C500: 1Dc: still amazed by the amount of detail in 4k mode

[AndreeOnline]

While waiting for an event to start, I shot a few 4k clips to kill the time. I've done quite a few shootings in 4k mode with the 1Dc by now, but I still get amazed now and then by the sheer amount of clean detail that is there.

Opening the image in a new tab takes you to the original 4k frame.

Such a pleasant camera to work with!

 

[eco_bach]

Have you seen the HDMI tests that James Miller posted on twitter?
What is your current workflow ? I'm still trying to figure out what is optimum since I'm jumping between PPro, FCPX(kicking the tires again) and Davinci Resolve.
And if and when it makes sense to create proxies first, BEFORE any editing.

One nice advantage of 4K is being able to stabilize in post without losing any resolution (if you're downsampling to 2K)

 

[marvinhello]

Have you seen the HDMI tests that James Miller posted on twitter?
What is your current workflow ? I'm still trying to figure out what is optimum since I'm jumping between PPro, FCPX(kicking the tires again) and Davinci Resolve.
And if and when it makes sense to create proxies first, BEFORE any editing.

One nice advantage of 4K is being able to stabilize in post without losing any resolution (if you're downsampling to 2K)

Two options for you:

1. Use an external recoder like Ninja 2, set it to record ProRes or DNxHD proxy files. edit them in PP or FCP then conform the 4K original, then do the grading and effects.

2. if you don't want to use an external recorder, transcode the 4K file to Cineform intermediate (10bit 422) and edit them in PP or FCP. This option gives slightly more headroom in the grading since it upsamples to 10bit.

 

[slidemaster]

Wow thats nice and great color too!

 

[eco_bach]

Thanks. Wasn't aware of Cineform intermediate (10bit 422). I thought Prores422 was 10bit. Do you use MpegStreamClip for the transcode?

 

[AndreeOnline]

What is your current workflow ? I'm still trying to figure out what is optimum since I'm jumping between PPro, FCPX(kicking the tires again) and Davinci Resolve.

Hi there,

In my "First impressions" article, I'm writing a bit about how I handled my initial projects. There are many options if you count all variants, but the broad strokes is that I converted my files to 4k ProRes 422 (yes, they are 10 bit as well).

Cineform that Marvin mentions is a great PC choice, but since I'm on a Mac and work in FCPX, ProRes is an easy choice.

I love DaVinci Lite, but I don't have the full version so that's for projects that end up in 1080p. When I do private stuff I really like how it looks on my MacBook Pro retina at 4k, so I tend not to take the whole project down to 1080p (except for exports to my Apple TV).

Checking the FCPX 'proxy' checkbox is also a valid workflow if you need it. You'll get 2k 'ProRes proxy' files that look quite nice for their 40 Mbit/s. You now have files that are easier on the system and you then just hook up to the originals before final export.

Up until now, I've used an extended loaner 1Dc for a dealer here. But today I finally got my own firmware upgraded 1Dc. That makes testing a tinkering so much easier and I'll be adding stuff to my blog every now and then.

PS. And by the way, the image posted above is 'out of the camera'. It wasn't shot in Canon Log, but rather in Neutral Picture profile. I've done most of my shooting in Log, but wanted to try something else. It all depends on lightning conditions and scene contrast, but in this case it worked well. Just goes to prove that you need to keep an open mind at all times.

 

[TheDingo]

Such a pleasant camera to work with!

Very nice image.

The trees on the horizon seem a bit on the "mushy" side, is this a focusing or lens issue, or just a limitation of current sensor technology ?

When I first started shooting HD I realized that getting accurate focus was a much bigger deal than shooting SD.

So I'm guessing that getting accurate focus with 4K is going take things to a whole other level.

 

[AndreeOnline]

Very nice image.

The trees on the horizon seem a bit on the "mushy" side, is this a focusing or lens issue, or just a limitation of current sensor technology ?

Of course there's a limitation in there somewhere, but I'd say it's mostly due to natural falloff on account of chosen f-stop and focal plane.

Look at the image in 4k at 100%. On the bridge to the right there are two persons standing there. Behind them, there are lamp posts that belong to the bridge and they suspend a net where you can actually see the threads making up the mesh of the net. And those threads, while faint, seem cleanly resolved to me.

While I think most images need some kind of sharpening to compensate for the processing pipeline, I don't like halos. And I especially don't like over-sharpened trees and foliage.

To me, the 1Dc strikes a very good balance between resolved detail and that relaxed image quality (no moire or aliasing) that I like very much in my 5Dmk3.

 

[TheDingo]

To me, the 1Dc strikes a very good balance between resolved detail and that relaxed image quality (no moire or aliasing) that I like very much in my 5Dmk3.

It's a very nice image, and the detail looks very natural.

I'm just wondering if focusing and lens selection are going to become more important when shooting 4K because any mistakes you make will be obvious in the finished image.

 

[marvinhello]

Thanks. Wasn't aware of Cineform intermediate (10bit 422). I thought Prores422 was 10bit. Do you use MpegStreamClip for the transcode?

Adobe Media Encoder for automatic batch transcode. You can even transcode it to 12bit RGB444 (1.6Gbps after), which does a great job in smoothing the chroma sampling (I use it for 1080p50/60 source)

 

[marvinhello]

It's a very nice image, and the detail looks very natural.

I'm just wondering if focusing and lens selection are going to become more important when shooting 4K because any mistakes you make will be obvious in the finished image.

Use sharp lens with good micro contrast, like Zeiss ZE/ZF range. Because in 4K mode the camera does 1:1 sampling, so the quality of the image relies heavily on the quality of the lens, especially for the resolving power.