I like FCP to make a new media file for each camera start stop. I edit a fair amount of documentary programs with lots of B-Roll. Ever since my early NLE days using AVID I've used the
Subclip function to manage long B-Roll captures. I don't like to scrub thorough long clips, preferring the film approach where rolls are cut up into individual shots or scenes, labeled, and hung in a bin. This is the 'librarian" aspect of editing as one of my college professors used to say.
Rather than shuttling back and forth through tapes and batch digitizing selects, I usually capture full tapes or large chunks. This saves wear on tear on my deck and tapes. Given enough storage space, it's easier to deal with the material after capture. Editing SD I use the
Subclip function and then the
Media Manager to trim away unwanted material. This results in shorter source clips and some storage savings. It's a bit time consuming, but helps me get familiar with the material. It's made a bit easer when editing DV SD where you can use
Detect DV Start/Stop to add markers.
Enter
Create New Clip on Start/Stop (available only in the HDV capture window.) During capture it makes HDV subclipping a snap by creating a new media file on each camera start/stop. First of all, not only are HDV tapes hard to cue, but the batch capture function is unreliable as those of you know who have dealt with the unexplainable "Can't Find Timecode" error. So capturing full tapes or large chunks really helps avoid frustration here.
During capture you can see the new clips being added to the bin. For instance a clip called Cover will be saved as individual clips named Cover-1, Cover-2, etc. When capture is complete I sort by duration to easily dispose of false starts (usually :05 or less). Then I examine each clip and if necessary Media Manage to further trim excess (such as when a camera operator forgets to shut off the camera between setups). I can also dump any bad takes or useless material by making
media offline. Finally I rename the remaining clips to reflect their content and use the "rename file to match clip" function to finish the process.
One drawback is that sometimes up to five seconds may be lost at the beginning of each HDV clip. A good justification for "rolling for speed" if the situation allows.
Finally, because of the unreliability of HDV Batch Capture I treat all of my HDV media as if it was captured on a card and back it up to a second drive.
Create New Clip on Start/Stop has long been available in Premiere Pro in SD. I assume that it's available in HDV and HD as well. Perhaps a Premiere user can set this straight. I would love it if Apple would add it as an option for HD and SD capture.
