Jerry Doran

Are there any software programs which would allow me to grab full 1920x1080 frames from an HD-SDI signal into my Macbook Pro? What type of hardware would I need?

I am wondering what is the typical procedure employed by DPs who test a particular HD camera prior to shooting with it. Aside from the obvious stuff like testing filters and lenses I mean. How for example do you determine a camera's dynamic range?

Is it possible to sync timecode between a HVX-200 and a HPX-2000? Can you slave an HVX via Firewire to a different model camera such as the 2000?

A few basic questions regarding time base: If you are shooting something for broadcast, is there any advantage to shooting 23.98 over 29.97? Many people seem to think there's some visual advantage to shooting 23.98 and then pulling down later in post to 29.97. True? Which time base should you choose for web video? Is it always preferable to shoot with the decimal offset? Are there any instances where it would be okay to shoot straight 24 or 30? Thanks.

I'm very unclear as to the correct methods for powering video cameras safely. For example, why do video engineers/VTR ops insist that all cameras/monitors be on the same circuit? Is is true that camera BNC cables should be disconnected on a dolly when the dolly receives a bump? I know I'm not wording this very well, but I'm just looking for a brief explanation as to possible pitfalls or risks that can arise when power is not correctly set up.

A question about white clip. I understand what its function is, but what leads one to set it at 100 vs. 109? When you're shooting something for NTSC broadcast, should you set it for 100? If not, what happens to the info between 101-109 IRE? Is it simply lost? Or is it better to futureproof the master and shoot with the white clip off?

I've been on a bunch of video shoots lately and been surprised by the haphazard cabling and distribution of electricity to the cameras, monitors, etc. What are the best ways of dealing with this on set? Is it risky to have BNC cable running next to/over electric cables? Should electricity to cameras/monitors all come from the same source? What are the potential risks if things are cabled/powered improperly?

I was doing a shoot with a 900R in daylight with a few HMIs. We switched in the daylight filter using preset white balance and the image turned a deep orange. We ended up using the 4300K filter, but even that was too warm...so we ended up taking it out of preset white and manually dialing in the white balance. When we finally achieved a correct looking image, the color temperature in the viewfinder said something like 3900K, several thousand degrees Kelvin away from the actual color temperature. Has anyone experienced similar difficulties with preset white balances in the 900R?

So, unlike S-Log, Hypergamma doesn't require image correction in post?

I'm confused about HyperGamma. Can anyone explain exactly what HyperGamma is doing and the differences between the 4 settings? When do you choose one over the other? How much does it change the effective ASA?

If you were shooting 4:4:4 and wanted to do on-set color correction, which camera is preferable, the F23 or the Viper (shooting in RGB mode)? What are the advantages of each?

I am doing a shoot with 2 Varicams and I was wondering about the process of matching the cameras up during checkout. Is there more to it than simply making sure the numbers are the same in each camera?

I was just working on a 2-cam shoot with F900s and white balanced the cameras under the same lighting conditions. One camera came up 5.3K, the other came up 4.3K. They looked virtually identical on the monitor. What accounts for this difference in the two? Is something not aligned at board level?

I will be working on a shoot with an all African-American cast and I have a question. The traditional wisdom is to place caucasian highlights around 70% when using zebras in the viewfinder, but what about african american skin?

The HD out delay was small, no more than a few frames. The SD delay was longer, maybe 15 or so? No aspect ratio conversion. And I'm not sure about the Marshall...I'll look into it.

2 questions: 1. I was testing an SRW-1 set up to record 4:4:4 23.98 PSF from an HDC-950 and had a small Marshall monitor set up on-board the camera. Taking a feed to the Marshall from the HD-SDI Monitor Out on the back of the SRW-1, I noticed a small visual delay. Taking a feed from the SD-SDI Monitor Out, I noticed a larger delay. What is the exact time of these delays and can they be synced to real time? 2. In reading postings/web sites where people give numbers they tend to program into Cinealta cameras, they never mention whether or not these numbers are absolutes. For example, if someone says they typically start with their knee point at -25, does that mean they start with absolute zero so the absolute numbers read -25 across?

hello all, this is my first post here so go easy on me... i am curious about the process of lighting and setting exposure for hd (or any video for that matter). with so many controls available to you - waveform, monitor, zebras, handheld light meters, etc - i am not sure how the process should work. obviously you could just turn on a bunch of lights and adjust them until they look good on the monitor, iris down/up until you've got proper exposure. but that seems very random to me, like skipping steps and you could end up with different aperture settings from one shot to the next. do you start by determining what stop you want to light to as in film? what is the function of a handheld meter in video...do you actually use it to determine iris setting or just contrast, output of lights, etc? do you rely on waveforms or zebras? or is it in fact common practice to just light to the monitor and ignore all the other tools? in short, can someone walk me through their typical process of lighting for video and determine aperture... another unrelated question...i know 70% is where you set zebras for caucasian highlights. what about african american or other darker skin tones?