My first job today in FCPX was to re-log the footage that I had shot yesterday. So, I repeated the process of bringing in the video and the separate audio and syncing it up on the timeline … Or, whatever the heck we're now supposed to call it in FCPX. Didn't take me too long to sync up the sound, so, I went quickly onto marking and logging the different parts of yesterdays interview.

This was pretty smooth. Adding markers with notes to clips was the same as always -- hitting the M key. I managed to log and make notes on a 20 minute interview in about 90 minutes.

I then wanted to take a small part of the interview and try a little colour grading. Although I lit the scene as planned I am not 100% happy with the results. So, I wanted to see whether a little colour grading could help improve it a bit … And this is where I ran into problems.

I wanted to re-create the blurred background effect that I had done so easily in Premiere Elements the other day (http://www.gregmcqueen.com/more-than-just-talk). This meant using a garbage matte. I clicked on the effects section … And, to my utter shock and surprise, there are no garbage mattes. In fact, there isn't much of anything.

After a little digging around online I found out that things like a simple 4 point garbage matte aren't included in FCPX. Apparently, we are expected to ship our footage over to Motion (another Apple app) and then back to FCP again. This really made me quite mad. I mean, here I am thinking, "Okay, give FCP another bash, it can't be all that bad -- I just need to re-learn where everything is." Except, I am not just re-learning where everything is, suddenly now, to do a simple layering effect that took me about 30 minutes to do in Adobe Premiere Elements, I have to learn yet another Apple app!

I mean, Adobe Premiere Elements is Adobe's equivalent of iMovie. So, I can do something in a "hobby" app that I can't do in a "Pro" app?

I realise there are people out there who are in love with Apple and will take anything the company throws at them. I am not one of those people. I also realise that Apple are trying to re-invent non-linear editing in some way. I heard a screencast on FCPX today saying, "Apple have taken the broken model of NLE from the last ten years and re-invented it for the next ten years."

Well, I have news for you Apple … NLE wasn't broken. It worked just fine. And it still works just fine the way it works in most of your rival products.

So. I have given FCPX its final --- FINAL! -- chance.

I am moving over to Adobe Premiere Pro. I found Elements to be a great app. I managed to get up and running editing in that within minutes, however, I quickly hit a wall with the limitation of only being able to run one timeline. I need to be able to run several timelines within the same project … I mean, by the end of tomorrow I will already have two interviews, which, I want to edit separately down to the essential content and then bring together … That's at least three timelines there.

I have downloaded the trial of Premiere Pro. I also realised that you can subscribe to Adobe's apps. So, rather than pay for the software upfront, you can effectively rent it on a monthly or yearly basis. So, when my trial runs out in 30 days I'll rent it for as long as I need.

I guess I should thank Apple. I mean, I have to write a thesis in a few months on how companies can use video for branding and marketing. Part of that paper will be about finding a video workflow. Realising that I am no longer in love with Final Cut Pro certainly will give me something to write about.

*A few addition thoughts having spend an hour fiddling with Premiere Pro:

What I loved about earlier versions of Final Cut Pro is that the app really felt like a tool. The interface was all business; not just a fancy-looking bit of software. I feel that way again having spent only an hout in Adobe Premiere Pro. It feels like a solid and reliable work enviroment.

I feel as though I can finally put aside any notions of rekindling my relationship with FCP and just get on with some damn work.