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Solved Confused about NTSC v PAL

  • tony
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Confused about NTSC v PAL was created by tony

Posted 08 Jun 2015 23:08 #1
I live in the UK so my tv system is PAL. My video camera is a Toshiba Camelio X150. shooting 1280 x 720 HD video at 30 fps.
My question is when I set up a new project in Movie Studio Platinum 13 does it matter if I select NTSC at 29.97 fps or PAL at 25fps? As the camera records at 30fps is there an advantage creating the video at 30fps. I will be using Architect Studio to make the my disk as a DVD which records at PAL 720 x 576 25fps..
What's the best render template in Movie Studio Platinum 13. I currently use MainConcept AVC/AAC Internet HD 30fps.
by tony

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Replied by DoctorZen on topic Confused about NTSC v PAL

Posted 08 Jun 2015 23:32 #2
Hi Tony

Did you buy your camera in the USA or online somewhere ? Because it sounds like an NTSC camera.

Yes it does matter how you set up a new project.
If you are shooting at 30 (29.97)fps, you should also set Movie Studio to the exact same frame rate. This will give you much smoother playback in the Preview Window while you are editing, otherwise MSP will be trying to convert the video in real time, which puts a huge extra load on the CPU.
The easiest thing to do is always use the Match Media function that I show in this tutorial:
www.moviestudiozen.com/free-tutorials/sony-movie-studio-platinum/516-1080p-video-in-movie-studio-platinum-13

I would also recommend rendering all your projects to 29.97fps.

For making DVDs, it would also be better to stick with 29.97fps.
All modern DVD/Blu-ray players and TVs, can play back 25fps or 29.97fps no problem at all. Your devices will auto-detect frame rates for you.
You could convert to 25fps if you really wanted to, however there really is no need.
If you had recorded the original videos at 25fps, I would have then said use 25fps for all your settings.

I have an NTSC camera myself that I bought from the USA.
Australia is also a PAL 25fps country.
When I record with this camera at 29.97fps, I set all my settings to the same frame rate for best picture quality.
However most of the time I record at 24fps with my NTSC camera to get the "film look".

Regards
Derek.
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  • tony
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Replied by tony on topic Confused about NTSC v PAL

Posted 10 Jun 2015 01:14 #3
Hi Derek.

Thanks for the quick reply. My camera was purchased in the UK. It seems most cameras which are made abroad use NTSC 29.97fps.

Also the information you gave me was top notch and I'm pleased with the results. Many thanks

Regards
Tony
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Replied by DoctorZen on topic Confused about NTSC v PAL

Posted 10 Jun 2015 14:40 #4
The world is split up into different regions which you can see on this map here:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NTSC#/media/File:PAL-NTSC-SECAM.svg

More than half the world uses PAL.
Most SECAM countries also use PAL.
Most cameras are locked to PAL or NTSC, but some models are "International" and can be set to either PAL or NTSC.

On a very simplistic level, it all goes back to the Power Line Frequency your country uses.
UK, Europe and Australia use 50Hz power.
USA uses 60Hz.

If you try to film with an NTSC camera in a PAL country indoors with the lights on, you will notice a flicker effect because the frame rate is out of sync with power line frequency. The same is true vice versa. However you can fix this buy manually changing the Shutter Speed of video camera.
ℹ️ Remember to turn everything off at least once a week, including your brain, then sit somewhere quiet and just chill out.
Unplugging is the best way to find solutions to your problems. If you would like to share some love, post a customer testimonial or make a donation.
Last Edit:27 Jun 2015 18:00 by DoctorZen

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