image fader?
 

hello,

most of the time i am shooting live in theater settings, and would like to use/ have a image fader of any kind, to insert a transition between scences. (overlap scenes, sepperate?)
i am tapping from my dv canon directly onto a vcr, and i wonder if there is something i could put in between my camera and the vcr without stopping the recording.
the xl1-s has a fader option, but only at the beginning and the end of a recording session.
would also like to control this device from my tripot pan handles.


thanks

karl

Probably the simplest would be to shoot in manual mode and repeatedly press the shutter speed button towards shorter exposures to fade out then press it in the other direction to fade back in.

For my livecam switching (analog) to a multimedia projector, I use the trusty old videonics (now focus enhancements) MX-1 digital video mixer. In your example feed 1 would be the xlcam and feed 2 would be nothing, so you could transition to black. The presets are many, and if you have the budget you could get the firewire version and record to disk.

<<<-- Originally posted by Jimmy McKenzie : For my livecam switching (analog) to a multimedia projector, I use the trusty old videonics (now focus enhancements) MX-1 digital video mixer. In your example feed 1 would be the xlcam and feed 2 would be nothing, so you could transition to black. The presets are many, and if you have the budget you could get the firewire version and record to disk. -->>>

hello jimmy,

well, yes that video mixer by videonics is exactly what i was looking for. after viewing their webside, mx-4dv, which retails for abou $ 4,500, i guess i have to wait...to much money.
will search the web. i hope to find something for much less...<G>

thanks
karl

The Videonics MX-1 has a few issues, the main one being lag between pushing the button and the actual transition. Otherwise it does work.

The cheapest new Videonics mixer is like $2,000 now.

Edirol or Roland makes some video mixers that are cheaper.

2- If you are comfortable with eBay, you can pickup an old analog mixer like the MX-1 or Panasonic MX-50. The MX-50 I like as it does not have the lag. It is about the same price. You can get it modified for extra resolution.

I wouldn't necessarily trust eBay for old equipment like a mixer though... they can be half-broken. You may however be able to find new-in-box stuff (although for mixers this old, it may not happen).

3- Maybe you can capture directly to a computer or direct-to-disk recorder? From there it shouldn't take that long to throw on transitions, fix any major problems, and print to tape.