-
FCPX metadata–how significant is it? And why?
-
My contention, Walter is that since metadata is actually nothing more or less than TEXT with positional data in the form of OTHER text elements (Tabs, CR’s et al) in a simple serial stream, it just stands to reason that the data will be accessible in the long run.
Even if someone has to write a small script or program to extract it.
After all, what would be the point of making it INACCESSIBLE?
It’s not like the average FCP-X meta-data user is going to fill up his or her TAG database with credit card numbers! I just don’t see Apple trying to hide TAG data text behind block cyphers or the like.
Makes no sense.
FWIW.
“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor
-
Particularly evil if you have a camera button battery go bad and find it’s internal clock tagged a clip as having been created in 1969!
(I have a project with a clip exactly like that right now – and it’s annoying as hell!)
This is clearly something that needs to be revisited.
“Before speaking out ask yourself whether your words are true, whether they are respectful and whether they are needed in our civil discussions.”-Justice O’Connor
-
[Jeremy Garchow] “The GPS requires a chip on the camera, and the camera has to have the capability”
No, I know. I’ve got a little Sony HD HandyCam that I take hiking/backpacking. It has such a thing, but I haven’t been able to make much use of it. Maybe I’ll play with it a bit this weekend and see what it does with the data.
-
[Bill Davis] “My contention, Walter is that since metadata is actually nothing more or less than TEXT with positional data in the form of OTHER text elements (Tabs, CR’s et al) in a simple serial stream, it just stands to reason that the data will be accessible in the long run. Even if someone has to write a small script or program to extract it. After all, what would be the point of making it INACCESSIBLE?”
I have argued for openness in FCPX every chance I’ve gotten. There is no point in making the system closed, but opening it up does require some intention and expenditure of development resources by Apple.
As shown by maybe dozens of small examples throughout FCPX, just because a feature may be both important to users and relatively easy for developers doesn’t mean it will be implemented any time soon (or maybe ever).
It’s also not in Apple’s interest to make it easy for you to move to another DAM or NLE. Apple’s other database-driven pro app, Aperture, doesn’t have an “export database” feature.
My original question was this: is the metadata open? Of course I think it should be, and of course it could be, but it seems at the moment that the answer is no.
Walter Soyka
Principal & Designer at Keen Live
Motion Graphics, Widescreen Events, Presentation Design, and Consulting
RenderBreak Blog – What I’m thinking when my workstation’s thinking
Creative Cow Forum Host: Live & Stage Events -
[Chris Harlan] “Not that I was ready to pony up [for Symphony], but any lingering thoughts I had in that direction have pretty much been quelled.”
I’m taking the DS demo for a spin, but I’m having a hard time figuring out how serious Avid is about the product, and I don’t want to buy in unless there are going to be some major updates soon. (My concerns there mirror my concerns about Apple and FCPX). The Autodesk marketing juggernaut makes Smoke look much more appealing, while Avid marketing seems to not know that DS exists.
Bringing finishing back to metadata, does anyone know how FCPXML handles auditions? Are the alternate takes exposed to Resolve (and someday Smoke), or would versioning with auditions require multiple exports?
Walter Soyka
Principal & Designer at Keen Live
Motion Graphics, Widescreen Events, Presentation Design, and Consulting
RenderBreak Blog – What I’m thinking when my workstation’s thinking
Creative Cow Forum Host: Live & Stage Events -
[Christian Schumacher] “The caveat with “Compound Clips” is that they increasingly bloat your project file further in time, as you create them. Not good. If you’re using it, you should know it. But it will get better, huh?”
So what? This happens with every single video application I use today. The more stuff, the more bloat.
This doesn’t scare me, it’s just what happens. You can expect to take on 4 tons of water and not feel the weight.
-
[Walter Soyka] “However, today, reel ID is still important (though not always meaningful) across many workflows”
Absolutely. I think the way MXF4mac has implemented it is very smart. It points to a file, not a file’s location or container. The file could be anywhere in any container (folder not media container).
[Walter Soyka] “This is a recurring theme in my frustration with FCPX. Apple made a clean break from existing technologies and standards to focus on their vision of what post production ought to look like.”
Yes. And they released it too early, or did they? They knew this thing was going to be a new venture. They new it was going to be full of bugs and holes as they don’t beta test. So in this sense, since the people that are using it now are beta testing, the little island they have created is necessary. Otherwise it would be sure bedlam if everything were turned on and even more busted and not working. I also think they have to wait for certain OS features to be in place, but that’s my optimism talking again, and who knows FCPX may never get there. But when I look at things like the sheer amount of metadata that’s in there, those aren’t amateur features. So, I can only think that something more will come of it. If not, there’s other options. I still use FCS3 everyday for my regular work.
[Walter Soyka] “Apple can’t just declare things like EDLs and reel IDs big bags of hurt, ignore them (even if they offer new alternatives like FCPXML), and still keep their market share and mind share.”
I totally agree, it’s not a very smart move.
But let’s look at the capability they do give you. You can import DSLR h264 movies, which have no tc/reel. You can import from a camera archive like P2/AVCHD and the “reel” and tc come in to the files (Reel is the folder name in this case, just like FCP7). And then they have a Camera Import SDK for other formats. I haven’t seen anything released in hat regard yet, so maybe it’s not quite all the way functional. For the rest, there’s an extensive batch naming system that works really well and really fast. So it’s there, but not quite “there” if you know what I mean. I think all the pieces are in place, it just sucks it had to be released in this state, whatever the reason.
-
[Bill Davis] “This is clearly something that needs to be revisited.”
You can modify the creation date and change that. Has to be done outside of FCPX, though.
-
[Walter Soyka] “BMD, on the other hand, is thinking about selling conform and color to Avid editors”
And premiere, and FCP7, and FCPX after capture card support, and windows versions for those apps….
and whatever else that comes along.
-
[Chris Harlan] “I’ve got a little Sony HD HandyCam that I take hiking/backpacking. “
Does it record to AVCHD or what format does it record?
Reply to this Discussion! Login or Sign Up