Chapter 4 Using the Log and Transfer Window 75
ÂMedia volume name: The name of a mounted volume, disk image, or folder. If you have
write access to a media volume, you can change the volume name in the Finder.
ÂMedia file: A file containing one or more video or audio tracks of sample data.
Media files contain your actual footage (also called content or essence). Associated
video and audio content (for example, interview footage including both image and
sound) may be stored together in a single file or as separate files. Separated video
and audio must be associated together via a metadata file (P2 cards have an XML
file for this purpose).
Many media files are stored in a general-purpose container format, such as QuickTime
or MXF, which then contains tracks or streams of video, audio, and metadata content.
AIFF, Wave, TIFF, and JPEG are also examples of types of media files.
ÂMXF: A media file standard for wrapping video or audio and associated metadata
into a single container file. An MXF file is similar to a QuickTime file; they are both file
formats for storing media and metadata about the media. For more information, see
“About MXF” on page 66.
ÂMetadata: Generally, secondary data describing the primary data. In the case of
media, the primary data is the video and audio samples themselves, and the
metadata is descriptive information attached to it, such as shooting time, GPS
coordinates, camera operator name, shot and take number, sample rate, video
codec used, and so on.
ÂProxy media file: A low-resolution copy of a media file, usually stored as an MPEG-4
file. A proxy can be used for fast transfer and preview of footage. Not all formats
record proxy files.
ÂClip: An object in Final Cut Pro that refers to—or points to—a media file on disk.
ÂReel name: A property stored in each clip in your Final Cut Pro project to remind you
which media volume your clip’s original media is stored on. A clip’s reel name is
especially important when you are reingesting a clip and you need to find the
volume containing the original media.
ÂSpanned clip: A single clip that consists of two or more media files. Spanned clips are
created whenever you record a single shot that exceeds the capacity of your storage
media (or, in the case of P2 cards, if your footage exceeds 4 GB). In this case, the
camcorder seamlessly continues recording to a new media file on the next available
storage medium. For more information, see “Working with Spanned Clips” on page 89.