GH2's Variable Movie Mode (VMM)

S

svecher

Well-known member
I have been perusing the freshly posted English manuals (search for DMC-GH2) and have come accross some interesting information regarding the Variable Movie Mode (VMM).

According to the manual, VMM can be set to record at 0.8x speed. It should be noted that base (1x) frame-rate in VMM appears to be 30p (even on European models). Because AVCHD format used in VMM is 24p this means it should be possible to speed up footage by 20% in post to arrive back at "native" 1080/30p footage with 24*1.2= 28.8 Mbps equivalent bitrate. The same approach is used on AF100, but base frame rate there is 60p. While obviously lacking the extra capabilities afforded by Big Brother's faster frame rate mode, GH2's overcranked 1080/30p mode could be an interesting alternative to Cinematic Mode for some specific applications, like web-distributed footage or even TV-style content, where a "film" aesthetic is not necessary, because 30p can be easily converted to broadcast format 1080/60i.
 
I believe you are absolutely correct. The 0.8x mode will be able to produce 1080p @ 30 FPS video if you speed it up in post processing. I believe it does not record audio in this mode though. However, I couldn't find any reference to that in the manual.
 
mpgxsvcd said:
I believe you are absolutely correct. The 0.8x mode will be able to produce 1080p @ 30 FPS video if you speed it up in post processing. I believe it does not record audio in this mode though. However, I couldn't find any reference to that in the manual.
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"Audio is not recorded" as stated on page 107.
 
Interesting, I did try it and it does produce progressive footage (evidently 24Mbps too) but no audio. I'm guessing the maximum speed the sensor can run at progressively is 40 fps since that's the limit for the burst mode (which you could also use for quick slow motion effects.
 
richtrav said:
Interesting, I did try it and it does produce progressive footage (evidently 24Mbps too) but no audio. I'm guessing the maximum speed the sensor can run at progressively is 40 fps since that's the limit for the burst mode (which you could also use for quick slow motion effects.
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Good to hear it works, Richard! Could you please post a short clip to take a peek at?

From what I understand, the sensor itself is fast enough to be read at 60p at full 1920x1080 resolution. That's how they are able to emulate the camcorder-style 60i output. Sensor itself is actually pretty cool, since it allows 120p at some unspecified resolution (which is used for live-view mode). Whether it is the encoder limitations or "marketing decisions" that dictated output choices remains to be seen I guess ...
 
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