DVCPro HD…here a format, there a format, everywhere a format format, Old Mc….

[Shane Ross]

We shoot with the Varicam to the 40 min (not 33min) tapes…and to HVX-200s via P2. I edit DVCPRO HD native throughout the show. Color correct DVCPRO HD (that will change on the next project…go to ProRes before I color)…then output to HDCAM….cross converting from 720p23.98 to 1080p23.98 via the Kona 3…with no issues at all.

Now, if you are shooting HDCAM, then DVCPRO HD would be an offline resolution solution. Or you can capture to ProRes and use that from start to finish…although it takes up more room than DVCPRO HD…quite a bit more.

[mortimer heathcliff] “the biggest negative i see with DVCPro HD is the limitation of 33 minute tapes”

Really? Betacam and digibeta cameras still use 30-min loads…always have. How is that a negative? DV gets you more time, but the quality STINKS in comparison. I’d rather have high quality 30 min loads (VERY easy to manage in post, BTW, over hour loads)…than lower quality 60 min loads. Quality…not quantity.

Shane

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[J. Tad newberry]

Hi Shane,

Thanks for your thoughts. Yes, i should’ve clarified my “negative” comment on tape load time with DVCPro HD. Of course, i’m totally used to half hour loads with my ol’ trusty BetaSP camera, so a 33 minute load is actually a 10% improvement! : )

I only see it as a negative thinking that in this world of high tech innovations, there would be something much longer available…thus the hopes of gigantically huge (and eventually, CHEAP) P2 cards on the horizon. So really, DVCPro HD doesn’t really have too many negatives (at least that i can see).

Any thoughts on getting P2 material into a G5?

[Shane Ross]

[mortimer heathcliff] “Any thoughts on getting P2 material into a G5?”

Good field acquisition. Using a laptop with PCMCIA slot to offload the cards to a hard drive (get the P2 Genie!), or using the P2 Store in the field and offloading at the end of the day to portable hard drives.

You then take those drives to your G5 for injest…and backup to other drives so you can use the portable ones again.

Shane

Littlefrog Post
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[J. Tad newberry]

so, the 900 comes with a FW400 output connection…will that be fast enough for me to download the “full quality” directly from the camcorder into my G5? another dumb question: i won’t need an HD card (from AJA or Blackmagic) to capture in its native DVCPro HD (100) codec, will i? i had tried capturing some HDV in the DVCPro HD codec but my system would not do it. . . so just trying to have my system up to snuff to capture from the camcorder…

i’m a little confused since i would be capturing via the Mac’s FW port why i would need an upgrade on my capture card…which wouldn’t even be utilized in this process, right???

[Shane Ross]

[mortimer heathcliff] “so, the 900 comes with a FW400 output connection…will that be fast enough for me to download the “full quality” directly from the camcorder into my G5?”

NOPE….you can use that to capture as DV resolution only. I wonder if you can get tape TC that way too? But you can’t use that to capture DVCPRO HD, as that is a Panasonic format and the camera is a Sony.

[mortimer heathcliff] “i won’t need an HD card (from AJA or Blackmagic) to capture in its native DVCPro HD (100) codec, will i?”

Yes, you will.

[mortimer heathcliff] “i had tried capturing some HDV in the DVCPro HD codec but my system would not do it. . .”

Because you need a capture card to do this. You cannot do this conversion via firewire capture. Firewire captures NATIVE resolutions only, or allows to capture as lower res OFFLINE RT as well. But that’s it. No conversions beyond that.

[mortimer heathcliff] ”
i’m a little confused since i would be capturing via the Mac’s FW port why i would need an upgrade on my capture card…which wouldn’t even be utilized in this process, right???”

You can do a test, but as I said, I believe that capturing via firewire from this camera will get you DV only. But I haven’t done it, so who’s to say. I just heard about it. If you want to capture from this camera at HD…either DVCPRO HD for offline or uncompressed HD or Pro Res, you’ll need a capture card. And, if you want ProRes, your machine will have to be an Intel mac…OR wait for the AJA I/O HD, which has a hardware ProRes encoder on board. But that doesn’t capture UC HD…just pro Res and DVCPRO HD and all SD versions.

Shane

Littlefrog Post
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[J. Tad newberry]

hmmm…i was referring to the Panasonic HDX-900, maybe you thought i meant the Sony HDW 900?

does that make a difference? it would seem then that the DVCPro HD codec is the “native” format and i might not need the other card(s) since it is coming in via Firewire???

just trying to clarify…

[Shane Ross]

[mortimer heathcliff] “hmmm…i was referring to the Panasonic HDX-900, maybe you thought i meant the Sony HDW 900?”

Ahhh…yes. Sorry. Maybe that does do DVCPRO HD via firewire. Makes sense. Have to test it, but I’ll wager it’ll output DVCPRO HD that way…

[mortimer heathcliff] “it would seem then that the DVCPro HD codec is the “native” format and i might not need the other card(s) since it is coming in via Firewire???”

Correct. If you capture via firewire no card is needed. But…how will you monitor this on a good monitor? Color Correct? Output to tape?

Shane

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