[Michael Hutchinson]

Thanks Brent! Do you think CS5 will work or does it have to be CS6 because I have the CS5 media encoder, just haven’t used it. Will let you know how it works out because you’re absolutely right about compressor. I’ve always known it had a terrible interface, and even though the new Compressor is faster than previous versions, it’s still pretty slow (faster to transcode in VLC).

I’ll think about shooting in 720p. Problem is some of what I’m shooting may be broadcast bound, so I’d like to have those extra pixels for source files. YouTube says it accepts 1080p, but after as many failed uploads as I’ve been having, I’m beginning to have my doubts.

Since YouTube is basically serving as a reference video, I wonder if it would be quicker if I compressed to 720p though.

If you have any other thoughts please let me know.

Much appreciation,
Michael

Michael David Hutchinson

“That most limited of all specialists, the well-rounded man.”–F. Scott Fitzgerald ‘The Great Gatsby’

[Michael Hutchinson]

Thank you Bob! Exactly what I needed. I’m going to create a Compressor Droplet based off what I find. If anybody wants it, let me know and I’ll create a public dropbox link.

Michael David Hutchinson

“That most limited of all specialists, the well-rounded man.”–F. Scott Fitzgerald ‘The Great Gatsby’

[Michael Hutchinson]

Hi Walter,
After further research, I’ve come to the same conclusion. It was almost difficult to do a compare/contrast chart because it’s so different from any other products I’ve seen. And Final Cut Server just seems too bulky. CatDV would have saved hours on the project that is currently being completed. Hopefully CatDV will make the post-production workflow on the next project a ton easier.
–Hutch

Michael David Hutchinson
“That most limited of all specialists, the well-rounded man.”–F. Scott Fitzgerald ‘The Great Gatsby’

[Michael Hutchinson]

Many thanks Rolf. I did some further research and it really looks like CatDV is the way to go. Seems like FCP Server is really for workflow organization and you definitely need someone to customize it for your particular workflow if it’s to be effective.

I’m thinking that the best product would be something that’s simple enough to train an assistant editor to use in less than an hour so he/she can log and pull clips. This seems to be one of the many advantages to CatDV that I haven’t really been able to find elsewhere (short of going the old fashioned, excel spreadsheet way).

I also looked at Adobe’s On Location and was pretty unimpressed. Seems like if you’ve done enough pre-planning to log your shots in the field, all you really need is a decent naming convention. Not ideal for anything on the fly. Not sure what the next projects will be, but the one that is just being finished now was multicam and required a lot of post-production organization during the editing process. Story lines had to be developed after the shoot, so no way to arrange the actual media files into acts/categories prior to editing.

I keep wondering how many headaches could have been avoided if the footage had been logged in CatDV.

Thanks again,
Hutch
I keep wondering how much time would have been saved if we’d have just

Michael David Hutchinson
“That most limited of all specialists, the well-rounded man.”–F. Scott Fitzgerald ‘The Great Gatsby’

[Michael Hutchinson]

I thought that might be the best way…the standard settings just look so terrible to me…then again, so did the footage from O’ Brother before digital mastering. But do the factory settings with a -4 black bring the most possible data back for rendering?

Michael David Hutchinson
“That most limited of all specialists, the well-rounded man.”–F. Scott Fitzgerald ‘The Great Gatsby’

[Michael Hutchinson]

Thanks Craig! I actually stumbled across these tutorials earlier…will watch again…and then probably again ad infinitum or until by some miracle I “get it”.

Michael David Hutchinson
“That most limited of all specialists, the well-rounded man.”–F. Scott Fitzgerald ‘The Great Gatsby’

[Michael Hutchinson]

Thanks Brian! I’ve spent the last couple hours on the picture profile recipes thread at DVinfo and am more confused than ever. Definitely just going to try to capture as much of the image as possible and then correct in post…Any chance you could post your settings for a flat image?

Michael David Hutchinson
“That most limited of all specialists, the well-rounded man.”–F. Scott Fitzgerald ‘The Great Gatsby’

[Michael Hutchinson]

Switched to 32-bit and with Bryson’s help got a fully functioning trial version. Problem solved as it seems to be running beautifully! Now I’m just reading the manuals to see all the different features CatDV offers and how best to integrate it into my workflow … just happened to receive an unexpected check for $300 and take a wild guess where I’m going to invest that money 😉

Awesome product! Many, many thanks for the advice and help.

–mdh

Michael David Hutchinson
“That most limited of all specialists, the well-rounded man.”–F. Scott Fitzgerald ‘The Great Gatsby’

[Michael Hutchinson]

Forgive the 2001 cliche, but you are indeed the man.
–mdh

Michael David Hutchinson
“That most limited of all specialists, the well-rounded man.”–F. Scott Fitzgerald ‘The Great Gatsby’

[Michael Hutchinson]

You guys are great! Based on the help I’ve received here alone, I’m confident I’ll purchase the product … still want to give it a proper try though. How do I get you my details?
–mdh

Michael David Hutchinson
“That most limited of all specialists, the well-rounded man.”–F. Scott Fitzgerald ‘The Great Gatsby’