Which video format to use for the H2/H2s?

[yatesd]

Hi Everyone,

I just upgraded from an X-T2 to an H2 this week. I have not really used the Fuji for videos previously, but really looking to leverage this true hybrid camera going forward. I even bought a small microphone.

Microphone

I've done some research online and most people still seem to recommend recording 264 codec. I've been researching ProRes and leaning toward leveraging it. I've got the M1 Mac Pro, and Premiere which both appear to be optimized to edit this file type.

ProRes article

ProRes file sizes compared

Another ProRes size comparison

Codec details from Apple

ProRes Discussion

If I understand correctly, ProRes regular or LT requires CF Express card, which I already own. It should be easier to edit with better quality, but will require conversion to share? Does this seem accurate? Any thoughts?

 

[blueplastic]

What’re you taking video of? How much storage space do you have? Are you going to do much post color grading? What frame rate do you want to shoot at?

 

[yatesd]

I’ve got some flexibility since it will be for personal use. Vacations, family events, wildlife, etc. Storage is not a huge issue, I just purchased a 512G CF card and have a Synology NAS.

I’m looking to capture at a high quality and make any editing/sharing easy. I don’t want to use a lower quality unnecessarily. In my case sharing is not an issue unless it would be difficult to convert post process.

I own a MacBook Pro M1 with 16GB RAM and have Premiere. I don’t anticipate tons of editing, but I can already tell that I will at least do noise reduction, sound, and color correct while editing since basic improvements are relatively easy.

Didn’t know if anyone is playing with ProRes LT for personal use, or whether I should stick to 264 MOV. I did do some minor editing on 264 Mov yesterday and that seemed to go smoothly. Curious if there is any real world advantage to ProRes LT for personal use.

 

[blueplastic]

The RODE VideoMic NTG sounds much better than the MK200 and the NTG has on-mic buttons and dials that are much more helpful.

So, most of those articles you referenced are old. They don't seem to reference H.265. Your M1 laptop will handle 265 LongGOP great. If you're on M1 though, you may really want to consider FinalCut over Premier for your use case of family/vacations/etc.

And when they say like for ProRes 422 "The target data is 147 Mbps", that's not referring to 4k. Per Apple target data rate is approximately 147 Mbps at 1920x1080 and 29.97 fps. 4k is 3840x2160 pixels. With 4k, it's 589 Megabit per second at 30 fps, which is 73 MB per second or 4.5 GB per min or 260 GB per hour. You'll blow through the storage in the Synology still relatively fast with ProRes.

See: http://pro.jvc.com/pro/attributes/ip/spec/prores_data_rates.html

For family/vacations, start with 4K, H.265 LongGOP, Eterna at 29.97p fps (it's less jittery than 24p), so:

• Shooting Mode: M (with shutter speed permanently set to 1/60 or ss60. If you set shutter speed like this, you’ll want a B+W Variable ND filter when filming video in the daylight outdoors) I’ll turn the rear thumb dial to change the apeture (the F number) to let more or less light in
• Movie Mode: DCI 17:9, 29.97P (4096 x 2160)
• Media Rec Setting: 1 (write to CF Express card), H.265 LongGOP 422 MOV, 100 Mbps (if you'll shoot in Eterna or a film sim and won't do post color correction) or 200 Mbps (if you plan on doing post color correction and using FLOG1 or 2). If you want to experiment with like 60p slow-mo, you'll need to record at like 400+ Mbps.
• F-Log/HLG Recording: Set to the first option in the menu (for Film simulation recording internally). I don’t recommend recording F-Log or F-Log2 unless you want to spend a ton of time learning color grading. And even then, it’ll take a long time to make it look as good as the Eterna film simulation.
• Data Level Setting: Full using H.265. Change to Video if you're shooting in ProRes.
• IS Mode: IBIS/OIS
• IS Mode Boost: Off if panning camera or chasing a kid. Set to On if holding camera steady for a static video.
• ISO: Auto
• Zebra Setting: Zebra Left
• Zebra level: 95%
• IQ:
• Change Sharpness: -2
• Dynamic Range: 200
• High ISO NR: -2
• Interframe NR: OFF

If you are going to be panning/moving the camera around a ton, you could switch to H.265 All-Intra, but it'll take up more room and the file size difference will be much bigger.

ProRes is more for professionals making real movies who are okay storing 2 hours of shooting on a TB hard drive than prosumers who want to store/archive family footage.

 

[yatesd]

blueplastic,

Thanks for your detailed feedback and guidance. It's very much appreciated and I'll start trying your recommended video settings.

In regards to the mic recommendation, I understand the compromises I am probably making using the Sennheiser 200 vs The NTG but I already had trouble justifying purchasing a mic for my hobby, and there is a big price spread between $65 to $240.