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

[timk91866729]

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!

[R Neil Haugen]

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

[SAFEHARBOR11 · Accepted solution]

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

[SAFEHARBOR11]

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

[R Neil Haugen]

Nice layout of a solid workflow for this project ...

Neil

[SAFEHARBOR11]

I should also clarify, camera and software vendors play loose with frame rate naming - 30p really means 29.97 and 60p means 59.94 - but 30p and 60p just sound better. So in my post you may have seen both 30p and 29.97 and I apologize for any confusion, both refer to the same thing.

The 1080i video from the HC1 is 29.97 frames per second, which is 59.94 fields per second, so you might see 1080i30 or 1080i60 and they are both exactly the same thing! Unless you are in PAL land then it is 1080i25/50 😉

If you decide to work in 1080i, here is the Sequence Setting to go with -

Thanks

Jeff

[timk91866729]

A huge thank you to both of you. This is really helpful and I am beginning to understand this better. I will take your advice on testing all the way through the process on a small scale including all file types to confirm that I have the correct settings before going too far into editing.

With the settings you suggest Jeff - the AVCHD 1080i30 (60i) - in the preset description it states "For editing (non-anamorphic)" but the HDV footage is anamorphic... So, it is ok to have it set this way?... I guess thats the part I am getting the most confused about now. 

I can see there are lots of 1080i options to choose from, some anamorphic and some not... and some 1920x1080 and some 1440 x 1080...

I think I am now clear that I need 1080i format that is 29.97fps and 1920x1080.... But still unclear about the anamorphic vs non-anamorphic in relation to what's the best choice for mixing these video files together.

Also, any insight into the differences of AVC-Intra 100 1080i vs. DNX 1080i vs. Sony XDCAM EX 1080i (HQ) and the mentioned AVHC 1080i30 (60i) ?

Again, Thank you so much for your time. This is extremely helpful and I really appreciate it.

[SAFEHARBOR11]

As I mentioned earlier, HDV footage can be edited in a 1920x1080 sequence, no problem - Premiere automatically figures out to adjust for the different PAR for you. Try it - drop an HDV clip into a 1080i Sequence (1920x1080, 1.0 PAR) and the footage looks correct! Of course, if it is the first clip you are adding and you get the message "Clip does not match sequence, do you want to change?" then say NO.

For anyone editing HDV footage, usually best to just use a 1080i Sequence, since when you export for say YouTube or other online/computer viewing, you ALWAYS want use to use square pixels (1.0 PAR). If you export an .mp4 at 1440x1080 with 1.33 PAR, most player software will not pay attention to the PAR as they assume 1.0 and then the video looks like 4:3 aspect on playback, try it! So edit AND export as 1920x1080 for best results.

HDV was a temporary step on the way to "full HD" - camera makers wanted to offer HD recording on the same miniDV cassettes meant for SD recording, but did not have enough bandwidth to record the whole HD signal, so they compromised the resolution a bit and came up with HDV. Formats that cheat on resolution are sometimes called thin-raster, for instance 1440x1080 while 1920x1080 would be called full-raster.

As for the different 1080i presets, there is a chance that the PREVIEW codec could be different, but I promise that all of them will be 1920x1080, 29.97 frames per second, 1.0 Pixel Aspect, and Upper Field First, and all will work with all your different clips. Avoid the anamorphic 1080i.

Thanks

Jeff

[timk91866729]

Thank you for explaining it like that - I understand now.

I can't thank you enough for taking the time to help me out with this! It's been a HUGE help!

I will now move ahead and make a small test video as suggested and burn onto blue ray as suggested.

Any advice on the process of exporting out of Premiere and writing onto blu ray disk? Any suggestions of the best quality user friendly programs?

Thanks again!

- Tim

[SAFEHARBOR11]

Hi Tim,

You can use Adobe Encore CS6 to burn to Blu-ray. To get Encore CS6, you will need to download Premiere CS6 - it can coexist with CC, no issue.     How to download and install Adobe Encore CS6

When you are ready to Export Media from Premiere, choose the H.264 Blu-ray format, then select a preset from the drop-down menu such as HD 1080i 29.97

This will output two files, audio and video - import both into Encore. For some users, Encore will not work properly with the installed disc writer hardware - in that case, you may need to export as IMAGE which will create an .iso file and then you can use free third-party software to burn the .iso to disc. I believe IMG BURN is one of them.

Thanks

Jeff

[timk91866729]

I have successfully downloaded Encore and will give it a shot.

Thanks again! I will be sure to pay it forward when I have the opportunity.

- Tim

[R Neil Haugen]

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