Basic SL2 Video Settings for NOOB?

[pmendelson]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

With the bewildering video choices available on the SL2 for a NOOB, can someone recommend some very basic video settings - I am mainly a stills shooter but on occasion just want to shoot some casual video of family, etc and be able to view it on my Mac (I have the 5K desktop).  I doubt I would do any editing, and definitely don't want to get into color grading, etc.    

Also, are there basic settings I could use for shooting slo-mo like I do sometimes on my iPhone?

If anyone has any links to any basic YouTube tutorials that they found useful as well I'd appreciate it!

Thanks!

[scott kirkpatrick]

I suspect showing video clips on your 5K Mac and sharing them over YouTube are quite different destinations.  If you want slo motion and Youtube, choose MOV, and your frame rate, which can be very fast in UHD.  If you want glorious moving images on your large desktop display, go for the C4K.  Even if you don't edit anything, the experiments will be worthwhile.

[BernardC]

For a NOOB , I would recommend MP4, UHD (3840x2160), Long-GOP. 8-bit is fine if you don't want to do any grading. The frame rate depends on where you live, and what you want to do with the videos.

23.98 fps is the traditional cinema frame rate (really 24fps, but close enough).

25 fps is the European TV frame rate. You can ignore that one unless you live in Europe and expect to show your footage on the evening news.

29.97 fps is the US TV frame rate. See 25 fps

50/59.94 are the old US/Europe "interlaced" frame rates. Analog TV used to broadcast 2 half frames instead of 1 full frame. modern cameras do not interlace frames.

 

I would stick with 24 fps, unless you are shooting sports/action where you might want 50/60 fps. It's really just a personal choice, some people prefer the look of 60 fps video.

 

The other options are irrelevant to you if you just want to shoot some basic video. For instance, you can select "All-I" codecs, but those are meant to help with editing. You won't notice a difference if all you do is trim and combine shots in iMovie. What you will notice is that your memory cards fill-up much faster.

[fransoi]

Here's a basic (almost foolproof) video editor for noob: Joyoshare Media Cutter.

[i-Leica]

35mm or APS-c?.....

[leicameech]

For what it's worth, I recommend using the Cine mode, which allows for you to choose shutter angle instead of shutter speed. Regardless of frame rate, using a 180 degree shutter angle ensures a "normal" look for that frame rate -- not too choppy, not too much like an acid trip either (excessive trails from people's hands etc.). Using the 180 degree shutter angle means you'll never have to think about your shutter speed for a given frame rate. You can play with different shutter angles to achieve different looks, but which framerate those shutter angles are used in will make somewhat less of a difference than the shutter angle used. You can get really choppy-looking video if the shutter speed is much higher than the frame rate. For example -- you're shooting wide-open at f/2 but at 60fps. It's the middle of the day. Just like with photography, unless you're shooting with an ND filter, you'll need a fast shutter speed even if the ISO is low. Say the correct shutter speed is 1/2000th of a second for a still image to be exposed properly. Well, if you apply this to video, shooting at 60fps, 60 frames per second are being recorded, but each frame itself is shot at 1/2000th of a second. This will result in properly-exposed, but choppy-looking video. To get natural-looking results, you'll need a ~1/120th shutter speed, or double the speed of the frame rate. This means you'll have to stop the lens down or use an ND filter to get correct exposure (since if it's bright even ISO 50 will leave you overexposed wide-open with a fast lens), but the video will look much more natural and not choppy. A 180 degree shutter angle will double the frame rate without you having to choose the correct shutter speed. That way, if you change your frame rate but not the shutter angle, the correct shutter speed will be chosen for you. It's kind of a take on shutter priority mode, but for video. I have found this to be very helpful for family and casual videos. I wish the Q2 had this feature.. it doesn't, for some reason. 

MOV files are huge. If you want smaller files, stick to MP4. 

[Photoworks]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

5 hours ago, leicameech said:

For what it's worth, I recommend using the Cine mode, which allows for you to choose shutter angle instead of shutter speed. Regardless of frame rate, using a 180 degree shutter angle ensures a "normal" look for that frame rate -- not too choppy, not too much like an acid trip either (excessive trails from people's hands etc.). Using the 180 degree shutter angle means you'll never have to think about your shutter speed for a given frame rate. You can play with different shutter angles to achieve different looks, but which framerate those shutter angles are used in will make somewhat less of a difference than the shutter angle used. You can get really choppy-looking video if the shutter speed is much higher than the frame rate. For example -- you're shooting wide-open at f/2 but at 60fps. It's the middle of the day. Just like with photography, unless you're shooting with an ND filter, you'll need a fast shutter speed even if the ISO is low. Say the correct shutter speed is 1/2000th of a second for a still image to be exposed properly. Well, if you apply this to video, shooting at 60fps, 60 frames per second are being recorded, but each frame itself is shot at 1/2000th of a second. This will result in properly-exposed, but choppy-looking video. To get natural-looking results, you'll need a ~1/120th shutter speed, or double the speed of the frame rate. This means you'll have to stop the lens down or use an ND filter to get correct exposure (since if it's bright even ISO 50 will leave you overexposed wide-open with a fast lens), but the video will look much more natural and not choppy. A 180 degree shutter angle will double the frame rate without you having to choose the correct shutter speed. That way, if you change your frame rate but not the shutter angle, the correct shutter speed will be chosen for you. It's kind of a take on shutter priority mode, but for video. I have found this to be very helpful for family and casual videos. I wish the Q2 had this feature.. it doesn't, for some reason. 

MOV files are huge. If you want smaller files, stick to MP4. 

while I was reading your post a question mark light bulb went on in my head.

Been there different size sensors and resolutions Super35, full frame, Large format, does the 180 degree still apply  in 5-8k?

Just asking because many hires camera require a speed bump not to get shake photos. 

Just wondering if anything changes in the last few years.

[BernardC]

1 hour ago, Photoworks said:

while I was reading your post a question mark light bulb went on in my head.

Been there different size sensors and resolutions Super35, full frame, Large format, does the 180 degree still apply  in 5-8k?

Just asking because many hires camera require a speed bump not to get shake photos. 

Just wondering if anything changes in the last few years.

No, the 180 degree shutter "rule" applies at any resolution. It's a more natural look, where things that are moving are slightly blurry, and things that aren't moving are sharper. You can, of course, play around with the effect. I've seen wonderful shots at 360 degree shutters (or as near as your camera will let you shoot, probably 355 degrees). You get streaks around moving elements, but the background stays sharp. You can also go the other way with a very narrow shutter angle, where you get a staccato movement. It's just an extra tool in your narrative bag of tricks, but the reason why it works is because a 180 degree shutter looks "normal" to most people.

Many TVs use "motion enhancement" technology that approximates a narrow shutter angle. Some people who grew-up with these television sets may find it to be more normal. It's also a common look in video games.

[leicameech]

5 hours ago, Photoworks said:

while I was reading your post a question mark light bulb went on in my head.

Been there different size sensors and resolutions Super35, full frame, Large format, does the 180 degree still apply  in 5-8k?

Just asking because many hires camera require a speed bump not to get shake photos. 

Just wondering if anything changes in the last few years.

As BernardC said above, it's all about the look, regardless of resolution. With video, unless you're on a tripod or some other sort of rig, filming a lifeless subject, everything is "motion blur" anyway. That's why it's video! When focus is correct and depth of field and exposure are appropriate for what you're shooting, all that's left is the smoothness of the motion in the frame. If you've got a camera that shoots 8k, a 180 degree shutter angle will look the same as a 180 shutter angle at 1080p. The 8k image will look crisper, but if someone were waving their arms around in the video you were recording, the amount of drag visible as their arm moves about will look the same in both resolutions. For most people, a shutter speed double the frame rate just looks "right" or "normal" most of the time because that's what most movies and TV shows use.