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.
(Even if you don’t read the tutorial, watch the movie at the end.) Here’s how to create an animated flashlight beam that changes shape as you move it around an image, using Apple Motion.
Alain asked how to create an animated flashlight beam in Apple Motion. So I showed him; afterward I realized I was wrong. Here’s both what I showed Alain, then an even better way to create a flashlight effect.
Apple changed how adjustment layers for Final Cut are created in Motion with FCP 11. An adjustment layer in Final Cut Pro is a special clip to which you can apply effects that affect all layers or clips below it. The only problem is that it doesn’t exist. Here’s how to create it.
Recently, FxFactory updated their flagship product, FxFactory Pro, to version 6. To learn more about this update, I emailed Niclas Bahn, head of Business Development at FxFactory.
Sometimes, creating a custom effect can save you a lot of time – especially if you need to use it over and over. So, here’s an example of how to create a template in Motion, using a variety of useful Motion effects, that you can use directly in Apple Final Cut Pro. (I included both the movie and the Motion project.)
This week, Apple released updates for Final Cut Pro (Mac & iPad), Compressor and Motion. Here are all the details of the June, 2024 updates.
Background Remover, from FxFactory, removes backgrounds behind people without requiring a green screen or a stationary background. It works in Apple Final Cut Pro & Motion, along with Adobe Premiere Pro and After Effects. It creates amazing results effortlessly and quickly. Here’s a review.
Today, Apple released new versions of Final Cut Pro (10.7), Motion (5.7), and Compressor (4.7). Here are the details.
There is no doubt that we can create effects in Motion that won’t play in real time. But I was impressed that even complex effects with lots of moving elements did not tax an Apple silicon system. At all. Take a look.
I’m working on a project this week which requires adding a variety of over-the-shoulder images to narration. Since production hasn’t yet occurred, I have two options: Shoot a monitor on set Add the graphics later in post Since shooting a …
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.
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.
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.
Animated GIFs are short animations that are posted to a web site and viewed in a web browser. Not only can you create stunning animation in Motion, this short tutorial illustrates an EXTREMELY fast way to automate the process.
Still photographs, slides and digital images are a common component in many video projects. From digital photos to maps to old photos, editors often need to bring still images to life. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how.
The coordinate system in Motion and Final Cut makes creating effects with multiple images simple – once you understand how it works and how to properly scale the video clips. Here’s a step-by-step tutorial that will help you understand this.
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.
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.
MediaInfo, published by MediaArea, is a convenient unified display of the most relevant technical data for video and audio files. It is free, available through the MacApp store. Here’s a detailed look at this useful utility.
This tutorial creates a 3D text template in Apple Motion that allows Apple Final Cut Pro to put moving video inside adjustable, textured 3D text. There are many creative variations on this idea.
The new “sliced scale” effect in Apple Motion 5.6.1 scales an image while preserving key visual elements. This is similar to Content-Aware scaling in Adobe Photoshop. Here’s an example of how this works.
Apple Motion is powerful software that can be used to create motion graphics for any video editor, not just Final Cut Pro. For example, you can use Motion to create animated text and graphics on a Mac, then export it …
Apple updates Final Cut Pro (v10.6.2), Motion (v.5.6.1) and Compressor (v.4.6.1). Here are the details.
Here’s a useful animated split-screen effect that is easy to create in Motion and a big time-saver when editing split screens in Final Cut Pro. I also included the template this tutorial creates for you to download.
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.
“Ask Larry Anything,” is a free-form conversation about questions related to media production and editing. In this short excerpt, Larry Jordan explains how to use keyframes in Motion to animate the movement of an object.
Richard asked me to compare the speed of Apple Motion running on Intel vs. Apple CPUs. The results were STUNNING – and NOT what I expected. This offers a caution that simply running on Apple Silicon is not a guarantee of blazing speed.
Happy New Year! Here’s an easy way to combine text, particles and animation in Apple Motion to celebrate the new year with an animated logo.
Recently, Apple updated Motion to version 5.6, where one of the highlighted features is a new neon text effect. In this video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how this works and how you can add an effect to make it look even better.
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.
An illustrated tutorial on how to put different video inside each 3D text letter, while still keeping the 3D effect. This effect has multiple uses and lots of creative options to play with it, once the basic effect is created.
“Ask Larry Anything,” is a free-form conversation about, well, anything you want to ask. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to animate an object (a toy car) to follow a complex path along a map using Apple Motion.
Here’s another technique that I use all the time – creating highly-flexible custom Final Cut Pro title templates in Motion that I use and modify in all my FCP projects. This is fast, easy and saves TONS of time formatting and positioning titles.
Your Mac system is acting flakey. Here are a variety of tests and trouble-shooting techniques you can use to get your system and running. (This includes a special section on trouble-shooting for media editors.)
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.
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.
Fonts are the easiest way to telegraph an emotion – and they don’t require any design skills from us. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan illustrates the importance of readability – and other factors – when choosing fonts for a video project.
Fonts are the easiest way to telegraph an emotion – and they don’t require any design skills from us. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan illustrates several font design tips to help you choose which fonts to use in your next video project.
Fonts are the easiest way to telegraph an emotion – and they don’t require any design skills from us. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan demonstrates three font adjustment techniques that can make on-screen video text look better. While this uses Photoshop, we can actually do this in most applications on Windows or Mac.
DPI (Dots per Inch) is a measure of image resolution. It also confuses a lot of people. Here’s an illustrated guide to where DPI matters, where it does not, and why images look bad when you scale them larger.
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.
Auto-shrink is a new feature in Apple Motion that resizes text to fit within a specific area. This is a very useful tool when creating text graphics for Apple Final Cut Pro.
Here are ten keyboard shortcuts that make Apple Motion a whole lot easier to use – and ones I wish I knew a month ago.
In this session, we step deeper into the 3D world of Apple Motion with a look at cameras and sets. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to move a single camera between multiple sets in Motion.
In this session, we step deeper into the 3D world of Apple Motion with a look at cameras and sets. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to add and frame multiple cameras to shoot a single scene in Motion.
In this session, we step deeper into the 3D world of Apple Motion with a look at cameras and sets. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan illustrates how to add depth of field (focus) to a camera in Motion.
