No two editors work the same way, and no editor works the same way on every project. Final Cut Pro is powerful because of its versatility, and--as users will learn--they will begin to tailor it to their own particular needs. Our book provides the necessary information to understand how to get the most out of the program without becoming overwhelmed with all the possibilities.
If the title of this book caught your eye, then you are probably familiar with Final Cut Pro and either already using it or thinking about learning to use it.
If you are already a working editor, this book offers you simple, straightforward instructions written to help you get started quickly using the features of Final Cut Pro that you will be using most of the time and bypassing features that may never make it into any of your work.
If you are new to DV editing, this book offers a clear visual guide to help you understand basic editing concepts and how they apply to Final Cut Pro. Rather than just dwelling on “how” the product works, we will present you with much of the “why” behind it.
For decades professional video editing required a host of expensive equipment that took years to master. Final Cut Pro places all of these tools at your disposal in a single package that will run on a Mac, all for a fraction of the cost traditionally associated with video editing. However, getting started with such a complex program may seem daunting at first, especially for first-time video editors.
While preparing to write this book, however, we quickly recognized that using Final Cut Pro follows the 80/20 rule. That is, you will use about 20 percent of its features 80 percent of the time and the other 80 percent of the features no more than 20 percent of the time. The Final Cut Pro manual is thick—three volumes thick—and is helpful as a comprehensive reference tool. Yet, when you get right down to it, video editing should be a matter of instinct and craft, and it should not require constant referral to a manual.
Final Cut Pro 4 and the Art of Filmmaking is not a replacement to the manual but a guide to get your feet wet with video editing using step-by-step instructions and hundreds of illustrations to show you what you should be seeing while you are working. We want to show you the features you’ll use every day that should, eventually, become second nature. We’ll also look at many of the more advanced features and offer editing tips to help you use them effectively. It is crucial when learning a new system, especially one with as many options as Final Cut Pro, that you become well grounded in the basics first and then build on those skills as a foundation. That is what you will get out of this book: a thorough understanding of what it takes to get a film made with Final Cut Pro. Beyond that, this book is designed to help you explore Final Cut Pro and discover how to make it work best for you. No two editors will work the same way, and no editor works the same way on every project. Final Cut Pro is powerful because of its versatility, and as you use it, you will begin to tailor it to your own particular needs. We have included information to help you understand how to get the most out of the program without becoming overwhelmed with all of the possibilities.
In this book, we will be covering everything you need to know to make effective use of Final Cut Pro. Although we have included a DVD with footage and exercises for you to practice with, this book is designed to help you edit your own film. To help organize the information, we have split the book into five main sections:
Each chapter in this book deals with a specific topic important to film editors. We have avoided making this book simply a laundry list of features (you can get that from the manual) and have instead concentrated on the real-world everyday tasks that video editors face. We show you how to use Final Cut Pro to full advantage for those tasks. Each chapter begins with an overview to help explain some of the reasoning and theory that the specific tasks in each section of the chapter covers.
Each section in a chapter provides step-by-step instructions for performing specific tasks. Nearly every step in these instructions also includes an illustration that shows what you should be seeing on the screen during the step. If you are using the tutorial provided on the DVD (see Using the Companion DVD in the back of the book) then these images should exactly reflect what you see on your own screen. However, even if you are using your own footage to edit with, the figure will help to visually explain what it is you are doing. In addition, many sections will include alternate instructions providing a different take on the same topic. The companion DVD at the back of this book also provides a host of files to assist you in completing the chapter tutorials.
Also, look for the Real World examples of how video editors are using Final Cut Pro on a wide variety of projects: everything from video art to feature filmmaking. These profiles not only help explain the equipment and processes these editors use; they can also provide inspiration for your own projects.