D800 Video Report--FCP Color Correction: Yes; Filter: No

[Phoenix1 0]

I just came back from a dive trip to Cozumel and tried my new D800's video capabilities.

 

I'm happy to report that, with color correction in FCP, the D800 does a great job without a red filter or lights.

 

I didn't have much chance to experiment with this--too many other new things to try--but here's a quick preview.

 

This is an uncorrected frame shooting without lights, auto white balance and programed exposure and shutter speed in about 40 feet of water (sunny day topside):

 

 

 

I did a quick and dirty color correction using the three way color correction tool in FCP. Not surprisingly, the corrections added red:

 

 

The final looks great to me:

 

I also tested use of the Magic Filter for a few dives. I did not get better resuls, and worse, I had to do a lot of color correction on my stills to make them usable.

[Drew 0]

Hi Rich

Thanks for the the tip. Have you tried doing a manual white balance or using a flatter picture profile with the D800? The D800 has awesome DR from 100-400ISO but even the neutral profile adds a curve that gives a bit too much saturation and kills the shadows, making post a bit more difficult. That's why you adjusted the highs down and punched up the mids and lows.

Since you are using FCP 7(?), you can also change the cyan hue of the highlights back to white.

[Phoenix1 0]

Drew:

 

No, I didn't get to play much. I was only there a week, and this was the first time in the water with the new rig. So I was doing lots of experimenting. I'll put fooling with manual WB on the list for the next trip in the spring.

 

I am using FCP 7, and am still knocking down the (steep) learning curve. Where can I make that cyan hue adjustment?

[Steve Douglas 16]

It appears to be more in the mids so use the middle wheel for that. Also, and very important, keep your waveform monitor and vectorscope open and have them help guide you. Are you using an external monitor for this or your computer monitor?

Steve

[Phoenix1 0]

Exciting! Something else I didn't know about. Thank heavens for the coming holidays. I hope to take my learning from graduation from Tom's Boot Camp to the next level. The video scopes tab might be a fun place to start.

 

I don't use a second monitor. I have a recent model 27" iMac, which gives me a fair bit or real estate. I've considered a second monitor from time to time, but I'm not a film or photo professional. Also, the best choice for me probably--a 27' thunderbolt display--is due for refreshment soon, according to MacRumors. So if I do jump, it won't likely be until next year.