Video Speed
Video comes in all shapes, sizes ....... and speeds. On the majority of our video production projects we shoot in 24 Frames Per Second (fps). This frame rate gives the viewer the most 'film like' look which is what most clients are looking for. We also shoot in other frames rates like 25fps, 30fps and 60fps. However, recently we have been shooting a lot of content at 120fps. But why I hear you ask?
High Frame Rates
People shoot at high frame rates for a number of reasons but the main one, and the reason we are now shooting a lot of video content at 120fps, is to get great slow motion footage.
In order to capture slow motion footage without lots of motion blur and 'missing frames' you have to shoot in a high frame rate. Just imagine you wanted to photograph a footballer having just kicked a ball and you wanted to see the ball in mid air. You would take lots of photographs in order to capture 'just the right shot' you were after. A video camera, in principle, is doing the same thing when shooting at a high frame rate. When you slow the footage down in post production, because you have captured plenty of frames, you get silky smooth slow motion footage. You can check out an example of a video we shot at 120fps HERE.
But what if you need to capture even more intricate details in the footage. For example, if you needed to see how much distance an object covered over a set period of time? That's when you need to be shooting at an even higher frame rate - thousands of frames a second! I was lucky enough recently to try out some cameras which do just that.
Sheffield Hallam University's Centre for Sports Engineering Research (CSER)
I attended a two day workshop at Sheffield Hallam University's Centre for Sports Engineering, or CSER for short! It was incredible. First of all, the team that we met were amazing and have a long list of accomplishments under their belt. The two main projects that stick out are 'Guy Martin's Speed' in which the team at CSER designed and created the vehicle which helped Guy beat the World Speed Record. Check out more HERE.
The second project which was impressive to have on the CV was Channel 4's 'The Jump!'. The CSER team were responsible for accurately measuring the athletes jump distances. You can read more HERE. Put simply, the team know their stuff. They were also fantastic teachers and made the two days an enjoyable event to be part of.
The main reason for my attendance was to get some hands on experience with some high speed cameras becasue in the future Whistle Video will be using high speed footage on video production projects. And hands on experience I got! We used a range of Phantom High Speed Cameras and they were not a let down. As with any camera, when you change settings, such as shutter speed, you have to change other settings to get the correct exposure for your shot. You soon realise that when shooting at such a high frame rate that light really becomes your friend. So lighting the scene is a must!
High Speed in Corporate Video and Promotional Videos
Other than looking incredible, shooting in high speed allows you to capture detailed information such as distance travelled etc. This is an invaluable tool if you have a product that needs to be accurately tested. It can prove (or disprove!) how effective your particular product is at doing the job it is intended for.
If you are in the need of High Speed Video Production then please feel free to get in touch HERE.
