Live video feedback software
Hey Anne!
I've had this same problem/need and suddenly found 3 good solutions. I found free software for both Mac and Windows that can show your webcam feed straight back to you with adjustable time delay. It's really useful for quick video feedback! No need to record/search a video, just do it with always-on real-time delay.
1. Mac: "Live video delay"
http://www.zachpoff.com/software/live-video-delay/
(not available for windows) This software is really simple, it delays the video from your computer-attached camera or built-in webcam by any adjustable amount. That's it. Brilliant. This is all I need, but I don't own a Mac.
2. Windows: "Kinovea"
http://www.kinovea.org/en/
(not available for Mac) Kinovea is a video player for sports training. Their tagline is "A video player for all sport enthusiasts. Slow down, study and comment the technique of your athletes or of yourself." The newest version allows adjustable real-time delay to your video, but you can even draw on the videos to highlight good/bad technique etc. If I understand this right, they're freely distributing an open-source software while outdated competitors are selling $1000++ crappy systems bundled with bulky external cameras and monitors. All you need here is a laptop with a built-in webcam, and camera/monitor upgrades are up to you. Sports enthusiasts are awesome. Did I mention it's free?
3. Record in any streaming video format (e.g. wmv) and you can open the file for playback while it's still recording.
http://www.edugeek.net/forums/general-chat/20726-live-video-delay.html This option is easy if you are too lazy to install any software at all
But the whole video is constantly being saved to your hard drive, so you'll run out of space eventually.
I've waited a few years to find these solutions, so I really wanted to share. I hope others find these useful and go on to improve themselves with live video feedback. Happy training!
all the best,
Lauri