Canon c200 - MP4 in full HD, files too huge to download.

[nick28]

Hi all,

Hope this is the appropriate place to ask, please let me know if it isn’t.

I’ve recently gotten a few canon c200s to help me shoot long form videos. Previously, we used Sony fs5II (a bit outdated but they did the job really well) and that camera was able to save the files in MTS when recording in Full HD.

The canon c200s seem to only produce an MP4 file which can be larger than 3gb, so 2 hours of recording come out as one large mp4 file. The previous cameras produced multiple files that didn’t exceed 4gb each.

The challenge here is that since I work with lots of editors abroad, some not having great internet connections, there’s a real struggle to download these large files.

Are there any details I’m missing in that regard? Is there a way to internally split the footage into multiple smaller files that doesn’t involve using an online tool or manually splitting them on editing software?

TLDR. Camera files too large, even if it’s just full HD, editors abroad struggle to download them. Can I split the mp4 files into chunks internally on the camera?

[rs-eos]

Are you able to have your editors use a proxy workflow? That would definitely reduce the file sizes.  The User Manual states that proxy files will be split approx every 4 GB (see page 113).

There's also mention of PIXELA software on page 159.  Though that can be used to join together multiple 4GB clips into one.  Perhaps it can also split files? Not sure.

[AtticusLake]

In my opinion, the first thing you should do when embarking on a video project is plan ahead; and one important aspect is calculating how much file space you're going to need.  And this isn't hard.

The C200's specs say it records at 150 Mb/s -- mega bits per second.  Divide by two to get 75 GIGA BYTES per HOUR.  (This is approximate, but gives you a little margin for error.)  So two hours would be 150 GB.  You said "larger than 3gb" -- I have no idea how you got files that small.  Did you mean "larger than 3TB"?  Then that seems large.  You didn't specify how long you recorded for, or how large the files actually are, so I don't really know what's going on.  More details would help.

But bottom line, shooting video these days means lots of data.  At least with forward planning you can decide not to shoot RAW, but for remote working, fast internet (like VERY fast) is going to be a necessity.  I know everyone these days is selling cloud workflow, but they all seem to forget to mention that you're going to need gigabit internet AT LEAST.

If you want to know more about bit rates, I made a video about that: https://moonblink.info/MudLake/tech#BitRates

MTS format is a total red herring.  Both MP4 and MTS are just container formats.  The FS5II records in H.264 format, same as the C200, so the file sizes will be the same if all else is equal.  The FS5's file sizes are smaller in practice because it records at a lower quality (100 Mb/s as opposed to 150 Mb/s).

"The previous cameras produced multiple files that didn’t exceed 4gb each" -- that's because the previous cameras didn't support SDXC cards, so the file size was limited to 4GB, and you were forced to join the in post.  SDXC lets you avoid splitting, which in most cases is a good thing.  You have clearly liked having the individual files be manageable -- and I don't blame you -- but as far as I know you won't get this on the C200, except by pressing the stop button.  But it shouldn't matter much; you're going to have to transfer it all anyway, whether it's in one file or many.

Maybe try using SDHC cards?  I can't see if the C200 supports these, and in any case the card size will be limited to 32GB, which is like half an hour.  But if you have some lying around, it could be worth a shot.

Sorry that's not much help.  As Ricky points out, a proxy workflow might help a lot.  Then you only need to send your remote editors the proxies.