Getting gray blocks and screens in footage???

J

J5 squared

Well-known member
Started to find lots of gray blocks and screens w cutouts in different shapes in footage. There seems to be no order to when they happen just randomly a frame or few of footage will display either grey small blocks (like tetris blocks almost) or a grey screen with cutouts of blocks where our footage shows through. Has anyone else seen this? Any ideas what could be causing it?

Here is a screenshot of one of the culprit frames.

blocks.png
 
How about some more information about your system and workflow? The last thing you want is for someone to tell you to clean the heads.
 
Right. That's what can happen. If you're using a Mac you just can't do that. That type of workflow only works with the PC.

With the Mac you cannot import directly from the cards right into FCP, reliably. Sometimes it works, sometimes this happens.

Apple recommends that you instead do a "disk image" copy of the cards to a hard disk, and import from there.

If you want to edit straight from the card, the PC can do it fine, but there's something amiss in the way the Mac gets the data from the card. I am certain it's not FCP's fault, so that means it's either in the Mac OS or in Panasonic's driver.

If you're having this problem, can you please identify *exactly* the circumstances it happens under? As in:

Does it happen to you if you import straight off the card in a G4 PowerBook?

Does it happen to you if you import straight off the card by using the HVX as a card reader in 1394 Device mode?

Does it happen to you if you import the footage through the P2 Store, using the P2 Store as a pass-through card slot?

Does it happen to you if you copy the card to the P2 Store first, and then import from the P2 Store's hard disk (and not from the card)?

Does it happen if you use the Finder to copy, or if you use P2 Genie to copy? Or both?

If we can get some definitive evidence here as to when it does happen, and when it never happens, then maybe we can scream long and loud at the appropriate party (Apple or Panasonic) to get this issue fixed once and for all.
 
Hrm I had no idea you weren't supposed to import directly to fcp. What we have been doing most times is using a g4 powerbook in the field. Once a card is full we put the card into the g4 and open FCP. We import the p2 card into fcp converting the files to quicktime and saving them to an external drive. Then at the end of the day we load that external drive footage onto a larger drive specifically for that project. Now and then they will use the p2 store to store a card or two on a small shoot or to copy from back at the shop. Though im not sure when we are getting the most dropouts. I'm an editor and was going through footage and finding these dropouts and brought it up to the production guys. We'll have to have a group discussion about all this tomorrow morning.
 
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