Cannot import raw video clips. "Select Import Souce Folders"

[tomstickland]

I'm in the process of evaluating several video editing programs. So far I've used AVS Video Editor, Cyberlink Power Director and Adobe Premiere.

With each program I've spent 30 minutes making a quick demo video to see how intuitive it is and how well it performs.

Today I downloaded Corel Visual Studio and decided to give it a go.

I've run into a problem straight away.
I've followed the help and tried to import raw avi files.
So I'm using the "Select Import Souce Folders" screen.
When I navigate to the folder containing the files the OK button is greyed out and won't work.
It's greyed out all of the time.

Any ideas what I need to do?

[tomstickland]

I've worked it out now!

Capture - Import from Mobile Device
Then I had to change the settings to point to my directories.

Not obvious!

My next challenge is working out how to zoom video images.
Not proving easy yet.

Bear in mind that by now on AVS I'd already made a video!

[Ron P.]

Welcome to the forums Tom,

First Corel does not have a program called Visual Studio, that is a product of another company. They do have VideoStudio Pro X3, which is the most current, and the only trial available from them.

Are you trying to insert a video file that is already on your system? If so do not use the Capture step. Stay in the Edit step, and insert it into a library/organizer or directly into the timeline, by right-clicking on the timeline, and selecting Insert video. Then navigate to your video file, select and insert it.

By RAW AVI do you mean in the literal sense? If so RAW uncompressed AVI is around 65 gigs per hour of video. The next best thing for SD video is DV (either type-1 or type-2. That eliminates 2 of the 800 or so possibilities for AVI. I think most systems and programs are better suited to deal with DV, which is still somewhat large, but compressed to where it only consumes around 13 gig per hour of video.

The Capture step in VS is mainly used for getting the video off of another device, camcorder, DVD, ect., onto your PC. Once the video is on your PC, with whatever program and means you used to get it there, it can be inserted into VS for editing.

FWIW, you can create custom Libraries to hold the clips your working on in your projects. To create a Library, open the Library Organizer (click the drop-down arrow to the right of "Video", select Library Organizer, or Settings menu>Library Manager>Library Organizer), then in the next dialog window, click New, provide a name for it and then click Close. You can create custom Libraries for Video, Photos, audio, title, and Project files. Once you're done with the project, you simply go to the Library Organizer, and press Delete. It will delete the folder and all the thumbnails within it. Don't worry, it will not delete the actual source files. Now one thing to know, is when you delete a thumbnail in one of the Libraries, IF you hold down the SHIFT key while pressing Delete, it will then delete the original source files on your system. However will not do so, until after asking if that's what you really want to do..

[Ron P.]

I've worked it out now!

Capture - Import from Mobile Device
Then I had to change the settings to point to my directories.

Not obvious!

My next challenge is working out how to zoom video images.
Not proving easy yet.

Bear in mind that by now on AVS I'd already made a video!

Sorry I was busy trying to provide an answer for you, otherwise you may have been able to create one sooner. However I now notice what it is you're trying to do, and you figured it out.

If AVS is that easy, might be the way to go...

Zoom video by adding the Video Pan/Zoom filter to your video file. It's found in the Adjust filters.

[Ken Berry]

And to apply a zoom effect, look to the buttons to the immediate right of the preview screen and click on FX. Then drag the 'Video Pan and Zoom' filter down to the video clip in the timeline you want to apply it to.

You click on the blue Options tab in the bottom right of the library window to customise the filter.

[tomstickland]

Hi Ron, thanks for that. Due to moderation my reply hadn't appeared when you replied.

I'm used to working with Windows Movie Maker where you just import avi files in and start using them.
When I say raw AVI I just mean the AVI video files that I copied from the XD card in my digital camera.

I've got all that working now.

My next challenge is to zoom some video clips.

[Ron P.]

Yes I'm the one that approved your posts.. To keep the board free from spam, we have it set to requiring the first few posts to be approved by a moderator/staff.

For pan/zoom see above..

[tomstickland]

You just rescued Corel Video Studio from the "can't be bothered any more" reject pile!
I was just about to give up on zooming. I looked on the help and the search brought up loads of irrelevant things.
I tried FX and all I found was "zoom motion effect".

Just to give you an understanding of what I'm doing: I've got 6-7 editors to try out. If I can't find something quickly then I'll look around for a bit and try the help. If I still can't find it then I'll think "product A let me do this and I didn't struggle at all".

[Ken Berry]

Are you sure there is nothing under V for 'Video Pan and Zoom' -- that is exactly what the filter is called.

[tomstickland]

Yes, I found it straight away once you told me what it was called.
In that previous post I was describing what I was doing before you told me where it was.

I've made my trial video.