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Ingesting RED in FCP vs Adobe
Hey all,
I’m revising a post-production workflow for RED footage shot at 4k raw (4096×2034) 1080i23.98, and one of my producers keeps telling me we should be cutting in Premiere because he heard it handles all the footage completely raw with no issues, no rendering, etc. It seems crazy to me and I don’t believe it, but he keeps insisting that an A.C. in the field showed him it. The idea of switching from FCP to any other program but Avid boggles my mind, but I was wondering if anyone had any experience with this in Premiere?
We have previously been using an outside company to handle all our media (converting the raw footage down to ProRes LT 4:2:2) and the idea is to cut out the middle man. I’m told that using RED CINE-X software we can accomplish the same in-house, but I figure there must be a laundry list of pros and cons that one can only learn from a trial by fire.
Any and all wisdom would be greatly appreciated!
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7 Replies
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Well, the new Avid Media Composer 5.5 (and 5.0, and 5.1) edit RED RAW too. Need some fast drives though.
Shane
GETTING ORGANIZED WITH FINAL CUT PRO DVD…don’t miss it.
Read my blog, Little Frog in High Def -
Premiere Pro CS5 does handle RED media natively and also has a flexible playback system so you don’t need a massive RAID system to play it back. In case you hadn’t figured it out, yes, I am an Adobe guy…
Here is the RED settings inside of Premiere Pro (or After Effects):
Here is a way to bring down the playback resolution in the program monitor:
As others will say, how you work with RED is a choice and a decision on based on what you need to do and who you will work with. Good luck with whatever you do.
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In the Avid you can adjust the playback as well…to all YELLOW meaning lower quality. And it will work there too.
I choose edit systems not based on what formats they work with natively, but on what I need to do. I can’t see using Premiere for long form, but if it is short form, I might jump on it. Plus comfort level. I am fast on an Avid and FCP, not with Premiere. SO if time is an issue, hope you have time to learn Premiere to feel comfortable.
Shane
GETTING ORGANIZED WITH FINAL CUT PRO DVD…don’t miss it.
Read my blog, Little Frog in High Def -
[Shane Ross] ” I can’t see using Premiere for long form”
For our users, this is where the 64-bit native application with lots of memory has come in spades.
As you said, it’s what you’re comfortable with…
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The conversion to ProRes LT that you get done elsewhere can be done in-house. Third party apps like Clipfinder and judicious settings on a fast machine can get you conversion near real time.
Regarding working in Avid native, with import via AMA, this works fine if your system and drives are fast. And clips are few and sequences short.
On long form work, with thousands of clips, and where making an AAF/OMF/EDL in the end is needed, conversion is often inevitable. I’ve seen issues particularly with 24fps in PAL which make conversion (transcode) in the end inescapable. And if you have anything else in your timeline – film, video, Canon etc – then conversion is advisable.
But, as with these things, someone else’s experience, as indeed your own, may be different. Therefore it’s YMMV.
As for working with Premiere Pro just because it allows native format editing, I’d recommend getting. Trial version of Premiere Pro and actually editing in it to gauge how comfortable you are in that app and how well you can edit in it. Else, whatever time you save in not converting will quickly be offset by a longer time in the edit process.
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Neil Sadwelkar
neilsadwelkar.blogspot.com
twitter: fcpguru
FCP Editor, Edit systems consultant
Mumbai India -
Obviously personal preference, comfort level, compatibility with the industry, client comfort, etc are all big factors. But I think Premiere is, on average, equal to FCP, there is no sacrifice there. Premiere has come a long long way from years ago, and in some ways its workflow is faster than FCP. I doubt in your situation switching NLEs is a good option, but I hate to see people treat PPro as something greatly inferior. It’s a Robust solution particularly if you edit on your own and don’t need to interface with other edit facilities. Just my 2c. (Nothing against FCP, we use both, they’re both great systems).
Scott Rucci
Rucci Productions
ruccipro.com -
Forgot to mention, I shoot RED footage, have edited in PPro a lot and really like the way it handles the RED raw files.
Scott Rucci
Rucci Productions
ruccipro.com
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