Nanoflash & HMC150 questions

A

AGMedia

Carbonite Member
I did run a search on this but didn't find clear answers. If these questions have been answered in a previous discussion I'd appreciate the link.

Okay...

After years of dragging my feet that whole nanoFlash thing is starting to make too much sense to ignore, especially if it really is something I can use with next year's hottest camera -- for a bunch of years to come.

Regarding the HMC150 -- anyone using it with a nanoFlash? If so, how's that working out?

Someone on here once wrote that the HDMI from the HMC150, even when in 24p mode, is interlaced. Is this true? (if true, I assume this is only 1080, not 720, yes?) If true, does the remove pulldown feature on the nanoFlash resolve this?

In one of the posts I read someone posted a note, represented as being from Panasonic, that confirmed that the HDMI output from the HMC150 is uncompressed 4:2:2. Can anyone confirm this as truth?

My thanks!
 
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The HDMI output is indeed uncompressed 4:2:2. However, it outputs either 1080/60i, or 720/60p. So if you're shooting 24p, it will use 2:3 pulldown; on 1080 it means embedding 24p within 60i by using 2:3 pulldown on the fields; on 720 it means duplicating frames in a 2:3 pattern.
 
Barry_Green said:
The HDMI output is indeed uncompressed 4:2:2. However, it outputs either 1080/60i, or 720/60p. So if you're shooting 24p, it will use 2:3 pulldown; on 1080 it means embedding 24p within 60i by using 2:3 pulldown on the fields; on 720 it means duplicating frames in a 2:3 pattern.
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My genuine thanks I'm operating under the assumption that the HD-SDI out from the 170 or AF-100 will not have these limitations. I'm grateful if you'd correct me if I'm wrong in that assumption.

Is there no one out there using a nanoFlash with an HMC150 who can report on their experience?

Again, thanks!
 
"However, it outputs either 1080/60i, or 720/60p." per B. Green

Why would they do (limit) this?
Is this a you get what you pay for kind of thing?
Like if you want all the choices from a digital output then you need to buy a higher end camera with an HD-SDI output that gives all flavors.

Also, somewhere else on the board I read that HDMI does NOT feed accurate color, e.g., to an external monitor. That surprised me when I read it, is that correct?

I am considering some greenscreen work using the HMC-150. And the question I have is whether to do a PH quality capture to SDHC card at 1080/30p OR perhaps 720/60p to a Ki Pro or Nanoflash via HDMI. The first route affords a bigger frame size, while the second has a higher frame rate and can be uncompressed. Any thoughts on which process would provide the highest quality?

BTW, kudos to Barry for the HMC book. I am in the middle of reading it. I find it extra-ordinarily helpful to understanding the potentials and limits of the 150 & 40.
 
artscam said:
I am considering some greenscreen work using the HMC-150. And the question I have is whether to do a PH quality capture to SDHC card at 1080/30p OR perhaps 720/60p to a Ki Pro or Nanoflash via HDMI. The first route affords a bigger frame size, while the second has a higher frame rate and can be uncompressed. Any thoughts on which process would provide the highest quality?
Click to expand...

I'm far from an expert, but I recently a pretty intensive study before deciding to buy the HMC 150 vs. other cameras from SONY and Canon. There are certainly a lot of options that give better performance for a higher price, whether in the Panasonic line or elsewhere. However, when I thought really hard about "which features do I not need that I shouldn't be paying for", the HMC 150 was the winner.

To your question: my research tells me that if you're doing a lot of green screen, you'll be tearing your hair out with 4:2:0 video. And you'll be even more miserable with 4:2:0 interlaced video. So if you record in PH mode, you either get 360 lines of chroma resolution in 720p or 540 interlaced (260 x 2!) in 1080i. Ouch!

Now, since green screens are typically set up in studios, and since studios usually have infrastructure you can plug into, it should be no big deal to use the 4:2:2 HDMI output if you need to. But if you're starting your studio from scratch, then the cost of adding the extra kit for capturing live video instead of off-loading cards is much more than the cost difference between the '150 and the '170. (The Ki Pro is about the cost of a '150 all by itself!)

Bottom line: if green screen were a priority for me, I'd be looking at the '170, minimum. It is much more suitable for that application than the '150.
 
MichaelTiemann said:
my research tells me that if you're doing a lot of green screen, you'll be tearing your hair out with 4:2:0 video.
Click to expand...


The new Adobe Premiere Pro CS5 has an all new "Ultra Key" feature that uses a new technology they call "vector" keying. It's specifically designed for "marginal" (4:2:0/uneven light) footage.

The tests I ran boggled my mind -- it was better than Keylight and arguably as good (looking) as anything I've seen from a 200/170.

Of the entire new Creative Suite -- nothing, nothing impressed me more than the new Ultra Key (it's all new, not a re-packaged version of the old Ultra) in Premiere Pro CS5.

And, on top of all that -- it's one of those real time plug ins that requires no rendering -- and it encoded in close to real time.

SO -- if your goal is keying -- I'd try the new Premiere CS5 Ultra Key before I'd invest in a nanoFlash. And, if for whatever reason Premiere doesn't impress the hell out of you -- then, yes, you should get very good results with the nanoFlash.
 
artscam said:
Why would they do (limit) this?
Is this a you get what you pay for kind of thing?
Click to expand...


The good news is that the nanoFlash includes a "remove pulldown" feature -- so in theory, in theory, the 60i stream isn't a big deal.

The problem is that I still haven't found anyone who can personally verify that it works perfectly with a 150 or 170.
 
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