Panasonic AG HVX200

[bing_chandler]

Hello all,

I am new to this forum. I am planning to make a full length feature film and exhibit in theatres.

Planning to buy Panasonic AG HVX 200 camera.

Not sure what adapters I would need for getting the 35mm look.

Any advice is truly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

 

[The Bear]

in some editing software you can put in a film look in post

 

[The Bear]

in some editing software you can put in a film look in post

 

[PompeyPete]

Film 'Looks'

Film 'Looks'

A couple of tips for what they're worth.

Short of using a RED or a Panavision Genesis, you wont get the 35mm film look with an HD camera. The problem being that the likes of the Pana HVX & the Canon XHA1/XLH1 lenses and chips just don't have the ability to represent the focal/colour depth and resolution of film.

Having said that there are a few things you can do increase the film look of HD footage. Using the Pana HVX200 is a good start. This camera shoots in 720p/25p. Progressive formats tend to result in a footage that looks more 'like' film than the interlaced formats. Also, should you want to take advantage of the HVX200's 'in camera' slow motion, you will NEED to shoot in 720p. Also the settings on the back of the HVX200, the Scene File ring give you the options for 'Cinema Style' looks with higher dynamic range and contrasts.

I am a Final Cut Studio user but I would presume that the Adobe CS3 Production Suite would have very similar features.

I recently began to use Apple's new Color (Colour where I am from) software (Part of FCS2) and there is pretty much an infinite amount of post production colour correction or manipulation that you can do. Including standard "Film Look' filters included and a huge number of plug ins to perform the same job. Color gives you the ability to manipulate all the hue, saturation and luminence (HSL) values in a shot, scene or whole film or just a small part of the same. Once you have the look you are going for, you can save that look and apply it to your whole film.

You can use Motion (or After Effects) to create focal depth changes in shots that have none.

Having said all of that, one of the best ways to be able to get your HD/DV to look as close to film as it is possible to get it, is to light and shoot it correctly. An HD monitor on set is a great asset, so you can see exactly how your shots look as you set them up.

Play with everything available to you if you can get access to it, shoot test shots and scenes etc Shoot colour charts (www.dsclabs.com) it will make your life alot easier in the long run.

Also, read, read, read....there are so many great books written by very intelligent and knowledgable people who know all this stuff, far more than a mere amateur like me :0)

Hope this is of some help.

 

[PompeyPete]

Canon XLH1

Canon XLH1

I forgot to mention, you may want to consider this camera. There are some definite pros and cons to both these cameras. You may want to hire one out or borrow one and do some test shots with it, especially if you are going to shoot anything in low light.

The Lieca lens on the Panasonic struggles in low light, as I have been told do the Zeiss lenses on the Sony range of HDV cameras. HDV is the downfall of the Canon, if this concerns you. The HDV although 1080i is a far more compressed form of HD than what is available on the HVX200, it is not 1920x1080, off the top of my head I think it's 1440x1080i. If this compression doesn't bother you, the Canon L series Fluorite HD lens is excellent. They make superb photographic lenses and that transposes across to their video lenses. The other cool thing about the Canon is the EFXL adaptor, although there is a 1.7x lens factor, this allows the connection of connection of L series Canon EF photographic lenses. I am lead to believe there is also a third party adaptor available for other lenses as well but they would suffer from the same lens factor fate as the Canon's.

For me the interchangeable Canon lenses and the quality of those lenses may surpass the P2 system and the 720p and higher resolution HD formats available in the HVX200. I am still running tests and trying to ascertain which one these cameras I am going to shoot the next film with.

PS Canon XLH1 is a fair bit more expensive :0) Can capture via HD-SDI and FW to hard drive or deck directly.

 

[ralck]

Another way to get the film look is to use a 35mm adapter. This allows your camera to use a 35mm lens (SLR or film) to get a very shallow depth of field. This is one of the most common differences in film and digital video (film often has a shallow depth of field and DV has a very large DoF).
35mm adapters can be expensive, but you could always try making your own.

Of course, nothing says you have to have a shallow DoF. Look at Citizen Kane- that was shot with a very large DoF.

Other than that, keep in mind lighting, composition, what is in the background and what isn't, sound (sound is a lot bigger than most people realize: try thinking about it as 70% of the movie and what you see as the other 30% and see how a short you produce like this comes out), placement on screen of talent and props, placement of talent to other talent, and also camera movement.

Basically, to get the film look, you can't just buy any camera (even a high end $40k camera) and point and shoot. It takes practice, commitment, planning, and most of all, patience.