Technical

One of the key factors of Canon's XF305 and XF300 camcorders is the compatibility they offer with major editing and processing software programmes - from Apple, Avid, Adobe and Grass Valley - in the video imaging industry. In this article CPN guides you through the software that comes with the camcorders and gives you a detailed rundown of the compatibility the XF series has with the third party non-linear editing (NLE) software packages, the system requirements and any plug-in restrictions.

XF Utility

The XF305 and XF300 camcorders come supplied with a single software CD that can be used with either Macs or PCs. This CD contains the new Canon XF Utility software and various 'plug-ins' for third party NLE software from Apple and Avid.

XF Utility is a simple software utility that is designed to allow you to manage recorded clips without the use of full-blown NLE software. XF Utility is not intended to replace NLE software and does not include any video or audio editing features.

The key features of XF Utility are:

• To back-up CF card contents (entire card).
• To transfer selected clips from the CF card to a computer.
• The playback of clips in Full HD resolution.
• Editing of selected metadata fields.
• Adding 'shot marks'.
• The copying of clips back to the CF card.

The table below shows you the system requirements needed for XF Utility.

Third party NLE compatibility

The launch of the XF305 and XF300 professional camcorders saw Canon introducing the MPEG-2 Full HD (4:2:2) file-based recording codec. This codec is compatible with video industry-standard editing and processing software. The Canon MPEG-2 MXF files from the XF305 and XF300 are officially supported by four major NLE manufacturers:

• Apple (Final Cut Pro)
• Avid (Media Access)
• Adobe (Premiere Pro)
• Grass Valley (EDIUS Pro)

As mentioned earlier Canon plug-ins are provided with the camcorders for Apple and Avid software whilst Adobe and Grass Valley have developed compatibility themselves, so no plug-ins are provided.

The table below shows the NLE software versions that support Canon MXF files, and any supporting software provided by Canon.

There are plans for updated Avid plug-ins to be released so watch out for details of this on CPN. The Windows plug-in will be upgraded to Version 1.0.1 to support Media Composer 5 and Newscutter 9. A Mac plug-in (Version 1.0.0) will be provided for the first time, also supporting Media Composer 4.05 and 5. The new plug-ins will be available for download from the Canon website and will be supplied with future XF shipments.

Information for Avid Media Composer and NewsCutter users

The following restrictions apply regarding the use of clips recorded with a Canon XF305 or XF300 HD camcorder with Avid Media Composer or NewsCutter.

1. Clips that were recorded using the 50Mbps (4:2:2) 1280x720, 24P video configuration cannot be used with Media Composer 4.0.5/5.0.0 or NewsCutter 8.0.5/9.0.0. Upgrade to Media Composer 5.0.1 or NewsCutter 9.0.1 to use said clips (correct as of July 2010).
2. Clips recorded using the 25Mbps (4:2:0), 1440x1080, 30P video configuration will be treated by Media Composer or NewsCutter as 60i clips. To edit a video project as a 30P project, please use clips recorded using the 50Mbps (4:2:2), 30P or 35Mbps (4:2:2), 30P video configurations (correct as of July 2010).
3. When linking MXF files using the Link to AMA File(s) menu option, a name other than Canon may appear in the Video properties. Nevertheless, the clips will be correctly linked and you will be able to use the clips without any problem (correct as of July 2010).

Please see below for a table of camcorder settings and compatibility with the Avid software as verified by Canon.

Final Cut Pro plug-in restrictions

The following restrictions apply regarding the use of clips recorded with a Canon XF305 or XF300 HD camcorder with Apple Final Cut Pro.

1. When ingesting clips that were recorded using the following video configurations: (1) 50Mbps (4:2:2), 1280x720, 30P; (2) 50Mbps (4:2:2), 1280x720, 25P or (3) 50Mbps (4:2:2) 1280x720, 24P, the clips cannot be used in Final Cut Pro if Native is selected in the "Transcode to" ("Target Format") column. Instead select one of the ProRes422 options (correct as of July 2010).
2. In the Log and Transfer window, relay clips (clips recorded spanning two or more CF cards) are not handled as one clip but are instead treated and ingested as separate, independent clips.
3. When ingesting clips with Native selected in the "Transcode to" ("Target Format") column, a name other than Canon will appear in the Compressor field. Nevertheless, the clips will be correctly ingested and you will be able to use them without any problem (correct as of July 2010).

Please see blow for a table of camcorder settings and compatibility with Apple Final Cut Pro software as verified by Canon.