Apple Final Cut Express HD - Manual (Page 179)

Chapter 14 Capturing Your Footage to Disk 179
IV
Additional Tape Label Information
For some projects, the following label information may also be helpful:
 Location and date
 Project name
 Number of audio channels and microphone setup
 Total running time (TRT)
 Camcorder model used
Logging Your Tapes
Before you capture footage from your tapes, you should familiarize yourself with their
content. One way to become acquainted with your footage is to log it, breaking your
tapes down into a list of named clips defined by timecode In and Out points.
Traditionally, the logging process consisted of the following steps:
 Play a tape.
 While watching the tape, determine points on the tape where you want to define a clip.
 Write the reel name (tape name), timecode In and Out points, and description of the clip.
You can log this information on paper or in a database or spreadsheet program. However,
because logging tapes before they are captured can be tedious, some editors skip this step
and capture entire tapes, breaking the footage into subclips within Final Cut Express HD
later. This process is sometimes referred to as logging after capturing.
Aside from the practical matters of selecting which footage to capture to disk, there are
many editorial benefits to reviewing your footage in this way:
 The first time you watch the footage is the first and only time you can watch it
objectively. Your gut reactions are important to note at this time. They serve as
valuable reminders of what a first-time viewer may think of the footage long after
you have seen the same shots over and over again.
 The better you know your footage, the more options you have when you’re stuck in
an editorial corner.