***I apologize if this is a controversial subject; but I'd prefer not to get into an ethical discussion about hunting!***

I am in preliminary negotiations to provide videography services for a specialized hunting company. This is not the type of work I normally do, but I used to be a ranger & field guide in National Parks for many years so I'd like the chance to work in the wilderness again.

Clients can be in the field for weeks, in remote and inaccessible locations, and accommodation can be extremely basic. Travel is by light aircraft, 4x4's, speedboats, canoes, and foot. Electricity is a big concern, so I'll have to stock up on batteries and figure a way to charge them in the field. I'm going to use the XLH1 & Nanoflash as the primary camera, and probably get a Gopro for secondary shots (and vehicle cuts, and use in boats when the XL is in a waterproof bag).

I was wondering if anyone has any experience with these kinds of shoots, and if so what would be the normal contract for them, specifically:

1) An all inclusive Basic Day Rate (but I guess this would be negotiable; package deals for long safaris). These can be long and physical days; I'm guessing somewhere in the $300 - $400 per day price range? Anyone have an idea of a ballpark figure?
2) Whats normally included (for example I see some companies include 3 tapes per day, and charge extra for extra tapes).
3) Editing - I see some companies charge extra for editing a documentary style dvd, and less for just handing over the unedited footage on dvd.
4) All expenses should be included I guess (travel, permits, accommodation etc).

Also, I live in a PAL region, and the footage I shoot is normally 25p. Considering some clients are from the USA will there be a problem with PAL DVD's and BluRays? I was kind of under the impression that most DVD players and Flatscreen TVs are capable of playing everything these days, but I could be wrong about that. I have looked up older threads and there seems to be some discrepancy in the info. Does anyone know for sure?

Any advice appreciated!

Hi Simon,
I wish i could give you some advice on all your questions, but i will leave that to others that have more experience costing jobs out.
With regards to the Pal/NTSC thing, i can tell you that a Pal DVD will likely not play here in North America. I moved to Canada 3 years ago, & all my Pal DVD's both bought & burnt by me from my own footage won't play here on any of the DVD players (4) i have tried so far. If i edit all my footage, or place all the edited footage on an NTSC timeline & then render it out & burn it to DVD the resulting disc will play, but on pans especially, there is a bit of juddering. Well at least to my eye it is noticeable!
Maybe the best option would be to go for the upgrade on your XL H1 to be able to capture in NTSC, i believe it is an (equivelant to) 500USD upgrade. Something i have been thinking of doing with my XH A1 for a while now.
Hope this helps,
Regards,
Bryce

Simon,

About the PAL/NTSC issue. I do not know the XHA1 but you might be well served to shoot in a format that would play well in each space. I would suggest 720p60 if the camera has that mode. You could then put the 60p footage on a 50p timeline and I do not think one would notice a difference given the progressive format.

Or, maybe 25p then to be put on a 24p timeline if it fits with the type of filming.

I am thinking pre-DVD encoding on an HD timeline for editing. Edit the project in your main format, export a finished file then put that file on the other framerate timeline for re-exporting in the new format. Progressive framerates seem to work best in this scenario.