[Bouncing Account needs new email address]

Let me guess…
Are the tapes from a Canon camcorder?

But more…

The audio is, by default, MUTED to the Mac’s speaker output during Log and Capture.

You should normally monitor the audio directly from the camcorder or deck you are using to capture.

Many people have reported that noise or “pops” appear in the captured clips if the Mac’s internal audio is left on WHILE capturing… so may want to choose “Off During Capture.”

Here is the way you can turn OFF the Mac’s speaker:

Final Cut Pro (menu) > Audio/Video Settings… > Capture Presets (tab)

“Duplicate” the Capture Preset you are now using, when the window opens rename it (I added “MacAudioOFF” to the file name).

Click open the “Advanced” button in the Audio section and turn speakers to “OFF during Capture.”
The Mac speakers/audio-out will now NOT play Audio during the preview in the Log and Capture window. (Monitor from the camcorder or deck.)

[Bouncing Account needs new email address]

[Jonathan Holm] “Is there any other type of file i can save it as?”

Save it as a PICT.

[Bouncing Account needs new email address]

Hi Chris (and all),

Just to keep things in perspective, my experience is just the OPPOSITE of Chris’.

I was having trouble getting my Mac-burned DVDs to play on several other players.

I bought an inexpensive set-top DVD Recorder (Sansui from Sears!) and the DVDs I burn on it will play on virtually ALL my various clients DVD players.
The thing about set-top DVD Recorders is that they burn in 1-to-1 (“Real-time”) and that can mean a disc is being burned “deeper” by the laser so that might make is easier to read on more machines.
Also, my Sansui burns DVD-R’s (like the Mac) and DVD-R media is supposed to be more compatible.
Many set-top units burn DVD+R and that could mean more problems with compatibility.

Some of the players in my preview will play the Mac discs, most will play the Sansui discs, and some units will play BOTH source’s discs.

[Bouncing Account needs new email address]

With all due respect to Mr. Nattress (he’s the best).

But, I have been producing and editing video for decades and have used all sorts of digital effects gear over the years (some units costing upwards of $100,000.00) and I get as good a results (in many cases, BETTER) in FCP as I ever got with the high-end gear.

1. You must render all effects to get full quality.
2. You must only check for QUALITY on an externtal video monitor, not on the computer monitor.
3. You must make sure that if you adjust the position of an image that the VERTICAL position is placed on an EVEN (not odd) INTEGER (no “percentages”).

Of course, if you want to zoom-in very “far”, you want a to use a larger, scanned image (1440 x 1080??)
But, I scale even 720×540 images in FCP up to 160% or so and, depending on the image, get very good results.

HOWEVER, if you are trying to zoom-in on a moving-video CAMERA image, the smaller the zoom-in, the better.

[Bouncing Account needs new email address]

The problem many times is the PLAYER.
DVDs and CDs that can be “Burned” are a completely different composition as commercially-made “printed” DVDs.

There are MANY DVD players out there that simply WON’T play “burned” DVDs.

There are several workarounds.

Try various other brands of burning media and/or using x1 and x2 (older, slower) media (but then you might end up with a brand clients A,B, and C can now use, but (formerly-happy) clients X, Y, and Z suddenly
now CAN’T.

On larger orders, have the DVDs “mastered and printed” by a local dub-house.
The most creative solution I’ve heard is (for “regular clients”) go to a discounter and BUY several inexpensive DVD players (under $30, especially if you buy several at once).
Test the player in the store to make sure it will play your burned DVDs.
I’ve found that many new inexpensive players work GREAT with my burned copies.
If you work with many clients over and over (and they can’t play your DVDs) GIVE them one of these inexpensive players.

[Bouncing Account needs new email address]

[Simon Bronson] “Even if I zoom as little as 102% my image is still going soft.”

1. You must render all effects to get full quality.
2. You must only check for QUALITY on an externtal video monitor, not on the computer monitor.
3. You must make sure that if you adjust the position of an image that the VERTICAL position is placed on an EVEN (not odd) INTEGER (no “percentages”).

I scale even 720×540 images in FCP up to 160% or so and, depending on the image, get very good results.

[Bouncing Account needs new email address]

[heimchen] “Looked at the movie file and saw that QT has 2 mono channels instead of 1 stereo channel.”

Edit the clip to the timeline.

Select both “mono” tracks and choose

Modify (menu) > “Stereo Pair” (or hit “option-L”)

[Bouncing Account needs new email address]

[Luis Guerrero] “I would like to know when it is acceptable in situations other than on an ENG assignment.”

When the scene directions, talent or director call for a “boom mic to be visible in the shot” for comic effect or to show (in the scene) that this is a “staged” or “news” event.

I can’t think of any other time it SHOULD be there.
Otherwise, you wouldn’t NEED a boom, as the talent could simply hold a hand mic or wear a lav.

In general, a boom in the shot is normally “bad form.”
Think of it as seeing a stagehand dressed in blue-jeans standing near the edge of the frame of a scene that is supposed to be on the surface of the moon.
It instantly breaks the mood of the moment as it screams “this is a MOVIE” (and a poorly-produced one, as well).

[Bouncing Account needs new email address]

[Tyler] “Do you think there might be a way to manually turn off Device Control either on the camera itself, or perhaps even in OS X?”

No.
Its not a camera or OSX setting.
Its a FCEx setting and requirement.

My best advice to you to SOLVE this (and this comes from many decades of production experience) is to BORROW another DV camcorder and COPY the tapes.
You can choose ANY properly-operating inexpensive home-video DV camcorder with FW.
It will work just fine for your transfer, and give you FULL QUALITY with NO generation-loss (that’s the beauty of FW and DV).

The copy process WILL correct your TC problems and allow you to properly capture and use your tapes.
Anything else you try will most likely waste a lot of time and effort, and gain you very little.

[Bouncing Account needs new email address]

If you need to “squeeze down” a full-screen incoming video feed to fit in a smaller portion of your new image so you can add the character generator to the rest of the area (sometimes called Picture-in-Picture), you WOULD need a switcher (or an add-on device) with digital effects.