Adobe Premiere Pro CS6 – Multicam

[Thoraya Binz]

Hey,

I would just like to follow up on the above, since I too, having just migrated from FCP, am accustomed to editing in lower res and swap out with full quality footage at final stages – and have as a result spent ages trying to figure out how to avoid starting my multiclip edit from square one.

Here is a more detailed description of the steps, based on the comment above, to save whoever else is looking for a solution a whole lot of time that could be better spent….

so,

To replace multiclip, open up project, relink media to new full quality footage, you will notice that the footage looks ‘zoomed in’/cropped to fit frame size. This is fine. Save and close. Now, duplicate the project to keep a backup of the file (.prproj) then open the original project using textedit.app, and find and replace all instances of your old dimensions, to the desired ones as follows:

<FrameRect>0,0,1280,720</FrameRect>

to

<FrameRect>0,0,1920,1080</FrameRect>

**in my example I am changing from 1280×720 to 1920×1080

Done.

Quickest and easiest solution I found. And most importantly, it works.

Good luck to all

[Benoy Thomas]

When i do right click on the clip in project area i cant see multy cam sequence on that pop up menu why? Premeir Pro CS6 . Please help me.. Am using windows

[Casey Culver]

@Thoraya Binz You’re my hero! I just created a profile just to give you props!

[Ht Davis]

My situation is more limited. I’m on a MBP 2008 model, core2duo, 4gbram and 256mb nvidia… …I get 4 cameras not so bad with low res proxies. How?

Let me explain my setup:
I archive everything. I use firewire and esata RAID with 3 drives per raid at least (some set up with a simple differential raid spare for rebuilding if necessary, others only with RAID large storage). This lets me work at 600mb\sec from each drive.
On macs at least, you’ll need a ton of internal space for any standard program caching (this is treated like swap data), and it needs to be internal or at least on a drive with permissions that match your root drive, so no odd formatting an external for use with this (I’ve tried externals, they just don’t work with the media cache in macs). This has to do with secure memory access, which means the files are accessed quickly and shunted to memory with a quick security pass, and if they don’t have the right setup, they will go into an endless loop, or take forever to verify. SO… …I put 2 1tb drives in my machine…
All of my external files (from the cameras) are on external raid with 2-4tb of space (I’ve got several and I move them between machines), formatted to FAT or ExFAT (I prefer EXFAT), and they are used for Log and transport as well, but the proxies are kept on a separate drive with my project files. I make a sparse disk image for my working project files, and proxy media. Typically, though, you can just make a couple of 100gb disk images for up to 8 cams with 2-10 hours of footage in a low res proxy. You can use what you like. I mix it a bit. H264 and Pro res work well for proxies.
I keep my audio and video previews on their own drive. That way I can recreate them as needed. This too is a RAID. But it is a firewire RAID (slower than esata). I do this so I have some idea of the playback quality at that resolution, and hints at the motion quality I’ll get with compression.

Note–keep your proxies at DVD or higher resolution and you have better quality previews.
Note–the more cameras you have, the more mbps you will use. Set the files up across several drives however, and you’ll be pulling less from each drive. I like RAID drives for this. It allows me to get closer to the full speed of the interface (firewire\esata). USB 3 would be great, but I don’t have it. More drives in a RAID means faster data writes and reads, combining the speeds. Since HDD’s usually have a max speed of 300mbps either way, even though SATA 1 is 1.5gbps, you’re limiting your speed with single or double drive storage bays.

1. When you import media, start with your smallest resolution main file (as in the full format file), and then set your resolution for output and such from that. However, set your PREVIEW to your proxy resolution. This will render previews at the proxy file resolution for use in playback.
2. Import your proxy files. Load them into your sequence. Now do an initial render. This will set up your preview files for use in playback.
3. If you have a lot of clips or effects in one area of the video, render out previews for that work area (you can set what area to render). I always have audio render out with video for better performance and a better idea of sync.

My initial log and transport usually takes a day or two to process with several cameras and only 1 higher end machine (I rent a unit for log and transport to my esata). I also output proxies depending on how much video (time), the frame rate, and how many cameras. With more cameras, I use h264 for proxies first. Then for a rundown with truer color and better resolution, I use Pro res and simply relink media, then delete the previews and re-render. My playback can be at full resolution in dvd quality. Sometimes, you can take a lesson from a less powerful machine and workflow. It’s all in how you allocate resources and put them to use. Start with a sequence that matches your main files, then put a proxy into it, and make sure your previews are at a resolution that matches your proxy. This will allow them to keep quality of image and motion. Then play them back at that resolution, don’t blow it up huge. You can always use an external monitor and set it to a low resolution view. I use a 50inch TV at a low resolution hooked to DVI\VGA. That’s basic dvd quality, and I play back on it to see how it looks. Granted, the image will be sharper and clearer in higher res, but most often, it’s pretty decent.

Archival:
Remember how I said I archive everything? DAY 3, initial archive. I set up most of my project, and proxies, then unmount the disk images, and burn to BDXL. Because I can archive to h264 without losing much quality on re-upping to full prores, I usually keep the original video in that format (mp4 h264) and store it with the project files archive. This takes up about 15gb per hour per video at high bit rate (5.0 and higher gen), or about 8 to 15gb per 2hrs video at blu-ray AVCHD 30p settings. I also keep any photos\images, or anything else I need initially, in that archive. Once I have most of my mainstream together, I burn an initial copy. After this point, I only use it if I have a truly fatal error (fire destroys the whole shebang or something like that). Every few days, I update that archive by simply burning the image to another bdxl. When I’m done with the project, everything is archived. I use a RAR split to break disk images up, especially those with my original card data, and burn to DVD’s size. The whole project, right down to the previews, is archived and ready to be reconstituted, so long as the EXFAT format can be read. The one step I left out… …I always make an ISO and restore each sparse to it before RAR and burn. It allows me to make certain the image format should still be compatible. The final archive takes about 2 days, but has been a boon. Some have come back time and again to have different projects done, then come back to have some highlights done that bring together elements from several projects. This workflow allows me the room to do that. I’ve only recently upgraded to 1tb drives in the RAID boxes. This gives me a grand total of… …13tb, minus the 2 internals for software. Plenty of space for a few hours of video. Since I only work with a few hours at a time (in general), it’s fast enough for me. When I have a larger project, I’ll make one change: a large xSAN or similar storage server farm. Then I just have to copy only the disk images I need at any one time, and go.

[Trig Simon]

I can’t imagine someone reading this whole page to look for your question. Can you break it down to less detail?

Trig Simon
Video Images by Trig
832 Main
Toledo OH 43605
419-693-0872
http://www.videoimagesbytrig.com

[Ht Davis]

not a question. It’s an example of how even a lesser computer can be utilized to it’s fullest if you plan out your setup to utilize more of your bus’s full speed. Ram and gfx processing will be the bottlenecks, along with cooling, but so far, it’s worked for me pretty well.
I’ve taken to rendering output on other machines for longer source and final output, which made render times unfeasible. But other machines see roughly the same access speeds, and the only real difference is their processing speed is about half to quarter the time to render out. Comparing 300 frames of a 30p video across the board, my macbook processed a frame every couple of seconds, where an imac i5 8gbram 2gb video card (2x ram, 4x the graphics card ram; two steps up on processor, 1 year newer) got about half a second per frame. Granted, that’s with several low end transitions of 1s or so, and one or two effects. Oddly enough, the laptop handled the audio samples faster. Actually moving the files, there was a benchmark difference of about 1mbps on average, running files of sizes up to 25mbytes. 2-4gb there was a difference of 10mbit, and larger than 4gb there was a difference of 12-15, averaging around 13mbit. Relatively small differences that are more akin to differences in the pathways and ram speeds. That’s all after cold-start, by the way, it took 2 weeks to benchmark it all. The differences are negligible except for processing time.

With RAID drives, you can get close to full speed out of your connections, but for each one you maximize, you’ll have to carry the overhead as well. Most of it is heat. Get past that, and you’ll be functional (not saying it’s acceptable by all standards, but it works for me for short project or non-profit work).

One last note:
I’ve also added file backup versioning… …Time machine or windows 7 backup routines… …It will actually keep older versions of files as you work. Set a timer for about 10 minutes, Save your file when it goes off. I used a little tool to do that… …I run it with a unix tool or batch file, sending the keycode (command key + s) to save every 10min, and run it in the background until I shut the window. In any app I’m in, I get file versions 10min old at most to go back to if a virus or other disaster crashes my system. I get back to work and finish up. I keep the backups all external, and image them as well. Yes, it’s almost paranoid, but I like to be able to recover everything in few hours, back to where I was when everything blew up; I don’t lose much time or work that way; I just lose headaches, which I never miss.