• Apple Final Cut Pro Legacy

  NTSC to PAL

  Posted by Nina Baschi on June 3, 2011 at 6:48 pm

  hello folks!

  this question has probably been asked before, but I’ll just try for my specific case.

  I made the very un-smart decision to buy a cannon mini dv camcorder in the US, which I am now using in europe (switzerland).

  now I shot a bunch of material in NTSC which I captured in final cut, with my capture settings on ntsc. I’m now about to start editing and I figure this is the right moment to ask the big question:

  at what point and how do I convert my material to PAL?

  …would it make sense to convert the raw material before I start editing, and edit in a PAL setting project directly, or should I edit in NTSC and do the conversion once I export the finished movie?

  …and in both cases: which program would I use, or which settings in compressor?

  thanks in advance!

  Paul Donahue replied 13 years, 1 month ago 5 Members · 5 Replies
• 5 Replies

• 

  Rafael Amador

  June 3, 2011 at 7:29 pm

  [nina baschi] “at what point and how do I convert my material to PAL?

  …would it make sense to convert the raw material before I start editing, and edit in a PAL setting project directly, or should I edit in NTSC and do the conversion once I export the finished movie?”
  I think is better converting before start to editing, but converting with a certain quality its takes time, so you may think of making a pre-selection or rough edit and MM that to reduce the amount of stuff to convert.
  Another solution may be editing your NTSC stuff on a PAL sequence with the Nattress Standard Converion pluging.
  Compressor has Presets for Standard Conversions. Use it always with the “Frame Control: ON”.
  rafael

  http://www.nagavideo.com
• 

  Chris Borjis

  June 3, 2011 at 10:11 pm

  I convert AFTER the edit and i’ll tell you why…

  You only have to convert the edit and not all of the possible “hours” of source footage. Thats a huge waste of time.
• 

  Nina Baschi

  June 4, 2011 at 6:25 am

  Another solution may be editing your NTSC stuff on a PAL sequence with the Nattress Standard Converion pluging.
  Compressor has Presets for Standard Conversions. Use it always with the “Frame Control: ON”.
  rafael

  thanks for the quick response!

  so do I get this right: I should edit my stuff as it is, in an NTSC project but on a sequence with PAL settings – once I’ve downloaded the Nattress Standart Conversion – and then export it with a Standart conversion (like DVD best quality), in which in just keep to frame fame control ON. correct?

  so no extra conversion before or after the editing?

  and won’t editing NTSC on a PAL sequence give me rendering problems?

  gracias mucho, again.
• 

  Andreas Kiel

  June 4, 2011 at 10:25 am

  Edit NTSC in a NTSC project/sequence.
  Once you’re done convert. Use either Nattress or Compressor (or hardware).

  Spherico
  https://www.spherico.com/filmtools
• 

  Paul Donahue

  April 17, 2013 at 6:35 am

  Hi Nina,

  I saw that you are from Switzerland and where I work now in Switzerland would like to purchase a camcorder. Would you have any suggestions where to do this in Zürich? Are there mail order houses like B&H in the United States here? Or, what camera store would you recommend in Zürich?

  Thanks,

  Paul Donahue

  Paul Donahue
  Media Eye
  http://www.mediaeyemedia.com

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