My A1 workflow plan - please advise
 

Hi gang. I'll be doing a wedding in two weeks. This is going to be my first time shooting in HDV. I had been planning on using a Sony V1, but I've been informed at the last minute that my only choice is now the A1. I'm very pleased because I've heard nothing but rave reviews about the A1, but I'm stressed because I have to re-think my entire plan now.

Can you guys tell me if this will work for shooting in HDV and delivering a SD DVD now, with the possibility of some HD delivery later on.

1. Shoot with the A1 in HDV 24f.

2. Capture the HDV 24f in Premiere CS3 (I don't have cineform or anything like that).

3. Edit in a true 24p HD timeline and export straight to a SD DVD compatible mp2 file (and maybe a HD-WMV file for xbox 360 owners).

Is Premiere CS3 going to work all by itself?

Depends on how fast your computer is and how much RAM you have, etc. Cineform will allow you to run HDV smoothly on even an average computer but if you are going to be using native mpeg files then you will need some significant horsepower.

Bob,
Be sure to familiarize yourself with the A1 prior to the wedding. You'll want to get your settings nailed down before hand. Check the preset library on this site for a great place to get starter settings. The A1 stock settings look flat. Many people on here seem to like the vividrgb. The lowlt12 works well for lower light situations. You'll have to decide what you like. Also, you'll want to understand how the autofocus thinks if you're going to use it.

Can't help you with the Premiere stuff, I'm an FCP guy. Good luck.
--Josh

Thanks for the quick replies, guys.

If I decide to shoot HDV but edit in SD-DV for now, when the A1 downconverts on the fly via firewire, will it output a anamorphic 16x9 picture (or will it crop or letterbox instead?)

Also, will Premiere CS3 recognize and deal with the 24f pulldown cadence in an SD timeline, or should I just shoot in 30f if I want to avoid pulldown headaches?

Bob, if you edit on an SD timeline in CS3, you'll get lots of options on re-framing shots and even doing some pan and zoom in post IF you capture the HDV files (and not down-convert). I do this all the time in PPro2. I shoot a lot of interview stuff and like to "creep in" in post when the talent says something meaningful. Having those extra pixels is handy.

FWIW, with my A1 I shoot in 30f instead of 24f, since I don't have to be as careful with pans and motion. With 24f, you'll get a bit more light to work with without gaining up by shooting at 1/48 vs. the 1/60 shutter with 30f. But I do shoot a lot of stuff at 1/30 and 30f, as long as there's not a lot of motion.

BTW, you can indeed output a 24p DVD that can be read by 99% of modern DVD players and not have to worry about pulldown on your end. Many Hollywood DVDs are 24p. It saves a lot of space vs. 60i.

I capture with HDVSplit, that way I can throw out the bad takes/ shots. I'm not certain whether CS3 has scene-detection for HDV or not.

HTH,
Brian Brown
BrownCow Productions
http://www.browncowvideo.com/

Also, If editing HD, I wouldn't make an SD dvd disc right in premiere...

The downrezzing of premiere kinda blows... get procoder... great app.