capturing speed on Hi-8 - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

bigoldalphamale · 07-22-2004, 06:08 AM

i am putting together a video which will be a compilation of my racing footage (on and off the track) with friends.

i have begun to take some footage of some of our local antics, and i have found it extremely hard to capture the true perception of speed on the camera. i ordered a stickypod so that i will be able to mount the cam in various places outside and inside the car, but i want to get some advice on how to best capture speed. i raced a friend up to 155 mph last night and from the video, it looked as though we may have been doing 30 mph.

does putting the camera closer to the ground make a difference in the translation of speed perception on a camera? would trailing shots (shot from the back of the car pointing back) pick up relative speed better than chase shots (shot from the front facing the front). i need some help here. what's the point of making a racing video if you cant capture the speed?

thanks in advance!!!

JStrider · 07-22-2004, 08:06 AM

having the camera closer to the ground or having more outside visible might help... another thing that might show speed a lot is to have someone outside filming the cars as they go by...

Cynthetiq · 07-22-2004, 10:40 AM

thats one of the reasons that the production companies spend money on mounts just outside the vehicle to help bring the motion of parallax closer to the camera, hence the over the wheel shots, rear fender shots, etc.

Also I noticed that most of the best camera shots have tandem cameras in sync one pointed at the direction and the other pointed at the speedo. and tehn the speedo shot is added into the other shot as a small mortices.

shakran · 07-22-2004, 06:38 PM

The closer to the ground the camera is, the faster the speed will seem.

Unfortunately, the closer to the ground the camera is, the more likely that it's outside the car and therefore stands a very good chance of getting destroyed, and you can't afford to be replacing cameras all the time like the network guys can

If I were doing this, I'd mount the camera behind and slightly to the right of the driver's seat. Get an over-the-shoulder shot of the driver, make sure you can see one (ideally both) of his hands on the wheel, and a good shot of outside. You may need to set it on manual iris if it has one so that it won't overexpose the outside in order to expose your hands. You should be going for underexposed you in order to get a properly exposed racetrack.

If you have a shock mount or your image stabilizer on your cam is good, zoom in a little bit. The wider you are, the slower it looks like you're going. Don't zoom in too much, though, or it'll be so shaky that it won't look very good at all.

See if your friend has a cam you can borrow and mount it under the dash, pointing up at your face. try to get your legs in the shot.

Then you can edit it together, sequencing the cornering with shots of you downshifting and turning. You can make it appear faster this way since the changing of camera angles will hide the fact that the race footage looks slow.

bigoldalphamale · 07-23-2004, 10:44 AM

thanks for the great info!!!!!!!!!!!!

tehhappyboy · 07-23-2004, 11:54 PM

Tried and true tricks of the cinematographers. Things that are closer appear to move faster, so the objects you are looking at filming, the closer the better. Drive closer to fenceposts, etc.

shakran · 07-25-2004, 09:07 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by tehhappyboy
Tried and true tricks of the cinematographers. Things that are closer appear to move faster, so the objects you are looking at filming, the closer the better. Drive closer to fenceposts, etc.

Only trouble with that is that on most road courses, the fence posts are way on the other side of a grass/gravel strip from the track for safety reasons. Plus the fact that he should be concentrating on his racing line, not his cinematography line

As long as we see a good bit of the inside of the car, it'll appear to go faster than if we see nothing but the outside world.

jaypc2 · 07-25-2004, 02:46 PM

also try getting something to add a bit of perspective into the shot.. since we learned in school that 'speed is relative' we have to give your speeding car something to be relative too..... close to ground shots would be good...especially if there are some sort of like white dots or something on the track or something and shakran had some great advice for making some shots inside of the car.... but then you still wont really be able to see how fast the car really is moving.. because you can't see outside of the car

so yeah try giving your car something to be relitave to in the shot.. and have you tried speeding the tape up? also (if your camera has the capabilities which i dont think it does cause its a Hi-8 format) try adjusting the shutter speed and the apature.... also try mutiple angles.. lots of mutiple angles....

oh and one more thing.. sound will play a big part into what this video will look/sound like.... if you have good sounds of cars going fast on your video then the car will look like its going a bit faster... think about it...

thats my 2 cents

shakran · 07-25-2004, 06:54 PM

Quote:

but then you still wont really be able to see how fast the car really is moving.. because you can't see outside of the car

Yes you can. You set the camera behind the driver shooting over his shoulder. We see the driver, and we see through the windshield. Just set the iris so that it's exposed for outside, not inside, the car.

jaypc2 · 07-26-2004, 06:14 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by shakran
Yes you can. You set the camera behind the driver shooting over his shoulder. We see the driver, and we see through the windshield. Just set the iris so that it's exposed for outside, not inside, the car.

your right i didn't realize that you were talking about shooting out side the windshield, but also i doubt this camea has an adjustable iris becuase it is recording in Hi-8 format...

shakran · 07-27-2004, 05:46 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by jaypc2
your right i didn't realize that you were talking about shooting out side the windshield, but also i doubt this camea has an adjustable iris becuase it is recording in Hi-8 format...

The format doesn't matter. VHS cameras had adjustable irises. It all depends on the camera. And if the iris isn't adjustable, simply make sure that more than 60% or so of the picture is taken up by the bright part and the iris will expose for that.

MSD · 08-01-2004, 11:21 PM

If the bumpre has a wide enough hole to mount a camera in there, that can get some really good, fast-looking shots. IF it fall sout, you're screwed, and the wind noise sucks. If you're inside the car, make sure you can see the hands on the wheel, the speedo, and if possible, the shifter.

07-22-2004, 06:08 AM	#1 (permalink)
bigoldalphamale Loser	capturing speed on Hi-8 i am putting together a video which will be a compilation of my racing footage (on and off the track) with friends. i have begun to take some footage of some of our local antics, and i have found it extremely hard to capture the true perception of speed on the camera. i ordered a stickypod so that i will be able to mount the cam in various places outside and inside the car, but i want to get some advice on how to best capture speed. i raced a friend up to 155 mph last night and from the video, it looked as though we may have been doing 30 mph. does putting the camera closer to the ground make a difference in the translation of speed perception on a camera? would trailing shots (shot from the back of the car pointing back) pick up relative speed better than chase shots (shot from the front facing the front). i need some help here. what's the point of making a racing video if you cant capture the speed? thanks in advance!!!

07-22-2004, 08:06 AM	#2 (permalink)
JStrider Poo-tee-weet? Location: The Woodlands, TX	having the camera closer to the ground or having more outside visible might help... another thing that might show speed a lot is to have someone outside filming the cars as they go by... __________________ -=JStrider=- ~Clatto Verata Nicto

07-22-2004, 10:40 AM	#3 (permalink)
Cynthetiq Tilted Cat Head Administrator Location: Manhattan, NY	thats one of the reasons that the production companies spend money on mounts just outside the vehicle to help bring the motion of parallax closer to the camera, hence the over the wheel shots, rear fender shots, etc. Also I noticed that most of the best camera shots have tandem cameras in sync one pointed at the direction and the other pointed at the speedo. and tehn the speedo shot is added into the other shot as a small mortices. __________________ I don't care if you are black, white, purple, green, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, hippie, cop, bum, admin, user, English, Irish, French, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, indian, cowboy, tall, short, fat, skinny, emo, punk, mod, rocker, straight, gay, lesbian, jock, nerd, geek, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Independent, driver, pedestrian, or bicyclist, either you're an asshole or you're not. What's the best nation in the world? DO-NATION!

07-23-2004, 11:54 PM	#6 (permalink)
tehhappyboy Tilted	Tried and true tricks of the cinematographers. Things that are closer appear to move faster, so the objects you are looking at filming, the closer the better. Drive closer to fenceposts, etc. __________________ I'm a happy boy, happy boy, way to get when things are going your way. Hey Hey. ...Pretty sure I asked for Pecan Sandies...

07-25-2004, 02:46 PM	#8 (permalink)
jaypc2 Tilted Location: south east	also try getting something to add a bit of perspective into the shot.. since we learned in school that 'speed is relative' we have to give your speeding car something to be relative too..... close to ground shots would be good...especially if there are some sort of like white dots or something on the track or something and shakran had some great advice for making some shots inside of the car.... but then you still wont really be able to see how fast the car really is moving.. because you can't see outside of the car so yeah try giving your car something to be relitave to in the shot.. and have you tried speeding the tape up? also (if your camera has the capabilities which i dont think it does cause its a Hi-8 format) try adjusting the shutter speed and the apature.... also try mutiple angles.. lots of mutiple angles.... oh and one more thing.. sound will play a big part into what this video will look/sound like.... if you have good sounds of cars going fast on your video then the car will look like its going a bit faster... think about it... thats my 2 cents __________________ Zero Cool stay sexy

07-22-2004, 06:38 PM	#4 (permalink)
shakran Tone.	The closer to the ground the camera is, the faster the speed will seem. Unfortunately, the closer to the ground the camera is, the more likely that it's outside the car and therefore stands a very good chance of getting destroyed, and you can't afford to be replacing cameras all the time like the network guys can If I were doing this, I'd mount the camera behind and slightly to the right of the driver's seat. Get an over-the-shoulder shot of the driver, make sure you can see one (ideally both) of his hands on the wheel, and a good shot of outside. You may need to set it on manual iris if it has one so that it won't overexpose the outside in order to expose your hands. You should be going for underexposed you in order to get a properly exposed racetrack. If you have a shock mount or your image stabilizer on your cam is good, zoom in a little bit. The wider you are, the slower it looks like you're going. Don't zoom in too much, though, or it'll be so shaky that it won't look very good at all. See if your friend has a cam you can borrow and mount it under the dash, pointing up at your face. try to get your legs in the shot. Then you can edit it together, sequencing the cornering with shots of you downshifting and turning. You can make it appear faster this way since the changing of camera angles will hide the fact that the race footage looks slow.

07-23-2004, 10:44 AM	#5 (permalink)
bigoldalphamale Loser	thanks for the great info!!!!!!!!!!!!

08-01-2004, 11:21 PM	#12 (permalink)
MSD The sky calls to us ... Super Moderator Location: CT	If the bumpre has a wide enough hole to mount a camera in there, that can get some really good, fast-looking shots. IF it fall sout, you're screwed, and the wind noise sucks. If you're inside the car, make sure you can see the hands on the wheel, the speedo, and if possible, the shifter.