Getting access to the 4K footage in FCP

[AnthonyFaust]

Hi everyone,

I'm learning the RED workflow. I shot some RED footage recently. I found out that Final Cut Pro will not allow me to import this footage in its native 4K resolution. I was able to import it as 2K in either Pro Res 420, Pro Res 420 HQ, or REDCODE.

So I tried importing the footage into After Effects CS 4. I wasn't able to import the R3D file but I was able to import the proxy file. It allowed me to import it at 4K resolution. I exported it out from AE CS 4 as uncompressed, 8 bit file. I was then able to import the file into FCP as a 4K file.

So my question is, have I found a workaround for editing this RED footage in its native 4K format? Is this file that I have representative of the uncompressed, original r3D file that was shot? Is this what I need to do with all my files if I want to edit in 4K?

Thanks,
Anthony

 

[Greg M]

No and no. The advantage of the r3d is that it's RAW, using the proxy locks in your settings. The proxy is intended for offline or review.

The real question is why do you want to edit in 4k?

Your best bet is to upgrade cs4, which will allow you to work with the r3d files and render out the resolution you need at the end.

 

[Johnny Friday]

CS5 and access your RAW data or go to redcine-x and do a one light and transcode to your codec of choice and edit there.

 

[AnthonyFaust]

Greg,

Good question. The reason I want to edit in 4K, or at least the reason why I want to work with the 4K file in After Effects is so that I can access the additional pixels in the 4K file as opposed to the 2K file. I want to be able to do rotoscoping (cutting things out of the image) and to do that, I would want to have the 4K file so I can have those extra pixels to make smoother edges.

Thanks,
Anthony

 

[Greg M]

unless you need to resize, the extra pixels wont do much good if you are ultimately going to 2k or 1080. In either case, your best bet is to upgrade after effects.

 

[AnthonyFaust]

Greg,

If Final Cut doesn't let you import the footage as 4K and if, as you imply, editing in 4K doesn't do much good, what's the point in the RED camera shooting in 4K? Why doesn't it just shoot in 2K?

Thanks,
Anthony

 

[Greg M]

Greg,

If Final Cut doesn't let you import the footage as 4K and if, as you imply, editing in 4K doesn't do much good, what's the point in the RED camera shooting in 4K? Why doesn't it just shoot in 2K?

Thanks,
Anthony

Final Cut can't edit in 4k, it's a limitation. Editingin 4k requires a pretty robiust system with dedicated hardware. The real question is what is your deliverable? If it's 2k or 1080, stay there and have a better experience.

Just because you shot at 4K doesn't mean you need to edit in 4k, but you always have the option to re conform at a higher resolution later if needed. If you shot with a 1080 or 2k sensor you wouldn't be able to do this. Having the extra resolution also comes in handy if you need to resize

The advantage to the CS5 workflow in this sense is that you are always working with the 4k data, but editing with lower res proxies. You decided at the end what to render your deliverables at.

 

[Ben Brainerd]

If Final Cut doesn't let you import the footage as 4K and if, as you imply, editing in 4K doesn't do much good, what's the point in the RED camera shooting in 4K? Why doesn't it just shoot in 2K?

And right there you've reached the crux of the argument for and against RED.

My take on it is that having those extra pixels available before a resize produces a cleaner image than one shot at 1080/2K. Especially since RED is a Bayer sensor, so if you shoot 2K, you're actually getting an effective resolution of about 1.8K. Downscaling from 4K gets you those extra pixels and reduces high-ISO noise by virtue of that downscale.

Just because you can't *edit* 4K doesn't mean you can't work with it. Most color grading applications can go back to the R3Ds and 4K. So you can get the best of both worlds. Edit lower-rez for speed, then back to full-rez for finishing.

In your case, given that you want the 4K in AFX for roto work, you've got a couple of options:

1) Upgrade to CS5, get native R3D support.

2) Render your FX clips using RC-X to another codec (ProRes, DPX, whatever) and do your Roto work there.