[Tig] HD color compression options

[bob at bluescreen.com]

>I'm getting ready to shoot a series of spec commercials in HD and have a
>couple of questions about format. My shooting options are:
>
>a)      Sony F900 on-board HDCAM 8bit 3:1:1
>
>b)      Sony F900 tethered to HDCAM SR 10bit 4:2:2
>
>c)      Sony F950/Viper tethered to HDCAM SR 10bit 4:4:4
>
> 
>
>What are the practical limitations in post grading and color correction
>for using one of the more compressed formats? I know there is less color
>information but how exactly does that express itself? Does anyone know
>of a way to tether a pre-compressed analog RGB signal from the F900 to
>get 10bit 4:4:4 on the SR deck?


The first two options are kind of like grading a print in terms of latitude
and control, although the second is quite a bit better than the first. 

The 950/Viper/SR combo is somewhat more like grading a neg.

There is no practical way to get 4:4:4 out of a 900. I have heard that some
have modified theirs for 4:4:4 RGB out (analog) based on some prototype Sony
once showed, but it's not for the faint of heart, and certainly not something
you want to do on a rented or borrowed rig. And you're still faced with
finding a 4:4:4 RGB to dual link HD-SDI converter somewhere...

--Bob

Bob Kertesz
BlueScreen LLC
Hollywood, California

The Ultimate in ULTIMATTE® compositing.