Quicktime Rendering
Quick Start Guide

 

Using the R3D Data Manager Quicktime Rendering

The R3D Data Manager can help your set to post process, by rendering all your R3D files into one consistent format. The R3D Data Manager in intended to do mass renderings for your editorial, not for detailed shot by shot color correction, though you can setup a default color correction and individual timings if you choose. The idea is that you can select a folder of R3D files (or more correctly a RDM folder) and let the R3D Data Manager create dailies from these.

Click on the button under "Source RDC Folders", and select the folder containing the RDM or RDC folders. This will be your source folder, and from here the R3D Data Manager will look inside for R3D files.

At this point you can create a text, csv or pdf file containing all the header, file, and metadata information for every shot. You can click on any one of the "Metadata Textfile", "Metadata CSV File", or "Metadata PDF File" buttons, and window allowing you to save the file will popup. At this time you cannot append new info to another file. The information saved by each one is the same, but the format and file are different from each one. You can save any of them that your post or bond company needs.

There are a couple of options that determine how the R3D Data Manager will process quicktime renders:

• "Place inside RDC folders - You can elect to save the rendered files to the same directory as the original R3D files. This will disable saving the rendered files to any other location. The saved renders will not overwrite the camera-generated quicktime proxy files that are already inside the RDC Folders. In addition, by default the program will not overwrite any previous renderings it created. Instead it will append the file name with a timestamp, so you can run the render process multiple times with different settings to compare how they look.
• "Default RSX File" - With this option, you can set a default look for your output renders. It will use the RSX look information that you define in your RSX file to generate the output quicktimes. It will ignore any in/out points you have set, unless you specify the option below.
• "Use RSX file from RDC folder" - This will use the RSX file inside the RDC folder with the R3D file it is rendering. This way you can specify a specific timing for each R3D file, and it will render that R3D file with that look.
• "Use In/Out Points" - If you have specific RSX files for each R3D files (in its RDC folder), you can specify in and out points with the RSX file. R3D Data Manager will honor those in/out points in its renderings, saving time by not rendering files that you wont use. Or you can use this for final outputs.

To select the primary destination, simply click on the button under "destinations" and select a destination folder. All rendered files will be saved here. This primary destination is the one folder where files will be rendered to, like a work directory.

After the render completes, you can have the R3D Data Manager copy the rendered files to other destinations. Simply click on the "add destination" button, and then you can add up to 4 additional places you can store the finished rendered files. By doing the renders this way, the R3D Data Manager will save you lots of time instead of creating renders for each destination. If you want to remove a destination, simply click on the "remove" button next to the destination you wish to remove. New renders will no longer be copied to that destination.

This is perhaps the most important part of the rendering process. These options must be properly set prior to the first render starting. If you do not set these settings properly, then your renders will not turn out as expected.

These settings must be set to your project settings, to ensure maximum compatibility

• Original Resolution - This is the resolution that the R3D files are shot in. The R3D Data Manager uses this info to then determine the aspect ratios and output formats in the rendered files.
• Render Resolution - This is basically the debayer process that you want to use to create your rendered files. Half resolution is faster, but doesn't have the full image quality of a full resolution. Please note this does not change the original or output resolutions, just the de-bayer process used.
• Shot Aspect Ratio - This is the aspect ratio of the shot footage. This can be "2.0", "16:9" or "Anamorphic".
• Framing Aspect Ratio - This determines your frame line that you used within the shot aspect ratio. The masking or letterboxing (if enabled) of your rendered files will be dependent on this setting. You can select a user reticule option and use the settings directly from the camera in R3D Data Manager.
• Base Frame Rate - This is the frame rate of your project. This is not the frame rate you shot at, but the frame rate it will be rendered to.
• User Reticule - This area allows you to create masks of frames exactly as you framed them in the camera, using the exact same settings. Using the "user reticule" option in the camera, you can set a custom frame in the camera. Note those settings, then enter them into R3D Data Manager here. R3D Data manager will automatically scale the settings you enter to the resolution you shot at, to give you a precise framing.

For all of these settings, we offer a default option. This uses the default option direct from RED. If you have a special setting you would like to use, you can select it here, otherwise you can use RED's recommended defaults. By setting the "Camera/RSX Default" for any of these options means that R3D Data Manager will use the metadata settings in the RSX or R3D file. By setting these options you override those settings in the metadata.

• Gamma - This is the gamma curve you wish to use. The default is REDlog.
• Color Space - This is the color space you wish to use. The default is camRGB.
• Detail - This is the detail setting during the debayer process. The default is high detail.
• Sharpen - This is post debayer sharpening. The default is off.
• Filter - This chooses the filter to use during the debayer process. The default is CatmulRol.
• Noise Reduction - This is a post-debayer noise reduction. The default is off.

These settings determine what format and codec the R3D Data Manager will render into.

• Output container - Choose between Quicktime and DPX to render into.
• Output Format - Choose final size of the downconversion.
• Output Codec - Choose the codec you wish to use to render into, only enabled for Quicktime.
• Enable Masking - This option create a letterbox effect with your output renders. It will mask the frame to your desired ratio, as determined by your framing aspect ratio. This option is only enabled for quicktime renders.

You can enable a timecode window burn with the options provided in this box.

• Enable timecode window (burn in) in renders - This option turns on and off the timecode settings and window burn in your output Quicktimes.
• Displayed Format - We provide 4 types of data to be displayed in the window burn. You can select which data to display, and the relative position it will be in.
• Text/BG Color - This selects the color of the text and the color of the background window. You can select form withe text and the options of no background, 50% translucent grey background, or a black opaque background.
• Text size - Select the size of the text you want. We find that smaller text sizes are the least obtrusive. Larger text sizes may have characters that run into each other, or off the screen.
• Text Font - Select the font for the window text.
• Burn Window On - Select which frames you would like to have the TC window burn on. You can select the first frame, the last frame, both the first and last, or all frames.

These are miscellaneous settings that can affect performance of the renderings.

• Number of Processors to use - (experimental) Choose the number of cores to use to render the quicktime footage. With this, you should be able to limit the processing to a number of processors suitable for your system and needs.

Once all these settings are set, click on the "Start Renders" button in the upper right corner. A progress indicator will immediately start rotating, letting you know that the process has started.