Venture firms raised $1.7 billion in the second quarter, the least in more than seven years. Only 25 firms raised money. Venture capitalists raised less than one fifth of the 2008 second-quarter total of $9.3 billion. More recently there have been some signs of life, with Vinod Khosla’s Khosla Ventures recently raising a $1.1 billion fund.

So all of that’s the present. But what’s the venture capital industry going to be like five years from now? That’s what Portfolio.com asked 10 venture capitalists from around the nation.

Most thought it would be a smaller industry, with smaller funds and fewer venture partners. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing, they say. They predict healthy funds will be able to return healthy results, and that smaller size could lead them to make better, more targeted investments in companies that truly have the capacity to become world changers like Google or Microsoft.

And they think that, for the venture capitalists with money to invest now, the companies they are growing could be looked upon as one of the great crops when they come to maturity. And there are still plenty of companies to invest in.

“Good firms that find ways to reinvent themselves,” says Doll of DCM, “and make strategic changes to stay in sync with what’s going on in the world, they’ll thrive and flourish. We don’t see any evidence at all that innovation is slowing down or coming to the end of its existence. There’s just a ton of evidence that innovation is alive and well. History also has taught us that times like we’re in right now are very good times for starting new companies because there’s a plethora of good talent.”

To read what 10 venture capitalists have to say about the future of their industry, click here.