Work Flow
 

I though it would be interesting if anyone could offer some insight on thier work flow. For example:
1) Log Footage
2) Place on timeline
3) Add edits & effects.

Do you like to work with individual segments? Do you like to wait and edit strictly on the timeline?, etc.

When I capture tapes, I capture in segments. So, I may have:

ETT1 - pre stuff
ETT1 - Ceremony
ETT2 - post stuff
ETT2 - reception
JTT1 - Ceremony
JTT1 - post stuff
JTT1 - reception
JTT2 - reception

So, from each tape I will capture each "section" into it's own separate AVI file.

Now I will edit each section separately. For example, I may have the following sections for the final product:

Intro (from the pre stuff)
Ceremony
Transition from ceremony to reception (from the post stuff)
Reception

I'll edit each of these on their own timeline and render to a new AVI file. Then I'll create a "final" project from those renders for creating the Master tape and DVDs.

When do you add effects, check sound, etc? When you complete a segment is it finished (except for color correction) or is it a rough cut and you do all of the finish work when it's pieced together on the timeline?

When I compete a section, it is FINISHED - complete with all audio/color correction/desired effects set.

My final project is a combination of COMPLETED segments. At that point all I do is add them to the timeline and render (dvd) or PTT (vhs).

I capture all of my footage in one pass directly from the tape with scene detection enabled, then dump everything to the timeline and start editing. I'll typically make at least a couple of passes through the whole timeline, with the first pass being mostly basic cuts and the second pass putting more emphasis on color correction, audio enhancements and special effects. If I use two cameras (which I frequently do), I'll spend a fair amount of time synching the footage and picking which camera angle I want at any given point in the timeline.

When everything looks good, I generate an MPEG2 file from the timeline and pull that into Ulead DVD Workshop for making the DVDs. After building menus I encode to an "ISO" file and burn the DVDs from that, plus I may save the ISO file for making future copies.

What platform do you prefer (AVID, FCP, VEGAS,ETC?).

Capture one tape at a time, place onto timeline in chronological order and begin editing. I try and do most of the editing as I go a long ("single pass") Things like the start and the highlights get multiple passes.

Jon

<<<-- Originally posted by G. Lee Gordon : What platform do you prefer (AVID, FCP, VEGAS,ETC?). -->>>

I use Vegas - would be lost without my scripts.

workflow
 

I'm skipping some details on the DVD work (such as scanning in and creating images for menus), but this is a pretty good rundown of my process:

(1) I capture all clips in Ulead MediaStudio Pro's capture utility, one tape at a time in the order of events as they happened. Before each wedding, I label my tapes using the "date/event/number" format, such as "040904Rec1R" -- translation, September 4, 2004 Reception tape 1. I used R for raw footage, which I retain for a year, and M for masters, which I retain indefinitely. I perform unattended captures using Automatic Scene Detection and splitting long clips when they reach 4GB. Clips are automatically named something like c1ce001 for for "Camera 1, ceremony" and "c1re001" for "Camera 1, reception."

(2) After capturing the whole wedding, I'll review each clip for bad shots. (There's no way I can fill out a proper shot log during the event. Does anyone do this?) I then delete all unusable clips. The thunbnail images usually refresh my memory, but I usually review all the footage. Storyboarding is no time to realize I missed a shot. By the time I storyboard, I'll already have all my assets in line so I know what I can work with.

(3) In MediaStudio Pro, I create a project folder in the Media Library, and import all the good clips for that wedding. I sort them by name, which usually follows the chronological order.

(4) I then drag clips from their project folder to the Storyboard folder and do a rough storyboard. (Seems like an extra step, but this gives me a safety net -- the project folder is a visual representation of the chronology -- for when I play with time and edit scenes out of order.

(5) Once my Storyboard is complete, I drag clips to the timeline and start making my cuts. I don't automate the storyboard when working on the ceremony, especially when I'm synching up footage from two cameras. I edit the whole movie in a single timeline across two 17" monitors. The F9 key (toggle zoom) is my friend! I typically work with the timeline in 1-second intervals, but I like being ble to bounce back and forth between 1 second and 10, etc.

(6) After doing color correction when needed, adding titles, and sweetening audio, I lock all my tracks to editing and save my project.

(7) I export as AVI master file for archiving to tape. After putting the master to tape, I'll delete the master file from my hard drive.

(8) Package the project to another hard drive for about 60 days, just in case I need to re-edit. I've done this once in about 20 weddings. Saves me from having to recapture and start from scratch. I rarely do more than two jobs per month, so my two 120GB hard drives afford me enough space for short-term archiving.

(9) I start a new project with only the master AVI in the timeline. In the clips Media Source options, I select "De-interlace" and then render out an MPEG-2 file as NTSC DVD, typically VBR 7000 bitrate and AC-3 stereo audio with a bitrate of 192 kbps. This works great for a typical 1-hour short-form wedding movie.

(10) I author and burn the DVD from the MPEG file.

(11) Archive the DVD project file locally until disk space gets low. Then I move the DVD project file and assets to a data DVD (or two).

(12) Drink a shot of Jack Daniels!

If I forgot something, I'll attribute that to the Jack :)

<<< What platform do you prefer (AVID, FCP, VEGAS,ETC?). -->>>

I've been using mostly Canopus products for editing because they consistently do more in real time than other solutions, but their editing software is relatively limited compared to more established products. For my purposes, getting things done quickly is more important than having every editing feature under the sun, plus Canopus allows you to install Edius on both a desktop and laptop computer using a single license.

If I get into HDV editing I'll probably either stick with Edius or get Adobe Premiere Pro with the Cineform Aspect HD plugin; all other HDV solutions are running way behind these two options in terms of overall features and real-time capabilities.