I use MPEG Streamclip to convert many different consumer formats to use in news-type videos. I thought it would be best to use Apple Intermediate Codec sequences and clips. However, when I import the AIC .mov files into FCP, it give me a message that the media is not optimized for FCP. Does FCP want a specific frame rate or resolution? Funny thing is, Final Cut Express doesn't give me that message.
MacBook Pro, Mac OS X (10.6.8)
Give us the clip properties. If you were able to import into FCP, press command-9 and tell us what it says... Otherwise, try converting to Pro Res LT (assuming you are using FCP7)
I'm using FCP 6.0.6. I import many clips at once. Someday when I have time, I could import individual clips one-at-a-time and see which ones give me the message. Each clip ends up with different properties - different "Vid Rate"s, Frame Sizes, Data Rates and even Pixel Aspects - based on what the sources clips were.
I was wondering if someone knows what, specifically, that FCP needs for the clips to be "optimized" for my AIC sequences; what properties need to match between sequence and clips. Of course, having exactly the same settings for sequence and clips is best, but I have to work with a variety of sizes.
Simply take a look at all of FCP's presets for ideal settings...
You need to conform everything to atleast the same frame rate... As FCP does not like different frame rates.
Don't know if you are in PAL or NTSC land, but since these are news spots as you mention (for broadcast?) you'd want to conform to 29.97 for NTSC (or appropriate for your area)...
Give us a setting of a clip that doesn't present any problems and a the settings of a clip that does present problems...
"Someday when I have the time..." No time like the present! An hour or two spent now will save you repeated woe every time you bring in new material. Don't be short sighted, you'll live longer and will pull out much less hair.
You can also look up the AIC fucntion in the FCP manaul.
It has specific applications. Enabling consumer formats is not among them. Waste of resources and space and, as you see, horribly complicates things. Convert to format and codec you know how to use.
bogiesan
I'm working with a variety of formats and want to find the best way to get them to all play nice in FCP and FCE. If I add "30" in MPEG Streamclip's frame rate option, it should help unify things a little more. I need to be able to batch convert many videos, and I can't easily make them all the same resoultion in MPEG Streamclip. So I guess I'll just keep their original sizes for now. None of this is a huge problem, but it is a messy issue and I was hoping to learn a little more. I think I did. Thanks everyone.
30 fps is not the normal frame rate for NTSC video. 29.97 is. Some cameras and software will generate 30fps material, but I'd recommend converting everything to 29.97. If you've got material at 30fps that's already in a fcp friendly format, you can use cinematools to "conform" to 29.97 without recompressing.
The videos are for web, so I don't think NTSC 29.97 is necessary.
As long as the majority of your sources are 30fps, you might as well stay that way. And if you have any 29.97 sources you might want to conform them to 30. Maintaining a consistent frame rate in all your sources and timeline is a good idea.
Even though with everything at AIC and 30fps I still get "not optimized" messages - maybe just because the resolution is different (pixel shape might be different too, I don't see how to change that in MPEG Streamclip anyway).
So I guess I'm down to this question:
Is it still better to convert everything to AIC than mixing other formats in the AIC sequence, even though FCP give me the "not optimized" messages?
Why is my AIC media "not optimized" for Final Cut?
