workflow suggestion d90->avid->fcp

M

mattsand

Veteran
hey,

i realize this is probably way ver the head of most d90 users but i need suggestions related to the lack of timecode on d90 clips and preservation of original quality for stairstep removal and grading. it seems like my feature will be edited on an avid system, but i need to do my post in final cut studio (fcp/motion/color). importing the files to avid should work fine, editing too since it converts everything to its own format, but then begins the problems: you can't do a normal edl export since there's no timecode and even if you output with file names there are numerous files called the same thing (i don't know if this is an option on the d90, but if so we didn't know so every time we formatted the cards it started on zero). so basically i need to create a new master clip with timecode or i need to rename all the files. both options are possible and both have pros and cons. any other ideas though? i guess editing uncompressed in the avid and exporting an online master from there could work? i don't think this particular system does uncompressed 720p though, it's not an easy task.

/matt
 
Editing uncompressed sounds crazy to me too. I would be more inclined to rename all the clips, especially since you or your editor is probably going to (or, at least, should) watch all of the material again, anyhow. Would that solve all of the problems with the EDL, even without TC? Exporting an avid EDL with file names would work flawlessly in FCP later? I'd test it out before committing.
 
Thanks, you're probably right. Yes, it works flawlessly with the file names, i've done it before with dv footage. Worst case you have to manually reconnect each clip. What i need to check is that avid adds its own timecode like fcp does, starting at 00:00:00:00 for every clip. I assumed it would but i'm not sure. Otherwise i won't get the edit points in the edl even if the clips would be referenced correctly, which would suck big time. :-)
 
mattsand said:
Thanks, you're probably right. Yes, it works flawlessly with the file names, i've done it before with dv footage. Worst case you have to manually reconnect each clip. What i need to check is that avid adds its own timecode like fcp does, starting at 00:00:00:00 for every clip. I assumed it would but i'm not sure. Otherwise i won't get the edit points in the edl even if the clips would be referenced correctly, which would suck big time. :-)
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's exaclty what I meant by "flawlessly"... :P

-BUT-

You could also check if there's some way of converting to a hybrid codec (one that would work for both plataforms) in your avid ingestion. If the codec is high quality and doesn't rescale the image (so it doesn't ruin your scaler), maybe you could integrate the conversion in your post path. Does it have to be that DNxHD thingy?
 
Apple is pushing ProRes as its professional high quality inter-platform codec. (A Windoze version of ProRes is supported by Apple). I am not an Avid user--but if Avid supports ProRes this could be a good lingua franca for sending files to FCP.

Just a thought.
 
Avid only supports its own codecs natively, as far as i know. When you import something else it's converted. This is both the strength and the limitation of the system. I haven't used it myself since media composer circa 2003, but i've worked with avid edl's more recently so i'm fairly familiar with those.
 
Yes, if there's an online quality 720p codec in avid that would solve it. I hate losing the connection to my originals though. One thing i thought of is the time stamp on the files. Any chance of converting those to timecode in software? They are unique since it was a single camera shoot and high enough res i think. (milliseconds or at least seconds?)
 
I don't know matt... It sounds fishy. I'd try to see if you can make this work using one of the first ideas, either renaming and hoping Avid and FCP would give them the same TC (test it out), or embedding TC on the files via software. You'd probably need to do your first conversion then, wouldn't you?
 
it's easy to add timecode to clips using quicktime manually, once it's there it's there just as if it was added by the camera and it's non-destructive. the "only" problem is to do it automatically for a thousand clips or more. i guess avi's support timecode too, but i don't know how easy it is to add.

/matt
 
Sounds like a pain in the arse to me, even with lossless codecs with all those conversions you're bound to lose something. Wouldn't it be easier to put a a gun to the editors head and tell them to cut it in fcp?
 
Yes and no. He has fcp but if he cuts on the avid he gets access to free assistant as well as a great mentor, one of the best. It's a long story. :-)
 
try running some test footy through the avid and back into fcp and see if you get any extra degradation then you can weigh up whether it's worth it.
 
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