Editing HF100 Footage with VSX2 and Lagarith

[pwholzel]

Normally, when editing HF100 AVCHD footage directly in VSX2, the resulting product is either low quality (if you choose not to smart render), or high quality but with stuttering frames between cuts in the footage.

I think I've found a good way to overcome this for free. Use the free lagarith codec to transcode the footage to lagarith avi (more info here: http://forum.videohelp.com/topic346331.html). Then import that avi into videostudio. You will most likely need to use smart proxy, unless you have a fast computer. Finally render the project to AVCHD at 100% quality, with smart render enabled, with 2 pass VBR enabled.

I so see some quality loss, but this method does allow you to add titles, transitions, etc, without too much loss of quality or stutters in the footage.

I then use Nero Vision 5 to burn the file (with the correct AVCHD file structure) onto my hard drive. Then, I replace the Bluray folder on the HF100 memory card with the Bluray folder created by Nero, and the file plays fine on my HF100. This is how I can watch the file on any display source without requiring an AVCHD bluray player or PS3.

Hope this helps.

[laidback]

Normally, when editing HF100 AVCHD footage directly in VSX2, the resulting product is either low quality (if you choose not to smart render), or high quality but with stuttering frames between cuts in the footage.

I think I've found a good way to overcome this for free. Use the free lagarith codec to transcode the footage to lagarith avi (more info here: http://forum.videohelp.com/topic346331.html). Then import that avi into videostudio. You will most likely need to use smart proxy, unless you have a fast computer. Finally render the project to AVCHD at 100% quality, with smart render enabled, with 2 pass VBR enabled.

I so see some quality loss, but this method does allow you to add titles, transitions, etc, without loss of quality or stutters in the footage.

I then use Nero Vision 5 to burn the file (with the correct AVCHD file structure) onto my hard drive. Then, I replace the Bluray folder on the HF100 memory card with the Bluray folder created by Nero, and the file plays fine on my HF100. This is how I can watch the file on any display source without requiring an AVCHD bluray player or PS3.

Hope this helps.

Hi Pwholzel,

If you are losing quality using VideoStudio, You may have your re-sampling set to the default, you can change this by going to,
file>preferences->Edit tab and then changing the re-sampling to Best, so that no compression is applied to your videos..

Oh and while you are about to share or create a file, make sure in the options "smart render" is enabled, and the slider in the next tab is all the way to the right and you are able to render to 18000K bps

Cheers,

Pete.

[pwholzel]

Hi Laidback,
Thanks for trying to help, but unfortunately VSX2 does not handle Canon HF100 footage at well at all, independent of settings. Many users have experienced this. Thanks, anyway.

[laidback]

Hi Laidback,
Thanks for trying to help, but unfortunately VSX2 does not handle Canon HF100 footage at well at all, independent of settings. Many users have experienced this. Thanks, anyway.

Hi Pwholzel,
To ensure less errors have you set your Camcorder to record in progressive mode?

I am beginning to suspect, if one does not have the Ultimate version of VS Pro X2, many users are experiencing editing problems..

As for your editing woes, it seems that with AVCHD recorded videos, if they are not created to an exacting specification,

see AVCH BIBLE and or REF: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AVCHD

Then no matter what NLE and or Video editor one uses, problems will become evident.. So many are forced to spend hours in correcting and or re-rendering video to an editable format that is with no errors.. <sigh> yeah I know its a pain, maybe someone out there may come up with a fast AVCHD video re-formatting routine to correct videos not to specs?

I am thankful that I was made aware of many aspects of AVCHD, as I had my eye on a Pal Sony HDR CX12 which records in an interlaced method that is not quite up to specs even though Sony and Panasonic have developed AudioVideoCompressedHighDefinition "AVCHD", to which results with all NLE's other than Sony's Vegas NLE to introduce interlaced artifacts to ones video, I was going to get Sony Vegas, but now I am not so sure if I should, so as of yesterday I am going for a Pal HD Panasonic Camcorder, as its recording method, even though much the same as Sony's except for perhaps some tiny but critical difference is editable with most NLE's to which VS Pro X2 is without any problems as far as I am aware so far..

BTW - before my Sony choice - which was up to yesterday, I did briefly have my eye on a Canon Camcorder, because my Still Camera is a Canon, "Best camera I ever purchased", but with my latest research - I have matured to base my decision on avoiding weak points and or future aggravations, and with AVCHD video at the mo, its editing them, as all Camcorders are cable of capturing much the same, but not always to exact AVCHD specifications, so no matter how good the Camcorders features are, it may all be useless if on editing ones videos they are ruined, rather than enhanced by ones NLE..

Anyway I hope the above provided link helps many readers to better understand AVCHD so that when their next Camcorder is sourced, "say what!? you don't want a better one? eh!???" Anyway its purchase will be based on sound knowledge of what pitfalls to avoid and or consider..
Maybe a camcorder that can have its hardware updated via the USB bus via ones computer that is connected to the Internet may be a good idea, so listen up you Camcorder manufacturers?

Cheers,

Peter J Schoen..

[pwholzel]

A good way to edit any AVCHD is to use Lagarith or NeoScene, and then edit with Vegas Movie Studio. Many people have reported success with this method, but you do lose a little bit of quality. Some may not notice the quality loss. I will probably use this method in the future once I purchase Vegas Movie Studio.

To get 100% quality, at least with the HF100, I have found that you must use the Pixela software that came with the camera. It is clunky and limited in its capabilities, but it is the only one that seems to preserve quality 100%.

[laidback]

A good way to edit any AVCHD is to use Lagarith or NeoScene, and then edit with Vegas Movie Studio. Many people have reported success with this method, but you do lose a little bit of quality.

Its a pity observable definition is lost to ones video, but if the video is properly formatted to AVCHD specs, READ.. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AVCHD
then no conversion should be needed, and as far as I am aware VS Pro X2 is able to edit AVCHD perfectly, well for me I am one of the lucky ones where I am able to use smart rendering with out any problems..

Unless I have to convert them to some other format, say like for You-Tube..

Cheers,

Pete..

[pwholzel]

Hi Pete,
You must not have a Canon HF100 series camera. For some cameras I think VSX2 does work.

[laidback]

Hi Pete,
You must not have a Canon HF100 series camera. For some cameras I think VSX2 does work.

A Canon HF100 sure would be nice to own <slobber droool> Alas I personally only own a Traveler HD 10X, that would normally sell for around $350 here, but the one I got was the last one that no one seemed to want, so when It was placed in the clearance showcase, I gutz it fur $299..

So in effect it's one of those cheaper than cheap camcorders, that spews out video at a lowly H.264 1280X720p Mp4 video, claimed to be AVCHD format, but I found its videos only import into VS, if I rename the .MP4 extension to .Mov, and its here where the fun begins, because even though its an AVCHD based video, it is treated by VS as a *.Mov video rather than an AVCHD, so what I do is re-render all my latest batch of clips by placing them all together in the time line to be rendered as one long "No transitions" AVCHD NTSC HD- 1920 video over the course of a night..

To which, when I compare my videos with my other family members who own various other "much higher end" Full HD AVCHD Camcorders, they are almost as good, even though they were recorded at a lowly HD 720p..

Which reminds me, the over night render trick that I use for my Raw videos, only came about because I was forced to do it for one of my other family members Raw videos, which now and then after editing them resulted with real runaway blocky video and also what I believe is really evident interlacing artifacts after each transition, my conclusion was that the Raw video simply isn't perfect AVCHD, so I concluded the Raw videos would need to be first rendered to perfect AVCHD, and because I hate waiting, I do this over night..

It was from that ordeal - I thought - what the hey, why don't I first up-convert all my videos to the right full HD AVCHD, and from there treat them as if they are a raw video.. And the beauty of this is, editing them is so much more enjoyable, as it only takes minutes to render because smart rendering can be used without fear of errors because as far as VS is concerned its pure and perfect AVCHD, so for the most, it doesn't need rendering

Cheers,

Pete..

[wandering-free]

A good way to edit any AVCHD is to use Lagarith or NeoScene, and then edit with Vegas Movie Studio. Many people have reported success with this method, but you do lose a little bit of quality. Some may not notice the quality loss. I will probably use this method in the future once I purchase Vegas Movie Studio.

To get 100% quality, at least with the HF100, I have found that you must use the Pixela software that came with the camera. It is clunky and limited in its capabilities, but it is the only one that seems to preserve quality 100%.

My camera is the Canon HF10, I found with Corel ProX2 I can get 100percent results only by doing a "Create Disc" AVCHD and sliding the slider to 100% in project settings and putting the bit rate to 18000, while it makes the AVCHD/dvd it puts a backup copy in the Corel Video Studio folder in "My Documents" under a sub heading called "CvtedTitle" this contains a fully rendered copy of whats on the time line and is free from glitches, only problem it is limited to 4.3 GBs or about 30 mins unless you have a dual layer DVD-RW hope this helps until they find a fix for the glitches.
Bryan

[Ken Berry]

...That same video is on the disc in the same format in the STREAM sub-folder of the BDMV folder. FWIW, I also do my AVCHD discs with a bitrate of 18 mbps. The quality, as you say, is excellent. But the downside is that on a 4.3 Gb DVD, I find you can only get around 20 minutes of video. More, of course, if you lower the bitrate, but that also lowers the quality unacceptably (to me at least...) But given the cheap price of DVDs and the still awfully high price of both Blu-Ray burners and discs here in Australia, I am happy enough with the result...