What Is Better: Adobe Premiere Pro...or...Final Cut?

[magentawave]

I'm going to be shooting video and making instructional videos. I need something to edit video, add transitions, titles & credits, easily edit audio with fade outs and fade ins, etc. It must be easy to use. I already have Premiere Pro that I can install on the Windows side of my Mac too.

Here are my questions please...

1) What is a better and easier to use program? Premiere Pro or Final Cut?

2) Is Premiere Pro for Mac easier to use than the Windows version?

3) Like I said; I already have Premiere Pro for Windows, and IF it is as easy to use as the Mac version, then I will probably just stay with it. On the other hand, I have heard forever that Macs are best for editing video and audio, so if that is the case, what pitfalls can I expect using Premiere Pro for Windows on my Mac using VMWare Fusion with XP? (I have 4 gigs of ram)

4) I already have iMovie. Is iMovie a joke or is it decent?

Thanks
Steve

[nuckinfutz]

Final Cut Studio is due to be refreshed.

I'd say that Premier Pro has gained a lot of ground but there's a more vibrant base around Final Cut Studio .

Adobe has a jewel though in After Effects. What's your time frame on making a choice?

Conventional wisdom says that Apple will deliver a 64-bit version of Final Cut Studio to coincide with Snow Leopard.

Are you running an Intel based Mac?

[ceezy3000]

http://www.mediacollege.com/video/editing/software/comparison/premiere-fcp.html
might help

[mmulin]

It is a definitely a workflow question. If you are used to Premier maybe stick to it. However, you also could test your grounds on FC Express before moving full step to FCS. Personally, having worked with every major AV editing distribution/ set throughout the years, I still prefer FCS or hardware Avid.

[CaptainChunk]

It is a definitely a workflow question. If you are used to Premier maybe stick to it. However, you also could test your grounds on FC Express before moving full step to FCS. Personally, having worked with every major AV editing distribution/ set throughout the years, I still prefer FCS or hardware Avid.

Same here. It's not that Premiere is necessarily an inferior product, it's that I've grown accustomed to the workflows of the FCS and Avid platforms and overall, it's easier go back and forth between different crafts (sound mixers, colorists, VFX artists, etc.) with the more "industry accepted" platforms.

But on the other hand, Premiere integrates seamlessly with After Effects and Photoshop, which can be plus.

[mmulin]

3) Like I said; I already have Premiere Pro for Windows, and IF it is as easy to use as the Mac version, then I will probably just stay with it. On the other hand, I have heard forever that Macs are best for editing video and audio, so if that is the case, what pitfalls can I expect using Premiere Pro for Windows on my Mac using VMWare Fusion with XP? (I have 4 gigs of ram)


There is no way you going to run video editing through a virtual machine. Alone the problem of scratching already will slow your productivity to 0. Add GPU access, bandwidths, etc.

You can use Boot Camp though.

[THX1139]

If all you are doing is simple cuts and transitions you can get by with iMovie. FCS and Premiere are professional products that may overwhelm you with a learning curve that you might not even need, especially if you are trying to keep it simple. Start there and move your way up.

[magentawave]

There is no way you going to run video editing through a virtual machine. Alone the problem of scratching already will slow your productivity to 0. Add GPU access, bandwidths, etc.

You can use Boot Camp though.

What is "the problem of scratching?"

I was under the impression that a macbook pro/2.4/4GB/VMWare Fusion with XP would run any Windows program I want just fine. Why is that some people say their computer runs great configured like that and others say its super slow?

I will have to search elsewhere on this forum for information (advantages & disadvantages) on running windows on Bootcamp over using VMWare Fusion.

Thank you
Steve

Model Name: MacBook Pro
Model Identifier: MacBookPro4,1
Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed: 2.4 GHz
Number Of Processors: 1
Total Number Of Cores: 2
L2 Cache: 3 MB
Memory: 4 GB
Bus Speed: 800 MHz
Boot ROM Version: MBP41.00C1.B03
SMC Version (system): 1.27f2

[magentawave]

Final Cut Studio is due to be refreshed.

I'd say that Premier Pro has gained a lot of ground but there's a more vibrant base around Final Cut Studio .

Adobe has a jewel though in After Effects. What's your time frame on making a choice?

Conventional wisdom says that Apple will deliver a 64-bit version of Final Cut Studio to coincide with Snow Leopard.

Are you running an Intel based Mac?

My time frame is my own but I'm eager to get started with this project.

Even though I already have Adobe Master Collection for Windows and have only made a couple videos, I might still be willing to cut loose if something else is a lot better so I'm not wasting time with the learning curve on a program I won't be using.

Thanks
Steve

[magentawave]

If all you are doing is simple cuts and transitions you can get by with iMovie. FCS and Premiere are professional products that may overwhelm you with a learning curve that you might not even need, especially if you are trying to keep it simple. Start there and move your way up.

But does iMovie allow you to edit multiple audio clips? I opened it a few days ago and couldn't find a way to even see the audio clips as waveforms. I googled the problem too and none of answers seemed to apply to my version of iMovie (7.1.4).

Steve

[magentawave]

http://www.mediacollege.com/video/editing/software/comparison/premiere-fcp.html
might help

Thank you!

Steve

[Dr.Pants]

The best way (IMO, the only way) to run Windows on the Mac and use professional programs is to run it natively. VMs work for a lot of certain things (Office, TurboTax, and the like), but these programs rarely demand performance. When using a high-footprint program, the VM will chug as both operating systems are using the same system resources.

In fact, a good idea would be to have a scratch drive and connect it via your FW400 port (thank you Mactracker program); once again, its about system resources. I/Os from your internal drive for the OS will hinder I/Os of the editable media - so to get the maximum I/Os, use separate system and scratch drives.

[magentawave]

The best way (IMO, the only way) to run Windows on the Mac and use professional programs is to run it natively. VMs work for a lot of certain things (Office, TurboTax, and the like), but these programs rarely demand performance. When using a high-footprint program, the VM will chug as both operating systems are using the same system resources.

In fact, a good idea would be to have a scratch drive and connect it via your FW400 port (thank you Mactracker program); once again, its about system resources. I/Os from your internal drive for the OS will hinder I/Os of the editable media - so to get the maximum I/Os, use separate system and scratch drives.

So are you of the opinion that running a program like Adobe Premiere Pro Windows version using VMWare Fusion with XP would run too slowly?

I looked up on Wikipedia what a "scratch drive" is and see that is something that graphic designers often employ, but wouldn't that be especially slow for a program like Premiere Pro for windows?

Thanks
Steve

[arjen92]

He,

This is what I know

iMovie is nice for consumers. I you want to make a fun movie it's great. But if you have a lot to edit, or want a bit more freedom iMovie is not your choice. (but you figured that out already didn't you)

If I were you I would stay with the adobe package for windows. Mac is great because it's more stable, and.... well that's the only reason I actually know. I guess they like how easy it is too. I prefer the mac, because it's less hassle. But what's more hassle? get a new package, or use it on windows.

The reason why it just won't run nice on your virtual machine is because it does not have it's own GPU. It's a virtual machine, and it only has a "virtual video chipset". although I've heard VMware is (coming with) 3d support. To make it more clear, I can run windows 7 with all it's glitter and glare without a problem when I'm using bootcamp. When I open the bootcamp windows through VMware (so while I'm using mac os x) windows 7 isn't able to produce the graphics, because the virtual machine lacks resources.

I don't know much about the scratch disk with a virtual machine. What I do know is that it's usefull to have an external drive on which your media is. This way you have 2 drives, which will increase speed. Cause one is for when your RAM is full, and the other for your files (scratch disk).

Hope it helps.

(p.s. I'd go for adobe on your pc, I also heard all editor's do the same, only the button's are on a different place)

[magentawave]

He,

This is what I know

iMovie is nice for consumers. I you want to make a fun movie it's great. But if you have a lot to edit, or want a bit more freedom iMovie is not your choice. (but you figured that out already didn't you)

If I were you I would stay with the adobe package for windows. Mac is great because it's more stable, and.... well that's the only reason I actually know. I guess they like how easy it is too. I prefer the mac, because it's less hassle. But what's more hassle? get a new package, or use it on windows.

The reason why it just won't run nice on your virtual machine is because it does not have it's own GPU. It's a virtual machine, and it only has a "virtual video chipset". although I've heard VMware is (coming with) 3d support. To make it more clear, I can run windows 7 with all it's glitter and glare without a problem when I'm using bootcamp. When I open the bootcamp windows through VMware (so while I'm using mac os x) windows 7 isn't able to produce the graphics, because the virtual machine lacks resources.

I don't know much about the scratch disk with a virtual machine. What I do know is that it's usefull to have an external drive on which your media is. This way you have 2 drives, which will increase speed. Cause one is for when your RAM is full, and the other for your files (scratch disk).

Hope it helps.

(p.s. I'd go for adobe on your pc, I also heard all editor's do the same, only the button's are on a different place)

So bottom line: A program like Premiere Pro for Windows will be a dog on a virtual machine. Right? But are you saying that I could run Premiere Pro for Windows just fine on Bootcamp?

Thank you
Steve

[akdj]

"So bottom line: A program like Premiere Pro for Windows will be a dog on a virtual machine. Right? But are you saying that I could run Premiere Pro for Windows just fine on Bootcamp?"

EXACTLY what he's saying. Do NOT run video editing of any kind through a VM. You will not be editing anymore....you will be waiting:)

Bootcamp allows you to run Windows separately. You can boot directly into the OS and your Mac will operate as a Windows machine (just more stable:))

Good Luck

J

[DaReal_Dionysus]

The age old question. How many well name professional studios use Premiere? Final Cut is the standard in the industry. You make the call

[LethalWolfe]

The age old question. How many well name professional studios use Premiere? Final Cut is the standard in the industry. You make the call
Funny, Avid users used to ask the same question when people brought up FCP vs Avid threads. The rumblings I hear about Premiere today remind me of similar rumblings I heard about FCP 6 or 7 years ago.


Lethal

[BigSky20]

I am facing this same question. I just ordered FCS2, but may return it and get Production Premiere Suite. My comparison is based on the whole premiere suite vs the final cut suite.

My main pros/cons are as follows:

Premiere Suite:

Pros
*Native AVCHD editing (just got better with latest update)
*Blu Ray Support
*Smooth integration with other programs such as Photoshop, After Effects, etc.
*Photoshop and After Effects - both awesome and industry leading programs.

Cons
*I do not like the interface as well as I like FCP.
*No "Color" like program.

FCS2:

Pros
*Color - One of the main reasons I will probably stick with FCS2
*Motion - Although not as powerful as After Effects, I like using Motion much better than After Effects
*Apple ProRes - This makes editing AVCHD footage very smoothly. However, the huge file sizes is a big con.

Cons
*Apple ProRes - See above
*No Blu Ray support is crazy for a "Pro App"

I probably will stick with FCS2 and hope for a nice upgrade with FCS3 that may support Blu Ray and native AVCHD editing.

This may sound crazy (probably not on this forum), but to me Apple products are a lot more fun to use than Adobe products!

[magentawave]

"I don't know much about the scratch disk with a virtual machine. What I do know is that it's usefull to have an external drive on which your media is. This way you have 2 drives, which will increase speed. Cause one is for when your RAM is full, and the other for your files (scratch disk)."

I hope you don't mind me asking all these dumb questions but what you are telling me above is important and I could use some clarification please... :confused:

1) When you say "media" are you referring to the actual program (which is Premiere Pro for Windows in this case)? And if so, does that mean that you install the actual program on the external hard drive?

2) What do you mean when you say that "one (hard drive) is for when your RAM is full"?

Thanks again.

Steve

[EmperorDarius]

Premiere = Prosumer.
Final Cut Studio = Professional.

Final Cut > Premiere

[akdj]

"My main pros/cons are as follows:

Premiere Suite:

Pros
*Native AVCHD editing (just got better with latest update)
*Blu Ray Support
*Smooth integration with other programs such as Photoshop, After Effects, etc.
*Photoshop and After Effects - both awesome and industry leading programs.

Cons
*I do not like the interface as well as I like FCP.
*No "Color" like program. "

Big Sky....No "Color" like program at one time was a $25,000 piece of software:) Thankfully Apple bought it and incorporated it! A HUGE seller! Makes it thee pro app with that addition, IMO between the two!

"FCS2:

Pros
*Color - One of the main reasons I will probably stick with FCS2
*Motion - Although not as powerful as After Effects, I like using Motion much better than After Effects
*Apple ProRes - This makes editing AVCHD footage very smoothly. However, the huge file sizes is a big con.

Cons
*Apple ProRes - See above
*No Blu Ray support is crazy for a "Pro App""

Final Cut is an editing program. Why would it support Blu Ray? DVD Studio Pro is an authoring program that would be where Apple would support BluRay....not in FCP. Toast allows about as much authoring options for Blu Ray as Premiere. Both are pretty basic actually. But again....this is only a matter of authoring after edit. You can find Blu Ray authoring for alot better deal than what Adobe is asking.

"I probably will stick with FCS2 and hope for a nice upgrade with FCS3 that may support Blu Ray and native AVCHD editing." AVC is not a pro format. I'm sure it will be included, as it has become a "good enough" solution to the consumer level camcorder.....but in the pro ring, AVC or other highly compressed formats will not be a priority. With bigger and bigger HDDs available, the uncompressed (or less compressed) formats will be the choice. Look at how huge RAW is in the still world now.

j

[mmulin]

"I don't know much about the scratch disk with a virtual machine. What I do know is that it's usefull to have an external drive on which your media is. This way you have 2 drives, which will increase speed. Cause one is for when your RAM is full, and the other for your files (scratch disk)."

I hope you don't mind me asking all these dumb questions but what you are telling me above is important and I could use some clarification please... :confused:

1) When you say "media" are you referring to the actual program (which is Premiere Pro for Windows in this case)? And if so, does that mean that you install the actual program on the external hard drive?

2) What do you mean when you say that "one (hard drive) is for when your RAM is full"?

Thanks again.

Steve

Scratch Disk: The amount of video data, applications need to handle, can not be simply put into RAM. In full HD quality they might go into TBs of data. Editing application will but the temporary ("scratch") data on the disk while rendering effects, cuts, etc. In a usual editing environment you will have very fast RAID sets or at least, in smaller scale, dedicated disks for the editing application to use. Since there is a lot of disk access necessary while huge amounts of data is shuffled between RAM and HD, mostly, the scratch disks are used solely for this temporary data. Source material and final products, applications, the OS, etc are running from separate disks.

Of course it is possible to to run everything of one disk, like it is often the case on laptops for example. But performance will suffer immensely and it is only advisable for rough pre-editing on the road, or, if you will, making a home movie. Since Apple laptops provide (these days "provided" :( ) firewire ports the situation could be helped to some extend. USB is feasible but less so since it is not a streaming protocol.

Virtual Machine (VM): In a VM everything the OS sees, in your case Windows, is abstracted by the application (Fusion, Parallels, etc). Inherently, Windows "thinks" it is running on a standard PC. Nevertheless, almost every call to the system as in writing/ reading data to/ from the disk image, drawing a picture on your screen via the graphic card, etc travels through this extra layer of virtualization. Besides this your host OS, OSX, is also running, requesting disk, CPU, GPU, RAM access, etc. Especially for the guest OS, huge bottle necks on all fronts are a certain reality, and unforgivable for high performance computing as video editing is. Another example, real-time previews of effects, are impossible in such an environment since there is no direct access to GPU features.

Software VM, as Fusion and Parallels, are certainly useful for a large range of appliances and have become quite usable. These days even older 3D games will perform admirably on it but don't confuse this with video editing, scientific computing, and akin. It is still a limited solution to run several OSes at one time and add benefit to your computing experiences if you need such.

Boot Camp: This is not a virtualization. Boot Camp will create a partition on the hard disk for use with another OS and provide an EFI hook to simulate a BIOS (Macs don't have a BIOS they use the more advanced EFI standard) upon which Windows is able to boot on a Mac. Additionally, Apple provides Windows drivers for the Mac hardware. Unlike in a VM solution, only one OS can run at the time. To switch, one must restart the computer into the other OS. However, nothing is virtualised (arguably the BIOS but can be neglected) and Windows us running as it would run on a PC with direct access to all the hardware and performance available.

I hope that helps.

[Truffy]

"I don't know much about the scratch disk with a virtual machine. What I do know is that it's usefull to have an external drive on which your media is. This way you have 2 drives, which will increase speed. Cause one is for when your RAM is full, and the other for your files (scratch disk)."

I hope you don't mind me asking all these dumb questions but what you are telling me above is important and I could use some clarification please... :confused:

1) When you say "media" are you referring to the actual program (which is Premiere Pro for Windows in this case)? And if so, does that mean that you install the actual program on the external hard drive?

2) What do you mean when you say that "one (hard drive) is for when your RAM is full"?

Thanks again.

Steve
Media = your captured video / audio / images

The application is installed on one disk (most likely your system disk), your media should be captured and authored on another disk (the scratch disk). As has been stated earlier, this means that I/O traffic between the application and system will not interrupt the smooth flow of data from your media.

As for Premiere burning to Bluray, like FCP I think this is unlikely. It's been a long time since I've used the Adobe products, but like DVDSP the DVD burining app of the Adobe suite is Encore.

[BigSky20]

"My main pros/cons are as follows:

Premiere Suite:

Pros
*Native AVCHD editing (just got better with latest update)
*Blu Ray Support
*Smooth integration with other programs such as Photoshop, After Effects, etc.
*Photoshop and After Effects - both awesome and industry leading programs.

Cons
*I do not like the interface as well as I like FCP.
*No "Color" like program. "

Big Sky....No "Color" like program at one time was a $25,000 piece of software:) Thankfully Apple bought it and incorporated it! A HUGE seller! Makes it thee pro app with that addition, IMO between the two!

"FCS2:

Pros
*Color - One of the main reasons I will probably stick with FCS2
*Motion - Although not as powerful as After Effects, I like using Motion much better than After Effects
*Apple ProRes - This makes editing AVCHD footage very smoothly. However, the huge file sizes is a big con.

Cons
*Apple ProRes - See above
*No Blu Ray support is crazy for a "Pro App""

Final Cut is an editing program. Why would it support Blu Ray? DVD Studio Pro is an authoring program that would be where Apple would support BluRay....not in FCP. Toast allows about as much authoring options for Blu Ray as Premiere. Both are pretty basic actually. But again....this is only a matter of authoring after edit. You can find Blu Ray authoring for alot better deal than what Adobe is asking.

"I probably will stick with FCS2 and hope for a nice upgrade with FCS3 that may support Blu Ray and native AVCHD editing." AVC is not a pro format. I'm sure it will be included, as it has become a "good enough" solution to the consumer level camcorder.....but in the pro ring, AVC or other highly compressed formats will not be a priority. With bigger and bigger HDDs available, the uncompressed (or less compressed) formats will be the choice. Look at how huge RAW is in the still world now.

j


Please note I was talking about Final Cut Studio 2, which does include DVD Studio Pro and shoud include Blu Ray. Also, the Adobe suite supports Blu Ray pop up menus. I do not believe Toast allows you to do this yet.

[knello]

So bottom line: A program like Premiere Pro for Windows will be a dog on a virtual machine. Right? But are you saying that I could run Premiere Pro for Windows just fine on Bootcamp?

Thank you
Steve

Why run it on Windows at all? Premiere Pro CS3 & CS4 runs natively on OS X (http://www.adobe.com/products/premiere/systemreqs) on Intel Macs.

[KyleHarrison]

Ive been using Premiere since the 6.5 days to modern CS4 for all ym video production work aside from the past few months where ive really been running Final Cut through the gamut.

It maybe just preference but i like Premieres feature set a bit better. For features Final Cut could probably do and i havent figure dit out yet, Premiere throws it at your face in an convenience manner

For instance, i hear in Final Cut you can alter clips by clicking on them in the preview window, i have not gotten this to work.
Premiere does this with no configuration. This includes scale handles and positional transitions.

Premiere has real time feedback regardless of what you throw at it, clips of different formats, transitions, effects, etc. Itll all scrub and play (though the more you stack on it the slower it gets before rendering)
With Final Cut you need to render with the exception of a couple mere technicalities (raw clip conformed to project settings, and onyl one clip with no alterations seems to be the standard here)


That being said, i like Final Cuts "extras" a bit better. For instance, the Video Generators are awesome time savers
I loved being able to throw stuff around to Motion for its templates and Soundtrack pro for a custom score, and then use Compressor to render the final product.
But thats a whole different can o' beans.



In short: im a bigger fan of Adobe softwares Workflow and Toolset, but i like Final Cut Studios presets, generators, and templates.

[DaReal_Dionysus]

Premiere = Prosumer.
Final Cut Studio = Professional.

Final Cut > Premiere

I concur

[DaReal_Dionysus]

Funny, Avid users used to ask the same question when people brought up FCP vs Avid threads. The rumblings I hear about Premiere today remind me of similar rumblings I heard about FCP 6 or 7 years ago.


Lethal

Yes you are so correct!!! As an Certified Avid Professional I too barked at the FCP followers till the last release. FCP has come of age and is now considered to be Avids #1 pain in the rump. FCP has become professional grade and the next release is supposed to be leaps and bounds from the previous. It is winning more & more awards by the day. Premiere has a while to go.

Premiere is for weddings!!!

FCP is for TV, Film and so on.

[knello]

Premiere = Prosumer.
Final Cut Studio = Professional.

Final Cut > Premiere

What exactly does Premiere Pro lack at this point that makes it unprofessional? Is it 2K/4K and film workflows? Or is just because the program was trash 10 years ago, back when Avid and FCP were not?

Premiere already supports Redcode, P2 cards, DNxHD, and it's fully 64 bit. I think the programs are too similar to really fight about this. Do you consider Photoshop and After Effects to be prosumer too?

[art gardiner]

Adobe used to be great about assisting customers with switching platforms. Contact their Customer Service Rep and tell them you have switched from Windows to Mac, and want to know if you can purchase an upgrade for Adobe CS Premium for Mac OSX. More often than not, they will supply you with the license to the Mac software and ask you to download the trial version off their web site. The trial version (upon installation) will give you the opportunity to enter your license number they provided you with when you contacted them. (They will also ask that you destroy the Windows version of Adobe CS Premium you currently have.) Be prepared to give them your license number when you call. This way, you will be working natively in Mac OSX, and can forgo the problems of trying to run VM, or Bootcamp.

The Premier vs. FCS vs. Avid part... to each their own. We use all three, with great success. Premier for our Live-to-tape sessions in the studio to generate graphics (lower thirds, virtual set, etc.); FCP for rough cuts / sequences; and Avid for creating our day reels, rough cuts / sequences. (We are split up in three different locations.) They are all just tools.

HTH's,

Art

[Disavowed]

About to get a computer for grad school and am contemplating buying FCExpress and I am not sure what I should do.

This is NOT for work or future Sundance entry, just for my personal enjoyment.

Thanks,

[arjen92]

About to get a computer for grad school and am contemplating buying FCExpress and I am not sure what I should do.

This is NOT for work or future Sundance entry, just for my personal enjoyment.

Thanks,

For what do you want to use it? If you want to make some small funny videos, you can just use iMovie. If you want to make a short movie of what you did (vacation/trip) you can use iMovie.

You should get express when you feel narrowed in your options with iMovie. I use it because it's more diverse. And it works fast. there's also more possible with sound, more layers. I sometimes use greenscreen. I once made a dvd of an event at school which lasted 4 hours.

What do you need it for? Personal enjoyment, I'd say that you should use iMovie 09.

[ekwipt]

From what i've seen in my short tv career, i have never seen premiere in any professional companies editing suites, I haven't worked in special fx, so maybe there you'll see more adobe stuff due to after effects.

If you don't care about industry standards, i'd look at what sort of workflow you wont to use and base my decision off that.

Do you want to use/learn after effects, it might be cheaper just to buy the adobe package rather that FCS and after effects (if you get what i mean)

Film primarily use AVID

TV use Avid and Final Cut

Premiere of course gets used as well, it's just i haven't seen it.

fyi premiere can handle things like redcode (red one media) better than final cut at the moment, has better ram usage etc.

I'd do some more research maybe ask over at creative cow forums, they seem pretty knowledgable

[magentawave]

1) Does Final Cut Express allow you to see the audio clips on a video as wave forms (unlike iMovie)?

2) Can you add and edit multiple audio clips with fade ins and fade outs?

3) How many audio clips can you add and edit as wave forms?

4) I think iMovie only offers about 6 transitions. Does Final Cut Express offer a lot more transitions?

5) Besides the price, what is the biggest difference between Final Cut Express and the full version of Final Cut?

6) If cost is not an issue, and I'm not doing super intense video work, which would be better for me? Final Cut Express - or the full version of Final Cut? And if you suggest the full version of Final Cut, is it overwhelming to use for the beginner?

Thanks
Steve

[LethalWolfe]

Yes
Yes
99 audio tracks
Yes
FCP comes w/the rest of the FC suite, it can edit more formats, it has more/better filters, batch capture ability, etc.,.
If someone offers you a free copy of FCE or a free copy of FCS 2 there's no reason to choose FCE, IMO. W/that being said if you are only doing relatively simple things then you won't need/use the expanded features you get w/FCS 2.


Lethal

[magentawave]

Yes
Yes
99 audio tracks
Yes
FCP comes w/the rest of the FC suite, it can edit more formats, it has more/better filters, batch capture ability, etc.,.
If someone offers you a free copy of FCE or a free copy of FCS 2 there's no reason to choose FCE, IMO. W/that being said if you are only doing relatively simple things then you won't need/use the expanded features you get w/FCS 2.

Lethal

Okay thanks! I really appreciate your input.

Last question (I think)...

I realize FCS 2 has millions of options, probably way more than I will ever need or use, but would FCS 2 be as easy to use for basis video editing now as it would be if I was using Final Cut Express? OR...is FCS 2 super difficult to use for basic video editing? Keep in mind that I have already determined that I need more capabilities than what iMovie offers.

Thanks again.

STeve

[BigSky20]

Okay thanks! I really appreciate your input.

Last question (I think)...

I realize FCS 2 has millions of options, probably way more than I will ever need or use, but would FCS 2 be as easy to use for basis video editing now as it would be if I was using Final Cut Express? OR...is FCS 2 super difficult to use for basic video editing? Keep in mind that I have already determined that I need more capabilities than what iMovie offers.

Thanks again.

STeve

Hi Steve,

I am not a professional editor and just do videos for a fun hobby. I just received final cut studio 2 yesterday after trying to decide between CS4 PP and FCS2. I started with iMovie and Final Cut Express and wanted FCS2 for better color correction and the Motion app.

The biggest advantage of FCS2 for a non-professional is the loads of templates and royalty content available. There are dozens and dozens of sound effects and motion templates that easily allows you to make professional looking projects. Also, you get the three wheel color corrector with FCP and of course the app Color. By watching the tutorials that come with FCS2 you can create some pretty cool color effects right away.

If you are used to editing with Final Cut Express, you will have no problems with Final Cut Pro. There are several tutorials out there to get you through some of the more advanced features and the basic features are exactly the same.

To me, FCS2 is so much more fun to use than CS4 (I tried the trial). The log and transfer for my AVCHD footage actually helps me keep organized and the output looks great. I am now wanting to buy toast to burn high definition DVDs. Hopefully, this will be updated for FCS3.

I would highly recommend the suite. For me, it is much easier and intuitive to use than the CS4 suite. My two cents....

[arjen92]

1)
4) I think iMovie only offers about 6 transitions. Does Final Cut Express offer a lot more transitions?

I think the amount of transitions aren't that import. If you watch real movies, the only transitions used are fades and cuts. With FCE and FCP you don't even need the "transition" for that, you can make it yourself by changing the opacity of the clip.

[magentawave]

Hi Steve,

I am not a professional editor and just do videos for a fun hobby. I just received final cut studio 2 yesterday after trying to decide between CS4 PP and FCS2. I started with iMovie and Final Cut Express and wanted FCS2 for better color correction and the Motion app.

The biggest advantage of FCS2 for a non-professional is the loads of templates and royalty content available. There are dozens and dozens of sound effects and motion templates that easily allows you to make professional looking projects. Also, you get the three wheel color corrector with FCP and of course the app Color. By watching the tutorials that come with FCS2 you can create some pretty cool color effects right away.

If you are used to editing with Final Cut Express, you will have no problems with Final Cut Pro. There are several tutorials out there to get you through some of the more advanced features and the basic features are exactly the same.

To me, FCS2 is so much more fun to use than CS4 (I tried the trial). The log and transfer for my AVCHD footage actually helps me keep organized and the output looks great. I am now wanting to buy toast to burn high definition DVDs. Hopefully, this will be updated for FCS3.

I would highly recommend the suite. For me, it is much easier and intuitive to use than the CS4 suite. My two cents....

Okay. You have convinced me and thanks! Its good to know that there are lots of templates and royalty free content with FCS2 because I will use those. And I like to hear it is more intuitive (Mac like) because there was very little about PP that I found to be intuitive.

What is the 'Motion App' for that you mention?

Thanks!
Steve

[BigSky20]

Okay. You have convinced me and thanks! Its good to know that there are lots of templates and royalty free content with FCS2 because I will use those. And I like to here it is more intuitive (Mac like) because there was very little about PP that I found to be intuitive.

What is the 'Motion App' for that you mention?

Thanks!
Steve

Check out the following for more details on motion and the other apps included with FCS2:

http://www.apple.com/finalcutstudio/overview.html

http://www.apple.com/finalcutstudio/motion/

[hitman45400]

I just got Final Cut 6, and the HD upgrade, and all that good stuff, i used iMovie 8 to edit videos, and have been blown away with Final Cut. It really isn't as hard to use as any Adobe products i have used. (PhotoShop, After Effects, and so on..) The key i have found is just learning what it has, the initial use is fairly easy to grasp.

my 2cents :D

[magentawave]

Check out the following for more details on motion and the other apps included with FCS2:

http://www.apple.com/finalcutstudio/overview.html

http://www.apple.com/finalcutstudio/motion/

Wow! Amazing stuff! Yeah, that is what I want.

Thanks
Steve

[magentawave]

1) Can anyone please tell me what is the difference between the quantity of templates and royalty free content you get with FCE over FCS2?

2) Have any of you chosen FCE over FCS2 just because of the huge amount of space FCS2 takes on your hard drive?

Thanks
Steve

[arjen92]

2) Have any of you chosen FCE over FCS2 just because of the huge amount of space FCS2 takes on your hard drive?

I think that nobody does, because you already need a scratch drive. So you'll have extra memory already. And when you think it takes to much, 1 video in dv is 8 Gb. so 5 movies are 40 GB.

In comparison it really isn't that much.

ps I did think it was too much. So I only installed the programs. You can ofcourse install them without the templates. And uses generated is way more original. but for motion and soundtrack pro, it comes in handy to have some stuff.

[magentawave]

I think that nobody does, because you already need a scratch drive. So you'll have extra memory already. And when you think it takes to much, 1 video in dv is 8 Gb. so 5 movies are 40 GB.

In comparison it really isn't that much.

ps I did think it was too much. So I only installed the programs. You can ofcourse install them without the templates. And uses generated is way more original. but for motion and soundtrack pro, it comes in handy to have some stuff.

I do want access to the templates. Is there any problem with installing the program (FCS2) on my computers hard drive but then put all the templates on my external hard drive?

Does anyone know what is the difference in the quantity of templates and royalty free content you get with FCS2 as compared with FCE? Does FCE even come with templates and royalty free content?

Thanks again
Steve

[chilipie]

I think that nobody does, because you already need a scratch drive. So you'll have extra memory already. And when you think it takes to much, 1 video in dv is 8 Gb. so 5 movies are 40 GB.

What do you mean by one video? The DV codec runs to around 13GB per hour of video.

[arjen92]

Oh you're right. I meant 1 hour of video. That isn't 8 gb, it is 13gb, as you said.

and to magentawave. You can just install them on another external hard drive. USB is okay. I did that. It will create a library map on to your external hard drive and put the stuff over there.

[Chris7]

Steve,

It seemed there was some concern about getting adequate data transfer rates when using ProRes, since AVCHD must be transcoded into ProRes or AIC before editing in FCP.

I am using a Caldigit VR with a Sonnet Tempo SATA Pro ExpressCard/34 with my MBP, and getting read speeds of over 180 MB/sec. according to an AJA test. It can handle three streams of 1080x1920 ProRes without dropping frames (and without rendering).

The folks at Caldigit said that the read speed will fall quite a bit if the hard drive gets full, but this is enough headroom that it will not matter for my purposes.

[steve123]

Steve,

It seemed there was some concern about getting adequate data transfer rates when using ProRes, since AVCHD must be transcoded into ProRes or AIC before editing in FCP.

I am using a Caldigit VR with a Sonnet Tempo SATA Pro ExpressCard/34 with my MBP, and getting read speeds of over 180 MB/sec. according to an AJA test. It can handle three streams of 1080x1920 ProRes without dropping frames (and without rendering).

The folks at Caldigit said that the read speed will fall quite a bit if the hard drive gets full, but this is enough headroom that it will not matter for my purposes.

I wish iMac's had an ExpressCard slot!