shooting green screen video format

[ddinisco]

I run into this issue every time we shoot green screen. Budget always wants needs to restrict the camera package to either HDcam (not SR) or DVC Pro HD. HDcam is 3:1:1 and DVC Pro HD is 4:2:2, but more compressed than HDcam.

Which format would you shoot of the two for the best green screen results?

Thanks
David

[Shekhar Rathore]

Given that everything is lit well and care is taken on set to capture the best image possible out of those formats, I’ve been able to get decent keys out of both. Of course, getting a really nice key out of less than perfect footage isn’t a one trick pony and usually requires a bit of finesse..a basic example is to focus on getting a nice edge key (hair, etc.), then add that to a solid core key (inner body, etc.) Neither HDCAM nor DVCPROHD are perfect and I tend to lean towards HDCAM over DVCPROHD in my experience…but that being said, the quality you are going to get may also depend on the specific model camera as well. (eg, an HVX-200 might give you more noise to deal with than an AJ-HDC27H with which you can use better glass.)

Honestly, we’ve been shooting RED mostly lately because of the cleanliness of the image and the beautiful keys you can pull on a green screen job…and the camera rental costs fit very well into a budget conscience project. If that isn’t an option, you could also look at the other flavor of P2 cameras that shoot AVC-Intra.

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