Using a GH1 for Interviews and Liners (Need Your Advice)

Hey, don't get me wrong, I really like the GH1, but there are jobs that the EX1 (and Nano Flash) are just better suited to handle. So I'll be keeping both for sure. Different tools for the job.

Example… On an upcoming trip, I'll have a limit of 30 pounds of luggage, total. Now, I could haul the EX1 and related support gear, but as the project is for web and DVD, the GH1 will allow me to travel light and still capture what I need, at a quality that will more than suffice.

Another… In 2010, I'll be filming a project for potential HD-network broadcast. This was made for the EX1/Nano Flash combination, so I'll use that. (Of course I'll pack the GH1/7D just in case.)

As for "redundancy," as I don't really know what your needs are, I can't really say. But for the OP, who shoots interviews, "liners"/b-roll and stills, the GH1 (or 7D when it arrives), would likely be perfectly fine, especially if coupled with a low-cost audio recorder for the interviews.

I'll also say, from personal experience, that there are just shots/situations that the EX1 (or an HPX/HVX) are much better suited to handle. Time-lapses for one. High-shutter action shots would be another (where the detail might likely cause the GH1 codec to break down). And certainly, if you either can't or don't want to deal with double-system sound, a DSLR isn't the right choice.

So, as with any camera, selecting the right tool to fit needs is key. Based on the OP's needs, I think the GH1 (handled properly) will work nicely.
 
commanderspike said:
But the files need to be 'transcoded' at the moment... you cannot just drag and drop the footage onto a timeline.

This takes some extra time to do, but is as simple as getting HDV footage off the HV20.
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Actually for Windows this is not true. I've used Vegas Pro 9 and Premiere CS 4.1 and they both edit AVCHD natively with a sufficiently fast computer (I'm on an AMD Phenom II 940 3.0GHz quad core system). My personal preference is Vegas Pro 9 paired with the free Color Lab plug-in (which further uses the video card to speed things up). It's very easy to use and with the newest version I haven't experienced crashing.

It's a really nice AVCHD editing solution, and heck I put it together for $470.
 
Oedipax said:
One thing to watch out for on the 5D has been its moiré/aliasing issues. I haven't seen a definitive answer yet on whether the 7D is improved in this respect, but it's something to keep an eye out for. Especially for an interview cam, sometimes people wear some pretty wild patterns that will drive the 5D crazy in video mode. I've seen much, much less of it on the GH1.

Edit: If you're wandering what moiré looks like:

moire_5d.jpg
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Yarg so that's what that was. I got that when I was filming a not so bright phone display.
 
Lots of helpful information! As soon as a store becomes stocked I'm going to be purchasing one.

Matching up sound is the least of my worries, I have a protools rig and prior from now I was using an HV20 and HVX100 and capturing audio completely separate with a U87 and MBox.
 
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yeah gh-1 is used for anything BUT films/short films with scripts which is very disappointing right now after all this hype,so it would fit your needs.Just look at footage section.
 
bwwd said:
yeah gh-1 is used for anything BUT films/short films with scripts which is very disappointing right now after all this hype,so it would fit your needs.Just look at footage section.
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Hi "bwwd": Could you explain a bit more what you mean? I don't understand what you wrote, regrets.
 
hi, from couple of months users on dvx forums were very excited about gh1 but now after release we still dont have any filmic examples from it,is it all about the hype on forums these days ? I hope it wont happen again with 7D.
 
I have used the DVX100, then the HV20, and now the GH1 for my 4+ year documentary... I'd say that I am still amazed at the quality of the HV20 footage when the lighting is good. It is amazing for such a consumer level camera. As for the GH1 - the main reason I would consider it would be for low lighting situations, or for shallow depth of field. There is no advantage on audio capture (actually more complicated), and I'm not sure I like the tapeless workflow at this point... since once I move the data off the card there is no master tape to fall back on.

Anyhow, I love my GH1, but still use my HV20 as a backup, and connecting mics to it is much easier.

Hope that helps!
 
Hi e-steve:

The topic of backup is off-topic to this thread, but it's important, so since you bring it up ... :-)

Concerning backing up camera original files recorded on SDHC cards: For "important" footage", in _addition_ to keeping copies of the camera original files on a hard drive, you may wish to consider using a "new" option: Relatively large-capacity but slow (e.g.: Class 2 or 4) SD or SDHC cards (or other solid state storage such as CF).

Although SD/SDHC/CF cards aren't as reliable as videotape or film, they have their benefits: The copied data files are essentially bit-for-bit identical to the cam originals (no additional compression), "slow" cards are relatively inexpensive, card capacities can be larger than DVD-R data disks, cards require very little physical storage space, and cards generally aren't as fragile as hard drives.

Files recorded on reasonably well cared for SD & SDHC cards will probably be readable for at least several years (possibly about the same as hard drives). DVD-R & BluRay data disks can be relatively inexpensive, but their reliability is hugely variable. Only traditional computer data tape backup systems & media (or, for that matter, videotape) are significantly more reliable, which is why these tape + recorder solutions usually cost more.

Of course, for the ultimate in motion picture backup, you transfer video imagery to actual motion picture film. Film is readable for at least 50-150 years, especially if well cared for.

But now that slower versions of SD/SDHC cards are relatively inexpensive, they can serve as part of a viable "short/mid-term" backup solution when used together with redundant on & off-site backups on other media.

No matter what backup media is used, keep at least one backup on-site and another backup off-site to protect against theft, fire and other inevitable disasters.

YMMV.
 
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I guess I've been unlucky in finding that video tape media from camcorders tends to be the least reliable media I've encountered. And the means to replay video tape media is much more likely to become obsolete in a few years than hard drives. And it can't be copied (to refresh it to another digital format) other than in real time. But copy your GH1 footage to two hard drives, and you should be well covered IMHO.

As for the robustness of card media - anyone got a link to that photo where one digital camera captured the moment when another camera was destroyed during a demolition shoot, and the card you see flying through the air actually worked fine afterwards?

But I guess this is a topic on which no two people will agree!
 
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