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Best workflow XDCAM EX–>CatDV–>FCP?
Hi all,
Thanks in advance for any help you can offer on this topic.
I’m trying to figure out the best possible workflow for ingesting, logging, cataloging, editing, and archiving XDCAM EX footage for a reality series and several other projects I’m working on.Others have convinced me that CatDV will make my life a whole lot easier, so I downloaded the Pro Demo and will give it a shot (first glance tells me it’s exactly what I need).
I’m wondering if someone can help me with a step-by-step workflow for dealing with the footage. Right now my work-life is a mess, with footage spread across 5 external hard drives with the organization of a tornado.
Some of the early files are just in .mov (with no XML files attached–I can’t blame the cameraman, I’m the one who committed the cardinal sin of not first making a copy of the BPAV folder. My apologies to Craig Seeman if you are reading this. I was new to the camera and didn’t discover your posts until after the fact).
Though not as necessary to the projects as the XDCAM footage, I also have about 25 miniDV tapes captured in single files using Final Cut’s “Capture Now” function … notice the pattern of ingesting without taking the time to properly log, label, review my material? Now that I’m actually working with the material, I sure as hell notice it. (Note to any newbies–allow me to lead by poor example and let my bad practices serve as a cautionary tale of what can happen when you think of “workflow” as isolated to post-production).
Anyway, if someone can walk me through step by step on the best workflow from this point forward, I will be forever grateful. Here’s what it looks like I need to accomplish:
1. Organize assets currently existing on different hard-drives into project/client based system (all footage dealing with Reality Show A goes on Scratch Drive A, all footage of Documentary B goes on Drive B).
2. Once files are transferred and in their new homes, wipe additional hard drives and all duplicate/redundant files, then back-up according to system in step 1 while trusting in the computer gods the hard-drives won’t give out during this process…on second thought, I may just transfer what I can, then delete and repeat so I always have multiple copies of material.
3. Back-up once again to another external drive and/or DVDs, leaving me with 3 back-ups in case of worst case scenario.
4. Figure out some way to continually backup new footage (Ideas?)
5. Create catalogs in CatDV based on each project…here’s where I start to get really confused…where do I store the catalogs. Do I still use “XDCAM Transfer” to create the .mov & .xml files for editing in FCP or do I use the .MP4 file in the BPAV?
Step 6-?
PLEASE HELP…and correct any of the above steps as I’m sure there are easier and better ways to organize my footage.Here are my current system specs:
Computer: MacBook Pro
Model Identifier: MacBookPro5,1
Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed: 2.66 GHz
Number Of Processors: 1
Total Number Of Cores: 2
L2 Cache: 6 MB
Memory: 4 GB
Operating System: Snow Leopard 10.6.2Applications:
Final Cut Studio 3 (Final Cut Pro 7.0.1)
CatDV Pro 8.08
XDCAM EX Clip Browser V2.6 2.06.00
XDCAM Transfer 2.11Michael David Hutchinson
“That most limited of all specialists, the well-rounded man.”–F. Scott Fitzgerald ‘The Great Gatsby’Michael David Hutchinson
“That most limited of all specialists, the well-rounded man.”–F. Scott Fitzgerald ‘The Great Gatsby’ -
2 Replies
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Hello Michael, I’m attempting to find out the same information you asked in this thread over a year ago. Since nobody replied, I’m curious to hear what you ended up doing? If you have a chance to reply, much thanks in advance!
tony -
Hi,
I am in the exact same situation.Any feedback on what workflow either of you end up doing would be greatly appreciated.
Marc
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