Final Cut X sees camera but will not import.

Question

I have a Canon XL1s going into my MacBook Pro running Final Cut X via DV to FireWire 800 to thunderbolt. Since I am recording long meetings I skip recording to tape and record straight to the hard drive. I have done this in the past and it worked on older versions of the same hardware and software.
Please note that it will import only when the camera is also recording.
Now When you import, you can see the feed and the computer says its importing, but after you stop importing the files are nowhere to be found. I even tried this on IMovie and used someone else's Mac with the same result. Does anyone have any suggestions or ran into similar issues?

Answer 1

Hello there, KaelCormac.
When recording video directly from your camera with Final Cut Pro X, the following Knowledge Base article provides some great information in regards to it's functionality:
Final Cut Pro X: Import while recording
Record live video and audio into Final Cut Pro
Do one of the following:
To record using the built-in camera: Click the Import Media button in the toolbar. 
To record using an external iSight camera: Connect the iSight camera to your computer with a FireWire cable, and click the Import Media button in the toolbar. 
In the Cameras list on the left side of the Media Import window, select the camera you want to import from.
A live video image from the camera appears in the Media Import window.
Click Import.
In the window that appears, choose how you want to organize the imported media in your library:
To add the imported clips to an existing event: Select “Add to existing event,” and choose the event from the pop-up menu. 
To create a new event: Select “Create new event in,” use the pop-up menu to choose the library in which you want to create the event, and type a name (for example, “Chris and Kim Wedding”) in the text field. 
To learn more about events, see Organizing libraries overview. 
Note:    You can set storage locations for each of your libraries using the Library Properties inspector. For more information, see  Manage storage locations. 
If you want to create optimized or proxy media, analyze the video, or analyze the audio, select the relevant checkboxes in the Transcoding, Keywords, Video, and Audio sections. 
If you don’t set Final Cut Pro to analyze your media during the import process, you can analyze it later (if necessary) in the Browser. 
Note:    Some import options are available only when you import files from a storage device. For more information, see Organize files while importing and Import from a hard disk. 
When you’re ready to begin recording, click Import.
The camera begins recording immediately.
When you want to stop recording, click Stop Import.
A new video clip is created. You can click Import to begin recording again. You can repeat this process as many times as necessary.
Thanks for reaching out to Apple Support Communities.
Cheers,
Pedro.