UPDATE: July 4, 2011

This totally free Final Cut Pro X tutorial will get you started with editing in the brand new interface. The author at Izzy Video has 2 hours and 39 minutes of video training for FCP X. This is a good way to see if the app is for you…so watch and learn before you buy.

UPDATE: June 23, 2011

Rumors continue to flourish about what FCPX can and can not do. Steve Martin, wrote a great article for Ken Stone’s Final Cut Pro Website. This is a VERY informative article on the features of FCPX.

UPDATE: June 22, 2011

Apple is indeed aware that that other apps are needed to complete the new FCPX and additional apps are on the way. Meanwhile, I have posted several links to reviews and insights from several well known video editing industry professionals.

1) CreativeCOW.net – FCPX: Ready or Not, Here it Comes…
2) Phillip Hodges – What are the Answers to the Unanswered Questions about Final Cut Pro X?
3) Larry Jordan – Ain’t Nothing Like It In The World
4) CreativeCOW.net – GET READY TO RUMBLE: Perfect setup for a seamless transition to FCP X and OS X Lion

Final Cut Pro X was released today as a $299 download from the App Store. Final Cut Pro X is completely rebuilt from the ground up featuring 64-bit architecture, GPU utilization, Grand Central Dispatch, ColorSync-managed color pipeline, and native support for AVCHD, H.264, and many other codecs. We also have companion apps Motion 5 and Compressor 4 for $49.99 each from the Mac App Store.

Below is a first look video created by MattsMackintosh.

FCPX does have certain minimum hardware requirements – The full system specifications are here.

• Mac computer with an Intel Core 2 Duo processor or better
• 2GB of RAM (4GB of RAM recommended)
• OpenCL-capable graphics card or Intel HD Graphics 3000 or later
• 256MB of VRAM
• Display with 1280-by-768 resolution or higher
• MacOSX v10.6.7 or later

Final Cut Pro X on 2011 iMac

Many of us use our DSLR to record video. One issue we all seem to have is with audio. Many of us, myself included use external audio recorders such as the H4n Zoom and Tascam DR-100 to eliminate the “dirty analog/digital converters” built into the Canon 5DMK2. FCPX has now included a few plugins that will become very useful in cleaning up noise.

• Match Audio for smoothing out EQ from different microphones
• Audio enhancements for volume normalization, background noise removal, and hum removal for both 50Hz and 60Hz
• Audio analysis during import option to remove serious background noise and flag medium-level issues for enhancement

Easy Color Correction Options

• Unique Color Board with controls for saturation, exposure, and colorMatch Color for precise shot matching in one click
• Balance Color instantly improves skin tones, removes color casts, and expands dynamic range of bright and dark regions of the image.
• Key frameable masks with size, rotation, and softness adjustments
• Adjust inside or outside of color mask
• Unlimited numbers of color corrections per shot
• Save and reuse color settings presets
• 20 Color Board presets
• Over 20 advanced color Looks in the Effects Browser

Supported Import/Export Options – my personal highlights for those of us using Nikon, Canon, and Panosonic DSLR’s for video production.

• Apple ProRes family, a 10-bit, full-width VBR codec that supports all major frame sizes and frame rates from ProRes Proxy to ProRes 4444
• Background transcode original media to ProRes 422 or ProRes Proxy for better performance
• H.264 from DSLR cameras
• AVCHD, including Panasonic AVCCAM and Sony NXCAM
• Uncompressed 8- and 10-bit SD and HD
• Still images including PSD, BMP, GIF, RAW, JPEG, PNG, TGA, and TIFF
• Compressed audio including AAC, AIFF, BWF, CAF, MP3, MP4, and WAV
• Import Camera Archives from third-party video capture cards and software.
• Import projects and Events from iMovie.
• Export presets for Apple devices, including Apple TV, iPhone, iPad, and Mac
• Export presets for YouTube, Podcast Producer, Facebook, Vimeo, CNN iReport, and email
• Export and burn DVD, AVCHD disc, and Blu-ray disc.
• Export as HTTP live streaming for Internet streaming to cellular, Wi-Fi, and broadband.

There are pro video editors that feel as if FCPX is iMovie 11′ on steroids. Well, maybe it is in some small way. However, FCPX is an all new video editor that has features designed for many of us. I see FCPX as being the best video program for those of us shooting weddings and creating commercial video clips for small business and social media websites. Final Cut Pro Studio cost $1200 and had more features than I really needed. PLUS, it was slow as hell to render video to final output….even on Mac Pros. I found iMovie 11′ to be interesting to play with, but a real pain in the #$@& for real work.

Final Cut Pro X is for photographers and videographers that want an easy to use video editing program. I suspect that Apple will add significant options for the professional video editor in the next few months, it is almost a given. Maybe Apple just needed to bring the hardware up to speed first and then Apple will continue updating more pro apps.

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