Specifications

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A Digital Video Primer
Aspect ratio: e ratio of an image’s width to its height. For example, a standard video display
has an aspect ratio of 4:3.
Assets: Typically refers to video and audio clips, stills, titles, and any other elements that com-
prise the content of a video production. With the recent proliferation of media asset management
solutions, asset has come to mean a piece of content and its associated metadata.
Audio gain: Audio level or volume.
Audio lead: See J-cut.
Audio sweetening: Processing audio to improve sound quality or to achieve a specic eect.
AVI: Audio Video Interleave. AVI is one of the video le formats on the Microso Windows
platform.
Balancing: Adjusting the balance of sound between the two channels (le and right) in a stereo clip.
Batch capture: Automated process of capturing a specied list of clips from a digital or analog
videotape source.
Batch list: List of clips to be captured by batch capture. Each clip is identied by In and Out
points using timecode on the videotape.
Binary: A type of digital system used to represent computer code in which numerical places can
be held only by zero or one (on or o).
Bit depth: In digital audio, video, and graphics, the number of bits used to represent a sample.
For example, bit depth determines the number of colors the image can display. A high-contrast
(no gray tones) black-and-white image is 1-bit. As bit depth increases, more colors become avail-
able. 24-bit color allows for millions of colors to be displayed. Similarly, in digital audio, a higher
bit depth produces better sound quality.
BNC connector: A connector typically used with professional video equipment for connecting
cables that carry the video signal.
Camcorder: A video camera that includes a device for recording audio and video, and typically a
microphone and other devices and controls to make it a complete portable production unit. Most
camcorders record to tape. However, a number record to other media such as hard disks and
optical discs.
Capture: If the source is analog, the process of converting audio or video footage to digital form
for use on a computer. Capture typically also involves the simultaneous application of compres-
sion to reduce the data rate of the content, so that it is easier to process and store. If the source
is digital, the content can be transferred directly to the computer hard disk, typically without
conversion or processing.
Capture card: See Video capture card.
CCD: Charge-coupled device. e sensor that detects light inside a digital camera or camcorder.
In single-chip camcorders, the CCD detects all three colors of light (red, green, and blue); in a
camcorder with three chips, each chip is dedicated to one of the three colors, typically, resulting
in better quality images.
CG: see Character generator.
CGI: Computer graphic imagery.
Channel: Each component color dening a computer graphic image (red, green, and blue). By
carrying each component on a separate channel, the colors can be individually adjusted. Chan-
nels may also be added to a computer graphic le to dene masks.
Character generator: Stand-alone device or computer program used to create text for video display.
Chrominance: e color portion of a video signal.
Clip: A digitized portion of video, also called a shot.
CMX: A standard le format for EDLs.