Red Scarlet vs Canon T2i

[Daniel Meador]

Of course this is a silly comparison BUT... I want to green screen an actor for a web page. The effect is to see the actor as though he is walking out on the weboage, I'm shooting in 4K on the Red and HD on the Canon. Workflow....premiere, AE, Flash then to Dw. Either I'm doing something wrong with the settings on the Canon or there is a huge difference in the quality of the images. The Canon looks over saturated and the blacks are crushed. Is it crazy to shoot using a Red for a webpage video? Do others see the difference in image quality is this circumstance?

 

[Phil Holland]

While I can't say if you are doing anything right or wrong......

You will be able to key easier with more color information and resolution from the Scarlet. Make sure you light well. If you can, shoot daylight balanced or use optical filtration to get near 5000K to make things "easiest".

 

[David Mullen ASC]

First of all, the Canon T2i HD image is only 8-bit 4:2:0 and very compressed h.264 video, not to mention limited by Rec.709 to a less wide dynamic range than the Scarlet would be. I'm sure you could adjust the picture settings of the Canon to be less contrasty though, but in terms of pulling keys, you'd be better off with the Scarlet picture.

 

[Josef Gatti]

I own both of these cameras (scarlet now an epic though). The quality difference is huge, and I don't think you're doing anything wrong. I was always conflicted too about using my Scarlet for web videos, it is "overkill". But at the end of the day I always wanted my work to look the best it possibly could, regardless of the project. Don't get me wrong here - my t2i still takes a good five hundred photos a week. But I wouldn't use it for video any more

 

[Daniel Meador]

Seeing is believing.

 

[Daniel Meador]

I was feeling a little embarrassed that I would use a 4K cinema camera to produce little green screen web shots. It was intended for independent film. But hey, what a bonus! I feel exactly like Josef regarding the quality of your work.

 

[Joel Arvidsson]

Its crazy to use dslr for most everyting that isnt stills I would say (that said I used it on closeups as b cam sometimes). Use the red and do not crop on the sensor unless you have to get more slowmo.

 

[Glen Powell]

I make 7 figures a year using a pair of Scarlets (soon to upgrade to Epics), to shoot 'little' projects for the web… Doesn't matter where they show up, it's always best to start with top quality visual and audio material.

***That we then often screw up in post to make it look amateurish, so we can get more views.

 

[Daniel Meador]

5greenScreeRed.jpg So how do you add a photo to a post? The insert image button is looking for a URL??

 

[Jeff Kilgroe]

I shoot web videos at 4K/ 5K all the time. Shooting on RED, the quality transfers through when done right. My clients are all high-end corporate types for the most part and the spit and polish of it all is what sells them on it. If I where shooting anything for chromakey or compositing use, the first camera I would reach for is the EPIC. Doesn't matter if it's for a new web campaign for a big car company, ski resort or helping my kids do something silly with their friends for school. And just hanging around this site or reading through this thread will show you that we're not the only ones who think this way.

To add a photo to a post, if you go to the <Go Advanced> view and then choose to manage attachments, you can attach and upload photos. Just be warned that these get re-processed. If you want to show it as you have it saved, then you'll have to put it online somewhere and link it with the URL, as you have already discovered.

 

[Brian Merlen]

All I do is web content, but the clients also recognize the difference in the end product. Sure some think its overkill, but shooting raw and high res at the same time has many advantages over shooting baked in. Maybe some budgets cant afford such luxuries, but I at least hope clients are aware of the advantages of shooting raw fat negatives while going 4k+. At least a lot of other brands have jumped on the 4k bandwagon, times are different then say, 3-5 years ago!

 

[Jaakko Rinne]

I see it the same way as everyone else who chimed in: I aim to shoot at the highest quality available to me, no matter what the footage is intended for. Sometimes it pays off by being able to grab high quality stills from the footage, or maybe a "web only" spot ends up going out to broadcast or even theaters. Sometimes it only pays off by making the crappy little web video look a tiny bit better.