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FCP6: Mix 1080i/720P on timeline? For real?
I will soon be starting the edit on a project with equal parts DVCPro HD 720p60 (from a Panasonic HVX200) and DVCPro 1080i60 (now on HDV tape, from a Sony Z1). Total of about 7 hours of footage. Release is SD.
Options as I see them:
1. Find somebody with a Kona 3 and cross-convert 1080i to 720p (Probably not possible given budget and time).
2. Have faith that FCP 6 with its mixed format timeline promises will help.
3. Downconvert everything to SD asap. (I can downconvert the 1080i from my Sony Z1 to SD during capture, leaving only the DVCPro HD 720p60 to downconvert. How do you recommend doing that?)
4. Cross-convert via software. Wait for ProRes422? Use Compressor to move 1080i60 to 720P60?Thanks for your patience with this old question; I’ve done the search but still don’t get it.
— Bob C
(2x3GHz dual core, 2 GB RAM MacPro, Kona LHe (NO access to a Kona 3), three internal 500 GB drives as RAID 0) -
9 Replies
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What will you be mastering to?
I say trust in FCP 6. I’ve seen it in action (at NAB) and it is very slick.
Shane
Littlefrog Post
http://www.lfhd.net -
[Shane Ross] “What will you be mastering to?”
SD. If I can edit in HD, I’ll make a HD QT file for future-proofing. The release for this year at least is SD on a DVD.
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Ah. I’d still go for the mixed media timeline. It looks like your Mac can handle it.
Shane
Littlefrog Post
http://www.lfhd.net -
I tried to get it out of an Apple rep at NAB how FCP6 actually deals with mixed frame rates in the same timeline and they couldn’t tell me. It probably won’t be a problem in your case as you have 60P and 60i and FCP6 should have a good way of dealing with that. The fact that FCP6 isn’t shipping yet might me more of an issue for you.
But if you had 60i, 24P, and 25, then I can guess that you’ll want to end up doing conversions the right way instead of just dropping them in a timeline and calling it good.
Until I can get some definate answers, I’d stick with either a cross-convert to HD or a down-convert to 29.97 SD using Compressor.
-Russ
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[Russell Lasson] “But if you had 60i, 24P, and 25, then I can guess that you’ll want to end up doing conversions the right way instead of just dropping them in a timeline and calling it good.”
To perform all of these conversions in realtime, you will need a very fast hard drive array, it’s that simple. And all of this will be realtime dynamic, meaning it will all have to be rendered prior to output. How that will look at output, i’m not sure until I see it. But as far as just editing, yes it absolutely does work the way it was shown in the demos, at least from what I saw at the show.
Walter Biscardi, Jr.
https://www.biscardicreative.com
HD Editorial & Animation for Food Network’s “Good Eats”
HD Editorial for “Assignment Earth”Read my blog! https://blogs.creativecow.net/WalterBiscardi
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For offline editing, this is going to be a lifesaver.
For finishing though, I’m really intersted to know how it changes the frame rate. If I have a 29.97 clip with a 2:3 pulldown in it and I drop it on a 24P timeline, will it detect the 2:3 pulldown or just remove 6 frames a second? Will it add a deinterlace filter?
I’m really of the opinion that it is really going to mess some people up when they start laying off masters? I can here it now, “I can’t figure out why the clip looks jumpy? Help me Creative Cow?” Discussions on 2:3 pulldown and other frame rate issues, while already quite popular topics, will become the most popular thread topics.
I’m not trying to be mean, but it will promote lazy and/or clueless editors to get into more trouble when they’re trying to deliver and their clients say, “Why doesn’t that clip look right?” Those editors won’t have a clue and they we get more “URGENT” posts on the cow.
There are plenty of editors that think they know enough to get the job done, but in reality, they know just enough to get into trouble.
I’m already starting to prepare a podcast on understanding frame rates and pulldowns as a preventitive measure.
-Russ
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I produce with DVCPRO-HD almost exclusively now. I’ve had to mix someone else’s HDV with my HD before. I captured as native HDV, then used Compressor to convert it to DVCPRO-HD. No problems.
You will have to do some grading, as the HDV and DVCPRO-HD color spaces are more different than you’d expect.
– Apple Certified Trainer
– Tutorials at http://www.bbalser.com
– South Louisiana FCP Users Group
– NOVAC Digital Filmmakers Institute
– Event DV magazine -
[bbalser] “I captured as native HDV, then used Compressor to convert it to DVCPRO-HD. No problems.”
Much easier to use a card like the AJA Kona 3 to do this in realtime in the future. We do this all the time. Just FYI.
Walter Biscardi, Jr.
https://www.biscardicreative.com
HD Editorial & Animation for Food Network’s “Good Eats”
HD Editorial for “Assignment Earth”Read my blog! https://blogs.creativecow.net/WalterBiscardi
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Well, when you have the luxury of a card, but if not, you use what you got. Conversion times in Compressor are not bad, though. I do find that capturing HDV as AIC cuts Compressor’s conversion time down significantly, too. But if I had the IOHD box, well…
– Apple Certified Trainer
– Tutorials at http://www.bbalser.com
– South Louisiana FCP Users Group
– NOVAC Digital Filmmakers Institute
– Event DV magazine
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