Those of you predominantly working with Final Cut Pro X know well how powerful and efficient the software could be even when running on an entry-level Mac. Unfortunately, the platform lacks many of the advanced features and assets that other professional NLEs like Adobe Premiere Pro CC and DaVinci Resolve provide by default.
Nevertheless, you can still bring some of this functionality to Final Cut X by installing a few neat plugins along the way. Harv of Harv Video/Audio Stuff shares a bunch of handy solutions that could help you to improve the overall functionality of FCPX by adding a few essential features some of which could not only be incredibly useful for your video editing workflow but also won’t cost you a dime.
Powered by Mocha engine, the Track X and Slice X plugins by CoreMelt allow you to track multiple objects in your frame including text or graphics to follow background motion directly in FCP X. This bundle can be beneficial when you want to insert floating lower thirds tracked to people, replace screens or signs, all with one step while eliminating the necessity to use another compositing package.
Skin Smoother 2 by FCPEffects is another essential add-on to Final Cut Pro X that quickly smooths out unwanted skin details. The plugin allows you to sample the skin tones directly from your clips and gives you loads of options to tweak its settings thus enabling you to achieve more natural results consistently.
The Lens Flare plugin by FCPEffects, on the other hand, adds realistic, anamorphic lens flares to your projects just with a few clicks. Currently, the plugin provides more than 60 beautiful, ready-to-go preset looks along with a plethora of intuitive controls for increased customization. It even features on-screen controls for easy positioning and keyframing that can be done on the fly.
If you need a high-quality denoiser for your projects, arguably the best option that comes to mind in an instance is the Neat Video Denoiser. In essence, the plugin is designed to reduce digital noise and other imperfections in your footage. It is a highly effective way to clean up video from any source including video cameras, digitized film, TV tuners and others, plus it’s considered as one of the best denoisers in the industry.
mLUT by MotionVFX not only allows you to add multiple custom LUTs to your projects while still giving you the option to customize their look further but it’s also completely free. It’s an excellent piece of software exclusively available for Final Cut Pro X and Motion 5 users.
The same goes for S-Curve plugin by CineLook. It’s straightforward and intuitive to use as it adds contrast to your images but as Harv points out it does it in a very subtle and natural way. Overall, it’s another must-have plugin that can be extremely useful, especially when working with Log footage in FCPX.
Last but not least, comes the White Balance 2 by FCPEffects. The plugin quickly and accurately fixes incorrect white balance by giving you an automatic white selection tool along with tone and comprehensive level controls for further tweaking.
All of these plugins can enhance your video editing workflow in FCPX and bring more value to your projects, so if you still don’t have them up and running on your Mac, we highly recommend them regardless of your skillset and level of expertise in video editing.
[source: Harv Video/Audio Stuff]
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Color Finale is the best plugin