R3d and Mocha workflow

[falcon418]

Can someone post a specific workflow for stabilizing R3D files with Mocha while still retaining image quality and sharpness?

I've been trying for a week, using intermediate codecs such as quicktime and png sequences to go to Mocha.I then go back to the original R3D file in AE and apply the data to it.

My source footage is 24fps 4k and 2k and I'm getting nowhere. The image quality falls off badly and even stabilizing is not working as I think it should.

Help!

 

[Chris Vrakotas]

Try to export DPX sequence from your "to be stabilized" material, 2K or 4K DPX sequence from Red Alert. With this format you'll have maximum picture quality. After that use Mocha to stabilize the shots.
I haven't tried this workflow, I just think that the DPX format is much more "stable' than Quicktime, etc.
Pls let us know if this works for you

 

[Stepan Kment]

openEXR

openEXR

if Mocha supports EXR, go for that. 10bit DPX can not store 12bit data from RED, no matter how logarithmic or linear it is. Or, at least, do first light correction to fix exposure to something reasonable and then export to DPX. If You export significantly underexposed imagery to DPX, you're loosing precious bits.

EXR uses floating point, it is the ultimate solution probably. Bit slower to work with, however even in float often results in smaller than DPX files and can store many, many stops, they claim something like 32 in high precision or so.. which integer 10bit DPX can't.

 

[Chris Vrakotas]

if Mocha supports EXR, go for that. 10bit DPX can not store 12bit data from RED, no matter how logarithmic or linear it is. Or, at least, do first light correction to fix exposure to something reasonable and then export to DPX. If You export significantly underexposed imagery to DPX, you're loosing precious bits.

EXR uses floating point, it is the ultimate solution probably. Bit slower to work with, however even in float often results in smaller than DPX files and can store many, many stops, they claim something like 32 in high precision or so.. which integer 10bit DPX can't.

Stepan,
It seems that openEXR pictures are top notch quality (ILM knows better:wink5
Have you used such pictures? What workflow you followed?

 

[Mike Harrington]

personally i would export just a decent quality proxy and export to mocha....let mocha do the tracking, and apply the stabilization data from mocha on to the origional r3d in AE or Fusion

this is of course assuming you have AE or Fusion and are just wanting to do the cropping style stabilization....

otherwise exr option is probably the best and you could likely just use the half-float option for smaller files and still be higher quality then DPX
(edit...not 100% sure mocha actually supports exr....i always just use cineform)

and if you are a cineform owner...it does work natively in mocha as well

 

[Chris Vrakotas]

How you can export EXR sequence from R3d material? With Redcine or something else?

 

[Paul Leeming]

Looks like Mocha only exports TIFF or DPX sequences:

I haven't used it myself, just became aware of what it's used for after reading this thread!!

HTH

Paul

 

[Mike Harrington]

i have actually never exported from Mocha....

i always just apply the tracking data in AE or Fusion to the origional source footage

Say for an AE workflow you could do it 2 ways

1. Generate a TIFF sequence(i doubt Mocha imports exr)
stabalize.....then export asecond stabilized Tiff sequence from mocha and throw into your editor

2. export a jpeg or other sequence from AE,track and apply the data to the Origional R3D back in AE...and garbage the jpeg sequence....just use Mocha for tracking

with the first one you will have a much larger file size for the data in your timeline, and even though Tiffs are high quality...it will have no advantage over the origional R3D except being very large....

remember 4k R3D....36MB/s
4k DPX sequence.....900+MB/s

and Tiff would be even larger

 

[shaneholloman]

How you can export EXR sequence from R3d material? With Redcine or something else?

If you get a trial of the Foundry's Nuke, you can export from that. Nuke is amazing with .r3d files

 

[Frank Weeks]

From what I have heard, CS 5.5 will have a stabilization tool that will turn a lot of heads. Find out at NAB.

 

[alexx_hg]

I do it the same way as mike harringhton but go another steps further:

in AE I develope the Raw Metadata in a way that I only consider the part of picture where I´ve to track, than i roughly cut out the unneeded parts with a mask, render in native Raw size (i.e. 4KHD) as jpg sequenz, apply the tracking data from mocha to the original Raw file and adjust the metadata back as needed. Use of this procedure ist to drastically shorten the rendertimes.

bg
alex