Blog Archives

General Errors in Final Cut Pro 7 (and earlier) are often caused by either bad clips or bad render files. This article explains how to fix them.

Is it possible to carry custom Final Cut Pro keyboard shortcuts in a pen drive and install it on another machine? Here’s a technique to help you.

A solution for dual-channel mono clips, or single track mono clips displaying audio as a single waveform in Final Cut Pro X.

This is a better, faster, and more flexible way to create audio transitions in Final Cut Pro X.

Thanks to the generous raffle donations of our media sponsors for Larry Jordan’s Live FCP X Training in Washington DC!

By default, the audio output of Final Cut Pro is stereo. You can get it to output split tracks, but you’ll need to do the mix in Soundtrack Pro or ProTools. This tutorial explains how.

In the Log & Transfer window of FCP 7, how do I empty the Log & Transfer window?

Changing the color of a gradient in Final Cut Pro X requires opening it in Motion and making changes. This article describes how.

What happened to Background Sound in Final Cut Pro X?

Alex Gollner has posted a new, FREE, effect for Final Cut Pro X — it’s an eight-point mask.

One of the limitations of FCP X is that all Events and Projects must be open at all times. This product is a stand-alone utility that makes file management much easier in FCP X.

The latest version of OS X — Lion — is now shipping. While many people are excited, I recommend taking a cautious approach to upgrading any systems that you depend upon for editing.

One of the limitations of FCP X is that it only allows one sequence per project. Here is a simple workaround you can create that may do the trick.

Cheryl Foster sent me an email recently asking about archiving.

Mark Whalen sent me his thoughts on Final Cut Pro X that I wanted to share with you.

Final Cut Pro X was released just over 30 days ago — seems longer than that somehow…

Discover the Power in Final Cut Pro X with Larry Jordan’s Live Training in Gallaudet Universit, Washington DC. Free Bonus for attendees, plus raffle prizes!

In response to a subscriber’s question regarding the “blurry and aliased” look of his clips, Larry suggests that the problem may lie in the monitor settings.

A quick question about preserving LiveType settings when upgrading to Final Cut Pro 7 is asked and easily answered.

Deciding whether to upgrade to Final Cut Studio 2? Read this short note first.

Not all software updates work the way they are advertised.This article describes an update approach you can use to make sure all software updates go smoothly.

Final Cut Pro is a QuickTime editor. But what if you want to create WMV files? Well, you are not out-of-luck, but you will need different software. This article describes what you need to know, along with how to resolve problems when creating WMV files.

The article describes how to view and change subtitles in DVD Studio Pro.

Here’s a great technique you can use if your camera only shoots 4:3, but you want it to look like 16:9. This works for any standard-def video format; you don’t need it when shooting HD, because HD is already 16:9.

The afternoon that Final Cut Studio (3) was released, July 23, 2009, I spoke with Richard Townhill, Director of Video Application Marketing for Apple, and the public face of Final Cut Studio. In fact, Richard is responsible for all the ProApps in Apple, including Final Cut Studio, Aperture, and Logic Studio. Probably no one in Apple has more direct control over the future of the product than he does. For this reason, it was good to get his take on the latest release. This article is based on our conversation.

Larry explains in this article why a subscriber is having difficulty with a video transfer from his Sony hard disk recording unit (HVR DR60).

Final Cut has always allowed keyboard customization. This article shows some new “almost-secret” techniques buried in OS X that allow you to create customized keyboard shortcuts in ANY application.

Confused about all the options available in Sequence Settings? Well, this article can help. It may not explain ALL the different choices, but it will help you focus on the ones that are the most important.

You’ll find that you can retouch images directly in Photoshop. You will need Photoshop Extended CS3 or CS4. In fact, I created a video tutorial that shows you how.

Does this happen to you? The audio waveforms don’t display in a Final Cut Pro 7 sequence when they should. Hitting option-apple-W simply brings up a series of Xs instead of a waveform. How do you get these back? By reading this article, which explains the problem and what you need to know to fix it.

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.

Even though Soundtrack Pro is, at its core, a surround-sound audio editing system, sometimes you just need mono (single-channel) audio out. The only problem is… how? This quick article explains what you need to know.

Larry diagnoses a subscriber’s problems with burning DVDs and makes recommendations (altering compression bit-rates, etc.) towards finding a solution.

Audio files are never lost, they’re just, um, misplaced. Soundtrack Pro automatically records files to a temporary location. Which means you can find your source files, even if there’s a crash. This article shows you how.

Final Cut makes it easy to move files from one place to another — provided you have your files and system setup correctly. This article explains what you need to know.

Increasingly, audio is being recorded in more than two tracks. However, Soundtrack Pro has a problem when dealing with more than two tracks. This article describes the problem, and a work-around that fixes it.

This is a commentary by Larry Jordan on the announcements and background conversation at MacWorld 2006 in San Francisco, CA.

In this post-NAB 2010 report, I show how we covered this huge trade show for the Digital Production Buzz. 16 reporters, crew of 22, live hourly audio brodcasts, and daily one-hour show specials. This goes into the gear, the process, the file naming conventions…everything.

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.

Compressor does a really good job of compressing video for the web, or DVD. But, what if you want to change the image size? Well, Compressor does that too – in the Geometry tab. This article shows you how.

The more I work with Soundtrack Pro 2, the more I like it. Recently, I spoke with Apple about STP and learn some quick facts I wanted to share with you here, including what gear you need to hear surround sound.

The latest versions of Final Cut Pro, Motion, and DVD Studio Pro were announced, along with a brand new application: Soundtrack Pro 2. This article gives you a behind-the-scenes look at what’s new.

Preference settings have changed in FCP 5. This article shows you how to optimize your setting to get the most from your editing system.

Apple released Final Cut Studio (3) on July 23, 2009. This is a quick look at the announcement and an exclusive interview with Richard Townhill, Director of Video Application Marketing for Apple, about the new software suite.

HDV is the latest video format craze, but it isn’t like DV; or any other video format we are used to working with. This article explains how HDV is different and what you need to know to use it successfully.

Trying to get up to speed on HDV quickly. This article gives you a primer on the current status of HDV – what’s good, what’s bad, and what you need to know.

Adding subtitles is something DVD Studio Pro is very good at. But sometimes, importing a subtitle file doesn’t work. This explains why and how to fix it.

You know the drill. Someone at Apple coughs and suddenly the rumor mill is filled with frenzied statements that the doom of Final Cut Studio is at hand. “The Death of Final Cut” rumors have gotten to be as regular as spring floods or a plague of locusts.

As 2010 draws to a close, three quick observations on technology for the coming year.