Vector and Wave Form monitors

[Dane Brehm]

I feel a vectorscope and waveform for HD are very important. In the hands of an seasoned DIT like Jim Rolin, will make any project look amazing especially in saving production time in the Color Suite which sometimes can be the difference between the DP being there and not.

 

With the new Wide Gamut camera's like the F23, a vectorscope/waveform is even more important then ever especially to creatives like the DP. The issue I've been having is for DP's who are used to vectorscopes that can't use them for Raw Data camera's like the Red,D21,Phantom.

 

Dane Brehm

4k + Raw

[Ale Reynoso]

I bought Mr. Wheeler´s book and was very surprised that a book about "digital cinematography" didn´t showed any vector/waveform image (and I read a lot of complains about a book called "Digital cinematography" only talking about Sony cameras).

May be is a way that work for him, but it´s not a good working way if you want consistent/accurate pictures as everybody has been saying (meanign "accurate" as the image you want to get, and not an image you discover later that is under/over exposed or with colour missmatching, etc.).

The book advices, for example (avoiding to use charts and vect/waveform), to adjust the aperture level "watching the smile lines in a close up of a middle aged person". And many, many times he advices that "it´s a purely engineering setup page, leave it alone"...like flare or shading!

I think you cannot be out in a serious shot without metering tools, using your waveform as a "whole picture spotmeter".

You could have not access to wave/vect regulary, like in a documentary. But in that case I would use them anyway before leaving the rental house to adjust/setup/check the camera and then rely in a calibrated monitor and/or the zebras to expose, but now knowing how the camera will look (like if you were shooting film?) and not tweaking things in the field you have no way of measure.

 

My two cents...

Alejandro

[Hal Smith]

If it weren't for vectorscopes and waveform monitors, live television programs would never have consistent color. The talented engineers in control rooms and video trucks use them to make certain the entire video chain is setup properly. "Fixing it in Post" is not an option when there isn't any "Post".