Wondering what exactly you get when you go with Canon’s 24f mode vs. true 24p? Showreel.org takes the Canon XH A1 and performs some extensive tests to find out how exactly the 24f mode works. Ends up that taking the upper field of an HD 60i still frame and and deinterlacing it in Photoshop with interpolation on gives you a frame that is almost identical to the 24f image you get with Canon’s camcorders. Read on if that just completely confused you.
When compared side by side, the difference between 24f vs. 24p was picked out by a number of viewers.
We consulted a wide group of people from professionals to people with no video experience whatsoever, and the great majority of these people could pick the 1080/24p image as more crisp than the 1080/24f image. The true 24p image resulted in about 20-25 per cent more vertical detail.
20-25 percent is no small number when you’re talking HD. The footage is going to look great, don’t get me wrong, but when you need the most true pixel information possible (the author cites compositing work) Canon’s 24f may not be the best choice.
