>Date: Tue, 6 Jun 2000 14:17:54 -0400 (EDT)

>From: Elizabeth Haas <[log in to unmask]>

>

>Can anyone suggest a good way of getting pictures of frames of films from

>VHS tapes? How do books that reproduce frames from films do it?



For frame grabs from video with Windows-based machines . . .



1.  Snappy.



Snappy is a little device about the size of 2 packs of cards that plugs

directly into your printer (parallel) port.  You plug a VCR into it and

<ba-bing> frame grabs!



Very easy to use and inexpensive (around $100-150).



2.  A video (graphics) card that supports input from a NTSC or PAL video

source.



Several video cards (the card that your monitor plugs into) will accept

input from a VCR or video camera.  The two I've used are the ATI

All-in-Wonder and the Matrox G-400-TV.  In both cases, you must pop the top

on your computer and replace your old video card with the new one.  Then

you plug your monitor and your video source (VCR, video camera, etc.) into

them and start grabbing.



The Matrox card is around $300 and the ATI one is cheaper, but I forget how

much.



To see how these sort of frame grabs look, check out these from UN CHIEN

ANDALOU (although a 1920s film doesn't really show the quality that well):



http://www.tcf.ua.edu/Classes/Jbutler/T340/SurrealismUnChienAndalou1.htm



These are all JPEG-format files.  For print you would use TIFF-format, but

the grabbing process is about the same.



Get frames from FILM is a whole 'nother process--perfected by Kristin

Thompson for FILM ART.  She takes photographs of the frames from 35mm

prints and then makes print copies from the photographs.





----

Jeremy Butler

[log in to unmask]

http://www.tcf.ua.edu/jbutler

Telecommunication & Film/University of Alabama/Tuscaloosa/AL



----

To sign off Screen-L, e-mail [log in to unmask] and put SIGNOFF Screen-L

in the message.  Problems?  Contact [log in to unmask]