-
Video and audio timecode sync questions
Dear friends,
I have received a project with RED raw files and separate stereo audio and was researching about a timecode sync in Resolve. I’m not very experienced in this workflow, but my assumption was since there is no scratch audio the timecodes would have to be synced while shooting. I don’t know of their workflow and I’m trying to figure it out here:
When batch timecode sync didn’t do anything at all I manually found corresponding video and audio files (since it’s slated) and tried to do Update Timecode from Audio – LTC while having both files in the media bin, but that didn’t change anything. Tried to do Auto Sync Audio – Based on Timecode and Append Tracks, but that didn’t sync anything. Timecodes that show up in metadata are very different (start TC for video is 02:03:16:09 and audio 04:33:35:00). What am I doing wrong here? Could it be that it wasn’t synced during production? (since it’s a very low budget short film) I haven’t done a timecode based sync before so maybe I’m misunderstanding the whole thing? I closely followed tutorials on websites and youtube but I guess the critical step here is “Update Timecode from Audio – LTC ” which doesn’t change anything at all for any of the video files, even if I just put 2 corresponding ones in a media bin.
If there’s no timecode sync possible is my only option to manually find audio files and sync them with the slate on a timeline one by one?
Thank you very much in advance, sorry if I seem like an idiot.
-
4 Replies
-
The camera and the sound recorder clocks were apart so timecode recorded in video and audio files is different.
-
So that means they didn’t sync it during filming and I have no other way but to manually connect it using clapper as a reference? Thank you
-
It appears so.
-
[Paul Page] “So that means they didn’t sync it during filming and I have no other way but to manually connect it using clapper as a reference?”
Yes. That is the way motion pictures shot on film were synced for about 80 or 90 years. It’s an annoyance, but it’s possible to get good at it over time and you can do it very, very quickly. I’ve seen great assistants sync up 2 takes a minute, so if there’s 200 takes total shot in a day, they get them all done in less than a couple of hours. If there’s problems, maybe 3-1/2 hours. It’s not that hard.It is imperative for the camera crew and the sound crew to communicate so that every camera has a timecode box on it and the camera is in continuous jam mode. At least twice a day, the sound crew (who is generally in charge of timecode) should rejam the box and the timecode slate. And yes, you need a timecode slate just to confirm that the timecode on the slate is the same timecode in the camera, and that that timecode is also the same on the audio recorder.
I can recall a case where we had about 350 hours of material on Martin Scorsese’s Rolling Stones: Shine a Light documentary, and almost half of it was synced by eye… because the camera operators failed to shoot slates. We had no timecode on the film, and just had to watch the movements of the musicians and figure out who was doing what, when, and where. Somehow, we got it done. So don’t think what you’re doing is undoable. It just takes hard work and stamina. (Or barring that, a great assistant.)
Reply to this Discussion! Login or Sign Up