The Panasonic TM900 Users Thread

[Roger Shealy]

Great Mike. I use Vegas as well, upgraded to 11 a couple months ago. Let me know if you need help finding the cable or have any other questions.

[David Pritchard]

Hello guys, I'm new here and i've just purchased this cam along with a steadytracker ultralite and this thread really helped me make the decision to dump my old sony hc1 and go with this cam!

I'm a semi pro videographer who lives in Phuket, Thailand but I'm English. Most the stuff I shoot is action as I make the videos for Sinbi Muay Thai camp and do training montages for the students on request.

Heres a couple of examples, the first is the usual kinda fast paced shooting I do and the second was me trying to be a bit more arty! Both shot on my sony hc1. I know this part is a little unrelated but I thought it may be interesting to others see someone shooting this kind of content on the tm900. Even if I am well below the skill level of most of you guys but hoping to change that!

Gaston "Tonga" Reyno Training at Sinbi Muay Thai and Fight Highlights - YouTube
Sinbi Thai Fighters Training for War - YouTube
Soo! I edit using adobe premier pro 5.5 and noticed that the raw footage shot in 1080/60p isnt as sharp as I'd expected during motion. I mean I thought progressive meant there would be no image bleeding which I believed was when someone moves, you get a slight shadow of their last movement. Its a lot better than on my old Sony Cam but still I just wanted to check if this is normal. I had the cam on auto in sports mode for the test. I'll be shooting my first video on the steadycam with this, sometime this week.

[David Pritchard]

Just wondering as well. Has anyone seen any short movies produced on this camera? I dont mean clips of nature etc I mean a planned scene in some kind of film. I'm planning on making a documentary pretty soon and would love to see what others have achieved with the same camera.

[Carol Berman]

Adam-
I went to Tanzania on Wilderness Travel's Serengeti Wildlife Safari which I cannot recommend enough. They change their locations through the year so that they follow the migration. Their guides and staff are fabulous, the lodges and tent camps extremely comfortable, the food is good, we always felt well taken care of. Definitely a trip of a lifetime.

WT Serengeti Wildlife Safari

I knew I would love the wildlife, but I had no idea how much I would fall in love with Africa. I cannot wait to go back.

Please feel free to contact me directly if you want any more info.

Carol

[Bill Bruner]

Originally Posted by David Pritchard

Just wondering as well. Has anyone seen any short movies produced on this camera? I dont mean clips of nature etc I mean a planned scene in some kind of film. I'm planning on making a documentary pretty soon and would love to see what others have achieved with the same camera.

David,

There are a few out there.

Here is the best I could find. Well lit, acted and edited: The Remote - YouTube
Others:

Disturbed - Short Film - YouTube
Getaway - Intense Short Film Downtown Portland - YouTube
The Working Man, 2011 - YouTube
Remember to Forget - YouTube
I know there are more, but I didn't have time for a more thorough search.

I just ordered the camera, and intend to do some narrative work with it, so this was a useful exercise for me too :-)

Bill
Hybrid Camera Revolution

[David Pritchard]

Thanks, some good finds :)

So I filmed last night with it and have uploaded the file to our youtube channel. I'm not happy with the first attempt... Doesnt look as sharp as I'd like and the colours aren't very bright. I shot in manual mode, setting my own iris, I think 60 shutter speed shooting at 29.7 fps. I left auto focus on because I feel I maybe need more practice with the ring before I try focusing myself on something so fast.

Another problem I seem to be getting with all the 29.fps stuff is a lot of rolling shutter on fast movements. As in lines going down the image. Is this something I can correct with the manual settings or do I just have to stick with 60fps for fast action?


Teresa (Sinbi Muay Thai) Wins by TKO - YouTube
Also I'm a little confused about shutter speeds. I was using a shutter speed of 60 when I was getting the shutter roll so maybe this was the cause? In 29. fps. Im going to go shoot in 60p now and I would assume that means I'd have to double the shutter speed to 120 - 180(fast motion) if I was to keep the rule of doubling up but some places say jfor 60i its still 100 max. Can anyone please clarify and sorry for all these questions!

[Rob Easler]

Here are some deeper pics of the X900m replacing the TM900 in February. Notice the dreaded fan is still there.

[David Cordero]

Originally Posted by David Pritchard

Thanks, some good finds :)

So I filmed last night with it and have uploaded the file to our youtube channel. I'm not happy with the first attempt... Doesnt look as sharp as I'd like and the colours aren't very bright. I shot in manual mode, setting my own iris, I think 60 shutter speed shooting at 29.7 fps. I left auto focus on because I feel I maybe need more practice with the ring before I try focusing myself on something so fast.

Another problem I seem to be getting with all the 29.fps stuff is a lot of rolling shutter on fast movements. As in lines going down the image. Is this something I can correct with the manual settings or do I just have to stick with 60fps for fast action?


Teresa (Sinbi Muay Thai) Wins by TKO - YouTube

Also I'm a little confused about shutter speeds. I was using a shutter speed of 60 when I was getting the shutter roll so maybe this was the cause? In 29. fps. Im going to go shoot in 60p now and I would assume that means I'd have to double the shutter speed to 120 - 180(fast motion) if I was to keep the rule of doubling up but some places say jfor 60i its still 100 max. Can anyone please clarify and sorry for all these questions!

I am also trying to get the optimal shutter speed for taking soccer action. I have a preview video on my website of a recent game. I had most settings on manual except autofocus. I was using 1080 60p so I can do slow motion without too much degradation. My shutter speed was set at 60.

In the same gallery, there is another game I shot using my canon 60D. I dont recall the shutter speeds but it may be within 1/60 to 1/125. I was changing the shutter speeds during the game which accounts for the different exposures in some scenes.. my learning is to choose a middle range shutter speed and stick with it throughout the game as I do not want to fix this in post. With the Canon, I think I should be increasing the shutter speed to 1/250 or higher to get more fluid motion of a fast pace sport, and of course balancing with the amount of light possible so I get a wider dof.

Here is the TM900 shot:
RHR 96 Fall - Winter 2011 - David Cordero's Photos | SmugMug

Here is the Canon 60D:
RHR 96 Fall - Winter 2011 - David Cordero's Photos | SmugMug

My next project is to sort out color correction in post. I recently did an indoor shot with different light sources (natural light, and halogen light), and both cameras were too different in rendering color that I have to rethink my strategy of mixing footage between these two cameras. I just started to try may hand in Premiere's tools but it is quite cumbersome especially since I had some footage on auto white balance because the TM900 couldn't handle the mix of colors very well! Either the halogen was too yellow or the natural light was too blue. I personally liked the Canon's rendering of the color, and I had more control by just choosing the Kelvin setting.

[David Cordero]

I just realized my 2 links go to the same gallery.
The TM900 video is the Snow Globe Tournament, while the RHR96 vs Dixie 97 A is the Canon 60D video.

[David Pritchard]

test - YouTube

Well I uploaded that so you can see about my shutter problem... only wierd thing is, when i played the same file through on another computer the problem isnt there... could my graphics card be doing something?

Well wow, Ive just realized it changes place each time... so its not rolling shutter on the camera its being created by my graphics card and even after rendering and compiling then uploading to youtube it stays in the file, errors created by my graphics card I guess. When I'm importing I'm just dragging straight from folder to folder.

Anyone got any idea??? :(

[Mark Evans]

Originally Posted by Roger Shealy

Mark,

I use the Monfrotto 561B, which is a fine monopod. I also have its smaller brother, the 560B-1 with the same 3 short feet and fluid coupler at the base. The 560B-1 is shorter (66" vs 79") , lighter, and comes with the 234RC head which is not suited for smooth video tilting.

560b-1

I removed the 234RC head and replaced it with the Velbon PH-368 for $29 from B&H.

Velbon PH-368 2-Way Panhead PH-368 B&H Photo Video


This head will not impress your friends, but works very well in this application, especially for tilt only. I lock the pan on the head and use the Monfrotto's fluid foot and use the tilt on the Velbon head. The Velbon is a slightly bulkier than I'd like, but is very smooth and the overall package is light, and inexpensive. You could certainly mount a different head, should you choose to do so. The larger 561B has the sliding mounting plate for balancing the camera, which really isn't much of an issue for the TM900. The larger 561B has a non adjustable tilt counterbalance, requiring you to hold the handle on the light TM900 in many situations to keep the head from springing back towards level. The 561B is the more professional rig, but is really suited better for heavier cameras.

All in all, I tend to use the shorter, less expensive 560B-1 with the TM900 unless I need the extra height. Both pods benefit from an occasional drop of WD-40 or other light oil on the lower fluid coupling's ball-joint to keep it moving buttery smooth. Great gear.

Thanks Roger and Dan

I wil call in to a local camera shop when I get the chance and have a look at the Mafrotto 560B-1. It is light and looks to be what I am looking for. Thanks for the help!

Mark

[Phil Lee]

Hi

Originally Posted by Rob Easler

Here are some deeper pics of the X900m replacing the TM900 in February. Notice the dreaded fan is still there.

Yep noticed the fan was still there in some other images I saw. So same heat producing LSI and hardware.

Also notice the cost reduction of having no covers protecting the connections!

It is basically the TM900 with a rejigged lens to favour a wider angle at the cost of zoom, and a claimed better OIS. The 3D aspect of the LCD display is just expense spent I don't need.

The only honesty from Panasonic PR is that the model number remains the same. Good I don't feel the need to replace my current camera, but not good for Panasonic.

Regards

Phil

[Mark Ahrens]

Originally Posted by David Cordero

I am also trying to get the optimal shutter speed for taking soccer action My shutter speed was set at 60.

In the same gallery, there is another game I shot using my canon 60D. With the Canon, I think I should be increasing the shutter speed to 1/250 or higher to get more fluid motion of a fast pace sport, and of course balancing with the amount of light possible so I get a wider dof.

My next project is to sort out color correction in post.

I wouldn't call a higher shutter speed more fluid, but it will remove the motion blur, obviously. I try to shoot at the highest possible shutter speed for sports - minimum 125 max 500. Some disagree, due to the stuttering effect during pans, especially with progressive shooting; but, in my opinion it's a trade-off i'm willing to make to get a clear image of the players performance. My wife hates the 'strobing effect' and has to look away- she'd prefer motion blur to the stop action effect of a high shutter.

I never use auto white balance - it can cycle between between the 2 points the camera selects as optimal.

What lens are you using with your 60D? A fixed aperture 2.8 would be optimal. It's on my list to get.
I've not tried using my 60D for sports events yet . . . i'd be giving up too much in focal range. I may try it for a special shoot focused on a single player, but to cover the whole game my tele lens doesn't go wide enough.

[Colin Rowe]

Originally Posted by David Pritchard

Thanks, some good finds :)

So I filmed last night with it and have uploaded the file to our youtube channel. I'm not happy with the first attempt... Doesnt look as sharp as I'd like and the colours aren't very bright. I shot in manual mode, setting my own iris, I think 60 shutter speed shooting at 29.7 fps. I left auto focus on because I feel I maybe need more practice with the ring before I try focusing myself on something so fast.

Another problem I seem to be getting with all the 29.fps stuff is a lot of rolling shutter on fast movements. As in lines going down the image. Is this something I can correct with the manual settings or do I just have to stick with 60fps for fast action?


Teresa (Sinbi Muay Thai) Wins by TKO - YouTube

Also I'm a little confused about shutter speeds. I was using a shutter speed of 60 when I was getting the shutter roll so maybe this was the cause? In 29. fps. Im going to go shoot in 60p now and I would assume that means I'd have to double the shutter speed to 120 - 180(fast motion) if I was to keep the rule of doubling up but some places say jfor 60i its still 100 max. Can anyone please clarify and sorry for all these questions!

Looks about right for interior shots. The TM900 is not renowned for low light work. Regarding shutter speed, if you increase it to 120 the image, in low light/interior shots, is going to darken considerably.
Hope this helps.

[David Cordero]

Originally Posted by Mark Ahrens

I wouldn't call a higher shutter speed more fluid, but it will remove the motion blur, obviously. I try to shoot at the highest possible shutter speed for sports - minimum 125 max 500. Some disagree, due to the stuttering effect during pans, especially with progressive shooting; but, in my opinion it's a trade-off i'm willing to make to get a clear image of the players performance. My wife hates the 'strobing effect' and has to look away- she'd prefer motion blur to the stop action effect of a high shutter.

I never use auto white balance - it can cycle between between the 2 points the camera selects as optimal.

What lens are you using with your 60D? A fixed aperture 2.8 would be optimal. It's on my list to get.
I've not tried using my 60D for sports events yet . . . i'd be giving up too much in focal range. I may try it for a special shoot focused on a single player, but to cover the whole game my tele lens doesn't go wide enough.

Yes it's a balance between motion blur and strobing for the 60D which I still have to find the sweet spot for. And I agree with auto white balance.. unfortunately, the TM900 is not very versatile in this respect compared to the Canon 60D.

I use a 24-105 F4 for soccer video. I try to get it at 5.6 aperture as a bigger aperture is a real pain to try to keep in focus due to depth of field. Zooming and focusing and trying to keep track of the soccer ball in a fast game is not for the faint of heart. I've done previous games at night in F4, and it is a nightmare to keep in focus. That is why I will be shooting at 5.6 in good light where possible. I use the Zacuto viewfinder. Right now I am leaning towards the Tm900 for soccer as it is much easier to use, and the fluid motion is quite good. My plan was to do multicam for soccer which is why I got the TM900..but as gain more experience I will reserve a multicam shoot for special games.