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timk91866729
Participant
June 19, 2017
Answered

Three different video formats within the same project? Please Help.

  • June 19, 2017
  • 2 replies
  • 6796 views

I am new to Adobe Premiere Pro CC and far from an expert on video production. I am responsible for putting together a video in which all the footage has already been shot (three different cameras and three different video file formats). I need some help understanding how to make this work because the video clip formats do not match. Maybe this is an issue or maybe not. Any help is appreciated. My main questions are:

Can I edit these in Premiere Pro CC ‘as is’ or do I need to have the clips matching formats? (do I need to re encode some of the clips to match before starting a project?) I have been able to edit these clips together in the timeline and it appears to look good in the preview window - so my other question is:

Will having these clips not match be an issue in the export stage? Ultimately, we plan to make into a blu ray disk.

Here is what I’m working with:

Nikon D750 shooting AVCHD 1080p 60fps (1920x1080) (at least that’s what Premiere defaults to when a new sequence is created using the clip) - When I right click on the file in the desktop it says 1920x1080 H.264, Linear PCM

Sony HDR-HC1 MIniDV - Imported via iMovie - When I right click on the file in the desktop it says its 1920x1080 Apple Intermediate Codec, Linear PCM - and when I use a clip to create a new sequence in Premiere it defaults to AVC - INTRA 50 30fps (1440x1080)

GoPro shooting ARRI Cinema 30 fps (1920x1080) (at least that’s what Premiere defaults to when a new sequence is created using the clip)

I am editing on a mac mini OS X 10.12.5 with a SSD to run the program and storing all the project files on a 4TB external drive via thunderbolt cable.

We plan to put this project on blu ray disk and maybe offer it as a download as well.

When I mix and edit these clips together on the timeline they seem to look fine but I fear exporting the final product will be an issue. Please help me understand the pitfalls and options or solutions to make this project work. If I have left out any critical information needed to understand the issue please let me know. Thank you!

    This topic has been closed for replies.
    Correct answer SAFEHARBOR11

    When you drop a clip into a new timeline, or right-click a clip and select New Sequence from Clip, Premiere simply chooses the first available Sequence preset that matches the footage specs. Alphabetically, that is often ARRI but definitely does not mean that the footage is ARRI at all. Could be AVCHD, ProRes, . avi, .mp4 or any number of footage types. What really matters is the specs of the footage, meaning:

    • Frame Size (like 1920x1080)
    • Frame Rate
    • Pixel Aspect Ratio (1.0 for HD, or 1.33 for HDV for instance)
    • Fields (Upper, Lower, or NONE)

    The actual codec doesn't matter. So, Premiere might choose ARRI, but you will also find AVCHD and DSLR presets with the exact same sequence settings inside them, so any of them would be appropriate to edit with.

    The HC1 footage is HDV, which is 1440x1080 anamorphic (1.33 PAR). You can edit that as full HD at 1920x1080 with 1.0 PAR, just mix it right in with the other clips in 1920x1080 sequence. The GoPro seems to be 1080p30.

    When working with footage sources that may have differing frame sizes or frame rates, then you have to make the decision as to which specs to edit with. Delivery will have a big influence on that. You said you want to deliver on Blu-ray. You have some footage (Nikon) that is 60p, but Blu-ray does not offer 1080p60. Would have to be 1080i (interlaced). The HDV footage is already 1080i, and 60p footage will convert to 1080i just fine, so you may want to edit using a 1080i preset (1920x1080). For online delivery, the export format should be progressive though, which can just be done at export time (1080p29.97 option).

    Taking Blu-ray out of the equation, figuring on online/computer viewing only, then I might edit as 1080p30, avoiding interlaced altogether. But again, if you do need to edit as 1080i for Blu-ray, you can always export a separate version as 1080p30 as well, gets de-interlaced on export to .mp4.

    Thanks

    Jeff Pulera

    Safe Harbor Computers

    2 replies

    R Neil Haugen
    R Neil Haugen
    Legend
    June 19, 2017

    To add something ... with a project like this, always do a test through to completion as your starting point! Until you've got your workflow through the entire project nailed, you've no way of knowing that any work you start on will actually be good time spent ... or totally wasted time.

    So I'd make a short test project of a few seconds of a number of clips, with all steps including graphics & such, then take that clear through making the B-Ray disc. And see how the material on the disc looks. Then you'll ​know​ what you're doing.

    Neil

    Everyone's mileage always varies ...
      R Neil Haugen
      R Neil Haugen
      Legend
      June 19, 2017

      I think with that mix I'd drop an Arri clip to a blank sequence area or "new item" icon to get a sequence around those settings, and drop a test clip of both the others onto it. See what PrPro 'makes' out of it, as often it handles this pretty well. Thankfully your time differences are rather easier than some that have been posted here ...

      The one that will be interesting is the media that's reporting as 1440 ... you might try dropping that onto MediaInfo, and going into that app's TreeView, to see what exactly that media is.

      Neil

      Media Info:        https://mediaarea.net/en/MediaInfo

      Everyone's mileage always varies ...
      S
      SAFEHARBOR11Correct answer
      Participating Frequently
      June 19, 2017

      When you drop a clip into a new timeline, or right-click a clip and select New Sequence from Clip, Premiere simply chooses the first available Sequence preset that matches the footage specs. Alphabetically, that is often ARRI but definitely does not mean that the footage is ARRI at all. Could be AVCHD, ProRes, . avi, .mp4 or any number of footage types. What really matters is the specs of the footage, meaning:

      • Frame Size (like 1920x1080)
      • Frame Rate
      • Pixel Aspect Ratio (1.0 for HD, or 1.33 for HDV for instance)
      • Fields (Upper, Lower, or NONE)

      The actual codec doesn't matter. So, Premiere might choose ARRI, but you will also find AVCHD and DSLR presets with the exact same sequence settings inside them, so any of them would be appropriate to edit with.

      The HC1 footage is HDV, which is 1440x1080 anamorphic (1.33 PAR). You can edit that as full HD at 1920x1080 with 1.0 PAR, just mix it right in with the other clips in 1920x1080 sequence. The GoPro seems to be 1080p30.

      When working with footage sources that may have differing frame sizes or frame rates, then you have to make the decision as to which specs to edit with. Delivery will have a big influence on that. You said you want to deliver on Blu-ray. You have some footage (Nikon) that is 60p, but Blu-ray does not offer 1080p60. Would have to be 1080i (interlaced). The HDV footage is already 1080i, and 60p footage will convert to 1080i just fine, so you may want to edit using a 1080i preset (1920x1080). For online delivery, the export format should be progressive though, which can just be done at export time (1080p29.97 option).

      Taking Blu-ray out of the equation, figuring on online/computer viewing only, then I might edit as 1080p30, avoiding interlaced altogether. But again, if you do need to edit as 1080i for Blu-ray, you can always export a separate version as 1080p30 as well, gets de-interlaced on export to .mp4.

      Thanks

      Jeff Pulera

      Safe Harbor Computers

      S
      SAFEHARBOR11
      Participating Frequently
      June 19, 2017

      Excellent advice from Neil - agreed that you should throw samples of ALL clips into a timeline and export to make sure you like the results before getting too deep into the project and then realizing the workflow is faulty!

      Thanks


      Jeff

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