why can't dark be dark... at DVinfo.net

Vedran Rupic · June 4th, 2006, 08:12 AM

I have recently purchased a XL2, a great camera i believe, as i went from consumer based single chip cameras.
But there is one thing that bugs me...
Recently i shot a clip outside when it was sunrise, i framed the sky and some of the forrest and exposed for the sky..
The underexposed trees in the woods should be very dark almost black...
so when i imported this to my NLE i saw a lot of noise in the dark areas?
mosquito noise is perhaps the term?
I know that DV has a limited compressor/decompressor system, But why cant dark be just dark or black?
I mean to hold color info of only one color seems less space consuming than holding info to all these diffrently shaded, fast moving pixels.
I used a aparture of about 5,6 i believe.
Is there anyway to avoid this pixeling in the dark areas, I don't need the info from the area, i just want it black...

Is there any special settings or am i missing something out?
I've tried pressing the blacks but it's the same thing...
using more light and still keeping a high ratio to darken down i post is perhaps an option, but can't it be done in another "on camera" method?
I really like dark contrasty images and this bugs the hell out of me....

Josh Bass · June 4th, 2006, 11:39 AM

Were you on the default setting, or one of the custom presets? When you activate a custom preset, you can do several things to blacken the dark areas--

Set the black-stretch/middle/press setting to "press" (emphasizes contrast in black areas)

Set the master ped all the way down (darkens dark areas)

Set the "setup" all the way down (darkens dark areas even more).

Eric Brown · June 4th, 2006, 02:45 PM

What the previous poster mentioned is correct. Also make sure that your gain is properly set. You should be able to easily use a -3 gain setting outside during the day. Tweak between this and your aperture setting.
The picture of the XL2 is unbelievably clean if you calibrate it correctly and the blacks can be super inky and noise free. It's very doable.

June 4th, 2006, 08:12 AM	#1
Vedran Rupic Regular Crew Join Date: May 2006 Location: Örebro, Sweden Posts: 71	why can't dark be dark... I have recently purchased a XL2, a great camera i believe, as i went from consumer based single chip cameras. But there is one thing that bugs me... Recently i shot a clip outside when it was sunrise, i framed the sky and some of the forrest and exposed for the sky.. The underexposed trees in the woods should be very dark almost black... so when i imported this to my NLE i saw a lot of noise in the dark areas? mosquito noise is perhaps the term? I know that DV has a limited compressor/decompressor system, But why cant dark be just dark or black? I mean to hold color info of only one color seems less space consuming than holding info to all these diffrently shaded, fast moving pixels. I used a aparture of about 5,6 i believe. Is there anyway to avoid this pixeling in the dark areas, I don't need the info from the area, i just want it black... Is there any special settings or am i missing something out? I've tried pressing the blacks but it's the same thing... using more light and still keeping a high ratio to darken down i post is perhaps an option, but can't it be done in another "on camera" method? I really like dark contrasty images and this bugs the hell out of me....

June 4th, 2006, 11:39 AM	#2
Josh Bass Slash Rules! Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Houston, Texas Posts: 5,472	Were you on the default setting, or one of the custom presets? When you activate a custom preset, you can do several things to blacken the dark areas-- Set the black-stretch/middle/press setting to "press" (emphasizes contrast in black areas) Set the master ped all the way down (darkens dark areas) Set the "setup" all the way down (darkens dark areas even more). __________________ The Bass' camerawork The Bass on IMDB

June 4th, 2006, 02:45 PM	#3
Eric Brown Major Player Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Seattle Posts: 427	What the previous poster mentioned is correct. Also make sure that your gain is properly set. You should be able to easily use a -3 gain setting outside during the day. Tweak between this and your aperture setting. The picture of the XL2 is unbelievably clean if you calibrate it correctly and the blacks can be super inky and noise free. It's very doable.