[Brian Thomas]

I’m new but I think I read SSD is not good for video editing in general..? I imagine I should go for 7,200 and not 5,400 for the HDD? If it comes down to battery life as opposed to speed then I think I’d go for the latter but I’m really interested in other people’s thoughts. Thanks!

FCP 7.0.3 iMac 24 3.06 4GB OSX 10.6.6. Near Geneva, Switzerland

[Brian Thomas]

Thanks for the reply Jeff. I’m not so concerned about costs today as last week’s purchase of FCS was the equivalent of 20+ keyboards! 🙂 I also have to think of the other occasional users of my iMac who would get confused if what was shown on the keycaps didn’t map with what’s coming up on the screen. On top of that I’m only a so-so touch typist.

I’m hoping someone can say if one or the other of the short lead time keyboards I mentioned will do most if not all the shortcuts. If not I’ll just have to order the US keyboard and wait for the three weeks involved.

FCP 7.0.3 iMac 24 3.06 4GB OSX 10.6.6. Near Geneva, Switzerland

[Brian Thomas]

Yes of course, I didn’t think all that documentation was so readily available. All the various opinions around here are invaluable too, many thanks!

FCE 4.0.1 iMac 24 3.06 4GB OSX 10.6.5. Near Geneva, Switzerland

[Brian Thomas]

Ah, thanks for clearing that up. So for multicam stuff it really has to be the same format on all the video tracks – it wasn’t at all obvious from what I read.

How about you Jeffrey, do you do multicam work? Does FCP somehow make it simpler than having to chop bits away on different video tracks as I have to do in FCE? (I’m getting quite good at that now but I’m always on the lookout for something that gets me to my goal faster and easier)

One other little question if you also happen to be familiar with FCE – is colour correction that much easier in FCP?

Thanks.

FCE 4.0.1 iMac 24 3.06 4GB OSX 10.6.5. Near Geneva, Switzerland

[Brian Thomas]

Thanks for the reply Walter. I was more concerned about the double processing of the HD stuff: first to make it like SD and then the encoding for the DVD.

The three HD camcorders are 2 Panasonic TM300 and a TM10 (as I said, pretty basic) and produce AVCHD files. I don’t think an SD option exists but in any case I use them so that at a pinch I could achieve my objectives with them only. The SD camcorders are often only for cutaways or an obscure part of the stage only used briefly.

What about multi-camera support – is it that much better than chopping bits away on different tracks?

Thanks!

FCE 4.0.1 iMac 24 3.06 4GB OSX 10.6.5. Near Geneva, Switzerland

[Brian Thomas]

Thanks both of you for responding. My six camcorders are all pretty basic and all record at 25 fps. Three are HD, three SD.

My ultimate goal is always to burn a number of DVDs for the cast/chorus etc. I imagine I’m losing some picture quality during the down-convert and obviously more during the DVD encoding, yes? It occurred to me that if I could skip down-converting then I’d not only save lots of time but even reduce quality loss..?

Another thing that appeals to me is the multi-camera support. I’ve not seen it in action but I’ve read it’s pretty good. I always use a minimum of four camcorders and sometimes all six even if the sixth might only be for a few seconds of audience cut-away every now and then. For now I obviously have to chop stuff away on the various video tracks and although I’ve sort of got used to it over the years I imagine the FCP way is easier/better?

Finally I am very happy to have the FCE colour correction filter but I’ve heard that FCP is that much ‘better’. Yes….?

Thanks in advance for your opinions etc.

FCE 4.0.1 iMac 24 3.06 4GB OSX 10.6.5. Near Geneva, Switzerland