Double System – Syncing and the FS100

[matteo1]

Shooting a documentary with a crew of two.

With the limited export / import timecode capabilities of the FS100 (you can only export via HDMI; no import at all, so no jamming) anyone got any clever ways of dealing with timecode and double system syncing?

Editing system is Avid; Audio is Sound Devices mixer and recorder. We've been using Plural Eyes so far to sync, but the subclipping takes a while.

Some Options:

1) Timecode Buddy in the audio bag with a Lockit Buddy on the Camera.

2) Digital timecode slate – this is a bit of problem in that we're shooting true run-and-gun, literally at times. Two person crew and sometimes we're not tethered.

3) $2750 Sound Devices Pix 220 or 240 – this would be great, but it doesn't do 1080p 60, which we've been shooting at times.

[Duncan Craig]

Doesn't running time of day timecode when the FS100 syncs from GPS, mean that two units will have a perfectly synced internal clock?

[Jean-Philippe]

If only you could run time of day timecode...

[Duncan Craig]

Oh Dear! no TOD TC...
I've only rushed through the PDF manual as I don't yet own an FS100.
Next you'll be telling me there's no HDSDI or ND filters!!

You see my usual trick with multi camera shoots is to either get someone to clap, fire a camera flash, or I've given the 2nd camera operator a small monitor screen with data showing for the main camera. They can film the data timecode at the start of each take and sync clips from there.
Plus it lets them know what shot size the main camera is on, so they can reframe accordingly.

[matteo1]

If only life could be so easy. I was hoping that the latest firmware might address TOD TC but no luck – it seems like such a small thing to grant us TOD TC, but in the end Sony had other plans and other cameras to sell.

[MattDavis]

There is an option to record Time of Day (and the date for that matter) with UserBits, but to my knowledge, no NLE bothers with picking up this information. Crossing fingers and toes that Adobe CS6 does this with Prelude et al, but it's the sort of metadata that even FCPX should be picking up on. Sigh.

BTW - on things that weren't picked up on v2.0 - a simple 'duration' view of shot would have been nice. At the end of almost every corporate talking heads take, I get the question 'how long was that?'

[Duncan Craig]

At the end of almost every corporate talking heads take, I get the question 'how long was that?'

Yeah me too. My answer: "Is that including all your ums arrghs, fluffs, pauses and mistakes?"

Can clip browser read the UBs?
If so, maybe you can choose a similar TOD on both camera clips, note the timecode, then find the timecode of the clips in FCP add markers to use for multicam sync.

[MattDavis]

Clip Browser? Ooh, shudder, I hope they've fixed its 'little ways'...

Yeah me too. My answer: "Is that including all your ums arrghs, fluffs, pauses and mistakes?"

Pardon me for being a smug git, but really *really* pleased with this setup that solved the 'What's the duration?' issue:

Pix on FS100.jpg

Nice little Duration clock on bottom right of screen, goes into record via TC on the FS100, plus a big red button glows RED when I'm recording. :-)

Okay, okay - bit of an overkill way of doing it but hey - audio into Pix, pix out to camera (so lovely lovely 702 style mic Preamps drive FS100 audio at line level), dual format record (though that's overkill for this kind of thing), and now with the v2 software it's a great little production monitor too (peaking, false colour, punch-in, zebras). It even charges batteries.

Obligatory 'On Topic' comment - it's sort of the ultimate dual system sound, with free pictures. The Pix pre-amps really do make a huge difference!

[matteo1]

Matt, do you have any other shots of your rig? I know this is slightly off topic, but it'd be nice to see how you've attached the PIX unit. I'm still trying to figure out a way to keep this pretty clean – but that's hard with all the cables snaking around the camera.

[MattDavis]

I've moved this to the 'Show Your Rigs' thread, but very briefly, the Pix is stuck on a Noga Arm, and the cabling is pretty manic as we were doing a quick setup quick pulldown job. If Mods would prefer to remove these two posts, happy with that. :-)