MediaStorm’s 10 More Ways to Improve Your Multimedia Right Now

As a followup to a previous post, here are ten more ways to improve your work right now, no matter how challenging your original assets may be. Make edits with purpose. Always ask why you are making an edit at a particular place. Is the cut motivated by action? A musical beat? A pause in narration? If you don't have a reason, you need to find a new location for your edit. Every edit must be motivated. When editing your visuals, don't cut in the middle of a word. Doing so is confusing. Edit between words, or even better, edit according to written grammar: at a comma, a period, or to emphasize a word. Cutting after words like because and however is also effective. Edit rhythmically. Make the first cut at the beginning of a spoken phrase. Time the first phrase so it ends right before a musical beat. Cut to another…

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MediaStorm’s Guide to Using Apple’s ProRes 422 Codec

One of the questions I'm asked most frequently about Final Cut is, "When do I use Apple's ProRes 422 codec?" To tackle this question it's first necessary to understand a few things about codecs. Shooting video is a very intensive digital capture process. It requires cameras to capture lots of information in a short amount of time. To handle so much raw data, most cameras need to compress what they capture. A codec is essentially a compression scheme, a way to encapsulate so much material into a containable format. Standard DV footage, for instance, uses a compression scheme referred to as the DV codec. Similarly, HD footage -- 1080i60, 1080p, etc. -- uses the HDV codec. Codec takes its name from “encoder” and “decoder” since your computer must now decode the encoded file during playback. When you create a new sequence in Final Cut, you are building what will become a new…

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MediaStorm’s Guide to Custom Final Cut Shortcuts

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Frequently when working in Final Cut, I need to find the source of a clip. The most obvious way to do this is to right-click on the clip and select Reveal in Finder. But I’d prefer to use a faster method, specifically a keyboard shortcut key. To find a function’s shortcut, enter a keyword into the Help>Search field window. You’ll see all of the menu items that contain the word ‘reveal.’ Use the down arrow key to select Reveal in Finder. A large blue arrow points to the item under the View menu. Notice that there’s no shortcut key to the right of the menu. This indicates that Apple has not assigned a default keystroke to this task. Not to worry. Final Cut provides a straightforward method for customizing your keyboard with new shortcut keys. Choose Tools>Keyboard Layout>Customize or Option-H. Final Cut launches the default keyboard layout window. This tool illustrates each…

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MediaStorm’s Guide to Final Cut Pro Resources on the Web

Final Cut Pro is a rich application, offering vast possibilities to those who take the time to learn it well. With that goal in mind, here is a list of some of the most important Final Cut Pro resources on the web. Apple Final Cut Pro Support - Apple's repository for Final Cut white papers as well as troubleshooting information and how-to documentation. Final Cut Studio Resources - Apple's comprehensive list of support and resource links related to Final Cut Studio. Apple Final Cut Studio Discussion - This is the best place to turn when looking for answers to very specific technical problems. Final Cut Video Training Lynda.com - The fountainhead for all video training. This subscription-based site offers extensive classes on all of Final Cut Studio's applications; a great place to learn the basics. Ripple Training - Ripple Training sells both DVD-based tutorials as well as screencasts that are downloadable via…

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MediaStorm documents Final Cut workflows for the Canon 5D Mark II and Nikon D300

Since its release, the Canon 5D Mark II has become the de facto video camera for many photojournalists. Despite some technical challenges, like the ability to follow focus and the low-fi built-in microphone, the visual quality is simply stunning. Prosumer video gear just can't touch its filmic look or depth-of-field. For examples, check out the gorgeous work of Jeff Hutchens and Nacho Corbella in the MediaStorm workshop project Hold Out. More recent workshop attendees Deanne Fitzmaurice and Doug Grant also used the 5D to beautiful effect in Family Kocktail. It's not hard to understand why the Canon 5D Mark II, and now the Nikon D300, have become so popular. But to make these files Final Cut Pro compliant there remain a number of technical hurdles. To help with this, MediaStorm has documented our workflow with each of these cameras in two separate PDFs. These documents detail the transcoding process in Compressor, demonstrate…

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