Videoguys Guide to Understanding HD Formats at DVinfo.net

Gary Bettan · June 1st, 2009, 05:13 PM

The goal of this guide is to provide you with a general foundation of knowledge about each of the most popular HD formats, so that you can use this information as part of your decision. It is not a technical manual. I am going to do my best to avoid tech speak and keep it in simple to understand terms.

This guide was NOT written to help you choose a specific camcorder. For that our best advice is to go to your local store and check them out. Talk to your friends/ colleagues who are already shooting HD and ask them what they like best and least about their camcorder. If you can, try to borrow it and try it yourself. If you already have an HD camcorder, this guide will help you better understand the format you have, and it’s pluses and minuses for post production.

HD is not DV
This is a very important fact you need to understand and appreciate. Editing DV footage is a breeze. Even with a four year old computer it’s a piece of cake. You don’t need a ton of processing power or storage. You don’t need special hardware and the workflow of importing DV footage into your computer via FireWire (or USB), editing it, encoding it and then burning it to DVD or publishing it on the web is easy.

Unfortunately working with HD footage isn’t that simple, and each HD format has it’s own unique workflow that can require special settings, plug-ins, work arounds and even hardware. Don’t let that scare you away. By the end of this article you will have a solid understanding of each HD format and a bunch of suggested workflows and solutions.

Videoguys Blog - Videoguys Guide to Understanding HD Formats

Gary

Vito DeFilippo · June 1st, 2009, 08:30 PM

Nice article, Gary. Well done and a very informative summary. Thanks.

Just so you know, for me on Firefox 2, some of the text extends into the right border and disappears.

And to be nitpicky, HDV is not an inherently tape-based format. It's a spec. For example, the Z7 records it to CF cards.

And DNxHD is not a lossless codec. It's a mastering codec, but is compressed.

Emrys Roberts · June 2nd, 2009, 08:10 AM

Thanks for the article Gary. :)

Ron Evans · June 2nd, 2009, 09:27 AM

Gary I know you don't sell Canopus anymore but Canopus HQ is another intermediate format just like Cineform that works well too and unlike Cineform will retain the 6 channels of audio for AVCHD conversion.
Ron Evans

Gary Bettan · June 2nd, 2009, 09:29 AM

We do include Canopus HQ in the comparison chart at the end of the article. I'll try and learn more about Canopus HQ workflows and add it to the next update of the article.

GAry

Ron Evans · June 2nd, 2009, 12:59 PM

Gary sorry I missed that column in the chart. Yes it would be worth you updating as HQ also supports 1920x1080 and is usable much like Cineform as an AVI file. Can't confirm for CS4 or Vegas 9 but HQ will certainly work in Vegas 8. There is no 64bit codec version so will not work in Vegas 8.1. One would of course need Edius to even get the converter for HQ.

Ron Evans

June 1st, 2009, 05:13 PM	#1
Gary Bettan Sponsor: Electronic Mailbox Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Glen Cove, NY Posts: 757	Videoguys Guide to Understanding HD Formats The goal of this guide is to provide you with a general foundation of knowledge about each of the most popular HD formats, so that you can use this information as part of your decision. It is not a technical manual. I am going to do my best to avoid tech speak and keep it in simple to understand terms. This guide was NOT written to help you choose a specific camcorder. For that our best advice is to go to your local store and check them out. Talk to your friends/ colleagues who are already shooting HD and ask them what they like best and least about their camcorder. If you can, try to borrow it and try it yourself. If you already have an HD camcorder, this guide will help you better understand the format you have, and it’s pluses and minuses for post production. HD is not DV This is a very important fact you need to understand and appreciate. Editing DV footage is a breeze. Even with a four year old computer it’s a piece of cake. You don’t need a ton of processing power or storage. You don’t need special hardware and the workflow of importing DV footage into your computer via FireWire (or USB), editing it, encoding it and then burning it to DVD or publishing it on the web is easy. Unfortunately working with HD footage isn’t that simple, and each HD format has it’s own unique workflow that can require special settings, plug-ins, work arounds and even hardware. Don’t let that scare you away. By the end of this article you will have a solid understanding of each HD format and a bunch of suggested workflows and solutions. Videoguys Blog - Videoguys Guide to Understanding HD Formats Gary __________________ Check out http://www.videoguys.com 800 323-2325 We are the video editing and live video production experts! DV InfoNet members save 5%! Use Coupon Code DVINFO5OFF

June 1st, 2009, 08:30 PM	#2
Vito DeFilippo Trustee Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Montreal, Quebec Posts: 1,585	Nice article, Gary. Well done and a very informative summary. Thanks. Just so you know, for me on Firefox 2, some of the text extends into the right border and disappears. And to be nitpicky, HDV is not an inherently tape-based format. It's a spec. For example, the Z7 records it to CF cards. And DNxHD is not a lossless codec. It's a mastering codec, but is compressed. __________________ . http://www.nosmallroles.com

June 2nd, 2009, 08:10 AM	#3
Emrys Roberts Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Denver, CO Posts: 78	Thanks for the article Gary. :) __________________ Website: http://rougheditproductions.com/ Vimeo Profile: http://vimeo.com/roughedit

June 2nd, 2009, 09:29 AM	#5
Gary Bettan Sponsor: Electronic Mailbox Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Glen Cove, NY Posts: 757	We do include Canopus HQ in the comparison chart at the end of the article. I'll try and learn more about Canopus HQ workflows and add it to the next update of the article. GAry __________________ Check out http://www.videoguys.com 800 323-2325 We are the video editing and live video production experts! DV InfoNet members save 5%! Use Coupon Code DVINFO5OFF

June 2nd, 2009, 09:27 AM	#4
Ron Evans Inner Circle Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Posts: 4,220	Gary I know you don't sell Canopus anymore but Canopus HQ is another intermediate format just like Cineform that works well too and unlike Cineform will retain the 6 channels of audio for AVCHD conversion. Ron Evans

June 2nd, 2009, 12:59 PM	#6
Ron Evans Inner Circle Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Posts: 4,220	Gary sorry I missed that column in the chart. Yes it would be worth you updating as HQ also supports 1920x1080 and is usable much like Cineform as an AVI file. Can't confirm for CS4 or Vegas 9 but HQ will certainly work in Vegas 8. There is no 64bit codec version so will not work in Vegas 8.1. One would of course need Edius to even get the converter for HQ. Ron Evans