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Home documentarians didn’t
drift significantly from film to video until about 1981. There are many reasons
for this switch, but the simple explanation is video technology had become
easier and less expensive than film and film devices to use for both recording
and playback. Other important factors contributed, but the focus of this
history is on video formats used in the home to document family activities and
adventures. I also give a brief overview of the chemical emulsion instabilities
of video tape that may cause you to decide to make digital copies of your older
home videos sooner rather than later.
Innovative improvements in
video technology began happening after World War II. The first practical video
tape recorder (VTR) was developed in 1951 and VTR technology become commercially
feasible with Ampex introducing the Quadraplex using 2 inch tape reels in 1956.
Sony began marketing the first reel-to-reel VTR designed specifically for home
use in 1964, but only a few hundred were ever sold. In 1969 Sony introduced
its  Color
Video player ,
which used a three-quarter inch videocassette tape and had a maximum playing
time of 90 minutes. Successful home-use video recorders didn’t get
introduced to consumers until 1975 and VTRs prior to 1969 were reel-to-reel
devices lacking suitability for home use.
Before 1967 there was no such
thing as man-portable out-of-studio video cameras. Home users who wanted to
document their parties and special events had to use 8mm or Super8 film and most
professional mobile and location work was done using 16mm film. Sony’s
introduction of the Portapak in 1967
inaugurated the modern era
of video. The Portapack was a bulky analog video camera connected to a VTR with
battery power supply carried in a heavy and huge strapped-on backpack.
Development of smaller,
lighter weight video camera devices became possible when Sony introduced the
1/2-inch Betamax home-use videocassette recorder (VCR) in 1975 and JVC
introduced the VHS VCR in 1976. Both the VHS and Betamax formats were small
enough that "tote-able" battery operated recorders were practical.
Sony
introduced the first prototype single-unit compact color video camera-cassette
recorder system (Video Movie Camera) in 1980 and JVC and Sony concurrently
ushered in the new era of small, lightweight camera/recorder devices
(camcorders) to home documentarians in 1982. After 1982, video technology and
devices changed from analog video to digital video and camcorder got smaller,
cheaper, and much improved. The complete history of these changes and new
technology is very muddling and includes several format battles. However,
delving into this history is avoidable because the important result is image
color and resolution capabilities have gotten much better. Newer digital video
technology, unlike older analog video technology, means unlimited image editing
and duplicating can happen with no loss of image quality or resolution. We are
now at the point where technology can provide better sound and viewing than most
people can detect.
Interest in developing of digital imaging began in the late 1960s
and early 1970s primarily through NASA and the military. NASA needed a more
reliable way of ending up with pictures being sent to Earth by automated
unmanned spacecraft orbiting Mars Venus and other distant planets. It also
needed away to send telemetry reliably to these unmanned probes to get them to
execute course corrections and follow other instructions. The military also had
needs of its own concerning its space platforms and being able to get pictures
and video in real time. The primary need resulted from the need to do constant
calibration and tuning to ensure analogous signals could be understood. With
digital numbers there was less chance instructions would blend in with
background noise and static or be corrupted by interferences as distances
increased as long as the signal was received. The technology was also being
pursued by commercial interests.
Solid
state imaging technology was first demonstrated in 1965 with the public
unveiling of the world’s first solid-state camera that became possible after
solid state CMOS transistor image-sensor devices known as
Passive-pixel
sensors (PPS) were developed just a year or two prior. Ten
years later, in December 1975 Eastman Kodak Company engineer Steven Sasson
captured the first digital photograph on digital cassette tape with a camera he
built using an analog-to-digital converter adapted from Motorola Inc.
components, a Kodak movie-camera lens and 100x100 pixel CCD chips introduced by
Fairchild Semiconductor in 1973. The picture was black and white and had a
resolution of .01 megapixels. Digital imaging didn’t start becoming the
consumer camera and camcorder of choice until about 1996 and 1997.
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1969 The first Charged Couple Devise was
created by George Smith and Willard Boyle at Bell labs
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1972 The first device to digitize the video
signal, the digital time base corrector (TBC) introduced by Consolidated
Video Signals.
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1973 The first imaging
CCD was produced by Fairchild Electronics with a format of 100x100 pixels.
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1974 The first microprocessor used in broadcast
equipment, the 2/3-inch Plumbicon was introduced
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1975 The first CCD
flatbed scanner was introduced by Kurzweil Computer Products using the first
CCD integrated chip, a 500 sensor linear array from Fairchild.
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1984 RCA introduced
CCD-1 solid state camera.
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1988 Fuji unveiled the DS-1P, the first electronic
still camera that recorded images digitally on a 16MB internal memory card
developed with Toshiba.
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1994 The first digital cameras for the US consumer
market becoming easily available
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1996 Flash card memory and mini DV tape first
became available at this time too.
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1997 - DV (Digital Video)/ miniDV standard
introduced by Panasonic & Sony.
The format types of analog
camcorders currently available are: Hi8, VHS, VHSC, and SVHSC. The format
types of digital camcorders currently available are: Mini-DV, Digital8, DVD, and
D-VHS. The following chart gives a bit more information concerning videotape
formats and associated camcorders previously and currently used by Home
documentarians.
|
Type of TAPE Format |
Historical Summary |
Resolution, Tape Type,
and Signal Type |
Compatibility with VCR
or DVD Player |
1975-2000
Analog
Video |
Introduced in
1975 by Sony. Beta videotape was the first successful consumer videotape
format. The first Betamovie camcorder hit stores
in May 1983. Sony began phasing out support in 1988 and completely
discontinued consumer Beta in 2002. Beta consumer VCRs and camcorders are
no longer manufactured or marketed by any company. |
Technically, Beta
was considered superior to VHS, with higher head-to-tape writing speed
(resulted in better image quality), but recording capacity less than VHS
format.
Horizontal
Resolution: 300 lines.
Tape Type: Oxide
Signal Type:
Component |
Camcorders large, requires use of shoulder to support and balance while
shooting.
Tapes
could be taken directly from camcorder and played directly in home beta VCR.
Recorded Beta video can be converted to DVD-Video. |
Introduced 1976
One of the world's
most-available recording media.
Analog Video |
Introduced in
1976 by JVC. VHS camcorders make it possible for you to immediately watch
the tape on your home VCR.
In 1988 VHS
had become the dominating video format. While Beta has been discontinued,
VHS VCRs are still being manufactured and marketed by several companies. |
Horizontal
resolution: 250 lines.
Tape type: Oxide
Signal Type:
Composite |
Camcorders
large, requires use of shoulder to support and balance while shooting.
Tapes
could be taken directly from camcorder and played directly in home VHS VCR.
Recorded VHS video can be converted to DVD-Video. |
|
8mm
Video8
Introduced 1984
Analog Video |
Introduced in
1984 by Kodak. 8mm camcorders are more compact than VHS. The tapes are
incompatible with home VCRs. |
Horizontal
resolution: 260-270- lines.
Tape type: Oxide
Signal Type:
Composite |
Connect the
camcorder to TV or VCR for playback on TV |
Introduced 1985
Analog
Video |
This camcorder
uses VHS cassettes that are approximately ¼ the size of the VHS VCR tape,
and can be played in your home VCR by putting it in an adapter. The maximum
recording time is 40 minutes, and the resolution is the same as regular size
VHS tapes at 250 lines. |
Horizontal
resolution: 250 lines.
Tape type: Oxide
Signal Type:
Composite |
Camcorder is
handheld. VHSC cassettes require an adaptor to play cassette in VCR.
Recorded VHSC video can be converted to DVD-Video. |
Introduced 1987
Analog
Video |
S-VHS tapes can
only be played by attaching the camcorder to your VCR or by using an S-VHS
VCR, as they are not compatible with standard VCRs. The S stands for super,
as the resolution jumps from the VHS standard of 250 horizontal lines 400
horizontal lines. |
Horizontal
resolution: 400 lines.
Tape type: Oxide
Signal Type:
Y/C |
Few
SVHS camcorders currently available.
Using an adapter,
SVHS-C cassettes can be played in a full size SVHS VCR. With a couple of
exceptions, however, SVHS-C recordings cannot be played back in standard VHS
VCRs.
Recorded SVHS video can be converted to DVD-Video.
|
|
HI-8
Introduced 1988
One of the world's
most-available recording media.
Analog/Digital
Video |
Hi-8 camcorders
use 8mm tapes, and have to be played back by hooking up the camcorder to the
television. |
Horizontal
resolution:
Analog-400 lines
Digital-500 lines
Tape Type:
Metal Particle
Single Type:
Y/C |
Very few analog
Hi8 cameras are made now, having fallen victim to the superior quality of
digital video cameras. |
Introduced 1995
Digital Video |
These camcorders
record images digitally, and use small tapes compared to VHS. Digital
camcorders have the highest resolution of all the camcorders, starting at
530-800+ lines of horizontal resolution.
Wide range of
camera system quality. Most consumer models are 1CCD, 530+lines of
horizontal. Professional /Broadcast models are 3CCD, 800+ lines of
horizontal resolution. |
Horizontal
Resolution: +500 lines
Tape Type: Metal
Particle
Signal Type:
Digital |
MiniDV-Connect
the camcorder to TV for playback on TV or connect directly to computer to
download for editing and burning to DVD-video.
Digital
Hi-Def Camcorder is the latest technology, able to record and play back
1280x720/30p digital high definition and 480p progressive wide images using
Mini DV tape. |
Introduced 1999
Digital
Video |
The digital8
format also records images digitally, and use regular 8MM cassettes. These
tapes are incompatible with the standard VHS VCR and require you to play
them through the camcorder onto your TV |
Horizontal
Resolution: 500 lines.
Tape Type: Oxide
Signal Type:
Digital |
|
Introduced:
Players-1996
Recorders-2001
Camcorders-2002
Digital Video |
DVD-Video has become
the format of choice for high quality movies, TV series and music videos.
Currently, a DVD offers about 480 lines of
resolution. Once HDTV gets going the DVD specs permit an upgrade (with
newer players) to 720 lines of resolution. |
Horizontal
Resolution: 500 lines.
The
creation of HD DVDs is not yet possible. When HD-DVD burners become
available in the future, they will open the doors to low-cost HD production
Tape Type: n/a
Signal Type:
Digital |
DVD camcorder
technology – The Hi8 and MiniDV video cameras
record a clearer picture and generally are much smaller. |
Introduced 1997
High Definition Digital Video |
|
Horizontal Resolution:
1,080 lines |
High Definition camcorders are marketed |
| NOTE 1:
Video tape
or any medium storing an image will have its own resolution. But the maximum
capture resolution depends upon the total system being used to shoot the
video. The better quality of the video bandwidth of the electronic
components and the better quality the lens and apertures the better recorded
image resolution you will see. |
|
NOTE 2:
Digital forms of storage are capable of copying any resolution of analog
video you want to copy. The quality of the digitally captured copy depends
on: Speed and compression capabilities of
the video capture board; Speed of the computer's hard drive; Speed of the
computer's s central processing unit (CPU); Data processing load on the CPU;
Speed of the computer's data bus; and, Available RAM if capturing to memory.
The quality of the captured video will never exceed the quality of the
source video, so you should use the highest quality source possible. |
Good quality tape when stored properly can have an expected lifetime of anywhere
from 10 years to beyond 30 years. It is possible for the effective life of
videotape to shorten because of wear and damage caused by repeated use, but the
probability wear through use is linked more to how well the playback devices are
maintained and the quality of the specific tape rather than how often the tape
is used. The most common causes of damage are improper handling and extremes or
fluctuations in heat and humidity. Dust and debris that get trapped between the
layers of wound tape or accumulate in the equipment can also result in damage,
i.e. scratching and equipment contamination. Magnetic fields (from televisions,
speakers, magnets, vacuum cleaners, etc.) are a problem only if they are strong
and close to the tape. If you’re comfortable, chances are your tape is
comfortable, too. Stay within 59° to 77° F and 40% to 60% relative humidity.
Because tape can expand or contract, stay away from sudden temperature changes,
even within the recommended range.
The binder, the glue adhering the magnetic recording particles to the base
film, is the weak point of most videotape. Videotapes absorb water when stored
in humid environments and eventually this can create a process of hydrolysis
that cause the chemical components of the binder to disintegrate. The binder
becomes tacky, creating an adhesive build-up that makes the tape almost
impossible to play. This condition is known as ‘sticky shed syndrome’ and the
magnetic media literally sheds off the from the tape base and what's more, if
you are playing an afflicted tape it sticks like glue to the heads and tape
guides. Even though binder formulations have improved over the years, new
formulations have not eliminated instabilities, particularly instabilities
relevant to the videotape absorbing moisture.
Manufactures provide recommend storage and care guidance in order to retain
high quality, trouble free recordings. Some of these suggestions include:
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Always put your
cassette back in its protective sleeve when not in use. Dust and dirt will
damage your tape and contaminate your VCR or camcorder.
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Don't store your tapes
near strong magnetic fields (near your power panel or high current users like
electric dryers or stoves, air conditioners, or stereo speakers, etc.) The
recorded information could be erased over time if you do.
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Don't
store your tapes in areas of high humidity (basements). This environment
provides the condition that allow mold and mildew to grow and will damage
tapes and sleeves. Storing tapes at 70 degrees F (40-percent RH or lower) can
keep them healthy for 30 years or more.
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Don't
leave cassettes in direct sunlight. The sun can heat a black shell to well
above the temperature necessary to permanently warp the shell.
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Take
proper care of your VCR and camcorder. See that it gets cleaned and lubricated
to keep it in top condition. Video heads only need to be cleaned if there is a
degradation in video signal, but the tape path and capstan pinch roller need
cleaning more frequently especially in dusty environments or in situations
where tapes have been left out without their protective sleeves. A dirty tape
path can cause physical damage to the tape especially the rubber pinch roller.
When it gets dirty and/or dried out, it will not drive the tape correctly.
Instead it will cause the tape to wander up or down, damaging the edges of the
tape against the guides. If you open the door of the cassette and see wrinkled
upper or lower edges on the tape, it is almost certain to have been caused by
a capstan pinch roller that needs to be either cleaned or replaced.
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Rewind
the tape before storing it. This keeps the beginning of the tape from being
creased by the end of the leader or the clamp. The best position for storage
is to stand the cassette on its end with the heavy end down. Don't lay them
flat (especially upside down).
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Don't use
rewind equipment to rewind tapes after playing. Your VCR will do a much better
and safer job rewinding that precious tape. VCR rewind mechanisms almost never
fail because of over use; they fail because of time and elevated temperatures
whether used or not.
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Look at the pack of
wound tape. If there’s "stepping" or other signs of uneven winding, the whole
tape should be rewound. Where possible, rewind at slower speeds. Be sure to
rewind tapes completely after each use to maintain high performance.
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You don’t want tape layers to start
sticking together. So "exercise" tapes at least once every three years.
In general, video tapes will retain
acceptable captured image quality for years, but at some point after 15 or 30
years image quality degradation becomes noticeable as the tape slowly
demagnetizes and physically degrades.
CY Technical and Professional
Services is ready and capable of giving you the keepsake digital memories you
expect. We can copy your old videos to digital tape or DVD.
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