Reviewers Recommend Tres Vias - review by Captain Jack Starring: Christian Clay, Alex Jones, Blake Blossom, Azul Hermosa, Madi Collins, Matthew Meier, Melanie Marie, Sky Wonderland, Eve Sweet, Rikako Katayama, Vixi Rafi. Read review
Recently, I've read quite a few articles on the subject of HDR (High Dynamic Range). Like this one:Seeing as 4K adoption is now pretty widespread within the porn industry, and given the industry's reputation for being at the cutting of technological innovation, do you think we're likely to see HDR porn in the near future? Also, which genres do you think would benefit most from being shot in HDR? Personally, I think it would be most appropriate for the artier sites like Femjoy and Sexart.
pat362's point still holds true. That's only a relative handful of the porn sites out there. While it's growing, 4K is still a niche. 4K displays still generally come at a big premium over even 1080p equivalents and until that premium shrinks, 4K won't become mainstream like 720p/1080p have. I'm not sure the movement from SD to HD to 4K can be used as a direct basis for the progression of HDR. There is only so much dynamic range people will want/care to see in people's flaps and dangly bits being mashed about. That being said, I can't disagree with your view that the more arty sites may benefit from it.
As someone who is trained in photography and has done photography for some mainstream publications (still photography), I don't think that the adult industry playing with HDR images will go well. HDR images are very hard to do right and most look horrible because they weren't done right. If video HDR is the same as photographic HDR, if a studio starts doing it they will need to invest good money in someone who actually knows how to do it right.
You have to figure out how many F stops above and below correct you need to shoot for to get a nice HDR image. Too much and they look fake. It is an art.
I don't see how HDR would improve porn at all. It seems most stuff shot these days has very bland white backgrounds that are often overlit to blow out distracting details, wheras HDR is essentially used to make such minor details pop out more. Personally I just think HDR is more of a fad thing that doesn't offer any objective improvement to image quality but rather tweaks it in a way that would be harsh and unwelcome in porn scenes. It can look nice when used for stuff like architectural photography (particularity in B&W) and is done with a subtle hand, but for the most part I view HDR the same way I view those pointless sound "enhancement" modes that stereo surround receivers come with. Edited by - Jackie Treehorn on 12/25/2015 10:51:16 PM
Prosumer and Professional cameras don't yet have the ability to really perform true HDR video. You would need a camera with an excellent dynamic range and then record the same video stream at least twice at two different dynamic ranges. Those videos would then be merged in post. The only current way is using two cameras with a beam splitter. It looks really nice in timelapse for landscapes and cityscapes. It does not look so good on people though.
low end camcorders don't do 'log' which is what's needed to add HDR in post production. Color grading is just another hoop to jump through for editors so don't expect low end gonzo to start offering HDR videos.
I think that high frame rate would make a much bigger difference. Because porn is very often about... fast action (twerking is a good example, it often looks like a blurry mess) and high frame rate would make pictures a lot more clear. Hdr on the other hand is useful for what I know to make more dramatic picture with high contrast, so one can see a lot of difference between a dark area and a very bright one, more convincing explosions, reflections of the sun... not exactly the kind of things I really care for in porn. I mean probably done right it could look good, it's not like I'm against it (altough at the moment I don't have a HDR tv or monitor) but still I'm not sure porn is the kind of content where HDR would be so necessary.
Yes, I totally agree. In fact, I think I posted a pretty much identical comment on another thread. I really do wish low-end porn productions would move away from cheap handheld camcorders. Even smartphones capture nicer-looking footage. Plus a gh5 or something similar isn't too expensive and takes much nicer-looking footage.
Couldn't care less about HDR. I am waiting for photo-realistic, lifelike CGI porn where you can pick your characters and setting.
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ironKnight Deactivated User
2524 Posts 4/21
Posted - Jul 17 2021 : 8:00AM
I agree to avoid cheap handheld camcorders by some companies and move to smartphones because I sawn some BTS from the new site called Bjraw where they use an iPhone for all their scenes and the picture quality looks fantastic like it was shot with high end camera equipment .
Handheld recorders are still being used because of one advantage. They don't overheat and can records hours of footage without time limitations. The Panasonic GH5 is an awesome camera that doesn't overheat and has no recording limits. But alas, it has the worst autofocus ever which is vital for shooting porn. Smartphones nowadays can have pretty good quality. But it can also overheat and have recording limitations. Plus one really needs good and adequate lighting if you plan on using a smartphone. The tiny sensors can't handle low light very well. Depth of field is another drawback. Everybody wants that "cinematic" look. If you plan to do multi camera recordings with a smartphone, goodluck. It's a pita to sync the footage in post because it can only record Variable Frame Rate as opposed to Constant Frame Rate. With all that said, you want quick and easy, reliable and surefire recordings? Handheld cameras is still a great option.
P.s. we should really start a thread here about best video recording equiptment specifically for shooting porn. Pros and cons, real world experience, specs and tech. I'd be very much interested.
Edited by - Beedeebob on 7/17/2021 7:33:32 PM
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ironKnight Deactivated User
2524 Posts 4/21
Posted - Jul 18 2021 : 12:02AM
Thanks for the explanation . Appreciate it . Also to about starting a thread here about best video recording equipment - it will be useful for tech ppl in general and not only for Porn .
I think that with the new Iphone is quite different from every other smartphone available right now. I'm not a fan of Apple, but I've seen some review of it and the difference in the way it handled light was very impressive. That said, I'm not sure if it would help with high framerate.
I'll never waste my money to buy porn shot on iphone. It's disrespectful to my pocket and my expensive TV. Either get a low end or used DSLR/mirrorless or rent a cinema camera. Consumer camcorder video color looks washed out when you compare it to single sensor DSLR. If a producer's going to use a camcorder, they should use a 3chip camcorder, 1/3" sensor minimum.
Be well
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hoochimama Deactivated User
1438 Posts 5/10
Posted - Jul 18 2021 : 4:35PM
HDR is still a mess when it comes to TV/movies/videogames with the different HDR standards and random TV compatibility/effectiveness, not to mention all the calibration woes.
The porn tech that's already lagging behind is h265 adoption for 1080p+ videos which can cut file size/stream bandwidth in nearly half. Websites should at least give us the option.
well to be able to decide that you should know what kind of gear it's been used in the first place, and usually I've never seen at the end of the scene something saying "we used this particular model of camera", or at least you should be able to tell the difference.
Easy to tell, small sensor with small lens has close range, lack of depth of field. Also bitrate, video & sound quality. I can also tell cheap DSLR video from high end DSLR from low chip camcorder (1/4.85", 1/3", 1/2"). I can tell servo vs manual zoom. I can recognize go pro footage.
well, I guess you're a videophile that accepts only perfection (that means that you're not able to watch anything produced before 2010 I guess, considering the incredibly bad quality of a huge amount of professional mainstream porn back then), but let's put it this way: after IronKnight above mentioned bjraw, I've watched a couple of minutes of two scenes, and in terms of quality is much better than the vast majority of porn produced until say, ten years ago.
I'm not a videophile nor do I expect perfection. I do expect quality for my money. Selling amateur video for 5x more than a Hollywood movie or low budget b-movie is slap in the face to the consumer and I will not stand for it. These 'content creators' think the public will accept anything because they're 'amateur'. An amateur does it for fun and/or free. They're stepping into professional big boy leagues by charging customers. I'll sign up to a "go pro/iphone" video site but not for no damn $30 a month. The more professional studios can go higher quality but they chose not to. UHD/HDR video/disc should be common place. As for bjraw, I'm not impressed with their model selection, it seems all over the place. I think it's time they increase the payrates and be ultra selective in who they hire.
Agree with you. He must be a videophile. Nothing wrong with that though. Always great to watch quality content. Especially if you're watching it on good playback equiptment. But seriously, I think most if not all watch porn using their phone, tablet or a laptop. A smartphone will do. Just invest in good lighting. Hate to see grainy and dark footage. And oh, also quit recording in vertical mode! We need our porn to fill up our expensive widescreen TVs! :)
Yes, I understand and largely agree with what you have said. Porr autofocus should only be a problem if you dont have a dedicated cameraman. I realise this is often the case with low budget productions where the cameraman is also the performer. I have heard sonys full frame cameras have impressive autofocus. They are quite a bit more expensive than a gh5 but they are considerably better in low light as well. As for smartphones not handling lowlight well. I thought that was the case with camcorders as well.
Tres Vias - review by Captain Jack
Posted - Dec 25 2015 : 1:07PM
