"AA" <AA@AA.COM> wrote in message news:tmyPa.18873$Tx.927148@news20.bellglobal.com...

 

> Since the DV codec can "affect" the quality of the output (not all codec are

> the same even for DV...), what codec should we use while in the editing

> process ?

>

> Actually I use "Main Concept DV Codec", which seem to be one of the good

> ones but it's not perfect...

>

> Round trips between the editor (Ulead MSP7) and the compositor (Discreet

> Combustion 2.1) can lead to quality degradation.

>

> In Combustion, I usually output to .TGA file sequence, which I think provide

> the best quality without (compression) quality loss.

>

> But since MSP7 can't output to a file image sequence (can only white to AVI

> or MPG), what codec could be use to have the less quality loss during the

> process ?

>

> (An uncompressed AVI file could be a possibility, but the file are so

> huge!!!)

 

The codec will have no effect on the video quality for parts that were

not rendered (generally, parts that were unchanged except for cuts).

For rendered parts, the codec will affect both render speed and image

quality (the latter will be more noticeable with multiple generations).

The MC codec is one of the better codecs, but is not without problems.

The Canopus is probably the best, but must be used with Canopus

cards, and the file types generated can cause problems when writing

DVDs (we use the Canopus file-converter software to get MS-codec

files, when needed...). The Canopus codec shows minimal quality losses

with multiple generations of rendering (see

www.David-Ruether-Photography.com/original_vs_10th-gen.htm for the visible effects

of 10 forced generations of rendering with the Canopus codec - they

are minor...). All the above may not help, since your compositor program

may be altering footage to minimize motion-artifacting, leaving resolution

reduced with each pass...

--

 David Ruether

 d_ruether@hotmail.com

 http://www.David-Ruether-Photography.com

 Hey, take a gander at www.visitithaca.com, too...!