p4pro owner looking to do a project, advice on ideal settings for capturing

[gemini8026]

I have had plenty of luck doing photos with my P4 pro since I bought it when it first came out. It's been great for that.

Ive been tinkering around with video/timelapses on my Nikon D850 , and I decided I would like to try doing a video montage of my home province of Saskatchewan. However, I would like to ask a quick question about capturing video.

Obviously will capture at 4k.

But for a movie project like this, would you choose 24fps? 30fps?!? 60?!

And what color profile for the best ability to color grade in post?! LOG?!

H.264 or H.265?! (I have a decent comp with a Nvidia Geforce Titan video card) but obviously the footage will be re-encoded after it passes through Premiere.

I'm learning grading in premiere and I feel fairly capable with my editing abilities, but I want to ensure I capture good CONSISTENT footage. Just looking for some advice from more experienced film guys so that I can make sure I have footage that is consistant and I can do some subtle grading to. Thx.

 

[JarrodF]

You'll get a lot of different thoughts on this. I like more cinematic video so I generally prefer 24fps. I would steer away from shooting log with the P4P because it's still 8 bit. You just don't have much room to adjust in post and adding log to the equation (unless your exposures are right on) is a recipe for disaster. I haven't seen a huge difference in H.264 verses H.265 in my tests so far and the post issues might make that decision for you. I did just get a new iMac Pro and with the new version of FCPX I can edit H.265 natively so I might do some more research on that this year. I've seen (and shot for that matter) some lovely H.264 footage with this bird so I wouldn't worry too much about the difference. The real key (as with any exterior video) will be capturing the best time of day and lighting. That will make a bigger difference than any specific camera setting. Have fun with your project!

 

[bsartist]

You'll get a lot of different thoughts on this. I like more cinematic video so I generally prefer 24fps. I would steer away from shooting log with the P4P because it's still 8 bit. You just don't have much room to adjust in post and adding log to the equation (unless your exposures are right on) is a recipe for disaster. I haven't seen a huge difference in H.264 verses H.265 in my tests so far and the post issues might make that decision for you. I did just get a new iMac Pro and with the new version of FCPX I can edit H.265 natively so I might do some more research on that this year. I've seen (and shot for that matter) some lovely H.264 footage with this bird so I wouldn't worry too much about the difference. The real key (as with any exterior video) will be capturing the best time of day and lighting. That will make a bigger difference than any specific camera setting. Have fun with your project!

If not using log, do you have a preferred setting?

 

[Tomas Wangen]

If not using log, do you have a preferred setting?

After trying different combos for a while, I ended up with dcinelike/h265/30fps. lense performs best around f/5.6. Watching the histogram is the most important regardless. There is lot of color-noise and lifting shadows will increase this drastically. 24/30 fps is a matter of taste, but for stand-alone footage 30 will seem smoother especially close to the ground. H265 only makes sense if your software/hardware handles this well as the edge over h264 is minor.

Sidenote, if you enjoy timelapses with your Nikon you must try hyperlapses with the drone. Eg litchi will help you here.

 

[AndrewCCM]

Also for more cinematic footage, pay attention to your shutter speed. You should target somewhere around double your frame rate (e.g., F5.6, 1/50th, 24fps) or 1/60, 30fps. To get these exposures at the lowest ISO (and preferred aperture), ND filters are often required on brighter days.

Good luck!

 

[JarrodF]

I like the look of 24fps myself but it helps that I don't like drone panning shots. Those are the ones that tend to look stuttery at 24. If the subject matter has super fine details you also might prefer 30fps for its crispness.

 

[African wildlife]

We use 24fps and 1/50th shutter speed, with a ND/PL filter, D-Cinelike, H.264. We always film at golden hour for consistent best light - a factor every bit as crucial as camera settings.

I look forward to seeing your province's landscapes, which I imagine are beautiful.

 

[bsartist]

We use 24fps and 1/50th shutter speed, with a ND/PL filter, D-Cinelike, H.264. We always film at golden hour for consistent best light - a factor every bit as crucial as camera settings.

I look forward to seeing your province's landscapes, which I imagine are beautiful.

Do you compress the contrast with cinelike and pull it back up in post? Similar to dlog? Or does it give you a good baseline out of the camera?

 

[Tomas Wangen]

Do you compress the contrast with cinelike and pull it back up in post? Similar to dlog? Or does it give you a good baseline out of the camera?

Dcinelike gives a slight lift of shadows as compared to none/normal.

 

[trickhog]

If you want it to look “cinematic” then 24fps at 1/50 shutter and ND filters to get the aperture into the sweet spot.