Digital Video for Dummies (Paperback)

by Martin Doucette (Author) "Something exciting has happened to the word "video..." (more)
Key Phrases: digital prosumer, work area slider, digital videographer, Adobe Premiere, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe After Effects (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
Digital Video for Dummies is a winner. It's a great guide to digital video production and one of the best-organized and most authoritative books in the Dummies series. Author Martin Doucette eloquently shares his experience in capturing moving images on videotape, converting the recorded images for editing on a personal computer, and manipulating them to yield maximum effect when presented to a viewer. Throughout, the book features the kind of advice only an experienced professional could deliver--stuff that will be extraordinarily valuable to anyone preparing digital video for use in a game, training aid, sales tool, Web site, or other multimedia genre.

Fully half of Digital Video for Dummies deals with motion-picture production values in general, computer editing and applications aside. Doucette explains how to script scenes, frame shots, capture sound, talk to actors, and apply makeup. He also demystifies camcorder technology--his fine explanation of white balance is one example of this book's excellent hardware coverage (which focuses on the Canon XL1 camera). Once he's explained how to get your scenes on tape, Doucette tells how to convert them to PC format. (He uses a Pinnacle Systems video capture card in his examples.) He uses Adobe's image- and video-editing software (especially Adobe Premiere 5.1 for Windows) in his tutorials, explaining how to get things done with a combination of numbered procedures, sharp prose, and succinct hints. The book's main shortcoming is its lack of information on producing and publishing streaming video in RealVideo or Windows Media Player format--after all, most Internet videos use one of those formats. But this isn't a Web book and it stands on its merits as a video-production and Adobe Premiere text. --David Wall

Topics covered: Preparing for video shoots, lighting, sound, scripting, capturing video to PC format, editing with Adobe Premiere, and adding effects with Adobe Photoshop and Adobe After Effects.

Product Description

As an aspiring videographer, one of the most exciting decisions you can make is to upgrade from a standard camcorder to digital video. Sophisticated software programs enable you to edit your work creatively and produce professional-quality video -- without spending a fortune!

Explore all phases of digital video, from recording and shooting to editing and distribution, with Digital Video For Dummies. In no time, you can turn your digital camcorder and personal computer into a high-tech video studio. Author Martin Doucette has broken down the process in clear steps; easy-to-follow instructions take you from understanding how digital video works to experimenting with advanced editing techniques: Take a look at light and sound, and see how your digital camcorder's lens and electronic features reproduce these elements with astounding accuracy. Read about the basics of video production planning and scene direction. See how your computer's operating system can be your best friend throughout the editing process. Investigate distribution options for your completed video: lay it on a CD, upload it to the Web, or transfer it to a tape. Turn ordinary photos and videos into extraordinary three-dimensional presentations. Visit Web sites full of valuable resources, tips, and information.

The enclosed CD-ROM introduces you to popular graphics software, such as Adobe Illustrator 8.0, Adobe Premiere 5.0, Adobe After Effects 4.0, and Adobe Photoshop 5.0. The CD-ROM also offers instructional examples, video samples, ready-to-use media clips, and more!

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Product Details

• Paperback: 338 pages
• Publisher: Hungry Minds Inc; Bk&CD Rom edition (October 12, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764500236
• ISBN-13: 978-0764500237
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,185,307 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

58 of 59 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Being a Dummy is not always a prerequisite..., January 18, 2000

By	M. Christian "Knight of the Old Republic" (Greenup, KY United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Kudos to Martin Doucette! I've been waiting for a recognizable personality to write a good beginner's book for Digital Video.

I always try to use the "...for Dummies" books in my classes because I think that they talk in plain English and lay a basic foundation for learning to take place. It's easy for the beginner to start at the beginning of the book and for the more advanced student to jump to what they need.

Digital Video for Dummies is no different. I'm using the book for the included software and its explanation of non-linear editing, but it is also a good refresher for my students on shooting and lighting.

Anyone that teaches digital video production should give this book a second look as a text. People who want to break into digital video production should use this as their bible.

21 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Misses the remainder of the edit world, May 15, 2000

By A Customer

While this book was certainly needed, it misses the fact that there are several capture devices, editing programs, and the like. Sticking with Adobe's Premiere, which has gradually become an inferior product at a very high price, makes this book really more for wealthy dummies, rather than the masses. Ignoring the importance of broadband webstreaming, missing most of the audio component, and approaching this subject with so much emphasis on Adobe means that this book really should be called Adobe media products for rich dummies. He completely ignores the Mac world, I edit on both Mac and PC. The fact that he also ignores shooting techniques for the majority of applications, and several other basics tells me that the book was thrown together predominantly on the basis of rewriting Adobe's manuals for them. How many people can afford 2500.00 just for the Adobe products that he continually points to, when there are dozens of other, equally or more popular formats at a substantial savings? Just visit any DV chatroom and you'll see what I mean. The book definitely imparts some great information. However, it's great information that the average dummy can't use, or has to really think hard to figure out how the information applies to his world.

19 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dummies book for intelligent peoples.., June 4, 2000

By	Sam Sagittarius "imagik" (Madison, WI USA) - See all my reviews

I generally shy away from "Dummies" books because they are steep with inconsequential humor and sparse with actual practical content. This book proved me wrong. Completely new to the Digital Video world, this book spoke to my level and without insult or time wasted. I would recommend this book for newcomers to this growing field.