HDR effect in FCP - help

[matteusclement]

hey there
I want to make a video piece that will allow me to get all the details of the shadows with all the glory of the blue skies. I am using FCP 7. I am using a panasonic hvx200 or a canon HV30

I shot the same scene with two different shutter speeds, one that made the sky not blown out and the other one that made the shaded (shadows) have detail.

Do I want to be making a composite mode change or do I want to move in a different direction?

 

[handsome pete]

There's really not a way to get true HDR video at this point.

When you say you shot your scene twice with 2 different exposures, is there any kind of motion going on within the frame? Because if so, then using the traditional method of HDR photography (combining frames of different exposure) won't work because the motion won't be exactly the same between the 2 takes.

To really give you a better answer though, we would need to see your shots. It could just be a matter of some color correction, or maybe a sky replacement.


Edit: After reading your post again, did you use both the Panasonic and Canon to shoot the scene at the same time?

 

[idea_hamster]

You'll probably do best if you basically key out the blown-out sky and replace it. Since you're trying to do it with another piece of video of the same size, that could make it trickier. Here's a little help:

http://videocopilot.net/tutorials/advanced_sky_replacement/


Generally, the good news is that blown-out portions of your video are rather uniform and can sometimes work as a good keying area. Not sure about how well developed the keying tools within FCP 7 are.

 

[matteusclement]

this one shot with panasonic

to clear things up a little:

1. shot with the panasonic on BOTH shots from the same tripod position. shot 30 seconds of footage then increased the shutter speed two stops and shot for another 30 seconds.
NO motion.

 

[Voodoophone]

Not to dismiss such an interesting way of doing things, are you not simply better off getting the scene lit properly and then grading to your required 'feel'?
You can always process a well lit shot, whereas an unevenly lit shot is a nightmare in post.
My penny worth.

 

[akdj]

Your HVX should do an excellent job for exposure...did you shoot with a Polarizer? Or an ND filter (There is one built in to your cam, I'm sure you know)? How did your footage turn out?

There shouldn't be a need for HDR to get the blues in the sky (and the shadows)....there isn't that significant of a dynamic range in the sky (assuming you're not including anything from the horizon and the land???)...and you're not shooting in to the sun, correct?

There are several different options in FCP, filter-wise. Have you experimented?

Or are you looking for the unnatural type of HDR? There are filters for that too

J

 

[handsome pete]

to clear things up a little:

1. shot with the panasonic on BOTH shots from the same tripod position. shot 30 seconds of footage then increased the shutter speed two stops and shot for another 30 seconds.
NO motion.

If there's no motion in the shot, I would just use a still frame then and do a sky replacement.

Or if you're that tied to HDR, why don't you shoot the image with a still camera?

 

[matteusclement]

too much for camera

akdj:
it was a REALLY bright day and the shot can't allow for me to "light up" the dark areas which were in the shade.

 

[boch82]

akdj:
it was a REALLY bright day and the shot can't allow for me to "light up" the dark areas which were in the shade.

if its a locked down camera frame. bring a still frame into photoshop. Cut a mask. save just the alpha channel (black and white). Then composite in FCP.

 

[Policar]

The above might kind of work. Worth a try but even small differences in the frame (leaves moving, etc.) will be apparent...

If you want a true "HDR effect" it will take more than FCP...but that wouldn't cut in very well with natural footage, anyway.

Next time, consider a two-stop nd grad filter, polarizer, and reflectors. You can buy bead board for $10 for an 8'x4' at home depot and that big a piece can fill your close ups now problem. Grad filters (not much more expensive) can help with the wide shots. Give it a try!

For overcast days...let it blow out. Even slow film blows out in the skies on overcast days, just less dramatically than video.

 

[grooveattack]

thought this might help...
http://vimeo.com/14821961

 

[Policar]

thought this might help...
http://vimeo.com/14821961

If he had a beam splitter and two cameras and if he were an optical engineer. In the mean time, this might also help:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/14451-REG/Cokin_CP152_P152_Gray_Neutral_Density.html