DVCProHD to HDCAM master workflow?

Gibby

Gibby

Red Savant
Many HVX owners will be interested in the various post-production workflows, depending on what NLE is used, to edit DVCProHD footage and master it to HDCAM for HD broadcast. There are so many different NLE's used by members of DVX User. I think it would be very helpful to everyone if members would give their input as to if and how they could solve this workflow on the NLE they use...

What's your suggestions for this workflow?

Gibby
www.cut4.tv
 
MovieSwede said:
If you shoot DVCPROHD I really dont se any point in not master it in DVCPROHD.
Click to expand...

That would simplify the workflow, but HD networks in the USA that broadcast in 1080i (NBC, CBS, HDNet, Discovery HD), require program masters to be delivered to them in 1080i HDCAM format.

Gibby
www.cut4.tv
 
Gibby said:
What's your suggestions for this workflow?
www.cut4.tv
Click to expand...

The goal would be to render out your show in a format usable by whatever hardware based NLE you would have access to that's hooked up to an HDCAM deck. Major consideration would be scaling up if you shot in 720 and/or making sure your 23.976 is properly 3:2'ed if going to 1080i...

On the Mac... if working in Final cut pro, you'll have AJA or Blackmagic or other hardware, so render to the best format for playback there.

On the PC...

If you're using Avid Express, then rendering to their DNX codec would be fine and take the file to a higher end Avid for dumping. Canopus I believe has HD-SDI out on the PC, along with VelocityHD and the inexpensive Blackmagic cards usable via Vegas or Premiere. It might even be worthwhile to invest in a system with a cheap Blackmagic card and haul the unit to your local posthouse for dumping to tape.

Regards,

Jim Arthurs
 
This is an interesting question...

Has anyone had experience taking hard drives to post-houses? What codecs did you use? Uncompressed?
 
My plan is to offline on Avid Xpress Pro HD in a 24p timeline, then bring it over as an MXF to the DS Nitris for online in a 1080i project and output to HDCAM.
Why 1080i? Because my project's intended broadcasts are for PBS which broacasts in 1080i.
I intend on having all of my needed media on FW drives which I will batch import into the DS. Of course this is my plan, we'll see what actually happens once I truly start working in the P2 workflow. ;)
 
I have read that some broadcasters ask specifically for the Teranex to be used for 720p upconverted to 1080i. I also undestand that some people are getting good results with the Kona2 card and the new drivers.

I think it is an excellent question, especially if we hope to sell to Hd broadcasters.

Cheers,
Chris
 
Keep the material in its native format as long as possible. DVCPro50 and 100 are not very demanding on the editing system, and are relatively space-efficient. Do all your editing in DVCPro HD. If you have composites or graphics to add, upgrade those shots to an uncompressed format to avoid recompressing them.

That's the real question: how to avoid recompression in your editing app. For example, if you start a DVCPro HD timeline in FCP (because that's what you shot), and then ship a few shots out to Shake for compositing, and render the result to 8-bit uncompressed and bring it back into your timeline, will FCP recompress it to DVCPro? I'd say yes, and it's best to avoid that. To avoid recompression in FCP (and other NLEs that can't truly handle mixed formats in a timeline) when you've modified frames, you have to bring your DVCPro material into an uncompressed timeline, and that means massive rendering and the squandering of the disk space and performance you were saving my sticking with DVCPro HD.

II would probably keep everything in a DVCPro HD timeline and see how bad the double-compression quality hit is on round-tripped material, if you have any. If it's objectionable, you can move everything into an uncompressed timeline (as long as you keep the uncompressed renders from your composites around) whenever someone asks for a particular delivery format. Unfortunately, there's no software HDCam codec, so you're stuck preparing an uncompressed timeline and playing it out over SDI if you want to maintain the highest quality.

Of course, if you have no composites or don't really mind the recompression, use a DVCPro timeline and play that out over SDI to your HDCam deck.
 
Knock Out Films said:
I have read that some broadcasters ask specifically for the Teranex to be used for 720p upconverted to 1080i.
Click to expand...
Really? That's good to hear since that's EXACTLY what I plan to do. My friend has a Teranex Xantus and a Sony HDCAM VTR. I plan to take my 720p HVX200-acquired edit master to him and put it through the Teranex to upconvert to 1080i, Sony HDCAM format, since as Gibby says, that's the HD format most networks accept.
 
Why would you want to upconvert the HVX's 720P to 1080i, when it stoots in 1080i anyway? or did I miss something?


Anhar
 
"Why would you want to upconvert the HVX's 720P to 1080i, when it stoots in 1080i anyway? or did I miss something?"

To be honest 720p for the variable frame rates. I will also master in 720p on D5 for future HD-DVD distribution.
 
Anhar Miah said:
Why would you want to upconvert the HVX's 720P to 1080i, when it stoots in 1080i anyway? or did I miss something?


Anhar
Click to expand...

If you shoot in 720p you will most likely need to master to 1080i for broadcasters. I could see some people shooting entire projects in 720 for the vari rate and the file sizes.

Chris
 
Knock Out Films said:
If you shoot in 720p you will most likely need to master to 1080i for broadcasters. I could see some people shooting entire projects in 720 for the vari rate and the file sizes.

Chris
Click to expand...

True! If your program is airing on a network that broadcasts 1080i (NBC, CBS, HDNet, Discovery), and the production values of the program determine that 1080i may provide the best "look" - reality, etc., then the HVX gives you the option to acquire the footage in 1080i. If it's a 720p broadcasting network (Fox, ABC, ESPN) and/or variable frame rates are needed, then the HVX gives you the option to shoot in 720p. I remember Graeme Nattress mentioning that 720p converts to 1080i better than 1080i converts to 720p, so its important to plan where your program is going to air, and what its other uses are (HD-DVD, etc.), and shoot in the resolution that will best satisfy your project needs, and the capabilities of your NLE system. The cool thing about the HVX is that it is versatile enough to shoot in the resolution your project requires.

Gibby
www.cut4.tv
 
To be precise, 720p60 converts to 1080i60 better than 1080i60 converts to 720p. Converting 1080i60 to 720p30 is very good, but you've halved the temporal motion in the process.

Graeme
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top