Free FCE plugins - Have fun

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Level 5

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Free FCE plugins - Have fun

As some of you already know some free plugins are available here.

Recently I added some more ( Reflections, Quarter PIP and Clone) that came to my mind while editing my videos.

Some effects probably could be made by existing standard plugins (not the FCE Timecode in FCE, though), or by properly using overlapped clips and Basic Motion contols. But having a specific filter for a new effect is nice...

They haven't been tested much. And anyway only by myself, with the exception of the oldest ones. So probably some problems are still there. Mainly I'm referring to NTSC videos since I can fully test only PAL (I don't have a NTSC camcorder).

So, you are free to use them, test them, and please make suggestions a report bugs.

Have fun

Piero

iMac G5 20" iSight 2.1GHz 1.5GB RAM, Mac OS X (10.4.8), 2x250 GB LaCie Porsche, MVX4i PAL Camcorder

Posted on Oct 13, 2006 2:22 PM

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Answer 1

Oct 13, 2006 4:10 PM in response to PieroF

Hi(Bonjour) Piero!

Thank you for your plugins, it' generous to share your work.

merci!

Michel Boissonneault

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Answer 2

Oct 14, 2006 3:25 AM in response to PieroF

Thanks Piero.

I saw your post minutes after you sent it and downloaded the filters.

After playing with them for a few minutes, I was too tired to reply as it was getting pretty late.

The Clone Filter looks as though it could prove very useful but I have not yet got to grips with the Mirror Effect.

Your website is beginning to look very impressive.

Ian.

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Answer 3

PieroF Author

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Oct 14, 2006 4:26 AM in response to Ian R. Brown

Thanks Michel and Ian for looking at them.

About the Clone: the whole idea is to copy one area of the frame to another area.

In the pictures given as examples on my site: in the topmost picture I copied the area containing the camel (and left some transparency); in the middle I copied a part of the green background over the red boy, to hide it.

In both cases I copied areas in the same frame.

The third is trickier: I copied the full frame (not just part of) to itself, but actually using a previous frame as a source: exactly the frame coming 25 frames = 1 second (PAL) before. Plus some transparency. The you can see the dancer and his ghost coming 1 second behind.

In a while on my site you might find a new filter applying variable speed to clips... (I know this is already possible in FCP)

Piero

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Answer 4

Oct 14, 2006 5:01 AM in response to PieroF

I was able to use the Clone filter after a few seconds but the Mirror baffled me. I got some fantastic distortions from it! I will experiment again when I have more time.

The Variable Speed filter sounds very useful. I think it is called "Time Remapping".

A few weeks ago someone on the forum was asking about such an effect. Tom said he could get something similar by cutting up his clip and applying speed increases (or decreases) to each piece.

However, when your filter becomes available it should make Time Remapping in FCE a lot easier.

I have just found the thread and on it I suggested you might discover a way - but you said it was impossible!

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=2456792&#2456792

Is it only likely to work with FCE 3.5 which can keyframe effects?

Ian.

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Answer 5

PieroF Author

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Oct 14, 2006 8:51 AM in response to Ian R. Brown

Yes, I thought it was not possible to remap time. But I found a function that allows to do it, the same I used in the Clone filter. I'm still struggling with blending the right fields to get the smoothest possible movement, but I hope I'll get it working soon.

Thanks for testing and returning your feedbacks

Piero

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Answer 6

Oct 15, 2006 4:10 AM in response to PieroF

Hi Piero

Great !! Thank you for your plugins.

Tusen Tack - Mille Grazie

There should absolutley be a Star system for most generous people !!

Bengt Wärleby - Sweden

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Answer 7

Oct 15, 2006 7:11 AM in response to Bengt Wärleby

If any of you are new to the forum and have enjoyed Piero's free filters and would like some more, you will no doubt be pleased to learn that there are possibly hundreds scattered about the internet.

However, to save you time searching, you can download about 55 Transitions, Effects and Generators from the 2 links below.

The Download time is only about 5 seconds and in a few more seconds you can have them all installed in FCE or FCP.

http://fxscript.org/plugins.html

http://www.mattias.nu/plugins/

Ian.

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Answer 8

VJK

Level 5

4,260 points

Oct 16, 2006 8:47 AM in response to Ian R. Brown

Piero, first of all, thanks for making these plugins available to all of us!

But ... I am having a prob. Because I refuse to have internet hooked up to my Macs I have to save files to a USB key, plug that into my Macs and open them there. I do this regularly and had no probs

So, I save your Zip files to the key and try to open them onto the Mac and they won't ... is it because they are Zip, which I don't have on the Macs? Any workaround?

Thanks

Vic

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Answer 9

PieroF Author

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4,283 points

Oct 16, 2006 3:37 PM in response to VJK

Thanks to all for trying the plugins.
Any feedback will help me to improve them.

VJK,
I zipped them with the Mac OS (10.4.8) embedded zipping facility, using its Finder contextual menu. Maybe 10.3.9 does not have zip/unzip embedded? I really I do not remember.
But I think Stuffit Expander should be able to unzip them.

If you are still in trouble let me know, I'll post them also as bare text files.

I did not do it so far because if you download their text files you have to fix their encoding as described in the "Plugin Installation" page in my site. This is nothing special, but is annoying; and you need TextWrangler or similar text editor for doing it (unless you know something better).

Piero

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Answer 10

VJK

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Oct 16, 2006 3:59 PM in response to PieroF

Thanks Piero ...when I'm next at the Macs I'll see what I can come up with

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Answer 11

PieroF Author

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Oct 16, 2006 11:24 PM in response to VJK

In any case I updated the Plugin Installation page with their text version, just in case.

Piero

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Answer 12

PieroF Author

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Oct 20, 2006 12:54 PM in response to PieroF

The Time Remap filter is now available in Time Remap.
This emulates the FCP Time Remapping function, as far as it is possible with a filter (and my knowledge of fxscript:-)

As for the other filters in the same site any suggestion, comment, bug report will be very welcome.

Piero

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Answer 13

Oct 20, 2006 2:02 PM in response to PieroF

Hi Piero.

Congratulations on producing the Time Remap Filter.

I think, however, a slight rewording of these instructions may be needed:-

"These Final Cut Express HD effects were tested only in Final Cut Express HD v3.5, but they’ll likely work also in OTHER VERSIONS OF FCE and FCP".

I suspect the Remap Filter requires an application with the ability to keyframe effects, so it is unlikely to work with earlier versions of FCE.

I will send you my test results as soon as I have completed them - next year! (I'm still on FCE 3.0).

Ian.

PS. What about a filter to make all FCE 3.0 filters keyframeable? ........Perhaps that is really impossible.

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Answer 14

PieroF Author

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Oct 20, 2006 2:31 PM in response to Ian R. Brown

Ian, you are absolutely right!

Time Remap is useless if you cannot keyframe it...
I fixed the instructions.

Thanks for your comment.
And I hope you'll convert to 3.5 soon. I'm repeating myself, I know, but I don't know how I could live without keyframes in 3.0...

Thanks again
Piero

(About a filter to make all FCE 3.0 filters keyframeable, well, somebody already did it, as you probably know: CHV Keyframe Collection - I'll take a rest!)

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Answer 15

PieroF Author

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4,283 points

Oct 30, 2006 8:02 AM in response to PieroF

I added some functions to make my Time Remap as similar as possible to the FCP functions, within the limits of fxscript and of my experience with it...

New functions:
1. real time remap: v1.0 had only a variable speed function. Now you can choose any frame from the source media and map it into any timecode of the clip;
2. an Info Box showing the basic infos that help in defining the needed control values.

Hope somebody will use it and let me know his/her comments.

Piero

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