Best way to transcode XDCAM EX easily to other formats?

L

lukeflegg

Member
Hi,

I've shot a whole web series on HQ 1080/50i so we have the best of both worlds for a 720p web download and DVD export. (Your thoughts?)

Anyway, now I just want to optimize these 101 videos for the web in the most efficient way possible.
They only need a trim, a cross dissolve and possibly some will want a colour grade.



Any ideas would be better than what I am currently doing-
Premiere CS3 -one clip at a time! 3 hour render per 1080i video, then export to web format(!!)

What can batch process/make my life easier?

I have a reasonably capable old edit suite, don't mind trialing a new NLE package if neccessary (Is Edius much better for these tasks?)
(System: AMD 4400+ x2, I'm able to playback 1080p in Premiere's timeline with no drops if I set it up right)

The videos are between 1 minute and 4 minutes long.



Thanks very much,
Luke
 
My thoughts

1. Why did you shoot 1080i if you intend to deliver progressive?

2. You can batch convert the footage, I do it all the time.

3. There is no way to batch a color grade/trim/cross-dissolve. That's all manual labor.
 
Hi Perrone

1. Because (as the post says) I also intend to deliver in 50i on DVD in the near future.

2. How are you batch converting the footage? I would really like to know your workflow (the reason for this post!)

Thanks
 
Have you tried the different export options in Sony Clip Browser? Some are formats are free but the ones that arn't give you watermarked exports to experiment with before you buy them.
 
You can shoot 25P and still deliver 50i. It works. The only problem is that you lose the color resolution just as bad as if you shot in 50i. 4:2:0 in interlaced mode looks awful. It only looks good in progressive mode because the color resolution is about double what it is in interlaced mode. I tried converting some 30P footage to 60i for a Blu-ray disc. The color lost so much resolution (became blocky, especially reds) that I decided to go with pulldown to 24P instead and live with the jerky motion, rather than the awful color artifacts. Why anyone could stand the EX1's interlaced output is a mystery--it looks almost as bad as HDV in that mode!
 
GuyB
Yeah! MainConcept's Conversion Packs looks great. Expensive though.. and I'm still not sure they would neccessarily quicken my workflow, other than add an extra stage before I get them into the editing software (albeit in a more manageable format)
 
basspig
What would you have shot in? I'm thinking 720/50p would have been the best option now. Though I'm not sure how speeding up 200% affects audio quality, for example.

I was definitely naive thinking it would be easy to find some app somewhere that would convert XDCAM EX into common formats. Is MC's Conversion Pack the only tool for this?
 
lukeflegg said:
basspig
What would you have shot in? I'm thinking 720/50p would have been the best option now. Though I'm not sure how speeding up 200% affects audio quality, for example.

I was definitely naive thinking it would be easy to find some app somewhere that would convert XDCAM EX into common formats. Is MC's Conversion Pack the only tool for this?
Click to expand...

Define "common formats"? Super lets you convert into any common editing format you should be using.

Or you can convert into DNxHD which is excellent (like ProRes for PCs) and has huge advantages if you have to move your files between Macs and PCs. I posted the tool for that.

Of you can purchase NeosceneHD from Cineform and work in that.

I've worked with over a year of XDCamEX footage using nothing but those 3 tools for conversion. I'm not really sure what you're after.

By the way, 720p50 doesn't do anything to the audio. Do some experimentation with the camera and try to learn how it all works and how it looks. Maybe take a day and go film in all the different formats then come back and edit the short clips. You'll learn a ton. That's what I did. All the talking on the internet pales in comparison to just getting out there with the camera and shooting.
 
Basspig, or anyone...

Are you saying that the EX1's interlaced settings don't look good? Are you saying it's better to shoot in progressive mode, then make an interlaced export?

I ask because I do TV spots, and plan on getting an EX1 for that purpose. Most of my stuff will be NTSC and go to DVD or TV (at the moment only SD). I am confused as to which way to record in the camera. I want 1080HD files that I can export for TV, DVD, and Web. Where do I start at in the camera?

Thanks

Chadfish
 
Chadfish said:
Basspig, or anyone...

Are you saying that the EX1's interlaced settings don't look good? Are you saying it's better to shoot in progressive mode, then make an interlaced export?

I ask because I do TV spots, and plan on getting an EX1 for that purpose. Most of my stuff will be NTSC and go to DVD or TV (at the moment only SD). I am confused as to which way to record in the camera. I want 1080HD files that I can export for TV, DVD, and Web. Where do I start at in the camera?

Thanks

Chadfish
Click to expand...

you don't need to shoot interlaced just because your final output will go to tv. nor do you need to shoot 30fps.

remember, a lot of primetime tv is still shot on film. 24p. at some point after being scanned and digitized, pulldown is inserted to conform it to 29.97. you can shoot the same way with video. don't let the output format dictate the look of your project. if you like the 24p look then shoot that way. if your project would be more suited to 60i then shoot that way. just beware that anytime you shoot interlaced, you will need to deinterlace for the web or you will have jaggy lines. web/computer viewing is always progressive.
 
Cheers Perrone,

I'm now using Vegas Pro 9, as it's happy with (MXF rewrapped) 1080i and BATCH RENDERS out to pretty much everything. Really nice. Definitely not loving the UI as much as Premiere yet though.. maybe with time..

Yeah, I should have just used SUPER instead of getting frustrated with Clip Browser's export settings...

720/50p or 60p does affect sound if you interpret as 25p/50i. That's what I meant. You get slow motion sound. I think I've probably shot and edited every format now, but definietly agree with your advice!


A question, since you know the camera well;
I never quite seem to have pure blacks in my EX1.. At first this paranoia was triggered by the histogram only seeming to go about 90% to the left of the chart, but all the way to the right (highlights) but also on a monitor is doesn't seem to ever be quite pure black.. Though I don't feel it's a black balance issue, it does feel a bit strange...?
 
Chadfish, the image quality issue with shooting interlaced is that the 4:2:0 color subsampling really shows it's ugliness in interlaced footage, effectively halving the color resolution such that when intensely-colored objects like red cars are in the scene, you can see jaggies around the color's boundaries and it tends to spill a little.
30P footage looks more photographic than 60i footage of the same static image, for instance, a still life with red roses against green leaves. The rose will be well defined in 24/30P, but will have ugly jaggies around the color red in 60i.
30P footage converted to 60i also degrades in this manner when rendered as MPEG2, in my experience. It looks so bad to me that I prefer judder of 30P pulldown to Blu-ray than the look of 60i on Blu-ray.
 
I just want the workflow with the least hassle. 30P seems like the way to go, but then when I make a file for SDTV or DVD do I make a new file? Or do I just put the 30P file into DVD Studio pro and let the app deal with it? I mean do I interlace the footage myself?

I do a lot of 30 & 60 sec spots. I have 6 hours total to do these most of the time so I need to keep it simple. When working with HDV 60i I shoot, capture, edit & export in HDV. Then I drop the final HDV file into an SD 720x480 project and output an SD file to send, or I "Print to Tape" to SD MiniDV. But with HDV I find the interlaced footage looks more natural. We shot one thing at 24P (the guy was a film student) and it looked great until we tried to output it for SD NTSC, where we got lots of flutter. He eventually figured it out, but we now stay away from 24P. Does 30P flutter too?

Sorry to be a pain, but the local TV stations don't have people working who can answer these questions. Many of the people working in TV in Eureka are still doing linear editing with 2 tape decks and a monitor if you can believe that.
 
My simple rule of thumb is:

Shooting for SD TV only? 720P/60 and convert to interlace in post.

Shooting for DVD or Blu-ray? 24P all the way. DVD and Blu-ray are all progressive sources; the player converts to interlace for the composite and S-video outputs only.

Sounds like your TV station is like our public access cable! Still S-VHS delivery, which is why I still have my S-VHS deck.
 
lukeflegg said:
A question, since you know the camera well;
I never quite seem to have pure blacks in my EX1.. At first this paranoia was triggered by the histogram only seeming to go about 90% to the left of the chart, but all the way to the right (highlights) but also on a monitor is doesn't seem to ever be quite pure black.. Though I don't feel it's a black balance issue, it does feel a bit strange...?
Click to expand...

Oh, you can get it there, believe me. There are a number of ways, but the picture profile is probably the easiest. I will say this though....

I prefer to avoid the superblacks and the superwhites in my shooting. I'd MUCH rather control that stuff in post. I rather get EVERYTHING I can at the shoot, and then move the footage around in post. I experimented today pushing the envelope on a TOUGH outdoor shoot at sunset. I'll see how I did in a few minutes when I dump the footage.
 
We shoot 30P and convert/deliver standard definition DV 480i to the local broadcasters without issue. We also shoot 30P for DVD and especially when shooting for the web. We created a custom preset in Apple Compressor to do the conversion between HD and SD. It's been working great. The secret was to check quality of the HD-SD conversion using an older CRT monitor that can properly display in interlaced signal. Learned a lot with that thing. :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top