Hey all,
I've been quite determined to find a workflow that not only removes Pulldown and transcodes the GH1's .mts files in one step, but also retains as much quality as possible (I'm not convinced that FCP's L&T + JES option doesn't soften the image - I mostly believe this because I really don't trust FCP for anything except editing).
And I've found a process that I think holds up for both elements, sharpness and 23.976fps.
I imported a .mts into After Effects CS5. I selected the Clip in the Panel and then went into the "Interpret Footage" menu and had AE remove the Pulldown by selecting "Guess 3:2 Cadence", (because I wasn't sure of the pulldown phase that the GH1 employs - anyone know?). From there, I assembled a new Composition and AE automatically matched the Comp. settings to the Clip settings (which then read as 23.976 in the Panel - directly after import it was 29.97). Next, I added the Comp. to the Render Queue, choose my desired settings and created a ProRes LT QT.
Obvious downside, as for as I know right now, it can only be done clip by clip, as supposed to the pseudo 'Batch' Log/Capture/Transfer method with FCP L&T. But I heard "The Social Network" ran some kind of Post Script to get AE to act in a 'Batch'/Conform sort of way. So maybe there's a trick to do multiple Compositions at once!
I'm pretty through when I transcode (and I love the way Shake converts files - and downsizes - from DPX sequences), so I tested an alternative workflow...
Following the same steps as above, except I chose DPX/Cineon Sequence as my Export/Render Settings in the AE Render Queue. Once the DPX seq. was created, I brought it into Shake and had Shake output a beautiful ProRes LT 23.98 QT with a hint of grain.
I'm shooting some formal camera tests tomorrow with my GH1 (with a less potent, and 29.97, version of Mark Crabtree's 54mbps patch) and some Red Pro Primes. In a few days, I'll post a comparison test of the the two methods I just described and the FCP L&T + JES workflow. And we can see if there is any difference in sharpness, motion, etc.
I've been quite determined to find a workflow that not only removes Pulldown and transcodes the GH1's .mts files in one step, but also retains as much quality as possible (I'm not convinced that FCP's L&T + JES option doesn't soften the image - I mostly believe this because I really don't trust FCP for anything except editing).
And I've found a process that I think holds up for both elements, sharpness and 23.976fps.
I imported a .mts into After Effects CS5. I selected the Clip in the Panel and then went into the "Interpret Footage" menu and had AE remove the Pulldown by selecting "Guess 3:2 Cadence", (because I wasn't sure of the pulldown phase that the GH1 employs - anyone know?). From there, I assembled a new Composition and AE automatically matched the Comp. settings to the Clip settings (which then read as 23.976 in the Panel - directly after import it was 29.97). Next, I added the Comp. to the Render Queue, choose my desired settings and created a ProRes LT QT.
Obvious downside, as for as I know right now, it can only be done clip by clip, as supposed to the pseudo 'Batch' Log/Capture/Transfer method with FCP L&T. But I heard "The Social Network" ran some kind of Post Script to get AE to act in a 'Batch'/Conform sort of way. So maybe there's a trick to do multiple Compositions at once!
I'm pretty through when I transcode (and I love the way Shake converts files - and downsizes - from DPX sequences), so I tested an alternative workflow...
Following the same steps as above, except I chose DPX/Cineon Sequence as my Export/Render Settings in the AE Render Queue. Once the DPX seq. was created, I brought it into Shake and had Shake output a beautiful ProRes LT 23.98 QT with a hint of grain.
I'm shooting some formal camera tests tomorrow with my GH1 (with a less potent, and 29.97, version of Mark Crabtree's 54mbps patch) and some Red Pro Primes. In a few days, I'll post a comparison test of the the two methods I just described and the FCP L&T + JES workflow. And we can see if there is any difference in sharpness, motion, etc.
