Q) What is a Video Editing System?

A) In contemporary terms, video editing and film editing are purely digital processes accomplished by utilizing personal computer technology, highly evolved software applications, and mass storage devices.

In stark contrast to "old school" film editing where actual film clips were physically spliced together, and the former techniques of video editing whick utilized multiple videotape players and a video editing recorder to compile scenes, the current paradigm of digital video workstation technology appears much simpler. Yet the inherent capabilities of the newer systems allow all manner of production value up to and exceeding that of the finest Hollywood movie post-production.

A professional digital video workstation will feature the ability to manipulate video and sound in myriad ways. Standard definition (SD) and high definition (HD) are now the baseline of image quality. 2K and 4K resolution editing and post-production have just recently become available here at TAYLOR Studios in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Q) What are some of the tape formats in use for video production and video editing?

A) There are many video tape and audio tape formats in use at the present time:

Standard definition (SD) is typified by regular broadcast/cable programming and reflects the detail afforded through the use of professional analog video formats such as 1", MII and BetaCamSP. Digital SD Video tape formats include Digital BetaCam, DVCam, DVCPro and mini DV. Examples of consumer analog SD formats are VHS and 8mm videotape. Consumer digital cameras are now recording to mini DV, Digital 8mm, rewritable DVD media and internal hard disk.

High definition (HD) tape formats currently in use are all digital. Among the professional formats are JVC HDV (using miniDV tape stock), Panasonic DVCPro HD, Sony XDCam and HDCam.

Q) Isn't tape recording becoming obsolete?

A) Although video tape and audio tape have been used for several decades as the standard way of storing video production footage and audio recording session assets, in the past 4 years there has been an increasing migration to data storage on hard drive, optical disc and solid-state memory devices such as compact flash and the Panasonic P2 format.

In late 2006 and early 2007, TAYLOR Studios completed principle shooting for the independent film production "Assassins Reunion". The digital high definition raw footage was recorded entirely to P2 storage cards and computer hard disk. All asset archiving was done using DVD-9 and Blu-ray writable media. The "digital film" editing and special effects compositing were greatly facilitated by the inherent non-linear characteristics of tapeless storage.