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Will it all be too much for me?
Hi all, new to this so be gentle please!
I am in the process of researching a new editing system to upgrade to and Final Cut Pro hs taken my fancy but I just want a little advice whether or not it’s just going to be too complicated for me.
I’m no idiot, but alot of the technical terms I’ve read on here I’m not familiar with.
I am currently using Pinnacle Studio 9 on the PC and find this easy and quick to use but infuratingly temperamental and limited.
I do prefer Macs, although have never used one for video editing.
I have dabbled with Premiere Pro on the PC but found it a bit heavy going and the lack of menus and complicated effects settings really set me back.
I’ve never come across a Mac programme I couldn’t get my head around yet though and quite fancy my chances with Final Cut Pro.
My main use for it would be for my wedding videography company.
So, is it fairly easy to pick up and use or would it means months of intensive self training?
Any advice would be gratefully accepted.
Cheers
Simon -
10 Replies
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FCP is very easy to pick up and for basic editing, you should be up to speed in about a day or so. There is a Tutorial that comes with the app, be sure to run that. Of course, it’s an ever changing, ever evolving app, so you’ll literally be learning new things for years to come.
Also, our very own Shane Ross has prepared a fantastic DVD called “Getting Organized in Final Cut Pro.” This is a MUST own for any FCP editor, especially one getting started with it. Organization is key to any editing application.
https://store.creativecow.net/p/63/getting_organized_in_final_cut_pro
Walter Biscardi, Jr.
Biscardi Creative Media
HD and SD Production for Broadcast and Independent Productions.STOP STARING AND START GRADING WITH APPLE COLOR
The new Color Training DVD now available from the Creative Cow! -
Thanks Walter, I appreciate the advice and now feel much more confident about tackling FCP.
Are there standard menus included on the programme or do you need another programme to create them like you do with Premier Pro? -
[Simon Owen] “Are there standard menus included on the programme”
Standard menus? What’s that?
Walter Biscardi, Jr.
Biscardi Creative Media
HD and SD Production for Broadcast and Independent Productions.STOP STARING AND START GRADING WITH APPLE COLOR
The new Color Training DVD now available from the Creative Cow! -
Simon –
My guess is that, based on what you’ve said, FCP will pose a huge learning curve. It’s a very good editing system, allowing for great flexibility in work-flows – and this very flexibility can be very difficult for a beginner.
It is a very quirky program, with features stuck in different menus all over the place. There are so many different ways to do anything that it can be difficult at first to figure out which one to use.
My advice, based on your comments, would be to try Adobe Premiere Pro. It’s similar to FCP but more limited in how it does things – this limitation is actually helpful for a beginner. It’s much more consistent in it’s menus and work-flows, not quite the hodgepodge that FCP can seem to be.
Just my $.02
Herb Sevush
Zebra Productions -
Hi
there is a separate program called DVD studio Pro that has some prem made DVD menu templates. It bundled with Final Cut 6, and the bundle is called Final Cut Studio 2
Final Cut is primarily for editing, some sound mixing, some motion effects. So apple has bundled several other programs to add extended capabilites, like animated type and sound mixing
go to Apple.com and check it out!
“I like video because its so fast!”
Bob Flood
Greer & Associates, Inc. -
My two cents would be to look at Final Cut Pro HD Express. Its a watered down version of FCP that might be better suited for your needs.
Can you tell us a little bit about how you plan on capturing your media, what kind of drive, what cameras and tape format do you use?
iDVD has some really good menus and is fast and easy to use for your work.
_______________________________
Wayne Carey
Schazam Productions
http://www.schazamproductions.com
https://blogs.creativecow.net/waynecarey -
Simon, is there an Apple store near you? If so, call up & arrange a demo. FCP is a very powerful editor, and so it can easily become very complicated. Be prepared to need some training- be it 1 on 1 lessons, a class or workshop, or even a set of DVD tutorials.
Arnie
Now in post: Peristroika, a film by Slava Tsukerman
https://www.arniepix.com/blog -
Part of what makes FCP so complicated is it’s ability to work with so many formats and devices.
The other part is that it combines the work of about 8 professionals: compositors, animators, engineers, colorists, editors, compressionists, audio techs, dvd authors, da dah, da dah, da dah, each of whom have apprenticed for several years. It’s not so much that FCP is complicated but that video itself is complicated.[Simon Owen] “My main use for it would be for my wedding videography company. “
If you use it with DV or HDV only (or what ever you are shooting only) in one consistent set up you will be able to define a simple work flow. It becomes more complicated when you start adding raid arrays and input cards etc. and doing work for other people.
B>[Simon Owen] “So, is it fairly easy to pick up and use or would it means months of intensive self training? “
There are more applications in the bundle which you can branch into eventually. Macs come with i-movie and i-dvd for simplicity which you can fall back on when you are starting out. It will be something you can grow into instead of something that will limit you.
“everything is broken” ……1st. coined by Esther Philips I believe.
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Simon,
I don’t think you will have any problem with FCP. I was using Pinnacle on Windows myself about a year ago, and had never used a Mac before. When I needed multi-cam editing capability and was fed up with Pinnacle/Windows crashing on me, my wife convinced me to move to the “dark side” (a Mac, she is a big Apple fan). So I bought a Mac Pro and a copy of FCP v5. My wife gave me about an hour of “this is a Mac” intro training, and away I went to learn FCP on my own.
WoW what a difference. Within a day or two, I could do everything in FCP that I could do in Pinnacle, plus multi-cam editing. FCP and the Mac never seem to crash. This is very strange (but great!) when you’re used to Windows. I probably haven’t used 80% of the functionality in FCP yet, haven’t needed to, but it is good to know I’ve got plenty of power and capabilities left to learn and play with when I need them. I recently upgraded to FCP v6 and it seems just as solid.
So go ahead and take the FCP plunge, the water is fine. 🙂
My ATV, Skiing and Hang Gliding videos: https://GrizzlyGuy.TV
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Thanks Eric
I really appreciated your post and you have finally convinced me to take the plunge. I have just ordered a new high grade mac and Final Cut Pro. Hopefully, I will find it as easy as you because i have been using macs for about 20 years and already find them far better and more reliable to use than PCs.
Once again, thanks for your encouragement,
Cheers
Simon
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