I want to hear your experience on collaborative editing. Are you now, or have you ever been part of any kind of collaborative editing environment? If so, what technical solutions have you been working with? I want to hear your experiences.

I personally have been a user of Avid interplay for about 10 years now.

Davinci Resolve Lite is one of the best color grading tool and now available as free Lite version. It works so far up to a Full HD resolution of 1920 x 1080 but not directly with .mts files. Sony Vegas Pro 11 does work directly with .mts files but does not export AAF and EDL files which can be read by DaVinci Resolve. Hence a easy workflow is almost not possible with implemented tools from both sites. With EDL_Convert and the application of two Vegas scripts its possible to realize an effective and efficient Workflow. Rendered .mov files will not be endless in space consumtion. You can predict the head and tail trim of the original cut in Vegas.

Workflow Overview:

a) Media Ingestion

b) Vegas Edit

c) EDL_Convert (Creates two new Text EDL files + Subfolders for Workflow)

d) Vegas Batch Render (place before Noise Reduction, Velocity Envelopes if needed)

e) Davinci Color Correction

f) Vegas Final Edit (Title, Audio Effects etc.; final Render for Presentation)

Workflow Detail:

a1) copy .mts files to logical folder structure of your computer (something like c:\originals\yyyy\yyyy-MM\yyyy-MM-dd)

a2) rename them in a logical way (something like yyyy-MM-dd_hhmmss.mts)

b1) start Project in Vegas in a separate Poject folder - save .veg file

b2) at the end of the edit use "save as" and activate "copy media with project" (this will copy all .mts files into the Project folder)

b3) save Project.veg also now as Project.txt (Text EDL) file

c1) load Project.txt file into EDL_Convert Program (creates Project_EDL_lin.txt and Project_EDL_lin.veg in Project\CCInput\ folder, Project_EDL_final.txt in Project folder) and starts Project_EDL_lin.veg of Project\CCInput\ folder by EDL_Convert automatically. Regions are applied automatically as well.

d1) apply neat video, stabilizer and/or velocity envelopes to specific clips in  Project_EDL_lin.veg

d2) Batch rendering in DNxHD format by means of A2_RegionsRender.cs. Choose Subfolder Project\CCInput for .mov files)

e1) load from this subfolder all freshly generated .mov files into DaVinci MEDIA

e2) Goto COMPOSE of DaVinci

e3) Add new empty timeline - right click on timelines area

e4) drag/drop sorted files from media files area to timeline

e3) start color grading in COLOR

e4) goto DELIVER and render graded files with original name into Project\CCOutput subfolder

e5) Move .mov Files to Project\ mainfolder

f1) start Project_EDL_final.txt of Project Folder in Vegas (audio files will be linked to .mts files, Video files will be linked to .mov files)

f2) edit the rest (put titles to your video, etc.), save all as .veg

enjoy....

Version History

v1buid003:

Did add head and tail trim

v1build004:

Did add new scripts A1_RegionsMark 24p, A1_RegionsMark 25p, A1_RegionsMark 30p. They will take care that you can render footage with mixed framerates to the target frame rate either 24p, 25p or 30p. This is done by automatically adjust "Undersample rate" as well as "Playback rate".

All RegionMark scripts will remove regions which might be set before and then subsequently sets the new regions.

Added A0_RegionsRemove which does only remove regions which might be set.

Added A0_RunEDL_Convert which will execute EDL_Convert.exe directly from Sony Vegas

v1build005:

Did correct frame shift. DaVinci Resolve thumbnails are now displayed correctly. Before that, thumbnails did show last frame of previous clip. Had to make changes in A2_RegionsRender.cs script as well as EDL_Convert.exe.

v1build006:

EDL_Convert program: introduce link to sony vegas; option to autorun Project_EDL_lin.txt, save it to Project_EDL_lin.veg and apply RegionsMark script. All RegionsMark scripts: automatic choose first track if nothing was selected; can be progressed from EDL_Convert to save .text to .veg

Install:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/gjnc673jymve3ug/EDL_Convert%20v1build006.zip

Copy all *.js and *.cs files to the script folder of Vegas Pro (something like: c:\Program Files\Sony\Pegas Pro 11.0\Script Menu)

Copy EDL_Convert.* files to the "C:\ProgramData\EDL_Convert\" folder of your computer. If you want to put it to another folder, please open the script A0_Run_EDL_Convert.js with a notepad editor and change the line var InstPath = "C:/ProgramData/EDL_Convert/EDL_Convert.exe"; that the path will fit. Please note: The script language is a little bit tricky. Sony Vegas does use "\" for making remarks within the code. Instead of "\" you have to use "/".

HQ Formats - 4:2:2

Uncompressed 4:2:2 10bit (working with LW)
ProRes 4:2:2 YUV 10bit 176Mbs HQ
DNxHD 4:2:2 YUV 10bit 176Mbs HQ
MPEG4 Wrapper for Lightworks
MPEG-2 4:2:2 I-Frame w/ M701 tag (for Lightworks only)
MPEG-2 4:2:2 I-Frame (w/out M701 tag) 



Proxy formats

ProRes 4:2:2 YUV 10bit 36Mbs
DNxHD 4:2:2 YUV 10bit 36Mbs 1080P 24
DNxHD 4:2:2 YUV 10bit 60Mbs 720P 24
DNxHD 4:2:2 YUV 10bit 145Mbs 720P 60
DNxHD 4:2:2 YUV 10bit 115Mbs 720P 50

DNxHD and ProRes HQ conversions seem nearly identical, but I think ProRes is a little better quality as a proxy format. DNxHD renders much faster than ProRes. I have a beefy workstation with Matrox hardware and it can handle all of the usable formats pretty easily but I would love to hear about how they work out for others. Please give it a try and let me know about the experience!

Check out http://hdcinematics.com/NewWeb/tools.html for more info. Also available are tools that add custom prefixes and timestamps to files on a directory-wide basis - to help keep clips uniquely named and organized (ExtensionCord). You might want to grab the Matrox and Avid codecs while you're there and download a copy of HD-MINI to audition clips on demand.

With this utility you can select a different flavor of HQ codec from proxy codec and have both conversions done automatically and off-hours. If you use ExtensionCord to add a prefix and (file creation) timestamp to your files before converting, you can edit with the proxies and then offline / link to the HQ clips of exactly the same name at render time.

I hope you can find some use for these ...; )

Cheers!

First, of course, RAW workflow requires some investments in HDD place and preferable also speed (like RAID, etc).

Existing Premiere CS5.5 and upcoming CS6 support working with CinemaDNG (as it is Adobe format after all).

OK, so I've shot a bunch of footage now and need to put it all together. I'm doing the "behind the scenes" video for my partner's forthcoming album. I'll need to send a master to the record company for them to include on the DVD.

I've shot everything in Sanity 5.1 HBR (PAL), which has been super dependable. (Didn't use 24p because of the motion judder.) My worst beginner mistake is that some of my footage is pretty underexposed and will need to be lifted quite a bit. Color profile was smooth -2 all the way.

I can edit the MTS files natively in Vegas Pro 12 and it's plenty fast. But I'd like to do the color correction, titles, etc in AE so I can use ColorGhears (which I am loving!). That's where the confusion starts.

No matter if I open an MTS file directly in AE or export an AAF from Vegas to open in AE, the MTS files are unbearably slow to work with in AE. So my first question is if I should transcode my footage in Vegas before I send it to AE. And if so, what would be the optimal settings? I have the DNxHD codecs installed, and have downloaded 5DtoRGB as well, but am not sure about settings.

System: Windows 7 PC with 32GB 1600mhz RAM, GTX570 graphics card, Intel Core i7 processor, media files on external Raid 10 setup. My Adobe suite is from the Creative Cloud, so I have access to Premiere but don't really have time to learn a new NLE.

What I'd like to do is make my edit in Vegas, and then use AE for my grading/titles/effects etc. I'm super confused about the simplest way to set up my workflow, and about how to set up my project files in Vegas and AE for optimal results.

If anyone out there has any advice, I'd be really grateful! Anyone who helps out will have my undying gratitude (and a thanks in the CD booklet if desired!). And if my questions are too newbish, feel free to get in touch backchannel.

Cheers, Lori

In an AVCHD timeline in Premiere Pro CS6, I imported two clips, one the original MTS and the other a converted ProRes of that clip. But the result was not fixed by only 15 and 235 input/output adjustment, it required something closer to 40 and 215. And that did not mean that the result was the same, there was still more blue in the highlights and shadows in the MTS vs. the ProRes. Further adjustment would be needed, but the ProRes conversion was more balanced.

This was just my first test, and I'm no expert in this, but it seems like conversion to ProRes still makes sense. What are other people's take on this?

I'm still developing/experimenting a workflow I feel good about: one within the tools I have and know, that delivers quality enough and time wise optimized.

As always all feedback, comments, thoughts and secrets are most welcome.

gashô

Using a Mac, editing in FCPX, converting in 5dRGB

I am in need of a little guidance regarding my workflow options for an upcoming project I will be shooting on a Panasonic GH2.

Footage from my GH2 is in the .mts format/AVCHD codec and my usual workflow is to use FCP's 'log and transfer' function to convert the footage to ProRes, for editing in FCP. I usually also archive each SD card as back up.

However, I am wondering whether there is a better method for this project, which will involve heavy use of the Twixtor plugin in After Effects. My initial instinct was to transcode the raw files into ProRes via FCP as per usual and then import these ProRes files into After Effects for processing. But I wonder whether I would be better of editing the .mts files directly in After Effects before exporting for FCP. My understanding is that this method involves one less re-compression and should theoretically result in less artifacts.

I am also unsure about what the most efficient codec for exporting from After Effects to bring back into FCP.

My ultimate goal here is to preserve quality and minimise re-compression artifacts.

Any help would be much appreciated!

Cheers. J

The short story: 31-OCT, the day the Portuguese Budget for 2013 was approved. People gathered in front of the Parliament to say we're being governed by thieves. Not very original I know, but it's a great place to shoot video and take pictures (well at last until it degenerates into mayhem which is rare around this parts but not unheard of until very recently). This is how I worked it.

1) The extremely simple setup:

GH2, screen folded back as a monitor, Transcend 32GB class 10, Samyang 7.5mm fisheye (my favorite video lens), set and forget to hyperfocal, ISO 400 I believe, SS=1/25s. Flowmotion 2 was used as I never know before hand how much video I'm going to capture or how many photos I'll be shooting, so I need something that is very good quality but doesn't make me have to change cards when something very important is happening. If the card is pre-formatted (the extended, not the quick format) it has never failed me to span.

2) The capture:

This is all about getting there up front and trying not to shake the camera. The police until very recently (and only after a 1h stone shower) has been instructed not to charge, so it's an easy job, you just dodge the TV reporters and other amateurs like me. So, here's my first mistake: the aperture is fine, this lens is sharp as an axe, but should have upped the ISO and set a faster SS because in these situations you are always bound to get bumped and it shows in wobbles after software stabilization.

3) Defishing the Samyang:

Load the MTS into AE. Export as image sequence. Use a batch (http://www.personal-view.com/talks/discussion/comment/69869#Comment_69869) to defish the images and import the output again to AE now as image sequence. The defishing was done using the Panini projection. It's loads more natural on people than Rectilinear, it preserves a lot more corner resolution and still manages to keep a few lines straight. This was the first export and not reasonably quick because the synthesis part takes it's toll: ~2-3fps.

4) Stabilizing:

Throw AE's Warp Stabilizer on the footage. Set the "Smoothness" to 15-25% (it will require much less cropping later) set borders to "Stabilize, Synthesize Edges" (again a lot less cropping) but drop the "Synthesis Input Range" to 0,2s otherwise you'll bog AE. In this kind of footage there is usually little point in using a higher value. Skim the footage looking for black borders and try to resize and reframe it so that they don't become evident. Note: defishing after stabilizing should make more sense as you would have more image to work with (defishing crops it) but from a few rough tries, the AE stabilization isn't clearly as effective when working on fisheye footage. This was the second export and a very long one: below 1fps.

5) CC & Denoising:

Used some of ColorGHear's gears, notably GHrain killer to kill a bit of noise and blockiness, but the footage was already very clean from the start and little color correction was used, just a little bit of levels adjusment. This was the third export and I believe it was even longer than the third due to the noise reduction filters: below 0.5fps.

6) The "so long" part: video effects, tracking and subtitling:

Translations were pretty quick, the hard and long part (at least until I found out how to smooth it) was tracking. It was fastidious to track people's features, takes a long time and needs constant review and adjustment. In the end I found out a few tricks (like increasing the tracking area) and smoothing the tracking points. This eased the job a lot and gave much better results. In the end I had to do it sometimes up to 3x until I was satisfied with it. In the process I had to learn a lot about tracking, smoothing, 3D objects, texting, transitions and light sources. This was the forth, the quickest and last export, probably around 10fps.

7) Audio mixing.

This was the part I was more ignorant about, but turned out to be pretty simple. Even though it's pretty rough, the footage is little demanding with so much crowd noise. It was as simple as importing the last video export from AE into Premiere, importing the original sound, importing also "Le Tigre - Dike March 2001" cutting and pasting a few pieces of this track and adjusting the volume here and there to serve the original events while leaving the words of the protesters audible when needed and off I was to the final export.

The resulting video can be found here:

Here are a few pictures of the event.

Anything more you may want to know about any part of the process I'll be glad to detail it.

Do you often use ProRes as a codec in your filmmaking process or when sending files to your client? Read this article made by my co-worker at Stopp, Johan Boije, about how unstable ProRes may be in terms of color and gamma shifting.

This test started out to check color fidelity with Apple ProRes and The Foundry products like Nuke and Hiero. We knew from earlier that results wouldn’t be ideal.Later we expanded the test to other video applications and encoding software to see what that would give us. The outcome was quite disturbing. A format most people believe to be stable in terms of color turns out to be not so “Pro” at all."

http://www.stopp.se/lab/?p=1621

I was wondering what is the optimal hack/settings for GH-2 if I have a slower pc? I just finished editing for a DepicT film festival and the Full HD playback was slow when i started to tweak the videos.

My pc specs: (general stuff) Amd phenom II 920 - 2.8 GHz 4 core 4870 radeon 8 GB ram DDR2

What should I do? Should I shoot in 720p from now on? Should I use a diffrent workflow (now I just threw .H264 video in adobe premiere)? Is there a way I could encode videos to a diffrent codec before I edit (I know I will be loosing quality...). Are there any other tricks and tips in post, if so let me know please :)

I had some workflow troubles because the .MTS files often have identical names and there is no timecode in the Quicktimes when I generate them with 5DtoRGB.

I wrote a short Automator app, which adds the creation time to the .MTS filename and generates a .THM file with the creation date and time as EXIF data.

For it to work you need ExifTool: http://www.sno.phy.queensu.ca/~phil/exiftool/

And the file template.THM has to be in /Applications/THM creator/

When you convert these files with 5DtoRGB (Batch) it will add timecode to the Quicktimes.

Feel free to use it or change and improve it if you have more ideas. For example I wanted to create the .THM file as a real thumbnail from the .MTS. But didn't manage. Will be very useful for me as I'll not run into the annoying situation anymore when there are files with identical names and timecodes. Hopefully it is useful for some of you, too.

Cheers

For instance, I am recording using the 100Mbps Aquamotion v2 hack, and I want to transcode to normal Prores 422, which is about 115Mbps for 1080p24. I don't want to transcode to HQ (220Mbps) or 4444 (330Mbps) if I don't have to. But am I losing quality? How much? I would rather have my file sizes be nearly half and have 98% of the quality of the hack, but I wouldn't make that sacrifice if I'm only getting 70% of the hack's capable quality. So some input from those who are more knowledgeable would be good.

Is this correct?

Aquamotion v2 100Mbps -> Appropriate Editing Codec -> Prores 422 or DNxHD 145

seaQuake 176mbs -> Appropriate Editing Codec -> Prores 422 HQ or DNxHD 220

Of course this thread should be an open discussion of different hacks and editing codecs not just relevant to me as the "Original Poster," I'm just starting things off.

-Chris