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Syncing two video cameras
We're starting our great video experiment at The Eagle-Tribune shooting daily "in studio" videos. Yes, it's been done and abandoned many other places and now we're taking our shot. So, in most cases, this will be two or three people in a 5 to 10 min. format show or interview. Where I'm hitting a wall is in how to effectively edit two cameras.
Ideally we'll have two cameras set up to alternate between the folks on our stage. When we shoot live video and broadcast on livestream, it's relatively easy to switch back and forth between camera views. However, if we're recording, I'm going to wind up with two tapes. Is this difficult to try to sync in FinalCut Express later on? Should we be be investing in some sort of video editing board that will combine the two camera signals into one final recording I can then import into FinalCut and add the finishing touches? Does anyone have any idea what I'm talking about? Do I?
-Noah
Ideally we'll have two cameras set up to alternate between the folks on our stage. When we shoot live video and broadcast on livestream, it's relatively easy to switch back and forth between camera views. However, if we're recording, I'm going to wind up with two tapes. Is this difficult to try to sync in FinalCut Express later on? Should we be be investing in some sort of video editing board that will combine the two camera signals into one final recording I can then import into FinalCut and add the finishing touches? Does anyone have any idea what I'm talking about? Do I?
-Noah
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Josh Chin on -
Noah,
Any chance your paper would be willing to spring for Final Cut Pro? If so, you'd have access to multiclip editing, which makes importing footage from two cameras, syncing and editing together a relatively easy process. There's a nice summary of how to do that here: http://www.kenstone.net/fcp_homepage/multicam_editing_martin.html
I used multiclip to edit a multicamera shoot of a bluegrass group performing some songs. Took me maybe a half hour to figure out how to sync the footage, but after that it was just a matter of choosing which camera I wanted for which moment. Worked nicely: http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/china-and-its-neighbors/090209/m...
Even without FCP, you can probably still make it work by using the "clapboard" method, i.e., starting both cameras, clapping your hands in a place where both cameras will see it, then using that moment in the footage to sync them up in the timeline. From there you can cut manually--labor intensive, yes, but filmmakers did it for years before the advent of FCP and managed to make it work.
-Josh
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Permalink Reply by Noah Bombard on -
Thanks, Josh. After slogging through a couple of projects I was able to convince the company to invest some dough in this, so we're getting Final Cut Studio as well as some better studio equipment. Ideally, I'd love to have Tricaster, but this seems like a good secondary option.
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Permalink Reply by Noah Bombard on
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Fantastic video, by the way. Great pacing and storytelling.
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Permalink Reply by Josh Chin on
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Thanks, Noah. This was one of my earliest pieces, and also one of my favorites. The more I do this, the more I'm convinced good video is simple video.
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Permalink Reply by Chris Soprych on -
We've been doing a sports show with green screen and a 3D virtual studio. We did it with multiple cams, then one of them was sent out for repairs. We decided to do it with one camera and it really reduce the amount of editing time. I'm not sure we're going back to the two camera system.
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Permalink Reply by Noah Bombard on
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Chris, nice job. What are you guys using to generate your 3D studio?
Do you guys produce your own preroll?
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Permalink Reply by Chris Soprych on
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I used Strata 3D. Our advertising guys did the prerolls, they seem a bit long.
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