Not the look I want

Here are the scene settings as recommended by DVfilm:

SHUTTER = OFF (1/50th). 1/60th sec may also be used, but only to reduce flicker with florescent or arc lighting in 60Hz countries (like the USA).

ATW (Auto Tracking White Balance) = OFF

SCENE FILE:
  • DETAIL LEVEL = -3 (see note 1)
  • CHROMA LEVEL = 0
  • CHROMA PHASE = 0
  • COLOR TEMP = 0
  • MASTER PED = -6 (see note 2)
  • A. IRIS LEVEL = -1
  • GAMMA = CINE-LIKE (for DVX100A use CINE-LIKE-V)
  • SKIN TONE DTL = OFF
  • MATRIX = NORMAL
  • V DETAIL FREQ = THIN
  • PROGRESSIVE = 24P(ADV) for NTSC / 25P for PAL models

CAMERA SETUP:

  • ASPECT CONV = NORM (4:3)
  • SETUP = 0%

SW MODE:

  • ATW = OFF

RECORDING SETUP:
  • REC SPEED = SP
  • AUDIO REC = 16BIT
DISPLAY SETUP:
  • ZEBRA DETECT 2 = 100%

  • ZEBRA DETECT 1 may be useful at 80% to set skin tones just below 80, as suggested by Steve Mullen's guidebook on the DVX100.
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]Notes:[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]1. More info on DETAIL LEVEL[/FONT]
  • [FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]DETAIL LEVEL of -7 should turn off all sharpening in the camera processor, which is typically best for transfer to film. However some sharpening may be necessary to overcome the smearing introduced by the CCD sensor where charge leaks from one pixel to another during the sample. Users report that DETAIL LEVEL greater than -3 gives unacceptable sharpening when viewed on a computer screen with high enlargement (which is what happens in a transfer to film). A studio monitor with 500-800 lines resolution should also be able to reveal this effect. Shoot a white or black card against a gray background with best possible focus. A white area with a false dark outline, or a black area with a false light outline indicates too much sharpening.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]2. More info on MASTER PED[/FONT]
  • [FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]According to this table from 24p.com, a MASTER PED setting of -6 with SETUP = 0% gives you the ideal black level.[/FONT]


    I would say work from these and make changes accordingly. Oen thing to consider is depth of field since that also can give shots a filmic quality. One thing I find kind of interesting is that you are looking at a snowboarding video and from what I've seen a lot of this sort of videos have look like they are shot on video. Color correcting is the other thing that will help give it a filmic look but you need to have a proper exposure to begin with. With all that snow you need to be really careful not to blow it all out.

    Just my two cents.

 
first of all, most of the shots don't look bad at all, but some of them were actually a little less appealing in the way they look.

personally i don't think it's a CC problem, nor a scene setting, really.
yes, maybe a little negative pedestal and a little enhanced croma amount help to make it more filmy, but i'm guessing that there are two other reasons for your disappointment:

1. scenes with excess of contrast. this is where the limits of the digital come out, regardless of the capabilities of the dvx. there's not really you can do there, except avoiding some shots.

2. probably more important, i didnt like at all how you framed some of the shots. that is so much more important in giving a professional look than all the scene settings in the camera. In many shots you make a very good use of the wideangle with intersting framing and compositions (eg people in foreground etc). but some other times (eg when you film jumps standing from the side) you were using an eccessively wide field of view, unjustified from what you were filming. if you dared a little more in some situations with the zoom you would have got much more intersting compositions.

sometimes 1. and 2. were combined in the same shots. these are things which make the shots look amatorial or more 'video-like'.
I wouldn't try the solution too long in a different scene setting, but in getting better compositions and avoind high contrasts.

all this, obviously IMHO, and aware of the limitations of judgement the web-compressed clip has..

good luck, it's not bad at all anyway!
Andrea
 
as to get the most film like image, i would say change these settings from
DETAIL LEVEL = -3 (see note 1)
CHROMA LEVEL = 0
CHROMA PHASE = 0
COLOR TEMP = 0
MASTER PED = -6 (see note 2)
A. IRIS LEVEL = -1
GAMMA = CINE-LIKE (for DVX100A use CINE-LIKE-V)
SKIN TONE DTL = OFF
MATRIX = NORMAL
V DETAIL FREQ = THIN
PROGRESSIVE = 24P(ADV) for NTSC / 25P for PAL models


to


DETAIL LEVEL = -3 (see note 1)
CHROMA LEVEL = 0
CHROMA PHASE = 0
COLOR TEMP = 0
MASTER PED = +2 ( flatten the image to get the most detail coming in and crush the blacks in post )

GAMMA = CINE-LIKE-D for dynamic range
SKIN TONE DTL = OFF
MATRIX = NORMAL
V DETAIL FREQ = THIN
PROGRESSIVE = 24P(ADV) for NTSC / 25P for PAL models
 
I have seen many snowboard movies in my life and i can always tell between the ones that are shot on 16mm and he ones on DV. Regardless of framerate, your footage looks so much like video because of a few things. The fisheye lense is something i see screwed onto every vx-2000 or gl2 when i go to bear mtn. The action sports fisheye look is completely overdone, ( btw, i have owned 2 century death lenses). Granted using it makes filming while trailing a rider very easy but with that you sacrafice alot of the "high budget production feel". Another thing is, if you have ever seen any 16mm snowboard movies, "lost in transition" by standard films for instance, the way it is filmed is much different. They are using 300 and 400mm cinema lenses with cameras on hilltops 200 yards or more away. This is much diferent than following along the rider holding the top handle on your DVX. The stationary camera movement makes it look much more professional. Just as if you were shooting a dramatic feature and opted to use handheld cameras versus dolly/tracking shots, it would end up looking more amatuerish.

I have used an array of cameras to shoot showboarding in the same way you have, and i have never gotten the "film" (or movie look, depending on who youre talking to). I would go with tripods, no fisheye and long lenses (zoom in) to get the look you are striving for. Try setting up shots on certain rails or jumps. If you are deliberate in the types of shots you set up then it is much more probable you will end up with footage that you appreciate.
 
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