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From: jlong@uhunix1.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (John Long)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.multimedia
Subject: Re: video digitizing
Message-ID: <12970@uhccux.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu>
Date: 10 May 91 22:37:03 GMT
References: <1991May7.155233.11899@sbcs.sunysb.edu>
Sender: news@uhccux.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu
Organization: University of Hawaii
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In article <1991May7.155233.11899@sbcs.sunysb.edu> dtiberio@eeserv1.ic.sunysb.edu (David Tiberio) writes:
>
> I am interested in doing some video digitizing. I have heard of people using
>programs such as DCTV, but what else is out there? And how can I use video
>digitized pictures from a programming language like C?
>
>  Right now I have a hand scanner, which does a nice job with black and
>white images, but I want color...
>

I assmume you mean digitizing still pictures, and not grab frames from video.
I have experience with Digi-View, and it does cut the mustard. The Digi-View
"thing" is just a little plug that you put on the serial port and plug a video
camera into it. The Digi-View "system" is the plug (with some electronics 
inside, natch), a *cheap black-and-white* (wait, you'll have color) camera,
and a funky-looking 3-color filter wheel that attaches to the camera, software
to drive the hardware, and a ham painting program.

How it works is, you point the camera at your subject, with the red filter in
front of the lens, and pull "scan red" from the menu. It takes a few seconds.
Then likewise with green and blue. The grey-scale color information from each
of the filtered passes is added together to produce a *good* color picture,
in resolutions up to and including hires ham. There is also a good assortment
of image processing filters in the software for controlling rgb levels, sat-
uration, contrast and such. Lots of special effects are possible.

It can also work with a color video camera and do single scan color passes,
but amazingly it works best with the cheap bw camera, because you pick up
the colors one by one (it's a bandwith thing).

Resolution is excellent. You can focus down to about 10cm square objects no
prob. The only difficulty is glare. Your light source should be very indirect
and bright. 

Good stuff.
Aloha,
-LongJohn