NLE Mac / Final Cut questions from 2004

Jeff Donald · August 9th, 2004, 02:43 PM

If the results are unacceptable after rendering and viewing the final output from tape on TV then you may need to purchase a plugin. I use Joe's Filters for my slow motion work. Joe Maller is a member here and occasionally drops in.

Chris Wright · August 9th, 2004, 03:19 PM

I should have known I'd end up having to buy a plugin... slowing down a clip is such a simple idea, im not sure why Final Cut can't do it right.

However, Joe's Time Blender filter looks really cool. I'll download the trial version and see if it's worth buying.

Thanks for the link

Jason R. Wood · August 10th, 2004, 03:13 AM

What are you using and why?

I'm an Avid guy and I am considering building an FCP suite for on-line work.

Xpress Pro is a superb offline tool, but I don't see Avid opening it up for SD on-line. Mojo and one stream of 1:1 does not cut it.

I am just curious as to your opinions on the two software packages.

Kevin Burnfield · August 10th, 2004, 06:03 AM

Take a look at all the companies and major names that are moving over to FCP.

Cold Mountain, Scrubs, Smallville... I can't think of all the companies and major editors but on Apple's site they have all sorts of stories and stuff.

I used AVID years ago and played with it again not too long ago and really feel that FCP is a better product and that Apple is really more interested in getting a great piece of software out there rather then protecting it's install base.

Would AVID let you upgrade from ANY previous version to the latest and greatest? (buy an old, unregistered, copy of 1.2 and upgrade that to 4.5 HD for only $399.00)

I don't have specifics for my choice right off the top of my head but I chose FCP over AVID and if you look at how they've supported the product, how Apple has bought products like SHAKE and other post production packages you can see that they are really looking to do great things with it.

Guy Cochran · August 10th, 2004, 04:08 PM

Here's another option, although a bit pricey http://www.revisionfx.com/rstwixtor.htm

Guy Cochran · August 10th, 2004, 06:04 PM

Hi Alex,

I might be able to help, certain devices need certain settings as per http://images.apple.com/finalcutpro/pdf/FinalCutProHD_4.5_Qualified_20040804.pdf or http://www.apple.com/finalcutpro/specs.html

For the GL2 go to Audio Video Settings and switch your device control preset to "FireWire Basic"

Also, if you are using an external FireWire hard drive, try plugging the camera directly into the Mac instead of into the FireWire HD.

Cheers,

Jeff Donald · August 10th, 2004, 08:35 PM

PLenty of new updates

Mac OS 10.3.5 here 88MB

Pro Application Support 2.1 here 2.6MB

Compressor 1.2.1 is available via Software Update

DVD Studio Pro 3.0.1 here 6MB

iSync 1.5 here 6MB

Java Update 1.4.2 Update 1 here 26MB

Do Not update in the middle of a project if at all possible. More update may be available after updating Pro Application Support and running Software Update. I advise repairing permissions before and after any updates. I also advise downloading the updates rather than installing via the internet over Software Update. Read VersionTracker and MacFixIt to read any possible conflicts if you're unsure of updating.

Vishal Gurung · August 10th, 2004, 11:45 PM

Ok, i've been using FCP 4.5 and been editing along nice.. every now and then when i try and use a clip and input it onto the timeline, it gives me that error.. no problem cuz when i just slide along diff video levels, it lets me sooner or later import it into the timeline.. now here's the big one.. i've been editing on low quality and now i'm changing it all to high res in order to render.. cept when i render.. it renders for like 10 secs, quits and then gives me this stupid General Error (34) msg... HALP! wtf does it mean??? it's never done it before.. why now?? pls help!

p.s ok this is where it get's weird.. so i rendered everything else like just clip by clip basically, but there's a part in my timeline at about the 30 second mark where even tho there's no clip, the previous clip that was there STILL PLAYS!! it's like.. there's nothing on the timeline (and i've checked up and down everywhere) and yet a clip plays!! argh!! driving me nuts!

and yes i've trashed all the preferences and all that stuff and i still get this stupid msg and that weird ghost clip!

Ken Tanaka · August 11th, 2004, 01:04 AM

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthrea...threadid=27285

Vishal Gurung · August 11th, 2004, 08:33 AM

hey ken, yeps i saw that and i did everything suggested but that didn't work either...hence why i posted again... it's the ghost clip that get's me.. so weird... well what i finally did was i copied and pasted everything into a new sequence and that seemed to work.. a bit of a go around way of solving things but one use what what can get... has anyone ever encountered this type of problem before tho? and if so, why the error? thanx in advance

Tim Tonner · August 11th, 2004, 09:42 AM

Greetings Ken---
FCP 3 indeed has all the leader/coundown options, (bars, tone, etc.)...My question is, does it render to the head of your project somehow intuitively or do you have to somehow assign it? I plan to put bars/tone, info on who produced it, and the countdown to the first fade up from black...

Ken Tanaka · August 11th, 2004, 10:03 AM

It's an export option. That is, you would tell FCP to use your own file (containing your countdown, etc) when preparing to export the sequence. It won't show up on your working sequence.

Mason Cooley · August 11th, 2004, 12:52 PM

DVX100A
DVD SP 2
FCP 3.0.4

---

A question came to me recently.

What is the advantage of removing the pulldown on 24p advanced when outputting to DVD?

If one encodes the 24p and authors that material on DVD then how is it viewed correctly on a monitor - another pulldown from the DVD player itself?

Is there an advantage with encoding 24p instead of 29.97?

---

My understanding is when shooting 24p standard not advanced and going to DVD one is preserving the pulldown and hence the image quality from the camera to outputting is the same?

I've also noticed when encoding to MPEG2 after shooting 24p standard the encode takes quite a but longer than my old XL-1 footage.

Thanks

Ray Echevers · August 11th, 2004, 01:43 PM

Anyone seen this? Aparantly they just released it.
It's FCPHD, Motion, and DVDSP3 for $1299.00, but if you can get the student discount, it's only $499.00!

http://www.apple.com/productionsuite/

What a steal!

Bryan McCullough · August 11th, 2004, 01:45 PM

I originally wasn't too excited about Motion, being a pretty hard core After Effects user.

However, the particle stuff looks pretty sweet and there's at least one template that I can already use in a current project, so I think I may be picking this up after all.

Anyone else interested in it?

August 9th, 2004, 02:43 PM	#1111
Jeff Donald Warden Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Clearwater, FL Posts: 8,287	If the results are unacceptable after rendering and viewing the final output from tape on TV then you may need to purchase a plugin. I use Joe's Filters for my slow motion work. Joe Maller is a member here and occasionally drops in. __________________ Jeff Donald Carpe Diem Search DVinfo.net for quick answers \| Where to Buy? From the best in the business: DVinfo.net sponsors

August 9th, 2004, 03:19 PM	#1112
Chris Wright Regular Crew Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Lee's Summit, Missouri Posts: 146	I should have known I'd end up having to buy a plugin... slowing down a clip is such a simple idea, im not sure why Final Cut can't do it right. However, Joe's Time Blender filter looks really cool. I'll download the trial version and see if it's worth buying. Thanks for the link __________________ www.interactiverecipes.com

August 10th, 2004, 03:13 AM	#1113
Jason R. Wood New Boot Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: LA LA Land Posts: 12	POLL: Avid Xpress OR FCP What are you using and why? I'm an Avid guy and I am considering building an FCP suite for on-line work. Xpress Pro is a superb offline tool, but I don't see Avid opening it up for SD on-line. Mojo and one stream of 1:1 does not cut it. I am just curious as to your opinions on the two software packages.

August 10th, 2004, 04:08 PM	#1115
Guy Cochran DVCreators.Net Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Seattle, WA Posts: 892	Here's another option, although a bit pricey http://www.revisionfx.com/rstwixtor.htm __________________ Guy Cochran DVinfo Sponsor, Cool Gear - DVeStore!

August 10th, 2004, 06:04 PM	#1116
Guy Cochran DVCreators.Net Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Seattle, WA Posts: 892	Hi Alex, I might be able to help, certain devices need certain settings as per http://images.apple.com/finalcutpro/pdf/FinalCutProHD_4.5_Qualified_20040804.pdf or http://www.apple.com/finalcutpro/specs.html For the GL2 go to Audio Video Settings and switch your device control preset to "FireWire Basic" Also, if you are using an external FireWire hard drive, try plugging the camera directly into the Mac instead of into the FireWire HD. Cheers, __________________ Guy Cochran DVinfo Sponsor, Cool Gear - DVeStore!

August 10th, 2004, 06:03 AM	#1114
Kevin Burnfield Major Player Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Princeton, NJ Posts: 363	Take a look at all the companies and major names that are moving over to FCP. Cold Mountain, Scrubs, Smallville... I can't think of all the companies and major editors but on Apple's site they have all sorts of stories and stuff. I used AVID years ago and played with it again not too long ago and really feel that FCP is a better product and that Apple is really more interested in getting a great piece of software out there rather then protecting it's install base. Would AVID let you upgrade from ANY previous version to the latest and greatest? (buy an old, unregistered, copy of 1.2 and upgrade that to 4.5 HD for only $399.00) I don't have specifics for my choice right off the top of my head but I chose FCP over AVID and if you look at how they've supported the product, how Apple has bought products like SHAKE and other post production packages you can see that they are really looking to do great things with it.

August 10th, 2004, 08:35 PM	#1117
Jeff Donald Warden Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Clearwater, FL Posts: 8,287	Many software updates for download PLenty of new updates Mac OS 10.3.5 here 88MB Pro Application Support 2.1 here 2.6MB Compressor 1.2.1 is available via Software Update DVD Studio Pro 3.0.1 here 6MB iSync 1.5 here 6MB Java Update 1.4.2 Update 1 here 26MB Do Not update in the middle of a project if at all possible. More update may be available after updating Pro Application Support and running Software Update. I advise repairing permissions before and after any updates. I also advise downloading the updates rather than installing via the internet over Software Update. Read VersionTracker and MacFixIt to read any possible conflicts if you're unsure of updating. __________________ Jeff Donald Carpe Diem Search DVinfo.net for quick answers \| Where to Buy? From the best in the business: DVinfo.net sponsors

August 10th, 2004, 11:45 PM	#1118
Vishal Gurung Major Player Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Vancouver, Canada Posts: 237	General Error (34)???? Ok, i've been using FCP 4.5 and been editing along nice.. every now and then when i try and use a clip and input it onto the timeline, it gives me that error.. no problem cuz when i just slide along diff video levels, it lets me sooner or later import it into the timeline.. now here's the big one.. i've been editing on low quality and now i'm changing it all to high res in order to render.. cept when i render.. it renders for like 10 secs, quits and then gives me this stupid General Error (34) msg... HALP! wtf does it mean??? it's never done it before.. why now?? pls help! p.s ok this is where it get's weird.. so i rendered everything else like just clip by clip basically, but there's a part in my timeline at about the 30 second mark where even tho there's no clip, the previous clip that was there STILL PLAYS!! it's like.. there's nothing on the timeline (and i've checked up and down everywhere) and yet a clip plays!! argh!! driving me nuts! and yes i've trashed all the preferences and all that stuff and i still get this stupid msg and that weird ghost clip! __________________ 2ndshooter.blogspot.com

August 11th, 2004, 01:04 AM	#1119
Ken Tanaka Retired DV Info Net Almunus Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 6,943	http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthrea...threadid=27285 __________________ Lady X Films: A lady with a boring wardrobe...and a global mission. Hey, you don't have enough stuff! Buy with confidence from our sponsors. Hand-picked as the best in the business...Really! See some of my work one frame at a time: www.KenTanaka.com

August 11th, 2004, 08:33 AM	#1120
Vishal Gurung Major Player Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Vancouver, Canada Posts: 237	hey ken, yeps i saw that and i did everything suggested but that didn't work either...hence why i posted again... it's the ghost clip that get's me.. so weird... well what i finally did was i copied and pasted everything into a new sequence and that seemed to work.. a bit of a go around way of solving things but one use what what can get... has anyone ever encountered this type of problem before tho? and if so, why the error? thanx in advance __________________ 2ndshooter.blogspot.com

August 11th, 2004, 09:42 AM	#1121
Tim Tonner Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: stowe, vt Posts: 45	countdown Greetings Ken--- FCP 3 indeed has all the leader/coundown options, (bars, tone, etc.)...My question is, does it render to the head of your project somehow intuitively or do you have to somehow assign it? I plan to put bars/tone, info on who produced it, and the countdown to the first fade up from black...

August 11th, 2004, 10:03 AM	#1122
Ken Tanaka Retired DV Info Net Almunus Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 6,943	It's an export option. That is, you would tell FCP to use your own file (containing your countdown, etc) when preparing to export the sequence. It won't show up on your working sequence. __________________ Lady X Films: A lady with a boring wardrobe...and a global mission. Hey, you don't have enough stuff! Buy with confidence from our sponsors. Hand-picked as the best in the business...Really! See some of my work one frame at a time: www.KenTanaka.com

August 11th, 2004, 12:52 PM	#1123
Mason Cooley New Boot Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 18	DVD SP 2 pulldown questions DVX100A DVD SP 2 FCP 3.0.4 --- A question came to me recently. What is the advantage of removing the pulldown on 24p advanced when outputting to DVD? If one encodes the 24p and authors that material on DVD then how is it viewed correctly on a monitor - another pulldown from the DVD player itself? Is there an advantage with encoding 24p instead of 29.97? --- My understanding is when shooting 24p standard not advanced and going to DVD one is preserving the pulldown and hence the image quality from the camera to outputting is the same? I've also noticed when encoding to MPEG2 after shooting 24p standard the encode takes quite a but longer than my old XL-1 footage. Thanks

August 11th, 2004, 01:43 PM	#1124
Ray Echevers Regular Crew Join Date: May 2004 Location: Somerville, MA Posts: 148	Apple's Production Suite Anyone seen this? Aparantly they just released it. It's FCPHD, Motion, and DVDSP3 for $1299.00, but if you can get the student discount, it's only $499.00! http://www.apple.com/productionsuite/ What a steal! __________________ Sony VX-1000 G5 1.8 dual 91 Turbo MR2

August 11th, 2004, 01:45 PM	#1125
Bryan McCullough Major Player Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Richardson, TX Posts: 842	Motion is released and a new Production Bundle from Apple. I originally wasn't too excited about Motion, being a pretty hard core After Effects user. However, the particle stuff looks pretty sweet and there's at least one template that I can already use in a current project, so I think I may be picking this up after all. Anyone else interested in it?