C200: C200 Proxy Workflow

F

Fahnon

Well-known member
Trying to see if there's a more efficient way of working than the standard Resolve>Export Proxy>Edit>Resolve RAW workflow I'd been using with RED/BMD footage. Something that seems odd on the C200 is that the proxies don't have the same filename as the RAW files; BUT if they have the same timecode, can we use that to re-conform the files in Resolve if we add the RAW files to the media pool? I would test this myself, but won't be able to until next week, so I was hoping someone here might know off the top of their head.

Strangely, Canon doesn't seem to have a paper or video on this for either the C300 II or the C200.
 
I called Canon about this, and they didn't have an answer right away which I found strange considering how long the C300 mk II has been out in the wild for. Googling around also came up empty. They're calling me back with info once they do some research on their recommended workflow. Will update when I hear back.

EDIT: Canon responded with the following:

We are aware of that naming of the proxy files is different from the full resolutions files in the EOS C200. We've submitted an inquiry to our engineers regarding a workflow that they would recommend for editing the proxy files. We'll contact you again once a response has been received. We appreciate your patience.
 
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I followed up with Canon, and their latest response is that their engineers looking into the right workflow. The fact that they don't just have an answer or link they can point me to suggests both that they didn't fully flesh the feature out, and that no one was really using it. They suggested I use a renaming script to make the names match. Seems like they're taking it seriously, though, so hopefully they'll fix the naming in the next firmware update.

The proxy names thing and the fact that the camera always resets your frame rate to 59.94 when you change recording modes are the only two real flaws I've found so far and both should be able to be fixed in firmware.
 
The proxy feature on the C300II is nigh on useless for this reason. I don't know what drugs they're taking, but the fact the file name has a '_p' in it and also that slowmo clips don't get recorded as proxies just boggles the mind. They implemented a feature that just doesn't actually work in real life...

This is what Arri got right but few others have - the practical workflow. It just means that a camera team can pass off footage to a post team and everything will be fine. Even the fact that agencies or whoever can playback prores in Finder is a big plus.
 
mrtreve said:
The proxy feature on the C300II is nigh on useless for this reason. I don't know what drugs they're taking, but the fact the file name has a '_p' in it and also that slowmo clips don't get recorded as proxies just boggles the mind. They implemented a feature that just doesn't actually work in real life...

This is what Arri got right but few others have - the practical workflow. It just means that a camera team can pass off footage to a post team and everything will be fine. Even the fact that agencies or whoever can playback prores in Finder is a big plus.
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Yeah before I called Canon, I googled the crap out of this and came up empty. I even asked on Canon's official board and nothing. As bad as it is for the C300, it's even worse for the C200 because you can just straight edit C300 II footage on modest hardware, but shooting RAW usually uses a proxy workflow as standard, so the lack of a viable option is really weird.

I just don't believe a group smart enough to design and implement something like a C200 didn't realize there's no viable way to actually use this viable feature out of the box...
 
mrtreve said:
The proxy feature on the C300II is nigh on useless for this reason. I don't know what drugs they're taking, but the fact the file name has a '_p' in it and also that slowmo clips don't get recorded as proxies just boggles the mind. They implemented a feature that just doesn't actually work in real life...

This is what Arri got right but few others have - the practical workflow. It just means that a camera team can pass off footage to a post team and everything will be fine. Even the fact that agencies or whoever can playback prores in Finder is a big plus.
Click to expand...

Learned this on the first doc I shot with the c300 mark ii. I vaguely remember a work around in premiere that allows relinking to 10 bit files, but I can't recall exact steps right now. I still record proxies in the rare event that something truly extraordinary and unrepeatable happens on camera and the CF 2.0 card gets corrupted or something.

Editors we work with never want in camera proxies, not just c300 mk ii... any. We usually flip prores dailies anyway so the lame proxy implementation hasn't been a big a deal in practice.
 
Fahnon said:
I followed up with Canon, and their latest response is that their engineers looking into the right workflow. The fact that they don't just have an answer or link they can point me to suggests both that they didn't fully flesh the feature out, and that no one was really using it. They suggested I use a renaming script to make the names match. Seems like they're taking it seriously, though, so hopefully they'll fix the naming in the next firmware update.

The proxy names thing and the fact that the camera always resets your frame rate to 59.94 when you change recording modes are the only two real flaws I've found so far and both should be able to be fixed in firmware.
Click to expand...

I've already almost been stung by this 59.94 default thing too. Does your camera come from the factory also sending out the Magnify feature through the HDMI and SDI? Mine did and same thing when I detach battery and haven't powered it up for a while, it defaults back to this behavior. You have to manually go into the button assignments and re-assign button 1 to only send to EVF/Touchscreen. I did a shoot using my Ninja Blade and portions of the footage were unusable because I was looking at the touchscreen, not the Blade screen once we rolled. Unfortunately I used the Magnify feature several times and that footage is unusable when I did that.

Eric Coughlin posted a workaround for the proxy file naming a few weeks ago that he has already used on his C300 MKII proxies using Adobe Bridge. PITA but it works. Seems as if someone smart like Apple or Adobe will integrate this ability into their software, it's really just a script someone clever needs to write.
 
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puredrifting said:
I've already almost been stung by this 59.94 default thing too. Does your camera come from the factory also sending out the Magnify feature through the HDMI and SDI? Mine did and same thing when I detach battery and haven't powered it up for a while, it defaults back to this behavior. You have to manually go into the button assignments and re-assign button 1 to only send to EVF/Touchscreen. I did a shoot using my Ninja Blade and portions of the footage were unusable because I was looking at the touchscreen, not the Blade screen once we rolled. Unfortunately I used the Magnify feature several times and that footage is unusable when I did that.

Eric Couglin posted a workaround for the proxy file naming a few weeks ago that he has already used on his C300 MKII proxies using Adobe Bridge. PITA but it works. Seems as if someone smart like Apple or Adobe will integrate this ability into their software, it's really just a script someone clever needs to write.
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Sorry, Pure, I missed this one. I haven't connected my Atomos yet (I should probably make sure my HDMI port works), but I'll check to see if it also passes the zoom over HDMI.
 
I followed up with Canon today, and got a bit of a strange response. They acknowledge the proxy naming issue, but ended the email with "...please note that decisions to include or alter a particular program feature are made by internal business decisions based on a number of factors. Consumer demand and feedback are all taken in to consideration. We suggest checking the Canon website regularly for any future updates."

I'm responding for clarification, but that kinda sounds to me like they aren't actively looking into it anymore and they'd rather I stop asking. Will update when I get clarification. I'll eventually point them to this thread...
 
Probably just no demand for it...not worth their time as they probably receive hundreds (thousands?) of different requests throughout the year.
 
I can say that two different Canon reps I have spoken with about it are well aware of it and that the Mothership and the engineers know this is a viable concern by users. Whether or not they do anything about it is another issue.
 
I heard back ffrom Canon after asking what their official workflow is and got the following answer:

"When I initially contacted our engineers, the use of a renaming script to rename the proxy files was what they suggested at the present time. Note that our engineers have already notified Canon Inc. about the different proxy files names and they are currently looking into it. If they decide to release an update in the near future that provides a solution in linking the proxy files to the full resolution files, it would most likely be posted at the website provided in our previous correspondence."

So I have no idea if/when this will be sorted and they're pretty non-committal. Not sure what we can do at this point... Petition?
 
Coming back to an old thread, I finally got around to playing with the proxy workflow. It seems to be working well for me. I'm using Premiere, using the "Media Start" option in the "Reconnect Full Resolution Media" dialog box.

How's it working for other people?
 
fhammond said:
Coming back to an old thread, I finally got around to playing with the proxy workflow. It seems to be working well for me. I'm using Premiere, using the "Media Start" option in the "Reconnect Full Resolution Media" dialog box.

How's it working for other people?
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I shot in Canon Raw Light and recorded proxies to SD card at the same time. The only issue was that file names didn’t match. Batch rename room me about 5 seconds :) Used proxies from SD card to edit in Premiere, exported XML to color in Resolve. Added CRM files into Media Pool, imported XML and pointed to CRM files instead of MP4. All worked perfectly. Literally takes about a minute to do it. I’d love to be able to edit with native CRM files in Premiere, but it’s not a dealbreaker. Actually, it’s just the opposite - editing with lightweight 2K proxies is very system-friendly and using 4K RAW only for colour.
 
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AndrewTaran said:
I shot in Canon Raw Light and recorded proxies to SD card at the same time. The only issue was that file names didn’t match. Batch rename room me about 5 seconds :) Used proxies from SD card to edit in Premiere, exported XML to color in Resolve. Added CRM files into Media Pool, imported XML and pointed to CRM files instead of MP4. All worked perfectly. Literally takes about a minute to do it. I’d love to be able to edit with native CRM files in Premiere, but it’s not a dealbreaker. Actually, it’s just the opposite - editing with lightweight 2K proxies is very system-friendly and using 4K RAW only for colour.
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A YouTube screen cap video with your VO on exactly how you are doing this, step by step, would get you a lot of accolades here ;-)
 
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