Best export settings for future editing?

[rfisher76]

Hello,

I have recorded about 3 hours of 4K footage on a Sony AX100 in order to get one tiny, 5min moment.
I'm not ready to edit that in to anything yet, but would like to not have to store the entire file just for that moment.

While I know how to compress the whole file to make it tiny, I obviously don't want to do that as it will effect quality. Especially if I want to stick it in to a future video and render all over again.

So what I need to do is snip out my 5min segment and save it as high quality, big and lossless as possible.

I'm not worried about file size at all for such a short clip.

I can do this to some degree by ticking various 'high quality' boxes and drop downs etc but I don't really know what I'm doing.

Any help would be most gratefully received! 

[salvo34 · Accepted solution]

I don't know that camera and how you got the source stuff ( what wrapper and codec and specs ). In general a safe bet would be to export an intermediate ( like prores 422 ) in a mov container (wrapper). I use a PC and would probably use DNxHD or DNxHR ( in mov container), or prores.. 

My cameras shoot BRaw or else DNxHD, so the files would be OK on the same timeline later.

It sorta has to do with dimensions, bit rate, and color depth ..so you might want to think ahead and determine what you think you might be using later on wherein you may use your saved 5 min. clip. If they match OK it should look great. 

I use the same FPS usually, so that's one spec I don't usually have to mess with to match stuff.

[Ann Bens]

Cineform or Prores.

[rfisher76]

Brilliant, thank you both.

The AX100 is kind of top end of amateur, so it certainly doesn't save in anything too fancy to begin with, certainly not ProRes or anything. Which is why I want to be sure that I don't do anything to make it worse!

I only have a tenuous grasp of these things but I think it saves as an AVCHD mp4 if it makes a difference.

Can I do any damage by 'overkilling' how I save it?

eg if I saved it as a higher resolution, that would have a negative impact on it visually (so obvs I won't do that,,,!) but does that theory apply to any other settings? 

[salvo34]

it's complicated.

most cameras ( pro sumer ) capture stuff on SD cards and have to use internal circuitry ( on data coming off the chip ) to smush it down to small byte counts ( like use H264 mp4 etc. ) which is OK for viewing the final product but not good for editing as a rule. That's why there are proxies and intermediates, so you can transcode to nice friendly edit format ...do your work, and then spit out a final product from that ( usually back to mp4 high compression ).

At any rate, you'll find that even only 5 min of 4K at intermediate will make a HUGE FILE in byte count, so you have a bit of researching to do in order to figure out the best way for you to work in your specific circumstances.

You may find it's just easier to import source to matched timeline and throw out the other stuff, and save the 5 min. at the same exact specs as your source and timeline... back to avc or whatever it is...for storage pupose ...

🙂

[salvo34]

P.S.

Most people don't use those so-called 'high quality' boxes and drop downs... just leave it at program defaults ( basically that junk is all ' off ' )... cause the stuff doesn't do what you think it does and it rarely helps the normal user.