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DaVinci Resolve 8.1.1 Lite, DNxHD and GH-2 footage
  • disneytoydisneytoy
    As you guys may already know, DaVinci Resolve is available (for the moment) as MAC only lite version FREE. Soon to be Windows 7 compatible!
    As of yesterday the main handicaps of the lite version were the limit to 2 nodes. This prevented some very essential corrections requiring 3+ notes for tracking or power windows. But now Black Magic has lifted that limitation! So now unlimited nodes, great use of CUDA acceleration. More importantly for us Windows users, DNxHD codec use to require a $500 license. But now is FREE! The fact ProRes as a writing codec is not available to us PC users, the free Avid DNxHD codec becomes an excellent alternative.

    With finalcut X loosing its luster with the current upgrade, and the highly touted Resolve coming to Windows, us PC users have much less reason for MAC envy. I do have a Mac I can try Resolve 8.1.1 on at the moment but that computer isn't part of my editing workflow.

    Particularly in light of high bit-rate GOP1 hacks such as Driftwood, I'd like to hear back regarding other's workflows getting their MTS files through a Resolve grading and out. I've done some transcoding tests with 5DtoRGB which supports output in 3 flavors of DNxHD. I believe it writes a .mov file. I'm not sure but I think Resolve wants an Avid MXF wrapper. Maybe someone can report back on that. Also, any other workflows to bring our MTS files into Resolve.

    For now I will leave a couple links to some good tutorials to get you started. The interface is a bit non-intuitive. But, if you follow along these should get you going.

    Davinci Resolve Lite Tutorial Part 0 - Basics for Free 8.1.1


    DaVinci Resolve workshop part1 (Montreal 2011) (4 Parts)


    Supermeet 2011 - Part 2 -Dedo Valentic - DaVinci Resolve 8.1


    And to download the free Mac version go here: http://blackmagic-design.com/support/detail/?sid=3948&pid=11735&os=mac

    :
  • 74 Replies sorted by
  • TrackZillasTrackZillas
    @disneytoy Man Thanks for posting this been looking around for tutorials, found one but had to buy, this one is free. Just downloaded Resolve Lite 8.1.1 this free version is almost the real deal that's crazy how they included unlimited nodes. My only problem now is to upgrade my hackintosh to 10.6.9, or 10.7 or else it won't work ;( gotta tear my system apart but it's worth it..
  • TrackZillasTrackZillas
    I'm soo glad I speak french ;)
  • pinger007pinger007
    Does anyone have a date for Windows availability?
  • disneytoydisneytoy
    I have an i7 Hackintosh running 10.7 (but afraid to upgrade to 10.7.2 and break something. I'll be happy in first quarter 2012 for windows Resolve.

    The key features to learn -

    How to use parallel and serial nodes together.

    how to store your grade as a still for later retrieval.

    How to motion track to lock a power window to say a face. Image stabilization

    I need to understand how to use the different scopes.

  • nomadnomad
    While I speak French too, just a heads up: the Montreal show will continue in English after a few minutes.

    The different scopes are not particular to Resolve. Get one of the books, like "The Art and Technique of Digital Color Grading" by Steve Hullfish or "Color Correction Handbook: Professional Techniques for Video and Cinema" by Alexis van Hurkman. Books are still a good learning resource ;-)
  • disneytoydisneytoy
  • OedipaxOedipax
    I downloaded version 8 when it was first released but never messed around with it too much. Since the 8.1.1 release, I've been playing around with it more and am absolutely floored with the results! I'm grading a bunch of Europe footage from my trip there last month, shot using the various Driftwood patches as they were being released. This is really the most excited I've been about filmmaking for some time - the combination of hacked footage and Resolve's ability to really make it sing.

    Since it hasn't been mentioned in this thread yet, fxphd offers some Resolve courses as well (including a new one on Resolve 8) that are very useful, though not free. I found that once I got over the initially disorienting process of bringing footage in, the program is very easy to use if you're used to Color or Color Finesse or what have you. Super powerful!
  • disneytoydisneytoy
    Exactly, for what ever reason, the steps you have to go through to get to grading is non-intuitive. That's why I put up these videos. After going through the process a couple times it makes sense. I'm guessing you can't load MTS files? So transcoding is required?
  • OedipaxOedipax
    Yeah, I don't think there's any sort of native MTS support - haven't tried though. I think it works best with ProRes and DNxHD, not sure what else it supports. In my case I'm transcoding everything with 5DtoRGB into ProRes HQ which wrings every ounce of quality out of the 176mbps GOP1 stuff.

    Running an ATI 5870 on a 2008 Mac Pro with 14gb of RAM, I'm getting real time performance on shots with several nodes. If I start stacking more nodes on (say 5+) then performance drops to about 15-20fps which is still quite useful for playback. Haven't tried rendering anything yet but I'm really pleased with the speed because prior to this I was using After Effects and RAM previewing everything!
  • kazuokazuo
    Just have to transcode MTS files using Pro Res. Rarevision or 5DtoRGB is really the way to go, try the technicolour plug-in as well. It may have been developed for 5D mk 2 but it works even better on GH2 colours I feel.

    The wide range of grading software out there has just made it so much harder for our images to suck
  • johnnymjohnnym
    hey @oedipax, looking forward to anything you might post (if any) done with Resolve.
    (I loved your Kowa 16D footage a while back)
  • AlexMantaAlexManta
    @kazuo do you talk about the Technicolor cinestyle preset in 5DtoRGB or is there a way to use the cinestyle plugin for Canon in a hacked GH2??
  • MacalincagMacalincag
    @AlexManta

    You can't load a color preset for the GH2 like you would for the Canon, so no.
  • AlexMantaAlexManta
    About transcoding .mts for editing, I'm on a macbook 13 inches not very powerful, but i am far from home right now on a shooting trip and far from my mac pro...So ProRes is the best for Resolve and Final Cut X but what is the best format/way to edit in Premiere Pro CS5.5?? Or After effect CS 5.5??
  • AlexMantaAlexManta
    @Macalincag thanks, do you have an answer for my next question??
  • MacalincagMacalincag
    @AlexManta

    Yeah, on a 13" MacBook you should transcode to ProRes 422 HQ. It would handle much better than using the .MTS files, especially for that computer.
  • AlexMantaAlexManta
    @Macalincag Great thank you so much for your fast reply.
  • disneytoydisneytoy
    where can we find the technicolour plug-in
  • kazuokazuo
    @Macalincag, @AlexManta

    Try transcoding yr mts files to Pro Res but use the LUT plugin on Rarevision. It's one of the presets there.
    You'd never guess GH2 colours can be so stunning! BTW, Technicolour LUT can also be installed on FCP Colour, so those of you still using the real FCP, not the faux version X!, you could try grading with that.
  • danyyyeldanyyyel
    Link to a beta version of resolve lite for PC :-) there is one for the full resolve also just check the net.



    http://blackmagic-design.com/support/detail/?os=win&sid=3948&pid=11735&leg=false
  • starstuffstarstuff
    @danyyyel
    BETA for the full version? Where?
  • danyyyeldanyyyel
    Here

    http://www.blackmagic-design.com/support/detail/?os=win&sid=3948&pid=4446&leg=false

  • starstuffstarstuff
    @danyyyel
    Thanks, for some reason that link didn't work earlier but it does now...
  • disneytoydisneytoy
    Very cool! DLing the Windows Beta now!
  • disneytoydisneytoy
    I need some workflow advice using Premiere, After Effects and Resolve on the PC.

    1) So, if I load my MTS files into premiere and export an XML to go to Resolve, that won't work because Resolve won't read MTS, correct? Within a Premiere sequence, can that edited footage be transcoded into a DNxHD codec that Resolve will now read? (How do I do this?) Is there a Collect for export like feature as with after Effects?

    (I don't see the point of transcoding all the clips first (5dtoRGB)

    2) Does Premiere have any features like actions or scripts like PS? I'd like to streamline the use of Warp Stabilization in AE. I watched a workflow where a clip in premiere is first duplicated on a second timeline (right on top) then "Replace with AE Comp" to AE can run Stabilization, and on the round trip, you still have the unaltered clip in the primary timeline. It would seem helpful, if you could select a clip, and hitting a key, and it automatically, copies it to the second track, "Replace with AE comp" etc.

    3) Resolve question: can anyone give a step by step, how to bring in a single edited movie clip, and have Resolve slice up the edits, then be able to export as individual clips.

    Thanks

    MaX
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