Drop Frame not possible

[Stefan Scherperel]

So I'm setting up for a studio shoot today and I've run across a problem that I haven't had before. All cameras are having a feed to be live switched and recorded to tape, 1080P 29.97, while recording internally as well. The studio is based around Drop frame timecode, something I rarely run into, but because it's a broadcast studio it is understandable. I start setting up the cameras and searching for a way to switch over to Drop Frame, and finally realize that neither the Epic Dragon nor any other Red camera that I can see supports switching to Drop Frame timecode. We ended up bypassing the issue by running audio to a separate recorder that is running Non Drop, but ultimately the live switch video has to be recorded in Drop Frame. A bit annoying and nothing deal breaking, but I was pretty shocked with the fact that Red does not seem to support such a standard feature in most every other camera I have worked with, no matter how rare it is to have to switch to Drop Frame. Maybe I am missing something? There is still time before we are shooting tomorrow, so if I'm able to figure something out, that would be great, otherwise future shoots in this production will most likely be switching to Black magic or C300's.

 

[Marc Wielage]

I have worked on many, many TV shows that recorded on set in non-drop and then only converted to drop frame for final delivery. I'm surprised these people don't do that. I get that if you're the new guy, it might be difficult to convince them to change, but it can be done.

 

[Stefan Scherperel]

Unfortunately their entire system is based on Drop Frame, Recording splits and a live mix, and for some reason this entire system is only able to to do Drop. Trust me, I asked the same question, and they assured me that this could not be changed. I appreciate the input though, Mark!