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Exporting FCP 7 Browser Column Data

Here’s a simple technique you can use to export all the data in the Browser into a format you can read in Excel, Word, or Text Edit.

Everything You Never Knew about PPMs

PPMs are something we never hear about in North America. All our audio is measured in dB. However, in Europe, PPM is THE standard of audio measurement — and Final Cut does not support it natively. This article explains what you need to know, and how to measure audio in PPMs.

Hardware Review: Euphonix Control Surfaces

Recently, Euphonix invited me to their LA offices to take a look at a suite of new products designed for video and audio editors. — a series of external control surfaces. Control surfaces have been a fixture in the audio industry for many year, but for video editors, this is a fairly new concept. This article takes a detailed look at each of the four units Euphonix provides, along with thoughts on where they fit into a post-production workflow.

Enhancing Old Film Transfers

We can’t always use the latest video technology to capture our images. Sometimes, historical footage requires a film transfer. In this article are some tips you can use to make your film transfers look better.

It Ain’t the Endian of the World

In the category of “you don’t know what you don’t know,” here’s an interesting piece of trivia. Ever wonder what that checkbox called “Little Endian” means when you are saving audio? This article tell you so you can now impress your friends.

Reflection: The End of Television As We Know It

The recent conversion to all-digital broadcasting brought this reflection on the changes we’ve seen in television over the years. I guess this isn’t really technical, but it struck me as appropriate.

Some Elementary Questions

One confusing issue new editors need to deal with is getting Final Cut Pro to recognize 16:9 (also called “widescreen,” or “anamorphic”) video. As well, if the editor is a new Mac user, they may also have problems with exported file sizes. This article addresses both these issues.

Editing Sound From FCP in Soundtrack Pro

Soundtrack Pro is far better at editing and mixing audio than Final Cut Pro is. While this can make your audio sound a lot better, you still run the risk of knocking your audio out of sync. This article explains more about how to prevent this problem.

Editing on a UVW-1800 Betacam Deck

Yes, Virginia, analog video tape still exists. And if you’ve ever wondered whether you can edit to a Betacam SP deck, this article will reassure you that Final Cut Pro works great with it.

Editing HDV

I’ve been writing a lot about HDV recently – and not all of it positive. However, Iain Anderson sent this in with his positive results using HDV. You owe it to yourself to read both side of the issue and Iain does a nice job.

Editing Questions for Pre-Production

The worst time to discover you have a problem is at the end of editing, when you have no time and no money. In fact, the best time to solve these problems is before production even starts. Here’s short article that provides guidelines on what you need to do to prevent problems down the road.

Missing Media in DVD Studio Pro’s Palettes

I’ve never seen this happen, but the workaround maybe a life-saver if you need it. Here’s how to reconnect DVD Studio Pro’s palettes with the files stored on your hard disk.

Setting DVD Studio Pro Tracks for 16:9 Video

By default, DVD Studio Pro creates tracks that support 4:3 video. However, this is easy to change, but hard to find. This short article describes what you need to do to create wide-screen DVDs.

Scripting DVD Subtitles

Getting DVD subtitles, especially when you have more than one language, requires a script. This short article tells you want you need to know to get your scripts to work properly, and where to look for more information.

Organizing Files for a DVD

A reader asked me how I organize my files when I’m creating a DVD. Well, organization best starts at the beginning of a project, so in this brief article, I outline the folders I create and where I store my files.

Creating a Motion Menu for DVD Studio Pro

Want to give your DVDs a more professional look? In this detailed, step-by-step article, you’ll learn how to create menus and button highlights in Photoshop, import them into DVD Studio Pro, build a menu and add buttons, all to create a professional-grade menu. (Part 1 of 2 – the second part discusses how to create a motion menu in Final Cut Pro for a DVD.)

The Life-Span of DVDs

Nothing lasts forever, and that includes DVD media. This article discusses what you need to know to make sure your backups and precious data survive for the long-haul.

Exporting Project Files for DVD

There are a variety of ways to export a project from Final Cut Pro for a DVD. This article showcases the best way to do it if you are using Final Cut Pro 6.x. (FCP 7 users may want to consider using Share or Send, which this article doesn’t cover.)

Changing Default Compression Settings for DVD

I’ve taught this technique in my classes for a long time, but recently discovered that I have not written about it. When you are compressing a QuickTime movie for a DVD, the default settings for video and audio compression may need to be tweaked.

Why Does DV Look Bad in QuickTime?

If you’ve ever compared the quality of your DV movies in Final Cut to what they look like in QuickTime, you can very quickly become suicidal. Why does QuickTime make your images look so bad? This quick article explains.