PNGs + Video Thumbnails = HUGE render times

Question

Dear Users,
I've always used Tiffs before as my export option from Photoshop, but just learned recently that I should be using PNGs. However, now when I use those PNGs in a timeline with custom sized video thumbnails, the render times are LONG. I'm used to rendering cause I'm on a 1st generation 17" MBP, but I'm talking an hour to render a 24-second sequence. The timeline consists of 5 PNG layers and 5 240x180 (Multimedia Small 4:3) 29.97 videos using DV/DVCPRO - NTSC as the Compressor and quality set to 50%. When I drop one of the video files into a new timeline, FCP6 asks me if I want to conform the timeline to meet the clip settings, and I choose yes, but as soon as I put any of the PNGs over the video, I get the orange Unlimited render bar. Any ideas as far as what's causing the Long times beside me being on a laptop? I figure it's gotta be something I'm doing wrong, just like I wasn't using PNGs before. This is for a DVD's Scene selection menu, hence the small videos acting as previews of each scene.
Thank you all,
-Brian

Answer 1

Found the problem. The key was where I said "from Motion." The movie came in with Animation as the compressor type, so when I dropped it onto a new timeline, FCP asked me if I wanted to conform the sequence to match the clip, and when I chose OK, it changed the video rendering from YUV to RGB and the compressor from DV/DVCPRO to Animation. Now for the science of what I found and who I tested it all: PSD = 18 layers, 2.4MB TIF = "layered" Tif, 2.5MB PNG = 540KB
In a brand new timeline, the video and .psd were Unlimited and need rendering to play back smoothly. The tif and png were both fine to play back.
With the conformed timeline settings, the video then played fine, but the psd, tif, and png were all red "Needs Render."
Now as for the rendering itself, the video was a 7 second, 14 frame Animation clip. Still images were placed 3 seconds from the end of the video then rendered. PSD = 18 seconds, TIF = 5 seconds, PNG = 5 seconds to render.
• Both the TIF and PNG could be freely moved around, including over the whole video without requiring another render. The .psd would loose it's render when layered over the video.
In a second brand new NTSC timeline, video captured from DVCAM tape was fine, along with the tif and png again. The psd yet again had the orange render bar even when layered over nothing.
So there's my unscientific tests. I've hated working with the PSDs natively, and those numbers show why. I'll continue to use PNGs because they're both small file sized, nice quality, and fast rendering.
As for my original problem, it was the Animation compression that was causing the problems.
What do you all do for your Photoshop workflows?
-Brian