night-shooting on a XH-A1 without lighting... advice please. at DVinfo.net

Salmaan Bhutta · March 4th, 2009, 06:09 AM

hello all.

I am using a XH-A1 in HDV1080/50i (PAL). Im trying to shoot street locations (purely backgrounds no actors or action) without extra lighting at night and have tried a variety of shutter speeds and apertures but am still getting very grainy midtones. any help would be muchly appreciated.

thanks Sal.

Michael Hutson · March 4th, 2009, 06:15 AM

I would try the pfvision preset. But even that has its limitations.

Philip Younger · March 4th, 2009, 06:47 AM

You say street scenes with no action, would a stills shot on a digital stills camera provide a better solution? The problem is, if there ain't no light, there ain't much you can do if you want the quality as well

Salmaan Bhutta · March 4th, 2009, 07:01 AM

we are attempting to create a 3screen moving image piece exploring narrative through splitting background/action on separate projections.. all the action is being shot in a studio under fully controlled lighting and the backgrounds on location. yes digital stills are definitely an option for some of the shots but in places were going to need pans/tracks. It doesn't need to be bright as darkness is the overall aesthetic we're going for (its set in east-london at 4am!) but how can i get dark shots in the dark without all the noise and grain? what is pfvision setting?

Michael Hutson · March 4th, 2009, 07:26 AM

pfvision is a custom preset....here is the link:
http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/xh-series...-included.html

Another option may be to shoot day for night or shoot at dusk with iris closed down.

March 4th, 2009, 06:09 AM	#1
Salmaan Bhutta Tourist Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: London, UK Posts: 2	night-shooting on a XH-A1 without lighting... advice please. hello all. I am using a XH-A1 in HDV1080/50i (PAL). Im trying to shoot street locations (purely backgrounds no actors or action) without extra lighting at night and have tried a variety of shutter speeds and apertures but am still getting very grainy midtones. any help would be muchly appreciated. thanks Sal.

March 4th, 2009, 06:15 AM	#2
Michael Hutson Major Player Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Elgin, IL Posts: 249	I would try the pfvision preset. But even that has its limitations.

March 4th, 2009, 06:47 AM	#3
Philip Younger Major Player Join Date: May 2008 Location: Warwickshire Posts: 207	You say street scenes with no action, would a stills shot on a digital stills camera provide a better solution? The problem is, if there ain't no light, there ain't much you can do if you want the quality as well

March 4th, 2009, 07:01 AM	#4
Salmaan Bhutta Tourist Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: London, UK Posts: 2	we are attempting to create a 3screen moving image piece exploring narrative through splitting background/action on separate projections.. all the action is being shot in a studio under fully controlled lighting and the backgrounds on location. yes digital stills are definitely an option for some of the shots but in places were going to need pans/tracks. It doesn't need to be bright as darkness is the overall aesthetic we're going for (its set in east-london at 4am!) but how can i get dark shots in the dark without all the noise and grain? what is pfvision setting?

March 4th, 2009, 07:26 AM	#5
Michael Hutson Major Player Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Elgin, IL Posts: 249	pfvision is a custom preset....here is the link: http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/xh-series...-included.html Another option may be to shoot day for night or shoot at dusk with iris closed down.