2000 drawings done!!... now, I am confused ><

[ginger1]

Hello! I am really loving using and learning TVpaint... I've just created a little short, but now I have some questions:

1. The short is animated in 1920x1080. Each shot is its own file. I want to now edit the files together, add music, ect. So off to the editing program, right?
Well that's where I need help. What file format should I export it as? AVI, quicktime? There are various codecs and settings available for both...

2. Square Pixels..... Okay, after google, I get that ntsc and pal use non square pixles... but I am confused as to how this affects me. If I did the drawings in square, when I eventually convert to DVD ntsc is it going to be squashed? What media uses square pixles?

Well that's it for now. Thanks in advance, this is all new for me...

~G

[slowtiger]

Hm, you started in HDTV, but what's your target resolution? TV? Big Screen = 35mm film or HDTV?

Anyway, there a trick in here. You can happily work with low-res files (like PAL) while editing the sound and music. Only for the final transfer to whatever output medium you choose you will need hi-res files. The trick is to keep track of all changes in the image files.

Depending on which editing software you use, there will be ways to replace low-res with hi-res source files.

[Paul Fierlinger]

I recommend you export your 1080 clip as a 720p AVI. In the export panel select Uncompressed (BGR24), RGB mode, convert project to DTV 720, set frame rate to 24 (or whatever is your choice), pixel aspect to 1.000, Field Progressive. (you can deal with Aspect Ratio after you finish editing in your NLE and are ready eo export.
Check Background
Correct Aspect
Stretch to Frame Rate (if you were animating in 12fps)
Browse to where you want this AVI saved and hit Export.

Next time you'll need to do this, TVP will remember all your settings.

Which NLE are you using?

[ginger1]

Thank you so much, Slowtiger and Mr. Fierlinger!
I plan on using Sony Vegas... I am not entirely familiar with it, but it is what I have access to at the moment. I'm going to do some tests, but so far I think it should be okay. A bit nervous about making my first dvd, maybe I'll need software for the correct compression it seems..? Well, anyway, only one way to learn, right?
Sometimes it's hard to find clear info, most pages seem to be trying to sell software or are filled with forums with lots of conflicting info

Anyway, thanks again!

[Paul Fierlinger]

Maybe we can help further if you will tell us what editing software you are using. For instance, if you are using Premiere, it would perhaps be better to export from TVP as QT clips. I assume you have the sound tracks in your editing program.

[ginger1]

Well the editing program I have currently is Sony's Vegas Pro... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sony_Vegas
Not too experienced with it, but doing a lot of reading about it.
So.. Why for example would it be better, in the case of Premier, to use QT...? Just curious.
I would be putting the sound in with the editing program, though I am still putting that part of the project together (recording sound effects). Though recording all these sound is a lot more work than it seemed like it would be!

[Paul Fierlinger]

Premiere does well with QT (probably because it's an Adobe product) but Vegas doesn't. I use Vegas and have had excellent results with the uncompressed avi I suggested earlier. Since my target is 35 mm film I save each scene twice; once at the original 1080p size for use when it comes to filmout time, and the 720p size for editing in Vegas, making sure both are saved in separate folders but under identical names. Vegas Pro 8c is a wonderful NLE for animators. If you have any questions feel free to ask me (PM if you wish) or I can recommend a superb Vegas forum with lots of good people helping out.

[ginger1]

Paul, thanks for the advice, as I experiment more and trip over my shoelaces I might have to take you up on the offer for more
One question I do have though, unrelated to editing... How black is *too* black?
Say you have a background of pure black, luminosity is 0.
At what point will a line be visible against the black at a level which is ''okay'' by video people standards. For example, I can raise Lum to 12 and see the line, but I have a feeling there might be... rules, or standards I should be aware of... Just curious!

[slowtiger]

There can't be a standard because people's eyes are as different as the different means of viewing ...

First: is your monitor properly calibrated? If not, you might see 2 colours where on other screens the same file will look like only 1 colour, or vice versa.

Second: our computer monitors will interpret the same RGB image different from what a TV screen will do or how a 35mm print of it will look like, with great room for tweaking it.

Third: human eyes can differentiate bright values easier from each other than dark values. RGB is a linear model, but several video codecs use a logarithmic interpretation of values so to have more differentiation in bright areas than in dark ones. You may experience changes of appearance while transferring from one model to another.

If in doubt, use a bigger contrast than you think you need. It's always easier to fine-tune a layer with reducing the contrast than decreasing it. The final tuning shouldn't be done before you have a test scene transferred to broadcast video or film.

[Sierra Rose]

Premiere does well with QT (probably because it's an Adobe product) but Vegas doesn't. I use Vegas and have had excellent results with the uncompressed avi I suggested earlier. Since my target is 35 mm film I save each scene twice; once at the original 1080p size for use when it comes to filmout time, and the 720p size for editing in Vegas, making sure both are saved in separate folders but under identical names. Vegas Pro 8c is a wonderful NLE for animators. If you have any questions feel free to ask me (PM if you wish) or I can recommend a superb Vegas forum with lots of good people helping out.

So if you take the smaller clip into Vegas and edit it, how is it you ever use the larger size for filmout time? Wouldn't it also have to be edited, hence duplicating your work? Thanks.

[slowtiger]

The vegas file, as any video editor file, only stores information about which video and sound file is placed at which point in the timeline, basically. You can easily replace the video files with bigger ones and ask Vegas to render again — Paul already described the process elsewhere. It's all a matter of consistent naming and some discipline in storing stuff at correct places.

[Sierra Rose]

Interesting. Thanks. I'm still only drawing but soon will want to put this little film together and then I will be pouring over this forum for all the "how to's" It's been awhile since I've done that kind of work and I'm surprised at how much I have already forgotten.

[Paul Fierlinger]

I know about that; Twice happy -- once when I learn something and the second time when I don't know I ever knew it and can learn it all over again.

[idragosani]

So if you take the smaller clip into Vegas and edit it, how is it you ever use the larger size for filmout time? Wouldn't it also have to be edited, hence duplicating your work? Thanks.

The basic idea is like a playlist you create for an MP3 player -- the playlist only contains the names and locations of the files. So if you edit the small clips in an NLE like Vegas, you are only manipulating the list of files and their location in the timeline. After you are done with the editing, if you replace all of the low res files with high res files that have the exact same name and location (obviously moving the low res versions to a different folder), Vegas won't know the difference, so you can render out the final high res version this way.

[Sierra Rose]

Right, I remember now some of this. (I used VT4 and now I'll be using SpeedEdit. That's a very cool trick. The penny just fell of what you explained. Thanks.