Confused by all the different video outputs on your deck? This article explains what they mean, what they do, and when to use them.
A reader asks how to create a PAL DVD. In this article, I provide a reference for file conversion, then talk about the Compressor setting you can use to compress your files. (I also include a link to lots more training on DVD creation.)
Here’s a quick tip on how to create still images so they can display in a PAL 16:9 sequence.
Over the last four months I’ve had a long email chat about video formats and the best ways to convert between them. If you are moving files from NTSC to PAL or back, and trying to integrate HD material, this article covers what you need to know.
Panning balances audio playback between the left and right speaker to position the audio in space. In this quick technique, learn three ways you can pan multiple clips in Final Cut Pro.
Hard disks are essential to video editing. But, as this short article explains, what you thought you knew about maintaining your hard disks may not be true. Take a look.
Paste Attributes is an extremely flexible tool that simplifies copying settings from one clip to another. This tutorial shows you how.
This is a quick tip illustrating how to make your dialog sound like it is coming over the telephone.
Working with still images in video is hard, because images created on the computer are not compatible with video. A new software – PhotoMotion – seeks to solve a lot of the challenges in working with still images. This is a detailed review of how the product works.
If there was one “magic format” we would all be shooting in it. Unfortunately, as many of us are discovering as we move to HD, the world is a highly incompatible place.
With the release of Final Cut Studio 2, Apple created a new high-end codec entitled ProRes. With the release of Final Cut Studio (3) they expanded it from two variations to five. What is ProRes and how do you decide which version to use for your projects? Answering that question is the purpose of this article.
Since its first release, Final Cut Pro has integrated effects with video editing. In this tutorial, I show you how to create a picture-in-picture effect, then make it move using keyframes in the Motion tab.
This detailed analysis looks at how to create graphics on your computer that look “right” on FCP. It’s a detailed look at the difference between square and non-square pixels.
If you edit multiple cameras and spend time creating multiclips, you need to check into a new utility for Final Cut Pro called “PluralEyes.” This software vastly simplifies the process of syncing and building multiclips — especially when there are breaks in the timecode. This article shows you how to use it.
Creating keys on the computer is easy – and they look great. Where problems occur is when those specials effects are shot with interlaced video and displayed on an interlaced TV set or monitor. This article describes how to avoid suddenly discovering that all your effects look out of focus.
What’s the best way to position text in Final Cut Pro, and why does the position shift as you change justification? This short article explains the why and how.
There’s a right way and a wrong way to position text in Final Cut Pro to get the highest quality. This article explains what you need to know.
Not all video is, um, video. In many cases, we need to integrate PowerPoint or Keynote slides into our video projects. This article explains what you need to know to make this work successfully.
Sigh… There’s nothing quite like death by PowerPoint slides. Still, many times we need to incorporate them into our productions. Here’s what you need to know to help them look as good as they can. (Oh, and by the way, do EVERYTHING you can to reduce the text they contain!)
Judging by my email, handling still images is by far the most confusing part of editing video — especially because the computer creates images using square pixels and video uses rectangular pixels, in a variety of shapes. This article explains everything you need to know to create great looking still images for your next video project.
The Primatte RT keyer, which ships with both Motion and Final Cut Pro, is a nice keyer, but it has problems with hair and transparency. In this review/technique, I show you how to use the big brother to the RT filter: Primatte Keyer Pro 4 to key a model who has lots and lots of big, bouncy, hair!
Print to Video is your best choice when outputting to tape. However, some people find really ingenious ways to avoid it. This article describes what it is, along with a discussion of self-contained vs. reference QuickTime movies.
A good question regarding soundtrack transfer is submitted in this article and Larry explains the problem with how scripts process – or fail to process – clips
QMaster allows you to combine multiple computers into a render farm to make video compression run faster. It also allows you to combine multiple processors on one computer to compress video faster. One of these choices works MUCH better than the other. This article explains what you need to know.
Last month, I wrote about how to use QuickTime 7 to add audio to video. Since then, I’ve gotten several comments from people that own OS X 10.6 that they don’t have QuickTime 7 on their system.
A reader questions why the Quicktime quality of his sequences are soft when he exports them as a mov.
Ripping a DVD, which means to convert it into something that Final Cut Pro can edit, can be done a number of ways. However, not all of them yield the best quality. This article explains what you need to know to convert your DVD footage into something that can be edited, while still looking good.
Here’s a technique you can use to slightly modify a voice so that it is no longer recognizable, yet still understandable. This is useful for disguising speakers, or commercial effects.
(Updated Dec. 2024). RAIDs (Redundant Array of Independent Drives) are high-speed, high-capacity storage systems designed for video editing. However, they are often described using arcane terms like RAID 0, 1, 3, 5, and so on. This describes what those terms mean and illustrates real-world speeds.
Lots has been written about the benefits – or lack thereof – in shooting 24 fps video. Here’s a quick look at a complex subject.
You have probably used Final Cut’s audio mixer to mix your audio tracks in real-time. Did you know you can do the same thing with audio filters? This technique shows you how.
Final Cut Pro is, most often, used for editing after the recording is complete. However, there are some situations where you need to record live and edit as soon as you can. This article talks about that and provides options to consider. There’s also some relevant reader feedback.
Tony asked an interesting question: what’s the difference between RED and DSLR cameras for shooting video. Good question. So I asked two experts: Philip Hodgetts and Noah Kadner. This article provides their answers.
Soundtrack Pro has the amazing ability to reduce the background noise in a clip – like air conditioners or other machine noise. In this tutorial, I’ll show you a step-by-step procedure you can use to reduce the noise in your audio. (Note: For a video tutorial of this process, click here.)
Nothing is more critical than making sure your reel numbers (or names) are correct before capturing video. This explains how to fix them when you forget.
Addressing the problem of digital media “evaporating” when a hard drive is powered down and stored on a shelf, with additional advice from Bob Gobeille, who originally provided the terminal script to fix this problem.
Sometimes, especially when merging clips, you get more audio tracks in a Final Cut Pro timeline than you want. This article describes a couple of different ways you can get rid of them.
It’s happened to all of us. We created an effect that looked great at the time, but now, after a night’s rest, we hate it. Here are two techniques you can use to remove all the filters from selected clips.
Final Cut creates render files for all transitions, effects, and audio mixes. This article explains what you need to know to keep these files under control and recover hard disk space at the end of a project.
Tracking and removing render files is easy — when you know how the Render Manager works. This tutorial shows you how.
Recently, I got an email from John Bertram, an editor in Toronto, on why metadata support is crucial to the next generation of Final Cut Pro.
I ran into an interesting problem over the weekend that I want to share with you because the solution is more complex than at first blush. Here’s the problem: I was asked to create a video for posting on line. The video had two components: me on camera talking, and screen shots, both of which were different sizes and formats. This article describes the process of creating a single, compressed file composed of multiple format video.
When you are working with multiple tracks of video, trimming clips on several tracks at once is essential. This article shows you how to trim multiple tracks quickly and accurately.
Steve Gagne sent in a question that sparked this tutorial. He was dissolving between chroma-key shots and in the middle of each dissolve, the foreground clip color-shifted to green. He thought this could be fixed using nests, but needed some help in figuring out how.
Confused about what size to create your images? This article explains what image size to use so they import correctly into Final Cut Pro HD.
In this article I discuss the criteria I use in judging which camera to buy, as well as factors that may not be that critical in making the decision.
In this article, various problems with playback are addressed and answered.
Larry diagnoses a subscriber’s problems with burning DVDs and makes recommendations (altering compression bit-rates, etc.) towards finding a solution.
When compressing an H.264 file, whether in QuickTime, Final Cut Pro, or Compressor, an option you may see is called “Frame Reordering.” This article explains, briefly, what it is and when you should use it.
Nothing drives us more nuts than having to wait for our systems to render transitions and effects. Reader Don Smith sent in this technique for reducing the time you spend waiting for Final Cut Pro to render.
