How do you make home movies into "broadcast" quality?

[Kenneth]

If you take a look at footage shot from a regular DV camera, then compare it with what you see on regular TV, say a commercial, an HBO movie etc. You'll immediately notice its... different somehow. I can't quite put my finger on it. On regular TV its... different... I just can't explain it.

Has it got something to do with the framerate? Are the colors more saturated? Is it because TV is uncompressed broadcast quality?

And is there a way or trick to give my home movies this "broadcast quality" look using maybe FCP? That would really be a nice change from the regular look.

Thanks

[markinton]

I think its the frame rate. Film has 24 fps. while video has 30. film's 24 fps gives that softer image look and better control on the depth of field.

[bagwis]

Compression really does it. Commercials are shot on film and video that are uncompressed. Film is then transfered to video and digitized without any compression, thus the broadcast quality result. Formats popular for these are Betacam and Digital betacam.

As mentioned above, film is 24 frames a second, while video is 30 fps.

There is a Film Effect in FCP but IMO, it still does not do the trick.

Key here is the video materials you've shot. No matter how great your post production facilities are, they won't really matter if your materials are not well planned and well shot, compressed or uncompressed. On the other hand, no matter how cheap your NLE software and hardware are, if your materials are well shot and planned, they would still come out great, compressed or uncompressed! Of course, having good materials and a competent post-production facility would give you best results.

Since you're into photography, yags, you might want to experiment on your shoots. Try shooting like a photographer, or a cinematographer. Play with the colors/contrast/speed of your materials either with FCP or if you have Adobe After Effects, the better. You could try strobing your video if you're not too happy with the Film Effect filter. :beer:

[Kenneth]

Thanks a lot for the replies guys.

Thats very true bagwis, and not just in film/video production. Garbage in, garbage out.

I just wanted to know if I could transform my home movies to give it more style. Well, I guess I'll be needing something like this instead



Magmumukha na talaga akong cameraman ng ABS-CBN.

[Edited on 5-28-2004 by Yagballs]

[de2]

if you have a prosumer camera (say panasonic) they have the option where u can shoot in 24fps.

if you use Canon's XL1s - it already has a soft look - maybe it is their lens ... great for weddings, IMHO. or you can use Canon's "Movie Mode" or Frame Mode in other cameras.

you can also play around with your aspect ratio - say 16:9? don't use the Cameras built in! doesn't give us much option for editing.

you can buy filters to make it look soft - or to save more, use your wife's or girlfriends leg nylons/stockings.

if your camera has manual controls - use that to control depth of field.

hope this helps.

[potemkin]

as much as it is about how your footage was shot (camera settings), i think a huge part of it is to pay attention to the lighting of your shot. You should know the limitations of your camera. like alot of Consumer Dv cameras do not react well to shots with a very intense light source.

what i usually do is to try and light it well and then bring it to AE. Then in AE i posterize the time to give it the motion of 24p.

[de2]

i found this at KenStone on the HOW-TO's using FCP and QuickTime PRO.

bit old but principle still works.

hope this helps.

http://www.kenstone.net/fcp_homepage/film_look.html

[extremyks]

Also take note most consumer DV cams are single CCD chip while those pro DV cams comes in 3CCDs and bigger size. But now you may find some pro-sumer cams equipped with 3CCDs already.

[bagwis]

Originally posted by potemkin
as much as it is about how your footage was shot (camera settings), i think a huge part of it is to pay attention to the lighting of your shot. You should know the limitations of your camera. like alot of Consumer Dv cameras do not react well to shots with a very intense light source.

what i usually do is to try and light it well and then bring it to AE. Then in AE i posterize the time to give it the motion of 24p.

Thus the need for lighting directors, and for film and video shoots, D.O.P.'s or Director of Photography, cinematographer. This is quite a lucrative career as of the moment. KOnti pa lang ang mga matitinik na DOP/Cinematographer sa Pilipinas.

TIPS (I'm sure most of you know this already) Harsh lights have work arounds. Sometimes, in weddings, i could see red heads just pointed straight at the subject, thus creating a "sunog" or washed out shot and video materials. While you could use these lights and point them straight on the subject, you could diffuse it's power by using tracing paper and colored gels. You could also move farther from the subject at times.

[Edited on 5-29-2004 by bagwis]

[Bob Serrano]

Comparing the quality of an HBO movie to that of a home video is a bit like comparing a go-cart to a S-type Jaguar. (Sorry--don't mean to sound sarcastic). As many of the responses so far point out, much of it has to do with 2 things: Quality of tools and standards.

Your 'typical' HBO movie was probably shot in 35mm film. Everything from the color depth to gamut (family of colors associated with film) is galaxies apart form a home video. Firstly, film resolution is dictated by emulsion and grain density while video resolution is computed in scan lines and horizontal resolution--a 'course' approximation by comparison. There are too many differences between video and film to discuss here. But thanks to modern technology, the abyss which used to separate the worlds of film and video has been reduced to almost a crack in the pavement. There are CCDs (charge-coupled devices--the sensors which act like electronic eyes) which are so refined and large that they now resolve as much if not more colors and lines than some film stocks). There are now digital video cameras that can be over- and undercranked (such as the Panasonic VariCam). Over/Undercranking is the method of shooting at a higher frame rate to achieve a "true" slo-mo instead of slowing down standard 30fps video, which works by interpolation. Almost all professional digital video cameras have interchangeable lenses (many with the same lens mounts as Arriflex film cameras).

The most sophisticated of these digital cameras have already been used in major feature films (StarWars prequels). But let's get back to earth. There are 'Prosumer' (professional consumer) cameras which are in the price range of 3 to 5K USD which create a reasonable facsimile of the film experience (what I think you are referring to as 'broadcast quality&#039. The Panasonic AG-DVX100 and 100A are such examples. Not only do these enable you to shoot in 24 frames per second like film, but they have a switch which changes the gamut to film gamut.

In a nutshell, generally speaking, film gamut or 'colors' are 'warmer' in quality, compared to the cold, often 'greenish' quality of standard video in comparison. In film, you may not notice it, but the blacks are 'crushed' which, in layman's terms, means they appear darker and actually less defined. Look at shadows in film--there is very little detail definition. Look at shadows in video--you can see almost everything. In fact, this is one of the color qualities you 'can't quite put a finger on' when comparing the two. You will hear comments like "video looks too clear--too crisp in comparison to film"--which is true in certain respects. Skin tones also appear 'warmer' in film. And all this is just touching on the subject of color. The other aspects like emulsion blur, shutter/motion blur, depth of field, etc. will be the subject of even longer discussions.

In conclusion, there are certain things you can do to video which will help make it more 'broadcast quality'. Quite frankly, lighting, composition and the proper use of lenses and knowledge of framing, light, and shadow, probably have more impact than anything else. I've already said my piece about the technological part. If you can combine everything while not breaking the bank, I guess that would be the proverbial "silver bullet". :roll: