The topic of this article is ArcSoft’s Video Impression 2.0, software that will allow you to create multimedia presentations by combining photos and video clips with audio, text and scene transitions. According to the corporate website, ArcSoft is a publicly held company based in the heart of Silicon Valley California with offices around the world. They specialize in “digital imaging and video solutions to companies around the globe”.

Hardware and Software Requirements:
According to the documentation, Video Impression is suited for the entry level enthusiast. I was very excited to give the software a spin. Let’s take a quick look at the basic requirements to run the software.

Windows Version:

• Windows 98SE/ME/2000/XP
• Pentium III 450 processor or equivalent (Pentium III 700 recommended)
• 200 MB free hard disk space (1 GB recommended)
• 64 MB RAM (128 MB recommended)
• 16-bit color display at 800 x 600
• Direct X 8.1 or above
• Apple QuickTime® recommended

Nice to have items (duh):

• Digital video camera (for making movies)
• 1394 capable input adapter for importing digital video (i.e. firewire)
• Digital still camera (for making slide shows)
• Digital Scanner (for scanning photographs)

Installation
I installed the software on a Dell Inspiron 8200 Laptop computer with an Intel Pentium 4 Mobile 1.4 GHz CPU with 512MB RAM running Windows XP Professional Service Pack 1. Installation was a snap – I had no problems during installation.

Using the Software
First of all, I rarely read manuals or maps! Yes, my wife gets upset with me when I drive around for a while looking for things, but I always manage to pull out the victory and locate whatever I am looking for. I think software should be somewhat intuitively obvious to use. Upon first glance Video Impression gives you that “Step by Step” feeling.

To Make a Video:

1. Give me your media.
2. Do you want to edit your media?
3. What effects do you want to add?
4. Do you want to add any text?
5. Would you like to add any narration?
6. Let’s produce your masterpiece.

To Make a Slideshow:

1. Give me your media.
2. What effects do you want to add?
3. Do you want to add any audio?
4. Let’s produce your masterpiece.

The first step in creating a video is simply dragging and dropping the media onto the story board in the order that you want your movie to flow.

You can edit your video to begin and end where ever you want. You can turn off the audio that your camera has recorded if you wish as well. In addition, you can also adjust the brightness and contrast of the video.

You can add effects that control the transition between videos. Video Impression gives you 24 different transitions – enough to make those creative juices flow. The software also supplies themes. Themes will allow you to give your movie a certain look and feel such “Sepia Video” or “Old Time Movie”. And for you people stuck in the sixties, there is a “Rock Video” theme that will make your live video footage of Jimi Hendrix look even more psychedelic.

You can add text right on top of your video and control how the text enters and leaves the scene. Video Impression gives you 32 different ways to transition your text. You can also control the font, color, size, and shadow effect of the text. There is no end to the fun!

Now that we have our movie, we can produce it. You have several output options:

• File – Write the video back to disk (.avi, .mpeg, .wmv, .mov)
• Email – Create an executable that you can email out
• DV – You can write the movie back to a DV camera
• VCR – You can output the movie back out to VCR (provided your video card supports this mode)
• CD – Write directly to a CD. Some DVD players can read these directly.

Conclusions and Recommendations
Video Impression 2.0 was extremely easy to install and use. The software is definitely written for the entry level enthusiast. It is a great piece of software that, if you are looking to make the family vacation videos of the “world’s largest ball of twine” a little more interesting, is a great way to start. Plus, at a list price of $49, you really can’t go wrong.