I’ve been noodling around in iMovie for a few years, but there was plenty just bugging me and slowing me down with it. Mostly I found that going back and editing a sequence could really screw up the timing of the whole movie. So the logical thing to do was to move on, and I decided to move on to Final Cut Express (version 3.5 when I bought it).
Here’s what happens: you install Final Cut and all the tools it comes with, fire it up all excited, and… panic. Then get frustrated that you’re doing less than you could in iMovie. Then get depressed. What I did, pretty much the same day I installed Final Cut, was go out and get a copy of Final Cut Express HD 3.5 Editing. I found the book exactly what I needed, with a DVD containing sample projects I could work through to check I was getting the right end product, and a section on moving from iMovie to FCE. Recommended.
I’ve also found a couple of vodcasts that were helpful: Creative COW Final Cut Pro Podcast and Final Cut Help Podcast.
Turns out it’s not so daunting after all, but of course I always knew I could just phone Ray…