CS5 – already frustrated – REALLY Adobe?!?!

[Icecooled Oc intel x6800]

Hey Eric M,

I do multicam work as well. Landscape 5 HD cameras panorama with 1.5 hours each of game film.
I’m amazed with CS5!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I just dropped my 5 AVCHD files (both Sony and Panasonic) in and they were ready to work with IMMEDIATELY!!!!! FUNNY they’re all named MTS0001 so I have to rename them. No need to capture HDMI 5 times 1.5 hours anymore.
Even with my BlackMagic card presets that outputs directly to my 46″, they preview immediately and conforming for 16bit audio doesn’t take long either!
Edius software edits/previews AVCHD immediately (preview window) with their trial but I don’t have their output card.

FCP?? I burn with Blu-Ray so I think its funny you mention FCP (no support).

In CS5 I can apply effects (like scale,rotation, position the usual that I do for panorama) and see it on my TV immediately (although have to render for RT playback of multi effects). I add the film twice on tracks so I have 5 non-effect tracks that I can eyeball between and these easily play out realtime both in the AVCHD and BMD presets!

I have an i7,gigabyte,SSD,GTX260 that I put together under $550.
Haven’t done much else but edit my files Gigabytes smaller and with no more 11 hour downtime!

I don’t understand you complaining about money if you are working with FCP?

Good luck wasting your time without CS5!

T

[Eric Monroe]

[icecooled oc intel x6800] “I don’t understand you complaining about money if you are working with FCP?”

Why is that? Adobe production premium = $1699 FCS3 = $999

FCS is cheaper.

[icecooled oc intel x6800] “Haven’t done much else but edit my files Gigabytes smaller and with no more 11 hour downtime!”

Why are you experiencing 11 hour down time?

[icecooled oc intel x6800] “Good luck wasting your time without CS5!”

So becoming proficient at another editing software is wasting my time? Last time I checked, if you go to look for a job as an editor, WAY MORE of them require FCP experience, than do require PPro experience. just sayin.

[Eric Monroe]

Andy,

I greatly appreciate you taking the time to post this. This has been helpful. Thanks a bunch.

[Icecooled Oc intel x6800]

Eric M,

Thanks for the follow up. I guess I was not clear with my comments.
I mentioned price because I assumed your were using a PC (from my perspective) and switched to a Mac (the equivalent Mac of my computer cost 4 times more (except the Mac doesn’t have a Blue-ray burner).
Also, I don’t assume I have to buy a new Photoshop, Flash, Illustrator, AfterEffects, ect.
And, well, most people are upgrading, so the $1699 is a straw-man.
I’m happy with my PhotoShop 5, Illustrator 10, After Effects 6.5 and Flash CS4! [I use what I need and don’t have much use for Adobe bridge]

“Haven’t done much else but edit my files Gigabytes smaller and with no more 11 hour downtime!” Me
What I meant was I can’t speak about all benefits but the time-saving is great. Previously I had to capture real-time through my HDMI BMD card 5 cameras worth of 1.5 hours of film —that’s 11 hours before I started editing.”
Because CS5 supports real time AVCHD codec now (I can plug the 5 SD/or Pro DUo cards in by usb adapters and edit without rendering preview files/converting to intermediate codec, ect).
Having 5 streams of Full HD immediately on the timeline is nice, and they play back in realtime.
All with pretty decent but not expensive prosumer tools. No P2’s, Raid array, mega SDI capture box, ect. just a hand-built pc and 5 prosumer AVCHD cameras.

“Good luck wasting your time without CS5!”
I meant the comment in the narrow specifics of the workflow you mentioned-[4 streams of footage going into the multicam viewer at 30-45 minutes long each] -if you have a workflow that requires importing your files and converting them to SD or realtime capturing DV, ect (like 4 cameras times 30minutes content) it would be much faster to just plug in SD cards and edit immediately. I assume you have cameras with AVCHD and aren’t just tape.

Sure its valid to learn other programs, but I’m not concerned with getting a job as an editor.

It would be nice if the multicam had a more than 4 camera option but I just scale the five down and view simultaneously while editing the duplicate tracks not scaled.

As far as stability, haven’t has an issue since using Premiere 6 and a matrox card nearly last century. However, I use dedicated OS drives (1 premiere only) (1 AE, Premiere, Photoshop), ect. and a system with only the editing software I need and don’t use the internet with the system. Since Premiere Pro 2 I haven’t had my computer crash, all with working on 3+ tracks of full HD of over 1hour length content.
The only thing was a little disappearing audio waveform here or there and sometimes a need to close and restart premiere to export a file properly (fixed with CS4).

T

[Eric Monroe]

Hey T,

I am blown away at how you can edit that length of HD footage and not have issues with native AVCHD. I have a Quad-core machine, running 8 gb of RAM, 10k velociraptor system (c:) drive, a raid zero for media/scratches, yet another 1tb drive for project files, GTX260 card like yours, and I cant budge AVCHD in the multicam viewer 4-up. and that’s only a couple minutes long each. My machine is a few years old, I just added some of those upgrades recently. Maybe the bus speeds aren’t there with my setup like machines that are newer…..who knows.

I am using FCP currently and for more than one reason, mainly cuz I wanna be well-rounded as an editor, I feel that I can learn from the way other NLE’s handle their workflow. I have learned quite a bit from the way that FCP does things, and it has helped me even in premiere workflows. I am not looking for a job either, I work full-time running my own business doing video production work, but ya just never know what can happen these days. I am extremely blessed right now, with more work than I can handle, but ya just nvr know what future holds. So if I have a wide skill set, at least I could go out there and be more usuable if I had to be.

I have a mac and a pc, so that is why I said FCP was cheaper, cuz I already own both. I was director of video for a large church for 3 years, before moving from there into doing my own stuff full-time. I had a really nice custom built quad-core machine with production premium CS3. Now I help out here and there at the church we currently attend, and I have access to a Mac Pro with the FCP Studio 3 on it. So I am gonna sit back and wait to see what happens, in the mean time, I will keep using my CS4, and the older FCP studio 2 that I have on my mac. Till I get a better feel for what kinda specs I need in a machine to run CS5. FCP has a pretty solid proxy editing workflow, and yes you do have to rewrap to prores, but it doesnt bother me, cuz I can set everythign to log and transfer while I am in bed, I get up the next morning, walk down to my studio, and I am ready to edit.

Have a great night!

[Anthony Miles]

Thanks for the great info and review of workflow. I am looking forward to having both and seeing how my working processes can advance, especially with a more inexpensive hardware. Also, hoping Apple is going to step up soon and meet adobe’s performance on the playing field.

Best regards,
Anthony Miles
DP, Editor 4th Wall Productions, LLC
https://4thwalltvandfilm.com

[Neil Myers]

Andy:

I, too use Premiere Pro with a similar rig. I used to crash a lot but once I upgraded to 12GB ram I stopped crashing almost completely. That may or may not be what is happening with you, but if you have 6GB or less of RAM that is one idea. FWIW.

Neil Myers
Connect Public Relations
CS4 Master Suite, 3DS

[Dennis Rafn]

“Why is that? Adobe production premium = $1699 FCS3 = $999 ”

Yaa MAC and FCP is so GOD like, so you dont need such stupid things as Photoshop, Ilustrator, AE…among others.

Premiere cost $799.

[Anthony Miles]

Not sure I understand your post, you sound frustrated with the Mac guys loving their Macs maybe I read it wrong. Anyway, I always have the latest Adobe CS suite specifically for Photoshop and I couldn’t live without it on my Mac and in my FCS workflow. It is way to valuable.

Best regards,
Anthony Miles
DP, Editor 4th Wall Productions, LLC
https://4thwalltvandfilm.com