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Standard Settings
I want to know what are the typical settings for pretty much everything in FCP so I can write it down once and for all and never have to look for specific tutorials to figure it out. Basically get one major thing out of the way so I can focus on the creative aspects which I am much better at then the technical. Here is my list:
I film in 24fps with a panasonic dvx100b hd camera. I plug my camera into my I-MAC using a firewire cable, then open my Final Cut Studio 2, specifically Final cut pro and now what do I set everything to so I keep as much of the filmed look as possible? Frame rates, aspect ratio’s, and everything else every detail please.
Then of course I edit my film, color it, add effects and anything else. Once it’s ready to go I want to send it to compressor. I know I can turn it into a .mov file but I really would like to get it compressed in Compressor without doing that. Most of my work is commercials no more than 5 minutes long, so what should I set my batch to in compressor? Again frame rates and sizes every detail please.
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14 Replies
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You seem to think the creative and technical are unrelated…
Patrick
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[Nicholas Crowley] “I film in 24fps with a panasonic dvx100b hd camera.”
Well, that isn’t really possible. What you can do is tape at either 24P, which runs at 30fps (29.97 to be exact) and has the “film look.” Then there is 24pA (Advanced). This records 24fps to tape with a special cadence. If you set your EASY SETUP to DV/NTSC Advanced Pulldown Removal, then FCP will capture and remove the redundant frames and leave you with 24fps…running at 23.98.
So if you want details you need to provide some as well. What format do you shoot?
There are no “typical settings” in FCP. FCP is an open NLE that can edit many different formats. Dozens. Each one has it’s own standard setting…several have several settings. There is no standard and no “typical.”
[Nicholas Crowley] “I know I can turn it into a .mov file but I really would like to get it compressed in Compressor without doing that.”
OK…you might not know this but .mov isn’t a codec…it is a format. QUICKTIME. Quicktime is the format you capture to…and it contains many different codecs. DV, DVCPRO HD, HDV, XDCAM, ProRes…h.264, Sorenson, Apple Photo JPEG…dozens more. So when you see .mov, all that means is that it is a quicktime file. It can be one of any of the dozens of codecs QT supports.
OK now…more details from you. Compressed…HOW? For what reason? Web? Back to tape? DVD? Full res file? Unless you tell us what you want…or what your intention is with this final output, we have no way of telling you what to go to get it.
Every detail please.
Shane
GETTING ORGANIZED WITH FINAL CUT PRO DVD…don’t miss it.
Read my blog, Little Frog in High Def -
[Nicholas Crowley] “I want to know what are the typical settings for pretty much everything in FCP”
Every one on here is going to have settings that vary in one way or another because we all are working on different projects with different needs.
My settings even change from project to project depending on the needs of that project.
FCP has thousands of different settings. There are settings for codec, frame rate, aspect ratio, field dominance, audio levels, audio rates, , transitions, filter settings, thumbnail size, render control settings, external video playback settings, scratch disk, auto save vault, memory settings, effect handling, window arraignments and MANY MANY MANY MORE.
Some settings depend on your hardware, some settings depend on your format of video.
There are just so many different possible settings, and those settings are so tied to the needs of each project that your request is impossible.
There are no “technical solutions” to your “artistic problems”.
Don’t let technology get in the way of your creativity! -
Nicholas
Oftentimes the trouble with the internet is that no one really knows who you are and what you do. You could be a 14 year old schoolkid brashly demanding knowledge or an old school film editor with bad interpersonal skills who never had to work without an assistant before. Who knows? Either way, sooner or later I’m sure someone more altruistic will come along and attempt to help you out. In the meantime, whilst you wait, have a go at rewording your request for assistance … at present it doesn’t give any sense at all that you understand what you are doing or indeed have made any attempt whatsoever to help yourself. If you don;t know what you are doing then its probably worth knowing that what you are asking has been asked in one form or another time and time again, you need to search that information out, filter it, and digest it. The Search field is at the top of the page. You’d learn a great deal in the process and be better able to ask specific and targeted questions.
I genuinely hope that helps!
Andy -
A lot of companies have poorly-written, confusing user manuals. Apple is not one of these companies. The reason why there are 4 or so manuals is because Apple literally gives you everything you could ever want to know.
See Appendix C: Working with 24p Video p.1900 and Ch. 20: Using Compressor with Final Cut Pro p.1762.
https://manuals.info.apple.com/en/Final_Cut_Pro_6_User_Manual.pdf
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No, but there is a difference. I just am simply not a tech guy. Hence, why most directors can tell somebody where they want something cut they don’t know all the tech specs that go into. I have an eye for filming and editing, the creativity to drive a story, but not with the codecs and unlimited amount of data and numbers that go into the endless number of settings involved with something like FCS. Simply put, I look through a camera and my brain understands. You look at your computer screen and see information and your brain understands. I am simply looking for basic help on a complicated application. I use to edit on actual film when you spooled it through an editing table and literally cut and taped the scenes together. I didn’t need a response from some dark recess of your bitter, no one appreciates “techies” ego.
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Thank you Shane for making multiple stabs at my question. Seeing I’m not that technically inclined I know right off the bat that even the phrasing of my questions will have problems. Thank you for being patient. Let me just give you some background. I worked on FCP years ago when it was in its infancy. I filmed on an Arriflex 8 camera which was then transferred to mini dv tape which was then loaded into a mini dv player which was connected to a Mac which was then captured into what was probably Final Cut Pro 2. This all took place at film school so we had an instructor walk us through the steps. Fast forward to the present. Now I have all my own equipment and I am great at lighting, assembling sets, designing shots, and even editing, just not the tech part. So basically I am person who knows what he’s doing, I just am not that great at terminology. Ok now I can try again with the help of your response.
I tape at 24p advanced on my Panasonic DVX100B 3ccd. The project I am working on is a commercial for a kitchen/bath woodworking company. It will be posted on their website and on DVD. The DVD will play on loop on a TV in their offices. It consists of shots of multiple kitchens and baths the company has produced. Clarity in color and lighting are essential and it looks great on camera and I don’t want to lose that. So, I connect my camera via firewire to my computer. I open my Final Cut Pro 6. I go to file/log&capture. Then I click on the final cut pro tab and I can click on easy setup or audio/video settings. By the way I lay down the audio separately, so no audio when I’m filming. Obviously what I want is to have the footage captured as close to what it looked like on camera. Of course I can use Color and the many tools in FCP to make it look even better but I want the original footage to come in as clean as possible. As of now I capture my film into imovie and then drag the clips into FCP. So if I were to use easy setup what should I enter in the ‘format’, ‘rate’ and ‘use’ pulldown menus? Conversely, if I were to click on the audio/video settings, which has way more tabs and choices, with my camera and the taping at 24p advanced what should my settings be?
Now above I mentioned what my project was and what the final output will be, DVD and internet. I would like to use Compressor at least for the DVD, again so I have the best quality, unless I don’t need to and there is a better or just as good way to getting it on DVD. I have posted some of my work on my youtube page so I am ok with doing that but this is more professional so I would like to know how to get the best quality for the internet. So of course when I send my finished project to Compressor there are more tech specs I need to know. Just wondering what I should use? If this still doesn’t help you out in answering my questions I’m sorry and thanks for your patience. It would be much easier in person but hey I’m trying. Thank you again. -
Why would you assume, sir, that I am a bitter techie without a creative bone in my body?
As to your question, the thing you seek does not exist. You might as well join Ponce de Leon, or King Arthur. You’re looking for a simple script or diagram that says A + B = C to replace the “techie” that the directors you refer to use to push buttons for them.
If you’ve ever tried to use tech support that followed scripts like this, rather than a basic understanding then you know how inflexible and frustrating and often flat out wrong they can be.
I wish you luck in your quest.
Patrick
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Nicholas, the point is that you need to have technical knowledge in your given area of expertise…or in the area that you intend to move into. If you are a camera operator, you need to know that camera inside and out. Know what the knee is (not the thing on your leg), how to adjust it and what happens when you do. Know how various focal lengths effect the shots, know what filters to use, why to underexpose a little rather than overexpose…know all the settings that camera has to offer. Only then can you be really creative.
Same with editing. You can’t just sit down and edit without a vast knowledge of the editing system you are using and what all the settings do. Even the big guys like Walter Murch knows the technical stuff. He might not know ALL the technical stuff on all the formats, but that is why he has Sean Cullen, his assistant…to cover that knowledge, and to focus on all the technical stuff so he can focus on the creative. Not that he doesn’t KNOW it, he does…well. He just wants to focus mainly on the creative so he hires a guy to focus on the technical. If you want to be only creative, then you need to hire a technical guy.
But this doesn’t mean that you don’t need to know this application and how it works. You do if you want to do things right. Even if you had someone else set it up and manage to capture all of the footage, unless you know how FCP deals with this footage and handles pulldown and all that, then you might edit yourself into a corner. I have seen this time and time again. Editors skilled with Avid who just know the FCP interface who edit and edit, but then time comes to share the project or online and…whoops! There is a huge mess to clean up, a mess that costs time and money to fix. Time and money that could have been avoided if they bothered to learn the specifics about the application and how it works.
Having artistic knowledge is good, but if you intend to apply that in using technology, you need to know that technology and how it works. Unless you want to hire someone to babysit all the technical stuff.
Working with 24PA footage? Use the DV/NTSC Advanced Pulldown Removal Easy Setup. There…done.
Shane
GETTING ORGANIZED WITH FINAL CUT PRO DVD…don’t miss it.
Read my blog, Little Frog in High Def -
Knowledge informs Creativity.
Creativity advances Knowledge.Patrick
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