5D and 7D footage in the same FCP timeline

[Tom Brooks]

Dropping the clips of a different frame rate into Final Cut will not make the frame rate conversion pretty in either case–that is, by dropping 30p in a 24p sequence or the other way around. Both will result in jerky motion because FCP does a simple frame doubling or frame dropping to achieve the sequence frame rate.

Many of us think about pulldown in terms of a progressive source being telecined to play in an interlaced medium. This is not the case with your 5D or 7D footage. It should remain progressive, whether at 24p or 30p. So, when your software conversion is done, you will have some blended frames. Interlaced fields will not be part of the picture. The quality of the software conversion will determine how good those blended frames look and how smooth the motion looks.

As to which direction is better, I recall a Kenstone.net article stating that it’s better to convert from a lower frame rate to a higher one. He’s right in that the motion will be smoother doing it that way, but I think the choice is really about which frame rate you need to end up with. If you need 24, convert the 30. In that case, you’re throwing away motion information. If you need 30, convert the 24. In this case, you don’t throw away motion information, but you don’t gain any either. Either way, you need to use Compressor to change the frame rate with frame controls on and rate conversion set to Better or Best.

[Philippe Gariepy]

Actually, the video will be an Internet trailer, so I guess I might as well just go 29,97.

Small question while we’re at it : what is the craze about wanting to shoot 24p instead of 30p or 29,97? What real difference does it make if it ends up being seen at 29,97 all the time. This might seem like a newb question, but every time I start juggling with timeframes, I end up being confused.

[Aristides Tiropolis]

[Philippe Gariepy] “what is the craze about wanting to shoot 24p instead of 30p or 29,97? “

24p Comes from the world of cinema so it has been associated with achieving the oh so desired “film look”. This has also led to this being used as a marketing/selling button from prosumer cameras to DVD players, Plasma/LCD screens and so on. Many people don’t seem to understand the technology too well and seem shocked when they see a strobe effect in a fast pan…

[Tom Brooks]

The 24p look is good if you shoot correctly for it. 24p is a nice, slow to moderate frame rate. Excellent for web usage and good for DVD. So, it’s really good for multiple forms of release.

DVD players today handle 24p very well with default settings. Most major movies are done on 24p DVDs that allow the deinterlacing chips in TVs or players to display progressive on flat panel displays. On a properly encoded DVD, properly connected to a progressive display, you won’t see any interlacing at all. Get a typical player out of the box, hook it up with HDMI or component to an LCD and you’ll most likely get progressive. No big deal.

Plus, it’s a fact of life. Movies are 24p. Why fight it?

[Phil Savoie]

I curious how the project turned out. And as I’m about to do the same thing what about frame size – the 5D being 1920×1080 (shot @29.97) and the 7D being 1280×720 (shot @ 60). I’m about to streamclip the raw footage any workflow suggestions for going into FCP? Final delivery for spec broadcast and web.

Thanks

Phil Savoie
https://www.linkedin.com/in/philsavoie

Members

[Danny Baron]

Did you do okay with this mix? i am about to do the same. Mixing 5D 1920×1080 (shot @29.97) and the 7D 1280×720 (shot @ 60). Did this cause any problems? Is there anything should keep in mind? Thanks.

Danny