Transferring AVCHD files

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Level 1

102 points

Transferring AVCHD files

I'm encountering some problems getting some AVCHD files into Final Cut 7. I've often done this before and have carefully written out the steps and am following them as I always have. But it's not working to day.

The instructions I've read in the past describe how one is to copy the AVCHD source file “with their original folder structure intact” from the camera's card to the hard drive, and once one has done that to rename that source folder on the hard drive. Further those instructions remind: “Don't mess around inside those folders”.

When I looked at the video files I was about to capture from the camera card I saw that the card still contained files I'd transferred earlier. I didn't want to re-capture them so deleted them from the "stream" sub-folder. Have I in doing this done the unspeakable? Have I “messed around inside those folders”? Is this perhaps why FC Log and Transfer will not recognize my AVCHD source folder today? If so is there a work around?

I'd turn to Compressor but it doesn't recognize AVCHD files. Is there another program that can transcode these files to ProRes if there is no way now to do this in Final Cut?

Thanks.

John

Final Cut Pro 7

Posted on Oct 8, 2015 12:37 PM

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Answer 1

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Meg The Dog

Level 6

13,561 points

Oct 8, 2015 5:14 PM in response to Canada John

First, is your footage shot at 60p? If so, FCP-7 will not import it via Log and Transfer. Log and Transfer does not recognize AVCHD @ 60p.

There was no standard for AVCHD @ 60P when FCP-7 was abandoned by Apple, so once it was standardized, it was never added as an acceptable file format to Log and Transfer.

You would need to use an app to convert the files to ProRes, where FCP-7 will work with them. Edit Ready is a good choice:

http://www.divergentmedia.com/editready

When you either automatically or manually navigate to the source directory for ingest, you can choose inside Log and Transfer which clips to ingest and which to not ingest, so there is no need to delete the files prior. And . . . you should never do that anyway, unless the card is mounted in the camera and you have the camera doing the deleting.

MtD

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Answer 2

Canada John Author

Level 1

102 points

Oct 8, 2015 5:15 PM in response to Meg The Dog

Thanks Meg - again.

The footage was 60i. The reason it wouldn't transfer via Log and Transfer must have been because I deleted those already-captured files through my computer, not the camera as you suggest. I have been able to log and transfer AVCHD footage from this camera via Log and Transfer before.

Thanks for the link. I'd gone on-line looking for programs and found one and downloaded it's trial version only to see that it only had one generic ProRes codec, plus ProRes4444. The link you've suggested offers all the versions of ProRes, which I like.

John

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