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Workflow for conversion to ProRes 422(LT) and duplicate file names
I shot a bunch of footage on two identical Kodak Zx3 Play cameras while I was traveling. I copied the .mov files from the cards to a hard drive as I filled them up. I put them in folders for each card, but the individual files in the folders often have the same names, like “100_0005.mov” The folders have more descriptive names so I can identify what the footage is. But many files may have the same file name in the various different folders for different footage.
The raw format from the camera is h.264, so I am converting all the footage to ProRes 422 (LT) to edit it in a proper codec.
In the future, after I edit a movie from the footage, I may want to convert it to ProRes 4444 or even DVCPro and reconform.
What is the best way to handle all these file names that are the same and prepare for the edit? I could import them and rename them in final cut and just forget what they were originally called, but I’m afraid that I won’t be able to re-conform it if I ever want to go to 4444 or another compression.
What is the proper workflow for a situation like this.
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2 Replies
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Just convert to ProRes 422. No benefit in going to HQ or 4444…this is not a ultra high end camera.
ProRes422 will retain the quality of your footage with a manageable file size. No need to reconform.You can make an Automator action to rename your original H264 clips and converted ProRes files to have matching names based on the folder name.
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Joel,
I shoot on a Canon 5DMark II and use the following workflow.
Transfer your .mov files from your cards to a HDD you’ll be editing from. I generally create individual folders for each card eg: CARD 1, CARD 2 etc…. ( of course you then back these folders to another drive for safety 😉
I then use Adobe bridge to “batch” rename all the files in the CARD 1 folder to something like eg: THE CLIENTS NAME – 001, THE CLIENTS NAME – 002 and so on….. I’ve found Adobe Bridge to be the easiest to achieve this.
Once you’ve renamed all my mov files, create a new folder called RUSHES. Then drag all the files from the individual folders to the RUSHES folder. This way all your files will now be situated in one folder.
Then start up FCP and import the RUSHES folder in your browser window. You can do this by right mouse clicking in the browser winder and selecting IMPORT/FOLDER.
I then right mouse click on the RUSHES folder & select MEDIA MANAGER. Under the media tab select RECOMPRESS & then choose the codec you want to recompress too. With my 5D files I usually transcode them to Apple ProRes 422 (LT) 1980×1080 25P.
From here on edit your heart away 😉
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