I saw the latest Star Wars at the AMC 25 theaters in Time Square (NYC) while at the show last weekend. I was with the reviewers for Stereophile Guide to Home Theater.
All of us were terribly disappointed. The blacks were terrible as were colors, resolution, and just about everything else (including acting). Even though the screen is much smaller than the Ziegfeld, pixels were easily seen.
If this is what's to be expected, it's no wonder Lucas and others are putting a BIG SALES PITCH on digital cinema. The public will need one helluva pitch to be fooled by this.
If this is truly the future, we've just taken a GIANT step backwards.
Randy Tomlinson
Star Wars II or V depending on how you are counting
-
ISF Forum
- Archives
- Posts: 83
- Joined: Thu Mar 04, 2004 3:58 pm
- Location: ISF Calibrators Discussion
You saw the pixels from how far back? Dou you think they were using the anamorphic lens adapter? When I saw Clones it was on a large curved screen with the anamorphic lens. I know the lens was there because of the pincushion. I could not see the pixels, but I could see the holes in the perf screen.
Jim Burns
www.dtvconsultants.com
Jim Burns
www.dtvconsultants.com
-
ISF Forum
- Archives
- Posts: 83
- Joined: Thu Mar 04, 2004 3:58 pm
- Location: ISF Calibrators Discussion
Hi All
Apparently we have a wide variety of opinion on the picture quality of the Star Wars Digital DLP presentation. As far as black level is concerned I don't think that it was that much worse than film. At the Ziegfield we had to walk right up to the screen to see mirror structure.
Randy,
It's like anything else. This technology is in its infancy. It'll be interesting to see what 1920 x 1080 DLP digital cinema presentations look like in a few years time.
Kevin Miller
Founding Imaging Science Foundation Member. Video Consultant, and freelance writer. www.ISFTV.COM. Email: [email protected]
Apparently we have a wide variety of opinion on the picture quality of the Star Wars Digital DLP presentation. As far as black level is concerned I don't think that it was that much worse than film. At the Ziegfield we had to walk right up to the screen to see mirror structure.
Randy,
It's like anything else. This technology is in its infancy. It'll be interesting to see what 1920 x 1080 DLP digital cinema presentations look like in a few years time.
Kevin Miller
Founding Imaging Science Foundation Member. Video Consultant, and freelance writer. www.ISFTV.COM. Email: [email protected]
-
ISF Forum
- Archives
- Posts: 83
- Joined: Thu Mar 04, 2004 3:58 pm
- Location: ISF Calibrators Discussion
I seen both versions film and then DLP. They were both at the Crown Palace 17 in Hartford. I watched the DLP immediately after the film to compare them. Here is what I noticed.
DLP +:
Bright! gave the movie a whole different feel
Detail - Much more detail
Color - more vivid ?accurate
DLP -:
Blacks were not as good but IMHO very acceptable
Aliasing
Screen door effect in some scenes
Seemed more difficult to make out detail in fast moving scenes
CRT +:
Blacks
CRT -:
Lots of film "spots", dust , etc. I expected better since it should have been made off a digital master instead of film.
Lacked detail and color, I noticed things with the DLP that I couldn't with CRT
Seemed out of focus
Overall, the movie was much more enjoyable on the DLP.
Just my opinion
BobL
DLP +:
Bright! gave the movie a whole different feel
Detail - Much more detail
Color - more vivid ?accurate
DLP -:
Blacks were not as good but IMHO very acceptable
Aliasing
Screen door effect in some scenes
Seemed more difficult to make out detail in fast moving scenes
CRT +:
Blacks
CRT -:
Lots of film "spots", dust , etc. I expected better since it should have been made off a digital master instead of film.
Lacked detail and color, I noticed things with the DLP that I couldn't with CRT
Seemed out of focus
Overall, the movie was much more enjoyable on the DLP.
Just my opinion
BobL
-
ISF Forum
- Archives
- Posts: 83
- Joined: Thu Mar 04, 2004 3:58 pm
- Location: ISF Calibrators Discussion
Sony 1080p/24 camera
Kevin,
The Sony camera apparently is full 1920 out of the SDI but compressed to 1440 for the HDCAM tape on board. I have heard three different stories regarding how Lucas used the camera:
1. He recorded 1920x1080 directly to D5 via the SDI.
2. He had engineers rig an RGB full-bandwidth output (4:4:4) right out of the camera's CCDs rather than the 4:2:2 SDI output. I have no idea what this would have been recorded on.
3. He used the standard HDCAM format (1440x1080).
Presumably at least one of these is correct!
Jim Noecker
Kevin,
The Sony camera apparently is full 1920 out of the SDI but compressed to 1440 for the HDCAM tape on board. I have heard three different stories regarding how Lucas used the camera:
1. He recorded 1920x1080 directly to D5 via the SDI.
2. He had engineers rig an RGB full-bandwidth output (4:4:4) right out of the camera's CCDs rather than the 4:2:2 SDI output. I have no idea what this would have been recorded on.
3. He used the standard HDCAM format (1440x1080).
Presumably at least one of these is correct!
Jim Noecker
-
ISF Forum
- Archives
- Posts: 83
- Joined: Thu Mar 04, 2004 3:58 pm
- Location: ISF Calibrators Discussion
Kevin,
Just talked with Tom Norton (SGTHT). We saw Star Wars in NYC at the AMC Theaters then TJN watched it in LA. He said it was like night and day. Good blacks, much much sharper, far better in every way. Must have been the equipment, huh?
Jim,
We all thought we saw "pixels" at the AMC in NYC on white objects. Maybe this is all related....equipment causing the lousy pics may have been more than just the projector.
Randy Tomlinson
Just talked with Tom Norton (SGTHT). We saw Star Wars in NYC at the AMC Theaters then TJN watched it in LA. He said it was like night and day. Good blacks, much much sharper, far better in every way. Must have been the equipment, huh?
Jim,
We all thought we saw "pixels" at the AMC in NYC on white objects. Maybe this is all related....equipment causing the lousy pics may have been more than just the projector.
Randy Tomlinson
-
ISF Forum
- Archives
- Posts: 83
- Joined: Thu Mar 04, 2004 3:58 pm
- Location: ISF Calibrators Discussion
Resolution of Sony F900 HDCAM Camera
Jim Noecker said: "The Sony camera apparently is full 1920 out of the SDI but compressed to 1440 for the HDCAM tape on board. "
Although the Sony uses a CCD sensor with 1920 horizontal pixels, you are correct that the HDCAM recording format has only 1440 luminance, and even less chromiance detail. John Galt of Panavision also has noted that the Nyquist anti-aliasing filter cuts the resolution by more than half.
Kodak has presented several technical papers at SMPTE technical conferences, and shown side-by-side image comparisons:
http://www.kodak.com/country/US/en/moti ... d24p.shtml
http://www.kodak.com/US/en/corp/researc ... nema.shtml
John Pytlak
Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services
Entertainment Imaging
Research Labs, Building 69
Eastman Kodak Company
Rochester, New York 14650-1922 USA
Telephone: +1 585 477 5325
e-mail: [email protected]
website: http://www.kodak.com/go/motion
Jim Noecker said: "The Sony camera apparently is full 1920 out of the SDI but compressed to 1440 for the HDCAM tape on board. "
Although the Sony uses a CCD sensor with 1920 horizontal pixels, you are correct that the HDCAM recording format has only 1440 luminance, and even less chromiance detail. John Galt of Panavision also has noted that the Nyquist anti-aliasing filter cuts the resolution by more than half.
Kodak has presented several technical papers at SMPTE technical conferences, and shown side-by-side image comparisons:
http://www.kodak.com/country/US/en/moti ... d24p.shtml
http://www.kodak.com/US/en/corp/researc ... nema.shtml
John Pytlak
Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services
Entertainment Imaging
Research Labs, Building 69
Eastman Kodak Company
Rochester, New York 14650-1922 USA
Telephone: +1 585 477 5325
e-mail: [email protected]
website: http://www.kodak.com/go/motion
-
ISF Forum
- Archives
- Posts: 83
- Joined: Thu Mar 04, 2004 3:58 pm
- Location: ISF Calibrators Discussion
Digital Cinema
Current digital projectors for theatres are only 1280 x 1024 pixels.
The HD camera used has anti-aliasing filtration that cuts the resolution by a factor of over two, and the HDCAM recorder uses subsampling and compression, further reducing color and luminance resolution.
John Pytlak
Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services
Entertainment Imaging
Research Labs, Building 69
Eastman Kodak Company
Rochester, New York 14650-1922 USA
Telephone: +1 585 477 5325
e-mail: [email protected]
website: http://www.kodak.com/go/motion
Current digital projectors for theatres are only 1280 x 1024 pixels.
The HD camera used has anti-aliasing filtration that cuts the resolution by a factor of over two, and the HDCAM recorder uses subsampling and compression, further reducing color and luminance resolution.
John Pytlak
Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services
Entertainment Imaging
Research Labs, Building 69
Eastman Kodak Company
Rochester, New York 14650-1922 USA
Telephone: +1 585 477 5325
e-mail: [email protected]
website: http://www.kodak.com/go/motion
-
ISF Forum
- Archives
- Posts: 83
- Joined: Thu Mar 04, 2004 3:58 pm
- Location: ISF Calibrators Discussion
Just a clarification John. I haven't kept up with things lately, but I thought Kodak was beating the drums against digital. Is that not the case anymore, or have they decided to jump into the digital world?
Second question. Since Lucas is leading the digital charge, is there any chance Kodak and Lucas may hook up together?
Terrell
Second question. Since Lucas is leading the digital charge, is there any chance Kodak and Lucas may hook up together?
Terrell