Times of Your Life Media
A Personal Motion Picture and Digital Home Media Solution Company

Times of Your Life is a full service premium production company dedicated to producing professional broadcast quality productions for the consumer market.  We are experienced Broadcast Network producers who provide our clients with professional and creative productions along with home media transfer and storage solutions.  

FAQ

A family film sounds great, but how much does it cost?

Every project is unique. We asses your media, and give you a quote as to how long we think it will take us based on what you would like to have done. Previous projects have ranged from $500 to $120,000 dollars. Were not going to kid you. A full blown family documentary is expensive. If you can afford it, there is no other material gift that comes close to the value of what you get with a professionally produced family film. That being said, keep in mind that every video project does not have to be a full blown production. Give us a call and well discuss with you some of the other package options that are available. 

Does your media have to be organized before we hand it over to you?

No. One client gave us 20,000 photographs and 25 rolls of film, all completely un-labeled, from over 40 years in 6 large boxes. We had it completely organized and chronoligised in 8 days. The client was amazed - he'd thought it would take us a month. In truth, because we remove the nostalgia factor, were able to be far more efficient. And because we do this all of the time, we are hyper aware of clues such as holiday spots, trends in fashion and photography.

The Process

We ask every client a list of questions at the front end so we know your preferences. Secondly; we do this all of the time. We have edited hundreds of thousands of photos and videos and everyone’s media is pretty much the same. Holidays, birthdays, and visits to grand ma. Because were family people ourselves, it's not very difficult to work out who and what to include. After all how many 70 year old men does the five year old in the picture play with? It’s probably grand dad.  We approach each project as if it is a Network produced documentary. This means that you tell us what you want, and we deliver a finished documentary along with the organized media.

What happens to my media, film reels once I give them to you?

If you are just having them transferred we process each reel or tape, and assign an ID number for accuracy and tracking. Then we inspect, clean and repair the reel or tape. Your media is then digitally converted and safely stored in a protective container. Your DVDs are then produced. If we are producing a family film for you then the material is sent to our production department for inclusion in your family film. When your order is completed, your original media plus the completed DVDs are then shipped back to you safely via FedEx.

Can movie film, videotape, photos and slides be included in the same order?

Yes. Times of Your Life will digitally master the entire order and provide it to you on DVD or if you like, online.

Is the conversion process safe?

Yes. Your home movies are not destroyed or damaged during the digital conversion process. A highly skilled technician works with your media during every step of the process.

Are my original home movies returned?

Yes. Your original home movies are returned in exactly the same manner that they were sent in. Each home movie film reel and video tape will be returned in its original case, box or can that it arrived in.

What kind of quality can I expect in my family documentary or other family media production?

Our producers, photographers and editors  are former broadcast network television program producers working with broadcast quality high definition equipment. The quality of these products will be the same as what you are used to watching on network television. Honestly, you will be amazed at what you see.  

What kind of quality can I expect in my media transferred to DVD?

The DVD you will receive will reflect the original quality of the media you supplied. If you had a VHS tape transferred, then you can expect the same quality or even slightly better.

What format will my digital video be in?

At Times of Your Life Media, you have the best of all worlds. We work with and store your digital video in the highest fidelity format. From that high fidelity format, we can convert your digital video into any standard format. Editable video is either AVI or DV format. DVD is MPEG-2 format. Online video is steaming Flash FLV format. iPhone and iPod is H.264 format. So, you have the largest variety of choices with iMemories. Note: H.264 technology is also known as MPEG-4 Part 10 or MPEG-4 AVC (Advanced Video Codec).

How long do DVDs last?

Not all DVDs discs are the same. In fact, the differences in quality can swing the lifespan of a DVD from less than 5 years to more than 100 years. Times of your Life Media uses the finest quality DVD media available – archive gold media. These archive gold DVD discs are stress-tested by the manufacturer under a variety of environmental conditions to ensure durability and longevity. Times of Your Life Media archive gold DVDs are currently rated with a lifespan of 125 years, meaning they should last for generations. All other service providers will only offer “silver” DVD disc media, which depending on quality level, are designed to last between 5-25 years – which is similar to the lifespan of analog video tape (example: VHS and 8mm).

Do you convert photos and slides?

Yes, we can transfer photo prints, negatives and 35mm slides to digital format. We have two levels of service: 1) you can have your picture or slide media digitally mastered to a digital photo file, or 2) you can also purchase a DVD photo slideshow, which runs on your TV set or computer as a video. Will the DVD play in any DVD player? At this point in time, it is extremely unusual for a modern DVD player to be incompatible with an. Times of Your Life Media DVD-R disc. Current estimates show that more than 99% of modern DVD players will successfully play ans. Times of Your Life Media DVD-R disc. You are welcome to review your DVD player manual to ensure it supports DVD-R disc media.

How do I order additional copies of my DVDs?

You are welcome to order additional copies of your DVDs anytime.

What should I expect if I select another home movie transfer provider?

Simple. A substandard product that will not last. Local and Internet A/V shops are traditionally run by amateurs, most of which conduct business out of their residence or small office (over 98% of all digital transfer shops). Because of their low end nature, they use consumer-grade equipment, poor quality DVD media, and they skip valuable quality steps throughout the process – sometimes to save money, sometimes because they don’t have the skill to know any better. Industry best practices or rarely or never followed. On top of it all, local and Internet A/V shops require you to do all of the upfront work yourself (perfectly labeling and organizing all reels/tapes in your home movie collection) – as they do not have an online video experience to make it easy for their customers to label and organize their DVDs after the conversion process. And, last but not least, your priceless home movies are always at risk of being permanently damaged or lost with unprofessional or amateur firms.

Should I do the home movie to DVD conversion myself?

Most people have a mix of film reels and videotapes – with even a further mix of different formats. 8mm, Super 8 and/or 16mm home movie film. And, Betamax, VHS, 8mm and/or MiniDV videotape. Because of this, a do-it-yourself project would be extremely difficult, if not impossible. In addition, even if you had some of the older equipment for playback, the equipment to convert it to a digital format would be considered low end, consumer grade – thus the quality of the resulting DVD would be poor – as the professional grade equipment necessary to correctly digitize home movies costs millions of dollars. Last but not least, who has the time and the patience to go through the process? Even if you had all of the necessary equipment and skill, an average “single family” project would take between 50-100 hours of your time to complete. Trust your home movie archive project to. Times of Your Life Media, and get it completed right the first time, and have fun getting it completed without wasting any time.

Will I have the ability to edit my new DVD on my home computer?

If you have experience working with digital video, and, you have the equipment and software, the answer is yes. But, the process is not straight forward and simple for non-tech savvy people. Said simply, a DVD is designed to be watched, and not edited.

What is the ultimate way to safeguard my home movies?

Converting your home movies to a digital format is the single best way to preserve and safeguard.

How many home videos will fit onto a single DVD?

Approximately two hours of video tape will fit onto a single DVD.

Do you repair broken videotape?

Yes. For an additional fee of $24.99 we will repair your broken video tape.

Can I combine film reel footage with videotape footage on a DVD?

Yes. Once your film reels and videotapes have become digitally mastered, both are considered digital video. You are welcome to mix and match any video footage onto a single DVD. Just drag ‘n’ drop the different clips to a DVD Creator project.

How much would that cost to transfer to DVD?

We charge $19.99 per videotape, up to 2 hours. If your tape duration is longer than 2 hours, then, add $19.99 per every additional 2 hours.

Can Times Of Your Life Media transfer PAL and SECAM videos?

Yes.

Do you enhance my home movie film in any way?

Yes. Times of Your Life Media enhances home movie film the exact same way that a Hollywood studio would enhance an old feature film. Times Of Your Life leverages both advanced digital technology as well as a team of highly trained film editors and colorists, to color correct, enhance lighting and contrast, and to touch up your home movie films. When the digital mastering process is complete, your film footage will look its very best.

Can I add music to my Archive of silent home movie film?

For silent film, a frequent request is to add a music soundtrack. we can add a full music soundtrack to your silent film footage for a fee of $99.99 per DVD, plus either 1) customer provides commercial music, or 2) customer purchases commercial music ($1 per song).

 What do I receive for the photo print, negative and slide scanning service? iMemories scans your photo prints, negatives and/or slides into a high resolution digital .JPG format – the same digital image format used in today’s modern digital cameras. Each image is scanned with professional grade equipment, and then, is photo edited with PhotoShop by seasoned photo editors. Full photo touch up, color correction and image optimization is included with each scan.

How many photo and/or slide images will fit on a Photo CD, Photo DVD or a Photo Slideshow on DVD?

iMemories will provide all of the converted (digital) photos in JPG format onto a CD-ROM, which holds approximately 600MB (Megabytes) of data. If you have a DVD data drive on your computer, you are welcome to special request you photos be mastered onto DVD disc media – which has larger storage capacity 4,700MB (Megabytes) or 4.7GB (Gigabytes) of data. Approximately 120 digital photo images will fit on a Photo CD and 940 photo images will fit on a Photo DVD data disc. Additionally, if you order an iMemories Photo Slideshow, approximately 1,600 digital photo images will fit into the DVD (each photo being displayed for 5 seconds).