David Wheeler
1
COW Coin
Forum Replies Created
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I agree with Marks recommendation for two video cameras for the ceremony and using DSLR for B-roll only. Another factor to consider is editing. You cannot use the multicam edit option in FCP with cameras of different frame rates, codecs and pixel dimensions, so using two identical video cameras is better for editing IMHO.
David Wheeler
EX1R; EX3; FCP 7; 17″ MBP, MacPro Quad, Matrox MSO2,CS5
dave@marcombiz.com -
I’m not familiar with the Z7U, but if you want to record motion (especially relatively quick camera moves) there are at least three important factors that determine the image quality: frame rate, bit rate and shutter speed. IMHO, you’ll get less motion distortion at 1080i60 than 1080p30. With MPEG-2 compression you may notice a lot of juddering on quick camera moves due to the slow data rate. If you can capture the uncompressed signal over HDMI (to a nanoFlash unit for example) you can eliminate the juddering problem.
David Wheeler
EX1R; EX3; FCP 7; 17″ MBP, MacPro Quad, Matrox MSO2,CS5
dave@marcombiz.com -
This is the group I recommend. They did a fine job on my EX1 and I plan to send my EX3 there soon for a firmware update.
They are located in Burbank, CA.
David Wheeler
EX1R; EX3; FCP 7; 17″ MBP, MacPro Quad, Matrox MSO2,CS5
dave@marcombiz.com -
Hi Ty,
The frequency response doesn’t match well with the Sony omni. It sounds much more skewed to higher frequencies. Perhaps this is normal with a cardiod, but it also distorts hard “S” sounds.Thanks for any advise!
DaveDavid Wheeler
EX1R; EX3; FCP 7; 17″ MBP, MacPro Quad, Matrox MSO2,CS5
dave@marcombiz.com -
Hi Saul,
I’ve learned over the years that purchasing good lighting equipment from the start saves money in the long run. LED lights are very expensive, but they can run off batteries and are extremely portable and easy to gel if needed. I prefer KinoFlo Diva 400 kits for local interview work since the color temp is easily changed from tungsten (32K) to daylight (55K) by just switching the bulbs (or even mixing them if needed. They are not hot lights, so striking equipment is easy afterward. For green screen, however, you’ll need to light the subject and background separately, so you’ll need four Divas or a mix of other lights. Unless you have a bigger budget and a grip or two, they are a bear to travel with due to the bulk.I normally travel with tungsten hot lights since they are cheaper than Divas, easier to pack and carry. Usually that means two Lowel Rifa 88s and a couple of fresnel kicker lights and a folding bounce card. The Rifas pump out a lot of soft light (with 1000W bulbs) can be set up quickly but need a lot of cool down time as you know. Additionally, the 1000W bulbs need to be on separate electrical circuits in most locations so you don’t overload a breaker. That is a major headache if you are running both at the same time. If you can get by with one Rifa and a bounce card, you’ll do better. Of course, setting up a remote green screen interview with tungstens is potentially a power nighmare that will require a lot of amps and drop cords if its more than a talking head.
Bottom line: If your company is starting out and you expect a lot of travel to different locations with minimal help, you’d be better off with LEDs if you have deep pockets or some Lowel kits if you’re like most companies that don’t want to fund what’s really needed.
David Wheeler
EX1R; EX3; FCP 7; 17″ MBP, MacPro Quad, Matrox MSO2,CS5
dave@marcombiz.com -
Hi Sean,
You didn’t mention whether you do this work professionally and have professional equipment to maintain. If your friend is a pro, she values her time and expertise, even though her equipment overhead may not be as high as a videographer/editor. If you are a pro, she should value your time and overhead as well. Every market and customer is different, but I would suggest $100 per hour for shooting and edit/render/compression time on pro gear. Friends and acquaintances tend to get in the way of normal business agreements, unfortunately. Of course, if you are starting out, why not trade services with some extra for you for the editing time?David Wheeler
EX1R; EX3; FCP 7; 17″ MBP, MacPro Quad, Matrox MSO2,CS5
dave@marcombiz.com -
I do a lot of time lapse recording of construction projects with my EX1R and most of the time I shoot 1 frame every 2 seconds as you suggested. If I need the final piece to be a set time duration, I can always adjust the speed in post. Determining a frame rate based upon final duration seems a little backwards, IMHO. You should base your determination on what action you are recording. If the action moves slowly, like a flower opening, a slower frame rate makes sense. If you are recording the movement of people in the process of working, you’ll need a faster frame rate. Keep in mind that a frame rate of 1 frame every four seconds will end up missing half of the video content of 1 frame every 2 seconds. Anything slower than 1 frame every 2 seconds for people in action sacrifices too much visual content for my audience.
David Wheeler
EX1R; EX3; FCP 7; 17″ MBP, MacPro Quad, Matrox MSO2,CS5
dave@marcombiz.com -
If you are using a Matrox MXO2 in the setup, I’m guessing you are recording directly to a computer? You should be able to feed a component video signal plus audio directly from your Matrox to a standard DVD recorder and record real time. You should also be able to connect the EX3 directly to a standalone DVD recorder such as the one below which handles dual layer DVDs but only has a composite connection. You can feed a DV signal to the recorder at the same time you are recording to the camera cards.
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/631186-REG/Sony_VRDMC6_DVDirect_MC6_Multi_Function_DVD.html
Dave
David Wheeler
EX1R; EX3; FCP 7; 17″ MBP, MacPro Quad, Matrox MSO2,CS5
dave@marcombiz.com -
I do non-broadcast corporate work and never shoot interlaced footage. If my clients send me interlaced footage to use, I always have to de-interlace it before editing, so starting with progressive footage saves the extra step in editing. Shooting for broadcast (or fast motion) may require interlaced footage, but if your final product will be uploaded to a web server or viewed on computer monitors, you are always better working in progressive.
David Wheeler
EX1R; EX3; FCP 7; 17″ MBP, MacPro Quad, Matrox MSO2,CS5
dave@marcombiz.com -
Never rename the BPAV folder itself, but you can rename the folder that contains the BPAV folder it to whatever you want. Your Browser and Transfer software will not recognize the clips if it does not see “BPAV” in the file structure.
David Wheeler
EX1R; EX3; FCP 7; 17″ MBP, MacPro Quad, Matrox MSO2,CS5
dave@marcombiz.com