Blog Archives

As part of a larger update, Apple released new versions of their Pro Video Formats. This free update is recommended for all media editors. Here are the details.

Video compression is essential to all media today, from social media to broadcast to streaming. In this video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how job chaining in Apple Compressor can save significant time when applying multiple compression settings to a source file.

Video compression is essential to all media today, from social media to broadcast to streaming. In this video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to use Apple Compressor to crop or reframe a video clip prior to media compression.

Video compression is essential to all media today, from social media to broadcast to streaming. In this video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to apply both still and moving watermarks to compressed video using Apple Compressor.

Video compression is essential to all media today, from social media to broadcast to streaming. In this video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to use Apple Compressor to create a custom compression setting for use in Apple Final Cut Pro X.

With the release of macOS Mojave and continuing into Catalina and Big Sur, older media codecs are no longer supported, nor displayed. Here’s a simple technique to find and transcode outdated files using Kyno.

New with the 10.5 update to Apple Final Cut Pro X is the ability to copy libraries, events and projects and, if necessary, create proxy media while all project media is being copied. This simplifies creating projects to share between editors.

Storage speeds vary widely. Here’s a tip to measuring them accurately.

Technology constantly changes, but older codecs and media don’t. What do you do if you can’t play older media in macOS Catalina or Big Sur? Watch as Larry Jordan shows how to use Kyno to potentially find and convert older media.

When you need to KNOW that your audio meets the technical spec, neither Premiere nor Final Cut can help. But Adobe Audition can. Watch as Larry Jordan shows how to use amplitude statistics to make sure your audio has the right levels and is distortion-free.

I first wrote this article to work-around a bug in Final Cut Pro X. But, Apple fixed the bug. Now, this is a step-by-step guide to importing chapter markers into Apple Compressor, which is useful for media created outside of Final Cut Pro X.

Final Cut Libraries store stuff. But how that stuff is organized is up to you. Here are a variety of thoughts on working with libraries in Apple Final Cut Pro X.

Thunderbolt 4 is already on the market – and it isn’t what you expect. What does it mean for Mac and PC users? Is our Thunderbolt 3 gear out-of-date? Larry Jordan interviews Larry O’Connor, Founder/CEO of OWC, a leading Thunderbolt manufacturer, to learn more.

After testing, a 7200 RPM RAID is about 30% faster than a 5400 RPM RAID. Also, journaling makes a difference. When speed is important, here’s what you need to know.

Disk Warrior is an essential Mac-based trouble-shooting, repair and optimization tool for any Mac system accessing spinning hard drives. I’ve used it for years and continue to highly recommend it.

Here’s a summary of the new features introduced at Adobe MAX (Oct. 2020) for Adobe Premiere Pro, with a link for more details.

Easy to connect, easy to use and extremely well-built. The OWC Thunderbolt 3 10G Ethernet Adapter works exactly as you would expect. And what higher praise is there?

In this video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to create a multicam sequence using video clips with different frame sizes in Adobe Premiere Pro.

In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan explains some of the key settings you need to consider when configuring a multi-camera source sequence for editing in Adobe Premiere Pro.

Regardless of which video editing software you use, storage is more important than your computer for multicam editing. Here, Larry Jordan presents the three storage criteria that multicam editing demands – and why they are important.

Multicam recording captures an event using multiple cameras. Multicam editing displays all those angles during the edit. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows why and how to use with proxies for multicam editing in Apple Final Cut Pro X.

Multicam recording captures an event using multiple cameras. Multicam editing displays all those angles during the edit. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to create a montage of video or stills using multicam techniques in Apple Final Cut Pro X.

Multicam recording captures an event using multiple cameras. Multicam editing displays all those angles during the edit. In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to work with multi-channel audio in a multicam clip using Apple Final Cut Pro X.

The Mercury Pro LTO tape system is a well-constructed, high-speed and easy to use tape archive system for media creators. Bundled with myLTO software, it can get new users archiving quickly, yet fully support more demanding archive applications.

The answer is “Maybe.” This detailed article explains the fundamentals of high-speed networking, illustrates how to connect a Mac to a 10G Ethernet network, then measures performance between 1G and 10G connections, with a focus on video editing.

Josh asked me to explain the pros and cons of using internal, direct-attached, and network-attached storage for media editing. Here’s an overview, along with recommendations on what you should consider for your own system.

Recently, NewBlueFX launched: NewBlue Stream, a new product designed for live streaming. In this interview with CEO Todor Fay, we learn more about the product, why they created it and who it is designed for. This is fascinating.

I’ve spent a lot of time this week thinking about how to improve the speed and responsiveness of my storage. Here’s a relatively inexpensive way to improve the responsiveness of a server, especially for smaller workgroups. When it comes to …

This article details what I learned trying to access often corrupted digital images that are 15 – 25 years old. It illustrates the software I use to recover images, video codecs that are obsolete and techniques I used to preserve media for the future. This covers AppleWorks, PICT, PhotoCD, JPEG, TIFF, audio, and video media.

You exported your video file only to find that it is WAAAY too big! Here’s an explanation of file sizes, codecs and media workflow for beginners.

Whether you use Adobe Premiere Pro or Apple Final Cut Pro X for your edit, you can clean, edit and mix your audio faster and better in Adobe Audition. In this excerpt, Larry Jordan shows how to use auto-ducking or, even better, a channel EQ to improve the balance between dialog and music in Audition.

Whether you use Adobe Premiere Pro or Apple Final Cut Pro X for your edit, you can clean, edit and mix your audio faster and better in Adobe Audition. In this excerpt, Larry Jordan shows how to move a project from Final Cut Pro X into Audition for audio clean-up and mixing, then, bring the final mix back into Final Cut for output.

Whether you use Adobe Premiere Pro or Apple Final Cut Pro X for your edit, you can clean, edit and mix your audio faster and better in Adobe Audition. In this excerpt, Larry Jordan shows how to move a sequence from Premiere Pro into Audition for audio clean-up and mixing, then, bring the final mix back into Premiere for output.

Whether you use Adobe Premiere Pro or Apple Final Cut Pro X for your edit, you can clean, edit and mix your audio faster and better in Adobe Audition. In this excerpt, Larry Jordan shows how to fix a popped “P,” called a plosive, and other weird pops and clicks using Audition.

An interview with Maury Rogow, CEO of RIP Media Group, on what they are doing to find work and stay creative during these difficult times.

In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan illustrates how automatic scene detection works in Adobe Premiere Pro v.14.4, along with a potential problem.

New in the Sept. 2020 update to Adobe Premiere is an improved HDR workflow for Rec. 2100 HLG HDR media. Adobe continues to upgrade Premiere to support HDR. However, the process is not painless. Here’s an illustrated tutorial showcasing what you need to know.

New with the Sept. 2020 update to Premiere Pro is automatic scene detection. Here’s an illustrated tutorial explaining how this works. In short, it is fast, fun and pretty darn accurate.

Earlier this week (Sept. 15, 2020), Adobe announced new versions of Premiere Pro and After Effects. Available immediately, as part of a Creative Cloud subscription, here are the new features.

In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to use several new – but hidden – Viewer features in the latest 10.4.9 version of Apple Final Cut Pro X.

In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to use several new – but hidden – Browser features in the latest 10.4.9 version of Apple Final Cut Pro X.

In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan shows how to use the new ISO and white point settings to adjust ProRes RAW media using the latest 10.4.9 version of Apple Final Cut Pro X.

I first wrote these “Media Planning Guidelines” as a series of bullet points to help us think about media and the storage necessary for video editing. In this article, I expand these to explain my thinking to help you make better media decisions for your next project.

In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan discusses the impact of video frame size, frame rate and codec on storage capacity and video editing, whether you use Adobe Premiere Pro or Apple Final Cut Pro X.

In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan explains why converting video frame rates often causes video playback to stutter, whether you use Adobe Premiere Pro or Apple Final Cut Pro X.

In this short video tutorial, Larry Jordan explains why H.264 and HEVC media are considered inefficient for video editing, whether you use Premiere Pro or Final Cut Pro X.

Apple Compressor 4.4.7 now supports creating a wider range of proxy files. This illustrated tutorial explains what you need to know, how it works and which to choose.

One of the headline features in the 10.4.9 update to Final Cut Pro X is a number of improvements to proxy editing. Here’s an illustrated tutorial on what they are and how they work.

The brand-new ArmorLock SSD from G-Technology is fast, secure and rugged. But, it has problems when trying to add multiple secure users to the drive. It’s a great idea that needs tweaking.

New with the 5.4.6 update to Apple Motion is support for 3D Objects. This illustrated tutorial shows where they are, how to use them and what you need to know to import your own USDZ objects into Motion.