Finally caved and tried the editing workflow advice from a pro editor in Atlanta

For two years I refused to use a proxy workflow for my video projects. I thought it was a waste of time and storage space. Last month a client in Atlanta named Mark who edits for a local news station told me to just try it on one project. He said 'load the proxies, edit like normal, then relink at the end.' I figured it would take an extra hour of setup. But when I dropped the files in, scrubbing through 4K footage was instant and lag-free. The whole edit took me half the time it normally does because I wasn't waiting for playback to catch up. Anyone else stubbornly avoided a workflow change and then regretted the lost time?

3 comments

3 Comments

charles_mitchell23d ago

Wait, are you actually saying the extra hour of setup time is worth the hassle? I feel like you're just swapping one waiting session for another and on top of that you're eating up double the storage space for files you'll just delete later.

simonp7622d ago

You know @charles_mitchell, my setup is so bad that I once spent an hour plugging cables into the wrong ports and still thought it was a good idea. I get your point about the storage though, those temporary files pile up faster than my unread emails. But hey, at least the extra hour gives me time to question all my life choices before the real waiting starts.

the_wendy22d agoTop Commenter

The proxy workflow is absolutely worth it and I will die on that hill. Once you experience editing without the lag, there is no going back. The extra setup time is nothing compared to the frustration of waiting for playback every single time you make a cut. Storage is cheap these days anyway, you can always delete the proxies after the project wraps. People who avoid it are just making their own lives harder for no good reason.