The real magic of home movies isn't just in recording them; it's in reliving them with the people you love. But your family’s history is hard to share when it’s stuck on outdated DV tapes in a box. Bringing those memories into the present means making them accessible on the devices we use every day—our phones, computers, and smart TVs. It’s about easily sending a clip of grandpa’s goofy dance to your cousins or watching your own childhood birthday parties with your kids. To make that happen, you need to convert DV tapes to digital. Let's explore how you can unlock those moments and start sharing them again.
Key Takeaways
- Digitize your tapes before they fade: DV tapes don't last forever and can suffer from permanent digital corruption like pixelation and audio drops. Converting them now is the best way to preserve your home movies in their original quality.
- Decide if you want a project or a professional result: Converting tapes yourself requires specific equipment, technical know-how, and a lot of time. For guaranteed high-quality results without the hassle, a professional service is your best bet.
- Protect your new digital videos with a backup plan: A single digital copy isn't safe. Use the 3-2-1 rule to protect your memories: keep at least three copies of your files, on two different types of media, with one of those copies stored off-site in the cloud.
Why You Should Convert Your DV Tapes to Digital
Those stacks of DV tapes tucked away in a closet hold more than just magnetic tape—they hold priceless family moments. From first steps and birthday parties to holiday gatherings, they are a time capsule of your life. But as technology has moved on, accessing those memories has become a challenge. Converting your DV tapes to digital is the best way to protect those irreplaceable moments, making them easy to watch, enjoy, and share with the people you love for years to come. It’s about bringing your family’s story into the present and ensuring it’s around for the future.
Preserve Your Irreplaceable Memories
The biggest reason to digitize your DV tapes is simple: preservation. Physical media doesn't last forever. Tapes are vulnerable to heat, humidity, and magnetic field exposure, which can cause them to degrade over time, even when stored carefully. Every play on an old camcorder adds a little more wear and tear. A professional video transfer service moves those precious videos into a stable digital format, safeguarding them from physical decay. Once digitized, your memories are no longer tied to a single, fragile tape. You can back them up to the cloud, save them on multiple devices, and share them with family members near and far with just a few clicks.
Signs Your DV Tapes Are Fading
Unlike analog tapes that get fuzzy, DV tapes can suffer from "digital corruption." This often shows up as pixelation, where parts of the screen look like a blocky mosaic, or sudden audio dropouts that create jarring moments of silence. You might also see frozen frames or glitches that weren't there when you first recorded the video. These are clear signs that the tape is beginning to fail. Because this damage is often permanent, it’s crucial to convert your tapes as soon as you notice these issues—or better yet, before they even start. Acting sooner rather than later is the best way to save your home movies in their original quality.
The Benefits of Going Digital
Going digital is all about convenience and quality. You no longer need to hunt down a working camcorder and the right cables just to watch a video. With digital files, your entire video library is at your fingertips, ready to be viewed on your computer, TV, or phone. Plus, you can finally edit your footage, creating highlight reels or trimming out the shaky parts. When you use a professional service, you also get the benefit of high-end equipment that produces a much better quality transfer than most home setups. Experts handle the technical side, ensuring your digital copies look and sound their best without you having to troubleshoot a single thing.
Top Services for Converting DV Tapes
If the idea of tackling the conversion process yourself feels a bit overwhelming, you’re not alone. Handing your precious tapes over to a professional service is a fantastic way to ensure a high-quality result without the technical hassle. These companies have the right equipment and expertise to handle delicate tapes and produce digital files you can easily share and enjoy. They take the guesswork out of the equation, giving you peace of mind that your memories are in good hands. From all-in-one kits to specialized services, here are some of the top options for converting your DV tapes.
YesVideo
With over 20 years of experience, YesVideo is a trusted name in the industry, specializing in preserving family memories. They offer a comprehensive video transfer service that handles not just MiniDV tapes but also a wide range of other formats like VHS, Hi8, and Digital8. What I appreciate most is that every order is processed by hand in the USA, ensuring your tapes get the individual attention they deserve. You receive your original tapes back along with your new digital files, which you can access through their MemoryCloud for easy viewing and sharing with family, no matter where they are.
Southtree
Southtree is known for its incredibly simple, all-in-one mail-in system. When you place an order, they send you a crush-proof box called a "Time Capsule" with everything you need to safely pack and ship your DV tapes. This includes a pre-paid UPS shipping label and barcodes to track your order every step of the way, which is a huge comfort. They convert your MiniDV tapes to digital files, DVDs, or thumb drives. It’s a straightforward and secure process, making it a great choice if you value convenience and want to feel confident that your tapes are being tracked carefully from your home and back again.
Kodak Digitizing
Leveraging a name that’s been synonymous with photography for generations, Kodak Digitizing offers a professional conversion service for MiniDV tapes. They emphasize quality and care, with trained technicians handling each tape. The process is similar to other mail-in services: you send your tapes, they digitize them, and you get everything back, including your originals and the new digital copies. Kodak promises a high-quality conversion and stands by their results with a satisfaction guarantee, making them a reliable option if you’re looking for the assurance of a well-known brand.
EverPresent
With decades of experience, EverPresent has digitized tens of thousands of MiniDV tapes, so it's safe to say they know what they're doing. They offer a great deal of flexibility in how you receive your digital files, providing them on a USB drive, DVDs, or through a private cloud account for easy online access. This is perfect if you want multiple ways to store and share your videos. Their experience means they’re well-equipped to handle older, more fragile tapes, and their range of delivery options makes them a versatile choice for preserving your family’s video history.
Legacy Box
If the name sounds familiar, it’s because Legacy Box is part of the same company as Southtree. They offer a very similar, user-friendly mail-in service designed to make digitizing your memories as simple as possible. You fill a Legacy Box with your MiniDV tapes and other old media (like photos or film reels), send it in, and their team handles the rest. Like Southtree, they provide step-by-step tracking so you always know where your memories are. It’s an excellent all-in-one solution if you have a mix of different media types you want to convert at the same time.
Memories Renewed
Memories Renewed is a service that focuses heavily on preserving the original quality of your footage during the digitization process. They handle a variety of formats, including MiniDV tapes, and take pride in their careful handling and conversion techniques. This focus on quality is key for anyone who is particularly concerned about getting the best possible digital version of their original recordings. If your main goal is to ensure your home movies look as good as they possibly can in their new digital format, this service is definitely one to consider for its commitment to quality preservation.
Walmart Photo (Lotus Media)
For a convenient and accessible option, Walmart Photo offers a MiniDV transfer service through its partner, Lotus Media. You can simply bring your tapes to a local Walmart Photo Center or use their mail-in service. They convert your tapes directly into MP4 files, which is one of the most versatile and widely used digital video formats. This makes it incredibly easy to save the files to your computer, share them online, or edit them. It’s a no-fuss solution that’s great for anyone looking for a quick and straightforward way to get their tapes digitized.
How to Convert DV Tapes Yourself
If you’re feeling adventurous and have some tech-savvy, converting your own DV tapes can be a rewarding weekend project. It gives you complete control over the process from start to finish. Before you start, just know that it requires specific equipment and a good bit of patience. The transfer happens in real-time, which means a 90-minute tape will take 90 minutes to digitize.
This path is best for those who have just a few tapes, enjoy a good DIY challenge, and already have some of the necessary gear. If your tapes are old, damaged, or you have a large collection, you might find that a professional service is a better fit. But if you're ready to roll up your sleeves, I'll walk you through everything you need to know to get started. Let's set up your workstation and get those memories onto your computer.
Your DIY Equipment Checklist
First things first, let's gather your tools. You won't get far without the right gear. Here’s a simple checklist of what you’ll need to pull this off:
- A MiniDV Camcorder or Deck: You’ll need a device that can play your tapes. Ideally, use the same camera that originally recorded the footage, as this can help minimize playback errors.
- Your MiniDV Tapes: Get your collection together and decide which ones you want to tackle first.
- A FireWire Cable and Adapter: Most DV camcorders use a FireWire (also known as IEEE 1394 or i.LINK) port for digital transfer. Since modern computers don't have FireWire ports, you'll likely need a FireWire-to-USB-C or Thunderbolt adapter.
- A Computer: Make sure you have a computer with enough free hard drive space to store the large video files.
- Video Capture Software: This is the program that will record the video signal from your camcorder.
Choosing the Right Video Capture Software
The software you choose will act as the bridge between your camcorder and your computer. For Mac users, QuickTime Player is a straightforward option that comes pre-installed. It’s user-friendly and can capture video easily, but it may compress the file, slightly altering the original quality.
For a more advanced approach that preserves the raw video data, you could use a tool like ffmpeg. This is a command-line tool, so it requires a bit more technical comfort to use. However, it gives you precise control over the capture process. If you're curious about the more technical route, you can find some great discussions from video editors who have tackled this exact project.
A Step-by-Step Guide to the Transfer Process
Once your equipment is ready, the transfer process is pretty simple. Here’s how it works:
- Connect Everything: Use your FireWire cable and adapter to connect the MiniDV camcorder to your computer.
- Cue Up Your Tape: Insert the MiniDV tape into your camcorder and rewind it to the beginning.
- Open Your Software: Launch your chosen video capture software (like QuickTime) on your computer. Make sure it recognizes the connected camcorder as the video source.
- Press Record: Start the recording in your software, then immediately press play on your camcorder.
- Wait: The video will record in real-time. When the tape is finished, stop the recording in your software and save the new digital file to your computer.
How to Handle Common Technical Glitches
Working with old tapes can sometimes feel like a rescue mission. A common issue you might face is "timecode dropout," where the recording stops and starts, creating a bunch of short, fragmented clips instead of one continuous video. This often happens when the tape has minor damage or when the playback device struggles to read the data smoothly.
The best way to prevent this is to use the original camcorder that recorded the footage. It’s often more forgiving and better at reading its own recordings. Also, make sure the playback heads on your camcorder are clean. If you’re still running into problems, it might be a sign that the tape itself is degrading, which is a good reason to consider a professional service.
Tips for a High-Quality Transfer
While the DIY method is effective, the final quality depends heavily on the condition of your tapes and your equipment. For the absolute best results, a professional video transfer service is the way to go. At YesVideo, we use professional-grade decks that are maintained and calibrated specifically for digitizing old formats. This specialized equipment can often pull a clearer picture and more stable audio from tapes than a consumer camcorder can.
If you're set on the DIY route, make sure to capture your video in a lossless format to preserve as much detail as possible. You can always compress it later if you need a smaller file size for sharing.
What Determines Digital Conversion Quality?
Getting a crisp, clear digital copy of your home movies involves more than just hitting a button. The final quality of your digitized videos depends on a few key factors, starting with the condition of your original tapes and extending to the equipment used for the transfer. The digital format you choose also plays a big role in how you’ll be able to watch and share your memories for years to come. Understanding these elements will help you make the best choice for preserving your family’s irreplaceable moments, whether you decide to do it yourself or hand it off to a pro.
How to Assess Your Original Tapes
The old saying "garbage in, garbage out" definitely applies here. The condition of your original DV tapes is the single biggest factor in the quality of the final digital video. Before you begin, take a close look at your collection. Tapes that have been stored in damp or hot environments might show signs of mold or feel brittle. Older tapes can also suffer from issues like "timecode dropout," which can cause the video to break into many short, glitchy clips during the transfer. If you still have the camcorder that recorded the tapes, using it for playback can sometimes help with these errors. For tapes that look delicate or damaged, consider a professional video transfer service to handle them with expert care.
Why Your Equipment's Quality Matters
The hardware you use for the conversion process makes a huge difference. For a DIY project, a simple DV-to-USB converter can get the job done, but the quality can be inconsistent. Professional services, on the other hand, use high-end, broadcast-quality decks that are specifically designed for digitizing old formats. This specialized equipment can often correct minor tracking errors and stabilize the video signal, resulting in a much cleaner and more stable picture than you could get at home. While going the professional route costs more, you’re paying for top-tier equipment and the expertise to get the best possible quality from your tapes. This is especially true for more fragile media like old reels, which require a delicate film transfer process.
Choosing the Best Digital Format
Once your video is digitized, you need to decide how you want it saved. The format you choose will affect how you can watch, share, and store your memories. The most common and versatile option is an MP4 file, which you can easily save to a computer, edit, and share online. Many services also offer to save your videos on a custom USB drive or DVD, which are great for gifting or for family members who aren't as tech-savvy. Another popular choice is cloud storage, which gives you instant access to your videos from any device and makes sharing with family across the country a breeze. Think about your end goal before you start the digital media transfer to ensure you pick the best format for your needs.
How to Preserve Video Quality
Maintaining video quality throughout the transfer process is crucial. If you’re doing it yourself, this means using high-quality cables and choosing the right software settings to capture the video without unnecessary compression. If you’re using a professional service, look for one that prioritizes the safety and integrity of your memories. A trustworthy company like YesVideo will offer features like order tracking so you know where your tapes are every step of the way. They should also perform all the work by hand in the USA and offer a satisfaction guarantee. This commitment ensures that your precious memories are not only converted at the highest quality but are also handled with the care they deserve.
How Much Does It Cost? Services vs. DIY
Deciding between a professional service and a do-it-yourself approach often comes down to cost. While the DIY route might seem cheaper at first glance, the total expense depends on what equipment you already own and how much you value your time. Professional services offer a straightforward, per-tape price, but it’s important to understand what’s included. Let’s break down the costs of both options so you can figure out the best path for preserving your memories.
What to Expect from Professional Service Pricing
When you use a professional digitizing service, you’re paying for expertise, high-end equipment, and convenience. Most companies charge on a per-tape basis, with prices typically ranging from $15 to $30 per DV tape. The final cost depends on the company and the services you select. For example, YesVideo offers a simple pricing model where you receive digital copies of your memories in the cloud, with options to add a USB or DVDs. This transparent approach helps you know exactly what you’re paying for upfront, without any hidden fees. The price reflects the hand-processed care and quality checks that ensure your memories are safely preserved.
The Cost of DIY Equipment
Going the DIY route can be cost-effective if you already have the necessary gear. You’ll need a working DV camcorder, a computer with a FireWire port (or a suitable adapter), and the right cables. If you have all this, your main cost is your time, since the transfer happens in real-time—a two-hour tape takes two hours to capture. If you need to buy equipment, costs can add up. A used camcorder can run from $50 to over $200, and you might also need to purchase video capture software. Before you invest, consider how many tapes you have to determine if the upfront equipment cost is worth it.
Understanding Add-ons and Extra Features
When comparing professional services, look beyond the base price and see what’s included. The initial quote might cover the basic video transfer, but many companies offer valuable add-ons. These can include a USB drive with your digital files, multiple DVD copies for family members, or access to a private online gallery for easy sharing. Some services also offer tape cleaning or minor repairs to improve the quality of the transfer. These extras can provide peace of mind and make sharing your newly digitized memories much simpler, so be sure to factor them into your decision.
How to Save Money with Bulk Orders
If you have a large collection of tapes, you’re in a great position to save money. Most professional digitizing services offer bulk discounts, so the price per tape often goes down as your order size goes up. Sending in your entire archive at once is much more economical than sending a few tapes at a time. Services like YesVideo are designed to handle large collections, allowing you to mix different formats like DV tapes, film reels, and photo albums in a single order. This not only saves you money but also streamlines the process of preserving all your family’s precious moments together.
How to Choose the Right Conversion Method
Deciding between converting your DV tapes yourself or sending them to a professional service can feel like a big choice. There’s no single right answer—it all comes down to what you value most. Are you looking for a weekend project, or do you want to hand off the task to an expert? Let’s walk through the key factors to consider so you can find the perfect path for preserving your memories.
How Much Time Do You Have?
The biggest factor in the DIY versus pro debate is often time. Converting tapes at home isn’t a quick process. You have to play each tape from start to finish in real-time to capture the footage. If you have a box of ten 90-minute tapes, you’re looking at a minimum of 15 hours of just transfer time. That doesn’t even include setting up the equipment, troubleshooting glitches, or organizing the final files. Be honest with yourself about how much free time you can dedicate to this project. If your schedule is already packed, a professional video transfer service can be a lifesaver, handling the entire process for you.
What Technical Skills Do You Need?
Next, think about your comfort level with technology. A DIY conversion requires you to connect a camcorder to a computer, install specific software, and manage the recording process. You’ll need to be prepared to work through potential issues, like your computer not recognizing the camera or the audio and video falling out of sync. If you enjoy tinkering with tech and learning new software, this could be a fun challenge. However, if the thought of troubleshooting drivers and settings sounds stressful, you might get better results and have a much better experience by letting a team of professionals handle the technical details.
What Are Your Quality Expectations?
When it comes to your family’s memories, quality is everything. While a DIY setup can get the job done, professional services use specialized, high-end equipment that’s built for one purpose: creating the best possible digital copy. They use capture methods that maintain the original video quality far better than most consumer-grade devices. At YesVideo, we also clean and carefully handle every tape by hand to ensure a smooth transfer. If your goal is to get a crystal-clear digital version of your home movies that will last for generations, investing in a professional digitization service is the surest way to achieve that.
What's Your Budget?
At first glance, DIY seems like the cheaper option, but the costs can add up. You might need to buy a working DV camcorder, specific cables like a FireWire cord, and a video capture device or software. These items can easily cost over $100, and that’s before you factor in your time. Compare that to the straightforward, per-tape pricing of a professional service. If you only have one or two tapes, a DIY project might save you a few dollars. But for larger collections, you’ll often find that using a service is more cost-effective and delivers a much higher-quality result for your investment.
Weighing the Pros and Cons: Professional vs. DIY
Ultimately, the choice is yours. Doing it yourself gives you complete control over the project and can be a rewarding experience if you have the time and technical skills. However, it comes with a steep learning curve, a significant time commitment, and the risk of a lower-quality transfer.
Using a professional service like YesVideo saves you time and eliminates the technical headaches. You can trust that your precious tapes are in expert hands and that you’ll receive high-quality digital files ready to be shared and enjoyed. It’s a simple, reliable way to ensure your memories are preserved perfectly.
How to Store Your New Digital Videos
Congratulations, you’ve successfully converted your DV tapes! But the journey to preserving your memories isn’t quite over. Now that you have digital files, the next crucial step is storing them safely so they can be enjoyed for decades to come. Unlike a physical tape that you can put on a shelf, digital files need a thoughtful storage plan to protect them from being lost or corrupted.
Thinking about storage now will save you a lot of headaches later. It involves choosing the right file format for your needs, creating a reliable backup system, exploring the convenience of cloud storage, and organizing your files so you can actually find that hilarious clip from your cousin’s wedding. Let’s walk through how to create a simple and effective storage system for your newly digitized videos.
Select the Right File Format
When you get your videos back from a service or finish a DIY conversion, you’ll have to decide on a file format. Think of this as choosing between a Blu-ray or a standard DVD—some formats are more versatile than others. The most common and recommended format is MP4 (.mp4). It offers a great balance of high quality and manageable file size, and it’s compatible with virtually every device, from your computer and smartphone to your smart TV.
When you use a video transfer service, you’ll typically have the option to receive your MP4 files on a USB drive, DVDs, or via a digital download. A USB drive is a great physical backup, while a digital download is perfect for immediately saving your files to your computer and the cloud.
Create a Smart Backup Strategy
A single copy of a digital file is a recipe for disaster. Hard drives fail, laptops get stolen, and accidents happen. To truly protect your memories, you need a solid backup strategy. A great rule of thumb is the 3-2-1 method: keep at least three copies of your files, on two different types of storage media, with one of those copies located off-site.
For example, you could keep one copy on your computer’s internal hard drive, a second copy on an external hard drive that you store in a safe place, and a third copy in the cloud. This redundancy ensures that even if one or two copies are lost, your precious videos are still safe and sound.
Explore Your Cloud Storage Options
Cloud storage is a game-changer for protecting and accessing your digital memories. It serves as your off-site backup and makes it incredibly easy to view and share your videos from any device, anywhere in the world. Popular services like Google Photos, Dropbox, and iCloud are all great options for storing your video files securely.
When you use a service like YesVideo for your film transfer, you get access to a private online MemoryCloud account. This not only stores your videos but also lets you view, download, and share them directly with family and friends on social media or via email. It’s a seamless way to start enjoying your memories right away.
Organize Your Digital Library
Now that your videos are safe, it’s time to get them organized. A little effort upfront will make it so much easier to find specific moments later. Instead of leaving your files with generic names like "video_001.mp4," take a few minutes to rename them with descriptive titles, like "FamilyVacation_Hawaii_July2002.mp4."
You can also create folders to group videos by year, event, or family member. This creates a clean, browsable library of your life’s best moments. One of the perks of using a professional album scanning or video service is that they often do some of this work for you by transcribing the labels you wrote on your original tapes, giving you a fantastic head start on organization.
How to Troubleshoot Common Transfer Problems
Even with the right gear, a DIY video transfer can feel like a science experiment. You might run into glitches, error messages, or files that just don't look or sound right. It’s a completely normal part of the process, so don’t get discouraged. You’re asking technology from two different decades to play nicely together, and that can take some finessing. Most common issues have a solution, whether it’s a simple settings tweak or a different piece of hardware.
Before you throw in the towel, let’s walk through some of the most frequent problems you might encounter when converting your DV tapes. From stubborn computers that won’t recognize your camcorder to pesky audio sync issues, we’ll cover what’s going wrong and how you can fix it. Sometimes, the solution is surprisingly simple. Other times, recognizing a tough technical challenge is the first step toward deciding if a professional service is the better route for your precious memories. The goal is to get your videos digitized beautifully, and this guide will help you figure out the best path forward, even when you hit a bump in the road.
Solve Equipment Compatibility Issues
One of the biggest hurdles is getting modern computers to talk to older camcorders. If you have a newer Mac, you might find that it struggles to capture DV tapes via a FireWire connection. That’s because recent versions of macOS have phased out the software support needed for this older technology to work smoothly. You aren’t doing anything wrong; the tech has just moved on. To get around this, you could try to find an older computer with a compatible operating system or look into specific adapters that bridge the gap. If this sounds like too much of a headache, this is often where a professional video transfer service can save the day.
Fix Common Video Quality Problems
Are you seeing your video import as dozens of short, jumbled clips instead of one continuous file? This is likely due to "timecode dropout." Over time, the data on your DV tapes can degrade slightly, creating tiny gaps. The capture software interprets each gap as the end of a clip, so it stops and starts over and over. One trick that sometimes helps is to play the tape back on the exact same camcorder it was originally recorded on. That camera is often better at reading its own recordings, quirks and all. For other issues like static or color distortion, try cleaning the playback heads on your camcorder or deck first.
What to Do When Audio Is Out of Sync
You’ve successfully transferred a video, but when you play it back, everyone’s mouths are moving at a different time than the audio. This frustrating issue happens when the audio and video streams don’t capture at the exact same speed. Fixing it requires you to manually realign the audio and video tracks in editing software. If you’re not familiar with video editing, this can be a tedious and tricky process. You’re in charge of all the post-transfer edits, and getting the timing just right takes a good eye and a lot of patience. This is another one of those problems that can make a DIY project feel overwhelming.
Overcome Format Conversion Hurdles
Sometimes the problem is as simple as not having the right ports to connect your gear. Your DV camcorder likely uses a FireWire port, but your new laptop almost certainly doesn’t. This is where a DV-to-USB converter can be a lifesaver. This small device acts as a bridge, allowing you to plug your camcorder into your computer’s USB port. It translates the signal from one format to another so the two devices can communicate. Just make sure you have the correct cables for each end—one to connect the camcorder to the converter and another to connect the converter to your computer.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What happens to my original DV tapes after you convert them? You always get your original tapes back! A professional service understands that these items are irreplaceable. The goal is to create a durable digital copy for you to enjoy and share, not to replace your originals. Once the transfer is complete, your tapes are carefully packaged and returned to you along with your new digital files.
My old camcorder doesn't work anymore. Can my tapes still be converted? Absolutely. This is one of the most common reasons people turn to a professional service. You don't need a working camcorder because services like YesVideo use professional-grade decks designed specifically for playing and digitizing old formats. This specialized equipment can often handle tapes that a consumer camcorder might struggle with.
Is it really safe to mail my one-of-a-kind tapes? It's completely understandable to feel nervous about shipping your memories. Reputable services have developed a secure process to give you peace of mind. You'll typically receive a crush-proof box to protect your tapes, a pre-paid shipping label, and a tracking system that lets you follow your order's journey from your home to the processing center and back again.
How long does the professional conversion process usually take? The turnaround time can vary depending on the size of your order and the service you choose, but you can generally expect it to take a few weeks. Remember that every tape is processed by hand to ensure the best quality, so the process is intentionally careful and deliberate. Most companies provide an estimated timeline when you place your order.
Can the digital version look better than my original tape? While digitization can't fix a poorly recorded video, a professional transfer can often produce a digital copy that looks more stable and clear than what you'd see playing the tape on an old camcorder. Professional equipment is maintained and calibrated to capture the best possible signal from the tape, which can help clean up minor visual noise and stabilize a shaky picture.
