Today, Apple updated Final Cut Pro (v11.1), Motion (v5.10) and Compressor (v4.10). Lots of bugs got fixed, FCP added adjustment layers, and Image Playground is now a feature inside Final Cut and Motion. Here are all the details and related links.
Over the last week, I tested Apple Final Cut Pro 11, Adobe Premiere Pro 25 and DaVinci Resolve 19.1 using a variety of computers from 2018 to the new M4 Pro Mac mini. This article summarizes what I’ve learned with an emphasis on the M4 Pro Mac mini and M2 Max Mac Studio.
Droplets are great stand-alone mini-apps. Watch folders are fast Compressor automations. Both can speed your work by automating the process of doing the same thing over and over Here’s how they work and which to pick for your work.
As a heads-up, I’m running into a perplexing, consistent bug in Apple Compressor (v4.8). This has been an on-going problem for the last several months. And I thought it was about time to give you a heads-up about it.
A question I get all the time is: “How do I import just a section of a clip? The original is really long and I don’t want to waste disk space.”
Regardless of the video editing software (NLE) you use, the answer is not initially encouraging: “You can’t. Here’s why.
In this tutorial, I tested different export options to see which is the fastest way to create an H.264 or HEVC compressed file from a Final Cut Pro project. Several results surprised me.
Apple Final Cut Pro 10.8 no longer supports DVD burning. However, Apple and Corel teamed up to provide a 50% discount to Roxio Toast for all FCP users. Here are the details.
This week, Apple released updates for Final Cut Pro (Mac & iPad), Compressor and Motion. Here are all the details of the June, 2024 updates.
Here’s a behind-the-scenes look at how we shot interviews at the 2024 NAB Show. This includes gear, people and process.
Export segmentation is one of the new features in Final Cut 10.7 that becomes available when you upgrade to macOS Sonoma. This harnesses the power of multiple media engines in Apple silicon chips to accelerate H.264 and HEVC exports in FCP or Compressor. While this makes exports faster, it also has other benefits – and limitations.
Today, Apple released new versions of Final Cut Pro (10.7), Motion (5.7), and Compressor (4.7). Here are the details.
One of the key benefits of Apple silicon computers is the use of Unified Memory. But… what is “Unified Memory,” why is it important, and how much do we need for our work? This tutorial has the answers.
Apple Compressor is a stand-alone, Mac-based program that compresses audio and video into a variety of formats for distribution. Long derided for its slow speed and poor image quality, since the release of Apple silicon Macs, upgrades have dramatically improved its speed and quality. Here’s how it works.
Yesterday’s update to Final Cut Pro breaks most FXFactory plugins. Caution is urged on updating. Here are the details, along with Release Notes for new versions of Final Cut Pro, Compressor and Motion.
Even if you don’t own – or like – Apple Final Cut Pro, you can use Apple Compressor to manipulate media in ways other software doesn’t. For example, use Compressor to change the timecode of a video clip. Here’s how.
The week, Apple released bug-fix versions of Final Cut Pro, Motion and Compressor. Here’s a list of what’s new and links to get more information.
Lou asked: “Should I partition the internal drive of a Mac to get the maximum speed for video editing?” The answer is no – but not for the reasons you might suspect. Larry Jordan provides the details on maximizing system speed.
With its latest releases, Apple now offers M2 versions of the Mac mini, Mac Studio and Mac Pro. This article is to help you decide which hardware best meets the needs of media creators, then provide tips on how to best configure the system.
Apple just updated Final Cut Pro, Compressor, Motion and Logic on the Mac to support the release of Final Cut and Logic on the iPad. Here’s the compete details of what’s in the update.
While you can add a timecode effect to clips in Apple Final Cut Pro (read tutorial), Apple Compressor allows you to add burned-in timecode to a batch of video clips at once. Here’s how.
Here’s a collection of two dozen websites with free – or mostly free resources for video editors.
Apple recently partnered with Future Media Concepts to create three certification exams for Apple Final Cut Pro editors. Here are the details, along with a website to learn more.
This morning, Apple released new versions of Final Cut Pro, Motion and Compressor. Here are the details, along with links to the full release notes.
[Update: Dec. 17, 2022, I updated to Ventura 13.1. Mostly, it went fine. But there were issues. Read the details here.] Sometime in October, Apple will release the latest version of the macOS: Ventura. First announced at the 2022 WWDC …
This week, Apple released a minor update to Final Cut Pro (v 10.6.4), Compressor (v 4.6.2), Motion (v 5.6.2) and iMovie. Here are the details.
Apple Compressor can analyze the technical settings of a media clip and, in some cases, allow you to change them. This illustrated tutorial shows you how.
Video bit depth makes a difference when you are creating effects, color grading or working with HDR material. Here’s an explanation of what bit depth is and when to care about it.
Based on a reader’s comment, this compares image quality between three different source codecs (ProRes, MPEG-2 and H.264) compressed into H.264 using Apple Compressor. This also illustrates how many CPU and GPU cores were active.
Apple updates Final Cut Pro (v10.6.2), Motion (v.5.6.1) and Compressor (v.4.6.1). Here are the details.
This is an excerpt of a recent PowerUP webinar called “Ask Larry Anything.” In this short tutorial, Larry Jordan explains what makes video frame rate conversions so difficult.
The New Mac Studio computer is stunning. But, is it for you? Here’s what you need to know to configure it for video editing – yet save money at the same time.
In this article, I compare the compression speed of Apple Compressor, Adobe Media Encoder and ffWorks (ffMPEG) on an Intel system versus a new M1 MacBook Pro. Along the way we also discover that speed is not dependent upon how hard the CPUs are working.
Here’s a list of the top 20 most-read media and video editing tutorials on Larry Jordan’s website from Jan. 1, 2021 to Dec. 31, 2021.
Yes, the new M1 MacBook Pro is very, very fast. But, the M1 did not win every race when tested against a 2013 MacBook Pro and a 2017 iMac. These twelve tests are a good comparison between performance benchmarks and real-world media processing of the improvements you can expect if you upgrade to these new systems.
Recently, Apple updated Compressor to version 4.6, where a highlighted feature is automated Watch Folders. In this video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how these work and how you can use them to automate compression of video, audio or still images exported from any media application.
Watch Folders are an important new feature in Apple Compressor 4.6 that can speed your workflow. Here’s an illustrated tutorial on how they work.
On Oct. 18, 2021, Apple updated Final Cut Pro, Motion and Compressor. Here’s a complete list what’s new and what’s fixed, based on Apple’s release notes.
On July 8th, Apple released bug fix updates for Final Cut Pro, Motion and Compressor. These updates included no new features. Here’s the list.
Apple updated Final Cut Pro, Motion and Compressor last week and both Final Cut and Compressor got a flurry of new features. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to reduce the file size of an animated image sequence. We do this without losing any video quality, by using indexed color and Apple Compressor.
Apple updated Final Cut Pro, Motion and Compressor last week and both Final Cut and Compressor got a flurry of new features. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to control what metadata is embedded into your movies during compression using Apple Compressor. This is a very useful technique when security or privacy are important.
New with the 4.5.3 update to Compressor are compression settings which simplify cropping and compressing square and vertical media. These new settings simplify the conversion of, say, horizontal media to vertical making it easier to repurpose existing assets for new uses.
Last week, Apple released updates for Final Cut Pro, Motion and Compressor. Both Final Cut and Compressor added new features, while all three applications saw significant bug fixes. Here’s the full list of what’s new.
“Ask Larry Anything!” is a free-form conversation about technical questions of interest to video editors. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to create a custom compression setting, using Apple Compressor, to create a 10-bit HEVC video file with surround sound.
“Ask Larry Anything!” is a free-form conversation about technical questions of interest to video editors. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to embed labels, called “metadata,” into video files during compression using Apple Compressor that can be viewed later during playback. These files could be ProRes, MP4, MP3 or QuickTime.
When it comes to updating the operating system on my main production Mac, I’m a laggard. This is by intent. Still, I finally decided it was time to upgrade. Here’s what I learned in the process.
Both the new M1 and existing T2 chips from Apple support hardware-assisted encoding and decoding of H.264 and HEVC media. Here’s how to enable them in Apple Compressor.
Two “Top Ten” lists of tips and techniques from “The Inside Tips” for 2020. The first is by number of views, the second is by reader ratings. These cover Adobe and Apple software, along with codecs, media, visual effects and production.
“Should you upgrade?” is the wrong question. Here is a better answer on when to upgrade to Big Sur – along with links to help your transition go smoothly.
Apple released minor updates for Final Cut Pro and Compressor, along with stability improvements and a name change.
Apple has expanded hardware acceleration on recent makes. Here’s what you need to know to vastly improve the speed of video compression.
