STORYTELLER32
Well-known member
Barry_Green said:
Barry, have you attempted or seen downconvert to tape in camera? If so, would you say it is better, the same, or worse than shooting straight SD to tape?
Thanks Guru
Using the HVX to shoot SD?
- Thread starter Pear Ubu
- Start date
Barry, have you attempted or seen downconvert to tape in camera? If so, would you say it is better, the same, or worse than shooting straight SD to tape?
Thanks Guru
Barry_Green
Moderator
Shooting straight to DV tape yields a slightly sharper picture than shooting in HD to the card and then downconverting to tape.
STORYTELLER32
Well-known member
Barry_Green said:
So.... how slight are we talking? Like blow it up and examine the pixels slight or really noticeable? From your side by side screen grab comparisons, I believe the HVX in SD is considerably sharper than the DVX-100a. Would you say it's less sharp than standard DVX100a footage?
Thank you again-
Barry_Green
Moderator
HVX SD is considerably sharper than DVX100A SD, when comparing 16:9 to 16:9. In 4:3 they're more comparable.
The differences are not massive, but they're there. I did a comparison that showed every format that an HVX can shoot, and also a DVX100B, shooting the same subject. Try this thread:
http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=44031
or this one:
http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=67011
The differences are not massive, but they're there. I did a comparison that showed every format that an HVX can shoot, and also a DVX100B, shooting the same subject. Try this thread:
http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=44031
or this one:
http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=67011
STORYTELLER32
Well-known member
Thanks for those links, Barry. That cleared up a lot. For some reason, I expected the HD in camera downconvert to carry over more sophisticated color depth when reduced to 4:1:1, but it appears I'm wrong about that. This is making me rethink my approach for my upcoming shoot.
Three more noob questions and then I'll stop pestering you. From your samples, It's pretty obvious DVCPRO50 is the way to go if shooting SD on the HVX. Can you shoot DVCPRO50 to tape or does it have to be captured on P2? My guess is P2 only, but I'd like confirmation. If it does have to be captured on P2, how many minutes of DVCPRO50 can a 4gig card hold?
I know very little about DVCPRO50, so bear with me. Is DVCPRO50 any more taxing on my system than the footage I get when capturing dvcam tape?
Thank you very much for taking the time to answer-
Three more noob questions and then I'll stop pestering you. From your samples, It's pretty obvious DVCPRO50 is the way to go if shooting SD on the HVX. Can you shoot DVCPRO50 to tape or does it have to be captured on P2? My guess is P2 only, but I'd like confirmation. If it does have to be captured on P2, how many minutes of DVCPRO50 can a 4gig card hold?
I know very little about DVCPRO50, so bear with me. Is DVCPRO50 any more taxing on my system than the footage I get when capturing dvcam tape?
Thank you very much for taking the time to answer-
TedRR
Well-known member
1. - DVCPro 50 can only be saved to cards, not mini-dv tape. It's a decent format for sure.
2 - I "think" it's 2-1, i.e. 8 minutes on a 4 gig card.
3 - Depends on how you capture. Some edit systems have a harder time with DV then if you "captured" in your NLE's favorite format.
2 - I "think" it's 2-1, i.e. 8 minutes on a 4 gig card.
3 - Depends on how you capture. Some edit systems have a harder time with DV then if you "captured" in your NLE's favorite format.
Good reference on the HVX FAQ to the various lengths...
How much recording time do I get on a P2 card?
It will depend on what mode you are recording in. For DVCPRO it is 4 minutes per GB; in DVCPRO50, it is 2 minutes per GB; in DVCPRO HD 720p it is 1 minute per GB, and in DVCPRO HD 1080i it is 1 minute per GB. Using the 720p Native Capture mode, only the flagged frames are recorded so the running time will depend on the frame rate (just like film). A rule of thumb in this mode would be to treat 1GB as 100 feet of 16mm film or 250 feet of 35mm film. For example, running an 8GB card at 24P in this mode will give you about 20 minutes per card of 24P HD footage. Or more simply, if shooting 720/24p, you would get 2½ minutes per GB.
How much recording time do I get on a P2 card?
It will depend on what mode you are recording in. For DVCPRO it is 4 minutes per GB; in DVCPRO50, it is 2 minutes per GB; in DVCPRO HD 720p it is 1 minute per GB, and in DVCPRO HD 1080i it is 1 minute per GB. Using the 720p Native Capture mode, only the flagged frames are recorded so the running time will depend on the frame rate (just like film). A rule of thumb in this mode would be to treat 1GB as 100 feet of 16mm film or 250 feet of 35mm film. For example, running an 8GB card at 24P in this mode will give you about 20 minutes per card of 24P HD footage. Or more simply, if shooting 720/24p, you would get 2½ minutes per GB.
Ursa
Active member
You can choose to look at life in two ways:
1. the negative: my 10 year old TRV900 with an anamorphic adapter produces the same video with almost exactly the same characteristics and light sensitivity
2. the positive: my 10 year old TRV900 is NOT able to: shoot progressive, shoot HD, shoot with cinegamma, shoot without ugly glass reflections, shoot to P2, shoot native widescreen, shoot without ugly green casts to all highlights
Bottom line: to my use, which is primarily FILM, not video, the HVX200 is the ONLY way to go. But it's video performance is so flexible that it makes it easier to fit into a huge range of shooting scenarios (have shot 3 concert videos, all look great, with the HVX200 and TRV900 combo). Lastly we shot 6 student films with the same cam, all came out really good.
Bottom line, cool version: The HVX is a CAMERA, not your WIFE. The faster you buy it, the faster the money starts rolling. I've bought back this camera 1.5 times in 6 months, and I'm only shooting as a hobbyist! (of course it has to be said those money are used and gone)
We actually tried intercutting a PD150 in widescreen mode with the HVX200 and the PD looked so bad we had to make it black&white to make it stand out as a "FX cam" (in Norway all broadcasting is in widescreen).
1. the negative: my 10 year old TRV900 with an anamorphic adapter produces the same video with almost exactly the same characteristics and light sensitivity
2. the positive: my 10 year old TRV900 is NOT able to: shoot progressive, shoot HD, shoot with cinegamma, shoot without ugly glass reflections, shoot to P2, shoot native widescreen, shoot without ugly green casts to all highlights
Bottom line: to my use, which is primarily FILM, not video, the HVX200 is the ONLY way to go. But it's video performance is so flexible that it makes it easier to fit into a huge range of shooting scenarios (have shot 3 concert videos, all look great, with the HVX200 and TRV900 combo). Lastly we shot 6 student films with the same cam, all came out really good.
Bottom line, cool version: The HVX is a CAMERA, not your WIFE. The faster you buy it, the faster the money starts rolling. I've bought back this camera 1.5 times in 6 months, and I'm only shooting as a hobbyist! (of course it has to be said those money are used and gone)
We actually tried intercutting a PD150 in widescreen mode with the HVX200 and the PD looked so bad we had to make it black&white to make it stand out as a "FX cam" (in Norway all broadcasting is in widescreen).