Using media manager to go from low res, to high res.

Having finished the edit on a film using footage all captured in low resolution, we are now trying to recapture all the clips using the media manager in high resolution. The recapture is going fine, but the media is not all reconnecting to the project on the time line. Some is, some is not, with no rhyme or reason as to why. Trying to select those clips on the timeline and then reconnect media is not working either. Is there any explanation or suggestions to correct this problem? We are editing with FCP 4.5 using a Lacie 500GB hard drive on a G4 mac with the 10.3.9 operating system. Any help greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Roberto

Did you use subclips? And did you capture whole tapes as one clip, say over 30 minutes apiece? If either answer is yes, then Media Manager shenanigans are the price you pay for not logging and capturing properly.

Try just copying the original, untrimmed low-res logs, recapture those in high resolution, then copy over the edits themselves and relink to the complete clips. If you skip the trimming process, chances for success with reconnecting media increase.

This doesn't solve Robertos problem but I do have some remarks about derek's reply.

Derek, what you say about mediamanager may be true but nevertheless in my humble opinion it is a problem that should be solved in a next version or preferably in an update.
There is no rule against capturing long clips, and if FCP or mediamanager loses timecode relationships that is an error of the software not of the editor.
Mediamanager also messes up speedclips when reloading the footage, and using speedramping in a clip without using subclips is not really practical.

I really like FCP but the mediamanagment, or lack of it, makes the "Pro" part doubteble.

Roberto Olivares wrote:

> Having finished the edit on a film using footage all captured
> in low resolution, we are now trying to recapture all the clips
> using the media manager in high resolution.

fine

> The recapture is going fine,

see, i told you

> but the media is not all reconnecting to the
> project on the time line.

that's not so fine
that;s weird.
it used to be that you HAD to select the sequence, and then start to Batch Capture.
you could NOT capture the browser clips, and have the timeline clips also automatically connect.
i thought that had changed.
you should try capturing like that

> Some is, some is not, with no rhyme
> or reason as to why.

really?
not clips with speed effects on them for instance?

> Trying to select those clips on the
> timeline and then reconnect media is not working either.

in what way?
what happens when you try to reconnect?
how many shots are we talking about here?
you could cut them back in manually


>Is there any explanation or suggestions to correct this problem?

need more info on why the clips wont reconnect.

how hard would it be to start over?
trash your existing media,
batch capture into the sequence
it might be the neatest approach.
otherwise just batch cap the remaining..

could be a problem if the clips already exist in the capture scratch folder.
FCP will either append numbers to the new caps,
overwrite the old caps,
or chuck a spak, (throw up some warning or other).

here;s an idea.
select all in the sequence,
use Media Manager to MOVE the shots to a new folder on the same drive.
(MOVE mode, DONT delete unused, base media files on existing file names)
quite FCP
in the finder, go to the original capture location and delete any left-over files.
re-open FCP & start to batch capture the remaining clips INTO THE SEQUENCE


oh, yes speed modified shots.
if these are the problem shots let us know.
there are ways of dealing with them,
but you may have to go right back into the lo-res project.
might be easiest to manually capture those sections and re-build the shots?
it;s easier than me explaining what to do right now, anyway

> We are editing with FCP 4.5 using a Lacie 500GB hard drive on a
> G4 mac with the 10.3.9 operating system. Any help greatly
> appreciated.

al the best,
nick

> There is no rule against capturing long clips.

There isn't, but there isn't a rule against lighting up 12 candles and lining them up around your G5 for ambience, either.

Some things just aren't done, because it's not smart.

Besides, I've assisted for a few editors and none of them likes dealing with clips that are over 10 minutes in length, let alone 60. Sync can drift, and timecodes can become inaccurate because of tape problems, capture slow-down, etc.

> Mediamanager also messes up speedclips when reloading the footage, and
> using speedramping in a clip without using subclips is not really practical.

That one I agree with -- at least, just the part about speed changes not reconnecting properly. Should've been fixed three versions ago, but remains a pain in the ass.

But when you say "speed-ramping without using subclips isn't practical", that's only because you're capturing 60-minute clips. Kevin Monahan has warned time and again that speed ramps will go berserk if your source clips are too long. It's your choice whether you want to listen. I do speed changes all the time, and they behave normally if you're not dealing with Media Manager.

> I really like FCP but the mediamanagment, or lack of it, makes the "Pro"
> part doubteble.

I've never had problems media managing in FCP, with projects I set up myself. Good work habits, such as logging and capturing clips in an organized manner, make the process smoother. You save more time in the long run if you take your time setting up in the beginning. Capture whole tapes using Capture Now, and you're begging for trouble down the line. Forty-five minutes saved now for days and even weeks of delays later. Even in the short term, the "capture whole tapes" approach can be hazardous.

Let me be clear, I didn't want to start a discussion just for the sake of arguiment.

I'm an editor for quite some time now and earn my living with it.
I know about ideal workflows and perfect time schedules.
(Deadlines & Budgets)

But over here I'm forced to certain workflows.

fe Monday morning I get 7 à 8 Betacam tapes and next day at seven pm the director has to leave my edit suit with an edited/mixed/titled program.

That gives me a very thight schedule, so I log very basicly while rewinding the tapes; style:
tape 1 clip 1 : 14 min exteriors
tape 1 clip 2 : 20 min interview
tape 1 clip 3 : 5 min cutaways
Batch capture
etc for the other tapes

At the moment I have to digitize the material I don't know what shot speed ramping has to be applied to.

And forgive me if I point out that the tool I have to use to do my editing has problems with that.
I just think it is not impossible to improve the software.

Thank you all for your ideas and the discussion. We are going ahead with the capturing and nearly finished. We have not solved the reconnect problem, but will tackle that after finishing our capture of what still needs to be connected. I will post if and when we solve the problem or discover the best way to get the job done.

terry for Roberto