This article describes one method for converting Canon Vixia HF10 FXP (1920x1080) 24p Cinema Mode video into other video workflows using Apple’s Final Cut Studio Compressor 3.0.3.
The technique is to first use Final Cut Pro’s “Log and Transfer” feature to convert the source AVCHD clips to MOV files in the Capture Folder. These original capture files will be in the Apple ProRes 422 (HQ) codec at the full 1920x1080 resolution, will have a 29.97 frame rate, and will contain the extra pull-down frames (Telecine).
Then use a Compressor custom preset to batch convert the original MOV files to the target format. There is no existing preset to perform the conversion. You have to create the custom preset yourself. And that is exactly what you will see how to do, step-by-step, in this article.
Disclaimer
I’ve used the following technique several times successfully. I suggest that you try it yourself and make sure it is working for you on your system and with your software before relying on the method. (Download it here. ) I would suggest you download some of my HF10 footage and try it on a few clips first to see that it works for you before investing in the gear or the workflow. It worked for me, but no guarantees.
Final Cut Pro and Cinema Tools
Don’t try to remove the pull-down in Final Cut Pro or in Cinema Tools. Final Cut Pro actually passes the frames through to Cinema Tools to perform the pull-down removal, and Cinema Tools cannot remove the pull-down from this footage because it cannot deal with temporally-compressed video. If you try this you will get footage that looks like it is 24p, but will have peculiar interlaced frames where Cinema Tools has incorrectly removed a good frame and left a pull-down frame in place. Also, Cinema Tools will replace the original MOV file, not create a separate file. So it is destructive. And if you have Reverse Telecine operating in Final Cut Pro during Log and Transfer, it will result in an incorrect and unusable file.
After Effects CS3
I have also successfully used Adobe After Effects CS3 to remove the pull-down from these MOV files. I do not have AECS3 on a PC, so I could not verify that pull-down removal was possible with AVI files. You basically follow the instructions for removing pull-down in any footage in AE, and let it “guess” the pull-down removal cadence. I don’t know if you can do batch conversion as you can in Compressor, but it is a workflow for one-at-a-time file conversion. It gives you the full 1920x1080 file with the pull-down frames removed (Native 24p) and this is exactly what you want – the full resolution – for use with effects and compositing work. Then you can render out the results in your favorite frame size and codec to match the rest of your project.
Target Frame Sizes and Codecs
In this article I illustrate how to create two custom presets. The first one results in a full-resolution 1920x1080 Apple ProRes 422 (HQ) file, suitable for use in effects work. The second one results in a 1280x720 DVCPROHD 720p24 “Native” file, suitable for editing in a 720p project in Final Cut Pro. After you see the technique, it will be easy to create additional custom presets for your desired workflow, such as HDV.
Color Correction
I’ve also provided an illustration of optional color correction. By performing a “rough” color correction during the conversion, you can get a close match to other footage in your project in batch, which can save a lot of time doing the color correction on each clip in the editor, since you just have to “tweak” the color because it will already be close.
File Size, Disk Space, and CPU
Archival Storage of Original Footage
The original AVCHD files are tiny for what they contain. I always archive/backup my HF10 footage in the original AVCHD file because it’s the most efficient way to store the footage.
Capture File Size
After the AVCHD clips are transferred to MOV files, the MOV will be about ten times the size of the original AVCHD files. So if you have 1 hour of 1920x1080 footage in AVCHD, it will take 8GB to copy the AVCHD files from the original SDHC card to your hard disk. Then “Log and Transfer” will create an 80GB MOV file.
I always copy the original card to disk, and then work on the copy. I would never try to convert directly from footage on the card.
Disk Format Limitations
I often carry footage back and forth between MAC and PC using a FAT-formatted USB drive. Unlike HFS+ format on the MAC and NTFS format on the PC (both of which cannot be used by the other OS), FAT has a file size limit. And it is rather easy for an AVCHD file to be expanded into an MOV file that is too large for a FAT drive to contain it. So either use an HFS+ formatted drive for “Log and Transfer” capture, or make sure your clips are brief. I believe that if you shoot in 1920x1080, at around 6 minutes, the resulting MOV file will be too large for capture onto a FAT drive. It will look like the clip is corrupted, but it’s not. You just have to capture to an HFS+ drive and it will be fine.
Disk Capacity Planning
The conversion process will make another copy of the MOV file with the pull-down removed. Just removing the pull-down will drop 6 out of 30 frames, reducing the file size by 1/5th (20%). So an 80GB file will produce a 64GB file when the pull-down is removed. Depending on the frame size and the codec you use, the file may be smaller. So, for example, with DVCPROHD 720p 24p Native, the original 80GB might result in a 40-to-50GB file.
8GB original plus 80GB MOV capture plus 64GB with pull-down removed is a whopping 152 GB needed to get 1 hour of editable video. Now, of course, you can get rid of the 8GB once the 80GB is captured. And you can get rid of the 80GB once the target pull-down file is created. So, after the conversion process, you will only have the footage you want in the codec you normally use, and it won’t take more space than normal. But you will need extra disk space during the conversion process.
If your disk space is limited, you can break the batch down into smaller groups of files or into single files. (1) Capture the AVCHD and then recover the original space. (2) Each clip is now a separate MOV file in the Capture folder. (3) Convert one or two files at a time, and then recover the original MOV space before converting the next clips.
CPU and Time Planning
I used a Macbook Pro with dual-core Intel and OSX/Leopard. The conversion for an hour of video took about an hour and twenty minutes for a DVCPROHD conversion. Your mileage may vary.
As I mentioned before, I would suggest either shooting a test clip or downloading my test clips and putting the footage through the process first, to see how much space it uses and how long it takes on your system.
All of the files I was working with were located on a USB 2.0 external drive. I might have gotten better performance using a Firewire drive or especially a Firewire800 drive.
If you would like to comment on your successes, failures, or issues with this process, please do so in our new Article Comments section.
To read the full review of the HF10 that occurs in this issue, just check it out here.
