Forums | MacLife

It's because of the software.

iMovie is quite a bit easier to use than Windows Movie Maker, and tends to produce generically inoffensive results in the hands of a novice.

If you're more high-end, of course, Final Cut is regarded as either as good as or better than any other video editing package. In any case, "best" is a function of features, ease of use, price, and other factors - not being a pro videgrapher, I have no clue what that means, I just keep reading it everywhere. When Final Cut was released, it apparently replaced Adobe Premier almost overnight.

At the extreme high end, you have software like Shake, that is pretty much restricted ($4999) to extremely serious video editors and movie studios. Apple bought the company, rather than create their own software from scratch. It originally was designed to run on Windows NT. It now runs on OS X and Linux.

Shake isnt' an editing application.  It is a compositing application.

But they are right, it is the software that is key.  Avid, which is still the king of non-linear editing software, works on both Mac and PC...so there is no contest there.  But then comes FCP for the Mac, and Premiere Pro for the PC.  I'll wager that FCP is superior to Premiere (having not touched Premeire since v2) because, well, broadcast television companies are using it.  Coupled with a good capture card like AJA or Decklink, FCP can go toe to toe with an Avid...win in some areas, lose in some areas.  Premiere cannot claim to do the same.

Then there is Final Cut Express and Avid Express Pro for the Mac...and Avid Express Pro for the PC, as well as Vegas and Edius.  This is the midrange level of NLE.

Then there is iMovie for the Mac and Movie Maker for the PC. 

All do good in the areas they were designed for.  People successfully use all of these apps to make a living.  Which is better?  Depends on what you are trying to accomplish.  Different tools for different jobs.

dvpierce wrote:

If you're more high-end, of course, Final Cut is regarded as either as good as or better than any other video editing package. In any case, "best" is a function of features, ease of use, price, and other factors - not being a pro videgrapher, I have no clue what that means, I just keep reading it everywhere. When Final Cut was released, it apparently replaced Adobe Premier almost overnight

i disagree.  Avid's editing softwear is better for anyone working in a networked enviornment with a lot of shared video.

I would take Final Cut over Premiere any day. Stability was my main reason for switching. Final Cut is rock solid.

Digital Droo wrote:

For many things, yes. Still has issues here and there. Rendering. Offline to Online conversions. The occasional beach ball when nudging certain tracks. Moving keyframes. The fun "General Error" messages.

But all in all, very usable.

-droo

Hey Droo,
I may not be the power user like you ( ) but I have had zero problems in Final Cut. I am a version behind and running 10.3.8 on a dual G5... maybe that's it...