Light Keeps Me Company - A Poet of Light and Shadow - Rajiv Jain (Indian Cinematograp

Light Keeps Me Company - A Poet of Light and Shadow - Rajiv Jain (Indian Cinematographer / Director of Photography / DOP)
A sample lesson: HD vs. Film...
Aspiring filmmakers are quite lucky compared to years ago. Today, you can make a movie in just about any format and still be taken seriously, assuming that you have a great story and reasonably good production values. As mentioned, The Blair Witch Project is one of the most successful independent features ever made, yet it was shot with a consumer video camera (non-digital).
Prior to the digital revolution of the 1990s, things were a lot different. If the movie was shot on a format other than 35mm, it did not stand a chance of being distributed. 16mm was not taken seriously and video was a joke. These standards were so ingrained in the industry, that even actors were reluctant to work on non-35mm shoots.
All that has changed now. Affordable, high-quality digital cameras have democratized the industry. Still, 35mm film is the standard by which all video formats are judged.
Has video reached the same quality level as 35mm? Old school filmmakers say "no" because the image capturing ability of 35mm is a "gazillion" times greater than video. Is this really the case? Let's take a closer look. The truth may surprise you.
Note: the study below is based on classic HD with 1080 lines of horizontal resolution. In 2007, the first ultra HD camera was introduced featuring an amazing 4,520 lines. Keep that in mind while reading!
The concepts associated with high definition (HD) video can be confusing to those of you unfamiliar with video camera function. If you are a beginning filmmaker, terms like scan lines, SD, HD, and 4k technology, will certainly make your head spin!
Fear not, for the concepts are surprisingly straightforward. In this lesson, we will cover the basics of high definition video and provide you with a working understanding of the terminology. In addition, we will look at 4k technology, also known as ultra HD. This technology is used by the groundbreaking Red One camera, introduced by the Red Digital Cinema Company in 2007.
To understand high definition video, we must start at the beginning and examine how images are recorded by a video camera.
Recording
When you shoot video, magnetic tape travels across the camera’s recording head. The head is essentially an electromagnet, which is activated by the electrical signal from the image processor. As the videotape travels over the head, the iron particles in the tape are magnetized. This, in essence, becomes the recorded image.
The latest generation of video cameras can record to hard drive or removable card. This allows the files to be transferred directly to your computer for editing.
Scan Lines
The video image is recorded one horizontal line at a time. These lines are called scan lines and the process is known as scanning. If you look closely at a TV screen you will see the scan lines. You probably can't see them on your computer monitor because the lines are narrower than on a TV.
Standard Definition (SD)
The term "definition" basically means the visible detail in the video image. It is measured by the number of horizontal scan lines in a single frame. In the United States and Japan, standard definition video is 525 lines. In most European countries, standard definition is 625 lines. (The former is known as NTSC; the latter is PAL).
High Definition (HD)
Although much hype has been made about HD, the concept itself is simple to understand. Technically, anything that breaks the PAL barrier of 625 lines can be called high definition. The most common HD formats feature 720 and 1080 scan lines.
Ultra High Definition
Ultra high definition features an amazing 4,520 lines of horizontal resolution. Known as "4k" technology because the scan lines exceed 4,000, it will no doubt be the future industry standard.
The following photos show the relative size of the different formats. The first one represents the typical digital video frame (DV and DVCAM). Notice how detail improves as the number of scan lines increases. The final photo illustrates the huge leap in image detail 4k technology provides.
As a point of reference, the typical flat computer monitor has 2,000 lines of resolution. 35mm film--as perceived by the human eye--falls in the mid HD range. For more on 35mm comparisons please see our sample lesson: HD vs. 35mm.
4k technology is based on the proprietary 12 megapixel chip developed by the Red Digital Cinema Company. Their affordable Red One camera can shoot at all popular scan rates, including those shown above. 4k technology may prove to be the death knell for 35mm film.
Comparison
There are two factors that can be compared: colour and resolution. Most casual observers will agree that, assuming a quality TV monitor, HD colour is truly superb. To avoid a longwinded mathematical argument, let's accept this at face value and focus on comparing resolution, which is the real spoiler.
Resolution is the visible detail in an image. Since pixels are the smallest point of information in the digital world, it would seem that comparing pixel count is a good way to compare relative resolution.
Film is analog so there are no real "pixels." However, based on converted measures, a 35mm frame has 3 to 12 million pixels, depending on the stock, lens, and shooting conditions. An HD frame has 2 million pixels, measured using 1920 x 1080 scan lines. With this difference, 35mm appears vastly superior to HD.
This is the argument most film purists use. The truth is, pixels are not the way to compare resolution. The human eye cannot see individual pixels beyond a short distance. What we can see are lines.
Consequently, manufacturers measure the sharpness of photographic images and components using a parameter called Modulation Transfer Function (MTF). This process uses lines (not pixels) as a basis for comparison.
Since MTF is an industry standard, we will maintain this standard for comparing HD with 35mm film. In other words, we will make the comparison using lines rather than pixels. Scan lines are the way video images are compared, so it makes sense from this viewpoint, as well.
HD Resolution
As discussed previously, standard definition and high definition refer to the amount of scan lines in the video image. Standard definition is 525 horizontal lines for NTSC and 625 lines for PAL.
Technically, anything that breaks the PAL barrier of 625 lines could be called high definition. The most common HD resolutions are 720p and 1080i lines.
35mm Resolution
There is an international study on this issue, called Image Resolution of 35mm Film in Theatrical Presentation. It was conducted by Hank Mahler (CBS, United States), Vittorio Baroncini (Fondazione Ugo Bordoni, Italy), and Mattieu Sintas (CST, France).
In the study, MTF measurements were used to determine the typical resolution of theatrical release prints and answer prints in normal operation, utilizing existing state-of-the-art 35mm film, processing, printing, and projection.
The prints were projected in six movie theaters in various countries, and a panel of experts made the assessments of the projected images using a well defined formula. The results are as follows:
35mm RESOLUTION
Measurement Lines
Answer Print MTF 1400
Release Print MTF 1000
Theatre Highest Assessment 875
Theatre Average Assessment 750
Conclusion
As the study indicates, perceived differences between HD and 35mm film are quickly disappearing. Notice I use the word "perceived." This is important because we are not shooting a movie for laboratory study, but rather for audiences.
At this point, the typical audience cannot see the difference between HD and 35mm. Even professionals have a hard time telling them apart. We go through this all the time at NYU ("Was this shot on film or video?").
Again, the study was based on standard HD with 1080 lines of horizontal resolution. We now have ultra HD with 4,520 lines.
Based on this, the debate is moot. 16mm, 35mm, DV, and HD are all tools of the filmmaker. The question is not which format is best, but rather, which format is best for your project? The answer, of course, is based on a balance between aesthetic and budgetary considerations.
Author’s Bio: Par Ris is a prolific writer and has written many books on politics and travel. In 1991, a compilation of his pieces in The Times appeared, entitled So Far, So Good. Since then there have been further compilations. Scorn, a book he has edited of quotations about curses, jibes and general invective, was published in October 1994.
Tags: rajeev, rajiv, jain, cinematographer, director photography, bollywood, india, indian, mumbai, dop, kalpvriksh, videographer, kenya, kenyan, dubai

 

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