GL2 / XM2 Frame mode

[Charles King]

I just re-read your post again Barry and it caught me. Barry, you said:

...Perhaps you are misunderstanding what the frame mode does, as the "effect" is viewable while you are shooting, as well as during playback on the LCD or TV or computer monitor...


...But Ken just said:

...you would have to view the footage on an interlaced medium (i.e. television) to see most of its effect...

Like I said. When viewing the tape in the camera on the lcd monitor, I don't see the slightest difference.Maybe I'm not understanding something here or simply mixed up. :)
I guess I'll have to experiment again.

[Ken Tanaka]

Charles,
Understandable confusion. But Barry and I are both correct. The degree to which you can discern the effect on the cam's little lcd or lcd viewfinder really depends on the nature of shot and the camera's settings. On a still shot you'll probably see little or no difference in the viewfinder. As I noted earlier, Frame mode records both video fields in each frame, rather than fields recorded in alternate frames.

I suggest you experiment and view the results on a television to gain a feeling for Frame mode, especially on shots with some motion in the frame. Also run a Search here on "frame mode" to see a great deal of thoughts on this subject. A close kindred topic would be "progressive scan" (although Frame mode on the GL-2 is a variation on true progressive scan).

[Barry Goyette]

Charles

Ditto what ken said. The effect is visible on the lcd screen...it's definitely more subtle than viewing on a tv...but as someone who almost always shoots frame mode...I always know when I have my camera set to normal movie mode, as the interlaced look is apparent to me in both viewfinders of the camera. The effect will definitely be more noticeable on an interlaced monitor or TV. On the gl1 it was easier to view this, as there is a frame/movie switch on the camera body, and you could easily switch between the two to see the difference...

I just got out my cam and tried it... it is definitely more difficult to see on the LCD, more easy on the eyepiece viewfinder. To see it on the LCD, you might want to expose one of the weaknesses of frame mode (and any other progressive system including film) which is to do a medium speed pan across a high contrast verticle edge..you will see that the frame mode will strobe slightly, whereas the movie mode will be perfectly smooth.

One other thing, make sure your shutter is set to 1/60 (or faster). At 1/30 or lower the normal movie mode would look almost identical to the frame mode.

Barry

[Charles King]

Thanks barry. Very explicit explaination. :) I'll give it a try not that I understand this frame mode a little better.

[James Farley]

Does anyone know if the GL 2 works well in Frame Mode while using a stabilization devise like Steadycam Jr. or Glidecam? Also, what is the best stabilzer to use with the GL 2?

[Charles Papert]

No problem with Frame Mode and stabilizing devices. You should be careful of your pans (applicable to handheld and tripods as well) as they can "strobe" somewhat in this mode, meaning they look jerky compared to non-frame mode. Some experimentation with different pan speeds at different focal lengths will solve this.

I'm a JR fan myself (as far as handheld stabilizers go) but there are quite a few variations out there these days.

[Mark Moore]

I have a GL1 and a Steadi-Tracker and have used it with frame mode quite a bit. With the exception of the the strobing that Mr. Papert mentioned - (on patterned backgrounds especially), I have had few problems.

[Charles King]

<<<-- Originally posted by Charles Papert : No problem with Frame Mode and stabilizing devices. You should be careful of your pans (applicable to handheld and tripods as well)... -->>>


Charles, are you saying that on bigger rigs the prolem is less likely to happen than on smaller rigs like a handheld?

[Barry Goyette]

I've got my gl2 on a glidecam v-8, and it's great. While the v-8 is really designed for a larger camera, the gl2 just seems to fit perfectly with the system (and of course the v-8 also will set you back a little more than the camera, but thats beside the point).

Frame mode works fine, ditto the comments on the panning...watch out for strong vertical lines of contrast, as these will give you the most problem.

Barry

[Charles Papert]

Charles, by "handheld" I meant having the camera on your shoulder. I was just trying to illustrate that strobing issues can happen regardless of the shooting platform.

[Charles King]

point made. Thanks Charles

[Joe Cinquina]

I am doing a dance program in a big 2000+ seat auditotium this weekend and was wondering how I should shoot it. I will be using my GL2 and a friends XL1s. I guess my first question is how well do these cameras match with each other (color, light)? And the big question is, should I shoot in fram mode? I have been playing around with frame mode on my GL2 and love it. I am able to get great Stills, and slow motion looks so much better. Is this the same for the XL1s? Someone told me that they thought Frame mode on a XL1s looks horrible and to them it looked like a lot of droped frames.

Thanks.

Joe

[Adrian Douglas]

It all depends on how much camera movement there will be as if you pan too fast in Frame mode it can appear jerky. The best thing to do would be to do some test shots with both cameras. This would also allow you to balance the camera settings, sharpness, saturation etc, so they better match each other.

If you like the GLs Frame Mode then you will like the XL1s's, there is minimal difference in the produced images.

[Joe Cinquina]

Thank you for your fast reply. That was great! I guess I would not be panning or zooming fast. It is a dance program, but I will have one camera on a tripod getting long to medium shots with an occational pan. The other camer will be roaming trying to pickup medium to close shoots from differnt angles. It will be hand held. Will that kind of lack of stabelization create a problem in frame mode?

[Adrian Douglas]

I'd suggest using the GL on the tripod and the XL for the handheld shots as the XL can be shoulder supported which aids stability. Also make sure to use the Image Stabilizer. Again the same applies, keep the pans etc smooth and reasonably slow. I've shot snowboarding handheld in frame mode and while the subject was smooth the background was a little jittery during pans at snowboarding speed.