Apple Final Cut Express HD: Getting Started User Manual

Final Cut Express HDGetting StartedFinal Cut Express HD Getting Started42886.FightClubGS Cover 1/17/05 9:29 PM Page 1

10 Preface An Introduction to Final Cut Express HD Step 2: Set up Thanks to the development of FireWire, setting up Final Cut Express HD is e

100 Chapter 6 Fine-Tuning Your Edit To move the playhead to the beginning of your sequence:mPress Home on your keyboard.To move the playhead to th

Chapter 6 Fine-Tuning Your Edit 101 Changing a Clip’s SpeedYou can use the Final Cut Express HD speed options to speed up or slow down a clip in y

102 Chapter 6 Fine-Tuning Your Edit To change the playback speed of a clip:1 Select a clip in the Timeline.2 Do one of the following:• Choose Modi

Chapter 6 Fine-Tuning Your Edit 103 Making Life Easier With Three-Point EditingWhen you set up a series of In and Out points to prepare for perfor

104 Chapter 6 Fine-Tuning Your Edit 3 In the Timeline, move the playhead to the location in your sequence where you want the clip to start (the se

Chapter 6 Fine-Tuning Your Edit 105 Example: Editing a Clip Into a Gap in Your SequenceYou can also do the reverse of the previous edit. For exam

106 Chapter 6 Fine-Tuning Your Edit 4 Choose Mark > Mark Clip (or press X) to set In and Out points around the gap.Note: The gap must be withi

Chapter 6 Fine-Tuning Your Edit 107 Three-Point Editing Rules in Final Cut Express HDFinal Cut Express HD uses the following rules to determine wh

7 1097 Adding TransitionsA transition is a visual effect used to change from one clip in your edited sequence to the next. Most movies and TV sho

Preface An Introduction to Final Cut Express HD 11 Moving From iMovie to Final Cut Express HD The Apple entry-level DV editing application is

110 Chapter 7 Adding Transitions Adding a Transition in the TimelineYou add transitions to clips in the Timeline after they’ve been edited into a

Chapter 7 Adding Transitions 111 If one clip or both clips have overlapping frames, but not enough for the entire duration of the transition, Fina

112 Chapter 7 Adding Transitions To add a transition from the Effects menu:1 Do one of the following:• Select an edit point between two clips in y

Chapter 7 Adding Transitions 113 To add a transition from the Effects tab in the Browser:mDrag a transition from the Effects tab in the Browser to

114 Chapter 7 Adding Transitions Adjusting a TransitionYou can perform some simple trimming operations on transitions in the Timeline to make them

Chapter 7 Adding Transitions 115 Deleting a TransitionIf you’ve applied a transition and don’t like the effect, removing the transition is simple.

8 1178 Adding EffectsEffects are ways of enhancing and processing your video and audio media.Most of the effects you’ll create in Final Cut Expre

118 Chapter 8 Adding Effects Applying a Filter to a Clip and a Range of ClipsYou can apply filters to clips in a sequence or to clips in the Brows

Chapter 8 Adding Effects 119 Rendering a SequenceDepending on the filter you applied to your clips, a red render bar may have appeared at the top

12 Preface An Introduction to Final Cut Express HD Final Cut Express HD Onscreen Help Final Cut Express HD Help is a comprehensive resource fo

120 Chapter 8 Adding Effects Controls in the Filters Tab of the ViewerThere are various controls you can use to manipulate filters in Final Cut Ex

Chapter 8 Adding Effects 121 Disabling a FilterYou can turn a filter on or off without removing it from a clip. This is useful for previewing diff

122 Chapter 8 Adding Effects Filter TipsFinal Cut Express HD makes it easy to apply the filter parameters in one clip to other clips in your proje

9 1239 Creating Titles and CreditsYou can add the finishing touch to your movie by creating titles and credits.In Final Cut Express HD, you creat

124 Chapter 9 Creating Titles and Credits Creating Opening TitlesYour opening titles provide viewers with their first impression of your movie. Th

Chapter 9 Creating Titles and Credits 125 • Text: Enter your title text in this field.• Font: Choose a font from the Font pop-up menu.• Size: C

126 Chapter 9 Creating Titles and Credits Creating Title TextYou use the Text generator to create the text for the title clips in your movie.To cr

Chapter 9 Creating Titles and Credits 127 Adding a Title to a SequenceYou add a title to your sequence the same way in which you add a clip. To ad

128 Chapter 9 Creating Titles and Credits 6 Perform an Overwrite edit by dragging the title clip from the Viewer to the Overwrite section of the E

Chapter 9 Creating Titles and Credits 129 To open the Lower 3rd text generator:1 Open the Generator pop-up menu at the bottom-right corner of the

1 131 Setting Up Final Cut Express HDSetting up Final Cut Express HD is as simple as connecting your DV camcorder to your computer with a FireWir

130 Chapter 9 Creating Titles and Credits Creating Rolling CreditsYou can use the Scrolling Text generator to create text that scrolls up the scre

Chapter 9 Creating Titles and Credits 131 3 Click the Controls tab in the Viewer to access the generator’s controls.The controls are similar to th

132 Chapter 9 Creating Titles and Credits Tips for Making Terrific-Looking TitlesDV was designed for real-world images that blend together, and it

10 13310 Sharing Your MovieWhen your video and audio are ready for playback, it’s time to make your movie available to others.There are three eas

134 Chapter 10 Sharing Your Movie 4 Choose a location and enter a name for the file.Tip: To easily find your movie when exporting is finished, it

Chapter 10 Sharing Your Movie 135 Exporting for the WebIf you want to stream your movie on the web, use QuickTime to create an MPEG-4 movie. MPEG-

136 Chapter 10 Sharing Your Movie Making a VideotapeYou can export your Final Cut Express HD movie back to mini-DV and share it with others that w

Chapter 10 Sharing Your Movie 137 6 The duration calculator displays the total duration of the program you are outputting, including all of the se

139AppendixAA Importing an iMovie ProjectYou can open and edit projects created with iMovie using Final Cut Express HD.To open an iMovie project

14 Chapter 1 Setting Up Final Cut Express HD Choosing Your Initial SettingsThe first time you open Final Cut Express HD after installing the softw

141AppendixBB Importing StillsIn addition to capturing video and audio clips from tape, you can import a variety of digital video and audio file

142 Appendix B Importing Stills To import a still image:1 Select the Browser to make it active.2 Choose File > Import > Files (or press Comm

143AppendixCC Preparing for Your Next ProjectBy the time you finish your project, your computer’s hard disk should be full. Preparing your hard

145AppendixDD Solutions to Common Problems and Customer SupportIf you run into problems while working with Final Cut Express HD, there are sever

146 Appendix D Solutions to Common Problems and Customer Support • Quit Final Cut Express HD, shut down your computer, turn your camcorder or deck

Appendix D Solutions to Common Problems and Customer Support 147 • Another reason could be that you’re using Mac OS X version 10.3 and FileVault.

148 Appendix D Solutions to Common Problems and Customer Support An error message appears during capture reporting a “Break in the Timecode.”• Whe

Appendix D Solutions to Common Problems and Customer Support 149 Your camcorder or deck doesn’t go to the specified timecode or won’t perform a co

Chapter 1 Setting Up Final Cut Express HD 15 The Differences Between NTSC and PALNTSC and PAL are standards for video. NTSC, or National Televisio

150 Appendix D Solutions to Common Problems and Customer Support Problems Playing a Reference MovieThis section deals with issues encountered whil

151GlossaryGlossaryaudio clip A media clip containing audio samples. Auto Render A feature that allows Final Cut Express HD to render open seq

152 Glossary edit point (1) Defines what part of a clip you want to use in an edited sequence. Edit points include In points, which specify the

Glossary 153 outgoing clip The clip a transition segues from.out-of-sync indicator In the Timeline, the symbol that appears at the beginning of

154 Glossary scratch disk The disk or disk space you allocate in Final Cut Express HD for digital video capture and editing, as well as for the

155IndexIndexAAIFF files 81–82anchor items 78animation 125AppleCare Knowledge Base 145AppleCare Support 12, 145, 150Apple FireWire. See FireWireA

156 Index duration of 96, 102editing into sequence gaps 105–106editing into sequences 103–104filters for. See filtershead 152incoming 152linke

Index 157real-time 153Effects menu 112Effects tab 113errors“Break in the Timecode” 148“Servo Can’t Lock” 148exporting itemscanceling export

158 Index file formats for 141iMovie projects 139still images 141–142In pointschecking 53clearing 133described 51, 152moving 53, 91–93removi

Index 159in Viewer 24playheadmoving to edit points 99–100moving to sequence beginning/end 100snapping 56Timeline 30Viewer 22PNG format 141P

16 Chapter 1 Setting Up Final Cut Express HD To specify one or more scratch disks and associated settings:mChoose Final Cut Express HD > System

160 Index source media files 18, 20spacing, text 125speakers 149still images 141–142storyboardadding to sequence 58creating 57described 57st

Index 161trimming 89–90tripods 9troubleshooting 145–150audio problems 146–149“Break in the Timecode” error 148performance problems 149playba

2 172 Getting to Know Your Editing EnvironmentThere are four main windows in Final Cut Express HD: the Browser, Viewer, Canvas, and Timeline. Eac

18 Chapter 2 Getting to Know Your Editing Environment Organizing Your Clips in the BrowserThe Browser is the central storage area where you organi

Chapter 2 Getting to Know Your Editing Environment 19 What Is a Clip?A clip is the basic unit of media that you use to create sequences in Final C

 Apple Computer, Inc.© 2005 Apple Computer, Inc. All rights reserved. Under the copyright laws, this manual may not be copied, in whole or in pa

20 Chapter 2 Getting to Know Your Editing Environment Selecting a Browser ViewThere are two ways to view your media in the Browser: icon view and

Chapter 2 Getting to Know Your Editing Environment 21 Working With Clips in the ViewerTo view a clip, you select it in the Browser, then open it i

22 Chapter 2 Getting to Know Your Editing Environment The following is a quick summary of the Viewer controls:• Tabs: There are five tabs in the

Chapter 2 Getting to Know Your Editing Environment 23 Opening Clips Into the ViewerYou can open clips into the Viewer from either the Browser or t

24 Chapter 2 Getting to Know Your Editing Environment Playing Clips in the ViewerYou use the transport controls in the Viewer to play clips forwar

Chapter 2 Getting to Know Your Editing Environment 25 Working With Clips in the CanvasThe Canvas is the Final Cut Express HD record monitor, showi

26 Chapter 2 Getting to Know Your Editing Environment Canvas ControlsThe following is a list of controls in the Canvas.• Tabs: Each tab in the Ca

Chapter 2 Getting to Know Your Editing Environment 27 Edit OverlayThe Edit Overlay appears when you drag clips from the Browser or Viewer to the i

28 Chapter 2 Getting to Know Your Editing Environment Working With Clips in the TimelineThe Timeline displays a chronological view of an open sequ

Chapter 2 Getting to Know Your Editing Environment 29 Track Display and OrganizationThe following is a list of controls that affect the way your s

3 1 Contents Preface 7 An Introduction to Final Cut Express HD7 What Is Final Cut Express HD? 8 Editing Your Movie With Final Cut Express HD 1

30 Chapter 2 Getting to Know Your Editing Environment Timeline NavigationThe following is a list of controls that allow you to navigate through yo

Chapter 2 Getting to Know Your Editing Environment 31 Timeline Editing ControlsThe following controls determine how your clips are edited into the

32 Chapter 2 Getting to Know Your Editing Environment Tool PaletteThe Tool palette contains tools for editing, zooming, cropping, and distorting i

3 333 Capturing Your VideoCapturing is the process of transferring the video images from your camcorder or deck to your computer.Before you begin

34 Chapter 3 Capturing Your Video To make a new project:mChoose File > New Project (or press Command-E).A new, untitled project appears in the

Chapter 3 Capturing Your Video 35 Working in the Capture WindowWhen device control is enabled (proper communication between Final Cut Express HD a

36 Chapter 3 Capturing Your Video Transport and Marking ControlsThe transport and marking controls appear below the Preview area. The Preview area

Chapter 3 Capturing Your Video 37 Marking controlsYou use these buttons to set the start and end frames (the In and Out points) to select a part o

38 Chapter 3 Capturing Your Video Logging TabThe Logging tab in the Capture window is where you enter all of the descriptive information about cli

Chapter 3 Capturing Your Video 39 Determining How Much Disk Space You NeedBefore you begin capturing, it’s a good idea to make sure you have enoug

4 Contents 68 Most Commonly Used Edits Chapter 5 75 Editing With Audio75 About Linked Clips 76 Resyncing Clips 79 Adding Music 82 Using the Voice Ove

40 Chapter 3 Capturing Your Video CapturingThere are three different ways to capture clips in Final Cut Express HD: Capture Now, Capture Clip, an

Chapter 3 Capturing Your Video 41 Make Sure Your Camera Is Properly Connected and Turned OnBefore you begin capturing, you need to make sure your

42 Chapter 3 Capturing Your Video 4 Choose File > Capture (or press Command-8).5 In the Capture window, enter any appropriate information in th

Chapter 3 Capturing Your Video 43 7 Click the Capture Clip button.Tip: Press Esc on your keyboard if you need to abort capturing.Final Cut Expres

44 Chapter 3 Capturing Your Video Capturing an Entire Tape or a Group of ClipsIf you want to capture an entire tape or group of clips, use the Cap

Chapter 3 Capturing Your Video 45 5 Do one of the following:• Rewind the tape to the beginning using the camcorder or deck’s controls.• Locate the

46 Chapter 3 Capturing Your Video Capturing TipThe following tip explains how to rename your clips and sequences once you’ve completed capturing y

Chapter 3 Capturing Your Video 47 To rename clips and sequences within Final Cut Express HD:1 Select the clip or sequence in the Browser.2 Click t

48 Chapter 3 Capturing Your Video If you rename a file in the Finder that is used by Final Cut Express HD, the clip goes offline because Final Cut

4 494 Basic EditingNow that you’ve seen how the Browser, Viewer, Canvas, and Timeline work together, and you’ve learned how to capture your media

Contents 5 Appendix C 143 Preparing for Your Next ProjectAppendix D 145 Solutions to Common Problems and Customer Support145 Solutions to Common Prob

50 Chapter 4 Basic Editing Before You BeginBefore you add the first clip to your sequence, there are two important tasks you should know how to do

Chapter 4 Basic Editing 51 Setting In and Out PointsThe first step to assembling an edit is deciding which portion of a clip you want to add to yo

52 Chapter 4 Basic Editing You can mark In and Out points while you’re playing a clip or when it’s stopped. Sometimes it’s easier to set edit poin

Chapter 4 Basic Editing 53 To check the In and Out points of your clip:mClick the Play In to Out button.Moving In and Out PointsYou can change In

54 Chapter 4 Basic Editing Removing In and Out PointsAfter setting In and Out points, you may want to use a different part of the clip, or you may

Chapter 4 Basic Editing 55 Adding a Clip to Your SequenceNow that you know how to set In and Out points, you’re ready to add a clip to your sequen

56 Chapter 4 Basic Editing To add additional clips to your sequence:1 Double-click a clip in the Browser to open it into the Viewer. This is your

Chapter 4 Basic Editing 57 Adding a Storyboard of Clips to a SequenceIt’s often a good idea to arrange your clips in the Browser to get an idea or

58 Chapter 4 Basic Editing To add your storyboard to a sequence:1 Click in the Browser or press Command-4 to make it the active window, if it’s no

Chapter 4 Basic Editing 59 Locking TracksAny track in the Timeline can be locked using the Lock Track control. Items on a locked track cannot be m

60 Chapter 4 Basic Editing Using the Razor Blade ToolThe simplest form of an edit is a cut. The simplest tool to perform this edit with is the Raz

Chapter 4 Basic Editing 61 This can be useful for quickly rearranging pieces of your sequence, for deleting a section of a clip, for applying an e

62 Chapter 4 Basic Editing Deleting Clips From a SequenceAs you edit, you can delete items from your sequence at any time, provided that the track

Chapter 4 Basic Editing 63 To perform a lift edit:1 Do one of the following:• Select the item or range of items you want to remove using one of th

64 Chapter 4 Basic Editing What Are Gaps? How Do I Get Rid of Them?As you edit, cut, paste, and move items around in Final Cut Express HD, empty s

Chapter 4 Basic Editing 65 To close a gap, do one of the following:mPosition the playhead anywhere within the gap, then choose Sequence > Close

66 Chapter 4 Basic Editing Assigning Destination TracksMany operations in Final Cut Express HD require you to use the Source controls to assign de

Chapter 4 Basic Editing 67 Disconnecting Source and Destination ControlsDestination tracks can be disconnected in order to omit the video or audio

68 Chapter 4 Basic Editing Resetting Source ControlsYou can reset Source controls to their default state after you’ve reassigned or disconnected t

Chapter 4 Basic Editing 69 Overwrite editTo do an overwrite edit:1 Specify the necessary In and Out points and destination tracks.2 Drag the clip

7 Preface An Introduction to Final Cut Express HD Final Cut Express HD provides a professional-level environment in which to edit video, mix a

70 Chapter 4 Basic Editing The clip overwrites all items on the destination tracks from the playhead position through the duration of your edit. N

Chapter 4 Basic Editing 71 Insert EditsAn insert edit places the source clip into your sequence so that all items after the insertion point in you

72 Chapter 4 Basic Editing After the edit, all clips on all unlocked tracks (including non-destination tracks) are moved forward in time, from the

Chapter 4 Basic Editing 73 If you perform several superimpose edits in the same location, all new source clips are edited into the video track dir

74 Chapter 4 Basic Editing 3 Drag the clip from the Viewer to the Superimpose section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas (or press F12).The clip in

5 755 Editing With AudioFinal Cut Express HD lets you mix up to 32 tracks of audio with the flexibility to add music or your own voice.As long as

76 Chapter 5 Editing With Audio Resyncing ClipsEven when linked selection is turned off, Final Cut Express HD keeps track of the relationship betw

Chapter 5 Editing With Audio 77 A red out-of-sync indicator appears whenever the following conditions occur:• Audio and video items from the same

78 Chapter 5 Editing With Audio To move a linked item into sync:mIn the Timeline, Control-click the item’s out-of-sync indicator, then choose Move

Chapter 5 Editing With Audio 79 Adding MusicThe quality of audio is crucial to the success of your movie. An easy way to add high-quality sound to

8 Preface An Introduction to Final Cut Express HD Editing Your Movie With Final Cut Express HD If you’re just beginning to learn how to edit v

80 Chapter 5 Editing With Audio 5 Drag the audio file or files you want to import to the desktop.6 In the Dock, click the Final Cut Express HD ico

Chapter 5 Editing With Audio 81 Using iTunes to Convert Audio to the Right Format and RateFinal Cut Express HD does not currently support variable

82 Chapter 5 Editing With Audio 6 In the AIFF Encoder dialog, choose the following settings, then click OK.• Sample Rate: 48.000 kHz• Sample Size

Chapter 5 Editing With Audio 83 Controls in the Voice Over ToolThe Voice Over tool appears as a tab in the Tool Bench window.To open the Voice Ove

84 Chapter 5 Editing With Audio mIf no In point is set, the position of the playhead defines the In point, and recording continues to the Out poin

Chapter 5 Editing With Audio 85 Recording Your VoiceoverAfter you’ve defined the duration and destination track for your voiceover clip, you’re re

86 Chapter 5 Editing With Audio Editing With Audio TipsWhen editing with audio, it is common to create additional tracks that you will want to rem

Chapter 5 Editing With Audio 87 To delete multiple tracks from a sequence:1 Choose Sequence > Delete Tracks.2 Choose your options for deleting

6 896 Fine-Tuning Your EditOnce you are happy with the clips edited into your sequence, you can fine-tune your edits with a process called trimmi

Preface An Introduction to Final Cut Express HD 9 Step 1: Shoot Making good videos begins with good camera work. Although this book does not

90 Chapter 6 Fine-Tuning Your Edit • Trim Edit window: This window provides very precise control while trimming. It displays both sides of an edi

Chapter 6 Fine-Tuning Your Edit 91 To select a tool from a group:1 Move the pointer over a tool in the Tool palette, then press and hold down the

92 Chapter 6 Fine-Tuning Your Edit To do a ripple edit in the Timeline:1 Select the Ripple tool in the Tool palette (or press the R key twice).2 S

Chapter 6 Fine-Tuning Your Edit 93 At the same time, the Canvas shows a two-up display with the Out point of the outgoing clip on the left and the

94 Chapter 6 Fine-Tuning Your Edit Doing a Ripple DeleteYou can also delete an item or items so that all items to the right of the deleted item mo

Chapter 6 Fine-Tuning Your Edit 95 2 Do one of the following:• Choose Sequence > Ripple Delete.• Press Shift-Delete.• Press the Forward Delete

96 Chapter 6 Fine-Tuning Your Edit Doing a Roll EditA roll edit moves the edit point where two clips in your sequence meet. Both the Out point of

Chapter 6 Fine-Tuning Your Edit 97 To do a roll edit in the Timeline:1 Select the Roll tool in the Tool palette (or press the R key).2 Select an e

98 Chapter 6 Fine-Tuning Your Edit To roll multiple tracks simultaneously:1 Do one of the following:• Press the Command key while clicking to sele

Chapter 6 Fine-Tuning Your Edit 99 Tips on EditingIn Final Cut Express HD, there are many methods you can use to perform the same task. Many of th