at the crossroads - need help, somewhat urgently

A

AndreKuhn

New member
Dear people

I am facing a decision really hard to come by. Hopefully you guys can give me some advise or opinions on this.

My situation: We are working on this documentation project for quite a while now. One year of preparation and going outside since the beginning of this year. We are using DVX100B with Letus Xtr. At this state interviews only yet with more street pictures to shoot at the end of the year.

This project has exploded. We are doing very well in terms of reaching eloquent people for interviews. Last week we were able to convince really famous folks to participate as interview partners. I mean really famous here in Europe and within the domain of our film topic. This is an exciting development. Our little project is all of a sudden not so little anymore. In fact it will attract way more people now we initially thought of. (Simply because of these really luminaries we'll talk to.) Okay, enough words. You got it: it's big now.

Here comes our "problem". Now I have some problems doing DV on the Panasonic (which I love, of course;). I mean this shootage will be for eternity and if some folks come up with 'Guys, you have awesome material. Let's do more, we will support you!' it might me a problem to have low-res material of DVX squeezed 16:9.

Don't you think, or do you disagree?

We already did two interviews on DV before matters changed that drastically. This footage would be in the film anyway (also in case we switch to Canon XH A1) - just dropping in quality, which I wouldn't mind because at the end, it's a documentary working with archive material anyway. You'd see different quality along the way in the film anyway.

What are your thoughts? I discussed this with various poeple in my hometown and couldn't come to a conclusion. It's all too much information and stuff to consider.

I'd (GREATLY) welcome your responses!
André
 
I think a big factor is how comfortable you are with the equipment you're using now. If you're really OK with it, it's a reason to stay with it.

It takes time to learn to get the best from a new camera, and I suppose you would be better concentrating on your interviews, storyline and all the other work that goes into producing a great documentary. The last thing you want is have one of your eloquent interviews in front of the camera, and be fiddling around trying to be sure you have the perfect settings.

Also, as you suggest, if you're mixing in footage from different sources, getting the ultimate in quality from your camera is less important. Remember, if it's a great film, it will because of you, not because of the camera.

On the other hand, if you think you will be more comfortable with the A1, get it now, before you have shot too much with the equipment you have. Better, I think, to change early than late.

Hope this helps

Nick
 
I definitely wouldn't mix and match footage from SD and HD. If you've already shot a heap of DVX then stick with it. And the DVX is good SD anyway.
 
Congrats, i'm sure you are thrilled and nervous.

As for the camera, I agree with Nick G, if you choose to go with A1 do it sooner rather than later and take some time to learn the camera. As for mixing SD and HD, depending on how much footage you have already shot (and will be using in the final film) you may consider checking out Instant HD. If you dont end up using that many shots from your existing SD footage, apparently you can uprez it pretty nicely to semi-match you new HDV footage. I would suggest calling the guys at Red Giant Software and asking them.
 
Your documentary will be judged on how well it covers the subject at hand, not whether you shot SD or HD. Take the time and money you would spend on an A1 and put it into your project.
 
the rest of the world hasn't made the jump to hdv yet - just because it's available doesn't make it the industry standard. most people will still shoot in sdv for years to come, and I'm pretty sure everyone who isn't a shutter bug or an hd-enthusiast won't know the difference either. I'd complete the project as you started it, and not change your production techniques.
 
Many thanks!

Many thanks!

I'd like to thank you guys very much. All of your comments have been very helpful. Do I need to mention we stick to SD? We just returned from Switzerland and did use our DVX / Letus setup. And I felt really comfortable with it - no more nagging doubts of whether going HD or not.

So many thanks for sharing your views. I think you are totally right - it's better to focus on content rather than hardware and it's probably too late by now given the fact HD is quite different and therefore more expansive in post-production.

Cheers
André
 
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