Final cut video question

[Shane Ross]

Why aren’t you using Final Cut Express to import the footage. It works with AVCHD and HDV… OH what camera type was this shot with? What Sony HD Camera? Model? What format does it shoot? FCE supports a few handycam formats.

Shane

GETTING ORGANIZED WITH FINAL CUT PRO DVD…don’t miss it.
Read my blog, Little Frog in High Def

[Jason Brown]

[Miguel Quintero] “seeing as how i only have the dvd and not the original source video.”

Your post was a bit confusing…you mention a handycam, but you don’t have access to that original footage?

If your footage is in DVD specification (VIDEO_TS) folder structure…then you are now dealing with Standard Def video…possibly anamorphic (16×9) or letterboxed 4×3.

A good free program to turn DVD footage into “editable” format, like ProRes or NTSC-DV is MPEG Streamclip.

https://www.squared5.com/

It requires a bit of knowledge of what you have, so you can convert it appropriately…do some reading around here on Creative Cow…this comes up often.

[Rafael Amador]

Nothing that you can do with HandBrake.
Give more info about your footage and fallow Shane’s advice.
rafael

http://www.nagavideo.com

[Miguel Quintero]

Because I do not have the camera. Just the DVD with the captured footage.

[Miguel Quintero]

No I do not have the camera with the footage in/on it. Just a DVD with the captured video.

You are right, “standard def”…I guess I cant really save the HD quality it was shot in, which is fine, I just want to be able to make the darn thing into a file FCE will recognize so I can start editing.

I downloaded the program you told me, but it said I dont have some mpeg2 plugin and that it costs $20 from Apple?!? Do I really need this, can you tell me how to do it without this? Is it free somewhere?

[Ryan Foregger]

Adding on to what Jason said, if you have, as I read in your post, just a dvd of the footage, use Mpeg streamclip.

Put your dvd in and copy the Video_TS folder to your hard drive (converting off the dvd takes forever)

Open the Video_TS folder and sort by file size. Drag the largest .VOB file into mpeg streamclip. If it ask you if you want to open the stream as a dvd, choose no. You should be able to see your clip in the streamclip viewer.

Choose FILE>EXPORT TO QUICKTIME from the menu bar.

You get a movie exporter settings box. Change your settings to:
Compression Apple Pro Res, (Apple Intermediate Codec if you want a smaller file size)
Quality 100%
Sound Uncompressed
FrameSize: Unscaled. You have some options here if you know what you want, but if you don’t know, go with unscaled and you’ll get what you already have.
Leave Frame Rate empty
Deselect Interlaced Scaling and Reinterlace Chroma

Click “Make movie”

It will create a quicktime you can bring into your editing software.

There may be other VOB’s you’ll need to convert to get the whole program. Repeat the process with the largest VOBs, once they get under 1MB, they’re not the files you need.

[Miguel Quintero]

Ok, thank you so much for the clear detailed instructions.

Two questions
1. “Apple Pro Res” was not in the list of compression settings, so I chose Apple Intermediate Codec
Why was it not there?

2.After I chose everything like you instructed it said I need to buy a mpeg 2 something??

[Ryan Foregger]

I’m guessing if your only have FCP Express, it explains both your points. I’ve never had FCP Express, I have the full version but Pro Res Codec probably is not avail with FCP Express. Not super important.

This mpg2 component is probably the deal breaker. It comes with FCP Studio so you’d have to buy it separately from Apple to make this work. I don’t think there is a way around that.

Sorry