Mr Magic Carpet Ride's Blog

Multi-Cam Editing with a Sony EX1 or EX3 and 5DMK II

mrmagiccarpetride — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 06:59:30 +0000

Hello world. I recently had a problem getting Final Cut 7 to play nicely with my Sony PMW-EX3 and Canon 5D Mark II in a multi-cam format. When trying to create a multi-clip FCP gives the user a message that the codecs are different and therefor both sources cannot be used in a single multi-clip. After much searching and testing I have decided that the best solution unfortunately involves a free, third-party software program called, “MPEG Streamclip”. Streamclip is very useful in that it can convert many different file types to many different file types. Although FCP can do this with no problems via the export options, it is not time effective to ingest 5D footage onto the local hard drive, import into FCP via Log and Transfer and then back out via the Export dialog box just to be able to edit normally. (I have found it much better to convert the 5D footage to the XDCAM EX codec instead of converting the EX footage to a ProRes 422 as the file sizes are absurd and there is still a gamma shift problem) My solution is listed below…

1. Copy the exact file structure from the 5D card to the desired place on your hard drive.

Example tree should read: 5DCAM/”DCIM” ”MISC” (both of the previous words in quotes are two separate folders as one will see in the native card structure)/100EOS5D/”MVI_0001.MOV” ”MVI_0001.THM” (Again…multiple files in this folder)

2. Open MPEG Streamclip (Just google it to find and download the free program) and go to “File”, “Open Files” and select as many of the .MOV files from your hard drive that you need to convert for a multi-clip.

3. Go to “File”, “Export to Quicktime”

4. At the top of the dialog box where it says, “Compression” choose one of the XDCAM EX compression methods that fit with how your footage was shot.

Example: I shot at 1920 x 1080 at 24 frames per second so I will choose, “XDCAM EX 1080p24 (35Mb/s VBR)” since this also matches the settings of the EX footage.

5. Make sure your frame rate in Streamclip on the lower right area is set to 23.98 if you shot at 24fps in your session

6. Click “Make Movie” and select your target destination

The following will explain how to get the footage into FCP

1. After using Log and Transfer for your EX footage, simply select “Import” under the “File” menu and browse to your new media.

2. Double click your EX clip so it opens in the Source window.

3. Go to a point you would like to use as a sync point, stop playback and hit the letter “I” for “In-Point” Repeat this exact process with your 5D clip.

4. Select both your 5D and EX clip in the Project area where your clips are listed, right click and select, “Make Multi-Clip”.

5. Select for the clips to be synced using In-Points and you now have a multi-clip.

Editing in Multi-Cam Mode

1. Drag the new multi-clip into the main timeline.

2. In the main timeline, click the “RT” button to the upper left of the video tracks. Make sure that “Multi-clip Playback” is checked.

3. In the source window, look for the button with two playback heads and an “X” between them. It is located at the top of the window directly in the center. Click this button and choose, “Open”. This will sync the source and canvas windows.

4. Double click your multi-clip in the main timeline; this should open both camera views in the source window.

5. Click anywhere in the main timeline and hit the space bar. You should now see both videos in the source window playing and available for you to click on the angle you want.

6. When you’re done you should highlight everything in the main timeline, right click and select, “Collapse Multi-Clip”. Don’t worry, you can easily turn it back on to continue multi-cam editing; this will just save on RAM.

I’ve left a lot out about the workflow of multi-cam editing, but you can easily find out more from search engines. If you can’t find anything, drop me a line and I’ll do my best to help you out. Who ever thought 5Ds and EX3s could play nice in FCP7. Now if Apple would only hurry up and fix the silly new Final Cut X by adding multi-cam and native playback of various compression methods we could all be happy.

I’m going to bed.

A Solution to Back-Focusing Problems With the Sony PMW-EX3

mrmagiccarpetride — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 00:08:23 +0000

Hello shooters! I recently was heartbroken after reviewing footage from a recent concert I shot with my EX3 where I realized that my footage was soft when I zoomed out for wide shots. This was particularly confusing because I was using full manual focus with no auto assist focus on and the subject was very sharp when zoomed in all the way. I had never had a problem like this before with any camera and had never heard of back focusing. After doing some research I found out that it is not necessary to do any updates to the firmware to resolve the problem as many forums were saying. Steps to correct the problem are below…

1. Set your camera to 1080i60 even if you don’t normally shoot this way, it will make the adjustments more accurate.

2. Print out the located below “Back Focusing Chart” and resize so that it fits on an 8.5″ x 11″ piece of white paper.

3. Tape the paper to a well lit wall as level as possible.

4. Set up a tripod about ten feet (three meters) from the chart with the camera at the same height as the chart.

5. Make sure your zoom is set to servo and not manual. (Located on the bottom of the camera) Zoom all the way into the chart so that it takes up the entire frame on the viewfinder.

6. Set the camera to full auto focus using the focusing ring and the switch on the side of the lens.

7. Go to the “Lens” menu in the main menu when your camera is in camera mode.

8. Select “Auto FB Adjust” and the camera should begin automatically calibrating itself.

9. If the test fails you might need to double check that you are shooting in a well-lit environment.

10. Your camera’s back focusing problems are now history!

This helped me and I hope it helps you too. You can also find several other back focusing charts by searching in Google, I just included this one here to save you folks some time. Please feel free to comment or contact me with any questions.

Happy shooting!

Mr. Magic Carpet Ride Productions Back Focusing Chart

We’re Headed to NYC

mrmagiccarpetride — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 18:55:06 +0000

Mr. Magic Carpet Ride Productions is going on its first trip as a company to NYC to create a few short films for Watters, a dress designer we had the pleasure of working with in late 2009. We’ll be staying at the beautiful ink48 hotel on Park Ave. and will actually have a bit of time to play in the big apple with our slew of photography gear! Stay tuned for some pictures!

Big Thanks to Soulbox Productions

mrmagiccarpetride — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 18:50:25 +0000

Every company has an inspiration for getting its vision into reality. Soulbox Productions has been an incredible guide over the years which helped us define our style, services, and the way we do business. Soulbox Productions is based out of the DFW area and has won several awards for their artistic approach to cinematography; check them out!

www.soulboxproductions.com

Mr. Magic Carpet Ride Productions Featured Company on Sony’s Website

mrmagiccarpetride — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 18:26:28 +0000

We we’re honored to receive a phone call in May of 2010 from a representative from Sony informed us that two of our films would be featured on their professional HD camera microsite. Sony did a fantastic job with the artistic layout and all of the functionality of the multi-page micro site they created for us. But don’t take my word for it…check out the site by clicking here.

Visit our company’s website by visiting www.mrmagicproductions.com. Thanks!

New Documentary for the Bradetich Foundation 2010 Bass Competition

mrmagiccarpetride — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 03:23:56 +0000

We are very proud to announce that filming has wrapped on our newest documentary featuring some of the world’s best double bass players. We collected five days worth of footage including musicians arriving at the airport from half-way across the world, extensive interviews, backstage footage, full performances, and the final award ceremony for the feature. Stay in touch to see the trailer and keep your eyes and ears out for mentions of the competition and the film on PBS and the BBC just to name a few!

Players went through a grueling week long process in the competition to ultimately shoot for the 1st prize of $10,000 and several featured concerts all over the world; the winner finds out that they currently have a featured show at Carnegie Hall in New York City! Everyone we spoke with and filmed was absolutely amazing and we were honored to be such a big part of an amazing event.

Keep checking our website for news about the release…or subscribe to our blog!

Really Awesome Royalty Free Music Site

mrmagiccarpetride — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 05:01:21 +0000

Well, I just stumbled across one of the best Royalty Free music sites in the world and wanted you all to check it out for use in any projects you might have coming up. Check out this link below to hear what they have going on. I just found a perfect use for one of their tracks I am doing for some young college students and I know it will be perfect. Check it out!

Royalty Free Music and Sound Effects Download the music and sound effects you need for your multimedia project today at Partners In Rhyme.

Final Cut 7 is the only way to go.

mrmagiccarpetride — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 19:47:40 +0000

Well, I was an Adobe Premiere fan for years and thought it was the best thing in the world when it was released for Apple computers; I was wrong! After finally realizing how many literal hours I had wasted either waiting for timelines to render, trying to solve the nature of a software bug, or dealing with consumer-friendly setting options I came to the painful conclusion that it was time to teach myself how to work more efficiently in Final Cut Pro 7.

First of all, the most important difference I have seen so far is that Final Cut gives an advanced editor much more detailed options when setting up a session. For example, choosing the codec method in the timeline and color space are even options from step one. Furthermore, the program runs much more smoothly than its competitor, virtually eliminating the need to render 90% of the types of cuts I’m doing. For example, the color correction filters (which seem to work in a much more precise manner than Premiere CS4) can be used on uncompressed 1920 x 1080 XDCAM EX footage shot at 35mbs without any need to render in order to view the results in real-time playback; this saves hours of editing time! Actually, I had become painfully accustom to editing first and color correcting last in Premiere to use time more efficiently.

Additionally, Final Cut 7 has the ability to work with up to nine separate camera views that are switchable in real-time! Our recent Snarky Puppy DVD release was edited with Premiere CS4 and was a daily embarrassment for me as a had to explain to my client why the video was so sticky during multi-cam mode in Premiere. Final Cut was able to handle the exact same footage in a real-time situation with no problems with motion in the playback. However, I was worried when working in the “Four Up” (four angles at once in the viewer) when a slight rolling-shift from green to red could be seen while editing in multi-cam mode. The problem was not sent to the final cut, no pun intended there, but was scary at first. Oddly enough, when in two-up or 9-up viewing mode the problem went away. Nonetheless, motion is incredibly important when deciding where to place exact cuts, so it wasn’t a big deal.

All in all, it was incredibly exhausting to waste an entire weekend and part of a week to relearn new short-cuts, basic functions (I couldn’t even figure out how to automate audio fades for a while!), and to simply get used to a new workflow (took me an hour or so to fully understand how to get XDCAM EX footage into FCP 7!), but I’ll never look back. Programs that weren’t designed to work on Macs are much too unstable when you have people relying on you to create a film quickly and professionally. Not only does my Apple Care extend into FCP 7, but my 17″ MacBook Pro is obviously much happier with this new direction as well.

For more information about our company visit www.mrmagicproductions.com. Thanks!

Snarky Puppy’s Live DVD is at the Presses!

mrmagiccarpetride — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 08:10:24 +0000

I am very happy to announce that the full-length film about Snarky Puppy is out of our hands and on the way to be mass produced! After many hours of hard work I forgot that what we were doing was going to be so amazing. When I finally sat down to watch the first test disc I remembered why I love not only film-making, but why I love Snarky Puppy’s music so much…wow guys! Check back soon to see a glimpse of the DVD on our website under the music category. By the way, you can find it on our newly released website in the music category of our film section under, “Snarky Puppy – Whitecap“, it’s a killer track.

Enjoy!

Full Length Music Documentary Almost Done!

mrmagiccarpetride — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 06:45:28 +0000

Well, our first full-length documentary on the wonderfully amazing band, “Snarky Puppy” is starting to wrap up; woo hoo! The band recorded live at Dockside Studio in Maurice, LA in November of 2009 in front of 75 or so of their closest fans, friends, and crew. We were happy to be along for the two days of tracking while the 17 piece band recorded some of the most amazing music in the world. The release is coming out on Rope-a-Dope Records online and will be available through their website and various stores around the world. We will make sure and post as soon as there is more information on the actual release scheduled in March of 2010. Congrats guys!