keeping h264 (5d original media) AND prores (high quality transcoded) files????

[Bill Davis]

Which way to you want us to consider this?

Exclusively a matter of space?
Space and safety?
Space,safety and project portability?
Space, safety, project portability and collaborative workflows?

How you set up your workflow is as different as how you prepare to go for a hike.

Some folks walk out the door and are OK with no prep other than a pair of shorts and some good hiking boots.

Others appreciate having a nice long checklist that insures that they can survive and thrive in lots of potentially adverse conditions.

I will note, however that with storage space so amazingly cheap these days – I can’t find much sense in not saving my camera master images. Since there’s no way I can know if the data I toss out in something like a ProRes conversion is something that I someday might wish I still had.

YMMV.

“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

[David Eaks]

FWIW, I keep a 2TB LaCie D2 Quadra 100% dedicated to only original camera card backups. I’ll transcode to Prores from this drive to my Media Drives. Adds an extra layer of redundancy to keep this drive of card backups “on the side” as well as normal working drives and backup. If keeping these files even might be important for paid work, there is no excuse for not buying more storage. As Bill mentioned, storage is not expensive.

Unless I’m confused, the original media isn’t in the proxy folder. Did you do both Optimize and Create Proxy? If so, you now have 3 versions of your video eatin up hard drive space. I still use FCP 7 Log and Transfer to create Prores, FCP X Optimize seems so slow (on my 2008 8-core)!

[Loren Risker]

Working with limited space seriously constrains your workflows and can slow everything down. However, it’s a constant reality, so here’s how I deal with it:

1) Never delete original footage. I take my archiving very seriously, and the thought of deleting source video to me is insane.

2) Delete in this order when you need space – proxy, high quality renders, optimized footage.

Proxy can be regenerated pretty quickly, as can high quality renders. Optimized is a bigger job and those files are more immediately useful.

If you’re really in a pinch, you can safely delete all 3 of them immediately, then when you need it again just convert exactly what you need and have it run over night or while you’re doing something else.

My thinking is, you can never get the source footage back once you delete it, everything else can be regenerated.

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OutOfFocus.TV – Music videos, docs, entertainment.

[Liesbeth Jongkind]

Thanks, Loren!
This was really usefull for me,
Liesbeth

[Bret Williams]

What are your system specs? FCP X is completely capable of operating normally with h264 footage. No need to convert to pro res potentially. But if you have an older system or a lasser graphics card you might want to use pro res. Why don’t you try that first? Takes up much less space, and you’re not gaining any quality by going to Pro Res.

[Ed Sayers]

thanks for all these responses

my system spec is:

macbook pro 15 inch late 2011
2.5ghz intel core i7
8gb 1333 mhz ddr3
intel hd graphics 3000 512mb
mac os x lion 10.7.4

latest fcpx including most recent updates

thoughts welcome!

thanks