My problem with the projection of my HDV (continued)

[Tony Grant]

Hi Everyone,

I am now getting to the bottom of my problem with the projection of my HDV film at the Bracina film festival. It is simple HDV and ACHDV are a new and exciting tool and we are going to have to learn how to use them.

After many telephone calls seeking advice from friends, club members, professionals both from TV and film I offer you the answers and the new questions that arise in as simplistic terms as I can understand. Last night at the club I made use of our recently bought projector and another film in HDV that had had a much better reception at the festival (that means more points), a holiday film from Rajasthan. (a very good one) My images on our projector looked much better and with some manipulation of the projector “tools” even better. One scene on the Rajasthan film had a similar lack of contrast that had occurred in many scenes on my film. “What did you do to that scene”? I asked. “I made an adjustment to the colour so that it would match the previous clip”. Light shone at the end of the tunnel.

• HD is HIGH DEFINITION and it is what it says on the packet HD. In the sixties I used to have an old Austin 7 which I kept on the road with the aid of a hammer, screwdriver and an adjustable spanner. Try doing that with a modern high performance car.
• All modern TV’s have a built in processor. This processor manipulates the digital signals to insure you receive perfect images from your favourite TV channel.
• Projectors do not have that processor. What you see projected is the image you created.
• Projectors, at least the newest ones (the one at our club is a few months old) have a mass of manual controls and filters that you can use to manipulate so that you can improve your image. We can not expect film clubs or competition organizers to adjust projectors for every film.

So what can we do, I offer the following solution.

• Make sure your images are perfect when you make the film, no room for mistakes. This is more difficult when one makes a short film using lighting and you want to create those wonderful “film looks” you see when you go to the cinema. Less difficult if you film in Africa or Rajasthan when you have a huge advantage called the SUN.
• Do not use a separate HDV domestic TV monitor when editing use only the computer screen. It still will not give exactly the image you will see projected but much closer than the TV screen.
• Look at your Edit programme and ask yourself why has it got all these features and why do I need them for example the Vector scope,
• This now, is the worst news I bring you. If you want to really improve and ensure more perfect images you will have to buy a calibrated monitor. “Watching your footage, while shooting or editing, on a calibrated monitor is vital for getting good video.” "The colors you see on your computer, no matter how expensive your computer monitor, will not look the same on a television set or projected. The computer has a different color range, as well as different latitude in contrast or gamma curve.

So when you really want to work with HDV,ACHVD or even 3D in two years time rememmber the real costs

Oh dear my wife is going to kill me I have just bought the new Sony The new HXR-NX5U and I told her, I promised her I would not spend any more on equipment.
I hope my experiences over the last week help others.

Tony

22nd April 2010

PS Thanks Dave re translation

[Brian Saberton]

Regarding calibration. As far as I know all monitors can be calibrated. On my main computer I have Windows XP and used Adobe Gamma to calibrate the monitor. There is a wizard to guide you through the process. My lap top has windows vista but Adobe Gamma didn't work so I adjusted the calibration in the properties for the graphics card. I think I'm correct in saying that Windows 7 contains a calibration tool but I don't have any direct experience of this system.

[billyfromConsett]

I don't accept that a calibrated monitor is needed to edit HDV. And however colour-accurate you think you've made your film, they will not look the same via two different projectors!

I would say frame accurate lip-sync is far more troublesome than colour-accuracy, thanks to the processing in projectors.

[Tony Grant]

Yes it is true all computer monitors can be calibrated with a host of magic downloads and well priced programmes but I repeat “The colours you see on your computer, no matter how expensive your computer monitor, will not look the same on a television set or projected. The computer has a different colour range, as well as different latitude in contrast or gamma curve’

I believe that if you want to colour grade your movie to create the exciting colours and effects seen at the cinema you will have to use a professional calibrated monitor and it would be better if you have one that is portable if you intend to make short film scripts to use at the location.

My findings show that if you mess about with colours in ACHDV and HDV more than e few clicks of either way you will find you have problems that only professional equipment and a lot of learning will over come.

I spoke to a BBC reporter some months ago who was using a Sony HDV camera and he was filming in DV.for a news documentary. I asked him why and he said that the BBC find that productions costs using HDV for every production would be too expensive and takes longer at the edit desk. I now know what he meant.

Holiday filmers you have nothing to worry about your images will look fantastc as long as you film as you always do (except in Scotland) in perfect weather.

Reference lip-sync please tell me more do not follow.

TTFN

Tony

[Brian Saberton]

Maybe I'm just lucky but I find that on my system the colours I see on my monitor look the same when copied out to tape and projected, and that applies both to films and audio visual sequences as well as pictures I produce for creating colour prints. Indeed one of my films was shown at BIAFF on Saturday and, to my eye at least, the picture and colour quality appeared to be exactly the same as on my own home screen and was more than acceptable. Obviously if you need to get into colour grading on individual seqeunces then that's a whole different ball game where you would need a professional standard of equipment that is probably well beyond the resources of most amateurs. I was hoping to add that this reply was written on a very sunny Scottish day but it has now started to rain. Drat!

[billyfromConsett]

I thought the BBC use DV in news reporting for drop-out avoidance reasons. But I edit in HDV, and that's how I'll stay for the time being - with Higher res, maybe AVCHD later down the road.