Hi, 

I'm an FCP guy with some Avid experience and I need help doing something I think is probably pretty easy.

One of our field cameras recorded DF and NDF footage. We're grouping it all together, and the DF stuff I need to transcode or modify into NDF. Also I think I imported the audio at DF but need to modify it to non drop as well - how is this done?

There isn't anything physical about the footage itself that makes it DF or NDF - it's simply a way the frames are counted and layed down on the timecode track.  What's important, if you need to make the distinction, is whether your sequence is DF or NDF.

But the mixture of df and ndf won't group together properly. The timecode check before subclipping doesn't add up. I think I need to transcode the df - is there a way to do that or do I need to retranscode from the original P2?

Philip/Pheral's explanation was correct.  You don't have to do anything to the footage at all; just make sure your sequence timecode is DF or NDF (whichever you require).

As for the footage, capture it and use it like you would any other footage.

tdunlop:

But the mixture of df and ndf won't group together properly

Mark common inpoints and try it; it'll work fine.

You'll need to modify the clip to make it drop frame.  With P2 however, you may need to go in and assign it a tape name in order to change from drop-frame to non-drop.

Right Click on the clip, select modify, then Set Source.  Give it a name, doesn't really matter.

Then you should be able to go in and modify the drop/non-drop settings.

Good Luck.

So if I have this straight -  Bring up the P2 volume in AMA, Modify > set source, give it a new tape name,  Then go one by one in the bin altering the colon to a semi-colon? Thanks for your help, this is driving us crazy!

Under the very same menu that you use to set the source, you can also change the clip from drop frame to non-drop.  At the very top is "Set Timecode Drop/Non-Drop."

I tried this, but no change in the timecode - it's still DF, still that colon there in the start timecode.

I selected all the clips in the bin (having brought them up using AMA)

Right Click, Modify, Set Source, named them TEST, 

Switched TC from the Drop Frame to the Non Drop Frame button

OK

Start timecode is still in DF. 

Any idea why this method isn't working?

I appreciate all the help by the way!

Okay - SOLUTION.

FIRST: I had it wrong, what I thought was drop-frame footage was in fact NON-drop frame footage.

Drop frame footage has a semi-colon. 

The modify feature changes drop-frame to non-drop-frame very consistently, if you give the footage a new source name first. 

I didn't think it was working because I expected a semi-colon. Basically, I'm a moron. 

Well you have learned some things, but I agree with others in this thread.  You did not need to do this.  And now you have made possibly made life harder for yourself if you need to go back to the original, unmodified footage for some reason.

Grouping can be done by several methods.  When TC does not match, you just find common sync points (a clapper board fro example visible to all cameras), mark that with an In point or Out point and then select the appropriate sync method in the Group tool.  I do this often.

Now, one thing to know about your modifying.  If you do this for media captured from tape (and I assume for P2 treated like tape), all you are doing is making a modification to Avid's database information about this media.  And the only place that this is valid is on a system which has the bin you did the modifying in.  Another way to say this is that you did NOT actually change the real MEDIA.  You just put a Post It note of sorts telling Avid to ignore the REAL tc on that media and use this other new one.

If you REALLY want to burn that into the media, you need to Consolidate that modified clip.  This will write both a new Master Clip (metadata) and Media (the real picture & sound) with the modified data integrated into the media.

This knowledge can sometimes be a lifesaver.

Good luck,

Jef