-
Switching from FCP to Premiere Pro, Codec question
I will be switching from Final Cut to Premiere and have one large project still unfinished. My footage was all converted to ProRes 422(LT) but I also have everything in the original H.264 codec.
With Premiere, would it be worth it to reconnect to the H.264 files? Even though Prores is lower quality, I see no difference. Also, there will be a lot of color correction and I’ve been hearing that Prores is better in this regard. I usually use either a T2i or a 5D so would it be wise to convert when this is the case?
Lastly, I need to get rid of something on my drive, either these Prores or H.264 files. Together they are eating up tons of space. Which, if either, should I toss?
-
3 Replies
-
I would use the h.264 (having made the same transition 6 months ago), but beware it is still a codec not very suitable for editing (try scrub backwards and you know instantly what I mean). If you grade within premiere, you might want to do it in a uncompressed sequence; but then you could also go for 32bpc and have to deal with really, really huge files. Your color corrections aren’t applied to the source clip and by exporting you are of course free to choose a codec which is better for editing.
Bottom line: using h.264 you get a speed penalty – decoding a frame at a given time needs more CPU cycles – but that’s it, essentially. -
Always, always, always use ProRes (or similar codec like DNxHD). h.264 is a delivery codec; not an editing format. It is not a friendly post-workflow codec. Additionally, it does not hold up well for color correction and compositing. If you plan to go out to Apple Color or DaVinci Resolve or whatever, ProRes is designed for multiple generational use – it’s designed to be re-encoded without losing quality. The (LT) variety is a bit lighter weight than it’s siblings. I generally recommend the Apple ProRes422 codec for the majority of projects that originate from HDSLR’s.
h.264 is an awful codec to edit in for the reasons Karsten gave (which make me wonder why they then recommend you use it!?). I never recommend an h.264 workflow unless you’re on a time crunch and can’t transcode to a better codec (i.e. ProRes, DNxHD, etc.). If you have the time editing is smoother, color correction is easier, and the footage stands up to multiple re-encodes which tend to happen in the post-workflow.
My overall summation:
h.264 = bad
ProRes = goodRyan Holmes
http://www.ryanholmes.com
vimeo.com/ryanholmes -
Awesome. That clears it all up. Many thanks.
Reply to this Discussion! Login or Sign Up