Logging Footage with Final Cut Pro

Have you ever tried to log some footage and had trouble getting the log and capture setup to recognize that your camera/deck is there? Perhaps you see that the window shows "VTR OK" but you still see color bars in the log and capture window. The camera/deck is playing but you don't see an image on the screen. This can be one of the most frustrating scenarios. You want to simply get the footage to start logging so that you can continue to work on other things in the background. Maybe you're missing part of the big game because you can't get your camera working right. 

Is it the camera? Is it the computer? Is it the connection? As it turns out, all of these things need to be in complete harmony or you won't be able to log anything. The first thing that you should check when you're trying to log the footage is that the camera has the correct settings. If you captured in HDV then make sure that you don't have the down-convert settings on. Make sure that the firewire setting is set to HDV and not to DV. Make sure that the camera is in VTR mode and not camera mode. 

The computer settings need to match the settings that the camera has. This is actually very simple in Final Cut Pro but can be frustrating if you don't do it right. Under the "File" menu, click on the "Easy Setup" option. In the window that will show up, find the setting that you configured your camera to display. From here you should be all set to log and capture.

If you find that these steps didn't get your camera to be recognized, you'll usually be able to fix the problem with a simple restart of the camera and the computer!