Another interview:
http://www.newsshooter.com/2014/09/18/ibc-2014-video-sony-catalyst-browse-and-cataylyst-prepare-also-new-4k-oled-monitor/


VMP

Question: Can I do a edit my footage and then do a "smart render" (i.e., a lossless edit) to my hard drive?

I watched the video, but he didn't specifically mention this.

I shoot a LOT of coverage and often want to throw away 90% of what I shoot (I shoot events, and I'll start the camera long before the action begins, just so I don't miss anything). I've used the Sony "Picture Motion Browser," and now "Playmemories Home" which ships with many of their cameras. It is really bad software. This appears to be aimed at doing the same thing, and hopefully will be more competent. Both of those programs are absolutely pathetic.

So, can this software edit and then export (to use their term), but without rendering?

If I were a marketer, I'd be asking development for more tools to bundle into the suite, and the Catalyst Software fills the bill.

Cakewalk has done a fantastic job with plugins and features to make software by the pound...you get just a TON of stuff - everything you need - to be producive.

Vegas Pro, Catalyst(s), Sound Forge, Spectral Layers Pro...that's a reasonably potent suite of stuff that all works together (and specifically for SONY gear).

I also suspect the hardware side wanted/needed some good software to support their products, which makes added sense.

http://www.sonycreativesoftware.com/download/catalystbrowse
Available for Download.

It has some nice color correction control. In fact the curves are more powerful than in Vegas. I hope we get that technology soon.

I for one would LOVE a better curves effect in Vegas.

In what way are the curves better? (I haven't installed it)

Here's my color curves wishlist:

- much bigger window with a grid
- a diagonal bottom-left-to-top-right guideline
- real numbers on the axes
- live output of coordinates
- the ability to input precise coordinates
- import/export LUT
- undo support [EDIT: this was added in either VP11 or VP12]
[ADDED] - ability to change the RGB master curve after "splitting" the individual Red-Green-Blue curves.
[ADDED] - make "Show all channels" default to ON, like it used to in VP10 and earlier

Seconded all of that wishlist! If only...

Curves in Catalyst allow you to change the Master curve (luminance) and then also change the Red-Green-Blue curves. In Vegas it's one or the others.

Nearly everything on Nick's wishlist is exactly what I would like and have submitted feature suggestions to SCS in the past.

I did not suggest numbers on the axes, but have snappable tick marks for the studio levels of 16 and 235 so on can clamp the curve output to not output illegal when you are trying to keep your video within legal range. Or just have a check box to have curves only operate within video levels.

As one who comes from the DSLR still photo world. I would like to dump the bezier control point user interface in favor of something like Adobe and everyone else does. Certainly such control point things are going on mathematically under the covers of apps with such UIs. It is just clumsy to make us do it.

If SCS added a kick arse curves to the next version of Vegas, IMO, that alone would be feature enough to want to upgrade. Curves are one little thing but SO important, IMO.

Actually SCS should look at adding a parametric "curve" effect like I use in RAW photo editors (Adobe, Rawtherapee, maybe others).

Controlling tone is so important and fundamental that having seemingly redundant UI options/capabilities is useful. People can work how it works best for them and/or the specific visual situation at hand. Expand user ease/capability can help expand your use base.

Nick's wishlist certainly gets a vote from me and yes, I would like NUMBERS :)

[I]"People can work how it works best for them and/or the specific visual situation at hand. Expand user ease/capability can help expand your use base. "[/I]

Agree with this too, there's a CC tool that Adobe supply the "lite" version of for free and it is brilliant in that the user can simply switch views of how it works, e.g. you can work in YUV or RGB space.

Bob.

All in all, Catalyst Browse is a handy tool, particularly in light of it being free.

Indeed John,

I use Content Management Utility at this moment.
I wonder If I really need this software.

Edit: I see that it is now available, gonna check it out.

VMP

Question to all:

Is it just me or everyone else?
When browsing through a folder containing so many video files (testing m2ts folder and xavc-s folder), it is extremely SLOW reading these video files, and after clicking one video file, I must wait quite some time!

I must be missing the point of this software.

I thought that the browse would be some kind of a replacement software for Content Management Utility (and many other). But i see that it doesent import anything from any camera.

Untill now I really dont like the interface.

The Content Management Utility gives a nice tree-view showing all the folders which you can fold out. With this utility only one folder at a time can be loaded in.

What are you guys using the browse for?

VMP

In media managers the speed of index is quite an important facet of the utility. Are you ALL ???? experiencing a way different speed ? between Content Management by Sony and the Catalyst Browse?

+1

would like to be able to add / append / change summary

I just spent 45 minutes trying to find one single feature of value in this software.

I gave up ... there simply isn't any value here, at least not for me. I thought it was going to help me organize and transfer clips from my camera, or at least provide some organization and management of clips already on my hard drive.

This is another in what is becoming a long line of Sony "clip organizer" or "media management" failures. These include "Play Memories Home" and "Picture Motion Browser."

I really had my hopes up that this would be something useful.

+1 John.

Having the much better Content Management Utility I see no reason why I should ever use this software.

VMP

Curves in Catalyst allow you to change the Master curve (luminance) and then also change the Red-Green-Blue curves. In Vegas it's one or the others.

In Vegas you can change the master RGB curve and then the individual Red-Green-Blue curves, but once the Red-Green-Blue curves have been "split", you can't go back and change the RGB master curve. Are you saying that is possible in Catalyst? I'll add that to my wishlist.

I did not suggest numbers on the axes, but have snappable tick marks for the studio levels of 16 and 235 so on can clamp the curve output to not output illegal when you are trying to keep your video within legal range. Or just have a check box to have curves only operate within video levels.

In that case I would also like an indication at 240, possibly also snappable. As I understand it, while the Rec.601 and Rec.709 limit luma to 235, chroma can be as high as 240. If I have footage with a strong colour bias, I very often have the curve relating to the weakest primary up at 240. For example this might be the red channel for greenish-blue underwater footage.

I think this is a very early beta !!! Does not do anything as good as PMB or Content Management Utility. I find every new Sony transfer software seems to be a backward step from the one before. As an example Catalyst just shows files not clips for AVCHD ,useless. I am only interested in the clips I took on the camera not how the camera managed a FAT32 file system for recording. I want the clips transferred to the PC just like PMB or Content Management Utility does with renaming ( in the case of PMB ) or in a predefined file. Also Catalyst did not recognize my FDR-AX1 at all but would play the files if I did the finding in the directories. Once again useless.

Ron Evans

NIck,

Yes that is the feature the curves have that Vegas does not. All of them are adjustable at the same time.