When I create my final master for storing on a hard drive, I use the export to tape function in CS3 and rename the resultant HDVExport.hdv2 file. This creates a file with a 10second blank leader on it.

I am sure this is not a great way of doing it, what would your settings be for a master backup within media encoder?

Many thanks.

Quicktime PhotoJpeg or Animation. Or PNG, but that takes longer to encode.