High Definition

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High Definition

Just upgraded from making iMovies with 30 second clips from a stills camera to making them with a Sony High Definition Camcorder, HDR-HC7E(DV Tape) and would appreciate some advice on a few things regarding the 1080i high definition-I have made a few of these in iMovie and export them back to the camcorder for viewing through an HDTV. Since I have not yet bought the latter, I cannot view in HD.

The first question is what happens to stills(say from iPhoto) imported into an HD project in iMovie. I use stills selectively not only in the canned themes but also with a Ken burns effect to make some point in the movie. Specifically, does iMovie convert the imported still into a high definition clip if the project is high definition and does it matter?

Secondly, when exporting directly back to camcorder or via a file, a menu box pops up at or near the end of the transfer and asks if you want to make another copy. If you click no thanks the camcorder is disconnected. Is this what should happen?

Thirdly, can anybody recommend any useful sites/books for getting the best out of camcorder audio accessories- I have a clip on Lavalier which seems straightforward and substantially improves commentary audio whilst filming but I do not really know how to make the most of the shotgun mike which I also have.

Finally an observation. This camcorder is fantastic and works well with iMovie.

iMac G5, Mac OS X (10.4.10), 2GB RAM 400GB Hard Disc

Posted on Jul 25, 2007 9:04 AM

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Answer 1

Jul 25, 2007 9:20 AM in response to tom lawrence

1) Yes, the still becomes high def.

2) I think so. You are finished working with iMovie, right? ;-)

3) I haven't got a clue. Sorry.

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Answer 2

tom lawrence Author

Level 1

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Jul 25, 2007 9:24 AM in response to Lennart Thelander

Thanks Lennart. 2 out of 3 is good enough for me.

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Answer 3

Jul 25, 2007 10:50 AM in response to tom lawrence

Congratulations!

For a few hints on using mics, scroll down to Hint 6 here.

You don't say which "..shotgun mike which I also have.." ..there are some Sony add-on mics, and there are other brands (..I use Beyerdynamic 72 and 86S mics).

You have to be careful that the mic you're using isn't a mono mic - many, or most, shotgun mics are - which will mean that you'll have to 'Extract' your audio in iMovie and feed it through GarageBand, or some other audio editor, in order to put the one audio channel onto both side of the stereo signal.

Otherwise, you can easily make a little plug'n'socket adaptor which feeds the left, or right, mono signal to both sides of your camcorder's external mic input.

A few shotgun mics are stereo ..ah! dinner calls! ..I'll be back later..

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Answer 4

Jul 25, 2007 10:14 PM in response to tom lawrence

<Finally an observation. This camcorder is fantastic and works well with iMovie.

It is a great camera!

Just a personal point.

1080i will be obsolete when 1080p becomes available.

I am waiting for the release of the new line of 1080p cameras. I hope by then blu-ray DVD burners and players will come down in cost so you can actually burn and watch HD DVD's.

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Answer 5

Jul 26, 2007 5:38 AM in response to David Babsky

..mmm. delicious..

Where was I..?

Sony's own mics for your camcorder are shown here (click on that link), and they clip onto the camera's 'Accessory Shoe'. Other mics can be plugged into the mic socket at the front of the camcorder.

Note that Sony cams have a 'plug-in power' socket for external microphones: that means that low voltage power is provided inside the microphone socket, to power those mics which can make use of that, instead of their needing a separate battery of their own. Not all external mics are wired the right way to make use of that. So MOST external mics work OK when plugged into a Sony; SOME work excellently, without needing a separate battery of their own (e.g; the wonderful little Vivanco EM216, which has terrific bass for a stereo mic so tiny!); and SOME mics give very poor results in that Sony external mic socket, because their own internal wiring is incompatible with the way that Sony send a low voltage though the socket. "Try before you buy" is the best motto.

Your own clip-on 'Lavalier' mic must be one of those which does work well with Sonys.

Many people buy the popular ' Audio-technica'-brand shotgun mics, but I'm very disappointed by them, finding them rather "thin" and "tinny", but - as with all mics - you've nothing to compare them with till you DO compare them with other brands of a similar type ..and perhaps many people are satisfied with them - or perhaps they've bought them, and then discarded them.

You don't say which shotgun mic you have.

You say "..I do not really know how to make the most of the shotgun mike which I also have.."

Generally, a shotgun mic picks up sound from directly ahead, and good sound from perhaps 6 feet (2 metres) away. But it WON'T pick up much sound from the sides, or behind it.

So you wouldn't use one at a party - because you'd miss all the general noise and "atmosphere" all around - unless someone was giving a speech, and you wanted to clearly pick up everything they said instead of it being drowned in the general noise, in which case you'd point the shotgun mic directly at them. So you'd use it at a wedding, to pick up the minister's words, and the bride's and groom's, and for speeches; but you wouldn't use it at a fairground, or a beach, or anywhere you wanted to pick up sound from all around.

It's like a telescope; it doesn't pick up what's everywhere around and nearby, but it picks up, and sharply focuses on, what's rather more distant. You wouldn't use one to record a conversation, unless the people talking were right next to each other and a few feet in front of you ..because it would pick up only the one person it's pointed at, and wouldn't pick up any others. But you WOULD use it to distinctly pick up someone at the other end of a fairly quiet room; someone giving a talk or a speech, or someone on stage, or the striking of a distant clock, or a distant whispered conversation.

Outdoors, shotguns can be quite susceptible to wind noise, so they generally come with a "windshield", but you often get better results with a specialist "fuzzy" cover such as a " Rycote".

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Answer 6

Jul 26, 2007 9:20 AM in response to Vernon Alexander

ob·so·lete /ˌɒbsəˈlit, ˈɒbsəˌlit/ –adjective
1. no longer in general use; fallen into disuse

I don't think 1080i will fall into this definition for quite some time.

Regardless, you'll never successfully wait out technology. When 1080p camcorders become widely available, there will be varying degrees of lens quality, imaging sensor quality, audio quality, storage space/format, etc. Then there's 2160p...

My vote - the jump from SD (480i) to 1080i is huge compared to 1080i to 1080p. If you have a reason to make the move now and you have the $$$, do it. Worry about the Jonses later.

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Answer 7

Jul 26, 2007 9:25 AM in response to Vernon Alexander

ob·so·lete /ˌɒbsəˈlit, ˈɒbsəˌlit/ –adjective
1. no longer in general use; fallen into disuse

I don't think 1080i will fall into this definition for quite some time.

Regardless, you'll never successfully wait out technology. When 1080p camcorders become widely available, there will be varying degrees of lens quality, imaging sensor quality, audio quality, storage space/format, etc. Then there's 2160p...

My vote - the jump from SD (480i) to 1080i is huge compared to 1080i to 1080p. If you have a reason to make the move now and you have the $$$, do it. Worry about the Jonses later.

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Answer 8

Jul 26, 2007 9:30 AM in response to Vernon Alexander

1080i will be obsolete when 1080p becomes available.

Why? 1080i is better for sports and fast action with its double frame rate.

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Answer 9

Jul 26, 2007 9:48 AM in response to Lennart Thelander

1080i is better for sports and fast action with its double frame rate.

It is the pixilated cross-fades and scene changes.

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Answer 10

tom lawrence Author

Level 1

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Jul 26, 2007 10:01 AM in response to David Babsky

Thank you for taking the time to reply in such depth David. Glad you enjoyed your meal break.

I thought you might like a little more background.

The shotgun mike is the Sony ECM-Z37C and to fit it to the camcorder I needed the Bescor VB-50 bracket.

The Lavalier is the Audio Technica AT803B Miniature wired clip-on with an XLR connection. Because the camcorder has a stereo mini connection, I also needed the Hosa Matching Trans XLR/F-Stereo Mini/M HOMIT156 adaptor cable.

Before you think I may know more than I am letting on, the above Mikes were recommended by the videographer sales person at B&H New York. Their expertise and service was great. And the reason I even thought of getting extra mikes in the first place was good old David Pogue and his book iMovie6.

I bought the camcorder and a load of accessories from B&H because of their expertise and also because of the favourable $/£ exchange rate. I now live in Switzerland, which also meant I paid Swiss import duty- only 7.6% against 17.5% in the UK. The total savings were considerable even allowing for having to get a MACK 2 year guarantee and the delivery charges.

My reason for choosing Sony HDR-HC7 came from another videographer who actually set up a discussion forum on MacRumors dedicated solely to this camcorder. He preferred it to the Canon HV20 because the Sony has a Lanc port-he and I wanted to be able to use a Lanc stand- and some small extras like slow motion. I believe the quality is similar though you get some friendly carping about low light shooting quality, difficult to use manual controls,etc. Personally, these are just additional challenges and have not spoiled my own experience.

On the basis of the MacRumors forum, I also bought a Sony wide angle conversion lens(VCL-HG0737C) which is permanently attached, the Sony NP-FH100 5 Hour Lithium spare battery,the Sony AV-VGH10 adaptor/charger, and a few other bits and pieces like the right firewire cable to link to the Mac, a Petrol carrying bag, and an HDMI cable to link camcorder to HDTV. B&H recommended Panasonic AY-DV63PQ Prof 63 minute DV Tape for recording.

I am fascinated by the power of iMovie and iDVD and the challenge of making 10 to 20 minute films from 30 second Quicktime recordings on a stills camera, interlaced sometimes with Ken Burns photos, and then burning several films onto a DVD got me hooked.

I realised, though, that in order to substantially improve content it was particularly necessary to get a good camcorder, and also to do something additional with the sound. I guess my background in advertising and publishing helps creatively but, technically, I have had to start from scratch.

A few last points since somebody mentioned the 1080p. I realised that a camcorder is out of date almost the same day as you get it but you have to start somewhere. Secondly, I am very lucky since my son treated me to this package. Thirdly, he made the mistake of getting a Sony hard drive camcorder to begin with and which,of course, is not compatible with Mac. This set me off on the research for the right camcorder and the realisation that the demise of DV tape is not imminent and that the hard drive and DVD camcorders are aiming at slightly different markets.

The expertise in these columns and others is staggering. The enthusiasm is superb. And the patience and willingness to help impressive. So please keep it coming since it is much appreciated and teaching me and others a lot.

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Answer 11

Jul 26, 2007 10:59 AM in response to Brian Bossler

ob·so·lete /ˌɒbsəˈlit, ˈɒbsəˌlit/ –adjective
1. no longer in general use; fallen into disuse

Ummm.....no

2. of a discarded or outmoded type; out of date:

Yes 480i to 1080i is a huge leap, just not a complete one.

It is very clear (no pun intended) that 1080p is the new standard. Movies in HD DVD, HD DVD players and HDTV are moving to 1080p.

The professional level video cameras are 1080p. That means consumer level Hi Def. camcorders should be right around the corner.

I am waiting for Leopard and 1080p. The Sony blu-ray DVD burners at Fry's were selling out. Only one left on the shelf.

OT - Sony offers a laptop computer with blu-ray.

http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/SYCTOProcess?catalogId=10551& storeId=10151&langId=-1&LBomId=8198552921665167488

HURRY UP APPLE!!!!!

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Answer 12

Jul 26, 2007 11:11 PM in response to tom lawrence

Well, as I said before: congratulations. You've put some thought into this.

I find that Sony mics (..in fact many Japanese mics..) sound a bit "thin", and your Sony ECM-Z37C has a frequency response of only 100-10,000Hz (and it's mono), meaning that although the camera shoots a great HDV video picture, the sound will be only 'half there' (it's mono) and there'll be no bass, and not much 'top' ..so the sound will be rather like that from a good quality telephone.

Your 'shotgun' mic, too, is mono, so although its frequency response is far greater (30-20,000 Hz, meaning more bass at the lower end - down to 30Hz instead of 100Hz - and more treble - up to 20kHz instead of only 10kHz) you're still getting only 'half' the complete "width" which a stereo mic gives.

Don't worry! ..But be aware that if you're going for good video, it's also worthwhile going for suitably good audio to complement it. (After all, you have chosen to get a high-definition camcorder..)

It was an excellent idea to get a wide-angle adaptor. Your 0.7x adaptor gives something like an extra one third width to the picture, which you certainly need indoors.

Your comment that "..the demise of DV tape is not imminent and that the hard drive and DVD camcorders are aiming at slightly different markets.." is spot on! Diesel engines were put into cars because they were cheaper to run, a bit more 'robust', and don't have electrical problems ..but that hasn't killed petrol (gas) engines.

I don't have time right now, but in a few days I'll put up a comparison QuickTime movie of sound from an HC camcorder, a Sony ECM mic, a little Vivanco 'Lavalier' (tie-clip) mic and a couple of Beyer mics, and then you'll be able to hear the differences between them ..and the differences between recording in mono and stereo. (Different stereo mics can have quite different sound characteristics.)

"..B&H recommended Panasonic AY-DV63PQ Prof 63 minute DV Tape for recording.." ..I don't know if it still applies, but it used to be the received wisdom NOT to mix different brands and types of recording tape, because different manufacturers (..though sometimes brands are the same tape, but in different wrappers..) were said to use different - possibly incompatible - lubricants in their tapes. By mixing tape brands it was possible to "gum up" video heads, as the different tape lubricants didn't "play well" with each other, and could cause head clogs.

I mention this because the 'Professional' tape is much more expensive than general purpose (Sony, JVC, Maxell, Panasonic etc) tape, and you might be tempted to change after a while to a cheaper type. Try to stick (no pun) with one brand and type, and that should avoid head clog.

Your G5 iMac and 2GB RAM may be fast enough to import HDV material at "real time" speed, but be prepared to find that your Mac isn't fast enough, after all, and that importing HDV may take up to twice as long as "real time" ..so importing half an hour of HDV from the camera may take an hour. (That doesn't happen with normal standard-def DV.) It's because your Mac has to convert the HDV footage "on-the-fly", while it imports, into a format which iMovie can edit (..it's not editable in its native MPEG format on the tape).

If you start to shoot a lot of HDV, you may later want to think about 'upgrading' your Mac to a faster machine.

For a few other general hints about Shooting, try these Shooting Hints, here..

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Answer 13

tom lawrence Author

Level 1

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Jul 27, 2007 10:37 AM in response to David Babsky

*I find that Sony mics (..in fact many Japanese mics..) sound a bit "thin", and your Sony ECM-Z37C has a frequency response of only 100-10,000Hz (and it's mono), meaning that although the camera shoots a great HDV video picture, the sound will be only 'half there' (it's mono) and there'll be no bass, and not much 'top' ..so the sound will be rather like that from a good quality telephone.*

*Your 'shotgun' mic, too, is mono, so although its frequency response is far greater (30-20,000 Hz, meaning more bass at the lower end - down to 30Hz instead of 100Hz - and more treble - up to 20kHz instead of only 10kHz) you're still getting only 'half' the complete "width" which a stereo mic gives.*

Thanks again David. I clearly need to master what I have and your suggestions will all be studied and tried. You have also convinced me to get a stereo mike sometime in the future

Slightly confused on the ECM-Z37C because it talks about stereo sound in its product description and then switches in the description to mono sound. Perhaps a typo. By the way, this is what I am calling the shotgun mike and it has its own battery plus it plugs into the front of the camcorder. I am told that it is an advantage to have it on the separate bracket because it removes it well away from the sound of the camcorder when recording. It is also easy to use the bracket to hold the camcorder when filming without the stand. Still early days in trials but I have noted your helpful ideas on WHEN to use it.

Your second para above has gone over my head. Are you referring to the clip-on? Are there stereo clip-ons? My trials of the clip-on have indicated much better quality than the camcorder built in mike in both outdoor and indoor situations which is encouraging.

My next audio trial is with the camcorder built-in mike and of a busy national day parade-so lots of ambient noise,crowds,marching bands,etc. I assume the built-in mike is also mono.

Can you explain a little more your ideas for converting the audio to stereo in Garageband. Afraid I did not understand. Neither did I grasp your point about building an adaptor for the camcorder to achieve the same result. Sorry but do these suggestions give you true stereo?

Finally, I visited your website, the link for which you provided earlier, and copied your 10 hints thank you. All the best.

ps If I can make the grade with the current equipment then ,maybe, I will upgrade to the Final Cut Suite and at the same time a really powerful computer. But that is a few years away I think. In the meanwhile my current computer whilst not importing HD in real time is just about acceptable.

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Answer 14

Jul 29, 2007 4:35 AM in response to tom lawrence

Sorry; a typo ..my mistake: in para 2 "..Your ' shotgun' mic, too, is mono.." I meant to say "Your ' Lavalier' (clip-on) mic.."

..You're right when you say "..My trials of the clip-on have indicated much better quality than the camcorder built in mike.." ..that correlates with my comment "its frequency response is far greater (30-20,000 Hz, meaning more bass at the lower end - down to 30Hz instead of 100Hz - and more treble - up to 20kHz instead of only 10kHz)".

It is a good mic; and will deliver good sound.

"..I assume the built-in mike is also mono.." ..No; the camcorder's own mic is stereo. And yes, there are stereo clip-ons ..that Vivanco EM 216 I mentioned (above) for example. (Should be easy to obtain in Switzerland; made in Taiwan, but marketed by Vivanco of Germany.) Try plugging in a pair of headphones (into the camera's headphones socket) and you'll notice that the camcorder's own mic is stereo.

"..your ideas for converting the audio to stereo in Garageband. Afraid I did not understand. Neither did I grasp your point about building an adaptor for the camcorder to achieve the same result. Sorry but do these suggestions give you true stereo?.." ..No; they just give exactly the same mono out of both the left and right channels.

More later ..but now I've got to go and feed the cat/reconnect the answering machine/charge my mobile phone/check the time-lapse recording of those orchids in the bathroom..

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Answer 15

tom lawrence Author

Level 1

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Jul 30, 2007 8:13 AM in response to David Babsky

Thanks for clarifying things David. Your enthusiasm is infectious.

It is good to know that the mono clip on mike I bought is superior to the stereo within the camera.

I will now experiment a little more with the mono shotgun mike with a view to possibly upgrading to one of the stereo shotgun mikes you mentioned.

Still not fully clear if it makes any difference running the sound through two channels or indeed how to achieve that with mono mikes.

I have tried the camcorder film through my normal TV which is also hooked up to my Hi Fi and I do get sound out of both Hi Fi speakers plus the TV. Although not true stereo, it does sound pretty good to my ears. I also experienced the same result after burning a DVD. Nevertheless, I will persevere along the learning curve.

Really looking forward to getting that HD TV.

Thanks again.

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