As the developer previously committed, Pinnacle Studio for iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch has now added both 48 kHz audio as default for all iOS devices except for the first iPhone 4, and non-integer framerates like 23.976, 29.97, and 59.94 fps, together with integer ones like 24, 25, and 50. The way to handle these framerates requires a bit of explanation, as I’ll cover ahead.
Please use Pinnacle Studio for iOS version 5.08 or later
Although these updates actually arrived with prior version numbers, I detected some issues with part of the metadata of the non-integer framerates which I reported and the developer thankfully resolved, so please use version 5.08 or later, since as of that version, those issues are fixed.
How to achieve your desired framerate
The following instructions apply to using Pinnacle Studio 5.08 with iOS 7.x. Things might change when we move to iOS 8 and/or with a future version of Pinnacle Studio for iOS, and if so, I’ll publish a new article at that point.
Shoot with FiLMiC Pro in the approximate target framerate
Pinnacle Studio’s internal camera app —in terms of framerates— is currently as limited as the native iOS camera app in iOS 7, i.e. ±30 fps only. Both the native iOS camera app and FiLMiC Pro shoot at VFR (variable framerate) for efficiency’s sake, but the native camera app and the Pinnacle Studio for iOS app have a target of ±30 fps only. FiLMiC Pro has targets for ±24, ±25, ±30, ±50, and ±60. So for this and many other benefits the app offers, you should be shooting with FiLMiC Pro, not with the native camera app or with the camera built-in to Pinnacle Studio.
- If you want 23.976 fps, shoot with ±24 in FiLMiC Pro. Of course, set the audio to 48 kHz.
- If you want 24.000 fps, shoot with ±24 in FiLMiC Pro. Of course, set the audio to 48 kHz.
- If you want 25 fps, shoot in ±25fps in FiLMiC Pro. Of course, set the audio to 48 kHz.
- If you want 29.97 fps, shoot with ±30 in FiLMiC Pro. Of course, set the audio to 48 kHz.
Unless you are shooting and editing specifically for a 720p TV station, I recommend avoiding the use of 50p or 59.94p as a final delivery framerate, since its distribution beyond 720p TV stations is quite limited, with multiple millions of iOS devices in use that can’t play more than 30 fps, and many important online distribution systems have the same limitation. Only a few of the latest devices and online players can handle up to 60 fps. So if you innocently were to produce a final product of 50 fps or higher, most of your viewers will end up seeing half of your intended framerate, and the shutter speed you used when shooting will no longer match, and you would no longer have a consistent motion experience on multiple screens. Stay under 30 fps unless you are specifically producing for a 720p TV station, like the 39 in the US I listed in this article.
Choose the approximate target framerate when creating a project in Pinnacle Studio 5.08 or later
- If you want a final product of 23.976p, create a ±24 project in Pinnacle Studio. (You’ll be selecting “23.98” in a later step.)
- If you want a final product of 24.000p (presumably for film-out or DCP, not for TV broadcast or DVD), create a 24 project in Pinnacle Studio.
- If you want a final product of 25p, create a 25 project in Pinnacle Studio.
- If you want a final product of 29.97p, create a ±30 project in Pinnacle Studio. (You’ll be selecting 29.97 in a later step.)
Choose the more exact framerate in the sharing step in Pinnacle Studio
- If you want a final product of 23.976p, select “23.98” when sharing.
- If you want a final product of 24.000p (presumably for film-out or DCP, not for TV broadcast or DVD), select 24 when sharing.
- If you want a final product of 25p, select 25 when sharing.
- If you want a final product of 29.97p, select 29.97 when sharing.
How many decimals are enough?
As I indicated in my June 2014 article called Video framerates and the Tower of Babel: a translation guide, I am the first to admit that even numbers like 23.976 and 29.97 are not totally exact either. They are actually simplifications of a more complex number, which would be the result of 30 ÷ 1/1.001 or 24 ÷ 1/1.001, whose results are very long and not feasible to be used in common speech or even writing. However, the numbers that are close enough for are purposes are 23.976 and 29.97. If we know that the camera shoots at 23.976, 24.000, or 29.97, we know that framerate to set in our editing software to avoid a mismatch, or we know what we must deliver, and we can determine whether it is feasible to shoot at the same.
Why it is important to express 23.976, not 23.98?
It’s a question of being able to explain in a workflow the value of a slow motion shot. If you shoot at 59.94 progressive frames per second and then conform to 23.976, you are achieving exactly 2.5x slow motion. The numbers work together perfectly with 23.976; they simply don’t with 23.98.
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My latest book (paperback + ebook)
My most recent book is available in two languages, and in paperback as well as an ebook. The ebook format is Kindle, but even if you don’t have a Kindle device, you can read Kindle books on many other devices using a free Kindle app. That includes iPad, Android tablets, Mac computers, and Windows computers. Although generally speaking, Kindle books are readable on smartphones like Androids and iPhones, I don’t recommend it for this particular book since it contains both color photos and color comparison charts. The ebook is also DRM-free.
In English:
In English, it is currently available in the following Amazon stores, depending upon your region:
- Amazon.com, for the US and other countries in the Americas that don’t currently have their own Amazon store, or anywhere if you simply prefer it
- Amazon.br for Brazil
- Amazon.ca for Canada
- Amazon.de for Germany
- Amazon.es for Spain pero a lo mejor lo preferirás en castellano, a continuación)
- Amazon.fr for France
- Amazon.in for India
- Amazon.it for Italy
- Amazon.co.jp for Japan
- Amazon.com.mx for México
- Amazon.co.uk for the United Kingdom
Or in your favorite bookstore by requesting ISBN–10: 1456310232 or ISBN–13: 978–1456310233.
En castellano:
En castellano, está disponible actualmente en las siguientes tiendas Amazon, según tu región:
- Amazon.com para EE.UU. y todas las Américas donde no existe ninguna tienda particular… o en cualquier parte si simplemente lo prefieres
- Amazon.com.br para Brasil
- Amazon.co.jp para Japón
- Amazon.de para Alemania
- Amazon.es para España
- Amazon.fr (Francia)
- Amazon.in para India
- Amazon.it para Italia
- Amazon.com.mx para México
- Amazon.co.uk para el Reino Unido
o en tu librería preferida al solicitar el ISBN–10: 1492783390 ó el ISBN–13: 978–1492783398.
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