XF on big screen?

Peter Moretti · March 1st, 2011, 05:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nick Wilcox-Brown

Peter,

IMHO that sounds to me like a rather sweeping statement and rather discredits the broad experience of others here?

'Big screen' work in most cases is simply projected with a 1080p or a 2K projector, and all that is necessary is a clean image without the blockiness that 5D Mark II will normally show.

A quality conversion from h.264 before edit is essential and careful cutting between the cameras and then grading are a given. The 'neat image trick' to remove DSLR blockiness has been used by several colleagues to project on some of the largest screens around and as Anthony said, projector tests are going to be important to check the clips and determine whether a very, very gentle sharpen might be required.

So saying, I have worked a great deal with a 1080p Canon Xeed projector and have been constantly surprised by how little needs to be done to 5D Mark II or XF footage for projection on big screen.

Vincent, wasn't he a Rowney man?

Nick,

What he said is theatrical release, and there is a significant difference. Even disregarding their image size advantage, Christie and Sony theatrical projectors are going to have at least twice the contrast ratio of an Xeed.

So while I'm sure you have helpful information, and sorry if I came off sounding harsh, I don't believe it's wrong for me to assume that no one who's posted here has done a film-out/theatrically released movie with an XF or 5D.

Also, my comment was not directed at you per se, but was a response to the information in this thread that is all over the place in terms of resolution and frame rate and mostly conflicts.

So I'm saying I hope Bill does not rely on the posts in this thread if he is SERIOUSLY planing to shoot for theatrical release. He should find the people who have actually done this. Even then, he's probably not going to find many definitive answers b/c the workflow is so new.

And he should watch in movie theaters films shot on the 5D and XF's. The only 5D movie I can think of is "Black Swan." And its 5D footage looked horrible both in film print and 4K Cinealta projection. So I gave him the name of an ASC member who is DSLR proponent and the title of his upcoming film.

I'm sure there is helpful information here, esp. what you posted, and I do apologize if I offended anyone, but I do believe theatrical release is another level.

P.S. Again, I'm sorry if I offended anyone.

Glen Vandermolen · March 1st, 2011, 06:41 AM

Actually, the subway scenes in Black Swan were shot on a Canon 7D and 1D Mark IV. I'm not sure what difference that makes compared to a 5D.
Interestingly, the DP used the 7D over a 5D to get more depth of field, not less. He used a Canon 24mm lens, ASA 1,600 and T 81/2.

He also used a 5D for all the rehearsal footage. Now, whether that means he used it during rehearsals to check the shots, or the actual rehearsal ballet scenes used in the movie, I don't know.

edit - I just saw the film. Very good movie, throughly enjoyed it. I can see why Natalie picked up the Oscar.
Honestly, I didn't see much of a difference in the subway scenes. Maybe not as grainy. It didn't distract from the film and a general audience would never notice.

Daniel Gustafsson · March 7th, 2011, 10:38 AM

I am shooting with the xf300, 5d2 and 7d. Been using the HDSLR's for "beauty" shots with shallow DOF and the xf300 for the more serious doc shots when I need to run around with a 29-530mm lens without lens swapping and on-camera xlr's etc.. I have not had any complaints about combining the cameras to get an even look (yet) :)

My work is though not the big screen so.. But with Magic bullet denoiser I can usually lower the "blockiness" of the 5d2/7d images caused by the h264 codec. Have looked at my stuff on big screen tv's and even a huge projection screen (not cinema projection) where it looked good (in my eyes :P).

I dont think that these cameras will be what might make your project prevail, rather the story as usual and all that other stuff that makes a film which will be the breaking point :)

March 1st, 2011, 06:41 AM	#17
Glen Vandermolen Space Hipster Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Jacksonville, FL Posts: 1,596	Re: XF on big screen? Actually, the subway scenes in Black Swan were shot on a Canon 7D and 1D Mark IV. I'm not sure what difference that makes compared to a 5D. Interestingly, the DP used the 7D over a 5D to get more depth of field, not less. He used a Canon 24mm lens, ASA 1,600 and T 81/2. He also used a 5D for all the rehearsal footage. Now, whether that means he used it during rehearsals to check the shots, or the actual rehearsal ballet scenes used in the movie, I don't know. edit - I just saw the film. Very good movie, throughly enjoyed it. I can see why Natalie picked up the Oscar. Honestly, I didn't see much of a difference in the subway scenes. Maybe not as grainy. It didn't distract from the film and a general audience would never notice. Last edited by Glen Vandermolen; March 1st, 2011 at 03:04 PM.

March 7th, 2011, 10:38 AM	#18
Daniel Gustafsson New Boot Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Stockholm, Sweden Posts: 5	Re: XF on big screen? I am shooting with the xf300, 5d2 and 7d. Been using the HDSLR's for "beauty" shots with shallow DOF and the xf300 for the more serious doc shots when I need to run around with a 29-530mm lens without lens swapping and on-camera xlr's etc.. I have not had any complaints about combining the cameras to get an even look (yet) :) My work is though not the big screen so.. But with Magic bullet denoiser I can usually lower the "blockiness" of the 5d2/7d images caused by the h264 codec. Have looked at my stuff on big screen tv's and even a huge projection screen (not cinema projection) where it looked good (in my eyes :P). I dont think that these cameras will be what might make your project prevail, rather the story as usual and all that other stuff that makes a film which will be the breaking point :)