Is this 1080p/HD?

[Philston]

Hi folks,

I'm a musician looking to record some quality (relatively speaking) music videos. I'm completely new to video.

I bought a Zoom Q8, a camera and audio-processor in one, because convenience. I shot a video with a friend, but I can't help but think the video quality is horrible. It looks nothing like the 1080p videos I see on YouTube, even though this camera was clearly advertised as such. What do you guys think? Is it a matter of bad lighting and the wrong settings, or is there something else I've misunderstood? I don't think it's a matter of focus - both the mic in the front and us in the back seem blurry. And I heard 4K doesn't survive the upload to YT, so that shouldn't account for the difference in quality either.

Should I return the camera and spend the €400,- (or a bit more) on one dedicated to video quality (recording the audio separately is a good idea quality-wise anyway)? Or is it not going to get any better in this price range (say, under €750,-) whichever camera I choose?

I'm hoping to get some expert opinions. I have about a week to decide whether to keep it or send it back
Thanks in advance!
-Philip

https://youtu.be/qnLO0juZgkE

Ps. Only after uploading this as a private vid to YT did I found out there -was- in fact sound behind it - excuse the banter, false starts and midway dropouts, I just took a random take.

[jagabo]

I haven't been able to view the 1080p version of the video yet but the 720p version appears to have 720p resolution. But what's the deal with that orange cast over the right side of the image? Was the sun or a light shining into the camera lens? If the camera always shoots like that there's something wrong with it.

[DB83]

You can quickly check the original video by loading it into mediainfo (text mode)

The first question you must answer is what is the true color of that background. I see a thick darker line going vertically down but guess that this, or the rest, is not correct.

But there seems to be too much light going to the subject(s)

[Philston]

Thanks for the replies.

The sun was low and shining into the room from that angle, I'll hang up some curtains before my next video. This also causes some of the pixelation I suppose, though I don't understand why. The background is also pretty accurate (it's a mural). I'll check out mediainfo tonight when I have time.

In any case then, neither of you see anything completely out of the ordinary, and my expectations are just too high?

[jagabo]

I've seen the higher resolution version now. It definitely has the resolution of 1080p. It's hard to tell from the youtube reencoding, but it looks moderately noise. You can probably fix that by using brighter lights. If you have the option, record at higher bitrates to preserve more detail and reduce posterization. It's not possible to say much more without seeing the original video file.

[DB83]

Pixelation is often caused by two much light/reflection and not enough bitrate on the recording. Hard to see (for me at least) in the sample since YT has re-encoded the video.

I would not say that there is nothing out of the ordinary since there is poor exposure caused by the direct sunlight. And since you are now aware you can correct for that.

[Philston]

So all in all it's more to do with my lack of skill and knowledge than with the camera quality. Good to know!

But I suppose a dedicated (non-hybrid) camera of the same price would still result in better quality (because of options and ease of use, or so?), so I should probably still send this back and just learn to handle a video camera and the audio-video syncing and all that.

Anyway, thanks for the help and input. Looking forward to the learning curve ahead

Cheers!
-Philip

[rollinsonphilip]

link doesn't work, can you give another one?

[Philston]

I took the video down after my question was answered

[DB83]

Just a little comment re your above action.

The forum exists both to help you (which it did) and others who might stumble across the topic at a later date. Removing the 'evidence' will not help them.

[Philston]

That's a fair point, and I appreciate the thought. However, the person I shot the video with specifically asked me not to share it. Posting it here and leaving it online for a few days I thought would be alright, but it's unfair towards her to just leave it lying around, so to speak. Hence

[DB83]

Understand.

Of course anyone who now reads the topic will wonder just what was in the video. She was a bit of a 'looker'