ENG with the HVX

Spartacus

Spartacus

Veteran
I´m still doing ENG work from time to time and a lot of stations here still go the BetaSP route.
Now, maybe I´m getting old, but after working with the HVX for some time now, I´m really sick of carrying those heavy analog bastards around - add a Video20 tripod and after two days my back hurts like hell...
I´ve talked to some producers and they actually don´t care which format you film with, even DV is now widely accepted for broadcast use...
BUT many in the news market still edit linear on BetaSP (no time for digitising, main storage and backup too expensive...) so in the end its Beta again.

So, those of you working in ENG with the HVX - how do you deliver (non P2)?
Should I maybe get an SP deck and dub from DV50?
Should I just try to deliver on DV tape (=shoot DV)?
If so how could I "sell" or label the HVX as not being some "simple DV cam"? (DV is accepted, yes, but mostly as a B-cam or coming from videojournalists, not so much from freelance cameramen, at least where I live...)
 
NDTV uses hundreds of HVXs for ENG. They shoot DV on them, but the main thing is that they want to edit nonlinear and they don't have time for digitizing either. They use the P2 cards and edit right off them using Avid.

If you were going to deliver to someone who's working with nonlinear, I'd say shoot DV50 and deliver hard disks. If they're working with tape, that's another problem... you could shoot DV50 and then dub to BetaSP if that's what they want... seems a waste, but hey, you have to meet your client's deliverable requirements. You could always shoot DV, yes, but there wouldn't be any real advantages over a DVX in that circumstance (unless you planned to do slow-mo stuff; you could shoot that to your cards and then downconvert to the tape and turn in a slow-mo tape...)
 
As said, here they still edit linear for news and short reports, so delivering on HDD is not an option...
Hmm, I have never tried the tape mode of the HVX - is it better or worse than the DVX (in PAL 4:3)?
 
Barry_Green said:
It's about the same, but a stop slower.
Click to expand...
Ok, thanks, I will do some testing the next days, but actually considering the image quality of most of the BetaSPs I worked with, I´m positive about the outcome...
How much is the price difference, between a BetaSP team and a DV team in the US?
 
If you want to get better quality on tape on the HVX, you could always shoot HD in 1080 or 720 to P2 cards and then dub that to tape internally on the camera. It will still record on the tape as DV but the initial acquisition will be better quality than shooting DV straight to tape.
 
When shooting news in standard definition I would think that 480p30 would be a lot more compatible with the new flat panel displays than the old analog like legacy 480i60 format.
 
Hm,
I´m with Barry on that one: why should a downconversion in post look better than the internal one of the HVX?
If I recall correctly, the HVX always starts with the maximum resolution and then compresses to DV100,DV50,DV...
Otherwise sth like the Hydra wouldn´t work?
On the other hand for eg greenscreen work many shoot 1080p because of the extra resolution, even if the endproduct is a DVD - they could use DVCpro50, it´s lighter compressed, offers the same colorspace and comes from the same imager and processor inside the HVX...
But maximum Quality put aside: first I´ll have to make the network accept miniDV from me...
 
I feel your pain brother. I still shoot beta sp but only when my clients request it. If your doing news I don't know how you would have time to dub anything. When I first got my dvx I was concerned that clients would consider the small size of the camera as not professional. This has never been an issue.

If your clients accept dv then shoot dv and tell them you have a great camera and let your images be judged on their own merit.

I do most of my shooting now with the dvx100-b and it is so great for SD work. I do mostly commercials, then corporate and broadcast. I'm interested in getting an HVX but I have not had any demand for it.
 
Buck,
what annoys me most is that I´ll have to pay for a worn down BetaSP from the rental house, while I have two HVXs sitting at my office ready for battle...
AND I know they produce a better picture in most situations!
Do you charge less for ENG work with DV compared to Beta...?
 
I went through a whole deal with a producer that wanted a commercial shot on Beta Sp for the simple reason that that was what the final output was to have been. I said why don't you shoot it in high def with the hvx and then dub to beta sp for final? She didn't want to hear about it.
I know entire production houses that have dumped every beta sp camera and deck that they can because they would rather take some money instead of none when beta sp is outdated even further.
 
Buck,
what annoys me most is that I´ll have to pay for a worn down BetaSP from the rental house, while I have two HVXs sitting at my office ready for battle...
AND I know they produce a better picture in most situations!
Do you charge less for ENG work with DV compared to Beta...?
__________________

I try to charge the same amount for dv as beta, but if a client trys to force the issue I will give them a modest break. Sometimes I run in to low ball producers that are use to working with el cheapo dv camera guys. Usually I will give them a bottm line price and it's take it or leave it.
 
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