How to get PAL movie out of a DSC-WS30 .avi file

[wizard1941]

Background:

I'm using PAL standard for video purposes (living in Europe). My WS30 is set to produce PAL movie out. Nevertheless the produced .avi file is made using 29 frames per second (fps) which is closer to NTSC (30 fps) than to standard PAL (25 fps). Importing the file to the PC (using Windows 7 software such as PhotoGallery) merely copies the file unchanged, i.e keeping the 29 fps.

Problem:

My video editing software warns me, that it has to do a conversion to PAL, leading to loss of quality. Obviously I don't want that to happen.

Question:

Can anyone advise how to get the camera make the correct fps in the first place?

Or to have the conversion done during transfer to the PC?

Or is this an error on the camera?

Looking forward to hear from you guys.:smileyconfused:

[Mick2011]

Hi wizard, welcome to the Sony Forums

The problem lies somewhere near the start of the process you describe, as the camera can't produce a file in .avi format, it only does MPEG-4 output

It's doubly odd, as all European cameras are PAL and basically yours cannot be both PAL and 29fps... leading me to the conclusion that you either (somehow) have another conversion process happening before you import to your video editor, or your camera is a US-spec W530 and is shooting NTSC. Most likely the former, as you also have this .avi thing going on.

Can you be sure it's not a US-spec camera? What is your upload routine to get the footage from the camera to the PC?

Cheers

Mick

[wizard1941]

Thanks for the welcome, Mick, and thank you for answering so quickly:smileyhappy:.

The following was my first answer to you, i.e. before I grabbed the magnifying glass.

I bought the camera in DK less than a year ago from an authorized dealer. I therefore expect the camera to be fully compliant with European standards (and Danish for that matter).

The menu contains the option of having either NTSC or PAL as the output movie format. Obviously, I have set the option as PAL. The file produced is actually sitting on the camera's memory card as an .avi file, not any MPEG format, to be examined by e.g. explorer or similar in Windows. And the transfer to PC is done by merely copying (copy/paste or cut/paste). The information about 29fps is obtained from Windows explorer by examining the .avi file properties.

I have not (yet) tried to import the video by any other means such as the software delivered with the camera. Since the format is determined already when the .avi file is produced by the camera I wouldn't expect the result to be any different from simple copying.

But then I came into doubt and grabbed the glass as mentioned. You are right, it is in fact model DSC-W530, I mistook the 5 to be an S.

So, what is it with the 530 model? is it in fact a US spec camera? And - if so - why does it then also have the PAL option?

I'm still confused, but now at a higher level:smileyconfused:

I now think this camera was never meant to be neither specifically US nor specifically EU but was intended to cover both from the beginning in one (cheap) model.

What do you think? Do you know for a fact, that the camera was never intended for Europe?

Thank you for answering:smileylove:

Bent

[Mick2011 · Accepted solution]

Hi Bent

My apologies, it seems the camera does shoot an .avi file. I was going by the 'normal' specifications for 'W' series cameras, and this one does seem to be something slightly different...

I've now checked the manual for the W530 and there are several mentions of USA usage, which is a little odd, but no real cause for concern as this isn't a Europe-specific model. There is however confirmation there that the camera does indeed record 30fps and it's not possible to change that framerate on this model. Again, I'm not sure you should worry about it: the PAL>NTSC option does seem kind of baffling, but it's only for playback via a TV, not setting framerates for recording.

Your editing software will obviously remove frames to resample from 30fps to 25fps and this is the reason you get a warning about 'quality loss'. It shouldn't noticably degrade image quality. You will, however, then have a PAL-compatible video.

Again, sorry if my hasty reply caused you any concern; let me know if your resampled videos don't turn out as you'd expect.

Cheers

Mick

[wizard1941]

Hi Mick,

You're right, the NTSC / PAL menu option is only applicable when sending A/V output directly to a TV set. It is clearly stated in the online manual (where I of course should have started before bothering you guys, but you know: only when everything fails: look into the manual). Sorry about that.:smileyblush:

Well, now I know: The video option was never meant to be the camera's strong side, being only VGA quality in 4:3 and neither 16:9 nor HD in any way. So it is a comfort, that it makes good pictures and is obtained for a reasonable price.

Thank you for assistance, I'll close this question now.

Bent