topic Re: Canon HF G40 - remove clip length limits in Camcorders

Canon HF G40 - remove clip length limits

missionpoint — Fri, 17 Mar 2017 15:02:46 GMT

We're using our new Canon HF G40 to record the sermons at our church. We are recording in 1920 X 1080 29fps. We are using a high speed 64 gb memory card. At about 30-35 minutes the camera starts a new clip. The sermons are typically about 40-45 minutes. Because of the camera splitting video into 2 clips, we have to import them into video editing software to combine them into one video before I can upload it online. Is there a setting that I'm missing in the camera that would allow me to remove the clip length limit? The memory has plenty of room so that's not causing the limit. Any ideas or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Re: Canon HF G40 - remove clip length limits

VideoGeek — Fri, 17 Mar 2017 16:09:04 GMT

There is no setting you are missing. It has more to do with the camcorder's file system than it does with the capacity of the SD card. I am looking into it to give you an answer that better explains why this is.

Re: Canon HF G40 - remove clip length limits

missionpoint — Fri, 17 Mar 2017 17:37:06 GMT

Thanks for the reply and info. From what you're saying, it sounds like there's nothing I can do about this.

Re: Canon HF G40 - remove clip length limits

VideoGeek — Fri, 17 Mar 2017 17:58:38 GMT

Yes, that is correct. The only work-around I know of involves recording directly to an external drive. Are you recording in mp4 or AVCHD?

Re: Canon HF G40 - remove clip length limits

missionpoint — Fri, 17 Mar 2017 18:04:35 GMT

I've been recording in mp4.

Re: Canon HF G40 - remove clip length limits

VideoGeek — Fri, 17 Mar 2017 18:18:08 GMT

Unless I am mistaken the ffile system used if FAT32 which has a 4GB file size limit which would explain why it breaks a recording into several clips. The reason, or at least it used to be, was that the FAT32 file system was compatible with more operating systems that NTFS.

I looked at your original post again and noticed you are importing individual files for editing. Have you tried importing an entire folder? Provided that the folder only contains one sermon when you import and drop the first clip into the timeline you should be able to see the entire video without adding the second clip (as long as both have been imported).

What video editng software are you using? I only ask out of curiosity.

Re: Canon HF G40 - remove clip length limits

missionpoint — Fri, 17 Mar 2017 18:47:56 GMT

The FAT32 limit makes sense.

Once we finish recording I remove the SD card from the camera and plug it into an SD card reader on my PC. When I open the folders in Windows there are 2 mp4 files. I then import both into the video editor to combine them into one video. I've trialed Premier, but I'm not ready to commit to the subscription cost. I'm currently trying DaVinci Resolve. It works well, but I'm having trouble getting the final render to be at the frames per second I want. Ideally I would like to be able to upload a single video clip from the camera to Vimeo without having to take the extra steps and time to combine 2 clips in a video editing program, render it, and then upload it to Vimeo.

Re: Canon HF G40 - remove clip length limits

VideoGeek — Fri, 17 Mar 2017 18:57:15 GMT

I hear you and understand. It's a shame to have to add that extra step. There are external recorders that will allow you to record more than 30 minutes in a single file but that requires additional hardware. A video capture card and capturing directly to a computer, such as a laptop, is another possible solution.The video capture card would be needed because the HDMI port on most, if not all, computers is HDMI out. I have just been researching this topic and found that some of the Atomos external recorders are compatible with the HF G40. I'm sure BlackMagic Design has something as well. I'm going to take another look at the manual and see if there is anything about recording to and external drive.

Re: Canon HF G40 - remove clip length limits

missionpoint — Fri, 17 Mar 2017 19:01:24 GMT

Thanks for your help. I really appreciate it. At least I understand why the limitation is there now.

Re: Canon HF G40 - remove clip length limits

VideoGeek — Fri, 17 Mar 2017 19:04:25 GMT

Glad to help. I don't get to talk about this stuff much as most people I know have no interest in videography or photography.

Re: Canon HF G40 - remove clip length limits

missionpoint — Fri, 17 Mar 2017 19:16:20 GMT

What would happen if I format the SD card for NTFS in Windows? Would the camera not recognize it?

Re: Canon HF G40 - remove clip length limits

VideoGeek — Fri, 17 Mar 2017 19:23:44 GMT

That would not be a good idea and probably will cause problems. The NTFS format won't work with the camcorder. Believe me I've thought of doing the same thing myself. I may have even tried it. Either way it is always safest to format the card in the camcorder.

Re: Canon HF G40 - remove clip length limits

Stephen — Fri, 17 Mar 2017 19:30:26 GMT

You could always call our team. They're happy to walk you through the best way to get the most out of your situation!

The number is 1-800-OK-CANON (800-652-2666) from 10am to 10pm (ET) during the week.

Re: Canon HF G40 - remove clip length limits

missionpoint — Fri, 17 Mar 2017 20:06:14 GMT

Thanks. I called Canon, but they're only suggestion was to lower the resolution. Due to the camera file system being FAT32 I'm limited to 4GB clips. The canon representative agreed that Canon needs to look into the option of having a different format that allows us to record longer videos without creating multiple clips.

Re: Canon HF G40 - remove clip length limits

VideoGeek — Fri, 17 Mar 2017 20:18:12 GMT

Thanks for the update. I don't think this is unique to Canon. The only camcorders I have that doesn't break the clips into files is are tape based (miniDV and 8mm) and prepping them for upload is an even longer process. It would be nice to have one continuous clip for each scene. If NTFS is out of the question then what about ExFAT since both PCs and Macs will recognize that file system It's a thought.

Re: Canon HF G40 - remove clip length limits

missionpoint — Fri, 17 Mar 2017 20:49:14 GMT

Agreed. I think Canon and the other companies need to be seriously discussing this. Especially since 4k video (and it's larger file sizes) is becoming more popular on the consumer level.

Re: Canon HF G40 - remove clip length limits

brokaw357 — Sun, 25 Mar 2018 13:02:57 GMT

VideoGeek explained the reason for the 4gig file sizes. Now a bit about what you can do about it. I'm part of a woodworking guild that conducts 80+ woodworking classes per year. Most of them are videotaped and the better ones are edited for posting on YouTube. There are a number of programs (some free, many low cost) that can concatenate your multiple files into one contiguous file (MP4 or the like.) We choose to use the Sony Vegas/Movie Maker product to actually edit out the parts of the recording that don't apply. We then add in a header and trailer that gives the title, date, talent, and subject. We used version 12 that we purchased from Amazon for around $40 for several years. They came out with v13 which didn't work very well, they sold the product, the new owners came out with v14 which is OK. The learning curve for video editing can be intimidating at first. There is a lot of educational material on the Sony products. Most notable are Movie Studio Zen and Bill Myers (guerillabill).

Re: Canon HF G40 - remove clip length limits

iyfoto — Wed, 30 Jan 2019 16:32:41 GMT

The Canon Rep I just spoke with said that as long as you keep your recording in the wrapper and import it directly into your editing program, and that you did not turn off the video during filming, your recording will be continuous.

Re: Canon HF G40 - remove clip length limits

marioroy — Sun, 19 Apr 2020 12:24:23 GMT

What does it mean keep the recording in the wrapper

Re: Canon HF G40 - remove clip length limits

Penniwinkle — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 01:26:18 GMT

We just bought a brand new video recorder camera to record a 90 minute presentation and my partner didn't notice it turned itself off after 15 mintues.

Why? And HOW to work around? A 64 gb chip is worthless if it only records for 15 minutes.