Progresive scan mode

mel58i wrote on 8/29/2004, 2:19 AM
I know this is not directly associated with vegas, but since there is a wealth of knowledge out there, I wonder if someone could clarify this situation.

I have a canon XM2 that has got progresive scan (frame mode). I understand the principle in that it is not interlaced and is ideal for getting the best still images etc. But when I try to use it the picture (understandably) is jerky when doing pans.

Is this mode any use at all when viewing stuff on a normal tv?

Comments

farss wrote on 8/29/2004, 2:24 AM
NO. The frame rate is very low, hence jerky.
DGrob wrote on 8/29/2004, 6:27 AM
If you really want a good quality still, render out a short clip de-interlaced, blend mode, best quality. You can then pull a still from the preview window (set to Best) that's not too bad for TV. Drop into Photoshop if you want, and touch up in there. Darryl
johnmeyer wrote on 8/29/2004, 7:26 AM
As said many times on this forum, progressive is not necessarily better: It is simply different. In most progressive formats, you only have 24 frames per second, compared to 60 fields per second in NTSC video. Two fields are interlaced to provide each frame, thus yielding (approximately) 30 frames every second.

Now, while NTSC video only has 30 frames every second, the fact that there is new temporal information every 1/60 of a second (after each field is drawn) means that you don't get "stutter" when you pan because you've got 2.5 times the "samples" each second. Of course there are lots of issues that arise because of the interlacing of these alternate fields, but the good news is that you get pans that don't jerk and jump.