I've been shooting in 24p (almost entirely) the past 6 months (w/DVX-100B). I've grown quite accustomed to the look. However, now I'm going to shoot some surfing and fishing stuff in 60i. I was wondering what I can do in post (FCP) to make it look better/different than a "home movie"?
Any tips for making 60i footage NOT look like a home movie?
- Thread starter chstick
- Start date
jcskeeter
Well-known member
One thing that can make the biggest difference when it comes to making video not look like a home movie doesn't have anything to do with effects or post proccesing. (Forgive me if this is something you already know.)
Camera movements and lighting.
The biggest thing that can make video look like home video is if the camera is all over the place. Unless that is the desired effect. Tripod, Tripod, Tripod. Always try to use it when possible. Smooth tilts and pans will help to make video more proffesional.
Also do some preproduction and think of shots that can be used for transitions from shot to shot. Try watching Scrubs one time and whatch how they use on screen elements to transition from shot to shot. Pretty cool stuff.
Ultimatly if you can't use a tripod and go hand held, try to do more cutaways instead of zooms. To avoid shaky zooms.
Lighting might not be something that can be dealt with that much with surfing and fishing. Just watch the sun and make sure not to shoot into it. Interviews though, try using a bounce card or somthing.
Once again sorry if this stuff is really amature sounding. But it's unfourtunate because some people think past the easy stuff too fast. Happy shooting!
Camera movements and lighting.
The biggest thing that can make video look like home video is if the camera is all over the place. Unless that is the desired effect. Tripod, Tripod, Tripod. Always try to use it when possible. Smooth tilts and pans will help to make video more proffesional.
Also do some preproduction and think of shots that can be used for transitions from shot to shot. Try watching Scrubs one time and whatch how they use on screen elements to transition from shot to shot. Pretty cool stuff.
Ultimatly if you can't use a tripod and go hand held, try to do more cutaways instead of zooms. To avoid shaky zooms.
Lighting might not be something that can be dealt with that much with surfing and fishing. Just watch the sun and make sure not to shoot into it. Interviews though, try using a bounce card or somthing.
Once again sorry if this stuff is really amature sounding. But it's unfourtunate because some people think past the easy stuff too fast. Happy shooting!
Thanks for the advice jcskeeter.
I've been shooting for less than a year and, though familiar with most of what you said, I can still use the reminders. It doesn't come second nature to me like most people who have years and years experience.
One thing I kept wondering, was if I should bring a tripod on this (33') fishing boat. I do have an OK back-up tripod which I'll definately bring. I'm a little scared to bring my brand new Sachtler......at least not the first time.
I've been shooting for less than a year and, though familiar with most of what you said, I can still use the reminders. It doesn't come second nature to me like most people who have years and years experience.
One thing I kept wondering, was if I should bring a tripod on this (33') fishing boat. I do have an OK back-up tripod which I'll definately bring. I'm a little scared to bring my brand new Sachtler......at least not the first time.
jcskeeter
Well-known member
Yeah no problem.
The tripod on the actual boat probly wouldn't work that great. Even if it was flat calm there would still be walking and such. Although, 33' is pretty big, that might soak up any kind of walking around in the boat. It would still have to be flat calm though for the pod.
I personaly do a lot of shooting of fishing, seeing as how I work for a fishing and hunting television show. I know we use bigger camers (DVCPro50) so we have the advantage of having it on our shoulder and being a little more stable somtimes. But I have used a Sony VX2000 to shoot some fishing before. When I used that I just tried to let my arms float as much as possible. I also tend to cradle the camera in front of me with both hands more than holding it with the strap tight around my one hand. A lot of quick cutaways is really good for fishing. ie: reel, reeling, rod tip, drag ripping, casting CUs, tackleboxes, bait, rigging and so on. Also do some boat to boat if you can. Or get out on land some where, if close enough, and get shots from land of them fishing.
Anyways, I'm done blabbing. Oh yeah about the pod. If your worried about the pod just bring the back up and see what happens.
The tripod on the actual boat probly wouldn't work that great. Even if it was flat calm there would still be walking and such. Although, 33' is pretty big, that might soak up any kind of walking around in the boat. It would still have to be flat calm though for the pod.
I personaly do a lot of shooting of fishing, seeing as how I work for a fishing and hunting television show. I know we use bigger camers (DVCPro50) so we have the advantage of having it on our shoulder and being a little more stable somtimes. But I have used a Sony VX2000 to shoot some fishing before. When I used that I just tried to let my arms float as much as possible. I also tend to cradle the camera in front of me with both hands more than holding it with the strap tight around my one hand. A lot of quick cutaways is really good for fishing. ie: reel, reeling, rod tip, drag ripping, casting CUs, tackleboxes, bait, rigging and so on. Also do some boat to boat if you can. Or get out on land some where, if close enough, and get shots from land of them fishing.
Anyways, I'm done blabbing. Oh yeah about the pod. If your worried about the pod just bring the back up and see what happens.
bbalser
Veteran
I shoot on boats all the time. You need a tripod, and you need a quick releasea to go hand held quickly. If you're shooting the people on the boat itself, tripod it. But make sure you have a strong tripod! We've blown the legs on two in the past year!
Teather ropes on the camera guy helps in some situations. You need to get out on the boat with some equipment before hand and just play around, get used to it. Every boat acts differently, every lake/river/bayou acts different. Experiment before you actually shoot!
Teather ropes on the camera guy helps in some situations. You need to get out on the boat with some equipment before hand and just play around, get used to it. Every boat acts differently, every lake/river/bayou acts different. Experiment before you actually shoot!
BenB, jskeeter,
Thank you very much for your info & tips.
Like I said earlier, this is fairly new to me and I greatly appreciate the advice.
I'll be going out this coming weekend for a "test" shoot. I will (obviously) get a chance to see what will and won't work for me, as well as giving the capt some different looks so he can tell me what he wants when we're ready for the real deal. I'll also be bringing a water-housing and have a friends "pilot" boat (12') to get a few shots. I will bring a tripod and I guess it's use will depend on mother ocean and how she's feeling that day.
An even greater concern for me will be the audio. I regret that I had made a couple foolish purchases BEFORE I found this DVXuser site. Anyway, I'll be trying to get some salvageable audio from my lav setup (Azden 200ULT). Hopefully not too much RF out at sea. I'll feed the lavs into an external recorder and try and also capture audio via shotgun mounted on cam. I'll just be praying for little to no wind.
Getting back to the thread topic.... (on a seemingly unrelated note) I've been another person who's been trying (with little success) to get better quality out of YouTube. Someone's comment has always stuck in my head...."Garbage in, garbage out". So, I will always pay greater attention to getting the best quality in production (if I can is another story....) but I will try.
I guess, subconsciously, I'm afraid that shooting in 60i will still look like a $200 camcorder (even though the DVX-100B produces better quality).
With that said, any tips (for 60i) that I can use in FCP for better quality?
Thanks again
Chris
Thank you very much for your info & tips.
Like I said earlier, this is fairly new to me and I greatly appreciate the advice.
I'll be going out this coming weekend for a "test" shoot. I will (obviously) get a chance to see what will and won't work for me, as well as giving the capt some different looks so he can tell me what he wants when we're ready for the real deal. I'll also be bringing a water-housing and have a friends "pilot" boat (12') to get a few shots. I will bring a tripod and I guess it's use will depend on mother ocean and how she's feeling that day.
An even greater concern for me will be the audio. I regret that I had made a couple foolish purchases BEFORE I found this DVXuser site. Anyway, I'll be trying to get some salvageable audio from my lav setup (Azden 200ULT). Hopefully not too much RF out at sea. I'll feed the lavs into an external recorder and try and also capture audio via shotgun mounted on cam. I'll just be praying for little to no wind.
Getting back to the thread topic.... (on a seemingly unrelated note) I've been another person who's been trying (with little success) to get better quality out of YouTube. Someone's comment has always stuck in my head...."Garbage in, garbage out". So, I will always pay greater attention to getting the best quality in production (if I can is another story....) but I will try.
I guess, subconsciously, I'm afraid that shooting in 60i will still look like a $200 camcorder (even though the DVX-100B produces better quality).
With that said, any tips (for 60i) that I can use in FCP for better quality?
Thanks again
Chris
adkimery
Veteran
Just off the top of my head:
-Don't shoot everything from eye level. We all see the world at eye level every day and videos can be made more interesting to watch when they present the world to us in ways we don't normally see it.
-Hold the beginning and end of you camera moves for at least 7 seconds (and do moves 2 or 3 times to make sure you get a solid take).
-Get a variety of shots. Long shots, medium shots, close-ups. This will help keep the video from feeling "same old, same old" visually.
-Zoom with your feet not with your hands. If your subject is too small in your viewfinder physically move towards it as opposed to just zooming in on it whenever possible.
-on camera filters. I'm sure there are filters (like ND) for the DVX that will help reduce glare from being out on the water.
On the post side of things:
-YouTube is always going to look like trash. Garbage in, garbage out is a great thing to keep in mind, but YouTube just applies too much compression for anything to look good on it.
-CCing in post (I'm sure BenB can recommend a good book) can help give a pro look to your project.
-A
-Don't shoot everything from eye level. We all see the world at eye level every day and videos can be made more interesting to watch when they present the world to us in ways we don't normally see it.
-Hold the beginning and end of you camera moves for at least 7 seconds (and do moves 2 or 3 times to make sure you get a solid take).
-Get a variety of shots. Long shots, medium shots, close-ups. This will help keep the video from feeling "same old, same old" visually.
-Zoom with your feet not with your hands. If your subject is too small in your viewfinder physically move towards it as opposed to just zooming in on it whenever possible.
-on camera filters. I'm sure there are filters (like ND) for the DVX that will help reduce glare from being out on the water.
On the post side of things:
-YouTube is always going to look like trash. Garbage in, garbage out is a great thing to keep in mind, but YouTube just applies too much compression for anything to look good on it.
-CCing in post (I'm sure BenB can recommend a good book) can help give a pro look to your project.
-A