The Jouberts Shoot Feature Film With Panasonic Aj-hpx3000 Native 1080p P2 Hd Camcorders

The AJ-HPX3000 is the industry’s first native 1080p one-piece camcorder to capture master-quality high definition video. Featuring three 2/3″ high density 2.2 million pixel CCDs, the HPX3000 acquires cinema-quality images in full-raster 1920 x 1080 resolution with 4:2:2 10-bit sampling using the advanced AVC-Intra codec. AVC-Intra, the industry’s most advanced compression technology, is a professional intra-frame video codec with bit rates of 50 and 100Mbps, utilizing the High-10 and High-422 profiles of H.264 respectively. AVC-Intra provides high-quality 10-bit intra-frame encoding in two modes: AVC-Intra 100 for full-raster mastering video quality, and AVC-Intra 50 Mbps for DVCPRO HD quality at half the bit rate, thereby doubling the record time on a P2 card. Joubert is shooting in run-and-gun style with two HPX3000s on location in Botswana’s Duba Plains. Mr. Joubert, an HPX3000 owner, is shooting the feature in AVC-Intra 100, the industry’s most advanced compression technology that delivers master-quality, 10-bit intra-frame encoding and full 10-bit, at full 1920 x 1080 4:2:2 video quality…

National Geographic Explorers-in-residence Dereck And Beverly Joubert Shoot Upcoming Theatrical Feature Film On Botswana’s Big Cats With Panasonic Aj-hpx3000 Master Quality 1080p P2 Hd Camcorders

Dereck Joubert, one of the most celebrated of international wildlife cinematographers, and his producer wife, Beverly Joubert, are currently in production shooting a feature film on lions in the wilds of Botswana. The Jouberts are both Explorers-in-Residence at the National Geographic Society.

Aj-hpx3000

The (as-yet-untitled) feature, slated for theatrical release early next year, is being shot with AJ-HPX3000 native 1080p one-piece Panasonic P2 HD camcorders. Mr. Joubert, an HPX3000 owner, is shooting the feature in AVC-Intra 100, the industry’s most advanced compression technology that delivers master-quality, 10-bit intra-frame encoding and full 10-bit, at full 1920 x 1080 4:2:2 video quality.

The Jouberts are multiply-awarded (Emmy, Jackson Hole Festival, Jules Verne Festival honors, among scores of accolades) filmmakers, photographers, writers and conservationists. Working with the National Geographic and based out of Botswana, the Jouberts have influenced policy and people’s perceptions of the wild for more than 25 years. Through their films (Living with Big Cats, Eye of the Leopard et al.), largely on the big cats of Africa, they show a side of the natural world that is often hidden, and explore the relevance of the natural world to humanity.

Joubert is shooting in run-and-gun style with two HPX3000s on location in Botswana’s Duba Plains. “We believe our project will show lions for the first time as they truly are, probably as you will never be allowed to see them on television. It is raw and gritty and wild,” he said. “We are following one pride of lions and showing their conflict with one herd of about 1,000 buffalo. But this war doesn’t always go the expected way–this is the 300 of the documentary world!”

The filmmaker had previously worked with the Panasonic VariCam HD Cinema camera on television projects. “I searched long and hard through my various camera options for our current shoot. And given my experience with the VariCam in considering a 1080 choice for the larger screen, I first looked at what Panasonic could offer,” he said. “I tested all the cameras I could get my hands on and decided on the HPX3000 for its quality, which is breathtaking, and its ease of use, which even improves upon the VariCam.”

“We have worked in terrible conditions with the cameras,” Joubert said. “At the onset, it rained solidly for two months while we were following lions, getting bogged in, getting drenched, and generally fighting the elements. This is an electronic camera, and yet I have felt more confident with it, not less, because of its tapeless mechanics. The fewer moving parts to take on moisture the better. When it isn’t raining, it is 120 degrees in the shade. If any camera really and truly wanted a test, these would be the conditions to do that in! The HPX3000s have held up very well.”

“As a veteran film cameraman, with every HD camera I use I try to set it up as much like a film camera as possible,” Jourbert explained. “In my mind, the HPX3000 is an electronic film camera: I expose for the highlights and mostly let the dark areas take care of themselves, because in film terms the camera’s latitude can handle it.

“I am finding a tolerance, latitude or dynamic range of around 13 stops out here. The HPX3000 has a far better [Image] light handling feature than other HD cameras I have used so far, and on the white balance settings, with Tungsten light simulation, I can get exactly what I am seeing with the naked eye. In some cases I may want to vary that, but now I want a perfect rendition of what I am seeing because I am not sure exactly what look we will end up with; I want it neutral for now.”

“I add a minimal amount of black stretch but I do like higher contrast settings to give me that full light,” Jourbert continued. “At one point, I had a male lion on a mound at 6 p.m. front lit against a sold dark

blue/grey stormy sky. It was heart stopping. I checked the image as I was exposing, again for the highlights, and the images I finally made were as beautiful. I wouldn’t want to mess with that. I find that with these cameras, you really don’t want to overexpose. I find that the HPX3000’s ability to go into the menus and lift any underexposed shadow gives me the freedom to work in a film philosophy realm.”

For this shoot, the HPX3000s are equipped with Fujinon 44x, and 25 x 16.4 HD zoom lenses. “The HPX3000s fit right into our established production milieu,” Joubert said. “All the mounts work, the cases that I use in camera cars fit, the Steadicam doesn’t change, and the jibs and cranes all keep the same balance.”

In terms of location workflow, Joubert said he downloads the AVC-Intra files and mirrors them on two 1TB RAID hard drives. “If there is something I want to review, I do it from the P2 card either before or after transferring to the hard drive and before reformatting,” he noted.

The feature will be edited in Final Cut Pro and finished on online on an Avid system for digital intermediates.

The HPX3000 bridges the divide between film and video partisans,” Jourbert said. “I expose the same way as with film, I use short depths of field because I think we see in shorter depths of field, and movie audiences expect that.”

“I need a camera that allows me to create my images the way I want them, not a creative ‘partner’ in the process, so I enjoy that honest and uncomplicated relationship I have with the HPX3000,” he added. “I have tended to shoot it all clean or neutral and add grades or NDs on the lens, just as I would in film. So in the end, what I have is a video camera that performs exactly like a film camera and that looks as good or arguably better than film. And I achieve all that without sweating over the techno details.”

“I would suggest that the HPX3000 is the best-quality 1080 HD camera for both theatrical and TV that is still in a moveable (camcorder) configuration,” Joubert added. “Certainly, from an image capture, quality, and workflow standpoint, this camera is as good as it gets, and takes the serious cinematographer into account. In fact, the images we can make with the HPX3000 give us converted films guys something new to be snobbish about.”

The upcoming feature is a joint production of National Geographic Films and the Jouberts’ company, Wildlife Films.

About the AJ-HPX3000
With three 2/3” high-density 2.2-megapixel CCDs, the HPX3000 captures cinema-quality images in full-raster 1920 x 1080 resolution with 4:2:2 10-bit sampling, utilizing the powerful, new AVC-Intra codec. The HPX3000 offers intuitive film camera-like operation with advanced gamma settings, including Film-Rec mode (made popular by the VariCam). Designed for episodic television, filmmaking and commercial production where mastering quality is essential, the HPX3000 records in industry-standard DVCPRO HD at 1080 in 24p, 25p, 30p, 50i and 60i, and in AVC-Intra. AVC-Intra, the industry’s most advanced compression technology, provides high-quality 10-bit intra-frame encoding utilizing the Hi-10 and Hi-422 profiles of H.264 in two modes: AVC-Intra 100 for full-raster mastering video quality and AVC-Intra 50 Mbps for DVCPRO HD quality at half the bit rate, thereby doubling the record time on a P2 card. For added flexibility, the HPX3000 can also produce standard definition recordings in DVCPRO50, and is 60/50-Hz switchable for worldwide use.

About Panasonic Broadcast
Panasonic Broadcast & Television Systems Co. is a leading supplier of broadcast and professional video products and systems. Panasonic Broadcast is a unit company of Panasonic Corporation of North
America. The company is the North American headquarters of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. (NYSE: MC) of Japan, and the hub of its U.S. marketing, sales, service and R&D operations.

AJ-HPX3000

The AJ-HPX3000 is the industry’s first native 1080p one-piece camcorder to capture master-quality high definition video. Featuring three 2/3″ high density 2.2 million pixel CCDs, the HPX3000 acquires cinema-quality images in full-raster 1920 x 1080 resolution with 4:2:2 10-bit sampling using the advanced AVC-Intra codec. AVC-Intra, the industry’s most advanced compression technology, is a professional intra-frame video codec with bit rates of 50 and 100Mbps, utilizing the High-10 and High-422 profiles of H.264 respectively. AVC-Intra provides high-quality 10-bit intra-frame encoding in two modes: AVC-Intra 100 for full-raster mastering video quality, and AVC-Intra 50 Mbps for DVCPRO HD quality at half the bit rate, thereby doubling the record time on a P2 card.

The HPX3000 also records in industry-standard DVCPRO HD at 1080 in 24p, 25p, 30p, 50i and 60i and can produce standard definition recordings in 50Mbps DVCPRO50.

Designed for movie, commercial and TV program production, the HPX3000 combines the ultra reliability of P2 HD solid-state recording with high-end features, including six advanced gamma settings, including Film-Rec mode (made popular by the VariCam), film-like shutter controls, intuitive film camera-like operation. It also features a built-in reverse scan that allows unique setups such as mounting the camera upside down or usage of an ultra prime lens or an anamorphic lens adapter to create a 2.35:1 aspect image.

With five 16 GB P2 cards installed, the camera records for up to 100 minutes in AVC-Intra 100 at 1080/24p, 200 minutes in AVC-Intra 50 at 1080/24p, 160 minutes in other AVC-Intra 50 formats, and 80 minutes in other AVC-Intra 100 or DVCPRO HD formats. Recording times will double with the release of Panasonic’s 32GB P2 card (model AJ-P2C032RG) in November.

• Native 1920 x 1080 imagers for 4:2:2 10-bit, master quality recording with built-in AVC-Intra codec
• Selectable AVC-Intra & DVCPRO HD/50 codecs
• Five-year warranty (1 year regular, plus 4 years extended upon registration)
• 24p, 25p, 30p, 50i, 60i formats
• High sensitivity of F10 at 1,000 lux in 1080i and a minimum illumination of .064 lx (at +56db gain-up)
• Advanced 14-bit Digital Signal Processing (DSP) circuit with A/D conversion and 12-axis independent color compensation and detail.
• Chromatic Aberration Compensation (CAC) 1 function compensates for and reduces lens error that may appear with very high-resolution recording
• Three-level Dynamic Range Stretch (DRS) function that varies the gamma correction to match the contrast within the image
• Ultra versatility of P2 HD recording, including instant recording startup
• Fast, flexible on-set workflow for immediate access to video content
• Four channels 48-kHz/16-bit digital audio
• Flip-out, 3.5-inch color LCD monitor
• Optional HD/SD-SDI input for external line recording

AJ-HPX3000 - 2/3″ 1080p 3-CCD 16:9 P2 HD Camcorder - U.S. List Price $48,000.00

More information about Panasonic Aj-hpx3000 Native 1080p P2 Hd Camcorders can be found at Panasonic website