Import EX1 footage ( newbie Question before buying a EX1))

DavidChia

DavidChia

Well-known member
I am actually thinking very hard about getting a EX1 and selling my XHA1.

Before I do so, I like to know the experiences of those who are currently using the EX1. Although I saw and played with it for an hour at IBC2007. I have no real work experience on it.

Going tapeless , is the question for me at the moment.

How do you guys transfer the footage when you are shooting a live show. do you have your laptop around you? I'm a mac user so I thinking of upgrading to a MBP.

I know that 8gig is only 35mins and 16 gig is about 1 hour. So how much trouble do you guys experience when you have to continually dump footage to a laptop while covering a live show that last for 2 or more hours or even like a full wedding day.

Does the footage remain continuous or does it break up by itself into files. If continuous , how long is the max file time.

Do you guys dump it directly into the Laptop hard drive or do you have to have an external hard drive link up to the Laptop that you dump the footage to. How long does it take to dump a 8gig card and erase the footage on the card after dumping and then you bring it back again on the camera for the on going show. ( providing that you proof check that the footage has been transferred , but actually seeing it play on the laptop. I hate to know that the file is corrupted and I just deleted the footage on the SxS card)

Obviously I think this is not fitted for one man band . I can't afford to shoot a wedding and pause and start dumping to my laptop can I?

What type of files are they when they are transfered from the SxS card. Can I use these files directly in FCP or do I have to transfer to Quicktime with something else. I have currently FCP studio 1 and I know that it can't do full HD and that I have to upgrade to FCP studio 2 for that purpose.

Or you guys have it linked up to a firestone to save the trouble of dumping footage during weddings and live shows

Thank you guys in advance for the reply, I have to calculate the total cost for all the extra gears that I have to buy if I have decided to go for the EX1.
 
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for a full day of shooting I use my personal cards, (2x16GB+2x8GB) and usually rent whatever else I think I'll need to cover me between when I anticipate breaking. So if I have to shoot a straight 6 hours, I rent 3 more 16gb cards. Then i'll dump them at lunch or at the end of the day. The cards dump very quickly in a macbook pro, I dont have exact numbers but maybe 6x or 7x actual speed. I was able to dump 3 hours of footage in under 25 mins.

Otherwise, if you have an assistant they can copy the cards easily. This is not a super technical job, its literaly copy and paste, so the person really only needs basic computer and organizational skills and some attention to detail about labeling cards and folders.

If you shoot a clip thats 1+ hours, or more importantly, larger than the 4gb max file size, it spans to a new file and then the xdcam software auto-joins it when you import into FCP. It would show up within the naming convention as 498_00, 498_01, whereas most clips are just 498_00, 499_00, 500_00 etc. It is well thought out.

its a great workflow, and the files are very workable on a MBP, we've had rough cuts of footage made in under an hour after wrapping, including time to dump cards.
 
i use FCP 6.0.2 and you need the sony XDCAM transfer software, which integrates into FCP and the SxS card driver for Mac which allows the cards to be read properly. the files are the sony Mpeg2 long gop codec wrapped in Quicktime metadata.

it just works great once you get it all set.
 
Cheers
Thank you for the reply. Looks like it is not a one man operation . I am shooting live shows or wedding most of the time., so needing to buy at least 4 x 32gig card is pretty expensive. I'll have to wait a little longer.
 
It gets interesting when you have to man THREE cameras AND copy all those cards over. Yup, a LOT of SxS cards to cover a 6-hour continuous shoot. XDCam may be cheap getting in, but, like printers, the camera's practically free--but you pay on the back end when you buy the SxS cards that make it work. :)
 
As you've stated, live events require a number of cards (especially as you are a one-man show). While cards are expensive now, they continue to fall quickly in price. If you can hold off on purchasing, this technology will only get cheaper. Of course you can always rent.

In the end, whether you rent or purchase, you'll need to cover your additional costs. The important question is whether your clients will know (or care about) the difference between 1440x1080i and 1920x1080p. Will they also care that you're getting a sliver more light or artsy shallow depth with the 1/2" CMOS vs the 1/3" CCD? Will they be willing to pay more for your new technology? Probably not.

On the other hand, if you haven't yet experienced the joys of tapeless acquisition and editing, you may want to try it. The extra savings in time may be worth it, even if you can't raise your rates. If you're always working, your investment will pay of quickly in the amount of time you save with XDCam HD EX.

If you do need to rent more SxS cards for your Sony EX1, give me a call!
 
Clark said:
As you've stated, live events require a number of cards (especially as you are a one-man show). While cards are expensive now, they continue to fall quickly in price. If you can hold off on purchasing, this technology will only get cheaper. Of course you can always rent.

In the end, whether you rent or purchase, you'll need to cover your additional costs. The important question is whether your clients will know (or care about) the difference between 1440x1080i and 1920x1080p. Will they also care that you're getting a sliver more light or artsy shallow depth with the 1/2" CMOS vs the 1/3" CCD? Will they be willing to pay more for your new technology? Probably not.

On the other hand, if you haven't yet experienced the joys of tapeless acquisition and editing, you may want to try it. The extra savings in time may be worth it, even if you can't raise your rates. If you're always working, your investment will pay of quickly in the amount of time you save with XDCam HD EX.

If you do need to rent more SxS cards for your Sony EX1, give me a call!
Click to expand...

Well, in my case, moving from unusable 1/4 CMOS (indoor receptions, +18dB 1/8 shutter) to 1/2 CMOS with the ability to work in the same conditions at 1/60 shutter, 0dB, is a tad more than a sliver of difference here. :)

Rental of SxS cards can be an option, but where do you rent these? No place within 50 miles of here rents anything video related, and certainly not even SxS cards at that!

I think it all depends on the market. The $695 wedding shoot gets the 15 year old Betacam onto DVD or VHS. The video gets viewed on a 17" TV connected to a whipped out old VHS player.
But the $10,000 luxury wedding shoot at a rented mansion gets the XDCam EX. It gets played on a $100,000 custom home theater system with a screen as big as some movie theaters.

Different markets, different expectations of the clients.
 
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