The Panasonic TM900 Users Thread

[Al Bergstein]

Mike how lightweight a tripod do you mean? I have a tripod from Gorilla which is quite nice for tiny little thing. Actually a smooth pan! But I do have others.

GorillaPod Video - Video tripod system for personal handheld cameras

[Phil Lee]

Hi

Originally Posted by Mark Rook

My first post on here for quite a while.

I've purchased a TM900 after coming from a Canon XHA1. As I wasn't shooting much video (I'm mainly a still photographer) I decided to sell. Well, a couple of years later I decided I wanted to get back into shooting video so thought (after reading a lot about it) I'd go for the Panasonic. So far I'm really pleased. The IQ is superb (a match for my old Canon) but I'm a little confused on a couple of areas......

For starters, I've had to move over to Premiere Pro as my Sony Vegas Pro isn't supported by my new Mac platform. Shooting in 1080/50P is also a new thing for me. My vids are for PC/Mac playback and I always saved to wmv. It now seems that H.264 is the way to go unless I purchase a wmv codec thingy for the Mac.

My first question (stick with me).....

The footage is shot in 50P so I take it there should be no field order or deinterlacing. When I save the video I find I get smoother footage when I set the field order to 'lower' at 50fps (in the H.264 codec settings). Now, if I right click on the timeline video and change the Field Options from 'None' to 'Always Deinterlace' then save the video but with 60fps and progressive I get smoother footage and a sharper picture. Can anyone explain this to me?

I still have a few other questions regarding Camera settings but wanted to clear this one up first.

Cheers,

Mark

If you are viewing on a computer monitor you will not get completely smooth video because typically your monitor is running at 60Hz and not 50Hz, so there are extra frames added/duplicated and this gives rise to some judder depending on the scene. On a HDMI TV this wouldn't be an issue as it would run at 50Hz to match the source. Also you computer may not be able to decode 1080/50p without some problems giving rise to even more stutters and judder.

Changing interlace settings is probably invoking the de-interlacer and more field-interpolation so smoothing things out better for 60Hz.

Regards

Phil

[Adrian Lepki]

Originally Posted by Adrian Lepki

I am thinking of using two L-shaped profiles side by side to form rails for the dolly's narrow wheels:

V=====V

This would prevent the dolly from rolling of the contraption. I'll post any future developments.

Just did some experimenting - the lightstands I wanted to use for support are out. They are too wobbly.
It looks like microphone stands will be used instead.

[Roger Shealy]

Why not just two inexpensive tripods?

I bought my materials yesterday and will hopefully put it together in the next week or so. I'm going with a laminated shelf with 1 x 2" on the edges to create an I-Beam of sorts, and inlaying 1/4 x 20 inserts on each end for mounting on two tripods. I may add adjustable feet on the corners for floor use. All in all, about $20 total.

[Adrian Lepki]

Originally Posted by Roger Shealy

Why not just two inexpensive tripods?

I bought my materials yesterday and will hopefully put it together in the next week or so. I'm going with a laminated shelf with 1 x 2" on the edges to create an I-Beam of sorts, and inlaying 1/4 x 20 inserts on each end for mounting on two tripods. I may add adjustable feet on the corners for floor use. All in all, about $20 total.

I just happen to have a couple of mic stands, that's all. At the beginning I was concerned with the total weight of the device that's why aluminum light stands came to mind. Mic stands are heavier but that will add to the stability of the device.

[Mike Hinkel]

Originally Posted by Al Bergstein

Mike how lightweight a tripod do you mean? I have a tripod from Gorilla which is quite nice for tiny little thing. Actually a smooth pan! But I do have others.

GorillaPod Video - Video tripod system for personal handheld cameras

Thanks for the reply, Al. that looks like something as porable as you can get. Would be nice to have that in the bag. However, I was looking for something I could use for fast deployment for use at eye level. My set up will have a seperate micicrophone and video light when needed.

[Adrian Lepki]

Originally Posted by Mike Hinkel

I was looking for something I could use for fast deployment for use at eye level. My set up will have a seperate micicrophone and video light when needed.

Mike, have you consider a monopod? They have some limitations comparing to tripods but in some situations a monopod can do a good job.

[Mike Hinkel]

Originally Posted by Adrian Lepki

Mike, have you consider a monopod? They have some limitations comparing to tripods but in some situations a monopod can do a good job.

Thanks for the suggestion, Adrian. I have used monopods for regular camera work. I would like to incorporate shooting stills from a point and shoot while running the video camera on the tripod for different points of view. .

[Adrian Lepki]

Originally Posted by Mike Hinkel

Thanks for the suggestion, Adrian. I have used monopods for regular camera work. I would like to incorporate shooting stills from a point and shoot while running the video camera on the tripod for different points of view. .

Here is my super light "travel" tripod:



I put it together some time ago for the specific purpose of travelling light. It consists of legs from Manfrotto 718SHB tripod and 701RC2 head. Also the center post was replaced with a longer one from one of Manfrotto's monopods. This tripod is 18" long or 54" fully extended.

[Mike Hinkel]

Originally Posted by Adrian Lepki

Here is my super light "travel" tripod:



I put it together some time ago for the specific purpose of travelling light. It consists of legs from Manfrotto 718SHB tripod and 701RC2 head. Also the center post was replaced with a longer one from one of Manfrotto's monopods. This tripod is 18" long or 54" fully extended.

Thanks Adrian. Nice looking setup, but a tad over my budget.

[Adrian Lepki]

Dolly on rails cont.

Here are a couple of pictures of work in progress.

Rails on the floor:



Close-up:

[Roger Shealy]

Looks nice. I hope it works and you'll share the outcome with us. I'm going a little more "blue collar" on mine - the Jethro effect!

[Adrian Lepki]

Thanks Roger, it will take few more days to get rid of rough edges and spray paint black the whole thing.

Some details: the overll length is 46.5" so it fits in the bag with the stands and some other stuff (the bag is 48"). The hole in the middle is for mounting the camera sideways.

In general this contraption can be used in 4 configurations:

1. directly on the ground, where the dolly by itself can't move, ie. sand
2. supported on table mic stands for low angles
3. supported on floor mic stands
4. as "the plank cam" as seen in this video at 0:30sec

Zero Budget Filmmaking: The Plank Cam - YouTube
I hope to post some results in coming weeks.

[Adrian Lepki]

Cont. > Table dolly on rails - first trials.

Table dolly test 2 on Vimeo

It is quite difficult to keep this dolly moving at a steady speed. Especially at slower speeds. Hopefully with practice my technique will improve.

[Mark Rosenzweig]

Here's a change of speed with the TM900: a sports video. Specifically, American baseball. This was a game that went from bright sunlight past sundown. Shows the OIS at work (all handheld), the great colors and smooth zoom.

108060p, 1/60th shutter. Manual iris and sometimes manual focus.

Panasonic TM900 Test Video: Spring College Baseball in HD on Vimeo