Final Cut Pro or Premiere for weddings!

locate · #1 (**permalink**) 03-11-2008, 07:18 AM

Hi All,
First of all I wanted to know what all the wedding videographers were using to edit, Final Cut Pro (MAC) or Premiere (PC), Sony Vegas?
Im currently using a 3yr old premiere system with a matrox x100 and its about time to step up a gear. I was really up for getting a Mac etc, but when I learnt it takes really long to render material (reading on the apple forums) it has now put in doubt. of the time its going to take to render, confirm and encode. Currently using the matrox everything is pretty much realtime, which is brilliant, but its not very stable. Majority of the weddings I cover are asian which can be very lengthy, do you think a mac could cope with me editing such long timelines with effects etc..
So basically trying to get an idea of experiences with Final Cut Pro and lengthy weddings and time it takes to render, confirm and encode, based on lets say 1.45hrs of edited footage. Currently using DVCAM but most likely going to be moving to HDV..

Thanks all..

Andy Lockwood · #2 (**permalink**) 03-11-2008, 07:34 AM

Hi. And welcome!

I use Vegas and although I run miles from weddings (and I think you are brave tackling Asian weddings... there's so much going on!) I regularly edit lengthy stage productions with it. Vegas is un-endingly stable, provides all the tools and more you'll almost ever need and is in my opinion the dogs soft bits. Rendering can take time if there's alot of effects in the chain, but I just leave it overnight to do it's stuff.

Download a trial and see how you get on.... Sony Creative Software - Download: Trials and Demos

Chuck Engels · #3 (**permalink**) 03-11-2008, 07:18 PM

I use Premiere CS3, After Effects CS3, Soundbooth and Premiere Elements 3 along with Encore CS3 for DVD Authoring.

MOSH · #4 (**permalink**) 03-12-2008, 01:27 PM

FCP for me, turn on the Unlimited real time rendering at it should be fine, most people seem to miss this option. It will only become slow it you are really hammering it with 8+ effects on each clip.

Although I don't do weddings, I've produced several 2 hour multi camera performance videos, and rendering and exporting weren't really an issue, this includes colour grading through the duration, the occasional luma/chroma key, and a whole load of cross dissolves, as well as motion graphics and titles.

If exporting in full native quality from FCP is surprisingly quick (5 minutes can be exporting in a matter of seconds). rendering obviously depends on what you've done to the video, but I don't think the above 2 hour projects took any longer than real time to render on a single processor. (256MB Gfx) Encoding for the dvd took longer, but was still done well within hours rather than days/over night

Mark W · #5 (**permalink**) 03-13-2008, 09:51 PM

I would say that your choice of editor is the least important factor - they all rule really.

Try beofr you buy, links to free trials in the links section a top of page.