ProRes 422 (LT) to HD Export?

You don't spell out the format of your timeline, but since you want to output to H.264, I'll assume it's some standard HD format.

If it is HD, I don't get where the NTSC/PAL concerns come from. If you output the timeline using "Make QuickTime Movie at current settings, you should have the format you want. Take that into Compressor and transcode to H.264 using the same dimensions and framerate. Take that to your authoring system and do whatever it is that one does to make an HD disk. NTSC/PAL sohouldn't come into it.

What kind of PAL HD disk? The Apple HD preset is dead... it will ONLY play on Mac computers... It will not play on a DVD player. for an HD disk you need to burn a BluRay disk... There is an option to burn a BluRay directly from FCP or Compressor, but if you have Toast, I hear that does a better job... Oh and you need a BluRay Burner...

There is a way to burn a bluray compatible HD disk as long as the blueray player is able to play AVCHD disks...

But it is limited to a certain amount of time...

Both formats will work, but IMHO H.264 is superior.

It is possible to export the timeline "as Quicktime Movie" or "as Quicktime Conversion" and select the H.264 codec, but I'd discourage it for workflow reasons. I like having a "highest quality" QT file as timeline output prior to any encoding. On the long list of things that can go wrong and slow down/screw up your project, "QuickTime output mysteriously corrupted" is waaaay down the list. I've had most of the others, especially the stupid ones... 😀

And I have found stand-alone Compressor to offer the greatest flexibility.

You've got it... at least that's what I've been doing for the last few years.

I've never worked with LT, but ProRes is a "lossless" codec, so unless you see quality issues in the timeline you should be fine. If there's any doubt in your mind, step up to standard ProRes 422.

As to the Blu-ray question, I have some personal "issues" with Blu-ray (how we got to it, the way it's been implemented, etc.) and will not work with it. So I've never done an analysis of the options and their quality. That said, my personal belief is that H.264 (a.k.a AVCHD) is a very good codec, and if I was driven at gunpoint to a large pile of money surrounding a Blu-ray project, it's what I'd go with. 😀

The part you don't understand is the ProRes "lineup":

PR 4444 is mainly for very high end work like 4K, especially where an alpha channel is involved.

PR 422 (HQ) is a very high quality codec for 2K and 4K, probably footage that will be presented theatrically.

PR 422 is a high quality codec suitable for pretty much any HD that isn't going out to film or slated for presentation on theater-sized screens.

PR 422 (LT) is visually quite close to PR 422 but is about 40% smaller. It is a good choice for most projects shot with 1080 and 720 "prosumer" cameras and slated for optical disc or web release. My personal advice is to compare your PR 422 (LT) footage and the same clip in PR 422. If you feel there is a visual difference then go ahead and upgrade, but in most cases there's no detectable difference.

PR 422 (Proxy) is the "low quality to edit with" codec. It is intended for projects that will be conformed (re-linked to the original high quality footage. PR 422 (Proxy) is not intended to be output as a final QT clip.

So yes, you're being silly again 😝 Now get back to work!

I'd never kick a good man just because he's down... I hope I've helped.