Cinema Tools scales down my clip

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Cinema Tools scales down my clip

Summary of the issue

I am putting a 1920x1080p 60fps clip into Cinema Tools to change the frame rate to 24fps using the simple "conform" function. The fps conversion is successful, but the clip is now 960x540.

I have seen this situation reported on the web in various places but I have yet to come upon any response other than "it shouldn't do that". Has that been answered here? Any suggestions?

Details

The original clip is from a GoPro hero3 Black shot at 1080p 60fps converted to ProRes using MPEG Streamclip.
I am using Cinema Tools 4.0.1

Thanks for any help in advance!

iMac, Mac OS X (10.6.8), 2.7 GHz Intel Core i5

Posted on Feb 27, 2013 6:02 AM

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Answer 1

Best reply

Michael Grenadier

Level 7

20,374 points

Feb 27, 2013 8:42 AM in response to LightsOutKid

are you sure it's actually resizing? It may just be changing the display size. Bring it into fcp and see what the clip settings say.

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Answer 2

LightsOutKid Author

Level 1

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Feb 27, 2013 9:52 AM in response to Michael Grenadier

Michael,

Thanks for your reply.

I will try that this evening. I do know that the file details when I "get info" show it scaled down to 960x540 and it was certainly scaled down when it was brought into After Effects.

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Answer 3

Feb 27, 2013 9:56 AM in response to LightsOutKid

If you're talking about the finder's get info, that does not always report pixel dimensions correctly. I recently had a client call me in a panic about a file I'd exported. When I looked at it in fcp, it was fine. When I opened it in quicktime player and did command-i, the actual pixel dimensions were correct, the displayed pixel dimensions were different. And the finder's get info just showed the display pixel dimensions, not the actual pixel dimensions. Don't know how Aftereffects would read this. Cinematools conform is an almost instaneous process that just changes the quicktime metadata. Don't see how it could change the actual pixel dimensions.

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Answer 4

Meg The Dog

Level 6

13,555 points

Feb 27, 2013 9:56 AM in response to LightsOutKid

Did you check the file once it was out of MPEG Streamclip - prior to Cinema Tools - to verify you had the conversion setting correct?

MtD

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Answer 5

LightsOutKid Author

Level 1

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Feb 27, 2013 11:05 AM in response to Meg The Dog

Meg,

Yes - I made sure that it came out of MPEG at 1080

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Answer 6

LightsOutKid Author

Level 1

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Feb 27, 2013 11:09 AM in response to Michael Grenadier

Michael,

Everywhere I've looked people are saying that Cinema Tools should only change the frame rate, so your reply is consistent. It did kind of shock me when it looked scaled in AE. I am going to definitely take a loom at what FCP says about the clip. What is the best way to check it there - throw it into a sequence and see how the sequence transforms to it?

Thanks again.

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Answer 7

Feb 27, 2013 11:28 AM in response to LightsOutKid

Just bring it in to fcp, and select it and hit command-9. I don't think fcp will even show you the "display" pixel dimensions. Also, if you open it in quicktime player and hit command-i it should show you both actual pixel dimensions and display pixel dimensions.

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Answer 8

Meg The Dog

Level 6

13,555 points

Feb 27, 2013 11:29 AM in response to LightsOutKid

Import the clip into FCP-7 then click on the clip in the Browser to select it. Then type Command+9 to see the item properties for the clip.

Either report those properties, or take a screen shot of the item properties and post that here.

MtD

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Answer 9

LightsOutKid Author

Level 1

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Feb 27, 2013 6:30 PM in response to Michael Grenadier

Michael and Meg,

So as you suggested, I threw the transcoded Cinema Tools frame-rate-adjusted clip that was displaying dimensions of 960x540 on my drive into FCP and used Command+9...

And lo and behold, 1920x1080. I also noticed that the 1080 version and the 540 version are both 648MB on the drive.

Don't get it, but it sure seems like I have no loss, so I'm not sure I care 🙂

Thank you both for your time and patience.

-Scott

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Answer 10

LightsOutKid Author

Level 1

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Feb 27, 2013 7:06 PM in response to LightsOutKid

Uh-oh! New related issue!

It would seem that when the FPS adjusted clip is brought into AE to remove the fish-eye, it is scaled down. After rendering and exporting from AE and brought into FCP, it needs to be scaled up 200% to get back to the same size on screen as the adjacent 1080p clips on the timeline, even though all clips read 1080p when shift+9 is used, including FPS adjustred one. I don't see a degradation of resolution that I would expect to see from scaling up like that, but what the heck is this all about?

-S

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Answer 11

LightsOutKid Author

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Feb 27, 2013 8:02 PM in response to LightsOutKid

I've adjusted my workflow to avoid this new weirdness 🙂

1) Transcode 1080p 60 fps GoPro raw MP4 footage to ProRes using MPEG Streamclip

2) Remove fisheye effect in After Effects using "optic compensation"

3) Bring that adjusted clip into Cinema Tools and convert to 23.98 FPS

Clip in FCP does not need to be scaled and reads as 1080p 23.98 fps when using the Command+9 trick.

Still reads as 960x1080 on the drive but I'm over it.

Thanks again.

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