Hi,
I just used my drone for the 3rd time and took some video.
I took out my SD card and copied the videos over to my computer.
The first problem was the files not opening normally and being very choppy. I opened with VLC player and the video ran smooth but it looked like there was a quality loss.
I have Adobe Premiere Elements 15 and opened the footage in that to edit it. (I have Magix too but it wouldnt open in that).
The footage was super choppy in there as well and impossible to edit.

How do I edit my 4k footage easily without quality loss like you see on youtube etc.?
Thanks

The simple answer is you pony up for a better computer. One of the things that the makers and promoters of 4K cameras do not tell you is that your computer is most likely too slow to perform editing on the 4K material.

If you are seeing what appears to be a quality loss when using VLC Player, then your monitor is also unable to handle the material.

Sorry to deliver all this bad news.

Geebax Posted at 2017-2-9 00:15
The simple answer is you pony up for a better computer. One of the things that the makers and promoters of 4K cameras do not tell you is that your computer is most likely too slow to perform editing on the 4K material.

If you are seeing what appears to be a quality loss when using VLC Player, then your monitor is also unable to handle the material.

This is unlikely.
I have a ridiculously good computer.
Cost me around $6k to build...

DroneEvo Posted at 2017-2-9 00:20
This is unlikely.
I have a ridiculously good computer.
Cost me around $6k to build...

When did you build it?

DroneEvo Posted at 2017-2-9 00:20
This is unlikely.
I have a ridiculously good computer.
Cost me around $6k to build...

Unlikely for you maybe but I have to agree with Geebax: your "$6K"-machine is probably not up to the job.
Try at a lower resolution or the lowest possible resolution and framerate and see what happens. If that doesn't work try an other PC or Mac. But 4K video, especially at a high framerate puts demands on a PC that only the newest and fastest models can digest. Simply said: most computers with an age >= 2 or 3 years probably won't work.

Hate to beat the horse man but sorry they are right. Your computer is too slow, I had the same issue with my Intel i7 3.2 ghz, 24 GB ram, and $330 dual video card running Windows 10. It can't play 4k or edit without playng choppy. I have to edit now on my MacBook pro which thankfully handles it fine.

DroneEvo Posted at 2017-2-9 00:20
This is unlikely.
I have a ridiculously good computer.
Cost me around $6k to build...

The video files from the drone are basic MP4 or MOV files.
any pc should play them as is with VLC.

if the playback of the files is stuttering or low res that is the PC.
maybe some setting need modified in the pc ....

to confirm this shoot some 1080p video and it will play fine I bet>

good luck and have fun flying

I found VLC won't play 4K video on my PC, I think there is an issue with VLC, lots of reports online that VLC struggles with 4K. They play fine using Windows 10 Films & TV app on the same PC....go figure!!

PhanFran Posted at 2017-2-9 05:49
Unlikely for you maybe but I have to agree with Geebax: your "$6K"-machine is probably not up to the job.
Try at a lower resolution or the lowest possible resolution and framerate and see what happens. If that doesn't work try an other PC or Mac. But 4K video, especially at a high framerate puts demands on a PC that only the newest and fastest models can digest. Simply said: most computers with an age >= 2 or 3 years probably won't work.

That might be it.
Its about 3 years old.
980 GTX, 16gb ram, i7,
Really powerful computer.
What components would you suggest replacing to edit/run 4k video smoothly?

DroneEvo Posted at 2017-2-9 12:38
That might be it.
Its about 3 years old.
980 GTX, 16gb ram, i7,

The most critical component is the processor, you need one with as many processor cores as possible, preferably around 6. Also, the GPU card could be upgraded, but that only helps with editing programs that utilise the GPU. I recently changed my GPU to a Radeon RX480.

taurus35 Posted at 2017-2-9 08:46
I found VLC won't play 4K video on my PC, I think there is an issue with VLC, lots of reports online that VLC struggles with 4K. They play fine using Windows 10 Films & TV app on the same PC....go figure!!

have you tried GOMPLAYER
it does well with anything I have tried.
free as well

Do you need 4K video?

Where will you be using it?

An example. My DSLR has a 36Mp sensor but 99% of the time I process it as 12Mp and 8 bits as there is no need of the full resolution.

It's also possible your editor does not fully support the codecs used in the video files. I say this because I have a very fast/powerful system too, and though files play perfectly in some of my media players, other media players and an older version of my editor (on the same computer) could not load some of the files shot on certain devices. And the files my editor could open would stop every few seconds, rendering my previews useless. On a whim, I upgraded to a more recent version of the editor I use and all my problems were gone. I can load all the video files from all the devices I shoot with, no matter what file format or codec. They also play/preview perfectly, even when I live preview (in the largest available preview window at the highest quality)  with my most system-taxing effects and filters (like Magic Bullet Looks). Again, this is active previewing too, not after rendering a preview.
Short version: If you're using an old version of your software, update it. If that still doesn't help, try a different editor. If that doesn't help, assume your system is just not up to spec.

taurus35 Posted at 2017-2-9 08:46
I found VLC won't play 4K video on my PC, I think there is an issue with VLC, lots of reports online that VLC struggles with 4K. They play fine using Windows 10 Films & TV app on the same PC....go figure!!

There are settings in vlc you need to change on windows to get it to play smoothly.

Try going into settings
Look for 'Skip H.264 in-loop deblocking filter'
set it to ALL
restart vlc, see if there is a change.

Similar fix on linux.
hth

Amd bulldozer, 8 cores running at 4ghz
20 mb ram
ssd's
Nvidia GTX 1080
Plays video games like a dream

It STILL is laggy when editing 4k for reference. So its entirely possible the machine isnt fast enough. There might be some proxy features you can take advantage of that will let you work with lower rez versions of your clips until you render them out.

Langstonius Posted at 2017-2-9 16:56
Amd bulldozer, 8 cores running at 4ghz
20 mb ram
ssd's

I presume you meant 20 Gigabytes of RAM, not 20 Megabytes. If it still won't handle 4K then perhaps your editor needs upgrading.

change the video setting and after that you can edit this.

I'm looking to assemble a package for editing and ran across these suggestions. How far down the list and do these seem valid for editing 4K.



NEWEGGBUSINESS.COM
HOW-TO
PRODUCT GUIDES
INFOGRAPHICS

Find the Best Computer for Video Editing at Any Budget

13th October 2016 Standard4
The best computer for video editing provides optimal performance for running Adobe Premiere Pro, Avid Media Composer, After Effects, Maya, and other professional editing programs. Rendering and encoding footage at HD and higher resolutions demands a mid- to-high end CPU and a good amount of DRAM. Which components provide the non-negotiable performance needed for the job? Which ones provide the nice-to-have benefits that fall within your budget ranges?

We’ll ferret all that out in this post. Here’s a quick set of component recommendations for the best computer for video editing at several price increments. Windows PCs are the primary focus here.

Learn more below the table about how I arrived at these, and viable substitutes for each.

CPU        Video Card        Storage        Memory
Entry Level
($750)        Intel Core i5-6600K        GeFore GTX 780        1x 256 GB SSD
2 x 1 TB HDD        8-16 GB DDR4
Mid-Range
($1000)        Intel Core i7-4790K        GeForce GTX 980        1x 256 GB SSD
2 x 1 TB HDD        16-32 GB DDR3
Standard
($1500)        Intel Core i7-6700K        GeForce GTX 1060        1x 500 GB SSD
2 x 4 TB HDD        32 GB DDR4
Professional
($2000)        Intel Xeon E5-1650v3        GeForce GTX 1070        1x 500 GB SSD
2 x 4 TB HDD        32 GB ECC DDR4
Ultra
($3000+)        (2x) Intel Xeon E5-2660v3        GeForce GTX 1080        1x  1 TB SSD
2 x 2 TB HDD        32-64 GB ECC DDR4

Here's the text from which the specs were pulled. Thoughts?
https://blog.neweggbusiness.com/ ... deo-editing-budget/

Geebax Posted at 2017-2-9 17:19
I presume you meant 20 Gigabytes of RAM, not 20 Megabytes. If it still won't handle 4K then perhaps your editor needs upgrading.

ha. megabytes.... derp!

It will play the clips. im using adobe premiere. Its just somewhat laggy when jumping around in the timeline.

fans03ded3db Posted at 2017-2-10 02:48
Here's the text from which the specs were pulled. Thoughts?
https://blog.neweggbusiness.com/buying-guides/find-best-computer-video-editing-budget/

Hmm, he does not even mention what is potentially the most powerful film production package available, which is Blackmagic's Da Vince Resolve. While I agree about maximum number of processor cores, he almost dismisses the importance of a decent GPU, and a good one is essential to operation of Resolve.

BenStein Posted at 2017-2-9 05:55
Hate to beat the horse man but sorry they are right. Your computer is too slow, I had the same issue with my Intel i7 3.2 ghz, 24 GB ram, and $330 dual video card running Windows 10. It can't play 4k or edit without playng choppy. I have to edit now on my MacBook pro which thankfully handles it fine.

How do I put my footage from 4k to 1080p so I can edit it for now?

fans03ded3db Posted at 2017-2-10 02:36
I'm looking to assemble a package for editing and ran across these suggestions. How far down the list and do these seem valid for editing 4K.

I can tell you that i7-6700K was the right power at the right price for me. I haven't found anything I've thrown at it to be too much. There are more powerful processors by Intel but the large price difference for just a tad bit more power (in some cases) was not worth it to me.

Geebax Posted at 2017-2-10 19:09
Hmm, he does not even mention what is potentially the most powerful film production package available, which is Blackmagic's Da Vince Resolve. While I agree about maximum number of processor cores, he almost dismisses the importance of a decent GPU, and a good one is essential to operation of Resolve.

More cores don't always mean better performance though. Your software may not even utilize the extra cores, so you could possibly have higher gains from fewer cores running at a higher clock.

theGrindLab.com Posted at 2017-2-10 20:04
More cores don't always mean better performance though. Your software may not even utilize the extra cores, so you could possibly have higher gains from fewer cores running at a higher clock.

Perhaps, but all the important software for editing by Apple, Adobe and Blackmagic can use the extra cores. Frankly, the rest don't matter as far as I am concerned.

Geebax Posted at 2017-2-10 20:06
Perhaps, but all the important software for editing by Apple, Adobe and Blackmagic can use the extra cores. Frankly, the rest don't matter as far as I am concerned.

Makes sense. Opinions and experience with specific software are often more important than facts.

DroneEvo Posted at 2017-2-10 19:46
How do I put my footage from 4k to 1080p so I can edit it for now?

I use AVS Video Converter but any similar software will suffice that can down convert a copy of the video files for you.

Premiere Elements lacks the ability to handle 4K video, if you wish to smoothly edit 4K video on your computer, it would be ideal for you to switch to Premiere Pro CC, if your computer is not powerful enough, you can create a small resolution proxy file with Premiere Pro CC for DJI 4K editing.

I second using Davinci Resolve.

My machine is a Core i7 2600k overclocked to 4.6GHz - I have a GTX 1070 GPU with 8GB RAM and several fast SSDs which Resolve uses as a scratch drive.

I keep the source media on an external USB3 drive - with this setup I can edit in real time in 4K and render at an average of 7fps.

In Resolve 12.5 on a PC you can't use H.265 natively - you need to convert it first.

So your machine might not be the problem but a slow GPU or lack of SSD might be.

Also note that if you built the machine yourself, video editing puts a HUGE load on the system which could cause the CPU to thermal throttle and slow right down if your cooling is not good enough.

.. and to convert, I use this:

http://hdcinematics.com/

Fast, flexible and relatively cheap.

Langstonius Posted at 2017-2-9 16:53
There are settings in vlc you need to change on windows to get it to play smoothly.

Try going into settings

Yes, this helps a bit with VLC, but Windows Media Player gives me much smoother playback for any 4K footage.
In fact what worked best for me was to enable the hardware acceleration in VLC, which is described here: http://www.pavtube.com/play-4k-video-on-vlc.html
Now 4K footage plays really smooth.

To watch 4k on Youtube you need to change the resolution in settings on the Youtube page,