Resolve on a Mac, first impressions

[jake blackstone]

Jake,

You said Resolve on Mac was single layer only. So it's not possible to grade
a base layer PLUS a composite layer with alpha channel on top? I guess not

Haven't tried it yet:-)

[Lucas Wilson]

, exporting OMF and EDL, basic compositing

OMF? (blink)

Would you like some Editdroid DVDs as well?

: )

Lucas

[jake blackstone]

Hey Jake, hope its all good over there man. You'll know why I'm asking this -
How well does it deal with speed changes in the clips either from AVID or FCP?

Hahaha, that's funny:-)
Unfortunately nothing new to report. Right now I do not even know, if Resolve can do retiming. I'll check it today. There is still no V7 user guide, so I have to use the old V6 to figure out what's what.
Nevertheless, even if Resolve does retiming, EDL does not support keyframing. I know AAF is much more robust and feature rich, than EDL, but I'm not sure if keyframing is supported in it as well. But even if it was possible, I doubt very much Resolve could match Twixtor's features and quality. In your case, rendered timeline solution, just like we ended up doing, is still the easiest option. But then again, your debayer was done correctly...

[Tom.Wong]

Is the motion tracking all they claim it to be and more? I saw videos of the demo, where they motion tracked a base ball players face diving across the field almost instantly. But you know how demos are geared towards what the software can actually do. Have you tried something that's been problematic or tricky in the past, and does resolve just eat it alive?

[Hans von Sonntag]

When you're talking about the timing of the project, do you mean the retiming of the shots or something else?

Jake, thanks for your insights!

Sorry for not making my self clear: I meant changing the in and outs of shots, hence changing the timing. All questions answered.

You're are describing an interesting grading tool, surely not a finishing application. But swiss army knifes are rarely the appropriate tool.

One more question: Would you buy a MacPro and all the necessary hardware plus Resolve on the Mac to build a grading suite fro client supervised sessions or are you suggesting that Resolve on the Mac is more suited for all those who have the hardware already and need a grading application on budget besides their NLE and compositing software and work rarely with clients in their neck?

Hans

[jake blackstone]

Is the motion tracking all they claim it to be and more? I saw videos of the demo, where they motion tracked a base ball players face diving across the field almost instantly. But you know how demos are geared towards what the software can actually do. Have you tried something that's been problematic or tricky in the past, and does resolve just eat it alive?

It is as good as you had seen in the demos. I had tested it with a shot, where a girl is dancing in the room filled with myriad of tiny soap balloons and the tracker tracked her perfectly. It's not real time tracking, but it is very fast.

[Hans von Sonntag]

Pablo can. And to some degree, so can Film Master and Baselight, although I wouldn't necessarily describe either of those systems as "finishing tools."

Didn't know that Pablo is such a wide tool. Good to know.

Power comes at a price.... The separation of the programs is indicative of the separation of talents.... .

Fully agree.

[jake blackstone]

Jake, thanks for your insights!

Sorry for not making my self clear: I meant changing the in and outs of shots, hence changing the timing. All questions answered.

You're are describing an interesting grading tool, surely not a finishing application. But swiss army knifes are rarely the appropriate tool.

One more question: Would you buy a MacPro and all the necessary hardware plus Resolve on the Mac to build a grading suite fro client supervised sessions or are you suggesting that Resolve on the Mac is more suited for all those who have the hardware already and need a grading application on budget besides their NLE and compositing software and work rarely with clients in their neck?

Hans

That's the beauty of this set up. It is easy to use even for a casual Color user and yet, it has a lot of features, that high end supervised grading session would require. Said that, if occasional, non supervised, non real time grading is needed, Color is still a perfectly valid solution. If you never going to use the high end tools offered by Resolve, than there is no immediate reason to upgrade.

[Hans von Sonntag]

OMF? (blink)

Would you like some Editdroid DVDs as well?

: )

Lucas

Haha. No, of course.

For a finishing application OMF export is great to have if you change the timing of the sound or use the application for creative editing. In either case you want your sound conformed or reconformed in a sound studio, hence OMF export.

Hans

[Hans von Sonntag]

That's the beauty of this set up. It is easy to use even for a casual Color user and yet, it has a lot of features, that high end supervised grading session would require. Said that, if occasional, non supervised, non real time grading is needed, Color is still a perfectly valid solution. If you never going to use the high end tools offered by Resolve, than there is no immediate reason to upgrade.

Jake, we surely agree that RT grading is not only desirable for client supervised but also for "private" sessions because keeping the pace up is a vital part of a successful grading session.

Apple Color is not RT if SDI monitoring is used. But Resolve on the Mac seems to be, isn't it? A big reason to invest the 1k, IMO. Funny how ridiculous cheap Resolve on the Mac is if it holds up to the peoples expectations, great times.

Hans