How to Capture using a Sony HDV deck

Put your tape in the deck and press ‘Play.’ The deck will automatically recognize if you recorded in HDV or Standard Definition (SD).

In the ‘Applications’ folder on the computer, open Final Cut Pro.

Final Cut Pro may give you an error message:

“Unable to locate the following external devices:

Apple FireWire NTSC (720 x 480)”

If the deck reads HDV1080i, click “Continue.”

If you’re capturing a Standard Definition tape, the Deck is not talking to the Computer, and you need a Proctor.

If you’re capturing in Standard Definition (SD), skip to step 6.

For HDV, in Final Cut Pro, under the ‘Final Cut Pro’ menu at the top left, choose ‘Easy Setup’ (Control Q).

Under the ‘Format’ pulldown menu, select: ‘HDV.’ Under the ‘Use’ pulldown menu, select: ‘HDV – 1080i60.’ Click ‘Setup’ or press return.

Save your project by selecting ‘File > Save Project’ (Command S).

Select a Scratch Disk by selecting ‘Final Cut Pro > System Settings …’ (Shift Q). Click on the top button that says ‘Set …’ and select the desired place to store your media. If you have a personal hard drive, choose it; otherwise choose a folder with your name on it in the ‘Tempstorage’ drive.

Select ‘File > Log and Capture’ (Command 8) to capture your video.