[AVW4]

I have read as many FAQs as possible and now have a better understanding of my issue , but still require assistance please

I have a 16GB Memory Stick for my Sony HDR- TG3E
I have a Mac on which I use IMovie to import these files and edit , all very successfully

My problem is that my hard drive is now full of these imported uncompressed HD Digital Video Files awaiting edit

As such I cannot use my camcorder to capture new footage as I have nowhere to store it

I'd like to be able to export the compressed files directly from the camcorder to a DVD (or any other similar media)
I want to use these discs as a library to keep and also to then use to import the comprressed files for editing at a time convenient to me

I naively assumed this would all be easy and possible , but I now , via this forum understand that the files on the memory stick are compressed and that none of the above is straightforward (or maybe even possible ) at all

I sent this exact query to Sony but got the lamest response imaginable.IE we do not support MACs !! I also have a PC so will retry , but in the meantime I see that you guys really know what you're talking about and thought I would ask for your help

Any explanation of a method whereby I can avoid putting the footage on my hard drive (or buying an external drive ) and can then import it later would be most welcome

Surely this must exist otherwise the industry would simply be saying , you can capture footage but you must go home and import , edit and burn onto a DVD immediately so you can then re use your memory stick for another situation --------- this cant be the case surely?

[dave_bass5]

Hi.
Personally i would either get a bigger HDD or get an external USB2 one.
Im not sure you can just export files from your cam to a DVD burner and if you can i think you would need to buy one which would cost a lot more than either of the first two options.

To be honest im a bit confused about your question. It sounds strange (no offence meant).
Why not just burn the ones you have on your MAC and then import the new ones?

[AVW4]

The reason its not as simple as just burning what i have already imported on my Mac , is that I have about 6 different "events" imported which I need time to sit down with and edit . This will take me a while to do (IE adding sound , effects , etc etc, ) + I want to be able to do this in my own time EG maybe not do one for a few months

I really just want the ability to create an archive of all my footage that I can dip into whenever I want to

A) View the entire holiday / bithday / event etc

B) Import and edit to then export / burn as a finished movie to a DVD

In doing so it will mean that my memory stick will always be available when I want to film a new event

If I buy an external hard drive , it will eventually fill up (as these files once imported are HUGE , and I wil lbe back to squre one again

Does that make it a bit clearer ? I understand why it sounded strange , of course , no offence taken

[Mr Lazy]

Originally Posted by AVW4

If I buy an external hard drive , it will eventually fill up (as these files once imported are HUGE

Are you importing them and converting them to a different format (ie. not AVCHD)? I don't know Macs and therefore I don't know if iMovie converts to it's native format when you import.

If not, I would not say that AVCHD files are huge (usually around 8GB per hour depending on bitrate of camcorder) and hard disk space is dirt cheap these days. The best way of storing this for future use is on an external hard drive. As an additional backup you could burn the raw AVCHD files to DVD (an hour's worth should fit on a DL DVD). That's what I do currently until I can afford a computer powerful enough to edit AVCHD.

Or if you don't want to use a computer you could use one of these: http://www.sony.co.uk/product/cac-ot...5/tab/overview

...but I don't see any advantage seeing as your computer can do the same task.

[dave_bass5]

Originally Posted by AVW4

The reason its not as simple as just burning what i have already imported on my Mac , is that I have about 6 different "events" imported which I need time to sit down with and edit . This will take me a while to do (IE adding sound , effects , etc etc, ) + I want to be able to do this in my own time EG maybe not do one for a few months

I really just want the ability to create an archive of all my footage that I can dip into whenever I want to

A) View the entire holiday / bithday / event etc

B) Import and edit to then export / burn as a finished movie to a DVD

In doing so it will mean that my memory stick will always be available when I want to film a new event

If I buy an external hard drive , it will eventually fill up (as these files once imported are HUGE , and I wil lbe back to squre one again

Does that make it a bit clearer ? I understand why it sounded strange , of course , no offence taken

If you get an external HDD and it fills up, get another. These drives are very big these days and i doubt you will fill it up quickly.
Burnng to DVD is a good idea once you have edited your footage. Then you can put those files away for safe keeping etc but if you get an external drive now you can put your new (or eve old) files on it and work off this. Its much easier than having to work off DVD or copy everything first beofre editing.

If you do fill up your 16GB stick, how often do you do this? You can get a 500GB USB2 drive for around £50. Thats a lot of 16GB's worth of data. This would help your work flow, even if its not the solution to your question.

[AVW4]

Ok , now I feel like I'm getting close ! thanks

I am technically naive , so here goes
I have seen a folder that says AVCHD on the memory stick , along with a few others(IE the USB adapter that it plugs into ) showing on the Mac

I think IMovie then changes the file format to their own , but all I want to do is to keep the originals in whatever this raw format is , get them onto a DVD (BTW, what is DL DVD ?) for archiving and later importing (so I want to make sure that when I put this archive DVD back into my Mac in say , 3 months time , it will recognise the raw files on it in the same way as it does when I plug my camcorder in or plug the memory stick into the USB port , to then allow me to import into IMovie

What do I need to copy (in terms of all these files I see on the memory stick ) onto the DVD ?

I found this earlier which seems to be someone doing exactly what I'm trying to do

Originally Posted by rhubarbeThanks for that!! Thats me sorted then, if I get this cam, sorry, WHEN I get this cam I'll get 8Gb cards so I can archive the raw footage straight to DVD+DL. Basically the same as having a MiniDV tape as an archive as these are 1hr native anyway.

So it looks like its possible , now all I need is an idiot's guide as to how to actually do it IE do I transfer ALL files on the memory stick , how do I do that etc

Also a point talked about is the 8GB size would fit on one DVD , my 16GB then would have to be spread over a few ? If so , how etc?

Apologies for being thick and asking what appears to have been discussed previously , but its still not 100% clear to me as to how I do this or if its 100% possible

[Mr Lazy]

BTW, what is DL DVD

DL=Dual layer

Apologies for using 'jargon'.

[AVW4]

Ah , ok , thanks

I am totally new to the forum , but now think I might have found my answer in a post from June (copied below)
Is there a way to ask the person ( dejongj ) who posted for help in expanding on the answer they gave as I think its entirely what I need?

Originally Posted by rhubarbe http://www.avforums.com/forums/image...s/viewpost.gif
Mrs rhubarbe MKII is 12 years younger than me and although that would have raised eyebrows if I had married her at 24, it raised none at 36.

Any reason you burn an image, JP?

Sounds like an interesting idea..

Well it is legal in some countries Including my home country...

Anyway on topic; there are a couple of reasons...

I'd like to keep untouched negatives of everything; all my photo's are managed through Aperture and indexed with MetaData for searches. And all editing is non-destructive meaning I always have the original.

I use iMovie08 for importing Video footage; it doesn't touch the originals either and can add meta data and grouping through events and thus makes it easy to keep all my footage "online' at home and accessible. I've got a combination of DV, DVD-MPEG2, 3GP Phone originated, MPEG Photo Camera and now AVCHD sources dating back to around 1996.

The only problem with iMovie08 and 5.1 original sound tracks is that you'll loose it in the library for now. As such I really want to keep the original original such that at a later stage I can just replace that footage with the full version.

With DV the tapes were so cheap and required 20Gb each that it was easier to just keep the tape for the negative. But with the nature of memory cards I find it easier and cheaper to reuse them instead of buying more.

Hence I make disc images of the memory cards and store that on a raid-array in my house...And burn them onto DVD's that I store off-site for safe keeping, just like I have got those for my photo's. God forbid we have a fire or a burgarly I can recreate all those digital moments.....

Hope that helps...
__________________
JP

[redsox_mark]

If you reply to the old thread, JP may see it (if he subscribes to notifications).

Or, you could send him a private message, asking if he could please look at your post.

[AVW4]

Trouble is the uncompressed files are really huge and my Macs hard drive of 500GB is now virtually full , so i dont want to just keep creating the same problem by buying another hard drive , no matter how cheap .
More to the point though , I'd also like a permanent FULL archive copy of what's on the memory stick ..... to look , keep safe, look back on , edit from etc

If I just import from the stick to Mac , edit and burn a movie , I have no copy of the original footage

[AVW4]

thanks , I thought the "private message" was for a more personal route IE if you knew the person
I will give it a go

[dave_bass5]

Originally Posted by AVW4

Trouble is the uncompressed files are really huge and my Macs hard drive of 500GB is now virtually full , so i dont want to just keep creating the same problem by buying another hard drive , no matter how cheap .
More to the point though , I'd also like a permanent FULL archive copy of what's on the memory stick ..... to look , keep safe, look back on , edit from etc

If I just import from the stick to Mac , edit and burn a movie , I have no copy of the original footage

The thing with your HDD being full is that its not just video files, its everything from the OS to your programs so while AVCHD files can be large its not like you have 500GB already on your MAC.
But anyway, thats not what your after so ill leave that.

What about a BD bruner? BD will hold a lot, lot more than DVD's. Not cheap but seeing as even a DL DVD will only hold about 8.5GB you might still find yourself with one or two files that wont fit on from each session.

[AVW4]

excuse ignorance , what is a BD Burner (is it blue ray ?)

[senu]

Originally Posted by AVW4

excuse ignorance , what is a BD Burner (is it blue ray ?)

Yes it is .. BD ( Blu ray Disc) Silly acronym TBH

[dave_bass5]

Originally Posted by senu

Yes it is .. BD ( Blu ray Disc) Silly acronym TBH

yeah, it took me a while to figure it out.

[A n d r e w]

I thought it was where you kept your bondage and discipline vids. In high definition, of course. Or is that just me?

[redsox_mark]

You and Max Mosley.

[A n d r e w]

Just call me Mistress Abi.

On second thoughts, perhaps not.

[johnnyboy1234]

Did you ever get a solution to your storage problem.

I am thinking about getting one of these TG3s but I am put off by reading so much negative stuff about editing and storage. Maybe you could help me out here.

I have a MacBook Pro 2.16Ghz Processor 2Gb Ram. Run 10.5. Will this fall over if I try to edid AVCHD in iMovie 08?

Will it work on a Power PC G5 also? I read somewhere you had to have INTEL based Mac.

I also understand the files are compressed on the Memory stick - 4Gb open up to about 34Gb. Can you download the compressed files to the Mac.

IO have been running Macs for about 20 years so I do know a thing or two about them - compatibility being a major issue.

Regarding your storage I would have thought the option wpould be to get a 1TB external which should last a long time - and have a back up. I use 2 x 1TB Formac drives at work - they run great. I would not use Lacie - I have had 3 crash on me for no reason - all data lost! Ouch!

[AVW4]

No , not really , all a bit vague
Everyone seems to be of the same opinion IE go and buy a 1TB external

But this is absolutely not what I was looking for
I want a disc archive copy of the uncompressed files
You are correct , once you import the footage into iMovie it is enormous and all you can then do is edit it into a finished movie to then burn to disc, but obviously in the process you have nothing to refer back to from the original footage (assuming you then delete this from your Mac's hard drive, which you have to do because of space)

The only (kind of) solution I have so far is to buy DL DVD and reduce the memory stick size I have from 16GB to 8 GB, fill this with compressed AVCHD and it should then fit (I haven't tried it yet though) I am still unclear as to whether the uncompressed files can be accessed at a later date from the DVD to inport into iMovie

[A n d r e w]

On the Mac, if you want to archive the raw AVCHD in a form which iMovie will recognise as if you'd connected the camera to your Mac, then use Disk Utility to make a disk image the same size as your SDHC card and copy the entire folder structure of the card into the mounted disk image.

I've written out the steps involved elsewhere - I'll go find where and come back with the link.

Andrew.

EDIT
Here we go:
Using a Mac and Panasonic HDC-SD9
http://forums.macrumors.com/showthre...ght=disk+image

[Monopot]

Originally Posted by A n d r e w

On the Mac, if you want to archive the raw AVCHD in a form which iMovie will recognise as if you'd connected the camera to your Mac, then use Disk Utility to make a disk image the same size as your SDHC card and copy the entire folder structure of the card into the mounted disk image.

I've written out the steps involved elsewhere - I'll go find where and come back with the link.

Andrew.

EDIT
Here we go:
Using a Mac and Panasonic HDC-SD9
AVCHD / iMovie questions - regrets? suggestions? - Mac Forums

Agree with Andrew above.

What I do is create an 8Gb Disk Image with Disk Utility, mount that and the copy the entire contents of the Memory Stick on this. I then unmount the image and burn this to a Dual Layer DVD for safe keeping. I also put a copy of the image on my external USB drive which Time Machine then also takes a backup off, so in essance I have 2 copies and a backup of one of them just in case.

Then when you mount the image in future iMovie / FCP just thinks you've plugged your camera in and lets you import the footage.