Slow motion video can provide new and interesting views of otherwise everyday events. This enhances the emotional impact, but also pushes the technical abilities of a camera system. In this article we'll provide a background on how slow motion works and discuss best practices.
OVERVIEW
Slow motion playback starts with high-speed capture. With early film, this was called "overcranking," since the camera operator would literally crank the film reel through the camera more rapidly. This footage would then be played back at normal frame rates, stretching time and making motion appear slower:
With digital, slow motion works much the same way, except overcranking is accomplished when the capture frame rate is faster than the playback frame rate (or "time base"). With these setting, a camera is said to be in "varispeed" mode, and the ratio between these rates represents the amount of slow-down. If a subject were captured at 96 fps and played at 24 fps, for example, then motion would appear at quarter speed:
(quarter speed from 96 fps capture)
(quarter speed from 24 fps capture)
The key is that true slow motion video requires both faster capture and slower playback. Using slower playback alone, which is perhaps one's first inclination, would result in sub-standard frame rates and likely stuttered motion. Alternatively, using faster capture alone would create smoother motion, but at real-life speeds.
APPLICATIONS
The degree of slow-down varies depending on application. A 2x to 4x slowdown is considered standard for replays or artistic effects, and often means a capture rate at 60 fps to 90 fps. This speed can also give the appearance of smoother panning and steadier shoulder-mounted footage, since high-frequency movements appear dampened.
Capture rates near and above 300 fps are an opportunity to show the viewer details that their eyes could never have captured. Water splashes, flying insects, sporting moments, explosions and other split-second events can become visually accessible and even other-worldly.
(lower magnification)
(higher magnification)
Note how objects move more slowly across the frame in the tenth speed example on the left. For the same action, the more a subject is magnified (either by using a longer focal length or moving the camera closer), the slower that subject will need to be shown for the same effect.
RED CAMERA SETTINGS
With RED cameras, both the playback rate (or "project time base") and the recording frame rate (or the "capture frame rate") can be changed in the Project settings menu. You can take a shortcut to the Frame Rate menu by selecting the Frame Rate option in the Upper Status Row.
Whenever the playback rate and recording frame rate differ, the recording frame rate value in the Upper Status Row turns yellow, and the bottom right displays "Varispeed" to indicate that this mode has been successfully enabled:
ARTIFICIAL SLOW MOTION
Sometimes slow motion can be emulated with post production software, using a technique where extra frames, are interpolated in-between normal frames enabling slower playback at standard frame rates. However, just as enlarging a photo doesn't create additional detail, slow-motion interpolation doesn't reveal additional high-speed behavior. These techniques are primarily aimed at masking stuttered motion, and ultimately don't increase temporal resolution. They also require faster shutter speeds and predictable motion for the full effect.
OTHER CONSIDERATIONS & BEST PRACTICES
Perhaps the biggest obstacles to high-speed capture are technical. In particular, data management and lighting require even more attention than they would otherwise. For example, higher frame rates increase storage space and media write-speed requirements, which in turn may demand either lower resolution images or higher REDCODE® compression. Similarly, higher frame rates mean correspondingly faster shutter speeds, which in turn demand more intense lighting.
Additional considerations include:
- Audio. Sounds are unrealistic if not played back in real-time, so slow-motion footage virtually always needs to be dubbed over with music or sound effects.
- Flickering. Artificial lighting is much more likely to flicker at higher frame rates; always try to shoot under bright daylight or continuous studio lighting when possible. See the tutorial on flicker-free shutter speeds for additional tips.
- Motion Blur. Viewers typically expect to see minimal motion blur with slow motion, so shutter angles smaller than the standard 180° may be necessary. However, without extra lighting this may require larger apertures and higher ISO speeds, which may come at the expense of sharpness and noise.
- Detail. Shooting at very high frame rates typically requires lower resolution. It's therefore more critical than ever that these images have the highest quality possible. For example, light permitting, stopping the lens down by 1 to 2 stops will improve sharpness. In post, using the unsharp mask and denoise tools can also help. Most importantly though, use the highest quality lenses available.
- Wide Angles. With RED cameras, shooting at lower resolutions means the outer portion of the frame gets cropped out, causing the image to appear as if it were taken with a longer focal length. For example, when shooting at 2K as opposed to 5K resolution, the effective focal length will increase by 2.5X (causing a 20mm lens to appear as if it were 50mm). See the interactive RED crop factor tool to see what happens with your specific settings.
RELATED TOPICS
- For a background on video motion blur, see the tutorial on Shutter Angles & Creative Control.
- For high-speed capture AND playback, see the tutorial on High Frame Rate Playback.