FCP/After Effects at DVinfo.net

Ron Jones · March 29th, 2009, 08:43 PM

Would some one tell me the difference between FCP and After Effects.
A friend of mind tells me After Effects can do all that FCP can do and better?
I have never work with After Effects, so have no come back.

Thank, Ron

Matt Cikovic · March 29th, 2009, 09:13 PM

Eh, well..

You can edit video in After Effects sure, just like you have title generation and some effects you can do in Final Cut, but really they are two different programs geared towards two different facets of production. Final Cut is more editing, After Effects is everything graphics.

Dean Sensui · March 30th, 2009, 12:47 AM

Chainsaw and miter saw. Each has a purpose. One can't replace the other.

FCP: Ediitng.
AE: Visual effects.

Each has its purpose. And you can't efficiently do the job of one with the other.

Ron Jones · March 30th, 2009, 07:10 AM

Thanks,
So what can FCP do in the editing process that After Effects can’t.
The real reason I am asking these questions is that, our company my what to go with After Effects and I need some more reasons to keep FCP.

Thanks

Kristian Kettner · March 30th, 2009, 09:09 AM

I work with FCP and AE on a daily base.
It is hard to see the big overview in AE when editing big projects, (+300 clips maby 2-3 hours of footage) But in FCP you can se the big picture in a few secons, and get a good over view fast.

I also had the same idea just to, skip FCP, and go all crazy with AE, but it is just not made for editing long clips, you quickly loose the big overview, with 10 min projekts in AE (unless you pre-compose alot)

Mathieu Ghekiere · March 30th, 2009, 09:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ron Jones

Thanks,
So what can FCP do in the editing process that After Effects can’t.
The real reason I am asking these questions is that, our company my what to go with After Effects and I need some more reasons to keep FCP.

Thanks

The easiest way to explain you is...

Go to a someone who has After Effects and FCP (or different friends).

Now, try to edit a 10 minute narrative short (for example) in FCP. Then try to do the same thing in After Effects and see how long it will take you in comparison.
You'll immediately know the difference ;-)

Final Cut Pro is an editing program. After FX is a visual FX program with some basic editing features built in.

Sandeep Sajeev · March 30th, 2009, 11:02 AM

Hi there,

A simple way to choose one over the other is to look at the kind of projects coming in to your company. If the bulk of your work is motion graphics, short-form promos etc, then you may find AE to be a suitable tool. However for any project requiring actual editorial, or dealing with medium to large amounts of source footage, FCP should be your weapon of choice.

You can always point out to management that when you purchase FCStudio, you get Motion as well, which can handle similar tasks as AE, albeit with some exceptions.

Some stuff that AE can do that FCP can't:
- motion tracking
- paint
- 3d Camera's
- freeform masking
- a whole host of other things - I guess an analogy would be photoshop for film/video.

Sandeep

Ron Jones · March 30th, 2009, 11:16 AM

Thanks to all! This helps much.

Ron

Dean Sensui · March 30th, 2009, 11:19 AM

With AE you won't be able to get a preview quickly with sound, especially if you have applied any kind of plug-ins or filters to any of the clips. It has to render before it can play back.

FCP will quickly play back your content, even if you applied a filter to the clips. Many of the filters that come with FCP allow real-time playback. Timing is crucial to good editing and you'll find yourself playing back a sequence many times while making adjustments.

But if you tried to do a critical green screen composite, motion tracking, complex rotomasks, image scaling or painting in FCP you'll get frustrated fast. AE is much better at those tasks and more.

AE and FCP are two entirely different applications with specific purposes in mind and there's not much overlap. If I had to animate stills (zoom-in, pan, tilt, etc.) I'd use AE because the scaling algorithm in FCP isn't nearly as good as AE's. And especially if I had to re-size a clip, that would also be done in AE.

If I'm doing a complex edit that required a lot of work in AE, I'll edit it for timing in FCP, then use Automatic Duck to transfer it to AE for finishing.

Hope this helps.

Ron Jones · March 30th, 2009, 12:07 PM

What is—Automatic Duck? Does it come in FCP studio?

Dean Sensui · March 30th, 2009, 12:20 PM

Automatic Duck is a third-party plug-in by Wes Plate: Automatic Duck, Inc.

Ron Jones · March 30th, 2009, 12:35 PM

Thanks, Dean

Dean Sensui · March 30th, 2009, 01:05 PM

BTW, Automatic Duck isn't cheap. But if you have a lot of edits that need to be worked over in AE, it's a huge time saver and worth the price. Otherwise you have to deal with each shot individually and rebuild things manually in AE.

The first project I used it with easily covered the cost of the application.

March 29th, 2009, 08:43 PM	#1
Ron Jones Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 95	FCP/After Effects Would some one tell me the difference between FCP and After Effects. A friend of mind tells me After Effects can do all that FCP can do and better? I have never work with After Effects, so have no come back. Thank, Ron

March 30th, 2009, 12:47 AM	#3
Dean Sensui Inner Circle Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Honolulu, HI Posts: 2,054	Chainsaw and miter saw. Each has a purpose. One can't replace the other. FCP: Ediitng. AE: Visual effects. Each has its purpose. And you can't efficiently do the job of one with the other. __________________ Dean Sensui Exec Producer, Hawaii Goes Fishing

March 30th, 2009, 09:09 AM	#5
Kristian Kettner New Boot Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Aahus Denmark Posts: 18	I work with FCP and AE on a daily base. It is hard to see the big overview in AE when editing big projects, (+300 clips maby 2-3 hours of footage) But in FCP you can se the big picture in a few secons, and get a good over view fast. I also had the same idea just to, skip FCP, and go all crazy with AE, but it is just not made for editing long clips, you quickly loose the big overview, with 10 min projekts in AE (unless you pre-compose alot) __________________ Filmprodcution Reklamefilm Viral film www.kettner.nu

March 30th, 2009, 11:19 AM	#9
Dean Sensui Inner Circle Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Honolulu, HI Posts: 2,054	With AE you won't be able to get a preview quickly with sound, especially if you have applied any kind of plug-ins or filters to any of the clips. It has to render before it can play back. FCP will quickly play back your content, even if you applied a filter to the clips. Many of the filters that come with FCP allow real-time playback. Timing is crucial to good editing and you'll find yourself playing back a sequence many times while making adjustments. But if you tried to do a critical green screen composite, motion tracking, complex rotomasks, image scaling or painting in FCP you'll get frustrated fast. AE is much better at those tasks and more. AE and FCP are two entirely different applications with specific purposes in mind and there's not much overlap. If I had to animate stills (zoom-in, pan, tilt, etc.) I'd use AE because the scaling algorithm in FCP isn't nearly as good as AE's. And especially if I had to re-size a clip, that would also be done in AE. If I'm doing a complex edit that required a lot of work in AE, I'll edit it for timing in FCP, then use Automatic Duck to transfer it to AE for finishing. Hope this helps. __________________ Dean Sensui Exec Producer, Hawaii Goes Fishing

March 30th, 2009, 12:20 PM	#11
Dean Sensui Inner Circle Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Honolulu, HI Posts: 2,054	Automatic Duck is a third-party plug-in by Wes Plate: Automatic Duck, Inc. __________________ Dean Sensui Exec Producer, Hawaii Goes Fishing

March 29th, 2009, 09:13 PM	#2
Matt Cikovic Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Knoxville, TN Posts: 47	Eh, well.. You can edit video in After Effects sure, just like you have title generation and some effects you can do in Final Cut, but really they are two different programs geared towards two different facets of production. Final Cut is more editing, After Effects is everything graphics.

March 30th, 2009, 07:10 AM	#4
Ron Jones Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 95	Thanks, So what can FCP do in the editing process that After Effects can’t. The real reason I am asking these questions is that, our company my what to go with After Effects and I need some more reasons to keep FCP. Thanks

March 30th, 2009, 11:02 AM	#7
Sandeep Sajeev New Boot Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Mumbai, India Posts: 14	Hi there, A simple way to choose one over the other is to look at the kind of projects coming in to your company. If the bulk of your work is motion graphics, short-form promos etc, then you may find AE to be a suitable tool. However for any project requiring actual editorial, or dealing with medium to large amounts of source footage, FCP should be your weapon of choice. You can always point out to management that when you purchase FCStudio, you get Motion as well, which can handle similar tasks as AE, albeit with some exceptions. Some stuff that AE can do that FCP can't: - motion tracking - paint - 3d Camera's - freeform masking - a whole host of other things - I guess an analogy would be photoshop for film/video. Sandeep

March 30th, 2009, 11:16 AM	#8
Ron Jones Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 95	Thanks to all! This helps much. Ron

March 30th, 2009, 12:07 PM	#10
Ron Jones Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 95	What is—Automatic Duck? Does it come in FCP studio?

March 30th, 2009, 12:35 PM	#12
Ron Jones Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 95	Thanks, Dean

March 30th, 2009, 01:05 PM	#13
Dean Sensui Inner Circle Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Honolulu, HI Posts: 2,054	BTW, Automatic Duck isn't cheap. But if you have a lot of edits that need to be worked over in AE, it's a huge time saver and worth the price. Otherwise you have to deal with each shot individually and rebuild things manually in AE. The first project I used it with easily covered the cost of the application. __________________ Dean Sensui Exec Producer, Hawaii Goes Fishing