5DtoRGB

Josh Dahlberg · January 2nd, 2012, 08:04 AM

Very much enjoying using the GH2 but alongside my XF300 (with 4:2:2 codec) one thing you really notice is the colour sampling.

Enter 5DtoRGB by Rarevision

This free software that solves most issues for me, especially in the reds (lips are a biggie). It takes a few minutes to download and test for yourself, well worth it.

After a quick test of the free version I'm going to upgrade to the paid version (with batch processing).

A few screen shots attached showing my test scene, the software, and a 200% upscale of a problem wallet: one shot shows a Clipwrap transcode to Prores 422, the other a (superior) 5DtoRGB transcode.

Along with the wallet, issues with the CF card, apple and drawing were also fixed. Yay!

Guy Smith · January 5th, 2012, 10:13 AM

Thanks for the recommendation. I went ahead and downloaded the software but have not been able to convert my GH2 1080i footage to DNxHD in the QT wrapper (I'm on a PC so ProRes won't work for me).

5DtoRBG saw the input file's framerate as 59.94i and set the default conversion rate to 29.97. When I tried to process the file at 29.97 or 59.94 I got an error message to the effect that there was a size mismatch and that the video needed to be either 720 or 1080.

When I set the conversion framerate to 23.976, however, it processed just fine.... BUT the audio and video were out of sync in the processed file in my editing application (Vegas) and I had to manually speed up the playback rate.

Converting the footage to DNxHD in the .avi wrapper at 29.97 did not result in an error, but I was unable to play the file in Windows' Media Player or in Vegas (I installed the DNxHD CODEC before installing 5DtoRGB).

Any ideas what I may be doing wrong??

Thomas Smet · January 5th, 2012, 01:12 PM

The advantage seems to depend on what NLE you use. Adobe CS5.5 actually does a very good job up converting AVCHD material. I did a comparison and honestly the up converted chroma looked about the same. Performance wise it does help a lot but there are better optimized formats other then Prores when using CS5.5 on a Mac.

The PC version of 5DtoRGB seems to not have as many features as the Mac version. At least in the free version. The PC version did seem to convert much faster however when using bootcamp on my Mac. That may be due to the lack of chroma filtering since the option wasn't there.

Josh Dahlberg · January 5th, 2012, 04:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Guy Smith

Any ideas what I may be doing wrong??

Sorry Guy, I'm in Pal land, so a simple 50i to 25p conversion takes place. I haven't had to deal with NTSC frame rates myself.

Thomas, yes I've heard something along these lines. It makes a big difference with Final Cut, both 7 and X.

Kevin McRoberts · January 6th, 2012, 05:10 PM

Is there any way to batch process this? Otherwise it's rather useless for me...

Josh Dahlberg · January 6th, 2012, 06:32 PM

Yes, as mentioned in the lead post, it's in the paid version

Nigel Barker · January 7th, 2012, 09:17 AM

Is the process still dog slow? I tried 5DtoRGB a long while ago for converting 5DII video but it was so much slower than using MPEG StreamClip or Log & Transfer for no appreciable benefit that I gave up on it.

Secondly as noted isn't this just a problem with FCP & converting to ProRes? We moved over to Premiere Pro & have been editing native DSLR footage so don't need to transcode any more.

Josh Dahlberg · January 7th, 2012, 05:02 PM

I can't comment on Premiere pro, but certainly reds are an issue with FCP whether you convert to prores or not.

Yep, it's much slower than clipwrap, but apparently that's because of the additional analysis/work it's doing.

Whether it's worth it depends on the scene for me. But if the reds are bleeding it makes a huge difference, at least in FCP.

January 2nd, 2012, 08:04 AM	#1
Josh Dahlberg Major Player Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Wellington, New Zealand Posts: 513	5DtoRGB - wow! This really helps. Very much enjoying using the GH2 but alongside my XF300 (with 4:2:2 codec) one thing you really notice is the colour sampling. Enter 5DtoRGB by Rarevision This free software that solves most issues for me, especially in the reds (lips are a biggie). It takes a few minutes to download and test for yourself, well worth it. After a quick test of the free version I'm going to upgrade to the paid version (with batch processing). A few screen shots attached showing my test scene, the software, and a 200% upscale of a problem wallet: one shot shows a Clipwrap transcode to Prores 422, the other a (superior) 5DtoRGB transcode. Along with the wallet, issues with the CF card, apple and drawing were also fixed. Yay! Attached Thumbnails

January 5th, 2012, 10:13 AM	#2
Guy Smith Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 48	Re: 5DtoRGB - wow! This really helps. Thanks for the recommendation. I went ahead and downloaded the software but have not been able to convert my GH2 1080i footage to DNxHD in the QT wrapper (I'm on a PC so ProRes won't work for me). 5DtoRBG saw the input file's framerate as 59.94i and set the default conversion rate to 29.97. When I tried to process the file at 29.97 or 59.94 I got an error message to the effect that there was a size mismatch and that the video needed to be either 720 or 1080. When I set the conversion framerate to 23.976, however, it processed just fine.... BUT the audio and video were out of sync in the processed file in my editing application (Vegas) and I had to manually speed up the playback rate. Converting the footage to DNxHD in the .avi wrapper at 29.97 did not result in an error, but I was unable to play the file in Windows' Media Player or in Vegas (I installed the DNxHD CODEC before installing 5DtoRGB). Any ideas what I may be doing wrong??

January 5th, 2012, 01:12 PM	#3
Thomas Smet Trustee Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Milwaukee, WI Posts: 1,719	Re: 5DtoRGB - wow! This really helps. The advantage seems to depend on what NLE you use. Adobe CS5.5 actually does a very good job up converting AVCHD material. I did a comparison and honestly the up converted chroma looked about the same. Performance wise it does help a lot but there are better optimized formats other then Prores when using CS5.5 on a Mac. The PC version of 5DtoRGB seems to not have as many features as the Mac version. At least in the free version. The PC version did seem to convert much faster however when using bootcamp on my Mac. That may be due to the lack of chroma filtering since the option wasn't there.

January 6th, 2012, 05:10 PM	#5
Kevin McRoberts Major Player Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Charlottesville, VA Posts: 700	Re: 5DtoRGB - wow! This really helps. Is there any way to batch process this? Otherwise it's rather useless for me... __________________ Freelance pudgy bearded lighting camera operator www.mcbob.tv

January 6th, 2012, 06:32 PM	#6
Josh Dahlberg Major Player Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Wellington, New Zealand Posts: 513	Re: 5DtoRGB - wow! This really helps. Yes, as mentioned in the lead post, it's in the paid version

January 7th, 2012, 09:17 AM	#7
Nigel Barker Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Norwich, Norfolk, UK Posts: 3,531	Re: 5DtoRGB - wow! This really helps. Is the process still dog slow? I tried 5DtoRGB a long while ago for converting 5DII video but it was so much slower than using MPEG StreamClip or Log & Transfer for no appreciable benefit that I gave up on it. Secondly as noted isn't this just a problem with FCP & converting to ProRes? We moved over to Premiere Pro & have been editing native DSLR footage so don't need to transcode any more.

January 7th, 2012, 05:02 PM	#8
Josh Dahlberg Major Player Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Wellington, New Zealand Posts: 513	Re: 5DtoRGB - wow! This really helps. I can't comment on Premiere pro, but certainly reds are an issue with FCP whether you convert to prores or not. Yep, it's much slower than clipwrap, but apparently that's because of the additional analysis/work it's doing. Whether it's worth it depends on the scene for me. But if the reds are bleeding it makes a huge difference, at least in FCP.