imagemechanic

Here are some downloadable scene files for camcorders.

I’ve been fairly cautious when creating these files, as it may not be a good idea to load anything too radical in to your camera unless you know exactly what it’s doing. It’s also the case that if there was a ‘magic bullet’ set up of a camera that created some kind of visual masterpiece, then it’s possible the designers may have stumbled across it by now, and made it the default setting.

Anyway, give these a try. Errors and omissions excepted. Check carefully that the results are acceptable before using.

PMW-500

What they do:

NTV1-500  is a look for general TV work, where there will be no grading.  ITU-709 matrix and gamma are used, Clip is set at 102% and manual knee point and slope are adjusted to take this in to account. Detail is softened just a little. Many users reduce black level to give a slightly black crushed, contrasty look. Rather than take this route, black gamma has been used to give a similar effect

NFL1-500 is a more filmic look where there would normally be a grade. ITU-709 matrix is selected. Hypergamma 4 is used to hold on to maximum dynamic range, but this means signal levels up to 109% are recorded, which may need to be tweaked in post to fit through the transmission path. Detail correction is reduced, but still visible.

How to use.

Although you can store scene files on the SxS card, it’s probably best to use a USB flash drive. Capacity must be at least 4GB (though the files are only tiny) and it can be a bit random regarding which types of drive conform to the Sony spec.

Format the drive in the camcorder and store the scene file in the following folder:

\MSSONY\SONY\PRO\CAMERA\XDCAM\PMW_500

You can’t edit these files, but if you open them with a script editor such as wordpad, you’ll be able to check the name of the file.

PDW-F800

NTV1-800  is a look for general TV work, where there will be no grading.  ITU-709 matrix and gamma are used, Clip is set at 102% and manual knee point and slope are adjusted to take this in to account. Detail is softened just a little (Don’t ever take detail level on an F800 below -15...its default setting from the factory is low to start with, unlike the ‘700). Many users reduce black level to give a slightly black crushed, contrasty look. Rather than take this route, black gamma has been used to give a similar effect

NFL1-800 is a more filmic look where there would normally be a grade. ITU-709 matrix is selected. Hypergamma 4 is used to hold on to maximum dynamic range, but this means signal levels up to 109% are recorded, which may need to be tweaked in post to fit through the transmission path. Detail correction is reduced, but still visible. (Don’t ever take detail level on an F800 below -15...its default setting from the factory is low to start with, unloke the ‘700)

Format the memory stick in the camcorder and store the scene file in the following folder:

E:\MSSONY\PRO\CAMERA\HD_CAM