Resolve 12b3; fine PC but slow with 4k and hundreds of mask keyframes ???

[Marc Wielage]

What if you avoid the keyframes and do the tracking in the tracking window?

I generally don’t run with more than 6 or 7 windows, but I hit that quite often if I run into a complicated scene. I’m using the tracking keyframer far more often than I do the regular keyframe window, and find the tracker is reliable enough that I can usually let the automatic control track the area, then go back in and do (at most) 4 or 5 manual (frame) tweaks and it’s dead on.

I generally only use the regular keyframing window for color dynamics and PTZR dynamics, and in some cases to turn windows or layers off and on.

You may want to try an alternate way to approach the scene and see if it produces less “stress” to the system, in an effort to get real-time performance back. Sometimes, a simpler approach may wind up being more effective.

[Peter Chamberlain]

You don’t mention the timeline length or number of clips but It sounds like you are adding 100s of key frames to the one clip, which is your complete timeline.
If so, don’t. Split the clip into individual scenes and use windows and the tracker with window shape changes in frame mode on the tracker palette.

Also, set your timeline resolution to HD. You can reset it later.

[Michael Mccune]

Right. These are changes I have been trying. That is, smaller clip lengths and an HD timeline, not 4k. Also, it seems that the latest 12.01 version improves memory management. Memory seems to climb–viewed using Windows Process Explorer–until the entire 32GB is used. So I save before that point and restart Resolve. Interesting in that this still takes a minute or two after Resolve quits for the “committed” ram to fall back to a normal level of about 6-8 GB.

Overall seems to be working better.

Question: for this simple case of tracking a single face in an interview format–for the simple purpose of lifting the face light levels slightly–would you use, as I have been using, a simple elliptical shape with feathering or would you use a more precise but certainly more demanding bezier-based shape??? Do you find that one tends to track better for this simple purpose??? The face of the subject does move from full left profile to full right profile, which is when the tracking needs a little help.

There seem to be few tutorials on Resolve tracking. Even Lynda.com. A couple of editing training sites may include this subject in their videos but that is not clear from their descriptions.

Thanks again,
Mike

[Marc Wielage]

[Michael McCune] “would you use, as I have been using, a simple elliptical shape with feathering or would you use a more precise but certainly more demanding bezier-based shape?”

It depends. A lot will hinge on how much difference there is between foreground and background, and how hard you’re hitting the face in terms of light. I will occasionally use multiple windows — one around the person’s body to bring the background down, and another window just on the face to lighten and/or sharpen it — in order to pull the person forward into the frame. But it all depends on the lighting of the source material.

When you’re trying to work fast, sometimes simple is better, and a basic oval will work fine… particularly if you have 600 shots to get done in 8 hours. If it’s a :30 second commercial where you have 4-5 hours with clients, then you can have a custom shape with 17 Bezier curves on it and go crazy. I haven’t seen any performance difference with different shapes, and I tend to draw custom shapes frequently unless I’m in a big hurry.