Question about DVCPRO and workflow.

7CS

7CS

Active member
What signals does the HVX200 record?
This camera handles standard-definition in 3 modes: DV and DVCPRO (which are 25 Mbps) and DVCPRO50, which as the name implies, is 50 Mbps, which is also 4:2:2 and has been compared favorably with DigiBeta. It also handles DVCPRO HD high-definition at 100 Mbps in 1080i or 720p, recording onto P2 cards.

How badly does the DVCpro 25/50 affect workflow? Does it bog down editing on a macbook, or a G5 for that matter? I am teetering on buying an HVX and using it in SD mode (Specifically DVCPRO) till they come out with larger and hopefully less expensive P2 cards. But I don't want it to turn into one of those deals where I need to buy 500 new things to accommodate the new camera. I'm using a DVX now but would greatly benefit from overcranking and the better color would be worth it as well I believe.

Thanks in advance
 
depends on what you shoot for what you need 500 new things for. And you will want atleast 1 P2 card. Do you have a laptop? What kind of things are you shooting? We opened up a can of worms really, and its hard to stop the bleeding with all the great stuff to buy for the camera. Almost 5 or 6 thousand i think in stuff that coincides with the purchase of the camera. So if you want to shoot movie shorts, and dont mind the deep DOF, then you can shoot stock plus a 4GB p2 and that would be all you need for a while.

If you want to do 35mm for your shorts, itll be atleast 1000 - 1400 for the adapter, plus 500 or more in lenses.

If you are doing event shooting, youll want atleast a laptop to capture to for longer things.
 
DVCPRO 50 can only go to P2. So ...you won't get the better color unless your ready to pony up to a P2 workflow and the neccesary cha-ching $$$.

Although I don't have an HVX yet, the consensus from this board is that DVCPRO 50 seems to hum along on a G5 tower and should do the same on a Macbook.
 
Bleh, I shoot mountain bike races and riders, I can't lug much gear around. I'd have bought an HVX as soon as they came out if they had 32 or 64g P2 cards, but the current limitation is just something I can't deal with. I was considering buying an HVX and continuing to shoot SD just so I wouldn't have to buy one a year or so from now when the workflow for P2 was something I could actually use. I have a DVX now, and obviously no workflow problems but I like to look forward.
 
Well you could still shoot tape with the HVX and keep an 8GB P2 card with you for special slow mo stuff (that I am sure moutain bike racing would work well with) that you want to grab. You could then down convert the slow-mo to tape while at the track and keep shooting. You may lose the color depth, but still get some of the camera's benefits. Also, remember that one 8GB P2 gives you 20 minutes at 720 24pn.

You might be surprised how much you can jam onto that P2 once you start to selectivly drop clips that don't work in the field, instead of the edit bay.

Just a tthought,

Rob
 
I am pretty likely going to do just that. I'm at a sort of crossroads right now where I either buy another DVX and run with what I do. Or buy an HVX and prepare for the future. I'd prefer to buy the HVX but they just don't make it seem reasonable with the limitations that are currently in place. 20 mins of HD @ 720p/24 is good, but I just think I'd need a minimum of 2 16gb P2 cards to get a decent days shooting done. I don't like the way the FS plugs into the HVX, and the cineporter is just too big. I am still seriously considering buying an HVX and a pair of 8g P2 cards then shooting in SD to use the overcranking abilities etc. Till they release larger cards. My only fear then is that they will cost a ton of money and I won't be able to afford them.

I'm sold on the camera, it's the storage that is holding me back.

That's why i originally asked about DVCPRO 25/50 How uch footage of thoe formats fits on P2 cards? Is it harder to import etc.
 
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Don't forget about the P2 store. A little pricey, but the best solution at the present time for action oriented, run and gun style shooting IMO. I shoot for ATV Television on The Outdoor Channel, and (2) 4 gig cards and the P2 store is more than enough to get through a day of shooting, and thats at full quality 1080/60i. If you are shooting DVCPro50 you are gonna get twice that time, and even more with DVCPro25. Dumping the cards gives us a much apretiated 10 min break, and doesn't hurt our schedule at all. My advice would be to go for the HVX and look into the P2 store as well.
 
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