Converting 25fps to 24fps - or is it worth the hassle?

[Ben Davies]

Hi

I'm in the middle of a nightclub video shoot, I've got some establishing shots today but just realised I was in 25fps from some client work on the weekend despite me usually shooting 24fps! I'll be carrying on with filming tomorrow.

Am I going to notice a huge difference shooting 24/25fps? Its only going to be used on the web. If there will be a difference is there an easy way to convert my 25fps footage to 24/23.98fps?

Thanks

[Brian Drysdale]

The traditional method is to just play it at 24 fps, the only noticeable difference might be a very slight sound pitch change if you're using the original sound. However, this tends to be only noticeable with music.

[Ben Davies]

Its a nightclub video so won't be using sound anyway. Is your point that its not worth changing to 24fps as I won't notice a difference or that I could convert if I'm not worried about sound?

[Steve Game]

There might be an issue if your plan is to add a music sound track with a beat that matches that being played when the video was shot.

[Gary Nattrass]

If it's being used for the web 24fps is pretty irrelevant but you should all be using 25fps unless the film is going to be release in the cinema where 24fps is still a standard.

Most 24p films in the UK on TV are just played back at 25fps anyway but there may be a pitch and speed change.

Are they using full 24p or have the set the camera to drop frame which could cause other problems but as most edit systems are floating point for audio I suspect it should not be a problem as timecode is not hugely relevant for sync in the digital age but you might get some questions from the editor as the numbers will not match up in post.

[Guy Caplin]

In Premier Pro 6 there is a useful feature that allows you to change the frame rate of a file, both sound and vision, to a another frame rate of your choice. I use it to match HD material sent over from the States in 24p to my time-line in 25p. It is simple quick and introduces no degradation other than the 2% speeding up in my case.

In the media storage bin, right click on a file and and select Modify>Interpret Footage. In the frame rate box select "Assume this frame rate" then enter - in your case 24 and the clip becomes a 24 frame clip in Premier which you can then export without any problems.

[Ben Davies]

Originally Posted by Steve Game

There might be an issue if your plan is to add a music sound track with a beat that matches that being played when the video was shot.

Problem if I keep 25fps or if I convert?

[Steve Game]

Originally Posted by Ben Davies

Problem if I keep 25fps or if I convert?

If you have shot video without a sound track and subsequently try to sync a tune to some of the visual action, (not necessarily lip synced), you may need to alter the speed of the music which will involve maintaining the pitch over a different duration. It depends on how critical the end viewer(s) is/are.

Hope that makes sense.