PAL/NTSC setting

goinggreynow

goinggreynow

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New 70D owner here with a question which is probably going to show up a basic lack of understanding re frame rates, playback, etc!
I know that I should be setting to PAL which will allow the camera to shoot video at either 25 or 50ps. However, if I set it to NTSC and shoot at either 30 or 60fps is the main trade off that I gain an extra 5 or 10 fps against the possibility of the footage not playing back quite so smoothly on my monitor or TV?
Or am I missing the point completely here? Are there other issues to consider?
The reason I ask is that I was playing around with settings earlier today and taking footage at both 25 and 30fps. My initial impression was, if anything, that I slightly preferred the 30 fps footage when played back on my Plasma TV straight from the camera. However, this was only the second or third time I've taken any video on the 70D, the weather was lousy and it probably wasn't the best test environment to be making any judgements.
Thanks in advance for any comments or help.
 
goinggreynow said:
......The reason I ask is that I was playing around with settings earlier today and taking footage at both 25 and 30fps. My initial impression was, if anything, that I slightly preferred the 30 fps footage when played back on my Plasma TV straight from the camera. .....
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The only thing I can think of is your TV was built before the switchover to digital and may have a menu setting to cater for PAL, SECAM and NTSC analogue input sources. If it does, did you switch it to the relevant setting when comparing the 25fps footage with the 30fps footage?

PS. I don't know why Canon still refer to PAL and NTSC because the only link between these analogue terms and the digital world is the 25 or 30 frame rate (the PAL system was 625 lines/25fps/50Hz and the NTSC system was 525 lines/30fps/60Hz). NTSC was replaced by ATSC in the US in 2009 and the UK had switched off all PAL analogue transmitters by the end of 2012. So IMO, any reference to PAL/NTSC/SECAM is irrelevant to modern digital equipment and to avoid confusion they should just refer to the choice of frame rates instead (24fps, 25fps, 30fps, 50fps or 60fps).
 
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Ozei said:
the PAL system was 625 lines/25fps/50Hz and the NTSC system was 525 lines/30fps/60Hz
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No it wasn't. PAL and NTSC are the methods of adding a colour sub carrier.

Brazil happily uses 525 line 59.97Hz PAL.

The problems you'll come across are:
  1. Lack of compatibility with European marketed equipment
  2. Bad lighting flicker - if you shoot indoors, or under street lights/stadium lights etc., you'll notice that because you aren't sampling the same bit of the sine wave each time - the lighting level will change between frames.
 
Many thanks for the replies so far. I've now noticed that my wife's new Canon S120 offers only 60 or 30 fps and as we're happy with the limited footage we've taken so far, I think I will give the 70d another try at the same frame rates.
 
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