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Hands-On With the Sanyo Xacti: Sequential High-Speed Stills

In this episode, the team's location scouting excursion doesn't exactly turn out as expected. Plus, Chris demonstrates shooting with sequential high-speed stills.

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Hands-On With the Sanyo Xacti: iFrame

Meet Chris, he's a videographer/filmmaker who just got a hold of his own Sanyo Xacti FH1A camera. Over the next several weeks, he'll be creating a short film project using his new camera and demonstrating some of it's features in the process.

This week, he covers the Xacti's iFrame format, which helps simplify the editing process with iMovie.

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Why High Definition?

High-definition. It sounds impressive, but what is it really? Are high-definition, or HD, features and content really worth seeking out?

Let's start by asking: What is high-definition, anyway?

HD is defined as content saved or broadcast in the widescreen, 16:9 aspect ratio (meaning the ratio of the width of the TV screen to the height of the screen is 16/9, or 1.778), and with a resolution of at least 720 horizontal lines, although 1080 lines of resolution — the uppermost HD standard today — is even more desirable.

The three major HD formats are 720p, 1080i, and 1080p. The number refers to the resolution, as outlined above, and the letter following it refers to the type of scan the TV or content source uses: "p" is progressive and "i" is interlaced. Without delving into too much detail, progressive scan is considered superior because it processes images twice as fast, refreshing the entire screen with each refresh instead of just half of it. (As such, interlaced screens can seem jittery to some.)

Sanyo's Xacti VPC-HD2000A and VPC-FH1A shoot in the best HD format available today: 1080p.

Why is HD quality important? As televisions get larger and larger, the quality of an image gets more important. On your old 15-inch television, low-grade VHS content probably looked fine, but when you blow that video up to display on a 60-inch monster TV set, imperfections become glaringly obvious. Even DVD images, with 480 lines of resolution, can look pixilated on very large sets, make HD content all the more important.

Having high-quality still images can be even more important. When images are in motion, as they are with a video, imperfections are often fleeting and hard to spot. But pause a DVD on a large TV or load up a still shot captured with insufficient resolution and you'll quickly spot flaws like jagged lines, blurry motion, and colors blending together where they shouldn't. In contrast, HD images (or paused motion pictures) look far more crisp and distinct.

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Simple Video Editing Tips and Tricks

Distributing unedited and untrimmed video is no way to dazzle your friends and family. Take a few tips from the professionals and turn raw video into impressive, well-edited masterpieces.

• When in doubt, cut it out. Shorter is almost always better no matter what kind of video you've shot. Remember: One minute of a gurgling baby is just as effective as five minutes. The last thing you want is for your audience to get bored.
• Don't cut too frequently. Unless you're a seasoned video editor, try not to cut more than a few times per minute. Videos that are too jumpy can be distracting and hard to follow. At worst they can nauseate your audience. Good edits should not be noticeable and should instead be natural, organic parts of a film. Watch for natural breaks in the action where you can jump to another scene.
• Go easy with the special effects. Adding color filters, psychedelic overlays, and animations that pop in and out will quickly make your video look like amateur hour. Keep things professional and eschew these cheap tricks.
• Soundtracks can help when used in moderation. Don't blast music over the action, but adding tasteful, scene-appropriate music can be a big help to your film. Narration can also be of use if you're looking to inject humor or understanding into what's going on.
• Remember continuity. When editing a long scene, try to keep what's on the right on the right and what's on the left on the left. Think about two people talking: If you're cutting a scene together and person A is sitting to the right of person B, don't suddenly cut to a scene where the two are reversed, or where person A is sitting alone but facing to his right. This will quickly confuse the audience.
• Establish where you are. Before jumping into the action, establish the scene with a shot that tells people where they are (an exterior shot of a home, a campground, a circus), before jumping into the close-ups. Remember you can always grab this shot when you leave.
• Watch a lot of movies. Pay conscious attention to editing in feature films that you like and you'll naturally pick up information about how it's done. Take notes and practice on your own films.