Odd smoothcam plugin issue/non-issue at DVinfo.net

Robert Turchick · December 8th, 2009, 01:46 PM

Strange problem that took two experienced FCP editors to figure out!

I was recently given an FCP project and all the associated files from another editor. My job was to color grade and fix a couple of noise issues.

The sequence had the smoothcam plugin on several clips which I had never used before and I rendered the timeline to see what I was dealing with. All the clips with smoothcam now had pronounced doubling and blur. I called the other editor and described what I was seeing and the troubleshooting began.

Long story short, smoothcam creates files with the extension .mtdf which are the analysis files. they get stored in the capture scratch folder with the original ingest. My new render files did not connect to the analysis files properly and the blur and doubling happened. We finally confirmed this by deleting all the .mtdf files and letting my computer create the analysis and render files and all is well! I am very impressed with this plugin as an alternative to AE or Motion!
The only reason we could think of for the "broken link" (why his analysis files didn't work on my machine) is the version differences (he uses 6.06 and I'm on 7.01)

Anyone have another idea?

Greg Quinn · December 8th, 2009, 10:34 PM

Haven't been able to get Smoothcam to render out properly with FCP 7 and ended up buying Lock and Load instead. It output what looked like interlaced from 24P..! I'm pretty sure that smoothcam with FCP 7 is an ongoing issue.

Robert Lane · December 9th, 2009, 08:11 AM

While previewing FCP7 from ADC builds one thing that both myself and other testers noted was that the "engine" or algorithm that actually does the work of the Smoothcam filter has changed.

Unfortunately - and a new trend noticed in many other NLE-based plug-ins both originating and third-party - is that the filter/effect isn't reverse-compatible nor designed to accommodate previous versions and as RT points out the fix is to delete the old renders and let FCP7 handle the new Smoothcam operation.

As with FCP6 the best way to use Smoothcam is to make a stand-alone sub-clip of just the section of the original clip that needs the filter applied. If you send a clip with in's and out's to Smoothcam it still looks at and processes the *entire* clip and ignores the in-out markers you set. This has been one of the biggest complaints of the filter since it's inception and one reason why "Lock and Load" was created to combat the issue and make the workflow more efficient and logical.

Robert Turchick · December 9th, 2009, 09:44 AM

Thanks for the insight! I'll check out Lock and Load

Ralph Stutchbury · March 27th, 2010, 05:02 AM

I'm new to smoothcam filter and tried to apply it to several aerials and other handheld HDV footage. I'm getting 'breathing and jitter' in random portions of the frame. The edges are steady and clean. Still unable to get rid of the problem in spite of trying different settings. I'm shooting PAL 1080 50i. Any advice please.

Jase Tanner · March 27th, 2010, 05:15 PM

I had what sounds like the same issue until I found out that smoothcam had to be used before any other filters.

December 8th, 2009, 01:46 PM	#1
Robert Turchick Trustee Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Mesa, AZ Posts: 1,389	Odd smoothcam plugin issue/non-issue Strange problem that took two experienced FCP editors to figure out! I was recently given an FCP project and all the associated files from another editor. My job was to color grade and fix a couple of noise issues. The sequence had the smoothcam plugin on several clips which I had never used before and I rendered the timeline to see what I was dealing with. All the clips with smoothcam now had pronounced doubling and blur. I called the other editor and described what I was seeing and the troubleshooting began. Long story short, smoothcam creates files with the extension .mtdf which are the analysis files. they get stored in the capture scratch folder with the original ingest. My new render files did not connect to the analysis files properly and the blur and doubling happened. We finally confirmed this by deleting all the .mtdf files and letting my computer create the analysis and render files and all is well! I am very impressed with this plugin as an alternative to AE or Motion! The only reason we could think of for the "broken link" (why his analysis files didn't work on my machine) is the version differences (he uses 6.06 and I'm on 7.01) Anyone have another idea?

March 27th, 2010, 05:02 AM	#5
Ralph Stutchbury Tourist Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Harare, Zimbabwe Posts: 4	FCP 7 Smoothcam problems I'm new to smoothcam filter and tried to apply it to several aerials and other handheld HDV footage. I'm getting 'breathing and jitter' in random portions of the frame. The edges are steady and clean. Still unable to get rid of the problem in spite of trying different settings. I'm shooting PAL 1080 50i. Any advice please.

December 8th, 2009, 10:34 PM	#2
Greg Quinn Major Player Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: San Diego, California Posts: 505	Haven't been able to get Smoothcam to render out properly with FCP 7 and ended up buying Lock and Load instead. It output what looked like interlaced from 24P..! I'm pretty sure that smoothcam with FCP 7 is an ongoing issue.

December 9th, 2009, 08:11 AM	#3
Robert Lane Go Go Godzilla Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Scottsdale, AZ USA Posts: 2,825 Images: 15	While previewing FCP7 from ADC builds one thing that both myself and other testers noted was that the "engine" or algorithm that actually does the work of the Smoothcam filter has changed. Unfortunately - and a new trend noticed in many other NLE-based plug-ins both originating and third-party - is that the filter/effect isn't reverse-compatible nor designed to accommodate previous versions and as RT points out the fix is to delete the old renders and let FCP7 handle the new Smoothcam operation. As with FCP6 the best way to use Smoothcam is to make a stand-alone sub-clip of just the section of the original clip that needs the filter applied. If you send a clip with in's and out's to Smoothcam it still looks at and processes the entire clip and ignores the in-out markers you set. This has been one of the biggest complaints of the filter since it's inception and one reason why "Lock and Load" was created to combat the issue and make the workflow more efficient and logical.

December 9th, 2009, 09:44 AM	#4
Robert Turchick Trustee Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Mesa, AZ Posts: 1,389	Thanks for the insight! I'll check out Lock and Load

March 27th, 2010, 05:15 PM	#6
Jase Tanner Major Player Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Vancouver, Canada Posts: 346	I had what sounds like the same issue until I found out that smoothcam had to be used before any other filters.