HDV, 7D and RED on the same timeline FCP

Apple Final Cut Pro Legacy

HDV, 7D and RED on the same timeline FCP

Posted by Marty Dale on June 27, 2011 at 9:19 am

Hi Guys,

I have a project that is 80% HDV (canon XH L1), 15% 7D, 5% RED (title sequence).

The footage has been captured like so:

HDV (HDV 25p Easy set up codec)

7D (Apple Pro Res HQ)

RED (As a full res 4096 x 2304) exported file from After Effects.

The final export will be a 1920 x 1080 file using Blackmagic 1080i Uncompressed 10 bit codec (this will then be dubbed to HDCAM, from which an SD Digi will be made- need both).

My question is that what is the best timeline settings to use (and does it make any difference?)

Currently the sequence is in the HDV 25p Easyset up as that is what the majority of the footage is. The 7D footage is being squashed into 1440 x 1080 (correct me if I’m wrong!).

Likewise the Red Footage is at about 43%.

WEould I be better in an Apple Pro Res 1920x 1080 timeline, i.e. the 7D would be at 100% no distort, the HDV blown up to fit.

When exporting to uncompressed HD does it make a difference if you have upscaled HDV (to a 1920 timeline) or squashed 1920 to a 1440 timeline?

Your help is very much appreciated in advance!

Martin

PS I am on a Quad Core FCP 6.

Marty Dale replied 15 years, 1 month ago 2 Members · 3 Replies
3 Replies

Steve Eisen
June 27, 2011 at 11:46 pm

This sounds like a project for FCP X.

Pro Res is a better choice than 10 bit uncompressed. Much, much, much smaller file size and same quality.

Steve Eisen
Eisen Video Productions
Vice President
Chicago Final Cut Pro Users Group
Marty Dale
June 28, 2011 at 7:25 am

Hi steve,

thanks for the reply.

Any idea on the actual timeline issue?

thanks

Martin
Marty Dale
June 28, 2011 at 7:56 am

Just stumbled across this on the Apple website: (I think either is fine then?)

Which media attributes can safely differ from the sequence settings?
The following clip characteristics can differ from those of the sequence without causing problems.

Codec: You can freely mix clips using any codecs that are compatible with Final Cut Pro, as long as their frame rates, interlacing, and frame size are appropriate to the sequence. However, keep in mind that some broadcasters have specific requirements about what percentage of a program can use source footage in a highly compressed digital format such as HDV or AVCHD.

Aspect ratio: Final Cut Pro lets you mix footage with different aspect ratios (for example, mixing footage with 3:4 and 16:9 aspect ratios), including anamorphic footage. Depending on the combination of sequence and media frame sizes, Final Cut Pro automatically letterboxes (places horizontal bars at the top and bottom of the screen) or pillarboxes (places vertical bars at the left and right of the screen) clips as necessary to fit them into the available width and height of the frame.

Bit depth: You can mix clips with any bit depth Final Cut Pro supports. Typical bit depths for video include 8-bit and 10-bit.
Frame size: If you set the Motion Filtering Quality pop-up menu (in the Video Processing tab of the Sequence Settings window) to Best, the scaling in Final Cut Pro is sufficient for modest enlargements and for shrinking higher-resolution clips down to smaller frame sizes. This means you’re in good shape if you’re editing HD clips into an SD sequence, as long as the frame rate and interlacing match all the other clips. However, if you’re editing SD clips into an HD sequence, you may want to consider using Compressor to upscale your media for the best results, as described later in this section.

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