[Craig Alan]

Yeah, I needed a grid or at least one point to use as a guide. I actually considered putting a self-stick label with an arrow on it on my monitor.

If you blow this up full screen, I used the three string retainers on the guitar head along the bottom of the frame. They aren’t perfect but a lot less movement than I started with. I don’t think they are floating around in the image like they were before. But I gather from your comment that it still looks horrible.

Even the fact that you notice the talent moving. The handheld cam was moving a lot too. Again just practice here, too many things wrong with the video to think of it as an end game.

Mac Pro, macbook pro, Imacs (i7); Canon 5D Mark III/70D, Panasonic AG-HPX170/AG-HPX250P, Canon HV40, Sony Z7U/VX2000/PD170; FCP 6 certified; FCP X write professionally for a variety of media; teach video production in L.A.

[Craig Alan]

[Robin S. Kurz] “That said, pretty much everyone I know simply calls e.g. the project “timeline” at least half the time if not always. As do I. “Problem” solved. “

Yes, and everyone here does the same. Even Apple will call it a ‘timeline’ in many of their tutorials/help articles. Because that’s what it is! It may not seem important; but it is. It’s a non-linear editor that allows you to edit in a non-linear way, but its endgame is a linear product. The word “timeline” defines that concept.

I think I might have started at least one branch of this thread or maybe a twig of it. Sorry it got all bent. In any case, I was not claiming that Apple’s poor choice of names for components of their interface was a deal killer. But as an educator you know that ergonomics is important to efficiency. And I have to keep repeating to scores of students, “Timeline, which is called a ‘project’ in FC…” They need to know this not when they are using the app itself (except of course when they need to create a new “project”). But they need to know this in order to read and listen to tutorials on the program. It’s the vocabulary being used and it is important to know. It’s also important to know what the rest of the world calls it so they can use this knowledge in general. In short, the most important skill you can teach students is how to learn. And that often is the ability to decode instructions. And step one of decoding is learning vocabulary.

Having standards in any field or technology has its value. It allows for the use of multiple tools from different sources/companies that work together, increases efficiency, and maximizes value to the end users. Sometimes standards have to change or new ones invented. Changing the name of the ‘timeline’ to ‘project’ was not one of them. Because as video producers, we work on ‘projects’ and need to keep all the assets of our ‘projects’ organized.

Often however, companies use proprietary components in order (they think) to maximize profits. Right now several of the biggest tech companies are at war to dominate major parts of our “digital lifestyle,” by creating self-contained digital ecosystems. Namely: Google, Apple, Adobe.” If instead they would all work together using a set of standards that allow their products to interact seamlessly with each other, we would all win.

FC’s greatest weakness is not what it names things but its lack of integration with the broader media production eco-system. And I do think they are working on this problem and will solve most of it. And their advancing of all forms of metadata will then be a huge step forward. However, I do think that its poor choice of renaming things that did not need renaming was symbolic of a culture that wants to own the entire tool set. And for something as complex as media production, that is not going to happen.

Mac Pro, macbook pro, Imacs (i7); Canon 5D Mark III/70D, Panasonic AG-HPX170/AG-HPX250P, Canon HV40, Sony Z7U/VX2000/PD170; FCP 6 certified; FCP X write professionally for a variety of media; teach video production in L.A.

[Craig Alan]

Thanks so much Don. I misunderstand now, I thought you meant make a compound clip out of the b.g. and storyline clip. I already had solved the crop of the china ball issue with the mask ‘effect’ by dragging the bottom right puck out past the frame of the shot creating a low angle.

However i will try your suggestion next because I do notice that with the mask tool you loose part of the frame of your shot. Its almost like it remains as an additional layer.

I scaled the entire clip to 110% and double checked that by going key frame to keyframe in the inspector and making sure each was at 110%. That kept the bottom of the shot in frame. I used the bottom of the image rather than the heads to keep the vertical movement as steady as I could. I already know its not well framed or lit but I’ve learned a lot so far about how to use the tools I am practicing on.

I’m open to whatever comments you might have. You’ve been a big help. Appreciate it.

mask transform keyframe

Mac Pro, macbook pro, Imacs (i7); Canon 5D Mark III/70D, Panasonic AG-HPX170/AG-HPX250P, Canon HV40, Sony Z7U/VX2000/PD170; FCP 6 certified; FCP X write professionally for a variety of media; teach video production in L.A.

[Craig Alan]

However I did keyframe the motion to keep them relatively level against the b.g. Instead of trying to keep their heads at the same height I used an anchor point ( the Pick Guard of a guitar). Then I toggled through each keyframe and set the scale to 110%. This hid some of the movement. Its ok. bad camera work. Now that it is much better in terms of the subjects not floating around I think maybe a stabilizer filter would do some good. Don’t see one though. I could just apply the bad TV filter and pretend we meant for it to look jerky.

Mac Pro, macbook pro, Imacs (i7); Canon 5D Mark III/70D, Panasonic AG-HPX170/AG-HPX250P, Canon HV40, Sony Z7U/VX2000/PD170; FCP 6 certified; FCP X write professionally for a variety of media; teach video production in L.A.

[Craig Alan]

Hey Don, I tried compounding one of the clips with the keyed b.g.. But it seems impossible to transform the subject up and down in relationship to the b.g. Perhaps I misunderstand.

Mac Pro, macbook pro, Imacs (i7); Canon 5D Mark III/70D, Panasonic AG-HPX170/AG-HPX250P, Canon HV40, Sony Z7U/VX2000/PD170; FCP 6 certified; FCP X write professionally for a variety of media; teach video production in L.A.

[Craig Alan]

thanks much Don. That’s what I was asking. I always find learning to do stuff like this the first couple of times is way harder than the actual process.

For hand tracking are you using the transform tool and scaling in the inspector? I’ve done this before for different reasons – creating shot variety out of a wide shot. Made me realize why 4K might be a good idea. And general reframing. If that’s the tool I’ve gotten pretty good at it – I set one keyframe in the viewer and then adjust the image as I move the playhead in the timeline – the other keyframes are then set automatically and then use the inspector to increase scale if needed. These are mid shots and MCUs so it’s not that hard.

Also I am using a still for the key b.g. and applying a gaussian blur to have it look like we had a narrow depth of field focused on the talent. It works but was wondering if you had any other suggestions. Its a shot of a forest background that has a nice mix of trees and a natural clearance. The idea is to make it look likes it’s an outdoor gig. (Again this is all really for my own education, not critical). To my eyes the problem is (and it does look ok) that studio lights don’t really match natural light. I tried increasing spill but because the key is a little weak that does not do much. I’m thinking maybe some form of stylized color correction on the studio shots and or outdoor shot.

So creating a compound clip is the only way to work with the keyed image? I can color correct either shot but not the composite until I compound the clip, Correct?

One shot is really too jerky (handheld). I could use a different shot (3 cams multi cam) but would like to correct it if possible. I don’t see the stabilize filter. Its a lot of slight up and down movement. I guess I need to go frame by frame and keep her head at the same point in the trees.

Mac Pro, macbook pro, Imacs (i7); Canon 5D Mark III/70D, Panasonic AG-HPX170/AG-HPX250P, Canon HV40, Sony Z7U/VX2000/PD170; FCP 6 certified; FCP X write professionally for a variety of media; teach video production in L.A.

[Craig Alan]

First: why have you not updated to the latest version. FC has been improved since 10.0.6 … a lot.

What version of OS X are you on?

Repair permissions:

https://macs.about.com/od/applications/ss/firstaid_3.htm

Trash preferences

In Finder, hold down the Option key and choose Library from the Go menu.
In the Library folder that opens, open the Application Support folder. Move the Final Cut Pro folder to the Trash.
Return to the Library folder and open the Caches folder. Move the “com.apple.FinalCut” folder to the Trash.
Return to the Library folder and open the Preferences folder. Move the following files to the Trash:

com.apple.FinalCut.LSSharedFileList.plist
com.apple.FinalCut.plist
com.apple.FinalCut.UserDestinations.plist

But if I were you I’d also delete FC and install the newest version

Removing Final Cut Pro X in OS X 10.9 Mavericks

In Finder, choose Applications from the Go menu.
Locate the Final Cut Pro application and drag it to the Trash.
In Finder, hold down the Option key and choose Library from the Go menu.
In the Library folder that opens, open the Application Support folder. Move the Final Cut Pro folder to the Trash.
Return to the Library folder and open the Caches folder. Move the “com.apple.FinalCut” folder to the Trash.
Return to the Library folder and open the Preferences folder. Move the following files to the Trash:

com.apple.FinalCut.LSSharedFileList.plist
com.apple.FinalCut.plist
com.apple.FinalCut.UserDestinations.plist

Reinstalling Final Cut Pro X

From the Mac App Store
Follow the steps from earlier in this article to remove Final Cut Pro X.
Open the Mac App Store.
Click the Purchases button in the Mac App Store toolbar.
Sign in to the Mac App Store using the Apple ID you first used to purchase Final Cut Pro X.
Look for Final Cut Pro X in the list of purchased applications in the App Store. If you don’t see FInal Cut Pro X in the list, make sure that it’s not hidden. See Mac App Store: Hiding and unhiding purchases for more information.
Click Install to download and install Final Cut Pro X.

Mac Pro, macbook pro, Imacs (i7); Canon 5D Mark III/70D, Panasonic AG-HPX170/AG-HPX250P, Canon HV40, Sony Z7U/VX2000/PD170; FCP 6 certified; FCP X write professionally for a variety of media; teach video production in L.A.

[Craig Alan]

[James Ewart] “In terms of workflow it has taken them three years to go back to the “Project, Bin, Clip, Sequence” concept that we now have back with “Library, Event, Clip, Project” in FCPX. “

Perfect summary. I would have named them: Project (folder), Media (folder), Timeline(s). Cause even a consumer level kid knows the meaning of ‘projects’ and ‘media’. And just about the first thing you learn about editing is you assemble your movie on a timeline.

Then only way ‘events’ make any sense to me is from old school history textbooks that puts events on a timeline.

Of course if BIN is obsolete then FOLDER is too since they are both names of physical storage containers which are not used for these items anymore (except some films are still shot on film). But no one puts media cards or even video tape in a “folder” or a “bin”. Container is more accurate but a bit long.

“Case” would work. PROJECT CASE (THE LIBRARY) – MEDIA CASE(s) (THE EVENT FOLDERs)

It would also lend itself to a lot of punning: nutcase, bad case of, made my case, and if you like library, bookcase.

Mac Pro, macbook pro, Imacs (i7); Canon 5D Mark III/70D, Panasonic AG-HPX170/AG-HPX250P, Canon HV40, Sony Z7U/VX2000/PD170; FCP 6 certified; FCP X write professionally for a variety of media; teach video production in L.A.

[Craig Alan]

Thanks Don,

There is no way in FC AFAIK to crop or transform just the top right corner.

1) Is there?

However I did learn since this post that the mask tool in the media>effects browser does allow me to move the handles (if that is what you call the puck you drag) past the end of the clip. By dragging the bottom puck past bottom right I can create an angle that “crops” the upper edge. Not easy to do since the puck becomes invisible past the clips image in the viewer. I guess I have to learn motion to do this well.

2) Or is there a way to see the mask lines past the frame of the clip?

This is all just practice for me. It was a simple shoot that involved several things I wanted to learn in FC. Multicam, 4 channels of audio, keying, framing problems, lighting problems. We were caught between two game plans. One was green screen and the other involved using china balls as both incidentals and fill lights. Problem being we had no dimmers for the china balls and they were way overexposed. Another approach is to mask the balls, color correct them to whatever exposure and color and use a b.g. to key that would work with them.

Another thing I’ve noticed is that any vertical movement of a camera against a key looks really awful, like the subject is floating in space.

3) I assume that you could have the b.g. key move with the camera? How?

Again, this is just me trying to grow as an editor not the way I would shoot this stuff myself. But I am working with students and I give them the freedom to make mistakes. Sometimes these “mistakes” look really cool and mostly they don’t.

Mac Pro, macbook pro, Imacs (i7); Canon 5D Mark III/70D, Panasonic AG-HPX170/AG-HPX250P, Canon HV40, Sony Z7U/VX2000/PD170; FCP 6 certified; FCP X write professionally for a variety of media; teach video production in L.A.

[Craig Alan]

I think that tags can now can be imported as a keyword collection as well.

Mac Pro, macbook pro, Imacs (i7); Canon 5D Mark III/70D, Panasonic AG-HPX170/AG-HPX250P, Canon HV40, Sony Z7U/VX2000/PD170; FCP 6 certified; FCP X write professionally for a variety of media; teach video production in L.A.