GH2 Grading h264... Bad idea?
- Thread starter alkota
- Start date
It depends what you are editing on. In Premiere you should be OK, but in Final Cut Pro, you need to convert it to Pro Res or something Final Cut likes... h264 doesn't behave well in Final Cut Pro.
Premiere has been pushing the compatibility with h264 files and AVCHD, so you can save space and just edit the native format.
Premiere has been pushing the compatibility with h264 files and AVCHD, so you can save space and just edit the native format.
I don't think quality is the issue here, it's more workability.
I personally don't trust editing with the h264 files. I prefer using a more editor friendly codec like ProRes. h264 is basically a streaming codec and is not as stable for editing at a ProRes file.
You are also talking to a Final Cut Pro editor here, so editing h264 is really not an option for me. If it was my call I would never edit h264 files because there is more of a chance of issues arising from working with that codec.
I personally shoot with GH2 and I always convert to ProRes HQ (if Critical color grading is needed) or ProRes LT (If Color Grading is not so important). While the visual difference between LT and HQ is very minimal, HQ gives you more maneuverability and maintains color quality better than LT for grading.
I personally don't trust editing with the h264 files. I prefer using a more editor friendly codec like ProRes. h264 is basically a streaming codec and is not as stable for editing at a ProRes file.
You are also talking to a Final Cut Pro editor here, so editing h264 is really not an option for me. If it was my call I would never edit h264 files because there is more of a chance of issues arising from working with that codec.
I personally shoot with GH2 and I always convert to ProRes HQ (if Critical color grading is needed) or ProRes LT (If Color Grading is not so important). While the visual difference between LT and HQ is very minimal, HQ gives you more maneuverability and maintains color quality better than LT for grading.
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J Davis
Veteran
I think you need to state if you are editing h264, grading h264 in an editor or grading h264 in ae or color. Why? because
editing h264 in fcp = bad idea
grading h264 in fcp = bad idea
grading h264 in ae with export to prores = good idea
grading h264 in color when sent from fcp and then export to prores = good idea*
* the last one means you have no transcode before the grade yet you end up with prores on the fcp timeline
at the end of the day. Dissolves then applied post grade.
editing h264 in fcp = bad idea
grading h264 in fcp = bad idea
grading h264 in ae with export to prores = good idea
grading h264 in color when sent from fcp and then export to prores = good idea*
* the last one means you have no transcode before the grade yet you end up with prores on the fcp timeline
at the end of the day. Dissolves then applied post grade.
I'm curious, If not editing h264 in FCP, Why grade h264 in Color if you are starting and ending in (for example) ProRes? Thanks for the clarification.
bleach551
Member
J.
why not transcode to a more lossless codec like Avid DNxHd or Pro-Res first that were designed to handle more extensive grading than H.264, edit, grade in FCP, export out to final delivery format
or
Transcode to Avid DNxHD or Pro Res, edit, export out as Quicktime Reference into AE ( no transcoding just has identifiers that link back to original footage in timeline), grade in Color Finesse, export out to final delivery format.
why not transcode to a more lossless codec like Avid DNxHd or Pro-Res first that were designed to handle more extensive grading than H.264, edit, grade in FCP, export out to final delivery format
or
Transcode to Avid DNxHD or Pro Res, edit, export out as Quicktime Reference into AE ( no transcoding just has identifiers that link back to original footage in timeline), grade in Color Finesse, export out to final delivery format.
J Davis
Veteran
Once the data is inside an application like Color or AE (After Effects) it is no longer h264, and no longer 8 bit.
By going from h264 to Color or AE it is slightly 'safer' than h264 to 10 bit prores and then to Color/AE. By safer I am
referring to minimizing any chance of detail loss, because even though prores is very very good it is still a lossy codec after all.
This brings about several problems as it means you need to specially prepare an h264 timeline in fcp ready to send to color.
In practice I would only do this for specialized shots that I need to take extra care on. 99% of the time you would never tell the difference.
The last time I did something like this was a greenscreen job where capture was h264. I was already at picture lock so I took
h264 files directly into After Effects then exported to prores. FCP came last for the pipeline of that particular job.
By going from h264 to Color or AE it is slightly 'safer' than h264 to 10 bit prores and then to Color/AE. By safer I am
referring to minimizing any chance of detail loss, because even though prores is very very good it is still a lossy codec after all.
This brings about several problems as it means you need to specially prepare an h264 timeline in fcp ready to send to color.
In practice I would only do this for specialized shots that I need to take extra care on. 99% of the time you would never tell the difference.
The last time I did something like this was a greenscreen job where capture was h264. I was already at picture lock so I took
h264 files directly into After Effects then exported to prores. FCP came last for the pipeline of that particular job.
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