Can I please receive some help on this - thanks.

Canon HD F10/Corel Video Studio Pro X2/Vista HP Laptop/fast

Sorry, dingdong, I'm not ignoring you. I just don't know anything
about Corel Video Studio Pro X2 or a Vista HP Laptop.

Could you do what you want to do with a camera that records
to tape? Is it only a HDD camera that won't let you do what you
want?

=============================================
The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but progress.
Joseph Joubert, essayist (1754-1824)

thats ok, I think my main question for now is can I download my images straight onto windows vista. Some on other sites are saying you can. This is where i am up to - have a new hard drive camera and just want to get my film onto my computer for now - i can work out how to play them later.

Canon HD F10/Corel Video Studio Pro X2/Vista HP Laptop/fast

I would think a forum dedicated to your camera would be the best place to start. Either that or the manual that came with the camera.

RJSchwarz

Thats ok, I have been able to download the clips straight from the camera. They will not play however. I have the manual and there is no forums dedicated to my camera that are any good. I suppose thats why people come to forums like this as there may be others who have similar issues or equipment and have already solved these problems?

Canon HD F10/Corel Video Studio Pro X2/Vista HP Laptop/fast

dingdong: are they a proprietary file format? If that is the (unfortunate) case then you'll most likely either have to use the proprietary software (some companies just want you stuck with their sutff) or you will have to convert it. In any case you would be sacrificing something, be it easier control and power over the cut or sacrificing some video quality in the conversion.

I don't know anything really about this camera however, so it might be in your interest for you to determine what type of file (and codec) the video is saved as on the camera.

no, they are not locked by the software that came with the camera. They need converting and all I need is a "lossless" converter which I do believe you can get?

Canon HD F10/Corel Video Studio Pro X2/Vista HP Laptop/fast

Well, it is to my understanding that no matter what conversion you do, for any file type, there will be some sort of data loss. If something says it's "lossless" in conversion that really means there isn't any perceivable loss of data.

A good converter I found a while ago is called "XviD"( http://xvidconverter.com/). Actually, this ( http://xvid4psp.en.softonic.com) was the one I found originally, but try them both if you want.

Your signature line says Canon HD F10, while in your original message, you say Canon HF10. I shall assume you have HF10, since I couldn't find a model by the name HD F10.

HF-10 (as the others in the Vixia line) captures 1920x1080 Hi-Def video in a compressed format called AVCHD (it's a variant of H.264/MPEG-4). All AVCHD camcorders capture and compress in the same way, by building a directory and file structure on the storage media (built-in flash, a hard drive, or a SDHC/memory stick card) in the AVCHD for Blu-Ray format. Most newer Blu-ray players can play back this without any modification.

In order to work on AVCHD files from your Canon outside of the original Pixela software, you have two options.

1. Transcode your original MTS files (located inside /private/avchd/bdmv/stream/ folder) into something that can be easily edited on an average computer, or;
2. Edit original AVCHD files directly (this requires a very fast and capable computer).

Option 1. can be done using iMovie, Final Cut Express, Final Cut Pro on a Mac (they all have simple and intuitive processes for importing and transcoding automatically), as well as using transcoding tools outside the NLEs, such as VideoPier, Cineform's NeoScene, Voltaic, or similar. If you use Windows, AVCHD converter, Cineform Neoscene, and some others can do the AVCHD to AVI transcoding for you. Also, some editing tools (Vegas, Premiere Elements, Pinnacle Studio, as well as your Corel VSP X2) can do the transcoding into something else to edit.

Option 2. Editing AVCHD files directly is still a cumbersome proposition. Adobe CS4 (Premiere, AfterEffects) can do it on Mac (as well as Windows), and on the Windows side, Vegas, Pinnacle, Elements and some others can edit directly.

I have tried both editing AVCHD directly (I have HF-100), and transcoding and there is no question, transcoding is significantly better way to do it. When editing original files, you can forget about any real-time preview of any effects. Meanwhile, transcoding provides NO perceptual difference from the original, and in many cases expands the chroma sampling to 4:2:2, which gives you more latitude when doing colour correction of your video.

I have never unwrapped the original Pixela software that came with my camcorder (15 months ago). For me, iMovie does a great job for most simple tasks. When I need better results, I go to Final Cut Express. When I'm stuck in Windows world (in the office), I go to Premiere Pro, but still transcode. For transcoding, I use Cineform's NeoScene, since it's the only tool that can easily and reliably remove the 2:3 pulldown from 24p footage encoded inside 60i stream. Perhaps one day, Canon will make the 24p feature a real 24p, instead of capturing those 24 progressive frames, breaking them down into fields, duplicating some of them and shoving it all into 60 interlaced fields. That way, we wouldn't have to do the song-and-dance routine in order to wrestle those 24 frames out of that 60i stream before we can place them on a 24p timeline in FCP (or Premiere Pro, or Avid...).

I hope my answer addressed your question without too much irrelevant rambling...

well done vasic.

Ok, as i wade through your info i see that transcoding is better. I am still a bit green at this so forgive my questions.

I want to encode? or convert? whatever.....but neither my windows encoder sees the files nor does my Corel. So, for a perceivable lossless converter, is there any free programs to download that will see my MTS files as even WMM doesnt even see them?

I may be out of the ballpark here but I dont want to download something that just strings the clips together and edits - i can do all that in Corel - what i am trying to do is get Corel to recognise them for starters.

Canon HD F10/Corel Video Studio Pro X2/Vista HP Laptop/fast

OK, so I went ahead and downloaded that Corel VSP X2 trial and installed it, since I had never worked with it and had no idea how to capture/acquire/import AVCHD into it.

Using "Movie Wizard", I was able to get to my MTS files using "Insert Video". If you are using "Edit in Corel Video Studio", under "Capture" tab, you'll use "Import Digital Media". It should recognise your camcorder (if connected via USB), or the SDHC card (if inserted into the card reader). If for some reason it does not recognise it (no proper AVCHD folder structure), use "Import from Mobile Device". This will allow you to manually navigate to your MTS files and import them directly.

I don't have the time to learn Corel VSP right now in order to tell you how to transcode or create proxy files for editing; you'll have to figure it out on your own. This, however, should get you going.

again, thanks vasic - this worked. For some reason I had to go up into tools and use the Movie Wizard as it would not import from panel of options on the right hand side of the editing screen which you would have thought would be the place to start.

My files are viewable and I was able to import to the movie wizard. The only problem I seem to be having is that movie wizard seems to be an automatic movie maker and wants to impose themes and stuff and make a movie. Surely i dont have to make an auto movie just so Corel can import from that program as well?

Canon HD HF10/Corel Video Studio Pro X2/Vista HP Laptop - reasonably fast

At last.

I went into File in the top right hand corner and clicked on insert media/movie file and what do ya know - it imported straight into Corel without going through any software. So far so good but thanks for stimulating my brain around this.

Canon HD HF10/Corel Video Studio Pro X2/Vista HP Laptop - reasonably fast