Many ProVideo Coalition readers may have noticed that I pardon the camera manufacturers (and even thank them) when they round shutter speeds (i.e. 1/60), but I protest when they round framerates to the closest integer (i.e. when they round 23.976 to 24, 29.97 to 30, and 59.94 to 60). In this article, you’ll find out why saloon talk about 24p is okay, why the rounding of framerates in camera menus is damaging to the video production community, while the rounding of shutter speeds is harmless.

Why rounding of framerates in camera menus is damaging

Often a director sits at a bar drinking her/his favorite beverage talking with colleagues about whether s/he esthetically prefers the 24p look, the 30p look, or the 60p look. That’s okay, because they aren’t dealing with workflow issues. But it is not at all okay that camera manufacturers round numbers like 23.976 to 24, 29.97 to 30, or 59.94 to 60. Why? Because many operators take it literally, and then innocently set their project or sequence in their editing software to 24, 30, or 60. I have met far too many people who really thought that they were shooting at exactly 24.000, 30.000 or 60.000 and they suffer all sorts of problems in post as a result. In the past, I could make a blanket statement and say something like: “Any camera under US$10,000 that says 24, 30, or 60 really means 23.976, 29.97, or 59.94 respectively.” That is no longer that case, since some HDSLRs really record exactly 30.000, and even the Blackmagic Cinema camera will offer 23.976p, 24.000p, 25.000p, 29.970p, and 30.000p, although Blackmagic -like many other camera manufacturers- rounds 23.976p to 23.98p: more about that ahead in this article. My point in this section is that it is wrong and harmful to say 24, 30, or 60 when the camcorder really records 23.976, 29.97, or 59.94 because many users believe it and set the editing sequence to match the inaccurate value in the camera’s menu.

Of course, I know that even numbers like 23.976, 29.97, and 59.94 are not exact and are in themselves rounded versions of much longer numbers, but they are close enough to work properly within a workflow. However, rounding up to 24, 30, and 60 don’t work properly within a workflow.

What’s wrong with rounding 23.976 to 23.98 ?

In order to work properly within a workflow, the numbers must interchange properly. For example, when I mention that when shooting at 59.94p and then conforming the playback to 23.976p in post, we get natural 2.5 x slow motion, the numbers work. Go ahead: Divide 59.94 by 2.5 and you’ll get exactly 23.976, not 23.98. Also, when I mention that the DreamColor monitor accepts (among many other rates) 23.976 Hz, repeats each frame and then displays 47.952 Hz, the numbers are the proper ones, both in the original and in the resulting number. For those editing software that insist on rounding 23.976 to 23.98, I need to explain to people: “They really mean 23.976.”

Why I pardon the rounding of shutter speeds in camera menus

I don’t mind when a camera menu rounds a very complex fraction like 1/59.94 to 1/60 because it doesn’t mess up anyone’s workflow.

To make sure you continue to see my upcoming articles, sign up to my mailing list here.

My latest ebook

I have just published an ebook in two languages.
The 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, iPhone, Android phones, Android tablets, Mac computers, Windows computers, some Blackberry phones and Windows 7 phones.

In English:

In English, it is currently available in the following Amazon stores, depending upon your region:

• At Amazon.com (for all of the Americas)
• Amazon.co.uk (United Kingdom)
• Amazon.de (Germany)
• Amazon.es (Spain, pero a lo mejor lo prefieres en castellano, a continuación)
• Amazon.fr (France)
• Amazon.it (Italy)

If you’re going to buy a Kindle book as a gift, you must do so via the Pan-American Amazon store (the first one listed above), regardless of where you live or where the recipient lives.

En castellano:

En castellano, está disponible actualmente en las siguientes tiendas Amazon, según tu región:

• Amazon.com (todas las Am©ricas)
• Amazon.co.uk (Reino Unido)
• Amazon.de (Alemania)
• Amazon.es (España)
• Amazon.fr (Francia)
• Amazon.it (Italia)

Si vas a comprar un libro Kindle como regalo, debes hacerlo vía la tienda panamericana de Amazon (la primera de la lista) sin importar donde vivas tú o donde viva la persona que recibirá el regalo.

Allan T©pper’s books, consulting, articles, seminars & audio programs

Contact Allan T©pper for consulting, or find a full listing of his books, articles and upcoming seminars and webinars at AllanTepper.com. Listen to his TecnoTur program, which is now available both in Castilian (aka “Spanish”) and in English, free of charge. Search for TecnoTur in iTunes or visit TecnoTur.us for more information.

Disclosure, to comply with the FTC’s rules

No manufacturer is specifically paying Allan T©pper or TecnoTur LLC to write this article or the mentioned books. Some of the other manufacturers listed above have contracted T©pper and/or TecnoTur LLC to carry out consulting and/or translations/localizations/transcreations. Many of the manufacturers listed above have sent Allan T©pper review units. So far, none of the manufacturers listed above is/are sponsors of the TecnoTur programs, although they are welcome to do so, and some are, may be (or may have been) sponsors of ProVideo Coalition magazine. Some links to third parties listed in this article and/or on this web page may indirectly benefit TecnoTur LLC via affiliate programs.

Copyright and use of this article

The articles contained in the TecnoTur channel in ProVideo Coalition magazine are copyright Allan T©pper/TecnoTur LLC, except where otherwise attributed. Unauthorized use is prohibited without prior approval, except for short quotes which link back to this page, which are encouraged!