I've had some thoughts about where to go with the VHS effect, let me know what you think anons:
- We need a baseline reference to recreate, that is a specific content reel (from digital sources) recorded to a specific tape format by a specific tape deck which is then captured with a specific capture card using specific software and settings. VHS captures online can potentially be from endless variations of hardware and software, which means we end up chasing a constantly moving target. With a baseline we can at least implement something that's accurate to a particular setup.
- Each execution of the program should be equivalent to a single tape generation, in theory if we get the first pass right then subsequent processing should be accurate also.
- Each part of the effect should be totally separate and toggle-able, by implementing artifacts separately we could eventually have a collection of presets for different decks and tapes, covering a broader range of visual styles.
I have a deck somewhere but I need to check if it can record, if anyone has the kind of hardware we need (in addition we need something to get the video onto the tape, something with composite out like a Raspberry Pi would probably do) then do say so.