Hey Guys,
My new XhA1 Arrived yesterday and im like a child with it.
Wow, is all i can say.

But right now i have 3 questions for ye're capable selves.

1) Noticed the few shots i took were a little noisy, particularly on the telephoto side.
maybe its the AGC? It was on when i was shooting. I must experiment more but am v.busy.

2) Captured with pp2 and the files after capture are mpeg(mpeg1 i think). Aftereffects wont import this filetype so im converting these to microsoft dvi as im typing here. the first converted file took quite a while to do but does import fine. is this the correct approach to Aftereffects use with HDV footage?

I realise these question must have been answered already but cant seem to effectively search for the answers.

thanks in advance
ger.

1) Noticed the few shots i took were a little noisy, particularly on the telephoto side.
maybe its the AGC? It was on when i was shooting. I must experiment more but am v.busy.


The AGC massacres footage... Unless it is pitch black and you can't see anything... It would be the only time I would suggest using the AGC...

Be sure to download the presets available on this forum... They will help dramatically improve footage quality and appearance...

1) Noticed the few shots i took were a little noisy, particularly on the telephoto side.
maybe its the AGC? It was on when i was shooting. I must experiment more but am v.busy.

Never use AGC unless you can't see anything. Most users hear set the "L" switch to -3 or 0, the "M" switch to +3 or +6, and the "H" to +6 or +12.

2) Captured with pp2 and the files after capture are mpeg(mpeg1 i think). Aftereffects wont import this filetype so im converting these to microsoft dvi as im typing here. the first converted file took quite a while to do but does import fine. is this the correct approach to Aftereffects use with HDV footage?

I also use PP2, but I haven't had a problem importing my .mpeg files into After Effects. I have recently been using HDVSplit (http://strony.aster.pl/paviko/hdvsplit.htm) to capture my files. HDVSplit stores the files as .mt2, maybe this would work better for you.

thanks for the replies.
AGC is set to off from here on out. will light the subject if i can to avoid use.
will download and test HDVsplit. i think i can work with .m2t
as for the presets on this site, ill wait till i have time on my hands to test them.
id nearly prefer if there was only one or two so i hadn't such a choice.
then again, i know its a reflection of how versatile the camera is.
just out of curiosity is there any particular preset ye might be partial to?
i do mainly weddings these days.

adobe has a update just for canon hdv footage.

try it.

Here's the link

http://www.adobe.com/support/downloads/detail.jsp?ftpID=3408

looks promising. ill give it a go when i get a chance.

i really am impressed with all the features this camera has to offer.

Most notably-

free record timecode. It works like a stopwatch in the form of timecode allowing you to start the stopwatch on 2 cams at the same time and then letting both cameramen away to film away at the event. stopping and starting doesn't matter as the timecodes will match. very useful.

Photo while recording- very useful.

photo from recording- very useful.

a zoom speed adjustment wheel in an easy to access location- lovely

But what i really love is the focus/zoom preset- ive spent a long time wishing for this and finally its here.

This is as far as i have gone with testing as im still waiting on my hd tv set.
i have yet to fool around with presets, skin detail, sky etc. etc. but all in all i've never seen or had the pleasure of using anything like this........!