PP CS3 deinterlace option for export to tape

[Eric Jurgenson]

HDV decks can’t record progressive except as “segmented frame” (interlaced progressive frames). So if you didn’t shoot progressive in camera, your only option would be to deinterlace on the timeline, which will look like crap since deinterlacing in post cuts your vertical resolution in half.

Bottom line: If you want progressive, shoot progressive. Don’t attempt to do it in post. If you do shoot progressive, edit it in an interlaced project if you want to export to tape, and progressive if you want to export to film. The progressive (or as some call it: “flickery”) look will be maintained in an interlaced project.

[Noam Eshel]

Hey Eric,

Thank you for your fast response.
Unfortunately I had to bring back the deck to the store. I can rent it again soon but first I would like to be sure that I understand my problem and that I can solve it.

My camera man doesn’t know exactly if it was shot in Progressive or not.
So I tried the following:
I opened a new Project HDV 1080p25, instead of my old one {1080i25 (50i)}.
In this Project the field is set on Progressive. There my footage appears interlaced in the workflow monitor, but deinterlaced (Progressive) on the output monitor in the Adobe Media Encoder, *without using the deinterlaced function there.

So my questions are:
1. If that means, according to the aforementioned, that my material was shot in Progressive?
2. And if yes, can I Export it to tape without meeting technical Problems?
3. Just for future editing (I understood that it looks very bad and that it cuts my resolution), but still as I said for general Knowledge, I would like to know, how do I Apply the deinterlace option on the Timeline in PPCS3?

Thanks again, you have helped me already a lot.

Noam

[Eric Jurgenson]

1) I don’t think you will be able to export to HDV from a progressive timeline (project). The deck won’t accept it.

2) To check if your footage is shot in progressive, load a clip with a lot of motion into the source viewer, export a frame (with fast movement) from the source viewer, and open it in Photoshop. If you see interlacing artifacts on moving objects), it is interlaced. If it is just blurred (on movement), it was shot progressive. Properties in Premiere will show interlace regardless, since that’s how it was captured.

3) Bottom line: Edit in an interlaced project regardless (unless you are printing to film, which is highly unlikely).

4) To deinterlace in Premiere, right click on a clip and go to field options. For better results, use After Effects (Smart Deinterlace).

[Eric Jurgenson]

Create as new sequence and place the original sequence icon (from the project window) into it. Now your original sequence is one big clip.