High Definition Cinematography, 2nd Edition

High Definition Cinematography, 2nd Edition

by Paul Wheeler
Released November 2012
Publisher(s): Focal Press
ISBN: 9781136054334

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Book description

High definition is here to stay.

HD changes the whole shooting and editing process in film and television production and this book is to satisfy your hunger for information. Whether you are a cinematographer, producer, or working in film/TV production, High Definition Cinematography, 2nd edition will demystitify the new technology, help you select the right cameras and equipment, and explain how high definition affects the shooting process and budgets. Filled with practical advice for tackling everyday decisions and choices, this is a necessity for you if you are using or considering using high definition technology.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Halftitle
  3. Dedication
  4. Title
  5. Copyright
  6. Contents
  7. Preface
  8. About the Author
  9. Introduction
  10. Acknowledgments
  11. Part 1: High Definition: A Quick Overview
    1. 1 Why shoot on HD?
      1. 1.1 What do we mean by High Definition (HD)?
        1. 1.1.1 The knowledge base
        2. 1.1.2 What does it mean to the Producer – saving money!
        3. 1.1.3 What does it mean to the Director?
        4. 1.1.4 What does this mean for the Director of Photography?
        5. 1.1.5 What does it mean to the other crafts?
        6. 1.1.6 Editing and post-production
      2. 1.2 Context
  12. Part 2: Production Decisions
    1. 2 Which formats to shoot on?
      1. 2.1 Progressive or interlace?
      2. 2.2 How many pixels do you need?
      3. 2.3 Recording formats
      4. 2.4 HDV – can you get away with it?
    2. 3 Picture quality
      1. 3.1 What does HD look like?
      2. 3.2 HD images compared with 35 mm
      3. 3.3 Anamorphic 35 mm
      4. 3.4 Comparisons with Super 16 mm
      5. 3.5 Comparison with Digi Beta
    3. 4 Display quality
      1. 4.1 High definition shown on television
      2. 4.2 HD written to film and projected mechanically
      3. 4.3 HD shown on a state-of-the-art digital projector
      4. 4.4 Digital projectors
        1. 4.4.1 The Barco D-Cine Premiere DP 50®
        2. 4.4.2 The Barco SLM R8
    4. 5 Delivery requirements
      1. 5.1 For delivery on film
      2. 5.2 Multi-format delivery requirements
      3. 5.3 HD projection
      4. 5.4 Encryption
      5. 5.5 Broadcast delivery
      6. 5.6 Convertibility
        1. 5.6.1 Picture
        2. 5.6.2 Sound
        3. 5.6.3 Time code
    5. 6 Sales potential
      1. 6.1 Multiple standard sales
      2. 6.2 Multiple venue sales
      3. 6.3 Additional sales to HD users
      4. 6.4 Future proofing
    6. 7 Cost implications
      1. 7.1 Savings
        1. 7.1.1 Origination costs
          1. 7.1.1.1 Stock savings
          2. 7.1.1.2 Insurance savings
        2. 7.1.2 Savings in print costs
        3. 7.1.3 Shooting for anamorphic release
      2. 7.2 Added costs
        1. 7.2.1 Camera kit rental
        2. 7.2.2 Editing costs
        3. 7.2.3 Writing out to film
      3. 7.3 A cost comparison example – Oklahoma!
        1. 7.3.1 Stock and processing savings
        2. 7.3.2 Camera rental
        3. 7.3.3 Additional costs
          1. 7.3.3.1 Overall savings
        4. 7.3.4 Competitive pricing
    7. 8 Crewing
      1. 8.1 Should the DP operate?
      2. 8.2 Do you need a focus puller?
      3. 8.3 Do you need a loader?
      4. 8.4 Naming the camera assistants
      5. 8.5 Do you need a clapperboard?
      6. 8.6 Do you need a dolly grip?
      7. 8.7 Sound
      8. 8.8 Electricians
    8. 9 Different shooting requirements
      1. 9.1 General considerations
      2. 9.2 Shooting in the USA
        1. 9.2.1 Theatrical productions
        2. 9.2.2 US prime time television productions
        3. 9.2.3 US commercials
        4. 9.2.4 Other US productions
        5. 9.2.5 What frame rate to choose
        6. 9.2.6 Potential cost savings
      3. 9.3 European productions
        1. 9.3.1 European feature films
        2. 9.3.2 European television
      4. 9.4 Performance shows
        1. 9.4.1 The Merchant of Venice
  13. Part 3: The Technology
    1. 10 Digital imaging
      1. 10.1 The history of digits
      2. 10.2 Digital tonal range
      3. 10.3 Linear and logarithmic sampling
      4. 10.4 Image resolution, why so many pixels?
      5. 10.5 Required resolution for HD
      6. 10.6 Data quantity
    2. 11 Scanning the image
      1. 11.1 A little of the history of television
      2. 11.2 Interlace scanning
      3. 11.3 Progressive scanning
      4. 11.4 Traditional cinema flicker
      5. 11.5 How are images captured by the two scanning formats?
      6. 11.6 Printing out to film
    3. 12 Line standards and definition
      1. 12.1 Line summation
      2. 12.2 Apparent picture quality
      3. 12.3 1080 versus 720 in television
      4. 12.4 Conclusions
      5. 12.5 Is HD worth the trouble?
    4. 13 Three chip technology
      1. 13.1 Additive color imagery
      2. 13.2 The three chip camera’s beam splitter
      3. 13.3 The image sensors
      4. 13.4 The sensor chip
    5. 14 Single chip technology
      1. 14.1 What’s available?
      2. 14.2 CCD sensors
      3. 14.3 CMOS sensors
      4. 14.4 CCDs versus CMOS chips
      5. 14.5 Color filtering in single chip cameras
      6. 14.6 Bayer pattern filtering
      7. 14.7 Sequential filtering
      8. 14.8 The effect of increasing the pixel count
    6. 15 The video tape recorder – the VTR
      1. 15.1 The HDCAM format
      2. 15.2 Helical scan recording
      3. 15.3 Mechanical considerations
      4. 15.4 The drum lacing mechanism
      5. 15.5 Operational considerations
      6. 15.6 A jammed mechanism
  14. Part 4: HD Cinematography
    1. 16 Lighting and exposing for HD
      1. 16.1 An HD camera’s equivalent ASA speed, or ISO rating
      2. 16.2 Tonal range
      3. 16.3 Lighting ratios
      4. 16.4 Lighting to a monitor
      5. 16.5 Highlights and shadows
      6. 16.6 Exposure
        1. 16.6.1 Using a monitor
        2. 16.6.2 Using a meter
        3. 16.6.3 Auto exposure
        4. 16.6.4 Exposing using a waveform monitor
    2. 17 Setting the color balance
      1. 17.1 White balance
      2. 17.2 What is white balance?
      3. 17.3 Neutral density filters
      4. 17.4 A warning!
      5. 17.5 Setting the white balance using a white card
      6. 17.6 Setting the white balance using a colored card
      7. 17.7 Setting the white balance under fluorescent lighting
      8. 17.8 The outer filter wheel on a Sony HDW camera
      9. 17.9 Black balance
    3. 18 Lenses
      1. 18.1 How to choose a lens
        1. 18.1.1 Resolution
        2. 18.1.2 Contrast
        3. 18.1.3 Perceived sharpness with regard to contrast
        4. 18.1.4 Color rendition
          1. 18.1.4.1 Overall color bias
          2. 18.1.4.2 Color fringing
          3. 18.1.4.3 What is fringing?
        5. 18.1.5 Breathing
      2. 18.2 Setting the back focus
        1. 18.2.1 Setting the back focus: zoom lenses
        2. 18.2.2 Setting the back focus: prime lenses
      3. 18.3 Focusing the lens using back focus charts – Beware!
      4. 18.4 Back focusing using the oval rings chart
      5. 18.5 Comparative focal lengths
      6. 18.6 Depth of field
      7. 18.7 Calculating depth of field
      8. 18.8 Neutral density filters
      9. 18.9 Limiting apertures
      10. 18.10 Filtration
        1. 18.10.1 Color correction
        2. 18.10.2 Diffusion
    4. 19 Monitors and cabling
      1. 19.1 What kind of monitors are available?
        1. 19.1.1 Cathode ray tube monitors
        2. 19.1.2 Liquid crystal display monitors
        3. 19.1.3 Plasma screens
      2. 19.2 Lining up your monitor
        1. 19.2.1 An SMPTE line up
        2. 19.2.2 Lining up using EBU bars
        3. 19.2.3 Using an exposure meter
      3. 19.3 Cabling your monitor
        1. 19.3.1 Single coaxial cables
        2. 19.3.2 Triple coaxial cables
        3. 19.3.3 Termination
        4. 19.3.4 Serial monitors
      4. 19.4 Best practice
    5. 20 Playback
      1. 20.1 Don’t use the camera for playback!
      2. 20.2 Using the Sony HDW F500 VTR for playback
      3. 20.3 Using digital video for playback
      4. 20.4 Using two DV recorders
      5. 20.5 Down converters
        1. 20.5.1 The Evertz down converter
        2. 20.5.2 The Miranda down converter
      6. 20.6 Sound delay lines
      7. 20.7 Playback packages
    6. 21 Shipping
      1. 21.1 It’s not ENG!
      2. 21.2 Shipping lenses
      3. 21.3 Transit cases
      4. 21.4 Camera set-up when shipping
      5. 21.5 Size and weight
      6. 21.6 Batteries
    7. 22 Multi camera shoots
      1. 22.1 Synchronization
      2. 22.2 Time code on location
        1. 22.2.1 Lock It boxes
        2. 22.2.2 Script Boy
      3. 22.3 Time code in a studio
        1. 22.3.1 Genlock
      4. 22.4 Menu set-ups
        1. 22.4.1 The Sony RMB 150
        2. 22.4.2 Using memory sticks
      5. 22.5 Matching lenses
    8. 23 Hazardous conditions
      1. 23.1 Re-setting the trips
      2. 23.2 Water
      3. 23.3 Heat
      4. 23.4 Cold
      5. 23.5 Dust
      6. 23.6 Gamma rays
    9. 24 Camera supports
      1. 24.1 Fluid heads
      2. 24.2 Geared heads
      3. 24.3 Remote heads
      4. 24.4 Under water
      5. 24.5 In the air
      6. 24.6 Motion control rigs
    10. 25 How HD affects other crafts
      1. 25.1 Art and Design
      2. 25.2 Costume
      3. 25.3 Make up and Hair
      4. 25.4 Sound
      5. 25.5 Script supervision and continuity
      6. 25.6 The second assistant cameraperson or ex-clapper boy
    11. 26 Troubleshooting
      1. 26.1 Stating the obvious
      2. 26.2 Problems and solutions
  15. Part 5: Examples of Shoots
    1. 27 Some pictures shot HD, and why?
      1. 27.1 The Children of Dune
        1. 27.1.1 Rushes requirements
        2. 27.1.2 The extended playback facility
        3. 27.1.3 The equipment list
      2. 27.2 Birthdays
        1. 27.2.1 The studio shoot
        2. 27.2.2 The location shoot
        3. 27.2.3 Exterior tracking shots
        4. 27.2.4 Interior lighting
        5. 27.2.5 Adding gain
        6. 27.2.6 Editing Birthdays
        7. 27.2.7 Viewings
  16. Part 6: Post-Production
    1. 28 Post-production: an overview
      1. 28.1 Generations
      2. 28.2 How the choice of edit suite affects the generation game
      3. 28.3 The route to a film copy
      4. 28.4 Non-photographic distribution
        1. 28.4.1 An international standard
        2. 28.4.2 Where might it be shown?
        3. 28.4.3 Time code considerations
    2. 29 The Sony HDW F500 VTR
      1. 29.1 VTRs in general
      2. 29.2 An overview of the HDW F500
      3. 29.3 Editing and playback
      4. 29.4 Simultaneous playback
      5. 29.5 Slow motion replay
      6. 29.6 High speed picture search
      7. 29.7 Digital jog sound
      8. 29.8 Vertical interval time-code read/write
      9. 29.9 The control panel
      10. 29.10 Remote control
      11. 29.11 In/out capacity
      12. 29.12 Optional plug-in boards
      13. 29.13 Cassettes
      14. 29.14 Changing the frame rate
      15. 29.15 Available frame rates
      16. 29.16 Power supplies
  17. Part 7: Cameras
    1. 30 Cameras in general
      1. 30.1 The choice of cameras
      2. 30.2 My disclaimer!
    2. 31 The Arriflex D-20
      1. 31.1 The camera
      2. 31.2 The camera chip
      3. 31.3 Interface
      4. 31.4 Lenses
      5. 31.5 Recorders
    3. 32 The Dalsa Origin
      1. 32.1 The camera
      2. 32.2 The look through
      3. 32.3 The sensor
      4. 32.4 Interfaces
      5. 32.5 Conclusions on the Dalsa Origin
      6. 32.6 Currently available recorders
      7. 32.7 The Codex Digital Media Recorder
        1. 32.7.1 The touch screen
        2. 32.7.2 Monitoring via the Codex
        3. 32.7.3 Conclusions on the Codex
    4. 33 The Panasonic VariCam: AJ-HDC27H
      1. 33.1 The camera
      2. 33.2 Frame rates
      3. 33.3 Exposure times
      4. 33.4 The chips and the processor
      5. 33.5 The VTR
      6. 33.6 Time code
      7. 33.7 An overview
    5. 34 The Panavision Genesis
      1. 34.1 The camera
      2. 34.2 Menus
      3. 34.3 White balance
      4. 34.4 The camera sensor
      5. 34.5 Formats, outputs and interface
      6. 34.6 Viewing logarithmic images
    6. 35 The Panavision HDW 900F
      1. 35.1 Introduction
      2. 35.2 External modifications
        1. 35.2.1 The top handle
        2. 35.2.2 The viewfinder support
        3. 35.2.3 The viewfinder
        4. 35.2.4 The camera front plate and lens mount
        5. 35.2.5 The camera base plate
        6. 35.2.6 The voltage distribution box
      3. 35.3 Internal modifications
        1. 35.3.1 The internal filter
        2. 35.3.2 Electronic definition enhancement
    7. 36 The Sony HDW F750P and the F730 HD cameras
      1. 36.1 Frame rates
      2. 36.2 The camera body
      3. 36.3 Add-in boards, etc.
      4. 36.4 Image control via the menus
        1. 36.4.1 Multi matrix
        2. 36.4.2 Auto tracing white balance
        3. 36.4.3 Color temperature control
        4. 36.4.4 Selectable gamma curves
        5. 36.4.5 RGB gamma balance
        6. 36.4.6 Variable black gamma range
        7. 36.4.7 Black stretch
        8. 36.4.8 Adaptive highlight control (auto knee mode)
        9. 36.4.9 Knee saturation function
        10. 36.4.10 The triple skin tone detail control
        11. 36.4.11 Level depend detail
      5. 36.5 Meta-data handling
      6. 36.6 The Sony Tele-File system
      7. 36.7 The optional HD SDI adapter
      8. 36.8 An overview
    8. 37 The Sony HDW F900R
      1. 37.1 The camera
      2. 37.2 The chips
      3. 37.3 The processor
      4. 37.4 Additional facilities
      5. 37.5 Menus
      6. 37.6 Overall impressions
    9. 38 The Thomson Viper HD camera
      1. 38.1 The camera body
      2. 38.2 Outputs from the camera
      3. 38.3 Recording a FilmStream signal
      4. 38.4 The Director’s Friend
      5. 38.5 The beam splitter
      6. 38.6 The Vipers CCD array
      7. 38.7 The mechanical shutter
      8. 38.8 Frame rates
      9. 38.9 Resolution
      10. 38.10 The cameras processor configuration
      11. 38.11 The camera back
      12. 38.12 The arguments for a logarithmic recording format
      13. 38.13 Lenses for the Viper
      14. 38.14 Monitors for the Viper
      15. 38.15 Camera accessories
      16. 38.16 Shipping the Viper
  18. Part 8: Camera Menus
    1. 39 Menus in general
    2. 40 The HDW F900 menus
      1. 40.1 Using the menus
        1. 40.1.1 The layout of the menus
        2. 40.1.2 Using the menus: some warnings
      2. 40.2 The Operation Menu
        1. 40.2.1 VF Display page
        2. 40.2.2 ‘!’ Indicator page
        3. 40.2.3 Marker page
          1. 40.2.3.1 Marker
          2. 40.2.3.2 Center
          3. 40.2.3.3 Safety Zone
          4. 40.2.3.4 Effect
          5. 40.2.3.5 Aspect Mode
          6. 40.2.3.6 Mask
        4. 40.2.4 Gain Sw page
        5. 40.2.5 Zebra/Vf Dtl page
        6. 40.2.6 Auto Iris page
        7. 40.2.7 Batt Alarm page
        8. 40.2.8 Others page
        9. 40.2.9 Operator File page
        10. 40.2.10 Lens File page
      3. 40.3 The Paint Menu
        1. 40.3.1 Sw Status page
        2. 40.3.2 Video Level page
        3. 40.3.3 Gamma page
        4. 40.3.4 Black Gamma page
        5. 40.3.5 Low Key Saturation page
        6. 40.3.6 Knee page
        7. 40.3.7 Detail 1 page
        8. 40.3.8 Detail 2 page
        9. 40.3.9 Skin Detail page
        10. 40.3.10 User Matrix page
        11. 40.3.11 Multi Matrix page
        12. 40.3.12 Shutter page
        13. 40.3.13 Scene File page
      4. 40.4 The Maintenance, File and Diagnostic Menus
        1. 40.4.1 Page M7
  19. Index

Product information

  • Title: High Definition Cinematography, 2nd Edition
  • Author(s): Paul Wheeler
  • Release date: November 2012
  • Publisher(s): Focal Press
  • ISBN: 9781136054334