Capture missing footage? FCP's Media Manager at DVinfo.net

Elmer Lang · March 7th, 2005, 05:47 PM

Hello

I have the FCP project file for a 3 hr rough cut, but not the footage itself. How/Can I make a sequence without the unnecessary footage so when I get the tapes I just capture the rough cut.

When I tried to use Media Manager and 'Media: Create Offline' it didn't work.

If anyone knows how to set up the window, lemme know!

Yikes,
elmer lang

Rob Lohman · March 12th, 2005, 05:05 AM

I'm not on the Mac/FCP platform, but you should be looking for a
feature that is labelled like: capture offline footage, capture missing
footage etc. etc.

Rhett Allen · March 12th, 2005, 02:34 PM

You will need Logged Bins in order for it to work. Meaning, whoever captured the footage in the first place would have had to "Log in" each tape. This is the only way for FCP to know which tape the footage came from and therefore which tape to "re-capture" it from.
I'm not certain I understand what it is you are trying to do. If you don't have the footage at all, you won't be able to edit it at all. If it's just a rough cut, and you have an "offline quality" version, continue with your edits. When you are finished you can recapture it in the higher quality and, provided it was logged properly, FCP will only re-capture the footage you need. If it was NOT logged properly in the beginning, there is no way to have it automatically re-capture the footage (read, lot's of work ahead).
The media manager is used for trimming footage you have already captured but are not using. This allows you to dispose of unused media and free up hard drive space. For instance, if you capture a full tape but only use 15 minutes of it and don't want to keep the rest of the tape on your drive, you would use the media manager to remove the extraneous footage.

Elmer Lang · March 13th, 2005, 09:05 AM

Hello,

Thanks for getting back. Yeah, looks llike Media Mangaement only works on eexisting footage.

So there is no way to take a sequence whose footage is deleted and, prior to recapturing needed footage, make it just recapture the needed footage? $1,000 software can't do that?

dang,
elmerlang
<http://elmerlang.com>

Rhett Allen · March 13th, 2005, 01:33 PM

The problem isn't the software, I don't know of any program that will allow that with any reasonable accuracy, it really has no way of knowing which tape the footage came from or what the starting time-code for that tape was. You could have started capturing 20 minutes into the tape for all it knows (which I have done). That's why it's so important to plan ahead and log the tapes, then FCP would be able to keep track of exactly "where" the footage came from. You would need to label the tapes and log them when you capture, then when you come back to capture again, it will tell you to please insert "tape #105a" or whatever you named it, capture the required footage for you and then ask for the next tape. It's a nice workflow but it requires more set-up in advance. You can even export the EDL (Edit Decision List) to use in another program and recapture the footage there if you want.

Elmer Lang · March 14th, 2005, 09:43 AM

Oops, I guess I left out some info. Sorry. It relates to another post I made.

Of course all the tapes are logged and and in bins.

I meant to say that there is a sequence I'm trying to reconcstruct by recapturing the footage, and since any sequence in FCP has ins and outs, I'm saying it's a shame a thousand dollar software can't just capture those ins and outs.

O, it can if the footage is already there and you run Media Manager but why can't you run MM on a sequence for which the footage exists but needs recapturing. I thought 'create offline' would but it didn't.

all the best...

Rhett Allen · March 14th, 2005, 06:40 PM

Why don't you create an EDL for your sequence and make a batch capture from that? If you know the ins and outs AND you have the source tapes logged, you should be able to capture just the media you need for the sequence. you could even make your own EDL in a text editor if you know the format. EDL's have limitations themselves so you have to make sure your edit follows those rules (like nested sequences and such) but since you're staying in FCP, you won't have as many problems.

March 12th, 2005, 05:05 AM	#2
Rob Lohman RED Code Chef Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Holland Posts: 12,514	I'm not on the Mac/FCP platform, but you should be looking for a feature that is labelled like: capture offline footage, capture missing footage etc. etc. __________________ Rob Lohman, visuar@iname.com DV Info Wrangler & RED Code Chef Join the DV Challenge \| Lady X Search DVinfo.net for quick answers \| Buy from the best: DVinfo.net sponsors

March 7th, 2005, 05:47 PM	#1
Elmer Lang Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: NY, NY Posts: 319	FCP's Media Manager Hello I have the FCP project file for a 3 hr rough cut, but not the footage itself. How/Can I make a sequence without the unnecessary footage so when I get the tapes I just capture the rough cut. When I tried to use Media Manager and 'Media: Create Offline' it didn't work. If anyone knows how to set up the window, lemme know! Yikes, elmer lang

March 12th, 2005, 02:34 PM	#3
Rhett Allen Major Player Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Plano, TX Posts: 607	You will need Logged Bins in order for it to work. Meaning, whoever captured the footage in the first place would have had to "Log in" each tape. This is the only way for FCP to know which tape the footage came from and therefore which tape to "re-capture" it from. I'm not certain I understand what it is you are trying to do. If you don't have the footage at all, you won't be able to edit it at all. If it's just a rough cut, and you have an "offline quality" version, continue with your edits. When you are finished you can recapture it in the higher quality and, provided it was logged properly, FCP will only re-capture the footage you need. If it was NOT logged properly in the beginning, there is no way to have it automatically re-capture the footage (read, lot's of work ahead). The media manager is used for trimming footage you have already captured but are not using. This allows you to dispose of unused media and free up hard drive space. For instance, if you capture a full tape but only use 15 minutes of it and don't want to keep the rest of the tape on your drive, you would use the media manager to remove the extraneous footage.

March 13th, 2005, 09:05 AM	#4
Elmer Lang Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: NY, NY Posts: 319	Hello, Thanks for getting back. Yeah, looks llike Media Mangaement only works on eexisting footage. So there is no way to take a sequence whose footage is deleted and, prior to recapturing needed footage, make it just recapture the needed footage? $1,000 software can't do that? dang, elmerlang <http://elmerlang.com>

March 13th, 2005, 01:33 PM	#5
Rhett Allen Major Player Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Plano, TX Posts: 607	The problem isn't the software, I don't know of any program that will allow that with any reasonable accuracy, it really has no way of knowing which tape the footage came from or what the starting time-code for that tape was. You could have started capturing 20 minutes into the tape for all it knows (which I have done). That's why it's so important to plan ahead and log the tapes, then FCP would be able to keep track of exactly "where" the footage came from. You would need to label the tapes and log them when you capture, then when you come back to capture again, it will tell you to please insert "tape #105a" or whatever you named it, capture the required footage for you and then ask for the next tape. It's a nice workflow but it requires more set-up in advance. You can even export the EDL (Edit Decision List) to use in another program and recapture the footage there if you want.

March 14th, 2005, 09:43 AM	#6
Elmer Lang Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: NY, NY Posts: 319	Oops, I guess I left out some info. Sorry. It relates to another post I made. Of course all the tapes are logged and and in bins. I meant to say that there is a sequence I'm trying to reconcstruct by recapturing the footage, and since any sequence in FCP has ins and outs, I'm saying it's a shame a thousand dollar software can't just capture those ins and outs. O, it can if the footage is already there and you run Media Manager but why can't you run MM on a sequence for which the footage exists but needs recapturing. I thought 'create offline' would but it didn't. all the best...

March 14th, 2005, 06:40 PM	#7
Rhett Allen Major Player Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Plano, TX Posts: 607	Why don't you create an EDL for your sequence and make a batch capture from that? If you know the ins and outs AND you have the source tapes logged, you should be able to capture just the media you need for the sequence. you could even make your own EDL in a text editor if you know the format. EDL's have limitations themselves so you have to make sure your edit follows those rules (like nested sequences and such) but since you're staying in FCP, you won't have as many problems.