The Panasonic TM900 Users Thread

[Andy Wilkinson]

Some new information about the the Rode VMP and its Deadcat (the latter item arrived on my doormat this morning). I've posted my initial observations about it (including it being partially in shot when on full wide with the TM900) in this thread - where some potential solutions are also discussed.

http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/all-thin...mic-pro-5.html

Alas, we've had no wind at all today - just glorious hot sun - so I've yet to find out if this new deadcat is effective on the Rode VMP!

EDIT: Updated info about my experiences with it in a 10 mph wind on Easter Sunday morning and some pictures of it on the TM900 are now added to the thread linked to above.

[Colin Rowe]

Need a bit of help. My son is getting married on Saturday, I would like to use footage from both my EX1 and TM900. Just love this little cam. I normally save all my edits to file, and replay them via my HDMI player. I am going to be asked for SD DVDs by a number of people, so, what is the best method of mixing 1080p 50 footage with 1080 25 from the EX1, to get half decent DVD quality. I would love to use the best quality of the TM900, but would it be easier to just shoot in AVCHD ? I have had some success experimenting, using a 1080p 50 timeline for footage from both cams, resulting mpegs look promising. Is there a method that anyone has tried that gives good results ? I have Edius 6 and Vegas 10. Any pointers as to mixing on the timeline would be much appreciated.
Thanks

[Dave Jervis]

Colin, I have a TM700 and I have Edius Neo 2.5... but it's my experience that Edius just 'makes sense' of the 50P footage in 25P and 50i projects. To give you reassurance at short notice, and with this important a project, I'd suggest at least a quick test...

Set up Edius 6 to edit some existing EX1 footage as you normally would. Now import a bit of 50P from the TM900 and just cut it in...!

Edius makes 25P from the 50P if the project is 25P but it will make 50i from the 50P if your project 50i...

...so I guess I'm suggesting you stick with shooting 50P (...preferably with a 1/50th shutter speed...).

I am hoping others can confirm what I have just said and also add their thoughts.....I lack experience with the whole SD DVD thing, and it all sounds rather important on this occasion!

Hope you all have a great day on Saturday.

dave

[Anthony McErlean]

Hi Colin,

Unfortunately I don't have a TM900 so I cant speak from experience.

I record in 1920x1080 50i with my Ex3 so its an Edius 6, 50i timeline.
If I used the TM900 at my weddings I would just drop the footage into the 50i timeline, perhaps it would be wrong to do this but I would try it anyway.

Hope you all have a great day on Saturday.

[Andy Wilkinson]

Colin, good advice from Dave and Anthony there and exactly what I'd do in your position (i.e. do some tests first in your NLE and shoot in the highest quality with the TM900).

There is some wedding type thing going on this Friday in London which you could always do some "practice shots" at - just so that you are perfect for the really important couple on Saturday ;-)

I would definitely shoot in 1080p50. After all, you can always convert it (in camera) to "normal" AVCHD at 17Mbps if you really need to (but I would only do that after you've archived the full CAM MEM folder structure to various hard drives and DVD-DLs - depending on total size). It won't look as good though...the 1080p50 will match EX footage a lot better. Concentrate on enjoying the day and getting the best quality raw footage you can (in that order) and then worry about how to get it all edited and on DVD later, that would be my advice.

P.S. When you hit the vino the excellent Hybrid Optical Image Stabilisation and the normally pretty accurate Autofocus should help you keep it all together too!

[Andy Wilkinson]

I'm now going up filming in a pre-WWII biplane in a couple of weeks and wanted to get a polarising filter for my TM900. I will probably also take some of my Canon 7D kit as I want all bases covered - but not the EX3 as there is limited room in this thing! I think my wife is busy doubling my life insurance cover...

I've been unable to get a B+W 46mm multicoated one here in the UK (the high quality filter brand I typically use) for the TM900 at a sensible price. One supplier wanted almost £100 for it - so bought a relatively cheap Hoya CIR-PL 46mm Polariser instead (£26). It's just arrived in the post. Seems OK and does exactly what I'd expect it to do. I also found a Sigma one at £36 which might have been better as it seems to be multicoated (look on amazon for details). Not sure if this Hoya one is or not. As mentioned by others earlier in this thread, one filter won't cause vignetting at full wide (35mm) on the TM900. However, there is a little, just in each corner, if you then screw the lens hood in front of the filter (most noticeable when the Image Stabilisation is on and you do a whip pan, where it then moves more into frame).

Chocks away!

[Colin Rowe]

Thanks very much, Dave, Tony and Andy. Its about what I thought, Have tried the suggestions on both an Edius and Vegas timeline, I think the results are pretty good, more testing to do. One query, I encoded to mpeg 2 in Edius, and it needed transcoding again in Encore. The Vegas encode did not!!!!! I dont use Edius all that much, Vegas being my editor of choice. Any indicators for the best settings, for SD DVD in Edius ??
Thanks very much all.
As an end note, I shot a web vid for a local hotel last week, I know the owner well and told him I was going to duplicate the EX1 shots with the TM900. He came round to check the footage yesterday, and was blown away by the quality of the TM900. I can see this little rascal creeping into a fair few paying jobs in the future.
Wouldnt it be nice to go to a family wedding and not work, as its our son, I am sure we will enjoy the day, and get the work done. I think my assistant may be a bit busier than usual.
Andy, your right, of course Just as well shoot in 50p, and down res in camera if I have any problems
Once again, Thanks all

[Anthony McErlean]

Originally Posted by Colin Rowe

and was blown away by the quality of the TM900. I can see this little rascal creeping into a fair few paying jobs in the future.

Wouldn't mind TM900 sometime.

[Andy Wilkinson]

I stumbled upon this on YouTube - some TM900 footage (I believe) from a boat in Venice, some of it pretty nice. No idea what camera settings were used (but you can guess).

YouTube - canal grande

Interestingly, Youtube gives, amongst the options, 720p, 1080p and 'Original'. I've never seen the 'Original' option before when looking at TM900 stuff - I tried Googling it to find out more but got nowhere. Anyone know what that's about?

[Mark Rosenzweig]

The Panasonic TM900 has an "intelligent" telephoto mode that uses the extra pixels of the sensor to extend the optical zoom from 12X to 20X (to 700mm). It is supposed to not reduce resolution. This feature was used extensively in this video clip of a baseball game:

Baseball Video using the Panasonic TM900 700mm Telephoto Feature on Vimeo

The opening shot - from far right field - shows how far away the eventual close up is (and the smoothness of the full zoom, from 35mm to 700mm). But all shots, from different sections of the ballpark, use the feature for at least part of each shot.

All shots were handheld, so the video also shows the great effectiveness of the OIS.

But does the intelligent zoom maintain the quality? Does one really have a useful 700mm telephoto with the TM900?

The original file is downloadable - and has 5.1 Dolby surround sound. 108060p, auto wb, manual iris, 1/60th shutter (NTSC, of course).

[Roger Shealy]

I'm need to buy a good polarizing filter for the TM900. I understand a linear polarizer is more effective and less costly, but can screw up a camera's metering, at least on DSLR's. I'm thinking this isn't an issue with a video camera that doesn't use a mirror, but would like to confirm.

Anybody know for sure?

[Andy Wilkinson]

Roger, I don't know for sure about the TM900, but in the absence of any replies so far...

ANY camera can use a circular polariser. The only worry when using a circular polarising filter (where only a linear polariser is needed) is that a circular polariser tends to be a little more expensive.

Linear polarisers can affect through the lens light metering and sometimes autofocus - in some cameras.

[Roger Shealy]

Andy,

I've already pulled the trigger on a non-circular polarizer, understanding they are better for reducing glare and shouldn't be a problem without a silvered mirror in the chain. Will know in a few days! I am going to the Moab desert in early June, so I needed something to cut the glare.

[Alan Christensen]

My impression on the "intelligent zoom" feature is that it is simply an interpolated digital zoom using the middle of the sensor once you get beyond the optical zoom range. Assuming you start with 1080 lines on the full sensor, you can digitally zoom to 2x and still have 540 sensor lines to work with. (This is approximately the number of lines in a sensor for an SD camera). A 2x digital zoom on the TM900 would yield a 24X total zoom. By zooming to only 20X with the TM900 (12x optical, 1.7x digital) you can still achieve (and claim) better than SD quality throughout the entire range. The Sony CX-700 has a similar feature, although they stop at 18X because the Sony starts with a 10X optical zoom instead of the 12X provided on the TM900.

The baseball video is pretty impressive, as the 700mm closeup is remarkably crisp. However, the thing that impresses me the most is that it was hand held. The image stabilization is extraordinary.

[Bryan Worsley]

Originally Posted by Andy Wilkinson

Roger, I don't know for sure about the TM900, but in the absence of any replies so far...

ANY camera can use a circular polariser. The only worry when using a circular polarising filter (where only a linear polariser is needed) is that a circular polariser tends to be a little more expensive.

Linear polarisers can affect through the lens light metering and sometimes autofocus - in some cameras.

Only applies to DSLR cameras. You can use linear or circular polarizers on a camcorder:

Polarizers: Fact & Fiction

Old info source, I know, but nothing's changed.

Probably more important - go with a reputable brand, B+W or Hoya (while they are still made in Japan!), preferably multi-coated. The Marumi (Super) DHG CPL's are also well regarded.

As Ted Moult used to say "You only fit double glazing once, so fit the best"