Nikon D300s, Best settings in FCP

I've just begun shooting video on a D300s, my results in FCP have been less than desirable. Specifically my HD Video is either very soft or pixilated. I am assuming that perhaps there are some settings I need to address in the program. My question is what should I check?

1. Compressor (slower, perhaps better) or MPEG Streamclip (faster).
2. Whatever matches the format you convert to. What to convert to? Can't tell you without knowing the exact specs of what the original media is.
This is the Nikon D300 tech spec page
http://www.nikonusa.com/Nikon-Products/Product-Archive/Digital-SLR-Cameras/25432 /D300.html#tab-ProductDetail.ProductTabs.TechSpecs
This is supposed to represent the cameras capabilities. As far as video goes it's complete and utter garbage. The only video references are NTSC and PAL. What does this tell me? It tells me that if I want to shoot video I shouldn't be using a camera from this company. I should get myself a video camera that shoots a standard, professional video format. Frankly whoever's responsible for this page at Nikon should be fired.

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Need advise on best settings for FCP 7!

I am looking for some advice on the best settings for FCP 7 when I am syncing sound using pluraleyes, exporting into quicktime as one file and then importing that new file into FCP 7 for editing. I have noticed that sometimes my Quicktime files are very large (20 gb) and sometimes they are much smaller (130 MB), but I never changed the settings.
I am working on FCP 7 and shot using my Panasonic GH3 at 24 fps (which comes to 23.98). My frame size is 1920x1080. Compressor is H.264. Data rate: 8.6 MB/sec. Audio rate: 48.0 KHz. I have heard that FCP 7 does not properly deal with H.264. So, I am wondering, what should my settings be? Should I set to "Apple ProRes 422 (HQ) 1920x1080 24p 48 kHz"? Is there anything I need to know when I export to Quicktime 7 Pro in order to not reduce the quality of the video? Should I be changing my video files first before I even start to work on them?
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Hi Shane Ross,
Thanks for your help. So, I already synced all of my interviews in FCP 7 (using pluraleyes) before I changed the video to ProRess 422. Can I just go into FCP (in the same project) and compress the video footage, import the new video files and throw it into the timeline? Or will this cause issues? I tried this as a test and it seems to be okay but I just want to check that there aren't any issues that I am not considering.
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Thanks so much!

What is the best raw plug-in for a nikon D300s with cs3

What is the best download raw plug-in for a Nikon D300s with cs3. I have used 4.6 but still can't open the raw images from my D300s, Used other cameras such as D300 and D200 the raw images where fine.

Use these tables as a guide.
http://helpx.adobe.com/creative-suite/kb/camera-raw-plug-supported-cameras.html
http://helpx.adobe.com/x-productkb/global/camera-raw-compatible-applications.html
D200 - Camera Raw 3.3 - compatible with CS3+
D300 - Camera Raw 4.3 - compatible with CS3+
D300s - Camera Raw 5.5 - compatible with CS4+
So you cannot open Raw files from the D300s in CS3.
Your choices are either to upgrade or download the free Adobe DNG converter, convert the Raw files to DNGs then open the DNGs in CS3.

Correct video settings for a Nikon D300s to input into Adobe Premiere Elements 10?

I understand that it is critical when using Adobe Premiere Elements 10 that the video settings of your project match the settings of your camera. I want to upload video from my Nikon D300s DSLR which has the video setting options of 480P (640 x 480), 576P (720 x 576), 720P (1,280 x 720), and 1080i (1,920 x 1,080). I will primarly be making videos either to upload to You Tube, or save on a dvd. Can anyone tell me which would be th right settings for my camera and Premiere?

It depends on which resolution you're shooting your videos in.
It looks like that cam shoots in 1280x720 at 24p. There should be a DSLR project setting for that.
But if the camera shoots in all of the video modes you've listed, you can shoot it in any -- just make sure to select the DSLR project settings that match the video.

Camera import settings (Nikon D300)?

How can my Nikon D300 photos all be imported with adjustments to black, brightness, and contrast? Is this an automatic setting (or something I have done mistakenly)?
I have used LR for many years, 25,000+ pictures, and many cameras. When I started importing pictures from a new Camera (a Nikon D300), I see that the following changes are made to every picture:
Black +5
Brightness +50
Contrast +25
I don't know how this happened. I appear not to have edited the photos (the actual Import photo in the history has this setting). My other cameras do not have this setting. Someone please help!
PS I don't ever recall using the synch setting for anything but I am suspicious that only this might have done that.

Please forgive my lack of knowledge of what's overexposed... Unlike Huey, I'm no pro! I do have a sense that the iMac monitors are quite bright and not perhaps terribly accurate until calibrated. (Maybe that's every monitor, IDK.)
Well the Huey is decidedly non-pro, but it still works quite well if you're not super sensitive. If you pay more, you'll get better precision, but I doubt most people will notice, especially if you don't also profile your printer or send out for prints from labs.
Please forgive my lack of knowledge of what's overexposed... Unlike Huey, I'm no pro! I do have a sense that the iMac monitors are quite bright and not perhaps terribly accurate until calibrated. (Maybe that's every monitor, IDK.)
Take an image of a white wall using default exposure on your camera. It should come out looking like an 18% grey card after conversion in Lightroom. Anyway, iMac monitors are notorious for being far too bright. They are almost impossible to get to reference luminance. A trick to try if you do not have a calibrator that does display brightness is described here by Eric Chan. You use your camera's light meter for it. You'll see that for the iMac display you're all the way on the bottom of the brightness scale. You do not want to use any LCD monitor at high brightness because they tend to lose detail in the highlights. A good test of that is available here. You should see the differences in most of the patch pairs in the rightmost column. If you don't, your monitor is set too bright.

Nikon D300, Just got it.

I'm posting this in case any of you are considering a purchase of a D300.
I've only done practice shots under different lighting conditions around my home. Checking out performance at various ISO's and so-forth. Well, I've got to say that I'm really impressed.
Please keep in mind that I'm not really at ease with it yet because there are sooo many settings available and the manual is 400+ pages. I don't know that I have it set to the "best" settings.
This is what I think so far.
The monitor is truly great. Compared to other monitors it is like going from a 20" regular TV to a 42" high definition. It is sharp and bright. You can zoom in on preview and see sharpness of small details,
Noise at higher ISO's is very well controlled. I did a few shots at ISO 800 and I think they look at least as good as, the best 400 speed film. Did a couple prints without any Photoshop noise reduction and base my opinion on those prints. Did a shot in a dimly lit room at ISO 3200. It was noisy but a couple minutes in Photoshop did miracles. I have no plugins for noise, just use CS.
Focus is very fast and accurate. Even in dim light and without the built-in AF assist light.
Color is very accurate.
Dynamic range (with special settings) is fairly good, for digital. There is a setting (adjustable) for getting better shadow details while not blowing out the highlights. I think this does a pretty good job.
I took one image (ISO 200) and enlarged to 20 X 30. Sharpened slightly and increased contrast a little in Photoshop. Cropped section to 8x10 and printed it on Epson R1800. It left nothing to be desired, a really nice print.
My thoughts are based on my experience. I've shot a lot using Fuji 12 meg cameras, not my own. My own cameras have been Nikon D70's. They have served my well in my wedding and portrait work. Before going digital I used only 35mm. I'm not comparing this to medium or large format. I also am not comparing to any other brand. I only shoot in manual mode.
My cameras are not better than your cameras
My photography is not better than your photography
I'm not a better person than you
Peace,
Q

LRK,
Hello to you also. How is the wedding photography going? Good, I hope. Nice to hear from you and thank you.
Lawrence,
I am comparing to My D70. I don't have enough knowledge as to other brands to make a judgment. One report (who can believe reports?) says that it compares favorably with the Fuji. In some circles the Fuji is considered the best digital for weddings because it has a fairly wide dynamic range, again for digital.
When I shoot I rely on the "high-lights" flashing in the monitor. I then check the levels, if I need to. This is just faster for me in the heat of battle. I did a snapshot of my neighbor yesterday. On the monitor it indicated that the part of his home (light tan) in the sunlight was in the white range. I opened the photo in Photoshop and it was clearly tan, with reasonable detail. Not as good as film but very good. A great improvement I think.
Nick,
Thank you so much. Yes going from D70 is an improvement. At the same time, I have to say that I really appreciate that the D70 came out when it did. It made my switching from film affordable. In my opinion, if you were able to get a good price for your D200 it possibly would make sense to get the D300. But I sure would not make the change if it meant a big financial loss. Some things aren't practical no matter how much we want the latest and greatest. I'm sure I'm not telling you something you don't know.
Ramona Dear,
Here I'm all happy about my new D300 and you come in here and say you want a D3 as a BACKUP! I hate you Not really, just kidding. I do have to ask what it would be a backup to? Again, just kidding about the "hate you" comment.
Peace,
Q

Permanent Crash related to changing display settings while FCP is open.

Recently, the display settings (arrangement) on my two monitors started changing by itself while I was working in FCP 6.5. I'm using ancient monitors (Viewsonic MB90 and Mitsubishi Diamond Pro 920. I just don't have the money to upgrade right now). Tis was annoying but I dealt with the problem by creating two different windows layouts. Then things got worse (the only thing I had done was install 8 gigs of additional memory on top of the original 2). FCP started crashing and now I can't even open the application. It doesn't react.
Apple recently posted a not very informative acknowledgement of the problem with changing display settings while FCP is open, but it doesn't suggest solutions to my problem. It would be helpful to know a) what resolution and refresh rates are best for these old monitors and b)how to open FCP again. Your help is greatly appreciated.
FCP 6.5
2x3g quad core xeon
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THIS IS IT!
Disabling the nVidia deep colors for 3d applications solved the uber-annoying "flicker-screen-settings-and-disrupt/crash-other-programs" issue. I specifically only disabled deep colors for Premiere, not for all 3d applications I use, because none of them have caused the same problem as Premiere.
This display-screen setting issue probably occurred because I use a Dell u3011 monitor which displays Adobe RGB color gamut, not just sRGB.
However, now this brings up another question with disabling deep colors (effectively disabling the Adobe RGB use of the Dell monitor):
QUESTION: If I have CG-rendered frames that seem to be created in sRGB and Adobe RGB (in two different programs), what color space should I be mixing/editing them in?
I'm somewhat of a novice with the color spectrum/gamut issue. From what I understand, if I edit both CG images in sRGB, I'll be losing color data from the Adobe RGB-created CG image. If I edit both CG images in Adobe RGB, will I create minor banding effects on the sRGB image because it doesn't have the color range that I'm editing in? Perhaps my question is more relevant to AfterEffects compositing of the images rather than simply/only editing them in Premiere.
The end result is something like an architectural film/ flythrough.
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Best Qualilty From FCP into Compresser

Ok, So ive filmed a short 6 min video in HDV 1080i60,and edited in that format, now because most of my clients DVD players don't read HDDVD I must compress it to something readable for SDDVD with out losing any of the quality.Now Ive tried MPEG-2 and it's crap, so ive tried numerous differnt formats and the best that ive come up with is JPEG-PHOTO. 1. Is their anything better then this?
2. Should I just transfer back onto my DV tape and go to a post house and get them to transfer on to DVD or will they have the same problem?
3.Can I Have and HD format and SD format on the same DVD so when it's inserted to HDDVD or SDDVD it can read it?
Any Answers would be greatful?
Thanks
SHawn

DVD with out losing any of the quality.Now Ive tried MPEG-2 and it's crap, so ive tried numerous differnt formats and the best that ive come up with is JPEG-PHOTO. 1. Is their anything better then this?
It needs to be MPEG 2 for SD DVD. Export from FCP uncompressed. Then use the best settings in Compressor. Bring into DVD SP and set track to 16:9 letter box. If you have more details on the footage and workflow it helps (settings, compression settings, type of footage, what does "crap" mean, how are you viewing things.)
2. Should I just transfer back onto my DV tape and go to a post house and get them to transfer on to DVD or will they have the same problem?
You could but you should be abllee to get fairly good results. Also downloadd bitVice from innobits.se (they have demo) to see if that helps. Not sure how mmuch a transfer house may charge but it may cover the cost of bitVice
3.Can I Have and HD format and SD format on the same DVD so when it's inserted to HDDVD or SDDVD it can read it?
No, though the new HD players are in theorry suppossed to be backkwards compatible (HD DVD not blu ray)

Best settings for PP mov's?

Got a few videos SD 720x486 I need to export from FCP 7 (uncompressed timeline) for use in a Powerpoint - what's best settings for PP? mov, h264, audio at 44 or 48k, what? Should we keep them at full 720 size, probably?
Thanks
K

ON a Mac or a PC?
WMV for the PC but learning how to embed is a function of learning how to use Ppoerpoint, not FCP's tools.
H.264? Dunno, what does the manual for PP say about compatible movie filetypes?
If you are handing these movies off to an experience PP producer, they will be able to give precise specs. If your'e doing this yourself, give yourself some extra time to work out the screwups. We have two wiseguys who insist on doing their own PP instead of letting our PP wonks do the jobs. They have never been able to figure out how to embed or link to movies and they do not understand why we tell them to have the movines in the same folder as the PP files.
bogiesan

JPEG, TIFF(8bit), TIFF(16bit) - what's the best for a FCP timeline?

I use Aperture to organize all my photos. When I export to use in my FCP timeline what is the best settings to use for photos? JPEG, TIFF, PSD, 8bit, 16bit,etc?
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Also read this: http://documentation.apple.com/en/finalcutpro/usermanual/#chapter=26%26section=1 %26hash=apple_ref:doc:uid:TempBookID-ReplacedWhenAssociatingWithMessierRevision- 44032IMP-1008859
-DH

Nikon D300 RAW NEF files not recognized ???

I just got a new Nikon D300. I Have been using a Nikon D80 shooting RAW with no problems. I cannot get iPhoto or Aperture to recognize any RAW files. RAW+jpeg results in the jpeg files being imported by not the RAW files.
All software is the newest version, iPhoto08 v 7.1.1 and Aperture 1.5.6 Here is the error message I get in iPhoto
Unreadabel Files:
/private/var/folders/1s/1suEP7hYGu15kLLAa5I2+++TI/-Tmp-/iPhoto/DSC_0075.NEF
Any thoughts would be appreciated.
Thanks
Steve

I just pickup a D300 and unfortunately Aperture nor iPhoto will not import the picture in the RAW format. Do you know if the RAW format will be updated in the new OS release that is to be announced?
I also contacted Nikon about the Capture NX program that came with the camera and Nikon told me that they are working with Apple to resolve the issues with there program as well.
It would be nice if the Camera venders would work with Apple before introduction to make sure the software is available to support the hardware they introduce..
Best Regards,
HH

Nikon D300 and chromatic aberration

I've noticed quite pronounced fringing in raw files brought into Lightroom 1.4 from a Nikon D300 and it can't be adequately fixed using the Lens Correction controls.
Creating jpegs in-camera using RAW+jpeg gives jpegs with far better fringe reduction than I can get in Lightroom. It seems that Nikon Capture NX can give the same treatment to NEFs that the camera gives to jpegs, but it's not available in Lightroom.
That benefit is powerful enough to make me consider switching to NX rather than upgrading to Lightroom 2 (which doesn't appear have this feature either).
Alas, I've been allowing Lightroom to convert my NEFs to DNGs, so I imagine I've lost the metadata that NX uses to fix the CA on all my old files.
Has anybody got any useful info on any of this?

Nikon uses a software algorithm in the body and in NX to correct for lateral CA live. It does it for ANY lense you attach to the body. For RAW files, the info is written as metadata in the RAW file, which NX reads and uses as a first guess. Canon does the same in their DPP software. The math that Lightroom does in the lens correction section is the same. It just doesn't automatically determine the right settings. I have over time developed a set of presets that I will apply to files from certain lenses at certain focal lengths and this works OK, but not as good as the automatic fitting of the parameters that NX does. I had asked for something like this in the beta period, but it is probably not very high on the list of priorities. We'll see when and if it materializes. The algorithms to do this are simple (there is no reason to build a database, this is straightforward image processing stuff) but they are patent protected, so Adobe might not go there at all.

Latest Camera Raw 2.3 + Aperture 2.1.2 + Nikon D300 = broken import?

After installing the latest camera raw update to version 2.3, it seems I can no longer import raw files from my Nikon D300 into Aperture when the D300 is set for USB Mass Storage, which I always used. When trying to do so, the first sign that something is wrong is the "Import" button in the Import dialog that doesn't show the number of selected pictures. It always show "Import All". Then, if I select all pictures or some of them, the Import dialog disappears as usual but then the completed import dialog appears immediately and says that 0 pictures have been imported. When checking the project where I wanted to import, there are indeed no pictures.
I then tried to import in iPhoto and it worked just fine. I reverted to Camera Raw Update 2.1, and had no problem.
I was able to import from the D300 when I set its USB connection to be MTP/PTP but no thumbnails appear in the import dialog, no matter if I shot RAW or RAW+JPEG.
So, anybody else noticed that?
Message was edited by: NemesysSoft
Message was edited by: NemesysSoft

NemesysSoft wrote:
Hmm... well, why would I want to buy a separate card reader, pull the card from my D300, put it in the reader, get it read, put it out of the reader and put it back in the D300?
typically photographers carry and shoot with multiple cards and then use card readers to get the photos into aperture
Because Apple screwed up their latest raw bundle? I'd rather not take the card out of my D300.
So, no, I haven't tried an external card reader and don't intend to buy one either.
that's your choice, we're just trying to help u out.
a fw800 card reader will be much faster importing than the camera,
if the camera settings changed at least you'll be able to get your photos into aperture.
btw, i have the same camera as you d300 and i've imported well over 100,000 photos (in the last week) since the last update, without a hitch (Camera Raw 2.3 + Aperture 2.1.2 + Nikon D300)
victor

Lightroom 4.1 - I Cannot import Nikon D300s video / movie files into catalogue - Can you?

Hi,
I can import all of my movie files produced by other cameras into my Lightroom 4.1 catalogue, I have the most recent version of Quicktime installed and obviously as I can import other camera model movies it proves that the basic Lightroom services and processes are working fine.
When I try to import the movie, first on the import module it says 'unable to create preview' and then it states, 'this movie file contains no video frames'.
I had gone back to Lightroom 3.5, but have since realised this version doesn't publish my movie files to flickr if they are >30Mb due to the way the Lightroom 3 Publishing module craps out on memory usage.
I know the D300s records movies using the J-MPEG codec, but I'm not sure if this is a problem with the codecs installed on my machine or whether Lightroom does not support this codec?
Before I waste another few days on trying to resolve the D300s import issue, can anybody else preview and import their Nikon D300s video files into Lightroom 4 or 4.1?
Thanks,
Simon

i have issues with some MPG files that can not be imported.
these files are not from nikon cameras but it shows that something is broken in LR 4.1
they worked with LR v3.6.
example:
Format                           : MPEG-PS
File size                        : 605 MiB
Duration                         : 4mn 25s
Overall bit rate                 : 19.1 Mbps
Video
ID                               : 224 (0xE0)
Format                           : MPEG Video
Format version                   : Version 2
Format profile                   : Main@High 1440
Format settings, BVOP            : Yes
Format settings, Matrix          : Default
Format settings, GOP             : M=3, N=12
Duration                         : 4mn 25s
Bit rate mode                    : Variable
Bit rate                         : 18.5 Mbps
Width                            : 1 280 pixels
Height                           : 720 pixels
Display aspect ratio             : 16:9
Frame rate                       : 24.000 fps
Color space                      : YUV
Chroma subsampling               : 4:2:0
Bit depth                        : 8 bits
Scan type                        : Progressive
Bits/(Pixel*Frame)               : 0.836
Stream size                      : 581 MiB (96%)
Audio
ID                               : 192 (0xC0)
Format                           : MPEG Audio
Format version                   : Version 1
Format profile                   : Layer 2
Duration                         : 4mn 25s
Bit rate mode                    : Constant
Bit rate                         : 384 Kbps
Channel(s)                       : 2 channels
Sampling rate                    : 48.0 KHz
Video delay                      : -83ms
Stream size                      : 12.1 MiB (2%)

Nikon D300S Raw Support

Please, Apple.....
Why so slow when it comes to RAW support for new professional camera models? Nearly a month ago, Nikon has updated one of their best selling pro DX-cameras - the D300, with the D300S model.
Adobe promptly released RAW-support for this camera..... while Aperture still greet images from the Nikon D300S as "Unsupported File Format"?
I am aware of the work-around with the use of Adobe´s converter (or Nikon Transfer) but it is still an inconvenience and bug in our workflow.
So, (pretty) please, Apple – why don´t you keep an eye on the camera market and follow up with timely updates of Aperture RAW support!
M. B.

Ahh the omni-present "when will Aperture support" thread....
I just thought of a great way to make some money here...I would be willing to bet just about anything that Aperture would support ALL Nikon DSLRs that Nikon continues to build...WHY?
Simply because when it comes to Nikon they have done so consistently. Those new to the forum can search D300 support or D3 support and see identical messages from a couple of years ago.
I would say Apple's average to respond to a new build is about 90 days, and then they typically release for a few cameras at once in an update.
Oh and finally, Nikon's top-of-the-line is my D3x, NOT the new D3s, and yes, Aperture supports it. I am 100% sure the D3s will be there soon as well.
Of course you can find this same thread from a while back if you search D3x. Less so though, because due to limited availability I was not able to get one for a while after announcement since I did not pre-order, so I think for me it was about a week or so after I had it that Aperture supported it. Lesson here would be pre-ordering a camera is not very useful if your workflow solution won't be supporting it immediately.
On a sad note...I am still waiting for the Leica D-LUX 4 support, and that has been more than a year...but it looks like Leica/Panasonic chose to include lens distortion data in their RAW file, and I am assuming Aperture is not equipped to handle that. Many of the programs who "support" the RAW file DO NOT have any lens correction applied, and the jpg vs. RAW looks different. I don't consider that support, and I bet Aperture did not want to open themselves up to complaints by only partially converting the RAW data. Fortunately the D-LUX 4 has the best jpgs I have ever seen from any camera, and are typically quite usable without major tweaking.

Nikon D300s, Best settings in FCP

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