The Leap Back 2009 Convention DVD Review
I promised several people that I would post a fair, critical review of this 4 disc set once I received it.
Please note that I am watching this DVD on a large (70") HDTV with a nice sound system for reference. Please also note that I am rather picky about the video and audio quality of DVDs.
And finally, please note that I did submit a bid to the Leap Back 2009 Committee offering my services to do this DVD set at a price similar to what was eventually paid. So it's not just a case of complaining without an offer to "put my money where my mouth is". I would have done a DVD which would have made everyone proud.
Leap Back 2009 Convention 4 disc DVD Review
by Morgan Feldon
Overall Presentation 6/10
Video Quality 5/10
Audio Quality 8/10
Presentation
So onto the introduction to this DVD. Oops, I almost missed it. It's a fuzzy screen grab of the printed insert that zooms in for 2 seconds. Then the still menu appears.
The menus are extremely simple. They contain a single screen grab of the imaging chamber blueprints from the Mirror Image DVD and one text button for each section of the DVD. There is no listing of who is in each panel. The audio on each menu is a very glitchy copy of the theme to A Single Drop of Rain (Sam's Prayer).
No Chapter Stops
Notice that there are no chapter stops on these DVDs. If you click Skip, you will jump one whole section. The first and last discs contains 6 sections. Disc 2 contains 4 sections. And disc 3 contains just 3 sections, one for each guest panel. So be aware that clicking Skip will jump you by nearly 1 hour.
An example of the intertitles.
Video Quality
All along, I understood that the Convention was filmed by Barbara with 3 cameras. However nearly all 12 hours of this DVD are shown from a single camera angle, the camera located at the back of the room.
I also pointed out to Brian during the Convention that the young camera operator at the back of the room was clearly inexperienced. I noticed that he had not loosened the horizontal panning wingnut on the tripod. As a result, every time he would pan the camera left to right, he would have to use considerable force and then the camera would spring back with a sickening lurch. I fear that extended viewing of these DVDs on a large screen will induce nausea.
Let me clear, there is little-to-no "editing" on these DVDs. It's a continuous recording of each event from 1 camera angle with no cuts. It is unbelievable to me that almost all 12 hours of these DVDs is from a single camera angle.
But the bigger issue is that the video quality here is roughly equivalent to what one would expect from a VHS tape. In this day and age of HDTV cameras starting at $300 and 65" HDTVs for $500, it is inexcusable that this was shot on a cheap DV camcorder in a square (not widescreen) format.
Furthermore, the video camera used was clearly a very low quality standard DV, single CCD camera. There are glitches throughout the entire 12 hours whenever the camera pans left and right. The right 5% of the image has large blocky errors as it "catches up" to the image.
Even worse, is during the pivotal Scott and Don sequence, there are random rainbow blocks on the right side of the image.
I'm very sad to see that the convention was NOT filmed in High Definition, NOT filmed on a camera able to deal with the dark settings, but worst of all a camera whose recording heads clearly to be CLEANED. When a DV camera is filthy, it is very obvious to someone familiar with the format.
High Definition video cameras are no longer the stuff of fantasy. I picked up a High Definition JVC camera off Amazon.com this summer for just $299 and I have so far been blown away by the quality, especially in the dark. If such a camera had been used, the video quality of this DVD would be easily 100% better.
In short, the video quality of this production is substantially inferior to the Somewhere in the Night and Scott & Don videos which were posted on Youtube and subsequently removed. Whoever shot those had better cameras. Perhaps this is why the Committee were so angry with these videos?
Audio Quality
Perhaps the best part of these discs is the audio quality. Everything the actors and guests are saying is clear and easy to understand. The Question & Answer sequences with fans of the show are also included (although not pictured as that particular camera angle was filmed but not used) and easy to hear. However the audio levels do change over time, depending on the sequence.
Overall
Obviously I could not watch all 12 hours of video to write this review so soon, but I watched nearly 2 hours of the DVD, carefully evaluating each section, jumping ahead, looking at the parts of the DVD that fans will be the most interested in.
But I just have to ask. What did this "professional" DVD production company do over the last 8 months? They clearly didn't do any editing. The opening and closing ceremonies, guest panels, etc. are each one unedited video clip lasting 20-50 minutes. They could not have spent more than about an hour building these DVD menus.
In short, this DVD might have been impressive 10 years ago. But with software like iDVD and iMovie included with each Mac for several years now, it is unbelievable that such low quality menus, titles, and video quality could be turned out by a "professional" DVD production company. When I submitted my bid, I had every intention of adding beautiful animated menus, multiple camera angles (if the video was available), and nice titles throughout the production.
I would expect the quality of work seen in these DVDs from a high school visual arts student.
At this point, I am hoping that fans will come forward with their own recordings of this event, as they will be far superior in image quality than the "official" video recorded by Barbara.
Copyright Notice
When you insert the DVD, a notice appears indicating that copies are prohibited by law and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. There is a line indicating that to receive additional copies of the DVD, contact the Starlight Foundation. However it has already been stated by the Starlight Foundation that they have no interest in dealing with any issues relating to this video, nor do they intend to make additional copies of the DVD.
However the more interesting aspect is that in reviewing the DVD case, printed insert, and intro video on the DVD, I do not find any legally binding Copyright Notice. The insert contains this notice:
So the 2 screenfuls of playful malarky about Sam and Al hunting you down if you make copies and that you would be "ripping off the charity" if you made copies are really a moot point once the 300 copies are gone. There will be no legitimate way to buy this DVD.
I also find it entertaining that, again, we see the illegitimate e-mail address @googlemail.com to contact the committee. This is a circumvention of everything that has been established over the last 2 1/2 years. It is an attempt to cut Brian Greene out of the e-mail communications in violation of the Committee bylaws and federal law.
To the Committee
I just have one thing to say to the committee. If you are going to play the power and control game and keep everyone (including Brian and all of us here on Al's Place) in the dark and promise the moon and stars that this DVD set will be "the best DVD set anyone could have ever produced" - then, you better deliver what you promised. And this DVD is a joke.
It's easy to see how a power struggle here caused a wreck to be produced instead of the quality that you promised.
Brian asked to see the original videos. Brian asked to see work-in-progress versions of these DVDs. Brian did his duty trying to make sure that the DVDs were the best they could be. And the 8 of you cut him out of the process thinking that you could do no wrong.
Fans will love this because we love Quantum Leap, but it is bittersweet for me, and just confirms all my fears that what this Committee needed more than anything was checks and balances in the production of the video to make sure something was produced that was worthy of the fans.
Remember: Absolute power corrupts absolutely.
I promised several people that I would post a fair, critical review of this 4 disc set once I received it.
Please note that I am watching this DVD on a large (70") HDTV with a nice sound system for reference. Please also note that I am rather picky about the video and audio quality of DVDs.
And finally, please note that I did submit a bid to the Leap Back 2009 Committee offering my services to do this DVD set at a price similar to what was eventually paid. So it's not just a case of complaining without an offer to "put my money where my mouth is". I would have done a DVD which would have made everyone proud.
Leap Back 2009 Convention 4 disc DVD Review
by Morgan Feldon
Overall Presentation 6/10
Video Quality 5/10
Audio Quality 8/10
Presentation
So onto the introduction to this DVD. Oops, I almost missed it. It's a fuzzy screen grab of the printed insert that zooms in for 2 seconds. Then the still menu appears.
The menus are extremely simple. They contain a single screen grab of the imaging chamber blueprints from the Mirror Image DVD and one text button for each section of the DVD. There is no listing of who is in each panel. The audio on each menu is a very glitchy copy of the theme to A Single Drop of Rain (Sam's Prayer).
No Chapter Stops
Notice that there are no chapter stops on these DVDs. If you click Skip, you will jump one whole section. The first and last discs contains 6 sections. Disc 2 contains 4 sections. And disc 3 contains just 3 sections, one for each guest panel. So be aware that clicking Skip will jump you by nearly 1 hour.
An example of the intertitles.
Video Quality
All along, I understood that the Convention was filmed by Barbara with 3 cameras. However nearly all 12 hours of this DVD are shown from a single camera angle, the camera located at the back of the room.
I also pointed out to Brian during the Convention that the young camera operator at the back of the room was clearly inexperienced. I noticed that he had not loosened the horizontal panning wingnut on the tripod. As a result, every time he would pan the camera left to right, he would have to use considerable force and then the camera would spring back with a sickening lurch. I fear that extended viewing of these DVDs on a large screen will induce nausea.
Let me clear, there is little-to-no "editing" on these DVDs. It's a continuous recording of each event from 1 camera angle with no cuts. It is unbelievable to me that almost all 12 hours of these DVDs is from a single camera angle.
But the bigger issue is that the video quality here is roughly equivalent to what one would expect from a VHS tape. In this day and age of HDTV cameras starting at $300 and 65" HDTVs for $500, it is inexcusable that this was shot on a cheap DV camcorder in a square (not widescreen) format.
Furthermore, the video camera used was clearly a very low quality standard DV, single CCD camera. There are glitches throughout the entire 12 hours whenever the camera pans left and right. The right 5% of the image has large blocky errors as it "catches up" to the image.
Even worse, is during the pivotal Scott and Don sequence, there are random rainbow blocks on the right side of the image.
I'm very sad to see that the convention was NOT filmed in High Definition, NOT filmed on a camera able to deal with the dark settings, but worst of all a camera whose recording heads clearly to be CLEANED. When a DV camera is filthy, it is very obvious to someone familiar with the format.
High Definition video cameras are no longer the stuff of fantasy. I picked up a High Definition JVC camera off Amazon.com this summer for just $299 and I have so far been blown away by the quality, especially in the dark. If such a camera had been used, the video quality of this DVD would be easily 100% better.
In short, the video quality of this production is substantially inferior to the Somewhere in the Night and Scott & Don videos which were posted on Youtube and subsequently removed. Whoever shot those had better cameras. Perhaps this is why the Committee were so angry with these videos?
Audio Quality
Perhaps the best part of these discs is the audio quality. Everything the actors and guests are saying is clear and easy to understand. The Question & Answer sequences with fans of the show are also included (although not pictured as that particular camera angle was filmed but not used) and easy to hear. However the audio levels do change over time, depending on the sequence.
Overall
Obviously I could not watch all 12 hours of video to write this review so soon, but I watched nearly 2 hours of the DVD, carefully evaluating each section, jumping ahead, looking at the parts of the DVD that fans will be the most interested in.
But I just have to ask. What did this "professional" DVD production company do over the last 8 months? They clearly didn't do any editing. The opening and closing ceremonies, guest panels, etc. are each one unedited video clip lasting 20-50 minutes. They could not have spent more than about an hour building these DVD menus.
In short, this DVD might have been impressive 10 years ago. But with software like iDVD and iMovie included with each Mac for several years now, it is unbelievable that such low quality menus, titles, and video quality could be turned out by a "professional" DVD production company. When I submitted my bid, I had every intention of adding beautiful animated menus, multiple camera angles (if the video was available), and nice titles throughout the production.
I would expect the quality of work seen in these DVDs from a high school visual arts student.
At this point, I am hoping that fans will come forward with their own recordings of this event, as they will be far superior in image quality than the "official" video recorded by Barbara.
Copyright Notice
When you insert the DVD, a notice appears indicating that copies are prohibited by law and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. There is a line indicating that to receive additional copies of the DVD, contact the Starlight Foundation. However it has already been stated by the Starlight Foundation that they have no interest in dealing with any issues relating to this video, nor do they intend to make additional copies of the DVD.
However the more interesting aspect is that in reviewing the DVD case, printed insert, and intro video on the DVD, I do not find any legally binding Copyright Notice. The insert contains this notice:
The notice does not name an entity, rightsholder, or even indicate a year that the material is copyrighted within. Copyright notices are supposed to be clear and concise. Point is, once the 300 copies are gone, the only way to get a copy of these DVDs will be to copy it from a friend.
So the 2 screenfuls of playful malarky about Sam and Al hunting you down if you make copies and that you would be "ripping off the charity" if you made copies are really a moot point once the 300 copies are gone. There will be no legitimate way to buy this DVD.
I also find it entertaining that, again, we see the illegitimate e-mail address @googlemail.com to contact the committee. This is a circumvention of everything that has been established over the last 2 1/2 years. It is an attempt to cut Brian Greene out of the e-mail communications in violation of the Committee bylaws and federal law.
To the Committee
I just have one thing to say to the committee. If you are going to play the power and control game and keep everyone (including Brian and all of us here on Al's Place) in the dark and promise the moon and stars that this DVD set will be "the best DVD set anyone could have ever produced" - then, you better deliver what you promised. And this DVD is a joke.
It's easy to see how a power struggle here caused a wreck to be produced instead of the quality that you promised.
Brian asked to see the original videos. Brian asked to see work-in-progress versions of these DVDs. Brian did his duty trying to make sure that the DVDs were the best they could be. And the 8 of you cut him out of the process thinking that you could do no wrong.
Fans will love this because we love Quantum Leap, but it is bittersweet for me, and just confirms all my fears that what this Committee needed more than anything was checks and balances in the production of the video to make sure something was produced that was worthy of the fans.
Remember: Absolute power corrupts absolutely.
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