fixing flourescents in fcp3 at DVinfo.net

Benji Wu · August 26th, 2003, 11:45 AM

So I shot some stuff in a small room with flourescent lights. I thought I brought the shutter speed down to 60, which I figured would get rid of that shift effect, when the white balance seems to move from normal to slightly yellow/green, then back again. But it didn't help, and the footage looks pretty funky, with the colors shifting slightly every few seconds. I'm definitely going to go back and attempt to reshoot, but is there anything I can do to allieviate the problem in fcp3? Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Thanks

Jeff Donald · August 26th, 2003, 05:46 PM

The changing phase makes it difficult to get the video real professional looking. If you can't reshoot, you can adjust the WB with the 3 way color corrector in FCP 3 and 4. If you have problems getting it to work post back. It was also covered here a few months ago and you can find it by doing a search.

Benji Wu · August 26th, 2003, 08:24 PM

Thanks Jeff. I'll give it a try.

Jeff Price · August 27th, 2003, 09:27 AM

I wonder if some of the funkiness was auto white balance? If you reshoot, remember to manually white balance for the room. That should at least lock the white balance and make it easier to fix in post if need be.

Scott Anderson · August 28th, 2003, 09:41 AM

Yeah, if the problem was due to auto WB, and is shifting every few seconds, that's going to be pretty much impossible to correct for fully. The AWB will shift according to the content of the scene, so a handheld or panning shot will have irregular shifts due to the operator's movements. Really tough to track and compensate for.

But I thought this would be a good time to bring up a FCP plugin set.

There's a huge, comprehensive review in the 09/03 American Cinematographer of digital film tools' 55mm v2.0. It's available as an AfterEffects or FCP plugin set for $195. It appears to be a really cool, all-around toolkit for digital fimaking. One of the features discussed is correcting for flourescent lighting.

www.digitalfilmtools.com/html/55mm_prod.html

The product has been out for awhile, but this is the most comprehensive review I've seen yet. AC's Jay Holben goes filter by filter, suggesting practical and film-type uses for each.

Strangely, he talks about using the "temperature" filter instead of the "flourescent" filter for correction, but the digitalfilmtools site lists that filter as a bonus filter for the Photoshop version only. I'll try to reach them later today to clarify.

Andre De Clercq · August 28th, 2003, 10:05 AM

I don't think it's a good advise to keep the WB in manual mode when the WB problem is generated by the periodic phase differences between the framrate and the mains power. Auto WB will try to compensate the variations. Unfortunately the compensation time constant is (mostly) too long, so it lags..

Benji Wu · August 28th, 2003, 10:16 AM

I manually adjusted the white balance with a white card in the room, so it wasn't an awb issue. Like Andre said, it was a phase issue. it seems like a catch 22 shooting situation: if i continually bring down the shutter speed to get rid of the phase shift, the movements of the person being interviewed look stuttered and slow mo-ish. But if I don't bring it down, I'll be stuck with the lighting shift from the changing phase. I guess just avoid heavy flourescents whenever possible when shooting in available light, huh?

August 26th, 2003, 11:45 AM	#1
Benji Wu New Boot Join Date: May 2003 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 6	fixing flourescents in fcp3 So I shot some stuff in a small room with flourescent lights. I thought I brought the shutter speed down to 60, which I figured would get rid of that shift effect, when the white balance seems to move from normal to slightly yellow/green, then back again. But it didn't help, and the footage looks pretty funky, with the colors shifting slightly every few seconds. I'm definitely going to go back and attempt to reshoot, but is there anything I can do to allieviate the problem in fcp3? Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks

August 26th, 2003, 05:46 PM	#2
Jeff Donald Warden Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Clearwater, FL Posts: 8,287	The changing phase makes it difficult to get the video real professional looking. If you can't reshoot, you can adjust the WB with the 3 way color corrector in FCP 3 and 4. If you have problems getting it to work post back. It was also covered here a few months ago and you can find it by doing a search. __________________ Jeff Donald Carpe Diem Search DVinfo.net for quick answers \| Where to Buy? From the best in the business: DVinfo.net sponsors

August 27th, 2003, 09:27 AM	#4
Jeff Price Major Player Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Chico, California Posts: 357	I wonder if some of the funkiness was auto white balance? If you reshoot, remember to manually white balance for the room. That should at least lock the white balance and make it easier to fix in post if need be. __________________ Jeff Price Flickerflix Nature Videos flickerflix@yahoo.com

August 28th, 2003, 09:41 AM	#5
Scott Anderson Major Player Join Date: May 2003 Location: Phoenix, AZ Posts: 327	Digital Film Tools - 55mm plug-in Yeah, if the problem was due to auto WB, and is shifting every few seconds, that's going to be pretty much impossible to correct for fully. The AWB will shift according to the content of the scene, so a handheld or panning shot will have irregular shifts due to the operator's movements. Really tough to track and compensate for. But I thought this would be a good time to bring up a FCP plugin set. There's a huge, comprehensive review in the 09/03 American Cinematographer of digital film tools' 55mm v2.0. It's available as an AfterEffects or FCP plugin set for $195. It appears to be a really cool, all-around toolkit for digital fimaking. One of the features discussed is correcting for flourescent lighting. www.digitalfilmtools.com/html/55mm_prod.html The product has been out for awhile, but this is the most comprehensive review I've seen yet. AC's Jay Holben goes filter by filter, suggesting practical and film-type uses for each. Strangely, he talks about using the "temperature" filter instead of the "flourescent" filter for correction, but the digitalfilmtools site lists that filter as a bonus filter for the Photoshop version only. I'll try to reach them later today to clarify.

August 26th, 2003, 08:24 PM	#3
Benji Wu New Boot Join Date: May 2003 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 6	Thanks Jeff. I'll give it a try.

August 28th, 2003, 10:05 AM	#6
Andre De Clercq Major Player Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Belgium Posts: 804	I don't think it's a good advise to keep the WB in manual mode when the WB problem is generated by the periodic phase differences between the framrate and the mains power. Auto WB will try to compensate the variations. Unfortunately the compensation time constant is (mostly) too long, so it lags..

August 28th, 2003, 10:16 AM	#7
Benji Wu New Boot Join Date: May 2003 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 6	I manually adjusted the white balance with a white card in the room, so it wasn't an awb issue. Like Andre said, it was a phase issue. it seems like a catch 22 shooting situation: if i continually bring down the shutter speed to get rid of the phase shift, the movements of the person being interviewed look stuttered and slow mo-ish. But if I don't bring it down, I'll be stuck with the lighting shift from the changing phase. I guess just avoid heavy flourescents whenever possible when shooting in available light, huh?