Final Cut pro problem. Need Help! at DVinfo.net

Eric Eugenio · March 7th, 2005, 09:56 AM

Thanks so much in advance! I transferred mpg files to my mac and when i import it and drag on to timeline it doesn't play back in like normal. It plays as a small box with black bordering. How can i fix this problem? It only happens to certain files I guess but they are all mpg. Once again, I thank you!

Eric Eugenio

Alex Beaupre · March 7th, 2005, 12:38 PM

My guess is the clips that you improted were not full quality (hence why they do not fill the entire scree) if you still want to use them however there is a way. When the clip is in the slug, click on the third bubble which has a little border icon, select "image+wireframe" then you will be able to resize the clip by dragging the corner to the desired size. After that click on the same bubble with the border icon and select "image" so that you can then drag the clip into the timeline if it is not already there. Hope that helped.

Alex B

Eric Eugenio · March 7th, 2005, 01:38 PM

When you say "full quality," what exactly do you mean? I will definitely try your suggestion. It will probably affect the picture quality, am I correct? Anyways, thanks again for the help.

Eric Eugenio

Boyd Ostroff · March 7th, 2005, 02:58 PM

I think Alex is right. What is the resolution of your mpg clips? Are they something like 320x240 (fairly common)? Other than the size issue, you will need to render these as DV (assuming your project is DV). By saying "not full quality" I think he means the clips aren't the normal 720x480 frame size, and they may not be the full 29.97 fps. Additionally, they could suffer from blockiness due to heavy data compression.

The problem with resizing as Alex describes is that FCP doesn't seem to do a very good job of this. One thing I recently did when using clips like this was open them in Quicktime Pro, then exporting them as DV at 29.97 fps and 720x480 resolution. This let me drop them into a normal FCP project without change and they looked pretty good (although the source was relatively high quality). Also, if your source clips are 320x240 then the aspect ratio will be wrong for NTSC DV, something else you would need to address if you don't use the technique I describe.

Eric Eugenio · March 7th, 2005, 03:23 PM

I'll definitely try the quicktime deal. Thanks so much..Its weird because the same footage, captured the same way works full screen but the others are small.

Boyd Ostroff · March 7th, 2005, 03:30 PM

Eric: I think you will find the answer as to why certain files behave differently by examining their properties in FCP. Select the clip in the browser then go to Edit > Item Properties. Compare these between clips to see what's different. If there is a mismatch between a clip and the sequence you're dropping it into then you get behavior like what you describe. Click on the timeline then choose Sequence > settings to see how these differ from your clips.

Eric Eugenio · March 7th, 2005, 03:35 PM

Thanks a lot alex for you help. I'll try that too!

Alex Beaupre · March 8th, 2005, 11:19 AM

No problem, glad to help. Hope it works out for you.

Alex B

March 7th, 2005, 09:56 AM	#1
Eric Eugenio New Boot Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: CA Posts: 16	Final Cut pro problem. Need Help! Thanks so much in advance! I transferred mpg files to my mac and when i import it and drag on to timeline it doesn't play back in like normal. It plays as a small box with black bordering. How can i fix this problem? It only happens to certain files I guess but they are all mpg. Once again, I thank you! Eric Eugenio __________________ Esoteric

March 7th, 2005, 12:38 PM	#2
Alex Beaupre Regular Crew Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: michigan Posts: 80	FCP help My guess is the clips that you improted were not full quality (hence why they do not fill the entire scree) if you still want to use them however there is a way. When the clip is in the slug, click on the third bubble which has a little border icon, select "image+wireframe" then you will be able to resize the clip by dragging the corner to the desired size. After that click on the same bubble with the border icon and select "image" so that you can then drag the clip into the timeline if it is not already there. Hope that helped. Alex B __________________ have you ever wanted something so bad you couldent stop thinking about it? a car, a girl, a skate trick? thats what this video was to me it started as an addiction but turned into an obsession. -Adam Johnson

March 7th, 2005, 01:38 PM	#3
Eric Eugenio New Boot Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: CA Posts: 16	Thanks for the quick response. When you say "full quality," what exactly do you mean? I will definitely try your suggestion. It will probably affect the picture quality, am I correct? Anyways, thanks again for the help. Eric Eugenio __________________ Esoteric

March 7th, 2005, 03:23 PM	#5
Eric Eugenio New Boot Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: CA Posts: 16	Thanks I'll definitely try the quicktime deal. Thanks so much..Its weird because the same footage, captured the same way works full screen but the others are small. __________________ Esoteric

March 7th, 2005, 03:35 PM	#7
Eric Eugenio New Boot Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: CA Posts: 16	THanks Thanks a lot alex for you help. I'll try that too! __________________ Esoteric

March 7th, 2005, 02:58 PM	#4
Boyd Ostroff Wrangler Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Mays Landing, NJ Posts: 11,801	I think Alex is right. What is the resolution of your mpg clips? Are they something like 320x240 (fairly common)? Other than the size issue, you will need to render these as DV (assuming your project is DV). By saying "not full quality" I think he means the clips aren't the normal 720x480 frame size, and they may not be the full 29.97 fps. Additionally, they could suffer from blockiness due to heavy data compression. The problem with resizing as Alex describes is that FCP doesn't seem to do a very good job of this. One thing I recently did when using clips like this was open them in Quicktime Pro, then exporting them as DV at 29.97 fps and 720x480 resolution. This let me drop them into a normal FCP project without change and they looked pretty good (although the source was relatively high quality). Also, if your source clips are 320x240 then the aspect ratio will be wrong for NTSC DV, something else you would need to address if you don't use the technique I describe.

March 7th, 2005, 03:30 PM	#6
Boyd Ostroff Wrangler Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Mays Landing, NJ Posts: 11,801	Eric: I think you will find the answer as to why certain files behave differently by examining their properties in FCP. Select the clip in the browser then go to Edit > Item Properties. Compare these between clips to see what's different. If there is a mismatch between a clip and the sequence you're dropping it into then you get behavior like what you describe. Click on the timeline then choose Sequence > settings to see how these differ from your clips.

March 8th, 2005, 11:19 AM	#8
Alex Beaupre Regular Crew Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: michigan Posts: 80	No problem, glad to help. Hope it works out for you. Alex B __________________ have you ever wanted something so bad you couldent stop thinking about it? a car, a girl, a skate trick? thats what this video was to me it started as an addiction but turned into an obsession. -Adam Johnson