Giveaway: CoreMelt’s excellent Lock and Load X stabilization plugin for Final Cut Pro ($150 value)
Sep 2nd
The good folks over at CoreMelt have given us one free copy of their fantastic Lock and Load X stabilization plugin for Final Cut Pro to giveaway to one lucky FCPDaily reader.
If you aren’t already familiar with Lock and Load X, it is hands down the fastest stabilization plugin designed especially for use within Final Cut Pro. Lock and Load X improves upon CoreMelts earlier offering, Lock and Load, in regards to both speed and quality.
If you’ve used the video stabilizer included within Final Cut Pro in the past (SmoothCam) you’re probably well aware of it’s deficiencies. Like SmoothCam, Lock and Load X analyzes clips and then rescales them to achieve a “stabilized shot”…however, Lock and Load greatly improves on this process.
For stabilization, SmoothCam requires you to analyze entire clips, not just the portion that appears in the timeline. Thus, analyzing an entire clip with SmoothCam can be very time intensive. To avoid this many editors put in and outs in the timeline around the “shaky clip”…export out just that clip….replace the new isolated clip in the timeline…and THEN apply SmoothCam. This kills time and time is money, people.
Lock and Load does away with this inefficient process…as it allows you to stabilize just the portion of the clip that appears in the timeline…BIG timesaver.
Another benefit of Lock and Load X is it’s speed in analyzing and rendering footage for stabilization, up to 12X faster than FCP’s SmoothCam. Clip analysis happens in the background, allowing you to continue working within FCP while Lock and Load does it’s processing work.
One really nice feature of this newest version of Lock and Load is it’s rolling shutter reduction (common artifacts as a result of shooting with a DSLR camera). Even high end DSLRs, including the now popular Canon 5D Mark II, can have their share of horizontal skew and vertical image distortion….which can give the video a “wobbly” look. Using a stabilizer can make the rolling shutter more obvious, so CoreMelt has built into Lock and Load X a rolling shutter reduction with presets for common DSLR cameras including the “Canon 7D / 5D Mark II and 550D, as well as consumer camcorders like the Legria / Vixia and helmet cams like the Contour HD” (from Coremelt.com). Lock and Load X is currently the only stabilizer for FCP with this feature.
If your software toolbox extends outside of Final Cut, you might be glad to know that Lock and Load X not only works within FCP but also Motion and After Effects CS4/CS5.
We gave it a good trial run, testing the plugin with multiple footage formats and varying degrees of “instability”. A camera bump from a tripod mounted Canon 5D was totally removed. Handheld footage shot with the Panasonic HVX200 got almost a Glidecam/Steadicam type of look . Even footage shot with a Mino FLIP camera can be improved using Lock and Load X. However, it’s important to note that any stabilizer must sacrifice some quality for stability (as the image is blown up to allow for stabilization). Lock and Load does this better than any other stabilizer we’ve seen for FCP. All things being equal, the higher quality the footage format the better the quality of the stabilization.
It never fails that the shot a client likes the best is the one with a camera bump or slight shake — “I just love how that line was delivered…but what about that camera bump? Can you just remove that?” Well yes, now you can….and with Lock and Load X it couldn’t be easier or faster. THIS is the best overall stabilizer we’ve ever used and for the money, Lock and Load X is worth every penny. Avoid reshoots and complex motion tracking and keyframing by adding Lock and Load X to your editing toolkit.
Visit LockandLoadX.com to view tutorials, download a 14-day trial or purchase
For your chance to win a copy of Lock and Load X (a $150 value) simply post a comment…
Post anything editing related — perhaps advice for an editor just starting out, your favorite FCP tip or a Final Cut shortcut you can’t live without. Please post once! One winner will be chosen the morning of Wednesday September 8th, so you have until then to post a comment. Good luck!
*A big thanks to CoreMelt for allowing us to giveaway a copy of Lock and Load X!
Batch exporting stills from FCP, easy but not so obvious.
Aug 31st
This is a great tip we picked up from FCP guru Larry Jordan (follow Larry on Twitter @LarryJordanFCP):
Quite often clients ask to have still images from a project exported out of Final Cut Pro and emailed out…maybe it’s for graphics approval…or perhaps storyboarding. It’s a fairly common request. Until recently we did it a quite archaic way — find the frame in the timeline, choose Export > Quicktime Conversion, choose Still Image and export. If you’ve got a big batch of photos this process of finding frames and going through the export process for each one, can be time consuming and tedious.
When we stumbled across Larry’s advice for exporting stills out of FCP, we had one of those “DOH!” moments — he offered up another way of exporting stills…one that was simple, but was not obvious to us before.
Here’s the simple way (and our new favorite FCP trick) for batch exporting still out of FInal Cut Pro:
1. Create freeze frames (shift+N)
2. Drag the freeze frame from the Viewer to the Browser (it will create a still in the Browser)
3. Repeat for each freeze frame.
4. Highlight all freeze frames in the Browser
5. Right click on the stills and choose Batch Export.
6. Set the settings (choose Default) and destination in the Export Queue…and export!
Check out Larry’s full post over at the DC Final Cut Pro Users Group, a fantastic resource for Final Cut Pro information. Larry posts his FCP tips on the site quite regularly…so be sure to bookmark it!
Best of the Web: The FCP Shortcutter
Aug 26th
You may have seen mention of the FCP Shortcutter on the site in the past, but today we wanted to make special note of one of THE BEST Final Cut Pro resources currently online.
Dave Hurley, professional editor, former professor and Apple Certified Pro Apps instructor, created The FCP Shortcutter back in February of this year. Since that time he has posted, nearly everyday, a post on his site based around a specific FCP shortcut.
He doesn’t just post the shortcut….no, Dave expands in great detail the benefit of the shortcut, ways to remember using it and how it works in a Final Cut Pro editing workflow. We thought we had most of the FCP shortcuts down…until we start regularly visiting The FCP Shortcutter!
Dave suggests visiting the site each morning and picking up a shortcut and adding it to your workflow. Overtime, you should pick up a slew of new shortcuts and have them become a habit in your editing.
Obviously, the more you use shortcuts, the more they become second nature and the more time you save. After being used effectively over time, shortcuts make editing operations smoother…a great way to develop a stride or pace when cutting projects.
Aside from being a FCP Guru, Dave is also an overall super nice guy.
Check out The FCP Shortcutter and take your FCP editing to the next level!
Follow The FCP Shortcutter on Twitter
**Also, Dave recently did a fantastic webinar over at New Media Webinars covering all things FCP shortcut related.
FCP Fundamentals: Setting Logging Bin — Keeps project organized!
Aug 25th
This may be one that a lot of you already know….but we’ve yet to cover it on the site and it’s definitely worth touching on.
When using Log and Transfer or Log and Capture you can set a Browser bin (or folder) to automatically be the home for clips transferred into FCP.
By default, footage brought into FCP from Log and Capture or Log and Transfer will appear in the Browser’s “root”.
However, by right clicking on a bin in the Browser (if you need to create one use the shortcut Command + B) you can choose “Set Logging Bin”.
A bin can also be set as a Logging Bin by highlighting it in the Browser and from the menu bar choose File > Set Logging Bin.
Make sure you set the logging bin BEFORE importing clips through Log and Capture or Log and Transfer….however, you can always change the logging bin as you go along.
Ex. If your first few clips are from Interview 1 — make a bin that says Interview 1, make it the logging bin and batch those particular clips into FCP. Before you import clips from Interview 2, make a bin called Interview 2, set it as the logging bin and batch the clips into FCP (either through Log and Transfer or Log and Capture).
Logging bins are underutilized…as some editors take the lazy approach of bringing all the clips into the root of the Browser and then sorting them into bins from there.
Setting up logging bins AS you bring footage into FCP will save time and keep your workflow more organized.
Something different — Old Apple Computer Print Ads
Aug 24th
BURIED under with a big edit this week…bare with me, as the site will get back to regular postings in the next few days
Until then, here’s two links to kill a few minutes during a render — old Apple Advertising and Brochures. Fanboys (and girls) be sure to check these out. Some are downright hilarious.
Oh how quickly, and how much, things have changed.
Mac Mothership: Apple Advertising and Brochure Gallery
Web Designer Depot: The Evolution of Apple Ads
Check back soon for more Final Cut Pro goodness!
FCP Free: Final Cut Studio Remover
Aug 18th
From Digital Rebellion, the folks who brought you the FCP Preference Manager (featured before on FCPDaily), here’s a great little free utility that wil wipe Final Cut Studio off your hard drive.
FCS Remover will uninstall all components of Final Cut Studio (and Final Cut Express) with one button click.
From Digital Rebellion:
What it removes:
- Final Cut Pro
- Final Cut Express
- Final Cut Server
- Motion
- Soundtrack Pro
- Color
- DVD Studio Pro
- LiveType
- Cinema Tools
- Compressor
- Batch Monitor
- Qmaster
Please note that the software allows you to specifically select which components you wish to remove.
It also removes preference files, installer receipts, documentation, codecs, frameworks and content folders (LiveFonts, sound effects, templates, etc).
What it doesn’t remove:
- Your projects, render files, captured footage
More information and download at Digital Rebellion
Image processing pipeline — knowing when to apply a filter in your FCP workflow
Aug 17th
Interesting topic covered initially by Apple Support and then later by the site Creative Workflow Hacks…
In some cases when you apply filters to a clip will change how the clip is ultimately processed. Because of this, you will always want to apply a broadcast safe filter LAST (or other filters applied after could null the effect of the broadcast safe filter).
From Apple Support:
In order to achieve accurate and predictable results with the Broadcast Safe filter, it’s important to understand that filters are applied in series in Final Cut Pro. The order in which a given set of filters are applied will affect the end result.
Creative Workflow Hacks suggests when you add filters to a clip you pay attention to the “image processing pipeline”…..
The idea of a pipeline is one of the trickier ideas to master for new users of image processing applications. In image processing each new operation like a blur, composite operation or color adjustment is applied and then passed to the next operation. In the example that Apple gives above, a Proc Amp operation applied late in the pipeline could boost the color levels outside of a safe range even though Broadcast Safe filter was applied in the stack. I’ve often found when you’ve got a visually unexpected output, moving the filter arrangement will restore some sanity to the expected output.
A good way to test your filter “pipeline” is to open up a clip (that has many filters applied) in the Viewer. In the filters Tab grab one of the filters and drag it up or down the filter list. Depending on the filter, the new filter order may very well alter the way your video looks.
Aside from the Broadcast Safe filter, we have noticed how important filter order is when keying footage. Changing the order of spill suppressors, color smoothing and key filters can drastically change the quality of a key in Final Cut Pro (ie, color smoothing should be always be applied before a key filter).
Always be mindful of filter order when working within Final Cut Pro!
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Resources:
Creative Workflow Hacks: When you apply a filter can make a big difference
Free Webinar on Final Cut Pro Shortcuts — TODAY!
Aug 12th
We meant to post about this earlier, but the date kind of snuck up on us…
Dave, our friend over at The FCP Shortcuttter, will be hosting a free webinar on FCP 7 keyboard shortcuts today at 10 am PDT. Dave is THE expert in Final Cut Pro shortcuts (in addition to being a super nice guy). NewMediaWebinars.com continues to deliver great webinars for broadcast and post-production professionals and this one should be equally terrific.
Here’s a run-down of the agenda from the NewMediaWebinars site:
• Pre-edit and “Assistant Editor” workfows and shortcuts
- Organizing your projects and the “shift Q” lifestyle
- Setting up and navigating your FCP interface
- Capturing and transferring source content
- Browser management and asset review
• How to Rough Cut with Shortcuts
- Working with clips in the Browser and Viewer
- The ideal shortcut workflow for laying down a rough cut
- Learn how to save time by keeping the rough cut rough
• Fine Cutting and getting to the “Final Cut” with shortcuts
- Using the amazing keyboard tools to review, trim and fine tune edit points
- Take the drudgery out of cleaning up audio tracks with shortcuts
• Output and distribution
The live presentation of the webinar is free but a download should be avaliable to purchase after today.
Go over to NewMediaWebinars to register for today’s FCP Shortcuts webinar!
Exporting Quicktimes from Final Cut Pro with Alpha Channel (Transparency)
Aug 10th
One function that is available in Final Cut Pro but not well documented, is the ability to export footage/timelines with an alpha channel (ie with transparency).
Countless times we’ve seen editors on Twitter or Creative Cow asking “What could I possibly be doing wrong…the background is just a solid black when it should be transparent?”
There may instances when you want to export out keyed footage with an alpha channel from Final Cut Pro….here’s how you do it:
1. Key out your footage. The keyers built into FCP are decent at best (chroma key, luma key, color key). When we key inside FCP, we typically use the Boris Contiuum toolset for keying…pulls pretty good keys quickly (but is highly modifiable).
2. After footage is keyed, we sometimes throw a layer in under the key (typically a solid color — color opposite to the key color). This will give a good test as to how clean the key is. This can also be double checked by taking a peek at the Matte view of the filter (any professional key filter will allow you to look at the footage in matte mode — a 2 color display of what is keyed and what is not).
3. After you check the footage unrender it (FCP requires the footage to be unrendered in order to process out the Alpha channel in export).
4. From the menu bar choose File > Export Quicktime Conversion…
5. On the bottom left of the dialogue box the default should appear “Format: Quicktime Movie” & “Use: Default Settings”. Click “Options…”
6. Click the Video > Settings button.
7. Make sure that the “Compression Type” is set to “Animation” (Animation codec).
8. The depth must then be set to “Millions of Colors+”
9. Hit “Ok”…then Save.
10. The exported Quicktime will have an Alpha Channel and can be used in any NLE (inclu After Effects).
FCP Web Roundup: Tips for better editing, DVD Menus from Photoshop Layers & 20% off Tiffen FCP filters
Aug 5th
A few worthwhile posts we’ve seen around the ‘net during the last 24 hours…
(all of these come from Twitter — and were originally retweeted through our @FCPDaily twitter. If you’re not already, follow us here.)
Hollywood Reinvented — a blog site with good info for filmmakers and editors — has released their 10 tips for better editing. This is a real quick read, but there’s some solid points on their list…a good refresher of key points to make any editing experience go smoother.
We couldn’t agree more with point #1 (no doubt probably the most important on the list): Get on the same page with the director/producer/client.
Got a :60 second render? Take a peek at the full list.
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This tutorial covers a frequently asked question when it comes to DVD creation — “How can I make my DVD menus more customized…like commercial DVDs?” We’d argue your options in DVD Studio Pro are somewhat limited. Larry Jordan breaks down, step-by-step, how to create nice looking buttons using Photoshop.
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Tiffen, manufacturer of filters for still, film and video cameras, currently has a special on their digital filter pack for Final Cut Pro (the filters emulate the looks created by Tiffen’s physical camera filters). All of their digital filters are currently 20% off.
You can also download a free-trial of the FCP filter pack. Test it out for a few days and if you dig it, you’ve got til August 16th to receive the 20% off.
