[Vic Noseworthy]

Sounds like a definite “maybe”! :^)
I’m really on the fence on it, because I’m afraid of damaging my camera, yet I’m so jealous of all those beautiful shots I see! I doubt I’ll actually take the leap, unless my finances improve!
Thanks Todd!

[Vic Noseworthy]

Thanks so much for your help! I actually just had a new motherboard installed in my MacBook Pro, so I hopefully won’t be purchasing a new computer any time soon. However, when the old motherboard crashed, it made me wonder about the 32/64-bit question. You’ve put my mind at ease (since the programs are rather pricey!)
Thanks again!

[Vic Noseworthy]

Thanks, “Ted”. Makes sense. Actually, I just have one external drive for all media storage and render files (plus a second drive for TimeMachine). I’m thinking that, eventually, I should pick up another drive so that I have one for reading and one for writing. Only problem there is, I’m working on a laptop which has a limited number of firewire connections. As it is right now, my system seems to work pretty well. But, since I just acquired After Effects, and have never used it, I’m a complete neophyte when it comes to data flow issues. In the beginning (i.e. when I first got into digital video), I read that a dedicated external drive for media files was recommended. The process was fairly simple when I was using just one program (i.e FCE4), and I just followed that recommendation and let the computer do the work. Now, in using After Effects, I’m somewhat boggled as to how I should store/render data in terms of efficiency as well as finding the media files I’m using in projects. I’ll just start using AE, and see how it goes.
Thanks for your help.
Vic

[Vic Noseworthy]

Thanks, Brian. Much of what’s in those tutorials goes over my head, though, I do get the gist of it. Basically, one needs to apply common sense in terms of data flow. You can’t (or shouldn’t) have data flowing to and from a drive simultaneously. Hence, you need to give some thought to what happens, and when, and specify drives accordingly. I will do my best to do just that. Thanks again.

[Vic Noseworthy]

Hey, Todd.
Yeah, unfortunately (for me, at least), Magic Lantern is required. The guy mentioned this after I posted the info here. I thought I was able to use the device for my T3i, but apparently not so (given that there’s no Magic Lantern update for the T3i). So, at this point, it seems there’s no real way to monitor audio being recorded on the T3i. Sucks.
Unless anyone else knows of a workaround… ???
Vic

[Vic Noseworthy]

Thanks, David:
I just purchased After Effects for compositing; have to learn how to use it, now! Any recommendations which format I should export to (from Final Cut Express) for compositing in After Effects (CS4)?
Thanks again.
Vic

[Vic Noseworthy]

Thanks for your input, Al. You say it doesn’t squish the image? I’ve noticed that, on B&H’s “reviews” page of the monitor that many of the reviewers complain of the image being reduced. You haven’t found that at all? Are you using this monitor with the T3i specifically?
Here is the link to B&H’s review page:

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=NavBar&A=getItemDetail&Q=&sku=730644&is=REG&si=rev#pr-header-730644

Specifically, the fifth reviewer on the page talks about the HDMI Auto scale issue. Numerous other reviewers (there are 62 reviewers in total) have said the same thing. Though, to be honest, there were also a few who said the down-scaling was not a huge issue.

But, one commenter quoted Marshall in saying that you lose 30% of the image size. That’s quite significant, given the monitor is only 5.6 inches. That means the image on the monitor during recording would be, like, 3.9 inches. That’s hardly bigger than the existing 3-inch LCD screen on the camera. It hardly seems worth the expense for such a marginally bigger image with which to adjust focus while recording.

How do you find this monitor for adjusting focus while the record button is pressed?

Thanks again! And, I don’t mean to question your previous response… it’s just that so many others have voiced discontent about the reduced image size when the record button is pressed.

[Vic Noseworthy]

Hi Al,
I’m also looking for a monitor for my new T3i. I’ve scoured the web, and it seems that, because the HDMI output is only 480 resolution, it’s hard to find a good monitor. Complicating the issue is the fact that, when you press the record button, the image gets “squished”. I’ve noticed this happens when I run HDMI out to my 24″ Samsung monitor, but this monitor has adjustments allowing me to correct the picture.
I’ve been looking at the Marshall monitors, as they seem to be of nice quality. Can I inquire which specific model you are using with your T3i, and whether or not you have any “squish” problems when you press the record button?
Thanks so much for sharing your expertise.
Vic

[Vic Noseworthy]

Thanks, John. Perhaps I was expecting too much. Or, at least, I was expecting to see differences in other aspects of the video (beyond low light and bokeh). In retrospect, I guess what you’re saying points out that my question really answered itself: I am getting better low light footage (bokeh is a bonus). This, in and of itself, IS a better image. I just thought I’d see the comparison of the images (side-by-side from the two cameras) to be, like, night and day. I thought the larger sensor footage would somehow look… I don’t know… crisper… or more saturated… or somehow more “robust”. Such is not the case.
So, if I compared my current video quality to footage acquired from, say, a RED camera, would that footage stand out (side by side)? Or, do those cameras simply give more shooting flexibility (i.e. in terms of low light, bokeh, etc.)? Would that level of camera provide additional benefits?
For example, is the captured footage much less compressed on a high-end camera? And are there any benefits (beyond image quality) of less compression at time of capture?
Here’s a question that will shed light on the subject for me:
Does less-compressed raw footage stand up better to “complicated” NLE editing, such as composite editing?
I’m just trying to get a better grasp on how the various technologies impact the whole process.
Thanks for any advice or insight you can provide.
Vic

[Vic Noseworthy]

Thanks, David. Just wondering…
Do you think there is much in the way of processing differences between the T3i and the HF M400? In other words, aside from the differences in sensor size, is the codec in one camera better than the codec in the other? (And, would this subsequently impact output video quality from my NLE when doing composite video editing?)
Thanks very much for your insight.
Vic