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• Controlling Audio Effects in Final Cut Pro X
• by David Smith
• Applying filters to your audio clips is very straightforward in Final Cut Pro X. David Smith takes it one step further to show how practical workflows when adding effects to sections of dialogue.

• Preparing Video For The Web With QuickTime And Compressor
• by Ben Balser
• Preparing video for the web might seem like a mystery. Have no fear! Ben Balser shows how to use OS X Lion's Finder, QuickTime X and Pro 7 and Compressor 4 to get great results every time.

• Color Grading With Gradients In FCP X
• by Ben Balser
• Ben Balser, FCP X trainer and expert, demonstrates how to use gradients in Final Cut Pro X for color grading purposes. It helps to control the color of one area while leaving the other untouched.

• Converting HD Video To SD in Compressor
• by Ben Balser
• Apple's Compressor is useful for converting, encoding and generally being a handy tool for every video and audio editor out there. Ben Balser shares essential tricks for converting HD video to SD.

• FCP X: Exploring Surround Audio Handling
• by Iain Anderson
• Final Cut Pro X allows for surround sound editing. However, there are options you need to be aware of before you plunge right in. Iain Anderson delves into these and surround audio handling tips.

• Motion 5 201
• Crafting Final Cut FX Templates
• Did you know that Motion 5 is Final Cut Pro X’s special effects farm? They’re brother and sister programs designed to work together. In this tutorial you learn how to create all kinds of original Motion 5 effects templates that magically appear as presets right in FCP X!

• Final Cut Pro X 201
• Multicam Editing
• Learn the art of Multicam Editing in Final Cut Pro X in the 23-video tutorial created by our in-house, Final Cut "X"pert, Michael Wohl...

• Final Cut Pro X 204
• Managing Media
• Final Cut Pro X projects can incorporate tons of different assets in many different formats. Learn how to micro-manage them to speed up your workflow. FCP X Certified Trainer Ben Balser shows you all the tricks...

• Final Cut Pro X 202
• DSLR Workflows
• As DSLRs become the de facto standard in video production, they bring with them a host of challenges in an editor’s workflow. In this tutorial Final Cut Pro Master Trainer Jeff Greenberg shows you how to optimize your DSLR workflow in FCP X...

• Motion 5 108
• Creating Content For Final Cut Pro X
• One of the most important new features of Motion 5 is the ability to create content for Final Cut Pro X. Think of Motion as your very own "FX incubator" where everything you create can be saved as a custom plugin for FCP X. No more shopping around for those 3rd-party FX. In this tutorial Michael Wohl will teach you how to “roll your own”...

• Final Cut Pro X 108
• Exporting and Sharing Your Work
• Outputting to different video formats is one of Final Cut Pro X’s greatest assets. Learn everything you need to know about exporting and sharing your video projects from editor and motion graphics expert Michael Wohl...

• Final Cut Pro X 107
• Color Correction Techniques
• Final Cut Pro X comes with many new, intuitive and very cool color correction tools. Our in-house FCP X Guru, the “colorful” Michael Wohl, shows you FCP X’s virtual rainbow of new tools and techniques that you can use right outta-the-box! (Oops, I mean, right-outta-the-Mac App Store!).

• Final Cut Pro X 106
• Titles, Effects and Compositing
• Final Cut Pro X incorporates very powerful tools for creating titles, visual effects and complex composite shots. Join star trainer and video editor Michael Wohl, as he explores each of these techniques and shows you how they are created, customized and edited to perfection. So if you're wondering how create stunning effects in FCP X, this tutorial will get you going down the right path!

• Final Cut Pro X 105
• Working With Audio
• With Final Cut Pro X, video editors now have the powerful combination of audio tools and bundled plug-ins that can make your audio sound like it went to a $450/hour Post Production studio. Let Michael Wohl show you how to use them...

• Final Cut Pro X 104
• Advanced Editing Techniques
• Final Cut Pro X, with its easy-to-use, freeform timeline, is truly revolutionary. However, with new ideas come new challenges and tools. This in-depth editing tutorial by expert editor Michael Wohl, dives beneath the “Magnetic” timeline’s surface to show you FCP X’s many incredibly powerful editing modes and tools. Get this tutorial to learn all about the new, Advanced Editing Techniques in Final Cut Pro X.

• Final Cut Pro X 103
• Editing In The Magnetic Timeline
• FCP X’s timeline is not only “Magnetic” but also redefines the whole concept of what a timeline is and how it works! Join Michael Wohl, one of the original designers of Final Cut as he shows how this amazing new video editing canvas will make your editing easier, faster and more fun!

• Final Cut Pro X 102
• Media: Ingesting and Organizing
• Media management in Final Cut Pro X has been simplified, automated, optimized and streamlined. In this tutorial you’ll learn everything you need to know get your media into the project, organized and ready for cutting!

• Final Cut Pro X 101
• Overview and Quick Start Guide
• This tutorial is free to all mPV members! With the release of Final Cut Pro X, Apple has upped the ante in the nonlinear video editing world. Join expert video editor, Michael Wohl, in this FREE Overview and Quick Start Guide, and get the inside info about FCP X’s new features.

• Final Cut 7 105
• Sound Editing in Final Cut Studio
• Learn how to make perfect Audio for your Video productions in this 2-hour tutorial by Michael Wohl …

• Photoshop CS5 204
• Preparing Still Images for Final Cut Pro
• Learn how to prepare crisp, clear, HD images for Final Cut Pro … Michael Wohl (one of Final Cut Pro's original designers) shows you the way!

Preview these Final Cut Pro Tutorial-Videos

A very popular effect these days is the miniaturization of real life shots called Shift/Slant. It is a simple Optical effect using our brain's own physiological depth of field process to make us think we’re looking at a tiny miniature toy world, rather than the real one. Through the process I’ll explain how each step helps to mimic the look of a miniature animated diorama image.

Step 1 - Selecting or Shooting Appropriate Footage

This effect will work better on some shots than others. Preferably you want a shot that is taken from above, looking down on a large area.  It should have static architecture around the top and bottom, and movement should be limited to the center of the shot. Think of a shot that replicates you looking down into a small diorama. A great example would be the intro shots from Mister Rogers' Neighborhood. 

Step 2 - Retime The First Layer

Once you have your shot on your computer do the basics: Create a new Event (Option-N), import the clip (Shift-Command-I), create a new project (Command-N), and drop the clip into the new Project (E). The first thing we want to do is retime the clip to make it look more toy-like. 

Click on the clip, Command-R brings up the Retime bar, then click the Retime bar menu arrow and choose Fast > 4X. Adjust as needed by dragging the retiming handle at the end of the clip. 

The exact timing will depend on the specific clip you use. Make it play faster (but not too fast), just enough to make it surreal, similar to how the movements of model trains are not exactly like those of real trains.

Step 3 - Color Correction

Since toys and miniatures are often painted brighter colors than those of real life objects, we want to mimic this look. This next step over-saturates the image to make the colors more surreal.  With the clip selected in the Timeline, open the Color Board (Command-6). In the Saturation tab, pull the global slider on the left all the way up. If the clip is particularly dull, pull the Shadows, Midtones and Highlights sliders up as desired.

Step 4 - Defocusing

When we view a miniature diorama our eyes focus intensely on the center of the scene, causing some depth of field type of blurring. We need to mimic this. With our clip still selected, open the Effects browser (Command-5), go to the Blur category and double-click (or drag-and-drop) the Gaussian effect which applies it to our clip. Begin with setting Amount to 15, Horizontal and Vertical both to 100. We want only enough blur to be surreal, not too much.

Step 5 - Creating The Second Layer

We did all of our adjustments first, as we need most of them to be the exact same on both copies of our clip. Now we can Option-drag the clip from the Primary Storyline up and out of the Storyline. This creates a duplicate that is now a Connected clip above the original.  

Highlight it in the Timeline and in the Inspector, delete the Gaussian effect but leave everything else as is. This Connected clip above the first one will be the section of the animated diorama our eyes are focusing on. Our next step then is to apply a mask.

Step 6 - Matte The Second Layer

In the Effects browser, from the Keying category, add the Mask effect. With the effect highlighted in the Inspector, adjust the Viewer controls and set the 4 corners to cover the center third of the image, with the left and right sides of the mask just barely inside the frame. 

Then, adjust the position to focus on your main action as needed. Adjust the Feather plus or minus 15, Roundness to 50. This completes the two-layer effect: one being what our eyes would focus on, with the periphery that is unfocused, with toy-like colors and animated-like movement.

Conclusion

It’s really that simple to make the right real life shot look as if it were an animated toy diorama with the right original clip. As a challenge, attempt creating this on your own in Motion as an FCP X effect template and publish the appropriate parameters. If doing this in Motion, use a very slight stutter effect on it to make it look more animated. Then share it with the world!

Preview these Final Cut Pro Tutorial-Videos

Ben Balser

Ben Balser filmed his first video project on a silent 8mm wind-up Brownie camera when he was 14 years old. Having studied educational psychology at Loyola University and with a 20+ year IT career behind him, he produces, consults, and teaches media production full time. As an Apple Certified Master Trainer, he runs the Louisiana Cajun Cutters FCP users group, teaches Final Cut and Motion courses regularly at Louisiana State University and across the country, and does technical consulting for broadcast, educational, government, and private production facilities, as well as for local film projects.

FCPX, FCP X Effect, Fcp x tutorial, FCP X Tips, FCP X miniature, Shift/slant

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