Different formats in one file in FCP and Compressor

[thuna72]

hi

i'm new to juggling and exporting formats in FCP X (10.0.2.) files and have the following question:

i am putting together an animation film that was shot in two different formats:

- still images in 1920 x 1280
- movie files in 1920 x 1080 25 fps

since the still images make up the vast majority of the material, i would like to use a format that clips as little as possible from the stills, while it's ok if the film files get cut (or blown up and then cut respectively).

i need two final products:
- a dvd with the best possible quality to view on the computer
- a youtube-compatible, compressed film file

my questions:
- what format would be best to use for the final products? is 1920 x 1280 a 4:3 ratio, and if yes what movie format would be best to use quality-wise?
- how do i actually fusion the two formats?
- can i do all of this in FCP or do i need compressor?

(currently FCP automatically downscales the stills to fit the height of the movie files because for quality reasons i chose the Full HD format whenever i imported material to a new project. i can live with the downscaling of the stills per se, but what is not ok is
- that the stills have a broader black frame on the side than the movie files, which are widescreen
- that the downscaling of the stills makes the image "zoom out", meaning i cannot create a smooth transition from a movie frame to a still image without a major jump/zoom-out.

thanks for your help!

[mBox]

Since your movie clips are the hardest to scale, shouldnt you conform your stills to them? Basically scale up the still images to fit the screen for 1920x018 at 16:9.
If dealing with FCPX and images are a pain then you might need to get Motion or After Effects involved.

[handsome pete]

Originally Posted by thuna72

hi
is 1920 x 1280 a 4:3 ratio, and if yes what movie format would be best to use quality-wise?

No, it's not. Just do the math to find out what ratio it is. What do you mean by format?

- how do i actually fusion the two formats?

I'm not sure what you mean by this. You can edit both movie files and still images on the same timeline.

- can i do all of this in FCP or do i need compressor?

You can do all of this in FCP. Compressor is for compressing/file conversion. However if you want to do any animation with the stills you might be better suited doing that in a motion graphics program.


I agree with mBox. You're probably better off working in one of the standard video resolutions and adjusting your stills to fit that frame (instead of the other way around).

[thuna72]

hi both

thanks for your answers! it's actually ok so far to work with images in FCPX, so i'll probably just go with a standard video format. which one would you suggest seeing the original sizes of my images? i'd guess 720p HD / 1280x720 / 25p?

thuna