Apple’s new Final Cut Pro apps turn the iPad into an impressive live multicam studio
At Let Loose 2024, Apple unveiled big changes to its Final Cut software that essentially turn your iPad into a mini production studio. Chief among these is the launch of Final Cut Pro for iPad 2. It’s a direct upgrade from the current app that can take full advantage of the new M4 chipset. According to the company, it can render videos up to twice as fast as Final Cut Pro on an M1 iPad.
Apple is also introducing a feature called Live Multicam. This allows users to connect their tablet to up to four different iPhones or iPads simultaneously and view a video feed from all sources in real time. You can even adjust the “exposure, focus (and) zoom” of each live feed directly from your master iPad.
When watching Apple’s demo video, selecting a source expands the footage to fill the entire screen, where you can then make any necessary adjustments. Tapping the Minimize icon in the bottom right corner will return creators to the four-part view. Apple states that previews from external devices are sent to Final Cut Pro so you can quickly start editing.
Impactful upgrades
You cannot connect your iPhone to the multicam studio via the regular camera app, which does not support installation. Users will instead have to install a new app called Final Cut Camera on their mobile device. In addition to Live Multicam compatibility, Apple says you can adjust settings like white balance, shutter speed and more to get professional-quality footage. The on-screen interface even allows videographers to check their footage via a zebra stripe pattern tool and an audiometer.
Going back to the Final Cut Pro update, there are other important features we have yet to mention. The platform “now supports external projects”. This means you can create a video project and import media to an “external storage drive” without sacrificing space on an iPad. Apple is also adding more customization tools to the software, such as 12 additional color correction presets and more dynamic backgrounds.
Final Cut Pro for Mac will also receive a substantial upgrade. Although it doesn’t support the four iPhone video feeds, version 10.8 does introduce several tools. For example, Enhance Light and Color offers a quick way to improve color balance and contrast in a clip, among other things. Users can also give video effects and color corrections a custom name to make them easy to recognize. It’s not a total overhaul, but these changes will take some of the headache out of video editing.
Availability
There are different availability dates for the three products. Final Cut Pro for iPad 2 will launch this spring and will be a “free update for existing users.” For everyone else, access costs $5/£5/$8 AUD per month or $50/£50/$60 AUD per year. Final Cut Camera will also be released in the spring and will be free for everyone. Final Cut Pro for Mac 10.8 is another free update for existing users. On the Mac App Store it will cost you $300/£300/$500 AUD.
We don’t blame you if you were completely unaware of the Final Cut Pro changes, as they were overshadowed by Apple’s new iPad news. Speaking of which, check out Ny Breaking’s guide to where to pre-order Apple’s 2024 iPad Pro and Air tablets.