Help with HMC40's two factory-set scene files..

[Butchnap]

I have a question about the scene files that come loaded on the HMC40..

In the manual it says "Scene 1: Settings suited to standard shooting" and "Scene 2: Settings suited to shooting images with modulated color hues and contrast".. I guess I understand the first scene file well enough.. But I don't understand the term "modulated color hues and contrast". What exactly does this mean?

I have Barry's book and want to use some of the other scene files I've found in there, but first I wanted to make sure I knew exactly what the factory-set scene files do.

Thanks in advance,

Nick

 

[ggrantly]

The factory scene files are really just a place to start. The first question you need to answer is whether you want to shoot very neutral, and add your own look when editing. This will offer the most flexibility, but is usually more work. The easy way to create a look in post would be to jiggy the footage with one of the Magic Bullet filters. Big productions have entire teams of people who add a look after the shoot.

Option B is to get close to the look you want while shooting and just touch in up in post. This is where tweeking the scene file parameters can really be of benefit. This latter method is easier for a small production IMHO. But if you go for maximum scene file effect, make sure it is what you want, since it will be hard to remove the effects out later if you don't like them.

Think of a scene file like alchemy, a little of this and that, and it creates a mood. Different recipes for different moods.

The stock scene file one is very neutral with very little tweeking. Scene file two is more saturated, some people might term that filmic.

Grant