[Alban Egger]

I switched from PC to Mac, that´s why FCP7 helped me to collaborate in a tapeless world.
In the early days of FCPX I used FCP7 to output OMFs, but in the meanwhileI send AAFs out of FCPX.

The people I work most with switched to FCPX also by now. So after the first 4-6 months everything went back to normal.

[Alban Egger]

Another question is: have FCPX and CS6 changed your perception about FCP7. FCP7 was the holy grail to many. I always disliked it, because when I started using it (2008) it was already an old software. Others, like Edius, already used P2 and h.264 natively then. But to be able to collaborate I pretty much had to use FCP7 in my market.

FCPX came and I switched within 2 weeks. And never looked back. I edited docs, music videos, TV-shows, used it in Live-environments…it just works great for me. So my first perception was correct: it is a very versatile and deep application which hasn´t even scratched the surface yet. BUT I acknowledge that there are a few quirks still. But then there are some tools I would´t want to live without anymore.

But FCP7 now REALLY looks like the lame duck it always was. CS6 wipes the floor with FCP7 from what I read and saw (but never really had time to try it). So what do the FP7 disciples think about their NLE?

[Alban Egger]

[Bret Williams] “In FCP 7 there is generally no need to ever lock tracks.”

If I am forced to have “ambient on track 3 and 4” and “voice-over on track 8” then I find it easier in FCPX´s role model to do the ambient and voice-over J-L cuts with the magnetic timeline. In FCP7 I have to go a longer way to mix these to my liking without taking them to another track, since I cannot stack them above each other.

I don´t have to “lock” the tracks, but I am forced to eventually have them in certain tracks to end up in the correct audio-bus. In FCPX I can arrange them where I want and the roles “ambience” and “voice-over” will take care of the rest.

[Alban Egger]

@Claude: until the next project you could fill your need with roles.
Create a role for goals, one for saves, one for hits etc.

Now in your timeline apply the roles to the clips. As replacement for missing keywords this could work, unfortunately we can´t assign keywords in the timeline (yet).
Eventually go to the item list (bottom left of the timeline) and select your goals for that game….copy to a new timeline/project……that could work rather fast.

@Bret: J-L Cuts? Double clicking the audio will bring it down a layer and you can trim as needed. The magnetic timeline will make room, while in a track based and locked environment I needed several keys to make room first.
When I make such an audio revision I select “Expand all audio” which brings down all audio tracks and I save the constant double clicking…..

[Alban Egger]

New Link after fixing the grammar 😉
https://eggermedia.squarespace.com/blog/2012/5/7/fcpx-find-me-if-you-can-tipstricks.html

[Alban Egger]

Michael has pretty much explained it.
We do alot of Football Highlights. The trickier parts are, when you have mixed audio on separate files and not-matching timecodes.

If all you want is a highlight reel of goals and hits etc. it is best to use keywords as explained.
This is actually where FCPX shines and where the Event and Project paradigm shows its strength.

You have several events /games. You set favourites and keywords for each goal/hit/save/playername.
Then you have different projects…e.g. a highlight reel for player X´s goals.

I have one event for a season of an American Football Team. I have all sacks by number 44 in a second at hand. It takes a bit in logging for the first game, but once all keywords are in place I have 9 shortcuts (the playmakers, the TD, sack, hit, FG, big play). So for the following games I am very fast going through a game and keywording and setting favourites.

Now the tricky part as said is when I have a game-livefeed, a timecode sheet and an additional live-commentary, which I don´t have on the same file. And I make 15 minutes for broadcast out of this.

In this case I usually bring the game into the timeline and align the audio to it. I set the timecode start to my file-start. Now I go through the game with my timecode sheet and use the buttons “c” and “v” to select and toggle portions of the game on/off. By holding “B” down I activate the Blade to split the files, without needing to change the pointer-tool. I usually end up with a 20 minute show after deleting all OFF parts.
Now I make a compound clip out of it (no more original timecode needed) and cut it down to 15 minutes in this revision. In the end I clean up the commentary sound with J-L cuts which are so easy in FCPX.

A 3 hour game takes me about 2,5 – 3 hours for both highlight keywording and 15 minute edit. In FCP7 last year I needed longer just for the 15 minutes and I never had season-worthy highlights and logs at hand like this…..

[Alban Egger]

Do you have a timecode skriptlist for the games (e.g.a list that says at 13:12:12 is a goal?)?

[Alban Egger]

Ok..lesson learned. Thanks 😉

[Alban Egger]

I have actually tried with the placeholders. It works for a spot in a generic way, but not really for anything in particular.

[Alban Egger]

Andy…I thought tips is what a waiter gets and tipps are ..well…little hints. Is that wrong? in Uk, US? I am in Austria, you know 😉