Going To Peru for a Doc, need advice.

sponester

sponester

Active member
I was hoping to get some input on peoples workflows for documentary.

I am the DP for a ten day shoot in iquitos Peru. we have very little money and i am still trying to figure out what to do for the P2 workflow. I normally shoot shorts and Music videos, so the workflow is P2 card to Labtop and then burn dvds of each card and transfer everything to a backup hard drive.

I don't think we will have the time or luxury to do this in a third world country and we are hoping to get a p2 store and transfering as we shoot and then transfering to an external at the end of the day.

The producer/director is interested in using this system called exabyte to transfer the data to 160gb tape solution. Has anyone heard of this and what would u do with these perameters? www.exabyte.com/products/products/get_products.cfm?prod_id=480

We are going to have 2 hvx's and 4 4gb cards total shooting in 720 24pn
Should I think about getting a firestore for each camera or is the p2 store going to be a smooth enough process? I think that the p2 store is the cheapest, but don't want to be limited to short shots.

Any comments would be greatly appreciated.
Also please give any necessary heads up in order to have a successful shoot in a foreign country.

thanks,
sponester
 
Hey Sponester:

Most important advice: make sure you have a good Quechua translator. You should consider bringing one along from California.

Secondly, what's the problem with the DVD backup plan? If you have a laptop with a DVD burner, it's likely the easiest thing and works well with the 4GB cards...

-Barry
 
Speaking as someone currently filming 2 docs in a 3rd world country, I think priority 1 is have 4 8G's per camera. I have 4 cards, and for any interviews longer that 1 hour, I don't know how I would do it otherwise. I back up in the field to my laptop hard drive, then offload to a Firewire800 raid and DVD's. That's my suggestion, also be very aware of lighting, the HVX needs a huge amount of light!
 
docutter,
Are you backing up 8Gig cards to DVD's?
Double sided disks?
How is that working out and how,long does it take per disk?

I also would think shooting a doc on 4 Gig cards would be difficult but maybe a P2 store would be convenient enought to work.

The firestores at this point don't seem very reliable so I wouldn't trust them on a doc.
 
I just got back last week from shooting some doc footage in Brazil with the HVX, four 4GB cards, a P2 Store, a laptop, and a G-Tech external drive. It all worked pretty well, except for one time when we were out in the sun and both the P2 store and HVX overheated - but once we had it in the shade for a few minutes it worked just fine.

Our setup limited us to about 3hrs 10min of footage before we had to unload, but this never stopped us from getting what we needed. Normally, we'd shoot in the morning, unload during the middle of the day, shoot more at afternoon/night, and then unload again.

For your setup, I'd be concerned about the tape drive since it is pretty slow compared to hard drives. The P2 store's connection is USB, and it took like 1.5hr or so to unload the full drive to the firewire external drive. (USB 2.0 has a theoretical output of 33MB/s vs. the theoretical 6MB/s of the tape drive listed) I haven't used the firestore for the HVX yet, so it might be quicker/more convenient than the P2 store in terms of offloading.

Since you are taking two HVX's, I'd suggest getting more cards and another P2 store. You might run into problems with shooting too much and not being able to unload your cards otherwise. However, it really depends on how much you plan on shooting each day and/or how much time there will be in between setups, locations, interviews, etc.

Hire a guide/security familiar with the areas you are going. A 6k camera can make a tempting target. Also, power supply can be an issue. Have a way to power everything/recharge batteries: power adapters, power strips, car cigarette adapters, and ground lifts are good things to pack.

Good luck,
Garrett

P.S. don't check any luggage with United Airlines.
 
sponester said:
We are going to have 2 hvx's and 4 4gb cards total shooting in 720 24pn
Should I think about getting a firestore for each camera or is the p2 store going to be a smooth enough process? I think that the p2 store is the cheapest, but don't want to be limited to short shots.
Click to expand...

Just remember that with a Firestore you won't be able to shoot in native mode. 720 24pn will not currently transfer out through firewire :(
 
I am currently in Colombia and have been shooting several short projects here with the HVXw with the P2 store and a large 500 GB external.

Humiditiy:

I haven't had to deal with humidity too much but that is the first thing that is scary about a tropical P2 workflow. Dry bags are a must and often more practical than a Pelican when you want to be low profile. I am not comfortable exposing the camera and gear to that level of humidity when things are not turned on. That goes for the drives as well. Dessicant silica beads in a sock works wonders. I have one for each dry bag. Keeps things nice and happy. I am sure if you are in Iquitos you will be making several day remote trips. Keep the computer, harddrive and backup DVDs somewhere safe while in the field. Locked up at a hotel or something and then bring along the P2 store and HVX with their dry bags. Even occassional exposure to that wetness can really screw up that stuff.

Power:

I have several extra batteries and went on two or three day trips without needing to plug anything in. Some lodges have a generator and power isn't that big of an issue as long as planned for. I agree with the previous poster about having adaptors for car batteries and such. A good car battery can be had almost anywhere and with a transverter make life nice and easy out in the field.

Workflow:

2 4GB cards and a P2 store for most situations were adequate. Play around with the P2 store a bit before you have to depend on it. As much to give you confidence that you aren't lossing your material as anything else. Rarely do I in a day shoot more than 150 min., so the P2 store has worked well. At night I use P2 genie to offload the material. It has worked well and the one thing about the p2 store is it is slow to get off your material. Not terrible, but certainly annoying.

Backup:

So right now I have all my master .mxf data (content and lastclip.txt) on a 500 GB maxtor. I had to send my g-raid 500 to get mended right before left. The maxtor hasn't given me any problems yet. I have been going through an pulling selects out with P2 log and in an ideal world would save those to a different external. I wish P2 log would change the names of the original files rather than just amend the FCP names. I have been pretty dilegent about burning each card to a DVD. Seems somewhat stupid to spend so much time doing something so repetitive, but when traveling in some less than safe places it gave me peace of mind to have it backed up.

Packing:

I carried-on everything to be able to shoot a simple interview. Tapes, P2, P2 store, small litepanels light, a few grip type items, and audio. All fit into a 1500 Pelican. Also had a dSLR and my laptop. Kinda heavy, but it would be shitty to loose your luggage and lose days of shooting when you might still be able to eek out some shots while the rest of your stuff shows up. I was traveling alone, but I would try to get the tripod as carry-on as well. You never know what can happen with luggage and if you are on a tight schedule I wouldn't want to be sitting around and waiting for gear to show up.

Exabyte Tape solution.

I looked into exabyte and that looks like something that will work for post...but I don't know how practical it is for the field.

good luck.

rick
 
Wow guys,

thanks for the response, I'll be sure to pass all of the info along to the producer about workflow. Now I need to a talk him into getting two more p2 cards per camera. Does anyone have some P2 cards they want to rent for 10 days or know of a rental house who gives good deals. Please send me a pm if u have cards for rent.

Where can I get the silica stuff. I've heard of this before. I am in the LA area.

Any other pointers, or suggestions, such as things unrelated to shooting. This is my first time out of North America. I am getting all of my overseas vaccines but was curious about individuals disasters or traveling mishaps that I can avoid.

thanks Again,

Sponester
 
3rd world does´nt mean that you will be on the back side of the moon. Generally in Latin America there is a small but well informed middle class that uses all the tools and devices you are used to in the United States. I haven´t been in Bolivia but Santa Cruz for example is said to be a very developed city. If you need to buy some DVDs or a new harddrive: There you should get everything.
I´m living in the Dominican Republic and here you could see TV spots promoting the HVX in february when it still was brand new!
 
I could maybe do a rental of my cards when I get back, PM me and we can discuss.
I back up my cards to 2 dvd's each using toast's spanning function. I haven't tried the dual layers, I brought a cakebox of them, but I think my drive is suuuuuper slow on DL discs.
 
sponester said:
Where can I get the silica stuff. I've heard of this before. I am in the LA area.
Click to expand...

Samy's Camera should have the silicone desiccant. You can also try Filmtools or Studio Depot. The sales people don't always know what you are talking about, so it's best to bring in a sample (if you have one) or describe it as "those little packets you get in new luggage".

sponester said:
Any other pointers, or suggestions, such as things unrelated to shooting. This is my first time out of North America. I am getting all of my overseas vaccines but was curious about individuals disasters or traveling mishaps that I can avoid.
Click to expand...

Only drink bottled stuff - no ice - and stay away from milk.
Bring your ATM card, travelers checks, extra VISA card, international phone card, and make photocopies of your passport, cards, and your contact/travel info and leave them with trusted friends or family members whose phone numbers you have memorized. Use a traveler's money belt or pouch if you can, and/or don't keep your wallet in your back pocket.
Check and see if your cell phone is compatible where you are going - if it is - you may pay like $1-$4+per minute, but it may be worth it as even landline phones can be unreliable out there.
Bring your phrase book with you everywhere (lonely planet series is good) and practice with the locals. I've found that the best teachers of the language are often the cab drivers.
Pack lightly as possible, but be sure to pack a basic first aid kit with a bunch of bandaids and some neosporin, claritin D, tylenol, aspirin, etc. A bunch of baby wipes are very good to take along too, along with hand sanitizer.


good luck,
Garrett
 
That's great advice. I'd also say to stay away from salads and such which is washed with their water.. and the same thing for brushing your teeth. That's an easy one to forget..... bring a bottle of water into the john with ya to brush the pearlies...
 
You can bring along a Quechua translator who has a P2 card...


In Bolivia, my process is: don't drink the water. don't drink boiled water unless you've supervised it every step of the way... I've often seen a nice pot of boiled water "topped off" from the tap - "it's just a little bit!". Get a PUR traveler water filter, and use that to filter everything. Works great, don't have to carry tons of water. Don't use lesser brands.

Eat everything as spicy as you can. It kills off the germs. Eat and carry lots of bananas and mandarinas (mandarin oranges). You can eat them without touching the part you eat... that is, with filthy hands, etc., and without having to wash them. And they're good! My traveling staple food.

Try not to plug anything valuable directly into a socket. Don't expect to find many grounded sockets that will allow a surge suppressor to work.

Keep a pocket full of small candies, gifts, etc. that you can give to beggars without going through your money. Keep your money scattered around different pockets, one denomination per. That way, you can pull out the exact amount of money you want to without ever showing a big wad.

And don't forget the Quechua translator... or at least learn a few words of Quechua. It will buy you tons of goodwill!
 
I was in Peru two months ago ... in high altitude places like Puno and the mountain passes ... first my iPod HD and later my laptop HD locked up ... there seems to be some expanding elements inside HD because of high altitude ... something to think about!
 
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