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Newbie workflow question with PPCC, SpeedGrade, noise reduction, multicam, …
Hi,
I’m pretty much a newbie at PP, but much of it is quite easy to grasp so far as I am a CC member and have used After Effects for a bit. Then again, I often wander out of my comfort zone and find that this is quite a different beast. 🙂
I am now tasked with turning 10 tapes of HDV (1080i) wedding footage into a BluRay disc. I want the final result to look better than a straight-from-tape home video. 🙂 Speeches, dances etc. were shot with two cameras, and they were at different angles and focusing on different things (usually one on the speaker, one on the bride and/or groom), so there is some room for editing into something more interesting than what you would have with a single camera. Worth to notice is that one camera was connected to the audio system via XLR, so I have very solid audio from speakers/music on that. The other camera used the on-board microphone for “room audio”, so it also has most of the audio from speakers etc., plus audience reactions etc.
Now, given that this is HDV, it starts out as 1440×1080, 25fps (I’m in Europe), pixel ratio 1.333333.
I want to do several things to the video, and here is the workflow I have worked out based on my very limited knowledge so far.
1. Capture video with Premiere Pro via Firewire. Organize related clips into bins.
2. Remove noise. Currently I’m thinking about purchasing Neat Video, as it is relatively affordable even for an amateur (I’m going to need the pro version). But I could simply be ignorant of better/cheaper alternatives. AFAIK, my CC membership doesn’t really offer anything in this department, at least not on that level.
3. Color grade/correct. I’ve taught myself the very basics of SpeedGrade, at least enough to “expand” the tonal range and add in some contrast.
4. Render out the results of pt. 1-3 as 1920x1080p 25fps video, probably using the Avid DNxHD codec.
5. Clean up audio using Audition (simply removing some noise from one of the cameras being moved and attached to tripod while filming).
6. Multicam editing. Use audio from both sources, mixing the “room audio” down a bit so the XLR input is strongest, but we still hear audience reactions. Also mix in still images from Powerpoint presentations that were used in several speeches.
7. Render the results in a format suitable for BluRay in maximum quality.
8. Install Encore CS6 and create BluRay project in there. Consider doing DVD project for old relatives with limited equipment.
Of course, there could be several huge weaknesses in my plan, because I am simply new at this. I want to do good, but I don’t have the skills or knowledge. So I’ve come up with several questions.
– At what point do I need to do anything in order to end up with 1920x1080p 25fps square pixels? Is it best to do that right after transfer from tape? Or at some other point in my pipeline?
– Should I do 2. and 3. in that order, or reverse it? Does it depend on the footage? Will color grading/correction simply bring out more noise to be removed, or is it better to remove it first then do CC later?
– I will end up with AT LEAST 3 hours of footage, probably more. Is there a definitive “THIS is the correct settings for the ultimate in image quality” for doing my renders in AME after finishing the sequences in PP?
– One of the speeches had to be split across two tapes – with two cameras, that means 4 video clips. The tape switch was offset so that no part of the speech was lost, but there is one part of the speech where it is covered only by camera A, then only by camera B. I will be able to create some markers to get this in sync, but is it simple to do this editing, given that A1 and B1 end at slighly different times, and that A2 and B2 start at slightly different times? The actual multicam editing part is under control.
– Am I right in assuming that since the tighter integration between PP and SG, once I do my grading and save the Premiere Project, there is absolutely no need to have SpeedGrade ever render anything?
– Is is possible/simple to do a BluRay project and also make it a DVD project, of course handling asset conversion to DVD resolution etc.? I don’t think it would kill me to do the project once for each platform, but it sucks if I do that and then start needing to make changes in two places to keep them in sync. I’ve read the unimpressive reasons why Encore isn’t in CC, but what is really the alternative for those of us that need to produce physical media with menus and stuff?
– In addition to the native audio, I need to add english subtitles for some of the foreign guests attending. Is this best done in Premiere Pro, Encore, or somewhere else?
That’s the issues I remember right now. Any help with any of them would be highly appreciated!
Thanks and best regards,
Rune Jacobsen
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