HELP! PLEASE! Movies are skipping frames!
 

Hello,

I just bought my 7d and noticed that when I import the movies it flicks and jumps frames very often when I play it in may macbook pro 17".

When I play it with the camera it appears to be normal.

I'm using 24p and just updated the firmware and nothing happens... still jumping frames.

Can it be my quicktime? ( I have Version 7.6.4 (518.35))

Please hepl me! I'm going to shoot a short tomorrow!!

THANKS

Hey Mauricio,

What are the specs of your 17" Macbook Pro? I thought the graphics card that came with the 17" line was always the higher end line. My 15" was upgraded to the GeForce 8600 GT with 512MB ram. I also have 4GB memory (upgraded from 2GB).

It probably is a graphics card issue (not fast enough) with the h.264 material. See if you can convert to ProRes or another format and play without frames skipping.

I have exactly the same version of QuickTime on my iMac and the movies from 7D plays fine. If you have software like Perian, Flip4Mac installed in your computer, remove them, restart and see whether this will fix the problem.

I concur. It could be the processing of h.264. I've got a 2.4ghz dual core 15" MBP with 4gb ram and the 256 nVidia GeForce 8600M GT. I still can't play a some movie trailers SMOOTHLY from the Apple website at 1080p. I can play humongous ProRes 422 files at 1080p, but not compressed h.264 without getting jumpy frames where it goes to like 6-12fps from a 24fps trailer. 720p is smooth though.

If that is not the problem, at least you know the files are fine and the camera is functioning properly from viewing on the camera. So do your shoot and you'll figure it out.

After I purchased the Canon 7D I realized that my Mac Pro wasn't up to snuff on handling 1080p ProRes 422 clips. I've only done one 30 second spot with the 7D and it was taxing FCP to the hilt. I may end up going back to shooting with the HVX200 due to it's streamlined throughput in FCP. Having viewed the footage first hand, I know for sure that the 7D replaces our primary camera only in situations where shallow depth of field is needed. Having previously owned a Redrock M2 Encore rig I fully realize the benefits of this camera in comparison, but it isn't a triumph above all else in any regard.

I've actually had arguments with my staff over using the HVX over the 7D due only to the range of it's lens. Having Macro capabilities as well as ultra wide and telephoto range, I find myself going back to the HVX time and time again. To get the same performance out of the 7D would cost thousands more than the cost of the camera itself to achieve. Still, it has the depth of field advantage over any 1/3" camera on the market.

I found shooting the 5D, and thus the 7D, to be very much like going back to having a film camera in my hands. There are some difference to be sure, like having access to the footage immediately on set, but there are a lot of similarities. Things that are probably unnerving or frustrating to "video" people.

The need to transcode to work effectively. This is very much like film.

No waveform monitor or zebras. Just like film! Meter the scene properly and shoot.

No integrated focus assist.

Interchangeable lenses

The ability to build up the camera several ways from light configs to all-out studio type rigs.


Ultimately, I think those folks who come to these cameras as a "cheap alternative" to more traditional video cameras will end up frustrated and disillusioned. I think those who have a film background, or are willing to shoot the camera like it was a film camera, will be rewarded handsomely for their efforts. But make no mistake, you'll spend $6k or so getting there.

thanks!
 

Thank you all for the answers.

My computer has a high performance. Doesn't seem to be that.

I converted to proRes and AIC and it got better, but still not smooth...

Do you think the archives can be damaged during the import to computer or I can trust and sort it out later? is that?

Other question regards the shooting time. On the manual is says that if the shooting is "prolonged period camera's temp. will increase and can degrade image quality". Not very clear hun?? How long can I keep shooting?

Thanks

Have you checked your hard drive speed? I made sure I got the 7200rpm drive instead of the 5400rpm. If the read/write is slow on your computer (and only 1 internal drive in laptops/iMacs), then playback may be affected. The only thing faster than the 7200rpm is a SSD.

John and Perrone,
I am very much in agreement that you can't just spend the $1700 or $1900 (kit) and replace a $5-8k dedicated video camera. I have had the chance to work with film and video and understand both where the 7D is easy to make work the way I want. People going from a lower-end HD video camera might not understand the caveats of a DSLR for video. You do have to buy some accessories that total to be more than the camera (if you want to get the most use out of it). Canon never sold the 7D to the filmmaker market, but rather the filmmakers are using the 7D and making it so appealing to everyone else. I know 5 people at work that want the 7D now—after seeing some of my footage. They have no clue how to shoot video but because I make it appear so easy to get great shots, they think that $1700-$1900 is their final cost to get into the professional HD video market—which is not the case by far.

Perrone said "those who have a film background, or are willing to shoot the camera like it was a film camera, will be rewarded handsomely for their efforts".
That`s my case.
So my question is: "Meter the scene properly and shoot" is that precise, I mean does it really work with 7D and 5D?
Thanks
Ron

playback
 

Hello,

I just tested another 7d and the images are the same, it jumps...

This is my Mac:

Model Name: MacBook Pro
Model Identifier: MacBookPro3,1
Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed: 2.4 GHz
Number Of Processors: 1
Total Number Of Cores: 2
L2 Cache: 4 MB
Memory: 4 GB
Bus Speed: 800 MHz

It's not enough to playback my 7d movies????

Just to check if it was my camera problem I use another and the images keep jumping... I'm shooting a short with My V1 too, but would like to know if the files are ok to use in another computer or what should I do to sort it out.. special software???

Is anybody playing the 7d movies well with a macbook pro????

THANKS again... I really need to sort it out NOW!!!

MORE...

I tried converting it to ProRes and the problem continuous... But playing with the camera is ok...

Tomorrow I will try to play these movies in another computer...

Your machine is not even close to being able to play raw 7D files. I have an 8 core PC with 8GB of RAM, a 1,5GB DRAM video card, very fast hard drives, and I still struggle to play native 5D and 7D files sometimes. These cameras stress new hardware and your computer is two generations old.

Of course it works. The 5D and 7D still answer to the law of physics including the properties of light. I just finished shooting a movie with the 5D. When the scene was lit according to my meter, we get exactly the results. When they relied on the camera LCD (which reads 2-3 stops low) they got blown out and clipped footage, as expected.

Now, I will say this. The 5D and 7D do not have as much tonal range as something like the EX1, the RED, and film. I can get maybe 9 stops on the EX1, the RED is apparently hitting something close to 12 stops, and new film on the order of 14 stops. These cameras give about 7. So you have to take care in controlling the contrast in the scene or you will be disappointed. I use the SpectraCine IV meter, and it was dead on the money for shooting with the 5D last month.

wow i'm glad I didn't jump right into getting a mac. From what I heared, even the older macs could edit video without a hitch. Guess not...


Anyone know if you can run a mac clone quad core pc to handle raw 5d footage better than the same system running windows 7?

What is more vital, better video card or more memory.

p.s. I'm running a dual core with 3gb of ram.

You're mean all else being equal, will Leopard run better than W7? Hard to believe there'd be any significant difference.

How about just saying no to native files? Use Cineform or ProRes (Mac) and you can edit with any lousy old computer.