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Panasonic Varicam HD to SD
Have an odd issue, shooting tomorrow using the Panasonic AJ-HPX2700 Varicam and unfortunately the end result is going to be SD. Since the 2700 doesn’t shoot SD, trying to figure out the best mode to shoot in to make the downcovert best. 720p60, 1080?
Use Premiere CS4 and have the Blackmagic HD Extreme 3. Thanks!
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6 Replies
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Best in terms of?
Noah
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DSLR Cinematography Blog -
Sorry Noah…didn’t mean “best” in terms of the downconvert. I think I meant “preferred” – as if you had to choose a mode on the Varicam to shoot in and then downconvert to SD, what mode would you shoot in?
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All formats have their use. Frame size and field/progressive (720p vs 1080i) isn’t as important as frame rates. 24fps for a more theatrical, film-like look with motion blur vs. 60fps for crisper action and better slow-mo (if needed). Resizing either 1080i or 720p down to SD is easy and really doesn’t matter, they both resize well. It’s more of the frame-rate look you wanting.
Ernie Santella
Santella Productions Inc.
http://www.santellaproductions.com -
I assume that you did your shoot already, but I figured I’d answer for the sake of posterity — I personally would shoot 720PN in AVCi for downconvert. There won’t be an appreciable quality difference between 1080 and 720, but the files in 720 will be half the size, which means the cards last twice as long.
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Jesse Rosen
Director of Technical Development
Abel Cine Tech, Inc.
blog.abelcine.com -
If file size and storage are not a real issue I’d recommend shooting 1080 anyhow. We do this to protect for the possibility of the client wanting to reuse it for HD down the road. This could happen as local stations slowly switch to HD. On a more local level, clients to tend to reuse footage for years.
Mark D’Agostino
http://www.synergeticproductions.com -
Did end up shooting in 720pn at 24fps. Did some overcranking and undercranking with it as well. Footage came out outstanding. Actually used the 2700 again yesterday for some more shooting using the Canon 33×11 long lens. Great lens on the Varicam. Was very happy with it. I’ll end up cutting all the footage in 720 then downcovert when project is complete. Sounds good in theory at least.
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