XDcam HD Workflow Question at DVinfo.net
DV Info Net

Go Back   DV Info Net > Sony XAVC / XDCAM / NXCAM / AVCHD / HDV / DV Camera Systems > Sony ENG / EFP Shoulder Mounts

Sony ENG / EFP Shoulder Mounts
Sony PDW-F800, PDW-700, PDW-850, PXW-X500 (XDCAM HD) and PMW-400, PMW-320 (XDCAM EX).

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Old January 17th, 2007, 01:33 PM   #1
Regular Crew
 
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Canada
Posts: 149
XDcam HD Workflow Question

I have a question about Xdcam workflow..... my question is can you successfully go from start to finish on a project using Xdcam & Final Cut Pro without the PDW70/30 Deck? I mean can I film in HD 35MB, edit in FCPro and export to DVD and/or HD DVD for playback on a standard DVD Player or a HD DVD Player? Or would i need the Deck to do this? and what benefits would the Deck give?
Brian Ladue is offline   Reply With Quote
Old January 17th, 2007, 01:43 PM   #2
Regular Crew
 
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Victoria Canada
Posts: 34
Hey Brian,

I don't own a deck, so I can't speak to what advantages it offers, but I have shot, edited and mastered all without one. I use an F350 and have filmed a 30 minutes television show @ 35Mbps, cut it in Final Cut Pro (which is an absolute joy.. the workflow is awesome) and then mastered back to XDCAM disc.

I have also used Final Cut Pro and DVD Studio Pro to make DVD versions of my edits. I know that DVD Studio Pro has HD-DVD capabilities, though you would need an HD-DVD burner to output that way.

Hope that helps in some way.

Jeremy Spruston
Jeremy Spruston is offline   Reply With Quote
Old January 17th, 2007, 02:37 PM   #3
Regular Crew
 
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Canada
Posts: 149
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jeremy Spruston
Hey Brian,

I don't own a deck, so I can't speak to what advantages it offers, but I have shot, edited and mastered all without one. I use an F350 and have filmed a 30 minutes television show @ 35Mbps, cut it in Final Cut Pro (which is an absolute joy.. the workflow is awesome) and then mastered back to XDCAM disc.

I have also used Final Cut Pro and DVD Studio Pro to make DVD versions of my edits. I know that DVD Studio Pro has HD-DVD capabilities, though you would need an HD-DVD burner to output that way.

Hope that helps in some way.

Jeremy Spruston

Thanks Jeremy, very helpful.... i presume that your DVD versions were downcoverted to SD? what was the quality of the DVD versions? I'd imagine they were very good.
Brian Ladue is offline   Reply With Quote
Old January 17th, 2007, 03:52 PM   #4
Major Player
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: Crestline, California
Posts: 351
Master back with firewire or SDI?

When you master back to the camera do you have to use SDI? I read on this forum that the firewire is for output only.

Tip
Tip McPartland is offline   Reply With Quote
Old January 17th, 2007, 04:20 PM   #5
Wrangler
 
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: DFW area, TX
Posts: 6,117
Images: 1
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jeremy Spruston
I know that DVD Studio Pro has HD-DVD capabilities, though you would need an HD-DVD burner to output that way.
DVDSP can also create an HD-DVD on standard red laser DVD media. The running times won't be that long and the end user would either need a set top HD-DVD unit, or a Mac. One caveat is that you must render your HD-DVD in MPEG2 for compatibility with set-top boxes. They don't understand MPEG4, or at least they didn't when they first came out.

So you don't need a special burner unless you need the longer running time that a true HD-DVD would give you.

regards,

-gb-
Greg Boston is offline   Reply With Quote
Old January 17th, 2007, 06:13 PM   #6
Regular Crew
 
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Victoria Canada
Posts: 34
Thanks Greg, I guess you really do learn something new everyday!

Tip: Sony supplies an XDCAM Exporter (along with the Importer) that will write back to the disc using File Access Mode through FCP.

Brian: For my DVD versions, yes they are downconverted into an Anamorphic DV file. They do look pretty nice, but nothing compares to the original HD signal.

Jeremy Spruston
Jeremy Spruston is offline   Reply With Quote
Old January 17th, 2007, 11:49 PM   #7
Major Player
 
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Posts: 645
Hi Jeremy

Did you export an anamorphic DV version directly from FCP for your DVD, or did you roundtrip from the camera (ie re-import the finshed and exported piece via firewire, from the camera, using the camera's hardware downconversion)

Cheers
Andy
Andy Mees is offline   Reply With Quote
Old January 22nd, 2007, 05:01 PM   #8
Regular Crew
 
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Victoria Canada
Posts: 34
Hi Andy,

I exported an anamorphic version through FCP. It turned out pretty nice, though I still find the FCP downconversion a little shoddy. That could be because I am so used to looking at an HD source though.
Jeremy Spruston is offline   Reply With Quote
Old January 23rd, 2007, 07:15 AM   #9
Major Player
 
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Posts: 645
Jeremy, there is an interesting workflow posted at http://www3.telus.net/bonsai detailing one HDV users method for producing good quality downcoversions for DVD ... it may worth a look to see whether it can be any use to your own DVD workflow
Andy Mees is offline   Reply With Quote
Old January 25th, 2007, 02:02 PM   #10
Regular Crew
 
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Victoria Canada
Posts: 34
Hey thanks Andy! That makes a huge difference in the downconversion quality. I've been trying a ton of different methods to get XDCAM downconversions to looks better but that's one of the best.

Thanks again.
Jeremy Spruston is offline   Reply
Reply

DV Info Net refers all where-to-buy and where-to-rent questions exclusively to these trusted full line dealers and rental houses...

B&H Photo Video
(866) 521-7381
New York, NY USA

Scan Computers Int. Ltd.
+44 0871-472-4747
Bolton, Lancashire UK


DV Info Net also encourages you to support local businesses and buy from an authorized dealer in your neighborhood.
  You are here: DV Info Net > Sony XAVC / XDCAM / NXCAM / AVCHD / HDV / DV Camera Systems > Sony ENG / EFP Shoulder Mounts

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

 



All times are GMT -6. The time now is 11:24 AM.


DV Info Net -- Real Names, Real People, Real Info!
1998-2024 The Digital Video Information Network