AVCcam Footage H.264 export time long - URGENT help

[premierdrummer18]

I am exporting a 1920x1080 30p project that was edited in adobe Premiere CS5. the end result needs to be a Disc image file (ISO) that I will be making in adobe Encore CS5. This will ultimately go onto DVD, not Blue Ray, so I am aware that the DVD will end up being 720x480. I am trying to determine the best way to make this ISO file/DVD and what settings I should use to export the video program before importing it as an asset into encore. I first exported a MOV file with the h.264 codec, but this file upon importing into Encore and placing on a timeline would always crash the program. Next, trying to use the dynamic link right from the premiere timeline to encore yielded a 14 hour ISO creation attempt that I intentionally ended after determining that this couldnt be the best way. Next, I tried to export an H.264 mp4 with the HDTV 1080p 29.97 preset, not tweaking any other changes(data rate, no maximum render quality, etc), and apparently this is taking 8 hours to do. This program is 1 hour long on the timeline and is composed of predominately AVCcam .MTS files, with a few short MOV segments peppered in a few places.

My machine specs: Imac Intel i5 3.6 ghz processor, 8gb RAM, Adobe Production Premium CS5.

Can someone please tell me the best way I should do this and why it is taking so long to pump an H.264 file out when most of the footage on the timeline is already AVCcam h.264 based?

Please help, and thanks in advance

 

[Admir]

The time that takes to get your footage exported depends a lot on what settings your are using when exporting. Settings that does impove your image quality is such as; Render at maximum depth, and 2 pass encoding. These setting will improve the final image of the file, but will increase your export time a lot. I shoot stuff with my HMC151, edit the original file, and files that end up about 7 minutes usually takes about 7-10 hours to export (because I'm using all the extra rendering options to increase the footage quality).

Also, the more your compress the filesize, the longer it will take (as far as what I've witnessed).

So, ask yourself, is all the extra time worth waiting for a better final looking image (and yes, there is quite a difference between all the standard settings and the maximum bith depth/2-pass encoding when comparing them).

 

[Phil1076]

If the final output is DVD, why are you exporting to H.264? Use the MPEG-2 DVD preset and set the quality accordingly. To save space, set the audio to Dolby instead of PCM also.

This will take several hours to render out and depends on quality settings as well as what effects you have in your timeline. There's just no way around it unless you get a faster computers.

When it's done, you'll have a 720x480 video that you can then add to your Encore timeline. Make sure your DVD settings in Encore match your footage (especially audio -- dolby instead of PCM) and create your iso. Since your footage is already 720x480, Encore will not have to transcode it again (you'll even see a "Do not transcode" message in Encore if the settings match).

There's no other way around it...if you just send the project to Encore from PP, Encore will have to transcode the video to fit on DVD. If you transcode from PP, then Encore will not have to transcode it again. PP gives you more encoding options for better quality than Encore so I recommend that.

Some things you can do speed it up:

-buy a better computer
-shoot in 1280x720 if you know your final output is only going to be DVD.