Level 2

179 points

Technical Help with Formats

Hello all, this is my first post and I'm hoping someone here can provide some advice on several fronts.

I'm self taught in FCP, have mostly done hobby-type videos, and only updated to FCPX this year (from Final Cut Studio 5). My knowledge of videocamera technology is severely outdated, as I am using an older model videocamera, the Canon Vixia HF S20, which shoots AVCHD/MTS. Then with a recent FCPX and OS update, my AVCHD footage imported ok, but I started seeing artifacting across the top in a horizontal bar. After the most recent update, it wouldn't import the files at all. I believe I've solved this issue today by downloading EditReady and transcoding to ProRes first.

I have a larger video project I'm beginning tomorrow and as a result of my AVCHD problem, I shot some test footage over the weekend on my Canon DSLR, the Rebel T6i, thinking I could use it instead. The test interview I shot looked really sharply focused, although I could not smoothly zoom with my 18-55mm kit lens. General video of people walking in the distance also looks sharp, until I try to zoom and then it loses focus. A local camera shop told me yesterday that I'm one version behind on my camera for achieving good video. The Rebel T7 has better video capabilities. I've never had anything to compare my videocamera quality to until I shot with my DSLR and now in looking at my Vixia camcorder footage, I'm seeing interlacing that's not present with the DSLR footage. See screenshots below.

Is this a transcoding problem, a FCPX timeline setting, or just an old camera with old technology? The Vixia shoots in 1080p/AVCHD/MTS and has an optical sensor size of 1/2.6". Can I achieve a higher quality output with this footage or do I need to update to a newer videocamera? If so, what are the specs I need to look for in a videocamera? I have a budget of less than $2000 for a new camera, as this was an unexpected issue. I'm hoping I can work with what I've got, but I'm concerned about the quality now that I compare it to my DSLR, which is not really equipped to handle zooming and focusing like a regular videocamera.

I am learning FCPX and now with this camera issue and a new project about to start, I'm feeling a bit out of my league. Can anyone offer some suggestions on how I can improve the quality of the video from this camera? I'm hoping I just have a setting wrong someplace. If I need a new camera, can someone make a recommendation? Do I need to look for a non-AVCHD format camera, or is transcoding the footage before importing into FCPX a normal part of the workflow? I've always been able to import directly from the card.

Thank you for any help. I appreciate having this community to turn to.

iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2017), macOS High Sierra (10.13.6)

Posted on Jul 23, 2018 12:19 PM

Top-ranking reply

fox_m

Level 6

13,270 points

Posted on Jul 23, 2018 4:40 PM

1) The Canon Vixia is a pretty decent consumer grade video camera. Its video quality tops out at around 20-22Mbits/sec. ["bandwidth"]

2) the Canon T6i is capable of shooting outstanding video at twice the "resolution" (Mbits/sec) as the Vixia.

a) *every* camera with a number bump shoots better video than anything that came before it is... horses***.

When is it NOT in somebody's self interest to convince you to buy newer equipment from them?

b) Movies have been made with iPhones.

c) The BEST camera you have is the one you have with you!

[Your cellphone, if it's a model from within the last 5 or 6 years, is quite likely a viable alternative —

get a clamp/tripod mount for it.]

3) Most consumer grade video cameras use a base frame rate of 60i and recalculate all the other frame rates from that raw video... that means no matter what the documentation says (and they all flat out lie), it's interlaced video. It might recompile frame rates to 24p, 25p and 30p, but the interlacing is still in the "raw" footage. Many years ago (no so much anymore) this led to serious problems with PsF ("Progressive segmented Frames"). In my estimation, the best format to shoot in for FCPX is 60i and let FCPX conform the video to whatever project frame rate you select. Do not attempt to lie to FCPX - you will probably have to manually set the (Info inspector) > Settings > Field Dominance Override to Upper First (all non-DVx formats are Upper First - all DVx [including MPEG-2 aka DVD] are Lower First). You generally do not need to Deinterlace, but the option is there if necessary.

4) There's a cheap Jar Opener thing you can buy at Walmart or Target or a dollar store near you -- looks like this:

https://trudeau.com/us_en/twist-jar-opener-0999025.html

It takes a little practice, but you can learn to zoom and/or follow focus with these gizmos. Make sure you camera is on a secure tripod. Wrap one of those around the focus ring and cinch it down -- practice the shots before executing a final take.

As a side note: Auto Focus is ... bad bad bad. Cameras have a tendency to "bounce" the focus until it locks on and it is terribly obvious.

You'll want more zoom. 18-55 is a wide angle to ~portrait lens. For Canon: make sure it's one of the USM lenses (silent focusing). [I would recommend the 18-135mm USM if you can find a decent deal - it's rather expensive - and a better lens than the 55-250mm zoom which in itself is a very good lens. (One of the best quality lenses I've ever seen is the Canon 60mm f2.8 Macro USM... but it is a fixed lens but if you ever get a chance, you should check it out!)]

The lens on your Vixia has a 35mm equivalency of 43.5mm to 435mm zoom (keep it around). (Do not use Digital Zoom).

FCPX is supposed to handle AVCHD although I have seen plenty of people complain about it. Your T6i doesn't shoot avchd and will produce much better video quality (in Mbps) than the Vixia, so if you generally use the DSLR, you won't have AVC issues. About the only thing you have to worry about is if the SD card is fast enough to handle recording the video (Class 6 is an absolute minimum - Class 10 or better is much better!) [As for transcoding AVCHD, there are several apps that only repackage video without transcoding when possible - I believe Smart Convert Pro 2 is likely a viable option.]

If you are not already familiar with it, you will want to learn about shutter speed vs frame rate. The general rule is that the shutter speed should be twice the frame rate. If you're shooting 30 fps (frame rate) then you would set your shutter speed to 1/60th of a second. Any faster shutter speed will begin to introduce a "stuttering" effect (which can be difficult to watch). Slower shutter speeds will begin to introduce significant motion blurs. You should experiment with this concept to find what you like. Locking down a shutter speed means all you have to adjust exposure is aperture and ISO and that can be a sticky balance.

Did I forget anything?

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18 replies

fox_m

Level 6

13,270 points

Jul 24, 2018 2:17 PM in response to iSwitcher

Both your current cards are very good!

https://www.cameramemoryspeed.com/canon-t6s-t6i/sd-card-comparison/

The card for the Vixia is probably faster than it can handle.

To answer your later question - no - I cannot recommend any consumer grade camcorder simply because I don't have enough experience with a wide selection of cameras. I had a Samsung and my partner had a Canon Vixia. The Canon took better video, but I liked the Samsung better honestly, because it was a lot easier to use. (I'm a very: work with what you've got type of person.)

iSwitcher Author

Level 2

179 points

Jul 25, 2018 6:22 AM in response to Karsten Schlüter

Hi and thank you again for your help. I mentioned the 24p because someone said 60i was outdated and the "i" meant interlaced and I thought that was part of the problem, that I was shooting interlaced video, which was causing the jaggedness.

I am not eager to spend the money on a new camera. I am just trying to solve the issue I have, which I thought was seeing jagged edges in my Vixia footage. If the Vixia is still a viable camera after 8 years, then I am fine with that. If all I need to do is tweak some settings on that camera, I am ALSO fine with that, I'm just trying to solve what I thought was a quality issue with the jagged lines. If I am told "that's normal," then I will keep the camera. Just wanting to learn how to get the best out of that camera. If I need to change it from 24p back to 60i, which was the default, I will do that. I'm just trying to learn if I really have a quality issue, and if so, how to fix it. Thank you so much for sticking with me in this thread and your help, I truly appreciate it.

iSwitcher Author

Level 2

179 points

Jul 25, 2018 6:25 AM in response to Alchroma

Thank you. My biggest problem with this Vixia camera, spec-wise, is although it has a headphone jack, I get a very loud hum when I plug a headphone in. So I can't monitor the audio. My T6i DSLR doesn't have a headphone jack at all. Yesterday I used the DSLR for the interviews without being able to monitor it, and upon import, the audio is extremely loud in the left channel and extremely low in the right channel. I'm trying to figure out how to fix it, but this makes me realize how helpful it would be to have a camera that allows me to monitor the audio. Thank you for your response, I appreciate it.

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Technical Help with Formats