I recently shot a one day job (tape) with rented gear that ended up being slightly desaturated due to a camera setting that was accidentally... set wrong.
Apparently, this switch on the HC400 is used when recording on 3/4" instead of Beta, and it makes the footage about 10% low on chroma (almost not noticeable to the eye apparently.)
This was confirmed to be the case when I called the rental house the day after the job when the producer discovered the footage was less than perfect. Also, during that day the deck AND the camera were checked out and (and I mean thoroughly) proved to be 100%.
Anyway, that much we knew. However, the editor subsequently started citing a laundry list of "problems" with the footage which I made note of and forwarded to the rental man. Rental man contacted the certified video engineer he sub-rented the deck from (a BVW 50) who checked it out AGAIN and said it was 100%.
I watched playback from the 50 at least 2 or 3 times during the day of production and noticed nothing out of the ordinary, and especially NOT the stuff the editor was describing.
Now, here's were the real problem comes in. The producer will not let me have the raw footage tapes so that I may examine them. I have asked many times over the past 2 weeks, and even though the job is finished, this person claims she doesn't have time and that getting me the tapes "is not a priority" for her.
The 2 guys involved in the rental should be allowed to see these tapes especially in light of the fact that there are 2 producers out there running around saying that the gear is faulty and/or "old." I should be allowed to see the tapes since it's really my ass on the line here because I'm the guy who shot this supposed barely usable footage.
And yet, this producer person will not even make a phone call to the post house or to whosever shelf the tapes are sitting on right now so that I may arrange to briefly take possession of them.
If anyone has any insight into what I might be able to do here, or should do, I'd really appreciate it.