Can you mix formats in timeline? at DVinfo.net

Kevin Ta · October 7th, 2009, 01:01 PM

Hi There,

I'm new to FCP, but I wanted to try my new project on this editor. I want to throw in footage from my Canon Mark II (ProRes) and HDV 60i footage into one timeline. Is that possible, and could I be running myself into any problems during output?

Usually in Avid which I normally edit with, I have to transcode everything to DNxHD to output smoothly. Can FCP export the HDV 60i footage without needing to transcode to ProRes like the Mark II footage? I will be outputting the footage to mpeg4/h264 codec.

Just wanted to look into this situation before I begin, all help is much appreciated. Thanks!

Robert Lane · October 7th, 2009, 01:44 PM

There is a forum category dedicated specifically to working with the 5D MkII footage; if you check out that category you'll find all the information you need from other shooters/editors who use it on a daily basis and get all the workflow information you can possibly need.

Michael Wisniewski · October 7th, 2009, 01:59 PM

I mix ProRes and HDV footage all time in ProRes sequences. For me it's a very solid workflow.

William Hohauser · October 7th, 2009, 02:05 PM

As long as you are editing on a ProRes timeline everything should work fine and in real-time with some rendering before final output. The main issue is image dimension. If the two files have a different image dimension (example: 1440x720 vs 1920x1080) pick the size that the majority of the footage will use. If you use the smaller size, the larger footage will be automatically reduced by FCP, however small dimension footage will have to be manually zoomed in on a larger size timeline which may not look so good.

Kevin Ta · October 7th, 2009, 03:03 PM

thank you everyone for your responses. i will give it a go mixing the formats. i'll be sure to run a prores timeline as well.

October 7th, 2009, 01:01 PM	#1
Kevin Ta Regular Crew Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: San Francisco, CA Posts: 55	Can you mix formats in timeline? Hi There, I'm new to FCP, but I wanted to try my new project on this editor. I want to throw in footage from my Canon Mark II (ProRes) and HDV 60i footage into one timeline. Is that possible, and could I be running myself into any problems during output? Usually in Avid which I normally edit with, I have to transcode everything to DNxHD to output smoothly. Can FCP export the HDV 60i footage without needing to transcode to ProRes like the Mark II footage? I will be outputting the footage to mpeg4/h264 codec. Just wanted to look into this situation before I begin, all help is much appreciated. Thanks! __________________ Kevin Ta

October 7th, 2009, 01:59 PM	#3
Michael Wisniewski Wrangler Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Makati, Metro Manila Posts: 2,706 Images: 32	I mix ProRes and HDV footage all time in ProRes sequences. For me it's a very solid workflow. __________________ "Ultimately, the most extraordinary thing, in a frame, is a human being." - Martin Scorsese

October 7th, 2009, 02:05 PM	#4
William Hohauser Inner Circle Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: New York City Posts: 2,650	As long as you are editing on a ProRes timeline everything should work fine and in real-time with some rendering before final output. The main issue is image dimension. If the two files have a different image dimension (example: 1440x720 vs 1920x1080) pick the size that the majority of the footage will use. If you use the smaller size, the larger footage will be automatically reduced by FCP, however small dimension footage will have to be manually zoomed in on a larger size timeline which may not look so good. __________________ William Hohauser - New York City Producer/Edit/Camera/Animation

October 7th, 2009, 03:03 PM	#5
Kevin Ta Regular Crew Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: San Francisco, CA Posts: 55	thank you everyone for your responses. i will give it a go mixing the formats. i'll be sure to run a prores timeline as well. __________________ Kevin Ta

October 7th, 2009, 01:44 PM	#2
Robert Lane Go Go Godzilla Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Scottsdale, AZ USA Posts: 2,825 Images: 15	There is a forum category dedicated specifically to working with the 5D MkII footage; if you check out that category you'll find all the information you need from other shooters/editors who use it on a daily basis and get all the workflow information you can possibly need.