you down with FCP? » GFIFCP http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com ...yeah you know me! - A Final Cut Pro editors blog Fri, 24 Feb 2012 20:16:15 +0000 en hourly 1 Get Faster In Final Cut Pro – 13 – speed change ‘sss’ http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/07/26/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-13-speed-change-sss/ http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/07/26/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-13-speed-change-sss/#comments Mon, 26 Jul 2010 21:20:02 +0000 ross http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/?p=1023 This was one of the most talked-about features of fcp 7, but for some reason I didn’t start using it until recently. If you have a timeline with a gap in video and you would like to time scale (or speed change) a clip as it sits you have few options. What I had resorted to doing was cutting the clip, pasting it at the end of the timeline, speed remapping it, and then pasting it back into place. That is slow and irritating. If you try to remap it in place then frequently linked audio will force you to ripple the sequence. In short the old right-click, then “change speed” menu works better than it used to, but still not that well.

Enter the speed change tool. You can find it under the ‘roll’ icon in the tool bar, or you can shortcut to it by hitting ‘sss’ It is shown below as the fifth icon down.

Click on the end of a clip and drag it to your desired length. The tool will keep the in and out as marked, and time remap the clip to fit your new selection. If you select an edit between two clips it will adjust both clips accordingly. This is exactly how I would like the tool to work, and it is super convenient.

If you have excellent vision you can see that the clip “Nightlights01″ has been remapped to 66% Three s’s and a drag was all it took!

]]> http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/07/26/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-13-speed-change-sss/feed/ 2 Get faster in Final Cut pro – 12 – ‘select file’ shortcut http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/06/10/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-12-select-file-shortcut/ http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/06/10/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-12-select-file-shortcut/#comments Thu, 10 Jun 2010 19:54:00 +0000 ross http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/?p=960 This is one of those tricks that I’ve never seen written anywhere, but it save me a TON of time. It works on 90% of the file import /save / open dialogs across all programs. If you want to export a file from say, FCP. You start out by hitting command-E and then you get the standard finder dialog window. You can navigate through this window to the directory you want…

OR you can select that folder in the finder and just drag it into the import “select folder” window. The box will update to the directory you just dragged in and you saved a lot of clicking. Enjoy!

The few apps I have found this to not work with are the apps that use non-standard dialogs, like color and nuke. I’m sure there are more, but this works in most apps.

]]> http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/06/10/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-12-select-file-shortcut/feed/ 7 Get faster in final cut pro -11 – Mouse analysis http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/06/08/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-11-mouse-analysis/ http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/06/08/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-11-mouse-analysis/#comments Tue, 08 Jun 2010 15:04:41 +0000 ross http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/?p=951 The more you use your mouse, the slower you work. Some tasks are impossible to do without a mouse, but maximizing keyboard shortcuts is the clear path to speed. Keyboard shortcuts, key remapping, and droplet creation are all designed to reduce the number of steps required to do something. The difficult thing is trying to get feedback on what we have been doing inefficiently. Watching others edit can be a great help, but it only shows you things that they do quickly, not things that you do slowly.

Enter io graphica It is a cool little piece of software that logs your mouse activity. When you move your mouse it will draw a thin black line. The longer your mouse sits in one position the line will turn into a dot and then a huge blob. Io graphica will run silently in the background while you edit. Turn it on and then crank out a few hours. Then take a peek. Provided you spent all (or most) of your time in final cut you can see a direct correlation between on screen actions and your window layout. If you want to you can take a screenshot and layer the two in photoshop to see how they line up. This info could be the final thing to help you move into 3 point editing, or it could help show you that you should really not use the pull down menu for copy and paste!

This will definitely take some introspection and careful analysis, but it is one clear way to work on the actual mechanics of editing. It will also work on many different apps, try it in illustrator, photoshop or after effects. Hopefully this will show you room for improvement, and possibly point you to some new shortcuts!

]]> http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/06/08/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-11-mouse-analysis/feed/ 0 Get faster in Final Cut Pro – 10 – Keyboard remapping http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/04/30/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-10-keyboard-remapping/ http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/04/30/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-10-keyboard-remapping/#comments Fri, 30 Apr 2010 22:01:36 +0000 ross http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/?p=796 Once fcp starts to become a part of you, you start to notice how it’s strangely missing some shortcuts. I must export to quicktime 20-30 times a day, why isn’t there a key command for that? It also has some simple shortcuts dedicated to infrequently needed things, like ‘w’ for toggle wireframes.

The answer is in keyboard remapping. You can change the keyboard commands to whatever you like, even deleting existing ones.

You can find the window in tools>keyboard layout>customize.


Click the lock to unlock the keyboard. Next find a key that is open, search for the command you want to bind it to, and drag the key to the command name in the right hand side. There are separate windows for all of the modifier keys (i.e. the shift tab means that all of the shortcuts there are the key+shift)

You can save the keyboard layouts and use them across multiple machines, too. One thing I would warn you of is that if you are an editor who does a lot of computer hopping then be careful how much you modify the layout. There is nothing more disconcerting than not having your layout installed and not knowing why half of your shortcuts don’t work!

Off the top of my head I like to remap Export, toggle wireframes, toggle audio clip names, and fit all. Let me know if you have any favorites in the comments.

]]> http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/04/30/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-10-keyboard-remapping/feed/ 2 Get faster in final cut pro -9- move keyframes http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/03/11/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-8-move-keyframes/ http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/03/11/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-8-move-keyframes/#comments Thu, 11 Mar 2010 08:00:34 +0000 ross http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/?p=165 Final cut doesn’t make it easy to move multiple keyframes – but it is possible! You can move both audio and video keyframes, but they each require a different approach.

How to move video opacity keyframes

    hit option t with the timeline window active.
    look for the blue bars under your video clip.
    hit ‘ a’ and position your cursor over the blue bar.
    click and drag the blue bar to reposition the keyframes.

    How to move audio volume keyframes

      double click on the audio file.
      hit ‘s’ for the slip tool.
      click and drag the red levels graph to reposition the keyframes.

      Sometimes it’s easier to watch it done, so more info (and a video) here at aled4d’s blog.

      These are the kinds of tips and tricks you usually learn by watching someone else edit. If you have something that drastically speed up your editing, let me know in the comments!

      ]]>       http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/03/11/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-8-move-keyframes/feed/ 1       Get Faster In Final Cut Pro – Nesting http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/02/24/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-nesting/ http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/02/24/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-nesting/#comments Wed, 24 Feb 2010 17:57:32 +0000 ross http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/?p=672 This tip is all about timeline cleanliness… And render times… And possibly some other stuff thrown in there too.

      I have long looked for something in FCP similar to precomp in after effects. What that does is to take multiple files, create a new composition out of them and then place the new composition in the same place in the timeline (where the original files were)

      It turns out I simply haven’t been looking hard enough! There is a great little tool called “Nest Items” in the sequence menu. You can also invoke it by hitting Option-C.

      I think the two best scenarios for this tool are:
      (1) when you have a very complicated timeline you can break parts out into functional units and (hopefully) reduce the number of times you have to re-render.
      (2) FCP has never been good at audio. Use this to nest multiple audio tracks together and force FCP to do a mixdown.

      It turns this…

      Into this…

      I guess I should mention that this can cause trouble. If you nest audio separate from video then you need to be careful moving tracks around because audio will not be linked to video anymore.

      One feature that I wish they had in FCP and AE is the ability to ‘break’ a nested/precomped sequence back into its original pieces in the original timeline. The only way to do that currently is copying it out of the nest and pasting it back into the sequence. Not exactly precise.


      One last thing – shout out to my man Nick for this idea! Thanks for the tip! These are the kinds of tips and tricks you usually learn by watching someone else edit. If you have something that drastically speed up your editing, let me know in the comments!

      ]]>       http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/02/24/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-nesting/feed/ 2       Get faster in final cut pro – 7 – Normalize audio http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/02/17/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-7-normalize-audio/ http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/02/17/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-7-normalize-audio/#comments Thu, 18 Feb 2010 05:37:22 +0000 ross http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/?p=146 Normalize effect
      This isn’t the primary use of normalize. The primary usage is to even out audio so that it has a more uniform volume. This usage is still very very useful.
      The timeline only allows you to change audio levels up to +12dB. Sometimes you have a very low clip that needs more of an audio boost. Short of bringing the clip to protools or soundtrack there isn’t a good way to do it in FCP. Or so I thought.

      The normalize effect allows up to +97db gain, but it takes a few steps… Here is where you can find the effect.

      I usually set it to -2 (for no apparent reason)

      Once you have applied it, open up the audio clip in the viewer window and click on the filters tab. Here you can go an impressive 96db up! Trust me: that is not a good idea. But if you need something higher than 12dB and lower than “way too freaking LOUD!” then this is very useful.

      Now one weird quirk of the normalize filter is that it behaves strangely with keyframed audio. It is best to run it on a stock clip, then put your transitions and fades in.


      These are the kinds of tips and tricks you usually learn by watching someone else edit. If you have something that drastically speed up your editing, let me know in the comments!

      ]]>       http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/02/17/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-7-normalize-audio/feed/ 6       Get faster in final cut pro – 6 – shift z http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/02/10/get-faster-i-final-cut-pro-6-shift-z/ http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/02/10/get-faster-i-final-cut-pro-6-shift-z/#comments Thu, 11 Feb 2010 05:19:00 +0000 ross http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/?p=132

      This one is also short and sweet, since last weeks tip turned out so well!


      Shift z – zoom timeline to fit project. No more words are needed!


      These are the kinds of tips and tricks you usually learn by watching someone else edit. If you have something that drastically speed up your editing, let me know in the comments!

      ]]>       http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/02/10/get-faster-i-final-cut-pro-6-shift-z/feed/ 2       Get faster in final cut pro – 5 – control v http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/02/03/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-5-control-v/ http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/02/03/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-5-control-v/#comments Thu, 04 Feb 2010 05:15:53 +0000 ross http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/?p=127 This one is short and sweet. Not all of these tips need to be needlessly complicated.


      Control-V – Control-V cuts a selected clip at playhead, or cuts all clips at playhead if no clip is selected. It only does one job, but it does it well. It is also much quicker than constantly toggling between the blade tool and the selection tool. This shortcut also allows you to edit on the fly. If you hit it while your timeline is playing it will temporarily add markers to the clip until you stop playback. Once you stop playback the markers will all turn into edits. You can even lay down edits while playing back faster than normal speed, and in reverse!


      This is a great tool to set rough ins and outs from long multi-take shots. Try it out!


      These are the kinds of tips and tricks you usually learn by watching someone else edit. If you have something that drastically speed up your editing, let me know in the comments!

      ]]>       http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/02/03/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-5-control-v/feed/ 1       Get faster in final cut pro – 4 – compressor preset naming for web http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/01/27/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-4/ http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/2010/01/27/get-faster-in-final-cut-pro-4/#comments Thu, 28 Jan 2010 05:09:57 +0000 ross http://blog.youdownwithfcp.com/?p=118

      Rename Compressor presets for web compatibility.
      This is another smack-your-forehead tip. By default Compressor has lots of spaces in the default filename suffixes it adds to your compressed files. This turns out to be a problem when you upload those to the web because the spaces turn into “%20″‘s and sometimes can split a link in half. Manually renaming each file to make it simpler and web-compliant is just a needless chore. Simply rename the “Name” field on the preset to something without any slashes or spaces and preferably keep it as short as possible. You can still keep the description field as wordy as you like. This also means you need to have web compatible sequence names, but that isn’t very hard, now is it?


      These are the kinds of tips and tricks you usually learn by watching someone else edit. If you have something that drastically speed up your editing, let me know in the comments!

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