Visual QuickStart Guide [Electronic resources] : Final Cut Express HD for Mac OS X نسخه متنی

Using Tape Output Modes

Recording Timeline Playback" later in this chapter.

Setting up for recording to tape

Before you record FCE's output on video tape, make sure that your recording device is connected and receiving video and audio output from FCE, and that the sequence or clip you're outputting is set up correctly.

Use this setup checklist for both tape output modes:

• Make sure your camcorder or deck is set to VTR (or VCR) mode (Figure 19.1 ). Final Cut Express can't record to devices set to Camera mode.

  
  

  Figure 19.1. Set your camcorder or deck to VTR (or VCR) mode.

  
  

  
  

• Make sure your video camcorder or deck is receiving output from Final Cut Express. Check the external video settings for your current Easy Setup. Your external video settings should send FCE's video signal to the external video device you want to record to (Figure 19.2 ). Enable the video output feed to your camcorder or deck by choosing View > Video Out > Apple FireWire.

  
  

  Figure 19.2. The last four settings in the Easy Setup window (highlighted here) indicate the video and audio output settings for this Easy Setup. The two PTV settings indicate video and audio output routing during a Print to Video operation. The settings shown here route video and audio output to your FireWire cable for playback and for PTV.

  
  

  
  

• Controlling playback and rendering quality" in Chapter 18.

  
  

  Figure 19.3. When FireWire output is selected, both RT and Video Playback quality options are dimmed. By default, FCE's FireWire output mode plays back non-rendered sections of your selected sequence or clip at High playback quality, overriding the image quality you selected for real-time playback in the Playback Video Quality section of the Timeline's RT pop-up menu.

  
  

  
  

  
  

  Figure 19.4. Specify image quality settings for rendered material in your sequence on the Render Control tab of the Sequence Settings window.

  
  

  [View full size image]

  

• If you want to print only a selected portion of a sequence or clip, open the clip or sequence and then set In and Out points to specify the portion you want to record (Figure 19.5 ).

  
  

  Figure 19.5. Set In and Out points to specify the portion you want to record.

  
  

  
  

• You should enable the Report Dropped Frames During Playback preference on the General tab of the User Preferences window. Feedback on dropped frames is especially critical during final output.

  If you enable dropped-frames reporting and find you're dropping frames in your external output during playback, you might try this first: Disable the Mirror on Desktop option on the A/V Devices tab of the Audio/Video Settings window. You'll immediately free up some performance power for the Print to Video functions.

  See "Optimizing Performance" in Chapter 2 and "Is Your System Capture-Ready?" in Chapter 5 for more tips on eliminating dropped frames by improving FCE's performance.

• Test your setup by recording a section of your show to tape. Play back the test recording and scrutinize the results in your external monitoring setup. Do the rendered sections of the program match quality with the rest of the footage? Are your titles crisp? Are your video levels within the recommended brightness range for your output format, or has your video image developed hot spots? Is the audio playback level healthy but not overmodulated? Are both stereo tracks balanced properly and panned correctly? A little extra care and patience now, when you're producing your final product, will protect all the care and patience you've lavished on your project so far.