If you're a Final Cut Pro user, you already know the power this software has to transform raw footage into cinematic masterpieces. However, to truly unlock its full potential, adding a few high-quality plugins can make all the difference. Here’s a look at five of the best plugins that can take your video editing to the next level, improving everything from colour grading to noise reduction.
1. MotionVFX Plugins
What It Does: MotionVFX offers a suite of plugins that include mTitle Cinematic and mTransition. The mTitle Cinematic plugin is perfect for adding professional, cinematic titles to your videos, giving them a polished and refined look. mTransition, on the other hand, provides dynamic transitions that can give your edits a creative flair.
How It Improves Your Project: These plugins can help you add that cinematic touch with minimal effort, making your videos look like they’ve been crafted by a Hollywood studio.
Price & Availability: Prices for individual plugins vary, with most starting around $49. You can purchase and download them directly from the MotionVFX website.
2. CoreMelt SliceX
What It Does: SliceX uses Mocha tracking technology to allow you to create complex masks and effects that follow movement within your shots. It’s particularly useful for advanced masking and tracking, giving you precise control over where and how effects are applied.
How It Improves Your Project: Perfect for adding targeted effects, or for when you need to mask out objects and track their movements seamlessly across your footage.
Price & Availability: SliceX is available for $99 and can be purchased directly from CoreMelt’s website.
3. Color Finale 2
What It Does: This powerful colour grading plugin offers advanced tools such as colour wheels, curves, and LUTs, providing extensive control over the colour correction and grading of your footage.
How It Improves Your Project: Colour Finale 2 is essential for anyone looking to achieve professional-grade colour correction. Whether you’re balancing colours across multiple clips or giving your project a unique visual style, this plugin is a game-changer.
Price & Availability: The standard version starts at $149, with more advanced options available at higher price points. You can purchase it from the Color Trix website.
4. Red Giant Universe
What It Does: Red Giant Universe offers a vast collection of visual effects and transition plugins, including retro looks, VHS effects, and unique transitions that can add a distinctive flair to your videos.
How It Improves Your Project: Ideal for editors who want to add a creative edge to their projects. Whether you’re looking to create a vintage aesthetic or add eye-catching transitions, Red Giant Universe has you covered.
Price & Availability: Universe is available as a subscription starting at $199/year. It's available from the Red Giant website.
5. Neat Video
What It Does: Neat Video is a specialised plugin that reduces noise and grain in your footage, especially useful for improving the quality of low-light or older footage.
How It Improves Your Project: By cleaning up noisy or grainy footage, Neat Video ensures your final project looks as crisp and professional as possible, making it an essential tool for editors dealing with less-than-perfect shots.
Price & Availability: Pricing starts at $74.90 for the Home version. You can find it on the Neat Video website.
Adding these plugins to your Final Cut Pro toolkit can significantly enhance your editing workflow, allowing you to produce stunning, professional-grade videos with ease. Whether you're looking to improve your colour grading, add creative effects, or clean up noisy footage, these plugins offer the tools you need to take your projects to the next level.
6. Editors Keys Microphone plugins
What It Does: The Editors Keys Vocal Plugin Pack offers a range of drag-and-drop audio filters designed for both Final Cut Pro and Adobe Premiere Pro. It enhances the sound quality of vocals captured by shotgun, desktop, or lavalier microphones, providing tailored presets for various microphone types and voice strengths.
How It Improves Your Project: This plugin pack instantly elevates your audio to professional standards, ensuring your vocals are as clear and polished as your visuals. With presets for different environments and voice characteristics, you can achieve the perfect sound effortlessly, saving time on manual adjustments. Whether you're recording indoors, outdoors, or with different microphone setups, these plugins offer versatile solutions for any project.
Price & Availability: £9.99 Purchase the Vocal Plugin Pack and receive instant access via email—no waiting for postal delivery. Start enhancing your audio within seconds. The pack is compatible with both Final Cut Pro and Adobe Premiere Pro, ensuring flexibility across workstations.
7. Editors Keys Masking Wipe Transition Pack
What It Does: The Editors Keys Masking Wipe Transition Pack provides a collection of object wipe transitions for Final Cut Pro, allowing you to create smooth, masking-style wipes between clips. The pack includes over 10 pre-made transitions and supports custom PNG objects for added creativity.
How It Improves Your Project: This transition pack saves you hours of manual work by automating the masking process, enabling you to achieve professional-looking effects with minimal effort. It enhances your video projects by adding visually striking transitions that seamlessly connect clips, giving your edits a polished, creative edge.
Price & Availability: £2.99 Available for immediate download, the Masking Wipe Transition Pack can be used within seconds of purchase. It is exclusively compatible with Final Cut Pro, making it the perfect addition to your editing toolkit.
LUTs (Look-up Table)
In addition to the plugins mentioned above, Editors Keys offers a fantastic range of LUTs (Look-Up Tables) that can dramatically enhance your video editing projects. LUTs are essential tools in video production, allowing you to apply professional-grade colour grading to your footage with just a few clicks.
What are LUTs? LUTs are pre-set colour profiles that can instantly transform the look and feel of your footage. Whether you’re aiming for a cinematic tone, a vintage vibe, or a vibrant pop of colour, Editors Keys LUTs provide you with the flexibility to achieve your desired aesthetic. By applying these LUTs during the editing process, you can ensure consistency across your entire project, making your video look polished and cohesive.
CLICK HERE to view our full range of fantastic Editors Keys LUTs available for all your favourite video editing softwares like LumaFusion, Adobe Premiere, Final Cut, DaVinci Resolve and more!
