Re: Final Cut to Televised Spot Question

I need to transfer footage from Final Cut to Beta for a Televised PSA in Pennsylvania. I am tranferring the product from Final Cut to Mini DV and then transferring to Beta. Are their certain Broadcast Specs I need to do before I start the transfer process?

Well I've done it many times supplying a dv tape. However, it does make you crazy. First you output to DV (DVCAM - on a dsr-11), then you have to screen the DV to make sure there are no dropouts or problems. Then you take the DVCAM to the post house (and they are real post houses not places specializing in pal to ntsc conversions for the east indian market) and they dub to betasp (or digibeta). I always insist on them doing it component and sometimes it probably is. Then I have them make a vhs screener from the beta and watch that to check for problems so when the client screams about the dubs having a dropout I have a record of the state of the master when it left the posthouse. Of course nobody's making vhs dubs anymore and the DVD workflow doesn't have these problems. And I guess your right to warn people here about the potential problems with this workflow.
Recently the post house I've been working with doing this sort of thing is Teatown Video in NYC and they just take the drive with the selfcontained quicktime and output via fcp.

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Final Cut Express? Many Questions.

I'm interested in shooting a short film in the near future. I'm looking to invest in a camera that will be under $1000.00. I'm also looking to use Final Cut Express to edit the footage. I believe Imovie will not offer enough editing options, and FCP will offer more than I need. I'm looking mainly to do simple cuts, transitions, put my footage in letterbox mode with the hopes of it looking like a real film, etc.
So here are my questions:
First off: With what I've written above, am I right in thinking FCE is a better option than FCP? Keep in mind I've never really done any work in video editing, but am anxious to purchase a new camera, shoot my film, edit it myself, etc.
Second: Will a HD camcorder work well with FCE? I'm currently looking to purchase a Canon HV 20. Link to the camera itself:
http://www.usa.canon.com/consumer/controller?act=ModelInfoAct&fcategoryid=177&mo delid=14869
Third: I want to purchase a laptop to use FCE and edit my future film. Will a black Macbook work well (upgraded with 4 GB of RAM)? Strong enough graphics card on that macbook? Or am I forced to move up to a Macbook Pro? (My thinking is that the Macbook Pro is unnecessary unless I want to use FCP.) Correct?
Answers to these questions and any additional advice would be GREATLY appreciated. Thanks!!!

Hi(Bonjour)!
HDV and FCE HD:
I shoot and edit in HDV with FCE HD without problem, but there are some points that need clarification.
1) HDV is converted upon capturing process within FCE to Apple Intermediate Codec movie. Regular HDV take the same amount of hard disk space as regular DV, but AIC needs aroung 49 Gig/hour of space.
2) HDV colorspace and compression sheme doesn't support well color correction or compositing (at least not as well than DV).
3) Rendering process is very very long one, and to play realtime effect you need a pretty fast CPU and many RAM.
4) A dedicated external hard drive runnig at 7200 rpm is a must to avoid drop frame on playback/capture/print.
5) Print to tape must be done overnight because it took a rule of 5 to 6 time the length of your sequence to operate.
6) HDV is astoning when viewed in a 1 to 1 pixel ratio on your computer screen, but it take at least 1920 X1080 pixel to do so. Apple Cinema HD display from 23" can do the job.
7) There is not easy/affortable way to distribute HDV on DVD right now. Your only option is to use your camcorder as VCR hooked on HD TV set, or use an Apple TV.
8) Final Cut Pro (part of Final Cut Studio 2) handles HDV natively but push hard on CPU. Compressor and DVD studio Pro allows to burn (in some forma right now, but with limitation) HD DVD disk.
9) I shoot in HDV but sometime, I downconvert from camcorder (Sony allows this) to DV upon capturing in DV NTSC in Final Cut Express. The result in a very good image (many pixels shrinked to fit the DV dimensions) in a standard def movie distributed on regular DVD or wide screen DVD.
10) HDV is still captured on tape, despite many manufacturers offer hard drive, DVD or card storing system for ohter flavor of HD like AVCHD. Tape is an affordable way to archive your material.
Final Cut Express HD 4 supports AVCHD.
Michel Boissonneault

Final Cut Studio 5.0 question

Hi
This is a Final Cut Studio (FCS) 5.0 PPC version question. I understand that Final Cut Pro is a pro application in the FCS suite, but since there is no FCS forum i will post this question in the Final Cut Pro forum.
If I were to install the whole FCS 5.0 PPC version on my MacBook Pro (or a future iMac) will it be able to work under Rosetta and it will therefore run a little slower? Ive heard that if you install the non native FCS you will not be able to update it to universal FCS? Also if it does work on intel macs, do you have to buy the FCS application updates, or can you buy the whole complete universal FCS 5.1 suite?
Thanks
Regards
Rich

is there a full FCS available at the moment that installs all the pro apps in FCS as universal? or do I have to install a full working PPC version of FCS and buy the crossover updates from apple?< </div>
The shipping version, 5.1, is universal. 5.0 might be available somewhere but not here. 5.0 is not universal which is why we all up- or cross-graded for cheap when we got the chance. You can upgrade from v1, 2 or 3 for $700.
http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore.woa/6674001/wo/9h7qZ eo3Ujp72nIZSsY1wfKWlO9/1.0.21.1.0.8.12.1.27.1.13.0
bogiesan

Final Cut Studio 2 Install questions ...

I have a dual 2.0 G5 that I bought used a while ago and it had Final Cut 5 installed on it. I just bought Final Cut Studio 2 and when I intall I can see that it is upgrading most of the components. Is there a way to uninstall the earlier version and do a clean install of my new FCS2? Or is letting it upgrade the previous owners version okay? I think I would feel better knowing my nice new software bundle was being installed cleanly?
Also, I plan on installing this on my PowerBook. What steps should I take to have the audio/template content get installed on an external drive. I only have 27Gigs available on the internal drive of my laptop.
Thanks in advance,
Keith

I would personally wipe the whole machine if I bought it new-- you don't know what the previous owner's loaded on, how many tiny processses have gotten piled up in the background. The only thing you need to run a fresh install is the FCP5 serial number.
As for the PowerBook installation, you will have the option when installing to place the additional content in another location other than the default. I don't remember exactly when this option presents itself, but keep your eyes open and I'm sure you'll see it.

Final Cut Pro-Two Pictures Question

Is there a way to have two pictures in the same shot (not a transition from one to another). For example, have two pictures in opposite corners in which you zoom in from one to the other?
Thanks.

Of course. Place them in the timeline, one above the other (as a connected clip), resize and reposition them.
Set keyframes and let FCP X generate the movement in between.
I suggest you take a look at one of the video tutorials, like the one at izzyvideo, to familiarize with the basic operations of FCP X: http://www.izzyvideo.com/final-cut-pro-x-tutorial/

HT4663 final cut pro x import question

So I have a 500gb external hard drive that is open. On another external hard drive I have about 300gb of footage. So far I have imported 80gb onto the open 500gb hard drive and it has filled it up. Am I doing something wrong on the import into Final Cut Pro X?

I am not 100% sure what you mean by where did it come from, so I don't mean to sound dumb but I will explain it best I can.
I went on a road trip across America and filmed around 300GB of footage. It was shot on Sony XDcam I believe. The media is .mts. I broke the footage up into 4 different legs of the trip, and each folder varies in size the first one is 80GB and the second is around 50GB and so on. So I am Importing them by their folders one at a time. So when the first Leg of the trip was done importing I noticed the 500GB drive I got for the footage was already full.
So the way I imported was I clicked on the import button and went through the archive button to find the hard drive with the footage. So I don't believe I used the optimize function when I imported, unless it was the proxy setting that I check marked during the importing process.
Here is a screen shot of what kind of footage I am trying to bring in, I hope it helps.
Thanks

Final cut studio 3 upgrade question

I have Final Cut Studio 2 and I am thinking about buying the upgrade to 3. And I am selling my final cut studio 2 to my little brother when he goes to college. My friend said that if I buy the upgrade version of FCS 3, that if something happens, I need to reinstall FCS 2 first then install the upgrade, that I can't clean install from the upgrade discs. Is that true? I haven't bought and upgrade version before. And I don't want to buy this and find out that I can't clean install from it.
Thanks!

To clarify...
If you have a full version of FCS2, and you purchase an upgrade to FCS3, you need the serial number from FCS2 to perform the upgrade. If your system crashes, or you need to do a fresh install, your FCS3 will be of no use without the serial number from FCS2. Selling it to your brother technically would mean you're running the same program on two separate systems. To do this the right way, purchase an older version of FCP and get a fresh serial for your install...
Blessings,
Craig

Final Cut Studio 2 Upgrade Questions.

i bought Final Cut Studio 2 upgrade, but didnt realize it was the upgrade and i dont have Final Cut Studio 1. What are my options?

If you don't have any version of fcp, you might try going on Ebay and find a legit copy of an earlier version. Not sure which versions are upgradable. Probably some research is in order.

Final Cut Studio Crossgrade License Question

Our office is in the process of updating all our G5s with the FCS crossgrade and have run into a little snag. The update comes with one serial number for Studio and it is presumable that it replaces and supercedes the previous versions of FCP, DVDSP, Motion, Livetype, and Soundtrack... So far, most of the machines are doing that. However, we have a couple of machines that are still attaching themselves with the old licenses.
Is there a preference file that can be deleted or an xml tag that can be changed in order for the new Final Cut Studio installer to prompt us to enter in the new serial?
Any help would be greatly appreciated!

If you rename /Library/Application Support/ProApps/Final Cut Studio System ID that should prompt you the next time you open an application...
Patrick

Final Cut Express Audio Listening Question

I just installed Final Cut Express and have imported an iMovie project. When I listen to it the audio does not play. Instead I get a beeping sound. The wave forms show that the audio is there but I can't listen to it and I can't turn off the beeping. Is there an easy explanation for this?
Many thanks.
BTW, I also exported the iMovie as a quicktime movie and then imported it. Got the same result even though the quicktime movie playes perfectly.
MacBook Mac OS X (10.4.8)

Thanks, that seems to be the problem. Not very satisfactory though.
How do I render the audio as is suggested in the link?
MacBook Mac OS X (10.4.8)

Final Cut Studio 2 Upgrade Question

Hi
I have a Final Cut Studio 1 installed on my laptop. I still have the original install discs and serial number.
I recently purchased Final Cut Studio 2 upgrade from a "reputable" source on ebay....but it came with NO serial number.
I have heard that if I send the discs to Apple they will supply me with a new Serial Number. Is this true?
thanks

The serial number sticker(s) come affixed to the front of the booklet titled "Installing Your Software." If you did not receive the serial number, and ALL of the documentation, the purchase is not legitimate according to Apple's Software License Agreement (SLA):
"3. Transfer. You may not rent, lease, lend, sell, redistribute or sublicense the Apple Software. You may, however, make a one-time permanent transfer of all of your license rights to the Apple Software to another party, provided that: (a) the transfer must include all of the Apple Software, including all its component parts, original media, printed materials and this License; (b) you do not retain any copies of the Apple Software, full or partial, including copies stored on a computer or other storage device; and (c) the party receiving the Apple Software reads and agrees to accept the terms and conditions of this License. All components of the Apple Software are provided as part of a bundle and may not be separated from the bundle and distributed as standalone applications."
from: http://images.apple.com/legal/sla/docs/finalcutstudio2.pdf
-DH

A few final cut studio 5.1 questions...

i was wondering if final cut studio 5.1 runs on these 3 settings.
will it run on leopard? or do i have to go to tiger
will it work with a NVIDIA geforce 9400m graphics chip?
will it work on an intel core 2 duo macbook?

Just to clarify; USB and Firewire are about the same speed, but transfer data in very different ways. USB transfers data in packets (short bursts) while Firewire transfers data in a sustained stream. Most NLEs will require a sustained stream for editing or capturing ... they often see the shorts breaks between the bursts of data in a USB transfer as dropped frames and may report errors.
The same thing can happen when editing or capturing to your boot drive; it's busy running the OS, all applications (including FCP), reading and writing to the project file and running all the background processes. When you add playback of a video stream to that workload, you might often receive an error message (dropped frames) usually due to data throughput errors. That's why it is recommended to store media used for video editing on a drive other than your boot drive. Since a laptop doesn't have but one internal drive, you're limited to an external Firewire drive to keep things happy and running smoothly.
-DH

Final Cut Studio 2 laptop question

Hello all -
My new MacBook Pro has a small hard drive (like 185 GB).
In addition to loading all the basic FCS2 software on that drive, my question is this:
Is it best to load additional software (i.e., optional templates, content, etc...) on a separate 800FW drive or try to cram it all on the laptop drive?
Follow-up question:
Does using an external drive for additional software affect performance of FCP or Motion when editing, rendering and/or exporting?
Thanks.

I'd put the biggest hard drive you can into that laptop. And yes, DO keep all the apple loops, livetype stuff on an external.
Applications want and mostly need to live on the system drive.

Final Cut Pro: Sequence Setting Question

I would like to know what the best sequence setting is for my FCP project.
In my project I mostly use digital still images, shot with a digital camera. I import images into FCP and directly drag them onto a sequence.
JPEG file dimensions 3488x2616
For making stop motion animation, the duration of each frame is extremely short, usually 00:00:00;03.
If the project is 60 seconds, it usually ends up with about 550 or more still images on a sequence.
What should be the appropriate sequence setting for it?
Frame Size: currently set for NTSC DV (3:2)
Pixel Aspect Ratio: currently set for NTSC-CCIR601/DV (720x480)
Quicktime Video Settings/Compressor: currently set for DV/DVCPRO-NTSC
in the Advanced field/Frame per Second: currently set for 29.97
Are these settings need to be made before editing the project or could setting changes still be applied to a finished project?
Any advice would be appreciated!!
Message was edited by: ykyk

Hi Tom,
I export QT movie and make it into a DVD using DVD studio pro.
I was trying to learn about the ProRes the other day but there are many kinds and could not figure out what the best one is for me.
Which prores preset could I use? and could I still change it even the project is done editing?
Many thanks!

Final Cut Pro monitor gamma question... again!

Very confused here: can anyone tell me for sure what gamma my Cinema Display needs to be set to for work with FCP7 / Snow Leopard? I can only find contradictory information and nothing clear and conclusive from Apple.
My problem: following the latest advice, I've been using a Cinema Display calibrated to 2.2 (dual monitors on a Macbook Pro). I can export an edited file which matches FCP's canvas when viewed in QuickTime.
However, if I send to Compressor from FCP, the preview in Compressor is darker and more contrasty than FCP's canvas.
If I upload a video that looks OK in QuickTime to MobileMe it becomes dark and contrasty too.
If I convert my exported file that looked OK in QuickTime to H.264 in Mpeg Streamclip I, once again, get a version that is darker and more contrasty than in FCP or QuickTime.
I'm pulling my hair out over this, not least because it's becoming a fantastic waste of time. I would like to be concentrating on editing rather than trying to sort this out!
I had assumed that using a suite of Apple applications on an Apple computer would mean seamless and easy integration...

But the problem here is not simply viewing. I am also creating and then viewing and I think this is where the problem lies. A video uploaded to MobileMe is transformed in the process and it's during the transformation (whatever that might be) that the change in appearance occurs. I view a video in FCP's canvas but then it is exported before being viewed in QuickTime. Gamma levels may be set, colour profiles embedded and / or read, applications may make assumptions about viewing conditions or which of the two monitors I'm using is the principal one, who knows what... I think it's here that the problem lies...

Re: Final Cut to Televised Spot Question

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