We first started shooting in High Definition exactly three years ago. Back then it was very much an experiment to see how we could use the format and how it would impact our day to day working.
Today we shoot the majority of our footage in HD, but it has to be said that it is not the customer that is driving us to do this. Instead it is our desire to achieve the best results possible on-screen. Clients rarely specifically request HD perhaps because they believe it might be complex or expensive. For the majority of cases neither is true, and indeed an HD shoot might not cost any more money than a SD shoot.
A finished production shot in HD has a number of advantages even if the client will only be viewing it in Standard Definition on DVD But what are these advantages? It’s certainly more than just looking good on your shiny new TV….
Here’s a little history lesson. If you are old enough to remember the children’s show Camberwick Green, may be surprised to learn that the BBC only paid for the series to be shot in black and white as they were yet to begin a colour service. However the series creator, Gordon Murray, was far sighted enough to shoot the series in colour, funding this from his own pocket. When the BBC started a colour service he was not only able to sell the colour version to the BBC, but he also ensured that the series would have a long repeat life. Indeed it was aired on the BBC right into the 1980′s.
This story proves the point that it is worth future proofing material. If there is any chance the production may have a long shelf life, or if you want to reuse footage in the future, then HD is an important consideration. Just as Murray was on the cusp of a leap in technology in 1966, we’re on the cusp now. If you are shooting anything that will have a shelf life, HD makes sense.
Another consideration are PC displays. The fact is that many PC displays are considerably higher resolution than broadcast SD TV. Standard SD television pictures are only 720 pixels by 576 pixels. So when expanded to full screen on a PC display, your video may look less than ideal.
With HD formats we’re commonly finding ourselves delivering in 1920×1080 interlaced or 1280×720 progressive. The advantage is that these resolutions look great when played back on large plasma screens or LCD’s at trade shows. We’ve also found that screen capture from PC’s can integrate well with video footage, something that was always difficult when using SD (even an 800×600 screen will flicker and look blurred in SD).
With these advantages, HD has become an important part of how we shoot at Media2u. If you are looking for a video that will be displayed on a large screen or perhaps you require that your material has a long shelf life, then a High Definition production may be for you.
If you are interested in High Definition production, visit the Media2u website to request some examples of our work.
