera purchase decision! its about time, huh?

 

[Zensteve]

Also, I noticed something on one of my old camcorders that I absolutely HATE! If I turn it off or anything it must rewind a little, because I lose footage. Will this happen with the hv30? will i have to fast forward after every cut (like if I turn it off and on again)? Any way to avoid this issue would be nice.

If you're talking about what I think you're talking about, you can prevent this by "striping" your tapes.

Essentially recording over the entire tape, in order to to lay down a timecode from start to end. (Typically, just hit record with the lenscap on)

Cameras will rewind a bit (just 'cos of the small difference in space between the heads) to make sure they can spin up to speed again, for the next shot, and see a timecode. If they didn't do this, the camera would not see an existing timecode on the tape and start a new one from scratch.

If you have dozens of 0;00;00 markers on your tape, you'll have a hell of a time trying to do batch-capture.

So you can either stripe your tapes before the shoot even starts, or just record an additional several seconds after calling cut before actually stopping the camera.

If you're the type to reverse/fast-forward the tapes for review, right after shooting a take, you should definitely do one of the above.

No idea how that works for recording to flash-cards.

As far as tape choice goes, just go with whatever the manual (or owner) suggests. Apparently there's a big difference between wet & dry lube on the tapes (and how they affect the heads). I dunno the details or mechanics, but I always get the type of tape requested by whomever I rent a camera from. Sure, it might cost a few extra bucks, but I can sleep at night.

 

[movieman1005]

re thanks

I really appreciate the help. I actally just got my hv30 on friday, and bought some tapes last night (the more expensive hd ones). I just want to clarify how exactly to stripe the tapes. Before I record any important info on them, I should record on the entire tape with just black, like the lens cap on, then just rewind it and start recording then? The timecode thing wont show up when editing, right, its just on the camera that the white letters show? I think im getting that confused with the date, but double checking. Thanks again for the help!

p.s. I know on old tapes they say to ff and then rewind the entire tape before use to get rid of "oxides", etc., should I do anything like that on these ones, or just what you said?

 

[Zensteve]

I should record on the entire tape with just black, like the lens cap on, then just rewind it and start recording then?

That's about it, yup. It doesn't really matter if the lenscap is on or not; plain black is just convenient and non-distracting. You could hit record and film your desk for an hour, if you wanted.

The timecode thing wont show up when editing, right, its just on the camera that the white letters show?

That should be the default setting, yah... but many cameras have the option to visually timestamp the footage itself, if you need to.

old tapes they say to ff and then rewind the entire tape before use to get rid of "oxides", etc.,

Dunno. The only time I ever did that was on old video-cassette players, with old VHS movies that seemed to get stuck and stop.

What does the camera's owner manual say, if anything?

 

[Gonzo_Entertainment]

Which reminds me to say...
Recording to P2 cards ROCKS!