[Ivan Myles]

[Evan Thompson] “I also downloaded and installed the DNxHD codec you linked to, but it doesn’t seem to have done anything; I don’t see a DNxHD format in Premiere Pro…”

When exporting, select:
– Format: QuickTime
– Video Codec: DNxHD
– Click the Codec Settings button to choose the appropriate variant and set Color Level to RGB

[Ivan Myles]

I agree with Tim’s recommendation to edit the source H.264 footage. But if you choose to create intermediate files, apply the Fast Color Corrector effect to the source H.264 footage and change output levels to 16-235 prior to rendering with DNxHD. This will ensure you preserve the full range of luma and chroma data (although some fidelity will be lost in the transcode). Alternatively, use a 422 YUV codec instead. Please refer to this post for additional information.

[Ivan Myles]

In older versions of Creative Suite the H.264 encoder wasn’t very good. CS4 was either right before or during the transition period. Test the H.264 encoder by rendering a short clip at maximum quality. On your main sequence adjust the work area bar above the timeline to only about 1-2 seconds of footage, preferably in an area where the quality was poor when previously encoded.

Export the work area as H.264:
– On the bottom of the left window in the export panel, set the Source Range to Work Area
– Format: H.264
– Preset: Custom
– Profile: High
– Level: 5.1
– Verify that TV Standard, Frame Width, Frame Height, Frame Rate, Field Order, and Pixel Aspect Ratio are the same as the sequence
– Bitrate Encoding: VBR, 2 pass
– Target Bitrate: Max
– Maximum Bitrate: Max
– Under Advanced Settings, set Key Frame Distance to 1
– Click OK to encode
– Import the encoded file to Premiere and insert in on the timeline on a track above the current work area
– Toggle the new track on and off and compare individual frames to the original video

These export settings are the best that Premiere can produce, so you should consider other options if the rendered file is still not satisfactory. Also, does the video contain quick changes or high motion? If so, it might be taxing the encoder.

Here are some other codec choices:

– Export from Premiere Pro using MPEG2. This is a good encoder that produces attractive video at high frame rates. The codec requires licensing fees if you plan to distribute the video.

– Download and install the DNxHD codec and use it to export your video from Premiere Pro. You can play the DNxHD file in QuickTime on computers that have the codec installed, but if you want to distribute the file to other people it should be transcoded. Use QuickTime Pro to convert the DNxHD file to H.264/MP4 or H.264/MOV.

– Export an intermediate file from Premiere Pro with either QuickTime PNG or QuickTime JPEG2000. Use QuickTime Pro to transcode the intermediate file to H.264/MP4 or H.264/MOV. Alternatively, download Expression Encoder 4 to produce a VC-1/WMV file.

[Ivan Myles]

What codec and export settings are you using?

[Ivan Myles]

The concern is not with sampling so much as color space. YCC allows luma and chroma values outside the RGB boundaries. Upon transcoding to DNxHD any values beyond 0-100 IRE will be remapped to the RGB limits. The result is a loss of detail that cannot be recovered during color correction. It is worth checking whether ProRes exhibits the same behavior.

Here is a sample H.264 source file with a very bright sky. The photo shows the mid-right portion of the shot. Note how the Y-curve extends beyond 100 IRE.

When transcoding to DNxHD, PNG, JPEG2k, “None” or other non-YUV codecs, luma and chroma values are truncated at the RGB limits.

The details are lost and cannot be recovered. Here is the transcoded DNxHD clip with output levels set to 16-235 using the Fast Color Corrector.

By comparison, Here is a 422 YUV intermediate file with output levels set to 16-235. Note the Y and RGB values between 90-100.

[Ivan Myles]

[Ryan Holmes] “There are several good reasons to transcode to a mezzanine codec like DNxHD or ProRes”

I don’t know about ProRes, but one consideration with DNxHD is that the H.264 Y’CbCr values get remapped during the transcode. IMO recolorization is a little easier when luma and chroma data is maintained. Source files or YUV intermediate codecs are better in this regard.

[Ivan Myles]

Which Blackmagic codec were you using? I have been looking for info on the BMD 10-bit 4:4:4. I originally thought it was YCC, but the rendered output looks converted to RGB.

[Ivan Myles]

The effect could be created using color correction tools. For example, increase gain with the Luma Corrector, or use the Fast Color Corrector to decrease input white level and change the color balance or hue angle.

The effect can be applied to a clip by using keyframes to toggle the changes on and off. Alternatively, create a copy of the clip you want to flash and insert it above the original clip on the timeline. Apply the effects to the copy, then trim and/or use the extract tool to leave only a few “flashed” images a few frames apart from each other.

[Ivan Myles]

[Frank Cervarich] “I notice that the mp4 that I get out of Premiere Pro does not play well on a Quicktime player”

Use the master file to render H.264 MP4 using QuickTime Pro.

[Ivan Myles]

Recommend H.264 with AAC audio at 320 kbps for web distribution. You might need to render multiple versions depending on requirements. Consider submitting high bitrate video to sites that re-render.

There are a few options for mastering. Commonly used codecs include ProRes, DNxHQ, PNG, and uncompressed RGBA (compressor = “None”). The QuickTime uncompressed 422 and AVI V210 YUV codecs maintain luma and chroma information, which is helpful if you need to make color corrections at a later date. (I’m not sure about ProRes, but the other codecs convert to RGB during encoding.) 10-bit varieties are preferred.