Cinematic video settings on the Sony RX100: a step-by-step guide
If you have a Sony Rx100, you know it’s the best compact camera for video. But getting the settings right can be tricky. This is meant to be a handy, step-by-step guide for getting the best video out of the camera. Stills capabilities and settings will not be addressed here.
Optimizing the Controls
Sony is notorious for overly complicated menu systems, and the RX100 is no different. But fear not because it can be optimized for quick use in a variety of situations. The key here is using the Memory Recall (MR) mode to create different settings that can be accessed at the touch of a button. Here I will walk you through how to create the different settings that will be useful for video.
Setting 1: Daytime, regular motion (no slow motion)
- Top dial: Movie Mode
- Menu -
- File Format: AVCHD
- Record Setting: 60i 24M (FX) – this becomes true 30p once you drop it into your editing program. It uses about twice as much data per frame as 60p 28mbps, resulting in fewer compression artifacts. But if you want the slow motion option at all times, use 60p instead.
- Steadyshot: Active (switch this to Standard or Off if you want a wider angle lens)
- Movie: Aperture Priority
- Menu -
- Grid Line: Rule of 3rds Grid
- Peaking Level: Mid
- Peaking Color: Yellow
- Function Button – click to enter
- Function 1: White Balance
- Function 2: Focus Mode
- Function 3: ISO
- Function 4: DRO/Auto HDR
- Function 5: Creative Style
- Function 6: Metering Mode
- Function 7: Quality
- Exit to Menu
- Func. of Center Button: Standard
- Func. of Left Button: AF/MF Control Toggle
- Func. of Right Button: AEL Toggle
- Press Fn Button
- White Balance: Cloudy (gives a slightly warmer, more filmic tone to daytime scenes)
- AF-C
- ISO Auto
- DRO Level 2
- Portrait Mode, -2, -1, -3
- Metering Mode: Center
- Raw + JPEG
- Press Fn Button to Exit
- Turn Control Ring to set aperture to f/1.8
To save this setting:
- Menu: 5
- Memory – click to enter
- Select Register 1
- Press Center Button to confirm
Setting 2: Daytime, Slow Motion
Same settings as above, except for the following:
- Menu -
- Record Setting: 60p 28M (PS)
To save this setting:
- Menu: 5
- Memory – click to enter
- Select Register 2
- Press Center Button to confirm
Setting 3: Nighttime, regular motion (no slow motion)
Same settings as above, except for the following:
- Menu -
- Movie: Shutter Priority
- Press Fn Button
- DRO Level 1
- White Balance: Tungsten (occasionally, Warm Flourescent and Daylight Flourescent will give pleasing, warmer results. I consider white balance an artistic choice at night).
- Standard Mode, 0, 0, -3 (reducing contrast and saturation at high ISO’s will only weaken the color information and increase blue-channel noise, both of which will cause headaches when you try to grade your footage. You do not gain latitude in either color or luminance)
- Press Fn Button to Exit
- Turn Control Ring to set shutter to 1/40. This will maximize low light sensitivity but will disable slow motion. For slow motion capability, set shutter to 1/60.
To save this setting:
- Menu: 5
- Memory – click to enter
- Select Register 3
- Press Center Button to confirm
If you wish any of the above settings to have slow-motion capability, just set your Record Setting to 60p (PS) mode. Be aware that this will reduce the bitrate available to each frame when played back at regular speed, resulting in slightly reduced quality.
To Access Memory Recall Settings:
- Top Dial: MR
- Select desired Memory Recall Setting (1,2, or 3)
- Press Center Button to confirm
Shooting Tips
I usually shoot semi-manual with the RX100. I let the camera achieve the desired focus/aperture, then I lock the settings. This is done by Auto Exposure Lock (AEL) and Autofocus/Manual Focus (AF/MF) switching.
- Center subject, let AF achieve sharp focus
- Press Left Button on Control Ring to switch to MF
- Pan/tilt camera until you achieve desired exposure (compensating for backlit subjects, etc)
- Press Right Button on Control Ring to engage AEL
If your subject moves or the lighting changes, just press the Left or Right Button to go back to auto mode and let the camera adjust.
When shooting one-handed, you can use your thumb to toggle auto exposure lock (AEL) and auto/manual focus (AF/MF) via the Left and Right buttons on the Control Ring.
This technique also works well with my dual-cam handheld shooting method because you can hold the camera from underneath and lock/unlock exposure and focus with either your left or right thumb.
Manual focusing on the Rx100 is aided by Focus Peaking, which highlights the in-focus portions of the shot with a yellow outline. This is dependent on contrast and can be fooled by high-detail, yet out-of-focus objects like vertical blinds or a patterned shirt. My advice here is to just play around with it until you get the hang of it.
I hope this has served as a helpful guide for getting your camera set for shooting cinematic video.
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Thanks, very interesting – good points about better bitrate per frame shooting 60i and also the wide angle being maximised by switching off active mode.
The bitrate issue mainly rears its head in low light and fast motion (especially camera movement). If you’re shooting a well-lit scene with little camera motion, you should be fine at 60p. The wide angle varies from 28mm to 33mm depending on the degree of stabilization.
Until I read you suggested settings I was planning to shoot 50p, but now I can see the sense of 50i which is good for lots of movement which may well be something I have to allow for, and still retain the option to extract true 25p for progressive from the same clips
After our conversation I jumped on this camera…B&H just delivered and the battery is charging. I picked up a Power2000 spare battery, have no idea if they’re any good but we’ll see. Are you having trouble with the larger SDHC cards – like bigger than 32gb? Some colleagues have had issues with the 64gb cards on their dslr’s.
Anyway amigo I want to send best vibes and thanks your way. And I will be studying the post above, extremely generous…many thanks.
Best and good light,
Michael
Awesome, glad you made the jump! You won’t be disappointed.
I have the same battery; no issues.
I’ve used 64gb SDHC extensively and never had an issue with the RX100 or any other camera. I shot 1-hour documentary on dual Rx100′s and not a single card failure. I used SanDisk Ultra SDXC cards.
Question. In the top set of settings for daytime, you said ISO should be auto, but I don’t have that option. In mine you have to choose a number. What did I miss? BTW, is there a way to set it so that we can be notified of replies to these threads? It definitely doesn’t tell us when you reply.
I’ll work on the reply notification. Not sure how that works…I’m not a webmaster. As for the ISO, this is strange because you should have an auto ISO option in any mode. Really not sure what the issue is. Are you in the “movie” mode on the top dial?
I don’t know what on earth I did wrong the other night, but now there is an auto ISO option where before there definitely was not. I scrolled through all the options multiple times. Ah well, got that one dialed in. Now I just need help finding the tungsten option (see reply to that thread below).
Shoot, one more question. There is no tungsten option for the nighttime settings using movie mode: shutter priority. I wonder if yours has some kind of firmware that mine doesn’t?
Firmware is the same. There should be manual white balance available in any mode. Not sure what issue you’re having. Are you sure you’re on manual WB? Are you accessing it through the Fn (function) button?
It’s just called incandescent on mine not tungsten. Either way, it’s the same thing
Oh, I didn’t know that it’s the same thing. Yes, I have the incandescent setting. Brandon, is that what you meant? BTW, it was super helpful to learn how to program the back buttons, particularly for manual focus and exp. lock.
Firmware is different in European models compared to North American models but should be the same on all NA models.
Yes, I definitely have manual WB. I was looking for a setting called tungsten after reading this:
“White Balance: Tungsten (occasionally, Warm Flourescent and Daylight Flourescent will give pleasing, warmer results. I consider white balance an artistic choice at night).”
Did I misunderstand something?
Hi Jason, I’m not exactly sure the issue you’re facing, but incandescent and tungsten are the same. They should be represented by a lightbulb option. Is your issue solved?
Yes, it’s called Incandescent on my camera and has a little light bulb icon. Thanks.
Great little beast!
In one your recent posts (LV Fling I think) you say that you used the lighting optimiser.
I’m finding that it generates extremely nasty artefacts and noise in the darks, by adjusting the SN to the detriment of quality.
I can’t see any nasties in your video, I wonder why.
Hi, the DRO can generate artifacts if used at high levels, just as lowering the contrast will increase visible noise. I keep DRO at level 1, which is very mild and just helps to bump the shadows a bit in high-contrast environments.
Inspired by this article I started experimenting with the 50i (PAL version) and comparing it to the 50p in FCP X.
I’m finding that the project must be set to 25i to reduce very heavy aliasing if i-footage is used in a p timeline. But even with the 25i timeline there seems to be quite heavy aliasing (sharp pixelation on many edges) comparing the the p footage.
Maybe I’m asking too much, but could you share the rest of your workflow of your RX material please?
Hi Vrais,
I’m working on a post-production guide. Not quite ready yet. Regarding your problem, which editing program are you using? If you are using one of the later versions of Adobe Premiere or Final Cut Pro X, the program should automatically recognize 50i footage as 25p, or if it doesn’t, you should be able to drop it in a 25p timeline and have it be correctly interpreted. If you are experiencing aliasing no matter what you do, one option is to transcode the footage to ProRes 25p. This can be done with Log and Transfer (FCP 7), Mpeg Streamclip, or Adobe Media Encoder.
I am using FCP X 10.0.7.
Allowing FCP X to convert the footage I end up with ProRes422 interlaced file. On a p timeline the asliasing is very pronounced, not so much on an i timeline.
The aliasing stays even on a p export from both p and i timelines.
Strange.
You said that the 60i uses twice as much data fer frame, but I’m finding that the i footage is much smaller than equal length and subject p footage, with both set to the highest bitrate available…
I did have a go at converting with MPEG Streamclip, which works just fine deinterlacing.
I’m really just nerding-out about this, as I’m happy with my default 50p recordings, but wanted to experiment.
Really appreciate your time helping out.
Cheers.
That is really strange, Vrais. Could you send me a link to a screenshot of your issue?
Regarding 60i, it is a lower bitrate overall (not exactly twice the bitrate per frame of 60p), but it does allocate more kilobytes to each frame recorded. This is because 24kb/30p = 800kb per frame, and 28kbps/60p = 467kb per frame. When you’re conforming to 30p, 25p, or 24p (non-slow motion), you’re just throwing away half the frames. So you might as well pack as much data as you can into each frame.
You will see the worst compression artifacts when you try to color grade footage that has a lot of camera movement and/or high ISO. At 60i or 50i, your camera noise will be a bit finer and more filmic, and your motion blur will look more blurry and less blocky.
With pleasure Brandon.
Here is a link to a PDF with screenshots and descriptions:
http://tinyurl.com/aufmodl
cheers.
What’s probably happening is FCP X is throwing away half the fields instead of de-interlacing them into one full progressive frame. So you’re only seeing half the resolution, hence the aliasing. Maybe try using Clipwrap and re-wrapping your footage to h.264 before importing to FCP X. I’m just guessing, though – this is really weird. You also might want to try using the same 50i footage in another editing program. If you will send me a link to a brief clip, I’ll try it in my FCP X to see if I get the same error.
Did you try going to Inspector > Info > Settings View > checking the Deinterlace box?
Somehow the Reply buttons are missing from your newer posts…
I did not, but will try, tick the deinterlace box.
This however would not explain why the footage is aliased even after MPEG Streamclip treatment…
I will upload a short clip straight off the cam as soon as i get a chance. Cheers.
Here are 4 screenshots of the results of using the deinterlace button in FCP X (zipped)
Have a look at the shot of the first 28 frames, a complete loss of detail after deinterlacing, the remaining frames are as per other screenshots.
http://tinyurl.com/bjotj7q
And here – trimmed ProRes (17 MB)
http://tinyurl.com/a8dxfh8
I’m lost…
The only other editor I had, was FCP 7, now gone.
Did you het a chance to test the footage I linked to per chance?
I’m thinking there’s something not right with my 50i footage on the camera level.
Hi, sorry I’ve been traveling the last couple days. Have not had a chance to sit down with the footage yet but will inspect shortly and let you know.
Sure, really no pressure.
It’s just the nerd…
cheers
Are you still having this issue? I just checked out the files you sent, and there is definitely some unwarranted aliasing going on in the footage. It looks like the NLE might be combining the wrong fields with each other. My only recommendation on fixing this is to try exchanging the camera. Deinterlacing errors aren’t a known issue with FCP X as far as I know, so the problem most likely lies in the camera.
(Again, no “Reply” on your post…)
Yes, it must be the camera. 50i from my NEX7 is just fine.
Why not using in-camera mpg (25p) instead of using 50i/25p AVCHD?
The in-camera mp4 is a lower bitrate as well as only being 1440×1080, so you don’t get full HD resolution. The only advantage is that it plays more easily in Quicktime and other media players.
Hi Brandon, just had a quick question for you about 50i vs 60i. Is there a difference in video quality between the two. I have just purchased an RX100 in OZ and have the 50i verison. p.s thanks for the awesome info and vids you put out there.
Hi Frankie, 50i and 60i should be nearly identical, apart from the difference between the look of 25p and 30p, respectively. Those with PAL cams are lucky in that their frame rate closely resembles the 24p film standard.
Thanks for that. The other question I had was when I switch to MR and recall a setting I set in the memory, say I select 1, but then when I switch back to movie, that setting is overridden. Does one just start recording from within MR? Does that make sense?
You should shoot in MR mode. Just make that your default mode when shooting video.
Yes, I’m still here, asking silly questions
If the bitrates (bits/sec) are the same in 60 and 50 FPS, wouldn’r less frames (50) have a better quality as the same amount of data is written into 50, rather than 60 frames?
If you want, I’ll send you a PAL version from Australia, but our prices are higher…
You are correct. Not sure how much of a difference it makes, but 50p would be more bits per frame. I would like a PAL version but I’ve already invested in two NTSC RX100′s.
I’m not sure of saturation at -1 for Portrait mode, which is already more saturated than standard mode.
I’ve done a few tests here and saturation at -2, even at night/high ISO looks much more natural, less blown out reds/orange etc
In my dealings with Sony’s 8-bit cameras, I’ve found that shooting with contrast and saturation set t0 0 usually yields the most flexible results for color grading; I simply reduce the saturation a bit when shooting because I like the overall look better and it saves a step in post.
What seems to be happening is that reducing the saturation in the menu doesn’t actually reduce the amount of saturation reaching the sensor. So if the reds are blown out at saturation “0″, they’ll still be blown out at “-3″, just posterized and desaturated.
So my current theory is that you’re never going to get smoother color than the camera’s default settings. You can only do a little “grading” in-camera and save some time in post.
Brandon,
I’m looking into a couple cameras to shoot B-roll for a television show. I’m already sold on the GoPro (a few underwater scenes and car mounting). This is going to be a verite style show and ill be shooting on an EX3 for the primary footage. I don’t expect to use the rx100 at night. Do you think this camera (with the settings you recommended) would be a suitable one for this? I am considering renting an mark iii, but am trying to keep my equipment costs down. Thanks! Love the blog.
Hi Chris,
The RX100 is the perfect B-roll cam for verite. It resolves a true 1080p image, so it will intercut nicely with the EX3 (and possibly out-perform the larger cam in low light). You will want to either carry several batteries (I recommend the 1600mah one for maximum duration) or get an external USB power pack (see my article on shooting dual-cam). The camera will record up to 30 mins per take. I recently recorded a 2.5 hour interview with almost no breaks and had no trouble with the Rx100.
By the way, I have to say this post has been extremely helpful. I would have never figured out those custom button settings on the back, but now I use that exposure lock thing all the time. Very very helpful, Brandon.
Awesome! This camera is absolutely pro-quality, and I’m glad you’re getting the most out of it. Regarding your other comments about developing training products, I definitely see that in the future at some point, once I have a break in my production work. Could definitely use your help.
Hi Brandon, many thanks for taking the time to share this with us, do you mind if I post a link to this from my Sony RX100 page on vimeo which you joined.
Hi, absolutely do re-post the guide! And thanks for making a page for people who use this camera to show their work.
Hi Brandon,
thanks for posting this real good information on RX100 video.
I am still learning what the RX100 can do, it is an amazing camera. I mainly use the camera with a spotting scope for taking video of birds and “grab” jpegs using Sony’s software.
Could you advise on the best setting to get optimum video quality, while at the same time capturing movement. Should I have a very quick shutter speed to capture flight and reduce the blurring of wing movement. Also your comment on using 60i to provide greater detail is interesting but would 60p (50p in my case) not help to “freeze” the action for grabbing jpegs.
I hope my query makes sense, Regards JW
Hi, for birdwatching you would want to shoot aperture priority (A mode) and leave it wide open so that the shutter stays fast. And 60p will give you twice the options of still images, albeit at a reduced image quality per jpeg. You might see a noticeable difference in quality in fast-motion shots like birds flying. I’d say just try both 60i and 60p and see if the quality difference is noticeable to your eye.
Hi, I am still having ‘issues’ with the above, up for discussion:
– 50/60i stores 50% information of each image (interlaced). When you de-interlace each frame is basically ‘computed’, so theoretically it should show more artifacts than 50/60p. We are talking compressed vs. computed. Also, interlaced adds one more step to the workflow and the question what method you use to de-interlace. Troublesome.
– I do not understand why 50i should be better for movements, when 50p provides a much more natural ‘flow’.
– active mode adds artifacts (it is a digital stabiliser), if that is an argument, it should be avoided IMO.
– I avoid DRO, prefer instead Contrast -3
To address your issues:
- 50/60i is not actually interlaced. It’s 25 or 30p wrapped in 60i interlacing – basically, it takes progressive frames and then splits them into fields. So when you import into a modern NLE like FCP X, the program automatically deinterlaces the footage. I have done extensive tests of the relative compression between 60p and 60i, and the latter is definitely less compressed.
- The RX100′s 50i, when deinterlaced, is 25p. So the movement would be similar to the cinema standard of 24p.
- active mode does add warping artifacts in some instances, but most of the time I find the tradeoff preferable to shaky footage. It should be used for some shots but not everything.
- I leave DRO on level 1 just to add a bit of lift in the shadows. Extreme use of DRO creates an awful pseudo-HDR look that is of course not preferable. Lowering the contrast in-camera can look nice, but I don’t believe you’re actually gaining dynamic range. I think you’re just compressing the signal into a smaller gamut. I lower the contrast in daytime simply to save a bit of time in post when color correcting.
Thank you for this article on setting up the RX100 for video.
I have tons of photography experience but very little video and this really helps me to get my initial setup going.
I have to record a few speeches at a luncheon and was hoping you could guide me as to:
1. How many minutes per GB?
The issue is obviously to try and prevent running out of card space in the middle of a speech.
2. What mb/s is the best to use?
I have a couple of 8GB cards and may need to get a larger card.
Thank you,
Frank
Hi, in answer to your questions:
1. 4.5 min per GB at 28mbps
2. For slow motion, you want to shoot at 60/50p 28mbps AVCHD (PS mode). For non-slow motion, the best mode is 24/25p 24mbps AVCHD (FX mode).
Happy shooting! It’s a great camera.
Thanks.
Another question please, if I may:
Re: the mode selection – bottom item in the movie menu-
I have all the options P,A,S or M
If i’m shooting 30fps then I should keep my shutter speed at 1/60th – right?
The only way to do that is eith in Manual or Shutter Priority
1/60 is the ideal shutter speed for 30p if your intended output is 30fps. The tricky part is, if you intend to convert to 24p at some stage (for a more “filmic” frame rate look), then you should be shooting at 1/40 or 1/50.
You’re correct in that the only way to ensure this is to shoot in M or S modes.
When I playback the video on the camera lcd it looks smooth,but when I play it on my machine it has aweful ‘stuttering’, ‘staggering’ with any camera or subject movement. I’m panning slowly using a video head on tripod with steady shot turned off.I used this method (free) to transcode the avchd files
http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=1308610
But just tried with shooting mp4 and all 3 avchd options – it’s the same problem.
Any solution?
What is the FPS in your timeline or transcoded footage? If you’re dropping the footage in a 24p timeline or transcoding it to 24p beforehand, you’ll get staggering because it’s changing the frame rate. 24p should be left for a later stage in the editing.
If that’s not hte case, and you’re leaving it as 30 or 60fps, you might be having hardware resource issues. Are you sure your computer is up to speed for editing this kind of footage?
Can you elaborate on this piece from your tutorial -
“Record Setting: 60i 24M (FX) – this becomes true 30p once you drop it into your editing program. It uses about twice as much data per frame as 60p 28mbps, resulting in fewer compression artifacts. But if you want the slow motion option at all times, use 60p instead”
Hi Frank, sorry for taking so long to get to this. 60i on the RX100 is actually 30p wrapped in 60i. Most editing programs will see the footage and automatically recognize it as such. So you can effectively think of it as 30p. Since it’s only recording 30 frames a second, and not 60, it gives more data to each frame than 60p does. You’ll notice the difference when you have a lot of movement in the frame; it’ll be less blocky. But if you need slow motion, you have to record 60p instead of 60i. It’ll be more compressed, but you’ll get more frames per second. Hope that clears up the issue a bit.
Thanks a lot for this amazing guide
Could you please publish soon the digital post-production flow you use (Premiere). I’m just starting with videography and I have no clue about how and where to start
Hi, I’ve actually moved to FCP X in the last few months. But if you have questions about the Premiere workflow, creativecow.net is a great place to start. I have been a bit too busy to post in-depth articles lately but will add some info for you when possible!
Hi
Brandon Li.
My question is similar to the last one. I am just starting out using the video capture facility on the camera, and am searching for a good (but not complicated) processing software. I have heard of Lightroom and Premiere, and I have also downloaded and installed some freeware – Avidemux 2.6. Problem is the program stops working every time I am saving a file, and Windows 7 closes it down….very frustrating. I would also be very interested in a good step by step guide to editing capture as well as post-processing technique and filter use.
Thanks for the informative article above.
Best regards
Chris
Hi Brandon,
i want to thank for your amazing blog.
I got my RX100 last week and felt in love with it.
I plan shooting movies for Youtube which allows only 30p,25p,24p.
Did i understand it right that i can work with 50i as native 25p in a 25p timeline?
Is that the best way to shot videos for Youtube without converting ?
Best regards
Mario
Congrats on your purchase – it’s a great camera. Yes, 50i is actually 25p in a 50i wrapper. It will de-interlace perfectly in a 25p timeline. This is the highest-quality way to shoot natively for Youtube.
I’m currently using a Canon T3i for shooting web training videos, but the 12 min video limit is a bit of a pain…
Will the RX-100 record longer than 12 min and will I see a drop in video quality between the 2 cameras?
Awesome post :=)
Thanks Peter! The Rx100 will record 30 mins at a time. You will probably notice that the T3i is capable of shallower depth-of-field, but the Rx100 is considerably sharper. Also, the T3i with Magic Lantern hack can record at a higher bitrate than the RX100, which may or may not affect image quality, depending on how much fast motion is in your footage. For interviews you wouldn’t notice a difference.
Awesome info. MANY thanks for your efforts.
I am very grateful to have found this link.
Now, to digest it all!
Best, R