We're working on an acceptable resolution; it's not as easy as it could/should be, because we need to find a means of assuring that the DV proxy represents the HDV/HD media as closely as possible. Watch for a new build of Gearshift soon. Be sure you've played with the latest build as well, uploaded last night.

Will be interesting to see with what you come up. I will tend to compare it with my PIC-mjpeg-avi idea - since that is a perfect solution. At least to the pixel aspect ratios. Maybe not to the color space (I do not know that, frankly spoken).

If so then there should be a checkbox to state make proxy optimized for SD out or HD out or make both so that the proxy can be gearshifted to output optimal SD or HD

So, I can offer following solution, based on the PIC mjpeg-avi codec for the proxy:

- generate a template "HDV 1080-50i int PIC 960x540, as shown here:
Template

- in the rendering quality, you can switch to "draft" - what halves the render time for the proxy:
Switch to draft

- the so generated proxys have following properties:
Properties of Proxy

- So, it makes sense to develop your own project properties for working with the mjpeg-avi proxies - to have the best possible realtime preview capabilities (runs with 25 fps under PAL):
Optimized Project Properties for that Proxy

As long as the name of the template starts with "HDV ", it is possilbe to select that in Gearshift unter proxy media:
Selection in Gearshift

And it is possible, to shift gears off course. Seems to work fine so far.

Oh yes, also if you are in the ntsc-world, since 1080i has 25 fps, I ask myself it it would not be better to edit the proxys in the PAL-Format - otherwise the calulction of the proxys should take much longer.

The total german tutorial is here: German Tutorial

Spot:

Having been a beta tester of GearShift you might think I should know this, but I do not understand the need for alternate proxy formats. As I alway convert back (shift gears), to the m2t file before rendering, what possible effect can the proxy format have on my project? Is it just the look and feel of the preview during editing, or does the proxy format have some effect on the final project when rendered?

Right now I am experimenting with a 24p from 1080i project and I am using the DVD NTSC Widescreen proxy not the 24p proxy. Will this screw me up?

Michael

PS
Thanks you VASST guys for a great party. Sorry I could not talk with you more - another time I hope.

The reason we match the proxy colorspace back to the m2t is because if it's not, what happens when you color correct for the 601 colorspace, but your m2t is in the 709 colorspace and it's not correct? To further that concept, we are working matching aspect exactly, so you see everything in the same frame size, aspect, etc.

Spot:

I'm not refering to the color space. I ask why a choice of proxy media-NYSC Wide or Wide 24p, or HD 1080i.

The reason is simple. If you convert to DV-PAL-widescreen (and very likely also to DV-NTSC-widescreen), you will see on the left and on the right side a black bars. Must be something about 20 pixels, I would guess. In other words: the image is scaled down a little bit if you switch to an DV-proxy.

That seems to derive by the fact, that you have clear defined pixel aspect ratios for both DV-widescreen and 1080i - and that they are not completely compatible. I am eager to see if there will be a solution by Douglas and Jonny.

If you apply now things like PiP, pan/crop and so on, it can happen that you have to adjust those effects again, when you switch back to the original m2t material.

So, from that generic perspective I prefer a proxy, that allows me to avoid such affects.

Thank you Wolfgang. I am experimenting now with a NTSC Widescreen 24p project from HDV1080i footage. Are you saying this incompatability will be different by using the NTSC DV Widescreen 24p media as opposed to using the HDV 1080-60i proxy media? I'm still confused as to which to use . What proxy do I use for editing if I intend to output to two fifferent formats like NTSC DV 24p and WMV?

My confusion might be related to my choice of original project settings. I don't understand why it is necessary to select a format in the original settings if I wish to render out to different formats. Whether it is WMV or DV Widescreen 24p only comes as a choice right at the end.

Michael

In order for the 24P project to work correctly, you MUST start with the project in 24P properties. It's part of how Vegas works. It needs to know where it's going, and we can't force that from the script.
I'll send you a beta of the newest version. Wolfgang, if you want to send me a private mail, I'll send it to you, too.

Michael,

you will see that black borders with NTSC widescreen DV avi, too.

Do you wish to replace the proxys with original m2t material befor your final rendering? If yes, then you should use a proxy that can be created in a fast way, has not a huge file size, and can be played back on your system with good preview capabilities. But it does not matter so much, if you replace the proxys with original m2t material, before you render to your final format.

As a general guideline, the project settings should always be ident with the material you have in your timeline. If that is the case, you have the best possible preview capabilities. So, the project settings should be adjusted always to the proxys, as long as you edit the proxys. So, if you edit in NTSC-DV-widescreen proxys, I would set the project settings to such an template. Only, when you substitute the original material back, I would switch back to 1080i templates in the project settings again - before rendering to your final format.

Wolfgang/Spot what a team you make though seperated by a big ocean! The wonders of the internet: - What a potential we have for world peace if only we could get rid of politics.

Thanks/Danka. Where as before I saw through a glass darkly now I see face to face as it were. All is understood!

any progress on the aspect ratio stuff?

Yup. We'll have a new version on the site tonight.

I have continued to test the PIC-mjpeg-avi codec to generate proxys, and can confirm 2 additional points:

- first, with the 960x540 template and an pixel aspect ratio of 1,000, no black boarders take place as we see it with DV-avi proxys. I have tested if you have some scale effects, resulting in a small pixel shifts of a PiP or pan/crop. As far as I see, no shift takes place if you use these mjepg-avi-proxys.

- I have also compared the color composition between the original m2t file and the mjpeg-avi file with the vectorscope in Vegas. Funny enough, you have to disable the corretion of the color space before you render the mjpeg-avi proxy - but if you do so, then the colors seems to be identical between the m2t and the mjpeg-avi proxy.

So, to use mjpeg-avi codecs should not be the worst solution.

LINK please Spot. I could not find it on the VASST site and even a VASST search came up blank. ALSO I did not recieve the beta you spoke of.

Cheers,
Mike