Film transfers, 60i, 50i, or Xl2?
 

DVFilm says 60i.
Duart says 50i but prefers the Xl2 to HDV.
Anyone here actually done a test transfer to film?
For me its between 60i and 50i Sony HDV and the XL2 24p which has a great lense. The DVX100 is not for documentary filming, I have seen enough test transfers to know that...

I had a 35mm transfer done at DVfilm a month or so ago. It was great. I shoot mostly with a DSR500, in 16:9 mode, but some closeups and slow shutter effect shots were done with the DSR250. I watched the print at a local theater with a 30 foot screen and was really impressed with what a good job DVfilm did. The end use was for an event at a drive in theater with a building-size screen. I didn't attend the event, but those who did said the print looked great. So, if you're using DVfilm, I would do as they say and give them 60i. I didn't send them a tape master, instead I sent them an Avid codec uncompressed QuickTime on a hard drive. I was also impressed with the audio quality--it was much better than I expected too.

Also before you shoot, it would be worthwhile to buy their book which tells you everything you need to know about transfers. And if you're doing something long, it would pay to do a test before you get into the project. I understand they will apply that cost to the final bill if you go with them.

If you haven't decided on the camera yet, you might want to give them a call. They seem to like HDV because of the high res. The guy I talked with was very helpful and prompt in returning phone calls and email.

Great info! I just got my FX1 a couple of days ago. I have a long form project that I'd love to see transfered to film, but also needed something that I could shoot NTSC corporate video with. The Z1 was out of my immediate price range so shooting PAL isn't even an option for me. Nice to hear 60i looked so good.

I did their class on shooting digital for film transfer 2 weeks ago. It was well worth the money. All kinds of questions were answered. We were given the book with the class. I read it afterward and it is excellent. I consider it a must if you are transferring to film.

I was looking forward to ordering this book, but the order page says that the book is being updated with the latest HDV camera info.

http://www.dvfilm.com/book.htm

For me frame rate would come second to resolution. I just watched Jackass 2 haha yes I know with some friends where they spliced 24p DVX footage with 24p HDCAM footage and back to back the DVX looked really grainy like bad 16mm with less of the atmosphere. but hey thats my opinion.

Glad they are updating the book. A lot has changed since then and I got conflicting info later.

I saw it last night. You can sure tell the difference, though the DVX would've looked a lot better if they weren't cutting between the two sources.

That's true with any 1/3" chip camera. If you shoot the whole movie with it, there's nothing better for the eye to compare it to, and it will look fine. But intercutting with a 2/3" chip camera, it always looks softer and grainier.

I think if I saw SD DVX footage blown up 35mm I would still be dissapointed, aside from comparison it still looked bad.

Actually, you might find it looked amazingly good, depending on the original footage and who did the transfer and what lab did the print.

Honestly from what I have seen I dont think 480p can hold up blown up to 35mm.

Opinions opinions