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How can I import RAW photo files into FCP?
If the regular workflows for bringing in stills don't work, then you can't.
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anyone know of any app that changes raw photos into JPEG / TIFF
Virtually any application will do this. Preview might or might not; I forget. But iPhoto, Lightroom, Aperture and Photoshop definitely will.
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PS what i a more favorable image format for fcp? jpeg or tiff?
TIFF. If you want to maintain the latitude you had in the raw format, use 16-bit TIFF.