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@fcpxlatino
Final Cut Pro X has been used for everything from ads to Hollywood movies, but the software didn’t get the easiest of rides from the industry when Apple first launched the radically-different…
Excellent report on the upcoming FCP X Documentary!!
There's more to video transitions than simply moving between scenes — here are the reasons behind the cuts.
What's New at NAB 2017! from Blackmagic Design
Final Cut Pro X Latino Cumple 2 Añitos hoy, yeay!
A Look at FCP X and Premiere Pro
By Braden Storrs June 29th, 2015
This is in response to this question from a current FCP 7 user, 7Presley, looking to update: FCP X vs. Premiere for a Feature I started typing and realized it was so big I might as well make it into an article. Everyone has different needs as an editor so I’ll just share my experiences for what they’re worth. I’ll cover 7Presley’s questions as well as my own thoughts. This is not an exhaustive comparison, or a bashing session, these are observations and opinions based on user experience.
Unfortunately I don’t know the details of 7Presley’s production workflow or cameras used. Not all productions or workflows have the same requirements so for anyone to say one program or another is the only way to go for everyone is a bit short sighted. There are many factors to consider. That being said I personally believe FCP X is the best option for most productions, if you know what you are doing with the tool. I’ll explain below. Wether it is capable is not a question anymore. Unfortunately comments like that still come up. It’s been proven in every type of production. From the smallest family movies upwards to wedding videos, web series, corporate and commercial productions, broadcast television, and Hollywood and otherwise feature films.
Of course it’s worthwhile to know various tools. While I highly prefer FCP X, I use Premiere when needed. I came from FCP 7 but haven’t had to use that professionally in 3-4 years. Going back to it now it’s amazing how antiquated it feels/is. Avid is still widely used due to its being engrained in so many long standing workflows. I would never use the adjective innovative and Avid in the same sentence though (except this one).
Color Grading
7Presley mentioned wanting to use the Red Giant color plugins. They are compatible with both Apple and Adobe suites so there’s no difference there. Though I prefer Color Finale from Color Grading Central personally. It’s a lot faster to work with and more accessible then Magic Bullet while still having the tools I need. Magic Bullet has a few extra tools that are nice at times. PPro CC just got the new Lumetri color system which is a big step up for its built in color effects. FCP X has the Color Board which, while not as advanced, is very intuitive and quick to work with. FCP X has key-framable shape and color masks for all effects. Premiere has shape mask tracking built in for effects. I’ll cover a few more app specific tools below.
Premiere Pro/CC:
Pros (I’ll just mention ones FCP X doesn’t have)-
All in one package that interacts and exchanges elements and media fairly efficiently between applications. Gives you video, motion graphics, design, web, and photo editing for one monthly price.
Access to After Effects, which is a powerful, though unnecessarily complex program. Older UI and lack of modern hardware optimization.
Speedgrade gives you an included color grading suite.
Basic audio mixer for rough mastering inside PPro.
Custom Window layout presets. Those are nice.
Cons-
Subscription based business model. I really, really, don’t like the forced subscription model. If you ever stop paying them, for example if you switch to another platform, you loose access to all your work on all of their programs. Video, design, etc. You can save XML for some things but you’re out of luck for the most part. As opposed to a license where you can always go back as long as your hardware supports the software. Let’s be honest though, that’s the point, to keep you paying. To have access to your work and to stay compatible you have to keep paying them $600 a year. It has ZERO to do with being able to deliver updates faster/easier. That’s just marketing speak. They are so integrated into so many workflows they can get away with it but it’s dirty business to me.
Aside from the subscription the thing that has really turned me off to the platform has been reliability. I don’t care how many features they have, if it doesn’t work, it doesn’t matter. Apparently on Windows it’s actually stable but for us in the Mac-sphere that’s not the case. I don’t trust the software to let me deliver on time, especially on large or complex projects. The bigger it is and longer I work on it the nastier things get. It’s been the same story on Mac Pros, iMacs, Macbook Pros. It’s not the hardware. There been so many missed deadlines, angry supervisors/producers, clients that won’t return. So much lost productivity that I almost got to a point of refusing jobs that require PPro. It costs me money and reputation and that’s bad for business. I definitely let people now what I think about using the NLE when I have to. it’s just warning from experience. It’s not a capabilities thing, it’s a trust issue with a tool that has failed me dozens of times in so many ways. To Adobe’s credit they are very responsive in their forums and via email. I appreciate how prompt they are. Unfortunately though, it hasn’t paid off. Having worked with PPro consistently since CS5.5 through CC 2015 I can confidently say the problems have gotten worse not better. It literally took minutes for some nasty bugs to show up in CC2015 on a new project. The same bugs go from one generation to the next. For more info on what happened a couple years ago when I switched to FCP X here’s that article: An Editor’s Journey to FCP X
Tracks. They’re proven and strait forward, but they are inefficient and slow you down.
Playback performance has been generally improved but both PPro and AE are no where as optimized to take advantage of newer hardware as the Apple applications. Too much old code in there.
FCP X/Apple Pro Apps:
Pros (some built in, some 3rd Party)-
It’s a modular system. You only have to pay for what you need. FCP X, Motion 5, Logic Pro X, and Compressor 4 make up the Apple Pro Apps. Just buy the ones you need. Those don’t do something you need? I bet you there’s a plugin that does. Since the initial cost are so low, getting any needed 3rd party tools is a lot easier cost wise. Buy it once, use it forever. I’ve heard FCP Compared to a RED camera. Buy the base and add the accessories that fit your needs.
Perpetual License! FCP X and it’s companion apps came out 4 years ago (except LPX which came out a little later). $600 for all four apps and free updates since. Roughly $150 a year. Not including any third party tools of course, which depend on the case, but you get the point.
Performance in general is much higher. The newer, optimized, 64 bit code takes full advantage of the newer hardware and they continue to improve this aspect of FCP X. Seriously impressive export and render times. Amazing thing is for many projects the need to render is either very limited, or not needed at all. Just edit and export.
Stability, in general, is much better. Every application has bugs, no way around that, but FCP X’s bugs are almost always just annoying at their worst. They are very rarely cost me any significant amount of time. In nearly every instance, if there is a crash, I can open FCP X back up right away and I haven’t lost any work because of the autosaving database design. Then I’m right back to work. After feature addition updates in particular there’s generally an update or two needed to smooth out new hiccups. They always work them out though, that’s what’s important.
Media/asset organization in FCP X is hands down the king. The FCP X Library system combines the very best aspects of a database combined with the flexibility of a project file. Libraries can live anywhere and be moved around like any other file. Inside there’s metadata, Keywording, Smart Collections, multiple retainable in and out ranges, Roles, the Timeline index, and that’s just scratching the surface. Premiere hijacked some of that functionality in an update (they’ve done that a lot since CS6) but the implementation is no where as intuitive. It’s harder to implement and harder to review at a glance. For more info on how insanely organized you can be quickly in FCP X check this out: FCP X Quick Tip: Organize at High Speed
Multicam in FCP X is also king of the hill. It’s the best implementation of Multicam I’ve seen in an NLE. The general design is excellent but also includes built in tools to sync via audio, markers, content creation date/time, timecode, or a combination of elements.
The Magnetic Timeline takes away a lot of the track based mechanics that stood in the way of editing efficiently. It’s now more of a spine to which elements attach. I’ve also heard it called a canvas. It’s more free flowing then tracks, but not to the point that you’re not in control. As long as you know the tools available to you. If you do learn them, you can move faster then you ever have. If you go in and try to make it work “your way” then you’ll end up with headaches. In the words of Yoda, “You must unlearn what you have learned.” Newer editors find it very intuitive while established editors have a harder time “getting it.” This article shows how it is an effective part of speeding up workflows: FCP X is Faster!
FCP X has an excellent, mature, and current XML that can be used to get project or clips into about any program. Smoke for example supports the FCP X XML. PPro still uses the old FCP 7 XML language unfortunately. XoCC and 7toX are useful XML converters. Intelligent Assistance has created some amazing tools for large productions like Sync-n-link and The Producers Best Friend that use the XML to save you DAYS of work.
Motion 5 is a huge improvement over Motion 4 (which I never cared for). For me, it’s replaced AE for most things. Especially with many of the plugins from MotionVFX at my disposal, one of which I mention below. It’s playback/rendering/export engine is so much better and I find it far more intuitive then AE.
DaVinci Resolve Lite is a very, very, powerful color correction suite and naturally fills that hole in the FCP X suite. It is the best coloring suite out there and has been used on countless movies. It natively supports the FCP X XML. Amazing thing is that the “Lite” version is free.
Logic Pro X supports the FCP X XML and provides an excellent mixing and composing tool for your FCP X projects. I like it a lot better then Audition personally. Here’s a detailed video with a lot of tips for that workflow: Workflow: FCP X to Logic Pro X and Back Alternatively, if you properly use the Roles system and run your project’s XML through X2Pro you will have an AAF that will be the best organized project your ProTools guy has ever seen. It’s a well worn, proven, workflow.
Slice X, Track X, and Drive X are all tools from Coremelt that use the famous Mocha tracking engine. They have various uses from tracking color corrections, masking and compositing, tracking 2D and 3D text, to tracking 3D particle generators. The possibilities are pretty endless and they all work in your FCP X timeline without having to go to other applications.
mObject from MotionVFX is an amazing plugin. As of a recent update, FCP X and Motion 5 have built in, really nice, true 3D titling tools. mObject takes it further. It can do 3D text with far more complex customizability, plus extruding vector artwork to make 3D logos for example, and you can open up the mObject extension app and build 3D scenes with actual 3D models which can then be animated. This works inside FCP X and Motion 5 with full 3D control over the elements and the camera. After Effects has a similar tool called Element 3D but it only works in After Effects and not Premiere.
One more 3rd Party tool. Frame.io has released a free plugin that lets you seamlessly export and upload to their online collaboration/client review system without leaving FCP X.
Cons-
Audio is a mixed bag in FCP X. There are some excellent, built in, audio plugins carried over from Soundtrack Pro and Logic. Editing wise I LOVE not having to manage audio tracks all the time when moving clips around. Not having tracks though means visual organization can get pretty messy. Many people want color coding based on Roles but we don’t have that yet. I have a quick, easy, method though that works really well. Check out the article here: Audio Organization Tip For FCP X The other challenge is that without tracks you can’t have a track mixer. Once again Roles could be the answer but there’s no Roles based mixer yet. Really though, we have Logic Pro X for mixing so that’s covered if you plan your workflow.
Being there’s no dynamic linking things can take a little longer when going between applications. Not enough to be an issue but thought I’d mention it. Unfortunately, while Motion is very integrated with FCP X, once something is in the timeline there’s no “Open in Motion“ option.
Anyways there’s my novel. Any questions, clarification, comments? Share them below.
Mental Haze: How to Use Bokeh to Create Visual Tension and Emotional Impact
by Marie Gardiner2 Apr 2015
When most people think about bokeh, they think of two things: a technical property of lenses and visual property of composition. These two ideas are so strong Wikipedia describes bokeh (or boke) as "the aesthetic quality of the blur produced in the out-of-focus parts of an image produced by a lens." On a technical level, that’s exactly what it is; but it’s also so much more.
The Japanese definition of bokeh includes another, deeper, meaning: ‘mental haze.’ This is a beautifully accurate definition when you consider how integral bokeh can be when telling the story of a photograph. Sometimes, it is the story.
Bokeh as a Story Telling Device
I’ve seen bokeh used to great effect in aiding the concept of a photograph. We’ve all seen the picture of the cup where bokeh is used to represent steam rising from the cup:
Bokeh rising from a cup as if steam is a popular use [Image: Pixabay: CC0 Public Domain]
In this way, bokeh can really add to a photo by giving it a different slant. This can be achieved in-camera, or by adding a texture like above in post production. Natural light works really well for this so outside shots are great but if you’d like to try it indoors, a string of fairy lights is a great, cheap option – I’d recommend the battery kind.
Bokeh as a Recognisable Abstract
I love this technique; you can tell what something is, like this bridge, but it’s a completely different take on the subject:
Bokeh can be used in such a way that the subject is still recognisable [Image: Pixabay: CC0 Public Domain]
This shot has probably been taken thousands of times but this one really stands out. The lens you use will affect the kind of bokeh you get, as will your focus and aperture. So really play around with those settings to see the great results you can get.
High spots make great vantage points and cities are a wealth of bokeh goodness because of all the lights!
Bokeh as a Mental Haze
Back to the phrase I mentioned at the start. What does a mental haze mean? Well, for me it’s a picture using bokeh in such a way that the bokeh makes the picture. It doesn’t even have to be recognisable but it should give you a particular feeling when you see it:
Certain uses of bokeh can evoke a particular feeling [[mage: PicJumbo: CC0 Public Domain]
Although recognisable, I wouldn’t say this image fits into our previous categories. Would it have worked if outside was in focus, without the bokeh? I personally don’t think so, but using the rain and outside lights in this way has encapsulated such a tone to it. For me it’s a kind of warmth, being in the car when it’s raining and travelling somewhere, even if it’s going home, makes you feel a particular way; that’s what this evokes for me. It's a visceral memory. It doesn’t always have to be so ostentatious either, if that’s not your thing:
A recognisable subject with effective back-lighting and bokeh [Image: Pixabay: CC0 Public Domain]
This shot has a clearly recognisable subject and good composition, but it’s the lighting and bokeh that really make it. The contrast between the dark, alien form of the spider with the softly lit background and delicate webbing makes for a wonderfully pleasing contrast.
Wonderful, Wonderful, Unresolved Tension
What all of these photos have in common, what makes them work, is that they all have an element that cannot be completely resolved. The bokeh in them seems to conceal something just beyond our reach, while all the while giving us little visual clues.
The bokeh in these examples helps move your eye through the picture, but it doesn't give you anything truly concrete to settle on. This feeling of travelling, of an unresolved energy, creates visual tension in a pleasing way. That's the photographic flow: a harmonious imbalance of visual elements, and it can be powerfully expressive.
Best of all, bokeh helps create a feeling of engagement with the moment. It taps the same feeling of detached concentration you use to see pictures with your mind's eye while you photograph. Strong stuff!
However you see bokeh or choose to use it, there is no right or wrong. When you go a little ‘arty’ and think outside of the traditional photo ‘box’ though, I think you can get some really stunning results. We love to see your bokeh pictures here so feel free to post some!
New #FCPX 10.2 announced!
New Macbreak explaining the features!
Don't Fix It in Post: These Techniques Will Help You Record Better Location Sound
Though ADR is unavoidable sometimes, it can be time consuming, expensive, and frustrating as hell. That's why it's imperative to know how to record good location audio so you get it right the first time.
If you need a few tips on how to do this, Sound Designer/Sound Mixer Jonah Guelzo and Boom Operator Tyler Lyons walk you through their own recording process for their feature film Where are you Bobby Browning?. This video is great, because you'll learn a wide range of basic and advanced techniques, like how to attach a lav mic to someone's chest, how to hide mics inside a car, and what kind of professional gear to use if you want to do dual system.
Check it out below:
Probably the most important lesson to learn from this video is this: don't have a "fix it in post" mentality. (Sound is supposed to be recorded not fixed, guys.) Even though editing software has become so incredibly powerful, it's still seems to be no match for the wacky things we can do to make our audio just terrible. Being meticulous and intentional about getting the best recording the first time around will make your (or your editor's) life during post so much easier (and cheaper).
How to Record a Quality Voice-Over (and Why You Should Do It)
January 8, 2015 by Izzy Hyman A voice-over might be the perfect thing to add to your next video, but unfortunately if you’re like a lot of video creators, you won’t use one.
That’s potentially a huge mistake.
Now it’s true that a voice-over isn’t always a good idea for every video (a reel comes to mind). But here’s the important thing to remember…
A voice-over is frequently the ideal element to add to your video.
And yes, I’m talking about all kinds of videos. If you’re making a product video for your business, it likely needs a voice-over. Watch several commercials on television, and you’ll see voice-overs are enthusiastically present.
But I’m also talking about videos you make of family events, vacations, club outings, or even the simple montage video.
At a minimum, a voice-over can help make an otherwise confusing video become clear. Best-case scenario, a voice-over can take these videos to a whole new level.
Why do you need a voice-over in your video?
The voice-over is a powerful and versatile tool.
It can help set the mood and tone of the video. It can share information with the viewer. It can answer the important questions: who, what, when, where, why.
Like a travel guide, a voice-over can help the viewer know what’s going on, what to pay attention to, and what this all means.
When a viewer clicks play on your video, they’ll immediately start asking themselves questions:
“What am I watching? What is this about? Why did that person just do that? Should I keep watching?”
The voice-over can help answer these questions.
Warnings
A voice-over can also harm your video, so you need to watch out for a few things.
Excessive mouth noises, hesitations, overly-repeated words, and other issues can make a video nearly unwatchable.
For example, have you ever watched a video on YouTube where the person narrating the video sounded bored (with audible sighs and a bored tone to their voice)? I have witnessed this myself, and I think it’s sad. If they’re not interested in the subject, why should I be? (And it’s a bit surprising when the video has 40,000 views with 1,200 thumbs-ups. Imagine how well the video would do if the person sounded interested!).
Yes, voice-overs can be problematic, but we should still use them.
How to Record a Voice-Over
What do you need to record a voice-over?
Technically all you need is a microphone and some way to capture the audio, such as a computer, phone, or audio recorder. Yes, technically this is true, but you can get far better results if you put a little more effort (and funding) into your equipment.
For someone just starting out, I think a good USB microphone and a set of studio headphones is enough to get you going. You can plug the USB microphone directly into your computer and capture darn-good-audio-for-the-price.
I haven’t personally owned this USB mic, but the Blue Yeti is certainly a popular choice. And the audio quality it records is quite good.
By the way, I’d recommend staying away from using your computer’s built-in microphone for voice-overs. The sound quality would be too horrible, and it would hurt your video’s watchability.
If you’re already using a separate microphone when you shoot video (such as a shotgun microphone), then you could use the same microphone for voice-overs. You might need to invest in an audio interface to get the audio from the mic into your computer. (The audio interface I currently use is the M-audio Fast Track Pro.)
If you’re always trying to level up your quality, then you might find yourself moving up in microphone standards. I’ve done this myself. I’m currently using a Neumann TLM-103 microphone for recording my voice-overs, but I’ve been through several other low and mid-range microphones on my way up to this one.
For headphones, I’m currently using the industry-standard Sony MDR-7506 Studio Headphones. They’re lightweight, comfortable, and the audio reproduction quality is good. Also, they’re not super-expensive at about $100.
Where should you record your voice-overs?
I record many of my voice-overs in my bedroom closet. I’m not kidding.
Closets are great for recording because all the clothing stops sound waves from bouncing around.
You don’t want bouncing sound in your recording (aka reverb or echo).
If you’re somewhat newish to voice-overs, you might not even realize the reverb is there. Here’s how to test it:
Record a voice-over and listen closely with headphones and your eyes closed. Can you hear the sound of the room? Does it sound like the recording was done in a specific space?
If the answer is yes, then you’ve accidentally picked up bouncing sound waves. You don’t want that. You want the voice-over to sound like it’s coming out of nowhere.
Like your voice is coming from an empty void.
What if you don’t have a closet you’d be comfortable using? Try recording inside your car (with it turned off).
And yes, if you have the budget and time, you can acoustically treat a room or get a vocal booth if you’re completely serious about this voice-over business.
That said, the closet or car is acceptable if you lean more video-enthusiast and less video-professional.
Tips for the Voice-Over Performance
Almost nobody starts out feeling natural when they record voice-overs.
It can be a challenge, because on the one hand, you should probably be reading from a script. But on the other hand, you don’t want to sound like you’re reading from a script.
So what can you do to make your voice-over sound more natural?
Here are a few tips you might want to try that I’ve personally found helpful:
Gesture a lot with your hands, the way you would in a real conversation. This makes the voice-over sound more natural.
Stand up if you can, or at least sit up in your chair. The posture shows up in the sound of your voice.
Smile if you want the voice-over to sound happy. Don’t smile if you want it to sound serious.
Talk a little louder and slower than you usually would. For me, this translates to a better voice-over.
Give yourself plenty of chances to get the take right. I do many (sometimes an embarrassingly large number of) takes until I’m happy with the result. (If you’re a professional voice-over artist, you likely won’t have the luxury of doing endless takes, but since you’re reading this, I’m assuming you’re not already a V.O. pro.)
Now Hit Record…
The most important thing to know about voice-overs?
More videos need them. So please use them. Yes, they require more effort, but the benefits of using voice-overs are too numerous to ignore.
A voice-over can help your video be more understandable and entertaining, so it’s worth the effort.
Apple Releases Final Cut Pro 10.1.4 and Xcode 6.1.1 Apple today released a minor update to Final Cut Pro, bringing native support for Material eXchange Format (MXF) container files and several other enhancements and bug fixes. What's New in Version 10.1.4 - Native MXF import, edit, and export with Pro Video Formats 2.0 software update - Option to export AVC-Intra MXF files - Support for import and editing with Panasonic AVC-LongG media - Fixes issues with automatic library backups - Fixes a problem where clips with certain frame rates from Canon and Sanyo cameras would not import properly - Resolves issues that could interrupt long imports when App Nap is enabled - Stabilization and Rolling Shutter reduction works correctly with 240fps video Version 10.1.4 is a free update to Final Cut Pro, which is available in the Mac App Store for $299.99. [Direct Link] Apple has also released Xcode 6.1.1 today, delivering several bug fixes for Apple's OS X and iOS app tools for developers. What's New in Version 6.1.1 - Fixes common causes of SourceKit crashes when working with Swift - Additional bug fixes and stability improvements Xcode is a free download from the Mac App Store. [Direct Link]
Final Cut Virtual User Group hosted by Alex Lindsay with guest participants Mike Matzdorff, Sam Mestman, Mark Spencer and Steve Martin.
MacBreak Studio: Ep. 290 - Fast Editing with the Keyboard
This week on MacBreak Studio, Steve Martin from Ripple Training welcomes special guest Sam Mestman from FCPworks.com, who shows us how he edits quickly by using keyboard shortcuts.
MacBreak Studio: Ep. 289 - Basic Rating Workflow in Final Cut Pro X
This week on MacBreak Studio, Mark talks with Bill Davis about his workflow for reviewing and rating clips.
MacBreak Studio: Ep. 288 - Feature Film Visual Effects Workflow with Final Cut Pro X
This week on MacBreak Studio, we have a very special guest: Mike Matzdorff, who recently finished editing a large budget feature film movie with Final Cut Pro X. Mike discusses the visual effects workflow he used with Final Cut Pro, Feature Overlays from alex4D.com, and Producer’s Best Friend from Intelligent Assistance.
