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DigitalDreads · 12-07-2015, 02:41 PM

I'm sure you could turn the bitrate down for recording. I would call whatever place you want to get it from and ask them. In my opinion I'd rather have the option to shoot at a higher bitrate in case I need that quality in the future. (unless the price difference is substantial) You can always render out your footage at a smaller bitrate/resolution. You may not have the hardware to handle it on your computer as much as you'd like but for a small fee (compared to the investment in the camera) you could easily get your computer the parts to handle it (few $100) I'm never against upgrading my computer since it'll have to happen eventually and its the lifeline of my income.

As far as the sub sampling, 4:2:2 is better than 4:2:0 so it kind of follows my opinion above of going with 4:2:2 of me rather having it and not need it than need it and not have it. So if you go with upgrading your computer to handle it, you can always render out a lower quality. As cmscorpus stated above, 4:2:2 will become more standard as tech progresses.

For codecs, I can't comment too much on those, but if you do a google search or ask the person selling them about it they may be able to explain it. It depends on what you need and your personal preference. I know XAVC S's wrapper is .mp4 so if you'd rather have footage come out of the camera as .mp4 instead of .mxf then you may want XAVC S. I can work with either so it doesn't matter as much to me, but it gets deeper than that and they have some differences in color depths and subsampling too. I don't notice it hardly (if I even do) and I do VFX/stills in this industry so it's not really up to me. (which is why you may want a more professional opinion on the codecs)

For the image stabilization, Optical is physical parts in the camera that move (like a gyro) to counter the movement of the camera, digital is software based stabilization (like the stabilize motion tool in after effects) and uses the software to interpret and stabilize motion. Most people like optical more since it's physical parts using the laws of physics and has less room for error when stabilizing motion. Digital is good too but software always has a small chance for error.

As for resolution, that's up to you. If you'll never need true 4K or will never have your stuff on a true 4K display it's not a big deal. If in the future you may want/need the actual 4k resolution then you may want to just go with it now.

Hope that helps, this information is from what I've learned going through school and working in the industry so I'd get another opinion if you're unsure about anything. It really depends on what your plan for now and the future is in regards to content and quality. Just make sure you get everything you NEED right now without breaking the bank, and then try and plan what you'll need in the future and if it'll be worth it to spend the extra now, or have to do it later.

12-07-2015, 02:41 PM
DigitalDreads Confirmed User Industry Role: Join Date: Oct 2015 Location: South Florida Posts: 38	I'm sure you could turn the bitrate down for recording. I would call whatever place you want to get it from and ask them. In my opinion I'd rather have the option to shoot at a higher bitrate in case I need that quality in the future. (unless the price difference is substantial) You can always render out your footage at a smaller bitrate/resolution. You may not have the hardware to handle it on your computer as much as you'd like but for a small fee (compared to the investment in the camera) you could easily get your computer the parts to handle it (few $100) I'm never against upgrading my computer since it'll have to happen eventually and its the lifeline of my income. As far as the sub sampling, 4:2:2 is better than 4:2:0 so it kind of follows my opinion above of going with 4:2:2 of me rather having it and not need it than need it and not have it. So if you go with upgrading your computer to handle it, you can always render out a lower quality. As cmscorpus stated above, 4:2:2 will become more standard as tech progresses. For codecs, I can't comment too much on those, but if you do a google search or ask the person selling them about it they may be able to explain it. It depends on what you need and your personal preference. I know XAVC S's wrapper is .mp4 so if you'd rather have footage come out of the camera as .mp4 instead of .mxf then you may want XAVC S. I can work with either so it doesn't matter as much to me, but it gets deeper than that and they have some differences in color depths and subsampling too. I don't notice it hardly (if I even do) and I do VFX/stills in this industry so it's not really up to me. (which is why you may want a more professional opinion on the codecs) For the image stabilization, Optical is physical parts in the camera that move (like a gyro) to counter the movement of the camera, digital is software based stabilization (like the stabilize motion tool in after effects) and uses the software to interpret and stabilize motion. Most people like optical more since it's physical parts using the laws of physics and has less room for error when stabilizing motion. Digital is good too but software always has a small chance for error. As for resolution, that's up to you. If you'll never need true 4K or will never have your stuff on a true 4K display it's not a big deal. If in the future you may want/need the actual 4k resolution then you may want to just go with it now. Hope that helps, this information is from what I've learned going through school and working in the industry so I'd get another opinion if you're unsure about anything. It really depends on what your plan for now and the future is in regards to content and quality. Just make sure you get everything you NEED right now without breaking the bank, and then try and plan what you'll need in the future and if it'll be worth it to spend the extra now, or have to do it later.