Is this a good way to back-up your mini-DV tapes?

Question

I have at least 7 or 8 miniDV tapes that can be re-recorded on at least 1 more time. so for salvaging what I have on them now, is it good to just burn them all onto a DVD so I'll always have them? one day down the road I guess I can just use an editing program to capture and add footage from the DVDs I have them saved on, just like I would if they were still on a tape. but I just thought saving them as raw footage to a DVD wouldn't be such a bad idea so I can start re-using these tapes without having to buy new ones.

Answer 1

The BEST way to "back up" your miniDV tapes is to not reuse them.

I have never reused a miniDV tape. I shoot the video, lock the tape, label it, transfer to computer, edit, export the completed project as a computer readable data file, export the project as a DVD and export the project back out to miniDV tape.

DVDs can get disc rot, get scratch (and be unusable), and in my case, would not be in high definition. I can connect my computer to a HDTV and see high definition footage, or I can connect my camcorder and see high definition footage. The miniDV tape (original unedited video) and the final project are the "back-up", the archive and the original.

DVD video is compressed a lot, so if I ever need to get the video, I can get original video from the tape or the computer file. Optical discs are not a good back up media. Plus, DVDs only hold 4.7 or 8.5 gig - I don't have a BluRay burner (up to 50 gig per disc) yet.

Compressed video = lost data = reduced quality. That's why DVD camcorders should never be used.

Answer 2

You can import the footage to your PC then back it up to an external drive. You could burn them onto DVDs for viewing on a DVD player, but I wouldn't edit from a DVD because you will need to uncompress the compressed video. It would be better to edit from an external backup.

Answer 3

dude you can record thousand times does not matter anyways you are not a fool who buy every time new tape coz they think you cannot copy on the same one