Well, HDV's native field order attribute is UPPER FIELD.
The same has been true of all of the MPEG-2 DVD disc camcorders that I've tested.
But -- for the sake of experimentation -- I've tried all of Ulead's field order settings... UPPER, LOWER, FRAME-BASED... and, frankly, none improves the down-converted HDV playback on my display here.
Jim's mention of how his display cards impact the appearance of the video playback is quite interesting; I suspect that's a valid observation.
Perhaps one of Jim's display adapters features some kind of built-in interlace-flicker reduction?
The suggestion to use a faster shutter speed might be worth some experimentation.
Still, HDV artifacting are problems being reported all over the Web on various forums by users of HDV camcorders who are trying to get the best results when they down-convert to standard definition DVD.
See the excellent Sony DCR-TRV900 Web site by John Beale, for example.
John has purchased several camcorders since his original Sony DCR-TRV900 MiniDV camcorder purchase.
His latest camcorder is the Sony HDR-FX1 -- a more expensive model -- and he reports similar issues with that camcorder and he attributes his standard definition DVD problems to the EXTREME RESOLUTION of the HDV format:
http://tinyurl.com/zn7c3
Frankly, I'm not sure if I agree with Beale's suggestions: USING BLUR FILTERS!
The folks at Studio Daily also did some testing with the Sony HDR-FX1.
Same problem:
http://tinyurl.com/h6qwu
Shooting with the Sony HDR-FX1, we noticed that the image quality, although generally very good, becomes a bit noisy (or blurred) when we panned with the camera. Actually, this is quite typical for MPEG-2 compression, even in HD broadcasts, as we noticed in the Summer Olympics broadcasts. With the HDR-FX1, the blur/noise is more visible because it features a less expensive codec. Using an HD-SDI converter, we then hooked up the camera with a portable HDCAM deck (SONY HDW-250). This let us bypass the MPEG-2 codec (with a transfer rate of 25 Mbps) and, instead, record uncompressed HD (with a rate of 140 Mbps). This resulted in a higher image quality with relatively clean pans. Based on our experience, we also recommend minimizing horizontal movement (panning) as much as possible in order to maintain a clean image. If you need to pan (and want to maintain the image quality), always pan as slowly as possible!
PANASONIC's sales representatives are claiming this was one of the reasons they chose not to join with the other camcorder manufacturers in supporting the HDV format.
I wonder if AVCHD H.264 MPEG-4 will be any better?
CamcorderInfo.Com just reviewed the new HDR-UX1 from Sony.
But there really wasn't much written about that codec's ability to handle motion.
http://tinyurl.com/p4xsm
Interesting stuff, however.
Thanks again for sending those discs, Jim.
HDV's resolution is truly amazing.
It appears one needs to shoot very carefully with it to minimize motion.
1) Always use a tripod;
2) Experiment with faster shutter speeds, if possible.
I'll keep my eyes open for any new technical articles on this topic.
Jerry Jones
http://www.jonesgroup.net
