Edit Software for Snow leopard 27" IMAC & 7D

[Bruce Hedge]

Hello and thanks to everyone for many informative posts I have found while searching this forum. I'm new to video editing and would really appreciate opinions and suggestions on a choice of editing software. I'm using a 27" IMAC with Snow Leopard and have a Canon 7D. So far I've been editing in imovie and would like to upgrade to a more full featured package. I've looked at various packages and searched forum posts and recently I saw controversy in the reviews regarding the new Final Cut Studio release. It does look like a lot to learn and I know that it's more of package than I really need at this point, but I'd would rather learn on something that I could stay with for the long term than go through another learning curve at a later date. My main questions are: (1) Is the new Final Cut Studio Release "buggy" like some reviews have stated ? (2) Is it missing some capabilities that would be especially useful for the 7D? (3) Are there other packages that should be looked at closely. I would be ready to try the new FCS unless there is something "better" (for lack of a better word)." My main use would be for production of documentaries and short films. For now the 7D is the most acceptable camera for the environment I am currently working in. Thank you again, I really do appreciate this forum and your advice. Best regards, Bruce

[Dean Sensui]

If you're running Snow Leopard then the latest version of FCS should work just fine.

There are some things to be aware of:

-- Color and Motion have certain graphics cards requirements. Check to see if your Mac meets those minimums if you intend to use them in your workflow.

-- Check to see how much RAM you have. I don't know what the minimum is but I've run FCP on a MacBook Pro with only 2 GB of RAM. My editing system has 16 but I'm also running After Effects.

-- You will want a fast external striped RAID.

-- You won't be able to determine accurate color because the color space used in TV production isn't properly displayed by FCP's monitor. FCP's monitor uses a different color space. You'll have to research how to get a reasonably accurate color display.

[Michael Wisniewski]

Just to echo Dean's post, Final Cut Studio is a very stable release. For the 7D workflow, it will do everything you need. I routinely travel with a Macbook Pro Core 2 Duo 2.4Ghz with 4GB of RAM. FCS works fine, the only program I don't fully use while traveling is Color, I usually wait until I can get to a desktop machine for that.

Your other options on the Mac are: Adobe CS5 Production Premium and AVID Media Composer. Final Cut Express and iMovie are also options, but they don't support 24p natively. The choice of editing software is a very personal thing, you need to try each one out and see which one works best for you.

[Bruce Hedge]

Thanks for the info.