Newbie to A1 and need some HD advice for TV show
 

First off, thanks to everyone that contributes to this website. It is without a doubt the most comprehensive collection of information for DV information. And the people on here is what makes it. So, thanks.

I am new to the A1 and have had it just a short amount of time. I have been shooting for my website, www.fishbuzz.tv with the a1 as well as the xl-s1.

I need some help as i am now going to be producing a tv show focusing on fishing in florida. I havent a clue as to what formats, presets and so forth i should start shooting in?? if that sounds funny that i dont know what im doing and producing a tv show, it is.

I will be shooting everything in Hi def 16:9 widescreen. Most of the shooting will be outdoors, on boats catching action shots of fish and the hosts. It will also feature a cooking segment for chefs probably later in the day in lower light situations. Any advice as to where i should start would be great.

I downloaded all the presets for the camera on my card from one of the threads on here.

Thanks for the help and all the other input that people put on this site.

I'm confused as to what you mean by the xl-s1. I thought you might mean the xl1s, but then you talked about going full hi def. Can you explain a little further?

I shoot a lot of video for TV on my A1 and I think I might be of some help. I'm not sure who you are shooting this video for (that is where it is being broadcasted) but on average it isn't going to be HD. I know all the broadcasting stations I have shot video for have given me very strict details on how I should shoot. Because of the nature of my work, I shoot in 60i, in SD, at 4:9 using very neutral color presets. I haven't had a single problem with my video and I usually find it to be of decently high quality. If the station that you are shooting for wants to broadcast for HD then you need to find out the specifics from them. Remember though that most TVs are in 4:9... so even if you are shooting in 16:9 and planning to downconvert later, it is important to set the aspect guidelines in the A1 to keep from embarassing yourself.

Delivering the medium to them is one of the biggest issues I've run into. Usually I shoot stuff that fits on a DVD (most stations these days are capable of using DVD+R but most prefer you use DVD-R, yeah I didn't know there was a difference either). If you are shooting in HD or shooting an ungodly amount of SD video, make arrangements with them on how they want it delivered to them. It might save you last minute headaches.

Who are you planning on broadcasting to specifically? You are in Seminole, I might have worked with them before (most of the work I do is in the Tampa area). It's good to know there are A1 users in the area, if you ever need another cam (or two since we have two) drop me a pm.