Importing AVCHD into Final Cut Pro 7

[Bob Matta]

Thanks David!

Got it. If you have a moment then can you expound on reasons for moving to Final Cut Pro X over 7Pro? You seem to enjoy it.
-Bob

-Bob

[David Eaks]

Sure, I really do enjoy FCPX. For me the switch became 99.9% FCPX the day of the 10.0.6 release. I have to admit, after doing my first paid job in FCPX (three 7 hour days of multican lectures with powerpoint slides that needed to be added in), I wasn’t sure if I’d ever use it again. It was miserable. But I continued to play with it and learn its ways.

Well, the obvious advantages of it being 64bit. The native/optimized/proxy workflow is awesome. Love the Multicam. Build your own templates in Motion and keep them in FCPX. Queue up multiple projects for export while also continuing to work. Third party plugin hysteria. Built-in Logic effects. I cant remember the last time I rendered anything in the timeline. “Expand audio components”. Too many great things to think of at once.

IMO the magnetic timeline is superior to the traditional track based NLE. I remember reading comments like “The magnetic timeline is horrible, I can’t have clips going crazy and flying around the timeline when I try to drag a clip into place”. To me, that “crazy flying around” is expected, useful, structured and does precisely what I expect it to do.

There so many little things that just “let me do my work”. I can quickly see and hear what needs to be done, then I do it.

[Lucie Martin]

Hi Benjamin,

I’m facing the same problem. (It worked the first time but it doesn’t since then).

Did you find a way to make it work?

(I didn’t go digging into the card structure so that can not be the problem).

I have a sony alpha 6000, shoot in 25/i and edit in FCP7.

Many thanks for any reply.

(I’m a beginner, quite desperate!)

[Shane Ross]

You will have to convert the footage that camera shoots with third party software, like EditReady by divergentmedia.com. Because that camera is new, and FCP 7 was not only discontinued 4 years ago, but the last update was 4.5 years ago. So it doesn’t recognize the AVCHD format it shoots.

AVCHD is a standard, with many many different variations. And unless the edit software knows about those variations, it won’t import it.

Shane
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[Lucie Martin]

Thank you very much for your reply Shane.
Somebody helped me to convert the files into prores 422 via clipwrap.
It worked fine but the file size exploded (x6)!
Seems like the only good solution though.
Thanks again!

[Tim Matkosky]

Hi Shane.

So….my issues with importing AVCHD in FCP7 have been time code related. I am shooting with a panasonic GH4, and am able to simply and easily injest my AVCHD files using log and transfer. My problem is, time code is not being transferred. Each clip starts at :00.

Will changing the preferenences while transferring fix this ?

Thank you

Tim

[Shane Ross]

Look to the GH4…is it recording timecode? A lot of those cameras don’t, and need a firmware update in order to work.

Also..every AVCHD format is a little different…there is no standard. And since the GH4 came out 4 years after FCP was discontinued…5 years after it’s last update…it might not be able to read all the metadata properly.

FCP 7 is old….

Shane
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Read my blog, Little Frog in High Def

[Tim Matkosky]

Good morning and thank you for taking the time to respond

Yes the GH4 is recording time code. I can see it on playback thru the camera. I’m also able to import TC into premiere

I appreciate your comment on FCP 7. I recently crossed over to premiere myself. My problem is I have 2
Clients who still edit in FCP 7.

I’ve seen a video tutorial on importing AVCHD into FCP 7. The ironic thing is that, in the tutorial, when AVCHD is imported thru log and transfer …there is no time code in the log and transfer window either. At least initially. Once the presenter goes to a cut away of screen …all of a sudden …poof …time code appears.