[Mick Haensler]

[Mark Suszko] “Thanks, Mick, er, I guess, for the compliment that you read my post all the way through. Do you usually just read, like, the first word of every sentence, looking for codes or something? 🙂 “

I’m jes pokin’ a lil’ fun Mark. I am in complete agreement with your sentiments concerning the value of PEG stations.

Mick Haensler
Higher Ground Media

[Mick Haensler]

Hey Mark

For once, I read your entire post!! This topic is near and dear to my heart. Before digital workflow and computers came along, I had given up on video production as a viable means to make a living. Then I got asked by a friend of mine to help with a production for our local PEG channel. Working on that program rekindled the fire and introduced me to digital video production. That was 8 years ago. Today I have a small but successful multimedia production company. I owe a lot to PEG.

This channel is also in a battle because our local government will not stand up to Comcast and demand the fees that they are due, according to their contract, to fund the channel. Not only that, but there is a power struggle now between the station’s management and the council over who will govern the workings of the channel. Interestingly enough, you will not hear much about this on the local news stations or in the paper. The only outlets that are carrying it are the blogs and the PEG channel.

While I am not fond of the way the station is run or being represented right now, I feel it is an important part of the local fabric worth preserving.

Mick Haensler
Higher Ground Media

[Mick Haensler]

[Neil Weaver] “To Mike Haensler – I can assure you we have done everything in our power to keep this client happy “

No you haven’t. If what you say is true, the only thing that will make this client happy is to give them EVERYTHING for free!!

AND DAMMIT PEOPLE, MY NAME IS MICK…..NOT MIKEorNICKorMITCHorRICK……MICK…with an M an I a C and a K…..MICK…….like Mick Jagger…..and yes this is meant as a joke so please don’t take it any other way. Feel free to bastardize my name any time you like….(he said to them knowingly…)

Mick Haensler
Higher Ground Media

[Mick Haensler]

Let’s say I have a friend who does custom fabrication. Each project requires that he make a mold to fabricate the final product. The client pays him to deliver the final product, not create the mold. Does the client own the mold or does my friend?? I look at raw footage kind of like this, it’s the mold with which we create the final product. The client doesn’t pay us to shoot footage, they pay us to deliver a final product. Sometimes the final product might include stock footage that we purchase, does the client now own that as well?? In a strict sense it could be construed as raw footage as well.

That being said, I have never refused a client the raw footage or charged extra for it. Like Walter, I feel it belongs to the client, but I can see both sides of the story. If the client wants the footage to do something in house, that is their right. And when it comes out looking like A%$, they will be back. If the client wants the footage to take to a competitor, than you haven’t done your job to keep the client happy. No one can steal a happy client. I do find it interesting that they didn’t offer up front why the wanted it.

Personally, I like the client to have the raw footage. If something happens to it, it’s on their head, not mine.

Mick Haensler
Higher Ground Media

Mick Haensler
Higher Ground Media

[Mick Haensler]

Thanks guys, that’s what I thought.

Mick

[Mick Haensler]

[Chris Babbitt] “Why not just export your original XDCAM sequence to an SD Prores file? It seems to me that you are getting the same result without the extra step of the DV sequence.”

As I said earlier in the thread, I find something that works and then I stick to it until I or someone else comes up with a better way to do things. May I suggest YOU do a side by side comparison and report back the results.

Mick Haensler
Higher Ground Media

[Mick Haensler]

[Chris Babbitt] “I’ve been experimenting as well, and I can’t seem to come up with settings for an SD sequence that work, other than NTSC-DV. Would you mind sharing your sequence settings? “

That’s what I’ve been using Chris. It seems to work just fine. Please post if you find a better solution.

Mick Haensler
Higher Ground Media

[Mick Haensler]

[Greg Ball] “Thanks Mike. Here are a few questions though.

I’ll try to answer them as best I can. I’m not a techie. I’m the kind who finds something that works and sticks to it.

1. Why a self contained QT and not a reference movie?

Several reasons. A: It seems, notice I said seems, to render faster. B: Since I render out in Pro Res HQ, I have a high quality Master for archiving and duplication.

2. What SD sequence settings did you use?

I use regular DV but I render out using Pro Res HQ

3. For a 15 minute video would you just use Compressors 90 minute best settings?

Yes. A lot of older DVD players can’t read the high bit rates of a higher quality compression

4. Why do you shoot progressive not interlaced?

It depends on what I’m shooting. For the most part right now I’m shooting mostly interviews that might need to go to the Web. From what I’ve read, Progressive is the only way to go for Web stuff.

I am not an expert by any stretch. I have only been on Mac since February of this year and have been shooting EX footage since June. I have a huge amount to learn but I know what is working for me and this is it. I hope that helps.

Mick(not Mike, Nick, Mitch, or Mic, it’s Mick, like Mick Jagger) 🙂 Haensler
Higher Ground Media

[Mick Haensler]

[Greg Ball] “Can you please share your settings with what becomes your optimum output to DVD? Thanks”

I will. Unfortunately this project is a mind numbing training video of a guy training off of a PP presentation in a darkened room, so I don’t know if I’ll be able to accurately judge the quality. Next week I’ve got a project going to broadcast, I should probably use that one to experiment with. Either way, I’ll report back what I find. I’m going to try it every which way since it’s only a 2.5 minute infomercial.

Mick Haensler
Higher Ground Media

[Mick Haensler]

Seems like I’m not the only one going through this AGAIN today. I’ve got a 144 minute project to output to SD DVD and I was trying to find a less time consuming way to render. My workflow has been:

1. Edit EX footage natively in FCP
2. Create an SD timeline and drag the EX sequence into it
3. Control R to render that timeline
4. Export that as a self contained MOV file, usually with the Prorez HQ codec
5. Drop that file into Compressor and compress
6. Take THAT file into DVD studio and burn

All well and good for short projects, but now I’ve got 2 monster training DVDs and I wanted to save some time. So I’m trying exporting straight from the EX timeline into Compressor. So far it’s looking like the 144 minute project is going to take at least 6 hours to compress on a Octocore machine.

Mick Haensler
Higher Ground Media