Tag: HDC-SD9

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Panasonic HDC-SD100: Raw AVCHD Sample

Panasonic HDC-SD100 is the third Panasonic AVCHD Camcorder that I use. The first one is Panasonic HDC-SD5 and followed by Panasonic HDC-SD9.

I am really impressed with the video quality of HDC-SD5 while I have mixed results with HDC-SD9. It is possible that I have a defective unit, and I did send it back to Panasonic for evaluation and repair. Unfortunately nothing has changed since.

My HDC-SD9 unit has a really poor low light performance even compared to the HDC-SD5 unit. I am hoping that HDC-SD100 would perform better than HDC-SD9 under the same lighting.

hdc-sd100_screencap

I tested Panasonic HDC-SD100 in-store, and recorded two videos on two different settings. The first one is recorded in 24p Digital Cinema Mode while the other is recorded in 60i mode. You can download the disk images below. Both disk images are in .iso format and zipped/compressed to save some disk space and bandwidth.

As of the date of this posting, iMovie ’09 will not import 24p AVCHD video from the camcorder or the disk.

I will be posting more videos recorded using Panasonic HDC-SD100 and some of the Raw AVCHD files.

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Software Updates: Perian 1.1.2 and Camino 2.0 Alpha 1

Perian 1.1.2 is released today.

  • Fixed update checker never running – this version requires a manual install
  • Enabled frame-dropping on AppleTV
  • Fixed some frames being lost in AVCHD/.mp4 with newer versions of QuickTime
  • Fixed another ffmpeg crash on G3s

Perian QuickTime Component is handy for decoding different video format on Mac OS X (1.4.7 and above). Perian QuickTime Component adds support for some AVCHD camcorder like Panasonic HDC-SD9.

Download Perian 1.1.2

——-

Camino 2.0 Alpha 1

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Quick Review: Belkin ExpressCard and Griffin Clarifi

Two new accesories I’ve recently acquired are Belkin Media Reader-Writer ExpressCard™ Adapter and Griffin Clarifi Case for iPhone 3G.

Belkin Media Reader-Writer ExpressCard™ Adapter is compatible with multiple flash memory cards including SDHC cards. The previous Belkin Multimedia Reader & Writer ExpressCard™ does not support SDHC cards. This ExpressCard™ Adapter can be used with any laptops that have 34mm or 54mm ExpressCard™ slot built-in. Due to its size, this ExpressCard™ Adapter does not support CompactFlash cards.

Griffin Clarifi Protective Case for iPhone 3G has a close-up lens built in on a slider. The iPhone camera has a fixed lens with a fixed focal length, which makes it impossible to take a sharp close-up pictures of anything. With the addition of Griffin Clarifi built-in lens, it is now possible to take sharper close-up picture using the iPhone 3G. With the lens, the iPhone can now take pictures of objects 4 inches away.

Please check back for more detailed review.

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Darren Carter: Ice House Rough Edit

I’m meeting Darren Carter at the Laugh Factory tonight. I’m currently editing video of his stand-up from Ice House Comedy Club in Pasadena. The videos were shot using Panasonic HDC-SD5 and HDC-SD9.

The AVCHD video’s were imported using iMovie ’08 in 540p and edited on Final Cut Pro 6.0.4. I’m using an octo-core 2.8GHz Mac Pro with 4GB of RAM.

Currently it is only the rough edit. I’d be putting up the clips either on my sites or on Darren Carter’s. Stay Tuned.

Darren Carter
Official Website | YouTube Channel | MySpace Page | IMDB
(Flash Player required to view Darren carter’s Official Website, iPhones are not welcome)

Darren Carter video from JillyOnline show.

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Buying Canon Vixia HV30 Hi-Def Camcorder

I am waiting for UPS to deliver Canon Vixia HV30 that I ordered from Amazon.com. Currently I am using Panasonic HDC-SD5, Panasonic HDC-SD9, and Canon HG10 to work on multimedia projects. All three camcorders are AVCHD camcorders, which record on to SDHC or Hard Drive. Canon Vixia HV30 is an HDV Camcorder that records on to HD-MiniDV tapes.

As much as I like the AVCHD format, I found a few advantages using a tape-based camcorder. I will get into that later.

For now, I am waiting for the camcorder to arrive on July 3rd.

Delivery estimate: July 3, 2008
1 “Canon VIXIA HV30 MiniDV High Definition Camcorder with 10x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom”
Electronics; $786.26
Sold by: Amazon.com, LLC

UPDATE:

The following items have been shipped to you by Amazon.com:
———————————————————————
Qty      Item                           Price  Shipped  Subtotal
———————————————————————
Amazon.com items (Sold by Amazon.com, LLC):
1     Canon VIXIA HV30 MiniDV Hi…  $786.26      1  $786.26

Shipped via UPS (estimated arrival date: 03-July-2008).
Tracking number: ******************
———————————————————————
Item Subtotal:  $786.26
Shipping & Handling:  $3.99

Total:  $790.25

Leo Laporte talked about this camcorder a few months back, and he took it to Tasmania for the Adobe Lightroom Adventure.

Canon Vixia HV30 product page @ Canon.com

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Panasonic HDC-SD9 Raw AVCHD Sample

For those who’s checking out Panasonic HDC-SD9 AVCHD Camcorder, I’ve uploaded a 36.7MB ISO file from the camcorder. Mac OS X users should update QuickTime to version 7.5 and all the latest version of iMovie ’08, Final Cut Pro 6 and Final Cut Express 4.

The particular video is recorded outdoor during daytime. I’ll post a raw AVCHD video from this camcorder recorder in lower light situation later.

About the video:

Recorded using Panasonic HDC-SD9
North American – NTSC version

Auto Mode
Recording Mode: HA1920
24p Digital Cinema: ON
Digital Cinema Color: ON

Video Clip duration: 18 seconds

Get the 36.7MB ISO file here.

Panasonic HDC-SD9 - The Box

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Panasonic HDC-SD9: The Answer Lies Within QuickTime 7.5

For the past few months, Panasonic HDC-SD9 owners have not been able to import videos from Panasonic HDC-SD9 correctly. The temporary solutions for Final Cut Pro 6.0.3 users was to install Perian 1.1 plugin.

AVCHD

With the release of QuickTime 7.5, Panasonic HDC-SD9 videos can now be imported using iMovie ’08, Final Cut Express 4, and Final Cut Pro 6.

It is recommended to update all the applications to the latest versions. QuickTime 7.5 is the most critical component to make this work.

I can only confirm this on the North American version of Panasonic HDC-SD9 (with 24p Cinema Mode). The European version (with 25p Cinema Mode) theoretically should now work with the Mac.

UPDATE:

Hans Eklundh left a comment and confirmed that the 25p PAL version (Europe) also works with QuickTime 7.5

Panasonic HDC-SD9 AVCHD Camcorder

Test results using 15-inch MacBook Pro Core Duo 2GHz 2GB RAM:

Mac OS X 10.4.11

QuickTime 7.4.5
iMovie 7.1
HA1920 24p – Video is faster than Audio
HA1920 – Crash during imports

QuickTime 7.5
iMovie 7.1
HA1920 24p – Video imported successfully; 37s -> 36s
HA1920 – Video imported successfully; 38s -> 38s

QuickTime 7.5
iMovie 7.1.2
HA1920 24p – Video imported successfully; 37s -> 37s
HA1920 – Video imported successfully; 38s -> 38s

Mac OS X 10.5.3

QuickTime 7.5
iMovie 7.1.1
HA1920 24p – Video imported successfully; 37s -> 36s
HA1920 – Video imported successfully; 38s -> 38s

QuickTime 7.5
iMovie 7.1.2
HA1920 24p – Video imported successfully; 37s -> 36s
HA1920 – Video imported successfully; 38s -> 38s

Get QuickTime 7.5 and iMovie 7.1.2 updates from Apple Software Update or through the Downloads site.