Question about HD/NTSC/PAL Formats
 

Hi

I understand NTSC and PAL formats. But HD, how do you categorize it?

Let's say I want to buy a Prosumer camera and the geographical location I am in uses the standard PAL format, naturally I would get a PAL standard camera.

Now when it comes to HD, since it has the 1080i and the 720 resolution standards, I would assume that it is on a format of its own. Right?

Therefore if the above statements are true, then it wouldnt matter which HD cameras or HD Player/Recorders I buy...since they are in a format of their own. True?

So in conclusion, it should not matter whether I'm a cameraman shooting HD in Malaysia and a cameraman shooting HD in America. Because we are both actually shooting in HD. Am I rite?

Please can someone explain to me? Thanks.

Regards
Nazz68

HD is neither PAL nor NTSC, it is HD. It is a format in and of its own self.

Any HDTV set should play any HD content, so any HD set should be able to play 50i or 60i or whatever. Any HD set should be able to play 720p or 1080i as well.

It should not matter which camera or deck you buy, that is correct. Your America/Malaysia thinking is correct.

However, if you're talking about the Sony FX1, that camera is dual-format: it is HDV but it is also DV. So you might want to get the right DV model for your territory so that the DV functionality is still useful to you.

Also, if you're looking at down-rezzing to standard video, the format of choice will be influenced by where you're releasing your video. For example, if you're shooting HD but intending to release on PAL, then 1080/50i would be the better choice over 1080/60i.

If you're shooting HD and staying exclusively in HD, then these PAL/NTSC down-rezzing concerns become irrelevant.

Just to reinforce what Barry says:

1) HD comes in several resolutions (720, 1080, etc)

2) HD also comes in several framerates (30p, 50i, 60i, etc)

Played on an HD monitor, none of these combinations should prove a problem.

However, you may wish at times to covert footage to SD. Any of the resolutions will be fine for downsizing to 480 (NTSC) or 576 (PAL) vertical pixels.

But it will be more straightfoward, and better quality, to be able maintain framerate at 50i (for PAL) or 60i (for NTSC), rather than having to convert from one to the other during the downrez.

I've used the PAL version of the FX1E here in the USA, and because its frame rate is 50i instead of 60i, it will not play on an NTSC-only HDTV. Now, several HDTVs and many HD monitors accept input from both NTSC HD and PAL HD, but you should check yours first.

I repeat: I have tried hooking a PAL camera up to my Toshiba 55" NTSC HDTV and the signals were not compatible. Even the FX1E manual stated that I needed a PAL TV, so this is not a shock.

That said, the PAL version's gonna be more cinematic (50i ~25 frames is closer to the 24 we all seek), so if you can work with it, you won't regret it...

<edited for grammar!>

That's not good news...

Did you hook the camera up through s-video? Or through component HD connections?

I wouldn't expect it to play a downconverted PAL signal through s-video, but it certainly should be able to play the component HD signal...