Colin Mcquillan
Forum Replies Created
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[Thomas Morter-Laing] ” just out of interest isn’t transcoding DSLR footage to 4444 a touch overkill?”
It really depends on what I am doing with the footage as to how I transcode.
Is transcoding to a higher format like PR4x4 going to add colour info that isn’t there? no.
But if I plan to composite, add transfer mode overlays, send to Color/ or another proper CC app and so on… – then I like to keep the footage and renders in the best possible format during the post process through to final output. If I am just doing basic cuts and mild 3-way CC then I typically go for either PR or PRHQ depending on length of project and format/amount of source footage.I personally don’t have a single preferred workflow – I choose what method I feel best on a project-to-project basis. I have a relatively large fast RAID so don’t worry too much about file size unless dealing with larger longterm projects.
Colin McQuillan
Vancouver, B.C. -
I wonder if you are lifting noise from footage shot with a high’ish ISO?! (noise that is otherwise hidden in the darks) or if you are just trying to to push the dslr footage too far. Even though you transcode to 10-bit Prores HQ, the footage was recorded very compressed in 8-bit color space and still has that lower bit characteristic.
If you need more leverage take a look at the link below – might give you more wiggle-room. Haven’t tried this method myself but looks promising.
https://vimeo.com/19908622If I know I am going to do a heafty grade on DSLR footage, I typically transcode to Prores 4444 and grade in Color. So far I havent had any issue with that.
Colin McQuillan
Vancouver, B.C.Some contents or functionalities here are not available due to your cookie preferences!This happens because the functionality/content marked as “Vimeo framework” uses cookies that you choosed to keep disabled. In order to view this content or use this functionality, please enable cookies: click here to open your cookie preferences.
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The ex-1 is a great alternative – and I’d actually recomend it to many over the ex-3 as most folks I know who have the ex-3 don’t use any of the extra features it has over the ex-1.
You should be able to find a decent deal on a first generation ex-1 (not the newer ex-1R) I’ve seen them for around the 4K range in a decent package with low hours.
On the cheaper end how about the Sony NX70U. Does 1080p60 in a nice small package. It’s got a small sensor, so it will have the deep depth of field you are after. Might be a good fit… You really need to try a couple out though and find what fits you best. If you are near a major market/City you should be able to find a rental house that will have most of the good toys there to play with. They typically will let you come in and test them out on site.
Panasonic has a really good selection of affordable cams as well.
Colin McQuillan
Vancouver, B.C. -
[Chris Barnes] ” Can I get the same quality without the shallow DOF?”
Short answer: yes. If you’ve been trying to shoot full races on a DSLR I’m sure you’ve had your fair share of aggravation.
You would definitely be better served to shoot races and such with a purpose build video camera that has a servo-zoom lens (they all do). Shoot your ‘art’ and interviews with the DSLR, and races with the video camera – If there is a race you don’t need complete hilts from or during warm-up/time trials… – switch to the DSLR and grab your artsy stuff.
I currently use a Sony EX-3 and Canon 7D combo for this purpose – shooting football and hockey games for promos, teases, HL vids…. This set up is great for someone like myself who has to travel/fly often with my complete kit. I am carry-on with a simple travel edit suite (Macbook Pro+G-RAID…) and both cameras/lenses/monitor… (Tripod, slider, other non-critical gear is checked).
Colin McQuillan
Vancouver, B.C. -
You should be fine,
I use a Zoom H4N and marry the audio to DSLR video of varying frame rates without issue.
The Zoom doesn’t record timecode. Like all audio recorders it keeps time by sample rate (some audio recorders will add/sync TC, the Zoom H4N is not one of them.) What you want to do is set the zoom to sample at the frequency of your timeline settings (48khz is typically the way to go) If you record 44.1k you may see drift over time when you add it to a timeline that is set to 48khz.
Bit-depth is not as important for sync. It’s importance lay in sound quality.
Colin McQuillan
Vancouver, B.C.“Live, love, laugh and be happy.”
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FCP 7 you would use the log and transfer function that would convert your footage to the ProRes flavour of your choice while importing. During this conversion process you need to walk away from the computer until it is done – otherwise clips can get truncated as they are importing. One nice thing about using the L&T interface is it adds to the clips time-of-day timecode from when the clips were shot (so long as the entire card structure is intact). Unsure if MPEG Streamclip does this or just zeroes each clip.
FCPX will create ‘optimized’ Prores versions in the background once you import the camera original H.264 mov files.
Colin McQuillan
Vancouver, B.C.“Live, love, laugh and be happy.”
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[James Wilhelmi] “Could you please explain why you would choose the 50 f1.4 over the 60 f2.8.”
Couple reasons I would pick the 50mm 1.4 over the 60 2.8.
1. The 60 is an EF-S lens, the 50 is full frame. If you ever upgrade to a full frame body like a 5D, the 60mm EF-S lens will not work on it. Glass lasts much longer than a camera body. I always go for full frame glass so my lens’ work on all bodies. I have known a few who have upgraded bodies leaving them stuck with a few K worth of EF-S lens’ they can no longer use.
2. The 50 is faster. f1.4 will give you softer backgrounds on your interviews, and work better in lower light situations. f2.8 is great on a zoom lens, but I always look for faster lens’ with primes. Also, most lens’ aren’t their sharpest when wide open. The 50 @ 2.8 will most likely be sharper than the 60 @ 2.8.
3. Even though it is only 10mm longer than the 50, with the 1.6x crop factor in mind, for my tastes the field of view of the 50 is better framed for interviews.
4. The 50 has an 8 blade aperture, the 60 is 7 blades. The bokeh of the 50 will be somewhat smoother/rounder.
Ultimately go with the lens that you feel will serve your needs best. For my needs the 50 f1.4 is the better lens (if I had the $$ I’d grab the 50mm f1.2L). If you plan on shooting insects or the like perhaps a proper macro lens would be the way to go. As I mentioned in my earlier post it really comes down to what you are going to be shooting.
Colin McQuillan
Vancouver, B.C.“Live, love, laugh and be happy.”
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I have a Sonnet Tempo card and had to update drivers when I upgraded to Lion.
Which version of OSX did you install? If you installed Snow Leopard, maybe the newest drivers aren’t the ones you need? Make sure you install the right drivers for your version of OS and express card.
Colin McQuillan
Vancouver, B.C.“Live, love, laugh and be happy.”
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If you have Compressor – It has good vimeo/youtube presets.
Otherwise follow the suggestions from the sites.Youtube’s encoding FAQ is a good resource:
https://support.google.com/youtube/bin/static.py?hl=en&topic=1728569&guide=1728585&page=guide.cshttps://vimeo.com/help/compression
There are heaps of different software to use for this… Compressor, Adobe Media Encoder, Sorenson Squeeze, Telestream Episode to name a few… There are some free encoders out there that may do the trick – MPEG Streamclip, Handbreak…
Colin McQuillan
Vancouver, B.C.“Live, love, laugh and be happy.”
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If you are jumping in cold and not jaded by the EOL of Final Cut Studio – I’d suggest moving forward with FCPX over FCP7. Bang for buck it is a fantastic deal. You can find FCP7 (part of Final Cut Studio) on eBay if you like – but it will cost much more than the new version and is a dead product (as in no longer being supported/updated by Apple).
Colin McQuillan
Vancouver, B.C.“Live, love, laugh and be happy.”