Creating a Compressor Batch
This section describes the steps in manually creating and submitting a complete
Compressor batch. For a quicker and easier but more limited method, see
Quick and Easy
Compressor Workflow: Batch Template Method
.
Once you have the necessary settings and destinations available, you can begin to create
your batch for transcoding. A batch contains one or more jobs. A job consists of one
source media file with one or more targets, which contain the settings and destinations.
You can submit a batch for transcoding only after you have assigned at least one target
(setting and destination) to each job (source media file) in the batch. All jobs in the batch
are submitted together. Think of batches as documents that can be saved, closed, and
opened again. And much like a Final Cut Pro project, a separate tab (that can be torn off )
contains each Compressor batch.
Stage 1:
Importing Source Media Files into Compressor
You import source media files into a batch either by using the File Selection dialog or by
dragging the files from the Finder to the Compressor Batch window. You can import
source media files from any folder that you have access to.
See
Importing Source Media Files
for more information.
Stage 2:
Assigning a Setting
Once you have imported your source media file into the Batch window, you need to
assign one or more settings to it. This makes it a job. A source media file can be transcoded
only after it has at least one setting assigned to it, and you can add a setting to a source
media file only after you have either selected a preexisting setting or created one. Your
setting must have an output file format associated with it.
• If you choose a preexisting setting: The output file format has already been assigned.
• If you create your own setting: You must choose an output file format from the file format
menu that opens when you click the Add (+) button in the Settings tab.
37
Chapter 3
The Basic Transcoding Workflow
You can add one setting to multiple jobs in one step by selecting the jobs in the Batch
window and choosing a setting from the dialog that appears when you choose Target >
New Target With Setting, or by Control-clicking one of the selected jobs and choosing a
setting from the New Target With Setting submenu of the shortcut menu that appears.
If you have a favorite setting (preexisting or customized), you can streamline your workflow
by creating a standalone application called a Droplet containing multiple settings, and
use the Droplet to submit batches without opening Compressor. See
Creating a Droplet
from the Settings Tab
for more information.
Note: You can also create groups of settings, which is a quick and convenient way to
assign multiple settings to a source media file. See
Creating Groups of Settings
for more
information.
Stage 3:
Previewing the Setting Using the Preview Window
You can either preview a source media file or the source media file with its assigned
setting. From the Preview window, you can dynamically preview (in real time) and modify
the effects of the filters and geometry adjustments of your setting, play back the media
file, view source or output views, crop the output file frame size, change the aspect ratio,
and add various markers relevant to the MPEG-1, MPEG-2, and H.264 for Apple Devices
formats.
See
Previewing a Setting
or
Previewing a Clip
for more information.
Stage 4:
Assigning a Destination
You can choose the location to place your output media files by assigning a destination
to each target. The destination also defines various aspects of how the output media file
is named. There are several supplied destinations in the Destinations tab you can choose
from, or you can create your own custom destinations. In addition to assigning a
destination by dragging one from the Destinations tab to a job’s target, you can also use
the Target > Destination menu or the shortcut menu that appears when you Control-click
a target to assign an existing destination to a job. You also have the option of choosing
a location that has not been defined as a destination by choosing Other in the above two
menus.
See
Assigning Destinations to Source Media Files
for more information.
Stage 5:
Submitting the Batch for Transcoding
Once you have created all the jobs you want in the batch and are satisfied with the
settings and quality of your output files (having previewed them), you are ready to submit
the batch. You do this by clicking the Submit button in the Batch window.
Note: If you are transcoding a large batch, you should turn off the screen saver application
on your computer. This will improve the speed of your transcode because resources are
not being diverted to the screen saver.
38
Chapter 3
The Basic Transcoding Workflow
See
Submitting a Batch
for more information.