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HD ARTICLES

New ! The Cycle of Life -- Thoughts on Snow Leopard
Apple released the latest version of its operating system (10.6) on August 28, 2009. But that doesn't mean this is the best day for you to upgrade. Here's a look at how OS releases fit into the cycle of our life as editors. (Published: Mar. 2010)

New ! Thoughts on the New Versions of ProRes
Wtih the release of Final Cut Studio (3), Apple has expanded the ProRes codec family to now include five variations. This article briefly outlines the differences between them, along with suggestions on which to use for what purpose. (Published: Mar. 2010 ; Studio Suite v. 3)

New ! Creating an SD 4:3 Center Cut from HD 16:9 Footage
Here's the problem. You have high-definition (HD) 16:9 footage that you need to create a standard-definition (SD) 4:3 full-screen image. This means that you are going to lose some visual information on the sides of your image. What's the best way to do this? This article explains what you need to know. (Published: Mar. 2010 ; Final Cut Pro v. 5.1x, 6, 7.x)

New ! Intercutting SD and HD Footage
Money was tight, so "they" decided to shoot the project using both SD and HD cameras. Now, your stuck editing them. HOW??? In this article, we explains a variety of ways you can intercut between SD and HD material, and how to avoid problems with poorly converted video. (Published: Mar. 2010 ; Final Cut Pro v. 5.1x, 6, 7.x)

New ! Working with HD Footage From Flip Cameras
Flip cameras, and other inexpensive devices, capture footage in a variety of unusual formats. This article explains what you need to know to work with it inside Final Cut Pro. (Published: Mar. 2010 ; Final Cut Pro v. 5.1x, 6, 7.x)

New ! Changing Final Cut Pro's Looping Time
When you press the backslash key, Final Cut loops around the current position of the Playhead. This article explains how to change the amount of time plays during this loop. (Published: Mar. 2010 ; Final Cut Pro v. 5.0x, 5.1x, 6, 7.x)

New ! Creating Chapter Markers in H.264 Video
Chapter markers are frequently used in DVD production. However, you can also put them in QuickTime movies to simplify navigation. However, compressing using H.264 makes this process a bit more difficult. But not impossible, as this article explains how to do it. (Published: Mar. 2010 ; Final Cut Pro v. 5.1x, 6, 7.x)

Monitoring HD Video
Monitors for HD video are not cheap. So why not just connect an HD television set via HDMI and let it go at that? In this short write-up, Dan May, president of Blackmagic Design, explains the potential problems with monitoring your HD video using this kind of setup. (Published: Jun. 2009 ; Final Cut Pro v. 6)

Understanding More About Blu-ray Discs
The best way to display HD video is using a Blu-ray Disc. However, the Mac OS does not support Blu-ray Disc playback, and to create a Blu-ray Disc takes an external burner. This article describes what you need to know to create a Blu-ray Disc. (Keep in mind that this technology is changing constantly - after this article was published, FCP 7 was released which provides limited support for Blu-ray Discs.) (Published: Apr. 2009 ; Final Cut Pro v. 6, 7.x)

Working with Multiple HD Formats
As you move into editing HD footage, you will quickly discover that there are many, many, MANY different HD formats. This article describes what you can do when you are forced to work with more than one HD format in a project. (Published: Apr. 2009 ; Final Cut Pro v. 6, 7.x)