Why does it need so much light?

[Ed Cilley]

Norman,

Sorry I didn’t reply earlier with details. Canon’s response sounds reasonable – along with the fact that you are getting auto-gain without asking for it in the HF S10. We tried not to shoot anything higher than ISO 800 and had good results. I know a couple shots used a higher setting, but I can’t remember details exactly.

It now makes sense to me that you are having a difficult time getting similar results based on the fact that you had to stop down to f/5.6 on the 5D in order to achieve the depth of field you are looking for. That explains everything.

If you have time, it wouldn’t hurt to do some ISO tests for yourself. Make sure to include some black areas, since that is where most noise will appear. Then take the clips into your editor and do a split screen between high and low ISO. This is one (very unscientific) way to determine what you are comfortable with.

Ed

Avid and FCP Preditor
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