In this third part of my series on the Sony F65 Workflow, I go over how to use Sony’s SR Compression format. In the latest firmware revision, the F65 is able to record in the SStP (Simple Studio Profile) video format, also known as the SR Compression format. This is the same format found in the F35 and other HDCAM SR recording cameras. Right now, the F65 can record in the SQ Mode (at 440 Mbps) to the SR Memory cards, with HQ and Lite options available in the future.

We were able to get our hands on the new F65 firmware and grab a few quick shots. I downloaded the footage onto a hard drive using the same methods as shown in Part 1 & 2 of this series. Clips are stored in a standard MXF format and can be read with either Sony’s SR Viewer or by using plugins for AVID and Final Cut Pro. You can find all of these tools on the Sony F65 microsite, under the television section. Watch the video above to learn more about working with this high quality HD format.

With the popularity of HDSLR cameras, as well as digital cinema cameras like the ALEXA, more digital productions are using 2nd-system audio recording than ever before. External recording offers improved quality and flexibility, but it does require some extra steps in post to sync things up.

PluralEyes from Singular Software uses audio waveforms to sync clips. Popular with HDSLR-based productions, the software now has versions for Final Cut Pro, AVID Media Composer, Premiere, Vegas and Edius. It creates a sequence in a given NLE with audio and video synced up. For a quick look at PluralEyes in action, check out this article by Jem Schofield of theC47.

Singular Software also has a standalone application called DualEyes, which will replace audio in clips with external audio recordings, allowing it to be used with any non-linear editing system. Both Plural Eyes and Dual Eyes use audio waveforms to sync audio, so no timecode is required. They are excellent tools and well worth purchasing.

For digital cinema cameras like the ALEXA, it’s fairly common to have timecode matched external audio, and no internal audio recording at all. So, Plural Eyes isn’t the best solution for working with these clips. DIT Ben Cain outlined a new solution called JamSync by Light Illusion on his blog negativespaces. Light Illusion’s software allows you to batch sync audio and video via timecode. It will quickly output new files (either MOV or MXF) with the audio already in sync. This is a great low cost application, which can speed up many different workflows. Check out Ben’s article on JamSync here, and learn more about the application here.

Panasonic has now released the AVCCAM Importer software that was announced at NAB 2011. This Final Cut Pro 7 plug-in allows you to edit AVCCAM (Panasonic’s variant of AVCHD) footage directly, without having to run it through Log and Transfer first. Previously, you would have to transcode AVCCAM footage to ProRes before working with it in FCP 7, but now you can work directly off the .mts files from the camera. This software also allows you to use QuickTime to view the AVCCAM footage, so even if you’re using Final Cut Pro X (which has native support for AVCHD), this will add AVCHD playback to QuickTime.

…continue reading Panasonic AVCCAM Importer for FCP 7 Now Available

Apple has just introduced a new version of Final Cut Pro, completely rebuilt from the ground up as a 64-bit platform with full Grand Central Dispatch support to utilize multicore CPUs. In addition to a new user interface, Apple has added support for up to 4K resolutions, background rendering and has eliminated the need to wait for your footage to ingest before editing. You can now edit before your media is fully ingested, and Final Cut Pro X will silently switch to the local footage as it is brought in.

Other highlights include:

• Resolution independent playback system
• Color management via ColorSync
• All editing is natively supported – no transcoding required
• Content analysis – media detection, image stabilization, people detection, shot detection, color balance and audio cleanup as footage is ingested
• Magnetic timeline – audio moves to a new track when inserting new clips to avoid trim collisions

Final Cut Studio X is expected to be available on June 9th for $299 through the Mac App Store.

Other Apple related highlights from NAB this year include new Thunderbolt-based hardware and technologies from AJA, Blackmagic and Matrox. While AJA is using NAB to showcase Thunderbolt technologies for future products, Blackmagic is launching its new UltraStudio 3D, and Matrox is introducing Thunderbolt to the entire MXO2 family of I/O boxes.

The Blackmagic UltraStudio 3D features dual link SDI and HDMI 1.4a inputs and outputs, and supports capture and playback up to 2K (YUV 4:2:2 or RGB 4:4:4). 3D support includes playback and capture of 1080p side-by-side, line-by-line, and top and bottom formats.

Matrox will be shipping Thunderbolt adapters with the MXO2 family of adapters starting in July. Current MXO2 owners can purchase the Thunderbolt adapter separately for $299.

Panasonic made several announcements yesterday, including new hardware, a reduction in P2 card pricing, wireless metadata, and native AVCCAM editing in Final Cut Pro. Read on to learn more.

PCD30 P2 Reader

The first announcement is the PCD30, a three P2 card reader with the speed of USB 3.0. The USB 3.0 interface permits super-fast transfer rates of up to 4.8Gbps. Additionally, the PCD30 can transfer data from all three P2 cards simultaneously, so your P2 content will download in no time. USB 3.0 is not available in many computers yet, but is growing every day. Look for this product in the summer for around $2,255.

…continue reading Pre-NAB News from Panasonic: 3D, P2 and FCP

ARRI’s ALEXA camera offers several recording options, including recording directly to SxS cards in Apple ProRes format. This is called the Shoot to Edit option, and it makes for a very simple workflow. ProRes has proven to be a high quality and robust video format that is widely used in the industry today. The ALEXA has an uncompressed video output, but I believe many productions will choose to record in ProRes directly in the camera. Here is a 3 step guide for how to import ALEXA footage into Final Cut Pro.

…continue reading Simple ALEXA Workflow with Final Cut Pro

Panasonic is now shipping their single card P2 reader, the AJ-PCD2. This is a must have for anyone who is a P2 camera owner. The device itself is small and very light weight. On the front, you’ll find the single card slot, and on the back there are two USB 2.0 ports. Why two? Well, one is for transferring data and the other is for power. The standard USB port has a limited power output, but with two ports there is enough power for the device to work without a battery or power supply. After downloading the drivers from the Panasonic website, I tested the PCD2 on my MacBook Pro. The device works as advertised without any hitches – gone are the days of the buggy Duel Adapter solution. Unfortunately, USB 2.0 is not as speedy as the ExpressCard interface, but I was able to download a full 32 GB card in about 15 minutes. Transfer speeds may vary depending on the drive you are copying to. I was using an external RAID 0 drive connected with FireWire 800. I also tested the PCD2 on a PC laptop running Windows XP, with very similar results and no headaches at all.

Panasonic also released a new AVC-Intra encoder plugin for Apple’s Compressor. This plugin allows Compressor to export video files encoded in the AVC-Intra codec. AVC-Intra is a high quality compression, and with Final Cut Pro 7, it is supported natively. So with this new export option, AVC-Intra can be used as a high quality deliverable at a relatively low data rate. The Compressor utility allows for files to be created in QuickTime format or in original P2 format. In P2 format, the video can be transferred back to a P2 card using a devices like the PCD2, PCD20 or PCD35, and metadata can be entered. While a P2 card is far from a common deliverable, productions and news networks that have adopted P2 will greatly appreciate the new option. Download the new plugin here. Note: Final Cut Studio 3 is required.