HDV vs. DV vs….

[Jerry Hofmann]

I’ve an article in the latest issue of the COW magazine you might read… sign up for free and get a PDF download link in your email after the registration. It covers post production techniques with HDV sources… includes transcoding to another format for post. Don’t believe that delivering HDV tape as a final is going to have many takers. Most folks can’t play the tape…

Why HDV? I’d suggest it has a much better picture than DV will resolve… lots more pixels for starters…

Jerry

Apple Certified Trainer

Author: “Jerry Hofmann on Final Cut Pro 4” Click here

Dual 2 gig G5, AJA Kona SD, AJA Kona 2, Huge Systems Array UL3D

[Walter Biscardi]

First off, the Canon cameras shoot in a proprietary HDV format so you MUST use the camera to capture from. I would recommend the Sony ZR1 camera and a Sony HDV deck. But the Sony HDV format will play off any HDV deck from what I understand.

As for the rest of the questions, that’s all driven by your client needs. HDV is an ok format, we’re cutting a series right now that’s originating on HDV, but we’re cutting in the DVCPro HD format. Not a whole lot of range in the colors and contrast which will be important when it comes to color correcting. We’re going to be very limited as the blacks crush very easily and the highs blow out very easily.

For delivery we either deliver DVCPro HD or HDCAM masters via the Kona 3.

Walter Biscardi, Jr.
https://www.biscardicreative.com
HD Editorial & Animation for Food Network’s “Good Eats”
HD Editorial for “Assignment Earth”

“I reject your reality and substitute my own!” – Adam Savage, Mythbusters

[Meeroo Sareew]

tnx jerry, I’ll sign up fot that.

[Jerry Hofmann] “Why HDV? I’d suggest it has a much better picture than DV will resolve… lots more pixels for starters…”

Yes… that is a big plus for HDV. So, if I shoot in HDV than downconvert, it’s much better regarding picture quality than to shoot in DV?

Mac: Quad 2.5 + OS 10.4.6 + Final Cut Studio HD + Multibridge Extreme + Sony DVW-M2000P
PC: Xeon 3.00GHz + Premiere Suite 1.5 + Avid Liquid + Decklink Extreme + Sony UVW-1800p + Sony HVR-M10E

[Tom Wolsky]

1. Shoot it if you need it. If you don’t need to deliver an HD widescreen format don’t shoot it.

2. That’s up to the client. There is real HD-DVD delivery yet, aside from commercially produced discs. If the client can playback HDV tape and that’s what he/she wants, then shoot, edit and deliver on HDV tape.

3. There is no problem editing HDV if your computer is fast enough. The material has be compiled into MPEG-2 HDV when you output, but that’s not a problem, just a fact of life of working with an interframe compression format. You could capture to uncompressed HD, but you’d better have honking, great big fast arrays to support that. But not much point really unless you have a broadcast delivery channel to go to.

Start at the end. What’s the client want, how do you deliver that, what’s the best format, most cost effective way to deliver that, and then get to what should I shoot to deliver that format.

All the best,

Tom

Author: “Final Cut Pro 5 Editing Essentials” and “Final Cut Express 2 Editing Workshop” Class on Demand “Complete Training for FCP5” and “Final Cut Express Made Easy” DVDs

[Bob O’brien]

I recently shot a concert with the Canon HL-X1 in HDV 1080i mode and downconverted using the camera to a 16:9 SD and edited in a DV timeline. The quality is fantastic! The quality is MUCH better than a concert I shot with a PD170. I’d say it might even be as good or better than shooting with a DSR570 (or other full-sized 2/3″ chip DVCAM).

Walter: Are you sure that the Canon HDV footage can only be played back using the Camera as a source? I think you may be referring to footage shot in the 24F mode… no? That is proprietary. I’m pretty sure that the 1080i footage is generic HDV fully playable with any HDV deck.

Bob

[Meeroo Sareew]

[walter biscardi] “First off, the Canon cameras shoot in a proprietary HDV format so you MUST use the camera to capture from. I would recommend the Sony ZR1 camera and a Sony HDV deck. But the Sony HDV format will play off any HDV deck from what I understand.”

I didn’t know that. I understood that big companies agreed about HDV and all use same one. Bastards! 🙂
Which is ZR1 camera? I couldn’t find it, did you mean Z1U? If that’s the case, you are right, that is good camera, but almost double the price than Canon. I just can’t afford $5000 camera right now.

Mac: Quad 2.5 + OS 10.4.6 + Final Cut Studio HD + Multibridge Extreme + Sony DVW-M2000P
PC: Xeon 3.00GHz + Premiere Suite 1.5 + Avid Liquid + Decklink Extreme + Sony UVW-1800p + Sony HVR-M10E

[Walter Biscardi]

[Bob O’Brien] “Walter: Are you sure that the Canon HDV footage can only be played back using the Camera as a source? I think you may be referring to footage shot in the 24F mode… no? That is proprietary. I’m pretty sure that the 1080i footage is generic HDV fully playable with any HDV deck.”

That’s what I’ve heard on the Cow from other people who have used Canon cameras. You may be right that it may just be the one mode, but I’m going by what folks have said on the Cow and also through contacts in the local area who have looked at that camera.

Walter Biscardi, Jr.
https://www.biscardicreative.com
HD Editorial & Animation for Food Network’s “Good Eats”
HD Editorial for “Assignment Earth”

“I reject your reality and substitute my own!” – Adam Savage, Mythbusters

[Meeroo Sareew]

Great! Since new Canon A1 is cheaper than new PD170, I don’t really have a choice 🙂

[Bob O’Brien] “I think you may be referring to footage shot in the 24F mode…”

If someone could confirm this, it would be quite helpfull.
I don’t really need 24F mode. Well, I do for my shorts, but for that I would anyway like to use camera with 24p mode (Sony Z1U)

Mac: Quad 2.5 + OS 10.4.6 + Final Cut Studio HD + Multibridge Extreme + Sony DVW-M2000P
PC: Xeon 3.00GHz + Premiere Suite 1.5 + Avid Liquid + Decklink Extreme + Sony UVW-1800p + Sony HVR-M10E

[Bob O’brien]

meeroo,

You may want to read through some of the posts on the Canon Camcorders forum on the Cow. Seems like there are some issues with playing back the footage.

Bob

[Meeroo Sareew]

will do.
tnx

Mac: Quad 2.5 + OS 10.4.6 + Final Cut Studio HD + Multibridge Extreme + Sony DVW-M2000P
PC: Xeon 3.00GHz + Premiere Suite 1.5 + Avid Liquid + Decklink Extreme + Sony UVW-1800p + Sony HVR-M10E