Film Like Look

[Thomas Foss]

Since the HD10U cannot record in 24P what is the best settings to get that film like look. Thanks

[Simon Wyndham]

Turn down the detail on the camera if you can. Then use a program such as DVfilmmaker to deinterlace the footage (or if you use FCP Nattress does a very good deinterlacer) Vegas is also okay.

For the rest, if you want a high end look, then good composition, lighting, editing, and VERY importantly, sound recording and final mix is the order of the day.

[Frank Hool]

for PAL version owners 25p.

[Marco Ba]

There is no PAL version of the HD10. The PD1 is similar to the HD1 (and it's PAL) but does not record HDV.

Deinterlacing should not be necessary because the HD10 also shoots 720/30p. So I recommend using the 720/30p mode of the HD10.

Marco

[Frank Hool]

Thanks for that information. I just had idea that there is a PAL version and just planned to dig up more information about given camera. You made my life easier it's now out of my focus :)

[Zack Birlew]

You know, I doubt you'd even be able to find a PD1 from a reputable dealer. I certainly couldn't. Besides the usual film look methods, a 35mm adapter seems to add a lot of film-like qualities to the HD1/HD10U/PD1 cameras from what I've seen. Obviously, this would be something you'd expect from a 35mm adapter, but the results, if done right, really make a day and night difference with these cameras in particular.

[Thomas Foss]

Besides setting the camera at 30P / 720, I notice that it can go down to 1.8 F what kind of an effect would that offer? Would that blur out the background? Would adjusting the color setting on the camera help? Someone posted that adjusting the gama settings (Not sure if this camera allows that) I did a search in the owners manual and nothing came up. Thank you all for you replies ...As you can tell that I am a novice but I learn quickly and appreciate your comments.

[Frank Hool]

It will give You shallower depth of field. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depth_of_field

[Ken Hodson]

Originally Posted by Simon Wyndham

Turn down the detail on the camera if you can. Then use a program such as DVfilmmaker to deinterlace the footage (or if you use FCP Nattress does a very good deinterlacer) Vegas is also okay.

For the rest, if you want a high end look, then good composition, lighting, editing, and VERY importantly, sound recording and final mix is the order of the day.

I'm all for chipping in with hint/help, but when you know zero about the cam in question I would not suggest stock answers or any responce at all. First of all there is no detail setting, and the cam is progressive so de-interlacing is not required.
That said, 30p at 720p gives a very nice film look. 24p is not required. Lighting, lighting, lighting. Minimal camera motion. Slow pans. When you want slo-mo use the 480p60 mode. The cam is very filmic do to it being native progressive. I would suggest a tool like HDVrack and a good lighting kit including a soft box, as well as a full set of ND filters or dual polarizers which is a necessity with this cam. (search varialbe ND filter on this forum for more info) In fact go through the amazing amount of threads available here for a further understanding of the cam.
Bottom line is if you want a pro-look you must learn the cam. I mean really learn it. It isn't a easy tool, and I am constantly amazed at the number of people who will plan out a shoot, but not have a clue on how to run the cam. The best way to achieve a pro-look is shooting properly.

[Simon Wyndham]

Sheesh :-(

[Thomas Foss]

Thanks Ken, I do plan on shooting short films (2-8 mins.) for our church so this is great information. You mentioned using 480P at 60 FPS for slow motion. Does that mean playing in back in slow motion. Just curious on why would someone one to film in that mode ... for fast moving scenes like football games or a golf swing? On another subject ... What is the normal F-stop do you set to for film? This camera goes to 1.8. Thanks and I am trying to learn more about this camera

[Ken Hodson]

Your project will ultimately have a distrobution format, NTSC DVD? The 480p60 mode is obviously 60fps or double the output speed. So 60p played at 30p will be an automatic 50% slo-mo. But if you have good post software, the 60p will allow almost any slow down speed to be created. That said with good software 30p footage can be manipulated quite well at the expense of render time and trial and error.

"What is the normal F-stop do you set to for film?"

I don't really understand your question. For film?
Ideally you will want a F-stop of F4 or F5.6. Shooting too low of a light level will induce chroma noise and reduce sharpness in your image. I would not recommend striving for shallow depth of field through artificial means. Do it by lighting or camera position or set design, or watch any Orson Wells movie and realize that it is often not needed at all. Or invest in a 35mm adaptor if shallow depth of field is your thing. I would suggest learning to work within the natural boundaries of the cam and learning how to achieve rock solid results within those boundaries.

[Ken Hodson]

Something I forgot to mention with this cam is that top priority should be choosing a shutter speed to work with. The common choice's are 1/60th or 1/30th. 1/60th relates to the more common look we see, and 1/30th give's a more distinctive film blurr look (slightly exagerated). 720p30 essentially defaults to 1/30th, and 48060p defaults to 1/60th, given filtering in extreem lighting or else the shutter will climb if not shutter locked. Options are to minimize movement at 720p30 1/30th. Film with a Eisenstein minimalisim, and the motion blur will not be exagerated and low light performance wil be maintained. Option two. Shoot at 720p30 1/60th shutter lock. Downside is you can not lock exposure and a lower low light performance. Perfect for locked down shots when lighting doesn't change (no large movment, hence no lighting change) so the exposure does not pump in auto. Option three. Shoot 480p60 mode. A highly under estimated mode that delivers true wide screen SD (364,000 vs. 454,000 pixels) non anamorphic resolution. It upscales extreemly well to 720p, being true 16:9/progressive. If it is a high motion shot where shallow depth of field is not desired, the lack of resolution plays out perfectly. The cam is highly underestimated and often un-respected due to its first HDV cam status, but if the shots are planned, and executed with proper settings of the cam, amazing results can be achieved. Personally I would rather have two HD-10's for a complicated shoot, then one HD100. This comming from a filmakers (short) prspective. Although I drool daily after HD100's ;>) : Three will do :>)

[Ken Hodson]

PS- one last option that is best for heavy software compositing filmakers is, shoot at AE auto mode, sports setting. This setting locks the shutter at 1/250th/sec+. This essentially locks into a 1/250th shutter unless you have an extreem lighting source. This is easily minimized with variable polo's or ND filters. This mode give's an incredably crisp progressive frame, hence very good compositing ability (convert to uncompressed 16bit in AE and colour correct to you wildest dreams). The kicker is that in this mode (1/250th+/sec), the exposure is free to lock at whatever setting the operator chooses. Or simply put, full manual control is available. Only down side is you need "film" like lighting to work the fast 1/250th+ shutter. Chroma-key works very well this way given proper lighting (duh), and post blurr through proper software, looks very natual. Tweak to your liking. One last point. To repeat myself, get HDVrack and a softbox, and dual (variable polo's) or a true ND filter kit.
Good luck.

[Darrin McMillan]

Here is a guy that really knows the HD10... Well done Ken...