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This Web site is dedicated to the thousands of "users" of my programs, those who have helped test my programs over the last 25 or so years, and especially those who shared their experiences with me.
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SECTION: 6.20 is for some informaton about Workflow issues related to Digital Cinema. See also the program files in the current distribution of my programs, the other parts of this HTML documentation, and the current On-Line version of this Web site for information more specifically about my programs. Any comparisons of my programs or methods to some others is only given as a vague generality of my opinion and is not intended as a recommendation or reference to any particular products, always make your own evaluations and comparisons before taking any action.
Digital Cinema cameras that make DNG files have some prescribed color correction in their header in the form of DNG/TIF Tag 50721 and others. Those prescribed values might be of use for making "mid-light" renderings (workprint) of the True RAW sensor data associated with the header data (meta-data) in the DNG frame files. DANCINEC.EXE (tm) was designed for de-Bayer processing of the frame files shot in Digital Cinema cameras that record True RAW sensor data. The whole point of shooting and recording True RAW sensor data is that the whole and entire compass of the ADC values from the sensor's circuits is placed in the hands of the filmmaker to use as he pleases in the production of his "finished renderings" of his True RAW frames he shot. To give the filmmaker maximum control over how the True RAW data he shot will be processed into "finish process method" frames, DANCINEC.EXE (tm) is fully under manual control of the filmmaker through its menu options, and the various KCC files the filmmaker can make in DANCAD87.EXE (tm). Although DANCINEC.EXE (tm) can make DNG files that contain tags related to color correction, it for the most part does not interpret such tags and leaves the color correction of the de- Bayer processing to the filmmaker's taste. If you want such header data used to make prescribed color correction, you can de- Bayer in a program that uses the Adobe (tm) DNG SDK, and make TIF RGB frame files for use with my programs and accept the limitations (and other qualities) that entails.
Note that de-Bayer programs that adjust to the light values in each frame may change the overall brightness of the image frames in the sequence acting like a kind of AGC, whereas DANCINEC.EXE (tm) was designed to lock the color correction for the length of the shot. If you want changes in the color correction of shots processed in DANCINEC.EXE (tm) mid- way through the shot you can use the lap dissolve process methods in the RGB to RGB "opticals" part of the process methods sub-menu.
Various workflows are possible using DANCINEC.EXE (tm) as the de-Bayer program:
Use DANCINEC.EXE (tm) to make BMP frames from the camera's RAW Bayer data frames, then use the "freeware" program VirtualDub (tm) to make those, along with the WAV mix, into an uncompressed AVI file. You can then use that AVI file in any editing system you like that can read AVI files of the size made.
Use DANCINEC.EXE (tm) to make CIN or DPX frames from the camera's RAW Bayer data frames, then use any standard editing system that can read shots as CIN or DPX numbered frame sets. You would sync the WAV audio in that editing system's normal way.
Use my program to de-Bayer and then DI/NLE/MIX/CC as gone into below. In my workflow the RAW frames would be de-Bayered to TIF frame files for the color correction steps, although it is possible to end up with CIN or DPX (or BMP) as the end result edited frame set, like for sending to easyDCP Creator (tm) or easyDCP Creator+ (tm) to make a DCP for digital projection, or to make a 35mm movie film release print with at a lab using their film recorder.
Use DANCINEC.EXE (tm) to convert the camera's RAW data into DNG frames, and then use one of the CinemaDNG (tm) workflows with those DNG frames as the source frames (Bayer DNG are not de-Bayered, so the CinemaDNG (tm) downstream programs would do the de-Bayer, in this workflow DANCINEC.EXE (tm) is just used to put a DNG header onto the RAW Bayer data from the camera's RAW frames.) In the case of cameras that make DNG files the header values can be adjusted by making DNG result files from DNG type as the RAW source.
You are not compelled to use any fixed workflow with my programs, you can use them for part or all of the workflow steps needed to get to the finished 35mm release print or frame set for making a DCP with. DANCINEC.EXE (tm) can also process BMP/CIN/DPX/TIF frames for color correction and "opticals" so you can move your image frames between various programs as needed to get any extra processing needed since the image frames are "out in the open" in folders in the project structure.
There are two methods of working you can use for editing, one is to export the frames for each shot into its own shot folder in the edit structure, the other is to export many shots into a single shot folder that will not be used in the final edit, then use the "Extract" command in the Pick command to Extract just the parts of that long set of frames making up several shots into shot folders that you will be using in the final edit. The first way is more like film editing where you cut the negative up into parts that you will be using, trim those parts then glue them together in the right order for the final edit, the second way is more like video editing where you "ingest" quite a long bit of "footage" and then copy out bits here and there to temporary media for arrangement into the final edit ordering. You can use both methods of editing on the same project if you want to. The second method requires less work manually trimming the audio if the audio is also recorded in the camera to run the same length as the image frames, because the Extract command in the Pick command copies BOTH the image frames and the audio frames to the new shot folder keeping the audio part in sync with the image frames.
Workflow for Acam dII (tm) Digital Cinema Camera can be to make a DI (Digital Intermediate, i.e. computer based replacement for movie film lab work) for a movie that was shot with an electronic Bayer filter sensor Acam dII (tm) Digital Cinema Camera. The general system of unique steps for the Acam dII (tm) Digital Cinema camera workflow with my programs is given below. Steps after the sound has been transferred into WAV files, and the frame images have been converted from DNG files into 48bpp TIF frames is much the same as the Workflow for Movie Film Scans, so see SECTION: 6.20.10.0 as well.
The unique steps used for Acam dII (tm) Digital Cinema camera workflow are:
Shoot DNG frame files in a Acam dII (tm) type camera.
If you have not already run DANCAD87.EXE (tm) and made a project directory folder structure with the Files Utilities Kinema Structure command, that gives you folders to put the TIF frames into, usually the I01 resolution level folder in each shot folder in the project structure, do so.
The Project folder structure can also be made using the project structure making command in DANCINEC.EXE (tm)'s Utilities sub-menu.
Download or Copy the DNG frame files from the cameras memory modules to your computer's harddrive, maybe into the I01 level shot folders since the de- Bayer program DANCINEC.EXE (tm) can put the result files in the I04 folder. The "Padded" file numbering type is best (00000000.DNG, 00000001.DNG), but "Long" can also be used (0.DNG, 1.DNG). The frames for each shot should be numbered from frame number zero. There are some file re-numbering commands in DANCAD87.EXE (tm) in the Files Utilities menu, if you need to renumber frames.
I have developed DANCINEC.EXE (tm) to do some image processing tasks like de-Bayer of DNG files to work in conjunction with DANCAD87.EXE (tm). DANCINEC.EXE (tm) has some "Presets" for the color correction based on some sample DNG files provided by the makers of the Acam dII (tm) camera. Since the DNG I have had to work with are not calibrated reference images so far (as of when I am writing this revision) the white balance of the "Presets" may not give the correct white balance for the lighting you are using with your camera, so you may need to use DANCAD87.EXE (tm) to make your own WBC KCC files, see DANCINEC.TXT for information on that issue. If you get stuck on how to make the needed KCC, you can see if you can email me and I may ask you for some sample DNG frames to check what the issue might be, be sure to mention that you are a Acam dII (tm) owner in the email subject line and also mention "DANCINEC.EXE (tm)" in the email subject line.
DANCINEC.EXE (tm) has a camera selection option, you should use that command to select Acam dII (tm) as the camera type for image frame processing. DANCINEC.EXE (tm) also has some presets for the color correction based on some sample DNG files provided by the camera's maker. You will probably need to use the Grading command in DANCAD87.EXE (tm) to make custom WBC KCC etc. to get usable results since the sample frames the camera maker provided from their web site that I was able to find as of this writing were shot with mixed light or otherwise hard to get an exact color balance on for standard K value lighting since no 18% Kodak Gray card was in the example DNG shot etc.
Run the de-Bayer program DANCINEC.EXE (tm) to convert the DNG frame files into 16bpc 48bpp TIF frame files. I have made some color correction "Presets" in DANCINEC.EXE (tm) based on some sample DNG files on the Acam dII (tm) web site, but the color of the light used in your shooting may not match, or your EI/ISO rating of the sensor in the camera may place 90% white card a bit too high or low for my WBC KCC adjustments, so some custom WBC KCC creation using DANCAD87.EXE (tm) may be required to get the white balance accurate, as well as the EI/ISO adjustment curves to place mid-tone Kodak (tm) 18% card where it needs to be at about 0.458 to 0.462 of result image file for monitor viewing etc. If you are trying to work with Acam dII (tm) footage e-mail me to see how these details are shaking out.
If you like you can use some other De-Bayer program to convert the camera's DNG files into 16bpc TIF files (or DPX).
You may need to use the Windows (tm) file manager to delete any TIF frames that are before the slate clap frame or Beep/Flash frame so that when renumbered the slate clap frame or Beep/Flash frame is numbered frame zero for each shot in the project folder structure.
You may need to use the renaming commands in DANCAD87.EXE (tm)'s Set file utilities sub-menu to alter the TIF filenames get 8 digit file name numbers in my Padded filename type, like 00000000.TIF, 00000001.TIF, 00000002.TIF, ... 00065523.TIF and such if you use a de-Bayer program other than my DANCINEC.EXE (tm). Once you have a plan for the setup of the de-Bayer you can have it start conversion, on a single typical computer it might take hours to convert a few minutes of footage in "finish quality" but maybe less in "workprint quality". The full path to a TIF frame in the project folder structure might be like C:\P0001\S0001\I04\TIF0000C\000.TIF, where P stands for the Project number (each movie you work on would have a unique number), S stands for the Shot in the project, in the Edit list you can move the shot pointers around bit the data stays in that folder even if you want the shots to play in a different order by way of moving the numbered pointers around, I stands for the Image resolution level, and then comes the padded numbered filename for the TIF frame. You would put each shot into a different Snnnn or Shot folder's I01 folder. Frames other than those DNG from the camera are normally stored in my "Divided" numbered filename type for use with just my programs, you can make copies in the "Padded" numbered file name type if the frames need to be loaded into some other program. "Padded" may be limited to about 65535 frames in a single folder under some OS, but a 35mm movie reel is only about 22 minutes at 24fps, so that is only about 31680 frames.
If you have recorded audio in the Acam dII (tm) along with the image frames, edit the WAV file of that audio so that the start of the WAV for each shot is the slate board clap or sync beep frame or at least so that the start of the WAV file corresponds to the TIF0000C\000.TIF frame for each shot. You can store the WAV for each shot in a track folder in the corresponding shot folder of the project structure. If you have recorded audio on an external WAV recorder you do the same type of thing, load the WAV file into a WAV editor like the third party program Magix (tm) and trim off the head and tail so that the first samples are the slate clap board slap or sync beep tone, then save the extracted audio samples that are the length of the shots image frames to a new WAV file and use that to make the audio frames for that shot in a Track using DANCAD87.EXE (tm).
The PIX sync speed playback frames can be made in the CAD programs using the Edit List Insert command, or they can be made, maybe faster using DANCINEC.EXE (tm), see DANCINEC.TXT for more information on that issue. DANCINEC.EXE (tm) has a "piggy back" PIX file making option to make the PIX files at the same time as the TIF files to save time since the de-Bayer is done once rather than twice. If you have made TIF you could also make the PIX from the TIF rather than the source DNG to save time since the TIF don't need to be de-Bayered. DANCINEC.EXE (tm) only supports the "SVGA" PIX files for 15, 16, 24, and 32 bit video modes, and those are "windowed" so that only the needed image part of the screen is used to reduce the PIX file size and increase loading speed. If you were using video mode 1280x1024 you could window the PIX files to 1280x720 and such. On most computers you would window the PIX to fit within 680x480 size screen, unless you have a SSD RAID 0 array and a very fast computer and video card that is able to play larger uncompressed frames. The 15 and 16 bit video modes use less disk space and load faster than the 24 and 32 bit PIX frames, but show some grain while in playback because of the tone dithering needed.
The remainder of the Steps in the workflow are the same as for the Movie Film Scans workflow in SECTION: 6.20.10.0 so click that hyperlink and read the steps there. That is, once you have copied the 16bit 48bpp TIF frame files numbered from zero for the clap frame into the I01 folder for each shot you need in the project file folder structure the steps to edit shots, Grade the key frames, and mix the sound track are more or less the same no matter what the picture frame images were shot with.
Please see the other example workflows in SECTION: 6.2 for more information.
You can find more information about using my programs for Digital Cinema tasks by looking in the sections that have the text from the program and update documentation files corresponding to the documentation files in the ZIP archive files for the program executables from the Download sections. See SECTION: 3.80.0.0 for information about using DANCINEL.EXE (tm) in a DIY film recorder, see SECTION: 3.85.0.0 for information about using DANCINES.EXE (tm) in a DIY film scanner, see SECTION: 3.90.0.0 for information about using DANCINEC.EXE (tm) to process Cinema frames, and see SECTION: 3.3.7.34 for information about using DANCAD3D.EXE (tm) and DANCAD87.EXE v3.7N+(tm) for motion picture post production and DI (Digital Intermediate) to edit, color correct, and sound mix a feature motion picture. See also any later Update files relating to the programs, and look in the Downloads sub-sections for additional utilities and or programs that may be added that relate to Digital Cinema.