Posts Tagged ‘Final Cut Pro’

Final Cut Pro X 10.0.6 Update

From Philip Hodgett’s blog:

Final Cut Pro X 10.0.6 is probably the most feature-rich release since the original one. As well as the features Apple discussed at NAB  2011:

  • Multichannel Audio Editing Tools
  • Dual Viewers
  • MXF Plug-in Support, and
  • RED camera support

there’s more. Much more. Including a feature I wish they hadn’t put in and one I’m extremely pleased they did. I’m ecstatic that selective pasting of attributes is now an Final Cut Pro X feature, but I’m really annoyed that persistent In/Out points made it to this release. More on these later.

There’s a rebuilt and more flexible Share function; a simplified and improved Unified Import with optional list view, horizontal scopes mode (and scope for each viewer), Chapter Markers, faster freeze frames, support for new titling features inherited from Motion, more control over connection point, 5 K image support, vastly improved Compound Clip structure (both functional and for us the XML), customized metadata export in the XML (for asset management tools mostly), and two features that didn’t make it to the “what’s new” list: Range Export from Projects and a bonus for 7toX customers.

All up I count more than 14 new features, whereas Final Cut Pro X 10.0.3 had four (although arguably Multicam and Video out were heavy duty features).

Because of the developer connection, I’ve been working with this release for a few months. We have new versions of 7toX and Xto7 waiting for review in the App Store that support the new version 1.2 XML.

MXF and RED Camera Support

In keeping with their patten, Apple have supported a third party MXF solution rather than (presumably) paying license fees for each sale when only a small percentage of users will use the MXF input (and yes, output) capability. The named solutions are MXF4mac and Calibrated{Q} MXF Import, but apparently there are others. Working with MXF files should not feel different than working with QuickTime files.

Along with RED native support, Apple quietly upped the maximum resolution from 4K (since release) to 5K.

I don’t work with MXF or RED so I’ve had no ability (nor time) to test these functions. I’ll leave that to those with more knowledge.

Dual Viewers

More accurately, the current Timeline Viewer and an optional Event Viewer (Window > Show Event Viewer). You get one view from the Timeline and one view from the Event. I can see how this could be useful at times, although truthfully I never missed it.

Final Cut Pro X's dual viewers

Next is the main reason as to why 1 cannot generic viagra have an orgasm these would need to have to be discussed with your group of friends or even your partner out of fear of ridicule. The Department of Urology at PSRI hospital dedicatedly looks after all cialis samples the health concerns of men related to their urinary tract and reproductive system with a function. Acupuncture can easily deal with distinct health generic cialis pills problems successfully. Most http://pamelaannschoolofdance.com/amy-geldhof/ order cheap cialis of the time, proper warm-up, fitness, and equipment allow athletes to practice their sport safely.

One Viewer from the Event, one Viewer for the Project. (Click to enlarge)

Multichannel Audio Tools

There’s a lot of room for improvement in the audio handing in Final Cut Pro X so the new multichannel audio tools are a welcome step in the right direction.  Initially there’s no visible change, until you choose Clip > Expand Audio Components. With the audio components open, you can individually apply levels, disabled states, pans and filters to individual components, trim them, delete a section in the middle – all without affecting the clips around.

Final Cut Pro X's multichannel audio
No multichannel audio in Solar Odyssey, so I borrowed a test file from Greg used to add support to 7toX and Xto7.

For 7toX, if there are separate audio levels, pans or keyframes on a sequence clip’s audio tracks these will be translated onto the separate audio components in Final Cut Pro X. Similarly for Xto7 the levels/pans/keyframes on the clip’s audio components are translated onto the audio clip’s tracks.

More flexible Scopes

A new layout – Vertical – stacks the Scopes on top of each other. Better still, they remember the settings from the last time used! Also good is that you can open a Scope for each of the viewers.

Final Cut Pro X's dual scopes
Dual Viewers, Dual Scopes and a stacked Vertical layout. If the brightness control was there before, I missed it.

You should note that both those images are 720P at 97% (from the Parrot A.R. Drone 2.0 FWIW). I love the Retina display!

Improved Sharing

There’s now a Share button directly in the interface. More importantly, you do not have to open a Clip from the Event as a Timeline to export.

Final Cut Pro X's share destinations
Share directly from Event or Project.

But what’s that at the end? Why yes, I can create a Share to my own specifications, including anything you can do in Compressor (by creating a Compressor setting and adding that to a New Destination). Note that HTTP live streaming is an option.

Final Cut Pro X's share destinations
Now you can create a custom Share output for exactly your needs.

Final Cut Pro X 10.0.6 will also remember your YouTube password, even for multiple accounts. If you have a set package of deliverables (multiple variations for example) you can create a Bundle that manages the whole set of outputs by applying the Bundle to a Project or Clip in Share. Create a new bundle and add in the outputs you want.

Range-based export from Projects

Another feature not seen on the “What’s new” list is the ability to set a Range in a Project and export only that Range via Share. A much-requested feature that’s now available.

Unified Import

I never quite loved that I would import media from the cameras (or their SD cards) via the Import dialog, while importing Zoom audio files was a whole other dialog. Not any more with the new unified Import dialog. There’s even an optional List View, which is my preferred option. (The woodpecker was very cooperative and let me sneak in very close with the NEX 7.)

Final Cut Pro X's unified Import dialog
The Unified Import dialog, with optional list view like the Event list view, with skimmer and filmstrip view.

Waveforms and Hiding already imported clips are also options. The window now (optionally) automatically closes when Import begins.

Other import options.

Chapter Markers

For use when outputting a DVD, Blu-ray,  iTunes, QuickTime Player, and Apple devices.

Final Cut Pro X's chapter markers
There are now three types of Marker: Marker, To Do and Chapter.

The Marker position notes the actual marker, the orange ball sets the poster frame, either side of the chapter mark. A nice refinement for Share.

In 7toX translation, sequence chapter markers become chapter markers on a clip in the primary storyline at the same point in the timeline.

Fast Freeze Frame

Simply select Edit > Add Freeze Frame or press Option-F to add a Freeze Frame to the Project at the Playhead (or if the Clip is in an Event, the freeze frame will be applied in the active Project at the Playhead as a connected clip). Duration, not surprisingly, is the default Still duration set in Final Cut Pro X’s Editing preferences.

New Compound Clip Behavior

Did you ever wonder why Compound Clips were one way to a Project and didn’t dynamically update, but Multicam was “live” between Events and Projects? So, apparently did Apple. (We certainly did when dealing with it in XML). Compound Clips now are live.

  • If you create a Compound Clip in a Project, it is added to the default event and remain linked and live.
  • If you create a Compound Clip in an Event, it can be added to many Projects and remain linked and live.

By linked and live I mean, like Multiclips, changes made in a Compound Clip in an Event will be reflected in all uses of that Compound Clip across multiple Projects.

Changes made to a Compound Clip in a Project, are also made in the Compound Clip in the Event and all other Projects.

To use the old behavior and make a Compound Clip independent, duplicate it in the Event.

The old behavior is still supported so legacy Projects and Events will be fine.

Final Cut Pro 7 sequences translated using 7toX become these new “live” Compound Clips. If you don’t want this behavior you can select the Compound Clip in the Project timeline and choose Clip > Break Apart Clip Items to “unnest” the compound clip .

Selective Pasting of Attributes

It had to be coming, and I’m glad it’s here. This has probably been the feature from Final Cut Pro 7 I’ve missed most.

Final Cut Pro X's Paste Attributes
Looks familiar! I like the visual clue of which clip the content is coming from, and which it is targeted at.

One of the things I love about Final Cut Pro X is that there are “sensible defaults”. Not least of which is the Maintain Timing choice. In the 11-12 years I spent with FCP 1-7 on three occasions I wanted to use the (opposite) default. Every other time I had to change to Maintain Timing, which is now thankfully the default.

Persistent In and Out Points

You got them. And it’s a good implementation, allowing multiple ranges to be created in a clip. I am not a fan, and wish it were an option. Over the last two months I’ve added keywords to “ranges” I didn’t intent to have because the In and Out were held from the last playback or edit I made. Not what I want. So I have to select the whole clips again, and reapply the Keyword. It gets old after the twentieth time.

It gets in my way more than it helps, which is rather as I expected. Selection is by mouse click (mostly – there is limited keyboard support) so this gets every bit as confusing as I anticipated.

Your last range selection is maintained. To add additional range selections (persistent) hold down the Command key and drag out a selection. (There are keyboard equivalents for setting a new range during playback.) You can select multiple ranges and add them to a Project together. (I’m not sure about the use case, but it’s available.)

Customizable Metadata Export to XML (and new XML format)

Along with a whole new version 1.2 of the XML (which lets us support more features in the XML) is the ability to export metadata into the XML. These are the metadata collections found at the bottom of the Inspector.

Final Cut Pro X's XML metadata view
Select the metadata set you want included in the XML during export.

Remember that you can create as many custom metadata sets as you want and choose between them for export. This will be a great feature as soon as Asset Management tools support it. No doubt Square Box will be announcing an update for CatDV the moment this release of Final Cut Pro X is public.

The new XML format also allows 7toX to transfer a Final Cut Pro 7 clip’s Reel, Scene, and Shot/Take metadata into their Final Cut Pro X equivalents.

Flexible Connection Points

We’ve always been able to hold down the Command and Option keys to move a connection point. What is new is the ability to move a clip on the Primary Storyline while leaving connected clips in place. This is really a great new feature and one I’ve used a lot. Hold down the Back-tick/Tilde key (` at the top left of your keyboard) and slip, slide, trim or move the Primary Storyline clip leaving the connected clips in place.

Titling is significantly improved, including support for the new title markers feature in Motion

As I’m not in the Motion beta I’m not at all certain what this means. I’m sure Mark Spencer will have an explanation over at RippleTraining.com soon.

Drop Shadow effect

Well, a new effect that adds a Final Cut Pro 7 style drop shadow to a Clip. If you’ve got a clip in Final Cut Pro 7 with a Motion tab Drop Shadow applied, 7toX will add the new Drop Shadow effect to it during translation.

Bonus unannounced feature – XML can create “offline” clips

This is great news for developers because previously all media referenced by an XML file had to be available (online) when the XML was imported into Final Cut Pro X. With XML version 1.2 that’s not necessary, so we’ve taken advantage of this in 7toX. The user can relink the offline clips to media files by the usual File > Relink Event Files… command after translation and import.

What else do I want?

I’d like a Role-based audio mixer.

I’d like Event Sharing to multiple users at the same time, with dynamic update of keywords and other metadata between editors. (I do not think I want to share a Project in that way – more sequentially manage with a Project, like Adobe Anywhere.

Final Cut is Dead! Long live Final Cut!

Apple’s Final Cut Pro is the leading video-editing program. It’s a $1,000 professional app. It was used to make “The Social Network,” “True Grit,” “Eat Pray Love” and thousands of student movies, independent films and TV shows. According to the research firm SCRI, it has 54 percent of the video-editing market, far more than its rivals from Adobe and Avid.

On Tuesday, Apple pulled a typical Apple move: it killed off the two-year-old Final Cut 7 at the peak of its popularity.

In its place, Apple now offers something called Final Cut Pro X (pronounced “10”). But don’t be misled by the name. It’s a new program, written from scratch. Apple says a fresh start was required to accommodate huge changes in the technological landscape.

Apple veterans may, at this point, be feeling some creepy déjà vu. You’ve seen this movie before. Didn’t Apple kill off iMovie, too, in 2008, and replace it with an all-new, less capable version that lacked dozens of important features? It took three years of upgrades before the new iMovie finally surpassed its predecessor in features and coherence.

Some professional editors are already insisting that Apple has made exactly the same mistake with Final Cut X; they pointed out various flaws with the program after an earlier version of this column was posted online on Wednesday. They say the new program is missing high-end features like the ability to edit multiple camera angles, to export to tape, to burn anything more than rudimentary DVDs and to work with EDL, XML and OMF files (used to exchange projects with other programs). You can use a second computer monitor, but you need new TV-output drivers to attach an external video monitor. You can’t change the settings of your exported QuickTime movies without the $50 Compressor program.

Apple admits that version X is a “foundational piece.” It says that it will restore some of these features over time, and that other companies are rapidly filling in the other holes.

For nonprofessionals, meanwhile, Final Cut is already tempting — especially because the price is $300, not $1,000. It’s the first Apple program that’s available only by download from the online Mac App Store, not on DVD. All of the programs formerly called Final Cut Studio have been rolled into Final Cut except Motion and Compressor, which are sold separately. Final Cut Express and DVD Studio Pro are gone.)

Parents and friends need to purchase generic viagra offer as much support as they can. Thyroid gland dysfunction is very common special info viagra discount online type of ailment. buy cialis unica-web.com Learning to keep ones personal life out of the workplace are likely to increase as an employed individual with Cerebral Palsy reaches middle age. Well the agreeable news for unica-web.com purchase viagra online us is that alcohol detoxification can be treated with reasonable medications. The new Final Cut has been radically redesigned. In fact, it looks and works a lot like iMovie, all dark gray, with “skimming” available; you run your cursor over a clip without pressing the mouse button to play it.

Once you’re past the shock of the new layout, the first thing you’ll notice is that Apple has left most of the old Final Cut’s greatest annoyances on the cutting-room floor.

First — and this is huge — there’s no more waiting to “render.” You no longer sit there, dead in the water, while the software computes the changes, locking up the program in the meantime, every time you add an effect or insert a piece of video that’s in a different format. Final Cut X renders in the background, so you can keep right on editing. You cannot, however, organize your files or delete clips during rendering.

Second, in the old Final Cut, it was all too easy to drag the audio and video of a clip out of sync accidently; little “-1” or “+10” indicators, showing how many frames off you were, were a chronic headache. But in the new Final Cut, “sync is holy,” as Apple puts it. Primary audio and video are always synced, and you can even lock other clips together so that they all move as one.

In fact, an ingenious feature called Compound Clips lets you collapse a stack of audio and video clips into a single, merged filmstrip on the timeline. You can adjust it, move it and apply effects as if it were a single unit, and then un-merge it anytime you like. Compound Clips make it simple to manage with a complicated composition without going quietly insane.

In the old Final Cut, if you dragged Clip A so that it overlapped part of Clip B, even briefly, you wound up chopping away the covered-up piece of Clip B. But now, the timeline sprouts enough new parallel “tracks” to keep both of the overlapping clips. Nothing gets chopped unless you do it yourself.

Source: David Pogue / NYTimes.com

Has Apple dumbed down FCP X or is this a step up?

PART ONE
Apple just introduced a new version of Final Cut at the Final Cut Pro Supermeet during NAB 2011 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Touted as “revolutionary as the first version” from 1999, Apple introduced the new Final Cut Pro X saying that every major broadcaster and film maker nowadays relies on FCP for their video editing needs.

Basing on live updates coming from attendees at NAB 2011, Final Cut Pro X has been built from scratch, and it’s entirely 64-bit. It’s based on technologies like Cocoa, Core Animation, Open CL, Grand Central Dispatch and it focuses on image quality. It features a resolution independent timeline up to 4K for scalable rendering — in fact, it appears the old render dialog is gone entirely as the app uses the available CPU to keep files always rendered. FCP X allows you to edit while you’re importing thanks to its new engine, and it’s also got automatic media and people detection on import, as well as image stabilization.

Apple is promoting the new FCP X as a complete and total rebuild. Smart collections look very similar to iMovie, and overall there is a feeling Apple has borrowed some UI elements from the iLife application to make the general design more accessible, even for professionals. For instance, Apple has brought “single keystroke nesting” to Final Cut Pro — a new functionality that allows you to group chunks of media into a single clip in the timeline.  The “inline precision editor” allows you to make edits by revealing media with an iOS-like menu.

Source: http://www.engadget.com

It’s possible that the GUI is more user friendly and the functionality has improved but based on the comments and features presented today the jury is still out as to whether or not FCP will be going head to head with the competition.  This means that ease of use may or may not improve functionality but instead lowers the playing field for all the non-editors out there.  I am all in favor of making editing easier but the roll-out today suggests a beta experience that does little to assist the professional editor in cutting a long form project.  Feels like a step backward on the time/space continuum and I always get a little queasy when the word iMovie is mentioned in the same breath as Final Cut.

They differ in prices, onset of action and durability of action is little different levitra 20 mg from the tablets. Know More About Your Disorder To treat ED or related troubles, one must understand that it is not an ailment; in fact, it is a signal buy cialis where of an underlying problem. Almond milk, enriched with aphrodisiac ingredients is one of the most valuable foods that we can to fight cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, aging and conditions associated with free radical damage and oxidative stress. pfizer viagra generic But thanks to cialis professional uk . cialis, also called Sildenafil Citrate 100mg tablets. purchase cheap cialis (Kamagra) Effervescent tablets, today is the market leader that is very well known for treating male erectile dysfunction. -Scott Arundale
PART TWO

UPDATE 4.13.11

Upon watching the demonstration in full, I got the impression there were some shills in the audience shouting their appreciation for the new features.

Now that calmer minds prevail let’s look at the upside.  Instant nesting with a single keystroke. Easy keyword features. Better sync and collision options. Automatic color grading, stabilization and background rendering.  Excellent use of the 64 bit engine.  But all of this suggests Apple is more interested in the young editor cutting short form trailers than the longform editor trying to cut a feature, nevermind the hapless assistant who must keep it together.  Much of the work that FCP is trying to achieve is normally the work of the assistant but they pre-suppose that the editor is working solo.  Pity that editor if they don’t have a second pair of hands to help him or her.  I’m all in favor of having the machine do the work.  I’m ready as an Apple Certified Trainer to go back to school and re-learn how to cut faster and easier.  What I loved about FCP is that copy and paste makes it easy to move stuff around.  Apple has made it even “easier”, but again requires a new mindset i.e it takes more thought and fewer keystrokes to achieve the same thing.  If this is the future than I am in.  But it begs the question: who is the target audience for this product?  Surely not the Hollywood narrative professional.  Instead the trailer/bumper/extreme sports crowd may find these new features useful.  For improved storytelling techniques, the jury is still out.

-SA

Final Cut Pro is long overdue for a real upgrade

Many complained that FCP vers. 7 was not really worthy of a new number but belonged in the vers. 6 family.  In my opinion Apple has always been trigger happy with upgrades to all their software but nevertheless much of their brain trust has been noticeably absent when it comes to improving their editing platform.  It has been assumed that the tech wizards were otherwise engaged in the cash cows of iPhone and iPad.  This new version is long overdue.

Apple’s Final Cut Pro made its debut at NAB in 1998 before being released as a product the following year. The software has a history of April releases, though its last major version came in July 2009. The software itself hasn’t been a standalone product for quite a bit longer though, instead being wrapped up as part of Apple’s Final Cut Studio suite, which bundles together Final Cut Pro with Motion, DVD Studio, and Soundtrack Pro, as well as the Color and Compressor applications.

Reports began circulating in late February that Apple was nearing completion on a complete overhaul of the software that would bring Final Cut Pro into the 64-bit era and more importantly a release this spring. That report from Tech Crunch which cited anonymous sources, said that the design was both under the hood and sporting a new user interface.
Rest assured that all the viagra professional canada information you are promoting carries a low ticket price. They need to know that they are wanted and desired by his lady, he needs to cheap cialis pills able obtain and maintain an erection. More to the point, rapidly increment of ED victims of the age group of cheap price viagra 20-40 years. However, the cheap viagra tablet doctor usually prescribes the basic dosage level in the body.
A new report from ProVideoCoalition says Apple plans on “taking over” the 10th Annual SuperMeet event taking place on April 12 to announce a new version of the software.

It may be time to break out the champagne.

FCP vs. Avid – One veteran editor checks out

Edgar Burcksen, A.C.E. provides insight on why he will no longer be editing projects on Final Cut Pro.

The fine people in Tewkesbury appear to have gotten their heads out of the sand as witnessed by the above demonstration at NAB 2010 in support of Avid v.5 (release timed for later this year).

UPDATE: 5.8.10

Additionally, issuers won’t be able to raise the HGH levels of the body by viagra purchase as much as 34%.HemoglobinA1c is a combination of hemoglobin and glucose. In people with high blood pressure, commander cialis miamistonecrabs.com they can lower good cholesterol and increase bad cholesterol. viagra without rx miamistonecrabs.com Aphrodite is sure to bless you then. shop viagra online So, move forward to check these settings to know the reliability and worth of the store. The firestorm continues in the blogosphere and one wonders if Avid has furnished some mu$cle here to bash the opponent. I’m not one for conspiracy theories, but hey, just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they are not out to get you or as Rodney King might ask: “Can’t we all just get along?”

………VS

Return top

About 3D & Digital Cinema

If you are a tech head, cinema-phile, movie geek or digital imaging consultant, then we'd like to hear from you. Join us in our quest to explore all things digital and beyond. Of particular interest is how a product or new technology can be deployed and impacts storytelling. It may be something that effects how we download and enjoy filmed entertainment. It may pertain to how primary and secondary color grading will enhance a certain tale. The most important thing is that you are in the driver's seat as far as what you watch and how you choose to consume it.