Digitizing 24f at 29.97 from the A1

M

macyfilms

Active member
I posted this in FCP, but I'm not getting much action over there, so forgive me for moving here.

Ok, i've discovered that all the footage i shot in 24p on the hdx-900 is always going to digitize at 29.97 (at least, that's what the panasonic dealer just told me.)

My B camera was an XHA1, shooting 24f, which I usually import at 24 (23.98). The question: to match my A camera, is there a way to capture the Canon footage at 29.97 into fcp?

The shortest work-flow here would be great, as I have a LOT of footage.

big thxx.

sam
 
Why should it matters? The HDX footage simply adds pulldown to its 24p footage which is automatically removed in FCP to give you 23.976 fps. The cadence remains exactly the same on both the A1 and the HDX if pulldown removal is done properly.
 
I must be doing something wrong, because all the clips from the hdx are in at 29.97. is it a setting i need to adjust during capturing?
 
You either need to remove the pulldown from the HDX footage to create true 24p clips, or add pulldown to the Canon footage and intercut with HDX footage in a 29.97 timeline. The important thing is to get the material from both cameras in a common format and frame rate.

If it were me, I would add pulldown to the A1 footage and transcode to DVCPRO HD unless you absolutely need to work in a true 24p timeline.
 
I don't need true 24p. And at this point, most of the HDX footage has been digitized at 29.97. How would you suggest i capture the 24f footage from the A1 ? I'd be happy to get it in at 29.97, i'm just not sure which settings to use.

thxx.
 
The easiest way to digitize the A1 footage would be to capture the analog component HD output (along with audio via RCA) via an HD capture card such as a Kona or Blackmagic card. The Canon will add pulldown automatically from this output, so you could capture through a card to DVCPRO HD 1080i 29.97 and be done with it.

If you can't do that, I don't think FCP by itself will add proper pulldown, so a tool such as Nattress Standards Conversion plug-in can add pulldown, but it's a complicated process to capture the HDV, go to the plug-in and add pulldown, and then export again as DVCPRO HD. It can be done, but it's quite time consuming.

If you don't have a Kona or BM card but have a PCI Express Mac, one less expensive option would be to get a BlackMagic Intensity Pro card, which can digitize via analog-in to DVCPRO HD. http://blackmagic-design.com/products/intensity/
 
If i capture the A1 footage at 23.98 and mix it with the 29.97 footage in the timeline, can I get it all to match the sequence settings at the end when I export it all? Will fcp adapt one of the two types of footage to match the other (which will be the sequence settings?) I did a test, and they will play together in the timeline.
 
Yeah, I haven't really tried a mixed codec timeline with the new FCP, but it might work fine. You'd just need to add pulldown to the 24F footage upon export unless you're ok with less smooth repeat frames being automatically generated.

If it's working ok for you now than by all means, don't fix what ain't broke. My only doubt is how smoothly they will intercut on a timeline, and export for that matter.
 
I mixed some of it together and exported into Quicktime and it looks okay when i play it back on the Mac. it all went 29.97 on the way out--took a while to render, though. i guess the test is when i go to tape and play it on a TV.

big thxx.

sam
 
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