Setting Project Settings in DaVinci Resolve is an important step as it allows us to tell DaVinci the resolution and frame rate. Also, it tells where to store render cache, proxy media, and optimized media. For now, all you need to know is where to save all of those files so all your media is in the same place.

We are only going to be focusing on our master setting for the moment. They are the most important to set up at the beginning of the project. You can actually change the timeline setting at any time. This will help with slower computers to be able to edit faster without much lag time. You can actually bring your timeline down to 1080p and that will help speed up and lower the workload on your computer. Later in delivery, there's a setting I’ll show you that you can click to export and render at the highest quality. In my experience, editing 6k Red Komodo footage is that dropping the timeline resolution really helps- with playback time and helps speed up my workflow. Helping with those editing headaches you can get when deadlines are catching up to you.

As you can see the timeline resolution doesn’t matter as much. What really matters is the timeline frame rate below. I shoot and like to work with a 24fps timeline. I know there are a lot of standards, and it’s important to know on each project and with each client to double-check the frame rate everyone is using. In the US traditional everyone using 23.98 fps, Most digital creators will use 24 fps, and in New Zealand, they always, in my experience, edit at 25 fps. It’s important to know what you are shooting at to avoid any problems. Example being shooting at 23.98 and the client's other shooter shot and edited everything at 25 fps. There could be problems that are easily fixable if you take the time to communicate.

One thing to keep in mind is once you set your project frame rate in for setting you won’t be able to change it. It’s really important that you set it to the frame rate you’ll be working with. Open a project file. To open your project settings, go to the bottom right and hit the gear or you can hit Shift - 9 on your keyboard.

Next is the video monitoring setting, and I leave that the way it is, so on to the next section.

The next area that's important is the optimize media and render cache. A quick look at what this is: proxy media is low-res copies of your main footage that can be used to take the workload off your hardware so you can edit faster. You don’t have to work with the original files. For me, it takes 6k .r3d and turns them into 1080p proxies or .mp4.

Optimized Media is kind of the same thing without the resolution decrease. It’s meant to keep the same relation but convert it to a format that your computer can handle better. I don’t really use it.

Then lastly, we have render cache. DaVinci Resolve allows you to render however many clips you like and in whatever format you like while the program is inactive, for the purpose of having smooth playback. I put my render cache on my desktop or on its own hard drive, the purpose being that it’s easy to find and delete once I’m done with a project. Usually, 6 months after it’s been delivered to a client. After a while, they just take up space and are non-mandatory. If you set DaVinci to “Smart Cache,” the program will work in the background to help render files so your timeline can play them in full FPS.

I usually set proxy media resolution to half. If you are trying to save a lot of space, you can make it smaller.

I set my proxy media format to H.264 as I find my computer runs better and the files are smaller.

I leave optimized media resolution to “choose automatically.”

I leave both Optimized media format and Render cache format at ProRes 422 HQ or just ProRes 422

The last thing I like to do is enable background caching. I keep it at around 5 sec. this will, if I don’t touch my Mac for 5 sec, start to back up and cache all the footage in my timeline. So if I take a break from editing, it’ll run in the background to make everything smoother. I keep it at 5 secs, but you can change it to whatever you want.

Under the optimized media section, we have the king folders section. Here we have the file paths where everything is going to be stored on your computer. I like to keep everything on my main drive and an easy place to find.

That’s about everything we need for this section. Thank you so much for joining me today, and don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions. If you have the time, check out my website and work. I'm a Durango, Colorado-based videographer and cinematographer. I work on everything from weddings to full-feature films.