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Trying to add contrast on export causing problems
I would be grateful for some advice -thank you!
Shot on the Sony PMW EX3 – HD Cam EX – HD 1920 x 1080.
Edited successfully, then successfully exported it from HD 1920 x 1080, 16:9, colour to Standard 768 x 576, 4:3 in black and white onto a standard DVD. I used Quicktime Conversion using H.264, keeping the aspect ratio choosing crop. This worked successfully and I burned DVDs in Toast – all of which was successful.The slight problem is that the DVDs are quite flat and lacking in contrast. This is fine if playing off a DVD player and 4:3 monitor as the contrast can be increased and it looks perfect but now that I am in the position of wanting to send someone a DVD the DVD is just too flat.
This is where I am having big problems:
If I add contrast via the export process – Quicktime Conversion – then it adds the contrast successfully but warps the picture and squeezes the 16:9 picutre into the 4:3 rather than cropping it – even though crop is selected.If I do the procedure in two exports/processes – firstly adding the contrast but keeping the size the same and making it into a quicktime movie. Taking that back into FCP on a new sequence and allowing the new sequence to be the same sequence settings as the clip, then exporting again using Quicktime conversion and this time changing the size to be 768 x 576 maintaining the aspect ration using crop. Then this has the desired effect. The resulting quicktime movie is the correct size and the correct contrast but it pulses really badly and looks terrible.
I then tried using Color but have had similar problems…. Color doesn’t seem to allow me to export it in the size of 768 x 576 with the 16:9 picture cropped to 4:3, so I have to change the contrast in color keeping the size the same, send it back to FCP then export it from FCP using Quicktime Conversion 768 x 576 maintaining the aspect ration with the crop… again this works in that it is the correct size and contrast but pulses terribly…
I realise it’s a bit mad shooting HD colour 16:9 when the desired result is black and white 4:3 with added contrast – but I would be grateful for any advice.
Thanks and best wishes
Katharine
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4 Replies
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Try nesting your entire timeline in FCP and adding your contrast effect to the resulting clip. Then you can export and author a DVD the same way you did in the beginning.
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Eric Susch
http://www.LetsKnit2gether.com
http://www.EricSusch.com
Follow me on twitter @EricSusch -
Dear Eric
Thank you for your answer.
I’m afraid that I don’t understand what you mean… what does ‘nesting your entire timeline in FCP’ mean??
(When I put the film through two compression procedures I can get it to the size and contrast that I want but it pulses very very badly and would be unusable).
Thanks…..
K 🙂
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Select all the video clips in your final FCP timeline and go up into the menu: Sequence / Nest Item(s)… This will “nest” all your video into ONE clip on the timeline. Drag your one nested clip to the viewer and add: Effects / Video Filters / Color Correction / Color Corrector – 3 way (or whatever filter you want.) This allows you to color correct your entire timeline all at once. That way you can set your contrast BEFORE exporting and only export once.
____________________________________
Eric Susch
http://www.LetsKnit2gether.com
http://www.EricSusch.com
Follow me on twitter @EricSusch -
Dear Eric Susch
Thank you so much for the explanation!
This worked perfectly and has solved my problem.
Many thanks, best wishes and a Happy New Year from Bournemouth UK
K 🙂
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