Premiere Pro CS5 thread

[Psynema]

anyone using it?

- native DSLR
- faster
- script to storyboard to edit
- slo mo
- pluraleyes work with it
- the trial download seemed sure as hell quicker than FCP to me

Questions?

- Does CS5 allow for markers/extended markers in the sequence? I like marking camera motions on the timeline then cutting the marked portions.

- How does CS5 work with Apple Color?

Meow

[WindyHillsVideo]

I'm NOT using it, but have tinkered with the demo. But here are a few notes from my perspective:

1) The "demo version" does not include ALL of the apps and is "hobbled" DVD authoring and several other choice features not there. Saw a side-by-side comparison of CS5 vs Final Cut Studio at a PVA meeting and for certain work flows like DSLR footage, CS5 has a very 'fluid' work flow. Runs great on the right Mac hardware. You don't get to test 'everything' until you buy the full version.

2) The render engine and native support of practically all the popular codecs is HUGE selling point. Encore DVD authoring is an UPGRADE on DVDSP if you want to author Blu Ray. .

3) As I understand it, you need to create a project in both Final Cut Studio AND CS5 in order to use Apple's Color app in CS5. You can 'round-trip" segments or sequences from one to the other, but CS5 is just outputting to Premiere, and Color is outputting to FCP or a stand-alone Quicktime or Compressor native file. I could be wrong here, but Adobe's 'support' of Final Cut is more like file exchange engine and not 'round tripping' like from within CS5 or FCP.

Bottom line, I like CS5, but unless you plan to abandon Final Cut, you're buying a $700 add-on and a number of headaches if you want to try and use both in your workflow. I'm sure it can be done, and some might be doing it, but there are too many deal-breakers in this proposition for me. I remain hopeful that the next FCS will be a real game changer.

Michael

[MediaConcepts]

I'm very interested in how it handles AVCHD video with LPCM audio. I was disappointed with the demo as it only supports DV.

Joe

[RatVega]

Funny you should ask, as I'm cutting a short right now that uses 7D footage and is being finished in Color...

My first impression is that "native" AVCHD/H.264 is probably about as cool as "native" HDV; both are processor-intensive solutions to a problem that a good DI codec solves better. I've played back the H.264 from the 7D and it wants 46Mb/sec bandwidth for one stream...

I know virtually nothing about PP CS5 except what I've seen at LAFCPUG, but unless it can produce a sequence packet with the correct XML you're going to need to find a way to bring the project into FCP to "dispatch" it. Color is a standalone app, but it requires a very specific input. There is no support for .mov, H.264, .AVI or whatever, only docs with a .colorproj extension or an EDL of an edited sequence if it is accompanied by the appropriate source files since (as I recall) it also worked with Avid NLEs when it was called "Final Touch HD" and sold for 25K a copy. But I have no idea what the specifics are.

My message to all is that if you're going to take the trouble to learn Color, your payoff will come from working in the 10-bit colorspace and rendering in 32-bit float. Although it's not terribly difficult to use, it will be daunting for many and counterintuitive for most. It's not your standard "user friendly" consumer app.

[Psynema]

Originally Posted by RatVega

Funny you should ask, as I'm cutting a short right now that uses 7D footage and is being finished in Color...

My first impression is that "native" AVCHD/H.264 is probably about as cool as "native" HDV; both are processor-intensive solutions to a problem that a good DI codec solves better. I've played back the H.264 from the 7D and it wants 46Mb/sec bandwidth for one stream...

I know virtually nothing about PP CS5 except what I've seen at LAFCPUG, but unless it can produce a sequence packet with the correct XML you're going to need to find a way to bring the project into FCP to "dispatch" it. Color is a standalone app, but it requires a very specific input. There is no support for .mov, H.264, .AVI or whatever, only docs with a .colorproj extension or an EDL of an edited sequence if it is accompanied by the appropriate source files since (as I recall) it also worked with Avid NLEs when it was called "Final Touch HD" and sold for 25K a copy. But I have no idea what the specifics are.

My message to all is that if you're going to take the trouble to learn Color, your payoff will come from working in the 10-bit colorspace and rendering in 32-bit float. Although it's not terribly difficult to use, it will be daunting for many and counterintuitive for most. It's not your standard "user friendly" consumer app.

Thanks.

Still can't figure out why it's so hard to find info on extended markers in Premiere - I know they have solitary markers, but it's a big time saver in FCP to use extended markers in the timeline marking unwanted footage.

I wonder if Premiere has some advanced coloring tools (I know it has a luma curve which FCP doesn't) and supposedly better keying tools. I know there's always after effects but that's built around single shots not a full timeline.

No big worry, it's not like we use color for weddings, though it's nice to have the option.

[RatVega]

I agree on extended markers, I use them frequently...

After my last post it's probably a bad idea to mention that Color has primary RGB and luma curves as well as secondary luma, hue, and saturation curves... hehehe...

Keylight (the keyer in Shake and AE) is about the best out there IMHO. I particularly like the interface AE has for it.