Horizontal Black Bars!! at DVinfo.net

Jim Wharton · December 8th, 2003, 07:54 AM

Okay, during day 2 of my ride-along with the fire department I popped in a new tape and shot about 12 minutes of b-roll and then went on a call. When I restarted the camera later the elapsed time and remainining time did not add up.
I finished the tape, loaded more and shot that too. When reviewing the tapes at home the first 10 minutes or so of the problem tape was solid blue-screen. When the image returned it was covered by 4 horizontal black bars. At times, those bars were replaced with frozen, pixelated images of the previous shot!
What happened??!! BTW the previous and subsequent tapes were fine (except the one shot where I forgot to turn on my new Azden mic) Geeez!

Walter Scott · December 9th, 2003, 08:25 PM

<<<-- Originally posted by Jim Wharton : ....... When reviewing the tapes at home the first 10 minutes or so of the problem tape was solid blue-screen. When the image returned it was covered by 4 horizontal black bars. At times, those bars were replaced with frozen, pixelated images of the previous shot!
What happened??!! BTW the previous and subsequent tapes were fine

Had this happen, had to throw the tape out. Has not happened again!

Ken Tanaka · December 10th, 2003, 12:31 AM

Jim,
Short answer: I don't really know what happened and doubt that anyone will be able to provide a definitive answer.

For what it's worth, here is my off-the-cuff speculation.

1. Contamination. Even though you used a new tape it's possible that something gunked the head from a previous roll. (Are you using differing brands of tape?) The new tape eventually wiped it clean and normal recording resumed. This is my best guess.

2. Tape path misalignment. It might be possible that the tape thread did not proceed precisely although not badly enough to trigger a "Remove Tape" message. Again, the tape managed to align itself during roll.

3. Alien invasion or act of terror?

<shrug>

Aaron Rosen · December 10th, 2003, 12:52 AM

I have no idea what happened, but I would like to see what you shot.

Jim Wharton · December 10th, 2003, 09:03 AM

Thanks guys. Use only Panasonc tapes. I did run the Panasonic cleaning cassette prior to the first tape. Never saw anything like that before. Oh well....probably have to return for some pick-up shots.

December 8th, 2003, 07:54 AM	#1
Jim Wharton New Boot Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Crestline, Ca Posts: 21	Horizontal Black Bars!! Okay, during day 2 of my ride-along with the fire department I popped in a new tape and shot about 12 minutes of b-roll and then went on a call. When I restarted the camera later the elapsed time and remainining time did not add up. I finished the tape, loaded more and shot that too. When reviewing the tapes at home the first 10 minutes or so of the problem tape was solid blue-screen. When the image returned it was covered by 4 horizontal black bars. At times, those bars were replaced with frozen, pixelated images of the previous shot! What happened??!! BTW the previous and subsequent tapes were fine (except the one shot where I forgot to turn on my new Azden mic) Geeez!

December 9th, 2003, 08:25 PM	#2
Walter Scott Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Baton Rouge, LA Posts: 27	Re: Horizontal Black Bars!! <<<-- Originally posted by Jim Wharton : ....... When reviewing the tapes at home the first 10 minutes or so of the problem tape was solid blue-screen. When the image returned it was covered by 4 horizontal black bars. At times, those bars were replaced with frozen, pixelated images of the previous shot! What happened??!! BTW the previous and subsequent tapes were fine Had this happen, had to throw the tape out. Has not happened again!

December 10th, 2003, 12:31 AM	#3
Ken Tanaka Retired DV Info Net Almunus Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 6,943	Jim, Short answer: I don't really know what happened and doubt that anyone will be able to provide a definitive answer. For what it's worth, here is my off-the-cuff speculation. 1. Contamination. Even though you used a new tape it's possible that something gunked the head from a previous roll. (Are you using differing brands of tape?) The new tape eventually wiped it clean and normal recording resumed. This is my best guess. 2. Tape path misalignment. It might be possible that the tape thread did not proceed precisely although not badly enough to trigger a "Remove Tape" message. Again, the tape managed to align itself during roll. 3. Alien invasion or act of terror? <shrug> __________________ Lady X Films: A lady with a boring wardrobe...and a global mission. Hey, you don't have enough stuff! Buy with confidence from our sponsors. Hand-picked as the best in the business...Really! See some of my work one frame at a time: www.KenTanaka.com

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December 10th, 2003, 12:52 AM	#4
Aaron Rosen Major Player Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: HB, CA - USA Posts: 298	I have no idea what happened, but I would like to see what you shot.

December 10th, 2003, 09:03 AM	#5
Jim Wharton New Boot Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Crestline, Ca Posts: 21	Thanks guys. Use only Panasonc tapes. I did run the Panasonic cleaning cassette prior to the first tape. Never saw anything like that before. Oh well....probably have to return for some pick-up shots.