GL2 - Audio and Video Recording for chromakey studio. at DVinfo.net

Daniel De Oliveira · May 28th, 2008, 08:20 PM

I am new to Video Production and I have purchased my "Digital Studio".
Adobe Master Collection CS3, Final Cut Pro, Chromakey background, a teleprompter, a GL2 camcorder, ligths, virtual sets and footage. I have a MAC and a PC to work with. I am ready to go on June 10th.

The company I created will focus in educational material for healthcare personnel. I have a new website I have launched to teach the Electrocardiogram which already got around 250 k hits in 5 months. My main goal at this point is to produce educational videos in chromakey background in my office. Most videos will be one person on chromakey background, some news style or 2 people with some over the shoulder shots like 20/20 on TV.

I have some questions I would like some help with:

Audio

Should I purchase a Canon MA-300 and Seinheiser Wireless microphones or should I purchase a shotgun microphone.

Recording

I have recorded some of my ECG videos by using my GL2 to film the screen. The quality is not that great. I tried to recording from the monitor VGA video output without success. Is there a way to record or capture the screen using a Canon GL2 camera? I do not need to record audio, just the video. If you know a link to a tutorial in this subject I would appreciate.

Jim Andrada · May 29th, 2008, 04:37 PM

Daniel,

I am absolutely not an expert at Green Screen and have very little experience (yet) as it is something I'm just starting to work with.

On the other hand, I've been reading a lot of forum posts on the subject trying to get smart about it.

If you do a search on Green Screen you'll find a lot of good info on this forum

The following is what I think I've picked up - mostly "book leaning" on my part, but hopefully some folks with real world experience will chime in

Something to bear in mind is that Standard Definition DV throws away a lot of the color information in order to compress an hour of video into 13GB. The perceptual models that are used to decide what to throw away works well for the human eye, but less well for the computer trying to pull a key.

High Def does a better job of keeping color info, but it is also not the best. The compression method used to get more data into the same 13GB is quite different and it has a lot of its own faults, but color info is preserved better than SD

Some of the other formats do really well at preserving the color information - but they tend to not be nearly as affordable as DV SD or HD.

Modern keying software is said to do a much better job than previously in dealing with the color space shortcomings of DV/HDV so if the screen is lit evenly (very evenly) and the subject is positioned far enough from the screen to minimize spill, reasonable results should be expected. Whether "reasonable" would meet your expectations or not only you can decide.

Some of the threads on the forum have discussed capturing directly to a PC from the analog camera outputs to avoid some of the problems with color space, but there also seems to be a difference of opinion about whether the capture method introduces its own set of other problems into the mix such as loss of sharpness in the image.

Again, this is pretty much a summary of what I've picked up by studying this forum as well as a few text books, but I hope it's useful for you.

Daniel De Oliveira · May 30th, 2008, 10:44 PM

Thanks for the post Jim.

I am still learning the ins and outs of Video. I purchased the GL2 because I have seen many good reviews on it and was a mid level professional camera. I am not sure if the new canon VIXIA HF10 would do the work for me.

I am still trying to find out how to record through a VGA output into the GL2.

Don Palomaki · May 31st, 2008, 07:46 PM

Which type of mic to use depends on the shotign situation, what kind of crew you have, and the progarm material. In general a wired mic will give better results, but a wireless may be better if the talent has to move about a lot, and you have no one to manage a wired mic as the talent moves. Shotguns are good to isolate the sound source from sounds to the rear and sides, but they are not a magic bullet.

Green screen has its uses, mainly when you need to put talent in a scene that can not readily be staged; e.g. superman flying.

Recording VGA to the GL2 (or any other camcorder) is not necessairly easy and the quality may be questionable. You maybe able to use some utility programs to capture the on-screen video to an appropriate format (e.g., AVI) for your NLE. There are adapters that connect to a VGA output and convert it to NTSC, quality is variable.

Daniel De Oliveira · May 31st, 2008, 10:53 PM

Thanks Don,

I decided to ask the guys on Digital Juice what microphone they use. I end up purchasing the NTG-2 SHOTGUN CONDENSER MICROPHONE and the Audio-Technica ATR288W Wireless Microphone System based on their suggestion. I have not received them yet. The quality of their audio is great on their website and products I purchase from them.

Well regarding the recording from VGA to the GL2. If you go to http://www.learntheecg.com/telemetry_room.html you will see that the quality of my recording can improve. I have Camtasia for screen capture in my computer, however the ECG rhythms do not display in my PC. If I am able to make then display on my PC laptop screen I would be able to record it with Camtasia? Is this possible?

The crew for now is easy. It will be one or two talents and I. The studio, my office. If you have I suggestion of a wired mic that goes into a camcorder I can take a look on it online.

Randall Allen · June 3rd, 2008, 10:21 AM

Daniel:
I thought the images you present are fine. What about them does not appeal to you? They are very clear and look like genuine images (to my untrained eye) that would be very useful for education.

Green screen on the GL-2 is doable. I am having fairly good results using the GL-2 and Edius 4.

www.cavespringlibrary.org/BG/BG-NoTrace.wmv

and

www.cavespringlibrary.org/BG/BG-kab-psa.wmv

The first link turned out very well because they sat in front of the tent. Since it did not move it keyed out very well for me. I do run into some situations where if a person holds up their hand and the fingers are spread then it does not key well.

-Randy

Daniel De Oliveira · June 7th, 2008, 11:55 PM

Thanks Randy.

The response I have got with the increase in traffic every month suggest that the need for this type of education is there. I am trying to obtain a better quality of ECG videos. If I could record the computer screen it would be much better but I have not been successful in getting the biomedical department of the hospital to install a screen recorder software such as camtasia in the computer. I just found out my JVC Everio has a S Video imput. I am going to try to record the ECG on it to see how it looks like. If any one knows how to record VGA to GL2 I appreciate the suggestion.

I tried to visit the links you posted but I got a page not found link.

I am impressed. I was not familiar with Eddius software. Another video editor software. I get curious but I am trying hard to learn my final cut pro and adobe premiere I got. I have been using www.vtc.com so far.

Randall Allen · June 9th, 2008, 01:21 PM

Sorry, I forget the files are large. Right click the link and save. Then view.

Best of luck to you!

Randy

David L. Holmes · June 10th, 2008, 11:27 AM

Sorry Randall, no can do... Can't watch or download any videos :(

Randall Allen · June 11th, 2008, 01:36 PM

Hmmm....not sure what is going on but I have a solution.

We are starting to post all of our Be Green videos on youtube, I was planning on uploading one every 3 days or so but will accelerate that rate to accomadate viewing the final two. I should have them all up by the end of the week.

http://youtube.com/user/BeGreenRomeGa

Randy

Chris Soucy · June 11th, 2008, 06:24 PM

Can't help with the green screen stuff but may have a solution for your VGA problem:

http://www.ramelectronics.net/comput...odGEZ1000.html

This site seems to have adapters for just about everything going. If your GL2 has better options than composite they should have something suitable.

CS

Daniel De Oliveira · June 12th, 2008, 09:46 AM

Hi Chris,

Thanks for the tip. I bought one of those. I just could not make it work. It is my fault. I read the manual but could not do it right. If you know a site with a tutorial with step by step it would help. I have an EVERIO digital camera with an S video imput. I am going to try it also to see if I can make it work.

Bill Mecca · June 12th, 2008, 09:54 AM

I was going to suggest the freeware Camstudio, but then read an earlier post where you said you couldn't get the hospital to install camtasia. I work for an agency that is very hardlined on what we can and cannot do, (while other branches of the same agency sit there downloading and watching movies all day, go figure).

As for the mike, though it's time has passed, since you are in a studio there is really no need for wireless and the potential issues they bring (interference etc) i would stick with a wired lav.

BTW, you do you have a sister named Diane who is in radio?

Chris Soucy · June 12th, 2008, 05:07 PM

Got to say I was a bit suprised to see you say you couldn't get the box to work.

"What's to work"? thought I.

Then I read the product description a bit more carefully.

The "Powered from USB" stopped me in my tracks.

Aha, OK if you actually have a PC to hand with USB ports, not so OK if you have an ECG machine that doesn't do USB.

Could that be the problem?

Stab in the dark maybe but the best guess I can come up with short of reading the FM.

CS

Daniel De Oliveira · June 20th, 2008, 09:59 PM

First and foremost I would like to pay my respects to all video makers out there. This week I got 3 hours to do 15 minutes of footage and lots of work to do with it.

I could not get my microphone to work in the first 1/2 of the filming. Got to go back and look into the manual and figure out what to do. I have the wireless microphone and the M300 adapter to the GL2. It did not work.

I have Camtasia Studio in my laptop. I can record my PC based ECG machine and record on it. What I can not record is the hospital ECG machine which has a VGA output on it.

I have purchased a PC to TV converter Gigaware. It has an S Video output. I was not successful in recording into my GL2 mini DV tape. The instructions on the manual look simple but it did not work.

May 28th, 2008, 08:20 PM	#1
Daniel De Oliveira New Boot Join Date: May 2008 Location: United States Posts: 16	GL2 - Audio and Video Recording for chromakey studio. I am new to Video Production and I have purchased my "Digital Studio". Adobe Master Collection CS3, Final Cut Pro, Chromakey background, a teleprompter, a GL2 camcorder, ligths, virtual sets and footage. I have a MAC and a PC to work with. I am ready to go on June 10th. The company I created will focus in educational material for healthcare personnel. I have a new website I have launched to teach the Electrocardiogram which already got around 250 k hits in 5 months. My main goal at this point is to produce educational videos in chromakey background in my office. Most videos will be one person on chromakey background, some news style or 2 people with some over the shoulder shots like 20/20 on TV. I have some questions I would like some help with: Audio Should I purchase a Canon MA-300 and Seinheiser Wireless microphones or should I purchase a shotgun microphone. Recording I have recorded some of my ECG videos by using my GL2 to film the screen. The quality is not that great. I tried to recording from the monitor VGA video output without success. Is there a way to record or capture the screen using a Canon GL2 camera? I do not need to record audio, just the video. If you know a link to a tutorial in this subject I would appreciate.

May 30th, 2008, 10:44 PM	#3
Daniel De Oliveira New Boot Join Date: May 2008 Location: United States Posts: 16	Video Thanks for the post Jim. I am still learning the ins and outs of Video. I purchased the GL2 because I have seen many good reviews on it and was a mid level professional camera. I am not sure if the new canon VIXIA HF10 would do the work for me. I am still trying to find out how to record through a VGA output into the GL2.

May 31st, 2008, 07:46 PM	#4
Don Palomaki Wrangler Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: Northern VA Posts: 4,487	Which type of mic to use depends on the shotign situation, what kind of crew you have, and the progarm material. In general a wired mic will give better results, but a wireless may be better if the talent has to move about a lot, and you have no one to manage a wired mic as the talent moves. Shotguns are good to isolate the sound source from sounds to the rear and sides, but they are not a magic bullet. Green screen has its uses, mainly when you need to put talent in a scene that can not readily be staged; e.g. superman flying. Recording VGA to the GL2 (or any other camcorder) is not necessairly easy and the quality may be questionable. You maybe able to use some utility programs to capture the on-screen video to an appropriate format (e.g., AVI) for your NLE. There are adapters that connect to a VGA output and convert it to NTSC, quality is variable. __________________ dpalomaki@dspalomaki.com

June 11th, 2008, 06:24 PM	#11
Chris Soucy Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Fairfield, Dunedin, New Zealand Posts: 3,682 Images: 18	Hi Daniel............ Can't help with the green screen stuff but may have a solution for your VGA problem: http://www.ramelectronics.net/comput...odGEZ1000.html This site seems to have adapters for just about everything going. If your GL2 has better options than composite they should have something suitable. CS

June 12th, 2008, 09:54 AM	#13
Bill Mecca Major Player Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: New Jersey Posts: 475	I was going to suggest the freeware Camstudio, but then read an earlier post where you said you couldn't get the hospital to install camtasia. I work for an agency that is very hardlined on what we can and cannot do, (while other branches of the same agency sit there downloading and watching movies all day, go figure). As for the mike, though it's time has passed, since you are in a studio there is really no need for wireless and the potential issues they bring (interference etc) i would stick with a wired lav. BTW, you do you have a sister named Diane who is in radio? __________________ Award-winning Pine Barrens Documentary! Video, Audio, Music & More

May 29th, 2008, 04:37 PM	#2
Jim Andrada Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 2,211	Daniel, I am absolutely not an expert at Green Screen and have very little experience (yet) as it is something I'm just starting to work with. On the other hand, I've been reading a lot of forum posts on the subject trying to get smart about it. If you do a search on Green Screen you'll find a lot of good info on this forum The following is what I think I've picked up - mostly "book leaning" on my part, but hopefully some folks with real world experience will chime in Something to bear in mind is that Standard Definition DV throws away a lot of the color information in order to compress an hour of video into 13GB. The perceptual models that are used to decide what to throw away works well for the human eye, but less well for the computer trying to pull a key. High Def does a better job of keeping color info, but it is also not the best. The compression method used to get more data into the same 13GB is quite different and it has a lot of its own faults, but color info is preserved better than SD Some of the other formats do really well at preserving the color information - but they tend to not be nearly as affordable as DV SD or HD. Modern keying software is said to do a much better job than previously in dealing with the color space shortcomings of DV/HDV so if the screen is lit evenly (very evenly) and the subject is positioned far enough from the screen to minimize spill, reasonable results should be expected. Whether "reasonable" would meet your expectations or not only you can decide. Some of the threads on the forum have discussed capturing directly to a PC from the analog camera outputs to avoid some of the problems with color space, but there also seems to be a difference of opinion about whether the capture method introduces its own set of other problems into the mix such as loss of sharpness in the image. Again, this is pretty much a summary of what I've picked up by studying this forum as well as a few text books, but I hope it's useful for you.

May 31st, 2008, 10:53 PM	#5
Daniel De Oliveira New Boot Join Date: May 2008 Location: United States Posts: 16	Thanks Don, I decided to ask the guys on Digital Juice what microphone they use. I end up purchasing the NTG-2 SHOTGUN CONDENSER MICROPHONE and the Audio-Technica ATR288W Wireless Microphone System based on their suggestion. I have not received them yet. The quality of their audio is great on their website and products I purchase from them. Well regarding the recording from VGA to the GL2. If you go to http://www.learntheecg.com/telemetry_room.html you will see that the quality of my recording can improve. I have Camtasia for screen capture in my computer, however the ECG rhythms do not display in my PC. If I am able to make then display on my PC laptop screen I would be able to record it with Camtasia? Is this possible? The crew for now is easy. It will be one or two talents and I. The studio, my office. If you have I suggestion of a wired mic that goes into a camcorder I can take a look on it online.

June 3rd, 2008, 10:21 AM	#6
Randall Allen Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2005 Posts: 192	Daniel: I thought the images you present are fine. What about them does not appeal to you? They are very clear and look like genuine images (to my untrained eye) that would be very useful for education. Green screen on the GL-2 is doable. I am having fairly good results using the GL-2 and Edius 4. www.cavespringlibrary.org/BG/BG-NoTrace.wmv and www.cavespringlibrary.org/BG/BG-kab-psa.wmv The first link turned out very well because they sat in front of the tent. Since it did not move it keyed out very well for me. I do run into some situations where if a person holds up their hand and the fingers are spread then it does not key well. -Randy

June 7th, 2008, 11:55 PM	#7
Daniel De Oliveira New Boot Join Date: May 2008 Location: United States Posts: 16	Thanks Randy. The response I have got with the increase in traffic every month suggest that the need for this type of education is there. I am trying to obtain a better quality of ECG videos. If I could record the computer screen it would be much better but I have not been successful in getting the biomedical department of the hospital to install a screen recorder software such as camtasia in the computer. I just found out my JVC Everio has a S Video imput. I am going to try to record the ECG on it to see how it looks like. If any one knows how to record VGA to GL2 I appreciate the suggestion. I tried to visit the links you posted but I got a page not found link. I am impressed. I was not familiar with Eddius software. Another video editor software. I get curious but I am trying hard to learn my final cut pro and adobe premiere I got. I have been using www.vtc.com so far.

June 9th, 2008, 01:21 PM	#8
Randall Allen Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2005 Posts: 192	Sorry, I forget the files are large. Right click the link and save. Then view. Best of luck to you! Randy

June 10th, 2008, 11:27 AM	#9
David L. Holmes Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Detroit, MI USA Posts: 96	Sorry Randall, no can do... Can't watch or download any videos :(

June 11th, 2008, 01:36 PM	#10
Randall Allen Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2005 Posts: 192	Hmmm....not sure what is going on but I have a solution. We are starting to post all of our Be Green videos on youtube, I was planning on uploading one every 3 days or so but will accelerate that rate to accomadate viewing the final two. I should have them all up by the end of the week. http://youtube.com/user/BeGreenRomeGa Randy

June 12th, 2008, 09:46 AM	#12
Daniel De Oliveira New Boot Join Date: May 2008 Location: United States Posts: 16	Hi Chris, Thanks for the tip. I bought one of those. I just could not make it work. It is my fault. I read the manual but could not do it right. If you know a site with a tutorial with step by step it would help. I have an EVERIO digital camera with an S video imput. I am going to try it also to see if I can make it work.

June 12th, 2008, 05:07 PM	#14
Chris Soucy Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Fairfield, Dunedin, New Zealand Posts: 3,682 Images: 18	Hi........... Got to say I was a bit suprised to see you say you couldn't get the box to work. "What's to work"? thought I. Then I read the product description a bit more carefully. The "Powered from USB" stopped me in my tracks. Aha, OK if you actually have a PC to hand with USB ports, not so OK if you have an ECG machine that doesn't do USB. Could that be the problem? Stab in the dark maybe but the best guess I can come up with short of reading the FM. CS

June 20th, 2008, 09:59 PM	#15
Daniel De Oliveira New Boot Join Date: May 2008 Location: United States Posts: 16	First and foremost I would like to pay my respects to all video makers out there. This week I got 3 hours to do 15 minutes of footage and lots of work to do with it. I could not get my microphone to work in the first 1/2 of the filming. Got to go back and look into the manual and figure out what to do. I have the wireless microphone and the M300 adapter to the GL2. It did not work. I have Camtasia Studio in my laptop. I can record my PC based ECG machine and record on it. What I can not record is the hospital ECG machine which has a VGA output on it. I have purchased a PC to TV converter Gigaware. It has an S Video output. I was not successful in recording into my GL2 mini DV tape. The instructions on the manual look simple but it did not work.