Got My HVX - Need help with 3 questions

[pilkiwilky]

OK, great forum, fantastic resource for newbie like me... Here are my questions:


1: I bought the camera, not the P2 and from the price drop I am glad. My question is... When I turn it on and connect the camera to my SD monitor, what format am I seeing? Am I seeing the best possible image from the camera? Am I seeing DVCPro 25, DVC Pro 50 or something else? Is there any way I can capture the best SD format - DVC Pro50 straight to my hard drive via FCP or do I need the P2 for that?

2: Squeeze - to get the best possible standard def image, if I am going to use a 16 x 9 aspect in the end, will shooting in squeeze mode give me the same or higher resolution than shooting without squeeze mode on and doing it in post?

3: Can someone translate the jargon: 480, 720, 1080. Does this corrolate to DVCPro25, DVC Pro50, DVCPro HD?


Thank you thank you thank you!

[russ_c]

1: You can capture DVCPro50 directly into FCP by hooking up your HVX through firewire and using Log and Capture. Just make sure to set your capture/Input to DVCPro50 under Capture Settings....not sure about the HVX settings, I imagin you would have to choose DVCPro50 in it's menus as your format.

3: 480, 720, 1080 are short for the resolutions 720x480 (DVCPro and DVCPro50 i.e. Standard Definition), 1280x720 and 1920x1080 (DVCPro100 i.e. High Definition).

[Barry_Green]

When I turn it on and connect the camera to my SD monitor, what format am I seeing? Am I seeing the best possible image from the camera?
On an SD monitor? Heavens no. You're not seeing anything near what the camera can produce! You're seeing a standard NTSC signal; you'd have to connect to a high-def monitor in order to see what it's really capable of!


Am I seeing DVCPro 25, DVC Pro 50 or something else?
None of the above. You're seeing an uncompressed digital-to-analog conversion of the signal before it's been processed into one of those formats.


Is there any way I can capture the best SD format - DVC Pro50 straight to my hard drive via FCP or do I need the P2 for that?
Yes you can capture with FCP straight to your hard drive without P2.


2: Squeeze - to get the best possible standard def image, if I am going to use a 16 x 9 aspect in the end, will shooting in squeeze mode give me the same or higher resolution than shooting without squeeze mode on and doing it in post?
Squeeze on the HVX is 100% different than Squeeze on the DVX. Squeeze on the HVX is legitimate native 16:9 with no stretching or squashing or anything. The whole "doing it in post" thing is now done away with. Always always always use in-camera "squeeze" on the HVX. I really wish they wouldn't even have named it "squeeze", they should have named it "widescreen" because using the name "squeeze" will just confuse DVX veterans. But in the HVX "squeeze" is what you want -- it's native 16:9.


3: Can someone translate the jargon: 480, 720, 1080. Does this corrolate to DVCPro25, DVC Pro50, DVCPro HD?
480 = standard-def (so DV, DVCPRO25, and DVCPRO50).

720 and 1080 = high-def (so DVCPRO-HD).

[pilkiwilky]

Ok, thanks so much, but to clarify:

I understand that the image I am seeing on my SD monitor is not HD. But what I really want to know is... Is this the best image I am going to see in SD. In other words am I seeing the best SD image I am going to get out of the camera?

Second, to capture direct from FCP HD do I need to upgrade to FCP 5.0? I currently have FCP HD 4.5 and my local panny dealer told me I have to get 5.0 - is this true, or is there a way to do it in 4.5? After shelling out for the camera I am broke!

Thanks

[Barry_Green]

You would be seeing the best SD image if you viewed it through the component outputs into a component SD monitor.

And FCP4.5 can probably capture the footage through firewire. 5.0.4 is necessary if you want to work with the P2 cards, but 4.5 should probably handle capturing. Don't really know though.