<table border="0" cellpadding="20px" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tr><td><div class="breadcrumbs"><a href="1_5_0_0.html" title="Capturing Video and Adding Files">Previous</a> | <a href="1_5_2_0.html" title="Connecting your DV camcorder to your computer">Next</a> | <a href="1_5_0_0.html">Capturing Video and Adding Files</a></div><h3 class="head1">Preparing your system for capture</h3><hr /><ol><p class="paragraph">Adobe Premiere Elements includes all of the tools necessary to acquire the footage from your DV camcorder so that you can begin assembling your movie. The process, called <span class="Emphasis">capturing</span>, is easy; you simply connect your DV camcorder to your computer, and then enable the Capture command in Adobe Premiere Elements.</p><p class="paragraph">However, before you capture, it is important to make sure that your system is set up appropriately for working with digital video. Following are some general guidelines for ensuring a DV-capable system:</p><p class="note"><span class="bold">Note:</span> Adobe Premiere Elements supports capture only from video camcorders, not digital still-image cameras. To use photos from digital cameras, you need to transfer the footage to your hard disk, and then add them to your project. (See <a href="1_5_7_0.html">Adding files</a> and <a href="1_5_8_1.html">Using the Send To command in Adobe Photoshop Elements</a>.)</p><ul><li class="bullet" type="disc">Make sure that your computer has an IEEE 1394 (also known as FireWire or iLink) port. This port may either be built into your computer or available on a PCI or PC card (often referred to as a <span class="Emphasis">capture card</span>) that you install yourself. A majority of computers manufactured in the last two years include onboard IEEE 1394 cards. (See <a href="1_5_2_0.html">Connecting your DV camcorder to your computer</a>.) </li><li class="bullet" type="disc">Make sure that your hard disk is fast enough to capture and play back digital video. The speed at which digital video files transfer information, called the <span class="Emphasis">data transfer rate</span> (often shortened to <span class="Emphasis">data rate</span>), is 3.6 MB-per-second. The data transfer rate of your hard disk should meet or exceed this rate. To achieve this rate, your hard disk must be able to operate at 7200 rpm. Most hard disks manufactured in the last five years have this capability. To confirm the rate or rpm speed of your hard disk, see your computer or hard disk documentation.</li><li class="bullet" type="disc">Make sure that you have sufficient disk space for the captured footage. Five minutes of digital video occupies about one gigabyte of hard disk space. Though the Capture window in Adobe Premiere Elements indicates the duration of footage that you can capture based on the remaining space on your hard disk, be certain beforehand that you will have sufficient space.</li><li class="bullet" type="disc">Make sure that you periodically defragment your hard disk. Writing to a fragmented disk can cause disruptions in your hard disk's write speed, causing you to lose, or drop, frames as you capture. You can use the defragmentation utility included with Windows XP, located in Start > All Programs (or Programs if you are using the Classic Mode display) > Accessories > System Tools > Disk Defragmenter.</li></ul></ol><hr /><div class="breadcrumbs"><a href="1_5_0_0.html" title="Capturing Video and Adding Files">Previous</a> | <a href="1_5_2_0.html" title="Connecting your DV camcorder to your computer">Next</a> | <a href="#top">Top</a> | <a href="1_5_0_0.html">Capturing Video and Adding Files</a></div></td></tr></table>
