Go fly with this software, it’s got wings….

Photo: Bianca Tamarit

When I wrote the first edition of The Easy Guide to Final Cut Pro way back when it was Final Cut Pro 2–1 had a clear vision of creating a book that was easy to follow, short on pages, and covered the essential areas of Apple’s professional editing software without trying to explain every single function the software was capable of.

There were other books on the market which were so many hundreds of pages in length, that went into such detail that the beginner or professional, who simply wanted to start cutting, had the overwhelming task of having to learn to be an aircraft pilot when all they wanted to do was to take a short journey on a plane.

I wanted to side-step the detail, jump right in and get the beginner or professional up to speed using Final Cut Pro in the shortest time possible.

This book presents to the reader the essential knowledge needed to edit with Final Cut Pro. While initially aimed at those using DV as their editing format, the book is relevant to all formats and all versions of Final Cut Pro. The interface and operation of Final Cut Pro in version 6 is remarkably similar to how it was in 1999 when the very first version of the software was released. And when moving from format to format the operation of the software is virtually the same.

This is the beauty of Final Cut Pro. It is format independent and each version builds on the last. Rather than radical changes in the software, new features are added without changing the look and feel from previous versions. Final Cut Pro provides the means to cut at any level with depth and power — be it on a desktop or a laptop.

But before one can perform a single edit one needs to understand the core knowledge to make the system work. That’s the challenge. Forget about the detail and focus on what is important. A builder does not examine what makes the drill spin — he or she simply squeezes the trigger and gets on with fulfilling the greater task…

So it is with Final Cut Pro — learn the essential functions and you will then be able to fulfil your creative vision whatever level you work at. To do this let’s begin right at the beginning, in a time when there were no computers, no hard drives, no ram or system buses or video cameras or codecs or RAIDS or even the electronic mouse… a time when editing was new and images were all there was.

Light, chemicals and images…

Photo: Fiona Young

Rick Young
Producer/Director/Editor
Shooting and Editing
On location, Valencia, Spain
July, 2007