Vegas 6 and Canon XL H1 at DVinfo.net

Mark McCarthy · May 25th, 2006, 12:32 PM

Hello everyone.
Haven't been on here for a while since I sold my XL2 and then upgraded to a DSR 450.
However I am back because I am off to buy c XL H1 tomorrow. Very excited about it, as the XL series is such a fun camera to work with!

I'll be heading off to Dubai next week to do some filming. One reason for getting the camera tomorrow, is I need a camera that produces a great picture, without weighting a tonne on the shoulder!
Anyway!!
I use Vegas 6 which I run on my PC (great program). Vegas 6 can edit HD footage. Do any of you out there use Vegas 6 to edit your XL H1 footage?
How are you getting on? Any advice on settings to use?

What happens if you mix HDV footage with SD footage in the same project? Can you do this?

Looking forward to getting back into the community which is a great resource.

A reply would be appreciated!

thanks, Sparky (UK)

Steven Dempsey · May 25th, 2006, 01:10 PM

I've used Vegas 6d to both capture and edit XLH1 footage. It works great except for one thing. You will basically need a state of the art speedy computer to have any semblance of smooth playback. I'm sure there are many workarounds but my primary NLE is Premiere Pro 2.0 with Cineform which, aside from some annoying bugs, works in real time and is much easier to edit.

Vegas also exports to tape very efficiently. I have not had a problem doing this. In fact, I use Vegas exclusively to drop to tape because Cineform is so buggy.

Mark McCarthy · May 25th, 2006, 03:06 PM

Thanks Steven. Good to hear from you.

I have just had a PC built for me recently for editing which I think has a decent spec. Hopefully it should be able to run Vegas 6 and edit in HDV reasonably well.
Do you edit it in HDV or do you convert it down for editing?
How do you find using the camera? I am slightly concerned about how it handles in low light situations. I thought the XL2 was pretty poor in this area.

Thanks again
regards
Sparky

www.sparkymediaproductions.com

Steven Dempsey · May 25th, 2006, 03:09 PM

I have posted some of my thoughts on the XLH1 here:
http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=68020

Having used the DVX100 for 2 years, the XLH1 is a dream under low light conditions. Not quite as good as the Sony but still better than I'm used to.

I edit in Premiere Pro 2.0 primarily, converting the original m2t files to Cineform's intermediary avi files which seem to be virtually lossless from the original. Cineform has tightly integrated with Premiere's functionality and the files produced for editing are highly efficient. Even on a halfway decent computer you will get smooth playback.

May 25th, 2006, 12:32 PM	#1
Mark McCarthy Regular Crew Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Westcliff-On-Sea, Essex, England Posts: 154	Vegas 6 and Canon XL H1 Hello everyone. Haven't been on here for a while since I sold my XL2 and then upgraded to a DSR 450. However I am back because I am off to buy c XL H1 tomorrow. Very excited about it, as the XL series is such a fun camera to work with! I'll be heading off to Dubai next week to do some filming. One reason for getting the camera tomorrow, is I need a camera that produces a great picture, without weighting a tonne on the shoulder! Anyway!! I use Vegas 6 which I run on my PC (great program). Vegas 6 can edit HD footage. Do any of you out there use Vegas 6 to edit your XL H1 footage? How are you getting on? Any advice on settings to use? What happens if you mix HDV footage with SD footage in the same project? Can you do this? Looking forward to getting back into the community which is a great resource. A reply would be appreciated! thanks, Sparky (UK)

May 25th, 2006, 03:09 PM	#4
Steven Dempsey Disjecta Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Seattle, Washington Posts: 937	I have posted some of my thoughts on the XLH1 here: http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=68020 Having used the DVX100 for 2 years, the XLH1 is a dream under low light conditions. Not quite as good as the Sony but still better than I'm used to. I edit in Premiere Pro 2.0 primarily, converting the original m2t files to Cineform's intermediary avi files which seem to be virtually lossless from the original. Cineform has tightly integrated with Premiere's functionality and the files produced for editing are highly efficient. Even on a halfway decent computer you will get smooth playback. Last edited by Steven Dempsey; May 25th, 2006 at 07:04 PM.

May 25th, 2006, 01:10 PM	#2
Steven Dempsey Disjecta Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Seattle, Washington Posts: 937	I've used Vegas 6d to both capture and edit XLH1 footage. It works great except for one thing. You will basically need a state of the art speedy computer to have any semblance of smooth playback. I'm sure there are many workarounds but my primary NLE is Premiere Pro 2.0 with Cineform which, aside from some annoying bugs, works in real time and is much easier to edit. Vegas also exports to tape very efficiently. I have not had a problem doing this. In fact, I use Vegas exclusively to drop to tape because Cineform is so buggy.

May 25th, 2006, 03:06 PM	#3
Mark McCarthy Regular Crew Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Westcliff-On-Sea, Essex, England Posts: 154	Thanks Steven. Good to hear from you. I have just had a PC built for me recently for editing which I think has a decent spec. Hopefully it should be able to run Vegas 6 and edit in HDV reasonably well. Do you edit it in HDV or do you convert it down for editing? How do you find using the camera? I am slightly concerned about how it handles in low light situations. I thought the XL2 was pretty poor in this area. Thanks again regards Sparky www.sparkymediaproductions.com