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Varicam under/over cranked ?


Guest Jeff Colon

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Guest Jeff Colon

I am working a spot this week being shot on varicam...using Zeiss primes, Nice!

I did not realise that the varicam can be speed cranked while rolling, apparently the shutter is auto compensated.

I assume this will have no effect on audio but I am a little confused.... too little sleep.  Does anyone know if audio is an issue when the camera's frame rate is changed during a shot?  Sound is only being recorded "in Camera" and during primary sound takes the frame rate is not being changed...just b roll.

ThX

Jeff Colon

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Hi, Jeff

What Dave says makes sense, since the tape runs at the same speed, and the overcranking is done by a combo of altering the output of the imaging chips and the shutter.

The Pro35 lens adaptor does make some noise. It has a motor that oscillates the ground glass inside. I only really heard it on wide lens closeups and in a really live practical location.

Jim

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The Varicam runs @ the same frame rate all the time: 60 fps.  It uses a system of frame-flagging to tell the system which frames to play back, and there are a number of other settings that affect the apparent frame rate as well, including shutter (and these decisions can be changed in post).  On a film shoot everyone would assume that audio recorded during a shot that was cranked @ "other-than-sound-speed" would be a wild track--on video I'd go ahead and work as you normally do and the editors can retrieve the sound from that shot if they want it.

Philip Perkins

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And just to add to what Jim mentioned. I did a shoot with a similar setup, and the lens adaptor with the motor can be troublesome. But ask if they can get a barney for it, and also, if you find you are hearing it, ask them to change the speed. The speed change really helped in a few shots where the sound was a little intrusive.

Actually, that reminds me, i sort of got used to the slight background noise the motor makes (it wasn't interfering, but i could just hear it with my headphones cranked). We shot a scene where the sound just disapeared. I realised that the operator forgot to turn it back on. So at the end of the take when asked if it was good for everyone, i said "camera would like to do it again" The A.D. sorta looked at me weird, and then i said "This time they're gonna do it with the lens adaptor turned on !" We had a good chuckle at that one. Luckily the DOP, the Operator and I were all friends, so I could get away with that one !

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Guest Jeff Colon

Thanks all,

We are going as slow as 6fps and doing some time lapse... Sound is (probably) not an issue, but I always record ambience when rolling...  If the lens is making noise, I cannot hear it as we are mostly on a 70...at least 15 ft away from foreground... today, a cold,rainy day in the marsh, good for ducks...bad for sound ;-)

jeff c

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Guest Jeff Colon

Hi all,

I did not realise Zeiss is manufacturing lenses specifically for use on HD videocams. this is what we're using.

http://www.digiprimes.com/2005/reviews/1000.shtml

No Pro35 adaptor... no noise at all.

JC

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NTSC

All panasonic camera's run at 60i, all the time. All panasonic camera's run timecode at 29.97, all the time. Your choice ND or DF.

During slow speed (4fps) shooting with the varicam you should record audio externally.

Actually that's 60p! :-)  Also, the timecode is ND only at 24fps, DF is available at all other frame rates.

---Matt

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Well, then I guess we are both partially right.  The VariCam is a progressive scan camera and never does anything interlaced.  Drop frame is available at all rates except 24.

The HDX can record interlaced as well as progressive.  The SDX being basically an NTSC camera is interlaced.  Can't find any info in the HDX manual if it will force the TC to ND at 24.

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