Stephan Walfridsson
Forum Replies Created
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You could try Conduit which is a realtime keyer (actually a node based compositing plugin) for FCP and also comes with Conduit live which enables you to do live keying while capturing from firewire. (But not while capturing directly into FCP…)
https://www.dvgarage.com/prod/prod.php?prod=conduit2
Stephan
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[Bob Flood] ”
If you want to add or change the existing TC track, there is a free standalone app called “sebskys tools” the website is gone, but maybe someone here can email you a copy
“You can also do this directly in FCP using Modify->Timecode. This changes or adds a timecode track in your quicktime in the same way that Sebsky tools does.
Stephan
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In the case of working with DVCAM I don’t see any reason not to use firewire. You’ll simply be copying the 1’s and 0’s from the tape into the computer. Going over SDI or component would mean converting to a different format (or analog) with no gain in information. (Although I guess some would argue that going over analog would soften the 4:1:1 or 4:2:0 compression.)
Stephan
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I haven’t had this issue myself with my Multibridge Pro. But when you say “after a period of inactivity” does that mean that the computer has gone to sleep? (Not that it should matter as far as I’ve noticed…) Do you have anything else connected to the PCI-e ports (eg. a raid or something else that might have a confllict with the Multibridge)?
/Stephan
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Yes, the decklink products work with color.
/Stephan
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And if you want even worse quality just do a couple of straight VHS to VHS dubs (or FCP->VHS->FCP->VHS) until you get the level of degradation that you (and the client) want.
Stephan
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Buy Nattress Standards Coversion plugins ($100 at https://www.nattress.com) and use the included plugin called G film Converter. It will convert your 24P material to 25i by inserting an extra field every half second.
I haven’t tried it myself but I believe the process i similar to how Avid handles 24fps footage in PAL, and the Avid playout looks okey. I have seen field problems on some occasion but I think that has been due to incorrect field order settings at some point in the process.
Stephan
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This most likely happens because of motion blur. During the exposure time of the frame your subjects arms/fingers etc. move which reveals/covers the greenscreen for only fraction of the exposure time. So these pixels should actually be semi transparent.
The only way to key that is to back down on your key settings, making sure that you have a softer key falloff. And absolutely do not choke the matte as that will eat away your semi transparent pixels. Then use spill suppression to get rid of the green tint.
But I doubt that the FCP keyer wll be able to give you a good key if your material is that difficult. If your source material is heavily compressed (DV or HDV) you will have a really hard time.
Stephan
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Your best bet is probably to use After Effects or something similar to achieve this.
However if the outline of your character is really simple (the part passing in front of the window that is) you could use the four or eight pont garbage mask effect (under Video Filter -> Mattes) to create a simple mask around her. Put a copy of your shot on a videotrack above the one where you have the mask you have already created to cover the window. Add the garbage mask effect to the (new) clip and adjust the shape to the outline . This will literally put back the part that is missing of her on top of your black rectangle. Then you would have to manually keyframe the mask to move with her, adjusting the shape as necessary. The main rule is to use as few keyframes as possible.
You could also try using a luma key instead of a garbage mask if there is enough luminance difference between the character and what is outside of the window. If the window is more or less completely white (from the light outside) you might be able to get a decent key.
Stephan
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Export the 24fps video using the Export->Quicktime movie option (same settings, self contained) bring it into cinema tools and conform to 25fps. This will result in a 4% faster playback but it will be smooth and this is the normal way to handle 24fps footage in PAL. Create a timeline in FCP with the correct settings (I guess you are going from HD to SD) and reimport your quicktime into this sequence. Export…
Stephan