Final Cut Pro X initial observations

[jetpack_monkey]

Out of the box, Final Cut Pro X has one *huge* strike against it as a potential vidding platform. It does not support importing DivX/xvid files.

I'll repeat that. It does not support DivX/xvid.

For me, this means the majority of source I've acquired over the years is worthless without conversion. Pretty much the only files that I can work with are the ones that I've created myself by ripping and then converting to H.264 or DV.

Just poking around, the interface is weirdly iMovie-esque, but I am already in love with the ability to tag my clips within an "event". Conceivably, I can add tags for "left-to-right motion" , "blue", "close-up", and "long shot". Although to be perfectly frank, I'm still trying to wrap my head around events, clips, and collections, the three elements of organizing source within FCPX. Also, I still haven't worked out how to break up "clips" (which in this case are the complete media files that I've imported) into, well, clips.

I'm confused by the interface, but I'm slowly finding my way around. I don't actually consider this a strike against the program. It's an all new interface and it's going to take time to find stuff.

I'm going to work on recreating one of my older vids in the program, just to get a feel for the tools and options available to me. I'll post more when there is more.
 

Comments

[elipie.livejournal.com]

What program do you normally use again? I heard X is kind of a nightmare compared to the older versions, but hey, it might work better for some people than others. Hopefully it works out for you!

[jetpack-monkey.livejournal.com]

I usually use Final Cut Express 4 (the cheaper version of Final Cut Pro 7).

I don't know if I'll be sticking with FCPX, but I haven't seen a lot of reports on it from a vidding perspective and I thought I'd be helpful like that. I may end up loving it and keeping. Who knows?

[elipie.livejournal.com]

Well thank you for posting your thoughts! I'm planning to get FCE4 as well, but I think I'll wait to see more of your reporting. :D