Matching T2i (also 60D/7D) with XH A1 writeup

Zissou

Zissou

Well-known member
Hello fellow DVX users,

I am about to do a full writeup for matching the Canon T2i HDSLR with the Canon XH A1 camcorder in the next few days, specifically colors, dynamic range, and contrast, and with as much detail as i can possibly get into, with some stills from video as well as a clip or two on YouTube. Theoretically, this should also be a writeup for matching the 60D and 7D to the XH A1 considering they use the same sensor and processing techniques.

Most of the tweaks need be performed on the much more adaptable Canon XH A1. Also, if you do not yet have a grey card (WB card), GET ONE. It is CRITICAL.

I do not normally post on youtube or do much in terms of writeups, but together the T2i and XH A1 are a tour de force for video, and right now, both are priced great. I have 2 XH A1/Letus rigs and 3 T2i cameras. I will discuss color/contrast matching, 35mm adapter matching (Letus Extreme with Canon FD lenses), and technical work on matching approximate fields of view (focal distances) and crop factors (between the T2i's, XH A1, and Letus/FD at appropriate zoom ranges) betwixt the two HD cams. The 35mm adapter matching writeup will be in a second part, as not everyone has/uses/wants one so i will split them down, and the technique and finessing post work is indeed different for T2i vs XH A1 and T2i vs XH A1/Letus with FD or Nikkors.

Custom presets for the XH A1 and T2i will be fully listed for best compatibility in post work, color matching, etc. I transcode both to the same I-frame for editing; all details will be given, and suggestions, corrections, and questions are all welcomed. I shoot the XH A1 to a DN-60 CF recorder so i will list all XH A1 files as .M2T or .m2t files, and all T2i work as .mov's (h.264 in MOV). I do NOT deal with tape so please dont ask about tape-related vs card related issues.

I use Adobe CS5 (premiere pro) for editing, so everything will be written and explained in Premiere Pro terms; i do NOT work in FCP or Vegas or other NLE's, and i have no idea how changes in PP color/contrast etc flow with FCP or Vegas, etc. so please dont ask me how NLE 'A' deals with color in NLE 'B'

I shoot TV ads, stock footage, and web content in the USA and Europe with both cameras, and the last month finally nailed best matching settings for both cameras and CS5 NLE. There are several tips and tricks i have learned for best matching both cameras which i will discuss and provide stills and video about. I do have a very slow internet connection so my uploads will take 2-3 days until i get off to the office and upload from there.

If you have specific color related questions, it will take me a few days to give you an absolute answer, as i am partially colorblind (red/green) and rely on two associates for final CC work. I have taught digital still photography and teach 3 interns digital video shooting techniques at our company in the field. I have and continue to teach still camera workshops. Both cameras, despite different 'true' resolutions (1920x1080P/1280x720P vs 1440x1080F/P/i), shoot 4:2:0 and can be coerced into the same relative dynamic range, and the XH A1 is very tweakable and dynamic; so CC in post isnt THAT hard.

I learned all i know about digital photography by buying a Nikon D50 and shooting strictly in 'M' manual mode, and later via the internet. I have learned A LOT about digital video here on DVXuser, so i figure i should give back.

I will be filming all this week on the subject; figure i give a heads up so persons with both cameras or considering a T2i/60D/7D or XH A1 can bring up their concerns. I would be happy to work on matching an HVX200/HVX200A/HVX200B or other HD camcorder to the T2i/60D/7D as well, but i would need to borrow one for about 2-3 days.

I hope a few of you find it useful and comprehensive. I should have a total of 5 or 6 FD lenses to test with as well as the original 'kit' 18-55 EF-S IS T2i lens. I do NOT recommend zoom lenses for HDSLR's, and i will be using a selection of Nikkor 'D' lenses and old Canon FD lenses for T2i footage.

I will post all video and photo links to my flickr or youtube accounts (i do not make anything off either). Any questions or particular tests you would like me to run, please post and i will gladly shoot it. If you have specific gear/lens concerns i will try to address them, and if i can, will specifically deal with them.

Stay tuned.
 
I did some matching earlier today with the 7D and the EX1 in prep for a shoot next weekend. It's a pain but soooo necessary if you want a multi-cam shoot or the assurance that the DSLR you're squeezing into a corner will yield the same look as your beefy camcorder.

I look forward to your writeup! I also use Premiere :D
 
perhaps we could corroborate; i would LOVE to help bring several modern cameras together to matching specs for maximum effect; i had my eye on an EX1 instead of my 2nd and 3rd T2i's and 2nd XH A1. The more we can bring together and make cohesive, the better the results will be. There are only 5 or 6 relative variables; and NLE's at worst provide the tools to match the lowest common denominator camera, which in these senses is dynamic range and sharpness of the XH A1. perhaps a compatibility matrix could be compiled for camera A vs Camera B. For instance, i plan on migrating from the 3 T2i's to one XF 105 or perhaps XF 305; i would love to match a T2i and XH A1 to the XF 100/105 and XF 300/305.

All i want to do is standardize (something the big manufacturers should REALLY already be doing dammit, Pantone 161-1-1C is the same but for the sensor/camera; thats bogus! it should ALWAYS be the same) but if it has to be done, might as well help those you can.
 
I am pouring over EX1 sites and playing with the camera as much as I can, but I won't be able to really see how the footage matches up with the 7D until later this week, when the director and I compare the video from the test we did today and play with color correction.

I would definitely be interested to share what I've learned, especially during and after principal! There is a lot of information out there on the web, but it is scattered, sparse and not always accurate. (And I haven't found anything yet on these forums that really dives deep into camera matching.) One source for balancing cameras together would be great.
 
jscottprice said:
I am pouring over EX1 sites and playing with the camera as much as I can, but I won't be able to really see how the footage matches up with the 7D until later this week, when the director and I compare the video from the test we did today and play with color correction.

I would definitely be interested to share what I've learned, especially during and after principal! There is a lot of information out there on the web, but it is scattered, sparse and not always accurate. (And I haven't found anything yet on these forums that really dives deep into camera matching.) One source for balancing cameras together would be great.
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My GF has a 7D; to me (again partially color blind) it appears to match my T2i's perfectly with the same WB card and settings. Matching cameras is critical, especially in the world of cheap HD nowadays.
 
Not to be blunt, but wouldn't it be faster/better/easier to just go all DSLR? It seems pointless, and frankly, a waste of time to match between footage when one camera has massively larger sensors than another. There is more to an image than color rendition, dynamic range, contrast, etc. There is just something about DSLR imagery that can't be post-matched with a video camera. Just my two cents worth.
 
Except they can be post-matched. If DSLR imagery were too different from other digital cinematography cameras, then no major production would ever have used them. They would be useless for pickup shots, as B-cams, or crash cams.

I am finding it is easier, however, to match a camcorder to a DSLR than it is to do the inverse. Most professional camcorders are just more user-friendly and customizable, as Zissou said.
 
... said:
Not to be blunt, but wouldn't it be faster/better/easier to just go all DSLR? It seems pointless, and frankly, a waste of time to match between footage when one camera has massively larger sensors than another. There is more to an image than color rendition, dynamic range, contrast, etc. There is just something about DSLR imagery that can't be post-matched with a video camera. Just my two cents worth.
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you match them; it is not that difficult, and the results look a little more filmic (IMO) rather than the near plasticky images from HDSLR's. I shoot a lot of track events and weddings, so long rolling times is critical and i cannot have CMOS jello, plus having all the controls, inputs and outputs without spending an additional wad of cash in one package is worth it. if you take a bit of time to match the two BEFORE shooting and save the profiles/settings, it is very easy to match in post. for the most part.

There is a reason 3CCD is still preferred by many. If i am panning and following a drift car doing 70mph sideways, it is likely i am using autofocus (HDSLR cant do that), probably have an ND filter engaged (HDSLR's do not have any built in, and in changing sunlight/cloudy weather there is NO time to change them out), trying to keep focus reasonably deep without losing sharpness and still getting motion blur in the background (camcorder deeper DOF means i can shoot at f5.2-f5.6 at -3 gain, the sharpness sweet spot) and considering i am panning pretty quick i would get very VERY bad CMOS jello, not to mention distortion in the tires/wheels. Often times, i am just a few feet from an apex where all the action is, but i can follow the car with a nice smooth zoom something i cannot do on the HDSLR, so that awesomely sharp prime lens set on the HDSLR is useless too, plus i would likely get bad moire from the grandstands, and would have a ruined shoot. I have tried shooting HDSLR's at these events alongside the camcorders; all these and more (audio, recording time maximum length, etc) means at most the HDSLR's will be used for walkaround cameras at these shows. Throw in a few people using a big flash later in the evening and now ive got half-overexposed frames too.

There are reasons i use both systems; most any camera can be matched to any other camera, with enough tweaking and post CC work (whether it looks good is another story), but i find its not that hard to get the XH A1 and T2i's to match pretty close in-body, and then VERY easy to match in post with a few presets.
 
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And to that: I would never use an HDSLR for event/sports motion photography. They are just not set up for that, and the setups to get them operable are still leagues short of the user-friendliness of a 3CCD camcorder like an XHA1, EX1, etc.

HDSLRs are much better suited for controlled environments.
 
I began preparing to properly color balance the Canon XH A1 and twin Canon T2i HDSLR's. First off, a few caveats and general specifications... XH A1 at Z0 (widest possible angle) T2i at 18mm with 18-55 IS 'kit' lens. Disregard the obvious distortion; it is irrelevant. I am also partially colorblind, so the actual 'final' color correction was achieved by a method we developed a while back...
This is in NO WAY a scientific approach. I have them matched perfectly now, but i do not have the original footage so i decided to reshoot it and show the process with pictures, and how it can be done easily enough at home.
My CC specialist does her corrections, and helps in my finalizations. I have issues with reds and greens, so i change the red and green channels to other colors, balance them against eachother individually, starting off with gradients in black and white, etc.

The purpose of this test is to properly match the XH A1 and T2i units in terms of the following...
Color; blues of all hues should match as with all other colors. Also the same colorspaces used. As these are both 4:2:0 cameras, all stills from the video footage are actual screen grabs from CS5; NOT photos from the photo modes on either camera. They are all JPEG, unedited. The D300 stills will naturally be more vibrant, as i shot them in 14-bit RAW and converted to get as close to reality as possible with the colors there too; but they are JUST to show HOW the setup was prepared.
Contrast; gradients should also be as similar as possible.
Gamma; deep blacks without crushing them, and properly matching and exposed highlights. There are several gamma and contrast options between both cameras; ND's on the XH A1, and the Auto Lighting Optimization on the T2i, so it can get rather messy rather quickly.

Sharpness; ie edge enhancement, as the XH A1 appears 'less sharp' than the T2i for a few different reasons i wont discuss at length here; bottom line i wanted matching sharpness and edge contrast. The XH A1's zoom lens isnt the sharpest in the land; neither is the 18-55 IS; i find them pretty damn close in terms of sharpness with both cameras at neutral settings.

The T2i's (only one needed and used in this process) were white balanced on a piece of white Xerox paper, as was the XH A1 and the Nikon D300 with which i took photo's, so they are all at the exact same color balance.

Both T2i and XH A1 were at 30P/30F, f4.0, 1/60 second, T2i at ISO400 and XH A1 at -3 Gain; exposed the same. Lighting was mixed fluorescent, 3200K, 4000K, and i believe 3500K. I REALLY wanted to push myself. I also had some 3200K Arri and no-name 1K's that i used last time, but decided to try with mixed fluorescents.

Please be patient, as this will take 2-3 days to complete. At the end i will post the best matching specs, as well as CC preset values for premiere pro CS5. Later i will attempt to match the XH A1 with a Letus and 50mm f1.4 FD lens with the T2i sporting a 50mm f1.4D Nikkor lens. Any requests or suggestions let me know. From what i have seen and understand, the 7D and 60D have identical sensor dynamics to the T2i. The XH A1 and XH A1s, and all of Canons XL/XH line share the same sensor and color correction system from my experience.

First pics are of the setup, XH A1 factory setting screengrab from CS5 NLE, and T2i (neutral setting) screengrab from CS5 NLE respectively... (first pic is with a D300 so dont compare the colors; just compare pics 2 and 3)

At first glance it appears the difference is mostly noise and saturation; not THAT far off... But far enough i would NEVER use them intercut. Look more closely at colors. Check out the blue block on the Rubik's Cube and the black on the 'gradient' scale... The T2i clearly favors vivid colors and high contrast, even at relatively even-keel settings. This is NOT acceptable.

Thankfully, the XH A1 is loaded with a suite of options for color balancing, and the T2i has a few options one can tweak. The trick is to balance as well as possible on set, then transcode to a 4:2:2 colorspace, rebalance and match in 4:2:2 on your NLE, edit, and export. This is what we are primarily going to exploit to best match the XH A1 to the T2i's.

(I use NeatVideo plugin for the XH A1 to denoise XH A1 footage for the final run; the results come out very close to the T2i.)



XH A1 and T2i setup...
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XH A1 screengrab...
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T2i screengrab...
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Where can I find the resulting presets for the XH-A1 get it to look more like the T2i? Is this thread continued somewhere else?
 
Why do people start threads, and say their going to do this and that, then never follow up with the results. God thats irritating. This thread would have been a huge time saver had it been finished like the OP said it would. I guess, I will have to find my own settings for this " perfect match".
 
I am following up this with great expetations to. I will try myself some tests and add results. I have both XH1 and 550D and I use to work with them at same time, I use to make color correction in pos-production but definitely if there is an option to do it directly with similar results will be a great value of information for us all.

Picking up what Zissou begins lhttp://www.dvxuser.com/V6/member.php?60339-Zissouets do some tests and show some results.
 
Ok, I will start with some testing this afternoon too, We can compare settings, and try to find a formula to get these cams matched. I have a small project to deliver in the first half of today, and Im still encoding. yikes.
 
I tried some settings for the XH to bring it closer to the T2i, and it does come "closer" in most lighting conditions with some final color adjustment in post, but it could be better, so I 'm looking forward to the results of moranfilms' tests.
 
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