Edit on an External Hard Drive and Save Money
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- Опубликовано: 5 июл 2024
- Editing on an external hard drive like an SSD and following this very important tip can save you money. If you're editing audio, photography or video, and using programs like Final Cut Pro, Adobe Premiere, or Davinci Resolve, these tips can help you set up your post production process and save money while doing it. Whether you have the Samsung T5 or the SanDisk Extreme SSD, this bonus tip will help you save more space on your Hard Drive so that you can store more content.
In this Final Cut Pro tutorial, I bring you behind the scenes of my personal workflow on how I setup these external SSDs and edit on the everyday. If you're editing video and need more space, but can't upgrade your internal hard drive, an external SSD is the way to go.
Time Stamps:
Intro: 0:00 - 01:00
Intro SanDisk: 01:20
Intro Samsung: 01:30
Reasons for External Drives: 01:50
Speed: 02:50
Working with Teams: 04:08
Mounting The Drives: 04:50
Workflow: 05:30
Bonus Tip: 07:20
Gear mentioned in this Video:
Samsung T5: geni.us/HoSb5A (Amazon)
Samsung T7 (updated model): geni.us/34xm7n (Amazon)
SanDisk Extreme: geni.us/ZJbcs (Amazon)
Sandisk Extreme Pro (updated model): geni.us/h5d9vj (Amazon)
Command Strips: geni.us/KnFM (Amazon)
SSD Enclosures (If you're interested in building your own):
TB3 Enclosure: geni.us/kVZhEMT (Amazon)
SSD: geni.us/AkzFB3s (Amazon)
USB Enclosure: geni.us/i7pcb (Amazon)
WD SSD (gen 3 option): geni.us/JIBGL (Amazon)
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Kevin Ross
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I just love how you pull out another content that super helpful for Final Cut user like us . Save a tons of data and Choosing the workflow with a SSD External Drive 👍👍👍
Awesome! So glad it helped, friend. 👊🤙
I'm thankful for this. I have had trouble finding videos of people explaining how this all works, and I realized I needed help with this when I made only like 10 videos (not even good videos, just beginner videos) and they filled up my Macbook. Lol!
Well, I’m certainly glad that this video has been helpful for so many. Glad to be of service. Happy editing! ✌️
What size is your MacBooks ssd?
Mine is 512GB, but you may be asking Lizzie.
@@KevinRossRN you are the man for doing this, I thought about it and humbled my ass to get good advice and this is 👌🏾
Many thanks friend. Really glad that you made it over here. Glad to help.
Be sure to check out the bonus tip toward the end if you've been making the same mistake I made when trying to make space on your drives after you've rendered and exported your final project.
When you want to access in back again after deleting the render folder, do you still have all your edits and colour correction on it? Or do you have to do it all over again?
All that is still intact. It just renders those tasks again.
@@KevinRossRN got it thanks ❤️❤️❤️
You bet 🤙
@@KevinRossRN the best advice ever so far 👍 U just got new sub
Wow, that bonus tip at the end wow! Game changer right there. BIG thank you!
And a big thank you as well. Happy to help and provide value where I can. Appreciate you.
The tips are priceless! 1. Saving backup file to internal 2. Deleting the render files after completion.
Thanks! Just trying to save a little time and some money. 😉
Awesome tips! Love your energy! I just started editing my videos and I'm so glad I came across this vid. Thanks a lot 🙏
That’s fantastic! Thanks so much for the feedback. Welcome to the filmmaking world. Glad this was helpful.
Great video! Thank you for sharing your experience Kevin!!
Happy to help. Thank you 🙏
Hey Kevin! I know that this video was uploaded 2 years ago and you aren't probably reading this but this video was very helpful to me. My video files and other files which the software was generating took a lot of space and I had to clean up my computer every week because I needed space for other files and due to that I had to delete some files which I needed but I had no other option. I figured that an external drive would help through some RUclips videos. All of them said "You could edit on an external drive to save you space." but no one actually showed how to do so. I finally came accross this video and you explained literally everything those videos didn't include. Thank you so much.
Well I’m definitely glad you found this video my friend. It’s my pleasure to be of service.
Appreciate your time that you spent here.
@@KevinRossRN You earned a sub.
And I’m thankful to have you here with us. Looking forward to seeing you around the channel.
Love your contents, sir! Thank you so much for those tips - especially that last one to save space! Keep it up!!!
Much appreciate you jumping down here in the comments to let me know. Thank you friend... And happy to help provide some value along the creative journey. 👍📸🔥
Man, you're truly a lifesaver! Thank you so much for the tips!
It’s entirely my pleasure.
this dudes been doing his pullups
Yep. Lifting heavy data 😉
Thank you for this! Definitely starting now to get in the habit of changing my workflow to keep my laptop working great and in top tier performance 👌
That’s a great habit to start. Best of luck moving forward. 🤘✌️
OMG you just helped me to clear 110GB from my external HDD! What an amazing trick!Thank you so much, double thumbs up!!
It gets a little messy in there, right? Happy to help.
Thanks for the command strips life saver. And love the idea of using the external hard drive and keeping hard drive space internally free awesome video thanks
It’s a very helpful workflow. And yes, command strips are awesome 👏
What a great video!! Thank you for explaining how to edit from the SSD!! Got mine coming tomorrow along with my new camera so time to get creative!!😃🏄♂️
Say what?! That's awesome! Really glad this helped and I'm stoked for you on getting your start...or continuation. What camera did you end up landing on?
Kevin Ross ended up going with the Sony A7iii upon lots of research! I’ve been filming videos for a long time using my Canon 70D but I just felt it’s time to invest and upgrade! This is going to be my first time editing 4K footage on my iMac so was browsing the best and easiest ways to edit 4K😊
Sweet! I believe that A7iii should serve you well. Here's to you chewing through that 4K timeline... Although I suppose that'll also depend on your GPU 😁
But, I do love having the work happen on the T5 to keep the local drive free.
Kevin Ross that’s very true, we’ll see🙏🏼😬
I just picked up a 1TB sandisk ssd and didn't know how to edit from it until I found your video. Well explained. Thanks!
Well friend, I’m just glad you found me. Happy to be of service.
Thank you! This is so helpful and that render tip is amazing!
Happy to help. Glad you found me.
Super helpful!! Thanks for sharing this :)
My pleasure. Glad to be of assistance.
Thanks for this helpful info!
Glad that you found us over here. Happy to to help.
Very interesting I’m considering getting Final Cut Pro next year so very good tips in terms of storage thanks
You bet! My pleasure. I’ve definitely appreciated FCPX to create here.
Thanks a ton for this video! I've been thinking to have my assistant edit videos on an external hard drive instead of having her transfer it locally, this is just another reason to do it LOL!
It’s my pleasure to be able to help. Sending my best on your future workflow.
thanks! this was super duper helpful!
Well I am super duper grateful for you letting me know. My pleasure to help. 👊💥
Excellent advice as always. 👍
Just trying to help as many as I can. Thanks 👍
Nice video bro. Just getting into film editing and I have an old 2012 MacBook Pro. Changed out my HDD for SSD but still want to work off an external drive to keep my old machine fast!
Heck yeah. I have the M1 Mac with 1TB of storage and still use external SSDs. I’m actually doing testing on some other setups right now and using these externals. They’re awesome.
Bonus tip is awesome!
Yes! Glad you liked it. 👊💥
Thanks Mate! Hugs from Lisbon 👌
Sending my best right back at you 🤙
amazing content. Thank you!
Thanks! Appreciate your time.
Nice tip at the last.
I use similar trick in program crash prevention.
Hey, glad to help. Appreciate you jumping down here to let me know. Many thanks!
Thank you for the video and tips! I'm a video editing beginner. Right now I'm mostly creating anniversary and memorial service videos for family/friends. I work with a few video clips but mostly pictures. I tend to download a lot of generators to make my videos more appealing. My storage space fills up quickly on my MacBook which causes me to delete my media and project files after the project is complete. Which external hard drive would you recommend for someone starting out like myself?
Sure. Glad it helped. I do have some SSD options linked in the description below.
I’d advise on at least 1TB to give you the ability to have more working projects and to keep your media on.
I love your whole vibe and energy just so positive, Thank you for teaching us. Clever command strip idea. they also sell a computer harddrive slip for back of computer that you slip in and out too.
Ha! Thanks. Command strips: the lowest high tech item in my kit.
Happy to help and glad to have you hanging out here. Much appreciated 🙏🤙
@@KevinRossRN Welcome, very inovative
you are the master, thanks
Thank you friend.
This is precious man, you're an awesome human!
Happy to help. You keep being awesome as well 👊
Love the bonus tip
You bet! Thank you 🙏
Excellent video! Subbed!
Thanks so much. Look forward to having you around here.
super helpful even a year later thank you!
Well I’m glad that this really helped. Best of luck!
Great info! Thanks
And thank you 🙏
Thank you for this. Bless you
Glad that you found it helpful. 🤙
Great, thank you 👍👍
Happy to help. Thank you 🙏
I just maxed out my macbook pro's internal SSD - thanks for these tips Kevin!
You did! Alright then. Room to grow 😁
And thank you friend.
How much ssd does your computer have??
Thanks for this video, this is very helpful! I don't use final cut as a video editor but as a creative professional, it has been a huge problem for me to keep my internal storage to not exceed its storage limit, especially with Adobe CC software datas. I wonder if keeping those data/files in my internal storage, counts to making my laptop shuts off randomly?
I use PS and LR and will say that those backups that occur on the internal storage really start to add up. I started keeping a specific external SSD just for my Adobe workflow so I could keep those backups elsewhere and not on the internal. It helped quite a bit.
WOW. You truly saved the BEST for last. I’ve gone through 4 external hard drives!!!! 🤦🏾♂️
Ha! Well I do hope that helps friend. I’ve done other videos where I talk about keeping all the media on an external and the App itself on the internal. That way you’re not duplicating media…and space 😉
Fantastic video! I edited my latest video almost entirely off of my internal drive, and it was a challenge. I kept on running out of space, and my computer was running really slowly. I will have to try your workflow out.
I hope that this workflow brings your internal drive some peace 😉
Sending you my best.
Hi. Thanks for this video. Do you backup your SSD's to anywhere besides your mac's internal? I'm looking to get the Sandisk SSD like you show, but also perhaps a 10tb external drive just to backup files/projects when I'm not working on them.
Yes, always have a backup solution. I use a Synology NAS at the moment, which I’ll be upgrading at some point. However a HDD backup solution is definitely recommended for archiving.
Great video. I just purchased the SanDisk Extreme Pro 2TB. I am working on an exiting video project in Premiere Pro on my iMac. Can I just copy my Premiere Pro work project folder that I have saved onto my desktop onto the Extreme Pro and start working from the external drive or do I have to create a new library file on the Extreme Pro? Thanks.
You should be able to move that over, but in the project timeline (within the interface/preferences) you just need to point the program to your external drive.
Thanks a lot!
You got it! 🤘
Hi Kevin. Thank you for the great video. There are a lot of these out there, but yours is exceptionally 'user friendly,' especially for dummies like me. You carefully explain stuff. You don't scrimp on things that might seem obvious-- you teach them carefully too. And you actually make a movie-- you show things. So great. Thank you.
I'm hoping you'll be willing to give me a reality check. I have been so confused, for so long, about importing-- what does it mean? And then, having just a vague understanding of what I'm doing when I'm importing compromises my understanding of everything else involving file management, so I'm perpetually confused.
I'd be very grateful if you'd look at my try at an explaning importing, and tell me whether I'm on the right track. I pray to God that I am. But, if not, at least I'll be able to add my explanation of importing video to the massive pile of erroneous, incorrect information that has been living in my head for years and years.
In another FCP video, somebody mentioned being able to work on an editing project on different devices (yeah, I know, really basic), and it occurred to me that maybe "importing" is a deceptive term. You're not really importing content from your external hard drive to FCP in your computer. Instead, you're using one of those cables you kept holding up to connect the FCP in your computer to the video content in your external hard drive-- SO YOU'RE ESSENTIALLY COMBINING YOUR COMPUTER, FCP AND YOUR HARD DRIVE INTO ONE SYSTEM, as if it were a single computer.
But you're never actually 'importing' the content into your computer or 'into FCP.' Instead, 'importing' is really CONNECTING-- the first step in building a complex set of instructions to, step by step, organize your content into a movie.
One thing that does happen, though, is kind of the opposite-- your FCP somehow tags the content in your external hard drive, so when you give your external hard drive to your friend to work on his computer-- his FCP in his computer gets those tagged instructions so it too can organize, and render, your content in exactly how you've been working on it on the FCP in your own computer.
My impulse is to beg to tell me that I'm right, whether or not I am right. But, if you could explain the truth, I'd really appreciate it. Thanks, Mike
I appreciate you taking the time. So as far as the “import” I suppose we also use that term regarding pulling the footage from the SD card (from the camera) to the SSD (external drive).
And then when opening up a new project and creating the “bundle” as it’s referred to as, your summation is correct in that the cottage remains on the external SSD and creates this communication between FCPX on your computer and the files on the external.
And as long as the other person has the same FCPX iteration and any specialized LUTs or effects that you also have, then it should also load that same project onto their timeline.
You’re a legend
Much appreciated friend.
I have the Samsung T5 1tb and I was using it for my editing like u but I am running very low on space which was strange so thank you for your help im going to try that out ASAP. I ended up getting a 5tb external drive as a back up so I’m going to see how that goes as well
Glad to help, and yes, a back up archiving solution is definitely a must with video footage.
Im looking into doing something similar, i just recently switched over to Davinci Resolve and despite loving all the mechanics that it offers, I've found that once i begin layering things up, even something as minimal as having text over video footage, almost immediately I begin experiencing lag. The main cause of this being the lackluster amount of storage on my internal hard drive on my Lenovo laptop, so besides putting my media and exports on that external hard drive i was wondering if it would be feasible to download and install the entire software onto an external hard drive ? I've seen a small handful of vids doing exactly that with final cut pro, so I've assumed that it would work similarly for Davinci Resolve as long as that external hard drive was large enough. I just wanted to get you're perspective on whether this could be possible since you seem especially knowledgeable on this stuff (sorry for how long winded this was 😅)
No worries on the detailed question... I sometimes go long on the answer 😁
As far as installing the software on an external drive, sure you could do it, however I'm not certain that would help how you'd need it. I assume you have SSD internally, so that memory swap should be fast.
You'll get a bottleneck with the USB connection, which even on a thunderbolt 3 (up to 40GB/s) there still can be some slow down... Not as noticeable if reading/writing files you're editing, but could be more noticeable with actual program load read/write... If that makes sense.
A couple of other questions I would really pose would be what's the original hard drive size, is it upgradeable, and what about the graphics card?
With any of these programs, and Resolve is awesome, but does need that GPU, I'm wondering if you could be getting some lag with those additional GPU intensive tasks, but no bandwidth to actually perform the tasks if the GPU is maxed out.
Just ordered those command strips via your link. Thanks
Hey, thanks! I have these things all over my studio. They’re great.
So HELPFUL 🙏🙏🙏
Glad it helped. Best of luck 🤞
If I want to start editing on my Macbok Pro or possibly iPad Pro, how do I know if I need the sandisk extreme or the Pro version with double the read/write speed?
So here's what I told someone else. If the price difference is small between the two, then I'd say go for the higher read/write speed. However let me also say that the difference in speed would likely be negligible as far as real world performance because there will be some bottle necking that can occur with the connection itself, the processor (depending on the CPU), etc. So, would you notice that much of a difference in actual editing? Probably not. However if the difference is say a 30 second - 1 minute improvement in rendering times per video and let's say you edit several videos (or audio tracks) a week, then over a year's time that could add up, but does it add up enough for the extra cost?
I've seen pricing differences in the states by sometimes only $20USD or less if there's a deal running, so if that's the case then why not? But if the price difference limits you from being able to invest in a 500GB drive (faster read/write) vs. a 2TB drive that is still fast, then I'd go for more storage honestly.
Is it a good option to use the ext ssd for de editing, and when you finish the project, put everything on a ext HDD? And if you need it again you can bring it back to the ssd right?
Yep! That’s what I’ve done. I move everything over to a server and, I could technically edit from the server, but I often times move files back over to the SSD.
Hi! Very helpful! But would you suggest buying two 500gb SSDs or just one 1tb SSD? Considering that I plan to use them for editing mainly 1080p footage. Thank you!
Well, I typically prefer the larger drives...this way you're not having to dump projects as often. My opinion anyway.
Thank you for doing this video. Can I save my editing software on the external drive? The hard drive on my computer is almost 100% full eventhough I am trying everything I can to create more storage space.
Feel free to check out my video on file management. The short answer is, I wouldn’t recommend it, but I talk about it in that video.
Hi Kevin!
I’m about to purchase a new Mac and this is exactly what I’ve been thinking about: keeping my internal hard drive ‘clean.’ Do you think 512gb is enough space to run Final Cut Pro, Photoshop and Lightroom? Those are the three main programs I use. For sure getting 16gb RAM. Could I go even lower? Not trying to be stingy but just curious your thoughts. Also going to get the SanDisc 2TB SSD.
Thanks so much for this video!
Congrats on the upcoming investment. 512GBs will be fine to work with these apps and of course keeping the libraries (media) in the external drive.
I’d opt for 16GBs at a minimum if you’re working with those programs.
Which Mac are you thinking about?
@@KevinRossRN For sure getting the upgraded ram. I was thinking the newest 24 inch with M1 chip. Was tempted to get the gold color but kinda want to stick with the classic and neutral silver. Thank you so much for answering my question!!! :)
Happy to help, and I do like the classic silver. Have fun!
Hi kevin. Im trying to upgrade my 2019 macbook 256gb because i have a huge problem with storage space that i dont use much. I want to learn using final cut pro is the SSD help getting all my footage from the camera?
Yes. Even with higher internal storage on my machines, I still use external SSDs for editing and having a place for the media.
One quick question what format do you recommend to use the sandisk ssd for the fastest speed to edit on the mack. Should we use the exfat format or the extended journal?
I personally use APFS. exFAT would be recommended if you’re going between Windows and MacOS.
Very interesting Kevin! So i tell my situation and i like have your opinion: I have to buy a ne Macbook air m1 for my home music studio. So imagine i will use logic pro for recording myself and for produce music with internal logic plugins and even with third parts plugins.. and i will use final cut for my music video. In your opinion which version you suggest buy? I mean , the 16gb ram with 256SSD or 8gb ram with 512SSD? I ll buy in everyway an external SSD like sandisk extreme..Thanks!
Well, not sure if you saw my other video talking about this... You might have.
But, I’d say more RAM first, but I always recommend buying what you can afford.
You’ve probably seen some of the videos on Logic and all the tracks it handles. I got a sample that has 188 tracks and it plays back without issue.
Also, you may have done research on the this, but if you’re using third party plugins, then make sure to right click on the Logic app and have it open with Rosetta.
Thanks for these tips! What is your workflow for RUclips videos with drives? i.e. Do you work on your RUclips videos until you fill up the drive then label the dates and start a new one? I can fill up one TB so quickly with my YT videos and have been using 4 TB spinning drives with a dock. I've ordered the new Mac Mini and need a new hard drive system, 1 TB just seems so small. I also use a lot of previously shot B roll stored on my external drives and I find it hard to remember where the footage is after awhile! Any tips or systems for keeping track of drives would be greatly appreciated!
So the external SSD is used for my active projects, but all of my archives live on a Synology NAS. SSDs are great for speed and workflow, but the spinning drives are better for archiving. Although slow, they typically are designed for this type of workflow...usually that is.
I can work with files on my Synology if I need to as FCPX easily creates a proxy of those files, but anything for immediate need is on the SSD. So that SSD (mine) gets dumped onto the NAS after several projects have filled it up. I do have several of these SSDs though, so I don't have to do it often.
@@KevinRossRN Which Synology NAS do you use? I'd love to see a video on setting that up! I still don't really understand NAS. But that's probably what I need.
So the model I have isn't currently offered. I've had it for years, so if that tells you something...this thing is on 24/7.
For video editing, this is the one my business has: amzn.to/34kyHs3
But as you'l see these things can add up because it's just the shell and you have to fill them with drives. I'm probably sitting at about 30TBs of video right now. It adds up. It would definitely be more if I was out doing more commercial work, but doing more RUclips these days since we're all mostly inside.
I honestly can't recommend Synology enough. I know it is investment, and something you'll likely want to save up for if it's not in the budget right now. I should add that to the list of videos. Been meaning to discuss my workflow. Guess I need to get on it. 😀
@@KevinRossRN yes I'd definitely watch it. I also am considering paid cloud storage because honestly I find NAS complicated to understand and I want simplicity. Do you or would you ever consider paying monthly or yearly cloud storage fees to archive video projects or save b-roll?
I use cloud storage for certain things, and have an Amazon S3 account. Video files do start to add up though.
Very helpful!!! I do a lot of church videos and this work flow is very helpful. What kind of affordable external drive do you recommend for storage
I did do a video on storage, but are you looking for a HDD desk setup, or something where you need a RAID with multiple drives?
thank you, I just bought my first MacBook and with just 128 GB is not enough to edit or do work with media, so after saw your review I'll buy a t5, greeting from Dominican Republic
Happy to help. And yeah, that 128GB machine should almost be “illegal” to sell. 🤣
You definitely run out of space quick on the internal. But these external SSDs are a life saver.
Thanks for the tips!!! I bought exactly the same Sandisk SSD a few months ago (my computer has only 256 GB SSD, so I have to keep the files outside anyway). By the way, What app do you use to edit your photos? ( I read that you don't use adobe cc )
Yeah these SSD's are fantastic. Still using them. Actually, I don't use CC for editing videos, but I do use Lightroom quite a bit for photos. I'm fairly pleased with the photo editing aspects, and the monthly photographer's fee of $~10.00 USD/month isn't unreasonable, but I am looking into some alternatives. How about you?
Affinity Photo and Capture One are perfect alternatives for Photoshop and Lightroom - and one time payment; not monthly as Adobe.
thank you
Many thanks to you.
Thanks :)
Thank you.
where did you get that Sandisk with the grey coloured trim? It's being sold everywhere now with an orange trim.
Sandisk (and really many manufacturers) sometimes makes special editions for certain stores. This one was made for Costco. Not sure if you're in the states, but it's a membership warehouse... It doesn't have any different features or anything.
I believe it was a little cheaper though.
Great video!! Does this work if Final cut is on the internal hard drive? Or do you have to have the program saved on the external? I just got a MacBook and want to keep the internal as clean as possible
So Final Cut remains on the internal drive. The only thing you’re putting on the external is the library (bundle) and all the other media you’re working with.
Thank you!
Hey!, first of all I wanna say that all of your content is pretty cool, you don't know how helpful your channel has beed for me as a beginner/student editor, and also I wanted to ask you what do you men by "bundle" in this parte of the video 7:50 , English is not my first language and that was the only word I didn't catch the meaning or was relatable for me, I don't even know If I'm writing it right LOL.
Thank you so much!
Hey glad to help. So the bundle in Final Cut is just the file name for the library and all the media inside of it. So if you look at the file name it’ll be something like (videoproject.fcpbundle) and you’ll see an image of four stars inside four squares.
Within that bundle is all the media you’re using, the render files, analysis files…basically everything you’re working with.
Love the way you mount the ssd to the MacBook. Is heat from the ssd not an issue with the MacBook monitor? My sandisk gets real hot. Excellent video!
Thanks! And I haven’t had any issues with the heat and the monitor. 👍
Hey Kevin. I appreciate this video. Question, how are you handling redundancy and archiving footage. You mentioned you keep those files. I too edit off an external SSD and my current HDD (Thunderbolt G-Tech Drive that houses All footage) is nearing capacity. Would love to know your workflow. I'm not necessarily interested in any sort of RAID configuration.
So I do use a NAS (Synology), but I also did a video on backing up to an external HDD. You can pick up a 14TB drive for around $200USD give or take.
@@KevinRossRN I really appreciate your quick response Kevin. In the 3 hours or so since I left my comment, I’ve been convinced to switch to a NAS. 😂 thanks again!
Ha!
A NAS is fantastic. Some of them you can even edit video off of. Just saying 🤷♂️😉
Great work. Do you thinkin editing 4k footage off a external SSD with speeds of 1000mb would be ok? I had the T5 and that was not fast enough for some edits.
Yes, I use the SanDisk that has a 1050MB/s read/write all the time. I actually have several videos on this, but an updated video features this very SSD I’m using: M1 Max Mac Studio | Do You Need the Fastest External SSD?
ruclips.net/video/YX69rbNqOps/видео.html
@@KevinRossRN ah amazing dude thank you. That’s actually the drive I wanted to get.
Awesome. It’s held up quite nicely over the years.
Great content 👍 do you recommend installing programs such as final edit, logic pro onto internal, or to an external SSD? FYI I have an m1 Mac mini 256 gb 16gb ram
So I have done a video on this already about running apps off the external. So the app itself should remain on the internal while all of the media and libraries can live on the external. I’d link up that video, but I’m on my mobile device and for whatever reason YT doesn’t allow me to grab those videos as links to share 🤷♂️
No worries, I'll look for it on your channel! Thanks for the fast response 👍
You bet. Many thanks.
Will my planned workflow be good enough? (And how good/bad will it be?)
4k files from Sony a6600 and my machine is the base model M1 Macbook Air.
Planning to store and edit the projects, footage, etc. using an external HDD (Seagate Ultra Slim). Only the software and os are in the macbook.
Editing from a HDD is possible. I did a video on it. The SSD will certainly be a faster option, but I’d start with what you have.
I like the show, brother.. I'm in!
Great to have you here 👊🤙
Ok I’m just starting off and have been watching videos to a point of exhaustion and this was the most simplest and easiest one to watch. I do however have a couple of questions, with Keeping in mind that I’m strictly an amateur that’s rocking a GoPro with the intent of making a RUclips channel. Hopefully lol.
1. Without the funds or need at this point for a NAS or some kind of redundant package, what would be the best way to edit and back up projects? I was thinking of taking all my RAW footage to one external SSD to organize and work off of and then all finished projects would be saved to another external SSD. Once complete I could just erase all the RAW footage and library off of the working or active drive.
2. In this scenario should I store the completed projects on 2 separate drives?
Again awesome video and mahalo!!!
First off, you can start a channel with just about any camera you have. Some of the biggest RUclips creators started with a Potato😄
Glad the video helped, and to add to what you're asking, I'd say that editing on an SSD is still something I do today, and often. However what I would recommend is backing up to an actual Hard drive vs. another SSD. I'd say the SSD would be fine to back up temporarily, but a hard drive like this one: amzn.to/34iQ1y8
is going to be much cheaper for the amount GBs you'll get. Now I wouldn't recommend editing on it as it'll be slow, but the drives in these external setups are built for back up and archiving. Something like this will give you storage for quite a while...but obviously that's based on how often you're filming and how much you want to save.
Great video! I needed this. Does that bundle thing happen with Adobe Premier Pro as well?
Thanks! So, FCPX is a bit different that way it manages these files and the bundle.
This resource may help you consolidate a bit: helpx.adobe.com/premiere-pro/using/copy-consolidate-transcode-archive-project.html
@@KevinRossRN thank you!
Best of luck 🤞
Thanks for the video. Couple questions: where do you keep your Lightroom catalog? On external SSD? Where do you keep your cache files? Also my photos would need a HUGE SSD for one year of work.....after processing a photo shoot what would you suggest....move to external hard drive. Issue is if client wants retouches then have to move it all back for LR to see it. Hope that makes sense. Using new laptop and would like to use external SSD for editing but trying to figure out best way to backup and be able to access easily for more touch ups. TIA!
So, my Lightroom catalog is on an SSD...all backups happen there actually. I’ve been told by my creative colleagues that I’m a little over the top with my labeling of files and folders, but if I’m looking for something, then I find it pretty quickly 😉
So I’ll typically keep a SSD or two for photos throughout the year that I may need quick reference on projects.
However for archiving, I have a Synology NAS for all of those files that need to be stored long term. It’s all setup on my network and via a gigabit connection, so if I need them I can grab those pretty quickly to move back over to the SSD.
I would say that although I have several working projects on my SSDs, I don’t use them as backups necessarily as I’m really just trying to keep those as working drives.
For video I can actually edit from my NAS if I need to, but I will say that I have a collection of these SSDs with various projects. It’s becoming part of the norm I think, to have these piling up 😁
I even have 1TB of internal on my M1 mini and I’m still just working with everything on an external.
I usually keep an eye out for sales, which happen almost all the time. I mean, this 1TB T5 in the video, I might have paid somewhere like 250(ish) USD when it first came out. Now you can find them for about 129 USD.
@@KevinRossRN thanks for quick response. Hmmmm so maybe I need to look into getting a NAS to move finished work to?
It would be advisable if you’re doing this professionally...but heck, I have all my personal/family photos backed up on the NAS as well.
It’s an investment, but a good one in my opinion.
Thank you for this information. I have tried video editing for the past couple of years, but I always end up giving up because my computer runs slow. I started using the external SSD trick, but I am a little confused on what the “back up” is. Is it a setting on your video editing software that saves your work to your PC just in case your ssd or the program freezes?
The back to that occurs on your computer’s drive contains small files of the progress of the timeline, but shouldn’t be the original media, so the internal drive should only have a small impact on the space it takes up.
@@KevinRossRN Thanks for the quick and helpful response!
You bet. Sending my best.
Thanks
Thank you.
Nice video. New sub 👍
Thanks! Much appreciate you 👊🙏
Can one use a flash drive? I prefer the small physical size of a 256 gb flashdrive vs an external hard drive. Currently looking at a Samsung 256gb flash drive
Sure, it’s just that you might want to consider a USB-C version 3.1 gen2 for faster read and write.
Using the M1 Mac Mini would the foloowing be correct? Internal SSD for OS and program files, external SSD for editing (would this be the scratch disk?) and source files for the current project, another external SSD for media and file storage (not necessarily related to the current project).
So in some of my recent videos I did discuss this, especially the latest one.
Programs on the main drive, and then having an active project external SSD, however for archiving, depending on how much media you have, I’d recommend a longer term back up like a NAS, but you could have another SSD... it’s just that per GB they’re more expensive than a HDD.
Considering getting a 500gb or 1tb ssd external for editing on my macbook (2011) IF it will really speed up my 4k editing (I use proxy files to make it possible as it stands with regular external drives) and Raw photo editing in C1 / PS.
Anybody have any more experiences that might help me decide if I should go for it?
Well, speeding up your workflow is relative in this case. First, I always recommend more space if you can afford it, and most of the time, you'll always wish you'd gotten more.
With the 2011 you'll be using the USB 3.0 speeds, not the thunderbolt/USB-C speeds which will be slower in transfer and editing, however if this extra space (externally) allows you to free up space on your internal drive to help with memory swap, you may get some small gains here. I was initially editing on a 2010 MBP and still used an external drive because I was editing much larger files and my internal drive was 256GB that would quickly fill up.
In this scenario it was more about keeping RAW files and editing on an external device so that I could keep the internal SSD as free as possible.
@@KevinRossRN I'm not editing off the internal drive. As I said external hard drive, so space isn't what I'm wondering about. Thanks for the reply
Sure thing. The SSD is definitely going to offer a speed bump compared to the spinning drive. Even on my 2010, it was noticeable for sure.
@@KevinRossRN thanks!
I am confused between buying the 550mbps SanDisk vs the 1000mbps SanDisk Extreme. Which one do you suggest for video editing?
I use M1 Macbook pro 2020 model.
Looking forward to your reply.
If you’re on the M1, I’ve done several videos on this, so I’d recommend the 1050MB/s read and write if you can. The thunderbolt controller in the M1 is slower, so that 550 will be somewhere around 300-350MB/s.
@@KevinRossRN Got your point. That makes sense. Thank you dude.
All the very best for your channel. 💪
And sending my best to you as well friend.
@@KevinRossRN Thank you mate. ♥️♥️
Have used Sandisk SSD for couple of years now with Lightroom for photography. Started as the best way to create my catalogs between home and university. Workflow is great once it's kept organised, the headache is BACKUP. To backup the backup and backup the backup and make sure to have a backup of everything. It's head melting at times to just keep everything backed up😂😭
Ah! The back up conundrum. I know it well. I'm working on a video sharing my exact workflow for everything when it comes to backups. These SSDs are just a life saver though and I love that over the years they've been getting cheaper along with more storage....hopefully that trend will continue. Appreciate you jumping down here to let me know about your workflow, and your appreciation for the Sandisk SSD. A boring piece of tech that is so necessary and I use it every day.
@@KevinRossRN Cheers Kevin. Boring? No way. Essential and I agree with you "life saving" and time saving and peace of mind. I wouldn't be without them. The Sandisk is great for the price and still is superior at the price. Have a good one and I must check out your back up process video👍
Ha! Glad we agree. And, I hope to have that video out soon(ish). Forward momentum my friend, and thanks again 👊
I thought I was the only one using Command straps instead of Velcro for attaching SSDs on the lid of a MacBook. Velcro is great for making morale patches, but they do wear out easily, not great for veryfrequent attaching and detaching. Command instead is a lot more durable. I change out the Velcro on my morale patches and tactical gears every year or so since they do fail fast. I've also been using Command straps for several years and haven't got any failed.
That’s awesome! Yes, I do love those Command Strips. I use them for so many things. But definitely on the MacBook lid it’s been a real workflow enhancer.
Great vid. I'm interesting in knowing how you deal with larger workflows, where perhaps you have way more data than your SSD's can hold? Typically these SSD's can be found in 1 or 2TB configurations. I recently filmed some content for a client and it nearly went over 1TB. haha
Wow, 1TB of footage is quite a bit. That must have been quite a project. Unless you have a 3-5TB internal drive this is where I would recommend the SSD. Obviously a 2TB option would be what you'd need in this scenario.
There could be a couple of workflow options here if you didn't have the 2TB drive. You could have the footage stored on a NAS/Server, which I've definitely done.
What I'd do then is have the footage on that NAS, but I'd keep the project file on the external SSD and basically have the stored footage on the NAS be utilized as proxy files, so it's pulling info from the NAS, but the internal drive is still freed up and capable of handling the memory swap during the cutting and rendering of the video that is occurring on the SSD.
However, at this point if it was a budgetary issue SSD vs. price of a hard drive (like something from LaCie) I'd prefer to keep my footage on the same drive as well as my project bundle, so then I'd sacrifice some speed to edit directly onto the LaCie, which probably be something in the neighborhood of a 4TB drive... Although you could also run a LaCie as your backup and hold your footage while the external SSD has the project file.
Not sure if I confused the situation here. You could also think about compressing the footage as well.
@@KevinRossRN Yup, it was a large project for a Wellness company. 30 minute recording sessions, using a 1DX Mark II (mjpeg codec produces ridiculously large files). So what I ended up doing was dumping all the footage to my 10TB G-Tech drive and using my 1TB SSD to edit pieces of the project. HOpe that makes sense. For obvious reasons, I used SSD to edit off of vs. G-Tech drive. Sounds like I need to upgrade to a 2TB. haha. I appreciate your response. I was just curious as to what your workflow would be in this case senario. Thanks again.
Yeah, definitely nothing wrong with editing off of the G-Tech..I've been there. And really if the G-Tech is where your raw footage is and SSD is where the project bundle is, that works. You're basically just creating proxies with those raw files...but I know it's probably a pain to make sure both of these are plugged into the computer at all times vs. just the one SSD.
Best of luck with your decision. I'm sure you'll appreciate having a larger SSD to just keep everything on...and they are continuing to come down in price 👍
@@KevinRossRN 10 months later I find myself referencing this video. haha. I ultimately ended up finding a 4 TB external SSD and love it! I can edit a few client projects at once.
Oh yeah, a 4TB drive is definitely great to have for all kinds of projects.
? about storage. I am a new FCP user. Editing on new M1 MacAirI have video files on external drive and setup my library to another external drive. Do I need to have 2 ext drives or 1 sufficient? Do I need 2 ssd drives or 1 large one? Confused on how setup should be? Appreciate your input.
I typically recommend keeping it as simple as possible, so really one SSD that you’re working on and have your media. 1TB at a minimum if you can, and then once that project is done, then moving that over to a backup system like an external HDD or NAS. If that makes sense.
I'm using a WD 5TB Elements Portable HDD to edit videos with Final Cut Pro. What format should the HDD be in for best performance? ExFAT?
APFS is going to be the fastest, technically speaking. ExFAT is great if you ever using Windows as well since it’ll be compatible for both. How’s it going so far with the HDD as far as editing on it?
thank you for your video , It sounds like you are well above what I am doing ,which is just trying to find an external hard drive that saves music projects I will be making on native instruments maschine mk3 , its a beat maker that offers sampling clips , software instruments , you name it . They suggest leaving the software in the computer and recommend using and external drive for music projects, They even have an area in the initial set up to dedicate this type of drive to,, which I'm really happy about ( being more creative than tech. ) I have a few external drives where I just dumped in a-lot of photos They were cheap and they worked well for that . Now I need one that when opened helps me find what I've put in it . Can u recommend any ? thx
Do you want an SSD drive like I’ve features here? Which in turn would be quicker to work on as far as speed/latency is concerned.
@@KevinRossRN - yes , I never bothered to look into what hard drives offer , if they have any helpful preferences built into them for categorizing music files .Before that i was just dumping all my photos of my art into cheap ext. drives . Thousands of photos of my art work taken to use with online arts web sites . Now I need a fast hard drive and wondering which will be the most helpful and easy to use . Thanks for your reply -
Well, typically if you're not doing this manually, there are certainly built-in features of your operating system, or third-party software that can help. I'd hate for you to purchase something that costs way more than it should and just get a reasonable back up solution and use the software available that can help you organize some of this.
Thanks for the info Kevin. So I've been using a 2015- 13" Macbook pro with 8 gb for editing and it's always out of storage so I end up deleting files to make room. So if I purchase an external HD I can essentially just upload all my video footage straight to that and then pull from the HD into say I movie? Is that the best process for keeping the computer from bogging down?
Yes, as of the current version of iMovie you should be able to move the library and files to an external device. I haven’t used iMovie in many years, although I have it around for testing purposes.
But, clearing of that hard drive will help because of the memory swap with the RAM that occurs. That should help things run smoother.
@@KevinRossRN Thanks!!
You got it 👊
@@KevinRossRN Just order the T5! Should be a good one right!?
The T5 is awesome. One of my favorite pieces of tech that I’ve used for a couple of years now.
Do you think I could edit entirely off an external HDD instead of an SSD? I use FCP. I think I need to prioritise storage (ideally 800GB-1TB) and only have about £50 to spend on it. SSD's are so expensive!
You have to ask how much your time is worth. You can edit off of an external HDD, but there will be moments where it will bottleneck. Not impossible though. I have tested it.
Great video, very helpful!
Question, using the external ssd for housing the files, does this keep from having them stored on and clogging up the c drive?
That is correct. The files (media) remains on the external drive. 🤘
Awesome!! Thanks again, great stuff!!
Do you have your editing software on an ssd, or is that on the machine internal hard drive?
@teddystewart6487 is on the machine’s internal. It only takes up a few GBs.
@@KevinRossRNperfect, thanks again! I appreciate you!
Great video. LOL "Any Roll, as long as it is gluten free".
Thanks 🙏 Terrible dad jokes 😁
Would u recommend the t7 or the San disk extreme?
Personally, I edit off of my Samsung almost daily in my studio. The Sandisk is still in use, but I mostly used it when I was traveling... Which isn't so much anymore theses days. I honestly think you can't go wrong with either one.
Hey Kevin! Can I run my files from an external hard drive and also use and SSD to run the editing software? will it still be fast or the files need to be inside the SSD? Cheers
So, just want to clarify the question, so help me is I misunderstood. The editing program runs on the internal HD, while the video footage is on the external SSD. Is that what you mean?
Kevin Ross So I have a 2t project in 4k that I need to edit and it’s store in a hard drive. My question is if use and external ssd card to run my laptop, will it still do the job to run the 4k footage smoothly? Even if the footage is in another storage device?
So you're running your Operating system on an external drive and then you'll have your video footage on another? Sorry my man, just wanted to make extra sure that's what you're asking. The short answer would be that if you're running your operating system or your editing software on an external drive and then trying to edit on another external drive you're going to have a serious slow down with editing.
@@KevinRossRN Thanks Kevin, that was really helpful, I'll give it a try just with ssd. Cheers!
Well, not sure how helpful, but hopefully you find this as a solution. You can certainly edit 2TB of footage on an external drive.
Thanks, this was helpful, as I was advised when buying my M1 iMac not to spend extra money on increasing the Apple internal storage (because it is the most expensive hard drive storage) and instead to use external SSD's. That has worked well holding all my photos and music off the hard drive, and I do not notice any difference in speed. I also now have my iMovie, Keynote and GarageBand projects off the internal, but the problem was still how do I Airdrop video from the iPhone when it will only download to the internal Downloads folder? I quickly transfer it to the external and delete the files in the Download folder ... But it does not immediately replace the used space on the hard drive, and it sometimes takes days to get to where the hard drive is back to where it was before I started.
The only work around I have found for this is to Airdrop the files to my older MacBook Pro ... Transfer them to a thumb USB SSD drive ... Move that drive over to the iMac ... And transfer them to the external SSD to work on them from that SSD drive. That's the only way I have found to have nothing added to the internal while working on large videos projects.
Thank you again.
Yeah the Airdrop workaround can be a bit of a headache in this particular scenario. Sounds like you’ve at least found something that works for you.
I appreciate you taking the time to share your particular experience.
If I already have Premiere, Lightroom, & Photoshop installed on my computer C drive, do I have to move the programs to my new SSD?
How about the files with all of my presets, files, etc.?
___
After my shoot, I want to upload my content onto the ext. SSD.
From there, I want to edit all of my work from the SSD.
Afterwards, I will transfer all of the finished content and files to my Archive HDD. The ext. SSD will no longer contain my files on.
If I want to open the files and edit anything again, how do I do this?
___
Is this complicating things? I don't get how to make this workflow happen
I definitely need to do a video on this...at least my workflow, which would likely mirror a lot of workflows. So the simple answer is no, you're not moving the programs, plugins or presets over. Those will stay on the computer and even though you're editing footage on the SSD, your NLE is still pulling the presets, etc. from the main hard drive of the computer.
If I need to recall the footage from my NAS while on my own network then I'd either grab it and use it in proxy format (in a new timeline), or move it back to the SSD, but again that's not necessary unless you're mobile and won't be on your network to get it from you HDD/NAS.
Here's a response that I gave someone else, but now I know I really need to show this breakdown. But, here's my breakdown:
So when I transfer my SD card data to the T5 to work on, I do keep all of the files on that SD card until the project is complete. This is mostly for my "personal" data, but for client work, it's a bit different...more on that in a sec.
...Now, after the video is rendered/completed/uploaded, I then take that SSD (the contents) and move it over to my server. Once the files are moved over there I'm then able to free up that space on the SSD and also able to format or free up some space on the SD card. I maintain copies of all raw files and label them carefully because I can't count how many times I've needed a clip that I filmed a week ago or even several years ago that I can access on that server, which I can access over my network...AND I can even work from it if needed, but I usually just bring that file into FCP (from the server) to work on, but maintain the file in its original location.
For commercial work I transfer everything as above, however before I start working on the project I also place all raw files on my server to create three locations of these files, however I am really creating four because my server is also attached to a server that is located in another location (offsite)...this might be a bit over the top, but we are certainly not interested in having to re-film something for a client if we don't have to.
In summary though, I like the ability to keep the working files and the project bundle on the T5 in case I want to take this somewhere else or really to keep the local drive as free as possible, and I do keep a FCP back up on the local drive in case something does get corrupted, but that file size is relatively small. Working from the T5 vs. working on the local SSD of the computer doesn't really seem to slow me down or actually give me any noticeable gains as I know the drive in the computer is faster when comparing read/write, but for real world it just doesn't seem to slow me down.
How does computer RAM interact with the speed of the HD? I'm wondering if upgrading my RAM to 16GB from 8GB is worth it, or will the 'bottleneck' as you describe it be a limiting factor?
The extra memory is typically a good investment, but it’s not going to impact the speed of the HD. The memory on these machines is very efficient and the swap is pretty fluid. Even with 16GBs of unified memory on my MAcBook Air I’m still swapping with day to day use and I can’t really tell.
Thank you for this video! I’ve been trying to edit on my external hard drive and I can create a library on it and everything but when I go to import to footage straight off of my camera it doesn’t import correctly and none of the files show up! What could I be doing wrong? I had to upload the files onto my computer and then create a folder on my hard drive for them and drag them directly into the editing bar for it to work. Is there an easier way?
Yeah, I wouldn’t pull files from the camera if you can help it. It’s very slow and not the best. Do you have a SD card in the camera?
@@KevinRossRN yes! I purchased an SD card reader from Amazon today in hopes that would make things a bit quicker because my MacBook only has 2 usb-c ports! Hopefully that was the right move? Thank you for responding and helping by the way! I really appreciate it!
Yeah, so that SD card reader will definitely help. I have a video on here where I discuss and show my workflow, but I put the SD card into the reader, I label the files, and then transfer them over to the external SSD.
@@KevinRossRN thank you so much! I will go try to find that video!
I’m on mobile RUclips Studio, so for some reason can’t grab the link, but the exact title is this: File Management for Video Editing | My Workflow