Best all around plug in bundle?

Hello all! Beginner Fcpx user. Can you recommend a good plug in pack free or @$100? I am mostly making videos of my band in my studio, and some live stuff using multiple GoPros/Zoom Q2N. I am interested in creating camera "movement" as my cameras are often static. Also interested in transitions that are not goofy...I was eyeing the BJK 500 effects for FCPX as its only $75 and a friend recommended them. Any advice would be greatly appreciated and I am very green at video editing at this point. Here is a video below I did for my band...

1st, never use effects just to use effects. Have a reason for it, you're telling a story. And the same for transitions.

Shoot 4K, edit 1080, you can get multiple angles from a single camera. I do this daily in my broadcast work. When you put the 4K clips in the 1080 Timeline, set the Spacial Conform for those clips to None, scale to 50% (-ish) to make the whole frame fit. Up to 140% to get various close-ups.

Pretty much all the major developers have freebies, look through those first. But have a purpose that contributes to the storytelling before using an effect or fancy transition.

I can assure you a bundle with 500 things in it, you won't ever touch most of them. Spend wisely with purpose. Here are links to some freebies.

coremelt.com/products/free-plugins

www.crumplepop.com/email-list-free-product/

fxfactory.com/products/finalcutpro/

FCPX.guru wrote:
Shoot 4K, edit 1080, you can get multiple angles from a single camera. I do this daily in my broadcast work. When you put the 4K clips in the 1080 Timeline, set the Spacial Conform for those clips to None, scale to 50% (-ish) to make the whole frame fit. Up to 140% to get various close-ups.

Cropping a 4K video by 50% is not the same thing as a different camera angle.

Yes, it is, I do it daily. Wide shot and close up shot are not the same angle. Explain how they are.

FCPX.guru wrote: Yes, it is, I do it daily. Wide shot and close up shot are not the same angle. Explain how they are.

Are you serious?

Cropping and image is not the same thing as a different camera angle. If I have a wide shot of a band with a 6K camera at shoulder height I can crop the guitarist, singer and bass player really easy if I output at 1920 X 1080. On the other hand if I want a worms eye view of the lead singer or a birds eye view of the drummer simply cropping the shot will not change the angle. Does it make sense now?

That is super helpful, thank you. I think I am looking to keep the viewers interest. And you are right about not reaching for something unless it is warranted or adds to the story. I keep telling myself the best transition is usually a fast cut, especially in music videos. Although I do love a good cross fade lol. Thank you so much for taking the time to reply to a video newbie. Cheers!

FCPX.guru wrote: Shoot 4K, edit 1080, you can get multiple angles from a single camera. I do this daily in my broadcast work. When you put the 4K clips in the 1080 Timeline, set the Spacial Conform for those clips to None, scale to 50% (-ish) to make the whole frame fit. Up to 140% to get various close-ups.

yep ! Alternatively you can also let Spacial Conform as it is and scale as desired (UHD to HD: I zoom 200% and it's perfect, - at least with my footage)

different framings like if you had two cams in the old days, (and yes FcpX would call it "Angles")

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don't feed the troll lurking around !

arc wrote:

FCPX.guru wrote: Yes, it is, I do it daily. Wide shot and close up shot are not the same angle. Explain how they are.

Are you serious?

Cropping and image is not the same thing as a different camera angle. If I have a wide shot of a band with a 6K camera at shoulder height I can crop the guitarist, singer and bass player really easy if I output at 1920 X 1080. On the other hand if I want a worms eye view of the lead singer or a birds eye view of the drummer simply cropping the shot will not change the angle. Does it make sense now?

I think Ben is referring to the fact that you can crop, re-size and reposition (using x and y controls) to create a new framing composition for the shot (from the same original shot). This may not technically be an "angle" but it is another view. With 360 cameras you can then truly capture various "angles" such as the side of a singers face vs. a straight on shot and have a completely different perspective all from one single 360 clip. I am sure Ben knows that and was just making a point.

I am hip to cropping the shot but cropping the shot is still using the same angle. Having said that there is a reason to use multiple cameras. I am hip to 360 cameras but even a 360 camera has a fixed position. Keep in mind a 360 camera in the end zone, the 50 yard line and the bleachers will all have a different perspective.

Of course that is true. But using multiple cameras is a totally different thing. This was about providing different compositions from a single camera.

dgwvideo wrote: Of course that is true. But using multiple cameras is a totally different thing. This was about providing different compositions from a single camera.

If you read the original post MartianO stated he uses a multi-cam setup. FCPXGuru stated he did not need to use multi-cam setup. I simply stated cropping the shot is not the same as a different camera angle. It depends on what the end result will be if using one camera will work or not.

Filmmaking 101, a different angle is anything more than 20-30 degrees in any direction, x, y or z. I do this all the time, it's way more than just a crop. But of course, I'm sure Arc has way more years under his belt than I do. And I don't recall saying I didn't need to use a multi-cam, when did that come up?

"yep ! Alternatively you can also let Spacial Conform as it is and scale as desired (UHD to HD: I zoom 200% and it's perfect, - at least with my footage)"

Um, that's not good information. If you leave spacial conform to "fit" and zoom to 200% it will not be perfect. It will be at 50% of your source frame's resolution and look blurry. Shoot 4K then (on a 1080) timeline set spacial conform to "none" then go from that 50% scale up to 100% (as desired) for your reframing.

Welcome Brian to fcp.co

Martian0..O wrote: …. I am interested in creating camera "movement" as my cameras are often static. Also interested in transitions that are not goofy...…

a good source (the biggest btmk) for free plugins is here @fcp.co:
www.fcp.co/forum/9-free-fcpx-plugins-and-templates

but, as said before: 'effects' for being just effect doesn't add to a project.

At our schools filmklub we had 'music videos' as topic a while ago. The kids found out, there are just a handful CONCEPTS for a music-video:
• documenting the making of music (in studio, on stage, on location)
• illustrating the content of a song one-on-one
• telling a complete different story in the video
• l'art pour l'art (often: demoing skills of new software)

I like your 'documentation' of how your music is made, esp. that living-room situation… very… authentic.

Now, for the making of a video: the extreme would be a single wide-angle, uncut 'doc'. Adding another camera/perspective/angle has to answer the question: what for?

The most used reason is: to cut to the 'dominant' instrument, simple example: cut to guitar when playing solo, or to singer, or… 
=> the video mimics the structure of the song!

And we instantly reach the point of 'editing' - when camera is the melody, then edit is the rhythm (not just beat)… 

I would forget the 'candy' for a while. A good, 'clean' cut gives better results.
If you like to add 'effect', a simple and fast done but nice one is desaturating the clip, make it black/white… adds some 'authenticity'

nice music, to mention that …

JarrodMFay wrote: "yep ! Alternatively you can also let Spacial Conform as it is and scale as desired (UHD to HD: I zoom 200% and it's perfect, - at least with my footage)"

Um, that's not good information. If you leave spacial conform to "fit" and zoom to 200% it will not be perfect. It will be at 50% of your source frame's resolution and look blurry. Shoot 4K then (on a 1080) timeline set spacial conform to "none" then go from that 50% scale up to 100% (as desired) for your reframing.

um, Jarrod what you say in wrong and somehow you are missing the point for my UHD footage in a 1080 Timeline

there is no difference I can see it right now in front of my very eyes.

of course things it's different for one of the 4K possible format but if you are UHD as I wrote (wich is the best way to go -> 1080 ) it's the same. Of course ! they are both 16/9°

I have to back up Jarrod on this one. Leaving the footage set to "Fit" does something wonky in FCPX. Export that footage and it'll be blurry. Set to None, work with native resolutions where 100% is actually 100%.

FCPX.guru wrote: Filmmaking 101, a different angle is anything more than 20-30 degrees in any direction, x, y or z. .

Is it 20 degrees or is it 30 degrees? You must see the two images below as different camera angles. I don't know of anyone who consider the two images as different camera angles. I think the actual camera must be moved on the X, Y and Z to be considered a different camera angle as opposed to simply rotating an image on the Z axis or cropping the shot. For the record I think we have all cropped images many many times.

With all due respect to all involved, isn't there another forum you could join to argue about semantics? The OP has been answered fully and I think we can all move on now?

JarrodMFay wrote: With all due respect to all involved, isn't there another forum you could join to argue about semantics? The OP has been answered fully and I think we can all move on now?

People were squabbling about a few things in this thread. It happens.

arc wrote:

JarrodMFay wrote: With all due respect to all involved, isn't there another forum you could join to argue about semantics? The OP has been answered fully and I think we can all move on now?

People were squabbling about a few things in this thread. It happens.

woa arc , when you are precisely the person who started the squabbling about angles ? * as you always do

very impressive in term of perversion

*and you did it agressively, as you always do, also.