FCP 7 Question

[Boe11]

Hi, guys

I've been editing for about 5 years and I recently migrated to FCP from Sony Vegas. I'm editing some material and for some reason my 2011 MBP is lagging like a mofo in the canvas preview. I'm not sure if this is due to the random footage I'm using together or what but...

Vegas had a nice feature that I think was called "memory preview". You could select an area of the timeline and hit shift-B to load that area to memory for a preview of exactly what it would look like when it was rendered. It helped you refine your edits and get a more precise idea of what you were dealing with.

Does FCP have something similiar?

Thanks

 

[LethalWolfe]

The poor playback is most likely because you are mixing and matching settings, codecs, and formats on your timeline which Vegas handles much better than FCP 7. There is a feature in FCP similar to what you are asking about called QuickView (it's found under the Tools menu in the menu bar).

You would probably be better off though finding the solution to your underlying problem. What are the Sequence settings you are using and what types of files are in the sequence (codec, frame size, frame rate, etc.,)?


Lethal

 

[Boe11]

Yeah, I think you're right on the money. It's a veritable cornucopia of frame rates, sizes and codecs. from 240 to 1080, 24p to 30p, avi, mp4. mpeg.

The quickview seems to help quite a bit. Think I'll experience any issues with the export because of the mismatching, or just during the edit?

Thanks for the help.

 

[LethalWolfe]

Yeah, I think you're right on the money. It's a veritable cornucopia of frame rates, sizes and codecs. from 240 to 1080, 24p to 30p, avi, mp4. mpeg.

The quickview seems to help quite a bit. Think I'll experience any issues with the export because of the mismatching, or just during the edit?

Thanks for the help.

You might get some unexpected results when you are exporting. The most common error I see when something like H.264 is used as a source in FCP is that the edit points will move around in the export.


Lethal

 

[Boe11]

I was able to get it edited but when I exported it some of the clips had some pretty obnoxious discoloration. Not sure what to do.

 

[LethalWolfe]

I was able to get it edited but when I exported it some of the clips had some pretty obnoxious discoloration. Not sure what to do.

I would take the source clips that are causing the problem and transcode them into ProRes, switch the original versions for the ProRes versions in the timeline and then try re-exporting. ProRes likes to be standard video sizes though (1920x1080, 720x486, etc.,) so if you make a ProRes a non-standard size (like 320x240) you might end up with other odd results.

Ultimately though you'd want to transcode all the source footage into 'FCP friendly' footage before you start editing. It'll make your life much easier.

Lethal

 

[Boe11]

Worked like a charm. EVerything looks good now. Thanks much for the help.

 

[LethalWolfe]

No sweat. Glad it was an easy fix.


Lethal