Weapon workflow on the road

[Rui Guerra]

I all,

I need some urgent help here, because I'm leaving in a few days for a big shooting.
I'll start shooting a film and I'll be moving by car during 15 days, shooting at different locations.

I want a system that allows me download footage, backup but also with the speed to play full resolution at 6K (to check focus and sharpness).

Regarding computers, I would like to travel only with my Macbook Air (from 2011 !!!) but it looks like it will not have the power to play full resolution footage from my Weapon. So, must I bring along my iMac 5K with me on the road? Not an ideal solution, because it's big and expensive... Any other ideas, besides buying another Macbook?

Regarding storage/backup and the ability to play in real time 6 K footage I wonder if I really need to bring along my Promise Pegasus2 R6 (RAID 5)...its really fast, but again big and expensive. Another fast external drives that would handle this high resolution footage.

What to you guys use in similar situations? Any travel workflow advices?

Thanks a lot!

Cheers,

 

[Patrick Tresch]

Doing this for years. MacBook Pro Retina 16gb ram good cpu and 2 usb3 WD 2TB drives get the job done. You can playback 1/4 res without problems and even check the focus. Put it to full res to check pixel peeping focus.

External battery for your Mbpr or car lighter charger adaptor.

Pat

 

[Rui Guerra]

Hi Patrick,

Thanks for your input. However, that means that I would need to buy another laptop, which I can't right now. I need to choose between the iMac and the Macbook Air, if there is a way to work in the field with this last one...

Regarding drives, are the WD USB3 regular drives quick enough so you can play 6 K video out of them without any issues?! Or your advice is to make proxies from every footage and use them to check focus in the field?

Thanks!

 

[Brody_B]

Make sure u get in a bunch of usb powered external HD's, Samsung SSD's if you can afford it. And just scan thru stills in Redcine X if your just trying to check focus in 6k. Which btw you don't need 6k to know if your in focus, thats just excessive. Theres no laptop out there thats gonna give u 6k playback.

 

[Patrick Tresch]

+1 for Brody

Rui,

The problem is first the CPU power needed for the debayer not the speed of your disk. You cand do all you need with regular USB3 WD 2 or 3 TB drives that runs at 95Mb/s. Full debayer 6k to check focus is overkill. You can do it by pixel peeping 6k in RCX on a still frame but you rarely look at the shot like that (only if you shoot for stills not for movie).

Try with your MBair and a drive if it gets you where you want. I don't see an Imac as a good option for "in the field" work but it is a great studio solution if it's one of the newest. I usually do all my Quality Check in RCX.

Test your equipment, you'll have better answers that I can give you.

Have a good shooting.

Pat