It takes far less effort to get dramatic footage from DaVinci Resolve. I've been using . With that editor, I've created several types of videos -- from how-tos to narratives -- with ease.
What first drew me to Final Cut Pro was its simplicity. It doesn't take long to start creating, and even using more advanced features doesn't require enrolling in a class. is as "Apple" as a video editor can be.
Recently, however, I embarked on a new project -- one far bigger in scope and scale -- that required a much more cinematic look. When I started filming test footage, I found myself struggling to get the look I wanted. Part of the problem was that (for this project) I was working with Log footage.
Simply put, Log footage looks flat and gray out of the camera but includes a larger dynamic range of colors than standard footage. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get that Log footage to look good in Final Cut Pro. After struggling for days, I finally reached out to a discussion group and asked for help.
At first, help came in the form of advice like "take a class in color grading" and "just use Rec709 instead of Log." Although there's some wisdom to that advice, it wasn't what I needed. Eventually, someone gave me the hard truth: Switch to .
Final Cut Pro didn't handle Log footage well, that person advised, and I'd be better off taking the time to learn DaVinci Resolve than continuing to struggle with Final Cut Pro. I took that advice. I should also say that I've tried DaVinci Resolv.