The problem:

Indie filmmaker using a canon HV40 to shoot HDV video to tape. In the process of shooting to tape the internal compression codec on the camera down converts the HD signal from 1920 Horizontal resolution to 1440. This loss in resolution is undesireable to say the least, especially when the HDMI output retains full resolution when recording. However, once media goes to tape, playback from the HDMI port will jus be upconverted 1440 media, not the original 1920 resolution.

The solution?

I'm thinking that it should be possible to make a portable device that records the HDMI output from the camera directly to a portable hard drive.

The obstacles:

I don't know much about Linux, or whether or not it would even be possible to write a lite port of it that is specialized for this task.

I'm not certain what specs would be required for the compression of the media/the resulting required speed of the drive to capture in real time.


Does anyone have any ideas?

In theory it seems you'd need an HDMI input for capture, a USB port for transfer of files to a computer, and the rest would be internal hardware for running the os.

Any advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

The solutions

1. Get a better codec or turn off crappy compression.

2. Write back with full details - this codec, that distro, this program, that command etc so someone has a clue what you are doing now. We migh then politely guess, and send you off to do work. Or someone might diagnose. But it's not much use emailing the doctor and hust saying "I'm sick!"

Hi,
I don't post on forums, but this is truly interesting, and I'd like to know what you've come up with since this post.

I want to access the HDMI port of my SOny HVR V1U. The firewire port shorted out and is not usable. I want a portable device to have an HDMI input, and record directly to an SD card or a fixed state hard drive. Something portable and easy to tether to the camera. I keep thinking there's an easy solution just around the bend. If it's not out there, let's invent it. I can see this thing weighing 5 oz and without moving parts. But I may be dreaming. If it has to be a spinning drive, let it be small, like SOny's $1600 60GB HDV input firewire drive. I have that as well, but it is useless to me because of the stupid firewire port shorting out. I'm kind of upset with Sony, actually. I got all that stuff to be portable, and now I'm pretty much stuck to a Black Magic Intensity card in a tower next to my camera. And that card is a great purchase. BUt most of the magic happens outside the studio.

I don't want to bring even a laptop. THis has got to be a simpler solution. THey're all but building these devices into their cameras by now.

Anyway, I hope we either find or pioneer a way to achieve this common end.

-Rob Larson