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BMCC alternate workflow
I’ve done some testing with the same 5 John Brawley camera raw clips from the Blackmagic Cinema Camera and have come up with an interesting workflow using FCP X. Obviously BMD wants you to use Resolve to generate dailies, but the truth is that many photo apps will read CinemaDNG. I would imagine that when this camera gets out into the wild, most folks will simply shoot ProRes. Nevertheless the DNG files offer the advantage of greater latitude (and grading control) and over-sized images. This gives you some nice lossless reframing options with HD and even 2K timelines. Here’s the workflow:
1. Open the CinemaDNG camera raw image files in Aperture. The shots are image sequences within a folder for each shot. (That’s how the files are online, but I’m not sure if that’s how the camera actually creates them, though.) I’ve imported each folder as a project in Aperture.
2. Adjust one frame in the Aperture project and then Lift & Stamp (like copy & paste attributes) the settings to apply them to all of the frames in that project. Repeat for each shot.
3. Export “versions” of the frames in the original size as new frames. I exported as TIFFs at original size. This should go to a different folder than the source folder. Repeat for each shot.
4. Launch QT Player 7 Pro and “open image sequence”. Find the first frame of the shot you want (the new exported frame) and import. At this point QT will ask for the frame rate. Once opened, save this as a QT reference movie. Repeat for each shot.
5. Launch FCP X and import the QT refs into an Event. You have the option to transcode optimized and/or proxy media and that’s what I would recommend. However, performance – at least with only these 5 short clips – is fine on an 8-core tower using the QT reference movies directly. Remember, the underlying compressed media is uncompressed TIFF at 2400 pixels wide. Adjust/fit/fill the frame size as desired.
Now here’s the interesting part. Go back to Aperture and change the settings for a shot (series of many frames). Then re-export new versions (replacing the earlier exports). The QT reference file will update to show the new color settings. When you relaunch FCP X, the clips in the Event and Project will also be updated. A few caveats, though. The filmstrip thumbnails are not updated. You’ll see one updated frame in the filmstrip as you skim over it. Nevertheless linking is fine and the viewer shows the correct display. If you have created optimized or proxy media, you will have to manually delete these files first and then transcode again in order to reflect the updated color.
In any case, working only with the QT refs is fine on a fast machine, as best as I could test with only 5 clips. By comparison, I could AMA-link these same files into Symphony 6 and also import them into Premiere Pro. In both cases, performance stuttered. Even at lower resolution playback settings. Clearly FCP X has an advantage in this type of workflow, although Media Composer/Symphony does a good job importing image sequences in the “traditional” (non-AMA) fashion. The only issue I’ve hit in FCP X is that some plug-ins (FxFactory and their partners plus IRUDIS, so far) don’t work on these clips because of the 2400 pixel width.
– Oliver
Oliver Peters Post Production Services, LLC
Orlando, FL
http://www.oliverpeters.com -
97 Replies
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That’s a useful workflow Oliver.
I found that when importing the raw dng files that FCPX created optimized media whether you selected this option on import or not.
ProRes 422 files at the original frame size were created during playback and skimming in the event or project. Perhaps it is doing the same with the ref QT and this explains the good playback performance you are getting.See here for more info https://forums.creativecow.net/readpost/335/40719
In fact I noticed this behaviour with a variety of stills: https://fcp.co/forum/4-final-cut-pro-x-fcpx/12820-color-correction-on-camera-raw-stills#13474
Sorry I am a few thousand miles from my computer so can’t test this out myself.
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[Rob Mackintosh] “I found that when importing the raw dng files that FCPX created optimized media whether you selected this option on import or not.”
It seems to do this with all still images. I found that out on another project and posted it in another thread.
[Rob Mackintosh] “Perhaps it is doing the same with the ref QT and this explains the good playback performance you are getting. “
No, I don’t think so. The only media I find in the event folders is what I told it to transcode or optimize. It’s definitely playing the timeline only from the QT reference movies. This is verified by when I change the TIFFs with updated ones. The timeline updated accordingly. No activities in the “100% meter” or the background tasks display.
– Oliver
Oliver Peters Post Production Services, LLC
Orlando, FL
http://www.oliverpeters.com -
[Rob Mackintosh] “I found that when importing the raw dng files that FCPX created optimized media whether you selected this option on import or not.”
PS: It does this with JPEGs and TIFFs, too. You will find them in the Events>Render files>High Quality Media folder.
– Oliver
Oliver Peters Post Production Services, LLC
Orlando, FL
http://www.oliverpeters.com -
[Oliver Peters] “Launch QT Player 7 Pro and “open image sequence”. Find the first frame of the shot you want (the new exported frame) and import. At this point QT will ask for the frame rate. Once opened, save this as a QT reference movie. Repeat for each shot.”
I wanted people to note that handling the files in this manner will truncate the working color space down to the QT players native 8bit.
Using the frame to video workflow is currently handled better by using the Adobe Media Encoder CS6 –
WHile allowing for the full bit depth during the still to motion conversions, it will also allow you to select the first frame of the image sequence, then select the make QT Movie and it will create the image seq for you, and can create ProRes for FCPX faster than the current Compressor workflows.gary adcock
Studio37Post and Production Workflow Consultant
Production and Post Stereographer
Chicago, ILhttps://blogs.creativecow.net/24640
follow me on Twitter
@garyadcock -
[gary adcock] “I wanted people to note that handling the files in this manner will truncate the working color space down to the QT players native 8bit.”
Hmmm… Very good point. Aperture gives you the option of a 16-bit or 8-bit TIFF export. I only tested this with 8-bit TIFFs anyway, so I’m not sure what would happen with 16-bit TIFFs. I also don’t really know whether the standard QT issues are a factor in FCP X or whether Apple has engineered some back-door workarounds. Clearly there are no problems with Alexa QuickTime recordings. Besides, if you bring the DNG files straight into FCP X, isn’t the same thing happening? I doubt these are coming in at full, native bit-depth. There certainly is no access to raw adjustments within FCP X.
FCP X identifies the “compressor” of the QT reference files as TIFF. I was trying to avoid a double-encode for reasons of time and storage space. Obviously a real shoot would amount to 100s of 1,000s of frames of unedited footage. The solution, of course, would be if FCP X added: a) raw settings controls, and b) the ability to ingest image sequences. In any case, the images looked very clean (no banding) in this very limited test. Another option is to use After Effects to create movie files.
– Oliver
Oliver Peters Post Production Services, LLC
Orlando, FL
http://www.oliverpeters.com -
[gary adcock] “I wanted people to note that handling the files in this manner will truncate the working color space down to the QT players native 8bi”
Right, but QT Player is not processing the stills in this workflow at any moment. Its only build a reference file that is processed by FCPX (32b FP). The original codec/bit depth is preserved.
QT supports 16b RGB (TIFF/PNG still sequences and Microcosm QT Movies) even if QT Player can’t process or display more than 8b.
Rafael -
[Rafael Amador] “ight, but QT Player is not processing the stills in this workflow at any moment. Its only build a reference file that is processed by FCPX (32b FP). The original codec/bit depth is preserved.”
It is my understanding that may have been true prior to the release of QTX, but under Mountain Lion, the QT REF movie is handling the file as a 8 bit video file, so unless you re-create stills on output, you will be limited to 8bits in your workflow.
[Rafael Amador] “QT supports 16b RGB (TIFF/PNG still sequences and Microcosm QT Movies) even if QT Player can’t process or display more than 8b.”
Supporting and correctly handling a bit depth are 2 completely different things here
How is it possible to output more than 8bits if that is all the players engine supports?
gary adcock
Studio37Post and Production Workflow Consultant
Production and Post Stereographer
Chicago, ILhttps://blogs.creativecow.net/24640
follow me on Twitter
@garyadcock -
[gary adcock] “It is my understanding that may have been true prior to the release of QTX, but under Mountain Lion, the QT REF movie is handling the file as a 8 bit video file, so unless you re-create stills on output, you will be limited to 8bits in your workflow. “
What we don’t know, though, is whether that applies to FCP X. This may only be a limitation of other software using the QT conversion. For example, Avid bypasses the QT conversion when it imports ProRes files directly, on Mac MC6.x, thanks to a licensing deal with Apple. It taps directly into the codec for a “fast import” (file rewrap). However, if you access QT files on MC5 or lower, the “hand-off” happens by way of the QT engine, which is handling the conversion.
– Oliver
Oliver Peters Post Production Services, LLC
Orlando, FL
http://www.oliverpeters.com -
PS: “Bypassing QT” in FCP X (if in fact that’s true) might also account for why real-time performance is significantly better in FCP X versus Avid AMA or Premiere Pro import.
– Oliver
Oliver Peters Post Production Services, LLC
Orlando, FL
http://www.oliverpeters.com -
[gary adcock] “It is my understanding that may have been true prior to the release of QTX, but under Mountain Lion, the QT REF movie is handling the file as a 8 bit video file, so unless you re-create stills on output, you will be limited to 8bits in your workflow. “
As Peter describes hes workflow, he is using QT.7, which hasn’t been modified since SL.
QTX has no “Open still sequence” option.
And he is “Saving as..Reff Movie”, where there is not any kind of picture processing involved. “Saving as…” just put the stills on a QT container without affecting the content.Things would be different if he did “Export”, where there is always processing, even when exporting to with the same codec, size, etc, etc.
“Export with QT Pro is always “Destructive”.[gary adcock] “Supporting and correctly handling a bit depth are 2 completely different things here
How is it possible to output more than 8bits if that is all the players engine supports?”
You work with 10b Uncompressed and Prores (10b) QT files, on a daily base, don’t you?
Where is the problem?
They are 10b QT files even if QT player can only display them at 8b.
You can play them with QT and they still being 10b, even if the monitor will shows just 8b.
You can edit (Cut, Copy, Paste, Add to Movie) and “Save as Reference Movie” or “Save as Self-contained Movie” and they still 10b.
The 8b crunching only happens when you EXPORT.The Player (that as you say only DISPLAY at 8b) and the QT Engine (that only PROCESS at 8b) are just two functions of QT Pro, but they don’t have any role here.
The QT Player window that pops up whenever you open or save something with QT Pro is just for preview, so you can see what are you doing
Another function is packing things in QT containers. This can be done a 16b per channel. All those functions are managed by common GUI. .
rafael
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