im using my canon xh a1 right now and i want to film a sunset but i have a question.
1.what settings do i use to make my camera see what my eye see's
2.How do i bring out the colors in my canon? presets?
btw i have the default settings on and the colors seem faded
ty

Look in the Custom Presets threads here on DVInfo for one named VividRGB. Give that one a try.

VividRGB works great for me. It's the only Preset I use.

Moon Rising over New Archangel on Vimeo

I'm a Panavision fan myself. The presets are a lot of fun and really make a difference. They sometimes pose problems with color correction or "Looks," but if you're not into that they are a big improvement over the stock setting.

Bit O/T but .. it depends on the age of your A1, the first factory releases were 'flat' colours and ppl complained.

That's why the A1 custom presets got going in such a big way by folk who knew what they were doing. Later releases of the A1 had 'better' factory presets again but the CPs were/are well established and ppl have their favourites. ,

The last in the range, the A1s is better again with further improvements that make it worthwhile to look for. It and the HV40 are also the last DV tape cams from Canon.

I use mostly VIVIDRGB too, I can archive material to pull out for future programs with the 'same' look. With sunsets etc. a lot of ppl shoot factory flat and colour correct in post. Your call.

btw I watched an old Panasonic show I produced recently and it's rekindled my love for the Pana look .. I'm watching the AF100 closely.

Cheers.

I'm curious....

How does a person determine or judge the color quality of another persons camera?

If I am standing in a field of golden grain video taping a red car. How does another person determine after viewing the footage later, whether the colors are right? In the outdoors light. colors, and contrasts change minute by minute. So unless a person was right there, at that same time, how can a person make a call about the color accuracy of the camera?

I'm curious. What's the formula for making the determination whether the colors were accurate or not?

In a controlled indoor shoot I can understand. But outside?

Just curious.

My 2c and way O/T :) David the point is whether the viewer accepts what they see .. or not. imo getting bogged down in tech details like color accuracy, means you're not appreciating or understanding the overall story.

An example is the artist Monets series of paintings of haystacks, each one painted at a different time of day .. with the light changing minute by minute.

No one ever questions whether his colours are accurate or not, not because we weren't there to see the actual colors .. but because we accept that each painting is Monets interpretation of the haystack, colours and all.

Cheers.

I don't want to the colors that my eye sees on the day of the wedding, those are pretty dreary. I want the "inaccurate" colors that the photographer cranks out and gets paid $9000 for.