Film Image Perception and Simulation

Ever since the development of television, comparisons have been made between the image characteristics of film and the image characteristics of television in perception, as well as technology. This paper will delve into the reasons why moving film imagery is perceived so differently, why it seems to be frequently preferred over video, even if it's High Definition and how electronic imagery can imitate it. The paper briefly addresses the history of motion picture film, the history of television and the influence that one had upon the other. Then the differences and the technical reasons why moving images have always been perceived the way they are is explored. Elements such as resolution, gray scale, grain, depth of field and aspect ratio are investigated as to how they differ and why they alter perception. The psychological aspect of “suspension of disbelief” and its relationship to frame rate are cited as the most significant aspect of ‘film-image’ perception. The past and present methods of film image simulation are described and their relative success or failure explained. The nature of electronic imaging and the evolution of video cameras including past attempts to simulate film imagery are described. Methods of film image simulation within post-production and methods of simulation within the acquisition process (the camera) are compared. The film imagery of 24P HD video cameras are cited and compared to their predecessors (60 interlace only).

Published

2004-02

Content type

Original Research

DOI

10.5594/M001018

ISBN

978-1-60423-807-5