Planet Earth over hyped

[nigel2shady]

I bought this during the week and watched first disc,and so far cant understand what all the fuss is about,dont get me wrong it is a great program and enjoy watching it,but the picture really is not that great.only in certain parts it looks like it is in HD,but at least half of it you would think you are just watching a DVD...

I have a 42"toshiba regza 1080p and set to 24 out..So cant be my TV as have watched Latest HULK film,Speed Racer,Indie Jones,and all looked great...

Dont get me wrong planet earth does look great in certain parts,but others looks standard..

 

[chump]

if you look on the case it states that not all of the series could be filmed in HD. I think that it was mainly in scenes shot in cold environments as either they didnt want to damage expensive HD gear or it wouldnt work in those types of climates.....something like that any way.

 

[nigel2shady]

I just feel people over-rate Planet earth,dont get me wrong it is a very good watch and very interesting,but in terms of Blu Ray picture it is nowhere near the best I have seen,most programs on the discovery channal are better.

 

[goodtimes]

cant see how you can complain planet earth is fantastic ,the detail contrast and sharpnees is whoopee on the segments done in HD

the dog chasing scenes are about as good as your gona get.

perhaps weve come to the stage where only the tech side is important to us and not the content.

 

[Steve McQueef]

Can't please everyone...

 

[nigel2shady]

Thanks for your comments,and I do agree the bits that are filmed in HD look great,I suppose I was expecting it to all be in HD...From what I have noticed the shots filmed from the helecopter seem to be standard would I be right in saying that...Allthough the shots of mount everest and other mountains seem to be in HD.Also couple great shots of waterfalls..But to me lot of shots from helecoptor look standard quaility.

Which one is the dog chase on ?

 

[J1mbo]

As far as I am aware nearly all of the series was filmed in HD, omitting only sequences that required cameras unsuited for such material. However many different cameras were used and also a variation of native HD resolution.

Anything shot of the Panisonic Varicam, for example, would be native 720p as opposed to 1080i/p.

It is worth mentioning that given the productions incredibly long production run (between 4 and 5 years!) and it's early adoption of High Definition, it was a learning experience for all concerned with the use of this new technology.

Many of the cameras and storage devices now used for HD capture were unavailable at the time.

I defy anyone to find a Discovery programme that has come close to the achievements of Planet Earth.

 

[Pincho Paxton]

Is Earth the same as Planet Earth? I have heard great things about the picture quality of Earth, and maybe the OP has got them mixed up?

 

[nigel2shady]

Some of the shots do look blurry and no way can they be shot in HD.

 

[J1mbo]

Some of the shots do look blurry and no way can they be shot in HD.

I don't understand this statement. You asked for some clarification on what was filmed in HD and why certain sequences look better than others.

I thought my post made it clear that the bulk of the series was filmed in High Definition using a wide range of cameras, techniques and at least two different resolutions, using technology still in it's infancy (it began filming seven years ago).

This obviously has ramifications for variations in quality and look of the final programmes.

I've also pointed out (as do the BBC) that small amounts of footage was unobtainable except via traditional methods and equipment.

The shots you complain are 'blurry' may be the result of any of the issues above, however I suggest you would notice an even more substantial difference if large portions of the program had been shot using conventional video tape.

As a side issue I notice that you are comparing movies shot on 35mm film (or in the case of Speed Racer the Sony F23 HD equivelent) with budgets potentially in the hundreds of thousands per shot with a documentary series shot on lower res HD video by relatively small crews.

Whist 16mm film has long been a stalwart of documentary filmmaking and (used properly) has the resolution of HD material, neither it nor video grade HD can match up to 35mm or the small range of HD cameras that shoot to 35mm rez.

The two are not remotely comparable.

 

[abdus]

LOL, you need a new TV and a new BR player

 

[Maxamus]

I got this 2 weeks ago and watched it and was blown away by the PQ!
The shots of teh sharks and the under sea creatures is awesome!

Looks fantastic on my Panny 50" through the PS3.

Love the 5.1 soundtrack also.

 

[nwgarratt]

The series was filmed in SD and HD (both 720p and 1080p). The main feature is 1080p/24 but the rest is a mixture.

 

[J1mbo]

The series was filmed in SD and HD (both 720p and 1080p). The main feature is 1080p/24 but the rest is a mixture.

Which I've already pointed out to the OP. And that the amount of SD is a very small percentile of the whole.

 

[Jeff]

The main feature is 1080p/24

1080p25 actually but was converted to 1080p24 for the HD-DVD and Blu-ray releases.

 

[nwgarratt]

1080p25 actually but was converted to 1080p24 for the HD-DVD and Blu-ray releases.

and? I already said it was 1080p/24

 

[nigel2shady]

Thanks for comments,Please dont get me wrong for most of Planet Earth it does look fantastic,but then there is little bits here and there where you know for sure it is not in HD.There is certain bits where the Grand Canyon is filmed and it is for defs not in HD on the bit where the Helecoptor flys over it,it for certain not in HD,I think that is on 1st disc on mountains or fresh water.

 

[gavan]

Thanks for comments,Please dont get me wrong for most of Planet Earth it does look fantastic,but then there is little bits here and there where you know for sure it is not in HD.There is certain bits where the Grand Canyon is filmed and it is for defs not in HD on the bit where the Helecoptor flys over it,it for certain not in HD,I think that is on 1st disc on mountains or fresh water.

Bummer - no doubt it would be 4x as enjoyable to watch during those sequences due to the extra pixel resolution..... how can life be so cruel as to inflict this sort of torment on people.....

 

[goodtimes]

you have to numb the torment with copious amount of beer

 

[Jeff]

and? I already said it was 1080p/24

I thought you were talking about the filming and production rather than the final transfer for Blu-ray and HD-DVD.

 

[gavan]

you have to numb the torment with copious amount of beer

It's a tough life!

 

[goodtimes]

it is when you run out of beer

 

[J1mbo]

Thanks for comments,Please dont get me wrong for most of Planet Earth it does look fantastic

No offence, but the title of your thread is 'Planet earth over hyped'. Is it mostly fantastic or a product of hyperbole? You can't have it both ways.

...but then there is little bits here and there where you know for sure it is not in HD.There is certain bits where the Grand Canyon is filmed and it is for defs not in HD on the bit where the Helecoptor flys over it,it for certain not in HD,I think that is on 1st disc on mountains or fresh water.

No, unless you are intimate with the filmmakers you don't know for sure. I defy you to prove this. It's already been made abundantly clear that the whole series is extremely patchwork in both the resolution and capture of the HD footage due to numerous issues. Even if it were possible for you to prove that 15 seconds of material was shot SD what would be the problem? Out of how much footage?

I think expectation is the key here. I can go out tomorrow and film something with a small HD cam in 1080p - but it won't look anything like the 1080p footage from Speed Racer. Why? Because the formats are worlds apart. You cannot compare all HD under one banner. It is an incredibly broad spectrum.

HD is not HD is not HD.

 

[Fangorn]

I have the sd dvd & the blu ray and even though my pj is only 720p the difference is considerable, no regrets in up grading..........

 

[Davy]

Is Earth the same as Planet Earth? I have heard great things about the picture quality of Earth, and maybe the OP has got them mixed up?

No they are not quite the same. Earth is 'chunks' of Planet Earth, but with previously unreleased material on it. It's condensed to around an hour in length and has a narration by Patrick Stewart (he of Star Trek fame). I wanted the 'Earth' version, and was not disappointed with it - stunning picture quality.