Catalyst Prepare 2023 Manual

Revised Tuesday, February 7, 2023
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents 5
Introduction 7
What's new in version 2023.1 7
The Catalyst Prepare window 7
Working with libraries 9
Creating or opening a library 9
Closing the library 9
Adding media to a library 10
Organizing media in a library 15
Editing library clips 22
Working with subclips in a library 23
Exporting media from a library 24
Working with FTP devices 24
Transcoding presets 49
Relinking library media 51
Backing up a volume 51
Finding media 53
Supported video formats for reading 58
Supported video devices 87
Playing media 89
Previewing video 89
Navigating the timeline 94
Marking in and out points for playback 96
Creating a snapshot of a frame 97
TABLE OF CONTENTS 5
Adjusting and monitoring audio levels 98
Editing clip settings 99
Working with clips 101
Viewing and editing metadata 101
Exporting custom metadata 105
Working with clip lists 106
Working with storyboards 110
Working with EDLs 115
Catalog export 116
Combining relay clips 117
Synchronizing multicamera clips 118
Stabilizing clips 118
Stitching clips 123
Repairing flash bands 124
Applying color correction 127
Editing Color Adjustments controls 127
Applying color-correction settings 139
Using a Tangent control 141
Video-style (Rec.709) color grading 142
Log (cinematic) color grading 145
Advanced cinematic (ACES) color grading 146
High Dynamic Range (HDR) color grading 147
Exporting color-correction settings 156
Editing Catalyst Prepare options 163
Keyboard shortcuts 175
Gestures 181
Index 182
6 TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter 1
Introduction
Catalyst Prepare is the fast, simple, reliable path from camera to post. You can use Catalyst Prepare to copy
and back up clips, organize your media clips, create subclips, apply color correction, and export clips.
What's new in version 2023.1

n Visualization of stabilization data.
n Improved Copy snapshot to clipboard and Save snapshot functions.
o Copy snapshot to clipboard and Save snapshot commands have been moved from the
More Actions menu to a dedicated Snapshot menu.
o The Snapshot menu provides access to options for saving snapshots.
n Mark In and Mark Out buttons have been moved to the main transport toolbar.
The Catalyst Prepare window

The Catalyst Prepare window can be displayed in two modes:
n In Organize mode, you can make a checksum-verified, full-volume backup; browse your computer
for media files; copy media to your computer; add to your media libraries; organize library clips
using bins; export clips to additional volumes or devices; upload to Sony Media Cloud Services Ci;
and transcode files.
n In Edit mode, you can preview media, mark in and out points, and apply looks and color correction.
Click the Organize or Edit button at the top of the Catalyst Prepare window to change modes.
INTRODUCTION 7
Organize mode
Edit mode
8 CHAPTER 1
Chapter 2
Working with libraries

You can use libraries in Catalyst Prepare to organize your media.
Creating or opening a library

You can use different libraries to manage your media. A library helps you organize your clips, and you can
use bins for even more control.
For example, creating a separate library for each project helps you keep your media organized and allows
you to quickly find the right media for each project.
In Catalyst Prepare, you can have one library open at a time.
Creating a library
1. Click the Organize button at the top of the Catalyst Prepare window.
2. Click the Library button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose New from
the menu.
3. Use the New Library dialog to choose the folder and file where you want to save your new library.
4. Click OK.
Opening a library
2. Click the Library button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose Open from
the menu.
3. Browse to the library folder you want to load, select it, and click Open.
You can also double-click a .cpreplib file in Windows Explorer or macOS Finder.
Closing the library

If you want to work with clips independently of a library, you can use the Close command. After you've
closed the library, (No Library) is displayed in the application's title bar.
WORKING WITH LIBRARIES 9

Some Catalyst Prepare features are unsupported without an open library:
n When no library is opened, color adjustments are applied globally to all clips for previewing. If
you want to save your color-correction settings, you can transcode clips to create new files. For
more information, see "Exporting media from a library" on page 24.
Color adjustments to clip lists or spanned clips are not available when a library is open.
n When no library is opened, Channel Assignment controls in the Inspector are not available. For
more information, see "Assigning audio channels" on page 103.
n When no library is opened, storyboard support is not available. For more information, see
"Working with storyboards" on page 110.
n When no library is opened, bin support is not available. For more information, see "Adding bins
to a library" on page 17.
2. Click the Library button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose Close from
the menu.
Adding media to a library

To add media to a Catalyst Prepare library, you can copy clips from folders or devices attached to your
computer, or you can choose to add clips without copying them to your computer.
10 CHAPTER 2
To add a local folder to the library without copying clips, click the Bin button at the bottom of
the Catalyst Prepare window in Organize mode, choose Create from folder, and browse to a folder on
your computer. The folder and any clips in the folder are added to the current library.
When you edit a clip that is not included in the current library, the metadata is saved to the library
without modifying the original clip. The clip is added to the Automatically Added bin. The following
actions will add a clip to the Automatically Added bin in the current library:
n Changing in/out points.
n Adjusting color correction.
n Editing metadata.
n Editing audio channel assignments.
When browsing your clips, a badge is displayed in grid mode or list mode to identify clips that
are included in the current library. Click the badge to display more information about the clip.
Clip lists and spanned clips are not supported in Catalyst Prepare libraries.
Copying media from a device

Copying media allows you to import clips from cameras or decks to your computer, to another camera
or deck, or to a centralized storage device.
The Places pane on the left side of the Catalyst Prepare window displays a list of the decks,
cameras, and card readers that are connected to your computer.
2. Click the Library button to choose the library where you want to add media (or create a new
library).
3. Select a device in the Devices list to display its media.
4. Select the media clips you want to import.
n Click a file to select it.
Growing MXF files are displayed with the following icon:
Copying is not available when growing and nongrowing files are selected.

n Hold Shift and click the first and last file you want to select to select a range of files.
n Hold Ctrl (Windows) or Command (macOS) to select multiple files.
Click the Select button to select multiple files without using keyboard modifiers.
5. Click the Copy button at the top of the Catalyst Prepare window.
6. Use the Copy pane to choose a destination for your files.
a. Choose how you want to copy the selected clips:
o Select Copy clips to library to copy the clips from your device to your computer and
add them to the current library. The clips will be copied to a timestamped folder
(YYYY-MM-DD hh.mm.ss) in the library (_cpreplib) folder.
o Select Copy clips to custom destination if you want to choose where to copy the
clips when adding them the current library. Click the Browse button to choose a
folder, and select the Create subfolder check box if you want to copy the selected
clips to a named or timestamped subfolder in the destination.
The Create subfolder check box is not available when copying to a known folder
structure.
b. Select the Add to bin check box and choose a bin from the drop-down list if you want to
copy the clips to a bin in the selected library (or create a new bin). For more information, see
"Organizing media in a library" on page 15.
The Add to bin check box is not available when copying from a library.
c. If you want to rename files, select the Rename files check box. Renaming ensures that
source files will not be overwritten.
o Type a string in the Prefix box if you want to start all file names with the same text.
o Choose a setting from the Numbering drop-down list to indicate whether you want
to number clips or use their original file names.
o Type a string in the Suffix box if you want to end all file names with the same text.
For example, if you wanted to name clips using a convention such as Commercial_
001_Camera1.mxf, you would type Commercial_ in the Prefix box, choose 3
digits from the Numbering drop-down list, and type _Camera1 in the Suffix box.
12 CHAPTER 2
If you're exporting a still-image sequence for use in an editor that has specific
file-naming requirements, you can use the Rename files controls to ensure
your exported files are compliant with your editor's requirements.
d. Select the Copy all related media check box if you want to copy all media related to the
selected clips (metadata.proxy clips, and extra files).
When SR Live metadata source is set to External file in the Options pane, .srm files
are not included with the copy operation. For more information, see "SR Live for HDR
settings" on page 168.
e. Select the Copy clips only radio button if you want to copy only full-resolution clips.
f. Select the Copy proxy only radio button if you want to copy only proxy-resolution clips and
all media related to the selected clips (metadata.proxy clips, and extra files).
g. Select the Copy only between mark points check box if you want to copy only the media
between the in and out points. For more information, see "Marking in and out points for
playback" on page 96.
If you've logged mark in and out points, partial copying is not supported for some clip
formats. Those clips will be transcoded using the Default transcode format setting in
Options. For more information, see "Marking in and out points for playback" on page
96 or "Editing Catalyst Prepare options" on page 163.
h. Select the Close growing files check box if you want to close growing MXF files generated
by Sony decks when copying is complete.
When you're copying via FTP from Sony decks, growing files are closed automatically,
and the check box is always selected. If you're copying from a local drive, you can select
the check box to close growing files or clear the check box to copy the files without
closing them.
If the copy destination is an FTP device, copied MXF files are not converted to closed
files.
i. Select the Embed NRT metadata check box if you want to embed non-real-time metadata
from an XML sidecar file into an MXF file.
j. Select the Copy with verification check box if you want to verify clips as they are copied.
The Copy with verification controls are not available when the source or destination
volume is an FTP device or when the destination volume is a Professional Disc Drive
unit.

o Choose a setting from the Verification mode drop-down list to choose whether you
want to verify the write operation only or also verify reading the source file.
Verify read/write is not available when the source volume is a Professional Disc
Drive unit.
o Choose a setting from the Hash type drop-down list to choose the method (MD5,
SHA1, CRC32, or xxHash64) that will be used to verify your copied clips.
7. Click the Copy button to copy the selected clips and add them to your library.
Progress is displayed in the activity pane at the top of the Catalyst Prepare window. Each copy job
can contain multiple files if you have multiple files selected in step 2 above. If you have multiple
jobs queued, a separate progress indicator is displayed for each job.
The imported clips will be available in Organize mode in the folder you selected above.
Adding media from a device without copying

If you want to include clips in your library without copying the files to your computer, you can drag
them from the device to a library bin.
The Places pane on the left side of the Catalyst Prepare window displays a list of the decks,
cameras, and card readers that are connected to your computer.
2. Click the Library button to choose the library where you want to add media (or create a new
library).
3. Select a device in the Devices list to display its media.
4. Select the media clips you want to add to the library.
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5. Drag the clips from the middle pane to a bin on the left side of the Catalyst Prepare window.
You can also drag clips from the Organize pane to a bin or storyboard in the Places pane.
The device's clips are added to the library and are identified with a badge when you browse your
device in grid mode or list mode .
Organizing media in a library

Organize mode allows you to view the clips on your computer's file system, attached devices, and libraries.
Select a folder in the Places pane to view the clips in a folder or device.
To navigate quickly, click the File button at the bottom of the Media Browser and choose Go to
location.
To add the current folder to the Favorite Folders list in the Places pane, click the File button at
the bottom of the Media Browser and choose Add to Favorites.
To remove a folder from the Favorite Folders list, select the folder in the Places pane and click the X
button:
Select a library bin or storyboard in the Current Library pane to view a library's clips.
For more information, see "Adding media to a library" on page 10.
Choosing a library
2. The Places pane lists the current library. Click the Library button to choose a different library or
create a new library.
The library's media is displayed in the right side of the Catalyst Prepare window.

Click the button to toggle thumbnail and list mode.
For more information, see "Creating or opening a library" on page 9.
16 CHAPTER 2
Adding bins to a library
Bins are virtual folders within libraries that you can use to organize your media files. Bins are saved with
your library and do not affect the way media is saved on your computer.
Click the Bin button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose a command from
the menu:
n Choose New to add a new bin to the library. You can use bins to organize media within a library.
n Choose Create from folder to quickly add a local folder to the library without copying clips. The
folder and any clips in the folder are added to the current library.
To create multiple bins quickly, select folders in the folder contents pane, right-click and
choose Add selected folders as bins. A bin is created for each selected folder, and the
folders' clips are added to the current library.
Adding clips to a bin

1. Use the Media Browser to browse your computer for video files.
2. Drag a clip (or folder) from the Media Browser to a bin in the Bins list.
To include a clip in more than one bin, drag it from the All Clips bin (or a local folder or device)
to each bin where you want to include a link to the clip.
You can also drag a clip from one bin to another to move it.
You can also choose to add a clip to a bin when adding it to your library. For more information,
see "Adding media to a library" on page 10.
Clip lists or spanned clips ( ) cannot be added to bins.
Deleting bins from a library

1. Select a bin in the Bins list.
2. Click the Bin button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose Delete from
the menu.
You're prompted with a confirmation dialog. If you also want to delete the source files from your
computer, select the check box.
3. Click Delete.

If a folder or media file is moved or deleted outside of Catalyst Prepare, it is displayed with the
following icon:
Renaming bins
2. Click the Bin button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose Rename
from the menu.
3. Type a new name in the box and click OK.
Cleaning a bin
2. Click the Bin button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose Clean. The
Clean dialog is displayed.
3. Select the check box for each type of clip you'd like to remove from the selected bin:
n Delete items older than X days: Removes clips that were added to the library before the
number of days you specify.
n Delete items that can no longer be found: Removes clips that are no longer available on
disk or are on disks that are not connected.
The dialog displays a list of clips that will be removed from the selected bin.
4. Click OK.
Exporting a library's bins as folders

3. Click the Library button and choose Export bins as folders.
18 CHAPTER 2
4. Choose the folder where you want to export your library's bins, and then click OK.
Progress is displayed in the activity pane at the top of the Catalyst Prepare window.
The exported folders are named to match the library's bin names.
Only the portion of the video between the mark in and mark out points will be copied. For
more information, see "Marking in and out points for playback" on page 96.
If you've logged mark in and out points, partial copying is not supported for some clip formats.
Those clips will be transcoded using the Default transcode format setting in Options. For
more information, see "Marking in and out points for playback" on page 96 or "Editing Catalyst
Prepare options" on page 163.
Exporting a library's bins to Premiere

3. Click the Library button and choose Export bins to Premiere.
4. Choose the folder where you want to create a new Premiere Pro project containing your library's
bins and clips, and then click OK.

Exporting a library's bins to Final Cut Pro X
3. Click the Library button and choose Export bins to Final Cut Pro X.
4. Choose the folder where you want to create a new Final Cut Pro X project containing your library's
bins and clips, and then click OK.
Working with storyboards

You can create and edit storyboards to create a video project that is comprised of multiple, shorter
video clips.
For more information, see "Working with storyboards" on page 110.
Moving clips between bins

When you're using bins to organize your library, you can easily move clips between bins.
1. In the Places pane on the left side of the Catalyst Prepare window, select the bin that contains the
clips you want to move.
2. Select the clips you want to move in the Media Browser.
20 CHAPTER 2
3. Click the Move button at the bottom of the Media Browser.
4. Choose your destination folder from the Move clip to bin drop-down list.
5. Click the Move button.
You can also drag a clip from one bin to another to move it.
To include a clip in more than one bin, drag it from the All Clips bin (or a local folder or device)
to each bin where you want to include a link to the clip.
Renaming clips
Renaming a library clip allows you to edit the name that is displayed in your Catalyst Prepare library.
Renaming a clip does not rename the source media file on the disk.
If you want to rename a file on disk, browse to a device or local folder in the Places pane, and
select a clip. Click the File button at the bottom of the Media Browser, choose Rename, and
type a new name in the edit box. The file and all instances of the file in your library are updated.
1. Select a clip in the Media Browser.
2. Click the Clip button at the bottom of the Media Browser, choose Rename, and type a new
name in the edit box.
Removing clips from a library (or bin)

1. Select a clip in the Media Browser.
2. Click the Clip button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose Remove
from the menu.
The Remove Clips dialog is displayed to allow you to choose to remove the selected clip only or all
clips that use the source media.
If you want to remove all clips that use the source media, you can select the Also delete the
associated source file from disk check box to delete the source file from disk. Selecting this check
box automatically selects the Also remove the clip from other bins check box.
If you want to remove the clip from all bins without deleting the source clip, select only the Also
remove the clip from other bins check box.
If a folder or media file is moved or deleted outside of Catalyst Prepare, it is displayed with the
following icon:.

Consolidating a library
Consolidating a library gathers all the library's clips to a single folder. When you consolidate a library,
clips are copied to the new destination folder; the original clips are not moved.
2. In the Places pane, click the Library button and choose Consolidate from the menu.
If any of the library's clips cannot be found, you'll be prompted to relink the library clips. For
more information, see "Relinking library media" on page 51.
3. Click OK to start copying media.
Saving and renaming a library (Save As)

You can use Save As to create a copy of the current library with a new name or to a different folder.
2. In the Places pane, click the Library button and choose Save As from the menu.
3. Choose the folder where you want to save the library.
4. Select the Consolidate media with new library check box if you want to copy clips to a subfolder
in the destination folder. You can choose to copy the selected clips to a named or timestamped
subfolder in the destination.
5. Click OK to start copying media.
Showing source clips

1. Select a file.
2. Click the Clip button at the bottom of the Media Browser and choose Show in Finder
(macOS) or Show in Explorer (Windows) to view the source clip in its containing folder.
Editing library clips

In Edit mode, you can preview media, log mark in and out points, and apply looks and color correction.
2. Select the clip you want to edit.
22 CHAPTER 2
The left pane allows you to navigate the folders in your library, and the middle pane displays the
contents of the selected folder.
3. Click the Edit button at the top of the Catalyst Prepare window to open the selected clip in Edit
mode.
You can also double-click a clip in Organize mode to open it in Edit mode.
In Edit mode, the left pane allows you to browse the file system or the library's clips; the center pane
allows you to preview the file, log mark in and mark out points, and apply color correction; and the
right pane allows you to view and edit metadata for the selected file in the Inspector.
n For more information about previewing media, please see "Playing media" on page 89.
n For more information about logging mark in and out points, please see "Marking in and out
points for playback" on page 96.
n For more information about applying color correction, please see "Applying color correction"
on page 127.
n For more information about using the Inspector, please see "Viewing and editing metadata"
on page 101.
Working with subclips in a library

A subclip is a library reference to a clip. You might create a subclip that uses different color correction than
the source media or that uses different mark in and mark out points.
Subclips save disk space when transferring media to the NLE: you can transcode only material of interest
and apply a meaningful name to simplify the editing stage.
When you view your library in Organize mode, subclips are labeled with the original clip name and a
number — MainClip - Subclip 1, MainClip - Subclip 2, and so on — or you can provide your own name.
Creating subclips
2. Double-click a clip to open it in Edit mode.
3. Use the Mark In and Mark Out buttons to adjust the length of your subclip. For more information,
see "Marking in and out points for playback" on page 96.
4. Click the Create Subclip button . The Subclip Name dialog is displayed.

The subclip is created using the base name of the original clip. Edit the clip name if needed and click
OK to add the subclip to your library.
The Create Subclip button is displayed under a Log button when the Catalyst Prepare
window is too narrow to display the full toolbar.
Deleting subclips
2. Select the subclip you want to delete.
3. Click the Clip button at the bottom of the Media Browser and choose Remove.
The Remove Clips dialog is displayed to allow you to choose to remove the selected clip only or all
clips that use the source media.
If you choose to remove all clips that use the source media, you can select the Also delete the
associated source file from disk check box to delete the source file from disk.
Exporting media from a library

Catalyst Prepare provides you with several methods to transcode and share clips from your library.
Working with FTP devices

You can use Catalyst Prepare to work with clips on a remote server using FTP/FTPS.
Connect to an FTP device
Click the Tools button at the top of the Places pane and choose Add remote server to specify a
server's connection settings.
Item Description
Server name Type a name to identify the server. This name will be displayed in the Remote
Devices list in the Places pane.
Protocol Choose a setting from the drop-down list to indicate whether you'll connect to the
server via an FTP or FTPS (Explicit) connection.
Address/Port Type the address or host name of the server and the port.
Folder If you want to connect to a specific folder on the server, type its name here. Leave
24 CHAPTER 2
Item Description
this box blank to connect to the root of the device.
User name Type the user name that you want to use to connect to the server.
Password Type the password for the specified user name.
Disconnecting from or reconnecting to a server
To disconnect from a server, select the server in the Places pane and click the button:
To reconnect to a server, select the server in the Places pane and click the button:
Editing a server's settings
To edit the settings for a connected server, select it and then click the Tools button at the top of the
Places pane and choose Edit remote server.
Removing a server
To remove a remote server from the Remote Devices list, select it and then click the Tools button at the
top of the Places pane and choose Remove remote server.
Browsing the contents of an FTP device

1. Connect to the FTP device. For more information, see "Connect to an FTP device" on page 24.
2. In the Places pane, select your FTP device. The contents of the device are displayed in the center
pane.

3. In the center pane, select a clip.
n You can use the Inspector pane to view the selected clip's metadata. For more information,
see "Viewing and editing metadata" on page 101.
Audio and video preview are not available over FTP connections.
n Right-click the selected clip and choose Rename to edit the clip's name.
n Right-click the selected clip and choose Delete to remove the selected clip from the device.
Copying, renaming, or deleting clip lists to SxS media and USB storage on the PZW-4000 is not
supported.
26 CHAPTER 2
Copying clips from an FTP device to your library or computer
Working with clips from an FTP server is as simple as working with clips from your local computer or an
external drive. After you connect to an FTP device, it will be displayed in a Remote Devices list in the
Places pane, and you can browse it in the same way you browse other volumes.
1. Connect to the FTP device. For more information, see "Connect to an FTP device" on page 24.
2. In the Places pane, select your FTP device. The contents of the device are displayed in the center
pane.

3. In the center pane, select the clip you want to copy to your library.
28 CHAPTER 2
Select the Copy clips to library radio button to copy the selected clips to the current library, or
select Copy clips to custom destination and click Browse to browse to another folder.
6. Use the copy pane to choose copy options, and then click the Copy button to start copying.
For more information about the controls in the Copy pane, please see "Copying clips to a device"
on page 41.
Copy clips to a Sony FTP device

1. Connect to the FTP device where you want to copy the clips. If your source clips are also on an
FTP device, also connect to the source FTP device. For more information, see "Connect to an FTP
device" on page 24.
2. In the Places pane, select the source device from which you want to copy clips. The contents of
the device are displayed in the center pane.

Select the Copy clips to custom destination radio button, click Browse, select your FTP device
in the Copy To dialog, and then click OK.
30 CHAPTER 2
on page 41.
Notes:
The Create subfolder check box is not available when copying to a known folder structure.
The Copy clips only check box is not available when copying to a Sony FTP device.
The Use fast device-to-device copy check box is not available when using FTPS protocol.
Copy clips to a non-Sony FTP device

1. Connect to the FTP device where you want to copy the clips. If your source clips are also on an
FTP device, also connect to the source FTP device. For more information, see "Connect to an FTP
device" on page 24.
2. In the Places pane, select the source device from which you want to copy clips. The contents of
the device are displayed in the center pane.

The source must be a Sony device.
32 CHAPTER 2
Select the Copy clips to custom destination radio button, click Browse, select your FTP device
in the Copy To dialog, and then click OK.

on page 41.
Notes:
The Create subfolder check box is not available when copying to a known folder structure.
Only the Copy clips only option is available when copying from a Sony FTP device to a
third-party FTP device.
The Use fast device-to-device copy check box is only available when copying from a
Sony device using FTP protocol (FTPS protocol is not supported).
The Preserve source UMID check box is not available when copying too a third-party
FTP device.
Transcoding clips
Transcoding clips allows you to convert clips to another format. The original clips are not affected
(overwritten, deleted, or altered) during the exporting process.
34 CHAPTER 2
1. Select the clips you want to export in Organize or Edit mode.
contents of the selected folder
n Hold Ctrl (Windows) or ⌘ (macOS) to select multiple files.
Click the Select button to select multiple files without using keyboard
modifiers.
An on a thumbnail indicates a clip that spans multiple files due to file-size

limitations but is displayed in Catalyst Prepare as a single virtual clip. Spanned
XDCAM EX clips can be transcoded directly, but AVCHD clips must be copied first.
To transcode spanned AVCHD clips, first copy them to a new folder. After the copy
is complete, the indicator is removed, and the clips are combined in a new clip
that you can transcode. For more information, see "Transcoding clips" on page 34.
2. Click the Export button at the top of the Catalyst Prepare window, and use the Export pane
to choose a destination and format for your exported files.
3. The Export clips to box displays the path to the folder where the selected files will be exported.
You can type a path in the box or click the Browse button to choose a folder.
4. If you want to rename files, select the Rename files check box. Renaming ensures that source
files will not be overwritten.
n Type a string in the Prefix box if you want to start all file names with the same text.
n Choose a setting from the Numbering drop-down list to indicate whether you want to
number clips or use their original file names.
n Type a string in the Suffix box if you want to end all file names with the same text.
For example, if you wanted to name clips using a convention such as Commercial_
001_Camera1.mxf, you would type Commercial_ in the Prefix box, choose 3 digits
from the Numbering drop-down list, and type _Camera1 in the Suffix box.

If you're exporting a still-image sequence for use in an editor that has specific file-
naming requirements, you can use the Rename files controls to ensure your
exported files are compliant with your editor's requirements.
5. The Source Metadata section shows you the file name, color space format, frame size, and
frame rate of the selected clip.
Source metadata is not displayed when a storyboard or clip list is selected.
Click the Reset button in the Source Metadata heading in the Inspector pane to
reset the Color Space based on the clip's metadata or the selected SR Live metadata
source. For more information, see "SR Live for HDR settings" on page 168.
6. Use the Transcode Settings section to choose the format for your exported files. If you need to
reset the transcode settings to their default values, click the Reset button .
a. If you want to use a transcode preset to choose the settings for your exported files,
choose a setting from the Transcode preset drop-down list, and then click Export.
If you want to choose custom transcoding settings, choose Custom from the
Transcode preset drop-down list and continue to step b.
For more information, see "Transcoding presets" on page 49.
When you select a video processing device other than your CPU in the application
settings dialog, high-quality deinterlacing and upscaling are applied to convert SD
and HD sources to modern progressive HD and UHD assets. For more information,
see "Choosing a video processing device" on page 163.
o High-quality upscaling is applied during transcoding when you choose an HD or

UHD render preset.
o Please note that some systems with limited GPU memory are not supported.
b. When exporting to a video format, choose a setting from the Output color space drop-
down list to choose the color space that will be used for rendering the new files.
You can choose Same as preview or Same as external monitor (if an external
monitor is enabled) to match the output color space and color adjustments to your video
preview or external monitor setting. For more information, see "Editing Catalyst Prepare
options" on page 163.
36 CHAPTER 2
If the selected color space includes color adjustments, the color adjustments icon
is displayed in white and a ToolTip notifies you that color adjustments will be
included. If the selected color space does not include color adjustments, the color
adjustments icon is displayed in gray and a ToolTip notifies you that color
adjustments will be excluded.
If the selected output color space is not compatible with the source color space, a
warning is displayed to notify you that the clip cannot be exported using the current
settings.
SR Live settings are applied only when the Output color space drop-down is set to
Same as preview or Same as external monitor. For more information, see "SR
Live for HDR settings" on page 168.
c. Choose a setting from the Format drop-down list to indicate the file format you want to
use for your exported files.
Format settings that are not supported by the selected Output color space will
not be available.
When transcoding to DPX format, you can type a value in the Starting frame index
box to append a numeric index to transcoded file names.
OpenEXR is available only for S-Gamut, RAW, or X-OCN sources when Output
color space is set to ACES, Rec.2020/Linear, S-Gamut/Linear or S-
Gamut3/Linear.
ProRes is available on macOS only.
d. Choose a setting from the Frame size drop-down list to choose the dimensions of the
rendered frame, or choose Same as source to match the selected clip.
e. Choose a setting from the Frame rate drop-down list to choose the number of frames
per second for the rendered clip, or choose Same as source to match the selected clip.
f. Choose a setting from the Render preset drop-down list to choose the settings that will
be used for the exported files.
Choose the Best match preset if you want Catalyst Prepare to choose the most
appropriate preset for each selected clip.
Render preset settings that are not supported by the selected Output color
space and Format will not be available.

Please note that the XAVC Long 422 3840x2160 200 Mbps (Sony) render
presets require 16 GB or more RAM. If you're using a dedicated GPU, the presets
also require 4 GB or more GPU memory.
g. If you want to create a file with segmented body partitions from a single body partition,
select the Create Sony Professional Disc partitions or Create segmented body
partitions check box. When the check box is cleared, body partitions are not modified.
The Create Sony Professional Disc partitions check box is available only when
XDCAM is selected in the Format drop-down list. Create segmented body
partitions is available only when XAVC Intra or XAVC Long is selected in the
Format drop-down list.
Files created with segmented body partitions may not be recognized properly by
some Sony camcorders, decks, or servers.
7. Enable the Use advanced settings switch if you need to adjust additional transcoding settings.
a. Choose a setting from the Crop type drop-down list to choose the aspect ratio for your
transcoded file:
o None (letterbox/pillarbox): if the source frame is wider than the destination

frame, black bars are displayed at the top and bottom (letterbox). If the source
frame is narrower than the destination frame, black bars are displayed on the
sides of the frame (pillarbox).
o Center crop (cut edges): if the source frame does not match the output frame,
the frame is centered, and the edges are cropped as needed.
o Use masking ratio: crops the frame to the masking ratio selected in the Clip
Settings menu. For more information, see "Playing media" on page 99.
b. Choose a setting from the Encode mode drop-down list to choose whether you want to
optimize image quality or transcoding speed.
c. Choose a setting from the Audio channels drop-down to choose how audio will be
rendered in the output file.
o Same as source: the rendered file will contain the same number of audio
channels as the source clip.
38 CHAPTER 2
o Map audio channels: you can choose how audio channels from the source clip
will be mapped to audio channels in the rendered file.
Each channel in the rendered file will be displayed with a drop-down list so you
can choose which source channel should be rendered to that channel.
d. Select the Stitch clips check box if you want to combine the selected clips into a single
continuous clip. The order of the clips in the new clip will match the order they are
displayed in Organize or Edit mode.
If you want the new clip to include continuous timecode based on the source clips'
timecode, select the Use continuous timecode check box. Clip order will be adjusted as
needed, and black frames will be added between clips to ensure the timecode in the new
clip is not interrupted. For more information, see "Stitching clips" on page 123.
e. Select the Add custom metadata check box if you want to include custom metadata
items for the exported files. For each item that you define, an edit box is displayed to
allow you to type the desired value for that metadata item. Custom metadata is saved in
a sidecar .json file.
The Add custom metadata check box is only displayed if you have created a
customMetadataExport.json file to define the items you want to export. For more
information, see "Exporting custom metadata" on page 105.
f. Select the Burn in timecode check box if you want to include timecode in the
transcoded video.
Click the position control below the check box to indicate where timecode will be
positioned in the frame.
The transcoded file will include the source clip's timecode. If you're transcoding a
storyboard, each clip will display its source timecode.
g. Select the Burn in clip name check box if you want to include the clip name in the
transcoded video.
Click the position control below the check box to indicate where the clip name will be
positioned in the frame.
If you rename a clip, the custom name will be displayed. For more information, see
"Renaming clips" on page 21.
If you're transcoding a storyboard, each clip will display its source clip name.

h. If the Burn in timecode and/or Burn in clip name check boxes are selected, you can
select the Allow burn in within letterbox/pillarbox area check box if your output format
will include letterboxing or pillarboxing and you want to allow the timecode/clip name to
be placed in the letterbox/pillarbox area.
When the check box is cleared, the timecode/clip name will be limited to the source
frame area.
i. Select the Add watermark check box if you want to include a watermark image in the
transcoded video.
Click Browse to choose a JPEG or PNG image file.
Drag the Opacity slider to set the transparency/opacity of the watermark image.
Click the position control below the Opacity slider to indicate where the watermark
image will be positioned in the frame:
o If you need to render multiple frame sizes, create a full-frame transparent

PNG using the dimensions of your largest target frame size, and the watermark
image will be scaled as needed for the smaller frame sizes.
o If your watermark image is smaller than the target frame size, no scaling is
applied and the image will be anchored at the selected position control.
j. Select the Use flip, rotate, and desqueeze settings check box if you're working with
rotated video or video that was filmed with an anamorphic lens and want to preserve the
Flip horizontal, Flip vertical, rotation, and Anamorphic desqueeze settings when
transcoding. When the check box is not selected, letterboxing will be applied.
For more information, see "Playing media" on page 99.
k. Select the Repair flash bands automatically check box if want to automatically detect
and repair flash bands when transcoding.
For more information, see "Repairing flash bands" on page 124.
l. Select the Use mark in/out points check box if you want to transcode only the portion
of the video between the mark in and mark out points. For more information, see
"Marking in and out points for playback" on page 96.
m. Select the Add padding to clips check box and type a number in the Seconds box if
you want to preserve media before the mark in/mark out points.
n. Select the Transcode using proxy source clip check box if you want to use the proxy
as the source clip when transcoding. When you're transcoding a lower-resolution clip,
40 CHAPTER 2
using the proxy as your source media is faster.
o. Select the Override start timecode check box and type a number in the edit box to
specify the starting timecode for your transcoded clip. When the check box is cleared, the
clip's timecode is used.
The Override start timecode check box is available when transcoding MXF clips to
DNxHD, SStP, XAVC-I, XAVC-L, and XDCAM formats.
If you want to save your transcoding settings, click the Transcode Tools button in the
Transcode Settings heading and choose Save transcode preset.
For more information, see "Transcoding presets" on page 49.
8. Click Export.
If multiple clips are selected, the Export button at the bottom of the Export pane is displayed as
Batch Export.
Progress is displayed in the activity pane at the top of the Catalyst Prepare window. Each export
job can contain multiple files if you have multiple files selected in step 2 above. If you have
multiple export jobs queued, a separate progress indicator is displayed for each job.
Copying clips to a device

Copying clips allows you to copy clips (or clip lists) from your library to another location. The original clip
name and format are preserved if possible, and color correction is not applied to the copied clips.
You can drag a clip to a folder on a drive or device in the Places pane to copy the entire clip (with no
transcoding, color correction, or renaming).
1. Select the clips you want to copy in Organize or Edit mode.

modifiers.
An on a thumbnail indicates a clip that spans multiple files due to file-size

limitations but is displayed in Catalyst Prepare as a single virtual clip. After you copy
a spanned AVCHD clip, the indicator is removed, and the clips are combined in
a new clip that you can transcode. For more information, see "Transcoding clips" on
page 34.
a. Choose where you want to copy the selected files:
o Select the Copy clip to library radio button to copy the selected files to the
current library.
o Select Copy clip to custom destination radio button to choose a folder where
the selected files will be copied. You can type a path in the box or click the
Browse button to choose a folder.
Select the Create subfolder check box if you want to copy the selected clips to a
subfolder in the destination.
n If you want to name the subfolder based on the date and time you
copied the files, choose Time stamped from the drop-down list.
n If you want to name the subfolder yourself, choose Custom folder name
from the drop-down list and type a name in the box.
The Create subfolder check box is not available when copying to a

known folder structure.
For more information about working with FTP devices, please see "
Working with FTP devices" on page 24.
b. Select the Add to bin check box and choose a bin from the drop-down list if you want to
add the selected clips to a bin in your library.
For more information, see "Adding bins to a library" on page 17.
42 CHAPTER 2
c. If you want to rename files, select the Rename files check box. Renaming ensures that
source files will not be overwritten.
o Type a string in the Prefix box if you want to start all file names with the same
text.
o Choose a setting from the Numbering drop-down list to indicate whether you
want to number clips or use their original file names.
o Type a string in the Suffix box if you want to end all file names with the same
text.
For example, if you wanted to name clips using a convention such as

Commercial_001_Camera1.mxf, you would type Commercial_ in the Prefix
box, choose 3 digits from the Numbering drop-down list, and type _Camera1 in
the Suffix box.
If you're exporting a still-image sequence for use in an editor that has

specific file-naming requirements, you can use the Rename files controls to
ensure your exported files are compliant with your editor's requirements.
d. Select the Copy all related media radio button if you want to copy all media related to
the selected clips (metadata, proxy clips, and extra files).
When SR Live metadata source is set to External file in the Options pane, .srm
files are not included with the copy operation. For more information, see "SR Live for
HDR settings" on page 168.
Only the Copy all related media option is available when the destination volume is
a Sony device.
If you need to copy all files from a volume, you can use the Back Up Source
command. For more information, please see "Backing up a volume" on page 51.
e. Select the Copy clips only radio button if you want to copy only full-resolution clips.
Only the Copy clips only option is available when copying to a non-Sony device.
f. Select the Copy proxy only radio button if you want to copy only proxy-resolution clips
and all media related to the selected clips (metadata, proxy clips, and extra files).

When you edit the metadata for a proxy file, the metadata for the full-resolution
clip is updated when you copy the proxy clip back to the device. For more
information, see "Viewing and editing metadata" on page 101.
g. Select the Copy only between mark points check box if you want to copy only the
media between the in and out points when copying files. For more information, see
"Marking in and out points for playback" on page 96.
If you've logged mark in and out points, partial copying is not supported for some
clip formats. Those clips will be transcoded using the Default transcode format
setting in Options. For more information, see "Marking in and out points for
playback" on page 96 or "Editing Catalyst Prepare options" on page 163.
Copy only between mark points is not available when copying to or from an FTP
device.
h. If you want to create a file with segmented body partitions from a single body partition,
select the Create Sony Professional Disc partitions or Create segmented body
partitions check box. When the check box is cleared, body partitions are not modified.
The Create Sony Professional Disc partitions / Create segmented body

partitions check box is not available during FTP copy.
Files created with segmented body partitions may not be recognized properly by
some Sony camcorders, decks, or servers.
i. Select the Use fast device-to-device copy check box if you want to copy clips directly
between devices via FTP (FTPS protocol is not supported).
When this check box is selected, clips are copied directly between the devices without
copying to your computer.
Device access is not available during a fast device-to-device copy:
o Copy progress is not displayed.
o Device-to-device copy operations cannot be canceled.
j. Select the Copy with verification check box if you want to verify clips as they are copied.
The Copy with verification controls are not available when the source or
destination volume is an FTP device or when the destination volume is a
Professional Disc Drive unit.
44 CHAPTER 2
o Choose a setting from the Verification mode drop-down list to choose whether
you want to verify the write operation only or also verify reading the source file.
Verify read/write is not available when the source volume is a Professional

Disc Drive unit.
o Choose a setting from the Hash type drop-down list to choose the method
(MD5, SHA1, CRC32, or xxHash64) that will be used to verify your copied clips.
k. Select the Override start timecode check box and type a number in the edit box to
specify the starting timecode for your transcoded clip. When the check box is cleared, the
clip's timecode is used.
The Override start timecode check box is available when copying MXF clips.
The Override start timecode check box is not available when copying to/from an
FTP device.
l. Select the Preserve source UMID check box if you want to preserve a clip's UMID
(Unique Material Identifier) when copying it to an FTP device. When the check box is
cleared, the clip's UMID may be changed when it is copied to the device.
The Preserve source UMID check box is available when copying from a local drive
to a Sony FTP device.
4. Click Copy.
Progress is displayed in the activity pane at the top of the Catalyst Prepare window. Each copy
multiple jobs queued, a separate progress indicator is displayed for each job.
Rendering a storyboard as separate files

You can convert a storyboard's clips to another format. A separate file is created for each clip, and the
original clips are not affected (overwritten, deleted, or altered) during the exporting process.
1. Click a storyboard in the Storyboards section of the left pane.
2. Select the clips you want to export.
3. Click the Export button at the top of the Catalyst Prepare window.
4. Select the Render clips as separate files radio button.

5. Use the controls in the Export pane to choose a destination and format for your exported files.
For more information about the controls, please see "Transcoding clips" on page 34.
6. Click Export.
Progress is displayed in the activity pane at the top of the Catalyst Prepare window. Each export
Rendering a storyboard as a single clip

In addition to exporting individual storyboard clips, you can convert a storyboard to a single media file. The
original clips are not affected (overwritten, deleted, or altered) during the exporting process.
3. Select the Render storyboard as single file radio button.
4. Use the controls in the Export pane to choose a destination and format for your exported file.
5. Click Export.
Progress is displayed in the activity pane at the top of the Catalyst Prepare window. If you have
Exporting a storyboard to another editor

You can convert a storyboard to a project that you can edit in a video editor.
3. Select the Export storyboard as project radio button.
4. The Export project to box displays the path to the folder where the project will be exported. You
can type a path in the box or click the Browse button to choose a folder.
5. Type a name in the File name box to set the file name that will be used for your exported
project file.
6. Choose an export format from the Project format drop-down list:
46 CHAPTER 2
n Apple Final Cut Pro X (*.fcpxml)
n Adobe Premiere (*.prproj)
n Avid Media Composer (*.aaf)
n Vegas Pro EDL (*.txt)
7. Choose transcoding options:
n If you want to link to the original clips in the original locations, clear the Transcode
media check box.
n If you want to transcode the storyboard's media to another format when exporting,
select the Transcode media check box and use the Transcode Settings controls to
choose transcoding options.
8. Click Export.
An HTML report file is created in the same folder as the exported project with details about the
export. Any warnings or errors will be displayed in the report.
Uploading files to Ci Workspace

1. Select the files you want to upload in Organize or Edit mode.
2. Click the Share button at the top of the Catalyst Prepare window.
3. From the Upload clip to drop-down list, choose Ci Workspace.
4. Use the Share pane to log on to your Ci account and follow the on-screen instructions to upload the
selected files to your Ci workspace.
Choose a setting from the Login method drop-down list to choose whether you want to log in with
a username/email or a Contributor Code.
If your account has multiple workspaces available, you can use the Workspace drop-down to
choose the workspace that will be used by default.
5. Select the Upload original clips radio button if you want to upload the source clips, or select
Transcode clips before upload and choose your transcoding settings if you want to convert the
clips to another format before uploading.

n When you upload the original clips, the source format is preserved, and no color adjustments
are applied.
n When you transcode before uploading, you can choose file format and color-adjustment
settings for the uploaded files. For more information about the controls, please see
"Transcoding clips" on page 34.
6. Click Upload.
multiple upload jobs queued, a separate progress indicator is displayed for each job.
Uploading files to YouTube

1. Select the files you want to upload in Organize or Edit mode.
2. Click the Share button at the top of the Catalyst Prepare window.
3. From the Upload clip to drop-down list, choose YouTube.
4. Use the Share pane to log on to your Google account and follow the on-screen instructions to
upload the selected file.
a. Rename your uploads if needed:
o When you're uploading a single clip, the Title box displays the file name of the
selected clip. You can type a new title to identify your video.
o When you're uploading multiple clips, select the Rename files check box.
n Type a string in the Prefix box if you want to start all file names with the
same text.
n Choose a setting from the Numbering drop-down list to indicate whether

you want to number clips or use their original file names.
n Type a string in the Suffix box if you want to end all file names with the same
text.
For example, if you wanted to name clips using a convention such as

Commercial_001_Camera1, you would type Commercial_ in the Prefix
box, choose 3 digits from the Numbering drop-down list, and type _
Camera1 in the Suffix box.
b. Type a description of your movie in the Description box.
48 CHAPTER 2
c. Type keywords you want to associate with your movie in the Tags box. Use words that
relate to your movie and describe its content. These tags will be used when searching
YouTube. Use commas to separate multiple keywords.
d. From the Privacy drop-down list, choose a setting to set broadcast options for your movie.
Public videos can be seen by any YouTube user; private videos can be seen only by members
you specify; unlisted videos can be seen by anyone who has a link to the video, but they are
not included in YouTube searches.
e. Choose a setting from the Category drop-down list. The category you choose is used to
classify videos on the YouTube site.
f. Choose a setting from the Frame size drop-down list to choose the frame size of the video.
g. Choose a setting from the Frame rate drop-down list to the frame rate of the video.
h. Enable the Use advanced settings switch if you need to adjust additional transcoding
settings. For more information about the controls, please see "Transcoding clips" on page 34.
5. Click Upload.
multiple upload jobs queued, a separate progress indicator is displayed for each job.
Transcoding presets
Transcode presets make it easy to transcode multiple files with the same settings.
Presets are saved in the following folder:
n Windows: C:\Users\<user>\Documents\Sony\Catalyst\Transcode Presets\
n macOS: /Users/<user>/Documents/Sony/Catalyst/Transcode Presets/
Importing transcode presets

If you're transferring preset files across computers, copy the .ctranscode files from the source computer
to the destination computer. Presets are saved in the following folder:
n Windows: C:\Users\<user>\Documents\Sony\Catalyst\Transcode Presets\
Close and restart the application to load the new presets.

Saving transcoding presets
Saving a preset allows you to reuse transcoding settings easily and transfer settings across computers.
2. Use the Transcode Settings section of the Export pane to adjust your settings as needed. For
more information, see "Exporting media from a library" on page 24.
3. Click the Transcode Tools button in the Transcode Settings.
4. Click Save transcode preset in the Transcode Tools menu.
5. Type name for your preset in the File name box and click OK.
Preset files are saved in the following folder:
n Windows: C:\Users\<user>\Documents\Sony\Catalyst\Transcode
Presets\
Deleting transcoding presets

Deleting a preset removes it from your computer.
2. From the Transcode preset drop-down list, select the preset you want to delete.
3. Click the Transcode Tools button in the Transcode Settings.
4. Click Delete transcode preset in the Transcode Tools menu.
5. When prompted to confirm deleting the preset, click Delete.
50 CHAPTER 2
Relinking library media
Relinking allows you to relink media files within a library when you move a library to a different drive or use
media from an external drive.
1. Open a library. For more information, see "Creating or opening a library" on page 9.
2. In the Places pane, click the Library button and choose Relink from the menu.
3. For each clip, the Relink Clips dialog displays the original clip and its linked clip.
Click a folder path and browse to a new location to choose a new location for your source clips.
Click Locate Folder or Locate File (if a clip is missing) or a clip's path and browse to a new file to
choose a replacement file.
Click the button to display the full path.
4. Click Relink. The paths to the library clips are replaced, and your library is updated.
Backing up a volume
Catalyst Prepare allows you to create verified backups of your discs and cards. A backup is an exact replica
of the original storage media — with all files and volume structure — backed up for long-term safety and
storage.
The Places pane on the left side of the Catalyst Prepare window displays a list of the available
volumes.
2. Select a volume in the Places pane.
3. Click the Back Up Source button at the bottom of the Places pane.
4. The Destination folder box displays the path to the parent folder where the backup will be created.
You can type a path in the box or click the Browse button to choose a folder.
5. The Subfolder box displays the name of the folder where the backup will be created.
6. Choose a setting from the Verification mode drop-down list to choose the method (MD5, SHA1,
CRC32, or xxHash64) that will be used to verify your backup file, or choose None to skip verification.
7. Click OK to start the backup.

52 CHAPTER 2
Chapter 3
Finding media
Organize mode allows you to browse your computer for media files that you want to add to your media
libraries, organize the clips in your media libraries, export clips to additional volumes or devices, and
transcode files.
For more information, see "Adding media to a library" on page 10 or "Organizing media in a library" on
page 15.
FINDING MEDIA 53
An on a thumbnail indicates that an error was detected with the clip.
A indicates a clip from an Optical Disc Archive volume.
An on a thumbnail indicates a clip that contains LUT metadata. For more information, see
"Editing Color Adjustments controls" on page 127.
An on a thumbnail indicates a clip that contains lens breathing metadata. For more information,
see "Correcting lens breathing."
An on a thumbnail indicates a clip that contains stabilization metadata. For more information,
see "Stabilizing clips" on page 118.
The stabilize icon is not displayed for clips on FTP devices, XDCAM Station volumes via CIFS,
XDCAM decks, XDCAM Drive units, or Optical Disc Archive volumes.
An on a thumbnail indicates a rotated clip. For more information, see "Working with rotated
clips."
An on a thumbnail indicates that a clip spans multiple discs on an Optical Disc Archive volume.
When you play a clip that spans discs, an indicator is displayed in the timeline to identify the point
where the clip switches discs:
An on a thumbnail indicates a clip that spans multiple files due to file-size limitations but is
displayed in Catalyst Prepare as a single virtual clip. Spanned XDCAM EX clips can be transcoded
directly, but AVCHD clips must be copied first.
To transcode spanned AVCHD clips, first copy them to a new folder. After the copy is complete, the
indicator is removed, and the clips are combined in a new clip that you can transcode. For more
information, see "Exporting media from a library" on page 24 or "Exporting media from a library" on
page 24.
An on a thumbnail indicates a proxy clip that does not have a full-resolution clip available.
54 CHAPTER 3
Connect to a device via FTP
You can use Catalyst Prepare to work with clips on a remote server using FTP/FTPS in much the same
way you work with clips on your computer's drives.
For more information, see " Working with FTP devices" on page 24.
Format a USB drive for PZW-4000
Select a USB drive in the Devices tab, click the Tools button , and choose Format for PZW-4000
from the menu.
If the drive you want to format is not displayed in the Devices tab, you may need to format it
using your computer's operating system first.
After formatting the drive, the drive will be treated as read-only media by the PZW-4000. Catalyst
Prepare can write to the drive, and the PZW-4000 can import clips to its internal drive.
If you want to create the XDROOT folder on a formatted drive, select a USB drive in Organize mode,
click the Tools button, and choose Create XDROOT folder from the menu.
FINDING MEDIA 55
Displaying files in a list or thumbnail mode
In thumbnail mode ( ), the Media Browser displays thumbnail images and file names.
In list mode ( ), you can click the headings in the Media Browser to sort the file list by various
attributes. Click the heading again to sort in ascending or descending order. An arrow is displayed to
indicate the current sorting method:
56 CHAPTER 3
Searching for clips
1. Select the folder you want to search. Subfolders will be included in your search.
2. Click the Search button to display the Search bar at the top of the Media Browser.
3. Type your search terms in the Search bar. The Media Browser displays all clips in the selected folder
that contain your search terms in the file name or Summary metadata.
Select a clip and click Go to folder to navigate to a clip's folder.
Click the Close button to close the Search bar and clear the search results from the Media
Browser.
Select a different folder to clear your search terms and start a new search in the selected folder.
Filtering clips
You can use the Filter button to filter the contents of the Media Browser. You can filter files by file type,
file format, date created, or flag metadata.
1. Select the folder you want to view.
2. Click the Filter button to display the Filter By menu at the top of the Media Browser.
3. Enable the Filter switch at the top of the menu to enable the filter.
4. Select the check box for each filter you want to apply.
FINDING MEDIA 57
For the Type, Format, and Flag filters, you can choose is or is not to indicate whether files that
match the filter should be included or excluded from the Media Browser.
For the Date Created filter, you can choose to display files created on or before a date, on or after
a date, or between two dates.
To turn off the filter and display all files in the Media Browser, turn off the Filter switch at the top of
the menu.
Using filtering, you can quickly find and select clips that you had tagged OK during shooting
and copy or transcode the filtered clips. For more information, see "Transcoding clips" on page
34 or "Copying clips to a device" on page 41.
Selecting files
Showing source clips

1. Select a file.
2. Click the File/Clip button at the bottom of the Media Browser and choose Show in Finder
(macOS) or Show in Explorer (Windows) to view the source clip in its containing folder.
Managing SxS and Professional Disc volumes

If you need to format an SxS card, please use the Memory Media Utility.
If you need to format or finalize an XDCAM Professional Disc volume, please use the XDCAM Drive
Software.
Supported video formats for reading

Catalyst Prepare supports reading the following video formats from volumes or as independent clips:
58 CHAPTER 3
XDCAM
SD format
Format Frame Size Frame Field Video Codec Bit Rate Audio
Rate Order Channels
DV 720x480 59.94i Lower DV 25 CBR 4x16 bit
DV 720x576 50i Lower DV 25 CBR 4x16 bit
MPEG IMX 720x512 59.94i Upper MPEG-2 Intra 30, 40, 50 4x24 bit /
CBR 8x16 bit
MPEG IMX 720x608 50i Upper MPEG-2 Intra 30, 40, 50 4x24 bit /
CBR 8x16 bit
Uncompressed 720x486 59.94i Upper Uncompressed 90 CBR 4x24 bit /

8x16 bit
Uncompressed 720x576 50i Upper Uncompressed 90 CBR 4x24 bit /

8x16 bit
HD format
Format Frame Size Pixel Aspect Frame Rate Video Codec Bit Rate
Ratio
MPEG HD 1280x720 1.0 50p, 59.94p MPEG-2 Long 25 CBR

GOP
MPEG HD 1280x720 1.0 50p, 59.94p MPEG-2 Long 35 VBR

GOP
MPEG HD 1280x720 1.0 50p, 59.94p MPEG-2 Long 50 CBR

GOP
MPEG HD 1440x1080 1.333 23.976p, 25p, 29.97p, MPEG-2 Long 17.5 CBR
50i, 59.94i GOP
MPEG HD 1440x1080 1.333 23.976p, 25p, 29.97p, MPEG-2 Long 25 CBR

50i, 59.94i GOP
MPEG HD 1440x1080 1.333 23.976p, 25p, 29.97p, MPEG-2 Long 35 CBR

50i, 59.94i GOP
Over Crank GOP
FINDING MEDIA 59
Format Frame Size Pixel Aspect Frame Rate Video Codec Bit Rate
Ratio
Over Crank GOP
Over Crank GOP
MPEG 1920x1080 1.0 23.976p, 25p, 29.97p, MPEG-2 Long 35 CBR, 50

HD422 50i, 59.94i GOP CBR
MPEG 1920x540 0.5 23.976p, 25p, 29.97p, MPEG-2 Long 25 CBR

HD422 Over Crank GOP
XDCAM EX
Format Frame Size Pixel Frame Rate Field Video Audio Bit
Aspect Order Codec Codec Rate
Ratio
DV 720x480 0.9091 59.94p Lower DV PCM, 48 25

kHz, 16 CBR
bit
DV 720x576 1.0926 50i Lower DV PCM, 48 25

kHz, 16 CBR
bit
MPEG HD 1280x720 1.0 23.976p, 25p, MPEG-2 PCM, 48 35

(EX-HQ) 29.97p, 50p, Long kHz, 16 VBR
59.94p GOP bit
MPEG HD 1440x1080 1.333 50i, 59.94i MPEG-2 PCM, 48 25

(EX-SP) Long kHz, 16 CBR
GOP bit
MPEG HD 1440x1080 1.333 23.976p, 25p, MPEG-2 PCM, 48 35

(EX-HQ) 29.97p, 50i, 59.94i Long kHz, 16 VBR
GOP bit
MPEG 1920x1080 1.0 23.976p, 25p, MPEG-2 PCM, 48 35

HD422 29.97p, 50i, 59.94i Long kHz, 16 VBR
(EX-HQ) GOP bit
60 CHAPTER 3
XAVC Intra
Format Frame Size Pixel Frame Rate Video Audio Bit

Aspect Codec Channels Rate
Ratio (PCM, 48
kHz, 24 bit)
XAVC Intra 1440x1080 1.333 50i, 59.94i, MPEG-4 8 CBG

23.976p, 25p, AVC Intra 50
29.97p
XAVC Intra 1920x1080 1.0 50i, 59.94i, MPEG-4 8, 16 CBG

23.976p, 25p, AVC Intra 100
29.97p, 50p,
59.94p
XAVC Intra 1920x1080 1.0 50i, 59.94i, MPEG-4 8 CBG

23.976p, 25p, AVC Intra 200
29.97p, 50p,
59.94p
XAVC Intra 1920x1080 1.0 50p, 50i, 59.94p, MPEG-4 0 CBG

HFR 59.94i AVC Intra 100
XAVC Intra 2048x1080 1.0 23.976p, 24p, 25p, MPEG-4 8 VBR

29.97p, 50p, AVC Intra
59.94p
XAVC Intra 2048x1080 1.0 23.976p, 24p, 25p, MPEG-4 8, 16 CBG

29.97p, 50p, AVC Intra 100
59.94p
XAVC Intra 3840x2160 1.0 23.976p, 25p, MPEG-4 8 VBR

59.94p
XAVC Intra 3840x2160 1.0 23.976p, 25p, MPEG-4 8, 16 CBG

29.97p, 50p, AVC Intra 300
59.94p
XAVC Intra 4096x2160 1.0 23.976p, 24p, 25p, MPEG-4 8 VBR

59.94p
XAVC Intra 4096x2160 1.0 23.976p, 24p, 25p, MPEG-4 8, 16 CBG

29.97p, 50p, AVC Intra 300
59.94p
FINDING MEDIA 61
XAVC Long-GOP
Format Frame Size Pixel Frame Rate Video Audio Bit Rate
Aspect Codec
Ratio
XAVC Long 1280x720 1.0 50p, 59.94p MPEG-4 4-channel 80

AVC Long, PCM, 48 (Maximum)
High 422 kHz, 24 bit
Profile
XAVC Long 1920x1080 1.0 23.976p, MPEG-4 4-channel 80

25p, AVC Long, PCM, 48 (Maximum)
29.97p, High 422 kHz, 24 bit
50p, 50i, Profile
59.94p,
59.94i
XAVC Long 3840x2160 1.0 23.976p, MPEG-4 4-channel 200

25p, AVC Long, PCM, 48 (Maximum)
29.97p, High Profile kHz, 24 bit
50p, 59.94p
XAVC Long 480x270 1.0 23.976p, MPEG-4 MPEG-4 1 or .5 Mbps

Proxy 25p, AVC Long, AAC, 2
29.97p, High Profile channels, 48
50p, 59.94p kHz, 256
kbps
MPEG-4
AAC, 6 (5.1)
channels, 48
kHz, 640
kbps
XAVC Long 640x360 1.0 23.976p, MPEG-4 MPEG-4 3 Mbps

50p, 59.94p kHz, 256
kbps
MPEG-4
AAC, 6 (5.1)
62 CHAPTER 3
Format Frame Size Pixel Frame Rate Video Audio Bit Rate
Aspect Codec
Ratio
channels, 48
kHz, 640
kbps
XAVC Long 1280x720 1.0 23.976p, MPEG-4 MPEG-4 9 Mbps

50p, 59.94p kHz, 256
kbps
MPEG-4
AAC, 6 (5.1)
channels, 48
kHz, 640
kbps
FINDING MEDIA 63
XAVC S
Format Frame Size Pixel Frame Rate Video Codec Audio Bit
Aspect Rate
Ratio
XAVC Long 480x270 1.0 23.976p, MPEG-4 AVC MPEG-4 AAC, 2 4

Proxy 25p, Long, High channels, 48
29.97p, Profile kHz, 256 kbps
50p, 59.94p

50p, 59.94p
XAVC Long 1280x720 1.0 23.976p, MPEG-4 AVC 2-channel 40

25p, Long, Main PCM, 48 kHz,
29.97p, Profile or High 16 bit
50p, 59.94p Profile
4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit

50p, 59.94p
XAVC Long 1280x720 1.0 100p, MPEG-4 AVC 2-channel 80

119.88p Long, Main PCM, 48 kHz,
Profile or High 16 bit
Profile
4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit

50p, 59.94p Profile
4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit
64 CHAPTER 3
Aspect Rate
Ratio

50p, 59.94p Profile
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit

Profile
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit

50p, 59.94p
XAVC Long 1920x1080 1.0 25p, 30p AVC S Long MPEG-4 AAC, 2 16
4:2:0 8-bit MP4 channels, 48
50
kHz, 256 kbps
4:2:0 8-bit MP4 channels, 48
50
kHz, 256 kbps
XAVC Long 1920x1080 1.0 24p AVC S Long MPEG-4 AAC, 2 50

4:2:0 8 bit-MP4 channels, 48
kHz, 256 kbps
4:2:0 8 bit-MP4 channels, 48
100
kHz, 256 kbps
XAVC Long 1920x1080 1.0 24p, 25p, XAVC S Long 2-channel 50

30p,50p, 4:2:2 10-bit MP4 PCM, 48 kHz,
60p 16 bit
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
FINDING MEDIA 65
Aspect Rate
Ratio
24 bit
XAVC Intra 1920x1080 1.0 24p XAVC S Intra 2-channel 89

4:2:2 10-bit MP4 PCM, 48 kHz,
16 bit
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit

4:2:2 10-bit MP4 PCM, 48 kHz,
16 bit
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit

4:2:2 10-bit MP4 PCM, 48 kHz,
16 bit
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit

4:2:2 10-bit MP4 PCM, 48 kHz,
16 bit
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit

4:2:2 10-bit MP4 PCM, 48 kHz,
16 bit
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit
66 CHAPTER 3
Aspect Rate
Ratio
25p, 29.97p Long, Main PCM, 48 kHz,

Profile
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit
XAVC Long 3840x2160 1.0 50p, 59.94p MPEG-4 AVC 2-channel 200
Long, Main PCM, 48 kHz,
Profile
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit

Profile
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit
XAVC Long 3840x2160 1.0 24p, 25p, XAVC S Long 2-channel 60

30p 4:2:0 8-bit MP4 PCM, 48 kHz,
100
16 bit
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit
XAVC Long 3840x2160 1.0 50p, 60p XAVC S Long 2-channel 150
4:2:0 8-bit MP4 PCM, 48 kHz,
16 bit
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit
4:2:0 8-bit MP4 PCM, 48 kHz,
16 bit
FINDING MEDIA 67
Aspect Rate
Ratio
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit
XAVC Long 3840x2160 1.0 24p XAVC S Long 2-channel 100

4:2:2 10-bit MP4 PCM, 48 kHz,
16 bit
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit
4:2:2 10-bit MP4 PCM, 48 kHz,
16 bit
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit
4:2:2 10-bit MP4 PCM, 48 kHz,
16 bit
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit
4:2:2 10-bit MP4 PCM, 48 kHz,
16 bit
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit
XAVC Long 3840x2160 1.0 24p XAVC S Long 2-channel 100

4:2:2 10-bit MP4 PCM, 48 kHz,
16 bit
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit
68 CHAPTER 3
Aspect Rate
Ratio

4:2:2 10-bit MP4 PCM, 48 kHz,
16 bit
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit

4:2:2 10-bit MP4 PCM, 48 kHz,
16 bit
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit

4:2:2 10-bit MP4 PCM, 48 kHz,
16 bit
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit

4:2:2 10-bit MP4 PCM, 48 kHz,
16 bit
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit

4:2:2 10-bit MP4 PCM, 48 kHz,
16 bit
2/4-channel
PCM, 48 kHz,
24 bit

4:2:2 10-bit MP4 PCM, 48 kHz,
16 bit
FINDING MEDIA 69
XAVC HS
Aspect Rate
Ratio
HEVC 1920x1080 1.0 23.976p, 30p, HEVC Long, 2-channel PCM, 16

Proxy 50p, 59.94, 10-bit, 4:2:0 48 kHz, 16 bit or
100p, 119,98p 24 bit
HEVC 3840x2160 1.0 23.976p HEVC Long, 2/4-channel 30

10-bit, 4:2:0 PCM, 48 kHz, 16
bit or 24 bit
HEVC 3840x2160 1.0 50p HEVC Long, 2/4-channel 45

10-bit, 4:2:0 PCM, 48 kHz, 16
bit or 24 bit

10-bit, 4:2:0 PCM, 48 kHz, 16
bit or 24 bit

10-bit, 4:2:0 PCM, 48 kHz, 16
bit or 24 bit

10-bit, 4:2:0 PCM, 48 kHz, 16
bit or 24 bit

10-bit, 4:2:2 PCM, 48 kHz, 16
bit or 24 bit

10-bit, 4:2:2 PCM, 48 kHz, 16
bit or 24 bit

10-bit, 4:2:2 PCM, 48 kHz, 16
bit or 24 bit

10-bit, 4:2:2 PCM, 48 kHz, 16
bit or 24 bit
70 CHAPTER 3
Aspect Rate
Ratio
10-bit, 4:2:2 PCM, 48 kHz, 16

bit or 24 bit
HEVC 3840x2160 1.0 24p XAVC 2-channel PCM, 30

HS Long 48 kHz, 16 bit
50
4:2:0 10-bit
2/4-channel
MP4 100
PCM, 48 kHz, 24
bit
HEVC 3840x2160 1.0 50p, 60p XAVC 2-channel PCM, 45

75
4:2:0 10-bit
2/4-channel
MP4 150
PCM, 48 kHz, 24
bit

4:2:0 10-bit
2/4-channel
MP4
PCM, 48 kHz, 24
bit
HEVC 3840x2160 1.0 24p XAVC 2-channel PCM, 50

100
4:2:2 10-bit
2/4-channel
MP4
PCM, 48 kHz, 24
bit

200
4:2:2 10-bit
2/4-channel
MP4
PCM, 48 kHz, 24
bit

4:2:2 10-bit
2/4-channel
MP4
PCM, 48 kHz, 24
bit
FINDING MEDIA 71
Aspect Rate
Ratio
HEVC 7680x4320 1.0 23.976p, 25p, HEVC Long, 2/4-channel 204

29.97p 10-bit, 4:2:0 PCM, 48 kHz, 16
bit or 24 bit
HEVC 7680x4320 1.0 23.976p, 25p, HEVC Long, 2/4-channel 260,

29.97p 10-bit, 4:2:2 PCM, 48 kHz, 16 520
bit or 24 bit
72 CHAPTER 3
XAVC Proxy
Format Frame Size Frame Rate Video Codec Audio Bit

Rate
XAVC Proxy 480x270 23.976p, 25p, MPEG-4 AVC Long, MPEG-4 AAC, 2 4
29.97p, 50p, Main Profile channels, 48 kHz,
59.94p 256 kbps
29.97p, 50p, Main Profile channels, 48 kHz,
59.94p 256 kbps
XAVC Proxy 720x480 59.94i MPEG-4 AVC Long, MPEG-4 AAC, 2 10

Main Profile channels, 48 kHz,
256 kbps
XAVC Proxy 720x576 50i MPEG-4 AVC Long, MPEG-4 AAC, 2 10

Main Profile channels, 48 kHz,
256 kbps
29.97p, 50p, Main Profile or channels, 48 kHz,
59.94p High Profile 256 kbps
XAVC Proxy 1920x1080 50i, 59.94i, MPEG-4 AVC Long, MPEG-4 AAC, 2 28
23.976p, 25p, Main Profile or channels, 48 kHz,
29.97p, 50p, High Profile 256 kbps
59.94p
X-OCN
Format Frame Size Bits Frame Rate Quality
X-OCN 2048x1080 16 23.976p, 24p, 25p, 29.97p, 50p, 59.94p, HFR (max. LT, ST, XT
240)
120p)
X-OCN 4096x1716 16 23.976p, 24p, 25p, 29.97p LT, ST, XT
120p)
X-OCN 4096x3024 16 23.976p, 24p, 25p, 29.97p, LT, ST, XT
FINDING MEDIA 73
Format Frame Size Bits Frame Rate Quality
X-OCN 6048x4032 16 23.976p, 24p, 25p LT, ST, XT
RAW
Format Frame Size Bits Frame Rate Compression
F5/F55RAW 2048x1080 16 23.976p, 24p, 25p, 29.97p, 50p, 59.94p, SQ

HFR (max. 240)
F5/F55RAW 3840x2160 16 23.976p, 24p, 25p, 29.97p, 50p, 59.94p, SQ

HFR (max. 120p)
F5/F55RAW 4096x2160 16 23.976p, 24p, 25p, 29.97p, 50p, 59.94p, SQ

HFR (max. 120p)
F65RAW 4096x2160 16 23.976p, 24p, 25p, 29.97p, 50p, 59.94p, Lite, SQ

HFR (max. 120)
FS700RAW 2048x1080 16 23.976p, 25p, 29.97p, 50p, 59.94p, HFR SQ

(max. 240)
FS700RAW 4096x2160 16 23.976p, 25p, 29.97p, 50p, 59.94p, HFR SQ

(max. 120)
HDCAM SR (SStP)
Format Frame Size Bits Color Pixel Frame Rate Compression

Space Aspect (Mbps)
Ratio
SSTP 1280x720 10 YUV 1.0 50p, 59.94p Lite(220), SQ

422 (440)
SSTP 1920x1080 10 YUV 1.0 50i, 59.94i, 23.976p, Lite(220), SQ

422 24p, 25p, 29.97p, 50p, (440)
59.94p
74 CHAPTER 3
Format Frame Size Bits Color Pixel Frame Rate Compression
Space Aspect (Mbps)
Ratio
SSTP 1920x1080 10 RGB 1.0 50i, 59.94i, 23.976p, SQ(440), HQ

444 24p, 25p, 29.97p, 50p, (880)
59.94p
SSTP 1920x1080 12 RGB 1.0 50i, 59.94i, 23.976p, HQ(880)

444 24p, 25p, 29.97p, 50p,
59.94p
SSTP 2048x1080 10 YUV 1.0 50p, 59.94p Lite(220), SQ

422 (440)
SSTP 2048x1080 10 RGB 1.0 50i, 59.94i, 23.976p, SQ(440)

444 24p, 25p, 29.97p
SSTP 2048x1080 10 RGB 1.0 23.976p, 24p, 25p, HQ(880)

444 29.97p
SSTP 2048x1080 12 RGB 1.0 50i, 59.94i, 23.976p, SQ(440)

444 24p, 25p, 29.97p
SSTP 2048x1080 12 RGB 1.0 23.976p, 24p, 25p, HQ(880)

444 29.97p, 50p, 59.94p
SSTP 2048x1080 12 RGB 1.0 23.976p, 24p, 25p, SQ(440)

444 29.97p
SSTP 2048x1080 12 RGB 1.0 23.976p, 24p, 25p, HQ(880)

444 29.97p, 50p, 59.94p
SSTP 2048x1556 10 RGB 1.0 23.976p, 24p, 25p HQ(880)

444
FINDING MEDIA 75
NXCAM
Format Frame Size Pixel Frame Rate Video Codec Audio Bit Rate
Aspect Codec
Ratio
AVCHD 1920x1080 1.0 59.94p, 50p, H.264/MPEG-4 Dolby AC-3 28

AVC or PCM Mbps
2 channels,
48 kHz, 16
bit
AVCHD 1920x1080 1.0 59.94i, 50i, H.264/MPEG-4 Dolby AC-3 24 or

29.97p, 25p, AVC or PCM 17
23.976p 2 channels, Mbps
48 kHz, 16
bit
AVCHD 1280x720 1.0 59.94p, 50p H.264/MPEG-4 Dolby AC-3 24 or

AVC or PCM 17
2 channels, Mbps
48 kHz, 16
bit
AVCHD 1440x1080 1.333 59.94i, 50i H.264/MPEG-4 Dolby AC-3 9 or 5

AVC or PCM Mbps
2 channels,
48 kHz, 16
bit
MPEG-2 720x480 0.9091 or 23.976p, 29.97p, MPEG-2 Dolby AC-3 9 Mbps

SD 1.2121 59.94i 2 channels,
48 kHz, 16
bit
MPEG-2 720x576 1.0926 or 25p, 50i MPEG-2 Dolby AC-3 9 Mbps

SD 1.4568 2 channels,
48 kHz, 16
bit
76 CHAPTER 3
AVC H.264/MPEG-4
Format Frame Size Screen Frame Rate Video Audio Codec Bit
Aspect Codec Rate
Ratio
H.264/MPEG-4 1280x720 16:9 50p, 100p, 120p, AVC, Mono, 48kHz,

AVC AAC
8-bit,
compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC

AVC 48p, 50p, 60p AAC
8-bit,
compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC

AVC 48p AAC
8-bit,
compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC
H.264/MPEG-4 3840x2160 16:9 23.97p. 24p, 25p, AVC, Mono, 48kHz,

AVC 29.97p, 50p, AAC
8-bit,
59.94p compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC
H.264/MPEG-4 4096x2160 17:9 12p AVC, Mono, 48kHz,

AVC AAC
8-bit,
compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC
H.264/MPEG-4 2704x1524 16:9 25p, 30p AVC, Mono, 48kHz,

AVC AAC
8-bit,
compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC

AVC AAC
8-bit,
compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC

AVC AAC
8-bit,
compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC
FINDING MEDIA 77
Aspect Codec Rate
Ratio

AVC AAC
8-bit,
compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC

AVC AAC
8-bit,
compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC
H.264/MPEG-4 240x180 25p, 29.97p AVC, 2 channels, 16

AVC bit, AAC
8-bit,
compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC

AVC bit, AAC
8-bit,
compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC

AVC bit, AAC
8-bit,
compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC

AVC bit, AAC
8-bit,
compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC

AVC bit, AAC
8-bit,
compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC
H.264/MPEG-4 1280x720 50p, 60p, AVC, 2 channels, 16

AVC 100p,120p bit, AAC
8-bit,
compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC
H.264/MPEG-4 1280x960 48p, 100p,120p AVC, 2 channels, 16

AVC bit, AAC
8-bit,
78 CHAPTER 3
Aspect Codec Rate
Ratio
4:2:0 compression
w/ AGC
H.264/MPEG-4 1920x1080 24p, 25p, 29.97p, AVC, 2 channels, 16

AVC 48p, 50p, 60p bit, AAC
8-bit,
compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC
H.264/MPEG-4 1920x1440 24p, 25p, 29.97p, AVC, 2 channels, 16

AVC 48p bit, AAC
8-bit,
compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC
H.264/MPEG-4 2704x1524 24p, 25p, 29.97p AVC, 2 channels, 16

AVC bit, AAC
8-bit,
compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC
H.264/MPEG-4 3840x2160 23.97p. 24p, 25p, AVC, 2 channels, 16

AVC 29.97p, 50p, bit, AAC
8-bit,
59.94p compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC
H.264/MPEG-4 4096x2160 12p AVC, 2 channels, 16

AVC bit, AAC
8-bit,
compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC
H.264/MPEG-4 720x480 59.94i AVC, 2 channels, 16

AVC (HVO) bit, AAC
8-bit,
compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC
H.264/MPEG-4 720x576 50i AVC, 2 channels, 16

AVC (HVO) bit, AAC
8-bit,
compression
4:2:0
w/ AGC
FINDING MEDIA 79
AS-11 DPP MXF
Format Frame Size Frame Rate Video Codec Audio Codec Bit Rate
IMX-50 720x576 25 MPEG-2 Intra PCM, 48 kHz, 24 bit
XAVC Intra 1920x1080 25 MPEG-4 AVC Intra PCM, 48 kHz, 24 bit
80 CHAPTER 3
Avid DNxHD®
Container: MOV or MXF
Audio Codec: PCM 44.1 kHz or 48 kHz, 16 bit or 24 bit
Frame Size Family Name Color Frame Rate/Maximum Bit Rate

Space/Bits
1920x1080 Avid DNxHD® 4:4:4 10 bit 29.97p @ 440 Mbps, 25p @ 365 Mbps, 24p @ 350
444 Mbps, 23.976p @ 350 Mbps
1920x1080 Avid DNxHD® 4:2:2 10 bit 60p @ 440 Mbps, 59.94p @ 440 Mbps, 50p @ 365
220x Mbps, 59.94i @ 220 Mbps, 50i @ 185 Mbps, 29.97p
@ 220 Mbps, 25p @ 185 Mbps, 24p @ 175 Mbps,
23.976p @ 175 Mbps
220 Mbps, 59.94i @ 220 Mbps, 50i @ 185 Mbps, 29.97p
@ 220 Mbps, 25p @ 185 Mbps, 24p @ 175 Mbps,
23.976p @ 175 Mbps
145 Mbps, 59.94i @ 145 Mbps, 50i @ 120 Mbps, 29.97p
@ 145 Mbps, 25p @ 120 Mbps, 24p @ 115 Mbps,
23.976p @ 115 Mbps
1920x1080 Avid DNxHD® 4:2:2 8 bit 59.94i @ 145 Mbps, 50i @ 120 Mbps
145
(subsampled
to 1440x1080)
1920x1080 Avid DNxHD® 4:2:2 8 bit 59.94i @ 100 Mbps, 50i @ 85 Mbps, 29.97p @ 100
100 Mbps, 25p @ 85 Mbps, 24p @ 80 Mbps, 23.976p @
(subsampled 80 Mbps
to 1440x1080)
36 Mbps, 29.97p @ 45 Mbps, 25p @ 36 Mbps, 24p @
36 Mbps, 23.976p @ 36 Mbps
1280x720 Avid DNxHD® 4:2:2 10 bit 59.94p @ 220 Mbps, 50p @ 175 Mbps, 29.97p @
220x 110 Mbps, 25p @ 90 Mbps, 23.976p @ 90 Mbps
1280x720 Avid DNxHD® 4:2:2 8 bit 59.94p @ 220 Mbps, 50p @ 175 Mbps, 29.97p @
220 110 Mbps, 25p @ 90 Mbps, 23.976p @ 90 Mbps
FINDING MEDIA 81
Frame Size Family Name Color Frame Rate/Maximum Bit Rate
Space/Bits
1280x720 Avid DNxHD® 4:2:2 8 bit 59.94p @ 145 Mbps, 50p @ 115 Mbps, 29.97p @ 75
145 Mbps, 25p @ 60 Mbps, 23.976p @ 60 Mbps
1280x720 Avid DNxHD® 4:2:2 8 bit 59.94p @ 100 Mbps, 50p @ 85 Mbps, 29.97p @ 50
100 Mbps, 25p @ 45 Mbps, 23.976p @ 50 Mbps
(subsampled
to 960x720)
82 CHAPTER 3
Apple ProRes
Container: MOV
Audio Codec: PCM
Format Frame Size Frame Rate Video Codec
ProRes 720x486 59.94i, 30p, 29.97p, 24p, 422 (proxy), 422 (LT), 422, 422 (HQ),
23.976p 4444, 4444 XQ (Windows only)
ProRes 720x576 50i, 25p 422 (proxy), 422 (LT), 422, 422 (HQ),
4444, 4444 XQ (Windows only)
ProRes 960x720 60p, 59.94p, 50p, 30p,29.97p, 422 (proxy), 422 (LT), 422, 422 (HQ),
24p, 23.976p 4444, 4444 XQ (Windows only)
ProRes 1280x720 60p, 59.94p, 50p, 30p,29.97p, 422 (proxy), 422 (LT), 422, 422 (HQ),
ProRes 1280x1080 59.94i, 30p, 29.97p, 24p, 422 (proxy), 422 (LT), 422, 422 (HQ),
23.976p 4444, 4444 XQ (Windows only)
ProRes 1440x1080 59.94i, 50i, 30p, 29.97p, 25p, 422 (proxy), 422 (LT), 422, 422 (HQ),
ProRes 1920x1080 60p, 59.94p, 50p, 59.94i, 50i, 422 (proxy), 422 (LT), 422, 422 (HQ),
30p, 29.97p, 25p, 24p, 23.976p 4444, 4444 XQ (Windows only)
ProRes 2048x1080 60p, 59.94p, 50p, 30p, 29.97p, 422 (proxy), 422 (LT), 422, 422 (HQ),
25p, 24p, 23.976p 4444, 4444 XQ (Windows only)
25p, 24p, 23.976p 4444 , 4444 XQ (Windows only)
HDV
Container: MPEG-2 Transport Stream (Windows), MOV (macOS)
Audio Codec: MPEG-1 Audio Layer-2 (Windows). 2 channels, 48 kHz, 16 bit
FINDING MEDIA 83
Format Frame Size Pixel Aspect Ratio Frame Rate Interlace Video Codec
HDV 1440x1080 1.333 50i, 59.94i Upper MPEG-2 MP@H14
84 CHAPTER 3
DV
Container: AVI (Windows), MOV (macOS)
Audio Codec: PCM, 2 channels, 32 kHz, 16 bit
Format Frame Size Frame Field Video Bit Audio Channels

Rate Order Codec Rate
DV (SD) 720x480 59.94i Lower DV 25 CBR 2 channels, 32 kHz, 16

bit
DV (SD) 720x576 50i Lower DV 25 CBR 2 channels, 32 kHz, 16

bit
FINDING MEDIA 85
DPX
Format Frame Size Frame Rate
Image Sequence Any Any
86 CHAPTER 3
OpenEXR
Format Frame Size Frame Rate
Image Sequence Any Any
Supported video devices

Catalyst Prepare supports the following video volumes and devices:
Folder Structure Storage Media Root Folder Supported Format
XAVC-XD-Style SxS memory card XDROOT XDCAM HD/HD422/IMX/DVCAM, SStP,

(exFAT) XAVC Intra, XAVC Long
XQD memory
card
XAVC-M4-Style SxS memory card M4ROOT XAVC S, XAVC HS

(exFAT)
XQD memory
card
SD card
XAVC-PX-Style SD card PXROOT XAVC Proxy
AXS-Style AXS memory card CINEROOT F55RAW, F5RAW, FS700RAW, X-OCN
SRM-Style SR memory card Media root F65RAW, SStP
XD-Style Professional Disc Media root XDCAM HD/HD422/IMX/DVCAM,

XAVC Intra
SxS memory card
(UDF)
BPAV-Style SxS memory card BPAV XDCAM EX (MPEG HD, DVCAM)

(FAT32)
SD card
AVCHD structure SD card AVCHD/BDMV AVCHD
FINDING MEDIA 87
88 CHAPTER 3
Chapter 4
Playing media
When you double-click a file in Organize mode, the file is loaded in Edit mode, where you can preview the
file, log mark in and mark out points, and apply color correction. For more information about using
Organize mode, please see "Organizing media in a library" on page 15.
You can use the toolbar at the top of the pane to adjust and monitor audio levels, select audio channels for
preview, scale the video preview, view metadata, and adjust clip settings.
You can use the transport toolbar below the video to choose the playback mode, scrub the video, and
control playback.
Previewing video
When you double-click a file in Organize mode, the file is loaded in Edit mode, where you can preview the
file, log mark in and mark out points, and apply color correction. For more information about using
Organize mode, please see "Organizing media in a library" on page 15.
You can also choose to display the video preview in a secondary window that you can position anywhere on
your screen or on a secondary display. For more information, see "Editing Catalyst Prepare options" on page
163.
PLAYING MEDIA 89
If you have multiple clips selected in the Media Browser on the left side of the window, the selected
clips will play sequentially in the order they are displayed. The file name of the current file will be
displayed above the video preview, and a vertical line in the timeline indicates where each selected
clip begins:
If the current clip contains discontinuous timecode, an indicator is displayed in the timeline to identify
the discontinuity:
A indicates a clip from an Optical Disc Archive volume.
An on a thumbnail indicates that a clip spans multiple discs on an Optical Disc Archive volume.
When you play a clip that spans discs, an indicator is displayed in the timeline to identify the point
where the clip switches discs:
Enable the Preview using proxy clips switch in Options if you want to use proxy clips for playback if
they are available. During playback, a Proxy indicator is displayed above the video preview. For more
information, see "Editing Catalyst Prepare options" on page 163.
Click the Play button to start playing the current video. Playback will start from the playback position
indicator and continue until the Mark Out position or the end of the file.
You can click the trackbar below the transport controls to set the play position indicator:
You can use the shuttle control on the transport toolbar to seek forward or backward or adjust the playback
speed. For more information, see "Playing media" on page 94.
For information about flipping and rotating video, enabling anamorphic desqueezing, and displaying
safe zone and mask guides, please see "Playing media" on page 99.
90 CHAPTER 4
Changing the preview mode
When you're adjusting color correction, you can change the preview mode to allow you to compare
adjusted clips to the original source. For more information, see "Editing Color Adjustments controls" on
page 127.
Click the Preview button in the top-right corner of the video preview to choose a preview mode. Split-
screen previews allow you to split the video preview and waveform/histogram/vectorscope monitor so
you can see your affected and unaffected video at the same time.
n
Before: full-frame video is displayed in its original state.
n
After: full-frame video is displayed in its color-corrected state.
n
Split: a single frame is displayed in a split-screen view with the original video on the left
and the color-corrected video on the right.
PLAYING MEDIA 91
If you want to move the split location, hover over the preview frame. When the split point is
displayed, you can drag the handles at the top of bottom of the screen to adjust where the
preview is split:
n
2 Up: two full frames are displayed in a split-screen view with the original video on the left
Scaling the video preview

Click the magnifying glass to adjust the size of the video preview.
n Click Fit to scale the video to fill the Video pane.
n Click a preset to scale the video to a predefined magnification level.
92 CHAPTER 4
When the level is below 100%, you can drag the blue rectangle to pan and adjust the visible
portion of the frame.
n Drag the slider or click the and buttons to choose a custom zoom level.
n Click the thumbnail and roll your mouse wheel to zoom in or out.
Toggling full-screen playback
Click to display the Video pane in full-screen mode. Press Esc or click the Close button to exit full-
screen mode.
Adjusting playback settings

Click the Playback Settings button to the left of the transport controls to display the Playback Settings
controls.
Speed/Quality
Select Speed if you want decoding to be optimized to preserve the frame rate.
Select Quality if you want decoding to be optimized to preserve video quality.
When using a device other than your CPU, high-quality deinterlacing and upscaling are applied
to convert SD and HD sources to modern progressive HD and UHD assets.
n High-quality deinterlacing is applied to interlaced source media when playback is paused,

during transcoding, and during playback when the Playback Settings Speed/Quality
setting is set to Quality.
n Please note that some systems with limited GPU memory are not supported.
Real Time/All Frames
Select Real Time if you want to play the clip using its source frame rate. Audio is played at its
recorded rate, and video frames are skipped if necessary to preserve the playback rate.
Select All Frames if you want to ensure that all video frames are played. The frame rate may be
reduced if needed to ensure all frames are played. Audio is unavailable in this mode.
If XAVC S and XAVC HS playback is not smooth, we recommend using the All Frames playback
setting.
PLAYING MEDIA 93
n
Real Time/Speed:
n
Real Time/Quality:
n All Frames/Speed:
n All Frames/Quality:
Using the transport controls

The transport controls below the video preview allow you to control playback:
Button Description
Go to Start Moves the playback position indicator to the Mark In position. Click again to
move to the beginning of the selected file.
Previous Moves the playback position indicator one frame or field to the left.
Frame
Play Playback will start from the playback position indicator and continue until the
Mark Out position or the end of the file.
Next Moves the playback position indicator one frame or field to the right.
Frame
Go to End Moves the playback position indicator to the Mark Out position. Click again to
move to the end of the selected file.
Loop Plays only the area between the Mark In and Mark Out points in a continuous
Playback mode.
For more information, see "Marking in and out points for playback" on page
96.
Navigating the timeline

After you open a file in View mode, drag the shuttle control to seek forward or backward from the play
position indicator to find an edit point. As you drag toward the ends of the shuttle control, playback speed
increases. Release the shuttle control to stop playback:
You can also press the J, K, or L keys to use the keyboard as a shuttle control.
94 CHAPTER 4
Press and hold K while pressing J or L to emulate a shuttle knob mode. Press K+J to scrub left or K+L to
scrub right.
Item Description
J Scrub reverse mode. Press again to accelerate the playback rate.
K Pause.
L Scrub forward mode. Press again to accelerate the playback rate.
PLAYING MEDIA 95
Marking in and out points for playback
If you want to play only a portion of a video, you can use the Mark In and Mark Out buttons to select the
portion of the video you want to play.
If mark in and out points have been set in an MXF clip, Catalyst Prepare will read the mark in/out
points from metadata. After you add a clip to the library, you can choose whether to synchronize mark
in/out points with the source clip:
n If you want to save mark in and mark out points with the library, clear the Synchronize mark
points with file check box on the Summary tab in the Inspector. For more information, see
"Viewing and editing metadata" on page 101.
n When the Synchronize mark points with file check box is cleared, mark in and mark out
points for MXF clips are saved back to the source media when you edit them in Catalyst
Prepare, and your library will be updated if the mark in and out points are edited on disk.
1. Click the Organize button at the top of the Catalyst Prepare window to view the Media Browser.
2. Double-click a file in Organize mode to load it in Edit mode.
You can also use the Preview pane in Organize mode to adjust mark points.
3. Click the Logging button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window.
4. Click the trackbar below the transport controls to set the play position indicator:
If the current clip contains discontinuous timecode, an indicator is displayed in the timeline to
identify the discontinuity:
5. Click the Mark In button.
6. Click the trackbar below the transport controls to set the play position indicator.
7. Click the Mark Out button.
When you click the Play button, playback will start from the playback position indicator and
continue until the Mark Out position or the end of the file.
96 CHAPTER 4
If you want to play the Mark In/Mark Out region in a continuous loop, select the Loop Playback
button .
You can quickly log mark in/out points by clicking the In, Out, and Length boxes at the bottom
of the Catalyst Prepare window and typing new timecode values. (Not available for MXF proxy-
only clips with embedded timecode.)
Type new values in the Mark in and Mark out boxes on the Summary tab in the Inspector to
edit the clip's mark in and mark out points. (Not available for MXF proxy-only clips with
embedded timecode.) For more information, see "Viewing and editing metadata" on page
101.
You can adjust mark in/out points by dragging the indicators above the trackbar.
To reset mark in/out points, click the More button and choose Reset mark in/out points.
If the current file contains essence marks, they will be displayed on the timeline as diamonds
. Essence marks are displayed in the Mark Points tab in metadata mode. For more
information, see "Viewing and editing metadata" on page 101.
When browsing your library, an indicator is displayed to represent a clip's mark in/out points:
Creating a snapshot of a frame

If you want to create a snapshot of the current frame, click the Snapshot button and choose Copy
snapshot to clipboard or Save snapshot.
Copying a frame to the clipboard

PLAYING MEDIA 97
4. Click the Snapshot button and choose Copy snapshot to clipboard from the menu.
Press Ctrl+C (Windows) or ⌘ -C (macOS).
When the Catalyst Prepare window is resized, the snapshot commands are available in the
More Actions menu.
The current frame is copied to the clipboard using the standard resolution that is closest to the
preview resolution.
Saving a frame to a file

4. Click the Snapshot button and choose Save snapshot from the menu.
Press Shift+S.
The current frame is copied to the clipboard using the standard resolution that is closest to the
preview resolution.
You can save the location and format used for saving the file in Options. Click the Snapshot button
and choose Snapshot options from the menu. For more information, see "Editing Catalyst
Adjusting and monitoring audio levels

Click the speaker in the activity pane at the top of the Catalyst Prepare window to display audio controls.
98 CHAPTER 4
Drag the Master Volume fader to increase or decrease audio levels. During preview, the meters allow you
to monitor the level of each audio channel.
If you want to choose which audio channels will be played, you can use the Channel Routing check boxes.
In the example above, the 1st, 3rd, and 5th channels are played through the left speaker and the 2nd, 4th,
and 6th channels are played through the right speaker.
Catalyst Prepare supports only stereo output devices.
Editing clip settings

Click the button above the video preview to edit clip playback settings.
Select the Use flip, rotate, and desqueeze settings check box in the Export pane if you're
working with video that was filmed with an anamorphic lens and want to preserve the Flip
horizontal and Flip vertical, Rotate preview, and Anamorphic desqueeze settings when
transcoding. When the check box is not selected, letterboxing will be applied.
For more information, see "Exporting media from a library" on page 24.
PLAYING MEDIA 99
Item Description
Flip horizontal Click the Flip horizontal or Flip vertical switch to flip the left-to-right
or top-to-bottom orientation of the video frame.
Flip vertical
Select a button to rotate the video preview image.

Rotate preview
(degrees) Select Auto to use the clip-rotation metadata setting if available, or
select 0, 90, 180, or 270 to specify the desired clip rotation.
Select a desqueeze button to apply anamorphic stretching to

Anamorphic
widescreen video, or click Off to turn off stretching.
desqueeze
Click the switch to enable safe area guides and a center point in the
Show safe areas
video preview.
When Show safe areas is enabled, Catalyst Prepare displays

rectangles marking 90% (action safe area) and 80% (title safe area)
of the frame to serve as guidelines for framing.
Overlays are not displayed when using full-screen preview.
Choose a setting from the drop-down list to enable shading in the

Masking ratio
video preview to indicate how your content will appear.
Overlays are not displayed when using full-screen preview.
Aspect markers from Sony cameras are supported and

preserved even when the clip is rotated.
Select Use masking ratio from the Crop type drop-down list in
the Export pane if you want to preserve the selected masking
ratio when transcoding.
For more information, see "Exporting media from a library" on

page 24.
100 CHAPTER 4
Chapter 5
Working with clips

Catalyst Prepare gives you control over your individual media clips.
Viewing and editing metadata

When you're in Organize or Edit mode, click the Inspector button in the toolbar to display metadata for
the currently selected file in the Inspector pane.
Click the Summary tab to view summary information associated with the file or configure audio channels.
Click the File tab to view details about the source media and its metadata, including GPS information (if
present).
When a file contains GPS metadata, you can click the Latitude and Longitude values to display a
map using the map service selected in the Open GPS links with drop-down list in the Options menu.
Links are not available when multiple clips are selected.
Click the Mark Points tab to view essence marks embedded in the file.
If the current file contains essence marks, they will be displayed on the timeline as a diamond .
If the current clip contains discontinuous timecode, an indicator is displayed in the timeline to identify the
discontinuity:
When Catalyst creates new non-realtime (NRT) metadata during MXF copy operations, metadata for
discontinuous timecode and essence marks is created.
New non-realtime metadata is not created when the source clip contains NRT metadata.
Setting the frame rate for a DPX or OpenEXR image sequence

1. Select a DPX or OpenEXR image sequence in the Media Browser.
2. Click the Summary tab.
3. Choose a value from the Frame rate drop-down list boxes to set the frame rate for playing the
selected image sequence.
WORKING WITH CLIPS 101

Editing mark in/out points
Click the Summary tab.
Type new values in the Mark in and Mark out boxes to edit the clip's mark in and mark out points. For
If you want to save mark in and mark out points with the library, clear the Synchronize mark
points with file check box.
When the Synchronize mark points with file check box is cleared, mark in and mark out points
for MXF clips are saved back to the source media when you edit them in Catalyst Prepare, and your
library will be updated if the mark in and out points are edited on disk.
Editing summary metadata

1. Click the Summary tab.
Click the Unlock button to enable editing summary information for the selected files.
2. In the Logging section of the Summary tab, edit the Flag, Title, Creator, and Description settings
as needed.
When editing metadata for multiple selected files, (multiple values) is displayed if the files'
metadata does not match. Editing the value will replace the metadata for all selected files.
3. Click Save to save the edited metadata values, or click Revert to discard your edits.
Not all media formats support summary metadata.
102 CHAPTER 5
When a clip has Flag metadata, an OK, NG (no good), or Keep indicator is displayed in
Organize mode:
You can also use Flag metadata to filter the contents of the Media Browser. For more
information, see " Filtering clips" on page 57.
Assigning audio channels

Assigning audio channels allows you to set up your clips for use in Catalyst Edit.
The Channel Assignment controls are not editable when multiple files with differing channel
counts are selected.
Channel Assignment controls are not available when no library is opened. For more information,
see "Working with libraries" on page 9.
Channel Assignment controls are not available when a spanned clip is selected.
Channel Assignment controls are not available when editing a storyboard.
Click the speaker icon to turn a channel on or off .
Click the Mono/Stereo button to indicate whether a channel is a mono channel or part of a stereo pair.
Enabling Stereo will pair the channel with the next channel in the list.
Type a name in the edit box to identify the channel. For example, you might type Lav1 to identify
audio from a lavalier microphone.

If you want to save the current channel configuration as a preset, click the Channel Tools icon
and choose Save preset from the menu.
If you want to apply a preset channel configuration to the selected file, as a preset, click the
Channel Tools icon and choose Load preset from the menu.
If you want to copy channel assignments between files, select the source file, click the Channel
Tools icon , and choose Copy from the menu. Next, select the destination files, click the
Channel Tools icon , and choose Paste from the menu.
If you want to set all of a clip's channels at once, click the Channel Tools button and choose
Set all to mono, Set all to stereo, or Reset.
Editing essence marks

1. Select a clip to display its metadata.
2. Click the Mark Points tab.
3. Click an essence mark's label or timecode value to type a new value.
Adding and editing essence marks is supported only for clips with non-realtime (NRT)
metadata and requires write access to the volume.
Editing essence marks is not available when FTP-based clips are selected.
Adding a mark point

3. Click the trackbar below the video preview to set the cursor position where you want to add a mark
point(or click the timecode display to move the cursor to a specific location).
4. Click the Add Point button or press E.
Adding and editing essence marks is supported only for clips with non-realtime (NRT)
metadata and requires write access to the volume.
104 CHAPTER 5
Deleting a mark point
3. Click an essence mark's label or timecode to select it.
4. Click the Delete button , and then choose Delete to delete the selected mark point, or choose
Delete All to delete all mark points.
The Delete command is not available when FTP-based clips are selected.
Exporting custom metadata

Catalyst Prepare allows you to include custom metadata when exporting clips.
Defining the metadata you want to export

To enable custom metadata export, you'll create a configuration file named
customMetadataExport.json in the following folder:
1. Close Catalyst Prepare.
2. Using a text editor, create your configuration file. The file should be structured like the following
example to include the key, value pairs that you want to make available as custom metadata.
The key is the metadata item, and the value will be used as the default value:
{
"Slug": "Election",
"Type":"News",
"Source": "",
"Shot Date": ""
}
3. Save the file in the following folder:
Windows: C:\Users\<user>\Documents\Sony\Catalyst\
macOS: /Users/<user>/Documents/Sony/Catalyst
4. Start Catalyst Prepare. The application will detect the customMetadataExport.json file during
startup and enable custom metadata export.

Exporting custom metadata
modifiers.
3. Enable the Use advanced settings switch in the Export pane.
4. Select the Add custom metadata check box. An edit box is displayed for each metadata item
you defined in your customMetadataExport.json file.
Type the desired value for each metadata item that you want to include for the rendered file.
Custom metadata is saved in a sidecar .json file.
Use the controls in the Export pane to choose a destination and format for your exported file.
For more information about the controls, please see "Exporting media from a library" on page
24..
If the customMetadataExport.json file is empty or incorrectly formatted, the Add custom

metadata check box is unavailable. Please see "Defining the metadata you want to export"
on page 105.
Working with clip lists

You can create and edit clip lists for the following media types:
n
XDCAM media in an XD root folder .
n
XAVC media in an XD root folder .
n
RAW media in an AxS folder .
106 CHAPTER 5
A clip list is a PD-EDL (.smi) file that allows you to create a video project that is comprised of multiple,
shorter video clips.
Clip lists are a helpful part of a proxy workflow when working with limited bandwidth: copy the proxy clips
to your computer, create a clip list using the proxy clips, and then copy the clip list back to the camera or
deck. The deck will then play the clip list using your full-resolution source.
If you need to create a project for other media types and don't need to write back to a camera or device,
you can create a storyboard. For more information, see "Working with storyboards" on page 110.
When viewing a clip list, indicates spanned clips from the same volume, and indicates
spanned clips from different volumes.
Creating a clip list

2. Navigate to the root folder or that contains the clips you want to use.
3. Select the files you want to include in your clip list. You can hold Shift or Control (Windows) / ⌘
(macOS) to select multiple files.
4. Click the Tools button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose New clip list
from selection from the menu.
If you want create a clip list without choosing clips, click the Tools button at the bottom
of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose New empty clip list from the menu.
5. Type a name for the new clip list and click OK.
6. Catalyst Prepare loads your new clip list in View mode.
Opening a clip list

2. Navigate to the root folder or that contains the clip list you want to open.
3. Double-click the clip list (.smi file) to open it.

Rearranging clips
In Clip List mode, you can add, remove, and arrange clips in the clip list. Click the Clip List button at the
bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window to switch to Clip List mode.
You can drag clips within the clip list to rearrange them. Drag a clip and drop it to a new position on the
clip list to change its position.
Adding clips
You can only add clips from the folder where the clip list (.smi) file is saved.
Click the add button at the end of the clip list to display a media browser, where you can select
additional clips for your clip list.
You can click the Add button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window when you're in Clip List
mode.
When you add a clip, a vertical line is added to the timeline to indicate where each clip begins:
108 CHAPTER 5
Removing clips
Select a clip and click the Remove button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window.
Editing clips
In Clip mode, you can log mark in and out points for your clips.
You cannot add, delete or rearrange clips in Clip mode. Use Clip List mode for clip list editing.
1. Open the clip list you want to edit.
2. Click the Clip button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window to switch to Clip mode.
You can also double-click a clip in Clip List mode to switch to Clip mode.
4. Use the Mark In and Mark Out buttons to adjust the mark in and out points for the selected
clip.
For more information, see "Marking in and out points for playback" on page 96.
Viewing metadata for clip lists
When you're in Organize or Edit mode, click the Inspector button in the toolbar to display metadata
in the Inspector pane.
In Browse mode, the Metadata pane displays additional information about the currently selected clip
list.
In View (Clip List or Clip) mode, the Metadata pane displays information about the selected subclip.
For more information, see "Viewing and editing metadata" on page 101.
Writing a clip list back to a device
Select a clip list in Organize mode and click the Copy button at the top of the Catalyst Prepare
window to write a clip list back to a device. For more information, see "Exporting media from a library"
on page 24.

Working with storyboards
You can create and edit storyboards to create a video project that is comprised of multiple, shorter video
clips.
Storyboards are saved with the current media library.
When no library is opened, storyboard support is not available. For more information, see "Creating or
opening a library" on page 9.
If you need to create a project that can be written back to a camera or device, you can create a PD-EDL clip
list. For more information, see "Working with clip lists" on page 106.
Creating a storyboard
2. Navigate to the folder that contains the clips you want to use.
3. Select the files you want to include in your clip list. You can hold Shift or Control (Windows) / ⌘
(macOS) to select multiple files.
4. Click the Storyboard button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose Create
from selection from the menu.
The Create from selection command is not available when a clip list, spanned clip ( ), or an
FTP-based clip is selected.
If you want create a storyboard list without choosing clips, click the Storyboard button at the
bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose Create empty from the menu.
5. Type a name for the storyboard and click OK.
Opening a storyboard
2. Click a storyboard in the Storyboards section of the left pane. The storyboard's clips are displayed in
the center pane.
3. Click the Edit button to load your storyboard in Edit mode.
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When viewing a storyboard, indicates spanned clips from the same volume, and
indicates spanned clips from different volumes.
Rearranging clips
In Edit mode, you can add, remove, and arrange clips.
You can drag clips within the storyboard to rearrange them. Drag a clip and drop it to a new position to
move it.
Adding clips
the center pane.
When the Add To button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window is selected, you can
quickly add a clip to the selected storyboard by selecting it and clicking the Add button (or
pressing Enter). Use the Add clip to storyboard drop-down list to select a storyboard.
When you add a clip, a vertical line is added to the timeline to indicate where each clip begins:
You can also drag clips from the Organize pane to a bin or storyboard in the Places pane.
4. Click the add button at the end of the clip list or the Add button at the bottom of the Catalyst
Prepare window to display a media browser, where you can select additional clips for your

storyboard.
Removing clips
2. Click a storyboard in the Storyboards section of the left pane. The storyboard's clips are
displayed in the center pane.
Select a clip and click the Remove button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window.
Editing clips
In Clip mode, you can log mark in and out points for your clips.
You cannot add, delete, or rearrange clips in Clip or Adjust Color mode. Use Storyboard mode for
clip list editing.
4. Click the Clip button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window to switch to Clip mode.
You can also double-click a clip in Storyboard mode to switch to Clip mode.
6. Use the Mark In and Mark Out buttons to adjust the mark in and out points for the selected
clip.
For more information, see "Marking in and out points for playback" on page 96.
112 CHAPTER 5
Editing a storyboard clip's mark in and out points does not affect other storyboards that
use the same clip.
Adjusting color correction for clips

In Adjust Color mode, you can adjust color correction settings for each clip in a storyboard.
You cannot add, delete, or rearrange clips in Clip or Adjust Color mode. Use Storyboard mode for
clip list editing.
4. Click the Adjust Color button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window to switch to Adjust
Color mode. In this mode, Catalyst Prepare displays a waveform/histogram/vectorscope
monitor, a video preview, and color controls that you can use to adjust the appearance of your
video.
6. Click the Inspector button in the toolbar to display the Inspector pane if it isn't already
visible. In the Adjust Color workspace, the Inspector pane provides controls that you will use to
adjust color-grading settings.
The waveform/histogram/vectorscope monitor and video preview window allow you to monitor
your progress as you adjust color values. For more information, see "Editing Color Adjustments
controls" on page 127.

Previewing storyboards
When you double-click a storyboard in Organize mode, the storyboard is loaded in Edit mode, where you
can preview the file in the same way you preview other clips. For more information, see "Playing media"
on page 89.
You can select a clip to set the starting point for playback, and the clip selection will follow the cursor
during playback.
Exporting storyboards
When you select a storyboard in Organize mode, you can export the storyboard in one of three ways:
n You can render each of the storyboard's clips to a new format.
n You can render the storyboard as a single media file.
n You can export the storyboard as a project for use in another video editor.
For more information, see "Exporting media from a library" on page 24, "Exporting media from a library"
on page 24, or "Exporting media from a library" on page 24.
Using Catalyst Prepare storyboards in Catalyst Edit

Catalyst Edit provides native support for Catalyst Prepare storyboards:
1. In the Catalyst Edit Media Browser, double-click a .cpreplib file ( ). When you open a Catalyst
Prepare library, the Media Browser displays all the media contained in that library sorted in bins.
The default location for .cpreplib files is C:\Users\<username>\Videos\ on Windows

and /Users/<username>/Movies/ on macOS.
2. Drag a storyboard bin to the Catalyst Edit timeline to add it.
Viewing metadata for storyboards
Click the Inspector button in the toolbar to display metadata in the Inspector pane. The Inspector
pane displays information about the selected subclip.
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Renaming a storyboard
the center pane.
3. Click the Storyboard button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose
Rename from the menu.
4. Type a name for the storyboard and click OK.
Deleting a storyboard
the center pane.
3. Click the Storyboard button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose Delete
from the menu.
Working with EDLs

You can use Catalyst Prepare to import an EDL.
Importing an EDL
1. Click the Tools button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose Import
EDL. The Import EDL dialog is displayed.
2. Select the EDL you want to import.
3. Choose a setting from the Frames per second drop-down list to set the frame rate of the EDL.
4. Click Import. The EDL Import workspace is displayed with the contents of the EDL.
Linking and unlinking clips

After you import an EDL, you can use the EDL Import workspace to link and unlink clips.
To link your clips, select a clip, click the Link button (or double-click an unlinked clip's thumbnail)
and browse for the source media.

If other unlinked clips exist in the folder, they will be linked automatically. If you want to link
only the selected clip, clear the Automatically link clips check box.
To unlink a clip, select it and click the Unlink button . If you want to unlink all clips, click the
More button and choose Unlink all from the menu.
Replacing clips
You can use the Replace media command to replace a clip in an EDL with a different media file.
1. Select a clip in the EDL.
2. Click the More button and choose Replace media from the menu.
3. Browse to the new clip and click OK.
Catalog export
Catalyst Prepare can export a PDF or CSV (comma-separated value) list of clips in a folder.
The Generate PDF catalog and Generate CSV catalog commands are not available for clips on
FTP devices, XDCAM Station volumes via CIFS, XDCAM decks, XDCAM Drive units, or Optical Disc
Archive volumes.
Generating a PDF catalog

2. Select the folder or clips you want to catalog.
3. Perform either of the following actions to generate a catalog from the selected folder:
n
Click the Tools button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose
Generate PDF catalog from the menu.
n Right-click the folder and choose Generate PDF catalog from the shortcut menu.
The Export Catalog dialog is displayed.
4. In the Title box, type a title to identify your catalog. This title will be displayed at the top of the
generated catalog.
5. In the Description box, type a description of the catalog. The description will be displayed below
the title in the generated catalog and can help you identify the clips in the catalog.
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6. In the Export PDF to box. type the path to the folder where you want to save the generated
catalog, or click Browse to choose a folder.
7. Select a Layout radio button to choose the appearance of the catalog:
n Text with 1 thumbnail: Displays metadata text with a thumbnail of the first frame.
n Text with 3 thumbnails: Displays metadata text with thumbnails of the first, middle and
end frames.
The space below the radio buttons displays a sample of the selected layout.
8. In the Metadata list, select the check boxes for the metadata values you want to include in the
catalog.
Click the Tools button at the top of the Metadata list and choose Reset to default or Clear all
to clear the current selection.
9. Click Export to generate the catalog with the selected content.
Generating a CSV catalog

2. Select the folder or clips you want to catalog.
3. Perform either of the following actions to generate a catalog from the selected folder:
n
Click the Tools button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose
Generate CSV catalog from the menu.
n Right-click the folder and choose Generate CSV catalog from the shortcut menu.
The Export Catalog dialog is displayed.
4. Navigate to the folder where you want to save the CSV file and type a file name in the File name
box.
5. Click OK to generate the catalog with the selected content.
Combining relay clips

You can use Catalyst Prepare to combine AVCHD relay-recorded clips into a single clip.
A relay clip is a continuous recording that spans multiple media cards.
Before combining relay clips, copy them to a single folder. For more information, see "Exporting media
from a library" on page 24.

1. Select the clips you want to combine.
Clips must be of the same operating point and the timecode must be sequential.
2. Click the Tools button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose Combine
relay clips. The Combine Relay Clips dialog is displayed.
The Combine relay clips command is not available when FTP-based clips are selected.
3. In the Combined file name box, type the name you want to use for the new clip.
4. Click OK.
Synchronizing multicamera clips

You can use Catalyst Prepare to synchronize audio in clips from a multicamera shoot.
When you synchronize clips, the mark-in points of the selected clips are adjusted as needed to allow the
clips to play in synchronization. Synchronizing your clips in Catalyst Prepare streamlines the process of
editing multicamera video in a nonlinear editor.
1. Select the clips you want to synchronize.
2. Click the Tools button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose Synchronize
multicam clips.
Progress is displayed while the clips are analyzed and synchronized.
The Synchronize multicam clips command is not available when FTP-based clips are
selected.
Stabilizing clips
Catalyst Prepare allows you to use metadata from clips to stabilize the image.
2. Select the clip you want to stabilize. An on a thumbnail indicates a clip that contains
stabilization metadata.
The stabilize icon is not displayed for clips on FTP devices, XDCAM Station volumes via CIFS,
XDCAM decks, XDCAM Drive units, or Optical Disc Archive volumes.
118 CHAPTER 5
For information about camera settings for enabling stabilization using metadata, please see
Information on Software Applications.
Clip stabilization is not supported when changing camera settings or detaching the lens during
clip recording.
3. Perform any of the following actions to display the Correct clip workspace:
n
Click the Stabilize button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window.
n Right-click the clip in the Organize pane and choose Stabilize clip from the shortcut menu.
The Stabilize button is not available when multiple clips are selected.
When the Catalyst Prepare window is resized, the Adjust color , Lens breathing
compensation , and Stabilize clip buttons are available in the Adjustments menu
4. Use the Correct clip workspace to preview and adjust stabilization settings for the selected clip:
a. Set the Mark In/Out points to indicate the portion of the clip you want to correct. For more
information, see "Marking in and out points for playback" on page 96.
b. Choose a Stabilization mode setting:
o Select the Auto button in the Inspector to adjust stabilization automatically.
The graph below the preview helps you visualize the stabilization. Please note that
the graph is not displayed when multiple clips are selected.
n The curve (1) represents the amount of stabilization that is required based on
clip analysis.

n The solid line (2) represents the Auto cropping amount after analysis.
n The dashed line (3) represents the Maximum cropping amount setting.
Click the Graph button to customize the display of the graph:
n Turn on the Scale graph to clip switch to adjust the vertical scale of the
graph to match the current clip.
n When Scale graph to clip is off, you can drag the Graph scale slider
to set the vertical scale of the graph.
Item Description
Auto After the clip is analyzed, this indicator represents the amount of
cropping cropping that will be used to stabilize the clip.
amount
Maximum Drag the slider — or the dashed line (3) in the graph — to set the
cropping amount of cropping that can be applied to stabilize a clip.
amount
n If the automatic adjustment results in a clip that is larger
than the maximum cropping amount, the Maximum
cropping amount will be used.
n If the automatic adjustment results in a clip that is smaller

than the Maximum cropping amount setting, the
automatic adjustment results will be used.
This setting is persisted when changing the selected clip or exiting

the Correct clip workspace.
When stabilizing a clip using a Maximum cropping amount

setting that is too large, clips with significant camera shake
may exhibit a black border around the frame. We recommend
using a setting that is close to the default cropping size in
manual mode. To check the default manual cropping size,
click the Manual button or double-click the Cropping
amount slider handle to reset the setting to its default.
Source Displays the dimensions of the source media before cropping is

resolution applied.
Corrected Displays the dimensions of the stabilized frame after cropping is

crop applied.
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Item Description
resolution
Minimum Displays the minimum dimensions of the stabilized frame based on

crop the Maximum cropping amount setting.
resolution
If source clips captured with Active image stabilization mode exhibit blurring
when using Auto mode, choose Manual mode and decrease the Cropping
amount setting.
o Select the Manual button if you want to adjust stabilization settings:
The graph below the preview helps you visualize the stabilization. Please note that
the graph is not displayed when multiple clips are selected.
n The curve (1) represents the amount of stabilization that is required based on
clip analysis.
n The dashed line (2) represents the Cropping amount setting.
Click the Graph button to customize the display of the graph:
n Turn on the Scale graph to clip switch to adjust the vertical

scale of the graph to match the current clip.
n When Scale graph to clip is off, you can drag the Graph scale
slider to set the vertical scale of the graph.
Item Description
Cropping Drag the slider — or the line (2) in the graph — to set the amount
amount of cropping that is applied to stabilize a clip.
This setting is persisted when changing the selected clip.

Item Description
When stabilizing a clip using a Cropping amount setting

smaller than the default value, clips with significant camera
shake may exhibit a black border around the frame. We
recommend using a Cropping amount setting that is close to
the default value. You can double-click the slider handle to
reset the setting to its default.
Source Displays the dimensions of the source media before cropping is

resolution applied.
Corrected Displays the dimensions of the stabilized frame after cropping is

crop applied.
resolution
1. Click the Analyze button to analyze the selected clip and update the preview to show the stabilized
clip.
After analysis, the Summary section of the Info panel displays the corrected crop resolution.
If you change the selected clip, the preview will indicate that the clip has not been analyzed.
Click the Analyze button at the bottom of the workspace to analyze the selected clip and
update the preview to show the corrected clip.
2. Click the Before/After button at the top of the video preview to choose a preview mode so you can
compare your original and stabilized video before applying the changes, and then use the transport
controls above the timeline to preview the clip.
n Before: the clip is displayed in its original state.
n After: the cropped and stabilized clip is displayed.
n
2 Up: two full frames are displayed in a split-screen view with the original video on the
left and the stabilized video on the right.
3. To save a clip with the stabilization settings, click the Export button at the top of the Catalyst
Prepare window, and use the Export pane to choose a destination and format for your exported
files. Click the Export button at the bottom of the Export pane to start exporting the selected clip.
If multiple clips are selected, the Export button at the bottom of the Export pane is displayed as
Batch Export. Click to display a confirmation dialog that lists all selected clips. You can select or
clear check boxes to add or remove clips from the selection. Click OK to begin exporting the
selected clips using the current settings.
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For more information about the controls, please see "Exporting media from a library" on page 24.
Stitching clips
Catalyst Prepare allows you to use combine several clips to create a single clip.
3. Enable the Use advanced settings switch in the Export pane.
4. Select the Stitch clips check box to combine the selected clips into a single continuous clip. The
order of the clips in the new clip will match the order they are displayed in Organize or Edit mode.
If you want the new clip to include continuous timecode based on the source clips' timecode, select
the Use continuous timecode check box. Clip order will be adjusted as needed, and black frames
will be added between clips to ensure the timecode in the new clip is not interrupted.

Use continuous timecode is not available if the selected clips contain overlapping timecode,
if interlaced and progressive clips are selected, if clips with mixed frame sizes or frame rates are
selected, or if clips with drop and non-drop timecode are selected.
Use continuous timecode can change the order of the selected clips. For example, assume
you selected the following three clips:
n 1.mxf 00:00:10;00 - 00:00:20;00
n 2.mxf 00:00:40;00 - 00:00:50;00
n 3.mxf 00:00:30;00 - 00:00:40;00
When Use continuous timecode is not selected, the clips would be rendered in the following
order: 1.mxf, 2.mxf, 3.mxf.
When Use continuous timecode is selected, the clips would be rendered in the following
order: 1.mxf, 10 seconds of black frames, 3.mxf, 2.mxf.
Use the controls in the Export pane to choose a destination and format for your exported file. For
more information about the controls, please see "Exporting media from a library" on page 24.
Repairing flash bands

When a camera flash is fired, it can create a band of light in your video.
Catalyst Prepare can detect and remove flash bands.
2. Select the clip you want to repair.
3. Click the Tools button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose Repair flash
bands. The Flash Band workspace is displayed.
4. Use the Flash Band workspace to identify the flash bands you want to repair:
a. Set the Mark In/Out points to indicate the portion of the clip you want to scan. For more
information, see "Marking in and out points for playback" on page 96.
b. Click the Detect button to scan the clip and mark flash bands automatically. A marker
is added to the timeline, and an entry is created in the Inspector.
124 CHAPTER 5
Automatic flash band detection is available only for MXF clips. To mark a flash band
manually, click the trackbar below the transport controls to set the play position
indicator and click the Add button in the Inspector.
Please note that automatic and manual flash-band repair can yield different results.
To remove a flash band marker, select it in the Inspector and click the Delete button
Click the Before/After button in the top-right corner of the video preview to choose a preview mode
so you can compare your original and repaired video before applying the changes.
n Before: full-frame video is displayed in its original state.
n After: full-frame video is displayed in its repaired state.
1. Click Repair. The transcode dialog is displayed to allow you to choose settings for the repaired file.

126 CHAPTER 5
Chapter 6
Applying color correction

If you've used multiple cameras within a project or if the lighting varies between shots, the resulting clips
can look noticeably different. You can use color correction to minimize the differences or to apply an artistic
look to your clips.
Color-correction settings are stored with each clip in the library and do not affect your source media.
When no library is opened, color adjustments are applied globally to all clips for previewing. If you
want to save your color-correction settings, you can transcode clips to create new files. For more
information, see "Exporting media from a library" on page 24.
Color adjustments to clip lists or spanned clips are not available when a library is open. For more
information, see "Working with libraries" on page 9.
Editing Color Adjustments controls

You can use the Color Adjustments controls in the Inspector to perform color grading for individual clips
in your library.
After you edit a clip's color adjustments, those settings will be loaded each time you load the clip.
Loading a clip/clip list for color adjustments and configuring the waveform, his-
togram, and vectorscope monitors
2. Perform any of the following actions to display the Adjust color workspace:
n
Select a clip in the Organize pane, and click the Adjust color button at the bottom of
the Catalyst Prepare window.
When the Catalyst Prepare window is resized, the Adjust color , Correct lens
breathing , and Stabilize clip buttons are available in the Adjustments
menu .
APPLYING COLOR CORRECTION 127

n Right-click the image in the Organize pane and choose Adjust color from the shortcut
menu.
n Double-click a clip in the Media Browser to load the clip in Edit mode. When you load a clip,
the color adjustments saved with the clip are loaded. Click the Adjust Color button at the
bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window.
In the Adjust Color workspace, Catalyst Prepare displays a waveform/histogram/vectorscope

monitor, a video preview, and color controls that you can use to adjust the appearance of
your video.
3. The waveform/histogram/vectorscope monitor and video preview window allow you to monitor
your adjustments as you edit color values.
The Preview color space setting in Options is also applied to the waveform, histogram, and
vectorscope so you can to check your video using scopes. For more information, see "Editing
Catalyst Prepare options" on page 163.
n
Click the Waveform button at the bottom of the window to toggle the waveform
monitor.
The waveform monitor displays the luminance values (brightness or Y component) of your
video signal. The monitor plots luminance values on the vertical axis and the width of the
current frame on the horizontal axis.
You can use the buttons at the top of the waveform monitor to display overlaid ( ) or
separate ( ) RGB waveforms and isolate colors .
Waveform settings
Click the Settings button to open the Waveform Settings menu. You can use the
Waveform Settings menu to change the scale of the waveform monitor and enable
AIR matching when grading HDR clips.
128 CHAPTER 6
The Settings button is available only when the Working color space drop-down
is set to Rec-2020/S-Log3 (HDR) and the Preview color space drop-down is set to
Rec.2020/S-Log3, Rec.2020/HLG, Rec.2020/HLG AIR Matching, Rec.2020/HLG
(bypass OOTF), Rec.2020/PQ, Rec.2020/PQ AIR Matching, or Rec.2020/PQ
(bypass OOTF).
For more information, see "Color management settings" on page 165 or "Editing
Catalyst Prepare options" on page 163.
You can click the % or Nits button to change the units displayed in the waveform.
When the Preview color space is set to Rec.2020/HLG, Rec.2020/HLG AIR

Matching, or Rec.2020/HLG (bypass OOTF), the Nits value is calculated for a peak
luminance of 1000 cd/m2.
When the Preview color space drop-down is set to Rec.2020/S-Log3, you can use the
AIR Matching switch to toggle AIR (Artistic Intent Rendering) matching to achieve a
consistent look between Rec.2020/S-Log3-based grading and a configured HLG (hybrid log-
gamma) or PQ (perceptual quantizer) monitor.
The AIR Matching switch is automatically turned on when the Preview color space
drop-down is set to Rec.2020/HLG AIR Matching or Rec.2020/PQ AIR Matching.
n
Click the Histogram button at the bottom of the window to toggle the histogram
monitor.
The histogram monitor displays the number of pixels that exist for each color intensity. The
vertical axis represents the number of pixels, and the horizontal axis represents the RGB color
range from 0 to 255.
You can use the buttons at the top of the histogram monitor to display overlaid ( ) or
separate ( ) RGB histograms and isolate colors .
n
Click the Vectorscope button at the bottom of the window to toggle the vectorscope
monitor.
The vectorscope monitor allows you to monitor the chroma values (color content) of your
video signal. The monitor plots hue and saturation on a color wheel.
The vectorscope displays targets for broadcast-legal saturations of red (R), magenta (Mg),
blue (B), cyan (Cy), green (G), and yellow (Yl). Individual colors in your video signal are
displayed as dots in the vectorscope. A dot's distance from the center of the scope

represents its saturation, and the angle of the line from the dot to the center of the scope
represents its hue.
For example, if an image has a blue cast, the distribution of dots in the vectorscope will be
concentrated toward the blue portion of the color wheel. If the image includes out-of-range
blue values, the vectorscope display will extend beyond the blue target.
You can use the vectorscope to calibrate color between scenes. Without calibration, you may
see noticeable color differences between scenes from multicamera shoots.
Click the Settings button to open the Vectorscope Settings menu.
The Vectorscope Settings menu allows you to toggle a monochrome view of the scope,
change the scale of the scope, adjust the brightness of the colors displayed in the scope, and
adjust the brightness of the scope's guide (graticule).
Use the 75% Scale setting when your source media uses 75% color bars, or use the
100% setting your source media uses 100% color bars.
n The video preview window displays the current frame at the playback position indicator.
Click the Preview button in the top-right corner of the video preview to choose a preview mode.
Split-screen previews allow you to split the video preview and waveform/histogram/vectorscope
monitor so you can see your affected and unaffected video at the same time.
n
Before: full-frame video is displayed in its original state.
n
After: full-frame video is displayed in its color-corrected state.
n
Split: a single frame is displayed in a split-screen view with the original video on the left
130 CHAPTER 6
If you want to move the split location, hover over the preview frame. When the split
point is displayed, you can drag the handles at the top of bottom of the screen to
adjust where the preview is split:
n
2 Up: two full frames are displayed in a split-screen view with the original video on the
left and the color-corrected video on the right.
Adjusting the color wheels

In the Adjust Color workspace, the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window provides color wheels for Lift,
Gamma, and Gain. The wheels provide a visual representation of the current adjustments and allow you
to adjust color quickly. As you adjust the controls, the waveform/histogram/vectorscope monitor and
video preview will update in real time to allow you to check your adjustments.
The color wheels are used to edit ASC-CDL (American Society of Cinematographers Color Decision List)
parameters.
Click the Wheels button to show or hide the color wheels.
Drag the point in the center of the color wheel to pick the hue and saturation you want to add to the
video, or drag the slider on the side of the color wheel to increase luminance for all RGB components
simultaneously. You can double-click the point to reset the color wheel or double-click the slider handle
to reset the luminance.
You can also adjust color wheels with a Tangent control. For more information, see "Using a Tangent
control" on page 141.

When you drag the color correction controls, they move in fine increments. To move controls in
larger increments, hold Shift while dragging.
132 CHAPTER 6
Choosing a color space
Click the Inspector button in the toolbar to display the Inspector pane if it isn't already visible. In
the Adjust Color workspace, the Color Space section in the Inspector pane provides color space controls
that you can use to choose the source and conversion color spaces.
If the selected color space is not compatible with the source color space and cannot be exported, a
warning is displayed to notify you.
Choosing a source color space
Click the Unlock button and choose a setting from the Source drop-down list to choose the
color space that should be applied to the source media. When you choose a setting, the video
preview is updated. The source color space should be detected automatically and does not need to
be changed in most cases.
The Unlock button is not used when editing RAW or X-OCN video.
Click the Reset button at the bottom of the Inspector pane to reset the Source color
space based on the clip's metadata or the selected SR Live metadata source. For more
information, see "SR Live for HDR settings" on page 168.
Converting between HDR/wide color gamut color spaces
When an HDR or wide color gamut color space is selected in the Source drop-down list, you can
choose a different HDR/WCG color space from the Convert to drop-down list to apply grading in the
selected color space or apply a look profile that is available in the selected color space.
You can also convert HDR/WCG clips to Rec.709 by choosing Convert to > 709(800). The 709
(800) setting applies a 1D curve. If you want to use a 3D LUT to convert HDR/WCG clips, you can
apply a look profile.
The Convert to drop-down is available only when the Working color space setting is
Rec.709, Log, or ACES and you're working with S-Gamut, RAW, and X-OCN source media.
For more information, see "Applying a look profile" on page 136, "Grading with hypergamma
conversion" on page 144,or "Applying color correction" on page 147.

Viewing the working color space
The Working box displays the color space that will be used for color grading. Click the Options
button and choose a setting from the Working color space drop-down list to change the setting.
Viewing the color space for the video preview
The Preview box displays the color space that will be used for the Catalyst Prepare video preview
window. Click the Options button and choose a setting from the Preview color space drop-
down list to change the setting.
Viewing the color space for the external monitor
If an external monitor is enabled, the External monitor box displays the color space that will be
used for the external monitor. Click the Options button and choose a setting from the
External monitor color space drop-down list to change the setting.
If a second external monitor is connected, it will use the Preview color space.
Adjusting exposure, temperature, and tint
the Adjust Color workspace, the Source Settings section in the Inspector pane provides the Exposure,
Temperature, and Tint sliders to adjust the color content of your clip.
Exposure, temperature, and tint are not available for all color spaces.
Exposure Index (EI)
When clip with a supported source color space is selected, the EI mode controls are displayed. Click an
EI mode button to choose how you want to apply exposure index settings:
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Files that include EI metadata display the EI on the File tab of the Inspector pane.
Mode Description
Metadata Choose Metadata to automatically apply exposure metadata based on camera

settings. The Exposure bar (1) and EI indicator (2) display the EI value.
This mode is selected by default when you choose a clip with EI metadata.
The ISO and EI values display the current frame values when playback is
stopped.
Manual Choose Manual to adjust exposure manually.
This mode is selected by default when you choose an HDR clip that does not
include supported EI metadata.
The Exposure slider (1) will show the EI metadata value of the current frame as a
black line, and an EI indicator (2) is displayed below the current value.
Drag the slider to adjust the overall brightness of your video (a fixed value is
applied to all frames).
Off Choose Off to turn off exposure adjustment. The adjustment slider and exposure
values are not displayed, and the original sensitivity is used.
Temperature
Drag the Temperature slider to adjust the color temperature (in Kelvin) of your video. Adjusting the
temperature modifies the red and blue gain by adding an offset to the temperature setting saved in a
clip's metadata.
If your camera does not store color temperature metadata, Catalyst Prepare will use a default
setting of 3200K.

Tint
Drag the Tint slider to adjust color balance of your video. Adjusting the tint allows you to modify the
magenta and green gain to supplement the color temperature.
Double-click a control to reset its value.
Applying a look profile

You can use the Look controls to apply a look profile/LUT to an HDR clip when the Working color
space setting is Rec.709 or Log.
the Adjust Color workspace, the Look section in the Inspector pane contains controls to apply a
LUT automatically based on metadata, manually, or to turn off LUT processing.
For information about adding custom look profiles, see Manual mode in the following table.
Click a LUT mode button to choose how you want to apply a look:
Mode Description
Metadata Choose Metadata to automatically apply LUT metadata based on camera settings.
The Embedded LUT box displays the LUT metadata.
This mode is only available for clips with supported embedded metadata and is
selected by default when you choose a clip with LUT metadata.
Files that include LUT metadata display a badge in the Organize pane and
display the LUT on the File tab of the Inspector pane.
Manual Choose Manual to choose LUT settings manually:
n Convert to: Choose a setting from the drop-down list to convert the clip to a
different color space.
n Look profile: When Convert to is set to an HDR color space — such as S-

Gamut3.Cine/S-Log3, S-Gamut3/S-Log3, Rec.2020/S-Log3,
Rec.2020/HLG, Rec.2020/PQ, or Rec.709/HLG — you can choose the look
profile you want to apply.
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Mode Description
To add look profiles (including .cube files) to Catalyst Prepare, save them
in the following folder and then close and restart the application:
Windows:
C:\Users\<user>\Documents\Sony\Catalyst\Color\Looks\
macOS:
/Users/<user>/Documents/Sony/Catalyst/Color/Looks/
o The sgamut-slog2 subfolder is used for S-Gamut/S-Log2 sources.
o The sgamut3cine-slog3 subfolder is used for S-Gamut3.Cine/S-

Log3 sources or Convert to choices.
o The sgamut3-slog3 subfolder is used for S-Gamut3/S-Log3

sources or Convert to choices.
o The rec709-hlg subfolder is used for Rec.709/HLG sources.
o The rec2020-hlg subfolder is used for Rec.2020/HLG sources.
o The rec2020-pq subfolder is used for Rec.2020/PQ sources.
o The rec2020-slog3 subfolder is used for Rec.2020/S-Log3

sources.
If you want to set a default look profile to be applied when no look profile
is specified in a clip's metadata, click the Manual button, choose a setting
from the Look profile drop-down list, click the Look Tools button in
the LOOK heading, and choose Make default.
To replace the clip's current look profile with the default, click the Manual
button, click the Look Tools button , and choose Reset to default.
Off Choose Off to turn off Look settings.
Click the Reset button at the bottom of the Inspector pane to reset the Look profile based
on the clip's metadata.
Adjusting the tone curve
the Adjust Color workspace, the Tone Curve section in the Inspector pane contains a color curve you can

use to adjust the red, green, and blue channels graphically. As you adjust the controls, the
waveform/histogram/vectorscope monitor and video preview will update in real time to allow you to
check your adjustments.
n Select the channel you want to adjust by clicking the Red, Green, or Blue button below the color
curve , or click the White button to adjust all RGB components simultaneously.
n Click the curve to add a control point.
n Select a control point and drag it to adjust it.
n As you adjust the controls, the waveform/histogram/vectorscope monitor and video preview will
update in real time to allow you to check your adjustments. Click Delete Point to remove the
selected control point.
n
Click the Reset button at the bottom of the Inspector pane to remove all control points.
Adjusting the color correction sliders
the Adjust Color workspace, the Color Correction section in the Inspector pane provides Brightness,
Contrast, Saturation, Lift, Gamma, and Gain sliders you can use to adjust video levels. As you adjust
the controls, the waveform/histogram/vectorscope monitor and video preview will update in real time to
allow you to check your adjustments.
The sliders are used to edit ASC-CDL (American Society of Cinematographers Color Decision List)
parameters.
For precise control, you can hold Ctrl (Windows) or ⌘ (macOS) while dragging or click the numeric
value to type a new value.
Drag the Brightness slider to adjust the overall lightness of your video.
Drag the Contrast slider to adjust the overall contrast of your video.
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Brightness and contrast are not saved explicitly with ASC-CDL files. When exporting an ASC-
CDL file, the Brightness and Contrast settings are incorporated with the other color-correction
values. When you reload an exported ASC-CDL file, the Brightness and Contrast settings will be
set to 0.
When exchanging color settings with Catalyst Browse and Catalyst Prepare, click the Tools button
at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose Save preset from the menu to
preserve Brightness and Contrast settings.
For more information, see "Exporting color-correction settings" on page 156 and "Applying color
correction" on page 139.
Drag the Saturation slider to adjust the overall intensity of the color in your video.
To adjust lift, gamma, and gain, drag the R, G, B sliders to adjust the red, green, and blue components
of the each parameter, or drag the Y slider to adjust luminance for all RGB components simultaneously.
Double-click a control to reset its value.
Click the Undo and Redo buttons to step forward or backward through your recent edits.
Click the Reset button at the bottom of the Inspector pane to reset all color correction.
Applying color-correction settings
You can use the Tools button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window to load color presets or
ASC-CDL (American Society of Cinematographers Color Decision List) files to exchange color-grading
information.
Applying a color preset

Color presets include the source settings (exposure, temperature, and tint), look profile, tone curve, and
ASC-CDL settings. For more information, see "Editing Color Adjustments controls" on page 127.
2. Double-click a clip in the Media Browser to load the clip you want to edit. When you load a clip, the
color-correction settings saved with the clip are loaded.
If you want to apply color correction to multiple clips, select the clips, click the Tools button
at the bottom-left of the Catalyst Prepare window, and choose Apply color preset from
the menu.

The Apply color preset command is not available when a clip list or spanned clip ( ) is
selected.
3. Click the Adjust Color button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window.
4. Click the Inspector button in the toolbar to display the Inspector pane if it isn't already visible.
5. Click the Tools button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose Load preset
from the menu.
6. In the Load Preset dialog, choose a Catalyst color (.ccolor) file.
Presets are saved in the following folders by default:
Windows: C:\Users\<user>\Documents\Sony\Catalyst\Color\
macOS: /Users/<user>/Documents/Sony/Catalyst/Color
7. Click Load.
The selected color settings are loaded and applied to the current clip.
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Applying an ASC-CDL file
If you want to apply color correction to multiple clips, select the clips, click the Tools button
at the bottom-left of the Catalyst Prepare window, and choose Apply ASC-CDL from
the menu.
The Apply ASC-CDL command is not available when a clip list or spanned clip ( ) is
selected.
5. Click the Tools button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose Load ASC-
CDL from the menu.
6. In the Load ASC-CDL dialog, choose a *.cdl file.
7. Click Load.
The selected color settings are loaded and applied to the current clip.
Using a Tangent control

You can use Tangent Element Tk, Kb, Bt, Mf, Vs, or Tangent Wave control panels to adjust color circles and
other parameters.
Tangent Element panels must be connected to your computer via USB. When using Tangent Element-
Vs on a tablet, your tablet and the computer running Catalyst Prepare must be connected to the same
network.
To enable control, Tangent Hub must be installed on the computer.
For more information about using and configuring Tangent hardware and software, please refer to the
Tangent documentation.
For information about control mappings, please see the control's display or use the Tangent Mapper
application.

Video-style (Rec.709) color grading
Use the following workflow when adjusting color grading for video sources.
Grading with Rec.709 gamma

Color correction is available only in Edit mode.
3. Click the Adjust Color button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window. In this mode, Catalyst
Prepare displays a waveform/histogram/vectorscope monitor, a video preview, and color controls
that you can use to adjust the appearance of your video.
In the Adjust Color workspace, the Inspector pane provides controls that you will use to adjust color-
grading settings.
5. The Source drop-down list displays the color space that is applied to your source media. Click the
Unlock button and choose a setting from the Source drop-down list to choose the color space
that should be applied to the source media. When you choose a setting, the video preview is
updated.
The source color space should be detected automatically and does not need to be changed in
most cases.
n Choose S-Gamut/S-Log2 for S-Log2, RAW, or X-OCN sources.
n Choose S-Gamut3.Cine/S-Log3 or S-Gamut3/S-Log3 for S-Log3, RAW, or X-OCN

sources.
6. The Working box displays the color space that should be applied to color grading adjustments. Click
the Options button and choose Rec.709 from the Working color space drop-down list to
change the setting if necessary.
7. If your source video is set to S-Gamut/S-Log2, S-Gamut3.Cine/S-Log3, S-Gamut3/S-Log3,

Rec.2020/S-Log3, Rec.2020/HLG, or Rec.2020/PQ, you can use the Source Settings controls to
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adjust the Exposure, Temperature, and Tint of your clip. For more information, see "Editing Color
Adjustments controls" on page 127.
8. You can use the Look controls to convert an HDR clip to Rec.709 (full). For more information, see
"Applying a look profile" on page 136.
9. Use the color wheels and controls in the Inspector pane to adjust your colors as needed. For more
information, see "Editing Color Adjustments controls" on page 127.
10. Click the Tools button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose Export color
settings from the menu if you want to export your settings as a 3D LUT file.
3D LUT export is available only when the Source drop-down list is set to an S-Log, RAW, or X-
OCN format.

Grading with hypergamma conversion
grading settings.
updated.
The source color space should be detected automatically and does not need to be changed in
most cases.

sources.
the Options button and choose Rec.709 from the Working color space drop-down list to
7. You can use the Look controls to choose conversion settings to 709(800), HG8009G33, or
HG8009G40. For more information, see "Applying a look profile" on page 136.
8. If your source video is set to S-Gamut/S-Log2, S-Gamut3.Cine/S-Log3, S-Gamut3/S-Log3,

Rec.2020/S-Log3, Rec.2020/HLG, or Rec.2020/PQ, you can use the Source Settings controls to
144 CHAPTER 6
adjust the Exposure, Temperature, and Tint of your clip. For more information, see "Editing Color
Adjustments controls" on page 127.
settings from the menu if you want to export your settings as a 3D LUT file. For more information,
see "Exporting color-correction settings" on page 156.
Log (cinematic) color grading

Use the following workflow when adjusting color grading for Log sources.
grading settings.
updated.


sources.
the Options button and choose Log from the Working color space drop-down list to change
the setting if necessary.
7. If your source video is set to S-Gamut/S-Log2, S-Gamut3.Cine/S-Log3, or S-Gamut3/S-Log3,

you can use the Source Settings controls to adjust the Exposure, Temperature, and Tint of your
clip. For more information, see "Editing Color Adjustments controls" on page 127.
9. You can use the Look controls to convert an HDR clip to Rec.709 (full). For more information, see
"Applying a look profile" on page 136.
settings from the menu if you want to export your settings as a 3D LUT file. For more information,
see "Exporting color-correction settings" on page 156.
Advanced cinematic (ACES) color grading

Use the following workflow when adjusting color grading in the Academy Color Encoding System (ACES)
color space.
146 CHAPTER 6
grading settings.
updated.

sources.
6. The Working box displays the color space that should be applied to color grading adjustments.
Click the Options button and choose ACES from the Working color space drop-down list to
7. If your source video is set to S-Gamut/S-Log2, S-Gamut3.Cine/S-Log3, or S-Gamut3/S-Log3,

you can use the Source Settings controls to adjust the Exposure, Temperature, and Tint of your
clip. For more information, see "Editing Color Adjustments controls" on page 127.
Output will be Rec.709 (full).
For more information, see "Exporting color-correction settings" on page 156.
High Dynamic Range (HDR) color grading

Use the following workflow to adjust color grading in the Rec.2020/S-Log3 color space and then convert to
high dynamic range (Rec.2020/S-Log3, Rec.2020/HLG, or Rec.2020/PQ) or standard dynamic range
(Rec.2020 or Rec.709) color spaces for distribution.
1. Adjust Catalyst Prepare options for HDR color grading:
a. Click the Options button .
b. From the Working color space drop-down list, choose Rec.2020/S-Log3 (HDR).

When you choose Rec.2020/S-Log3 from the Working color space drop-down list, the
SR Live for HDR controls are displayed to allow you to convert between standard- and high-
dynamic-range content:
SR Live metadata source
Choose a setting from the SR Live metadata source drop-down list to choose how SR Live
metedata processing is performed:
o When SR Live metadata source is set to None and Adjust SR Live settings
manually is off, no SR Live processing is performed.
o When SR Live metadata source is set to None and Adjust SR Live settings
manually is on, SR Live processing is performed only for the visible controls.
o When SR Live metadata source is set to Clip and Adjust SR Live settings
manually is off, metadata settings from the current clip are used when converting
between standard- and high-dynamic-range content.
o When SR Live metadata source is set to Clip and Adjust SR Live settings
manually is on, metadata settings from the current clip and manual control settings
are used when converting between standard- and high-dynamic-range content. For
more information, see "Adjust SR Live settings manually" on page 149.
o When SR Live metadata source is set to External file and Adjust SR Live
settings manually is off, metadata settings from an external .srm file are used when
converting between standard- and high-dynamic-range content.
o When SR Live metadata source is set to External file and Adjust SR Live
settings manually is on, metadata settings from an external .srm file and manual
control settings are used when converting between standard- and high-dynamic-
range content. For more information, see "Adjust SR Live settings manually" on page
149.
When SR Live metadata source is set to Clip or External file, Catalyst

Prepare uses recommended SR Live values for clips generated by Sony devices
even if SR Live metadata values are not present in the clip.
When SR Live metadata source is set to External file, the selected file's
values are used as SR Live default values.
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Adjust SR Live settings manually
Enable the Adjust SR Live settings manually switch to enable the SDR gain, SDR knee,
and Black adjustment switches to manually control settings for converting between
standard- and high-dynamic-range content.
When SR Live metadata source is set to Clip or External file and Adjust SR Live
settings manually is on, clip metadata and manual control settings are used for conversion.
Click the Load button to load settings from the selected clip and set the SDR gain,
SDR knee, and Black adjustment controls to match the clip settings. You can then fine-
tune the settings manually, and the manual adjustments will be used for conversion.
You can double-click a control to reset it to the default value. When SR Live metadata
source is set to External file, the selected file's values are used as SR Live default
values.
SR Live settings are applied in the following cases:
o When exporting Rec.2020/S-Log3, S-Gamut3/S-Log3, S-Gamut3.Cine/S-Log3, or

Sony RAW/X-OCN source clips to Rec.2020/S-Log3, Rec.2020/HLG, Rec.2020/PQ, or
SDR formats when the Output color space drop-down is set to Same as preview
or Same as external monitor.
o When exporting Rec.2020/HLG clips to Rec.2020/HLG or SDR formats when the

Output color space drop-down is set to Same as preview or Same as external
monitor.
o When exporting Rec.2020/PQ clips to Rec.2020/PQ or SDR formats when the Output
color space drop-down is set to Same as preview or Same as external monitor.
o When exporting SDR clips to Rec.2020/S-Log3, Rec.2020/HLG, Rec.2020/PQ, or SDR

formats when the Output color space drop-down is set to Same as preview or
Same as external monitor.
When Use SR Live metadata is off and Adjust SR Live settings manually is off,
color management uses default settings, and no SR Live processing is performed.
When Output color space is set to Rec.2020/HLG AIR Matching, Rec.2020/HLG

(bypass OOTF), Rec.2020/PQ AIR Matching, or Rec.2020/PQ (bypass OOTF) in
Options, no SR Live processing is performed.

Conversion mode
When External file is selected in the SR Live metadata source drop-down list, the
Conversion mode section displays conversion settings for the selected external .srm file:
o Conversion mode displays the file's HDR/SDR conversion mode.
o HDR look displays the file's look setting for source HDR content.
o HDR black compression indicates whether black compression is enabled to

improve the appearance of low-luminance levels.
SDR gain
When the switch is enabled, you can drag the Gain slider to choose the gain that is applied
when reading SDR content or when exporting to an SDR format or displaying on an SDR
display.
For example, if you set the slider to -6.0 dB, a linear gain of +6.0 dB (2.0x) is applied when
reading SDR content, and a linear gain of -6.0 dB (0.5x) is applied when exporting to an SDR
format or displaying on an SDR display.
Black adjustment
Enable the Black adjustment switch to adjust black levels:
o Drag the Master black slider to adjust the master black level.
o Drag the HDR black offset slider to apply an offset to the Master black value for
HDR content.
The Master black and HDR black offset values should match the settings on
the HDRC-4000 HDR Production Converter Unit.
On the HDRC-4000, the SETTING MODE should be set to

SONY SYSTEM CAMERA, and the ABS mode should be set to enabled.
Gamma settings
When External file is selected in the SR Live metadata source drop-down list, the Gamma
section displays gamma settings for the selected external .srm file:
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o Table displays the file's gamma table.
When a hypergamma value is selected, you must adjust the SDR gain value
manually:
n Hyper 1: Increase SDR gain by 5.0 dB. For example, if your clip's original
SDR gain value is -6.0 dB, you will need to increase SDR gain by 5.0 dB for an
SDR gain value of -1.0 dB.
SDR gain value of 2.0 dB.
SDR gain value of -3.0 dB.
SDR gain value of 0.0 dB.
o Step indicates the gamma strength in steps (0.35 to 0.90).
o Level indicates the gamma strength in analog values from -100 to 100.
SDR knee
Select the SDR knee switch to apply a knee curve to the RGB output gain when exporting
HDR content to an SDR format or displaying on an SDR display. While the SDR gain setting
applies a linear gain, a knee curve can help preserve midrange colors and highlights.
When using knee parameters on the Sony HDRC-4000 HDR Production Converter Unit,
please enable ABS mode and confirm the R, G, B values in the HDRC-4000. Adjust the
values in Catalyst Prepare to match. Using different R, G, B values is not supported.
o Drag the Point slider to adjust the position of the knee point in the curve.
o Drag the Slope slider to adjust the slope of the curve above the knee point.
o To adjust the color intensity in the output image, select the SDR knee saturation
switch and drag the Level slider. Increasing the saturation can help compensate for
decreased saturation around the knee curve.

White clip
When External file is selected in the SR Live metadata source drop-down list, the White
clip section displays the white clip settings for the selected external .srm file:
White clip indicates whether the white clip level is used when exporting HDR content to an
SDR format or displaying on an SDR display.
Level indicates the white clip level: 0 is the default setting; lower settings decrease the white
clip level, and higher settings increase the clip level.
The File tab in the Inspector displays the SDR White Clip and SDR White Clip Level
settings for the selected clip.
HDR knee
When External file is selected in the SR Live metadata source drop-down list, the
HDR knee section displays information about the HDR knee curve for the selected external
.srm file. The HDR knee curve is applied to the luminance (Y) when exporting HDR content to
an SDR format or displaying on an SDR display. The HDR knee value adjusts brightness to
conform to SDR output.
When using knee parameters on the Sony HDRC-4000 HDR Production Converter Unit,
please enable ABS mode and confirm the R, G, B values in the HDRC-4000. Adjust the
values in Catalyst Prepare to match. Using different R, G, B values is not supported.
o Point indicates the position of the knee point in the curve.
o Slope indicates the slope of the curve above the knee point.
152 CHAPTER 6
c. From the Preview color space drop-down list, choose the color space for the Catalyst
Prepare video preview window.
In most cases, choose Rec.709 for your computer monitor, or you can choose other settings
to check your video using scopes. For more information, see "Loading a clip/clip list for color
adjustments and configuring the waveform, histogram, and vectorscope monitors" on page
127.
d. From the External monitor color space drop-down list, choose the setting that matches
the EOTF (electro-optical transfer function) setting on your external monitor.

You can use the AIR Matching (Artistic Intent Rendering) or bypass OOTF settings to
achieve a consistent look between external-monitor previews and rendered clips.
Using AIR Matching to monitor using the S-Log3 (Live HDR) EOTF
Sony BVM-X300 version 2.0 monitor settings:
o Color Space: ITU-R BT.2020
o EOTF: S-Log3 (Live HDR)
o Transfer Matrix: ITU-R BT.2020
o In the Catalyst Prepare Options menu, choose Rec.2020/S-Log3 from the

External monitor color space drop-down list.
Content mastered using these settings and rendered to HLG or PQ with

AIR Matching should have the same look on HLG or PQ monitors or televisions.
Using bypass OOTF to monitor using the S-Log3 (HDR) EOTF
o Color Space: ITU-R BT.2020
o EOTF: S-Log3 (HDR)
o Transfer Matrix: ITU-R BT.2020
o In the Catalyst Prepare Options menu, choose Rec.2020/S-Log3 from the

External monitor color space drop-down list.
Content mastered using these settings and rendered to HLG or PQ with bypass
OOTF should have the same look on HLG or PQ monitors or televisions.
Converting HDR media to SDR color spaces
When converting HDR media to standard dynamic range color spaces, use the
following settings to preserve your Rec.2020/S-Log3 grading (the dynamic range of the
HDR color space will be clamped to the BT.709 gamma curve):
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o In Options, set the Working color space to Rec.2020/S-Log3 (HDR).
o In Options, enable the SDR gain and SDR knee switches and adjust the
controls to choose the gain and knee curve that will be applied when exporting
to an SDR format or displaying on an SDR display.
o In Options, set the Preview color space for the video preview to Rec.709 or
Rec.2020.
When converting HDR media to standard dynamic range color spaces, use the
following settings to preserve more of the dynamic range of the original HDR media:
o In Options, set the Working color space to Rec.709.
o In the Inspector, set the Convert to color space to 709(800), HG8009G33, or

HG8009G40.
e. From the External monitor device drop-down list, choose the device where you've
connected a monitor that supports the Rec.2020 color gamut and an HDR luminance curve,
such as the Sony BVM-X300.
f. From the Monitor resolution drop-down list, choose the appropriate resolution for your
external monitor.
grading settings.

For more information, see "Exporting color-correction settings" on page 156.
Exporting color-correction settings

You can use the Tools button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window to export color-correction
settings to cameras for on-set monitoring or to a nonlinear editor (NLE) for color grading.
Saving a color preset

Color presets include the source settings (exposure, temperature, and tint), look profile, tone curve, and
ASC-CDL settings. For more information, see "Editing Color Adjustments controls" on page 127.
5. Click the Tools button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose Save preset
from the menu.
6. In the Save Preset dialog, type a file name to identify your Catalyst color (.ccolor) file.
Presets are saved in the following folders by default:
Windows: C:\Users\<user>\Documents\Sony\Catalyst\Color\
macOS: /Users/<user>/Documents/Sony/Catalyst/Color
7. Click OK.
156 CHAPTER 6
Exporting an ASC-CDL file
4. Click the Inspector button in the toolbar to display the Inspector pane if it isn't already visible
and adjust your color settings as needed. For more information, see "Editing Color Adjustments
Saturation and color wheel/slider settings are saved with ASC-CDL files. Tone curve settings are
not saved.
Brightness and contrast are not saved explicitly with ASC-CDL files. When exporting an ASC-
CDL file, the Brightness and Contrast settings are incorporated with the other color-
correction values. When you reload an exported ASC-CDL file, the Brightness and Contrast
settings will be set to 0.
When exchanging color settings with Catalyst Browse and Catalyst Prepare, click the Tools
button at the bottom of the Catalyst Prepare window and choose Save preset from the
menu to preserve Brightness and Contrast settings.
For more information, see "Exporting color-correction settings" on page 156 and "Applying
color correction" on page 139.
settings from the menu.
6. Use the Export As dialog box to specify the folder, file name, and settings you want to export:
a. Use the browser to select the folder where you want to save your file.
b. In the File name box, type the path and file name you want to save your color-correction
settings.
c. Choose ASC-CDL from the Format drop-down list.
7. Click Export.

Exporting a 3D LUT
When the Working color space in Options is set to Rec.2020/S-Log3 (HDR), you can export a 3D
LUT (look-up table) to capture your color settings — including the application of SR Live metadata —
that can be applied in nonlinear editing software or a hardware LUT box.
4. Click the Inspector button in the toolbar to display the Inspector pane if it isn't already visible
and adjust your color settings as needed. For more information, see "Editing Color Adjustments
settings from the menu.
6. Use the Export As dialog box to specify the folder, file name, and settings you want to export:
a. Use the browser to select the folder where you want to save your file.
b. In the File name box, type the file name you want to use to save your 3D LUT.
When SR Live metadata source is set to External file in Options, the base name of
the selected SRM file is provided by default. For more information, see "SR Live for HDR
settings" on page 168.
c. Choose a setting from the Format drop-down list to choose the type of 3D LUT you want to
create:
o Choose 3D LUT (NLE .cube) to create a 3D LUT you can use with an NLE such as
Blackmagic Design DaVinci Resolve or Adobe Premiere Pro.
For more information, see "Applying a 3D LUT in Adobe Premiere Pro" on page 162
or "Applying a 3D LUT in Blackmagic Design DaVinci Resolve" on page 161.
158 CHAPTER 6
o Choose 3D LUT (SDI/SMPTE .cube) to create a 3D LUT you can use with a
hardware LUT box.
d. If the input color space is S-Log2 or S-Log3 and the Format is set to 3D LUT (NLE .cube),
you can select the Extended S-Log input range check box and choose a setting from the
Type drop-down list to specify an extended input range.
o Choose IRIDAS/Adobe to create a 3D LUT you can use with Adobe Premiere Pro.
o Choose DaVinci Resolve to create a 3D LUT you can use with DaVinci Resolve.
The Extended S-Log input range check box is used to correct for cases where an NLE
treats files that use full range (such as S-Log3) as legal range. If the NLE has an input
range setting, such as newer versions of Resolve, you do not need to select the
Extended S-Log input range check box.
e. Choose a setting from the Input color space drop-down list to specify the color space that
will be used as the input of the LUT.
f. Choose a setting from the Output color space drop-down list to specify the color space
that will be used as the output of the LUT.
Output color space is available only when the Working color space is set to
Rec.2020/S-Log3 (HDR). For more information, see "Applying color correction" on
page 147.
g. Choose a setting from the Precision drop-down list box to choose a standard (33x33x33) or
high-precision (65x65x65) LUT.
h. Select the Source settings check box if you want to include exposure, temperature, and tint
settings with your LUT.
i. Select the Convert to setting check box if you want to export your LUT using the
Hypergamma setting selected in the Convert to drop-down list in the Inspector.
The Convert to setting check box is available only when the Working color space in
Options is set to Rec.709 and the Convert to drop-down in the Inspector pane is set
to a Hypergamma conversion choice, such as 709(800) or HG8009G33.
j. Select the Look profile check box if you want to include the selected look profile from the
Inspector in your LUT.

The Look profile check box is displayed below the Convert to drop-down list when the
Working color space in Options is set to Rec.709 and the Convert to drop-down in
the Inspector pane is not set to a Hypergamma conversion choice.
The Look profile check box is displayed below the Color correction check box when
the Working color space in Options is set to Log.
k. Select the Tone curve check box if you want to include the tone curve from the Inspector in
your LUT.
l. Select the Color correction check box if you want to include the color correction
adjustments from the Inspector in your LUT.
7. Click Export. The LUT file will be saved in the folder you selected in step 6a.
160 CHAPTER 6
Applying a 3D LUT in Blackmagic Design DaVinci Resolve
1. Follow the instructions in "Exporting a 3D LUT" on page 158 to save your 3D LUT file in 3D LUT
(NLE .cube) format.
2. Save the 3D LUT file in the following folder:
n Windows: C:\ProgramData\Blackmagic Design\DaVinci

Resolve\Support\LUT\Sony
n macOS: /macOS/Library/Application Support/Blackmagic Design/DaVinci

Resolve/LUT/Sony
Tips:
o To locate the LUT folder, choose File > Project Settings in Resolve, and then
click the Open LUT Folder button on the Color Management tab.
o Use the 3D Lookup Table Interpolation drop-down list to set 3D LUT

interpolation to be Trilinear or Tetrahedral.
3. Ensure your project is set to use the intended output color space (typically Rec.709) on the timeline:
a. In Resolve, choose File > Project Settings.
b. Click the Color Management tab.
c. From the Color science drop-down list, choose DaVinci YRGB.
d. From the Timeline color space drop-down list, choose a Rec.709 color space, such as
Rec.709 (Scene).
e. Click Save.
4. To apply the LUT to a clip, right-click the media thumbnail, choose LUT from the shortcut menu,
choose Sony, and then choose the 3D LUT you want to use:
If the source media color space uses Legal range (such as HLG XAVC), no further actions are
required.
If the source media color space uses Full range (such as S-Log3, for example), you must tell Resolve
not to stretch the media range: right-click the media thumbnail, choose Clip Attributes, and then
change Data Levels to Full.

Applying a 3D LUT in Adobe Premiere Pro
1. Follow the instructions in "Exporting a 3D LUT" on page 158 to save your 3D LUT file in 3D LUT
(NLE .cube) format.
2. Ensure your sequence is set to use the intended output color space (typically Rec.709) as its working
color space.
a. In Premiere Pro, choose Sequence > Sequence Settings.
b. From the Working Color Space drop-down list, choose Rec.709.
c. Click OK.
3. Right-click the media in the Premiere Pro media window, choose Modify from the shortcut menu,
and then choose Interpret Footage.
When working with S-Log3 and/or HLG files containing SR Live metadata in Premiere Pro
2022, you can skip steps 3-6 if you want to convert from S-Log3/HLG to Rec.709. If you
want to use a specific 3D LUT in Premiere Pro 2022, please perform steps 3-6 and refer to
the Premiere Pro documentation for specific usage information.
4. In the Color Management section, open the Input LUT selector.
5. Select the 3D LUT file you want to use:
n To use an existing 3D LUT, choose it from the selector.
n To add a new 3D LUT, choose Add LUTs and browse to the folder where you've saved the
3D LUT you want to use.
6. Set the Color Space Override selector to match the output color space of the LUT (typically
Rec.709).
162 CHAPTER 6
Chapter 7
Editing Catalyst Prepare options

Click the Options button to edit your application options.
If you need to reset all Catalyst Prepare options to their default values, hold Control + Shift when
starting the application.
Application settings
Choosing a video processing device
Choose a setting from the Video processing device drop-down list to enable or bypass GPU-
accelerated video playback and transcoding.
Choose CPU if you want to turn off GPU acceleration, or choose a device from the list to enable GPU-
accelerated playback.
The optimal GPU device is automatically selected. Changing this value is intended for advanced
users and may be useful for troubleshooting technical problems.
Computers equipped with CPUs that utilize Intel’s Quick Sync Video (QSV) technology see
improved processing performance for decoding H.264/AVC/MPEG-4 video files.
When using a device other than your CPU, high-quality deinterlacing and upscaling are applied to
convert SD and HD sources to modern progressive HD and UHD assets. Please note that some
systems with limited GPU memory are not supported.
n High-quality deinterlacing is applied to interlaced source media when playback is paused, during
transcoding, and during playback when the Playback Settings Speed/Quality setting is set to
Quality.
n High-quality upscaling is applied during transcoding when you choose an HD or UHD render
preset.
Enabling OpenCL/OpenGL interoperability
OpenCL/OpenGL interoperability allows OpenCL and OpenGL to share rendered frames and can
improve playback performance, but it can cause instability with some hardware and drivers.
EDITING CATALYST PREPARE OPTIONS 163

n Select Performance to enable OpenCL and OpenGL interoperability. We recommend using this
setting in most cases for optimum playback performance.
n Select Compatibility to turn off interoperability if you notice artifacts or corruption in rendered
frames.
After changing the OpenCL/OpenGL interoperability setting, please restart Catalyst Pre-
pare for the change to take effect.
Choosing a default transcoding format
Choose a setting from the Default transcode format drop-down list to choose the format that will be
used when copying partial clips that cannot be copied in their source format or when uploading to Ci.
For more information, see "Exporting media from a library" on page 24 or "Organizing media in a library"
on page 15.
Choosing a map service for GPS links
Choose a setting from the Open GPS links with drop-down list to choose the map service that will be
used to display maps when you click GPS links in a clip's metadata.
Enabling the secondary window
Enable the Secondary preview window switch if you want to show the video preview in a secondary
window that you can position anywhere on your screen or on a secondary monitor.
Enable proxy clip playback
Enable the Preview using proxy clips switch if you want to use proxy clips for playback if they are
available.
If you're working on a system with limited processing power, creating a proxy file will allow you to
preview your media more efficiently.
Video proxy files are used for playback only.
Enable half-step timecode for 50p/60p sources
Enable the 50p/60p half-step timecode display switch if you want to display half-step timecode for
each field in 50p/60p sources. The timecode for field two will be displayed with an asterisk appended:
Field 1: 01:00:17:17
164 CHAPTER 7
Field 2: 01:00:17:17*
Show or hide thumbnail frames
Enable the Show thumbnails switch if you want to display thumbnail images in the Media Browser.
Turning off the switch can improve performance on some slower storage devices.
Automatically rotate thumbnail frames
Enable the Automatically rotate thumbnails switch to detect clip rotation and adjust thumbnail
images in Organize mode.
For more information, see "Working with rotated clips."
Choosing snapshot settings
The Save snapshots to box displays the path to the folder where the files will be saved when you save
a snapshot of the current frame. You can type a path in the box or click the Browse button to choose a
folder.
Choose a setting from the Snapshot image format drop-down list to choose the file format that will be
used for snapshots.
For more information, see "Creating a snapshot of a frame" on page 97.
Color management settings
Working color space
Choose a setting from the Working color space drop-down list to choose the color space that will be
used for color grading.
For more information, see "Applying color correction" on page 127.
When you choose Rec.2020/S-Log3 from the Working color space drop-down list, the SR Live for
HDR controls are displayed to allow you to convert between standard- and high-dynamic-range content.
For more information, see "SR Live for HDR settings" on page 168.
Video preview color space
From the Preview color space drop-down list, choose the color space for the Catalyst Prepare video
preview window.

In most cases, choose Rec.709 for your computer monitor, or you can choose other settings to
check your video using scopes. For more information, see "Loading a clip/clip list for color
adjustments and configuring the waveform, histogram, and vectorscope monitors" on page 127.
External monitor color space
Choose a setting from the External monitor color space drop-down list to choose the color space
that matches the EOTF (electro-optical transfer function) setting on your external monitor.
When using the Sony BVM-X300 version 2.0, please use the following monitor settings:
External monitor color space in Color EOTF Transfer

Catalyst Prepare Space Matrix
Rec.709 ITU-R i.e. 2.4 ITU-R

BT.709 BT.709
Rec.2020 ITU-R i.e. 2.4 ITU-R

BT.2020 BT.2020
Rec.2020/S-Log-3 ITU-R S-Log3(Live HDR) or S-Log3(HDR) ITU-R

BT.2020 BT.2020
Rec.2020/HLG, ITU-R HLG SG Variable(HDR), HLG ITU-R

Rec.2020/HLG AIR Matching, or BT.2020 System Gamma 1.2 BT.2020
Rec.2020/HLG (bypass OOTF)
Rec.2020/PQ, ITU-R SMPTE ST 2084(HDR) ITU-R

Rec.2020/PQ AIR Matching, or BT.2020 BT.2020
Rec.2020/PQ (bypass OOTF)
166 CHAPTER 7
When Rec.2020/S-Log3 (HDR) is selected from the Working color space drop-down list,
you can use the AIR Matching (Artistic Intent Rendering) or bypass OOTF settings to achieve a
consistent look between external-monitor previews and rendered clips.
Using AIR Matching to monitor using the S-Log3 (Live HDR) EOTF
n Color Space: ITU-R BT.2020
n EOTF: S-Log3 (Live HDR)
n Transfer Matrix: ITU-R BT.2020
n In the Catalyst Prepare Options menu, choose Rec.2020/S-Log3 from the External
monitor color space drop-down list.
Content mastered using these settings and rendered to HLG or PQ with AIR Matching
should have the same look on HLG or PQ monitors or televisions.
Using bypass OOTF to monitor using the S-Log3 (HDR) EOTF
n Color Space: ITU-R BT.2020
n EOTF: S-Log3 (HDR)
n Transfer Matrix: ITU-R BT.2020
n In the Catalyst Prepare Options menu, choose Rec.2020/S-Log3 from the External
monitor color space drop-down list.
Content mastered using these settings and rendered to HLG or PQ with bypass OOTF
should have the same look on HLG or PQ monitors or televisions.
Converting HDR media to SDR color spaces
When converting HDR media to standard dynamic range color spaces, use the following
settings to preserve your Rec.2020/S-Log3 grading (the dynamic range of the HDR color space
will be clamped to the BT.709 gamma curve):
n In Options, set the Working color space to Rec.2020/S-Log3 (HDR).
n In Options, enable the SDR gain switch and adjust the Gain slider to choose the gain
that will be applied when exporting to an SDR format or displaying on an SDR display.
n In Options, set the Preview color space to Rec.709 or Rec.2020.

When converting HDR media to standard dynamic range color spaces, use the following
settings to preserve more of the dynamic range of the original HDR media:
n In Options, set the Working color space to Rec.709.
n In the Inspector, set the Convert to color space to 709(800), HG8009G33, or

HG8009G40.
SR Live for HDR settings

When you choose Rec.2020/S-Log3 from the Working color space drop-down list, the SR Live for
HDR controls are displayed to allow you to convert between standard- and high-dynamic-range content:
SR Live metadata source
Choose a setting from the SR Live metadata source drop-down list to choose how SR Live metedata
processing is performed:
n When SR Live metadata source is set to None and Adjust SR Live settings manually is off,
no SR Live processing is performed.
n When SR Live metadata source is set to None and Adjust SR Live settings manually is on,
SR Live processing is performed only for the visible controls.
n When SR Live metadata source is set to Clip and Adjust SR Live settings manually is off,
metadata settings from the current clip are used when converting between standard- and high-
dynamic-range content.
n When SR Live metadata source is set to Clip and Adjust SR Live settings manually is on,
metadata settings from the current clip and manual control settings are used when converting
between standard- and high-dynamic-range content. For more information, see "Adjust SR Live
settings manually" on page 169.
n When SR Live metadata source is set to External file and Adjust SR Live settings manually
is off, metadata settings from an external .srm file are used when converting between standard-
and high-dynamic-range content.
n When SR Live metadata source is set to External file and Adjust SR Live settings manually
is on, metadata settings from an external .srm file and manual control settings are used when
converting between standard- and high-dynamic-range content. For more information, see
"Adjust SR Live settings manually" on page 169.
168 CHAPTER 7
When SR Live metadata source is set to Clip or External file, Catalyst Prepare uses
recommended SR Live values for clips generated by Sony devices even if SR Live metadata
values are not present in the clip.
When SR Live metadata source is set to External file, the selected file's values are used
as SR Live default values.
Adjust SR Live settings manually
Enable the Adjust SR Live settings manually switch to enable the SDR gain, SDR knee, and Black
adjustment switches to manually control settings for converting between standard- and high-dynamic-
range content.
When SR Live metadata source is set to Clip or External file and Adjust SR Live settings manually
is on, clip metadata and manual control settings are used for conversion.
Click the Load button to load settings from the selected clip and set the SDR gain, SDR knee, and
Black adjustment controls to match the clip settings. You can then fine-tune the settings manually,
and the manual adjustments will be used for conversion.
You can double-click a control to reset it to the default value. When SR Live metadata source is
set to External file, the selected file's values are used as SR Live default values.
SR Live settings are applied in the following cases:
n When exporting Rec.2020/S-Log3, S-Gamut3/S-Log3, S-Gamut3.Cine/S-Log3, or Sony RAW/X-

OCN source clips to Rec.2020/S-Log3, Rec.2020/HLG, Rec.2020/PQ, or SDR formats when the
Output color space drop-down is set to Same as preview or Same as external monitor.
n When exporting Rec.2020/HLG clips to Rec.2020/HLG or SDR formats when the Output color
space drop-down is set to Same as preview or Same as external monitor.
n When exporting Rec.2020/PQ clips to Rec.2020/PQ or SDR formats when the Output color
space drop-down is set to Same as preview or Same as external monitor.
n When exporting SDR clips to Rec.2020/S-Log3, Rec.2020/HLG, Rec.2020/PQ, or SDR formats

when the Output color space drop-down is set to Same as preview or Same as external
monitor.
When Use SR Live metadata is off and Adjust SR Live settings manually is off, color
management uses default settings, and no SR Live processing is performed.
When Output color space is set to Rec.2020/HLG AIR Matching, Rec.2020/HLG (bypass
OOTF), Rec.2020/PQ AIR Matching, or Rec.2020/PQ (bypass OOTF) in Options, no SR Live
processing is performed.

Conversion mode
When External file is selected in the SR Live metadata source drop-down list, the Conversion mode
section displays conversion settings for the selected external .srm file:
n Conversion mode displays the file's HDR/SDR conversion mode.
n HDR look displays the file's look setting for source HDR content.
n HDR black compression indicates whether black compression is enabled to improve the
appearance of low-luminance levels.
SDR gain
When the switch is enabled, you can drag the Gain slider to choose the gain that is applied when
reading SDR content or when exporting to an SDR format or displaying on an SDR display.
For example, if you set the slider to -6.0 dB, a linear gain of +6.0 dB (2.0x) is applied when reading SDR
content, and a linear gain of -6.0 dB (0.5x) is applied when exporting to an SDR format or displaying on
an SDR display.
Black adjustment
Enable the Black adjustment switch to adjust black levels:
n Drag the Master black slider to adjust the master black level.
n Drag the HDR black offset slider to apply an offset to the Master black value for HDR content.
The Master black and HDR black offset values should match the settings on the HDRC-
4000 HDR Production Converter Unit.
On the HDRC-4000, the SETTING MODE should be set to SONY SYSTEM CAMERA,
and the ABS mode should be set to enabled.
Gamma settings
When External file is selected in the SR Live metadata source drop-down list, the Gamma section
displays gamma settings for the selected external .srm file:
n Table displays the file's gamma table.
When a hypergamma value is selected, you must adjust the SDR gain value manually:
170 CHAPTER 7
o Hyper 1: Increase SDR gain by 5.0 dB. For example, if your clip's original SDR gain value
is -6.0 dB, you will need to increase SDR gain by 5.0 dB for an SDR gain value of -1.0 dB.
is -6.0 dB, you will need to increase SDR gain by 8.0 dB for an SDR gain value of 2.0 dB.
is -6.0 dB, you will need to increase SDR gain by 3.0 dB for an SDR gain value of -3.0 dB.
is -6.0 dB, you will need to increase SDR gain by 6.0 dB for an SDR gain value of 0.0 dB.
n Step indicates the gamma strength in steps (0.35 to 0.90).
n Level indicates the gamma strength in analog values from -100 to 100.
SDR knee
Select the SDR knee switch to apply a knee curve to the RGB output gain when exporting HDR content
to an SDR format or displaying on an SDR display. While the SDR gain setting applies a linear gain, a
knee curve can help preserve midrange colors and highlights.
When using knee parameters on the Sony HDRC-4000 HDR Production Converter Unit, please
enable ABS mode and confirm the R, G, B values in the HDRC-4000. Adjust the values in Catalyst
Prepare to match. Using different R, G, B values is not supported.
n Drag the Point slider to adjust the position of the knee point in the curve.
n Drag the Slope slider to adjust the slope of the curve above the knee point.
n To adjust the color intensity in the output image, select the SDR knee saturation switch and
drag the Level slider. Increasing the saturation can help compensate for decreased saturation
around the knee curve.

White clip
When External file is selected in the SR Live metadata source drop-down list, the White clip section
displays the white clip settings for the selected external .srm file:
White clip indicates whether the white clip level is used when exporting HDR content to an SDR format
or displaying on an SDR display.
Level indicates the white clip level: 0 is the default setting; lower settings decrease the white clip level,
and higher settings increase the clip level.
The File tab in the Inspector displays the SDR White Clip and SDR White Clip Level settings for
the selected clip.
HDR knee
When External file is selected in the SR Live metadata source drop-down list, the HDR knee section
displays information about the HDR knee curve for the selected external .srm file. The HDR knee curve is
applied to the luminance (Y) when exporting HDR content to an SDR format or displaying on an SDR
display. The HDR knee value adjusts brightness to conform to SDR output.
When using knee parameters on the Sony HDRC-4000 HDR Production Converter Unit, please
enable ABS mode and confirm the R, G, B values in the HDRC-4000. Adjust the values in Catalyst
Prepare to match. Using different R, G, B values is not supported.
n Point indicates the position of the knee point in the curve.
n Slope indicates the slope of the curve above the knee point.
Choosing an external video monitor device and resolution

Choose a setting from the External monitor device drop-down list to display your video preview on an
external monitor via a Blackmagic Design device:
n DeckLink 4K Extreme 12G, 4K Pro, 4K Extreme, Studio 4K, SDI 4K, HD Extreme, Extreme 3D, and
Mini Monitor.
n Intensity Shuttle, Pro 4K, and Pro.
n UltraStudio 4K Extreme, 4K, Pro, SDI, Express, and Mini Monitor.
Choose a setting from the Monitor resolution drop-down list to choose the display resolution for your
monitor.
172 CHAPTER 7
If you have a Blackmagic Design device that supports multiple displays (or have multiple
Blackmagic Design devices), you can enable two external monitors, allowing you to monitor SDR
and HDR output simultaneously.
n You can set the display resolution for each display independently.
n The first external monitor will use the External monitor color space setting, and the
second external monitor will use the Preview color space setting.

174 CHAPTER 7
Chapter 8
Keyboard shortcuts
Shortcut keys can help streamline your work with Catalyst Prepare software. The available shortcut keys are
arranged in tables according to function.
Global shortcuts
The following keyboard shortcuts are available when the Video or Media Browser pane has focus.
Command Windows macOS

Shortcut Shortcut
Enter full-screen preview/playback F11 or Ctrl+F ⌘ -F or Control-

⌘ -F
Exit full-screen preview/playback Esc, F11, or Ctrl+F Esc, ⌘ -F, or

Control-⌘ -F
Switch between Organize/Edit workspaces Alt+W Option-W
Show/hide the Inspector/Copy/Export/Share pane Ctrl+I ⌘ -I
Show/hide the Inspector pane Alt+1 Option-1
Show/hide the Copy pane Alt+2 Option-2
Show/hide the Export pane Alt+3 Option-3
Show/hide the Share pane Alt+4 Option-4
Show/hide the secondary window Alt+V Option-V
Open application help F1 Fn-F1 (F1 if the

Use all F1, F2,
etc. keys as
standard
function keys
setting is selected)
KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS 175

Media Browser
The following keyboard shortcuts are available when the Media Browser pane has focus.

Shortcut Shortcut
Navigate files/folders Up, Down, Left, or Up, Down, Left, or

Right Arrow Right Arrow
Open/close folder in tree view Right/Left Arrow Right/Left Arrow
Select all files Ctrl+A ⌘ -A
Deselect all files Ctrl+D ⌘ -D
Delete selected files Delete Delete or

fn+Delete
Load file and start/pause playback Spacebar Spacebar
Open selected folder Enter or Ctrl+Down Return or ⌘ -Down

Arrow Arrow
Navigate up one level Backspace ⌘ -Up Arrow
Go to start/end of list Home Home
End End
Move selection up/down one page Page Up Page Up
Page Down Page Down
Rename F2 Fn-F2 (F2 if the

Use all F1, F2,
etc. keys as
standard function
keys setting is
selected)
Open library Ctrl+O ⌘ -O
New library Ctrl+N ⌘ -N
Editing
The following keyboard shortcuts are available when the Edit pane has focus.
176 CHAPTER 8
Shortcut Shortcut
Switch Logging/Storyboard/Clip/Adjust Colors ` `

~ ~
Load previous/next file in Edit mode. [] []
Go to previous/next clip in Storyboard mode.
Save a snapshot of the current frame to a file. Shift+S Shift-S
Reset mark in and mark out points to the beginning and end of Shift+R Shift-R
the clip.
Switch between Before/After/Split/2 Up video preview in 1/2/3/4 1/2/3/4

Adjust Color mode.
Show/hide the Media Browser in View mode Ctrl+B ⌘ -B
Create subclip from selection in Logging mode. S S
Add clip to selected storyboard (when the Add To bar is Enter Return
visible).
Undo color correction Ctrl+Z ⌘ -Z
Redo color correction Ctrl+Shift+Z Shift-⌘ -Z
Ctrl+Y

Playback and preview
The following keyboard shortcuts are available when the Video pane has focus.

Shortcut Shortcut
Go to start Ctrl+Home ⌘ -Home
Ctrl+Up Arrow ⌘ -Up Arrow
Fn- Left Arrow
Go to end Ctrl+End ⌘ -End
Ctrl+Down Arrow ⌘ -Down Arrow
End Fn- Right Arrow
Go to previous frame Left Arrow Left Arrow
Go to next frame Right Arrow Right Arrow
Go to previous clip [ [
Go to next clip ] ]
Start/pause playback Spacebar Spacebar
Start/stop playback Enter Return
Shuttle playback J/K/L
Press J or L once for 1x playback.
Press J or L twice for 1.5x playback.
Press J or L three times for 2x playback.
Press J or L four times for 4x playback.
Press K to pause playback.
Press and hold K while pressing J or L to

emulate a shuttle knob mode: press K+J
to turn the knob to the left or K+L to
turn the knob to the right.
Toggle looped playback Q Q
Ctrl+L ⌘ -L
178 CHAPTER 8
Shortcut Shortcut
Set Mark In point I I
Set Mark Out point O O
Add mark point E E
Go to Mark In point Shift+I Shift-I
Home Home
Go to Mark Out point Shift+O Shift-O
End End
Save a snapshot of the current frame to a file. Shift+S Shift-S
Reset Mark In/Out points Shift+R Shift-R
Go to previous marker (including Mark In/Out) Ctrl+Left Arrow ⌘ -Left Arrow
Go to next marker (including Mark In/Out) Ctrl+Right Arrow ⌘ -Right Arrow
Copy current frame to clipboard Ctrl+C ⌘ -C
Enter full-screen playback F11 ⌘ -F
Ctrl+F Control-⌘ -F
Show/hide the secondary window Alt+V Option-V
Zoom to fit Ctrl+0 ⌘ -0
Zoom to 100% Ctrl+1 ⌘ -1
Zoom in Ctrl++ ⌘ -+
Zoom out Ctrl+- ⌘ --

180 CHAPTER 8
Chapter 9
Gestures
Media Browser pane
Gesture Result
Tap Selects and loads a file.
Double-tap Opens a file in the Video pane.
One-finger drag (touchscreen) Scrolls the list vertically.
Two-finger drag (trackpad)
One-finger flick (touchscreen) Scrolls the list with inertia.
Two-finger flick (trackpad)
Video pane
Gesture Result
Double-tap Toggles the zoom level between 100% and Fit.
One-finger drag (touchscreen) Pans the image.
Two-finger drag (trackpad)
One-finger flick (touchscreen) Pans the image with inertia.
Two-finger flick (trackpad)
Pinch Zooms the image in and out.
GESTURES 181
Index
all frames playback 93
. anamorphic stretch 100
apply ASC-CDL 141
.ccolor files 139, 156
apply color preset 139
.cube files 137
ASC-CDL export 156
.smi files 106, 110
ASC-CDL files 138, 141
assigning audio channels 103
1 audio channel assignment 103
audio channels 103
1D LUT export 156
Audio channels 38
audio meters 99
3 auto cropping amount 120
Automatically Added bin 11
3D LUT export 156
Automatically rotate thumbnails 165
AVCHD relay clips 117-118
5 Avid Media Composer 47
50p half-step timecode 164

B
6 backing up volumes 51
batch export 41, 122
60p half-step timecode 164
bin export 18
bin location 11
A bins 17
browse remote server 25, 55
Add custom metadata 106
burn in clip name 39
Add custom metadata | Default.Prolog | [61] 39
burn in timecode 39
add existing folder 11, 17
BVM-X300 155
add padding to clips 40
bypass OOTF 154, 167
Add to bin 12, 42
Add to Favorites 15
add watermark 40 C
adding clips 108, 111
card backup 51
adding clips to bins 17
catalog export 116
adding media to library 10
channel assignment 103
adding shot marks 104
channel routing 99
address/port (FTP) 24
Ci Workspace 47
Adjust SR Live settings manually 149, 169
CinemaScope overlay 100
Adobe Premiere 47
cleaning bins 18
AIR matching 154, 167
INDEX 182
clip settings 99 creating subclips 23
clip list from selection 107 cropping ratio 121
clip lists 106 CSV export 116
clip name 39 curves 137
Clip rotation 100, 165 custom metadata export 39, 105
clip stitching 39, 123
clip stitching | Default.Pro-
D
log,Default.Hidden,Default.Browser |
[230] 123 default look profile 137
Clips default transcode format 164
rotation 100, 165 deinterlacing 36, 93, 163
close growing MXF files 13 delete files 21
closing the library 9 delete items older than X days 18
color correction 127 delete items that can no longer be found 18
exporting 156 delete transcoding preset 50
loading 139 deleting shot marks 105
color curves 137 deleting subclips 24
color presets 139, 156 desqueeze 40, 99-100
color sliders 138 device copy 44
color space 133 disc backup 51
color temperature slider 134 disconnect FTP 25
color wheels 131 discontinuous timecode 90, 96, 101
combine clips 123 display CinemaScope overlay 100
combining relay clips 117 Display color space (external monitor) 166
consolidating library media 22 Display color space (video preview) 165
continuous playback 90, 97 display mode 56-57
continuous timecode 39, 123 display secondary window 164
Converting HDR to SDR color spaces 154, 167 DPX frame rate 101
Copy all related media 43
copy channel assignments 104 E
Copy clips only 13, 43
copy clips to a device 41 Edit remote server 25
Copy only between mark points 44 editing clips 22
copy snapshot to clipboard 98 editing essence marks 104
copy to bin 42 editing summary metadata 102
copy to FTP 44 EDL
Copy with verification 13, 44 importing 115
Create subfolder 12, 42 linking clips 115
Create XDROOT folder 55 replacing clips 116
creating a library 9, 11, 14-15 unlinking clips 115
creating clip lists 107 embed NRT metadata 13
creating storyboards 110 essence marks 97, 101
183 INDEX
export bins as folders 18 removing 25
export bins tp Final Cut Pro X 20 SxS media 26
export bins tp Premiere 19 USB storage 26
exporting clips 24 FTP protocol 24
exporting metadata 105 FTP server settings 25
exporting storyboards 46, 114 FTPS protocol 24
exposure slider 134 full-frame-rate playback 93
External file for SR Live metadata 148, 168 full-screen preview 93
external monitor color space 166
external monitor device 172
G
external monitor resolution 172
gestures 181
Go to End 94
F
Go to Start 94
fast copy 44 GPS information 101
Favorite Folders 15 GPS links 101, 164
file formats 58, 87 GPU acceleration 163
file information 101 grade in 165
filter by date created 57 grading color space 133, 165
filter by flag 57 Graph scale 120-121
filter by fomat 57 graticule 130
filter by type 57 growing MXF files 11, 14, 58
filtering clips 57 growing MXF files, closing 13
Final Cut Pro X 47 gyroscope 118
finalizing Professional Disc volumes 58
finding media 53
H
fit 92
flash bands 40, 124 half-step timecode display 164
flip horizontal 100 HDR knee 152, 172
flip vertical 100 HDR Knee point 152, 172
folder (FTP) 24 HDR Knee slope 152, 172
formatting for PZW-4000 55 histogram monitor 129
formatting Professional Disc volumes 58
formatting SxS 58
I
frame rate 101
FTP 24, 55 Import only between in/out points 13
FTP copy 44 import transcode preset 49
FTP devices importing a LUT 136
browsing 25 importing an EDL 115
connecting 24 interoperability 163
disconnecting 25
reconnecting 25
INDEX 184
Loop Playback 94
J LTC 90, 96, 101
LUT export 156
JKL shuttle 94
LUT import 136
K
M
Kelvin temperature 134
magnifying glass 92
keyboard shortcuts 175
Make default look profile 137
map metadata 101, 164
L mark in 96, 102
mark out 96, 102
library
Mask options 100
add existing folder 11, 17
Masking ratio 100
adding clips to bins 17
master volume 99
adding folders 17
maximum cropping amount 120
adding media 10
Media Browser pane 53
cleaning bins 18
merge clips 123
closing 9
metadata 101
consolidating 22
metadata export 105
creating 9
metadata for proxy clips 44
creating subclips 23
metadata, stabilization 118
deleting subclips 24
meters 99
new folder 17
minimum cropping amount 120
opening 9
minimum stabilized crop resolution 121
organizing 15
missing media 51
removing clips 21
monitor color space 166
removing folders 17
monitor resolution 172
renaming bins 18
mono channel 103
renaming clips 21
move clip to bin 17, 21
save as 22
moving clips between library folders 20
library indicator 11
multicam,synchronizing audio 118
linking clips in an EDL 115
multicamera clips, synchronizing 118
list view 56
Load settings from current clip 149, 169
Load SR Live settings 149, 169 N
load transcode preset 49
navigating the timeline 94
loading a library 9
new clip list from selection 107
logging 96
new empty clip list 107
logging metadata 102
new empty storyboard 110
look profile 136-137
New Folder 17
look, default 137
new library 11, 14-15, 18-20
loop playback 97
185 INDEX
Next Frame 94 proxy preview 164
NRT metadata 13 PZW-4000 26, 55
numbering 12, 35, 43, 48
R
O
real time playback 93
offline media 51 Rec.2020 166
open clip list 107 Rec.709 166
open GPS links with 101, 164 reconnect FTP 25
open MXF files 11, 14, 58 relay clips, combining 117
open MXF files, closing 13 relinking library media 51
open storyboard 110 remote server 55
OpenCL/OpenGL interoperability 163 remove clips 21
OpenEXR frame rate 101 Remove remote server 25
opening a library 9 removing clips 109, 112
options 163 Rename files 12, 35, 43, 48
ordering clips 108, 111 renaming clips 21
Organize 15 renaming folders 18
override source timecode 41, 45 rendering storyboards 45
reordering clips 108, 111
repairing flash bands 40, 124
P
replace source media 116
partial copy 13, 19-20, 44 Reset mark in/out points 97
password 25 reset options 163
paste channel assignment 104 Reset to default look profile 137
PD-EDL clip lists 106, 110, 115 reset transcoding settings 41
PDF export 116 Rotate preview (degrees) 100
perserve source UMID 45 rotated clips 100, 165
Play 94
play all frames 93
S
play in real time 93
playing media 89 safe areas 100
prefix 12, 35, 43, 48 saturation slider 138
Premiere Pro CS6 47 save settings, transcoding 41
Preview color space 165 save snapshot 98
preview proxy clips 164 save snapshots to 165
previewing storyboards 114 save transcode preset 50
Previous Frame 94 save transcoding settings 41
Professional Disc format 58 Scale graph to clip 120-121
protocol 24 scrub control 94
proxy editing 51 SDR gain 149, 169
proxy metadata 44 SDR knee 151, 171
INDEX 186
SDR Knee point 151, 171 previewing 114
SDR Knee slope 151, 171 renaming 115
searching for clips 57 rendering 45
secondary window 164 subclips 23
select files 58 suffix 12, 35, 43, 48
sequential playback 90 supported formats 58, 87
server name (FTP) 24 SxS format 58
sharing files with Ci Workspace 47 SxS media 26
sharing files with YouTube 48 synchronizing multicamera clips 118
shortcuts 175
shot mark 104
T
Show in Explorer 22, 58
Show in Finder 22, 58 Tangent element 141
show safe areas 100 temperature slider 134
show secondary window 164 thumbnail frames 165
shuttle control 94 thumbnail view 56
sliders 134 timecode 39
snapshot image format 165 timecode break 90, 96, 101
Sony BVM-X300 155 tint slider 134
source color space 133 tone curve 137
source UMID 45 touchscreen navigation 181
split-screen preview 91, 130 trackpad navigation 181
SR Live metadata source 148, 168 transcode clips before upload 47
clip 148, 168 Transcode preset 36
external file 148, 168 transcode presets 49
stabilization mode 119 transcode using proxy source clip 40
stabilize clips 118 transcoding clips 34
stabilized crop resolution 120, 122 transcoding settings, saving 41
starting frame index 37 transferring clips via FTP 24
stereo pair 103 transport controls 94
stitch clips 39, 123
stitch clips | Default.Pro-
U
log,Default.Hidden,Default.Browser |
[230] 123 UMID (Unique Material Identifier) 45
stitching clips 123 unlinking clips in an EDL 115
storyboards 110 upload original clips 47
creating empty 110 uploading to Ci 22, 58
creating from selection 110 uploading to Ci Workspace 47
deleting 115 uploading to YouTube 48
editing clips 112 upscaling 36, 93, 163
editing color correction 113 use anamorphic setting 40, 99
exporting 46, 114 Use fast device-to-device copy 44
187 INDEX
use flip and desqueeze settings 99
Use flip, rotate, and desqueeze settings 40
use mark in/out points 40
user name 25
vectorscope monitor 129

Vegas Pro EDL 47
verification mode 14, 45
Video pane 89
video preview 130
video processing device 163
VTR-style playback 90
watermark 40
waveform monitor 128
wheels 131
working color space 165
XDCAM EDL 106

XDCAM Professional Disc format 58
XDROOT folder 55
YouTube 48
INDEX 188

Catalyst Prepare 2023 Manual

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Revised Tuesday, February 7, 2023

Sony Creative Software Inc.

Copyright © 2023. Sony Creative Software Inc.

© 2023 Sony Creative Software Inc.

What's new in version 2023.1 7

The Catalyst Prepare window 7

Working with libraries 9

Creating or opening a library 9

Closing the library 9

Adding media to a library 10

Organizing media in a library 15

Editing library clips 22

Working with subclips in a library 23

Exporting media from a library 24

Working with FTP devices 24

Relinking library media 51

Supported video formats for reading 58

Supported video devices 87

Navigating the timeline 94

Marking in and out points for playback 96

Creating a snapshot of a frame 97

Editing clip settings 99

Working with clips 101

Viewing and editing metadata 101

Exporting custom metadata 105

Working with clip lists 106

Working with storyboards 110

Working with EDLs 115

Catalog export 116

Combining relay clips 117

Synchronizing multicamera clips 118

Stabilizing clips 118

Stitching clips 123

Repairing flash bands 124

Applying color correction 127

Editing Color Adjustments controls 127

Applying color-correction settings 139

Using a Tangent control 141

Video-style (Rec.709) color grading 142

Log (cinematic) color grading 145

Advanced cinematic (ACES) color grading 146

High Dynamic Range (HDR) color grading 147

Exporting color-correction settings 156

Editing Catalyst Prepare options 163

Keyboard shortcuts 175

What's new in version 2023.1

n Improved Copy snapshot to clipboard and Save snapshot functions.

o The Snapshot menu provides access to options for saving snapshots.

The Catalyst Prepare window

Working with libraries

Creating or opening a library

In Catalyst Prepare, you can have one library open at a time.

Closing the library

WORKING WITH LIBRARIES 9

Adding media to a library

n Changing in/out points.

n Adjusting color correction.

n Editing audio channel assignments.

Copying media from a device