Is there a “middle ground” when working from AVCHD? at DVinfo.net

Bill Mette · May 11th, 2008, 07:26 PM

Hello All,

I recently purchased a Canon HF100 and have been researching the daylights out of working with AVCHD source material on a Mac for the past week or so. While I think I have my mind wrapped around most of the important items, there are still a few pieces that just aren’t quite coming together for me. If anyone wold care to take a shot at any of these, it would be much appreciated.

I’m not looking to produce commercial output or edit AVCHD natively. I’m just a hobbyist that’s trying to figure out what middle ground may exist between iMovie ’08 and shelling out the $’s for FCS (or a Mac Pro).

FCE
I’ve seen mention that FCE is limited to working with footage at 1440 x 1080. [**] Is this actually a limitation of FCE itself or a limitation of how AIC is currently implemented? Is FCE capable of working with material in anything other than AIC?

Similarly, I’ve seen it posted that FCE doesn’t work with 24p footage. Again, is this an actual limitation of FCE or is this an “assumption” based on the fact that FCE provides no means to remove pulldown from the consumer cameras that shoot 24p in 60i? Are there any Mac apps/tools available for removing pulldown besides FCP and Compressor?

Intermediate Format Options
Are there any intermediate codec options (and conversion tools) available for Working with AVCHD on the Mac besides AIC and ProRes? I would also be interested to know how processor-hungry these options may be relative to one another. I currently have a 2.4 GHz Core2 Duo iMac.

As an example, many of the Windows folks seem happy working with CineForm’s codecs and tools. CineForm makes mention of Mac support on their Web site but I’m honestly having a hard time figuring out what exactly it is they offer for the Mac.

If there are indeed other intermediate codecs available, could I work with them in FCE or would I end up needing to buy FCS anyway just use them?

[**] Side Question: Does iMovie ’08 have the same 1440 x 1080 resolution limit as FCE? I’ve seen people mention outputting 1920 x 1080 from iMovie but I was thinking this may actually be a rendered “upsizing” from 1440. If both apps are utilizing AIC out of the box, then it’s confusing to me why FCE would be limited to 1440 while iMovie ’08 is not.

Robert Lane · May 11th, 2008, 08:50 PM

Hi Bill,

Welcome to the forum.

If you research the "AVCHD Discussion" forum on this site you'll have all your questions answered - and then some.

Bill Mette · May 11th, 2008, 09:41 PM

Thanks for the welcome Robert. I've been lurking in the AVCHD forum for the better part of a week. It basically seemed like a coin toss as to whether I should post my questions there or in here. Now I know.

May 11th, 2008, 07:26 PM	#1
Bill Mette New Boot Join Date: May 2008 Location: Streamwood, IL Posts: 12	Is there a “middle ground” when working from AVCHD? Hello All, I recently purchased a Canon HF100 and have been researching the daylights out of working with AVCHD source material on a Mac for the past week or so. While I think I have my mind wrapped around most of the important items, there are still a few pieces that just aren’t quite coming together for me. If anyone wold care to take a shot at any of these, it would be much appreciated. I’m not looking to produce commercial output or edit AVCHD natively. I’m just a hobbyist that’s trying to figure out what middle ground may exist between iMovie ’08 and shelling out the $’s for FCS (or a Mac Pro). FCE I’ve seen mention that FCE is limited to working with footage at 1440 x 1080. [*] Is this actually a limitation of FCE itself or a limitation of how AIC is currently implemented? Is FCE capable of working with material in anything other than AIC? Similarly, I’ve seen it posted that FCE doesn’t work with 24p footage. Again, is this an actual limitation of FCE or is this an “assumption” based on the fact that FCE provides no means to remove pulldown from the consumer cameras that shoot 24p in 60i? Are there any Mac apps/tools available for removing pulldown besides FCP and Compressor? Intermediate Format Options* Are there any intermediate codec options (and conversion tools) available for Working with AVCHD on the Mac besides AIC and ProRes? I would also be interested to know how processor-hungry these options may be relative to one another. I currently have a 2.4 GHz Core2 Duo iMac. As an example, many of the Windows folks seem happy working with CineForm’s codecs and tools. CineForm makes mention of Mac support on their Web site but I’m honestly having a hard time figuring out what exactly it is they offer for the Mac. If there are indeed other intermediate codecs available, could I work with them in FCE or would I end up needing to buy FCS anyway just use them? [**] Side Question: Does iMovie ’08 have the same 1440 x 1080 resolution limit as FCE? I’ve seen people mention outputting 1920 x 1080 from iMovie but I was thinking this may actually be a rendered “upsizing” from 1440. If both apps are utilizing AIC out of the box, then it’s confusing to me why FCE would be limited to 1440 while iMovie ’08 is not.

May 11th, 2008, 08:50 PM	#2
Robert Lane Go Go Godzilla Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Scottsdale, AZ USA Posts: 2,823 Images: 15	Hi Bill, Welcome to the forum. If you research the "AVCHD Discussion" forum on this site you'll have all your questions answered - and then some.

May 11th, 2008, 09:41 PM	#3
Bill Mette New Boot Join Date: May 2008 Location: Streamwood, IL Posts: 12	Thanks for the welcome Robert. I've been lurking in the AVCHD forum for the better part of a week. It basically seemed like a coin toss as to whether I should post my questions there or in here. Now I know.