FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Video editing software APPLE - Free user manual and instructions

FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Video editing software APPLE - Free user manual and instructions

Frequently Asked Questions - FINAL CUT PRO 5 APPLE

USER MANUAL FINAL CUT PRO 5 APPLE

Final Cut Pro 5

User Manual

Volume I

Interface, Setup, and Input

Part I An Introduction to Final Cut Pro

Part II Learning About the Final Cut Pro Interface

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Part III

Setting Up Your Editing System

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Part IV Logging, Capturing, and Importing

Final Cut Pro 5 Documentation and Resources

Getting Started

User Manual

Onscreen Help

To access onscreen help:

Onscreen User Manual

To access the onscreen user manual:

Working With High Definition and Broadcast Formats

Information About Known Issues and Third-Party Hardware and Software

To access Late-Breaking News:

Information About New Features

Apple Websites

Final Cut Pro Websites

Apple Service and Support Website

Part I: An Introduction to Final Cut Pro

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

About the Postproduction Workflow

No matter what your project, Final Cut Pro is the cornerstone of your postproduction workflow.

The Industry Workflow

Step 1: Scripting

Step 2: Preproduction

Step 3: Production

Step 4: Postproduction

Step 5: Distribution

The Postproduction Workflow

Step 1: Planning

Step 2: Setting up

Step 3: Logging and capturing

Step 4: Editing

Step 5: Mixing audio

Step 6: Adding effects

Step 7: Outputting

Before you begin editing, you need to decide what video format you will capture, edit, and output. The format you choose determines your postproduction workflow.

About Nonlinear and Nondestructive Editing

Video Formats Compatible With Final Cut Pro

Using Multiple Video Formats

Offline and Online Editing

Audio Formats Compatible With Final Cut Pro

Video Format Basics

Video Standards

Image Dimensions and Aspect Ratio

Frame Rate

Scanning Method

About Timecode

SMPTE timecode

About Drop Frame and Non-Drop Frame Timecode

To determine the type of timecode used in Final Cut Pro:

How Drop Frame Timecode Works

The Building Blocks of Projects

What Are Media Files?

What Are Clips?

What Are Sequences?

What Are Projects?

Project

What Are Bins?

Working With Projects

Organizing Your Projects

Using More Than One Sequence in a Project

Creating and Saving Projects

To create a new project:

To save a project:

To save all open projects:

Opening and Closing Projects

To open a project:

To close a project:

To switch between several open projects:

To close all open projects:

About the Connection Between Clips and Media Files

To see a clip's Source property:

Relationship Between Source Tapes, Media Files, and Clips

Reconnecting Clips to Media Files

To create an offline clip (without a corresponding media file), do one of the following:

Filenaming Considerations

Avoiding Special Characters

Restricting Length of Filenames

Using Filename Extensions

Adding Times and Dates to Final Cut Pro Project Names

Using Multiple Hard Disks

Part II: Learning About the Final Cut Pro Interface

The Final Cut Pro interface has four main windows and a Tool palette.

Basics of Working in the Final Cut Pro Interface

Using Keyboard Shortcuts, Buttons, and Shortcut Menus

Using Keyboard Shortcuts

Using Button Bars

Using Shortcut Menus

Learning Commands by Using Tooltips

To enable tooltips in Final Cut Pro:

Customizing the Interface

Moving and Resizing Windows

To resize windows in Final Cut Pro:

Working With Tabs and Tabbed Windows

To make a tab active:

Moving Windows

Using Different Screen Layouts

To choose a screen layout:

Showing and Positioning the Dock

To arrange Final Cut Pro windows and make room for the Dock:

Undoing and Redoing Changes

The Browser is where you organize all of the clips in your project.

How You Use the Browser

Learning About the Browser

Working in the Browser

Creating Sequences

To create a new sequence:

Selecting Items in the Browser

To select a single clip:

Navigating Within the Browser Using the Keyboard

To navigate within the Browser, do one of the following:

Copying and Deleting Items in the Browser

To copy an item, do one of the following:

Renaming Clips, Sequences, and Bins

Using Columns in the Browser

Viewing Columns in Standard or Logging Formats

To switch between standard and logging columns:

Creating Custom Column Layouts

Customizing the Browser Display

Choosing Views in the Browser

To display Browser items as icons or in a list, do one of the following:

Working With the Browser in List View

To rearrange a column:

To resize a column:

To hide a column:

To display a hidden column:

To display thumbnails:

To hide thumbnails:

To scrub, or move, through a thumbnail:

To change the names of the Master Comment or Comment column headings:

Working With the Browser in Icon View

Scrubbing Through Clips in Icon View

To scrub through clips in large icon view:

1 Do one of the following:

2 Drag the Scrub Video tool over the thumbnail.

Automatically Arranging Clips in Icon View

Setting the Poster Frame

To set the poster frame of a clip in the Viewer:

To set the poster frame in the Browser in large icon view:

Saving and Using Custom Column Layouts

To save a custom column layout:

To open a custom column layout:

To open a custom column layout that is not in the default location:

The Viewer is used for viewing a clip's media and preparing clips before editing them into a sequence.

How You Can Use the Viewer

To make the Viewer window active, do one of the following:

Opening a Clip in the Viewer

To open a clip in the Viewer from the Browser, do one of the following:

Learning About the Viewer

Tabs in the Viewer

Video Tab

Audio Tabs

Motion Tab

Controls Tab

Transport (or Playback) Controls

Playhead Controls

Playhead and Scrubber Bar

Jog Control

Shuttle Control

Marking Controls

Zoom and View Pop-Up Menus

Recent Clips and Generator Pop-Up Menus

The Canvas provides an environment for viewing your edited sequence, and works in tandem with the Timeline while you edit.

How You Use the Canvas

To make the Canvas window active, do one of the following:

Opening, Selecting, and Closing Sequences in the Canvas

To open a sequence in the Canvas:

To make a sequence active in the Canvas:

To close a sequence in the Canvas, do one of the following:

Learning About the Canvas

Editing Controls in the Canvas

Edit Overlay

Edit Buttons in the Canvas

Transport (or Playback) Controls

Playhead Controls

Playhead and Scrubber Bar

Jog Control

Shuttle Control

Marking Controls

Zoom and View Pop-Up Menus

Navigating and Using Timecode in the Viewer and Canvas

How the Viewer and Canvas Are Different

Navigating in the Viewer and Canvas

Playing Clips and Sequences

To play a clip in the Viewer or a sequence in the Canvas:

To play media in reverse:

To play a clip or sequence between In and Out points:

To play a clip from the current position of the playhead to the Out point:

To play a clip around the current playhead position:

To play every frame of a clip:

Scrubbing, or Moving, Through a Clip or Sequence

To scrub through a clip or sequence:

To jump to a new location in the scrubber bar:

Shuttling Through a Clip or Sequence

To play clips or sequences at varying speeds using the shuttle control:

Jogging Through a Clip or Sequence

To move forward one frame at a time:

Looping Playback

To enable looped playback:

To disable looped playback:

Working With Timecode in the Viewer and Canvas

Navigating With Timecode in the Viewer and Canvas

To move the playhead in a clip or sequence by entering a value in the Current Timecode field:

To move the playhead typing outside the Current Timecode field:

1 Do one of the following:

2 Type a new timecode value, then press Return.

Dragging Timecode Values

To drag a timecode value from one field to another:

About Timecode Overlays and Sync Color Coding

Viewing Timecode Overlays

To view timecode overlays:

Information Displayed by Timecode Overlays

The Timeline shows a graphical representation of your edited sequence, with all of that sequence's clips laid out in chronological order.

How You Use the Timeline

Opening and Closing Sequences in the Timeline

To select a sequence in the Timeline:

To close a sequence in the Timeline, do one of the following:

Learning About the Timeline

Sequence Tabs in the Timeline

Editing Controls

Vertical Multitrack Controls

Horizontal Time Controls

Timeline Display Controls

Audio Controls

Other Miscellaneous Controls

Real-Time Effects and the Render Status Bar

Sequence Clips in the Timeline

Changing Timeline Display Options

About Timeline Display Options in the Sequence Settings Window

To change Timeline display options in the Sequence Settings window:

General Options

Track Display

Clip Keyframes

About Timeline Display Controls in the Timeline

Options for Displaying Duplicate Frames

Navigating in the Timeline

Positioning the Playhead Using the Ruler

To scrub through a sequence in the Timeline:

To jump to a specific location in the Timeline:

Using Timecode to Navigate in the Timeline

To move the playhead to a specific location:

Zooming and Scrolling in the Timeline

Zooming In and Out of the Timeline

To zoom in and out of the Timeline using the Zoom control:

To zoom in and out of the Timeline using the Zoom tools:

Scrolling Horizontally Through a Zoomed-In Timeline

Scrolling Vertically Through Multiple Tracks

To scroll vertically through the audio and video tracks in your sequence, do one of the following:

To resize the audio and video regions:

Changing Browser and Timeline Text Size

Moving and Resizing Final Cut Pro Windows

Using Screen Layouts

Choosing a Screen Layout

To choose a screen layout:

Customizing Screen Layouts

Creating Custom Layouts

To create a custom layout:

To use a custom layout:

Saving Additional Screen Layouts

To save a layout:

To load a saved layout from your hard disk:

Ways to Customize Keyboard Shortcuts

Learning About the Keyboard Layout Window

Keyboard Area

Command List Area

Assigning Keyboard Shortcuts

To assign keyboard shortcuts to commands:

Avoiding Keyboard Shortcut Conflicts

Keyboard Shortcut Conflicts with Mac OS X

Clearing and Restoring Keyboard Layouts

To clear all keyboard shortcuts:

To restore the default keyboard shortcuts:

Saving Commands and Keyboard Shortcuts as Text Files

To save commands and keyboard shortcuts as a text file:

Saving and Loading Keyboard Layouts

To save a customized keyboard layout:

To load a customized keyboard layout:

Using Different Keyboards and Languages

Working With Shortcut Buttons and Button Bars

Adding Shortcut Buttons to a Button Bar

To use shortcut buttons to perform commands:

Rearranging, Moving, and Copying Shortcut Buttons

Changing Shortcut Button Colors

Removing Shortcut Buttons

Saving and Using Custom Shortcut Button Bars

To save a shortcut button bar:

To load a custom shortcut button bar:

Part III: Setting Up Your Editing System

The Setup Process

Connecting Video and Audio Input and Output to Your Computer

If you are using DV video:

For professional and non-DV setup:

Connecting an External Video Monitor and Audio Speakers

Choosing an Easy Setup to Configure Final Cut Pro

Choosing a Scratch Disk Location for Captured and Render Files

To choose a scratch disk, see:

Components of a Final Cut Pro DV Editing System

Video and Audio Input and Output Devices

Video Device

Audio Device

External Video Monitor

External Audio Speakers

Video Interfaces

FireWire (for DV)

PCI Video Interface Card

AJA Io—FireWire for Uncompressed Digital Video (not DV)

Audio Interfaces

USB 1.1 Audio Interfaces

PCI Audio Interface Card

FireWire for Digital Audio

Using a Breakout Box With Video and Audio Interfaces

Device Control Interfaces

FireWire (DV) for Device Control

Serial Remote Device Control Using a 9-Pin RS-422 or RS-232 Connector

Scratch Disks

Connecting DV Video Equipment and Specifying Initial Settings

Setting up Final Cut Pro to capture DV video is as simple as connecting your camcorder to your computer with a FireWire cable.

Connecting Your Camcorder

Opening Final Cut Pro and Choosing Your Initial Settings

Choosing an Easy Setup

To choose an Easy Setup:

Specifying Scratch Disks for Capturing Video and Storing Render Files

To specify one or more scratch disks and associated settings:

To remove a scratch disk:

When Scratch Disks Become Unavailable

Assigning Search Folders for Reconnecting Media Files

Using a Storage Area Network for Media Storage

What Is FireWire?

The Differences Between Apple FireWire and FireWire Basic

What Is Device Control?

Choosing a Device Control Preset

To choose a device control preset in the Log and Capture window:

To confirm the communication between your VTR and Final Cut Pro:

Understanding Device Control Status Messages

Switching Device Control Presets When Changing Decks

Determining Your Hard Disk Storage Options

Working With Scratch Disks and Hard Disk Drives

Data Rates and Storage Devices

Determining How Much Space You Need

Know Your Shooting Ratio

Planning for Additional Media Files

Calculating Hard Disk Space Requirements

Example Calculation for Disk Space Requirements

Total duration of media captured to disk:

Data rate requirements for DV media:

Calculated disk space requirements for media:

Multiply final movie length by a safety margin of 5 for extra files:

Total disk space requirements:

Choosing a Hard Disk

Internal Disks

External Disks

Types of Hard Disk Drives

ATA Disk Drives

Parallel (Ultra) ATA Disks

Serial ATA Disks

FireWire Disk Drives

Important Information About FireWire Drives

SCSI Disk Drives

Using a RAID or Disk Array

Fibre Channel Drive Arrays and RAIDS

Storage Area Networks (SAN)

Why Use Third-Party Interfaces?

Choosing a Video Interface

FireWire DV

PCI Video Interface Card With Built-in Connectors

PCI Video Interface Card With Breakout Box

FireWire Video Interface

USB Video Interface

Connecting Professional Video Devices

To connect professional video devices to your computer:

Connecting Professional Standard Definition Video Devices

A Recommended System Using a Third-Party Video Interface

To connect video and audio outputs from your VTR to your third-party video interface:

Connecting Professional High Definition Video Devices

Connecting Professional Component Analog Video Devices

Connecting Consumer Analog Video Devices

Connecting Non-DV Devices to a DV Converter

A Recommended Non-DV-to-DV System Using Serial Device Control

To connect video and audio outputs from your VTR to your analog-to-DV or digital-to-DV converter:

Choosing an Audio Interface

Built-in Analog Audio

Built-in S/PDIF Digital Audio

PCI Audio Interface Card With Built-in Connectors

PCI Audio Interface Card With Breakout Box

USB Audio Interface

FireWire Audio Interface

Connecting Audio Devices

A Recommended Audio System Using a Third-Party Audio Interface

To connect your audio deck outputs to a third-party audio interface for synchronized, genlocked audio capture:

Connecting Professional Digital Audio

Connecting Consumer Digital Audio

Connecting Professional Analog Audio

To connect multiple analog audio channels from a VTR or audio device to a multichannel audio capture interface:

Establishing Device Control

Using Serial 9-Pin Connectors for Device Control

To connect a USB-to-serial adapter for remote device control between your computer and a VTR:

To connect an internal modem serial port adapter for remote device control between your computer and a VTR:

Synchronizing Equipment With a Blackburst Generator

It's best to preview your video on an external video monitor to accurately see how your final program will look.

This chapter covers the following:

Using an External Video Monitor While You Edit

Consumer Video Monitors Versus Broadcast Monitors

Connecting DV/FireWire Devices to an External Monitor

Previewing Standard Definition Video on an External Monitor

To connect your video interface to an NTSC or PAL monitor to preview video while you edit:

Previewing High Definition Video on an External Monitor

To preview uncompressed HD video on an HD monitor while you edit:

To video downconverted uncompressed HD video on an SD monitor while you edit:

To preview DVCPRO HD video on an HD or SD monitor while you edit:

Choosing Playback and Edit to Tape Output Settings

To choose a video interface for external monitoring:

Playback Output Area

Separate Output Options for Edit to Tape/Print to Video

Disabling Warning Controls

Using Digital Cinema Desktop Preview

About Digital Cinema Desktop Preview Options

Digital Cinema Desktop Preview - Main

Digital Cinema Desktop Preview

Digital Cinema Desktop Preview - Full-Screen

Digital Cinema Desktop Preview - Raw

Using Digital Cinema Desktop Preview to Monitor Your Video

To turn on Digital Cinema Desktop:

To turn off Digital Cinema Desktop Preview, do one of the following:

Troubleshooting Digital Cinema Desktop Preview

Compensating for Video Latency by Specifying a Frame Offset

To set the frame offset between the computer display and the external video and audio outputs:

About the Display Quality of External Video

Troubleshooting External Video Monitoring Problems

Controlling When External Video Output Is Updated

To set the external display option:

Part IV: Logging, Capturing, and Importing

What Are Logging and Capturing?

Ways to Log and Capture Footage in Final Cut Pro

Log your tapes, then batch capture using the Log and Capture window

Log and capture clips one at a time, using the Log and Capture window

Capture entire tapes, then create subclips and log in the Browser

Log in another application, import a batch list, then batch capture clips

Create clips directly in the Browser, then batch capture them

Log in the Log and Capture window without tapes in the camcorder or VTR

Import Final Cut Pro XML created in another application, then batch capture clips

Learning About the Log and Capture Window

Preview Area

Video Preview Area

Transport Controls

Jog and Shuttle Controls

Marking Controls

Tabs in the Log and Capture Window

Log and Capture Buttons

Are You Ready to Log and Capture?

The Importance of Logging

Benefits of Logging

Preparing to Log

Keeping Track of Footage With Reel Names and Timecode

Choosing Reel Names

Choosing Names and Log Information for Clips

Logging suggestions for projects that are tightly scripted

Logging suggestions for documentary-style projects

Monitoring Video and Audio While Logging

Entering Logging Information and Logging Clips

Overview of Logging Steps

Opening the Log and Capture Window

To open the Log and Capture window:

Inserting a Tape in the VTR

Considerations When Logging NTSC Footage

Setting a Logging Bin to Store Logged Clips

Logging Bin Controls in the Logging Tab

Creating and Setting a Logging Bin

Entering a Reel Name for the Current Tape

To enter a reel name:

Setting Clip In and Out Points

To set In and Out points for a clip to be captured:

To adjust clip In and Out points using timecode, do one of the following:

Entering a Clip Name and Other Logging Information

Specifying the Clip Name

To name your clip:

To clear the Description field along with the Shot/Take fields:

To clear the Shot/Take field:

To reset the Shot/Take and Angle fields to "01", do one of the following:

Adding Notes and Marking Good Shots

To enter logging notes for a clip:

To mark a clip as a good shot:

Confirming Your Logging Information

To have Final Cut Pro verify that the name and logging information is correct:

Adding Markers to Clips While Logging

Marker Controls in the Logging Tab

Setting Markers in a Logged Clip

To add markers to a clip you are logging:

Selecting Which Tracks to Capture

To select which tracks on tape are captured:

Multichannel Audio Capture Track Selection

To select which audio tracks are captured:

Changing a Clip's Track Selections After Logging

Changing Capture Settings

To choose different capture settings:

Setting Video and Audio Levels for Analog Video

Logging a Clip

To log a clip and add it to the current logging bin:

Logging Media Efficiently

Avoiding Duplicate Timecode Numbers on a Single Tape

Logging Tapes With Duplicate Timecode Numbers

Techniques for Avoiding Multiple Occurrences of the Same Timecode Number on a Single Tape

Additional Sources for Logging Information

Before You Capture

Different Ways to Capture Footage

Batch Capturing Clips

Before You Batch Capture

Learning About the Batch Capture Dialog

To open the Batch Capture dialog:

Settings and Options for Batch Capture

Batch Capturing Selected Clips

To batch capture clips:

Stopping and Restarting the Batch Capture Process

About the Additional Items Found Dialog

Capturing Clips as You Log (Capture Clip)

To capture a single clip in the Log and Capture window:

Capturing Entire Tapes (Capture Now)

Capturing an Entire Tape Using Capture Now

To capture an entire tape to your scratch disk using Capture Now:

About Automatic Filenaming During Capture Now

Automatically Creating Subclips Using DV Start/Stop Detection

Capturing Footage Without Device Control

Capturing Footage That Doesn't Have Timecode

Using a Non-Controllable Device for Capture

To choose a device control preset for a non-controllable device:

Recapturing Clips

Recapturing Subclips

Recapturing Merged Clips

Capturing Footage With Timecode Breaks

The Importance of Avoiding Timecode Breaks

How to Avoid Capturing Clips With Timecode Breaks

Using the Make New Clip Option

Ordered Timecode Breaks

Reset Timecode Breaks

Timecode Gaps

Using the Media Manager After Capturing

Final Cut Pro allows you to capture multiple audio channels at the same time, as well as capture audio-only media files.

About Capturing Audio

Preparing for Audio Capture

Choosing a Method for Capturing Audio

Capturing Audio-Only Media Files

To set Final Cut Pro to capture only audio:

To choose a folder on your scratch disk for audio-only capture:

Capturing Multiple Audio Channels

Setting Up for Capturing Multiple Audio Channels

To select an audio interface for capturing audio:

Multichannel Audio Channel Selection

To choose which audio channels to capture:

Dual Mono Versus Stereo Audio

How Multichannel Audio Clips Appear in the Viewer

How Multichannel Audio Files Are Stored on Disk

About Capturing Multiple Audio Channels From DV Devices

To choose which DV audio channels to capture via FireWire:

Adjusting Analog Audio Levels for Capture

To adjust the audio gain levels before capturing analog audio:

About Audio Peaks

Capturing Audio From an Audio Deck Using Device Control

Capturing From an Audio Device Without Device Control

Transferring Audio to Media That Supports Timecode

Capturing Synchronized Audio Independently From Video

What Is a Batch List?

How Batch Lists Can Be Used in Your Workflow

Differences Between Batch Lists and Edit Decision Lists

Creating a Batch List

Using Equipment That Displays a Timecode Window

Creating and Logging Window Dubs

Rules to Follow When Creating a Batch List

Using a File Exported From Final Cut Pro as a Template for a Batch List

To export a batch list:

Importing a Batch List

To import a batch list:

Troubleshooting Batch List Importing

Final Cut Pro can import almost any media file that QuickTime recognizes, allowing you to integrate different formats within a single project.

What File Formats Can Be Imported?

How Is Importing Different From Capturing?

Importing Media Files

To import a file or folder:

3 Save your project.

Tips When Importing

About Importing Video Files

Before you export a movie file for use in your Final Cut Pro sequence, do the following:

About MXF-Based Formats

Importing From a Sony VDU

About Media File Optimization

To disable the non-optimized media warning when importing files into Final Cut Pro:

About Importing Audio Files

What Kinds of Audio File Formats Can Be Imported?

Choosing Audio File Sample Rate and Bit Depth

Mixing Sample Rates and Using Real-Time Sample Rate Conversion

Converting Audio Clips to Match Sequence Settings

To convert a CD audio file so it matches your sequence settings:

Using Audio CD Tracks in Your Project

Importing Still Images and Graphics

Importing Numbered Image Sequences

Converting a Numbered Image Sequence Into a QuickTime Movie

To convert a numbered image sequence into a QuickTime movie:

Importing a Numbered Image Sequence Into Final Cut Pro

To import image files from a numbered image sequence:

Making Movies From Still Images

Using Color Bars

When Should You Use Color Bars?

Calibrating Brightness and Color on Analog Equipment

How Digital Video Levels Are Measured in Final Cut Pro

How Analog Video Levels Are Measured

Measuring Analog Video During Output

What Is Setup?

Using the Waveform Monitor and Vectorscope

To use the built-in Waveform Monitor and Vectorscope to adjust your clip settings:

Adjusting Color on Source Tapes Without Color Bars

To adjust color on source tapes using flesh tones:

"Legal" Broadcast Colors

Outputting Accurate DV Black Levels Using FireWire

Using an External Waveform Monitor and Vectorscope to Calibrate Analog Video Levels

Calibrating Video Monitors With Color Bars

Calibrating Your Broadcast Monitor

To calibrate your monitor:

Volume II

Editing

Part I Organizing Footage and Preparing to Edit

Chapter 1 15 Organizing Footage in the Browser

Chapter 2 35 Creating Subclips

Chapter 3 45 Merging Clips From Dual System Video and Audio

Chapter 4 53 Using Markers

Part II

Rough Editing

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Part III Fine-Tuning Your Edit

Chapter 19 345 Learning About Trimming Clips

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Part I: Organizing Footage and Preparing to Edit

Using Bins to Organize Your Clips

Creating New Bins

To add a new bin to a project:

Opening Bins in the Browser

Opening Bins in a Separate Window or Tab

Moving Items Between Bins

Using Labels to Organize Your Clips

About Label Names and Colors

Assigning Labels and Setting Label Names to Help Manage Your Media

To assign a label to a clip in the Browser, do one of the following:

Changing Names of Labels

To change the label names:

Sorting Clips by Labels

To sort clips by label:

Sorting Items in the Browser Using Column Headings

To sort items in the Browser:

Searching for Clips in the Browser and Finder

Revealing a Clip's Media File in the Finder

To reveal a clip's media file in the Finder:

About Search Options

To open the Find window:

Options for Defining the Scope of a Search

Options for Defining the Criteria of a Search

Search Commands

Searching for Items in the Browser

Searching for Multiple Items in the Browser

To search for multiple items in the Browser:

Searching for Unused Clips in Your Project

To search for unused clips:

Manipulating Items in the Find Results Window

To modify an item property for a group of found clips:

To delete found items:

To search for items within the Find Results window:

Using Custom Column Layouts in the Find Results Window

Learning About Subclips

To create a subclip:

To open the original media file from which a subclip came:

Removing Subclip Limits

To extend the Media Start and End points of a subclip to those of the original media file:

Master-Affiliate Clip Relationships

Techniques for Breaking Large Clips Into Subclips

Turning Markers Into Subclips

To turn a clip's markers into subclips:

How Markers Determine Subclip Durations

Creating Subclips Manually

To manually break a clip into subclips:

Editing With Subclips

Creating Independent Media Files From Subclips After Capturing

To organize subclips you want to keep and subclips you want to delete:

To delete media not referred to by selected subclips:

8 Click OK.

9 Choose one of the following options:

10 Choose Continue to delete media not referenced by the currently selected subclips, or choose Abort to stop the process, leaving your media file intact.

Merging Clips From Dual System Video and Audio

Working With Dual System Video and Audio

Use Accurately Captured Media to Create Merged Clips

Using Synchronization Points to Create Merged Clips

To synchronize video and audio clips using In or Out points:

Duration of Merged Clips

Creating Merged Clips From the Timeline

To create a merged clip from two or more clips in the Timeline:

4 Drag the linked clip items from the Timeline to the Browser.

Changing the Sync of Merged Clips

Learning About Markers

What Can You Do With Markers?

Differences Between Sequence and Clip Markers

Types of Markers

Working With Markers

Viewing Markers in the Viewer or Canvas

Viewing Markers in the Browser

Adding Markers in Clips and Sequences

Quickly Adding Markers

To quickly add a marker to a clip in the Viewer:

To quickly add a marker to a sequence clip in the Timeline:

To quickly add a marker to a sequence:

Adding Markers Along With Detailed Information About Them

To add a marker to a clip and enter information for it:

Adding Chapter, Compression, and Scoring Markers

Deleting Markers in Clips and Sequences

To delete specific markers in a clip in the Browser:

To delete specific markers in a clip in the Viewer or Timeline:

To delete all markers in a clip in the Viewer or Timeline:

To delete specific markers in a sequence:

To delete all markers in a sequence:

Navigating With Markers

To move the playhead to a marker in the Viewer or Canvas, do one of the following:

Renaming Markers, Adding Comments, and Changing the Kind of Marker

To rename a marker, add comments to a marker, or change the kind of marker:

Moving a Marker

Aligning Items in the Timeline by Their Markers

To align markers in sequence clip items to a sequence marker:

Extending a Marker's Duration

To extend a marker's duration to the playhead's location:

To shorten a marker that has a duration:

Editing Markers Into Sequences

Exporting Markers With Your QuickTime Movies

Working With Projects, Clips, and Sequences

Specifying Preferences Before You Start Editing

Working With Projects

Working With Multiple Projects in the Browser

Choosing Whether the Last Previously Opened Project Opens on Launch

Viewing and Changing the Properties of a Project

To view or change the properties of a project:

To choose new project properties each time you create a new project:

Backing Up and Restoring Projects

What Is Contained in a Project File

Returning to Saved Projects

Using the Revert Project Command

Automatically Saving Projects With Autosave

Learning About the Different Types of Clips

Types of Clips

About Offline Clips

Sequences as Clips

Viewing and Changing the Properties of a Clip

Changing Clip Properties in the Browser

Viewing and Changing Clip Properties in the Item Properties Window

Viewing and Modifying Clip Properties

To view and modify clip properties:

Finding a Clip's Media File

To identify the media file to which a clip refers:

Finding a Clip's Start and End Timecode Values

To identify the start and end timecode values of a clip's media file:

Changing the Properties of Affiliate Clips

Creating and Working With Sequences

Creating and Deleting Sequences

To create a new sequence in the current project:

To have Final Cut Pro prompt you for a sequence preset each time you create a new sequence:

To delete a sequence from the current project:

Opening and Closing Sequences

To open a sequence, do one of the following:

To open a sequence in the Viewer:

To open a sequence in a new Viewer window:

Duplicating a Sequence

To duplicate a sequence:

Copying a Sequence Into Another Project

To copy a sequence from one project into another:

To copy a sequence from one project to another by dragging:

Nesting a Sequence

Basic Sequence and Timeline Settings

When Rendering Is Required

Why Would You Change Your Sequence Settings?

Viewing an Existing Sequence's Settings

To view sequence settings:

The Fundamentals of Adding Clips to a Sequence

Creating a Rough Edit

Basic Steps Involved in a Rough Edit

Step 1: Add clips to the sequence

Step 2: Arrange content

Step 3: Make rough adjustments to clips in the Timeline

How Clips Appear in the Timeline

Undoing and Redoing Actions

To undo a change, do one of the following:

To redo a change, do one of the following:

Overview of Ways to Add Clips to a Sequence

Methods for Adding Clips to Sequences

Drag-to-Timeline Editing

Three-Point Editing

Determining What Parts of Clips You Want in Your Sequence

Preparing a Sequence Order in the Browser

Sorting to Create a Sequence Order

Visually Storyboarding in the Browser

To create a storyboard in the Browser:

About In and Out Points

Learning About the Out Point Inclusive Rule

To see exactly how the Out point inclusive rule works:

Things to Keep in Mind When Setting an Out Point

Setting Clip In and Out Points in the Viewer

To set an In or Out point for a clip in the Viewer:

To set an In or Out point while playing a clip:

Specifying an Edit Point Using Timecode

To set an In or Out point for a clip in the Browser using timecode:

To set an Out point by changing the duration of a clip:

Setting In and Out Points to Include a Whole Clip

Reviewing Your Edit Points

Setting Sequence In and Out Points in the Canvas or Timeline

Options for Setting Sequence In and Out Points

When No Sequence In or Out Points Are Set

When You Set One Sequence In or Out Point

When You Set Both Sequence In and Out Points

Setting Sequence In and Out Points

To set In and Out points in the Canvas or Timeline:

Setting In and Out Points to Match a Clip or Gap

To set In and Out points at the beginning and end of a clip or gap in the Timeline:

Setting In and Out Points Based on a Selection in the Timeline

Navigating to In and Out Points

To move the playhead to the next edit point in your sequence, do one of the following:

To move the playhead to the previous edit point in your sequence, do one of the following:

To move the playhead to the current In point in your sequence:

To move the playhead to the current Out point in your sequence, do one of the following:

Moving In and Out Points

Clearing In and Out Points

Adding and Deleting Tracks

Adding Tracks

To add multiple tracks to a sequence:

Deleting Tracks

To quickly delete a single track in a sequence:

To delete multiple empty tracks from a sequence:

Specifying Destination Tracks in the Timeline

Understanding Source and Destination Controls

Setting Destination Tracks

Changing Source and Destination Control Connections

To change Source and Destination control connections, do one of the following:

Disconnecting Source and Destination Controls

To disconnect Source and Destination controls in the Timeline, do one of the following:

Resetting Destination Tracks to the Default State

To reset the destination track assignments to their default state:

Exceptions to Normal Use of Source and Destination Controls

When Dragging Clips Directly to the Timeline

When Using the Superimpose Edit

When Recording With the Voice Over Tool

Locking Tracks to Prevent Edits or Changes

To lock a single track:

To lock a video track using keyboard shortcuts:

To lock an audio track using keyboard shortcuts:

To lock all video tracks in a sequence:

When Working With Clips on Locked Tracks

Disabling Tracks to Hide Content During Playback

To disable a track:

To enable a single video or audio track while disabling all others:

Customizing Track Display in the Timeline

Resizing Timeline Tracks

Resizing Tracks by Dragging

To resize a single track in the Timeline:

To resize all video or all audio tracks at once:

To resize both video and audio tracks at once:

Resizing All Tracks Using the Track Height Control

Saving Track Layouts

To save a custom track layout:

To restore a track layout from your hard disk:

Creating a Static Region in the Timeline

To resize a static region in the Timeline:

To move the static region up or down in the Timeline:

Drag-to-Timeline editing is a quick, intuitive way to move clips from the Browser or Viewer into your sequence.

Overview of the Drag-to-Timeline Editing Process

Step 1: Set clip In and Out points in the Viewer

Step 2: Drag the clip to the Timeline

Dragging Clips to the Timeline

To add part of a clip to a sequence:

To add an entire clip to a sequence:

Doing Simple Insert and Overwrite Edits in the Timeline

To do an insert edit:

To do an overwrite edit:

Automatically Adding Tracks to Your Sequence While Dragging

Understanding Three-Point Editing

Overview of the Three-Point Editing Process

Step 1: Set clip In and Out points in the Viewer

Step 2: Set sequence In and Out points in the Timeline or Canvas

Step 3: Specify destination tracks

Step 4: Add the clip to the Timeline

Different Ways to Do Three-Point Editing

Dragging to the Edit Overlay in the Canvas

Using the Edit Buttons in the Canvas

Using Keyboard Shortcuts

About Edit Types in the Edit Overlay

Performing the Different Types of Edits

Performing an Insert Edit

To perform an insert edit:

Performing an Insert With Transition Edit

To perform an insert with transition edit:

Performing an Overwrite Edit

To perform an overwrite edit:

Performing an Overwrite With Transition Edit

To perform an overwrite with transition edit:

Performing a Replace Edit

To replace an entire clip in the Timeline with a clip synchronized to a point in the sequence:

4 Do one of the following:

To use a replace edit with sequence In and Out points:

5 Do one of the following:

Superimposing Clips

To perform a superimpose edit:

Three-Point Editing Examples

Example: Editing a Specific Clip Into Your Sequence

Example: Editing a Clip Into a Gap in Your Sequence

Example: Backtiming a Clip Into Your Sequence

Example: Editing a Clip With No Specified In or Out Points Into Your Sequence

Finding and Selecting Content in the Timeline

Understanding What's Currently Selected

Identifying Selections in the Timeline

How Selections Are Prioritized in the Timeline

Direct Methods for Selecting Content in a Sequence

The following can be selected in the Timeline:

The following cannot be selected in the Timeline:

An Introduction to the Selection Tools

To select a tool:

Selecting Clips

Selecting an Individual Clip

To select an individual clip:

1 Do one of the following:

2 In the Timeline, click anywhere in a clip.

Selecting a Group of Clips by Dragging

To select multiple whole clips by dragging:

1 Do one of the following:

Selecting Multiple Clips

Deselecting an Item in a Multiple Selection

To deselect an individual clip item within a selection:

Selecting a Range of Timeline Content

To select a portion of a clip item:

1 Do one of the following:

2 Click a clip item where you want to start your selection, drag to the right until you reach the end of the portion of the clip you want to select, then release the mouse button.

Selecting All Clip Items on a Track

To select all the clip items on a single track:

Selecting All Items on All Tracks Forward or Backward

Selecting or Deselecting All Clips in a Sequence

To select every clip item in the Timeline:

To deselect every clip item in the Timeline:

Finding and Selecting Based on Search Criteria

To search for clip names, marker names, marker comments, or timecode numbers in a sequence:

Selecting a Vertical Range Between In and Out Points

Using Auto Select to Specify Tracks for Selections

To enable or disable Auto Select on a track:

To enable Auto Select on one track while simultaneously disabling Auto Select on all other tracks:

To explicitly select a region between Timeline In and Out points:

After initial content has been added to the Timeline, the next part of the rough editing phase is assembling clips into the order in which you want them to appear.

Snapping to Points in the Timeline

Moving Items Within the Timeline

Moving by Dragging

Moving Clips Numerically

To move an item by entering a timecode value:

3 Press Return.

Using the Command Key to Drag More Slowly

Performing Shuffle Edits

To shuffle a clip item from one position to another:

Copying and Pasting Clips in the Timeline

Copying Clips by Option-Dragging

Modifying Selections and Commands Using the Option Key

Copying, Cutting, and Pasting Clips in the Timeline

To copy (or cut) and paste clip items within the same Timeline tracks:

Example: Copying and Pasting Audio and Video Clip Items to Different Tracks in the Timeline

Deleting Clips From a Sequence

Deleting With a Lift Edit (Leaving a Gap)

To remove a clip item and leave a gap:

3 Do one of the following:

Deleting With a Ripple Edit (Leaving No Gap)

To delete a clip item and close the gap left behind:

Finding and Closing Gaps

To find gaps in a sequence:

To find track gaps in a sequence:

To close a gap, do one of the following:

To close a track gap without affecting any other tracks in the sequence:

To close a track gap using the Select Track Forward tool:

To determine the duration of a track gap in the Timeline:

Color-Coding Clips in the Timeline

To assign or change a label for a clip in the Timeline:

Once you've assembled clips in your sequence, you can easily cut them and adjust their durations.

Performing Basic Cut Edits

Cutting Clips in the Timeline

Using the Add Edit Command to Cut Clips

To cut all clip items at the playhead position:

Joining Through Edits (Splicing Cut Clips Back Together)

To remove a through edit, do one of the following:

Changing the Duration of Clips in the Timeline

Opening Sequence Clips in the Viewer to Change Durations

To open a sequence clip in the Viewer from the Timeline for further editing, do one of the following:

Linked Sync Relationships Between Video and Audio Clips

When Linked Clips Are Moved Out of Sync

Understanding Sync Relationships Between Multiple Linked Audio Items

Linking and Unlinking Video and Audio Clip Items in the Timeline

Linking Video and Audio Clip Items

To link unrelated clip items in the Timeline:

3 Choose Modify > Link (or press Command-L).

Unlinking Video and Audio Clip Items

To break the link between clip items:

Selecting Individual Clip Items While They Are Linked

Getting Clip Items Back in Sync

Moving a Clip Into Sync

Slipping a Clip Item Into Sync

To slip an out-of-sync clip item into sync using the Slip tool:

Moving or Slipping All Clip Items Into Sync at Once

To move all out-of-sync clip items into sync with the anchor item:

Establishing a Different Sync Relationship Between Linked Clip Items

Marking a Clip as In Sync

To mark out-of-sync clip items as in sync:

2 Choose Modify > Mark in Sync.

Learning About Linking Behavior in Audio Channel Pairs

If a clip contains two mono audio channels:

If a clip contains a stereo pair of audio channels:

Synchronizing Dual System Recorded Video and Audio

When video and audio are cut at the same time, the edit is usually more noticeable. Split edits help to “soften” edits by creating continuous audio beneath video edit points.

This chapter includes:

Learning About Split Edits

How Split Edits Look in the Viewer and Canvas

Setting Up Split Edit Points in the Viewer

To set up a split edit in the Viewer:

Setting Up a Split Edit While Playing a Clip

To change a simple edit to a split edit while playing a clip:

Modifying and Clearing Split Edits

Split Edit Examples

Example: Split Edit in the Viewer and a Simple Edit Point in the Canvas

Example: Split Edit in the Viewer and a Single Split Edit Point in the Canvas

Example: Simple Edit in the Viewer and a Split Edit in the Canvas

The multiclip features in Final Cut Pro allow you to group multiple camera angle clips together and switch or cut between them in real time.

About Multiclips

Multiclip Workflow

Step 1: Shoot an event with multiple cameras

Step 2: Log and capture multicamera footage

Step 3: Create multiclips, assigning a clip from each camera to a different angle

Step 4: Edit multiclips into a sequence

Step 5: Collapse multiclips to the active angle

Step 6: Output to tape or export to a QuickTime movie or a project interchange format

Creating Multiclips and Multiclip Sequences

Preparing Clips to Be Used as Multiclip Angles

Assigning Angle Numbers to Clips

To assign an angle number to a clip:

Cinema Tools Clip-Naming Conventions

Deriving Clip Angle Numbers From Reel Names and Filenames

Creating Individual Multiclips

About the Make Multiclip Dialog

Synchronizing Angles in a Multiclip

Creating a Multiclip

To create a multiclip:

Creating Multiclip Sequences

When Should You Use the Make Multiclip Sequence Command?

About the Make Multiclip Sequence Dialog

Creating a Multiclip Sequence

To create a multiclip sequence:

2 Choose Modify > Make Multiclip Sequence.

4 Depending on which timecode synchronization option you chose above, do one of the following:

5 Deselect the Include Angle checkbox for any angles you don't want to include in your multiclips.

Multiclip Sequence Examples

Example: Creating Multiclips Using the Starting Timecode and Starting Timecode Delta Options

Starting Timecode Offset Is 0:00

Starting Timecode Offset Is 5:00

Starting Timecode Offset Is 10:00

Example: Creating Multiclips Using the Overlapping Timecode and Minimum Overlap Options

Minimum Overlap Is 100%

Minimum Overlap Is 38%

Identifying and Naming Multiclips in the Browser

To change the name of a multiclip:

Working With Multiclip Angles in the Viewer

Viewing Multiclip Angles in the Viewer

To change the number of multiclip angles shown in the Viewer:

To scroll to view angles that are not currently visible in the Viewer:

1 Move the pointer over any video in the Viewer.

2 Click an arrow to scroll the angles up or down by one row.

Identifying Active Video and Audio Angles

Viewing Multiclip Overlays

To turn on multiclip overlays in the Viewer:

Rearranging and Deleting Multiclip Angles in the Viewer

To delete an angle from a multiclip:

Adding Angles to a Multiclip in the Viewer

To insert a new angle into a multiclip:

Resynchronizing Angles in the Viewer

To adjust the relative start time of a multiclip angle:

3 Release the mouse button.

Editing With Multiclips in Real Time

Using Keyboard Shortcuts and Shortcut Buttons for Multiclip Editing

Editing Multiclips Into the Timeline

Switching and Cutting Between Angles

Switching Angles

To switch the active angle for a multiclip in the Viewer:

To switch the active angle for a multiclip in the Timeline, do one of the following:

Cutting Between Angles

To cut to a multiclip angle using shortcut buttons or keyboard shortcuts:

To make multiclip cuts in real time using the Viewer:

Switching and Cutting Video and Audio Items Separately

To choose whether you switch or cut video, audio, or both at the same time:

Editing in Multiclip Playback Mode

To enable the Multiclip Playback option:

Optimizing Real-Time Performance for Multiclip Playback

Viewing Multiclip Playback on an External Video Monitor

To see all multiclip angles displayed on your external video monitor during multiclip playback:

Applying Filters, Speed, and Motion Parameters to Multiclips

Applying Filters to the Active Multiclip Angle

Switching Angles With Effects

Collapsing and Expanding a Multiclip

To collapse one or more multiclips in the Timeline:

To expand one or more multiclips in the Timeline:

Multiclip Master-Affiliate Relationships

Match Frame Commands Used With Multiclips

Media Management and Project Interchange

Working With Multiclips in the Media Manager

Reconnecting and Recapturing Multiclips

The Goals of Audio Editing

Make sure your audio edit points aren't noticeable.

Make sure that your video and audio clips are in sync.

Minimize differences in tone and quality between audio clips in the same scene.

Using Waveform Displays to Help You Edit Audio

Learning About the Audio Controls in the Viewer

Editing Audio in the Viewer

Opening Audio Clips in the Viewer

To open an audio clip from the Browser:

To open an audio clip item from the Timeline:

Viewing Audio Tracks in the Viewer

Zooming In or Out of the Waveform Display Area

Scrolling Through a Zoomed-In Audio Clip

To scroll horizontally through a zoomed-in clip in the Viewer, do one of the following:

Using the J, K, and L Keys to Hear Subtle Details

Turning Off the Audio Scrubbing Sounds

About Setting Edit Points for Audio

Dragging an Audio Clip to the Canvas, Browser, or Timeline

Trimming Audio Clips in the Viewer

Editing Audio in the Timeline

Timeline Audio Display Options

Displaying Waveforms in the Timeline

Displaying Overlays and Adjusting the Track Height

Zooming In and Out of Waveforms in the Timeline

To zoom in and out of the Timeline using the zoom tools:

Naming Audio Tracks

Moving Audio Items From One Track to Another at the Same Frame

Using Audio Transitions to Smooth Audible Changes

Creating or Separating Stereo Pairs

To create a stereo pair:

To separate a stereo pair:

Working With Audio at the Subframe Level

Viewing an Audio Clip at Single-Frame Resolution

Subframe Synchronization of Audio and Video

To navigate through a clip by subframe units:

Examples of Ways to Easily Edit Audio

Example: Replacing Unwanted Audio With Room Tone

To create a section of room tone from a short pause:

To replace an unwanted section of an audio clip with room tone:

Example: Fixing Awkward Audio Cuts in the Timeline

About Trimming With Slip, Slide, Ripple, and Roll Tools

Sliding Clips in the Timeline

Performing Slide Edits by Dragging

To slide a clip in the Timeline by dragging:

Performing Precise Slide Edits Numerically

To slide a clip in the Timeline using timecode:

Slipping Clips in the Timeline

Performing a Slip Edit Using the Slip Tool

To perform a slip edit in the Viewer using the Slip tool:

Performing Precise Slip Edits Numerically

Using the Ripple Tool to Trim an Edit Without Leaving a Gap

Which Clip Items Move in the Timeline After a Ripple Edit?

Performing Ripple Edits

Performing a Ripple Edit in the Timeline

To do a ripple edit in the Timeline:

Performing a Ripple Edit in the Viewer

To do a ripple edit in the Viewer:

About Ripple Edits and Sync Relationships of Clip Items on Other Tracks

Doing Ripple Edits on Multiple Tracks at Once

Asymmetrical Trimming With the Ripple Tool

To create a split edit using asymmetrical editing:

Tips for Edits Made With the Ripple Tool

Using the Roll Tool to Change Where a Cut Occurs

Rolling the Position of an Edit Between Two Clips

Rolling Edit Points in the Timeline

To do a roll edit in the Timeline:

To roll edit points on multiple tracks simultaneously:

1 Do one of the following:

2 Use the Roll tool to perform the roll edit across all of the tracks.

Doing Roll Edits in the Viewer

To do a roll edit in the Viewer:

Tips for Using the Roll Tool

Adjusting a clip's duration by moving its In or Out point, or moving the edit point between two clips, is called trimming.

What Is Trimming?

Controls That Affect Trim Edits

Linked Selection

Snapping

Locked Tracks

Using the Command Key to "Gear Down"

Selecting Edits and Clips to Trim

Tools for Selecting Edit Points

Selection Tool

Edit Selection Tool

Selecting Single Edit Points

Selecting Multiple Edit Points

Trimming Clip In and Out Points

Trimming With the Selection Tool

To trim a clip's edit point in the Timeline using the Selection tool:

Extending and Shortening Clips in the Timeline

To use an extend edit to change the duration of a clip in the Timeline:

Trimming Clips in the Viewer

To trim a clip in the Viewer:

Precision Editing Using Timecode

Determining What Kind of Edit Occurs When Entering Timecode Numbers

Moving the Playhead in the Timeline Using Timecode

Moving Clips Using Timecode

To move a clip in your sequence using timecode:

Using Timecode to Trim Clips in the Viewer

To use timecode to set a clip's In or Out point:

Understanding Alert Messages When Trimming

Insufficient Content for Edit

Media Limit

Clip Collision

Learning About the Trim Edit Window

Opening and Closing the Trim Edit Window

Controls in the Trim Edit Window

Transport Controls

Playback Controls for Individual Clips

Trim Buttons

Outgoing Clip Area

Incoming Clip Area

Using the Trim Edit Window

Playing Incoming and Outgoing Clips in the Trim Edit Window

Dynamic Trimming

Trimming an Edit in the Trim Edit Window

3 Choose a ripple or roll edit by doing one of the following:

Reviewing and Playing Back Your Edits in the Trim Edit Window

Slipping a Clip in the Trim Edit Window

Listening to Audio While Trimming

To listen to all sequence audio tracks while using the J, K, and L keys in the Trim Edit window:

Learning About Transitions

Common Types of Transitions

Using Transitions in Your Sequences

How Transitions Appear in the Timeline

Having Handles at Edit Points

Aligning a Transition in the Timeline

Adding Transitions

Adding Transitions With Clips You Add to the Timeline

Quickly Adding the Default Transition to Clips in Your Sequence

To add the default video transition, do one of the following:

To add the default audio transition, do one of the following:

Adding Transitions to Clips in Your Sequence

1 Do one of the following:

2 Do one of the following:

To add a transition from the Effects tab in the Browser:

Example: Transitioning To or From Black

To fade to or from black:

Using Transitions in Projects to Be Exported as EDLs

Moving, Copying, and Deleting Transitions

Moving a Transition to Another Edit Point

To move a transition in a sequence:

Copying and Pasting Transitions

To copy a transition from one edit point to another:

To copy a transition from one edit point to another by dragging it:

Deleting Transitions

To delete a transition from a sequence:

Modifying Transitions in the Timeline

Changing the Duration of a Transition in the Timeline

To change a transition's duration in the Timeline using timecode:

Changing the Alignment of a Transition in the Timeline

Changing an Edit Point After Adding a Transition

Replacing Transitions

Working With Default and Favorite Transitions

Changing the Default Transition

To change the default video or audio transition:

Saving a Transition as a Favorite

To save a favorite transition, do one of the following:

To rename a favorite transition:

Deleting Favorite Transitions

To delete a favorite transition:

Detecting Duplicate Frames Over Transitions

Using After Effects Transitions

To install After Effects transitions:

Use the Transition Editor to precisely modify a transition and preview it before you render.

Using the Transition Editor

Controls in the Transition Editor

Timecode Duration Field

Alignment Buttons

Drag Hand

Ruler

Outgoing and Incoming Clip Handles

Transition Bar With Start, Stop, and Edit Handles

Start and End Percentages of Transition

Reverse Transition Button

Reset Button

Custom Parameters

Displaying Clips in the Transition Editor

Opening and Modifying Transitions in the Transition Editor

Applying a Modified Transition Directly to a Sequence in the Timeline

Trimming Transitions and the Surrounding Clips

About the Two-Up Display in the Canvas

Trimming the Duration of a Transition

To change the duration of a transition:

Doing a Roll Edit to Change the Location of a Transition

To do a roll edit, changing the location of a transition:

Doing a Ripple Edit to Adjust the Length of a Clip in a Transition

To do a ripple edit, adjusting the length of the transition:

Previewing and Rendering Transitions

Determining the Render Status of Transitions

Previewing Transitions Before Rendering Them

Rendering Transitions

To render a single transition in your sequence:

To render only transitions and effects that can't play in real time:

To render all transitions and effects in your sequence:

You can edit from one sequence to another, either by nesting one sequence into another, or by actually editing the clips from one sequence to another.

Methods for Editing Clips From One Sequence to Another

Opening More Than One Sequence at a Time

Copying Clips From One Sequence to Another

4 Do one of the following:

Nesting Sequences

When Do You Nest Sequences?

Pros and Cons of Nested Sequences

Pros

Cons

How Many Audio Items Does a Nested Sequence Have?

Nesting a Sequence Inside Another Sequence

To nest a sequence open in the Viewer:

To nest a sequence by dragging it into another sequence:

Making a Section of Clips Into a Nested Sequence

To create a nested sequence using the Nest Items command:

Changing the Duration of a Nested Sequence Ripples Clips After the Nested Sequence

Editing the Content of One Sequence Into Another Without Nesting It

Editing Sequence Content Versus Nesting

Editing Clips From One Sequence Into Another

To edit all content from one sequence into another using the Canvas Edit Overlay:

To edit all content from one sequence into another using keyboard shortcuts:

To edit content from one sequence into another by dragging it into the Timeline:

Working With Sequence Clips in the Viewer

Opening a Sequence Clip in the Viewer

To open a sequence clip in the Viewer from the Timeline:

To open a sequence clip in the Viewer from the Canvas or Timeline:

To open a specific sequence clip item in the Viewer:

Switching Between the Viewer, Canvas, and Timeline

To switch between the Canvas and Viewer:

To switch between the Viewer, Canvas, and Timeline, do one of the following:

Using the Viewer to Adjust Sequence Clip In and Out Points

Using the Viewer to Adjust Motion and Filter Parameters

Matching Frames Between Sequence and Master Clips

To check if a sequence clip is independent:

Matching Frames Between a Sequence Clip and Its Master Clip

To match a sequence clip's current frame to its master clip in the Viewer:

Matching Frames Between a Sequence Clip and Its Media File in the Viewer

To open a sequence or Browser clip's media file as a clip in the Viewer:

Matching a Master Clip to a Sequence Clip in the Canvas or Timeline

To match a master clip (or any Browser clip) frame to a sequence clip in the current sequence:

Synchronizing the Canvas/Timeline Playhead With the Viewer Playhead

Why Synchronize Playheads?

Working With Playhead Sync

Using the Open Playhead Sync Option

Using the Gang Playhead Sync Option

Example: Trimming a Browser Clip by the Duration of a Sequence Clip

About Timecode in Final Cut Pro

Frame Rate Versus Timecode

Displaying Timecode in Final Cut Pro

Choosing a Timecode Display Option

To change the timecode display format:

To determine whether drop frame or non-drop frame timecode is displayed:

Displaying Timecode Affected by Speed Changes

Choosing Source and Auxiliary Timecode Track Display

Clip Time Versus Source Time

Changing Global Timecode Display Options

To choose default timecode display options for the active project:

Timecode Overlays

To view timecode overlays:

Modifying Timecode in Media Files

Using the Modify Timecode Command

To modify the timecode of a clip's media file:

3 Verify that the settings are correct:

Modifying Timecode in the Browser or Item Properties

Modifying the Timecode of Merged Clips

Modifying Sequence Timecode

To adjust the starting timecode number of a sequence:

To create a sequence preset in which the video frame rate (timebase) and timecode rate are different:

To modify the timecode rate of an existing sequence:

Working With 60 fps Timecode

Working With 24 @ 25 fps Timecode

Generating Timecode Window Burns

To apply the Timecode Reader filter to an entire sequence:

Volume III

Audio Mixing

and Effects

Part I Audio Mixing

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 8 135 Using the Voice Over Tool

Chapter 9 151 Using Audio Filters

Chapter 10 175 Tips for Better Audio

Part II Effects

Chapter 11 185 Video Filters

Chapter 12 217 Changing Motion Parameters

Chapter 13 249 Adjusting Parameters for Keyframed Effects

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21 489 Using Built-in Generated Clips

Chapter 22 495 Creating Titles

Part III

Real Time and Rendering

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Audio mixing is the process of blending the sounds of your movie together by adding filters and adjusting levels and pan settings.

Audio Finishing Features in Final Cut Pro

Audio Sweetening Features

Audio Mixing Features

Mixing Your Audio in Other Applications

Monitoring Audio on External Speakers

Overview of Audio Sweetening in Final Cut Pro

Categories of Postproduction Audio

Creating Additional Tracks for Audio Sweetening

Using Sequence Markers for Sound Effects and Musical Cues

Cleaning Up Audio

Adding Audio Filters

Setting Appropriate Volume Levels for Audio Clips in Sequences

Making Premixes (Stem Mixes)

Making the Final Mix

Determining the Number of Output Channels/Speakers

Adjusting Audio Levels

Adjusting Pan

Mixing to Call Attention to Important Audio

Choosing External Audio Monitoring Components

Choosing an Audio Interface

Built-in Audio

DV (FireWire)

Third-Party Audio Interfaces

Choosing Speakers and an Amplifier for Monitoring

Frequency Response and Dynamic Range

Amplifiers and Signal Levels

Self-Powered Versus Passive Speakers

Matching Your Mixing and Screening Environments

Setting Up a Proper Audio Monitoring Environment

Speaker Placement and Listening Position

Using Headphones

Audio Cables, Connectors, and Signal Levels

About Balanced Audio Signals

Microphone, Instrument, and Line Level

Signal Differences Between Pro and Consumer Equipment

Audio Connectors

1/8" Mini Connectors

RCA Connectors

1/4" Tip-Ring (TR) Connectors

1/4" Tip-Ring-Sleeve (TRS) Connectors

XLR Connectors

Configuring External Audio Monitors

Connecting Speakers to Your Editing System

To connect self-powered speakers to your computer:

To choose an audio interface to monitor your audio:

To enable "audio follows video" switching for video and audio outputs:

Setting Monitoring Levels and Muting System Sound Effects

What Is Sound?

Fundamentals of a Sound Wave

Frequency

Amplitude

Phase

Frequency Spectrum of Sounds

Measuring Sound Intensity

What Is a Decibel?

Decibel Units

Signal-to-Noise Ratio

Headroom and Distortion

Dynamic Range

Stereo Audio

Identifying Two-Channel Mono Recordings

Identifying Stereo Recordings

Interleaved Versus Split Stereo Audio Files

Digital Audio

Sample Rate

Bit Depth

About Audio Meters

Average and Peak Audio Levels

Average Versus Peak Audio Meters

Analog Versus Digital Meters

0 dB (Analog) Versus 0 dBFS (Digital)

What Does 0 dB Mean?

About Audio Meters in Final Cut Pro

Clip Indicators

To turn off clip indicators during playback:

Floating Audio Meters

Audio Peak Detection

Setting Proper Audio Levels

Setting Levels for Capture

What Reference Level Should You Use for Mixing?

Outputting Bars and Tone at the Head of Your Tape

Labeling Your Tapes

Working With Multiple Audio Output Channels

About Audio Output Presets

Choosing and Creating Audio Output Presets

To select an audio output preset for your sequence:

To change the audio output settings of your sequence:

To create a new audio output preset:

To change the default audio output settings assigned to all new sequences:

Downmixing Multiple Audio Channels to a Stereo Mix

Stereo Versus Dual Mono Audio

Capturing

Editing

Mixing

About the Audio Mixer

Controls in the Audio Mixer

Track Visibility Area

To show the Track Visibility area:

Track Strips Area

Master Area

To show the Master area:

View Buttons

Record Audio Keyframes Option

Using Audio Mixer Views

To show or hide individual audio track strips:

To customize and save different Audio Mixer views:

To reset all tracks to be visible in a particular Audio Mixer view:

Making Basic Audio Adjustments With the Audio Mixer

When Audio Mixer Controls Aren't Available

Using the Mute Button to Silence Audio Tracks

Using the Solo Button to Listen to Individual Tracks

To solo one or more tracks, do one of the following:

To disable solo on all tracks at once:

Using Faders to Adjust Audio Levels

Adjusting Levels in Mono Versus Stereo Clips

To change the overall audio level of a clip using a fader:

To change the audio level of a clip numerically:

Adjusting the Master Level of Your Sequence

Making Stereo Pan Adjustments With the Audio Mixer

Stereo Versus Dual Mono Output Channels

Stereo Versus Dual Mono Audio Clips

Changing a Clip's Pan

To change the pan of an entire clip:

To reset a panning slider:

To reset all panning sliders in the Audio Mixer:

About Mixer Automation and Keyframe Recording

Specifying Audio Keyframe Recording Resolution

To choose the resolution for audio keyframe recording:

Recording Audio Level and Pan Keyframes

To record level or pan keyframes:

Looping Playback to Mix Each Track

To record automation while your program is looping:

Tips for Working With Stereo

Modifying Recorded Keyframes

Using the Audio Mixer to Record Over Previously Existing Automation

Modifying Keyframes in the Timeline and Viewer

Deleting Audio Level and Pan Keyframes

To remove keyframes using the Remove Attributes command:

1 Do one of the following:

2 In the Remove Attributes dialog, click Levels or Pan to delete keyframes from those overlays.

3 When you're finished, click OK.

Using a Control Surface With the Audio Mixer

Connecting a Control Surface

What is MIDI?

Choosing an External MIDI Interface

Installing a MIDI Interface

To set up and connect a MIDI interface to your computer:

Choosing a Control Surface

Installing a Control Surface

To connect your control surface to your MIDI interface:

Configuring Final Cut Pro to Work With a Control Surface

To configure a control surface:

To change the settings for a control surface:

To delete a control surface:

How Audio Mixer Tracks Correspond to Control Surface Faders

Arranging Control Surface Order

To rearrange the order of control surface icons:

Working With Fader Banks

To switch fader banks on your control surface:

About Fader Banks With Multiple Control Surfaces

Using a Control Surface With the Audio Mixer

Preparing to Use a Control Surface

Adjusting Levels, Pan, Mute, and Solo Using a Control Surface

To use a control surface to mix audio in the Timeline:

Using Control Surface Transport Controls

Control Surface Commands Supported by Final Cut Pro

Recording Audio Mixer Keyframes Using a Control Surface

To record audio level and pan keyframes using a control surface:

Adjusting Audio Levels in the Timeline and Viewer

Adjusting Audio Levels in the Timeline

To display clip overlays in the Timeline:

To display audio waveforms in the Timeline:

To adjust the volume of a single clip with no keyframes:

To adjust keyframes in the Timeline:

To adjust the volume of a group of clips simultaneously:

Changing Volume Levels While a Sequence Is Playing

Changing Audio Levels in the Viewer

To adjust the volume using the Level slider:

To adjust the volume by entering a numeric value:

Panning Audio in the Timeline and Viewer

Panning Audio in the Timeline

To change the pan for a clip or clips:

Changing the Pan of Audio in the Viewer

Changing Pan for an Entire Clip

To adjust pan using the slider control:

To adjust pan by entering a numeric value:

To adjust pan by dragging the pan overlay:

Copying, Pasting, and Removing Audio Attributes

Adjusting Clip Levels and Pan Using Keyframes

Tools for Adjusting Keyframes

Using the Option Key to Temporarily Enable Pen Tools

Using the Command Key to "Gear Down" Adjustment Speed

Creating, Modifying, and Deleting Keyframes in the Viewer

To set a keyframe, do one of the following:

To set additional keyframes:

To move the Viewer playhead from one keyframe to another, do one of the following:

To adjust the level or pan of a single keyframe, do one of the following:

Example: Using Keyframes to Adjust Audio Levels

Example: Using Keyframes in the Timeline to Automate Audio Levels

Example: Setting Subframe Audio Level Keyframes to Eliminate Clicks

To set and adjust subframe keyframes:

Example: Using Keyframes to Control Pan

To set up a dynamic stereo pan using keyframes:

About the Voice Over Tool

Setting Up Your Computer to Record Voiceover

About Microphones and Room Noise

Connecting Audio Devices and Configuring Software

Step 1: Install or connect an audio interface

Step 2: Connect a microphone to a microphone preamplifier, and the preamplifier to your audio interface

Step 3: Open the Voice Over tool and choose audio input settings

To select an audio input in the Voice Over tool window:

Step 4: Choose an audio track and duration for your voiceover

Step 5: Determine the offset of your audio interface

To determine the offset of your audio recording device:

Step 6: Plug in your headphones

RAM Requirements When Using the Voice Over Tool

Controls in the Voice Over Tool

Playback and Recording Controls and Status Area

Audio File

Input

Headphones

Defining the Recording Duration and Destination Track

Setting the Recording Duration

Defining the Destination Track

Recording a Voiceover

Recording Multiple Takes

How Audio Recorded With the Voice Over Tool Appears in Your Sequence

About Audio Filters

Overview of Audio Filters

Frequency Ranges and Equalization

Low (20–250 Hz)

Midrange (250–4,000 Hz)

High (4,000–20,000 Hz)

Using Equalization (EQ) Filters in Final Cut Pro

Compression

Expansion

Noise Reduction Filters

Hum Remover

Vocal DeEsser

Vocal DePopper

Echo and Reverb Filters

Working With Audio Filters

Applying Filters to an Audio Clip

To copy and paste filters from one clip to another:

Displaying Filter Keyframes in the Timeline

To view the Clip Keyframes area:

Modifying and Removing Filters

To view a clip's filters in the Viewer:

To enable or disable a filter:

To change the order of filters:

To remove a filter from a clip, do one of the following:

Making Real-Time Audio Filter Adjustments

To make real-time changes to an audio filter parameter:

Looping Playback While Making Real-Time Filter Adjustments

To loop a section of a clip while making real-time filter adjustments:

Recording Audio Filter Automation

To record audio filter automation:

Automating Audio Filter Parameters With Keyframes

Controls in the Filters Tab

Adjusting Audio Filter Parameters

To record keyframes for a parameter during playback:

Saving a Filter or Transition as a Favorite

To make a filter a favorite:

To delete a filter saved as a favorite:

Installing Third-Party Audio Units Filters

When Audio Filters Are Missing

Read through the sections in this chapter for tips on cutting dialogue, cutting music, and keeping your tracks organized.

Learning to Describe Sound Accurately

Efficiently Using the Frequency Spectrum

Tips for Cutting Dialogue

Use subframe keyframes to eliminate pops and clicks at edit points.

Change the pace of off-camera dialogue.

Use the video from one take with the audio from another.

Be careful when combining dialogue from different takes.

Edit in sound to handle a loud background noise at an edit point.

Swap onscreen sound effects with new ones using a replace edit.

Tips for Cutting Music

Organizing Your Tracks

Once you have clips in a sequence, you can apply filters to process and modify the visual content of your clips.

Different Ways to Use Filters

Keyframing Filter Parameters

Applying a Filter to a Clip

To reposition the filter Start and End points:

Applying Multiple Filters to Clips

Viewing and Adjusting a Filter's Parameters

To reveal parameters for a filter:

Controls in the Filters Tab of the Viewer

Using Filter Controls

Sliders

Logarithmic sliders

Point control

To define a new location with x and y coordinates:

Angle control

Color controls

Clip control

Displaying Filter Bars in the Timeline

Enabling and Rearranging Filters

Copying and Pasting a Clip's Filters

To use the Paste Attributes command to paste filters into a clip:

Removing Filters From Clips

To remove a filter from a clip, use one of the following methods:

To remove all of a clip's filters:

Using After Effects Filters

To install After Effects filters:

Video Filters Available in Final Cut Pro

Blur Filters

Border Filters

Channel Filters

Color Correction Filters

Distort Filters

Image Control Filters

Key Filters

Matte Filters

Perspective Filters

Sharpen Filters

Video Filters

Creating Motion Effects in the Viewer

Adjusting Parameters in the Motion Tab

To view the motion parameters for a clip:

To reveal parameters for a motion attribute:

To enable the Drop Shadow or Motion Blur attribute:

To adjust motion parameters, do one (or more) of the following:

Keyboard Modifiers for Controls in the Motion Tab

When using slider controls:

When using a dial control:

Controls in the Motion Tab

Basic Motion Parameters

Crop Parameters

Distort Parameters

Opacity Parameter

Drop Shadow Parameters

Motion Blur Parameters

Time Remap Parameters

Using the Paste Attributes Command

Using Cartesian Geometry to Position Clips

To move a clip to the right:

To move a clip to the left:

To move a clip down:

To move a clip up:

Examples Using Motion Settings

Example 1: Using Motion Settings to Create a Multiclip Layout

10 Check the Basic Motion box, then click OK.

Example 2: Using Additional Motion Settings to Refine the Layout

Creating Motion Effects in the Canvas

Choosing a Wireframe Mode

Which View Should You Use?

Manipulating Images in the Canvas

Crop and Distort Tools

Zooming In to the Canvas

To zoom into the Canvas, do one of the following:

Using Wireframe Handles to Transform, Scale, and Rotate

To scale a clip:

To move a clip:

To rotate a clip:

To distort the shape of a clip:

To crop a clip:

Example: Using Motion Parameters and Wireframe Handles

Animating Motion Effects Using Keyframes

How Keyframing Works

Determining the Number of Keyframes to Use

Creating Simple Effects With Two Keyframes

Using Three Keyframes

Using Four (or More) Keyframes for Complex Effects

Keyframing Controls in the Viewer

Keyframing Tools in Final Cut Pro

Keyboard Modifiers for the Pen Tool

Setting Keyframes

To set a keyframe:

To create additional space in the keyframe graph:

To add more keyframes:

Adjusting and Deleting Keyframes

To adjust the value of a single keyframe, do one of the following:

To adjust a parameter value between two keyframes:

To adjust the values of an entire parameter with all keyframes simultaneously:

To move a keyframe forward or backward in time:

To delete all of a setting's keyframes:

Moving Between Keyframes

Zooming In to the Keyframe Graph

To zoom using the Zoom slider:

To zoom using keyboard shortcuts:

To zoom using the zoom tools:

To scroll along the entire duration of your clip:

Example: Using Keyframes to Make Opacity Changes

Example: Keyframing Opacity in the Timeline

Smoothing Keyframes With Bezier Handles

Understanding Bezier Handles and Curves

One-Sided Bezier Handles

Two-Sided Bezier handles

Smoothing Keyframes

To smooth a keyframe:

To change the shape of a Bezier curve:

To resize one side of a Bezier curve independently of the other:

To change the length and the angle of one Bezier handle independently of the other:

Creating Keyframed Motion Paths in the Canvas

What Are Motion Paths?

Creating Motion Paths

To create a motion path:

Adding, Moving, and Deleting Keyframes in Motion Paths

To add a keyframe to a motion path without moving the playhead, do one of the following:

To move a keyframe in a motion path without moving the playhead:

To delete a keyframe in a motion path without moving the playhead, do one of the following:

Creating Curved Motion Paths Using Bezier Handles

To add Bezier handles to a keyframe in a motion path:

To change the shape of the motion path:

To adjust curves in a motion path:

To resize one side of a Bezier curve independently of the other:

Controlling Speed Along a Motion Path

Moving an Entire Motion Path in the Canvas

To move selected motion paths:

Creating and Applying Motion Favorites

To create a motion favorite:

To change the name of a motion favorite:

To apply a motion favorite to a clip in your sequence, do one of the following:

To remove a motion favorite from the Motion Favorites submenu:

Using the Timeline Keyframe Graph Area

To display the Timeline keyframe graph area:

About the Keyframe Graph Area

Customizing the Keyframe Graph Area in the Timeline

To selectively display the individual parts of the keyframe graph area:

Working With the Filter and Motion Bars

To selectively display which keyframes are visible in a motion bar:

To move a clip's keyframe forward or backward in the Timeline:

Working With the Timeline Keyframe Editor

To view a specific parameter's keyframe graph line in the keyframe editor:

To resize a track's keyframe editor:

Copying and Pasting Specific Clip Attributes

About the Paste Attributes Dialog

Video Attributes

Audio Attributes

Copying and Pasting Clip Attributes

To paste the attributes of a copied clip into another clip:

Removing Attributes From a Clip

To remove attributes from a clip:

Reapplying the Most Recently Used Effect

To apply the most recently used effect:

Applying Filters Across Multiple Tracks at Once

To apply a filter across more than one track:

Creating and Applying Favorite Filters and Transitions

Creating Favorite Filters and Transitions

To create a favorite transition from the Effects tab:

To create a favorite transition using a transition already in a sequence:

To create a favorite filter from the Filters tab in the Viewer:

Organizing and Renaming Favorites

To rename a favorite transition or filter:

To organize favorite transitions and filters into sub-bins:

Applying Favorite Filters and Transitions

The Frame Viewer and QuickView tabs are useful for comparing content in different frames or quickly previewing a frame you are working with in the Canvas.

Comparing Two Frames in the Frame Viewer

Displaying Images in the Frame Viewer Tab

To open the Frame Viewer tab:

Choosing Display Options in the Frame Viewer

To choose a frame to display:

To turn on the split screen:

To turn off the split screen:

To adjust the split screen, do one of the following:

To swap the contents of two split-screen regions:

Viewing Your Composition in the QuickView Tab

Controls in the QuickView Tab

Playback in the QuickView Tab

Speed Basics

How Changing Speed Affects a Clip's Duration

Performing a Fit to Fill Edit

To perform a fit to fill edit:

5 Do one of the following:

Constant and Variable Speed Settings

Constant Speed

Variable Speed (or Time Remapping)

Differences Between Constant and Variable Speed Changes

Frame Blending and Reverse Speed

Smoothing Slow Motion Using Motion Blur

Making Constant Speed Changes

Making Variable Speed Changes

How Time Remapping Works

To apply a variable speed adjustment to a clip:

The Y Axis

The X Axis

Where You Can Make Time Remapping Adjustments

Viewing Time Remapping Parameters Applied to Your Clips

Learning to Read Timeline Speed Indicators

To view the Timeline keyframe graph area:

To view the motion bar in the Timeline keyframe graph area:

Using the Time Remap Tool

Sliding a Frame From Another Time to the Current Playhead Position

To move a source frame from another time to the playhead:

Keyboard Modifiers for Variable Speed Adjustments

Sliding a Frame to a New Time in the Clip

To drag a source frame to a new time:

Adjusting Time Remap Keyframes in the Motion Bar

Time Remapping Using the Time Graph

Time Remapping in the Motion Tab

Time Remap Parameters

Time Graph Output Parameters

How Timecode Is Affected by Speed Settings

To see how speed settings affect the timecode view, try the following:

Using Still Images and Graphics in Your Sequences

Creating Freeze Frame Stills From a Video Clip

To create a freeze frame from a video clip:

If you want to export a frame as a still image:

If a Still Image Appears Fuzzy on Export

Considerations Before Creating and Importing Stills

Creating Graphics With the Correct Frame Size for Video

Working With Graphics Clips of Different Resolutions

Video Is Not 72 Dots per Inch

Bit Depth of Imported Graphics

Scaling a Graphic to Fit the Frame Size

To scale a graphic:

Understanding Digital SD Video Non-Square Pixels

To create graphics that look correct when output to video:

3 Do one of the following:

4 Import your image file into Final Cut Pro.

Pixel Aspect Ratios in SD Video Signals Versus Computer Displays

Creating Graphics With the Correct Color Settings for Video

Choosing the Maximum White Sequence Setting

Flattening Graphics With Layers

Using Alpha Channels

Selecting Fonts and Creating Line Art for Video

Scaling Images and Video Clips to Match a Sequence

To scale an imported graphic in a sequence:

Changing the Duration of Still Images

To change the default duration of still images:

To change a clip's duration, do one of the following:

Example: Adding Camera Motion to Still Images

Step 1: Prepare and import your still image into Final Cut Pro

Step 2: Edit the still image into your sequence

Step 3: Open the image clip in the Motion tab of the Viewer

Step 4: Prepare the Viewer and Canvas settings

Step 5: Position and keyframe the image at the pan start and end points

To smooth the speed at the starting and ending points of a motion path:

Compositing Strategies and Modes

What Can You Do With Compositing?

Different Ways to Layer Clips in the Timeline

Moving Clips Vertically to Another Track

Adjusting Opacity Levels of Clips

To adjust the opacity of a clip (with no keyframes) in the Timeline:

To adjust the opacity of a clip (with no keyframes) in the Motion tab:

1 Do one of the following:

2 Click the disclosure triangle next to the Opacity parameter.

3 Adjust the opacity by doing one of the following:

Working With Composite Modes

Applying Composite Modes to Clips

To view or change a clip's composite mode:

Composite Modes in Final Cut Pro

Using Travel Mattes to Hide or Reveal Parts of a Clip

To create a travel matte:

Working With Layered Photoshop Files

What Happens When You Import a Multilayered Photoshop File

Don't Add or Delete Layers From an Imported Photoshop File

Using Video and Graphics Clips With Alpha Channels

Types of Alpha Channels Recognized in Final Cut Pro

Working With Clips That Have Alpha Channels

Importing Clips With Alpha Channels

Changing a Clip's Alpha Channel Type

To change or reverse the alpha channel type of a clip using the Item Properties window:

1 Do one of the following:

To reverse a clip's alpha channel:

Exchanging Media With Alpha Channels

Options for Displaying Alpha Channel Information

Displaying alpha channels

Displaying backgrounds

Superimposing Video When Preparing for EDL Export

Viewing RGB and Alpha Channels in the Viewer

Choosing a Background

Temporarily Excluding Clips From Playback or Output

Temporarily Disabling a Single Clip

To disable one or more clips:

To selectively disable a clip's audio or video tracks:

Soloing Clips in Multitrack Sequences

To solo a clip:

To reenable the disabled clips:

You can isolate specific elements of clips from the background and combine those elements with other clips by using keying, mattes, and masks.

Ways to Layer and Isolate Elements in Clips

What Are Mattes and How Can You Use Them?

What Is Keying and How Can You Use It?

What Are Masks and How Are They Used?

Alpha Channels and Key, Matte, and Mask Filters

Using Keying to Isolate Foreground Elements

Shooting Footage That Keys Well

Choosing an Appropriate Video Format

Use Proper Lighting

Using the Final Cut Pro Video Scopes to Help Correctly Light Your Background Screen

Overview of Compositing Using the Chroma Keyer Filter

Step 1: For best quality, start with the Color Smoothing filter

Step 2: Apply the Chroma Keyer filter

Step 3: Eliminate fringing with the Matte Choker filter

Step 4: Readjust the Chroma Keyer filter's settings

Step 5: Desaturate the key with spill suppressor filters

Step 6: Crop out elements using the Garbage Matte filter

Step 7: Color correct the foreground and background clips to match

Step 8: Perform additional adjustments to the background layer

Working With the Chroma Keyer Filter

Specifying the Type of Controls to Use for the Chroma Keyer Filter

To use the visual controls:

Visual Controls in the Chroma Keyer Filter

Example: Using the Chroma Keyer Filter

Using Mattes to Add or Modify Alpha Channels

Matte Filters Available in Final Cut Pro

Example: Using the Four-Point Garbage Matte Filter

Example: Keyframing Garbage Mattes

Using Masks to Replace or Modify Alpha Channels

Mask Filters Available in Final Cut Pro

Example: Using the Image Mask and Mask Feather Filters

Final Cut Pro includes powerful color correction features that let you analyze clips in your project and perform color correction on them.

Viewing Examples in Color

What Is Color Correction?

Why Color Correct Your Footage?

Color Correction Starts During Your Shoot

Using a Chip Chart in Production

Managing Color During Postproduction

Telecine Color Correction

Other Advantages to Telecine Transfers

Tape-to-Tape Color Correction

Color Correction in Final Cut Pro

Tools for Measuring Color and Brightness in Final Cut Pro

Measuring and Evaluating Video

Luma (Luminance)

Chrominance (Chroma)

Blacks, Mids, and Whites

Illegal Broadcast Levels

The Importance of Using a Properly Calibrated Broadcast Monitor

Displaying Excess Luma and Chroma Levels in the Viewer and Canvas

Enabling Range Checking

To enable range checking:

Options in the Range Check Submenu

Screen Layouts for Color Correction in Final Cut Pro

Working With Final Cut Pro Video Scopes

Viewing the Different Video Scopes

To open the Video Scopes tab in the Tool Bench:

Options in the Video Scopes Tab of the Tool Bench

Viewing and Choosing Display Options for Video Scopes

To see video scope options that are currently displayed:

Learning to Read the Waveform Monitor

Learning to Read the Vectorscope

Learning to Read the Histogram

Learning to Read the Parade Scope

How the Final Cut Pro Scopes Work

The Color Correction Process

Step 1: Pick the master shot of a scene to use as the basis for color correction

Step 2: Perform primary color correction

Step 3: Add additional color correction as necessary

Step 4: Add other filters to address specific needs

Step 5: Match the coverage of the scene to the master shot

Using Scopes Versus Looking at the Picture

The Final Cut Pro Color Correction Filters

Using the Color Corrector Filters

Controls in the Color Corrector Filters

To use the visual controls:

The Color Corrector and Color Corrector 3-Way Filters

General Controls

Copy Filter Controls

Working With the Copy Filter Controls

"Copy From" rule

"Copy To" rule

Keyboard Shortcuts for the Copy Filter Controls

Color Balance Controls

The Color Corrector Filter Controls

Color Balance Controls in the Color Corrector Filter

Auto Level and Contrast Controls in the Color Corrector Filter

Level and Saturation Controls in the Color Corrector Filter

Hue Matching Controls in the Color Corrector Filter

Example: Using the Color Corrector Filter

Color Corrector 3-Way Filter Controls

Color Balance Controls in the Color Corrector 3-Way Filter

Using a Trackball With the Color Correction Filters

Auto Level and Contrast Controls in the Color Corrector 3-Way Filter

Level and Saturation Controls in the Color Corrector 3-Way Filter

Hue Matching Controls in the Color Corrector 3-Way Filter

Example: Using the Color Corrector 3-Way Filter

Example: Color Correcting a Three-Shot Sequence for Continuity

Hue Matching Controls in the Color Corrector and Color Corrector 3-Way Filters

Using Limit Effect Controls to Control a Hue Matching Correction

Hue Matching Controls

Example: Using the Hue Matching Controls of the Color Corrector 3-Way Filter

Limit Effect Controls in the Color Corrector and Color Corrector 3-Way Filters

Limit Effect Controls

Using Multiple Filters Together With the Limit Effect Controls

Example: Using the Limit Effect Controls to Change a Specific Color

Example: Using the Limit Effect Controls to Isolate a Specific Color Against Grayscale

The Desaturate Highlights and Desaturate Lows Filters

Desaturate Highlights and Desaturate Lows Filters Controls

Highlight Desaturation controls

Lows Desaturation controls

Example: Using the Desaturate Highlights Filter

The Broadcast Safe Filter

Luminance Limiting controls

Saturation Limiting controls

Final Cut Pro can generate several types of clips for you to use in your sequences, including bars and tone, placeholders, and backgrounds.

What Is a Generator Clip?

Different Ways to Use Generators in Your Sequence

Graphical Video and Audio Generators Available in Final Cut Pro

Creating and Adding Generated Clips to Sequences

To create a generator and add it to a sequence:

1 Do one of the following:

Titles, including opening and closing credits and those used in the lower part of the screen, are important elements in your project.

How You Can Use Titles in Your Project

Installing and Choosing Fonts

Making Sure Titles Fit on TV Screens

Text Generators Available in Final Cut Pro

Creating and Adding a Title Clip

To create a title clip:

To add the title clip to your sequence:

Other Options for Creating and Adding Titles

Using LiveType to Create Titles for Your Project

Importing a LiveType Project Into Final Cut Pro

Working With LiveType and Motion Clips in Final Cut Pro

To automatically open a LiveType clip from within Final Cut Pro:

Introduction to Real-Time Processing Using RT Extreme

How Many Effects Can Be Played in Real Time?

About Real-Time Playback Quality

About Dynamic Real-Time Playback

About Safe Real-Time Playback

About Unlimited Real-Time Playback

Playing Only the Base Layer of a Sequence

About External Video Monitoring

Maximizing Real-Time Playback Performance

Available Real-Time Effects

Supported RT Extreme Playback Codecs

Display Quality and Accuracy of RT Extreme

What Is Gamma Correction?

More About Gamma Correction

Choosing Gamma Correction Options in Final Cut Pro

Using Real-Time Controls in Final Cut Pro

About Render Status Bars

Identifying Which Effects Can Be Processed in Real Time

Setting Real-Time Playback Options

Playback Settings

Record Settings

Using RT Extreme for Video Output

To output reduced-quality video using Print To Video, Edit to Tape, or direct output from the Timeline:

Real-Time Audio Mixing in Final Cut Pro

Calculating the Number of Tracks Played Back in Real Time

To determine the number of tracks your system can play back in real time:

Improving Real Time Audio Performance

Choosing Real-Time Playback Versus Rendering

Using a Third-Party Video Effects Accelerator Card

To choose software or hardware real-time effects processing for clips using a particular codec:

When you apply more effects to a clip than your computer can process in real time, you need to render temporary media files to watch your sequence in real time.

What Is Rendering?

Reasons for Rendering

Render Indicators in Final Cut Pro

About Render Status Bars in the Timeline

Video Render Status Bars

Audio Render Status Bars

About Item-Level Render Bars

Item Render Status Bars

The Rendering Process

Rendering Effects in Sequences

Selectively Rendering Parts of a Sequence

Commands for Rendering Effects

Render Selection Submenu

Render All Submenu

Render Only Submenu

More About Audio Render Options

Rendering One or More Sequences

To render an entire sequence:

Rendering Part of a Sequence

To render a section of a sequence:

1 Do one of the following:

Rendering Audio Items in a Sequence

To render individual audio items:

To render all audio items:

Using the Mixdown Command

To mix down audio in a sequence:

Temporarily Disabling Rendering

To temporarily disable rendering:

Auto-Rendering While You Are Away From Your Computer

To change Auto Render settings:

Changing Render Settings

Overview of Video Processing Settings

About Color Space

RGB Color Space

Y^_BC_R Color Space

About Video Bit Depth

32-Bit Floating Point Processing

About Color Space Conversion

Rendering in Native Y'C\_B C\_R (YUV) Color Space

About Maximum White Levels

Rendering Y'C\_B C\_R Footage in RGB

Compositing and the Y'C\_B C\_R and RGB Color Spaces

About Rec-601 and Rec-709 Color Standards

Y^_BC_R Rendering and Color Bars

About Settings in the Video Processing Tab

Color Space and Bit Depth Precision Options

Changing Settings in the Video Processing Tab

To change video processing settings for an individual sequence:

To change the default video processing settings for a sequence preset:

Changing Settings in the Render Control Tab

Render & Playback Settings

Render Settings

Changing Render Options for Sequences

Managing Your Render Files

Locating Render Files

Using the Render Manager

To delete render files:

1 Choose Tools > Render Manager.

2 Click in the Remove column to delete specific render files.

3 When you're ready to delete render files, click OK.

Preserving Render Files

Using Nested Sequences to Preserve Render Files

Disabling Tracks Affects Render Files

Tips for Avoiding Unnecessary Rendering

Reducing Render Time

Volume IV

Media Management and Output

Part I Media and Project Management

Chapter 1 13 Media Management

Chapter 2 19 Backing Up and Restoring Projects

Chapter 3 29 Elements of a Final Cut Pro Project

Chapter 4 41 Working With Master and Affiliate Clips

Chapter 9

Part II

Project Interchange

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12 163 Importing and Exporting Final Cut Pro XML

Part III Output

Chapter 13 175 Preparing to Output to Tape

Chapter 14 185 Assemble and Insert Editing Using Edit to Tape

Chapter 15 207 Printing To Video and Output From the Timeline

Chapter 17 227 Learning About QuickTime

Chapter 18 239 Exporting QuickTime Movies

Chapter 19 245 Exporting QuickTime-Compatible Files

Chapter 20 261 Exporting Still Images and Image Sequences

Chapter 21 267 Batch Exporting Clips and Sequences

Part IV

Settings and Preferences

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Part V

Appendixes

Appendix A

Appendix B

377 Frame Rate and Timecode

Appendix C

391 Working With Anamorphic 16:9 Media

Appendix D

401 Solving Common Problems

Glossary

Index

Part I: Media and Project Management

What Is Media Management?

Reasons to Use Media Management

What You Need to Know to Manage Your Media

Media Management Steps in Final Cut Pro

Step 1: Log and capture

Step 3: Recapturing media

Step 4: Transferring your project to another Final Cut Pro system

Step 5: The final cut (online edit) and outputting to tape

Strategies for Media Management

Reel Name Conventions

Clip Name Conventions

Media Filename Conventions

Working With Full-Resolution Media Versus an Offline/Online Workflow

Working With Multiple Editing Workstations and Trading Project Files

Using Multiple Workstations With a Storage Area Network (SAN)

Online Editing on a Final Cut Pro System Versus Another Linear or Nonlinear System

Backing Up and Restoring Projects

Using the Revert Project Command

To revert to the previously saved state of a project:

Using the Autosave Feature

How Autosave Works

To turn on autosave:

To change the location of the Autosave Vault folder:

Using a "First-In, First-Out" Strategy

Restoring Autosaved Projects

To restore a previously autosaved project:

Opening a Project File After Your Computer Is Unexpectedly Powered Off

Archiving Completed Projects

Creating an Archive of a Finished Project

Updating Projects From Previous Versions of Final Cut Pro

Before Updating Projects

Updating Projects

To update projects created in earlier versions of Final Cut Pro:

Updating Projects From Final Cut Pro HD 4.5 or Earlier

Updating Projects From Final Cut Pro 3.0 so That Clips Have Master-Affiliate Relationships

To create master-affiliate relationships for clips in an older project:

Updating Projects or Sequences From Final Cut Pro 1.2.1

To enable YUV processing in a sequence with an unknown codec:

About Clips, Media Files, and Sequences

Media Files

Types of Clips

Clips Described By Their Properties

Clips Defined By Relationship to Other Clips

Clips Defined By Media File Connection

Clips Defined By Location in Project

Sequences

About Icons and Project Elements in the Browser

Clip Properties

Master-affiliate clip relationships make it easy to manage multiple uses of media files in your project.

Using Master and Affiliate Clips

How Master Clips Connect to Media Files

Identifying Master Clips

To view a clip's Master Clip property:

Creating Master and Affiliate Clips

Creating a Master Clip by Duplicating a Master Clip

To create a new master clip by duplicating a master clip, do one of the following:

Creating Affiliate Clips From Master Clips

To create a master clip from an affiliate clip in the Browser, do one of the following:

To create a master clip from an affiliate or independent clip in the Timeline:

Creating Affiliate Clips From Other Affiliate Clips

Breaking the Relationship Between an Affiliated Clip and Its Master

Independent Clips

The Difference Between Independent and Master Clips

To make a sequence clip independent:

Creating Master Clips for Independent Clips

To create new master clips for an entire sequence of independent clips:

When Can Independent Clips Become Affiliated With Existing Master Clips?

Finding a Clip's Master Clip

To find a clip's master clip:

Master-Affiliate Relationships With Subclips, Merged Clips, and Freeze Frames

Master-Affiliate Clip Properties

Master Clip Properties

Affiliate Clip Properties

Media File Properties

Final Cut Pro allows you to do offline editing with low-resolution copies of your media files, and then recapture your footage at full resolution for the final online edit.

About Offline/Online Editing

Offline Editing

Edit Decision List or Other Project Interchange File

Online Editing

How Audio Is Handled in the Offline/Online Editing Process

Offline/Online Editing Workflows

Step 1: Set up and capture media at low resolution

Step 2: Edit with offline-quality (low-resolution) media files

Step 3: Create a sequence for recapturing media at full resolution

Step 4: Recapture necessary media at full resolution

Step 5: Add final color correction, effects, transitions, and titles

Step 6: Output to tape, MPEG-2 (for DVD), or a QuickTime movie file

Using the OfflineRT Format in Final Cut Pro

Setting Up and Capturing Media to an OfflineRT Format

To prepare your project for capturing media to an OfflineRT format:

Capturing or Recompressing Media to an OfflineRT Format

Editing With Offline-Quality (Low-Resolution) Media Files

Using Full-Resolution Graphics in a Low-Resolution, OfflineRT Sequence

Creating a Sequence for Recapturing Media at Full Resolution

Which Sequence Preset Should You Choose for Your Online Edit?

Recapturing Full-Resolution Media for Your Sequence

To recapture media for your full-resolution sequence:

Adding Final Color Correction, Effects, Transitions, and Titles

Output to Tape, MPEG-2 (for DVD), or a QuickTime Movie File

Online Editing on Non-Final Cut Pro Editing Systems

Trading Project Files Using Email or the Internet

To use the Media Manager to deliver your project to another Final Cut Pro editing system:

About the Connections Between Clips and Media Files

How the Connection Between Clips and Media Files Can Be Broken

Making Clips Offline

To make one or more files offline:

Differences Between "Missing" and Offline Media Files

Reconnecting Clips to Media Files

About the Reconnect Files Dialog

Files To Connect List

Search Locations Area

Search Order and Speed in the Reconnect Files Dialog

Locate and Search Buttons

Files Located List

Using the Reconnect Files Dialog

To use the Reconnect Files dialog:

When Final Cut Pro Reconnects Your Clips

About the Offline Files Dialog

Information and Controls in the Offline Files Dialog

The Media Manager helps you move, copy, delete, and process your project's media files, automatically updating the connections between clips and media files.

Getting Started With the Media Manager

What Can You Do With the Media Manager?

Selecting Items to Process With the Media Manager

Settings and Options in the Media Manager Window

To open the Media Manager:

Summary Area

Media Area

Include Render Files Checkbox

Include Master Clips Outside Selection Checkbox

Delete Unused Media Checkbox

Use Handles Checkbox

Include Affiliate Clips Outside Selection Checkbox

Project Area

Media Destination Area

How the Media Manager Processes Selected Items

Processing Steps in the Media Manager

How Independent Clips Are Processed

How Subclips Are Processed

How Clips With Speed Adjustment Are Processed

Limiting How Much Media Is Copied or Deleted

Preserving Media Only for the Selected Item

Preserving Media for the Selected Item and Its Master Clip

Preserving Media for the Selected Item, Its Master Clip, and All Affiliated Clips

Examples of How to Use the Media Manager

The best way to learn about the Media Manager is to perform some of the common tasks described in this chapter.

This chapter covers the following:

Using the Media Manager

Step 1: Select clips or sequences in your project

Step 2: Choose options in the Media Manager window

Step 3: Start the media management process

To use the Media Manager:

Example: Removing Unused Media From a Sequence

2 In the Media Manager, choose the following options, then click OK.

Example: Duplicating a Sequence and Its Corresponding Media Files

Example: Duplicating a Portion of a Sequence and Its Media Files

2 In the Media Manager, choose the following options, then click OK.

Example: Copying Several Sequences With New Settings, but Without Media Files

2 In the Media Manager, choose the following options, then click OK.

Example: Recompressing Media Files for an Entire Project for Editing on a PowerBook

Example: Removing Portions of Media Files After Creating Subclips

To eliminate portions of a media file not referenced by subclips:

5 In the Media Manager, make the following selections:

6 Click OK.

Example: Consolidating Media Files Into One Folder

Example: Consolidating Your Project and Media Files for Archiving

Different Tools for Diagnosing Clips

About the Analyze Movie Command

Using the Analyze Movie Command

To analyze any QuickTime media file on your hard disk:

To analyze a clip's media file in your project:

Information Reported by the Analyze Movie Command

For all QuickTime files:

For files with a video track:

For files with an audio track:

For files with a timecode track:

Finding and Marking Long Frames

Using the Mark Long Frames Command

To find and mark long frames:

To clear long frame markers:

Detecting Audio Peaks

To find and mark audio peaks:

To clear all audio peak markers in a clip:

Edit Decision Lists (EDLs) are useful for transferring edit information between editing systems.

What Is an EDL?

Learning to Read an EDL

Elements of an EDL

Title and Sequence Timecode Format

Event Number

Reel Name

Track Type

Edit (or Transition) Type

Transition Duration

Source In and Out, Record In and Out

Notes

Exporting EDLs

To export a sequence to an EDL file:

Settings and Options in the EDL Export Dialog

EDL Title

Target Video Track Only

Omit Transitions

Reel Conflicts

EDL Notes

Master

Audio Mapping

Reviewing an EDL

To open an Edit Decision List:

Using EDL Access for RT-11 Disks

Importing Edit Decision Lists (EDLs)

Limitations of Importing EDLs

Importing EDLs in Final Cut Pro

To import an Edit Decision List:

Problems Importing EDL Files

Settings and Options in the EDL Import Dialog

How Clips From an EDL Are Named

Master Clips Created From EDLs

Recapturing Clips From an Imported EDL

Creating Better EDLs

Limitations of EDLs

EDL Considerations Before Capturing

Maintaining Accurate Timecode

Reel Name Restrictions in EDLs

Unique Reel Names for Each Tape and Timecode Breaks

To identify a tape with timecode breaks using multiple reel names:

To change a clip's reel name in the Browser:

Choosing a Timecode Track Used for a Clip

Choosing a Sequence Frame Rate

EDL Considerations During Editing

Limit the Number of Edits in Your Sequence

Only Use Transitions in Track V1

Join Through Edits

Keep Track of Duplicate Frames

Limit the Number of Audio Tracks You Use

Don't Rely on Audio Mix Levels

Avoid Nested Sequences

Avoid Nonstandard Video Transitions

Be Careful Using Still Frames and Speed Settings

Transition Wipe Codes for EDL Export

Ways You Can Finish Your Audio

Organizing Your Audio Clips for Multi-Track Export

Exporting Audio Tracks to Individual Audio Files

Preparing to Export Audio Tracks as Audio Files

Step 1: Make a duplicate of your sequence

Step 2: Insert sync beeps at the beginning and end of each audio track

To create a sync beep (or two-pop):

Step 3: If necessary, arrange audio clips so they don't overlap

Step 4: Remove audio filters and delete any level or pan keyframes

To remove all audio filters and keyframes in your sequence:

Exporting Audio Tracks as Individual Audio Files

To export a single audio track as an audio file:

Exporting Audio Output Groups to AIFF(s)

Automatic Filenaming During Export to AIFF(s)

Exporting a Downmix

Preparing to Export Audio to AIFF(s)

Using the Export Audio to AIFF(s) Command

To export audio to AIFF(s):

Exporting Multichannel QuickTime Files

To export your sequence to a multichannel QuickTime movie file:

Exporting OMF Audio Files

Limitations of OMF Exporting in Final Cut Pro

Exporting Sequence Audio to an OMF File

To export audio from a sequence to an OMF file:

OMF Files Have a Two-Gigabyte Limit

Exporting Audio Clip Information to an EDL

Copying Audio to Timecoded Tapes for Logging, Capturing, and EDL Export

About XML

Tags and Elements

Original text file

Tagged document

Attributes of XML Elements

Whitespace

Document Type Definitions

Working With XML Created in Different Applications

Overview of the Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format

Main Final Cut Pro XML Elements

Example: Creating an XML file and Importing It Into Final Cut Pro

Exporting XML in Final Cut Pro

To export a Final Cut Pro element as an XML file:

Importing XML Into Final Cut Pro

To import an XML file into Final Cut Pro:

Choosing a Videotape Format and Equipment for Output

Output Requirements

Requirements for full-resolution DV output

Requirements for full-resolution Digital Betacam output

Requirements for full-resolution BetacamSP output

Requirements for VHS output

Methods for Output to Tape in Final Cut Pro

Edit to Tape

Print to Video

Recording to Tape Directly From the Timeline

Setting Up Your Editing System to Output to Tape

Connecting Your Video Equipment and Setting it to VCR Mode

Choosing Video and Audio Outputs

To view a summary of your Easy Setup:

Selecting Playback Settings

Selecting Render Settings

Selecting Edit to Tape and Print to Video Preferences

Cueing the Videotape

To cue the tape:

Calibrating Your Timecode

Choose Device Control and Edit Preview Settings

To choose device settings:

Preparing Your Videotape With Black and Timecode

To prepare a tape with black and timecode:

Assemble and Insert Editing Using Edit to Tape

Overview of Tape Editing Methods

About Assemble Editing to Tape

About Insert Editing to Tape

About Tracks on Videotape

About the Control and Timecode Tracks

Requirements for Assemble or Insert Editing to Tape

About the Edit to Tape Window

Video Tab

Destination Track Controls

Transport Controls

Mastering Settings Tab

Leader Elements

Media Elements and Options

Trailer

Duration Calculator

Adding Standard Leader and Trailer Elements

Device Settings Tab

Using the Edit to Tape Window

Performing an Assemble Edit to Tape

To do an assemble edit:

Performing an Insert Edit When Editing to Tape

To perform an insert edit:

Using Edit to Tape to Output Multichannel Audio

Choosing Audio Mapping for Multichannel Audio Output

To set up Final Cut Pro to output more than two channels of audio:

Printing To Video and Output From the Timeline

Different Ways You Can Output Video From the Timeline

Printing to Video

Automatically Recording With Print to Video

Using the Print to Video Command

To test playback:

To print to videotape:

Recording From the Timeline

To record directly from the Timeline:

Outputting to VHS Tape

The DVD Creation Process

Video for DVD

About the MPEG Format

Audio for DVD

About Surround Sound Audio

Adding Chapter and Compression Markers to Your Sequence

More About Chapter Markers

More About Compression Markers

About the DVD Authoring Applications

Using iDVD

Using DVD Studio Pro

Using Compressor

Exporting a QuickTime Movie for DVD Use

Creating DVD-Compliant Sources for DVD Studio Pro

Launching Compressor Within Final Cut Pro

To launch Compressor from Final Cut Pro:

Using Compressor as a Standalone Application

Launching the QuickTime Encoder Within Final Cut Pro

To export a QuickTime movie file using the MPEG-2 codec:

What Is QuickTime?

The QuickTime Suite of Software Applications

QuickTime for Media Authoring

The QuickTime Movie File Format

How Is Information Stored in a QuickTime Movie?

Codecs Supported in QuickTime

Distinguishing Between File Formats and Codecs

Understanding Codec and File Format Naming Conventions

Time in QuickTime Movie File Tracks

How Final Cut Pro Uses QuickTime for Import, Export, and Capture

To Find Out More About QuickTime

Formats Supported by QuickTime

Movie File Formats

AVI

DV Stream

MPEG-2

MPEG-4

QuickTime Movie

Video Codecs Supported Within Video File Formats

Uncompressed

Animation

DV Codecs

Apple M-JPEG

JPEG

Third-Party Codecs

Graphics and Still Image Formats

Audio File Formats

How Do You Export the Files You Need?

The Export QuickTime Movie Command

The Export Using QuickTime Conversion Command

About the Export QuickTime Movie Command

Choosing the Type of QuickTime Movie to Export

Exporting a Self-Contained Movie Without Recompressing the Media

Exporting a QuickTime Movie File

To export a QuickTime movie:

5 Choose a location and enter a name for the file.

About the Export Using QuickTime Conversion Command

What Is QuickTime and Why Do I Need to Know About It?

Types of QuickTime-Compatible File Formats

Video and Movie File Formats

Multimedia Distribution File Formats

Still Image File Formats and Image Sequences

Audio File Formats

Exporting a QuickTime Movie File for Web Distribution

To export a QuickTime movie file:

8 To set additional video, audio, and Internet streaming settings, click Options.

QuickTime Movie Video Settings

Standard Video Compression Settings

Motion

Data Rate

Compressor

Preview

Filter Settings

Size Settings

QuickTime Movie Sound Settings

Linear PCM Settings

Prepare for Internet Streaming

Exporting a DV Stream

To export a DV Stream file:

Exporting an AVI File

To export an AVI file:

Determining the Image Format for Still Image Export

Resolution of Exported Still Images

Bit Depth of Exported Still Images

Exporting a Single Still Image

To export a still image:

Exporting Image Sequences

To export a numbered image sequence:

You can set up Final Cut Pro to export multiple clips and sequences at one time using the Batch Export command.

Overview of the Batch Exporting Process

Selecting Items in the Browser to Batch Export

Selecting Batch Export Settings

Choosing Export Settings With the Settings Button

Selecting Batch Export Settings From Columns

To change batch export settings from the Export Queue window:

Columns in the Export Queue window

Doing a Batch Export

To do a batch export:

Opening Batch Exported Files in the Viewer

To open batch exported files in the Viewer:

To add batch exported items to your project:

Redoing Batch Exports

To change the status of items in the Export Queue:

Final Cut Pro has numerous settings and preferences that allow you to customize your system for particular video formats and editing styles.

Changing User Preferences

To open User Preferences:

General Tab

Real-Time Audio and Video Options

More About Audio Playback Quality

Interface Options

Autosave Options

New Project and Sequence Options

Capture and Playback Options

Text Size Options

Auto Render Options

Editing Tab

Default Timing Options

Dupe Detection

Trim Edit Window Options

Visibility, Track Locking, and Audio Keyframe Options

Labels Tab

Timeline Options Tab

Render Control Tab

Audio Outputs Tab

Locating and Trashing the Preferences File

Changing System Settings

To open System Settings:

Scratch Disks Tab

Search Folders Tab

To add or replace a search folder:

Missing Search Folders

Memory & Cache Tab

Memory Usage

Thumbnail Cache Settings

Playback Control Tab

External Editors Tab

To open a clip in an external application:

1 Do one of the following:

2 Make the necessary revisions to the file, then save the changes in the external application.

To set an external editor:

To clear an external editor:

Effect Handling Tab

The Audio/Video Settings Window

Learning About Audio/Video Presets

Viewing a Summary of the Current Presets

Changing Your Easy Setup and Presets

Selecting a Different Easy Setup

To choose an Easy Setup:

Changing Audio/Video Presets

Choosing Individual Presets

To choose a different preset for your current setup:

Viewing Settings in a Preset

To view settings for a preset:

Creating a New Preset

To create a new preset:

Editing a Preset

To edit a preset:

Deleting Presets

To delete a preset you've created:

Creating Custom Easy Setups

To create a custom Easy Setup:

Moving, Deleting, and Restoring an Easy Setup

To delete a custom Easy Setup:

To make an Easy Setup unavailable:

To restore the original Easy Setups that came with Final Cut Pro:

Example: Creating a Custom Preset and Easy Setup

To create a custom Easy Setup for capturing DV NTSC video from a Betacam SP deck:

Installing Third-Party Easy Setups and Presets

Loading Easy Setups Over a Network

A capture preset is a group of settings that determine how media is captured from an external media device (such as a VTR) to a hard disk.

About Capture Preset Settings

To view or edit a capture preset:

General Settings for Capture Presets

QuickTime Video Settings for Capture Presets

Finding the Maximum Data Rate When Using the Limit Data Rate Field

Advanced QuickTime Video Settings for Capture Presets

Compression Tab

Motion Settings

Compressor Settings

Source Tab

QuickTime Audio Settings for Capture Presets

About Capturing Multiple Audio Channels From DV Devices

Creating a Preset to Capture Audio Only

To create a device-controllable, audio-only capture preset:

Device Control Settings and Presets

About Device Control Presets

Viewing Settings for a Device Control Preset

To view or edit a device control preset:

Settings in the Device Control Preset Editor

What Is a Device Control Protocol?

About Device Control Protocols

Device Control Protocols Supported by Final Cut Pro

Using FireWire Device Control

Using Serial Device Control

Timecode Transferred Via Serial Device Control

Using a Non-Controllable Device

Calibrating Timecode Capture With Serial Device Control

Determining and Entering the Timecode Offset

To determine the timecode offset:

1 Do one of the following:

To enter a timecode offset:

Troubleshooting Your Device Control Setup

To verify device control is properly set up:

Settings for sequences are found in several windows throughout Final Cut Pro. These settings are used when new sequences are created.

What Are Sequence Settings?

About Sequence Settings and Presets

To view or edit a sequence preset:

General Tab for Sequences

QuickTime Video Settings for Sequences

QuickTime Audio Settings for Sequences

Video Processing Tab for Sequences

Timeline Display, Render, and Audio Output Options

Timeline Options Tab

Render Control Tab

Render and playback settings

Render settings

Audio Outputs Tab

Changing Sequence Settings

To view and change individual settings for a sequence:

To change sequence settings using a new sequence preset:

Characteristics of Video Formats

Storage Medium

Tape Size, Cassette Shape, and Tape Coating

Video Standards

Standard Definition Video

High Definition Video

Type of Video Signal

Aspect Ratio of the Video Frame

Frame Dimensions, Number of Lines, and Resolution

Number of Lines

Pixels (Samples) per Line

720 x 486 Versus 720 x 480

Pixel Aspect Ratio

Frame Rate

Scanning Method

About Interlaced Scanning

About Progressive Scanning

About Field Dominance

Setting Field Dominance in Final Cut Pro

Color Recording Method

Video Sampling Rate and Color Sampling Ratio

Color Sampling Ratio

Bit Depth

Video Compression

Lossless Codecs

Lossy Codecs

Uncompressed Video

Video Formats Supported by Final Cut Pro

DV Formats

24p Video

High Definition Video Formats

Scanning Methods

24psF Segmented Frame Recording

Compressed High Definition Tape Formats

Uncompressed High Definition Tape Formats

Data Rate Comparisons

Types of Video Signals and Connectors

Composite

S-Video

Component YUV (Y'C\_B C\_R) and Component RGB

FireWire (Also Called IEEE 1394a or i.LINK)

FireWire 800 (Also Called IEEE 1394b)

SDI (Serial Digital Interface)

HD-SDI (High Definition Serial Digital Interface)

SDTI (Serial Digital Transport Interface)

SCART

A Brief History of Film, Television, and Audio Formats

What Is Frame Rate?

Understanding Flicker and Perceived Frame Rate

Persistence of Vision

Frame Rate Limits: How Many Frames per Second Is Best?

Recording High Frame Rates for Slow Motion Effects

Recording Slow Frame Rates for Time-Lapse Photography

Examples of How Different Frame Rates Are Used

Choosing a Frame Rate

What Is Timecode?

About Drop Frame and Non-Drop Frame Timecode

More About Drop Frame Timecode and NTSC Frame Rate

The Difference Between Frame Rate and Timecode

Timecode on Tape

Comparison of Various Timecode Formats

About Anamorphic 16:9 Media

About Letterboxing

Why Shoot 16:9 Video?

Achieve a Cinematic Look

Keep Higher Resolution and Quality When Transferring to Film

Transfer to High Definition Video

Recording Anamorphic Video

Capturing Anamorphic Media

If you used the 16:9 Wide button on your camcorder when recording video:

If you used an anamorphic lens:

If you're not sure whether or not the aspect ratio information was recorded on the videotape:

Viewing and Editing Anamorphic Media

Specifying Sequence Settings for Anamorphic Media

To turn the Anamorphic setting on after you've created a sequence:

Changing Clip Properties for Anamorphic Media

To select the Anamorphic property for a clip:

Rendering Items That Contain Anamorphic Media

Outputting Anamorphic Video to Tape

To letterbox an edited anamorphic 16:9 sequence:

Exporting Anamorphic Video to a QuickTime Movie

Resources for Solving Problems

Solutions to Common Problems

Problems With Video Devices

Problems During Playback

The audio is not in sync with the video, or you're experiencing dropped frames in your video.

DV video clips look fuzzy on the computer's monitor.

Video does not play through to the computer screen.

You experience poor playback and stuttering video when trying to edit.

Your camcorder or deck doesn't go to the specified timecode or won't perform a command.

General Performance Issues

Final Cut Pro seems to be working slowly.

Problems With Audio Quality

Captured audio sounds distorted and "crackly" during capture.

Problems Playing a Reference Movie

Problems Importing an EDL or Batch Capture List

Contacting AppleCare Support

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Frequently Asked Questions - FINAL CUT PRO 5 APPLE

USER MANUAL FINAL CUT PRO 5 APPLE

Final Cut Pro 5

User Manual

Volume I

Interface, Setup, and Input

Contents

Part I An Introduction to Final Cut Pro

Part II Learning About the Final Cut Pro Interface

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Part III

Setting Up Your Editing System

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Part IV Logging, Capturing, and Importing

Final Cut Pro 5 Documentation and Resources

Getting Started

User Manual

Onscreen Help

To access onscreen help:

Onscreen User Manual

To access the onscreen user manual:

Working With High Definition and Broadcast Formats

Information About Known Issues and Third-Party Hardware and Software

To access Late-Breaking News:

Information About New Features

Apple Websites

Final Cut Pro Websites

Apple Service and Support Website

Part I: An Introduction to Final Cut Pro

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

About the Postproduction Workflow

No matter what your project, Final Cut Pro is the cornerstone of your postproduction workflow.

The Industry Workflow

Step 1: Scripting

Step 2: Preproduction

Step 3: Production

Step 4: Postproduction

Step 5: Distribution

The Postproduction Workflow

Step 1: Planning

Step 2: Setting up

Step 3: Logging and capturing

Step 4: Editing

Step 5: Mixing audio

Step 6: Adding effects

Step 7: Outputting

Before you begin editing, you need to decide what video format you will capture, edit, and output. The format you choose determines your postproduction workflow.

About Nonlinear and Nondestructive Editing

Video Formats Compatible With Final Cut Pro

Using Multiple Video Formats

Offline and Online Editing

Audio Formats Compatible With Final Cut Pro

Video Format Basics

Video Standards

Image Dimensions and Aspect Ratio

Frame Rate

Scanning Method

About Timecode

SMPTE timecode

About Drop Frame and Non-Drop Frame Timecode

To determine the type of timecode used in Final Cut Pro:

How Drop Frame Timecode Works

The Building Blocks of Projects

What Are Media Files?

What Are Clips?

What Are Sequences?

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User questions about FINAL CUT PRO 5 APPLE

This manual is not available in your language

User questions about FINAL CUT PRO 5 APPLE

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Video editing software

Name: FINAL CUT PRO 5
Brand: APPLE
Rating: 5.5 (267 reviews)

Find the device manual for free FINAL CUT PRO 5 APPLE in PDF.

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Product type	Video editing software
Brand	Apple
Model	Final Cut Pro 5
Version	5.0
Required platform	Mac OS X 10.3 or later
Minimum processor	PowerPC G4 500 MHz
Minimum RAM	512 MB RAM
Disk space	4 GB for installation
Display	Resolution 1024x768
Supported video format	QuickTime, DV, HDV, SD
Main functions	Non-linear editing, real-time effects, titling, color grading, multichannel audio mixing
Export	QuickTime, MPEG-2, DVD, Web
User manual	Included in PDF format (1868 pages)
Manual language	French, English
Maintenance	Update via Apple Update software
Security	Regular backup of projects
Spare parts	Not applicable (software)
Repairability	Reinstallation via original disk
General information	Manual available at notice-facile.com

How to import videos from a camcorder?

Connect your camcorder in playback mode via FireWire. In Final Cut, go to File > Capture (or Cmd+8). Select clips and import them into the Browser.

How to add a title to a sequence?

Place the playhead at the desired location. Go to Generate > Title and choose a style. Edit the text in the Inspector and adjust the duration in the Timeline.

How to export a project for YouTube?

Go to File > Export > QuickTime Movie. Choose H.264 format and set resolution to 1280x720 or 1920x1080. Use the Web Streaming preset for optimal quality.

How to create a transition between two clips?

Select the edge of the clip in the Timeline. Press Cmd+T to add a default transition (fade). Double-click the transition to modify its parameters in the Inspector.

The software does not start, what to do?

Check that your Mac meets the minimum configuration (PowerPC G4, 512 MB RAM). Reinstall the software from the original disk. Delete preferences in ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.FinalCutPro.plist if the problem persists.

How to record audio separately from video?

In the Timeline, disable the audio/video link by clicking the lock icon. Select the audio clip and go to File > Export > Audio to save it in AIFF or WAV format.

Can I use Final Cut Pro 5 on an Intel Mac?

Final Cut Pro 5 is designed for PowerPC processors. On Intel Macs, it runs via Rosetta but may be unstable. It is recommended to use Final Cut Pro 6 or later for native compatibility.

How to apply a color filter to a clip?

Select the clip in the Timeline. Go to the Filters tab in the Inspector. Click + and choose a filter, for example Color Correction. Adjust parameters like Hue and Saturation.

Where to find additional plugins for Final Cut Pro 5?

Search online for plugins compatible with Final Cut Pro 5 (.plugin format). Install them in the /Library/Application Support/Final Cut Pro System Support/Plugins folder. Restart the software to see them appear.

How to burn a DVD directly from Final Cut Pro 5?

Final Cut Pro 5 does not allow direct burning. Use DVD Studio Pro (included in the bundle) or export your project as QuickTime then use software like iDVD to burn.

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Download the instructions for your Video editing software in PDF format for free! Find your manual FINAL CUT PRO 5 - APPLE and take your electronic device back in hand. On this page are published all the documents necessary for the use of your device. FINAL CUT PRO 5 by APPLE.

To view the user manual, click a topic in the drawer on the side. Otherwise, click a link below.

Late-Breaking News
New Features
Getting Started
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■ HD and Broadcast Formats
■ List of Qualified Devices
■ Final Cut Pro Support
■ Final Cut Pro on the Web
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Preface 9 Final Cut Pro 5 Documentation and Resources
9 Getting Started
9 User Manual
10 Onscreen Help
11 Apple Websites

Chapter 1 15 About the Postproduction Workflow

15 The Industry Workflow

16 The Postproduction Workflow

Chapter 2 21 Video Formats and Timecode

21 About Nonlinear and Nondestructive Editing

22 Video Formats Compatible With Final Cut Pro

23 Audio Formats Compatible With Final Cut Pro

23 Video Format Basics

25 About Timecode

Chapter 3 27 Understanding Projects, Clips, and Sequences

27 The Building Blocks of Projects

32 Working With Projects

35 About the Connection Between Clips and Media Files

37 Filenaming Considerations

Chapter 4 43 Overview of the Final Cut Pro Interface

43 Basics of Working in the Final Cut Pro Interface

45 Using Keyboard Shortcuts, Buttons, and Shortcut Menus

48 Customizing the Interface

51 Undoing and Redoing Changes

52 Entering Timecode for Navigation Purposes

53 Browser Basics
53 How You Use the Browser
54 Learning About the Browser
55 Working in the Browser
59 Using Columns in the Browser
60 Customizing the Browser Display

71 Viewer Basics
71 How You Can Use the Viewer
72 Opening a Clip in the Viewer
73 Learning About the Viewer
75 Tabs in the Viewer
77 Transport (or Playback) Controls
78 Playhead Controls
80 Marking Controls
81 Zoom and View Pop-Up Menus
84 Playhead Sync Pop-Up Menu
85 Recent Clips and Generator Pop-Up Menus

87 Canvas Basics
87 How You Use the Canvas
88 Opening, Selecting, and Closing Sequences in the Canvas
89 Learning About the Canvas
90 Editing Controls in the Canvas
92 Transport (or Playback) Controls
93 Playhead Controls
95 Marking Controls
96 Zoom and View Pop-Up Menus
96 Playhead Sync Pop-Up Menu

97 Navigating and Using Timecode in the Viewer and Canvas
97 Navigating in the Viewer and Canvas
104 Working With Timecode in the Viewer and Canvas

109 Timeline Basics
109 How You Use the Timeline
111 Opening and Closing Sequences in the Timeline
112 Learning About the Timeline
122 Changing Timeline Display Options
131 Navigating in the Timeline
133 Zooming and Scrolling in the Timeline

139 Customizing the Interface
139 Changing Browser and Timeline Text Size
139 Moving and Resizing Final Cut Pro Windows
141 Using Screen Layouts
144 Ways to Customize Keyboard Shortcuts
153 Working With Shortcut Buttons and Button Bars

159 Overview of Setting Up
159 The Setup Process
160 Connecting Video and Audio Input and Output to Your Computer
160 Connecting an External Video Monitor and Audio Speakers
161 Choosing an Easy Setup to Configure Final Cut Pro
161 Choosing a Scratch Disk Location for Captured and Render Files

163 Designing Your Editing System
163 Components of a Final Cut Pro DV Editing System
164 Video and Audio Input and Output Devices
165 Video Interfaces
166 Audio Interfaces
168 Device Control Interfaces
168 Scratch Disks

169 Connecting DV Video Equipment and Specifying Initial Settings

169 Connecting Your Camcorder
170 Opening Final Cut Pro and Choosing Your Initial Settings
175 What Is FireWire?
176 What Is Device Control?

179 Determining Your Hard Disk Storage Options
179 Working With Scratch Disks and Hard Disk Drives
180 Data Rates and Storage Devices
181 Determining How Much Space You Need
183 Choosing a Hard Disk
184 Types of Hard Disk Drives

191 Connecting Professional and Non-DV Equipment
191 Why Use Third-Party Interfaces?
192 Choosing a Video Interface
194 Connecting Professional Video Devices
201 Choosing an Audio Interface
204 Connecting Audio Devices

206 Establishing Device Control
206 Synchronizing Equipment With a Blackburst Generator

Chapter 16 209 External Video Monitoring
209 Using an External Video Monitor While You Edit
211 Connecting DV/FireWire Devices to an External Monitor
211 Previewing Standard Definition Video on an External Monitor
212 Previewing High Definition Video on an External Monitor
213 Choosing Playback and Edit to Tape Output Settings
216 Using Digital Cinema Desktop Preview
220 Compensating for Video Latency by Specifying a Frame Offset
221 About the Display Quality of External Video
221 Troubleshooting External Video Monitoring Problems
222 Controlling When External Video Output Is Updated

Chapter 17 225 Overview of Logging and Capturing

225 What Are Logging and Capturing?

226 Ways to Log and Capture Footage in Final Cut Pro

229 Learning About the Log and Capture Window

235 Are You Ready to Log and Capture?

Chapter 18 237 Logging Clips

237 The Importance of Logging

238 Benefits of Logging

239 Preparing to Log

242 Monitoring Video and Audio While Logging

243 Entering Logging Information and Logging Clips

257 Avoiding Duplicate Timecode Numbers on a Single Tape

259 Additional Sources for Logging Information

Chapter 19 261 Capturing Your Footage to Disk

261 Before You Capture

262 Different Ways to Capture Footage

262 Batch Capturing Clips

263 Before You Batch Capture

264 Learning About the Batch Capture Dialog

266 Batch Capturing Selected Clips

268 Stopping and Restarting the Batch Capture Process

269 About the Additional Items Found Dialog

270 Capturing Clips as You Log (Capture Clip)

271 Capturing Entire Tapes (Capture Now)

272 Capturing an Entire Tape Using Capture Now
273 Automatically Creating Subclips Using DV Start/Stop Detection
276 Capturing Footage Without Device Control
276 Capturing Footage That Doesn't Have Timecode
277 Using a Non-Controllable Device for Capture
278 Recapturing Clips
278 Recapturing Subclips
278 Recapturing Merged Clips
279 Capturing Footage With Timecode Breaks
279 The Importance of Avoiding Timecode Breaks
280 How to Avoid Capturing Clips With Timecode Breaks
283 Using the Media Manager After Capturing

Chapter 20 285 Capturing Audio
285 About Capturing Audio
287 Capturing Audio-Only Media Files
287 Capturing Multiple Audio Channels
292 Adjusting Analog Audio Levels for Capture
294 Capturing Audio From an Audio Deck Using Device Control
296 Capturing From an Audio Device Without Device Control
296 Capturing Synchronized Audio Independently From Video

Chapter 21 299 Working With Batch Lists
299 What Is a Batch List?
300 Creating a Batch List
303 Importing a Batch List

Chapter 22 305 Importing Media Files Into Your Project
305 What File Formats Can Be Imported?
306 Importing Media Files
310 About Importing Video Files
313 About Importing Audio Files
316 Importing Still Images and Graphics
316 Importing Numbered Image Sequences

Chapter 23 321 Using Color Bars for Video Calibration

321 Using Color Bars

322 Calibrating Brightness and Color on Analog Equipment

323 How Digital Video Levels Are Measured in Final Cut Pro

325 Measuring Analog Video During Output

325 Using the Waveform Monitor and Vectorscope

330 Outputting Accurate DV Black Levels Using FireWire

330 Using an External Waveform Monitor and Vectorscope to Calibrate Analog Video Levels

331 Calibrating Video Monitors With Color Bars

You can use Final Cut Pro to create movies of any budget, style, and format. Final Cut Pro comes with both printed and onscreen documentation to help you learn how.

This preface provides information on the documentation available for Final Cut Pro, as well as information about Final Cut Pro resources on the web.

Final Cut Pro comes with several types of documentation to help you learn more about movie editing and how to use the application:

• Final Cut Pro 5 Getting Started
• Final Cut Pro 5 User Manual
• Final Cut Pro onscreen help

The Final Cut Pro 5 Getting Started book provides an overview of the application and explains the basics of editing in Final Cut Pro. If you are new to Final Cut Pro and want to start using the application right away, read this book first.

The Final Cut Pro 5 User Manual provides comprehensive information about the application and is organized into several volumes:

• Volume 1—Interface, Setup, and Input: Explains the basics of the Final Cut Pro interface and the elements of a project, and provides instructions for setting up your editing system, capturing footage to your computer, and importing files.
- Volume 2—Editing: Discusses each part of the video editing process, including organizing your footage, creating a rough edit, and fine-tuning your edit using advanced trimming techniques. Also includes instructions for multicamera editing using powerful new multicamera editing tools.

Volume 3—Audio Mixing and Effects: Provides instructions for mixing audio and enhancing your video using the elaborate effects capabilities of Final Cut Pro. Topics include adding transitions and filters, creating motion effects, compositing and layering, creating titles, and color correcting your footage. Also covers real-time playback and rendering.
• Volume 4—Media Management and Output: Provides information about managing projects and media files, exchanging projects between editing systems, and outputting completed projects. Also contains detailed explanations of settings and preferences and information on video formats, frame rate, and timecode.

Note: The four-volume user manual is also available onscreen; see the next section, "Onscreen Help."

Onscreen help (available in the Help menu) provides easy access to information while you're working in Final Cut Pro. An onscreen version of the Final Cut Pro 5 User Manual is available here, along with other documents in PDF format and links to websites.

In Final Cut Pro, choose an option from the Help menu.

The onscreen version of the user manual is helpful if you do not have immediate access to the printed volumes.

In Final Cut Pro, choose Help > Final Cut Pro User Manual.

The Working With High Definition and Broadcast Formats document covers how to use high definition formats (such as DVCPRO HD and HDV) and broadcast video formats (such as Sony Video Disk Units and Panasonic P2 cards) with Final Cut Pro.

To access the Working With High Definition and Broadcast Formats document:

In Final Cut Pro, choose Help > HD and Broadcast Formats.

For information about issues with third-party hardware and software and other known issues, you can read the Late-Breaking News section of the onscreen help.

In Final Cut Pro, choose Help > Late-Breaking News.

For information about features that have been added or enhanced since the last version of Final Cut Pro, you can read the New Features section of the onscreen help.

To access the New Features document:

In Final Cut Pro, choose Help > New Features.

There are a variety of discussion boards, forums, and educational resources related to Final Cut Pro on the web.

The following websites provide general information, updates, and support information about Final Cut Pro, as well as the latest news, resources, and training materials.

For information about Final Cut Pro, go to:

- http://www.apple.com/finalcutpro

To get more information on third-party resources, such as third-party tools, resources, and user groups, go to:

- http://www.apple.com/software/pro/resources/fcpresources.html

For information on the Apple Pro Training Program, go to:

- http://www.apple.com/software/pro/training

To provide comments and feedback to Apple about Final Cut Pro, go to:

- http://www.apple.com/feedback/finalcutpro.html

The Apple Service and Support website provides software updates and answers to the most frequently asked questions for all Apple products, including Final Cut Pro. You'll also have access to product specifications, reference documentation, and Apple and third-party product technical articles:

- http://www.apple.com/support

Find out how Final Cut Pro fits into the moviemaking process and learn about fundamental concepts of digital video editing and the basic elements of a Final Cut Pro project.

About the Postproduction Workflow

Video Formats and Timecode

Understanding Projects, Clips, and Sequences

This chapter covers the following:

• The Industry Workflow (p. 15)
• The Postproduction Workflow (p. 16)

Before you start editing, it's helpful to consider how postproduction fits into the overall moviemaking workflow. Even though no two movie projects follow exactly the same steps, there is a common workflow that almost every project adheres to. From conception to completion, the basic steps to complete a film or video project are described below.

Scripting is where the movie is conceived and written.

This is where budgeting, casting, location scouting, equipment and format selection, and storyboarding take place.

Production is where you create your footage, capturing performances using video or film cameras, as well as audio recorders. Lighting, cinematography, acting, and directing all come together to create the elements used to tell your story or deliver your message. For practical reasons, scenes are usually shot out of order, which means they have to be properly arranged during editing.

Postproduction is where you organize and assemble your production footage, putting scenes in proper order, selecting the best takes, and eliminating unnecessary elements. Production sound is synchronized (with the picture), edited, sometimes rerecorded, and mixed. Music is composed and added. Footage is color-corrected and special effects are created. The final movie is output to tape, film, or some other high-quality media format.

Distribution is when you release a movie for viewing. This may involve theater screenings, video and DVD releases, festival submissions, or web delivery.

The postproduction phase begins with the raw source footage and ends with a completed movie, ready for making distribution copies. As technology evolves, postproduction continues to proliferate into an increasing variety of jobs and tasks. Where there was once a single editor who was responsible for the majority of the postproduction process, there may now be a whole special effects team, an audio department, a colorist (responsible for color correction), and a number of assistant editors keeping track of all the footage. Final Cut Pro is at the heart of the postproduction pipeline, allowing you to organize and assemble media from multiple sources into a finished product.

Here is an overview of the basic Final Cut Pro postproduction workflow. As you begin your project, remember that there are no hard and fast rules for editing. Different editors have different working styles and, given the same source material, no two editors will cut the same finished program. The workflow described here offers just one example of how you might approach a typical project.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - The Postproduction Workflow - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["Scripting"] --> B["Preproduction"]
    B --> C["Production"]
    C --> D["Postproduction"]
    D --> E["Distribution"]

    F["Planning"] --> G["Setting Up"]
    G --> H["Logging and Capturing"]
    H --> I["Editing"]
    I --> J["Mixing Audio"]
    J --> K["Adding Effects"]
    K --> L["Outputting"]

    M["Final Cut Pro Postproduction Workflow"]

Planning is where you choose your basic workflow, such as offline and online editing (for projects with a lot of media) or editing the uncompressed footage (for shorter projects with quick turnaround times), choose input and output formats, and plan for equipment requirements (such as hard disk space), timecode and sync requirements, special effects shots and color correction, audio mixing requirements, and so on.

Planning for postproduction primarily means preparing for each of the upcoming postproduction phases: choosing input and output formats; acquiring your original footage, music, and graphics; deciding on a logging and capturing method; choosing an editing strategy; and planning the scope of effects you will be adding so you can determine how much time and support you will need to dedicate to them.

In this phase, you set up your editing system by installing and connecting the hardware you need, as well as configuring your software. For example, before logging and capturing, you need to connect the video and audio from your camcorder or VTR (video tape recorder) to your computer. You also need to make sure that the correct presets are chosen within Final Cut Pro, so that Final Cut Pro knows what video and audio formats you are capturing and what kind of device control you're using. (Device control allows Final Cut Pro to remotely control video and audio devices.)

Depending on the format and device you are using, setup can be fairly simple (as it is with DV formats) or more complex. For example, if you are working with an uncompressed video format, you need to install a third-party video interface in your computer, as well as a serial port adapter to communicate with the deck.

See Chapter 12, "Designing Your Editing System," on page 163 for more information.

Logging is the process of identifying which shots on tape you want to capture to your hard disk for editing. While you log, you can add scene and shot descriptions, logging notes, and markers. Logging also helps you become familiar with your footage before you begin editing.

Capturing means transferring source media from your video camcorder or deck to your computer's hard disk, which creates media files. You can capture media files at any time, although most footage should be captured before you start editing.

The order in which you log and capture your footage is up to you. There are several possible workflows, depending upon your work style, the needs of your project, and the availability of footage. You can log all or most clips before batch capturing them (in an automated way), or log and then capture each clip individually. You can also log clips after capturing your footage to a hard disk.

Final Cut Pro allows you to capture video and audio from a wide variety of sources, if you have the appropriate hardware. See Chapter 17, "Overview of Logging and Capturing," on page 225 for more information.

The editing process involves taking the video and audio you've captured, along with any music or graphics you've imported, and arranging these raw materials into a final edited sequence of clips. Most editors start with a rough cut, where they quickly arrange all of the clips for a movie in sequence. Once that's finished, they work on fine-tuning, subtly adjusting the edit points between clips and refining the pacing of each cut. Basic audio editing and synchronizing are also part of this process, as well as adding transitions, such as fades and dissolves.

Often, the type of project you're working on determines your method of editing. For example, documentary editing, in which the script often evolves in parallel with the editing, is quite different from commercial television and film editing, in which there is already a finished script to provide an order for clips.

Once your movie is edited and the picture is "locked," meaning the duration of the movie is fixed and you no longer intend to change any of the edits, you can begin working more extensively on your audio. This involves:

Cleaning up the dialogue with more detailed audio editing, balance audio levels, and equalization
Adding sound effects, music, and voiceover on additional audio tracks in the sequence
Mixing the levels of all the different clips together to create a balanced sound mix

You can use Final Cut Pro for each of these processes. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 1, "Overview of Audio Mixing."

Note: You can also sweeten your audio with another audio application, perhaps even at another facility. To export your movie audio, see Volume IV, Chapter 11, "Exporting Audio for Mixing in Other Applications."

Creating effects tends to be more time-consuming than cuts-only editing, so it's good to focus on basic edits first and work on effects when the timing of your project is finalized. Effects are any enhancements you want to make to your footage, such as color correction, special transitions, animation, still or motion graphics, multilayered images (compositing), and titles. Final Cut Pro has a wide variety of video and audio filters, each with parameters that you can keyframe to adjust over time in your sequence, as described below.

Once editing is finished, effects are added, and the final audio mix is complete, you can output your movie to videotape or film. You can also export to a QuickTime format for web delivery or use in a DVD-authoring application, such as DVD Studio Pro.

If you need to finish your project on a different editing workstation, you can export your project to an interchange file format such as EDL or Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format. You may need to output on another system if you work with uncompressed video, do lots of real-time effects processing, or require specialized video monitoring. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 12, "Importing and Exporting Final Cut Pro XML." You can also refer to Volume IV, Chapter 5, "Offline and Online Editing."

This chapter covers the following:

About Nonlinear and Nondestructive Editing (p. 21)
• Video Formats Compatible With Final Cut Pro (p. 22)
• Audio Formats Compatible With Final Cut Pro (p. 23)
• Video Format Basics (p. 23)
About Timecode (p. 25)

In the past, video editing was a time-consuming process. With linear editing, video editors had to edit everything onto a tape sequentially, one shot after another, from the beginning to the end. If you wanted to insert a series of shots in the middle of your edit, you had to reedit everything forward from that point.

Final Cut Pro lets you do nonlinear, nondestructive editing. Unlike traditional tape-to-tape editing, Final Cut Pro stores all of your footage on a hard disk, allowing you to access any frame of your footage instantaneously. Without the constraints of linear editing, you are free to combine shots in different orders and change their durations until you arrive at the exact sequence you want. Video and audio effects, such as scaling, position, rotation, speed changes, and multiple layers can also be applied and played back in real time. No matter how you process your footage, the underlying media is never touched. This is known as nondestructive editing, because all of the changes and effects you apply to your footage never affect the media itself.

Long before editing begins, the most basic decision you need to make is which format to shoot with. The format you choose affects the equipment needed for editorial work, as well as how the finished product will look.

Final Cut Pro uses QuickTime technology, allowing you to use almost any digital video format available. This flexibility ensures that your Final Cut Pro editing system always works with the latest video formats.

DV editing: Final Cut Pro supports DV video natively, using your computer's built-in FireWire port for capture and output. DVCAM, DVCPRO, DVCPRO 50, and DVCPRO HD are also natively supported. Therefore, your system requires no additional hardware to edit DV material on your computer. You can capture, edit, and output the exact same data that is recorded on tape, resulting in no quality loss.
Broadcast and high definition video formats: Final Cut Pro supports the latest broadcast and high definition video formats With appropriate equipment, you can capture, edit, and output uncompressed SD and HD formats such as Digital Betacam, D5-HD and HDCAM.
Project interchange: Support for project interchange formats allows Final Cut Pro to integrate into existing broadcast and postproduction systems. Final Cut Pro is compatible with formats such as EDL, OMF, and the Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 10, "Importing and Exporting EDLs." You can also refer to Volume IV, Chapter 11, "Exporting Audio for Mixing in Other Applications." For information on the Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format, see Volume IV, Chapter 12, "Importing and Exporting Final Cut Pro XML."
QuickTime-compatible files: Because Final Cut Pro uses QuickTime technology, almost any QuickTime-compatible file format can be imported and exported. This allows you to import files created in video editing, motion graphics, and photo editing applications. For a list of all formats that you can import, see Volume IV, Chapter 17, "Learning About QuickTime."

You may find it necessary to use source material from a variety of formats in your project (for example, Betacam SP and DV-format video clips). If so, be aware that in Final Cut Pro, clips with settings that don't match your sequence settings (such as image dimensions or frame rate) need to be rendered before they can be played back. To avoid time-consuming rendering, try to use the same video format throughout your project, or convert footage that doesn't match by exporting media in the proper format, or transferring to the proper tape format prior to capture.

Final Cut Pro allows you to edit low-resolution copies of your media until you are ready to finish at high quality. For example, you can edit your movie on a PowerBook using low-resolution footage and then reconnect your project clips to high-resolution media for finishing and output. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 5, "Offline and Online Editing."

You can use a variety of audio with Final Cut Pro including audio files captured from tape, imported from audio CDs, or provided by musicians and sound designers. Final Cut Pro is compatible with audio files with sample rates as high as 96 kHz and a bit depth of 24 bits. You can work with most audio devices, such as audio CD players, DAT machines, digital multitrack recorders, or audio from videotape. For more information, see Chapter 20, "Capturing Audio," on page 285 and "About Importing Audio Files" on page 313.

Most video formats are described by the following characteristics:

Standard
• Image dimensions and aspect ratio
Frame rate
Scanning method

For a more thorough explanation of video formats, see Volume IV, Appendix A, "Video Formats."

A number of video standards have emerged over the years. Standard definition (SD) video formats have been used for broadcast television from the 1950s to the present. These include NTSC, PAL, and SECAM, regional video standards, with each used in certain countries and regions of the world.

NTSC (National Television Systems Committee): The television and video standard used in most of the Americas, Taiwan, Japan, and Korea.
PAL (Phase Alternating Line): The television and video standard used in most of Europe, Brazil, Algeria, and China.
SECAM: A video standard that is based on PAL and used in countries such as France, Poland, Haiti, and Vietnam. SECAM is not supported by Final Cut Pro. However, editing work is usually done in PAL and converted to SECAM for broadcasting.

Important: When you are specifying your initial settings, make sure you choose an Easy Setup that corresponds to your country's video standard. (An Easy Setup is a collection of settings that determines how Final Cut Pro works with your editing system.) For more information, see "Opening Final Cut Pro and Choosing Your Initial Settings" on page 170.

Originally, all these formats were analog. Analog video uses a signal that consists of a constantly varying voltage level, called a waveform, that represents video and audio information. Analog signals must be digitized, or captured, for use by Final Cut Pro. VHS and Betacam SP are both analog tape formats.

More recently, digital standard definition video formats were introduced, as well as digital high definition (HD) video formats. Most consumer camcorders today record standard definition digital video (such as DV), and professional cameras may record SD or HD digital video.

The horizontal and vertical pixel dimensions of your format determine the frame size and aspect ratio. For example, standard definition (SD) NTSC video is 720 pixels wide and 480 pixels tall. High definition video is either 1280 x 720 or 1920 x 1080, and is usually referred to by the vertical dimension and the frame rate (for example 720p60 or 1080i30).

The aspect ratio of a video frame is the width with respect to the height. Standard definition video has an aspect ratio of 4:3, while high definition uses 16:9.

Note: You may notice that 1280/720 or 1920/1080 is equivalent to 16:9, while 720/480 is not equivalent to 4:3. This is because standard definition digital video uses pixels that are rectangular, not square. For more information, see Volume IV, Appendix A, "Video Formats."

The frame rate of your video determines how quickly frames are recorded and played back. The higher the number of frames per second (fps), the less noticeably the image flickers on screen. There are several common frame rates in use:

24 fps: Film, certain high definition formats, and certain standard definition formats use this frame rate. This may also be 23.98 fps for compatibility with NTSC video.
• 25 fps: Standard definition PAL
• 29.97 fps: Standard definition NTSC
59.94 fps: 720p high definition video frame rate. This can also be 60 fps.

For more information, see Volume IV, Appendix B, "Frame Rate and Timecode."

Video frames are composed of individual lines, scanned from the top of the screen to the bottom. Lines may be scanned progressively (one line at a time), or interlaced (every other line during one scan, and then the alternate lines on a subsequent scan). Standard definition video uses interlaced scanning, while high definition formats may use either interlaced or progressive scanning. For more information, see Volume IV, Appendix A, "Video Formats."

Timecode is a signal recorded with your video that uniquely identifies each frame on tape. When you capture video or audio in Final Cut Pro, you also capture the timecode signal, which is displayed in Final Cut Pro when you play back your clips. Timecode allows you to recapture your footage from tape and always get the same frames. Final Cut Pro uses SMPTE timecode (developed by the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers) which is represented in hours, minutes, seconds, and frames, using the following format:

01:32:15:28 Hours Minutes Seconds Frames

In Final Cut Pro, timecode is used for synchronization between video and audio clip items, project interchange (such as Edit Decision Lists), and recapturing clips from tape. When you play clips, Final Cut Pro displays the media file timecode. Timecode also allows you to navigate through your sequences, and see how long your edit is.

For more information about timecode, see Volume II, Chapter 25, "Working With Timecode."

With the exception of timecode used with NTSC video, all video formats use non-drop frame timecode, which simply counts at the frame rate of the video itself. For example, PAL video runs at 25 fps, and it uses 25 fps timecode.

When working with NTSC video, you have the option to use drop frame timecode to compensate for the fact that NTSC video has a frame rate of 29.97 fps, while the timecode runs at 30 fps. Timecode can only be represented by whole numbers, so drop frame timecode periodically skips numbers so that the timecode count and the amount of actual time passed stays in sync. This way, the timecode count matches the the number of hours, minutes, and seconds that it takes for your video footage to play. NTSC video can use either drop frame or non-drop frame timecode.

Important: No video frames are dropped when you use drop frame timecode. Only the associated timecode numbers are skipped.

- Non-drop frame timecode has a colon (:) between the seconds and frames fields, and no numbers are dropped from the counter.

01:16:59:29, 01:17:00:00

- Drop frame timecode has a semicolon (;) between the seconds and frames fields, and two timecode numbers are skipped from the frames counter each minute (except every tenth minute).

01:16:59;29, 01:17:00;02

A clip's timecode comes directly from its media files. To set sequence timecode, you can use the Drop Frame checkbox in the Timeline Options pane of Sequence Settings. For more information, see "Changing Timeline Display Options" on page 122

When you use drop frame timecode, numbers :00 and :01 are skipped at the beginning of each minute, unless the minute number is exactly divisible by 10. The dropped numbers do not appear in the timecode fields in Final Cut Pro because they've been dropped and are not on your tape.

If you're entering timecode to navigate and inadvertently type a timecode number that doesn't exist in drop frame timecode, Final Cut Pro automatically moves forward to the next available timecode number.

The basic elements in Final Cut Pro are projects, clips, and sequences. Once you learn what these are and how you can use them, you can begin working in Final Cut Pro.

This chapter covers the following:

• The Building Blocks of Projects (p. 27)
• Working With Projects (p. 32)
- About the Connection Between Clips and Media Files (p. 35)
- Filenaming Considerations (p. 37)

Media files, clips, and sequences are the elements that provide the main foundation for your work in Final Cut Pro. You use projects and bins to organize these elements in your program.

Media files are the raw materials you use to create your movie. A media file is a video, audio, or graphics file on your hard disk that contains footage captured from videotape or originally created on your computer. Since media files—especially video files—tend to be quite large, projects that use a lot of footage require one or more high-capacity hard disks.

Many media files contain multiple tracks. For example, a typical DV media file has a video track, audio track, and timecode track. In a Final Cut Pro sequence, you can work with each of these media tracks as separate items, either in sync or separately.

Before you can edit in Final Cut Pro, you need to capture media files from a video deck or camcorder to your hard disk. For more information about capturing media files, see Chapter 17, "Overview of Logging and Capturing," on page 225.

Once you have media files on your hard disk, you need a way of working with them in Final Cut Pro. A clip is the most fundamental object in Final Cut Pro. Clips represent your media, but they are not the media files themselves. A clip points to, or connects to, a video, audio, or graphics media file on your hard disk. (For more information on the relationship between media files and clips, see “About the Connection Between Clips and Media Files” on page 35.)

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - What Are Clips? - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["Project"] --> B["Clip"]
    A --> C["Clip"]
    A --> D["Clip"]
    B --> E["MOVIE"]
    C --> F["MOVIE"]
    D --> G["MOVIE"]

Media files on your hard disk

Clips allow you to easily cut, trim, rearrange, and sort your media without manipulating it directly. You manage and organize your clips in the Browser. The three kinds of clips you'll see most often are video, audio, and graphics clips, but there are other kinds of clips that can be stored within a project, such as a generator clip (a clip whose media is generated within Final Cut Pro). You can also subdivide a clip into separate pieces, called subclips, to further organize your footage.

A sequence is a container for editing clips together in chronological order. The editing process involves deciding which video and audio clip items to put in your sequence, what order the clips should go in, and how long each clip should be. Sequences are created in the Browser. To edit clips into a sequence, you open a sequence from the Browser in to the Timeline.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - What Are Sequences? - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["Project"] --> B["Sequence"]
    B --> C["MOVIE"]
    B --> D["MOVIE"]
    B --> E["MOVIE"]
    B --> F["MOVIE"]
    B --> G["Clip"]
    B --> H["Clip"]
    B --> I["Clip"]

A sequence contains one or more video and audio tracks, which are empty when first created. When you edit a clip into a sequence, you copy the clip's individual clip items to the sequence. For example, if you drag a clip that contains one video and two audio tracks to the Timeline, a video clip item is placed in a video track in the Timeline, and two audio clip items are placed in two audio tracks. In a sequence, you can move any clip item to any track, allowing you to arrange the contents of your media files however you want.

A project contains all of the clips and sequences you use while editing your movie.

Once you create or open a project, it appears as a tab in the Browser. There's no limit to the number of items, including clips and sequences, that can be stored in your project in the Browser.

A project file acts as a sort of database for tracking the aspects of your edited movie.:

• video, audio, and still image clips
• comments, descriptions, and log notes for all your clips
• sequences of edited clips
• motion and filter parameters
- audio mixing levels
- bins, or folders within a project in the Browser, for organizing elements, such as clips and sequences.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Project - 1

Video clip

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Project - 2

Audio clip

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Project - 3

Still image

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Project - 4

Sequence

To start working in Final Cut Pro, you must have a project open in the Browser. For more information, see Chapter 5, "Browser Basics," on page 53. You can have multiple projects open at the same time, each represented by its own tab in the Browser.

Note: A project does not contain any media at all, which keeps it small and portable. Even though project files refer to your media files, the media is not actually stored in the project. By separating the structure of your project from the associated media, your project can easily be archived or transferred to another computer, and it can be opened even if none of the media files can be located. Compared to media files, project files are relatively small and portable. You can make regular backup copies of your project without filling your hard disk.

A bin is a folder within a project that can contain clips and sequences, as well as other items used in your project, such as transitions and effects. You use bins to organize these elements, sort them, add comments, rename items, and so on. Bins help you to design a logical structure for your projects, making your clips easier to manage.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - What Are Bins? - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["Project"] --> B["Bin 1"]
    A --> C["Sequence 1"]
    A --> D["Bin 2"]
    B --> E["Clip"]
    B --> F["Clip"]
    B --> G["Clip"]
    C --> H["Clip"]
    C --> I["Clip"]
    C --> J["Clip"]
    D --> K["Clip"]
    D --> L["Clip"]
    D --> M["Clip"]

You can create separate bins for organizing clips by movie scene, source tape, or any other category. You can organize bins hierarchically and open them in their own windows. You can even put bins inside other bins. There is no limit to the number of bins you can have in your project, or the number of items you can store in each bin.

Bins exist only in project files. Changes you make to the contents of a bin, such as deleting, moving, and renaming clips or renaming the bin itself, have no effect on the original media files stored on your computer's hard disk. If you delete a clip from a bin, the clip's media file is not deleted from the hard disk. Likewise, creating a new bin does not create a new folder on your hard disk.

How you use and organize your projects depends on the scope of your movie as well as your particular organizational style. These factors also affect your decision to use one or more sequences in your project.

Typically, you create a new project file for each movie you work on, regardless of its duration. For example, if you're working on a documentary about a bicycle manufacturing company, you would create a project for it. If you're also working on an industrial training video about how to fix bicycles, that would be a second, separate project. Both projects could conceivably refer to some of the same media, but they are completely independent structures, each with their own clips, bins, and sequences.

Very large movie projects, such as feature films and documentaries with high shooting ratios (meaning most of the footage shot during production will not be used in the final movie), may contain thousands of clips. Although the number of clips and sequences you can store in a project is theoretically unlimited, Final Cut Pro may take longer to search, sort, and update if there are too many clips. If you find that managing your project is becoming difficult, you can always break one project into several for the early editing stages.

For some projects, it makes sense to use several different sequences within the project. You can use sequences in several ways including:

Sequences as scenes: Break a movie into a series of separate sequences for each scene.
Sequences as versions: Edit different versions of the same movie, with each as its own sequence. Examples are a television commercial with several alternative sound mixes, or a documentary cut to feature film length as well as broadcast television length.
Sequences for special effects: This allows you to separate elaborate effects shots in separate sequences so you can render them separately.

When you create a new project in Final Cut Pro, a new blank sequence is automatically created and named Sequence 1. You can change the sequence name to better reflect its content or the type of program you'll be working on. The settings for the new sequence are determined by your current Easy Setup. (To check your current Easy Setup, choose Final Cut Pro > Easy Setup.) For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 23, "Audio/Video Settings and Easy Setups."

Note: When you open Final Cut Pro for the first time, there are some initial settings you must specify before you can create and save projects. For more information, see Chapter 13, "Connecting DV Video Equipment and Specifying Initial Settings," on page 169.

- Choose File > New Project.

A new, untitled project appears in the Browser with an empty sequence. You can name the project when you save it.

This is your new project. A new sequence is automatically created when you create a new project.

1 Click the project's tab in the Browser
2 Choose File > Save Project (or press Command-S).
3 If you haven't named the project yet, a dialog appears. Enter a name and choose a location for the project, then click Save.

Save Save As: Cafe.fcp Where: Documents Format: Project File Cancel Save

- Choose File > Save All (or press Option-S).

If you haven't named a project yet, a dialog appears where you can enter a name and choose a location for the project.

You can open and work on more than one project at a time. When you finish working and quit Final Cut Pro, a message appears for each open project, asking if you want to save your changes. The next time you open Final Cut Pro, all projects that were open at the end of your last session open automatically. You can have multiple projects open at the same time, each represented by its own tab in the Browser.

1 Choose File > Open.
2 Locate and select the project file, then click Open.

If you created the project in a previous version of Final Cut Pro, you'll be asked if you want to update your project. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 2, "Backing Up and Restoring Projects."

1 Click the project's tab to bring it to the front.
2 Do one of the following:

Choose File > Close Project.
Control-click the project's tab, then choose Close Tab from the shortcut menu that appears.
Press Control-W.

Cafe Dining Close Tab Name Shot/Take Media Start Dining Room Dining sequence Foyer Intro sequence Music Outside House Truck 01:00:00:00 01:00:00:00 Control-click the tab and choose Close Tab.

3 If you've modified the project and haven't saved it, a message asks if you want to save changes to the project. Click Yes to save the project.

The project 'Dining' has been modified. Do you want to save it? Cancel Save As... No Yes

In the Browser, click a project's tab.

To switch between projects, click a project's tab. Cafe Dining Effects Name Shot/Take Media Start Dining Room Dining sequence 01:00:00:00 Foyer Intro sequence 01:00:00:00 Music Outside House Truck

- Close the Browser.

Any project that has its own window (because you dragged the project's tab out of the Browser) remains open.

Clips are not to be confused with the media files you captured to your computer's hard disk. A clip refers to a media file on your computer's hard disk, but the clip is not the media file itself. Clips usually reference all of the content within a media file, but you can also create subclips that reference only part of a media file, or merged clips that refer to several media files at once.

A Final Cut Pro clip refers to its media file via the clip property called Source, which describes the location of the media file in the form of a directory path. For example, the directory path for a clip's media file might look like this:

/MyScratchDisk/Capture Scratch/MyProject/MyMediaFile

Note: Every file on your hard disk can be located by its directory path. A directory path describes where a file is located within the file and folder hierarchy of the operating system.

1 Select a clip in the Browser by clicking it.
2 Choose Edit > Item Properties > Format (or press Command-9).

The Item Properties window appears.

3 Look at the directory path in the clip's Source field.
4 If you can't see the complete directory path, you can do one of the following:

Drag the right edge of the column heading to the right to increase the column width.
Move the pointer over the directory path in the Source field, then wait until a tooltip appears showing the complete directory path.

The relationship between source tapes, media files, and clips is described below.

Source tape: An original videotape from your production.
Media file: A QuickTime movie file created by capturing video, audio, and timecode from the source tape to a computer hard disk. This is a copy of the original footage.
Clip: An object in a Final Cut Pro project that represents a media file on the scratch disk. A clip connects to a media file, but it isn't the media file itself. If you delete a clip, the media file remains intact on the scratch disk. If you delete the media file, the clip remains in the project, but it is no longer connected to its media. You can create clips by importing or dragging media files to the Final Cut Pro Browser.

If you modify, move, or delete your media files on disk, the clips in your project lose the connection to the media files and they become offline clips. In this case, the word offline refers to the fact that a clip's media file has become unavailable.

Choose File > New > Offline Clip.
■ Create a clip by clicking the Log button in the Log and Capture window.
For more information, see Chapter 18, "Logging Clips," on page 237.

An offline clip has a red slash through its icon in the Browser. In the Timeline, an offline clip appears white (when you play back your sequence in the Canvas, offline clips display a "Media Offline" message). To view these clips properly in your project, you need to reconnect the clips to their corresponding media files at their new locations on disk. This reestablishes the connection between the clips and their media files.

Final Cut Pro allows you to reconnect clips to media files in whatever way suits your project. For example, you can work on one project on two different editing systems that both contain the same media files. When you transfer the project from one system to another, you can easily reconnect the project clips to the local media files. For more information on reconnecting offline clips, see Volume IV, Chapter 6, "Reconnecting Clips and Offline Media."

Proper file naming is one of the most critical aspects of media and project management. When you capture your media files, consider how and where your files may be used in the future. Naming your files simply and consistently makes it easier to share media among multiple editors, transfer projects to other editing systems, move files across a network, and properly restore archived projects. The following sections present several issues to consider when naming project files and media files.

The most conservative file naming conventions provide the most cross-platform compatibility. This means that your filenames will work in different operating systems, such as Windows, Mac OS X and other Unix operating systems, and Mac OS 9. You also need to consider file naming when you transfer files via the Internet, where you can never be certain what computer platform your files may be stored on, even if temporarily.

Most special characters should be avoided. Here are some suggested conservative file-naming guidelines for maximum cross-platform compatibility:

Avoid	Example characters	Reasons
File separators	: (colon)/ (forward-slash)\ (backward-slash)	You cannot use colons (:) in the names of files and folders because Mac OS 9 (Classic) uses this character to separate directories in pathnames. In addition, some applications may not allow you to use slashes (/) in the names of items.These characters are directory separators for Mac OS 9, Mac OS X, and DOS (Windows) respectively.
Special characters not included in your native alphabet	≤¢^TM	These characters may not be supported or difficult to work with when exported to certain file formats, such as EDL, OMF, or XML.
Punctuation marks, parentheses, quotation marks, brackets, and operators.	., [ ] { } !;“‘* ? < > \|	These characters are often used in scripting and programming languages.
White space characters such as spaces, tabs, new lines, and carriage returns (the last two are uncommon).		White space is handled differently in different programming languages and operating systems, so certain processing scripts and applications may treat your files differently than expected. The most conservative filenames avoid all use of whitespace characters, and use the (underscore) _ character instead.

Although current file systems such as HFS+ (used by Mac OS X) allow you to create filenames with a 255-character limit, you may want to limit your filename length if you intend to transfer your files to other operating systems. Earlier versions of the Mac OS only allow 31-character filenames, and if you want to include a file extension (such as .fcp, .mov, or .aif), you need to shorten your Mac OS 9-compatible filenames to 27 characters.

For EDL files, which may be stored on DOS-compatible disks, you should limit your filenames to 8-characters plus a 3-character file extension (.EDL).

Mac OS X and other operating systems can use file extensions when determining which application to open a file with, or what method of transfer to use for a network transfer. If you intend to transfer your media or project files to non-Macintosh computer platforms, you should use standard file extensions for your files. Some common file extensions include: .mov (QuickTime movie file), .xml (XML file), .zip (ZIP compressed archive file), .aif (AIFF audio file), .wav (WAVE audio file), .psd (Photoshop graphics file), .jpg (JPEG graphics file), and .tif (TIFF graphics file).

When you make a backup copy of your project file, adding the date to the project name helps identify the file among the other saved versions. If you add dates to a filename, avoid using special characters like the slash (/), since that may be interpreted by Mac OS X as a file separator.

The Final Cut Pro autosave feature appends the date and time in the following format: ProjectName_03-21-04_1744. The filename above is a backup of a project called ProjectName. The date is March 21, 2004, and it was saved at 5:44 PM. Note that the name includes no white space. This sequencing convention is simple, consistent, and easily identifies the order in which the project files were created. (For more information about this feature, see Volume IV, Chapter 2, "Backing Up and Restoring Projects."

If you have multiple hard disks and partitions, or volumes, that have similar names, they may cause problems during the capture process. Each hard disk should have a name that doesn't contain the entire name of another disk or partition.

Avoid filenames such as: "Media" and "Media 1"
Create filenames such as: "Zeus" and "Apollo"

Get familiar with the Browser, Viewer, Canvas, and Timeline, and learn how to customize the Final Cut Pro interface to meet your specific needs.

Chapter 4 Overview of the Final Cut Pro Interface

Chapter 5 Browser Basics

Chapter 6 Viewer Basics

Chapter 7 Canvas Basics

Chapter 8 Navigating and Using Timecode in the Viewer and Canvas

Chapter 9 Timeline Basics

Chapter 10 Customizing the Interface

This chapter includes:

Basics of Working in the Final Cut Pro Interface (p. 43)
• Using Keyboard Shortcuts, Buttons, and Shortcut Menus (p. 45)
Customizing the Interface (p. 48)
Undoing and Redoing Changes (p. 51)
Entering Timecode for Navigation Purposes (p. 52)

There are four main windows in Final Cut Pro that you use while you are making your movie. You may want to open Final Cut Pro so you can view these windows and familiarize yourself with them.

Note: If you're opening Final Cut Pro for the first time, you're prompted to choose an Easy Setup (a collection of settings that determines how Final Cut Pro works with your editing system) and a scratch disk (the hard disk where you'll store your captured media files). For more information about these settings, see "Opening Final Cut Pro and Choosing Your Initial Settings" on page 170.

To open Final Cut Pro:

In the Finder, double-click the Final Cut Pro icon in the Applications folder.

You may also choose to add the Final Cut Pro icon to the Dock for easier access. For more information, see Mac Help.

You'll see these windows when you open a sequence with clips already in it. These windows are covered in more detail in the chapters that follow.

Before working in a window in Final Cut Pro, you must make sure it's the currently selected (or "active") window. Otherwise, your actions and commands might trigger actions in another window.

Important: Menu commands and keyboard shortcuts apply to the active window.

To determine the active window:

- Look for the highlighted title bar.

To make a window active, do one of the following:

Click anywhere in the window.
■ Press one of the following keyboard shortcuts:
Browser: Command-4
Viewer: Command-1
• Timeline: Command-3
Canvas: Command-2
• Audio meters: Option-4

Note: There is no keyboard shortcut to open the Tool palette.

- Choose Window, then in the submenu, choose the window you want to display.

Final Cut Pro offers several methods for performing commands. You can choose commands from the menu bar at the top of the screen or from contextual shortcut menus, or you can use keyboard shortcuts to perform many commands. Most people work fastest using keyboard shortcuts; others prefer to use shortcut menus or the mouse to access commands in the menu bar. Experiment to find out which method best suits your editing style.

You can also create shortcut buttons that appear at the top of each window in the window's button bar. Learning about these basic interface elements will enable you to work faster and more efficiently.

Keyboard shortcuts let you perform commands in Final Cut Pro using the keyboard instead of by pointing and clicking. These shortcuts can help you work more efficiently. For example, to create a new sequence, you'd press Command-N; to zoom in, you'd press Command-=(equal sign).

Note: The default keyboard shortcuts for tasks are presented throughout this volume, as well as in menu commands and tooltips (tooltips appear when you move the pointer over a control in Final Cut Pro and show the name of the control, as well as the current shortcut key(s) assigned to that control).

Final Cut Pro allows you to change the default keyboard shortcuts to better suit your needs. For example, if your style of editing requires a particular set of commands that isn't readily available by default, you can modify the default keyboard layout with your own set of commands. You can also create different keyboard layouts for different tasks. For example, you may find it useful to create different keyboard layouts for editing, color correction, multicamera editing, and audio mixing.

For more information on how to customize keyboard layouts in Final Cut Pro, see Chapter 10, "Customizing the Interface," on page 139.

You can create shortcut buttons and place them in the button bar along the top of the main windows in Final Cut Pro—the Browser, Viewer, Canvas, Timeline, and any Tool Bench windows. (The Tool Bench is a specialized window containing tabs for specific tasks, such as the Audio Mixer.) You can then click any of the shortcut buttons in the button bar to perform commands, instead of entering keyboard shortcuts or using menus.

For more information on using and customizing button bars, see Chapter 10, "Customizing the Interface," on page 139.

Shortcut menus (also called contextual menus) are available in nearly every section of every window and offer a quick way to perform various tasks. The commands available in a shortcut menu depend on the location of the pointer. For example, a shortcut menu in the Browser shows options different from those available in a shortcut menu in the Timeline.

1 Press the Control key and click an item (this is called Control-clicking), or Control-click an area in a window in Final Cut Pro.
2 In the shortcut menu that appears, choose the command you want, then release the mouse button.

New Bin New Sequence Set Logging Bin ✓ View as List View as Small Icons View as Medium Icons View as Large Icons Arrange Text Size Paste

Note: If you have a multibutton mouse, clicking the right mouse button is the same as Control-clicking by default.

When you move the pointer over a control in Final Cut Pro, a small box called a tooltip appears with a description of the control. Next to the description is the keyboard shortcut for using the control. You can turn tooltips off and on in the General tab of the User Preferences window.

This tooltip appears when the pointer is over the Play button in the Viewer. Play - space

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > User Preferences.
2 In the General tab, select Show Tooltips.

Final Cut Pro allows you to customize the interface in several ways. You can rearrange windows and move them to suit your needs and work style. You can also use various screen layouts provided by Final Cut Pro. You can also position the Dock in the Mac OS X interface so that it takes up less room or is hidden.

All open windows in Final Cut Pro—the Browser, Viewer, Canvas, Timeline, and Tool Bench—can be individually moved and resized to suit both your working style and the task at hand, even across multiple monitors. When all windows are arranged together on a single monitor, you can drag the border between any aligned group of adjacent windows to quickly resize all the windows at the same time.

Pointer between three or more windows Time Pointer between two windows

- Drag the border in the desired direction to resize the appropriate windows.

The windows on either side of the border are resized accordingly.

Any border between two windows in Final Cut Pro can be dragged. When borders line up, such as the tops of the Browser and Timeline, they act as a single border—resizing one window resizes the other as well. See “Moving and Resizing Final Cut Pro Windows” on page 139 for more information.

The Viewer and Browser contain tabs that let you access different functions. The Browser also contains tabs for open projects. Tabs in the Timeline and Canvas represent open sequences.

The Browser contains tabs for open projects and effects. Like the Canvas, the Timeline contains a tab for each open sequence. The Viewer contains tabs that specify functions within clips. The Canvas contains a tab for each open sequence.

- Click the tab.

To close a tab, do one of the following:

■ Control-click the tab, then choose Close Tab from the shortcut menu
- Click a tab to make it the frontmost tab, then press Control-W.

You can drag tabs out of their main, or parent, windows so they appear in a separate window. This is useful when you are working on more than one sequence or project at a time.

To make a tab appear in its own window:

- Drag the tab out of its parent window (Browser, Viewer, Canvas, or Timeline).

Effects Cafe Favorites Video Transitions 3D Simulation Cross Zoom Cube Spin Spin3D Spinback3D Swing Zoom Dissolve Iris Map Page Peel QuickTime Slide Type Bin Bin Bin Video Transition 00:00:01:00 Video Transition 00:00:01:00 Video Transition 00:00:01:00 Video Transition 00:00:01:00 Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin The Effects tab is dragged out of the Browser and appears in its own window.

To put a tab back in its original window:

- Drag the tab to the title bar of its parent window.

Drag the tab to the title bar of the original window to put it back.

Effects Cafe Favorites Video Transitions 3D Simulation Cross Zoom Cube Spin Spin3D Splineback3D Swing Zoom Dissolve Irix Map Page Peel QuickTime Slide Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Min

There are several ways you can move windows in Final Cut Pro. You can move a window by clicking its title bar, and then dragging it to a new position and releasing mouse. You can also hold down the Command and Option keys, and then click anywhere in a window and drag it to a new position.

Final Cut Pro comes with a set of predefined screen layouts. These layouts determine the size and location of the four main windows in Final Cut Pro (the Browser, Viewer, Canvas, and Timeline), along with the Tool palette and audio meters. Some screen layouts include additional windows, such as the Tool Bench. Choose a layout that maximizes your screen space in the best way for your source material, editing function, screen resolution, and monitor type.

- Choose Window > Arrange, then choose an option from the submenu.

If none of the existing layouts meet your needs, you can create and save additional screen layouts that you've arranged yourself. See "Customizing Screen Layouts" on page 142 for more information.

When you use Final Cut Pro, your screen space may be limited by the presence of the Dock. You can make the Dock smaller so it takes up less room on the screen. You can also hide the Dock, so it only appears when you move the pointer over its (hidden) position. Another option is to position the Dock somewhere else on the screen. The default is on the bottom, but you can also choose to place it on the left or right side of the screen.

Decide how you think you'll work best, then modify the Dock settings. You can then rearrange the windows in Final Cut Pro to accommodate the position of the Dock.

1 If desired, change the position of the Dock.

For specific information on changing the way the Dock looks and works, see Mac Help (in the Finder, choose Help > Mac Help).

2 In Final Cut Pro, choose Window > Arrange, then choose your preferred layout from the submenu.

The windows are rearranged to take into account the position of the Dock.

You can undo changes you make in your projects, sequences, and clips. This is helpful if you make a change you don't like and want to revert to an earlier version. You can also redo actions that you have undone.

By default, you can undo 10 of your previous changes. You can set Final Cut Pro to undo up to 99 changes. The more levels of Undo you select, the more memory is needed. For more information on modifying the number of changes to undo, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

To undo a change, do one of the following:

Press Command-Z.
- Choose Edit > Undo.

To redo a change, do one of the following:

■ Press Command-Shift-Z.
- Choose Edit > Redo.

Timecode is a signal recorded with your video that uniquely identifies each frame on tape. Timecode also allows you to navigate through your sequences to a specific point in time.

Cafe 01:00:38:04 Current Timecode field in the Canvas

When you enter timecode in a field, such as the Current Timecode field in the Viewer, Canvas, or Timeline, you don't need to enter all of the separator characters (such as colons); Final Cut Pro automatically adds them for you after each set of two digits.

For example, if you enter 01221419, Final Cut Pro interprets it as 01:22:14:19. This stands for 1 hour, 22 minutes, 14 seconds, and 19 frames.

If you enter a partial number, Final Cut Pro interprets it with the rightmost pair of numbers as frames and puts each successive pair of numbers to the left in the remaining seconds, minutes, and hours areas. Numbers you omit default to 00.

For example, if you enter 1419, Final Cut Pro interprets it as 00:00:14:19.

However, if the rightmost pair of numbers is not a valid frame number, then the entire number entered is interpreted as absolute frames.

For example, suppose the frame rate of your clip is 25 fps. If you enter 124, Final Cut Pro interprets this as 01:24 (one second and 24 frames). However, if you enter 125, or 199, Final Cut Pro interprets these as 125 frames or 199 frames, respectively. This is because the frame counter cannot be higher than 24 when you use 25 fps timecode. Since a number like 01:99 is not a valid timecode number, the entire value is interpreted as absolute frames.

For more information about using timecode, see "About Timecode" on page 25 and Volume II, Chapter 25, "Working With Timecode."

This chapter covers the following:

• How You Use the Browser (p. 53)
• Learning About the Browser (p. 54)
• Working in the Browser (p. 55)
• Using Columns in the Browser (p. 59)
- Customizing the Browser Display (p. 60)

Note: For information about organizing footage in the Browser, see Volume II, Chapter 1, "Organizing Footage in the Browser."

The Browser is a powerful tool used to organize your project's clips. In the Browser, you can sort, rename, and rearrange hundreds of clips in a multitude of ways. You can also customize how the Browser displays information about clips to suit your preferred work habits.

You can think of the Browser as a way of viewing and manipulating your clips as if they were in a database or spreadsheet. Each row represents a clip or sequence, and each column represents a property field containing information about that clip or sequence.

Note: For more information about the basic organizational elements of Final Cut Pro—media files, clips, sequences, bins, and projects—and how they relate to the Browser, see Chapter 3, "Understanding Projects, Clips, and Sequences," on page 27.

You can view items in the Browser in different ways. When the Browser displays items in list view, all items appear in a sorted list.

You can also view items in the Browser in icon view, which lets you easily see items by type. For video clips, you see a frame of video to help you distinguish the contents.

Project Cafe Effects 9 items Sequence Master sequence 00:01:04:16 Don pain XCU 00:00:06:00 Jacob reaction to customer CU 00:00:07:05 Music 1 00:00:51:06 Master shot Debra CU 00:00:04:20 Master shot Debra MS 00:00:09:13 Bin Scene 4 4 items Master shot jacob CU 00:00:03:15 Nancy at table CU 5 00:00:04:15 Clip

For more information about viewing items in the Browser in list view or icon view, see "Customizing the Browser Display" on page 60.

Before you can work in the Browser, it must be the currently selected, or active, window. Otherwise, any commands or keyboard shortcuts you use may perform the wrong operations.

To make the Browser window active, do one of the following:

Click anywhere in the Browser.
■ Press Command-4.

Before you can begin editing clips into a sequence, you must create a sequence.

1 Click in the Browser to make it the active window.
2 Choose File > New > Sequence (or press Command-N).
If no project is currently open, Final Cut Pro creates a new untitled project and creates a new sequence within it.

You can select and modify individual clips, or many clips at once.

- Click an item.

A selected clip is highlighted in the Browser.

To select a group of adjacent clips, do one of the following:

- Select an item, press and hold down the Shift key, then click the last item.

The first and last items are selected, along with all items in between.

- Drag over multiple clips.

Drag across multiple items to select them.

To select multiple, nonadjacent clips:

- Press and hold down the Command key while clicking multiple items.

You can navigate to items in the Browser in various ways, depending on whether you are viewing items in list view or icon view (see "Customizing the Browser Display" on page 60).

Press the Up and Down Arrow keys to move up and down in a list of items in list view or move vertically between items in icon view.
Press the Right and Left Arrow keys to move horizontally between items in icon view.
Press the Tab key to move between items alphabetically.
Type the first few letters of an item's name.

Copying or duplicating a clip creates an affiliate clip, which is a clip that shares properties with the original clip, or master clip. For more information about master-affiliate clip relationships, see Volume IV, Chapter 4, "Working With Master and Affiliate Clips."

- Select the item, then hold down the Option key while you drag the item to a new bin or to the Name column heading.

Hold the Option key while you drag the item to a new bin or to the Name column heading.

■ Press Option-D to duplicate the selected item.
- Select an item, choose Edit > Copy, then choose Edit > Paste.

To duplicate a master clip, creating a new master clip instead of an affiliate clip:

1 Select a clip in the Browser.
2 Do one of the following:

Choose Modify > Duplicate as New Master Clip.
Control-click the clip, then choose Duplicate as New Master Clip from the shortcut menu.

To delete a clip, sequence, or bin from a project:

■ Select the item, then press Delete.

Note: Deleting a clip from a project does not delete that clip's media file from your hard disk, nor does it delete any other affiliated clips, including sequence clips. When deleting a master clip, however, Final Cut Pro warns you that affiliated clips will lose the master clip they refer to. Deleting a master clip turns all affiliated clips into master clips (in the Browser) or independent clips (in sequences).

You can rename items within Final Cut Pro. Renaming clips does not change the names of media files on your disk.

To rename clips, sequences, and bins within Final Cut Pro:

1 Select the clip, sequence, or bin.
2 Once the item is selected, click the item's name, type a new name, then press Return or Enter.

Renaming a clip automatically renames all affiliated clips in the current project, because there is only a single Name property shared between a master clip and all of its affiliate clips. This affects all clips in the Browser and in all sequences within your project. For more information on master and affiliate clips, see Volume IV, Chapter 4, "Working With Master and Affiliate Clips."

Note: Master-affiliate clip relationships exist only within a project, not across multiple projects.

In list view, the Browser's scrollable columns provide information about your clips and their associated media files.

Use the horizontal scroll bar to navigate and view all of the columns in list view.

The Browser can display many columns of information at once. You can customize the Browser to display only the columns you want, as well as rearrange columns and change their width. The Name column cannot be hidden, and always appears at the far left.

Information in Browser columns is based on the following:

• The item properties of a clip
- The clip settings you selected when your clips were logged and captured
- A clip's media file properties such as image dimensions and frame rate
- The sequence settings of an individual sequence (the selected sequence preset)

You can change properties in some columns directly in the Browser by clicking or Control-clicking within the column, and then choosing an option from the shortcut menu. You can also modify these properties in the Item Properties window for a clip. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 5, "Working With Projects, Clips, and Sequences."

Other properties, such as the frame size or video rate, are determined by the capture preset you used to capture the clip's media file (see Volume IV, Chapter 24, "Capture Settings and Presets."

Tip: If a field in the Browser contains more text than fits within the field or column, you view the complete information by moving the pointer over the field and then waiting for several seconds. A tooltip appears with the full text of the entry.

There are two default column layouts included with Final Cut Pro: standard and logging. You can customize both layouts for particular projects. You can also create and save your own column layouts.

Standard Columns: Choose this option to see most of a clip's properties.
Logging Columns: Choose this option when logging clips, so you can focus on clips' logging properties (such as Media Start, Media End, Duration, and Reel) and the Browser isn't cluttered with other information.

You can customize both column layouts, displaying, hiding, and reordering columns in any way you like. Any modifications you make are remembered for the column layout you're using for that project. New projects you create use the default column layouts.

Note: For a description of column information, see Volume IV, Chapter 3, "Elements of a Final Cut Pro Project."

■ Control-click any column heading in the Browser, then choose Standard Columns or Logging Columns from the shortcut menu.

You can create your own column layouts, based on your preferred arrangement of columns. For more information, see "Saving and Using Custom Column Layouts" on page 70.

There are various ways you can display items in the Browser, depending on your needs and workstyle. You can display items in list or icon (thumbnail) view, choose columns you want to show or hide, and choose the frame you see for a clip in icon (thumbnail) view.

You can view items in the Browser in list view or icon view. List view provides detailed clip information in columns; clips within bins appear hierarchically, allowing you to reveal or hide the contents of a bin.

If you want to organize your clips visually, you can set the Browser to display your clips as icons. There are three icon view sizes—small, medium, and large. When you choose an icon view, items are rearranged in a grid. The large icon view is particularly useful when using larger (20-inch or greater viewable area) monitors.

Color-corrected shots 10 items Master shot jacob CU 03:15 Nancy at table CU 5 04:15 Master shot Debra CU 04:20 Bon pain XCU 06:00 Jacob reaction to customer CU 07:05 Nancy greets at door CU 2 08:10 Master shot Debra MS 09:13 Nancy drinking talking 10:00 Side master shot jacob MS 11:18 Master shot jacob MS 12:23

Small icon view

Bin: Color-corrected shots Color-corrected shots 10 items Master shot jubb CU 03:15 Nancy at table CU 5 04:15 Master shot Debra CU 04:20 Dun pain XLU 06:00 Jacob reaction to customer CU Nancy greets at door CU 2

Medium icon view

Bin: Color-corrected shots 10 items Master shot jacob CU 03:15 Nancy at table CU 5 04:15 Master shot Debris CU 04:20 Dot gain ICU 06:00

Large icon view

Choose View > Browser Items, then choose an option from the submenu.
■ Control-click in the Name column (or any place in the tab other than an icon), then choose a view option from the shortcut menu.
■ Press Shift-H to toggle through all four views.

When items are displayed as a list, the Browser displays information about the items in columns. You can customize these columns in several ways. You can:

Rearrange, resize, hide, and show individual columns
Sort clips by columns
View a predefined set of standard columns or a set of columns designed for logging
Change the Master Comment column headings
Display, hide, and scrub (move) through thumbnails of clips

- Drag the column heading to the new location.

As you drag a column, the pointer changes to a rectangle.

- Drag the right edge of the column heading to the desired width.

The pointer between two columns changes to a Resize pointer, indicating a column can be resized.

■ Control-click the column heading, then choose Hide Column from the shortcut menu.

Note: You can't hide the Name column; it's always displayed.

■ Control-click the column heading to the right of where you want to display the column, then choose the column you want to display from the shortcut menu.

- Control-click any column heading other than Name, then choose Show Thumbnail from the shortcut menu.

A thumbnail column appears with images for all video clips.

Bin: Color-corrected shots Color-corrected shots Name Thumbnail Duration Master shot jacob CU 00:00:03:15 Nancy at table CU 5 00:00:04:15 Master shot Debra CU 00:00:04:20 Don pain XCU 00:00:06:00 Jacob reaction to customer CU 00:00:07:05 Thumbnails appear as small images of your video clips.

When thumbnails are displayed, the image shown is the first frame of the clip or the In point of the clip, if one is set. You can scrub through a thumbnail by dragging in the image, but the frame shown in the Browser always reverts to the Media Start or In point of the clip.

You can change the starting image (called the poster frame) if you want to display another frame in the thumbnail. For more information, see "Setting the Poster Frame" on page 69.

- Control-click the Thumbnail column heading, then choose Hide Column from the shortcut menu.

- Drag the thumbnail image in the direction you want to view.

Bin: Color-corrected shots Color-corrected shots Name Thumbnail Duration Master shot jacob CU 00:00:03:15 Nancy at table CU 5 00:00:04:15 Master shot Debra CU 00:00:04:20 Don pain XCU 00:00:06:00 Jacob reaction to customer CU 00:00:07:05 The thumbnail you're scrubbing through is highlighted.

Note: You can also scrub through clips that are displayed in large icon view (see "Scrubbing Through Clips in Icon View" on page 67).

1 Control-click a Comment column heading, then choose Edit Heading from the shortcut menu.

2 Type a new name in the column's Name field, then press Return.

Browser Cafe Effects Name Cafe scene Debra enters cafe WS Debra on sidewalk Jacob reaction to customer CU Master shot Debra CU Master shot Debra MS Master shot Jacob CU Master shot Jacob WS Side master shot Jacob MS Graphics Master sequence Music Background Dramatic Music 1 Director Comments Media S Enter the new column name.

The Master Comment and Comment column headings are the only column headings you can change. Once you customize the name of a Comment column, it remains changed in that project file, even if you hide it. New projects you create use the default names.

If you want to change several Comment headings at once, use the Project Properties window. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 5, "Working With Projects, Clips, and Sequences."

In large, medium, or small icon view, you arrange your clips graphically in the Browser. Video clips are displayed as a thumbnail of the starting frame of video, audio clips are displayed as a speaker, and bins are indicated by a folder icon. If a video clip has an audio track, a small speaker icon appears inside the clip's thumbnail.

Bin: Scene 4 Scene 4 11 items Master shot jacob CU 03:15 Nancy at table CU 5 04:15 Video clip with audio Thumbnails of clips in icon view Master shot Debra CU 04:20 Music 1 05:06 Audio clip

You can use different views for open Browser windows and tabs. For example, you can keep the main tab of your project in the Browser in list view for organizational purposes, but open bins in their own windows or tabs using large icon view to quickly identify clips visually.

In large icon view, you can scrub through video clips to see their content. You can also scrub through thumbnails of clips displayed in list view (see "Working With the Browser in List View" on page 62). However, you don't have all of the options you have in large icon view.

Note: You can't scrub through clips in small icon view.

- Select the Scrub Video tool in the Tool palette.

Selection tool Select the Scrub Video tool.

Note: When the Scrub Video tool is selected, you can hold down the Shift or Command key to temporarily make the Selection tool active to select, open, or move clips.

- With the Selection tool selected, press Control-Shift to temporarily make the Scrub Video tool active.

Bin: Scene 4 Scene 4 11 items Master shot jacob CU 03:15 Nancy at table CU 5 04:15 Master shot Debra CU 04:20 Music 1 05:06 Move right to scrub forward; move left to scrub backward.

When you're in icon view in the Browser, you can organize clip icons however you want. You can use the Arrange commands to automatically arrange your icons from left to right, either in alphabetical order or by duration, within the current width of the Browser or bin window. This is useful if the Browser or a bin window has overlapping icons or if you find yourself constantly scrolling to see icons.

To arrange items in the Browser into rows in icon view, do one of the following:

Choose View > Arrange, then select by Name or by Duration.
■ Control-click in an empty area of the Browser, then choose Arrange by Name or Arrange by Duration from the shortcut menu.

Bin: Scene 4 Scene 4 11 items Master sh Master sh Nancy at table CU 5 04:15 Music 1 05:06 Before using the Arrange command

Bin: Scene 4 Scene 4 11 items Master shot jacob CU 03:15 Nancy at table CU 5 04:15 Master shot Debra CU 04:20 Music 1 05:06 After using the Arrange command

The poster frame is the picture that represents a clip in icon view in the Browser. When you look at clips in the Browser in large icon view or when you show the Thumbnail column in list view, the icon or thumbnail picture you see reflects either the In point for that clip (or the first frame of the clip if no In point has been set), or the poster frame you set for the clip in the Browser.

Poster frames are useful if you want to identify a clip visually in the Browser using a specific image, and can be especially useful if you're working with a lot of clips or subclips with similar imagery. Any frame of a clip can be its poster frame.

1 Double-click a clip in the Browser to open it in the Viewer.
2 In the Viewer, navigate to the frame you want to use as the poster frame for the clip.
3 Choose Mark > Set Poster Frame (or press Control-P).

- Scrub through a clip until you get to the desired frame, press and hold the Control key, then release the mouse button.

Bin: Scene 4 Scene 4 11 items Master shot jacob CU 03:15 Nancy at table CU 5 04:15 Original poster frame (before scrubbing) Master shot Debra CU 04:20 Music 1 05:06

The poster frame is now set to the frame you scrubbed to. Master shot jacob CU 03:15 Nancy at table CU 5 04:15 Master shot Debra CU 04:20 Music 1 05:06

You can create customized column layouts and save them for easy access at any time. For example, some editors prefer to have the Master Comment 1 column after the Name column, so they don't have to scroll to that column all the time to review the assistant editor's notes. The custom column layouts you save appear in the shortcut menu that appears when you Control-click any column heading in the Browser except the Name column.

1 Rearrange the Browser columns the way you want them to appear.

Note: The Name column always appears on the far left and cannot be moved.

2 Control-click any column heading, then choose Save Column Layout from the shortcut menu.

3 In the Save dialog, choose where you want to save the layout, change its name if you like, then click Save.

Custom column layout files are saved by default to the following folder location: /User Name/Library/Preferences/Final Cut Pro User Data/Column Layouts

■ Control-click any column heading in the Browser except Name, then choose a custom layout from the shortcut menu.

If you have placed column layouts in a location other than the default folder mentioned above, you will need to open them using the Load Column Layout command in the shortcut menu.

1 Control-click any column heading in the Browser except Name, then choose Load Column Layout from the shortcut menu.

2 In the Choose a File dialog, navigate to the location where the column layout is stored, select it, then click Choose.

Tip: You can also save and use custom column layouts in the Find Results window, following the same instructions you use for the Browser. Any custom column layouts created in the Browser can be used in the Find Results window, and vice versa.

This chapter covers the following:

• How You Can Use the Viewer (p. 71)
- Opening a Clip in the Viewer (p. 72)
• Learning About the Viewer (p. 73)
- Tabs in the Viewer (p. 75)
• Transport (or Playback) Controls (p. 77)
• Playhead Controls (p. 78)
• Marking Controls (p. 80)
• Zoom and View Pop-Up Menus (p. 81)
• Playhead Sync Pop-Up Menu (p. 84)
• Recent Clips and Generator Pop-Up Menus (p. 85)

The Viewer is extremely versatile. You can use the Viewer to:

Define In and Out edit points for clips before editing them into a sequence
Adjust audio levels and panning in the Audio tab
Open clips within sequences to adjust durations, In and Out points, and filter parameters
Note: Changes you make to a clip opened from a sequence are applied to the clip only in that sequence. If you make changes to a clip opened from the Browser, the changes appear only in the clip in the Browser.
Add filters to clips and adjust filters applied to clips
Adjust the motion parameters of clips to modify or animate such parameters as scale, rotation, cropping, and opacity
Adjust generator clip controls Generators are special clips that can be generated by Final Cut Pro, so they don't require source media. Final Cut Pro has generators that create color mattes, text of different types, gradients, color bars, and white noise. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 21, "Using Built-in Generated Clips."
Open a transition, such as a dissolve or a wipe, from an edited sequence for detailed editing

For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 21, "Adding Transitions."

Before you can work in the Viewer, it must be the currently selected, or active, window. Otherwise, any commands or keyboard shortcuts you use may perform the wrong operations. To display the Viewer (if it's not open already), you must open a clip from the Browser or the Timeline (see the next section, "Opening a Clip in the Viewer").

Click the Viewer.
■ Press Command-1. (Press this again to close the Viewer.)
■ Press Q to switch between the Viewer and the Canvas.

The Viewer is where you look at source clips from the Browser before editing them into a sequence. You can also open clips that are already in a sequence in order to adjust durations and edit points, or edit filter parameters. There a variety of ways to open clips in the Viewer. You can choose the method that you find most convenient.

Tip: You can tell whether a clip in the Viewer has been opened from the Browser or from a sequence in the Timeline. Sprocket holes appear in the scrubber bar for clips opened from a sequence. You can also tell the origin of the clip from the name of the clip in the Viewer title bar.

In the Browser, double-click the clip.
- Drag the clip from the Browser to the Viewer.
In the Browser, select the clip and press Return.

Note: In the Browser, pressing Enter is different from pressing Return. Pressing Enter allows to you to rename the clip.

In the Browser, Control-click the clip, then choose Open in Viewer from the shortcut menu.
In the Browser, select the clip, then choose View > Clip.
In the Viewer, select a clip name from the Recent Clips pop-up menu in the lower-right area of the window.

To open a sequence clip in the Viewer from the Timeline or Canvas, do one of the following:

In the Timeline, double-click the clip.
In the Timeline or Canvas, move the playhead over the clip, then press Return or Enter.
The clip on the lowest-numbered track with Auto Select enabled is opened in the Viewer.
In the Timeline, select the clip and press Return or Enter.
- Drag the clip from the Timeline to the Viewer.

Sprocket holes indicate that this is a sequence clip

The following is a quick summary of the Viewer controls. For a more detailed description of Viewer controls, see the sections starting with "Tabs in the Viewer" on page 75.

Tabs Clip name and the project it's in. Video Master shot Debra CU in Cafe 00:00:21:00 5% Current Timecode field Zoom pop-up menu Playhead Sync pop-up menu Image display area Playhead In point Marker Scrubber bar Shuttle control Jog control Generator pop-up menu Marking controls Transport controls Recent Clips pop-up menu

Tabs: There are five tabs that can be shown in the Viewer—Video, Audio, Filters, Motion, and Controls—each providing certain editing functions. For more details, see "Tabs in the Viewer" on page 75.
Image display area: This is the area of the Viewer where you can see the video from your sequence play back.
In Point and Out point: In and Out points allow you to define a specific portion of a clip to include in a sequence. A clip In point marks the first frame of a clip to be edited into a sequence. A clip Out point specifies the last frame of the clip to be used. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 7, "Setting Edit Points for Clips and Sequences."
Playhead: The position of the playhead corresponds to the currently displayed frame. You can move the playhead to go to different parts of a clip.
Scrubber bar: The scrubber bar represents the entire duration of a clip. You can click anywhere in the scrubber bar to automatically move the playhead to that location.
Transport controls: You use these to play clips and move the playhead within clips and sequences.
Jog and shuttle controls: You use the jog and shuttle controls to navigate within your clip, much like traditional VTR controls.
Marking controls: You use these to set edit points (In and Out points) and add markers and keyframes to your clips.
Zoom pop-up menu: This lets you enlarge or shrink the image that appears in the Viewer.
Playhead Sync pop-up menu: This gives you options for locking the movement of the playheads in the Viewer and the Canvas together in different ways while scrubbing through clips. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 24, "Matching Frames and Playhead Synchronization."
View pop-up menu: This allows you to control display options such as timecode and marker overlays, as well as the background color for transparent pixels.
Generator pop-up menu: You use this to select and open generators in the Viewer for modifying and editing into your sequence. Generators are special clips that can be generated by Final Cut Pro; for example, they can be used to create color mattes and text of different types.
Recent Clips pop-up menu: This allows you to open recently used clips in the Viewer for modifying and editing into your sequence.
Current Timecode field: This field displays the timecode of the frame at the current position of the playhead. You can enter timecode numbers here to navigate to a new position in the clip.
Timecode Duration field: This field shows the current duration between the clip In and Out points. You can change the duration here, which automatically adjusts the the clip Out point.

Each tab in the Viewer provides a specific set of editing functions: Video, Audio, Filters, Motion, and Controls. You can drag tabs out of the Viewer so they appear in a separate window. This is useful, for example, if you want to adjust filter or generator parameters while watching the results in the Video tab.

The video tab lets you view a clip's video media, set In and Out points, and add markers and keyframes. This tab appears when you open a clip that includes video clip items. This tab is shown by default (see "Learning About the Viewer" on page 73).

Audio tabs display audio waveforms for audio clip items. If your clip has audio items, each audio item opens in its own Audio tab. (If you open an audio-only clip, you'll only see Audio tabs with no accompanying Video tab.) Clips in Final Cut Pro may have up to 24 audio items.

An audio tab may represent a single (mono) audio item or a stereo pair of audio items. Stereo audio items appear together in a single tab, while mono audio items appear separately in individual tabs. Controls in each Audio tab allow you to change the audio level and the stereo panning parameters, creating keyframes if necessary to adjust levels over time. You can also use an Audio tab to set In and Out points, markers, and keyframes for audio clips. To learn more, see Volume II, Chapter 17, "Audio Editing Basics."

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Audio Tabs - 1

You use this tab to adjust parameters for any video or audio filters you've applied to a clip. You can also set keyframes to adjust filter parameters over time. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 11, "Video Filters." For audio filters, see Volume III, Chapter 9, "Using Audio Filters."

Viewer: Master shot Debra CU in Cafe Video Stereo (x1a2) Stereo (x3a4) Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 33:13 02:05:2 Video Filters Fisheye Radius 100 Amount 15 Center 0 0 Stereo 1 Filters Band Pass Filter Frequency 8000 Q 0.71 Stereo 2 Filters High Pass Filter Frequency 8000 Q 0.71 02:05:15:08

Every clip with a video clip item, whether it's a video, still image, or generator clip, has the same motion parameters: scale, rotation, center, anchor point, and additional attributes such as crop, distort, opacity, drop shadow, motion blur, and time remap (speed). The Motion tab allows you to adjust these parameters of a clip.

You can create motion effects by setting keyframes for motion parameters over time. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 12, "Changing Motion Parameters." Also refer to Volume III, Chapter 13, "Adjusting Parameters for Keyframed Effects."

Viewer: Master shot Debra CU in Cafe Video Stereo (a1a2) Stereo (a3a4) Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 33.13 02:05:2 Basic Motion Scale 100 Rotation 432 Center 0, 0 -432 Anchor Point 0, 0 Crop Distort Opacity Drop Shadow Motion Blur Time Remap 02:05:15:08

You use the Controls tab to change the parameters for generator clips, such as the font and text size in a Text generator, or the size of a Circle Shape generator. The Controls tab appears only when a generator is open in the Viewer. For additional information, see Volume III, Chapter 21, "Using Built-in Generated Clips."

Viewer: Text Video Controls Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 00:00 00:02 Text Font Lucida Grande Size 36 Style Plain Alignment Center Font Color Origin 0 0 00:00:55:00

Transport controls let you play clips in the Viewer. (The same controls also appear in the Log and Capture and Edit to Tape windows.) These controls play clips at 100 percent (or 1x) speed. There are keyboard shortcuts for each control.

Go to Previous Edit Play In to Out Play Go to Next Edit Play Around Current Frame Play

Play (Space bar): Plays your clip from the current location of the playhead. Clicking it again stops playback.
Play In to Out (Shift-): Moves the playhead to the current In point of a clip and plays forward from that point to the Out point.
Play Around Current Frame (\): Plays the selected clip "around" the current playhead position. When you click this button, the playback begins before the playhead position based on the value in the Preview Pre-roll field in the Editing tab of the User Preferences window. Playback continues through the original position of the playhead, and then continues for the amount of time in the Preview Post-roll field in User Preferences. When you stop playback, the playhead jumps back to its original position. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."
Go to Previous Edit (Up Arrow) and Go to Next Edit (Down Arrow): When you have a Browser clip open in the Viewer, these controls navigate between the In, Out, and Media Start and End points of the clip. When you have a sequence open, these buttons let you navigate between sequence edit points; sequence In and Out points are skipped over.

The playhead lets you navigate through and locate different parts of a clip quickly and easily.

Playhead Inactive video Scrubber bar Shuttle control Jog control

The playhead shows the location of the currently displayed frame within the current clip. The scrubber bar runs along the entire width of the Viewer, below the video image. To scrub through a clip, drag the playhead across the scrubber bar. You can also hold down the Command key to drag the playhead at a slower speed, so you can more easily locate specific frames. You can click anywhere in the scrubber bar to instantly move the playhead to that location.

The playhead's movement in the scrubber bar is affected by whether “snapping” is turned on. When snapping is on, the playhead “snaps,” or moves directly, to any markers, In points, or Out points in the scrubber bar when it gets close to them. (To turn snapping on or off, choose View > Snapping, or press the N key.)

To move the playhead to the next In or Out point, or Media End:

■ Press the Down arrow key.

To move the playhead to the previous In or Out point, or Media Start:

■ Press the Up arrow key.

To move the playhead to the beginning of your clip:

■ Press Home on your keyboard.

To move the playhead to the end of your clip:

■ Press End on your keyboard.

To move forward or backward in your clip very precisely, use the jog control. The jog control allows you to move the playhead as if you were actually moving it with your hand, with a one-to-one correspondence between the motion of your mouse and the playhead's motion. This control is useful for carefully locating a specific frame (for instance, if you're trimming an edit). For more information, see "Jogging Through a Clip or Sequence" on page 102.

To move the playhead backward, one frame at a time:

■ Press the Left Arrow key.

To move the playhead forward, one frame at a time:

■ Press the Right Arrow key.

To move the playhead one second at a time:

- Hold down the Shift key and press the Left Arrow or Right Arrow key.

This control lets you quickly play through clips at different speeds, in fast and slow motion. It also shifts the pitch of audio as it plays at varying speeds. In slow motion, this can make it easier to locate specific words and sounds for editing.

Drag the slider to the right to fast-forward and to the left to rewind. Playback speed varies depending on the distance of the slider from the center of the control. When the slider is green, playback speed is normal (or 100 percent speed). The further away from the center you move, the faster the playback speed. The keyboard equivalents of the shuttle control are the J, K, and L keys. For more information, see “Shuttling Through a Clip or Sequence” on page 101.

Marking controls let you set In and Out points, add markers and keyframes, and navigate to matching frames in master or affiliate clips (this is called performing a match frame). There are keyboard shortcuts for each control.

Add Motion Keyframe Mark Clip Show Match Frame Add Marker Mark In Mark Out

- Show Match Frame (F): When you click this button, Final Cut Pro searches the current sequence for the same frame shown in the Viewer. Specifically, Final Cut Pro looks for any sequence clips that are affiliated with the clip in the Viewer. If the frame shown in the Viewer is used in the current sequence, the Canvas/Timeline playhead is positioned to that frame. The result is that you see the same frame in both the Viewer and the Canvas, but the clip you see in the Canvas is actually an affiliate of the clip in the Viewer. This is useful if you want to see where you have already used a particular frame in your sequence.

Each time you click the Match Frame button, Final Cut Pro navigates to the next occurrence of that frame in the sequence. To make sure you find the first occurrence of the frame, you can move the Canvas/Timeline playhead to the start of the sequence.

For a more comprehensive discussion of the Match Frame controls, see Volume II, Chapter 24, "Matching Frames and Playhead Synchronization."

Mark Clip (X): Click to set In and Out points at the boundaries of the clip.
Add Motion Keyframe (Control-K): Click to add a keyframe to the current clip at the position of the playhead for clip parameters such as Scale, Rotate, Crop, Distort, and so on. By default, this button sets keyframes for all clip motion parameters at once. To add keyframes for individual parameters, Control-click this button and choose a parameter from the shortcut menu. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 13, "Adjusting Parameters for Keyframed Effects."
Add Marker (M): Click to add a marker at the current playhead position. While editing you can use markers to make notes about important points in your sequence, such as areas to change, potential edit points, or sync points. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 4, "Using Markers."

Important: If a clip is selected in the Timeline, and the playhead touches that clip, a marker is added to the sequence clip, not the sequence.

Mark In (1): Click to set the In point at the current position of the playhead.
Mark Out (O): Click to set the Out point at the current position of the playhead.

The two pop-up menus near the top of the Viewer let you quickly select the magnification level and a viewing format to control the way media in the Viewer is displayed.

Note: These menus also appear in the Canvas, and the options are the same.

Choose a magnification level from this pop-up menu. Your choice affects only the display size of the image; it doesn't affect the scaling or frame size of the footage in the Viewer. You can also change the magnification level from the keyboard by pressing Command-= (equal sign) to zoom in and Command-- (minus) to zoom out.

Viewer: Master shot Debra CU in Motion Zoom pop-up menu 59%

Besides simply choosing a magnification level, you can choose one of the following:

- Fit to Window: Increases or decreases the size of your media's image to match any size of the Viewer window. You can also do this by clicking the Viewer to make it active, and then pressing Shift-Z (Zoom to Fit).

Viewer: Master shot Debra CU in Cafe Video Stereo (a1x2) Filters Motion 00:00:53.18 100% 02:04:50:03 vail.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.psd.pds

Before

Video Stereo (a1x2) Filters Motion 00:00:53.18 59% 02:04:50:03 view.sat View.sat

After

- Fit All: This is similar to the Fit to Window command, but this command takes into account clips whose borders extend beyond the current Viewer boundaries.

Canvas: End Credits in Cafe End Credits 00:00:10:00 59% 01:00:08:22 View/View: View/View

Before

Canvas: End Credits in Cafe End Credits 00:00:10:00 47% 03:00:08:22 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%

After

- Show as Sq. Pixels: Displays non-square pixel images as square pixels so they look correct on your computer screen. Standard definition (SD) video equipment displays video using non-square pixels, whereas computer monitors display video with square pixels. Because of the difference in the shape of the pixels, the same video image looks different on each kind of monitor. Final Cut Pro can simulate how your images will look on a video monitor using the computer's display, so that your video images look correct as you edit. This does not permanently affect your picture; it's only for display purposes.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Zoom Pop-Up Menu - 6

natural_image

Screenshot of a video editing software interface showing a white square on black canvas with timeline controls (no readable text or symbols)

Displaying native, non-square pixels

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Zoom Pop-Up Menu - 7

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Video editing software interface showing a white circle on black canvas with control buttons (no text or symbols on the main image area)

Display pixel as square

Note: When playing back media with the Viewer scaled to 100 percent, both fields of interlaced video are displayed. If the Viewer is scaled to anything other than 100 percent and you're displaying a DV clip, only one field is shown during playback or while scrubbing through the clip. When playing back media captured with a third-party video interface, some interfaces display both fields regardless of the scale of the Viewer, which may result in visible artifacts in the picture. These are display artifacts only, and do not exist in the video signal output to tape.

Important: Clips may not play back smoothly if you zoom in on them so far that part of the image is obscured, and you see scroll bars to the right and below the Viewer windows. Other windows blocking the Viewer will also affect playback. Choosing a screen layout or pressing Shift-Z are easy ways to remedy playback quality in this situation.

You can choose various options from this pop-up menu for how you view your clips and sequences in the Viewer.

Viewer: Master shot Debra CU in Motion 59% View pop-up menu

Image, Image+Wireframe, or Wireframe mode: Image is the default, and simply shows the video of your clip or sequence as it plays back. Image+Wireframe is useful when you're using motion effects or compositing. Each video layer in the Viewer has a bounding box with handles (or a wireframe) that can be used to adjust that clip's size, rotation, and position. Wireframe mode shows only the bounding box and handles of each clip in your sequence, without the corresponding image. For more information on using motion effects, see Volume III, Chapter 12, "Changing Motion Parameters." You can also refer to Volume III, Chapter 13, "Adjusting Parameters for Keyframed Effects." For information on compositing, see Volume III, Chapter 18, "Compositing and Layering."
Overlays: Final Cut Pro provides translucent visual cues, called overlays, that help you easily recognize certain parts of your edit in the Viewer, such as the markers and In and Out points of clips in your sequence.

Note: To view overlays such as title safe and timecode overlays, you need to enable this option.

- Title and action safe overlays: These show you the boundaries within which you need to keep your graphics and text so they'll appear when the sequence is played back on television. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 22, "Creating Titles."

- Timecode overlays: These overlays display the source timecode for clips and are color-coded to show which items are in sync. For more information, see "About Timecode Overlays and Sync Color Coding" on page 106.

- Excess luma: This overlay indicates whether the luma levels of your footage are acceptable for broadcast. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 20, "Color Correcting Clips."

- RGB, Alpha, or Alpha+RGB: When you're compositing, it can sometimes be handy to have a quick look at the alpha channel of your clip. The alpha channel defines areas of transparency, and can change if various filters are applied. Viewing your sequence with the Alpha or Alpha+RGB option selected shows you exactly which areas of your image have transparency. Additional controls are available for viewing the individual Red, Green, and Blue channels in the View menu.

Important: If the image display area in the Viewer is all black or all white, it may be because the Canvas is set to view only the alpha channel instead of the RGB channels. Try changing the channel view to RGB to solve this problem.

- Black, White, Checkerboard: When working with clips that have an alpha channel, you can choose different backgrounds to make it easier to see which areas of your picture are transparent. For example, translucent clips or generated text may be more visible if you choose a background that emphasizes them, such as Checkerboard 1 or 2. You can also view Red, Green, and Blue background colors using the View menu.

None of these view options affect either rendered output or material sent to tape. They only affect display in Final Cut Pro.

You can lock the Viewer playhead to the Canvas/Timeline playhead so that they move together while scrubbing through clips.

Note: This menu also appears in the Canvas, and the options are the same.

Sync Off Open Gang Playhead Sync pop-up menu in the Viewer

There are several playhead sync modes available:

Sync Off: The Viewer and Canvas playheads move independently of one another. This is the default behavior.
Open: As the playhead moves through your sequence, the clip that appears at the current position of the playhead is automatically opened in the Viewer. Playhead sync between the Viewer and Canvas is maintained so the same frame is always open in both windows. This method is useful when you need to quickly adjust filters for a number of clips in a sequence, such as for color correction. Multiclip playback mode also enables this playhead sync mode, so you can view multiple camera angles in the Viewer while you watch the active angle in the Canvas.
Gang: This mode allows you to establish an arbitrary synchronization between the Viewer and Canvas/Timeline playheads. Each time you choose this mode, the current position of each playhead is used to set the sync relationship. For more information on ganging, see Volume II, Chapter 24, "Matching Frames and Playhead Synchronization."

The two pop-up menus near the lower-right corner of the Viewer let you quickly choose source clips and generators.

Generator pop-up menu Recent Clips pop-up menu

This pop-up menu shows recently used clips. A clip is not added to this list when first opened in the Viewer, but only when another clip replaces it. The last clip that was replaced in the Viewer appears at the top of the list. By default, the maximum number of clips that appear in this list is 10, but you can change this number. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

Master shot Debra CU Don CU Nancy enters 4 Master shot Debra CU Music 3 Master shot Debra CU Music 4 Music 1 Don pain XCU Lola gives coat and tie CU 3 Jacob reaction to customer CU The clip replaced most recently is at the top of the list.

Use this pop-up menu to choose a generator clip, such as Bars and Tone, a Color Matte, Gradients, and Text. A generic version of the generator appears in the Viewer; you can then customize it using the Controls tab. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 21, "Using Built-in Generated Clips."

Favorites Bars and Tone (HD 1080i50) Bars and Tone (HD 1080i60) Bars and Tone (HD 720p60) Bars and Tone (NTSC) Bars and Tone (PAL) Matte Others Render Shapes Slug Text Title 3D Title Crawl Various generator effects

This chapter covers the following:

• How You Use the Canvas (p. 87)
- Opening, Selecting, and Closing Sequences in the Canvas (p. 88)
• Learning About the Canvas (p. 89)
• Editing Controls in the Canvas (p. 90)
• Transport (or Playback) Controls (p. 92)
• Playhead Controls (p. 93)
- Marking Controls (p. 95)
• Zoom and View Pop-Up Menus (p. 96)
• Playhead Sync Pop-Up Menu (p. 96)

In Final Cut Pro, the Canvas is the equivalent of a record monitor in a tape-to-tape editing suite; it displays the video and audio of your edited sequence during playback.

When you open a new sequence, it appears simultaneously in tabs in both the Canvas and the Timeline. The Canvas playhead mirrors the position of the Timeline playhead, and the Canvas displays the frame at the playhead's current position in an open sequence. If you move the Timeline's playhead, the frame displayed in the Canvas changes accordingly. If you make a change in the Canvas, it's reflected in the Timeline.

The controls in the Canvas are similar to those in the Viewer, but instead of navigating and playing back individual clips, the controls in the Canvas navigate the entire sequence currently open in the Timeline.

Before you can work in the Canvas, it must be the currently selected, or active, window. Otherwise, any commands or keyboard shortcuts you use may perform the wrong operations. To display the Canvas, you must open a sequence from the Browser (see the next section, "Opening, Selecting, and Closing Sequences in the Canvas").

Note: Most of the commands you use in the Canvas also work in the Timeline.

Click the Canvas.
Press Command-2.
■ Press Q to switch between the Viewer and the Canvas.

Sequences are represented by tabs in the Canvas and Timeline. All controls and commands in the Canvas affect only the sequence in the foreground.

■ Double-click a sequence in the Browser.
- Select the sequence in the Browser, then press Return.
■ Control-click the sequence in the Browser, then choose Open Timeline from the shortcut menu.
- Select the sequence in the Browser, then choose View > Sequence in Editor.

If you have more than one sequence open in the Canvas, the tab in front is the active sequence.

- Click a sequence's tab to bring it to the front.

Click a sequence's tab to bring it to the front, then choose File > Close Tab.
Click a sequence's tab to bring it to the front, then press Control-W.
■ Control-click the tab, then choose Close Tab from the shortcut menu.

When you close the tab of a sequence in the Canvas, its corresponding tab in the Timeline also closes.

The following is a summary of the controls in the Canvas.

Tab for the open sequence Name of the currently selected sequence and the project it's in Canvas: Dining sequence in Dining Timecode Duration field 00:00:38:20 59% 01:00:25:04 Current Timecode field Zoom pop-up menu Image display area Playhead In point Scrubber bar Jog control Shuttle control Edit buttons Transport controls Sequence marking controls

Tabs: Each tab in the Canvas represents an open sequence. Each tab in the Canvas has a corresponding tab in the Timeline.
Image display area: This is the area of the Canvas where you can see the video from your sequence play back.
Playhead: The position of the playhead corresponds to the currently displayed frame. You can move the playhead to go to different parts of a sequence.
In Point and Out Point: You can set sequence In and sequence Out points in the Canvas or Timeline. You can use these as placement points to determine where clips are placed in the Timeline destination tracks when you're doing three-point editing. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 7, "Setting Edit Points for Clips and Sequences."
Scrubber bar: The scrubber bar represents the entire duration of a sequence. You can click anywhere in the scrubber bar to automatically move the playhead to that location.
Transport controls: You use these to play a sequence and to move the playhead within your sequence. The position of the playhead corresponds to the currently displayed frame.
Jog and shuttle controls: These let you navigate more precisely within your sequence.
Sequence marking controls: These are used to add sequence In and Out points, markers, and keyframes.
Editing controls: The edit buttons and the Edit Overlay allow you to perform different kinds of edits from the clip in the Viewer to your sequence.
View pop-up menu: This allows you to control display options such as timecode and marker overlays, as well as the background color for transparent pixels.
Zoom pop-up menu: This lets you enlarge or shrink the image that appears in the Canvas.
Playhead Sync pop-up menu: This gives you options for locking the movement of the playheads in the Viewer and the Canvas together in different ways while scrubbing through clips. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 24, "Matching Frames and Playhead Synchronization."
Current Timecode field: This field displays the timecode of the frame at the current position of the playhead. You can enter timecode numbers here to navigate to a new position in your sequence.
Timecode Duration field: This field shows the current duration between the sequence In and Out points. You can change the duration here, which automatically adjusts the the sequence Out point.

The Canvas can perform five basic types of edits to place a clip in the Viewer into the current sequence. The clip is placed in the Timeline according to the In and Out points set in the clip and the sequence, following the rules of three-point editing. The basic edit types are:

Overwrite: Replaces the clip items in the destination sequence track with the clip in the Viewer.
Insert: Pushes clip items in the sequence forward to accommodate the clip from the Viewer.
Replace: Replaces the clip item beneath the Canvas/Timeline playhead with the clip in the Viewer, using the playhead position in both windows as a synchronization point.
Fit to Fill: Speeds up or slows down the clip in the Viewer to fit between the In and Out points set in the Canvas and Timeline.
Superimpose: Edits the clip in the Viewer into a track above the sequence clip that intersects the playhead.

Variations of overwrite and insert, called overwrite with transition and insert with transition, add the default transition when you perform the edit. This allows you to perform transitions such as dissolves in a single move. These edits are covered in much more detail in Volume II, Chapter 10, "Three-Point Editing."

You can use the Canvas editing controls to perform edits. Once you've marked a clip in the Viewer with In and Out points defining how much of that clip you want to use, you can use the Edit Overlay or the edit buttons at the bottom of the Canvas to perform the edit.

The Edit Overlay appears only when you drag clips from the Browser or Viewer to the image area of the Canvas. The Edit Overlay appears translucently over the image currently in the Canvas.

Drag a clip to the image display area of the Canvas. Insert with Transition Overwrite with Transition Replace Fit to Fill Superimpose The Edit Overlay appears with its seven sections.

There are seven sections in the Edit Overlay. If you simply drag your clip to the image display area to the left of the Edit Overlay, an overwrite edit is performed. To perform any of the other edits, drag your clip to the overlay area for the edit you wish to perform.

You'll know that the clip you're dragging is over a specific overlay when a colored outline appears around the border of the overlay.

Instead of dragging clips to the Canvas, you can click one of the edit buttons to edit the clip in the Viewer into your sequence. (You can also drag clips to the edit buttons to perform the same edits.)

Click the disclosure button to display the additional edit buttons (shown on the right). Overwrite Insert Replace Superimpose Fit to Fill Overwrite with Transition Insert with Transition

Transport controls let you play sequences in the Canvas, as well as move the playhead in the Timeline. These controls play clips and sequences at 100 percent (or 1x) speed. There are keyboard shortcuts for each control.

Go to Previous Edit Play In to Out Play Go to Next Edit Play Around Current Frame Play

Play (Space bar): Plays your sequence from the current location of the playhead. Clicking it again stops playback.
Play In to Out (Shift-): Moves the playhead to the current In point of a sequence and plays forward from that point to the Out point.
Play Around Current Frame (\): Plays the selected sequence "around" the current playhead position. When you click this button, playback begins before the playhead position based on the value in the Preview Pre-roll field in the Editing tab of the User Preferences window. Playback continues through the original position of the playhead, and then continues for the amount of time specified in the Preview Post-roll field. When you stop playback, the playhead jumps back to its original position. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."
Go to Previous (Up Arrow) and Go to Next Edit (Down Arrow): These controls are primarily used for quickly navigating from one edit point to the next in the Canvas. The Go to Previous and Go to Next Edit buttons move the playhead to the previous and next edit points in the sequence, relative to the current playhead position. If you have In and Out points set in your sequence, the Go to Previous and Go to Next Edit buttons navigate to these points as well.

Note: Similar controls also appear in the Viewer, Log and Capture, and Edit to Tape windows.

The playhead lets you navigate through and locate different parts of a sequence quickly and easily.

Inactive video Inactive video Scrubber bar Jog control Playhead Shuttle control

The playhead shows the location of the currently displayed frame within the current sequence. The scrubber bar runs along the entire width of the Canvas, below the video image. To scrub through a sequence, drag the playhead across the scrubber bar. You can also hold down the Command key to drag the playhead at a slower speed, so you can more easily locate specific frames. You can click anywhere in the scrubber bar to instantly move the playhead to that location.

The playhead's movement in the scrubber bar is affected by whether "snapping" is turned on. When snapping is on, the playhead "snaps," or moves directly, to any markers, In points, or Out points in the scrubber bar when it gets close to them. (To turn snapping on or off, choose View > Snapping, or press the N key.)

To move the playhead to the beginning of your sequence:

■ Press Home on your keyboard.

To move the playhead to the end of your sequence:

■ Press End on your keyboard.

To move the playhead to the next edit point, do one of the following:

Choose Mark > Next > Edit.
Click the Go to Next Edit button.
■ Press the Down Arrow key.
Press Shift-E.

Final Cut Pro looks for the next edit, In point, or Out point. If overlays are enabled in the View menu, an L-shaped icon appears in the Canvas, indicating whether you are on an In or Out point.

To move the playhead to the previous edit point, do one of the following:

Choose Mark > Previous > Edit.
Click the Go to Previous Edit button.
■ Press the Up Arrow key.
Press Option-E.

Final Cut Pro looks for the previous edit, In point, or Out point. If overlays are enabled in the View menu, an L-shaped icon appears in the Canvas, indicating whether you are on an In or Out point.

To move the playhead to sequence markers, do one of the following:

■ Control-click in the Current Timecode field in either the Timeline or the Canvas, then choose a marker from the shortcut menu that appears.
- Press Shift-Up Arrow to move to the next marker to the right of the playhead.
- Press Shift-Down Arrow to move to the next marker to the left of the playhead.

The playhead moves to that marker. If overlays are enabled in the View menu, the marker is displayed in the Canvas. For more information on setting markers in the Timeline, see Volume II, Chapter 4, "Using Markers."

To move forward or backward in your sequence very precisely, use the jog control. The jog control allows you to move the playhead in the Canvas as if you were actually moving it with your hand, with a one-to-one correspondence between the motion of your mouse and the playhead's motion. This control is useful for carefully locating a specific frame (for instance, if you're trimming an edit).

This control lets you quickly play through sequences at different speeds, in fast and slow motion. It also shifts the pitch of audio as it plays at varying speeds. In slow motion, this can make it easier to locate specific words and sounds for editing.

Mark Clip Show Match Frame Mark In Mark Out Add Motion Keyframe Add Marker

Mark In (I): Click to set the In point at the current position of the playhead.
Mark Out (O): Click to set the Out point at the current position of the playhead.
Add Marker (M): Click to add a marker at the current playhead position. While editing you can use markers to make notes about important points in your sequence, such as areas to change, potential edit points, or sync points. Markers can be added to sequences in the Canvas and Timeline. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 4, "Using Markers."

Important: If a clip is selected in the Timeline, and the playhead touches that clip, a marker is added to the sequence clip, not the sequence.

- Add Motion Keyframe (Control-K): Click to add a keyframe to the current clip at the position of the playhead. This button adds keyframes for clip parameters such as Scale, Rotate, Crop, Distort, and so on.

By default, this button sets keyframes for all motion parameters at once. To add keyframes for individual motion parameters, Control-click this button and choose a motion parameter from the shortcut menu. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 13, "Adjusting Parameters for Keyframed Effects."

- Show Match Frame (F): When you click this button, the frame you see in the Canvas appears in the Viewer. Specifically, the master clip for the sequence clip that intersects the Canvas/Timeline playhead is opened in the Viewer. The Viewer playhead is set to the frame shown in the Canvas, and the In and Out points for the sequence clip are set in the master clip in the Viewer. This allows you to easily get back to the master clip for any affiliate clip, in case you want to use the footage for another purpose, or if you want to see the original video and audio clip items of the master clip. For a more comprehensive discussion of the Match Frame controls, see Volume II, Chapter 24, "Matching Frames and Playhead Synchronization."

- Mark Clip (X): Click to set In and Out points at the boundaries of the clip that currently intersects the Canvas/Timeline playhead. The clip on the lowest-numbered track with Auto Select enabled is used.

The two pop-up menus near the top of the Canvas let you quickly select the magnification level and a viewing format to control the way media in the Canvas is displayed. These menus are also present in the Viewer, and the options are the same. For details, see “Zoom and View Pop-Up Menus” on page 81.

Canvas: Master sequence in C Zoom pop-up menu —— 59% —— View pop-up menu

You can lock the Viewer playhead to the Canvas/Timeline playhead so that both playheads move together while scrubbing through clips. This menu is also present in the Viewer, and the options are the same. For details, see "Playhead Sync Pop-Up Menu" on page 84.

Sync Off Open Gang Playhead Sync pop-up menu in the Canvas

While the Viewer and Canvas serve different purposes, navigating and working with timecode are nearly the same in both windows.

This chapter covers the following:

• Navigating in the Viewer and Canvas (p. 97)
• Working With Timecode in the Viewer and Canvas (p. 104)

Although the Viewer and Canvas windows are very similar in appearance and use many of the same controls, the video displayed in the Canvas is not the same as that in the Viewer. In the Viewer, you open and play clips in preparation for editing, while the Canvas shows video from a sequence in the Timeline. You can think of the Viewer as the source monitor and the Canvas as the record monitor from a traditional tape-to-tape editing system.

For information about controls in the Viewer, see Chapter 6, "Viewer Basics," on page 71. For information about controls in the Canvas, see Chapter 7, "Canvas Basics," on page 87.

Aside from using the transport controls, there are numerous ways to move around within clips and sequences in Final Cut Pro. You can navigate more quickly using the specialized jog and shuttle controls, moving through your media at slower or faster speeds. You can also enter absolute or relative timecode values directly into timecode fields to move the playhead within your clips and sequences. All of these methods work with external video enabled, and external video output will be continuously updated.

You use the transport controls in the Viewer and Canvas to play forward, backward, between In and Out points, one frame at a time, or loop playback. You can also move around within clips and sequences by jogging, shuttling, and scrubbing, and by entering timecode numbers.

1 Open a clip in the Viewer or make the Canvas or Timeline active.
2 Do one of the following:

Click the Play button.
Press the Space bar.
Press L.
Choose Mark > Play > Forward.

To stop playback, press the Space bar or click the Play button again.

You can navigate backward at 1x (normal) speed, such as if you want to search for precise locations to set your In and Out points.

1 Open a clip in the Viewer or make the Canvas or Timeline active.
2 Do one of the following:

Shift-click the Play button.
Press Shift–Space bar.
Press J.
Choose Mark > Play > Play Reverse.

Once you set In and Out points for a clip to define what part you want to use in your sequence, you may want to review the In and Out points. You can use the Play In to Out feature so that playback starts precisely at the In point and stops at the Out point, to make sure that the edit points are exact. This is useful if you're editing dialogue and you want to make sure you're cutting on the proper sound at each of your edit points. You may also want to use this feature if you're matching action and want to make sure you're starting and ending at the right frames.

1 Open a clip in the Viewer or make the Canvas or Timeline active.
2 Do one of the following:

Click the Play In to Out button.
Press Shift-\ (backslash).
Choose Mark > Play > In to Out.

If you want to preview how the cut you've made at the Out point will play, you can play to the Out point. This is useful because it quickly shows you if you've left out a frame, or if you need to shave off more frames. For example, if you're editing dialogue, you can make sure you cut out on the very last frame of a pause at the end of an "s" sound, while leaving out an "i" sound that follows in the actor's next sentence.

1 Open a clip in the Viewer or make the Canvas or Timeline active.
2 Do one of the following:

Command-click the Play button.
Press Shift-P.
Choose Mark > Play > To Out.

You can also play around the current playhead position. This is useful if you want to watch the outgoing and incoming media around an edit point, perhaps to decide how you want to trim one side or the other.

1 Open a clip in the Viewer or make the Canvas or Timeline active.
2 Do one of the following:

Choose Mark > Play > Around.
Click Play Around Current Frame.
Press \ (backslash).

Note: The amount of video played depends on the pre-roll and post-roll settings in the Editing tab of the User Preferences window. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

You can also play every frame of a clip. This is useful for getting a preview of a clip or sequence with effects applied, without rendering first. While the clip won't play back at 1x (normal) speed (it plays back somewhat more slowly, depending on the number of effects applied and on the data rate of the clip), every frame plays back, with no frames dropped.

1 Open a clip in the Viewer or make the Canvas or Timeline active.
2 Do one of the following:

Choose Mark > Play > Every Frame.
Press Option-\ (backslash) or Option-P.

The scrubber bar represents the entire duration of the clip that's open in the Viewer and the entire duration of a sequence that's open in the Canvas. Dragging the playhead in the scrubber bar lets you scrub through your clip or sequence, with a one-to-one correspondence between the movement of your mouse and the playhead's movement through the clip or sequence.

This is the fastest way to move through a clip or sequence in order to find the point you want. How quickly you can move through the clip or sequence depends on the duration of the clip or sequence. In a short clip or sequence, moving the mouse a given distance in the scrubber bar will move through less footage than in a clip or sequence of lengthy duration.

As you scrub through your clip or sequence, audio also plays back more quickly, but it doesn't play back smoothly—it will seem to stutter (not speed up) as individual audio samples are skipped. This is normal. For smooth playback of audio at speeds under 1x, use the shuttle control instead.

- Drag the playhead along the scrubber bar.

To move around, drag the playhead along the scrubber bar.

You can also use the scrubber bar to jump to a different part of your clip or sequence instantly, without playing all the footage between the previous location of the playhead and the new location.

- Click the desired location in the scrubber bar.

While using the scrubber bar is a great way to quickly navigate to different parts of your clip or sequence, sometimes you want to play through your clip or sequence smoothly at varying speeds as you make decisions about where to place your edit points. The shuttle control gives you this kind of smooth control, playing back your video and audio at various speeds in either direction, much as the shuttle of a video deck does.

In particular, the shuttle control is useful for playing back at less than 1x speed. As the audio slows down, it's sometimes easier to distinguish individual words, and to set your In and Out points more accurately.

The shuttle control can play your clip or sequence at five speeds in each direction: 1/4x, 1/2x, 1x, 2x, and 4x. The shuttle control snaps to the closest available speed. When the shuttle control is at 1x speed, or 100 percent, the slider turns green.

- Drag the shuttle slider to the left or right.

Dragging to the right moves the clip or sequence forward; dragging to the left moves the clip or sequence in reverse. The farther you drag the slider from the center, the faster the clip or sequence plays in that direction.

Drag to the right to play forward; drag to the left to play in reverse.

You can also use the J, K, and L keys on your keyboard to shuttle through your clip. When you use the keyboard shortcuts, the only speed available under 1x is 1/3x. However, you can use the keyboard commands to speed playback up to eight times normal speed, faster than you can play back using the shuttle control.

J K L ◀ Moves through reverse speeds ▪ Pause ▶ Moves through forward speeds

To begin forward playback at normal (1x) speed:

Press L.

To begin reverse playback at normal (1x) speed:

Press J.

To pause playback:

Press K.

To double the current playback speed:

- Press L or J again.

You can play back up to eight times normal speed, switching from 1x to 2x to 4x to 8x normal speed (pressing either key a total of 4 times).

Pressing the key for playback in the opposite direction halves the playback speed, slowing playback in that direction down until it reaches 1x playback. Playback then begins doubling in reverse, starting from 1x.

To immediately reverse the playback direction:

- Press K to pause, then press the key for the direction you want.

To move the playhead one frame at a time:

- Hold down the K key, then press J or L.

To move the playhead at below 1/3x speed:

- Hold down the K key, then press and hold down J or L.

Note: When using keyboard shortcuts for device control, the speed of forward (L) and reverse (J) may differ depending on your video equipment.

To move through a clip or sequence more precisely, you can use the jog control. The jog control offers a one-to-one correspondence between the mouse and the playhead's movement, but also provides frame-by-frame accuracy that's not dependent on the duration of the clip or sequence. It's a good tool to use to play through a section of very slowly, looking for the right frame to cut on.

To move forward or backward using the jog control:

- Drag the jog control to the left or to the right.

The playhead moves with a one-to-one correspondence to the movement of your mouse. Moving your mouse slowly moves the playhead slowly, even frame by frame. Moving the mouse faster moves the playhead faster. If you stop dragging, the playhead stops instantly.

To move precisely through a clip, drag the jog control.

You can also move the playhead one frame at a time or one second at a time, by using the arrow keys on the keyboard.

■ Press the Right Arrow key

To move back one frame at a time:

■ Press the Left Arrow key.

To move forward one second at a time:

■ Press Shift while you press the Right Arrow key.

To move backward one second at a time:

■ Press Shift while you press the Left Arrow key.

Normally, playback of a clip or sequence starts at the current playhead position and stops at the end of the clip or sequence. If you enable looped playback, the clip or sequence plays over and over again until you stop playback.

When looped playback is enabled:

Using Play In to Out loops playback only between your two edit points.
Playing in reverse loops playback from the end of your clip to the beginning.
In all other playback modes, playback always starts over from the beginning of the clip.

Note: When you loop playback, there is a split-second pause at the end of your clip or sequence before the next loop starts. For this reason, enabling looped playback to loop a sequence during output to tape from the Canvas might not give you the results you want. For more information on outputting to tape, see Volume IV, Chapter 15, "Printing To Video and Output From the Timeline."

- Choose View > Loop Playback (or press Control-L).

If it's already enabled, you'll see a checkmark next to the command in the menu.

- Choose View > Loop Playback (or press Control-L) again, so that the checkmark next to the menu item disappears

Two fields display timecode in the Viewer and Canvas: Timecode Duration and Current Timecode.

Canvas: Dining sequence in Cafe Dining sequence 00:01:20:09 59% 01:01:14:15 Timecode Duration field in the Canvas Current Timecode field in the Canvas

Timecode Duration field: This field shows the current duration between the clip In and Out points. You can change the duration here, which automatically adjusts the the clip Out point.
Current Timecode field: This field displays the timecode of the frame at the current position of the playhead. You can enter absolute or relative timecode numbers here to navigate to a new position in the clip.

Note: Clicking the icon to the left of each field highlights the entire field so you can enter new numbers.

Control-clicking the Timecode Duration and Current Timecode fields displays a shortcut menu that lets you select the following timecode display options:

- Non-drop frame timecode, drop frame timecode, feet+frames, or frames: The menu item in boldface indicates the type of timecode currently specified in that sequence's settings. Changing the timecode display in the Canvas does not alter that sequence's settings. Drop frame timecode is only available for clips with a frame rate of 29.97 fps. PAL clips do not have drop frame timecode display as an option. The feet+frames option is useful when you are editing a film project.

For more information on timecode, see Volume II, Chapter 25, "Working With Timecode." For more information about editing film, see the documentation that came with Cinema Tools.

You can move the playhead around in a clip or sequence by entering a new timecode number in the Current Timecode field.

To move to a particular frame in your clip or sequence, enter a complete (or absolute) timecode number.
To move the playhead forward or backward a precise number of hours, minutes, seconds, and frames from the current position, you enter a relative number.
To move the playhead relative to its current position, type a minus (−) or a plus (+) and the timecode value outside the Current Timecode field.

To avoid typing zeroes when moving by larger amounts, type a period instead.

To move to timecode 00:00:03:00, type "3." (3 and a period). The period is automatically interpreted by Final Cut Pro as 00 in the frames field.
To move to 00:03:00:00 from the previous position, type "3.." (3 and two periods). These periods insert 00 into both the frames and seconds fields.
Type 3... to move to 03:00:00:00.

Note: You can also enter values in the Timecode Duration field to adjust the duration of a clip.

1 Do one of the following:

Double-click a clip to open it in the Viewer.
• Make the Canvas active.

2 Click the Current Timecode field (or the icon to the left of it) to highlight the field.
3 Enter a new timecode value, then press Return.

Instead of moving the playhead to an absolute timecode number, you can move it relative to its current position by pressing the + and – keys. For example, to move the playhead 15 frames forward from the current position, type “+15”. To move the playhead 1 minute and 20 frames back from the current position, type “-01.20” (the period automatically adds 00 to the seconds field).

To move the playhead forward relative to its current position:

■ Enter + (plus), then a timecode value.

To move the playhead back:

- Enter – (minus), then a timecode value.

For example, if you type +1612, the playhead moves ahead 16 seconds and 12 frames. To move the playhead back by 16 seconds and 12 frames, you would type -1612. To move back 5 minutes, 20 seconds, and 10 frames, you would type -52010.

Double-click a clip to open it in the Viewer.
• Make the Canvas active.

Even though the Current Timecode field isn't selected, the timecode value you type appears in this field. The playhead moves to the location of the new timecode value, and the new timecode value is shown in the Current Timecode field.

For more information about timecode, see Volume II, Chapter 25, "Working With Timecode."

You can drag timecode values from one timecode field to another, or from columns in the Browser to timecode fields in the Log and Capture window. This can be especially helpful for quickly relogging a clip when you want to change its In or Out point in the Log and Capture window. For more information, see Chapter 18, "Logging Clips," on page 237.

- Hold down the Option key while you drag a timecode value from a timecode field or column in the Browser to any other timecode field.

In the Viewer, timecode overlays display the source timecode for each clip item. In the Canvas, timecode overlays provide a powerful way to see the sync relationship between clip items stacked in multiple tracks. You can see the source timecode track of each clip item in each track at the current playhead position.

Timecode overlays, like other overlays, don't appear during playback; you'll only see overlays when playback is paused. You can turn timecode overlays on and off independently in the Viewer and the Canvas.

Timecode overlays are useful in a variety of situations:

When matching video clips with audio clips that were recorded on separate devices but with identical timecode, you can use timecode overlays to make sure that both clips are numerically in sync.
When you're searching for a range of media that a client has requested by timecode numbers, timecode overlays can help you quickly find what you're looking for.
If you're performing complex trimming operations, being able to see the timecode as you move the playhead in the Timeline can help you figure out the durations and offsets you need to trim with.
Timecode overlays can also help you spot-check your sequence when you're preparing for EDL (Edit Decision List) output.

Timecode overlay display is overridden by the Show Overlays command in the View menu. If you turn on timecode overlays and then turn off Show Overlays (so there is no checkmark next to it in the View menu), this also turns off the timecode overlays.

1 Make the Viewer, Canvas, or Timeline active, depending on where you want to see the timecode overlays.

Note: Overlays in the Viewer can be set independently from those in the Canvas.

2 Choose View > Show Overlays, so there's a checkmark next to it.
3 Do one of the following:

- Choose View > Show Timecode Overlays.

- Press Option-Z.

Timecode overlays give you an “at-a-glance” view of a wide variety of information about your clip in the Viewer or sequence in the Timeline.

- Timecode numbers of In and Out points: These appear in the upper-left and upper-right corners of the Canvas and Viewer. If one or both of these have not been set, these values display Not Set. In the Viewer, clip In and Out points are shown. In the Canvas, sequence In and Out points are shown.

- Video and audio timecode numbers: In the center of the Canvas and Viewer are lists of timecode numbers for every clip item that intersects the current position of the playhead. The column on the left shows video and the column on the right displays audio. Video and audio tracks start with the display of track 1.

• Video timecode numbers are preceded by V and the number of the video track.
- Audio timecode numbers are preceded by A and the number of the audio track.

Depending on the size of the window, not all tracks may be displayed. If Final Cut Pro cannot fit all the tracks in the window, a “+” (plus) indicates that there are more clips items whose timecode numbers aren’t displayed in the overlay.

- Color-coding of clip items in sync: Clip items' timecode overlays are color-coded to indicate which ones are in sync. There are 12 colors used to indicate distinct groups of synced clip items. Whenever one or more clip items are in sync, their listed timecode values are highlighted with the same color. If a clip item is not in sync with any other item, it is displayed in the standard gray timecode overlay color.

For example, if the clip items on tracks V1, A1, and A2 all refer to the same media file, and they all have the same timecode number at the current playhead position, the timecode overlays for these tracks are displayed with the same color.

This chapter covers the following:

• How You Use the Timeline (p. 109)
- Opening and Closing Sequences in the Timeline (p. 111)
• Learning About the Timeline (p. 112)
• Changing Timeline Display Options (p. 122)
• Navigating in the Timeline (p. 131)
- Zooming and Scrolling in the Timeline (p. 133)

The Timeline and the Canvas display two different views of the same sequence. The Timeline shows the chronological arrangement of clips and layered video and audio clip items, while the Canvas provides a single view that allows you to watch your sequence just as it will appear on a movie or television screen.

The Timeline, like the Canvas, contains tabs for all open sequences. Each sequence in the Timeline is organized into separate video and audio tracks, which contain clip items you've edited into the sequence from the Browser. Using the Timeline, you can quickly navigate through an entire edited sequence, adding, overwriting, rearranging, and removing clip items.

This shows several items in the Timeline.

In Point Playhead Out Point Sequence tab Current Timecode field Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:06:18 01:00:06:00 01:00:12:00 01:00:18:00 v1 V1 Jacob WS Debra MS Jacob CU Debra CU a1 A1 Jacob WS Debra MS Jacob CU Debra CU Music 2 Mu a2 A2 Music 1 Music 1 A3 Music 1 Music 1 A4

This shows the same items as they appear in the Canvas.

Sequence tab Master sequence 00:00:09.18 Current Timecode field Playhead In Point Out Point

Since the playhead in the Timeline mirrors the playhead in the Canvas, you can use the navigation, marking, and editing controls in the Canvas to navigate in the Timeline, and vice versa.

To make the Timeline window active, do one of the following:

Click in the Timeline window.
■ Press Command-3.

Note: To work in the Timeline, the first thing you have to do is open a sequence. If you don't have any sequences in your project, you need to create one. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 5, "Working With Projects, Clips, and Sequences."

In the Timeline and Canvas, tabs represent sequences. Opening a sequence opens the Timeline and the Canvas windows simultaneously (if they're not open already). If the Timeline and Canvas are already open, a newly opened sequence appears in its own tab on top of any other sequence tabs.

To open a sequence in the Timeline and Canvas, do one of the following:

The sequence opens in the Timeline and Canvas windows.

- Click the sequence's tab.

With the sequence's tab selected in the Timeline, choose File > Close Tab.
Control-click the sequence's tab, then choose Close Tab from the shortcut menu.
Press Control-W.

When you close a sequence's tab in the Timeline, the corresponding tab in the Canvas closes, and vice versa. Closing the Canvas window closes the Timeline window.

However, closing the Timeline window by pressing Command-W does not close the Canvas window.

You can view the content of your sequences in many different ways in the Timeline. Track height, clip opacity and audio level overlays, keyframes, and many other sequence properties can be displayed and edited in the Timeline. Each sequence has its own unique display settings; changing the zoom setting or audio controls in one sequence doesn't affect another.

Editing controls Each tab represents a sequence. Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:27:02 00:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:20:00 01 Text v2 v1 V1 Audio controls a1 A1 a2 A2 A3 A4 Jacob WS Debra MS Jacob CU Debra CU Jacob side MS Music 2 Music 2 Music 1 Music 1 Music 1 Music 1 Keyframe and track controls Horizontal Time controls

Each tab in the Timeline represents a sequence. You can have multiple sequences open simultaneously, each with its own tab. Controls in Final Cut Pro affect only the sequence whose tab is in front. Clicking another sequence's tab brings it to the front, along with that sequence's tab in the Canvas.

The Timeline editing controls determine which tracks are selected and enabled for editing and playback.

Destination control Source control Track Visibility control RT 01:00:26:21 Lock Track control Auto Select control v2 v1 v1 a1 A1 a2 A2 A3 Locked tracks are cross-hatched.

- Source and Destination controls: These allow you to connect (or patch) clip items of the source clip in the Viewer to tracks in the Timeline. These controls are primarily used in three-point editing to determine which source clip items tracks are edited into your sequence, and where they are placed.

The number of available Source controls corresponds to the number of clip items of the source clip currently open in the Viewer. For example, a typical DV clip has one video track and two audio tracks. In this case, one video and two audio Source controls appear in the Timeline. If, instead, you open a clip in the Viewer that has one video item and four audio items, then one video and four audio Source controls appear in the Timeline. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 10, "Three-Point Editing."

- Track Visibility control: Determines whether the contents of a track are displayed and rendered in your sequence. When a track is disabled, it appears darkened in the Timeline, but its contents remain in your sequence and can still be edited. When you play back your sequence, disabled tracks don't appear in the Canvas or on an external monitor, nor will they be rendered or output to tape with that sequence.

Note: Render files for a track are deleted if the track is disabled. You can have Final Cut Pro display a warning before this occurs by selecting the "Warn if visibility change deletes render file" option in the Editing tab of the User Preferences window. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

- Lock Track control: Prevents a track's contents from being moved or changed in any way. Overlays in locked tracks can also be protected by deselecting the "Pen tools can edit locked item overlays" option in the Editing tab of the User Preferences window. Locked tracks are cross-hatched all the way across the Timeline. Tracks can be locked and unlocked at any time. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

- Auto Select control: Enabling the Auto Select controls of specific tracks in the Timeline limits which tracks are affected by various functions such as copying, pasting, deleting, the Match Frame command and so on.

Note: You can think of In and Out points as limiting your edits in the horizontal (time) dimension and Auto Select as limiting your edits in the vertical dimension.

- Tracks: The main portion of the Timeline is divided into audio and video tracks, with a divider between the two regions. You can drag the divider up or down to allocate more room to either the video or audio half of the Timeline. Audio tracks 1 and 2 are just underneath the divider, and all additional audio tracks continue downward. Video track 1 is just above the divider, and all additional video tracks continue upward. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 8, "Working With Tracks in the Timeline."

You can change the default number of video and audio tracks in the Timeline Options tab of the User Preferences window. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

More tracks can be added at any time. Additional audio tracks can be used for adding music or sound effects, or for organizational purposes. Additional video tracks can be used for superimposing clips and compositing layers of video clips together.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:27:02 00:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:20:00 01 Video tracks v2 v1 V1 Divider a1 A1 a2 A2 Audio tracks Jacob WS Debra MS Jacob CU Debra CU Jacob side MS Music 2 Music 2 Music 1 Music 1 Music 1 Music 1 The unused area provides space to accommodate new tracks. Thumb tab Vertical scroll bar

Unused area: This is the area either above or below the outermost video and audio tracks in your sequence. Ordinarily, this area is blank, but if you drag clips directly into this gray area, new tracks are created to accommodate them.
Vertical scroll bars and thumb tabs: If you have more tracks than can be displayed in the Timeline window at one time, the scroll bars let you scroll through your video and audio tracks separately. The thumb tabs between the audio and video track regions can be used to define a static area that contains separate groups of audio or video tracks with their own scroll bars.

This can come in handy when you have considerably more audio tracks than video. You can use the thumb tabs between your audio and video scroll bars to allocate more space to your audio tracks and less for video. For more information about creating a static area, see Volume II, Chapter 8, "Working With Tracks in the Timeline."

- Ruler: The ruler along the top of the Timeline represents the total duration of your edited sequence, from the first frame to the last. The ruler can be used for reference, to see the timecode corresponding to the location of clips in the Timeline. You can choose to view the ruler with several different units: timecode, frames, or feet and frames (for editing footage that originated on film).

You can also click or drag the playhead in the ruler, which works exactly like the scrubber bar in the Canvas.

Sequences can be a maximum of twelve hours (with a sample rate of 48 kHz or lower), or six hours (with a sample rate of 96 kHz).

Playhead Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:02:15 00:00 01:00:03:00 01:00:06:00 01:00:09:00 v1 V1 Jacob WS Debra MS a1 A1 Jacob WS Debra MS Music 2 a2 A2 Music 1 A3 Music 1 A4 Music 1 Music 1 Music 1

Playhead: The playhead displays the current frame location in a sequence. You can also use the playhead to navigate through your sequence in the Timeline. For more information, see "Navigating in the Timeline" on page 131.
Current Timecode field: Indicates the timecode position of the playhead. Typing a new timecode number moves the playhead (as in the Viewer and Canvas).

Current Timecode field

Master sequence RT 01:00:02:06

- Zoom control: Lets you zoom in and out of the contents of your sequence in the Timeline. Zooming in shows more detail in the ruler, and the duration between the numbers in the ruler shrinks. Zooming out shows less detail in the ruler, but allows you to see more of the total duration of your sequence in the Timeline. If the playhead is visible, it stays centered when you use the Zoom control to zoom in on the Timeline. If the playhead is not visible, the Zoom control centers the current contents of the Timeline window instead.

Zoom control

Using the zoom keyboard shortcuts produces slightly different results. Pressing Option-= (equal sign) or Option-- (minus) zooms in or out of the contents of the Timeline no matter which window in Final Cut Pro is currently active. If one or more clips are selected, they will be the center of the zoom. Otherwise, zooming centers on the current position of the playhead.

Note: If you want to zoom in and out around the current playhead, make sure no clips are selected in the Timeline.

- Zoom slider: Like the Zoom control, the Zoom slider allows you to zoom in and out of a sequence in the Timeline. Dragging the thumb tabs on either side of the slider adjusts both thumb tabs and leaves the visible area of the Timeline centered.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:03:10 01:00:18:00 01:00:24:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Jacob Debra C Jacob side MS Jacob CU Debra CU Jacob side MS Music 2 Music 1 Music 1 Music 1 Music 1 Drag the slider to scroll through your sequence.

Pressing the Shift key and dragging one of the thumb tabs locks the opposite thumb tab and moves the visible area of the Timeline in the direction you're dragging. The light gray indicators inside the scroll bar indicate one-minute increments in your sequence, and widen or narrow depending on how far into your sequence you've zoomed.

Once you've zoomed in to your sequence, you can scroll along the entire duration of the sequence by dragging the center of the zoom slider.

There are several controls in the Timeline that can change how items in the Timeline are displayed. For more information on these controls, see “Changing Timeline Display Options” on page 122.

Clip Keyframes control Track Layout pop-up menu Clip Overlays control Track Height controls

- Audio Controls button: Click to display the mute and solo buttons to the left of each audio track in the Timeline. By default, these controls are hidden.

Master sequence RT 01:00:26:21 v1 V1 a1 A1 a2 A2 a3 A4 Solo control Mute control Audio Controls button

- Mute and solo controls: Use to enable and disable audio playback on individual tracks for monitoring purposes. The track strips in the Audio Mixer have corresponding mute and solo buttons that work the same way. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 5, "Overview of the Audio Mixer."

Mute: Click to turn off audio playback for that track. The mute button affects monitoring during playback only. Muting a track does not delete panning or audio level keyframes for the clip items in that track, nor does it prevent fader automation.
Solo: Click to listen only to an individual track. When you solo a track, all others are muted except other tracks already soloed. For example, if you click the solo button on track A1, and it's the only track with solo selected, all other audio tracks are muted. If you enable the solo button on multiple tracks, all tracks with solo enabled play back, while all other tracks are muted.

Note: Mute and solo controls only affect playback in the Timeline. They do not suspend audio output during Print to Tape or Edit to Tape operations, or when exporting to a movie or audio file.

Snapping button Linked Selection button

Snapping button: Click to turn snapping on and off. This button appears in the Timeline button bar by default. When snapping is on, the playhead "snaps to" key areas in the Timeline, such as the boundaries of other clip items, sequence markers, and sequence In and Out points. This can be extremely useful when you need to quickly line up two clips without gaps in between, or to quickly move the playhead to a marker in preparation for an edit. You can also turn snapping on and off by choosing View > Snapping (or by pressing N).
Linked Selection button: Click this to turn linked selection on and off. With linked selection on, clicking a video or audio clip item selects all other items linked to that item. If linked selection is off, only the clip item you click is selected, even if it is linked to other items. This is useful for editing the audio In or Out point of a clip separately from the video, such as when doing a split edit. You can also turn linked selection on and off by choosing Edit > Linked Selection (or by pressing Shift-L). For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 14, "Linking and Editing Video and Audio in Sync."
Link indicators (within clip items): The names of linked video and audio clip items are underlined. As long as linked selection is on, when one linked item is selected, moved, or trimmed, all other items linked to it are affected identically.
Labels (within clip items): If any clip items in your edited sequence in the Timeline have been labeled, their names are highlighted in the color that matches that label. You can choose whether clip labels are displayed in the Timeline by selecting the Show Clip Labels option in the Track Layout pop-up menu.
Speed indicator (within clip items): If the speed of a clip has been changed, either by using a fit to fill edit or using the Speed item in the Modify menu, its change of speed will be shown in parentheses after the name of the clip in the Timeline. If variable speed (time remapping) has been applied, the word "Variable" appears instead.

Tip: Optional speed indicators can be displayed in the keyframe graph area to show you the speed of clips in your sequence using tic marks. For more information on clip keyframes, see Volume III, Chapter 12, "Changing Motion Parameters." You can also refer to Volume III, Chapter 13, "Adjusting Parameters for Keyframed Effects." The spacing and color of these tic marks indicate the speed and playback direction of your clips. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 16, "Changing Clip Speed and Time Remapping."

- Stereo pair indicators (within clip items): Two pairs of triangles indicate that two audio clip items are linked as a stereo pair. If you select an audio clip item that is part of a stereo pair, the other clip item in the pair is also selected. This is useful when you are working with stereo audio clips such as music or sound effects. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 17, "Audio Editing Basics."

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:20:14 00:00 01:00:07:00 01:00:14:00 01:00:20:14 v1 V1 Jacob WS (50%) Jacob WS (50%) a1 A1 Jacob WS (50%) Jacob WS (50%) a2 A2 Jacob WS (50%) Jacob WS (50%) A3 A4 Speed change is shown as a percentage. Stereo pair indicator

- Real-Time Effects (RT) pop-up menu: Allows you to adjust the playback quality of real-time effects in Final Cut Pro. Using the options in this menu, you can decide which is more important to you—visual playback quality, or maximizing the available effects that can be played back in real time. For more information on the options in the Real-Time Effects pop-up menu, see Volume III, Chapter 23, "Using RT Extreme."

Real-Time Effects (RT) pop-up menu

Render status bar: This bar at the top of the Timeline indicates which parts of the sequence have been rendered at the current render quality. The top line is for video, the bottom for audio.
Video render bar (upper region): Indicates the presence and render status of video effects items.
Audio render bar (lower region): Indicates the presence and render status of audio effects items.

The upper area indicates the render status of video items. Dining sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 The lower area indicates the render status of audio items.

Colors in the render bar above items indicate whether the items need to be rendered. Items that don't need to be rendered have dark gray bars above them. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 23, "Using RT Extreme." You can also refer to Volume III, Chapter 24, "Rendering."

- Clip item render bars: Audio clip items can be rendered individually. Clip items in the Timeline display individual render bars in the following cases:

- Audio clip items that require sample rate conversion: For example, audio clips that were captured at 44.1 kHz but have been edited into a sequence set to 48 kHz.

- Audio clip items with filters applied: Applying one or more filters causes an audio clip to display a render bar within the clip item itself.

For more information about clip item render bars, see Volume III, Chapter 24, "Rendering."

Clip items in a sequence are often called sequence clips, with the item's name at the beginning (and, if the clip item is long enough, at the end as well).

You can choose whether video clip items in the Timeline display thumbnails, and whether audio clip items display audio waveforms. These options are available in the Timeline options tab of the Sequence Settings window (for more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 26, "Sequence Settings and Presets."

Clip items can be linked so that they can be selected and edited together. This allows you to keep clip items that came from the same Browser clip together, such as a video clip item and a stereo pair of audio clip items. When you select a linked clip item, all the other linked clip items are selected as well (unless the Linked Selection button is disabled). For more information about working with linked items, see Volume II, Chapter 14, "Linking and Editing Video and Audio in Sync."

The default Timeline display options for new sequences are defined in the Timeline Options tab of the User Preferences window. (For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences.")

You can change Timeline display options for existing sequences in several places:

Timeline Options tab of the Sequence Settings window: This tab shows all the options available for displaying items in the Timeline. For more information, see the next section, "About Timeline Display Options in the Sequence Settings Window."
Timeline display controls: These controls include the Clip Keyframes, Clip Overlays, and Track Height controls. For more information, see "About Timeline Display Controls in the Timeline" on page 128.

- Track layout pop-up menu: You can use this pop-up menu to change some Timeline display options, as well as save, choose, or restore custom track layouts. For more information, see "Timeline Display Options Available From the Track Layout Pop-Up Menu" on page 129.

Click here to view the Track Layout pop-up menu.

Jacob WS Show Video Filmstrips Show Audio Waveforms ✓ Show Through Edits Show Duplicate Frames ✓ Show Clip Labels Save Track Layout... Restore Track Layout... Reduced Small ✓ Medium Large Track Layout pop-up menu

You can access almost all of the Timeline display options in the Timeline Options tab of the Sequence Settings window. Exceptions and alternate ways of accessing the same options are noted when possible.

- Select a sequence in the Browser or Timeline, choose Sequence > Sequence Settings, then click the Timeline Options tab.

These are basic display options you can change at any time. Several options, such as the default number of video and audio tracks, are only available in the Timeline Options tab of the User Preferences window, because these options only affect default settings for new sequences.

Starting Timecode: This sets the starting timecode number in the Timeline for new sequences.
Drop Frame: Select this option to display drop frame timecode in the Timeline (this only applies to NTSC format video that has a frame rate of 30 fps). For more information on drop frame and non-drop frame timecode, see Volume II, Chapter 25, "Working With Timecode."
Track Size: Choose a track size to set the vertical height of tracks in the Timeline. (You can also use the Track Height controls in the Timeline.)
Default Number of Video and Audio Tracks: You can only specify the default number of video and audio tracks you want new sequences to have. This option is only available in the Timeline Options tab of the User Preferences window.
Thumbnail Display:
Name: Displays only the name of the clip without thumbnail images.
Name Plus Thumbnail: Displays the video frame at the In point of the clip and the clip name.
Filmstrip: Displays as many thumbnail images as possible for the current zoom level of the Timeline.
Audio Track Labels: Choose whether audio tracks are labeled as individual audio tracks (A1, A2, A3, and so on) or as members of a pair (A1a and A1b, A2a and A2b, and so on). For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 17, "Audio Editing Basics."

- Show Keyframe Overlays: Select this option to display opacity overlays (thin black lines) over your video tracks, and audio level overlays (thin red lines) over any clips in the audio tracks of the Timeline. These lines indicate video transparency or audio levels. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 13, "Adjusting Parameters for Keyframed Effects."

You can also use the Clip Overlays control in the Timeline to show or hide overlays.

- Show Audio Waveforms: Select this option to display audio waveforms superimposed over audio clips in the Timeline. You can also toggle audio waveforms by pressing Option-Command-W. This option is also available in the Track Layout pop-up menu in the Timeline.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:41:20 00:00 01:00:03:00 01:00:06:00 v1 V1 Jacob WS Debra MS Music 8 Music 3 Music 8 Music 3 a1 A1 a2 A2 A3 A4 Audio waveform

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:41:20 00:00 01:00:03:00 01:00:06:00 v1 V1 Jacob WS Debra MS Music 3 Music 3 Music 3 Music 3 a1 A1 a2 A2 A3 A4 Without audio waveform

- Show Through Edits: A through edit is an edit composed of two adjacent frames that have the same reel number and subsequent timecode numbers. For example, if you use the Razor Blade tool to cut a clip in half, that edit point is considered a through edit. Select this option to display through edit indicators—two red triangles—where they exist. This may help you discover unnecessary edit points in your sequence, which you can then delete. This option is also available in the Track Layout pop-up menu in the Timeline. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 13, “Cutting Clips and Adjusting Durations.”

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:34:17 00:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Jacob CU Jacob C Debra CU Music 3 Music 3 Music 3 Music 3 Music 3 Music 3 Through edit indicator a1 A1 a2 A2 A3 A4

Show Duplicate Frames: Select this option to display frames that are used in your sequence more than once. When duplicate frames are displayed and you select a clip, you can see a list of all clips that contain the same frames as the selected clip. For more information about working with duplicate frame indicators, see "Options for Displaying Duplicate Frames" on page 129. You can also select this option from the Track Layout pop-up menu in the Timeline.
Show Audio Controls: Select this option to display the mute and solo buttons to the left of each audio track in the Timeline. You can also toggle the Audio controls button in the Timeline. For more information, see "Audio Controls" on page 118.

You can click the Clip Keyframes control to display the keyframe graph area—additional space below each video and audio track in which to view and edit keyframes for effects that are applied to your clips.

This area can be divided into four optional regions showing keyframes and parameters for motion effects, video filters, and audio filters applied to your clips. For more information about customizing and using the keyframe graph area, see Volume III, Chapter 12, "Changing Motion Parameters." You can also see, Volume III, Chapter 13, "Adjusting Parameters for Keyframed Effects."

Filters bar: If a clip has one or more video or audio filters applied, a green bar appears in this space for the duration of that clip. If keyframes are added to a filter in a given clip, those keyframes appear as diamonds on this bar, where they can be edited or moved using the Selection tool.
Motion bar: If a clip's motion settings are modified, a blue bar appears in this space for the duration of that clip. If keyframes are added to the motion settings for a given clip, those keyframes appear as diamonds on the bar to which they apply, where they can be edited or moved using the Selection tool. This bar is only available for video tracks.
Keyframe editor: The keyframe editor shows you keyframe graph lines for motion or filter parameters. These graphs are identical to those found in the keyframe graph area of the Motion and Filters tabs in the Viewer. You can edit keyframes in the keyframe editor using the Selection and Pen tools. The keyframe editor can only display the keyframe graph line of one effect parameter at a time.
Speed indicators: Speed indicators show you the speed of clips in your sequence using tic marks. The spacing and color of these tic marks indicate the speed and playback direction of your clips. The speed indicators of clips in the Timeline update in real time as you make variable speed adjustments to clips in your sequence, showing you exactly how you're altering a clip's timing. There are no user-adjustable controls in the speed indicator area. For more information about viewing speed indicators while making speed changes to clips in a sequence, see Volume III, Chapter 16, "Changing Clip Speed and Time Remapping."

Several controls in the Timeline allow you to change the display of certain items in the Timeline.

Clip Keyframes control Clip Overlays control Track Height controls

Clip Keyframes control: Click this button to display the keyframe graph area—additional space below each video and audio track in which to view and edit keyframes for effects that are applied to your clips.
Clip Overlays control: Click this control to display opacity overlays (thin black lines) over your video tracks, and audio level overlays (thin red lines) over any clips in the audio tracks of the Timeline. These lines indicate video transparency or audio levels.
Track Height control: Use this control to switch between four track display sizes—Reduced, Small, Medium, and Large. The current setting is highlighted in blue and has a small dot in the center. Choosing a track height with this control resets all tracks to the new size, overriding any custom track heights previously selected. To preserve the relative heights of individually sized tracks while resizing all tracks, hold down the Option key while choosing a new height with this control.

Note: When the track size is set to Reduced, neither audio waveforms nor thumbnails are displayed.

You can use the Track Layout pop-up menu in the Timeline to change some Timeline display options, including:

Track height
Video filmstrips
Audio waveforms
Through edits
Duplicate frames
Clip labels

This pop-up menu also allows you to save, choose, or restore custom track layouts. This menu can hold up to 40 custom track layouts.

- Click the triangle to the right of the Track Height control, then choose an option from the pop-up menu.

Click here to view the Track Layout pop-up menu.

Indicating duplicate frames is useful primarily for movies you plan to finish on film (using Cinema Tools) or that will be edited online in a tape-to-tape edit suite. In both instances, it's important to know if the same frames are being used in more than one place in the Timeline because special measures must be taken to create these duplicate frames later. If you can see where there are duplicate frames in advance, you can reedit your sequence to eliminate the duplicates, if necessary.

- Duplicate frames indicator: If you use a clip more than once within a single edited sequence, the duplicated frames are marked by a colored bar appearing at the bottom of the clip's video item in the Timeline.

Duplicate frames indicator

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:31:04 00:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Jacob WS Debra MS Jacob WS Debra C Jacob WS a1 A1 Jacob WS Debra MS Jacob WS Debra C Jacob WS a2 A2 Jacob WS Debra MS Jacob WS Debra C Jacob WS

Each separate instance of duplicated frames is color-coded differently. There are six different colors used to indicate separate sets of duplicated frames: red, green, blue, white, black, and purple. If there are more than six sets of duplicate frames in your sequence, these colors are reused. In the following example, the first clip is duplicated once, as indicated by the red duplicate frames indicator. The second clip is also duplicated once, as indicated by the green duplicate frames indicator.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:18:13 00:00 01:00:05:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:15:00 v1 V1 Jacob W5 Debra CU Jacob J acol Jacob W5 Debra CU a1 A1 Jacob W5 Debra CU Jacob J acol Jacob W5 Debra CU a2 A2 Debra CU Jacob J acol Jacob W5 Debra CU Different colors indicate different sets of duplicated frames.

Note: If a duplicated instance of a clip has variable speed applied to it, no duplicate frames indicators appear.

You can adjust the parameters that determine when duplicate frames indicators appear in the Editing tab of User Preferences. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

You can enable or disable duplicate frames indicators altogether by selecting Show Duplicate Frames in the Timeline Options tab of the Sequence Settings window. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 26, "Sequence Settings and Presets."

Control-click a clip with duplicate frames to see a shortcut menu with the following option:

- Dupe Frames: Choose this option to see a list of all clips that contain duplicates of the frames in the selected clip. Each item in this list contains the number of duplicated frames, the timecode value of the first duplicated frame, and the name of the clip that contains the duplicates. When you select an item in this list, the playhead moves to the first duplicated frame in the clip that corresponds to that item.

There are several ways you can navigate through your sequence in the Timeline:

Move the playhead by clicking or dragging in the ruler at the top of the Timeline window.
Note: The playhead in the Timeline is locked to the playhead in the Canvas, and both windows mirror each other. The Canvas displays the frame currently at the position of the playhead in the Timeline, whether it's playing or stopped.
Enter a new absolute or relative timecode value in the Current Timecode field.
Use the same shortcuts you'd use in the Canvas to navigate through and play your edited sequence. For more information, see "Navigating in the Viewer and Canvas" on page 97.

Moving the playhead in the Timeline ruler works in the same way as moving the playhead in the scrubber bar in the Canvas or Viewer.

- Drag the playhead in the Timeline ruler.

Master sequence in Cafe 01:00:05:00 Playhead Debra MS

- Click the desired location in the Timeline ruler. (You can do this while your sequence is stopped or playing.)

The Current Timecode field shows the current position of the playhead. If you enter a new timecode number, the playhead moves to that position. You can enter either absolute or relative timecode numbers in this field. (For information on where this field is located in the Timeline, see "Horizontal Time Controls" on page 115.)

1 Make the Timeline or Canvas active.

If you're in the Timeline, make sure that all clips are deselected; otherwise, you will move the selected clip to a new location. (Pressing Command-D deselects all clips.)

2 Do one of the following:

Enter a new timecode number, then press Return to move to the frame that corresponds to the timecode number you entered.
Enter + (plus) or – (minus) and a relative timecode number, then press Return to move forward or backward that number of frames from the current position of the playhead.

You do not have to select the Current Timecode field to enter a new timecode number. If the Timeline window is active, the playhead will move to the new timecode location in both the Timeline and Canvas, and the Current Timecode field of the Canvas will mirror that of the Timeline.

Being able to navigate quickly to any point in your sequence is critical to efficient editing and storytelling, and the ability to jump to any point in the Timeline instantly is one of the main benefits of a nonlinear editing environment. There are lots of ways to navigate through the Timeline. Learning keyboard shortcuts can save you time.

There are several ways to set the zoom level you want:

Zoom slider
Zoom control
Zoom tools from the Tool palette
Menu commands
Keyboard shortcuts

To zoom in and out of the Timeline using the Zoom slider, do one of the following:

Drag the thumb tabs on either side of the Zoom slider to adjust both ends of your view at the same time. If the playhead is visible, it stays centered during the zoom. If the playhead is not visible, the visible area of the Timeline stays centered.
Hold down the Shift key while you drag one of the thumb tabs (on either side of the Zoom slider) to zoom in or out of your sequence from the selected end of the Zoom slider, while keeping the other thumb tab locked in place. This also moves the visible area of the Timeline in the direction you're dragging as you zoom.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:03:10 01:12:00 01:00:18:00 01:00:24:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Jacob Debra C Jacob side MS Jacob CU Debra CU Jacob side MS Music 2 Music 1 Music 1 Music 1 Music 1 Playhead indicator Zoom slider Thumb tab Click in the space around the slider to scroll one length of the Timeline window. Scroll arrows

Once you've zoomed so far in to your sequence that you can't see either the beginning or ending clips in the sequence, you can use the Zoom slider as a scroll bar, to smoothly move forward or backward to a specific section of your sequence.

- Click or drag the Zoom control to view the Timeline at a different time scale while keeping either the playhead or the current area of the Timeline centered. Clicking to the right of the control zooms out to show more of your sequence; clicking to the left zooms in to show more detail.

Drag the Zoom control to change the Timeline to a different time scale.

1 Select the Zoom In or Zoom Out tool in the Tool palette.
2 Do one of the following:

Click in the Timeline.
Drag to select a region to zoom in on or out of.

As you drag, the box (or "marquee") snaps to areas that correspond to the percentage of zoom in the Timeline.

Clicking or dragging repeatedly increases the zoom factor. When the Timeline is zoomed in or out to the maximum level possible, the + and – signs on the zoom tools disappear.

Note: When the Zoom In or Zoom Out tool is selected, pressing the Option key temporarily changes it to the opposite tool.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:05:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:15:00 v1 V1 Jacob WS Debra MS Crop Jaco a1 A1 Jacob WS Debra MS Jacob CU Debra CU Music 2 Music 1 Music 4 Music 3 Music 4

Drag the Zoom In tool to expand the sequence.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:00:00 11:08 01:00:12:00 01:00:12:16 01:00:13:08 v1 V1 Debra MS Cross Dissolve Jacob CU a1 A1 Debra MS Jacob CU Music 2 A2 Music 3 Music 4 A3 Music 5 Music 6 A4 Music 7 Music 8

This shows the above sequence zoomed in, so you can see more details within the sequence.

To zoom in and out of the Timeline using menu commands or keyboard shortcuts:

1 With either the Canvas or the Timeline selected, move the playhead to the position in the Timeline where you want zooming to be centered, or select one or more clips in the Timeline that you want to center on as you zoom in or out.

2 Do one of the following:

- Choose View > Zoom In, or press Option- = (equal sign).

Pressing Option-= (equal sign) repeatedly shows more and more detail, down to the individual frames of your sequence.

- Choose View > Zoom Out, or press Option-- (minus).

This reduces the amount of detail but shows more of your edited sequence until the entire sequence fits into the Timeline. You can zoom out further to reduce the scale of your sequence in the Timeline and show more empty area to the right of it.

Before zooming in Master sequence RT 01:00:11:14 01:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:12:00 01:00:14:00 v1 V1 Debra MS Cross Dissolve Jacob CU a1 A1 A2 A3 A4 Debra MS Jacob CU Music 2 Music 3 Music 4

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:11:14 01:00:11:00 01:00:11:10 01:00:12:00 Debra MS Debra MS Cross Dissolve v1 V1 After zooming in a1 A1 Debra MS Debra MS Music 2 Music 1 Music 1 A2 A3 A4

To fit the entire contents of the Timeline into the available window size:

Press Shift-Z.

The zoom factor changes so that the entire sequence fits into the available window size.

To fit a selected area of the Timeline into the available window size:

1 Using the Selection, Group Selection, or Range Selection tool, select one or more items in the Timeline.
2 Press Option-Shift-Z.

The zoom factor of the Timeline changes so that the selected items fit into the available window size.

It's easy to zoom far enough into your sequence that you are only seeing a small fraction of the whole Timeline. To see another portion of your sequence, you can drag the playhead in the Canvas to move to a new location in the Timeline. If you want to see another portion of your sequence in the Timeline without moving the playhead, use the Zoom slider.

The area of the horizontal scroll bar encompasses the total duration of your sequence in the Timeline. Gray lines indicate one-minute increments, while a purple line indicates the current position of the playhead.

One-minute increment Position of playhead

To scroll horizontally through your edited sequence, do one of the following:

Drag the center of the Zoom slider to the left or right. The displayed area of the Timeline moves smoothly in the direction you drag.
Click the scroll arrows at either end of the scroll bar to move the displayed area in the Timeline to the left or right.
Click the scroll bar to the left or right of the Zoom slider to move the displayed area of the Timeline by one length of the Zoom slider's current scale.
Press Shift–Page Up or Shift–Page Down to scroll left or right one length of the Timeline.

Note: If you are using a PowerBook, press Function-Shift-Up Arrow or Function-Shift-Down Arrow key. The Function key is labeled "fn".

The tracks in the Timeline are divided by default into two regions, one for audio and one for video tracks. A divider between the two regions can be dragged up or down to resize the regions, giving more space to either the video or audio tracks in your Timeline.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:20:00 01 V2 Text v1 V1 jacob si a1 A1 jacob WS Debra MS Jacob CU Debra CU Jacob side MS jacob WS a2 A2 Music 2 Music 2 A3 Music 1 Music 1 Scroll bar Divider Scroll bar

If you have more tracks than can be seen in the Timeline, scroll bars for the appropriate region appear on the right side, so you can view the tracks in each region separately. For example, you may have more audio tracks than video tracks in a documentary piece with sophisticated sound design, or you may have more video tracks than audio tracks in a music video with a lot of layering and motion graphics work.

Drag the slider for the region in which you wish to scroll.
The displayed area of the Timeline moves smoothly up or down in the direction you drag.
Click the scroll arrows to move the displayed area of the Timeline up or down.
Click the scroll bar above or below the slider to move up or down by one length of the slider's current scale.
■ Press Page Up or Page Down.

- Drag the divider between the two regions up or down.

For more information about the static area that contains separate groups of audio or video tracks with their own scroll bars, see Volume I, Chapter 8, "Navigating and Using Timecode in the Viewer and Canvas."

Final Cut Pro lets you customize the way you work with windows, rearranging them and creating new layouts. You can also set up custom keyboard shortcuts and use shortcut buttons to work more efficiently.

This chapter covers the following:

Changing Browser and Timeline Text Size (p. 139)
Moving and Resizing Final Cut Pro Windows (p. 139)
• Using Screen Layouts (p. 141)
Ways to Customize Keyboard Shortcuts (p. 144)
• Working With Shortcut Buttons and Button Bars (p. 153)

If you have difficulty reading the names of clips in the Browser or Timeline, you can adjust the size of the text.

To change the text size in the Browser and Timeline, do one of the following:

Choose View > Text Size, and then select from the available text size options.
Control-click on an empty area in the Browser, then choose View > Text size from the contextual menu. Select one of the available text size options.

All open windows in Final Cut Pro—the Browser, Viewer, Canvas, and Timeline—can be individually moved and resized to suit both your working style and the task at hand, even across multiple monitors.

Note: You can also resize and move the Tool Bench window, a window used for specialized editing, including audio mixing and recording voiceovers.

Default Two Up layout

For example, you may want to increase the height of the Timeline while simultaneously shrinking the size of the Viewer and Canvas to work on a sophisticated multitrack sequence. You could also enlarge the Browser while shrinking the Timeline to perform multicolumn searches for clips in the Browser as you edit.

Layout after making the Browser and Timeline larger and the Viewer and Canvas smaller.

Video 00:00:03:18 Video 00:00:03:18 Video 00:00:03:18 Video 00:00:03:18 Video 00:00:03:18 Video 00:00:03:18 Video 00:00:03:18 Video 00:00:03:18 Video

When you're viewing windows arranged together on a single monitor, you can drag the border between any aligned group of adjacent windows to quickly resize all the windows at the same time.

To resize multiple windows at the same time:

1 Move the pointer over the border between the windows you want to resize.

The pointer changes to the Resize Window pointer.

Pointer between three or more windows Time Pointer between two windows

2 Drag the border in the desired direction to resize the appropriate windows.

The windows on either side of the border are resized accordingly.

Keep in mind the following about screen layouts:

The available layouts depend on the resolution of your display.
All layouts adjust automatically to the position of the Dock. If you change the position of the Dock, reselect your screen layout to reposition the windows so they aren't covering the Dock.

Choose a layout that maximizes your screen real estate in the best way for your source material, editing function, screen resolution, and monitor type. For example, if you're doing color correction, you may want to choose the Color Correction layout. This gives you a simultaneous display of the Tool Bench window (and use of the Video Scopes tab for monitoring levels), the Viewer (so you can manipulate the color correction controls), and the Canvas (to see your output).

- Choose Window > Arrange, then choose an option from the submenu.

Audio Mixing: This places the Viewer, Canvas, and Tool Bench at the top. The Tool Bench window contains the Audio Mixer tab (you can also open the Audio Mixer by choosing Tools > Audio Mixer). The Browser and Timeline are on the bottom, with the Tool palette and audio meters to the right of the Timeline.
Color Correction: This places the Viewer, Canvas, and Tool Bench at the top. The Tool Bench window contains the Video Scopes and Frame Viewer tabs (you can also open the Video Scopes and Frame Viewer by choosing Tools > Video Scopes and Tools > Frame Viewer). The Browser and Timeline are on the bottom, with the Tool palette and audio meters to the right of the Timeline.
Multiple Edits: This layout appears only if your screen resolution is set to 1280 x 854 or higher. This layout is useful for comparing three clips appearing in a sequence in a row for color correction. At the top of the screen, from left to right, are the Viewer; a Tool Bench window with a Frame Viewer tab showing the previous edit point; the Canvas; and another Tool Bench window with a Frame Viewer tab showing the next edit point. The Browser and Timeline are on the bottom, with the Tool palette and audio meters to the right of the Timeline.
Standard: This places the Browser, Viewer, and Canvas at the top and the Timeline across the bottom. The Tool palette and audio meters are to the right of the Timeline.
Two Up: This places the Viewer and Canvas at the top and the Browser and Timeline on the bottom. The Tool palette and audio meters are to the right of the Timeline.

If none of the existing layouts meet your needs, you can create and save additional screen layouts that you've arranged yourself. There are two types of screen layouts you can create:

Custom layouts: You can create up to two layouts that are available in the Arrange menu as Custom Layout 1 and Custom Layout 2.
Saved layouts: You can create numerous screen layouts that you name and then save to your hard disk. Once you've saved a new window layout, it appears at the bottom of the Arrange submenu of the Window menu. If you've saved multiple custom window layouts, the first five appear in alphabetical order at the bottom of this menu.

Two custom layouts are presented at the top of the Arrange menu and cannot be renamed.

1 Choose Apple > System Preferences, click Displays, then set the desired resolution of your computer monitor.
The resolution you choose will become the minimum resolution for that particular screen layout.
2 In Final Cut Pro, arrange any combination of the four main windows, custom Tool Bench windows with tool tabs, the Tool palette, and audio meters as you want them.
3 Hold down the Option key and choose Window > Arrange, then choose one of the Set Custom Layout options.

- Choose Window > Arrange, then choose Custom Layout 1 or Custom Layout 2.

If you want to save a layout for use on another computer, or name a layout yourself, you can save layouts to your hard disk. Keep in mind the following about saving window layouts:

When you save a window layout, you save the state of each currently open window in Final Cut Pro, including the number and order of all tool tabs in all open Tool Bench windows.
If you have two monitors connected to your computer, when you save a window layout, the state of all Final Cut Pro windows appearing on both monitors is saved.
The screen resolution that's selected at the time a window layout is saved becomes the minimum resolution at which that layout can be used.

1 Arrange any combination of the four main windows, custom Tool Bench windows with tool tabs, the Tool palette, and audio meters as you want them.

If you're using two monitors, you can arrange Final Cut Pro windows on both screens.

2 Choose Window > Arrange > Save Window Layout.
3 In the Save dialog, choose a location where you want to save the layout, enter another name for the layout, then click Save.

Final Cut Pro defaults to the following folder location: [Home]/Library/Preferences/Final Cut Pro User Data/Window Layouts.

To use a saved layout, do one of the following:

Choose Window > Arrange, then choose a saved layout from the submenu.
The first five saved layouts in the Window Layouts folders can be selected using keyboard shortcuts. By default, they are Control-Shift-(6, 7, 8, 9, 0).

1 Choose Window > Arrange > Load Window Layout.

2 In the Open dialog, navigate to the location where the window layout is located, select it, then click Open.

You can customize the way you work in Final Cut Pro by setting up keyboard shortcuts for many commands. The default keyboard shortcuts appear to the right of the command name in menus and in tooltips.

When you customize the keyboard, you can:

Change default keyboard shortcuts: You can customize the keyboard to override the default keyboard shortcuts for individual commands or for the entire keyboard layout. This lets you set up keyboard shortcuts based on your preferred set of keys and work style. You can also set up the keyboard so that it uses the same keyboard shortcuts used in other applications you may be familiar with.
Load and save keyboard layouts: Once you set up your keyboard shortcuts, you can save your keyboard layout for use in another system or for archiving (in case you have to reinstall your software at a later point). You can also load a layout that someone else has set up. These options are useful if you are working on multiple computers or with several editors on a team. You can also save documents that list commands and their keyboard equivalents, providing you with a useful online or print reference guide.
Create shortcut buttons: You can create shortcut buttons corresponding to commands and place them at the top of the major windows in Final Cut Pro. This lets you use a one-button click, instead of a key combination, to perform commands in that window. You can rearrange, organize, copy, and move buttons between windows, allowing for even more customization of the interface.

The Keyboard Layout window allows you to view current keyboard shortcuts, set up custom keyboard shortcuts, and search for keyboard shortcuts by function or menu item.

To open the Keyboard Layout window, do one of the following:

Choose Tools > Keyboard Layout > Customize.
Press Option-H.

This specifies the currently selected keyboard layout and input type. Disclosure triangle Magnifying glass icon Tabs let you choose the modifier key to use. Search field An icon for the default command is shown on each key. Lock button The keyboard layout is currently locked. Click the lock to allow changes. Keyboard area Command list area (shown here by menu set and function)

The currently selected keyboard layout appears here.

Icons: Icons appear on each key for commands that are currently assigned to that key. If you are unfamiliar with the icons, you can always enter a key in the command list area to view all commands corresponding to that key.
Tabs: There are tabs at the top of the Keyboard Layout window for each modifier key or combination of modifier keys, such as No Modifiers, cmd (Command key), shift (Shift key) and opt (Option key). Click a tab to display the icons for commands used when a modifier key or combination of modifier keys is pressed along with another key.
Lock button: Click to lock and unlock the keyboard layout so you can make and prevent changes.
Reset button: Click to reset all keyboard shortcuts to their original default key combinations.
Clear button: Click to clear all keyboard shortcuts, so they are blank. Some general commands cannot be cleared, such as Copy and Paste. For more information, see "Clearing and Restoring Keyboard Layouts" on page 150.

By default, commands are listed by menu set (such as File and Edit) and command group function (such as Audio and Capture commands). You can also view commands alphabetically. You can use the controls in this area to choose how to display commands as well as how to search for them.

Disclosure triangle: Click to display all commands and their corresponding keyboard shortcuts for a menu set or command group.
Magnifying glass icon: Click to display commands alphabetically, along with their keyboard shortcuts.
Search field: Enter a command or key to search for.
X icon: This icon appears on the right side of the search field only after you display commands alphabetically. Click to display the command list by menu and function.

To view all commands alphabetically:

- Click the magnifying glass icon.

To view commands by menu set and command group function:

- Click the X icon.

Specifying shortcuts for commands is easy. You don't have to set up the entire keyboard with your preferred shortcuts—you can choose specific menu sets or command groups. For example, you can specify keyboard shortcuts for all commands in the File menu or for all render functions.

Important: Before you begin specifying keyboard shortcuts, make sure you choose the appropriate language and input type. For more information, see "Using Different Keyboards and Languages" on page 152.

To see which commands have a key or key combination assigned to them:

- Enter a key or key combination in the search field.

If you press the E key, all commands that use that key are shown. Audio Transition Favorite #2 Extend Edit Go to Next Edit Go to Previous Edit New Project E E, ^8 E, ^7 E

1 Choose Tools > Keyboard Layout > Customize.

The Keyboard Layout window appears.

2 In the Keyboard Layout window, click the Lock button in the lower-left corner.
3 Click a tab to choose a modifier key or combination of modifier keys.

The keyboard layout for commands that use that modifier key is shown.

4 If you want to create an entirely new layout, click Clear. When a message appears asking if you want to clear the keyboard layout, click Yes.

All existing keyboard shortcuts in all tabs are cleared and the keys appear blank (no icons are displayed).

5 In the command list area, do one of the following:

Click a disclosure triangle to display commands within a menu set or command group.
Click in the search field. (Commands are displayed alphabetically.)
Enter the name of the command in the search field. (Commands that match are displayed automatically.)

Edit Add Edit Center On Edit Copy Filter Forward 1 Edit and Go Copy Filter Forward 2 Edits and Go Edit Marker... Edit Media File Metadata... Edit to Tape... End On Edit Extend Edit Go Back 2 Edits Go Forward 2 Edits Go to Next Edit Go to Previous Edit Group Edits Tools Select Nearest Edit

If you enter "edit," all commands that include that word are shown.

6 Click a command in the list to select it, then do one of the following:

Press the key or key combination you want to assign as the shortcut.
Drag the command from the list to the key on the keyboard layout that you want to assign it to.

Note: The modifier key is already chosen by the tab selected at the top of the Keyboard Layout window.

The keyboard shortcut you entered appears next to the command.

If the key combination you set is not currently used for another command, it's assigned to the command you selected. The keyboard shortcut you entered now appears next to the command in the list. The icon for that command also appears on the appropriate key.

If the key combination is already used by another command, a message appears asking if you want to reassign it. Click Yes. The keyboard shortcut you entered now appears next to the command in the list. The icon for that command also appears on the appropriate key.

Note: If the command already has a shortcut assigned to it, you can delete the existing one. If you don't, the command will have two keyboard shortcuts assigned to it.

7 When you're finished assigning new key combinations, do one of the following to prevent further changes:

Click the Lock button.
Close the Keyboard Layout window.

Note: Customized keyboard layouts are automatically saved when you close the Keyboard Layout window.

If you like, you can reassign commands to keys in the Keyboard Layout window. However, you cannot move commands between modifier keys (tabs). If you make mistakes as you set up commands, or simply want to clear the command for one or two keys, see "Clearing and Restoring Keyboard Layouts" on page 150.

To quickly reassign the keyboard shortcuts for a command:

1 Choose Tools > Keyboard Layout > Customize.

The Keyboard Layout window appears.

2 In the keyboard area, drag the icon for a command from the current key to the new key.

If you drag an icon to a key that already has a command assigned to it, the new command takes precedence and the previous command no longer has a keyboard shortcut assigned to it.

You can also delete the keyboard shortcut for a command in the Keyboard Layout window. This is useful if you only want to delete keyboard shortcuts for individual commands and not the entire keyboard layout.

To delete the keyboard shortcut for a command:

1 Choose Tools > Keyboard Layout > Customize.

The Keyboard Layout window appears.

2 In the keyboard area, drag the icon for a command out of the Keyboard Layout window.

For more information on clearing all keyboard shortcuts, see "Clearing and Restoring Keyboard Layouts" on page 150.

Certain keyboard shortcuts may not work in certain Final Cut Pro windows. For example, suppose you press an alphanumeric key, such as J, K, or L in the Browser. In this case, the first clip beginning with the character you pressed is selected (clips named Jacob, Katy, or Larry, respectively). This is the default behavior of the Browser, and keyboard shortcuts cannot bypass this feature. However, in the Viewer or Canvas, pressing J, K, or L activates the transport controls (reverse, pause, and forward, respectively). When you assign keyboard shortcuts, consider which windows you intend to use them in. To make sure your custom keyboard assignment works as expected, try adding one or two modifier keys to your custom keyboard shortcut. These key combinations are less likely to be used by the built-in features of the windows.

Keyboard shortcuts assigned by Mac OS X are unavailable in Final Cut Pro. These keyboard shortcuts, such as Command-M (for minimizing a window) appear red in the Keyboard Layout window of Final Cut Pro. Optional keyboard shortcuts, such as those assigned to Exposé or Dashboard (in Mac OS X 10.4), also override keyboard shortcuts assigned in Final Cut Pro. To solve this problem, you can either adjust the keyboard shortcuts for Exposé or change the conflicting keyboard shortcuts in the Final Cut Pro Keyboard Layout window. For more information, see Mac Help.

At any time, you can clear the keyboard layout, removing most of the commands and their keyboard shortcuts. This is useful if you want to clear the keyboard layout you previously set up, so you can change the commands for another project.

Note: If you don't clear the existing layout, newly specified keyboard shortcuts are used in addition to those keyboard shortcuts already specified (either the default keyboard shortcuts or those you previously set up).

Some commands cannot be cleared and always use a default keyboard shortcut, including: Abort, Cancel, Clear, Copy, Cut, Minimize Window, Paste, Play, Redo, and Undo. Additional commands that can't be cleared are shown on pink-colored keys. If you like, you can specify additional key combinations to use for these operations.

1 Choose Tools > Keyboard Layout > Customize.

The Keyboard Layout window appears.

2 Click the Lock button, then click Clear.
3 When a message appears asking if you want to clear all keyboard shortcuts, click OK.

The keyboard layout in the Keyboard Layout window now appears without any icons or commands.

At some point, you may decide that you want to restore all of the keyboard shortcuts to their original default settings.

1 Choose Tools > Keyboard Layout > Customize.
The Keyboard Layout window appears.
2 Click the Lock button, then click Reset.
3 When a message appears asking if you want to reset the defaults, click OK.

You can save commands and their keyboard shortcuts in a text document. These documents serve as keyboard layout guides, available onscreen, or printed for easy reference. You can open and reformat the text files in other programs, such as spreadsheet or word-processing applications, to make them easier to read.

1 Choose Tools > Keyboard Layout, then choose an option from the submenu:

Save Grid as Text: Saves only those commands to which you've assigned keyboard shortcuts as a tab delimited text file.
Save Menu Commands as Text: Saves all commands from the following menus: File, Edit, View, Mark, Modify, Sequence, Effects, Tools, and Window. (This option does not let you save command groups, such as Compositing or Editing.)
Save Command Groups as Text: Saves all commands from the command groups shown in the command list area, such as Audio, Capture, Compositing, Display, and so on. Commands are listed by command group in the same order as in the command list area. (This option does not let you save menu sets, such as File and Edit.)
Save All Commands as Text: Saves all commands (menu sets and command groups), with commands listed alphabetically.

2 In the Save dialog, enter a new name for the document if you want and choose where to save it, then click Save.

The default location where these files are stored is: [Home]/Library/Preferences/Final Cut Pro User Data/Keyboard Layouts.

You can save a keyboard layout that you customized. This is useful if you are working with others on a project and want to use the same keyboard shortcuts for commands. You can also load keyboard layouts that others have created.

1 Choose Tools > Keyboard Layout > Save Keyboard Layout.
2 In the Save dialog, enter a new name for the layout if you want and choose where to save it, then click Save.

The default name is Custom Keyboard Layout. The default location where these files are stored is: [Home]/Library/Preferences/Final Cut Pro User Data/Keyboard Layouts.

3 If a file with the specified name already exists in that location, a message appears asking if you want to replace the file. If so, click Replace; otherwise, click Cancel and rename the file, then click Save.

When you import a custom keyboard layout, all existing shortcuts are replaced by those in the custom keyboard layout.

1 Copy the keyboard layout file to your computer.

The default location where these files are stored is: [Home]/Library/Preferences/Final Cut Pro User Data/Keyboard Layouts.

2 Choose Tools > Keyboard Layout > Load Keyboard Layout.

3 In the Choose a File dialog, navigate to the location where the keyboard layout is stored, then click Choose.

When you open the custom Keyboard Layout window, the title bar indicates that the layout is imported and displays the name of the layout.

You can set up your keyboard for use with a language and layout different from the one it shipped with using the International pane in System Preferences. For information on how to use a specific keyboard layout, see Mac Help.

When you customize a keyboard, the keyboard shortcuts you create apply to the currently selected language. (The keyboard layout is also listed at the top of the Keyboard Layout window.) If you are switching among multiple languages, make sure you choose the right one before setting up shortcuts for commands.

Important: The physical keyboard you're using is detected by Mac OS X as soon as you connect it to your computer, and while you can switch between multiple languages, the position of the key on the keyboard takes precedence over the letter that's assigned to that key due to the selected language. For example, suppose you set up the default U.S. keyboard so the A key (three rows up and two keys in from the left) is the shortcut for a ripple delete. If you switch to another keyboard language, such as French, that key is now the Q key, but when you press it, the keyboard shortcut remains ripple delete.

Shortcut buttons can be created and placed at the top of the main windows in Final Cut Pro—the Browser, Viewer, Canvas, Timeline, and any Tool Bench windows. You can then click any of these shortcut buttons in this “button bar” to perform commands, instead of entering the key combination or using menus.

Browser Cafe Music Effects Name Duration In Cafe scene Master sequence 00:00:26:22 Not Set Music Subclips Shortcut buttons added to the Browser

Some windows, such as the Timeline and Tool Bench, include some buttons in their button bar by default. You can delete these buttons, if you like (see "Removing Shortcut Buttons" on page 155).

Shortcut buttons display the icon of the command they perform, providing you with a visual cue to their function. In addition, when you move the pointer over a shortcut button, a tooltip for the specified command appears.

Browser Icon for a shortcut button View as Small Icons Tooltip for a shortcut button

Note: Shortcut buttons are automatically saved when you quit Final Cut Pro. They are not saved per project.

Button bars that you set up are automatically saved when you quit the application and restored when you open it again. You can rearrange, copy, and drag shortcut buttons to further customize the button bar in each window.

Note: You can add any number of shortcut buttons to the button bar; however, excess buttons may not be visible within the window.

To create a shortcut button in the button bar of a window:

1 Make sure the window you want to add the shortcut button to is displayed. If you're adding a shortcut button to the Tool Bench window, make sure the tab of the feature you want is in front.
2 Choose Tools > Button List.

The Button List window appears. This looks the same as the command list area of the Keyboard Layout window.

Tip: You can also drag icons from the command list area or keyboard area of the Keyboard Layout window.
3 Drag an icon from the Button List window to the window where you want the shortcut button to appear.

$Cafe Music Effects Name Duration In Cafe scene Master sequence 00:00:26:22 Not Set Music Subclips Button List import Import Batch List... Import EDL... Import Files... $1 Import Folder... Import Keyboard Layout... \\Y Import Panasonic P2... Import VDU Data... Import XML...$

A shortcut button with an icon for the specified operation now appears in the window. As more shortcut buttons are added to the button bar, tabs in the window move to accommodate them.

Note: You may need to resize the window to view all shortcut buttons and tabs. If the buttons in a button bar exceed the width of the window, a dot appears on the left edge of the button bar, indicating there are more buttons that cannot be seen. To see the additional buttons, you need to widen the window.

- Click the shortcut button in the button bar of the desired window.

The window containing the shortcut button does not have to be active.

New shortcut buttons are placed to the left or right of existing buttons. You can move and copy shortcut buttons within a window and to different windows. You can also add "spacers" between shortcut buttons to organize them in the button bar.

To rearrange shortcut buttons in a button bar:

In the button bar, drag shortcut buttons where you want them to appear.

To add a spacer to a button bar:

■ Control-click the button bar, then choose Add Spacer from the shortcut menu.

Browser Spacer added between buttons Duration In

To move spacers in a button bar:

- Drag the spacer where you want it to appear in the button bar.

To remove a space in a button bar:

- Drag the spacer out of the window.

To move shortcut buttons to a different window:

- Drag the shortcut button from one window to another window.

To copy a shortcut button to a different window:

- Press and hold down the Option key, then drag the shortcut button from one window to another.

You can change the color of individual buttons in a button bar.

To change the color of a shortcut button:

■ Control-click any shortcut button in the button bar, choose Color from the shortcut menu, then choose a color from the submenu.

Available colors are: Plain, Red, Yellow, Green, Cyan, Blue and Purple. The default color is Plain (gray).

You can remove one or all shortcut buttons from a button bar at any time.

To remove a shortcut button from a button bar, do one of the following:

Drag the shortcut button you want to delete out of the window.
■ Control-click the shortcut button, choose Remove from the shortcut menu, then choose Button from the submenu.

To remove all shortcut buttons from a button bar:

■ Control-click any shortcut button in the button bar, choose Remove from the shortcut menu, then choose All from the submenu.

Note: In the case of the Timeline, which contains default shortcut buttons, choose Remove > All / Restore Defaults from the submenu.

You can manually save the shortcut button bars that you set up in the Viewer, Canvas, Browser, and Timeline. This is useful if you are working with others on a project and want to use your shortcut button configuration. You can also load and use shortcut button bars that others have created.

Important: Button bars that you set up in Tool Bench windows are saved with custom window layouts you create.

1 Do one of the following:

Choose Tools > Button Bars > Save.
Control-click any shortcut button in the button bar, then choose Save All Button Bars from the shortcut menu.

2 In the Save dialog, enter a new name for the button bar and choose where to save it.

The default name is Custom Button Bars. The default location where these files are stored is: [Home]/Library/Preferences/Final Cut Pro User Data/Button Bars.

1 Copy the button bar file to your computer.

The default location where these files are stored is: [Home]/Library/Preferences/Final Cut Pro User Data/Button Bars.

2 Do one of the following:

Choose Tools > Button Bars > Load.
Control-click anywhere in the button bar of any window, then choose Load All Button Bars from the shortcut menu.

Note: A list of button bars that have been saved in the Button Bars folder appears only in the Button Bar submenu, not in the shortcut menu.

3 In the Choose a File dialog, navigate to the location where the shortcut button bar is stored, then click Choose.

The default location where these files are stored is: [Home]/Library/Preferences/Final Cut Pro User Data/Button Bars.

The shortcut button bar appears at the top of the selected window.

Note: When you restore a button bar or use a saved shortcut button bar, all existing shortcut buttons in all windows are replaced by those you are loading.

Design the editing system that's right for you. Read this section to learn how to set up your system, specify initial settings, and connect video, audio, and storage devices.

Chapter 11

Overview of Setting Up

Chapter 12

Designing Your Editing System

Chapter 13

Connecting DV Video Equipment and Specifying Initial Settings

Chapter 14

Determining Your Hard Disk Storage Options

Chapter 15

Connecting Professional and Non-DV Equipment

Chapter 16

External Video Monitoring

Setting up your Final Cut Pro editing system involves both hardware installation and software configuration. Regardless of the formats and devices you plan to use, you can follow the same basic steps.

This chapter covers the following:

• The Setup Process (p. 159)
- Connecting Video and Audio Input and Output to Your Computer (p. 160)
- Connecting an External Video Monitor and Audio Speakers (p. 160)
- Choosing an Easy Setup to Configure Final Cut Pro (p. 161)
- Choosing a Scratch Disk Location for Captured and Render Files (p. 161)

The way you set up your Final Cut Pro editing system depends on the video and audio formats you are using for your project. You may use a basic DV/FireWire setup or a professional, uncompressed video setup. You may also want to add external components such as a video monitor, hardware audio mixer, or speakers. In either case, setting up involves the following steps:

Step 1: Connect video and audio input and output to your computer

Step 2: Connect an external video monitor and audio speakers (optional)

Step 3: Choose an Easy Setup to configure Final Cut Pro

Step 4: Choose a scratch disk location for captured and render files

If you are using DV video, this means connecting your DV camcorder to your computer via a FireWire cable. For other professional and non-DV formats, you need to install a third-party video interface to connect your video deck. Many video interfaces support audio connections, but you can also install a separate audio interface if you want to capture more audio channels than your video interface supports, or if you need to capture with higher audio sample rates than the video interface supports.

DV video can transfer video, audio, and even device control data all on a single FireWire cable, even in both directions.

To set up a DV system, see Chapter 13, "Connecting DV Video Equipment and Specifying Initial Settings," on page 169.
For additional information, you may want to see Chapter 12, "Designing Your Editing System," on page 163.

Learn about video and audio devices and interfaces in Chapter 12, "Designing Your Editing System," on page 163.
Learn about connecting video and audio components to your computer in Chapter 15, "Connecting Professional and Non-DV Equipment," on page 191.

Final Cut Pro doesn't require separate video and audio monitoring devices, but these are important during your final editing to make sure you have the highest quality picture and sound possible. Online editing suites include an external video monitor, audio speakers, and a waveform monitor and vectorscope to ensure that signal levels are consistent, balanced, and conform to necessary broadcast or film specifications.

If you want to incorporate external video and audio monitoring, see Chapter 16, "External Video Monitoring," on page 209 and Volume III, Chapter 2, "Setting Up Audio Equipment."

Easy Setups are software configurations that define capture, device control, and sequence settings, as well as external video and audio monitoring options. You choose an Easy Setup based on the equipment and format you're using. Final Cut Pro comes with Easy Setups that work with the most popular editing configurations.

To learn about choosing Easy Setups, see "Choosing an Easy Setup" on page 170.

For more advanced information about setting up and working with device control, see "Establishing Device Control" on page 206 and Volume IV, Chapter 25, "Device Control Settings and Presets."

A scratch disk is a hard disk (internal or external to your computer) where Final Cut Pro stores captured media files and render files. By default, Final Cut Pro uses the hard disk on which the application is installed.

Note: Rendering is the process of creating temporary video and audio render files for portions of your sequence that Final Cut Pro cannot play in real time.

- "Specifying Scratch Disks for Capturing Video and Storing Render Files" on page 171

For information about choosing additional hard disk storage to use as scratch disks, see:

- Chapter 14, "Determining Your Hard Disk Storage Options," on page 179

In addition to your computer and software, a Final Cut Pro editing system can include external video and audio devices for input, output, and monitoring.

This chapter covers the following:

Components of a Final Cut Pro DV Editing System (p. 163)
• Video and Audio Input and Output Devices (p. 164)
• Video Interfaces (p. 165)
• Audio Interfaces (p. 166)
• Device Control Interfaces (p. 168)

A complete Final Cut Pro editing system consists of several components.

A Macintosh computer and related peripherals, such as mouse, keyboard, display, internal hard disk, and so on
• Video and audio input and output devices
Video and audio interfaces to connect video and audio devices to your computer for capture and output
• Device control adapter (if necessary)
• Additional scratch disks

To capture and output media, you need to connect video decks, camcorders, and audio players to your computer. If your camcorder, VTR, or audio device doesn't connect to your computer's built-in ports (such as FireWire or USB), you may need to purchase and install a third-party video or audio interface.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Video and Audio Input and Output Devices - 1

This is a VTR or camcorder you connect to your computer to capture and output media. The connectors and signal format on your video device determine what kind of video interface your computer needs to connect to your device.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Video Device - 1

This is a device, such as a DAT or multitrack audio recorder, that lets you capture or output audio independently from video.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Audio Device - 1

When you edit your video, it's ideal to watch it on a monitor similar to the one you will use for the final screening. An external video monitor can display color, frame rate, and interlaced scanning more accurately than your computer display.

If you are working on an NTSC or PAL project, you should watch it on an external video monitor that shows the video interlaced. Your ability to color correct is limited by the accuracy of your monitor. For more information about external video monitoring, see Chapter 16, "External Video Monitoring," on page 209.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - External Video Monitor - 1

As with video, it's important to monitor your audio so that it matches the listening environment where the final project will be shown. Although you can use your computer's built-in speakers for monitoring audio, any critical audio work should be monitored on external speakers (also called audio monitors). For more information about external audio monitoring, see Volume III, Chapter 2, "Setting Up Audio Equipment."

To connect video devices to your computer for capturing and outputting video, your computer needs a video interface. The video interface may be the built-in FireWire port (when using DV video), a third-party PCI video interface card, or a device such as an AJA lo, which is a self-contained video interface that connects to your computer via FireWire.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Video Interfaces - 1

natural_image

Diagram showing a device connected to a smartphone via a cable and cable switch (no text or symbols present)

If you are using DV video, you can capture and output DV video via your computer's built-in FireWire port. Final Cut Pro natively supports (meaning no additional hardware is required) DV camcorders and VTRs with a FireWire connection for input and output.

Note: DV refers to the entire range of DV formats: DV, DVCAM, DVCPRO, DVCPRO 50, and DVCPRO HD.

Diagram showing a device emitting particles into a smartphone screen, with scattered dots indicating particle distribution.

If you are using professional analog or digital formats (either SD or HD) without native FireWire connectivity, you need to purchase and install a PCI video interface card to connect your video deck or camcorder to your computer. Many PCI interface cards come with a breakout box where video, audio, and perhaps even 9-pin remote connectors are located (rather than on the PCI card itself). Interface cards are also referred to as video cards, or capture cards. This is not the same as the video graphics card used to send signals to your main computer display.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - PCI Video Interface Card - 1

natural_image

Diagram showing a device with a plug and connection points, no text or symbols present

The AJA Io is an external video and audio interface that conveniently connects to your computer via FireWire. Instead of transferring compressed DV signals, the Io transfers an uncompressed component 4:2:2 signal via FireWire, and has a wide range of analog and digital connectors for both video and audio. Several models of the Io exist, for digital, analog, or multiformat connectivity.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - AJA Io—FireWire for Uncompressed Digital Video (not DV) - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["Computer"] -->|FireWire| B["AJA Io"]
    B -->|Video| C["Standard definition monitor"]
    C --> D["Amplified speakers"]
    D -->|Audio| C

Important: DV video and FireWire are not interchangeable terms. While almost all DV devices use FireWire to transfer DV video and audio, not all FireWire devices use DV. For example, a FireWire hard disk uses FireWire to transfer any kind of digital data between the hard disk and a computer. The AJA Io is another example of a non-DV FireWire device.

When capturing and outputting audio, your computer needs an audio interface. The audio interface may be part of the video interface, which may be the built-in FireWire port (when using DV video), a third-party video interface, or a separate audio interface (described below). If an audio interface is designed to work with Mac OS X Core Audio, it is compatible with Final Cut Pro.

Most video capture interfaces also have audio inputs and outputs. This is true for DV transferred via FireWire (both video and audio can be transferred simultaneously), most PCI video capture cards, and the AJA Io. However, if you want to capture more audio channels than your video interface supports, or if you need a microphone preamplifier for recording voiceovers, you may want to install a separate audio interface.

Diagram showing wireless device connection with USB port and connected to a server, including a blue circle highlighting the port's cable.

Because audio data rates are fairly low (compared to video), USB is an acceptable port for transferring several audio channels (usually two, but in some cases up to six). USB audio interfaces vary in quality, so research them carefully before you purchase one.

Make sure you don't exceed the total bandwidth of the USB bus by connecting too many devices. USB 1.1 has a fairly low data rate, so be careful not to add too many USB items to the bus. Also, USB hubs can potentially cause audio problems. If you are having audio problems with a USB interface connected to a hub, try removing USB devices and eliminating the hub from the connection.

Note: USB 2.0 audio interfaces are also available. Because USB 2.0 devices can handle high data rates (similar to FireWire 400), you can treat them similarly to FireWlre audio interfaces (described below).

Diagram showing a device emitting particles into a smartphone screen, with scattered dots indicating particle distribution.

If you need additional input and output audio channels, or if you need to connect professional analog or digital signals to your editing system, a PCI audio interface card is a good option. There are a lot of PCI audio interface cards available. Many audio interfaces come with a separate breakout box where the audio input and output connectors are located.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - PCI Audio Interface Card - 1

natural_image

Diagram showing a computer connected to a plug device with a magnified inset (no text or symbols)

Instead of using a PCI card, many manufacturers now offer audio interfaces that connect to your computer's FireWire port. These are not DV devices, but merely use FireWire as a means of transferring digital audio data. FireWire interfaces are more convenient to switch between computers than PCI cards, and they can be used with both desktop and PowerBook computers.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - FireWire for Digital Audio - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["Computer"] -->|USB or FireWire| B["Audio interface"]
    B -->|Audio| C["Amplified speakers"]
    A <-->|FireWire| D["DV VTR"]
    D <-->|Video| E["Standard definition monitor"]

Important: Although a FireWire bus supports a very high data rate, connecting too many devices, such as a DV video device, a FireWire hard disk, and a FireWire audio interface, could potentially exceed the bus speed, resulting in dropped video frames or audio with missing samples.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - FireWire for Digital Audio - 2

natural_image

Simple line drawing of a monitor and keyboard (no text or symbols)

Some PCI cards are too small to mount all the connectors for the various input and output signals available. In this case, a breakout box is included to provide a sturdy housing for all of the video and audio connectors. For example, professional audio interfaces use XLR connectors, but these are too big to be mounted directly on a PCI card. Instead, a breakout box, included with the card, contains the XLR connectors. A multipin connector on a fairly long extension cable is usually used to attach the PCI card to the breakout box. The breakout box can then be mounted on a desktop or in a standard equipment rack, making the connectors more accessible than on the back of your computer.

For instructions on connecting a breakout box to your PCI card, see the documentation included with your interface. An example of a setup with a breakout box is shown in Chapter 15, "Connecting Professional and Non-DV Equipment," on page 191.

Device control is used to remotely control video and audio devices and to transfer timecode between a device and your computer. Device control cables allow the VTR and the computer to communicate with each other. The VTR can tell Final Cut Pro where a tape is currently positioned and Final Cut Pro can tell the VTR to cue the tape to a new position, pause, rewind, fast-forward and even record during output.

Positional information is conveyed via timecode recorded on the tape. Device control allows you to control your VTR via Final Cut Pro instead of from the VTR itself.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Device Control Interfaces - 1

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Device Control Interfaces - 2

In addition to video and audio data, DV devices can also transfer timecode and device control via FireWire. This makes connecting DV devices to your computer as simple as connecting a single FireWire cable.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - FireWire (DV) for Device Control - 1

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - FireWire (DV) for Device Control - 2

For professional equipment, device control data is transferred between a serial port on your computer and 9-pin connector on a video or audio device. A Macintosh has two types of serial ports: USB and the internal modem port. With the appropriate adapters, either of these ports can be used to send and receive device control information via serial RS-422 or RS-232 protocols.

A scratch disk stores captured and rendered media for editing, playback, and output. Scratch disk performance is a critical aspect of your editing system: the storage capacity and data rate of your disks must match or exceed the video format you are using. For more information, see Chapter 14, "Determining Your Hard Disk Storage Options," on page 179.

This chapter covers the following:

• Connecting Your Camcorder (p. 169)
- Opening Final Cut Pro and Choosing Your Initial Settings (p. 170)
• What Is FireWire? (p. 175)
• What Is Device Control? (p. 176)

Note: If you are using any other kind of video format or using a third-party interface, refer to Chapter 15, "Connecting Professional and Non-DV Equipment," on page 191.

The following illustration demonstrates how to connect your DV camcorder to the FireWire port on your computer, so that you can capture video (transfer the video from your camcorder to your computer) and output your program back to DV tape. For more information on FireWire, see "What Is FireWire?" on page 175.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Connecting Your Camcorder - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["Computer"] -->|FireWire| B["DV camcorder in VTR mode"]
    A --> C["6-pin connector to computer"]
    A --> D["4-pin connector to camcorder"]

To connect your DV camcorder or VTR to your computer:

1 Connect the 4-pin connector on one end of your FireWire cable to the 4-pin FireWire port on your camcorder.

Important: Some DV decks may use a 6-pin FireWire connector instead of a 4-pin connector. Make sure you use a FireWire cable that matches the connector on your video device.

2 Connect the 6-pin connector on the other end of your FireWire cable to a FireWire 400 port on your computer.

3 Turn on your VTR or camcorder, and switch it to VCR (or VTR) mode.

The first time you open Final Cut Pro after installing the software, you're prompted to choose an Easy Setup (a collection of settings that determines how Final Cut Pro works with your editing system) and a scratch disk (the hard disk where you'll store your captured media files).

Final Cut Pro comes with several predefined Easy Setups based on the most common video formats and devices, such as DV-NTSC and DV-PAL. The Easy Setup you choose applies to all new projects and sequences until you choose another Easy Setup.

If you always use the same type of camcorder or video deck, you may never have to change your Easy Setup. If you do change your camcorder or video deck or the format you are working with, it's simple to change your Easy Setup.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > Easy Setup.

If this is the first time you've opened Final Cut Pro, this window appears automatically after opening the application.

2 Choose an Easy Setup from the Setup For pop-up menu.

To show all Easy Setups that are currently available, select Show All.

Note: To use remote device control via FireWire (so Final Cut Pro can control your camcorder or deck), make sure you choose a device control preset that uses FireWire. Both DV-NTSC and DV-PAL use a FireWire device control preset. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 25, "Device Control Settings and Presets."

3 When you're ready, click Setup.

The selected Easy Setup applies to all new projects and sequences. Settings for existing sequences do not change. For additional information about Easy Setups, see Volume IV, Chapter 23, "Audio/Video Settings and Easy Setups."

If this is the first time you're setting up Final Cut Pro, you'll now need to specify your scratch disk.

A scratch disk is a hard disk, internal or external to your computer, where Final Cut Pro stores captured digital video and audio, as well as rendered media files created during editing. (Rendering is the process of creating temporary video and audio render files for portions of your sequence that Final Cut Pro cannot play in real time.) By default, Final Cut Pro uses the hard disk on which the application is installed.

You use the Scratch Disks tab in the System Settings window to choose where you want to save the video and audio files that you capture, and the render and cache files that Final Cut Pro creates. You can also specify other settings related to the size of captured and exported files and the minimum space allowed on scratch disks.

Important: Final Cut Pro lets you specify up to 12 scratch disks at one time. Make sure you choose the proper scratch disks before you begin capturing media Final Cut Pro always uses the disk with the most space first. When that disk is full, Final Cut Pro uses the disk with the next most available space, and then the next one, and so on, until all disks are full.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > System Settings, then click the Scratch Disks tab.

If this is the first time you've opened Final Cut Pro, this window appears automatically after you've chosen an Easy Setup.

2 To specify a disk or a folder on a hard disk as a scratch disk:

a Click Set.
b In the dialog that appears, locate and select the disk you want to use.

Only connected external disks or installed internal disks are listed. If your hard disk doesn't appear, make sure it's connected properly and that it's correctly initialized and mounted. For more information, see the documentation that came with your computer, your hard disk, or your disk-formatting software.

c Click Select (the button includes the name of the disk you selected).

The specified disk is listed next to the Set button, along with the amount of available disk space. You can define up to 12 disks (they can be partitions or whole disks) where your captured video will be stored. Scratch disks specified in this list are used based on the amount of available disk space, so those with the largest amount of available disk space are used first. After the first disk becomes full, Final Cut Pro uses the disk with the next most available space, and then the next one, and so on, until all disks are full.

3 To capture video and audio to separate files, select the "Capture Audio and Video to Separate Files" option.

When you capture video and audio to separate files, two media files are saved on your hard disk, but the clips appear in your project as merged clips. Capturing your video and audio as separate files allows you to divide the workload between two scratch disks, maximizing the performance of each scratch disk you're using so that you can capture your video at the highest possible data rate. Video and audio files captured as separate files have the same name, with _v appended to video and _a appended to audio files. The files are also captured to two separate folders named Capture Scratch and Audio Capture Scratch, respectively.

Note: For capturing DV media, it's usually best to leave this option disabled.

4 Check the boxes next to the type of files you want to store on each scratch disk: Video Capture, Audio Capture, Video Render, and Audio Render.

5 To set locations for the waveform and thumbnail cache files and the Autosave Vault folder:

a Click Set next to the appropriate item.
b In the dialog that appears, locate and find the disk you want to use.
c Click Select (the button includes the name of the disk you selected).

The specified disk is listed next to the Set button, along with the amount of available disk space. The amount of space that the caches use is determined by the Thumbnail Cache setting in the Memory & Cache tab of the System Settings window. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences." For information about the Autosave feature, seeVolume IV, Chapter 2, "Backing Up and Restoring Projects."

6 Specify additional settings for capturing and exporting files.

Minimum Allowable Free Space On Scratch Disks: Enter a value to set the minimum space you want to keep available on a scratch disk. If you have limited scratch disk space, you may want to set this to the amount of disk space you want available for render files. If you use most of your disk space for captured clips, you may run out of space when rendering transitions, and clips with filters or motion parameters applied to them.
Limit Capture/Export File Segment Size To: If you're capturing or exporting clips that may be used on other systems with a file size limitation, you may want to select this option. Any files that are larger than the limit entered here (which defaults to 2 GB) are written as separate files, in which the end of one file contains a reference to the next (so the first file appears to be a continuous file).
Limit Capture Now To: This option limits the duration of media files captured using the Capture Now command. This can be useful if you want to capture an entire tape without monitoring the entire process. For example, you can set the limit to 64 minutes, begin the Capture Now process, then leave and return several hours later. Instead of capturing until your scratch disk is filled, Final Cut Pro stops capturing after 64 minutes.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > System Settings, then click the Scratch Disks tab.
2 Click Clear next to the scratch disk you no longer want to use.

Scratch disks you've set might become unavailable. This can happen for a number of reasons. They might be turned off, disconnected, or temporarily unmounted. If the scratch disk folder you selected has been moved, deleted, or renamed, Final Cut Pro might not be able to find the scratch disk.

The next time you open Final Cut Pro, if the scratch disk can't be found, a dialog appears with three options:

Quit: Lets you quit without changing the scratch disk preferences.
Set Scratch Disks: Opens the Scratch Disks tab in the System Settings window so that you can change the current set of scratch disks. Any disks that are missing are removed from this list. You must choose at least one scratch disk to continue.
Check Again: Allows you to reconnect or start up your scratch disk, wait for it to amount, and then proceed as usual.

After you selected which volumes and folders you want to use to capture media, you may want to assign these same locations as search folders for the Reconnect Files dialog. This allows Final Cut Pro to limit its search for media files if they become offline. For more information about assigning search folders, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences." For more information about the Reconnect Files dialog, see Volume IV, Chapter 6, "Reconnecting Clips and Offline Media."

You can use a storage area network (SAN) to store your media files. Final Cut Pro respects Mac OS X file privileges, so you are not allowed to access media in folders that your user does not have access to.

Final Cut Pro is compatible with Xsan, storage area network administration software used to set up networked media storage accessible from multiple editing stations simultaneously.

FireWire (also called IEEE 1394a or i.LINK) is the consumer and professional standard for DV-format digital video. DV devices typically use FireWire 400 connectors. There are two kinds of FireWire 400 connectors: a 4-pin connector (typically used to connect to video equipment such as camcorders or decks) and a 6-pin connector (used to connect to computer equipment). However, some newer video equipment uses the 6-pin connector and some video cards use the 4-pin connector. See your equipment's documentation for more information.

A single FireWire connection is actually a two-way data connection, so Final Cut Pro and a DV device can communicate remote control information using FireWire. DV devices support device control via FireWire, but other professional formats do not. (Device control allows Final Cut Pro to control your camcorder or deck, such as for capturing footage or for playback. For more information, see "What Is Device Control?" on page 176.) Typically, you only use FireWire for device control when you are using a DV format (this includes DV, DVCAM, DVCPRO, DVCPRO 50, and even DVCPRO HD).

For more information about FireWire technology, go to the Apple FireWire website at http://www.apple.com/firewire.

Video devices vary greatly in their functionality and adherence to FireWire specifications for device control (the technology that allows Final Cut Pro to control your DV camcorder or deck via FireWire). For this reason, there are two versions of the FireWire protocol you can use for device control and capture in Final Cut Pro:

• Apple FireWire: This is the default.
- Apple FireWire Basic: This is a simplified device control protocol for camcorders and decks that aren't fully compatible with Apple FireWire. Using this protocol doesn't affect the quality of captured video or audio.

It may not be obvious which camcorders support the complete FireWire device control protocol and which only understand FireWire Basic. If you're unsure, try the standard FireWire preset first (NTSC or PAL FireWire). If you're not able to remotely control your camcorder or VTR using Final Cut Pro, choose an Easy Setup that uses the FireWire Basic version of device control.

Device control enables communication between your VTR or camcorder and Final Cut Pro, allowing you to remotely control your video deck for capturing and output. A device control preset contains settings that define how Final Cut Pro communicates with a particular camcorder or VTR. For this reason, the correct preset needs to be chosen before Final Cut Pro can control your camera or VTR during video capture and output.

If you have a video source without device control (and therefore without timecode), such as VHS, 8 mm videotape, or even live video from a camcorder, then you must capture video manually. See "Using a Non-Controllable Device for Capture" on page 277 for more information.

Note: Since each of the Easy Setups contains a device control preset, you do not need to choose a device control preset if you've already chosen an Easy Setup.

To remotely control your camcorder or VTR, you need to select a device control preset that matches the device. For example, if you are using a DV device connected via FireWire, you should choose a FireWire NTSC or FireWire PAL device control preset. Final Cut Pro has only one device control preset selected at a time, but you can change it in several ways.

1 Choose File > Log and Capture, then click the Capture Settings tab.
2 From the Device Control pop-up menu, choose a device control preset that corresponds to your connected device.

For an explanation of each device control preset, see Volume IV, Chapter 25, "Device Control Settings and Presets."

To choose a device control preset in the Audio/Video Settings window:

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings.
2 Do one of the following:

In the Summary tab, choose a device control preset from the Device Control Preset pop-up menu.
In the Device Control Presets tab, click in the column to the left of the device control preset you want to select.

3 Click OK.

Since an Easy Setup contains a device control preset, you can also change the device control preset by changing the Easy Setup. However, this may also change the capture and sequence presets.

1 Choose File > Log and Capture.

The Log and Capture window appears.

2 Press the Play button on your VTR.

If the proper connections are made from the VTR to the computer, the VTR begins playing, and you see the following in the Log and Capture window:

• Video appears in the video preview area.
- The status message "VTR OK" appears below the video preview area.
- The transport controls (play, rewind, fast-forward, and so on) appear below the video.

At the bottom of the Log and Capture window, the device status area shows the readiness of camcorders and decks being controlled by Final Cut Pro.

03:13:30:18 VTR OK Device status 03:14:10:19

The device status area can display any of these messages:

VTR OK: This indicates your equipment is connected and working properly.
No Communication: This indicates that Final Cut Pro has not established communication with the deck or camcorder (much like a modem that is unable to connect to a server on the Internet). If your VTR or camcorder has no ability to be remotely controlled, this status is expected. However, if you have a device-controllable camcorder or deck and you see this status, check to make sure you're using the right FireWire or serial control cables and that they're connected properly. Also make sure your device is turned on.
VTR in Local: Your device is set to work only with its built-in playback buttons. Set the switch on your camcorder or deck from Local to Remote and you'll be able to remotely control the device from Final Cut Pro.

Note: Decks with serial device control have a switch that lets you choose Local or Remote control.

To control your deck with Final Cut Pro: Set the switch to Remote.
To use the transport buttons on your deck to control the deck: Set the switch to Local.
Not Threaded: This indicates that you have a camcorder or deck connected to your computer, but there's no tape in the deck or the tape is still loading.
Tape Trouble: This indicates that your tape may be jamming. It's important to immediately stop playback and remove your tape from the deck, if possible. If you can't eject your tape, take your camcorder or deck to a qualified technician. For more information, see the documentation that came with your video equipment.
No Communication: This appears if you turned off device control or selected Non-Controllable Device in the device control preset for your camera or deck.

If you have multiple video decks that you regularly capture from or output to, and each one is a different format, you can use device control presets to easily change your device control settings each time you use a different deck. For example, the timecode offset may be different from one deck to another, or one deck may require more pre-roll time before its motor stabilizes to provide a stable video signal for capture.

You can create a different device control preset for every deck you use. When you switch decks, you can simply change the device control preset to set up quickly. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 25, "Device Control Settings and Presets."

To make the most of your Final Cut Pro editing system, you need to make appropriate choices about hard disk selection and maintenance.

This chapter covers the following:

• Working With Scratch Disks and Hard Disk Drives (p. 179)
• Data Rates and Storage Devices (p. 180)
• Determining How Much Space You Need (p. 181)
- Choosing a Hard Disk (p. 183)
- Types of Hard Disk Drives (p. 184)

By default, Final Cut Pro uses the hard disk on which the application is installed as your scratch disk to store captured and render files. Ideally, you should use a hard disk other than your main system disk as your scratch disk. Depending on how much space you need for your media, you can have up to twelve scratch disks in your Final Cut Pro editing system.

Important: If you have multiple hard disks and partitions, make sure they do not have similar names, or you could encounter problems during capture. For more information, see "Using Multiple Hard Disks" on page 39.

The data rate of the video you capture depends on the format of the source video and the codec you use for capture. If you are capturing low data rate video, chances are you can use more inexpensive storage devices. If you need to capture extremely high data rate video, then you may need a faster hard disk. Here are some examples of data rates for common capture formats:

Format	Typical data rate
OfflineRT (using Photo JPEG)	Varies between 300-500 KB/sec.
25:1 Motion JPEG (M-JPEG)	1 MB/sec.
DV (25) HDV (1080i)	3.6 MB/sec.
DVCPRO 50	7.2 MB/sec.
DVCPRO HD (1080i60) DVCPRO HD 720p60)	11.75 MB/sec.
DVCPRO HD (720p24)	5 MB/sec.
2:1 Motion JPEG (M-JPEG)	12 MB/sec.
Uncompressed standard definition video	24 MB/sec.
Uncompressed 8-bit 1080 29.97i high definition video	121.5 MB/sec.
Uncompressed 10-bit 1080 29.97i high definition video	182.3 MB/sec.

Whatever disk drive technology you decide to use, your storage disk's sustained transfer speed must be fast enough to keep up with the data rate. Depending on the data rate of the video you're capturing, a single drive may or may not be enough.

For example, if you plan to capture uncompressed standard definition video at 24 megabytes per second (MB/sec), it's unlikely that a single hard disk will be able to record the data fast enough. Even if you somehow successfully get the data on disk, Final Cut Pro may drop frames during playback or output.

If your hard disk or its connection to your computer does not support the data rate of your video format, you need to consider three factors:

Sustained transfer speed is a measurement of how fast data can be written to a disk in MB/sec. When you use a video interface that utilizes M-JPEG compression, the sustained transfer speed of your hard disk determines the maximum quality of the video you can capture. Disks with a higher sustained transfer speed allow you to capture video media files with a higher data rate, which results in higher visual quality.
Seek time is a measurement of how quickly data stored on the disk can be accessed in milliseconds (ms). Low seek times are important when playing back an edited sequence of clips, because the disk must spend a lot of time searching for the next clip to play.
A faster spindle speed increases a disk's sustained transfer rate (typical multimedia disks run at 7200 revolutions per minute, or rpm). However, the faster a hard disk runs the more it heats up, so ventilation is important when you install disks internally or in external enclosures.

Note: Removable media drives such as Jaz, Zip, and CD-RW drives are not suitable for video capture and playback because of their low data transfer rates.

The amount of disk space you need depends on the specifications of the video format you are using for editing. In some cases, you can capture video at a lower quality (which saves disk space) for rough editing and then recapture only what you need at higher quality to create the finished movie. This process is known as offline/online editing. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 5, "Offline and Online Editing."

Remember that when you start editing a movie, you need to capture much more media than you will use in the final movie. The ratio between the amount of footage you begin with and the final duration of the movie is called the shooting ratio. When you are estimating how much disk space you need for a project, calculate it based on the total amount of media you plan to capture and use during editing, not the intended duration of the final movie.

In addition to space for captured files and project files, you need extra space for render files, graphics, movie files created in other applications (such as animations), additional audio files, and so on. A loose rule of thumb to determine how much space you need is to multiply the amount of space needed for your finished program by five.

Ultimately, the amount of extra space you reserve depends on how much additional media you create during editing. For example, if you use hardly any effects, additional render files may not be a factor. If you are using only a few graphics files and little additional audio, these may not be a concern, either.

Keep in mind that although real-time effects don't require additional drive space for rendering, you still need to render the effects at high quality for final output, so at that point you need enough drive space for render files.

You can use the table below to estimate how much disk space you need for your project.

Video data transfer rates	30 sec.	1 min.	5 min.	10 min.	30 min.	60 min.
500 KB/sec. OfflineRT (using Photo JPEG)	15 MB	30 MB	150 MB	300 MB	900 MB	1.8 GB
1 MB/sec. Offline quality M-JPEG	30 MB	60 MB	300 MB	600 MB	1.8 GB	3.6 GB
3.6 MB/sec. DV-format video HDV (1080i)	108 MB	216 MB	1.08 GB	2.16 GB	6.5 GB	13 GB
6 MB/sec. Medium quality M-JPEG	180 MB	360 MB	1.8 GB	3.6 GB	10.8 GB	21.6 GB
11.75 MB/sec. DVCPRO HD 1080i	352.5 MB	705 MB	3.4 GB	6.9 GB	20.7 GB	41.3 GB
12 MB/sec. High quality 2:1 M-JPEG	360 MB	720 MB	3.6 GB	7.2 GB	21.6 GB	43.2 GB
24 MB/sec. Uncompressed standard definition video	720 MB	1.4 GB	7.2 GB	14.4 GB	43.2 GB	86.4 GB
121.5 MB/sec. 8-bit uncompressed 1080 29.97i high definition video	3.6 GB	7.3 GB	36.5 GB	72.9 GB	218.7 GB	434.4 GB

Suppose you want to create a music video that's approximately four minutes long using DV video for capture, editing, and output. Consider a shooting ratio of 15:1, meaning you shot 15 times more footage than you will use in the final movie.

- 15 x 4 minutes = 60 minutes

• 3.6 MB/sec. video data rate x 60 seconds = 216 MB/min.

60 minutes x 216 MB/min. = 12960 MB
• 12,960 MB ÷ 1024 MB per GB = 12.66 GB

4 minutes x 216 MB/min. = 864 MB x 5 = 4320 MB
• 4320 MB ÷ 1024 MB per GB = 4.22 GB

• 12.66 GB + 4.22 GB = 16.88 GB

Round your calculation up to 17 GB to be safe. This is the amount of disk space you'll need for this one project. If you plan to work on multiple projects at the same time, estimate the amount for each project and add these numbers together.

Note: These calculations are also important when planning how to archive your projects when they are finished, though many people choose to archive only the project file and not back up their media files (since the original footage is stored on tape, you can always recapture the footage if necessary).

The disk that contains your computer's operating system is called the startup disk or boot disk. In addition to the operating system, the startup disk also stores your applications (such as Final Cut Pro), your application preferences, system settings, and other documents. Since the files on the startup disk are your most critical data, maintaining the startup disk is vital.

Since digital media (especially high data rate video) makes your disks work harder, you should use dedicated disks for capturing and playing back your digital video and other media files. Consider your media disks as storage units that work long, hard hours, while your startup disk keeps your system properly organized. If a disk is going to malfunction, it's better if your critical data is separate from your replaceable media files.

Depending on what kind of computer you are using, you may be able to use internal and external hard disks to store your media files. Each has benefits and drawbacks:

May be less expensive because they don't have external cases or require their own power supplies.
Are inside your computer, causing less noise.
Are limited by the expansion capabilities of your computer and the heat buildup they cause.

Let you easily switch between projects by switching disks connected to the computer.
Let you move a project quickly from one computer system to another in a different location.
May be more expensive because of external cases and power supplies.
May be noisy.

Warning: Heat buildup in your computer can result in dropped frames during capture and playback, and can ultimately cause the failure of one or more disk drives. Consult the documentation that came with your computer for information about the maximum number of internal drives that can be installed.

There are several disk drive technologies you can choose. The type appropriate for your needs depends on the format and data rate of the video you're capturing. Each disk drive technology has benefits and limitations. The main choices currently available are:

ATA
FireWire
SCSI
RAID and Fibre Channel

There are two kinds of ATA disks:

Parallel (Ultra) ATA disks: These are found in Power Mac G4 and older Power Mac G3 computers.
Serial ATA disks: These come with Power Mac G5 computers.

ATA disks do not offer as high a level of performance as LVD or Ultra160 SCSI disks. If you plan to use Ultra ATA disks, make sure that:

The sustained transfer speed is 8 MB/sec. or faster.
The average seek time is below 9 ms.
The spindle speed is at least 5400 rpm, although 7200 rpm is better.

Many editors use parallel ATA (PATA) disks (also called Ultra DMA, Ultra EIDE, and ATA-33/66/100/133) with DV equipment. Parallel ATA disks are disks that you install internally. Since imported DV material has a fixed data rate of approximately 3.6 MB/sec, high-performance parallel ATA disks typically can capture and output these streams without difficulty. The numbers following the ATA designation indicate the maximum data transfer rate possible for the ATA interface, not the disk drive itself. For example, an ATA-100 interface can theoretically handle 100 MB/sec., but most disk drives do not spin fast enough to reach this limit.

Parallel ATA disks use 40- or 80-pin-wide ribbon cables to transfer multiple bits of data simultaneously (in parallel), they have a cable length limit of 18 inches, and they require 5 volts of power. Depending on your computer, there may be one or more parallel ATA (or IDE) controller chips on the motherboard. Each parallel ATA channel on a computer motherboard supports two channels, so you can connect two disk drives. However, when both disk drives are connected, they must share the data bandwidth of the connection, so the data rate can potentially be reduced.

Serial ATA (SATA) disks are newer than parallel ATA disk drives. The disk drive mechanisms may be similar, but the interface is significantly different. The serial ATA interface has the following characteristics:

Serial data transfer (one bit at a time)
• 150 MB/sec. theoretical data throughput limit
7-pin data connection, with cable limit of 1 meter
Operates with 250 mV

- Only one disk drive allowed per serial ATA controller chip on a computer motherboard, so disk drives do not have to share data bandwidth

While not recommended for all systems, FireWire disk drives can be effectively used to capture and edit projects using low data rate video clips, such as those captured using the DV codec. However, most FireWire disk drives lack the performance of internal Ultra ATA disk drives, or of internal or external SCSI disk drives. For example, a FireWire disk drive may not be able to support real-time playback with as many simultaneous audio and video tracks as an internal Ultra ATA disk drive can. This can also affect the number of simultaneous real-time effects that can be played back.

FireWire disk drives are not recommended for capturing high data rate material such as uncompressed standard definition or high definition video.
Certain DV camcorders cannot be connected to a computer while a FireWire disk drive is connected simultaneously. In many cases, you can improve performance by installing a separate FireWire PCI card to connect your FireWire drive.
You may be able to improve performance by reducing the real-time video playback data rate and the number of real-time audio tracks in the General tab of the User Preferences window.
You should never disconnect a FireWire disk drive prior to unmounting it from the desktop.

SCSI disk drives are among the fastest drives available. SCSI (Small Computer Systems Interface) technology has been implemented in various ways over the years, with each successive generation achieving better performance. Currently, the two fastest SCSI standards for video capture and playback are:

Ultra2 LVD (Low Voltage Differential) SCSI: Ultra2 LVD SCSI disk drives offer fast enough performance to capture and output video at high data rates when a single disk is formatted as a single volume (as opposed to formatting several disks together as a disk array).
Ultra320 and Ultra160 SCSI: These are faster than Ultra2 LVD SCSI disks.

SCSI disks can be installed internally or connected externally. Many users prefer external SCSI disk drives because they're easier to move and they stay cooler. If your computer didn't come with a preinstalled Ultra2 LVD, Ultra160, or Ultra320 SCSI disk drive, you need to install a SCSI card in a PCI slot so you can connect a SCSI disk drive externally.

A SCSI card allows you to connect up to 15 SCSI disk drives in a daisy chain, with each disk drive connected to the one before it and the last terminated. (Some SCSI cards support more than one channel; multiple-channel cards support 15 SCSI disks per channel.) Use high-quality, shielded cables to prevent data errors. These cables should be as short as possible (3 feet or less); longer cables can cause problems. You must use an active terminator on the last disk for reliable performance.

Note: Active terminators have an indicator light that goes on when the SCSI chain is powered.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - SCSI Disk Drives - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["Computer"] -->|SCSI cable| B["SCI card"]
    B -->|SCSI cable| C["SCI card"]
    C -->|SCSI cable| D["SCI card"]
    D --> E["SCI terminator"]

All devices on a SCSI chain run at the speed of the slowest device. To achieve a high level of performance, connect only Ultra2 or faster SCSI disk drives to your SCSI interface card. Otherwise, you may impede performance and get dropped frames during capture or playback.

Note: Many kinds of SCSI devices are slower than Ultra2, including scanners and removable storage media. You should not connect such devices to your high-performance SCSI interface.

You can improve the transfer speed of individual disks by configuring multiple disk drives in a disk array. In a RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disks), multiple SCSI, ATA, or FireWire disk drives are grouped together via hardware or software and treated as a single data storage unit. This allows you to record data to multiple drives in parallel, increasing access time significantly. You can also partition the array into multiple volumes.

Creating a disk array is only necessary if high performance is required to capture and play back your video at the required data rate without dropping frames.

If you require rock-solid data integrity, consider purchasing a RAID, or Redundant Array of Independent Disks. Many RAIDs record the same data on more than one disk, so that if a drive fails, the same data can still be retrieved from another disk. There are many RAID variations available, but one that offers high performance for both digital video capture and data redundancy is RAID level 3. Because they use specialized hardware, RAID level 3 systems can be more expensive, but they should be considered whenever the safety of your media is more important than the cost of your disks.

When you create or purchase a disk array, there are two important considerations:

Compatibility: Make sure the software you use to create the array is compatible with Final Cut Pro. For more information, go to the Final Cut Pro website at http://www.apple.com/finalcutpro.
Ventilation: If you're creating an array yourself with an off-the-shelf drive enclosure, make sure to allow for good ventilation. Disk arrays store information on several disks simultaneously. If one of your disk drives fails, information on all the disks is lost. One of the most common reasons a disk drive breaks down is overheating, so make sure that your disks stay cool.

Important: Check the manufacturer's specifications before buying disks to make sure the disks offer the level of performance you need.

Fibre Channel is a hard disk drive interface technology designed primarily for high-speed data throughput for high-capacity storage systems, usually set up as a disk array or RAID. Fibre Channel disk drive systems typically have performance rivaling or exceeding that of high-performance SCSI disk arrays.

One of the most common ways of connecting a computer to a Fibre Channel disk drive system for video capture and output is called a point-to-point connection. A single computer, equipped with a Fibre Channel PCI card, is connected to a single Fibre Channel disk drive array. Unlike SCSI systems, Fibre Channel cables can be run extremely long distances, up to 30 meters using copper cables and 6 miles (10 kilometers) using optical cables.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Fibre Channel Drive Arrays and RAIDS - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["Fiberchannel card"] --> B["Disk array"]

For all its advantages, a Fibre Channel disk array requires more setup than the other storage options previously described, making it unsuitable for portable use. Fibre Channel disk arrays usually have extremely high capacity (potentially several terabytes of disk storage). While this can make them more expensive relative to other storage solutions, the cost per megabyte is often considerably lower.

A storage area network (SAN) consists of one or more disk arrays that are made available to multiple computer systems simultaneously. Software, such as Apple Xsan, allows an administrator to control SAN access privileges for each editing system. For example, a capturing edit station may have read/write access to the SAN, while an assistant editor station may only have read access to media files for a particular project. Broadcast and postproduction facilities can use a SAN to share a single set of media files with among multiple editing systems.

You can design a Final Cut Pro editing system that uses more than just your computer's built-in video, audio, and device control interfaces.

This chapter covers the following:

• Why Use Third-Party Interfaces? (p. 191)
- Connecting Professional Video Devices (p. 194)
- Connecting Audio Devices (p. 204)
• Establishing Device Control (p. 206)

- Synchronizing Equipment With a Blackburst Generator (p. 206)

Note: For instructions on setting up a simple DV/FireWire editing system, see Chapter 13, "Connecting DV Video Equipment and Specifying Initial Settings," on page 169.

You may want to consider adding a third-party interface to your system in the following cases:

You are digitizing video from an older analog VTR (such as a Betacam SP deck) that does not have digital video outputs or remote control via FireWire.
You are integrating Final Cut Pro into a professional broadcast environment that requires SDI, HD-SDI, or other non-FireWire video and audio connections.
You need to capture, edit, and output full-resolution, uncompressed video signals instead of DV video (which is compressed).
You need to capture or output multiple audio channels.

Third-party video and audio interfaces can be installed in one of your computer's PCI slots, the USB port, or connected via FireWire (for example, the AJA Io).

Final Cut Pro allows you to use a wide variety of video interfaces for capture and output. The following section shows examples of the most common types of video interfaces available.

You can use the built-in FireWire port on your computer to capture and output to almost any DV device, including DV, DVCAM, DVCPRO, DVCPRO 50, and DVCPRO HD. In this configuration, you only need your computer and a supported DV device.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - FireWire DV - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["Computer"] --> B["FireWire 400 (6-pin)"]
    B --> C["Analog or digital VTR"]
    C --> D["FireWire 400 (4-or 6-pin)"]

PCI cards allow you to capture and output video with high data rates, such as uncompressed SD and HD video. PCI cards are necessary for high-end applications such as compositing, online editing, and uncompressed video editing. Many PCI cards have BNC or RCA connectors mounted directly to the back of the card. In this configuration, you connect your video equipment directly to the PCI card connectors in the back of your computer.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - PCI Video Interface Card With Built-in Connectors - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["Computer (PCI card with connectors)"] -->|BNC connector| B["Analog or digital VTR"]

Many PCI cards aren't big enough to fit all of the necessary video and audio connectors. In these situations, a breakout box is connected to the PCI card via a multipin connector on a long cable, and the connectors are accessible on the breakout box instead of the back of the PCI card. A breakout box is also useful because it allows you to place the connectors somewhere more convenient than the back of your computer, such as an equipment rack or a desktop.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - PCI Video Interface Card With Breakout Box - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["Computer (with PCI card)"] <--> B["Breakout box"]
    B <--> C["BNC connector"]
    C --> D["Analog or digital VTR"]

FireWire video interfaces (such as an AJA lo) use your computer's built-in FireWire port to input and output uncompressed standard definition video. An AJA lo has video, audio, and device control (serial RS-422) connectors, making it simple to connect a professional deck to your computer. FireWire interfaces are comparable to PCI card interfaces, but they are much easier to connect and disconnect.

Note: Although this type of video interface uses FireWire, it is not a DV device. If you want to capture or output DV video, you can connect your DV device directly to the FireWire port on your computer.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - FireWire Video Interface - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["FireWire 400 (6-pin)"] --> B["AJA Io"]
    C["BNC connector"] --> B
    B --> D["Analog or digital VTR"]
    style A fill:#f9f,stroke:#333
    style C fill:#f9f,stroke:#333
    style B fill:#ccf,stroke:#333
    style D fill:#cfc,stroke:#333

USB video interfaces cannot support the high data rates required for professional video use, so they are not commonly used. USB video interfaces are usually used for converting analog video sources to a digital signal for capture.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - USB Video Interface - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["Computer"] --> B["USB interface"]
    B --> C["Analog or digital VTR"]
    D["RCA connector"] --> B
    B --> C

Regardless of what format or video interface you use, the same basic steps apply when you connect a VTR or camcorder to your computer.

Note: For a list of video formats and the signal formats they use, see Volume IV, Appendix A, "Video Formats."

1 Connect the video output on the video device to the video interface input on your computer.

This is usually one BNC connector (for HD or SD digital video or for composite analog video) or three BNC connectors (for component analog video).

2 Connect the audio output on the video device to the video (or audio) interface input on your computer.

This is usually two or more XLR or 1/4" balanced audio connectors (for professional audio devices) or RCA connectors (for consumer devices).

3 Connect device control.

This is a two-way connection, so there is no distinction between input and output. A video or audio device typically has a 9-pin D sub (DB9) connector (or 9-pin for short), while your computer needs an adapter for the USB or internal modem port.

Professional devices usually communicate device control information using the serial RS-422 or RS-232 protocols.

4 Make sure a capture preset that matches your video format or video interface has been selected.

If you chose the correct Easy Setup, it's already selected. You can check this in the Easy Setup window (choose Final Cut Pro > Easy Setup) or in the Capture Presets tab of the Audio/Video Settings window (choose Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings).

5 You may also want to connect a blackburst (or sync) generator to both the VTR and the video interface to ensure that both devices are playing and recording exactly in sync.

For more information about blackburst generators, see "Synchronizing Equipment With a Blackburst Generator" on page 206.

If you're using a format other than DV, such as Betacam SP or Digital Betacam, you need to install a third-party video interface, which supports the proper signal format for the format you're using. Some video interfaces can digitize analog video input and output (for analog formats like BetacamSP), while others capture video only if it is already digital. In either case, the video interface encodes the video information using a codec, which may or may not apply compression to the video data to make it smaller while stored on disk. Compression settings used by video interfaces can typically be controlled by software, and use a variation of the M-JPEG codec (although the name of the codec itself may not reflect this).

Unlike DV video devices (which use a single FireWire cable), third-party interfaces send and receive video, audio, and device control on separate cables. For remote device control connections on professional equipment, 9-pin (DB9) connectors are used.

To set up a system using a third-party video interface, you need the following equipment:

Your computer and display
A non-DV format video device (a camcorder or deck)
• Audio and video cables for your system
A third-party capture interface installed in or connected to your computer
Note: Some third-party video interfaces have a breakout box connected to the card with a special cable, which is included.
A USB-to-serial adapter or internal modem serial port adapter
An RS-232 or RS-422 video deck control cable
A blackburst generator, with the appropriate cables to connect it to both your third-party video interface and your video and audio devices

The following illustration shows a typical SD setup:

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - A Recommended System Using a Third-Party Video Interface - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["PCI card"] -->|USB| B["USB-to-serial adapter"]
    B -->|Serial| C["Audio"]
    C --> D["Amplified speakers"]
    A --> E["Breakout box"]
    E -->|Audio| F["Analog or digital VTR"]
    E -->|Video| G["Reference video"]
    G --> H["Blackburst generator"]
    H -->|Video| E
    E --> I["Reference video"]
    I --> J["Standard definition monitor"]

The following are basic instructions for connecting a video device to a third-party video interface in your computer, as well as connecting remote device control.

1 Install or connect a supported third-party video interface to your computer.

For detailed information, see the documentation that came with your video interface and your computer.

2 If you are using a PCI card video interface that came with a breakout box, connect the breakout box to the PCI card using the cables provided.
3 Connect the video output of your VTR or camcorder to the video input of your video interface.
4 Connect the audio outputs of your VTR or camcorder to the audio inputs of your video or audio interface.

For more information about specific video formats and signals, see Volume IV, Appendix A, "Video Formats."

5 Connect the remote device control cable to your deck, and to your breakout box or serial port adapter.

For details, see "Establishing Device Control" on page 206.

6 To genlock your video interface with your camcorder or deck:

a Connect one of the blackburst generator's outputs (there should be several) to the Genlock or External Sync input on your deck (usually you use a cable with a BNC connector).
b Connect another of the blackburst generator's outputs to the Genlock or External Sync connector on your video interface.

For more information, see "Synchronizing Equipment With a Blackburst Generator" on page 206.

7 Plug in and turn on your blackburst generator.
8 Turn on your deck.
9 If you're using Final Cut Pro to control your camcorder or deck, make sure that the device control switch on your VTR is set to Remote.

For more information, see "What Is Device Control?" on page 176.

To configure Final Cut Pro to work with your video deck, do one of the following:

Choose Final Cut Pro > Easy Setup, then select an Easy Setup that corresponds to the video format and device control protocol of the device you connected. For more information, see “Opening Final Cut Pro and Choosing Your Initial Settings” on page 170.
Choose Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings, then individually select capture, device control, and sequence presets that correspond to your video device and format.

For details about customizing settings to work with your video device, see:

• Volume IV, Chapter 24, "Capture Settings and Presets."
• Volume IV, Chapter 25, "Device Control Settings and Presets."
• Volume IV, Chapter 26, "Sequence Settings and Presets."

The steps for connecting HD devices are essentially the same as for connecting SD devices. For HD video, you need to have a video interface that supports high definition video capture, which is usually transferred via an HD-SDI signal. To connect equipment, follow the instructions in the previous section, "Connecting Professional Standard Definition Video Devices" on page 195.

The most prevalent component analog video format still in use today is Betacam SP. It is a standard definition video format, but because it is analog, your video interface must have analog-to-digital (A-D) converters to digitize the analog signal before encoding it and writing a digital media file to the computer hard disk. Unlike digital capture interfaces, analog-to-digital interfaces often allow you to adjust luma and chroma levels (using controls in the Log and Capture window) when you digitize. For more information about calibrating an analog signal before digitizing it, see Chapter 23, "Using Color Bars for Video Calibration," on page 321.

The steps for connecting an analog VTR to a video interface are essentially the same as for digital SD and HD devices. The main difference is that you need to make three physical connections, one for each of the three analog video components: Y, R-Y, and B-Y (also called YUV or Y'C_B C_R, depending on the country and the specifics of the format). For more information, see Volume IV, Appendix A, "Video Formats." To connect equipment, see "Connecting Professional Standard Definition Video Devices" on page 195.

If you want to digitize video from an analog consumer format, such as VHS or 8 mm video, you need a video interface that has an analog composite video input. Also, older consumer decks rarely support remote device control, which means you can't remotely control the deck or capture timecode from these formats. If you need the ability to recapture the video accurately using timecode, it's often easiest to dub (copy) the video to a digital format like DV, or a professional format you are using for your project.

There are fairly inexpensive capture interfaces that can accept an analog composite input and convert it to a DV video signal transferred via FireWire. Some more expensive interfaces may also accept an analog component input.

For more information about composite video, see Volume IV, Appendix A, "Video Formats."

You can use a DV converter to convert a device in a non-DV format, such as BetacamSP or Digital Betacam, to DV. This allows you to capture footage using the built-in FireWire port on your computer. However, unlike a complete DV/FireWire setup, this kind of deck still requires serial (RS-422 or RS-232) remote device control.

This kind of setup is used mainly for low-resolution capture and offline editing. Because Final Cut Pro can edit DV video natively, you can capture your video as if it is DV footage, edit at DV resolution, and then recapture only the necessary media files for your finished movie at full-resolution using one of the third-party video interface solutions described above.

Important: If you plan to recapture footage later, make sure timecode is captured accurately. For more information about calibrating your device control and timecode, see Volume IV, Chapter 25, "Device Control Settings and Presets."

You need the following equipment:

Your computer and display
A non DV-format playback device, such as a BetacamSP or Digital Betacam deck
An analog- or digital (SDI)-to-DV/FireWire converter

Note: Some DV camcorders and VTRs can also act as an analog-to-DV/FireWire converter.

A 4-to-6-pin FireWire cable, available at an electronics store or an Apple-authorized retailer
A USB-to-serial adapter or internal modem serial port adapter
An RS-232 or RS-422 video deck control cable

The following illustration shows a typical non-DV-to-DV setup:

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - A Recommended Non-DV-to-DV System Using Serial Device Control - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["Computer"] -->|USB| B["USB-to-serial adapter"]
    B -->|Serial| C["Analog or digital VTR"]
    C -->|Audio| D["Amplified speakers"]
    C -->|Video| E["Standard definition monitor"]
    A -->|FireWire| F["DV converter"]
    F -->|Audio| C
    F -->|Video| C

1 With your DV converter turned off, connect the 6-pin connector on the FireWire cable to the FireWire port on your computer.
2 Connect the 4-pin connector on the FireWire cable to the DV converter.
3 Connect the video output of your VTR to the video input of the DV converter.
4 Connect the audio output of your VTR to the audio input of the DV converter.

Note: The DV converter mentioned above could possibly be a DV VTR that can convert analog video and audio input to DV/FireWire. Some decks need to be in record mode to allow this conversion. Other decks may not support this.

5 Connect the remote device control.

For details, see "Establishing Device Control" on page 206.

Final Cut Pro supports any audio interface that is compatible with Mac OS X Core Audio. The following section shows examples of the most common types of audio interfaces available for use with Final Cut Pro.

You can capture and output audio using the built-in audio ports on your computer. The built-in audio interface on your computer usually uses a stereo miniplug connector. If necessary, you can buy adapters to connect the miniplug connector to two stereo RCA or 1/4" connectors, which can then be connected to your video or audio device.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Built-in Analog Audio - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["Computer"] -->|Stereomini plug connector| B["Audio or video device"]
    B -->|RCA connector (2)| C["Computer"]

Some computers have a built-in S/PDIF optical digital port (sometimes called TOSLINK). Some CD players, DAT recorders, and digital multitrack recorders also have this optical connector, allowing you to transfer your audio digitally.

Note: The same connector is used for several digital signal formats: S/PDIF (stereo digital), AC-3 (5.1-channel surround), and ADAT Lightpipe (an 8-channel digital signal). Make sure your audio device sends and receives a 2-channel S/PDIF signal before you capture or output using this port.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Built-in S/PDIF Digital Audio - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["Computer"] -->|S/PDIF optical digital connector| B["Audio or video device"]
    B -->|Signal transmission| A

Some PCI audio interface cards have audio connectors attached directly to the card. Because there is limited space to mount audio connectors to a PCI card, RCA connectors are typically used.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - PCI Audio Interface Card With Built-in Connectors - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["Computer (PCI card with connectors)"] --> B["Audio or video device"]
    B --> C["RCA connector (2)"]
    C --> D["Computer (PCI card with connectors)"]

The majority of PCI audio interface cards have a breakout box with a large number of XLR or 1/4" connectors. The breakout box is attached to the PCI card via a long cable with a multipin connector. The long cable allows you to place the breakout box in a convenient location, so you can easily connect and disconnect to your video and audio devices without going behind your computer.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - PCI Audio Interface Card With Breakout Box - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["Computer (with PCI card)"] <--> B["Breakout box"]
    B <--> C["XLR connector (2)"]
    C --> D["Analog or digital VTR"]

There are a wide variety of USB audio interfaces available. Most support two or four audio channels at one time. USB audio interfaces vary in quality considerably, so take some time to research before you purchase. The connectors on USB interfaces vary; some interfaces have RCA connectors and others have both XLR and 1/4" tip-ring-sleeve connectors. Very inexpensive USB audio interfaces may only have a stereo miniplug.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - USB Audio Interface - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["Computer"] --> B["USB"]
    B --> C["Audio interface"]
    C --> D["Analog or digital VTR"]
    D --> E["1/4-inch Tip-Ring Sleeve (TRS) connector (2)"]
    style A fill:#f9f,stroke:#333
    style B fill:#ccf,stroke:#333
    style C fill:#cfc,stroke:#333
    style D fill:#fcc,stroke:#333
    style E fill:#ffc,stroke:#333

FireWire audio interfaces are comparable to PCI interface cards with a breakout box. The main difference is that FireWire interfaces are easier to connect and disconnect than PCI cards. A FireWire interface typically supports ten or more inputs, and at least eight outputs.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - FireWire Audio Interface - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["FireWire 400 (6-pin)"] --> B["Breakout box"]
    C["XLR connector (2)"] --> B
    B --> D["Analog or digital VTR"]
    style A fill:#f9f,stroke:#333
    style C fill:#ccf,stroke:#333
    style B fill:#cfc,stroke:#333
    style D fill:#fcc,stroke:#333

If you have an audio interface separate from your video interface, or if you are capturing audio exclusively via a dedicated audio interface, read this section. In most cases, you simply need to install the audio interface, connect the breakout box (if included), and connect the audio outputs from your video or audio device to the audio interface or breakout box. Some professional audio devices can be genlocked to the same sync signal as the interface, ensuring stable, drift-free digital capturing and recapturing.

Note: If your audio device supports remote device control, you also need to connect a device control cable. For more information, see "Establishing Device Control" on page 206.

Important: Make sure your audio interface is compatible with Mac OS X Core Audio, and includes a Core Audio driver if necessary.

To set up a system using a third-party audio interface, you need the following equipment:

your computer and display
a device-controllable audio deck, such as a DAT or multitrack deck
• appropriate analog cables for your system
an audio interface

Note: Some third-party PCI interface cards have a breakout box connected to the card with a special cable.

A USB-to-serial adapter or internal modem serial port adapter
a blackburst generator, with the appropriate cables to connect it to both your third-party audio interface and your audio deck
An RS-232 or RS-422 video deck control cable

1 Install or connect a supported audio interface card to your computer.

For more information, see the documentation that came with the audio interface and your computer.

2 If you are using a PCI card audio interface that came with a breakout box, connect the breakout box to the PCI card using the included cable.
3 Connect the audio outputs of your audio device to the audio inputs of your audio interface.
4 Connect the remote device control cable.

For details, see "Establishing Device Control" on page 206.

5 To genlock your audio deck to your audio or video interface:

a Connect one of the blackburst generator's outputs (there should be several) to the Genlock or External Sync input on your audio deck.
b Connect another of the blackburst generator's outputs to the Genlock or External Sync connector on your video or audio capture interface (depending on which one you are using to capture audio).

For more information, see "Synchronizing Equipment With a Blackburst Generator" on page 206.

6 Plug in and turn on your blackburst generator.
7 If you're using Final Cut Pro to control your audio deck, make sure that the device control switch on the equipment is set to Remote.
8 If you are using a blackburst generator, choose Final Cut Pro > User Preferences, and in the General tab of the User Preferences window, make sure that "Sync audio capture to video source if present" is selected.

For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

Professional digital audio devices often use balanced XLR connectors. Each XLR carries two AES/EBU digital audio channels. Connect the digital audio outputs of your video or audio device to your audio interface (or its breakout box). If your video interface has the appropriate connectors, you can also connect the audio outputs of your device to the audio inputs on the audio interface.

Note: Professional analog audio also uses XLR connectors, but the signal is incompatible with AES/EBU digital audio.

Consumer devices such as CD players, MiniDisc recorders, and some DAT recorders use either an optical or RCA (coax) connector for S/PDIF digital audio. S/PDIF carries two channels of digital audio, usually at a sample rate of 44.1 or 48 kHz and a bit depth of 16 bits. Connect the S/PDIF output of your audio device to the S/PDIF input on your audio or video interface, if available.

Professional analog audio devices use balanced XLR or 1/4" phone (tip-ring-sleeve) connectors for each audio channel. Most audio interfaces that support multiple audio channels come with a breakout box that contains all the connectors.

- Connect each audio output channel on the VTR or audio device to each audio input channel on the audio interface or corresponding breakout box, if included.

Device control is necessary for communication between Final Cut Pro and your VTR. Final Cut Pro sends and receives all timecode information via a device control connection. This is critical for logging, batch capturing, and frame-accurate output to tape. DV devices use FireWire for device control, but most professional non-DV decks use serial device control with the RS-422 protocol.

Professional decks use the RS-422 or RS-232 remote device control protocol via a serial data connection. The connector used is a DB9 (9-pin) connector. Since Macintosh computers do not have a DB9 port, you need to add a USB-to-serial adapter or internal modem serial port adapter.

1 Connect a USB-to-serial adapter to a USB port on your computer.

Important: For best results, always connect a USB-to-serial adapter directly to your computer, not to a USB hub connected to your computer.

2 Connect the DB9 (9-pin) connector to your device-controllable camcorder or deck, and connect the other end to the USB-to-serial adapter.

1 Install an internal modem serial port adapter in your computer's internal modem port.

2 Connect the DB9 (9-pin) connector to your device-controllable camcorder or deck, and connect the other end to the modem serial port adapter.

With most professional editing systems, you capture video, audio, and timecode via separate cables. It's important that when you capture, the VTR and the video and audio interfaces are synchronized via a common video timing signal. If digital audio samples and video lines and frames are not precisely synchronized, they eventually drift apart because they are captured at slightly different rates.

Using a common sync source is especially important when you are independently capturing long segments of video and audio to synchronize together later. If your audio deck and capture interface are not both receiving the same timing information, the sync between the audio and video portions of clips might drift over time.

A blackburst generator provides a common timing signal (or clock) to lock together the timing clocks of all devices in a system. This is sometimes referred to as external sync or house sync because every device in an entire facility can be timed to this common reference.

Professional VTRs, camcorders, audio devices, and interfaces often have the ability to accept sync signals from an external device. These connectors are labeled genlock (short for generator lock), external sync, or reference input. On some equipment, the normal composite video input of a device can be used to lock to external sync.

Important: To synchronize your video or audio devices and interfaces, they must all accept an external clock source (such as a blackburst generator).

When you genlock a deck and a video or audio capture interface, one output of the blackburst generator should be connected to the external sync input of the video or audio deck, and another output should be connected to the external sync input of your audio interface.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Synchronizing Equipment With a Blackburst Generator - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["PCI card"] --> B["Breakout box"]
    B --> C["Audio"]
    B --> D["Video"]
    C --> E["Analog or digital VTR"]
    D --> E
    F["Blackburst generator"] --> G["Reference video"]
    G --> B
    H["Reference video"] --> E

3 When your deck and video capture interface are genlocked together, you still need to:

Calibrate the timecode capture offset (found in the Device Control Presets tab in the Audio/Video Settings window) prior to capture. For more information about calibrating timecode for capture, see Volume IV, Chapter 25, "Device Control Settings and Presets."
Make sure that "Sync audio capture to video source if present" is enabled in the General tab of the User Preferences window. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

• Using an External Video Monitor While You Edit (p. 209)
- Connecting DV/FireWire Devices to an External Monitor (p. 211)
- Previewing Standard Definition Video on an External Monitor (p. 211)
- Previewing High Definition Video on an External Monitor (p. 212)
- Choosing Playback and Edit to Tape Output Settings (p. 213)
• Using Digital Cinema Desktop Preview (p. 216)
- Troubleshooting Digital Cinema Desktop Preview (p. 219)
• Compensating for Video Latency by Specifying a Frame Offset (p. 220)
- About the Display Quality of External Video (p. 221)
- Troubleshooting External Video Monitoring Problems (p. 221)
- Controlling When External Video Output Is Updated (p. 222)

If you're outputting to videotape for television broadcast, it's a good idea to preview your video on an NTSC, PAL, or HD video monitor while you edit. Color is represented differently on computer and video monitors, and computer displays always show your video progressively scanned, even though NTSC and PAL video are interlaced. You can connect an external video monitor several ways:

Via FireWire, through a camcorder, deck, or DV-to-analog converter
Directly from a third-party video interface connected to your computer

You need to match your computer's output video format to your monitor's input format. Some combinations are not possible without purchasing additional equipment. For example, if your video interface only has an SDI video output, and your video monitor only has an NTSC composite input, you cannot connect the two directly. In this case, you can:

• Purchase a monitor that supports SDI video input
• Purchase an SDI-to-composite converter
- Use a VTR that has an SDI input and composite output and supports converting between input and output signals (this solution is often used with DV decks, when FireWire DV input is converted to analog composite output)
- Purchase and install a video interface that supports composite output in addition to SDI output

Note: You can enable the Digital Cinema Desktop Preview option on your computer display to preview your video, but this won't show proper broadcast colors or interlaced video. For more information, see "Using Digital Cinema Desktop Preview" on page 216.

Throughout the Final Cut Pro 5 User Manual, a distinction is made between "video monitors" and "broadcast monitors." This is to differentiate between cases when any video monitor will do, and when only a high-quality broadcast monitor is appropriate for a given task.

In most cases, when you want to simply monitor your video signal as it will look to the audience, any standard NTSC or PAL video monitor is appropriate, and there are many inexpensive models to choose from. When performing critical tasks such as color correction, however, you should use a high-resolution broadcast monitor that can be properly calibrated to display your signal consistently and accurately.

Broadcast monitors offer manual control over every aspect of the video signal being displayed, including brightness, chroma, phase, and contrast. Additionally, broadcast monitors can often display different parts of the signal using modes such as blue only (only the blue gun traces the screen; the green and red guns are turned off), underscan, and H/V delay. Without these controls to accurately calibrate your broadcast monitor's display with the signal being output from your computer, you run the risk of making bad color correction decisions based on an inaccurate view of your program's picture.

For more information on how to use the controls on a broadcast monitor to calibrate your video signal, see "Calibrating Video Monitors With Color Bars" on page 331.

A FireWire DV setup is one of the most common Final Cut Pro configurations. A DV device (either a camcorder, VTR, or FireWire-to-analog converter box) converts DV signals to analog video and audio signals that are then sent to a video monitor (and to self-powered speakers for audio monitoring). If you have a home stereo system, you can also connect the audio output of the DV device to any available channels on the home stereo system.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Connecting DV/FireWire Devices to an External Monitor - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["Computer"] -->|FireWire| B["DV camcorder in VTR mode"]
    B -->|Composite or S-video| C["Standard definition monitor"]
    C --> D["Amplified speakers"]
    D -->|Audio| B

To connect an external NTSC or PAL monitor to your edit system to monitor DV video while you edit:

1 Connect a FireWire cable between a FireWire port on your computer and the FireWire port on your DV device.
2 Connect the analog video outputs of the DV device to an external video monitor. Depending on the device, the video output may be a composite or S-video signal, using either an RCA, BNC, or S-video connector.

While you edit, you can preview standard definition video on an NTSC or PAL monitor. Make sure that the output format of your video interface and the input format of your video monitor match. If you have a consumer monitor, it probably has only composite analog video input, even though your video interface may support a higher-quality output format (such as SDI or component analog).

- Connect a BNC or RCA cable from the video output of the video interface to the video input of the NTSC or PAL.

You can preview high definition video directly on a high definition monitor, or you can use a special device to downconvert high definition video to standard definition for previewing video on an SD monitor. Many high definition VTRs have a built-in downconverter.

Note: DVCPRO HD video, like DV video, can be monitored via FireWire.

1 Connect the HD-SDI video output of your high definition video interface to the HD-SDI input of a HD monitor.
2 In Final Cut Pro, choose View > Video Playback, then select your HD video interface from the list of options.
3 Choose View > External Video > All Frames (or press Command-F12).

1 Connect the HD-SDI video output of your high definition video interface to the HD-SDI input on your HD VTR.

Note: Make sure your HD VTR has a built-in standards converter.

2 Connect the standard definition video output from your VTR to an SD monitor. This output could be SDI, composite analog, or another format.

3 In Final Cut Pro, choose View > Video Playback, then select your HD video interface from the list of options.

4 If external video monitoring is not already enabled, choose View > External Video > All Frames (or press Command-F12).

1 Connect a FireWire cable between the FireWire port on your computer and the FireWire port on your DVCPRO HD VTR.

2 Do one of the following:

For downconversion and display on an SD monitor: Connect the SDI or composite video output of your VTR to an SD monitor.
For display on an HD monitor: Connect the HD-SDI video output of your DVCPRO HD deck to the HD-SDI input of an HD monitor.

3 Choose View > Video Playback > DVCPRO HD.

If the DVCPRO HD device does not appear in the menu, make sure the device is connected and turned on, then choose View > Refresh A/V Devices.

4 Choose View > External Video > All Frames (or press Command-F12).

The settings in the A/V Devices tab of the Audio/Video Settings window determine which video interface you use to externally monitor your video. You can choose to view external video via FireWire (DV), a computer display (using Digital Cinema Desktop), or a third-party video interface. You can also specify a different output interface for editing to tape versus playback while editing.

Although these settings reside in the A/V Devices tab of the Audio/Video Settings window, you can choose a video interface from several other locations in Final Cut Pro:

Summary tab in the Audio/Video Settings window: In this tab, you can choose video and audio output interfaces from the corresponding pop-up menus.
View menu: Instead of going to the Audio/Video Settings window, you can select video and audio interfaces for external monitoring by choosing the following:
• View > Video Playback and then choosing the name of the video interface
• View > Audio Playback and then choosing the name of the audio interface

Note: When you select an Easy Setup, the external video and audio playback settings are automatically set for you because A/V Device settings are stored in an Easy Setup. For more information about Easy Setups, see Volume IV, Chapter 23, "Audio/Video Settings and Easy Setups."

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings, then click the A/V Devices tab.
2 Choose the settings you want, then click OK.

• Video pop-up menu: Choose an device to output video to.

- None: This turns off external video output. If you play clips or sequences in Final Cut Pro, you can't view them on your camcorder, deck, or NTSC or PAL monitor.

- Digital Cinema Desktop Preview: Depending on the number of computer displays you have connected, there are several options. For details, see "Using Digital Cinema Desktop Preview" on page 216.

- Apple FireWire NTSC (720 x 480): If you're using a computer with built-in FireWire and an NTSC device is properly connected to your computer and turned on, this choice appears. If you choose this option and you have a video monitor connected to your DV device, your video will be displayed on it.

- Apple FireWire PAL (720 x 576): If you're using a computer with built-in FireWire and a PAL device is properly connected to your computer and turned on, this choice appears. If you choose this option and you have a video monitor connected to your DV device, your video will be displayed on it.

- DVCPRO HD: If a DVCPRO HD device is connected, you can choose the DVCPRO HD device here. The name displayed depends on the Easy Setup you currently have selected: 1080i60, 1080i50, or 720p.

- Other available video interface: If you have a third-party video interface installed, it appears in this list. Choose the video interface to view video on a monitor that's connected to the interface.

- Options button: Depending on your video interface and its associated codec, the video frames may need to be decompressed when viewing video on an external monitor. Click Options, then check the box next to "Decompress after compress." This option is not available when using FireWire. If you're using a third-party video interface, check the documentation that came with it to see if you should use this option.

- Mirror on desktop: Select this checkbox to simultaneously show video on both your computer's display (the Canvas or Viewer) and an external video monitor. Some third-party video interfaces may override this setting.

- Audio pop-up menu: Choose an audio device to output audio to. For information about choosing audio output settings, see Volume III, Chapter 2, "Setting Up Audio Equipment."

- Rendered Frames: This option may only appear when certain output devices are selected. If you choose this option, rendered frames will be displayed on your external monitor, as well as video that doesn't require rendering.

- Different Output for Edit to Tape/Print to Video: Selecting this checkbox allows you to redirect your program's output to the specified video and audio interfaces whenever the Edit to Tape or Print to Video commands are used. For example, if you're using a video interface, you may want to preview your video using its analog outputs during editing, but output your final movie to tape using the digital SDI output.

When this option is selected, all the controls in this section become available. All controls in this section are identical to, but independent of, those appearing in the Playback Output area, above.

Note: If this option is not selected, your sequence video and audio are always sent to the video and audio interfaces specified in the Playback Output controls—even when the Edit to Tape and Print to Video commands are used.

- Do not show External A/V Device Warning when device not found on launch: When selected, this option disables the "Unable to locate the external video device" dialog that appears when Final Cut Pro is opened without a camcorder, deck, or video interface installed. Instead, Final Cut Pro finishes opening, and External Video is automatically set to "Off" in the View menu. When this checkbox is selected, Final Cut Pro continues to attempt to locate an installed video device each time it is opened, but does not display a warning requiring user input in its absence.

If the "Don't Show Again" box is selected in the "Unable to locate the external video device" dialog, it is also selected in the A/V Devices tab of the Audio/Video Settings window.

If no video device is connected when Final Cut Pro opens, but you connect one while Final Cut Pro is open, you will not be able to immediately use it. If the video device does not appear in the View > Video Playback, make sure the device is connected and turned on, then choose View > Refresh A/V Devices.

- Do not show warning when audio outputs are greater than audio device channels: This option affects the Audio Output tab in Sequence Settings window. If this option is disabled, you will see a warning every time you choose more audio outputs than available from the currently selected audio device.

For example, if your audio device has only two audio outputs, and you configure your sequence to have six audio outputs, a warning dialog appears when you click OK to close the Sequence Settings window. To disable this warning, select this option.

The Digital Cinema Desktop Preview feature allows you to preview your video using any available computer display connected to an AGP graphics card. (Displays connected to a PCI graphics card cannot be used by Digital Cinema Desktop.) If you have two computer displays, one can be used to view the Final Cut Pro interface and the Finder while the other can be used as a dedicated video monitor. For Final Cut Pro PowerBook systems and other single display systems, you can switch between the user interface and the Digital Cinema Desktop Preview display.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Using Digital Cinema Desktop Preview - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["Display (Final Cut Pro)"] --> B["Computer"]
    B --> C["Graphics card"]
    C --> D["Audio interface"]
    D --> E["Amplified speakers"]
    B --> F["Display (Digital Cinema Desktop)"]
    style A fill:#f9f,stroke:#333
    style E fill:#bbf,stroke:#333

Important: If you are doing critical online editing or color correction, you should use an external CRT broadcast monitor that supports the format you are editing (NTSC, PAL, HD, and so on), especially when your final output is interlaced video.

You choose the Digital Cinema Desktop Preview options in one of several locations:

The Video Playback options in the View menu
The options in the Playback Output Video pop-up menu in the A/V Devices tab of the Audio/Video Settings window
The options in the Video Playback pop-up menu in the Summary tab of the Audio/Video settings window

There are several settings you can choose:

• Digital Cinema Desktop Preview - Main
• Digital Cinema Desktop Preview
• Digital Cinema Desktop Preview - Full-Screen
• Digital Cinema Desktop Preview - Raw

Note: The Main option is available on single-display systems, but the remaining options are available only if you have two or more displays connected to AGP graphics cards.

Video is shown on the main computer display (that normally shows the menu bar for applications). This option is available at all times, regardless of how many monitors you have connected. Video presented on the main display is always shown in full-screen mode and scaled to fit the display in at least one dimension. If the aspect ratio of the video signal and the computer display do not match, the video on the display is letterboxed (black on top and bottom) or pillarboxed (black on sides) as necessary. This is identical to full-screen mode on a second monitor.

Pro: You can use this format on single-display systems, such as a PowerBook editing system.
Con: The normal computer interface is covered by the Digital Cinema Desktop Preview display, so you can't see Final Cut Pro when you choose to view full-screen video this way.

The video is shown at its normal scale (there is a 1:1 relationship between pixels in your video and pixels on the display). However, if the video pixel dimensions are larger than the dimensions of the display, the video is scaled to fit on the display.

Pro: The video always maintains proper aspect ratio and does not exhibit scaling artifacts due to magnification.
Con: Some formats, especially SD formats, may look very small when displayed on large computer displays.

The video is scaled to maximize its size on the display. If the aspect ratio of the video signal and the computer display do not match, the video on the display is letterboxed (black on top and bottom) or pillarboxed (black on sides) as necessary. For example, 16 x 9 video shown on a 4 x 3 display is scaled until the width of the video matches the width of the display, and the top and bottom are letterboxed.

Pro: This format gives you the biggest picture possible and maintains the proper aspect ratio.
Con: Scaling artifacts may be noticeable when viewed up close.

This mode shows your video data with as little processing as possible—there is no scaling or pixel aspect ratio correction. For example, a 720p frame (1280 x 720) shown in raw mode on an 800 x 600 display only shows 800 x 600 pixels of the image. This can be useful for engineering evaluations of the image.

• Pro: More accurate assessments of video quality can be made.
- Con: Not useful for general viewing. No scaling or pixel aspect ratio adjustments are made, even when the video is larger than the display.

Unlike using a third-party video interface (or DV via FireWire), directly monitoring video on a computer display does not introduce video latency (inherent processing delays). Therefore, Final Cut Pro ignores the frame delay offset setting when you preview your video on a computer display connected to an AGP graphics card.

Tip: Regular editing commands still work when full-screen video is presented on the main display. This means you can still set In and Out points, use the J, K, and L keys for playback, and so on. For a list of shortcut keys, choose Tools > Keyboard Layout > Customize, or see the Final Cut Pro 5 Quick Reference.

1 Choose View > Video Playback, then choose one of the available Digital Cinema Desktop Preview choices.
2 Choose View > External Video > All Frames (or press Command-F12).
3 To listen to audio in sync with video output on a computer display, make sure the audio frame offset value is set to 0.

For information about how to set the frame offset for audio/video latency compensation, see "Compensating for Video Latency by Specifying a Frame Offset" on page 220.

Important: Command-F12 is the default keyboard shortcut for turning external video monitoring on and off. When full-screen video is presented on the main display, the menu bar cannot be seen, so you need to use this keyboard shortcut.

It's important to know how to turn off the Digital Cinema Desktop Preview option, especially when you are using full-screen mode on the main display.

■ Press Command-F12.
■ Press the Escape key.

If you experience trouble when using Digital Cinema Desktop Preview, review the following:

In Mac OS X System Preferences, the screen saver should be turned off (set the Start screen saver slider to Never in the Screen Saver tab of the Desktop & Screen Saver pane).
Digital Cinema Desktop Preview only works with AGP graphics cards. For triple monitor configurations, you should use a PCI graphics card for your computer display, and an AGP graphics card for any monitors you intend to use for Digital Cinema Desktop Preview.
Due to the refresh rate of LCD computer monitors, 1080i 60 and 720p60 material may exhibit temporal artifacts during playback.
Interlaced media is scanned progressively at the frame rate instead of the field rate, Therefore, when viewing formats such as 1080i 60 or standard definition NTSC or PAL, both fields are scanned simultaneously, which may result in interlacing artifacts.
If you need to change your display resolution, do so prior to launching Final Cut Pro.
LCD Cinema Displays have a longer decay period between each frame when compared to lines being scanned on a CRT. At times, the same video image may be visible on screen for a period of up to four to seven frames.
Turning on Digital Cinema Desktop playback can reduce the number of real-time effects available in your sequence. However, the real-time status of these effects is not updated in the Effects menu or the Effects tab in the Browser).
Refrain from clicking on the monitor upon initially enabling Digital Cinema Desktop Preview (especially in Single User mode).
Exposé is not supported with Digital Cinema Desktop Preview.
Graphics files with a resolution of 1920x1200 and larger may not display properly.
Digital Cinema Desktop Preview must be disabled when performing a Print to Video operation.
If you do not have a second display connected to your computer, Digital Cinema Desktop Preview – Full Screen or Digital Cinema Desktop Preview options are not available.

No matter what signal format you use for external monitoring, all digital video and audio interfaces (including FireWire) introduce inherent processing delays (known as latency) to signals sent out of the computer. External video and audio coming from the built-in FireWire port or third-party interface may be several frames later than the video on your computer display (in the Viewer or Canvas). The latency, or offset, between different devices can make precise editing difficult.

By changing the frame offset value in Final Cut Pro, you can compensate for the delay between your computer display and external video and audio outputs. Frame offset is active only when your sequence real-time effects are handled by Final Cut Pro. For information about setting the Effects Handling tab of the System Settings window, see Volume III, Chapter 23, "Using RT Extreme."

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > System Settings.
2 Click the Playback Control tab.
3 Enter a number of frames in the Frame Offset number field.

Frame offset can be any whole number between 0 and 30. The default value is 4. For example, if a video monitor connected to your DV camcorder shows your program 4 frames later than your computer display, a frame offset of 4 will synchronize the two.

Note: Depending on your external monitor configuration, you may need to experiment with frame offset values to synchronize the external monitor and the computer display.

4 Click OK.
5 In the Canvas or Viewer, play and compare the video offset between your external monitor and your computer display.
6 If the computer display and external monitor are still not synchronized, repeat steps 1 through 5 using different frame offset values until the display and monitor are in sync.

Note: Final Cut Pro automatically compensates for latency in third-party audio cards if proper Mac OS X Core Audio drivers are provided.

The display quality of your video depends on several factors:

Whether you have effects applied to your clips.
Whether your clip or sequence settings match the video output device.
The video and frame rate options selected in the Real-Time Effects (RT) pop-up menu in the Timeline or in the Playback Control tab of the System Settings window. The status of the Scrub High Quality option also affects playback quality when your video is paused or when you are scrubbing.

The external video signal is displayed at the quality selected in the RT pop-up menu and Playback Control tab of the System Settings window. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 23, "Using RT Extreme."

If you experience problems while viewing your sequence, there are a few things you can try.

To quickly choose a different video interface for external monitoring, do one of the following:

Choose Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings. In the Summary tab, choose a video interface (or none) from the External Video pop-up menu, then click OK.
Choose View > Video Playback, then choose a video interface.

If you cannot see external video on your monitor, try the following:

- Choose View > Refresh A/V Devices to update the list of connected devices.

Note: This is especially useful if you just connected an audio or video device without quitting Final Cut Pro.

- Choose View > External Video > All Frames (or press Command-F12).

If you are using a third-party video interface, check the cable connections between the video interface, breakout box (if applicable), and video monitor.

If you are using FireWire and DV, check the FireWire connection between your computer and VTR (or other FireWire DV device) and the cables between the DV device and the external monitor.

■ Make sure output connectors are always connected to inputs, and vice versa.

If your monitor has multiple inputs, make sure the proper input is selected on the front panel of the monitor or in the monitor's onscreen menu.

■ Make sure the signal formats of your output device match the signal format of your monitor. For example, both SDI and composite analog video can use a BNC connector, but the signal formats are incompatible.

If you are using a FireWire DV camcorder to convert DV to analog video, make sure the camcorder is in VCR (or VTR) mode and that it is turned on.
If you are using a VTR to convert video from your video interface to a format for your video monitor, make sure you select the proper input connector on the VTR. For example, if your VTR has both SDI and component analog video inputs, and your video interface is connected to the VTR via an SDI connection, choose SDI input on the VTR. You may also need to put the deck in E-to-E (electronics to electronics, or signal passthrough) mode.

Updating the external video output requires processing power. You can control how often the external video output is updated.

1 Choose View > External Video.
2 Choose an option from the submenu.

- Off: Turns off external video and audio output so nothing plays on your video monitor. This allows you to perform more real-time effects.

- All Frames: Updates every frame to the external video output. This includes scrubbing, jogging and playback.

- Single Frames: Updates external video output when you manually choose to display a frame. This frees your CPU to do more real-time effects but still allows you to preview single frames on your external video output. When this option is selected, you can update the video output device by choosing View > External Video > Show Current.

Learn how to log clips, capture video and audio files to your hard disk, and import media into your Final Cut Pro project.

Chapter 17 Overview of Logging and Capturing
Chapter 18 Logging Clips
Chapter 19 Capturing Your Footage to Disk
Chapter 20 Capturing Audio
Chapter 21 Working With Batch Lists
Chapter 22 Importing Media Files Into Your Project
Chapter 23 Using Color Bars for Video Calibration

You can log your tapes to create clips, or regions of your videotape that you want to use in your movie. Then you can capture your clips as media files on disk.

This chapter covers the following:

• What Are Logging and Capturing? (p. 225)
- Ways to Log and Capture Footage in Final Cut Pro (p. 226)
- Learning About the Log and Capture Window (p. 229)
• Are You Ready to Log and Capture? (p. 235)

In Final Cut Pro, logging and capturing are two separate, but related, tasks. When a movie production wraps, the raw footage is delivered to the editor in relatively lengthy tapes, or reels. During the logging process, the editor reviews each tape, identifying the useful portions to be captured to the hard disk for editing. Timecode In and Out points are used to identify each portion.

Logging tapes is a critical step in every movie project. After you create clips by logging, you capture the regions of tape defined by the clips to media files on disk. Clips in your project represent the captured media files on a hard disk, but they are not the actual media files.

Note: Although videotape is still the predominant acquisition media format for camcorders, nonlinear media, such as optical discs, Flash RAM, and hard disks are becoming increasingly common. You may also be using film, but in most cases the film is first transferred to videotape or other media previously mentioned. For simplicity, this book generally refers to acquisition media as videotape.

In the early days of nonlinear editing systems, there was only one log and capture workflow: log first to create clips, then batch capture selected clips' media. This workflow was necessary because hard disk capacity was limited, so editors had to be selective about what they captured. Although this is still a good workflow for some projects, it is no longer necessary to log your footage first and then batch capture.

Today, inexpensive, high-capacity hard disks allow editors to capture entire tapes and log afterward. Once your footage is on the hard disk, you can review it more efficiently than when it is on tape, which makes logging go faster.

In Final Cut Pro, most logging and capturing is done in the Log and Capture window, but you can also use the Browser to add logging information to clips after you capture. The most common logging and capturing workflows are described below.

This is the traditional method of logging and capturing. In this case, you watch your footage by playing videotapes in a deck or camcorder connected to Final Cut Pro. You can set In and Out points using the timecode information coming into Final Cut Pro, and create clips that represent portions of your original videotape. After you finish logging, you capture media for only the clips you think are necessary for your project. Capturing the media files for many clips at once is called batch capturing.

Logging: Use the Log Clip button in the Log and Capture window.
Capturing: Batch capture selected clips that you think are useful for your project.

With this method, you log clips using a deck connected to Final Cut Pro, but you capture each clip immediately after you log it. This is probably the most time-consuming of all the methods because, unlike batch capturing, which is a semi-automated task, you oversee the capture of each clip immediately after you log it.

Despite being more inefficient, this method is the most thorough and avoids any pitfalls that may occur with automated batch capturing. If your tapes have a lot of unexpected timecode breaks, or if you simply want to log and capture one or two clips from a tape, you may prefer this method.

- Logging and Capturing: Use the Capture Clip button in the Log and Capture window to log a clip to your project and capture its media file immediately afterward.

This method is increasingly popular because hard disk space is no longer prohibitively expensive. Instead of choosing selected footage to transfer to your hard disk, you capture entire tapes. Once on disk, you can break the footage into smaller subclips, add logging information in the Browser, and delete unnecessary media from your hard disk.

Capturing: Capture entire tapes using the Capture Now button in the Log and Capture window.
Logging: In the Browser, break the clip representing each tape into smaller subclips and add logging information.
Media management: After you create subclips, you can break large media files into smaller media files, one for each subclip, and delete any media you don't need for your project. The result is that you only have media files for clips you want to use.

There are several advantages to this method:

Capturing entire tapes causes less wear on the tapes than traditional logging because you only have to play them back once, straight through, to transfer media files to the hard disk.
Logging the media on the hard disk after capture is faster than tape-based logging because you can access any frame instantly. You can also loop playback on a particular shot to review it multiple times. On tape this would be much more time-consuming.

Note: If you are using an uncompressed video format, the amount of hard disk space required to capture entire tapes may still be too high, even with the cost of hard disk space dropping rapidly. When you are editing with uncompressed video, it can still be more cost-effective to log your tape first, then capture selected regions.

Some editors prefer to log their footage outside of Final Cut Pro, then import a batch list of clips to automatically batch capture.

Logging: In a spreadsheet or database application, enter clip name, reel name, Media Start and End points, and other logging information, save it as a tab delimited text file, then import this batch list into Final Cut Pro.
Capturing: Batch capture selected clips that you think are useful for your project.

You can create clips directly in the Browser using the New Offline Clip command in the File menu. You can enter pertinent logging information, and then batch capture the clips. This approach is useful if you are only creating a few clips, or if you have a handwritten list of clips that you logged somewhere else. Otherwise, creating and importing a batch list may be faster.

Logging: Create clips in the Browser, then add the reel number, Media Start and End points, and any additional logging information to the various columns in the Browser. To create new offline clips quickly, you can assign a shortcut key to the New Offline Clip command (see "Assigning Keyboard Shortcuts" on page 146).
Capturing: Batch capture the clips you created to make them online.

If you already have a handwritten list of clips and log notes, you can manually turn them into clips in Final Cut Pro using the Log and Capture window. This works in the same way as logging the tape, but no VTR is actually connected. This is an alternative to creating offline clips directly in the Browser.

Logging: Use the Log Clip button in the Log and Capture window.
Capturing: Batch capture the clips you created to make them online.

Important: Whenever you create clips from NTSC footage without a tape in your video device, you risk entering the wrong type of timecode (drop frame instead of non-drop frame or vice versa) because Final Cut Pro isn't reading timecode directly from the tape itself. If you are manually entering timecode in the Log and Capture window, and there is no tape in the device, make sure that the Default Timecode pop-up menu in the device control preset you are using is set to the proper timecode (for more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 25, "Device Control Settings and Presets." You can also Control-click on the timecode field for the clip In or Out point in the Log and Capture window and choose between drop frame or non-drop frame timecode.

The Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format can be used to represent entire projects, including sequences, bins, and clips. Using any XML-compliant application, you can create an entire project in the Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format, import the XML file, and then batch capture the clips. This is similar to importing a batch list, but with XML you can create not only clips, but sequences, bins, effects, and so on.

Logging: Import the XML file into Final Cut Pro.
Capturing: Batch capture the clips you created to make them online.

The Log and Capture window provides controls for controlling a VTR or camcorder, previewing video from tape, setting In and Out points, logging, and capturing clips.

To open the Log and Capture window:

- Choose File > Log and Capture (or press Command-8).

There are several areas in the Log and Capture window.

Preview area: On the left is the area where you view video while logging clips. This area contains transport controls, marking controls, and timecode fields. If device control is not enabled, the transport controls do not appear.
Tabs: On the right are the Logging, Clip Settings, and Capture Settings tabs.
Log and capture buttons: You use one of these buttons when you are ready to log a clip or capture media.

This section of the Log and Capture window lets you view video from tape while you log and capture it. If your camcorder or deck is not on or there is no tape inserted, you'll see color bars or black. The following controls appear if your camcorder or deck is on and properly connected, and device control is enabled.

Available space and time Current Timecode field Timecode Duration field Video preview area Shuttle control Transport controls Jog control Clip In Point Timecode field Device status Clip Out Point Timecode field

Available space and time: Final Cut Pro displays the amount of available space on the current scratch disk and the amount of capture time available, which depends on the capture preset chosen in the Capture/Input pop-up menu in the Capture Settings tab.
Device status: Shows the readiness of camcorders and decks connected to your computer and being controlled by Final Cut Pro. If you see "VTR OK," your equipment is connected and working properly. If you see another message or for more information, see "Understanding Device Control Status Messages" on page 177.
Timecode Duration field: Displays the duration, in timecode, between the current tape In and Out points. If you enter a duration in this field, the Out point is adjusted.
Current Timecode field: Displays the timecode number of the current frame of your source tape. You can enter a timecode number in this field to navigate to that timecode point on your tape.

Tip: You can drag timecode values to the Log and Capture timecode fields from other timecode fields in Final Cut Pro, such as Browser columns. Hold down the Option key while you drag a timecode value from a column in the Browser to either the Timecode Duration or the Current Timecode field.

If you have device control, use these to control your camcorder or deck. These controls are similar to controls in the Viewer and Canvas, except that they control playback of a videotape instead of a media file. For more information, see "Navigating in the Viewer and Canvas" on page 97.

Rewind Play In to Out Stop Play Fast Forward Play Around Current Frame

Jog and shuttle controls, similar to those in the Viewer and Canvas, are also available for navigating through the tape. For more information, see "Navigating in the Viewer and Canvas" on page 97.

Jog control Shuttle control 01:13:06:12 VTR OK 01:13:17:09

In the Log and Capture window, you can use the J, K, and L keys for jogging and shuttling, just as you can in the Viewer and Canvas. For more information about using the J, K, and L keys to navigate through your clip, see "Shuttling Through a Clip or Sequence" on page 101 and "Jogging Through a Clip or Sequence" on page 102.

Note: Tape playback is not as efficient as playback from media files on your hard disk. It takes a few seconds for a tape to cue to the proper frames or change playback direction.

Use these to set In and Out points for a clip on tape.

Clip In Point Timecode field Go to In Point 01:13:06:12 Mark In VTR OK Clip Out Point Timecode field Go to Out Point 01:13:17:09 Mark Out

Mark In (I): This sets the In point for a clip on tape.
Clip In Point Timecode field: Shows the timecode value of the currently set In point.
Go to In Point: This causes the connected VTR to cue to the currently set In point.
Mark Out (O): This sets the Out point for a clip on tape.
Clip Out Point Timecode field: Shows the timecode of the currently set Out point.
Go to Out Point This causes the connected camcorder or VTR to cue to the currently set Out point.

The Log and Capture window has several tabs:

- Logging: Use this tab to add descriptive information to each clip that you log, such as reel name, In and Out points, scene/take number, markers, and so on. Much of this information can also be added later in the Browser. For more information, see "Logging a Clip" on page 256.

Logging Clip Settings Capture Settings Log Bin: Cafe footage Reel: 001 Name: Debra enters cafe_3 Description: Debra enters cafe Scene: 6 Short/Take: 3 Angle: 1 Log Note: needs color correction Prompt Good Markers: Marker: Set Marker 00:00:00:00 00:00:00:00 Update Log Clip Clip Now Capture Batch

- Clip Settings: Use this tab to choose which video and audio tracks you capture from tape. You can choose to capture video only, audio only, or both video and audio, and you can specify which audio channels you capture. You can also adjust video levels for each clip using the waveform monitor and vectorscope; audio levels can be monitored using the audio meters. You can also monitor the incoming audio signal by selecting the Preview option. For more information, see "Selecting Which Tracks to Capture" on page 253.

Note: Video levels can only be adjusted for analog video interfaces.

Logging Clip Settings Capture Settings Video Scopes Use Digitizer's Default Settings Video- 180 Saturation 50 Brightness 50 Contrast 50 Back offset 50 Multi location 50 Audio Input Channels 2 Preview Master Chips 0 dB 1 2 Capture Log Clip Clip Now Batch

- Capture Settings: Use this tab to select a scratch disk for capture, a capture preset (video and audio rate, compression settings, and frame size) and a device control preset to remotely control your video or audio device. For more information, see "Changing Capture Settings" on page 255.

Logging Clip Settings Capture Settings Device Control: FireWire PAL Capture/Input: DV PAL 48 kHz Scratch Disks... Free Space: 10.0 GB (AV) (Unknown) Capture Now Limited To 30 min -Capture Log Clip Clip Now Batch

As you log and capture, use the following log and capture buttons.

Log Clip Capture Clip Now Batch

Log Clip: Logs a single clip with the current log information and clip settings.
Capture Clip: Logs and captures a single clip with the current log information, clip settings, and capture settings.
Capture Now: Captures the current video and audio input to a media file on disk until you press the escape key. No In or Out points are necessary. You can use this to capture an entire tape as a single media file.
Capture Batch: Captures the selected clips in the Browser, or the clips in the currently assigned logging bin.

Before you log and capture your footage, go through the following list to make sure you are ready for either process:

- Have you created a project in which to log and capture?

You need a project to log clips to, as well as to edit in. When you open Final Cut Pro for the first time, an untitled project is created by default, which you can rename to make your own. You can also create a new project by choosing File > New Project.

- Are your video and audio devices connected to your computer?

There should be a connection from your camcorder or VTR to your computer. For more information, see “Connecting Your Camcorder” on page 169 or Chapter 15, “Connecting Professional and Non-DV Equipment,” on page 191.

- Have you chosen a scratch disk where you want to store your captured files?

The scratch disk is a hard disk, internal or external to your computer, where Final Cut Pro stores captured media files and render files. For more information, see "Specifying Scratch Disks for Capturing Video and Storing Render Files" on page 171.

• Have you selected the correct Easy Setup?

Easy Setups are software configurations based on commonly used capture, device control, and sequence settings. Choosing the proper Easy Setup automatically configures Final Cut Pro so your capture preset matches your tape format, and your device properly communicates via a device control preset. For more information, see "Choosing an Easy Setup" on page 170 and Volume IV, Chapter 23, "Audio/Video Settings and Easy Setups."

For many editors, logging is the first phase of editing, when they identify which shots to capture from tape. The logging information you enter at this stage serves as a guide throughout the project.

This chapter covers the following:

• The Importance of Logging (p. 237)
• Benefits of Logging (p. 238)
• Preparing to Log (p. 239)
• Monitoring Video and Audio While Logging (p. 242)
- Entering Logging Information and Logging Clips (p. 243)
- Avoiding Duplicate Timecode Numbers on a Single Tape (p. 257)
• Additional Sources for Logging Information (p. 259)

Because of the deadline-driven nature of moviemaking, it is tempting to skip the time-consuming preparatory steps in an effort to produce results faster. Don't make this mistake. The benefits of accurate logging usually come late in a project, such as in the media management and finishing phases, when time is at a premium.

To log your tapes using Final Cut Pro, you connect your camcorder or deck to your computer and use the Logging tab in the Log and Capture window to specify the reel number, timecode In and Out points, and name of each clip you create.

In the Logging tab, you can also add details about each clip such as a clip description, scene number, shot or take number, and general logging notes. You can also select a checkbox labeled Good to identify the best of several takes. Once you have edited several projects, you may devise your own particular rules and abbreviations for these descriptive fields.

Each clip that you log is stored in your project, and all of the descriptive information in the clip can be changed in the Browser or using the Item Properties window. For more information about changing clip properties, see Volume II, Chapter 5, "Working With Projects, Clips, and Sequences."

Important: When you log in Final Cut Pro, you add descriptive information to clips, not to media files. This means that all of your logging information is stored in your project file, not the media files on disk. If you delete your project file or clips from the Browser, your logging information is gone forever.

Aside from the practical matters of selecting which footage to capture to disk, logging has many editorial benefits, too:

By watching the footage, you familiarize yourself with the material of your project. The better you know your footage, the more options you have when you're stuck in an editorial corner.
Adding descriptive notes, comments, and labels to the footage helps you, and other editors on the project, navigate large amounts of original source material.
The first time you watch the footage is a unique occasion to view it objectively. Your gut reactions are important to note at this time. They serve as valuable reminders of what a first-time viewer may think of the footage long after you have seen the same shots over and over again.
Meticulous logging can identify problem shots early on, when there is still a chance to fix them. For example, if there is only one take of a particular scene, and it is flawed, the director may have an opportunity to reshoot it if informed early enough. Usually, these discoveries should be made in production, during the review of dailies. As an editor, you have the potential to warn the production crew of possible errors before it is too late.
Logging can reduce the amount of footage you capture and edit with. Editing is a constant process of refinement and reduction of footage. When you log your footage, you can often eliminate a large amount of footage before you start editing.

During the logging stage, you find out just how organized you really were during the production phase. No matter how careful you were, a few things may not have been labeled properly, or some information may be missing. Take time before you begin postproduction to get your tapes as organized as possible.

Remember that the list below is really a production checklist. However, any inconsistencies during production should be straightened out before you start logging and capturing.

Clearly label each of your tapes (reels) with a unique, simple name.
If for any reason you ever leave the Final Cut Pro editing environment to work on another system, simpler reel names will cause less confusion. See “Choosing Reel Names” on page 240.
Use a simple clip-naming convention.
Final Cut Pro can handle long clip names, but other systems often can't. See "Choosing Names and Log Information for Clips" on page 241.
Identify the audio sample rate and bit depth of your tapes.
You should always log and capture your footage with matching sample rate and bit depth settings.

Clips represent media files on your hard disk, but they also represent sections of your original tapes between In and Out points. If you accidentally delete a clip's media file on disk, you can always recapture it from the original tape. Being able to recapture your media from the original tapes is critical for most postproduction workflows.

Final Cut Pro can identify which portion of a tape to recapture using the following clip properties:

Reel name: This is usually the name written on the tape label during production or just prior to postproduction.
Media Start and End timecode: A clip's Media Start and End timecode numbers identify the start and end frames of the clip on your tape. Timecode is the critical link between clips in your project, media files on disk, and the footage on your tapes.

A reel name identifies which tape a clip comes from, and timecode identifies where on the reel a particular clip is located.

Important: If your original tapes don't have timecode, it is impossible to accurately recapture your tapes because Final Cut Pro has no way of ensuring that you are capturing the exact same frames each time. For suggestions about logging and capturing footage without timecode, see "Capturing Footage Without Device Control" on page 276.

Older editing systems accepted three-digit reel numbers, starting at 000 and ending at 999. For maximum compatibility, this is a good naming convention to start with. Unless you have over a thousand tapes in your project, this reel naming convention should be sufficient.

You can use the digits of your reel name to mean different things. For example, the first digit can be used to represent a particular location, with space for 100 tapes per location. 100–199 could be used for tapes shot in Washington, D.C., while 200–299 could be used for tapes shot in Los Angeles, and so on. Pick a consistent method, and if you have to break your convention, have some numbers reserved just for this. For instance, you could reserve 900–999 for miscellaneous tapes that don't fit your naming convention.

Note: Tapes recorded using professional video equipment allow the user to define the timecode with custom hour numbers, so you can use those for your reel names. For example, tape 001 would begin at timecode 01:00:00:00, and tape 022 would start at timecode 22:00:00:00, and so on. Of course, this method only works if you have less than 24 tapes.

Most mini-DV devices don't allow you to set custom hour numbers, so with these devices the best policy is to write reel names onto the tapes themselves, and to use these to identify your tapes.

Note: If you plan on exporting an EDL, there are restrictions on the reel names you can use. The restrictions depend on what EDL format you're using. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 10, "Importing and Exporting EDLs."

When logging, always make sure that you:

Label your tapes with simple, unique names. If the reel names you used during production are too long and complicated, you may want to relabel your tapes when you start postproduction, using a simpler, more consistent naming convention.
Assign the proper reel name to each clip before you log and capture it. If a clip is assigned the wrong reel name, Final Cut Pro asks for the wrong tape whenever you recapture. You can change a clip's reel name in the Browser, or by selecting the clip and choosing Modify > Timecode. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 25, "Working With Timecode."

Before you start logging clips, think about the fundraising scheme you want to use for your project. It's easier to edit when you have an organized naming system, especially if there are several people working on a project at one time. This will help you avoid duplicate clip names.

Important: Captured media files are named after the clips that are used to capture them. You should avoid certain characters in your filenames. For more information, see "Filenaming Considerations" on page 37.

These include narrative and educational projects or projects with scripts that actors adhere to. Projects like this can benefit from:

Using the Description field to name each separate shot.
The auto-incrementing numbers in the logging fields. Each time you log a clip the number at the end of a logging field is automatically incremented so you can focus on logging the content of your footage. Use this feature to keep track of where your clips fit into the overall script.
Using the Good checkbox to identify the takes you want to use while editing. Your first impression is important, and you might forget what it was later on. When you're ready to start capturing your clips, you can use the Find command (or sort by the Good column in the Browser), to select only the clips you've marked as good, and then capture them, if you like.

These include not only documentaries, but any kind of project where the majority of your material is unscripted interviews, found footage, or previously recorded or stock material.

Use the Prompt checkbox to enter clip names as you think of them. It's a good idea to identify clips by their content, as well as by where you might use them in your project.
You can use the Notes field in the Prompt window (where you enter the name of a logged clip) to enter the scene number where you think that clip might be placed. Later, you can sort your clips in the Browser by the Notes column and all of your clips will be grouped by scene number.

- Use markers, especially if you're logging long takes. Markers can remind you, later on when you're editing, of sections of video that you liked.

- Feel free to log more clips than you intend to capture. Especially when editing an unscripted piece, you never know when you're going to need an alternate take or a B-roll shot that you didn't initially think you'd use. If you log all of the shots on a given reel for reference, you can use the Good checkbox to mark the shots that you know you want to capture right away. You can then store the other offline shots in a separate bin for reference. If you need these shots later on, it's easy to select and batch capture them.

Once you have connected your VTR or camcorder to your computer, you can view your video in the Preview area of the Log and Capture window, or you can connect your video device to an external video monitor to view footage while logging.

Note: The size of the video preview area in the Log and Capture window is based on the current height of the Canvas window.

To change the size of the video preview area in the Log and Capture window:

1 Close the Log and Capture window.
2 Change the size of the Canvas to the size you want to make the video preview area.
3 Choose File > Log and Capture (or press Command-8).

The Log and Capture window opens based on the current size of the Canvas.

To monitor audio directly from your video or audio device while you log, do one of the following:

■ Connect headphones to the headphone output of your camcorder or VTR.
■ Connect audio outputs from your camcorder or VTR to external speakers.

To monitor incoming audio directly from your system audio output:

1 Choose File > Log and Capture (or press Command-8), then click the Clip Settings tab.

2 In the Audio area, select the Preview option.

This option routes the incoming signal to the audio output selected in the Sound pane of System Preferences. Each audio channel you enable for capture is routed to a corresponding output on your audio interface, while disabled channels are not heard. If your audio interface has less audio outputs than the number of channels you are capturing, the audio is downmixed to stereo. This does not affect your captured media files; only the preview of audio during logging and capturing is affected.

Before you begin to log, make sure that your camcorder or deck is connected to your computer and that you've chosen the correct Easy Setup and specified a scratch disk. For more information, see "Are You Ready to Log and Capture?" on page 235.

If you like, you can follow these general steps to log your clips. If you need more detailed information, see the sections that follow. For information about the Log and Capture window, see "Learning About the Log and Capture Window" on page 229.

Step 1: Open the Log and Capture window (page 243)

Step 2: Insert a tape in the VTR and play it for several seconds so Final Cut Pro properly detects the timecode format of your device (page 244)

Step 3: Set a logging bin (page 245)

Step 4: Enter the reel name of the current tape (page 246)

Step 5: Set In and Out points for the clip (page 247)

Step 6: Enter a name and other logging information for a clip, then confirm the information (page 249)

Step 7: Select which tracks (video and audio) to capture (page 253)

Step 8: Click the Log Clip button to log the clip (page 256)

Additional information that can be set during logging includes:

Adding markers to identify separate shots within a single clip, or to identify notable moments. (You can also add these markers later, after capture, in the Viewer and Browser.)
Setting video levels for a clip. Typically, you only do this for analog video capture to make sure the video is digitized as accurately as possible.

The Log and Capture window provides controls for controlling a VTR or camcorder, previewing video from tape, setting In and Out points, logging, and capturing clips. It must be open before you can log and capture clips. For more details, see “Learning About the Log and Capture Window” on page 229.

- Choose File > Log and Capture (or press Command-8).

The Logging tab is active by default. To choose another tab, click it.

You need to make sure there is a proper connection between the VTR and camcorder and Final Cut Pro. The device status message in the Log and Capture window should read "VTR OK." For more information, see "Understanding Device Control Status Messages" on page 177.

When you insert a new tape in the VTR connected to your computer, Final Cut Pro alerts you that a new tape has been placed in the deck. Make sure you check the name of the tape before you put the tape in the deck, so you can enter the proper reel name.

When a new DV tape is inserted into a camcorder or deck connected via FireWire to your computer, it can take several seconds of playback for Final Cut Pro to determine whether the tape's timecode is drop frame or non-drop frame.

To compensate for this delay, the Default Timecode pop-up menu in the Device Control Preset Editor allows you to specify which timecode format Final Cut Pro defaults to when the Log and Capture window is opened. Most consumer DV camcorders record drop frame timecode exclusively; professional DV camcorders and VTRs can record either drop frame or non-drop frame timecode. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 25, "Device Control Settings and Presets."

Note: If you are using serial device control or FireWire device control with a frame rate other than 29.97, the default timecode format specified in your device control preset is ignored.

If the timecode format specified in the Default Timecode pop-up menu is incorrect, Final Cut Pro will still interpret the timecode format correctly after several seconds of playback. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 25, "Device Control Settings and Presets."

If the default timecode format is incorrect and you do not allow enough time for the proper timecode format to be detected, clips you log may have the wrong duration after they're captured. To be safe, let your tape play back for a few seconds before logging, unless you are absolutely certain that the default timecode format in your device control preset matches the timecode format on your tape.

When you log clips, you need to specify a logging bin where the clips are stored in your project. By default, the project itself is considered to be the logging bin, but you can create a new bin or assign any bin in your project as the logging bin.

Use the Logging Bin controls to choose where logged clips are stored when you use the Log Clip or Capture Clip buttons.

The Log Bin button contains the name of the currently selected logging bin.

Logging Clip Settings Capture Settings Log Bin: Cafe footage Reel: 001 Up New Bin

Log Bin: This button contains the name of the bin in your project where logged clips will be placed. There can be only one logging bin at a time, no matter how many projects are open. When you click this button, the bin opens in its own window; if the bin is already open, it brings that window to the front.
Up: Click to move the logging bin up a level from the currently selected one. For example, you could switch from a bin to the bin that contains it. If the current logging bin is at the highest level, clicking this button assigns the project itself as the logging bin.
New Bin: Click this to create a new bin inside of the currently selected bin, and set it as the logging bin.

You can create and set the logging bin in the Logging tab of the Log and Capture window or in the Browser. A slate icon appears next to the bin in the Browser to indicate that it is the current logging bin.

To create and set a new logging bin in the Log and Capture window:

In the Logging tab, click the New Bin button.

To set an existing bin in the Browser as the current logging bin:

In the Browser, select the bin you want to use as your logging bin and do one of the following:

Choose File > Set Logging Bin.
Control-click the bin, then choose Set Logging Bin from the shortcut menu.

The slate icon appears next to the current logging bin.

Browser Cafe Effects Name Cafe scene Master sequence Music Subclips Out Media Sta Not Set 01:00:00

As you log your clips, you may want to check to see how many you have or view their names.

To open the logging bin, do one of the following:

In the Log and Capture window, click the Logging tab, then click the Log Bin button.
In the Browser, double-click the logging bin.
In the Browser, click the disclosure triangle next to the logging bin.

All clips require a reel name. Make sure you enter the proper reel name before you capture. The reel name is necessary any time you need to go back to your original tapes. This is especially true if you need to recapture your footage from tape. For more information, see “Choosing Reel Names” on page 240.

Important: You can change the reel name at any time, but you should get in the habit of entering the reel name as soon as you put a new tape in the VTR or camcorder.

In the Reel field, enter the number or name of the tape, then press Enter.

Control-click the field to choose from a list of recent reel names.
Option-click the Slate button to clear the contents.
Click the Slate button to increment the letter or number at the end of the name.

For example, if the current reel name is 500, clicking the Slate button increments the reel name to 501. However, if the current reel name is 500C, clicking the Slate button increments the reel name to 500D. If the reel name is 500Z, clicking the Slate button increments the reel name to 501A.

Logging Clip Settings Capture Settings Log Bin: Cafe footage Reel: 001 Enter the source tape name here. Slate button

To ensure compatibility with older editing systems, the safest reel names are simple, three-digit numbers, such as 001, 244, 999, and so on. If you think there is even a slight chance you might need to move your project to another editing system, you should use this reel-naming convention.

Note: On many older editing systems, the term is reel number, not reel name.

A clip to be captured is defined by In and Out points that you set as you view the footage in Final Cut Pro. This is how you tell Final Cut Pro what part of a tape to capture. When you log a clip, the In point you set becomes the clip's Media Start property, and the Out point becomes the clip's Media End property. These properties can be seen in the Browser and in the Item Properties window. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 5, "Working With Projects, Clips, and Sequences."

1 In the Log and Capture window, navigate to the first frame of the clip you want to log by doing one of the following:

Use the transport controls.
Enter a timecode value in the Current Timecode field.

For more information about controls in the Log and Capture window, see "Learning About the Log and Capture Window" on page 229.

2 To set the In point for the clip, do one of the following:

Click the Mark In button.
Press I.

3 Find the last frame of the clip you want to log, by doing one of the following:

Use the transport controls.
Enter a timecode value in the Current Timecode field.

4 To set the Out point for the clip, do one of the following:

Click the Mark Out button.
Press O.

When you set an In or Out point, you may be off by a few frames. You can adjust the clip In and Out points using timecode.

- Enter a timecode number for the In or Out point.

Enter the In point timecode here. Enter the Out point timecode here.

- Click in the Clip In or Out point timecode field, then type + (plus) or – (minus) followed by the number of frames or seconds you want to adjust the In or Out point.

For example, you could adjust the In point to be ten frames earlier by clicking in the Clip In point timecode field and then typing -10. An alternative method is to batch capture all clips with additional "handles" on the In point and Out point. Handles are media beyond the In and Out points of a clip that provide a safety margin during capture to make sure you get a bit of extra media in case you need it during editing. For more information about adding handles during batch capture, see "Batch Capturing Clips" on page 262.

Tip: You can listen to your audio while you log by selecting the Preview checkbox in the Clip Settings tab of the Log and Capture window. When this option is selected, you hear your audio on the output selected in the Sound pane of Mac OS X System Preferences (in the Sound pane, click Output and select a device for sound output).

The following clip properties can be entered in the Logging tab of the Log and Capture window, as well as adjusted later in the Browser: Name, Description, Scene, Shot/Take, Angle, Log Note, and Good.

The clip name in the Name field is generated automatically from the Description, Scene, Shot/Take, and Angle fields. However, only the fields whose checkboxes are selected contribute to the clip name. Underscores in the clip name separate the content of each automatically included field. For example, the clip name "Man Talking 3_23_4" is generated from the Description "Man Talking," the Scene "3," the Shot/Take "23," and the angle 4.

There are two features available to several fields:

Slate buttons: Click the Slate button to increment the last number or letter in the field.
If the current field doesn't end with a number, a "1" is appended.
If the field ends with a single character (such as "A"), the character is incremented alphabetically (in this case, to "B").
Combinations of numbers and letters, such as "893z", are incremented as well (for example, to "894a"). Uppercase and lowercase characters are preserved.
Checkboxes: Click a checkbox to add a field's text to the Name field.

For more information, see "Choosing Names and Log Information for Clips" on page 241.

1 Select the checkbox next to the log properties you want to include in the name of the clip—Description, Scene, Shot/Take, and Angle.

Logging Clip Settings Capture Settings Log Bin: Cafe scene Reel: 001 Name: Nancy at table MS_2 Description: Nancy at table MS_2 Scene: dining room Shot/Take: 2 Angle: 1 Log Note: Window needs color correction. Too bright Markers: Marker: starting over Set Marker 03:13:35,20 03:13:35,20 Update (03:13:35,20, 03:13:35,20) starting over -Capture Log Clip Clip Now Batch

2 Enter a brief description of the clip in the Description field (click the Slate button to increment this field by 1).
Note: After you log a clip, the last number in the Description field is automatically incremented.
3 Enter a scene number in this field (click the Slate button to increment this field by 1).
4 Enter numbers for the shot and take in the Shot/Take field (click the slate button to automatically increment the field by 1).
5 If the footage was part of a multicamera shoot, enter a camera angle number in the Angle field (click the slate button to automatically increment this field by 1).

- Option-click the Slate button next to the Description field.

- Option-click the Slate button next to the Shot/Take field.

Click the Slate button next to the Scene field.
Option-click the Slate button next to the Scene field. This clears the Scene field in addition to resetting the Shot/Take and Angle fields.

This happens no matter what the number was before (assuming a new scene will begin at the first take).

As you are logging, you may want to add notes to the clip. If you think the current clip is worth capturing, or if you at least want to remember that you considered it useful for your project, you can mark it as Good. These notes and marks can help you later on as you assemble your program.

Log Note: Window needs color correction. Too bright ✓ Good

In the Log Note field, enter comments and editorial notes about the clip.

Control-click this field to choose from a list of recent Log Note comments in the current project.

■ Select the Good checkbox.

If you select this checkbox, a checkmark appears in the Good column of the Browser. This is helpful if you want to log every shot on all of your tapes, but mark only a few shots for capture. Later, in the Browser, you can use the Good property to sort and search clips.

Before you log a clip, you can choose to have Final Cut Pro confirm the clip name, Log Note, and Good property before the clip is logged.

- Select the Prompt checkbox next to the Name field.

Note: If the Prompt checkbox is unselected, Final Cut Pro logs the clip without asking you to confirm, when you click the Log Clip button. For more information, see "Logging a Clip" on page 256.

As you log, you can set markers within clips to note significant parts for future reference. Markers can be used for several purposes.

Reference: Each marker can contain a name and associated note to help you identify the content or other noteworthy information.
Navigation: You can move the playhead from marker to marker in the Viewer and the Timeline to quickly go to specific parts of a clip.
Creation of subclips: You can also use markers to automatically create subclips, or parts of a larger clip, in the Browser. For example, when you log a lengthy clip for capture, you can arrange the markers to break the clip into smaller subclips for use while you edit. For more information on creating subclips, see Volume II, Chapter 2, "Creating Subclips."

Click the disclosure triangle next to Markers to see the marking controls.

Set Marker In Marker In Point Timecode field Marker list (after clicking the Set Marker button) Marker Out Point Timecode field 03:14:33:11 03:14:33:11 (03:14:04:02, 03:14:04:02) starting over (03:14:08:04, 03:14:08:04) camera pans down (03:14:33:11, 03:14:33:11) window too bright Set Marker Update Set Marker Out

Marker: Enter a name or comments to go with the marker in this field. The marker name remains until you change it.
Set Marker: Once you've set the marker In and Out points, click this to create a new marker.
Set Marker In: Click this to set a marker In point, or enter a timecode number in this timecode field.
Set Marker Out: Click this to set a marker Out point, or enter a timecode number in this timecode field.
Update: To update a marker in the list, click to select it, make your changes, then click Update. The marker in the list then displays the new information.
Marker list: Displays all markers and associated information for the current clip.

You can set as many markers as you like. Markers appear in a list and can be edited and deleted. Markers you set for clips during the logging process also appear in the Browser, the Viewer, and the Timeline.

1 Click the disclosure triangle next to Markers to see the marker controls.
2 Enter a name for the marker in the Marker field.
3 Find the frame where you want to set a Marker In point, by doing one of the following:

- Use the transport controls.

- Enter a timecode number in the Marker In Point Timecode field.

4 Click the Set Marker In button.
5 Find the frame where you want to set a Marker Out point, by doing one of the following:

- Use the transport controls.

- Enter a timecode in the Marker Out Point Timecode field.

6 Click the Set Marker Out button.
7 Click the Set Marker button.

When you click the Log Clip button, all the marker information in this section is saved with the clip and the window clears.

For each clip you log, you need to specify which video and audio tracks are captured to the clip's media file. For example, a typical DV videotape has one video track and two audio tracks. You can choose to capture video only, audio only, or both video and audio. You can also choose how many audio tracks to capture, and how they are grouped together (mono or stereo).

Logging Clip Settings Capture Settings Video Scopes Use Digitizer's Default Settings Video 180 Saturation 50 Brightness 50 Contrast 50 Noise Level 50 White Level 50 Audio Input Channels 2 Preview Master Band 0 dB 1 2 Capture Log Clip Clip Now Batch

1 In the Log and Capture window, click the Clip Settings tab.
2 To capture video, enable the Video checkbox.
3 To capture audio, enable the Audio checkbox.

Final Cut Pro can capture up to 24 audio tracks from a video or audio interface. Each input on your audio interface is shown in a list in the Clip Settings tab. You can select up to 24 inputs for simultaneous capture. You can also group adjacent channels together as a stereo pair, or leave them as mono channels. For more information about capturing multiple audio channels, see "Multichannel Audio Channel Selection" on page 288.

See "Multichannel Audio Channel Selection" on page 288.

If you change your mind about the audio grouping after you capture, you can make channel grouping adjustments by choosing Modify > Clip Settings, or by relinking clip items in the Timeline. For example, two adjacent mono channels can be regrouped as a stereo pair. For more information, see "Dual Mono Versus Stereo Audio" on page 290 and Volume II, Chapter 14, "Linking and Editing Video and Audio in Sync."

Important: In Final Cut Pro 5, mono audio channels are each captured to a separate track in a QuickTime media file. Stereo pairs are each captured to a single interleaved track in a QuickTime media file. In previous versions of Final Cut Pro, only two-channel audio capture was supported to a single QuickTime audio track. Therefore, older versions of Final Cut Pro can only recognize media files if you capture them with a single stereo pair audio track.

Once a clip is logged, you can override its track settings in one of two ways:

- Clip Settings command: You can change an offline clip's track settings by choosing Modify > Clip Settings, and then enabling different tracks for capture.

Modify Clip Settings Modify Tracks of Type: Audio and Video Number of selected offline files: 1 Video Audio Input Channels 6 Preview Master Gain 0 dB Enable or disable video and audio tracks for capture Enable or disable specific audio tracks for capture Choose to modify the current clip's video settings, audio settings, or both. Cancel OK

- Batch Capture dialog: If you are batch capturing clips, deselect the "Use Logged Clip Settings" checkbox. In this case, individual clip settings will be overridden by the current video and audio track selection in the Clip Settings tab of the Log and Capture window.

If you've already specified a scratch disk and selected an Easy Setup for the setup you're using, you don't need to change the capture settings. However, if you've changed equipment or your Easy Setup, you may need to modify your capture settings. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 24, "Capture Settings and Presets."

1 In the Log and Capture window, click the Capture Settings tab.
2 From the Device Control pop-up menu, choose an option.
3 From the Capture/Input pop-up menu, choose an option.
4 If you need to specify a different scratch disk or add others, click Scratch Disks, choose your options, then click OK.

For more information, see "Specifying Scratch Disks for Capturing Video and Storing Render Files" on page 171.

If you are capturing from an analog source, you can adjust analog video and audio levels for each clip in the Clip Settings tab of the Log and Capture window. If you are capturing digital video, these settings usually do not apply. For example, if you are capturing DV video via FireWire, all the video level adjustments are disabled. However, some third-party video interfaces have specific level sliders enabled. For more information about setting audio levels for capture, see "Adjusting Analog Audio Levels for Capture" on page 292.

Once you have entered basic log information, you can log the clip, which means adding it to your project. When the clip is logged, it is stored in your project's current logging bin.

1 In the Logging tab, do one of the following:

Click Log Clip.
Press F2.

2 If you selected the Prompt checkbox, a Log Clip dialog appears. Enter or change any information for this clip, then click OK.

For more information, see "Confirming Your Logging Information" on page 251.

The clip appears in the selected logging bin. It is an offline clip because no media has been captured for the clip yet. The clip's Source property is empty—the clip does not yet contain a file path to a media file.

Instead of merely logging the clip, you could also choose to capture the media file by clicking the Capture Clip button. In this case, a clip is added to the current logging bin, but the clip's media file is captured too. For more information about capturing your clips, see Chapter 19, "Capturing Your Footage to Disk," on page 261.

If you're logging a lot of material, it's a good idea to familiarize yourself with the various keyboard shortcuts you can use. Here's an example of a logging workflow.

Use the J, K, and L keys to quickly play through your tape. Press J to play the tape at various speeds in reverse, press K to stop playback, and press L to play the tape at a variety of speeds going forward. For more information, see “Shuttling Through a Clip or Sequence” on page 101.
When you've identified your In and Out points, press I to set the In point and press O to set the Out point.
Press F2 to log your clip.
If the Prompt checkbox is selected, a dialog appears where you can enter a name, and then press Tab to move down to the Notes field, if desired.
Press Return or Enter to finish logging the clip.

Repeat this sequence for other clips you want to log.

Here are additional pointers for logging your material quickly:

A new In point is automatically set at the Out point of the last logged clip.
If you're using the automatic naming feature and the Prompt box is unselected, the Shot/Take field that makes up the clip's name is automatically updated.

If you aren't careful during production, you can end up with duplicate timecode numbers on your tape. Each time the camcorder is powered off and on again, there is a potential that the camcorder will reset the timecode counter to zero. This is especially true when working with consumer camcorders. For logging, capturing, and media management, a tape with the same timecode number in two or more locations is very difficult to work with.

If someone asks you to capture media from timecode 00:00:00:00 to 00:01:00:00 on reel 1, you assume that you should capture the first minute of the tape. But if the camcorder was powered off and back on at some point during the shoot, the timecode counter may have reset somewhere in the middle of the tape. This tape has two occurrences of timecode 00:00:00:00, so which occurrence should you capture?

Worse, during logging and capturing, neither Final Cut Pro nor the VTR will necessarily navigate to the proper timecode 00:00:00:00, because there are two. Device control uses timecode for positioning information, and always assumes that timecode numbers increase as the tape progresses. If the timecode starts over somewhere in the middle of the tape, you have to manually navigate to the correct area of the tape.

If you have to log tapes that have duplicate timecode numbers, make sure that you account for any timecode breaks by assigning separate reel numbers for each section of tape where the timecode reset to 00:00:00:00.

For example, suppose you have a DV tape with footage from 00:00:00:00 to 00:30:00:00, followed by a timecode break. You could name the first half of the tape reel 4-A, and the second half of the tape (which goes from 00:30:00:00 through the end of the tape reel), 4-B. Clips from both reel 4-A and 4-B actually come from one physical tape labeled reel 4, but for ease of media management and clip recapturing, it helps to have a unique reel number for each section of continuous timecode, so you are never confused about where on the tape a particular timecode number is located.

Duplicate timecode numbers on a single tape can be one of the most frustrating experiences during logging and capturing. Make sure the camera operator is aware of these pitfalls before shooting, especially when using a consumer camcorder.

Note: A camcorder may automatically shut off after sitting idle for several minutes to conserve battery power. One solution is to use AC power with the camcorder, though this isn't always practical.

Here are some techniques for avoiding reset timecode counters when shooting with consumer DV camcorders:

Prerecord a video signal (preferably black) on each tape before production to create a continuous timecode signal on the entire tape.
This is called blacking a tape. You can do this in any camcorder by pressing Record with the lens cap on and the microphone disconnected (to avoid recording any audio signals). The more professional solution is to use a DV deck and its internal black generator. Some DV decks also allow you to choose what timecode number your tape starts with.
Dub your tapes so that you copy the video and audio information, but not the timecode. The dubbed tapes become your new source tapes, and you can capture from these.

- During production, pay attention to the position of your tape.

Camcorders attempt to create continuous timecode by quickly reading the last timecode number written on tape. The process of generating new timecode based on the last stored timecode number is referred to as jam syncing timecode. However, if the camcorder doesn't see a timecode or video signal on the tape (for example, at the beginning of a blank tape), the timecode counter is reset to zero.

DV camcorders tend to be fairly good at finding the last timecode number on tape as long as the camcorder has not been powered off. If the camcorder is powered off, the best solution is to rewind the tape by a second or two so that the camcorder can jam sync the timecode already written on tape when you start recording again. In theory, this technique can remedy most potential timecode problems. In practice, however, it can be difficult to always remember to rewind, or you may rewind too far and then spend time cueing your tape to make sure you don't record over part of the previous shot.

One helpful tip when using this technique is to record several additional seconds well past the end of each shot. If your camcorder is powered off and on, you can rewind a few seconds into the previous shot without worrying that you are going to record over important footage.

Not all logging information has to be created by the editor during postproduction. Some kinds of projects, such as feature films and episodic shows, use shooting scripts, which break down the original screenplay into detailed scene numbers, camera angles, and so on. This information is then translated into camera reports created by a camera assistant during shooting. Timecode (video) or feet and frames (film) are written side by side with notes about the shot: actor and camera positions, lighting setups, audio information, notes about bad takes, and so on.

This information can be merged with postproduction logging notes to help the editor easily identify the reel and timecode numbers corresponding to each shot in the movie. With the shooting script's detailed information about scene and shot numbers and the camera report information added to the log notes of your clips, it is much easier to navigate your raw footage.

If several people are logging footage on a large project, it is important that they use similar naming conventions, and that notes are made using consistent descriptions and shorthand. For example, everyone should use the same abbreviations, such as "CU" for close-up, "MOS" meaning "without sound", and so on. It doesn't matter what conventions you use, as long as you are consistent.

Capturing is the process of transferring footage from your original tapes to media files on the computer hard disk. You can then edit the media files, leaving your footage untouched.

This chapter covers the following:

• Before You Capture (p. 261)
• Batch Capturing Clips (p. 262)
• Capturing Clips as You Log (Capture Clip) (p. 270)
• Capturing Entire Tapes (Capture Now) (p. 271)
• Capturing Footage Without Device Control (p. 276)
• Recapturing Clips (p. 278)
• Capturing Footage With Timecode Breaks (p. 279)
• Using the Media Manager After Capturing (p. 283)

For information about the controls in the Log and Capture window, see "Learning About the Log and Capture Window" on page 229.

Final Cut Pro gives you several options for capturing your footage to disk:

Capture multiple clips at once (batch capture): Once you've logged your clips or imported a batch list, you can capture multiple clips in the Browser at once using the Capture Batch button in the Log and Capture window. For more information, see the next section, "Batch Capturing Clips."
Capture one clip at a time as you log in the Log and Capture window: You usually do this to precisely control the capture process and clip settings for each clip. See "Capturing Clips as You Log (Capture Clip)" on page 270.
Capture an entire tape, or portions of a tape, in one pass: Afterwards, you can break the clip into smaller subclips and add logging information in the Browser. For more information, see “Capturing Entire Tapes (Capture Now)” on page 271.

For large projects with a lot of footage and limited hard disk capacity, it's usually most efficient to log all of your clips first, and then batch capture only the clips you actually want to use in your project. When you batch capture clips, Final Cut Pro automates the capturing process, cueing each tape to the In point for each clip and capturing the corresponding media. If you're capturing from multiple reels, you'll need to insert new tapes when Final Cut Pro requests them.

Note: To batch capture, your device must support remote device control and your clips must have timecode numbers that accurately match the timecode numbers on your tape. Most audio CD players, VHS decks, and other consumer equipment cannot be remotely controlled and do not have timecode, so batch capturing from these devices is not possible. For more information about device control, see Volume IV, Chapter 25, "Device Control Settings and Presets."

Batch capturing is useful for the following workflows:

When you log all of your tapes first and then select some of your logged clips for capture
When you import a batch capture list created in an another application
When you import an EDL (which becomes a sequence of clips) or a sequence from another Final Cut Pro project, in which the clips' media files are offline
When you want to recapture media files using different video and audio settings (in other words, a different capture preset). For example, during the online phase of offline/online editing, you can recapture low-resolution media at full resolution. See "Recapturing Clips" on page 278.

Batch capturing is an automated process, so make sure your settings and preferences are correct before you start. Keep in mind the following:

Timecode breaks: Make sure that you account for any timecode breaks when you log your tapes. If you're capturing from DV tapes, you should have separate reel numbers for each section of tape where timecode reset was to 00:00:00:00 as a result of a timecode break. For more information about logging tapes with timecode breaks, see "Logging Tapes With Duplicate Timecode Numbers" on page 258.
Capture preset: Make sure the capture preset you've specified is correct. You won't be able to change it once you start the batch capture. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 25, "Device Control Settings and Presets."
Scratch disk settings: Anticipate the amount of scratch disk space all of the batch captured media requires, so you can properly set up your scratch disks. In the Log and Capture window, click the Capture Settings tab and check the free space listed next to the Scratch Disks button. You can compare this to the space needed in the Batch Capture dialog.
If you're capturing a lot of clips and the first specified scratch disk is getting full, make sure you have selected additional scratch disks. This way Final Cut Pro can automatically start writing media files to another disk and the batch capture process won't be interrupted.
If you only have one scratch disk selected, make sure that it has enough room for the batch capture operation.

For details on specifying scratch disks, see "Specifying Scratch Disks for Capturing Video and Storing Render Files" on page 171.

- Clip and media filenames: When you log clips, it's possible to accidentally create two or more clips with the same name. However, when you batch capture, all clips in the same folder on the same scratch disk must have unique filenames. Since clip names are used as filenames, you'll need to change any duplicate clip names before you capture, or there will be a media filename conflict during capture. Final Cut Pro handles media filename conflicts in the following ways:

If you set up a batch capture that includes two clips with the same name, a dialog appears to let you change the name of one of the clips.
If a filename used by a clip that is about to be captured is already used by another media file on one of the selected scratch disks, a dialog appears where you can rename the new clip, skip capturing it, or replace the old media file with the new one with the same name.

Note: When you create clip names while capturing, make sure you avoid certain special characters that could cause trouble later. See "Filenaming Considerations" on page 37 for details.

The Batch Capture dialog provides settings and options when you are batch capturing multiple clips at one time.

1 Select one or more clips in the Browser.
2 Do one of the following:

If the Log and Capture window is open, click the Capture Batch button in the lower-right corner.
Choose File > Batch Capture.
Control-click any of the selected items in the Browser, then choose Batch Capture from the shortcut menu.
Press Control-C.

The following section describes the settings in the Batch Capture dialog.

Capture pop-up menu: Lets you capture offline clips, online clips, or both. The items that appear in this pop-up menu differ depending on whether you open the Batch Capture dialog by clicking the Capture Batch button in the Log and Capture window or by using the shortcut menu from within the Browser.
When you click the Capture Batch button in the Log and Capture window, you are limited to capturing clips inside the current logging bin.
When you choose Batch Capture from the shortcut menu within the Browser, you can capture any items that are selected in the Browser; you are not restricted to capturing only from the current logging bin.
All Items in Logging Bin/All Selected Items: Captures all clips in the current logging bin (or all selected items in the Browser), whether or not they've already been captured. If there are only offline clips, this is the only option available. If you're recapturing online clips to the same folder on the same scratch disk that the clips' current media files are stored in, the clips' media files will be overwritten with new media files. If you're recapturing online clips and the currently selected scratch disk folder is different from the one the clips' original media files are in, the original media files are preserved, and new media files are written to disk. After capture, the clips reference the new media files.
Selected Items in Logging Bin: If you selected specific clips in your logging bin, you can choose to capture only these. This is a good way to capture or recapture clips from a specific reel or a limited number of clips that you isolate using the Find command or by sorting a specific Browser column. This option is only available when you initiate batch capturing from the Log and Capture window and you have selected items within the current logging bin in the Browser.
Offline Items in Logging Bin/Offline Items Only: Captures only the offline clips in the current logging bin (or the current selection in the Browser). If there are no offline clips available, this option doesn't appear.
Aborted Clips: If you stopped an earlier batch capture, you can choose to capture just the clips that weren't captured.
Use Logged Clip Settings: Select this checkbox to capture all your clips using the settings you specified for each individual clip during the logging process. If this checkbox is unselected, all your clips will be captured using the current settings in the Clip Settings tab of the Log and Capture window and the capture preset currently chosen in the Capture Settings tab. This includes video and audio track selections, analog video level settings (only available with some video interfaces), and capture preset settings such as image dimensions, frame rate, and so on. For more information, see “Changing Capture Settings” on page 255.
Add Handles: Select this checkbox to capture additional frames beyond the head (In point) and tail (Out point) of each clip captured, then enter a duration in the handle timecode field. Handles are useful if you've logged your clips starting at precisely the first and last frames that you think you want to use, but you want to capture a little bit more media just in case you need additional frames for performing dissolves and other transitions.
Capture Preset pop-up menu: If the Use Logged Clip Settings checkbox is unselected, you must choose a capture preset from the Capture Preset pop-up menu. This capture preset is used for all media files you batch capture. A summary of the settings you specify appears below this pop-up menu.
Total Media Time: Lists the total time of the selected media, based on the capture settings you specify.
Total Disk Space: Lists the disk space needed for the captured media, based on the capture settings you specify, as well as the space available on your scratch disk.

When you batch capture, you need to select clips in the Browser to capture. If no clips, sequences, or bins are selected, the clips in the currently assigned logging bin are batch captured when you use the Batch Capture command.

1 In the Browser, select the clips you want to capture by doing one of the following:

Select clips.
Select one or more bins. (All clips in a selected bin will be captured.)
Select one or more sequences. (All clips in a selected sequence will be captured.)
Control-click a bin, then choose Set Logging Bin from the shortcut menu. You can choose the entire project as the logging bin if you want to capture all the clips in your project.

For more information, see "Selecting Items in the Browser" on page 55.

2 Do one of the following:

If the Log and Capture dialog is open, click the Capture Batch button in the lower-right corner.
Choose File > Batch Capture.
Control-click any of the selected items in the Browser, then choose Batch Capture from the shortcut menu.
Press Control-C.

3 In the Batch Capture dialog, choose your settings, then click OK.

For detailed information, see "Learning About the Batch Capture Dialog" on page 264.

a Choose which clips you want to capture.
b If you want, select the Use Logged Clip Settings checkbox.
c If you want, select the Add Handles checkbox and enter a duration.
d If the Use Logged Clip Settings checkbox is unselected, choose a capture preset from the Capture Preset pop-up menu.

Important: When you finish specifying your settings, check the total disk space needed at the bottom of the Batch Capture dialog and make sure your scratch disk has enough space. If you need to specify additional scratch disks, see "Specifying Scratch Disks for Capturing Video and Storing Render Files" on page 171.

4 When you're ready to capture, click OK.
5 If there are any other clips outside of your current selection that reference the same media files, the Additional Items Found dialog appears and you must choose an option. For more information, see "About the Additional Items Found Dialog" on page 269.
6 You are prompted with a list of all the reels needed for capture. Select a reel in the list, then click Continue.

Insert Reel 003 - 00:03:19:02 - 3 clips - READY 004a - 00:06:55:13 - 4 clips - READY 004b - 00:04:03:04 - 4 clips - READY Ready for capture. Show Details... Cancel Continue

7 Insert the selected reel into your camcorder or VTR.

You'll need to make sure that your equipment is properly connected and turned on. For more information, see "Connecting Your Camcorder" on page 169 or "Connecting Professional Video Devices" on page 194.

8 Final Cut Pro captures all of the clips on that reel and then prompts you to select another, until all the clips in the batch have been captured.

Warning: If you're capturing clips that have been captured once already, you can't recapture them at a frame rate that differs from the frame rate at which they were originally captured. For example, if you capture a clip at 25 frames per second (fps), delete the clip's media file to make it an offline clip, and then recapture it, you must recapture the clip at 25 fps.

Sometimes you need to stop a batch capture because you realize you are using the wrong capture preset or scratch disk, or you selected the wrong clips for capture.

To stop a batch capture at any time, do one of the following:

Press Esc.
■ Press and release the mouse button.

All clips that weren't captured are labeled "Aborted" in the Capture column in the Browser.

To restart the batch capture process:

1 Choose File > Batch Capture.
2 Follow steps 3–6 in the section "Batch Capturing Selected Clips" on page 266.
Make sure you choose Aborted Clips from the Capture pop-up menu in the Batch Capture dialog.

When you start batch capturing, Final Cut Pro checks all currently opened projects to see if there are any other clips outside of your current selection that reference the same media files. This includes clips in other open projects, and clips in the same project that refer to the same media files but are not in your current selection. If additional clips are found, the Additional Items Found dialog appears.

Additional Items Found 9 items outside of your current selection have been found to reference media about to be processed during this operation. No additional disk space will be required if you add these items to your selection. If you select Continue, these items will not be added to your selection, and they might be taken offline. Add Continue Abort

Choose one of the following options:

Add: Click this so Final Cut Pro automatically adds additional clips outside the selection to your current batch capture. After capture, those clips reference the new media files.
Continue: Click this to ignore the additional clips in other open projects (and thus not reconnect them to the newly captured media files). The clips Final Cut Pro found are ignored and the batch capture is restricted to the clips you originally selected.
Abort: Final Cut Pro stops the batch capture process.

For example, suppose you have a bin containing one sequence and twenty offline clips. If you used some of the Browser clips in your sequence, the sequence clips refer to the same media files as the corresponding Browser clips. If you select the sequence and choose File > Batch Capture, the Additional Items Found dialog appears because some of the Browser clips refer to the same media files as clips in the sequence.

If you click Add, the Browser clips that refer to the same media files as sequence clips are added to the selected items before batch capturing starts. Each media file is captured only once, but both Browser and sequence clips will be reconnected to the new media files after the batch capture is complete. If you don't click Add, only the sequence clips are connected to the new media files, and the Browser clips remain offline (unconnected to the new media files).

For more precise control over the capturing process, some editors prefer to capture each clip as soon as they've logged it. You can use the Capture Clip button in the Log and Capture window to capture the currently logged clip.

The Capture Clip option is useful in the following situations:

For tapes with lots of timecode breaks or video/audio settings that need individual level adjustment per clip, the Capture Clip option gives you more control over each clip's settings.
If you only have a few clips spread across several tapes, it may be faster to log and capture each clip as you go instead of logging each tape and then batch capturing.
As an alternative to the Capture Now option, you can set In and Out points near the beginning and end of each tape and then capture the entire duration of the tape.

Note: The only difference between the Capture Clip and Log Clip buttons is that Log Clip only creates a clip in your project, while Capture Clip creates a clip and also captures its media file.

Make sure that your camcorder or deck is connected to your computer and that you've chosen the correct Easy Setup and specified a scratch disk. For more information, see "Are You Ready to Log and Capture?" on page 235.

1 Log the clip using the instructions in Chapter 18, "Logging Clips," on page 237.
2 Once all of the clip information is entered, click the Capture Clip button.

Log Clip Clip Now Batch Capture Click here to capture a clip.

3 If the Prompt checkbox is selected in the Logging tab, a Log Clip dialog appears. Enter or change any information for this clip, then click OK.

Log Clip Name: Don talks to driver Log Note: underexposed Click the Slate button to increment the clip name. Mark Good Click here to mark the clip as Good. Cancel OK If desired, enter additional notes here.

Final Cut Pro rewinds the tape and captures the media file, creating a clip in the logging bin that represents the captured media file.

If you have lots of hard disk space, it's often easiest to capture all your footage to your scratch disk and log it afterwards. You can then delete the media you don't need from the hard disk. Capture Now is also useful for capturing portions of tapes.

Once you've captured your tape, you'll need to break your media files and clips into smaller pieces. For details, see "Automatically Creating Subclips Using DV Start/Stop Detection" on page 273.

There are several reasons to capture entire tapes:

Reviewing footage is easier once it is on your computer, allowing you to easily rewind and loop sections of footage while you take notes.
Capturing entire tapes causes less wear to the original source tapes because you only play the tapes once while capturing instead of rewinding and fast-forwarding them during logging and subsequent batch capturing.
With some DV footage, Final Cut Pro can detect breaks between shots, allowing you to create clips of each shot without setting In and Out points manually. This feature is known as DV Start/Stop Detection.
For footage without timecode, you have to use Capture Now because Final Cut Pro can't locate In and Out points for batch capturing.

Once you capture all of your tapes, you can break these large (up to an hour or more) clips into smaller, more manageable subclips. For instructions on creating subclips and smaller media files from larger clips, see "Automatically Creating Subclips Using DV Start/Stop Detection" on page 273 or Volume II, Chapter 2, "Creating Subclips."

When you use Capture Now, the captured media file increases in size until you manually stop the capture process, or the Capture Now time limit is reached. This limit can be set in the Scratch Disks tab of System Settings.

Note: Earlier versions of Final Cut Pro preallocated disk space before capturing, causing a delay before capturing started. This disk preallocation no longer occurs.

You do not need to set In and Out points when you use Capture Now. The In point is determined when you press the Capture Now button, and the Out point is determined when you press Escape, or when a maximum number of minutes that you specify is reached.

1 In the Logging tab of the Log and Capture window, enter a reel name, description, and other logging information.

For more information, see Chapter 18, "Logging Clips," on page 237 and "About Automatic Filenaming During Capture Now" on page 273.

Note: Since you are capturing the entire tape, some fields in the Logging tab may not apply. You can leave those blank.

2 Click the Capture Settings tab, then click the Scratch Disks button.
3 In the Scratch Disks dialog, select the "Limit Capture Now To" checkbox. Then enter a number of minutes for the maximum duration of your tape. To be safe, you can add an extra minute or two.
4 Rewind the tape to the beginning by doing one of the following:

Press the Rewind button on your VTR or camcorder.
Click the Rewind button in the Log and Capture window.

5 When you're ready to begin capturing, do one of the following:

Click the Play button.
Click the Space bar.

Final Cut Pro begins capturing your media file to your scratch disk.

6 Click the Capture Now button.
7 Press the Escape key to stop capturing, or wait until Final Cut Pro automatically stops because the maximum amount of time in the Limit Capture Now To field has been reached.

Once Final Cut Pro stops capturing, a clip appears in your logging bin. The new clip refers to the media file you just captured.

8 Double-click the clip in the Browser to open it in the Viewer.
9 Review the clip briefly to see that it plays back properly, and make sure it contains all of the tracks you wanted to capture (video, multiple audio channels, and proper timecode).
Tip: You can easily find a clip's media file by selecting the clip in the Browser and choosing View > Reveal in Finder.

Unless you enter text in the Description field, Final Cut Pro automatically names media files (and captured clips) using the following convention: Untitled, Untitled1, Untitled2, and so on.

If you're capturing a clip using the Capture Now command and the currently specified name is already taken by a clip in the current Scratch Disk folder, the letter or number at the end of the name is incremented. For example, if you use Capture Now to capture a clip named "Office Clips1" and there's already a clip in that project's Scratch Disk folder with the same name, the name is changed to "Office Clips2." If there is already a media file called "Office Clips A", the current media file is called "Office Clips B".

Alphabetical incrementing occurs if the last letter is preceded by a separating character such as a space, underscore, or dash. For example, "ClipName-A" is incremented to "ClipName-B", but "ClipNameA" is incremented to "ClipNameA1". If the last letter in the clip name is preceded by a number, both the number and letter are incremented. For example, "ClipName-2Z" is followed by "ClipName-3A".

If you are using a DV format (DV, DVCAM, DVCPRO, DVCPRO 50, or DVCPRO HD), you may be able to create subclips automatically from start/stop metadata that is embedded in video frames each time you stop and start the camcorder. This DV start/stop metadata is captured and stored in the media file. Final Cut Pro can identify the location of each start/stop marker (sometimes referred to as an embedded flag) to automatically place markers in a clip. These markers can then be used to create subclips.

Note: DV start/stop metadata is not timecode. It is independent time-of-day metadata recorded within the video data of your footage. When the time-of-day information jumps dramatically from one shot to the next, Final Cut Pro recognizes that the shot has changed and can place a marker at that point in the clip.

To break a long DV clip into subclips based on starts and stops:

1 Capture a long clip from a DV tape containing several starts and stops.

Note: If you're capturing the contents of an entire DV tape, make sure that the "On timecode break" pop-up menu in the General tab of the User Preferences window is set to Make New Clip, to ensure that no timecode breaks are captured. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

2 Do one of the following:

Select the clip in the Browser.
Open the clip in the Viewer.

3 With the Viewer active, choose Mark > DV Start/Stop Detect.

Viewer: Nancy drinking talking in Dining Video Stereo (a1x2) Filters Motion 00:03:53:02 04:06:09:15

A marker appears in front of every start and stop in the clip.

Note: If you have any exceptionally long clips, you can break these up further by adding a few more markers manually. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 4, "Using Markers."

4 Switch the Browser to list view and locate the clip you were working on in the Viewer. For more information, see "Choosing Views in the Browser" on page 61.
5 Click the disclosure triangle to view the clip's markers.

Browser Reel 4a Dining Name Duration In Nancy drinking talking 00:03:53:02 Not Set Marker 1 00:00:00:00 04:02:52:20 Marker 2 00:00:00:00 04:03:23:05 Marker 3 00:00:00:00 04:04:17:08 Marker 4 00:00:00:00 04:05:06:05 Marker 5 00:00:00:00 04:05:31:09 Marker 7 00:00:00:00 04:06:09:15 Markers for a clip

If you want to give any of the markers a more descriptive name, simply click the marker in the Browser, then click the marker's name to select it. You can now change the name.

6 Drag in the Browser to select all the markers.

Browser Reel 4a Dining Name Duration In Nancy drinking talking 00:03:53:02 Not Set Take 1 00:00:00:00 04:02:52:20 Take 2 00:00:00:00 04:03:23:05 Take 3 00:00:00:00 04:04:17:08 Take 4 - slower 00:00:00:00 04:05:06:05 Take 5 - improvise 00:00:00:00 04:05:31:09 Take 6 - safety 00:00:00:00 04:06:09:15

7 Choose Modify > Make Subclip.

Note: If you gave your markers new names, your subclips will use them.

All of the material between the markers you selected should now appear as subclips.

The subclips appear in addition to the original clip with the markers. You can rename the subclips, if you want. You can review the subclips, deleting any clips you might not need. If you do remove unused clips, you can use the Media Manager to remove your unused footage from disk, leaving the media for your remaining subclips alone. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 7, "Overview of the Media Manager."

If you have a video source without device control (and therefore without timecode), you must capture video manually.

If you capture a media file without timecode, it's impossible to guarantee accurate recapture of the exact same clip with the same In and Out points. If you need to recapture these clips for any reason, such as to capture them at a higher resolution or to re-create an archived project that no longer has the associated media files, the recaptured footage won't be exactly the same, and you won't be able to automatically batch capture the clips.

More and more footage is acquired digitally (using DV formats, for example), and capturing analog, non-timecoded footage is becoming increasingly rare. One way to avoid capturing from a non-timecoded tape is to first transfer your footage to a timecoded format, such as DV, Betacam SP, or Digital Betacam, and then capture footage from the timecoded tape using device control. For more suggestions about transferring footage from a non-timecoded format to a timecoded format, see

"Capturing From an Audio Device Without Device Control" on page 296. (The same concepts apply to both non-timecoded video and audio footage).

If you have to manually capture footage without timecode or device control, make sure you:

Capture media at the same resolution you plan to output: Since you can't accurately recapture your clips with the same In and Out points (because you don't have remote control of the VTR and timecode precision during capture), you should capture them at the resolution at which you plan to output your project. This way, you won't have to manually recapture later.
Back up all of your non-timecoded media files: If you back up your clips' media files, your source material is always available for reediting. Because video clips require a lot of disk space, you need to use a high-capacity backup format, such as streaming tape (for example, Data DAT, Mammoth, DLT, AIT, and VXA), CD-ROM, or DVD-ROM.

To capture media manually, you press the Play button on your video device, then click the Capture Now button in the Log and Capture window. When you want to stop the capture, press Escape. For more information, see the next section, "Using a Non-Controllable Device for Capture" on page 277.

When a device-controllable camcorder or deck is not available or device control is not enabled, the Log and Capture window no longer has transport controls, and only the Capture Now button is available.

If you aren't using device control, the Log and Capture window is simplified. 00:01:25:01 Total Free Space 8.6 GB Total Free Time (AVI (Unknown) Logging Clip Settings Capture Settings Log Bin: Drving Keel: 004a Name: Elia rolls eyes CU Prompt Description: Lola rolls eyes CU Scene: Shot/Take: Angle: Log Note: Good Markers: 04:18:51:12 No Communication 04:20:16:12 Log Clip Clip Now Push

The steps for capturing without device control are the same steps for capturing using Capture Now. The only important difference is that you need to choose the device control preset for a non-controllable device.

- Click the Capture Settings tab, then choose Non-Controllable Device from the Device Control pop-up menu.

To capture a clip without device control, see "Capturing an Entire Tape Using Capture Now" on page 272.

When you recapture a clip, you capture its media file, even if it already has a media file associated with it. There may be several reasons why you'd want to recapture clips:

You accidentally deleted a clip's media file.
You captured a clip with the wrong capture preset.
You captured clips at a low resolution for rough, offline editing, and now want to recapture the clips at full resolution for your final sequence.

Recapturing is essentially the same as capturing. The only notable difference is that when you recapture, there may already be a media file associated with a clip. When you recapture media, you can replace the clip's existing media file, or capture a new media file to a different location by changing the path of the scratch disk. For more information, see "Specifying Scratch Disks for Capturing Video and Storing Render Files" on page 171.

To recapture your clips, simply follow the batch capturing steps described earlier in this chapter.

Subclips refer to portions of media files by using virtual subclip limits. When you tell Final Cut Pro to capture a subclip, the subclip limits are ignored, and the entire duration of the original media file is captured.

Merged clips are powerful because they allow you to group together a video media file and multiple independent audio files within a single clip. This is especially useful for dual system moviemaking, where video and audio come from separate sources and are synchronized during postproduction. A merged clip is a single clip in the Browser that keeps these independent media files synced. When you recapture the media files for a merged clip, you may have to make several capturing passes from different video and audio sources.

Important: Generally, it's best if all audio files referenced by merged clips are stored on one scratch disk (preferably in the same folder).

For more information about merged clips, see Volume II, Chapter 3, "Merging Clips From Dual System Video and Audio."

The Final Cut Pro timecode break–detection features let you easily and cleanly capture entire source tapes without inadvertently introducing timecode errors.

As you log your footage, it's important to avoid timecode breaks in your clips. A timecode break is any jump in the continuous flow of timecode numbers. There are two kinds of timecode breaks:

Ordered timecode break: This is a nearly imperceptible gap in the timecode track of your tape which interrupts the continuous flow of timecode but doesn't reset the timecode to 00:00:00:00. Ordered timecode breaks can result from turning the camcorder off and on in the middle of a tape, or from rewinding the tape to review a section and then pausing at the end of the last recorded shot.
Reset timecode break: This kind of break results in the timecode track being reset to the default timecode value. For many DV-format camcorders, this value is 00:00:00:00. A reset timecode break can happen as a result of a tape being cued slightly past the end of the last recorded shot before being recorded onto further, or by partially recording over the beginning or middle of a previously recorded tape.

Note: There are also timecode gaps, when long gaps are detected with no timecode at all.

Since most timecode breaks happen between the end of one shot and the beginning of another, they're pretty easy to avoid if you log your footage one clip at a time. Still, if Final Cut Pro captures a clip with either type of timecode break, the timecode that Final Cut Pro captures and writes to that clip's source file on disk will be incorrect from the point of the break forward. Since the timecode is incorrect, you will be unable to use that clip with any Final Cut Pro function that requires accurate timecode, such as batch capturing, media management with the Media Manager, or EDL export.

The “On timecode break” pop-up menu in the General tab of the User Preferences window gives you several ways to avoid capturing clips with timecode breaks. It’s important to set this option to suit the way you intend to capture your clips. You have several options:

- Make New Clip: This is the default option. Video that's already been captured before the break in timecode is saved as a single media file, with its Out point set to the frame occurring immediately before the timecode break. Final Cut Pro then automatically continues capturing video after the dropped timecode frame as a second media file. When this option is selected, clips captured after timecode breaks are named with the original name and the number of the clip. For example, if the first captured clip's name is "Cats Playing," the second clip's name is set to "Cats Playing-1."

This is a good option to choose if you are capturing an entire tape. For example, suppose you are capturing the entire contents of a 60-minute tape that has four timecode breaks. Instead of restarting the capture every time a timecode break is detected, Final Cut Pro captures all media from the tape as five clips, skipping over each timecode break and ensuring that the timecode of all captured media is frame-accurate.

Abort Capture: If you choose this option, Final Cut Pro stops capture immediately after a break is detected. All media captured before the timecode break has frame-accurate timecode and is preserved. The resulting media file is saved and its representative clip is placed in the Browser.
Warn After Capture: If this option is selected, timecode breaks are reported after capture and the media file with the timecode break is preserved. It is unwise to use such a clip unless you have no choice, because timecode breaks result in incorrect timecode from the timecode break forward, and will make it difficult to accurately recapture your media.

When you choose Make New Clip from the "On timecode break" pop-up menu in the User Preferences window, ordered and reset timecode breaks and timecode gaps are handled in different ways. The pre-roll and post-roll values in the current device control preset also affect how the In and Out points of the resulting clips are determined.

When an ordered timecode break occurs, the video that's already been captured is saved in the logging bin in the Browser as a single clip, with its Out point at the frame occurring immediately prior to the discontinuous timecode. Final Cut Pro then continues to capture video after the timecode break to a second media file.

The In point of this second media file is calculated by adding the pre-roll duration to the frame occurring immediately after the dropped timecode frame. The pre-roll duration is taken into account so that if you ever try to recapture the clip, there is enough acceptable video footage before the In point to allow for VTR pre-roll.

Clips captured after timecode breaks are named by combining the original name and the number of the clip. For example, if the first captured clip's name is "Cats Playing," the second clip's name is set to "Cats Playing-1," then "Cats Playing-2," and so on.

Timecode break 00:01:00:00 00:01:10:00 00:01:13:00 Cats Playing clip Pre-roll Cats Playing-1 clip

If a timecode break occurs during the pre-roll period (before the clip's specified In point), Final Cut Pro moves the In point later to accommodate the currently specified pre-roll duration from the timecode break point to the new In point. For example, when a timecode break occurs within the default pre-roll duration of 3 seconds, the In point is moved later:

Timecode breaks New In point 00:01:00:00 00:01:10:00 00:01:11:00 00:01:14:00 Cats Playing clip Pre-roll Cats Playing-1 clip

Each time a timecode break occurs, Final Cut Pro continues to move the In point later until there is enough continuous timecode to accommodate the In point in addition to the duration of the pre-roll. This ensures that you will be able to recapture the clip again later.

Reset timecode breaks are handled differently. Since a reset timecode break results in the timecode at the point of the break being reset to 00:00:00:00, the reel name is incremented along with the clip name. This makes later media management much easier. The reel number identifies which part of a tape particular group of clips came from. For example, if a tape with the reel name 004 is captured and a reset timecode break occurs, the reel name for all clips captured after the timecode break is incremented with an uppercase letter, in this case 004-B. If another reset timecode break occurs, the reel number is incremented to 004-C, and so on.

First timecode break Second timecode break 00:00:00:00 00:10:33:12 00:00:00:00 00:32:10:18 00:00:00:00 00:48:04:20 Reel 004 Reel 004-B Reel 004-C

When long gaps are detected with no timecode at all, Final Cut Pro stops capturing, saving the media before the timecode gap as a single media file with its Out point set at the last frame before the gap. If you performed a Capture Now operation, Final Cut Pro continues playing through to the end of the tape, searching for more recorded video. If more video is found, the reel name is incremented—as with a reset timecode break—and capture continues.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Timecode Gaps - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["Reel 012\nDesert Scene-005"] --> B["10 second gap"]
    C["Reel 012-B\nDesert Scene-006"] --> B

Note: If you're experiencing excessive timecode breaks and don't know why, try cleaning your camcorder or deck's video heads. For more suggestions about how to find the causes of timecode breaks and dropped frames during capture, see Volume IV, Appendix D, "Solving Common Problems."

After you capture, there are several ways you can use the Media Manager to process your media files:

Capture media files at a lower resolution and edit your project using the low-resolution files. Once you are finished editing, you can then use the Media Manager to duplicate your edited sequence, deleting any unused media in the process, and recapture only the media you need for the final sequence at full-resolution. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 5, "Offline and Online Editing."
Even if you're not planning to recapture clips later at a different data rate, you may find yourself needing additional disk space. For example, if you have a lot of long clips that you only use portions of, the Media Manager can help. You can use the Media Manager to discard any unused media from your scratch disk.
Capture an entire tape, make subclips of all the shots you want to use, and then use the Media Manager to create smaller media files based on the subclip limits. You can discard media for subclips you don't want to use. If you're using DV tapes, you can use DV Start/Stop Detection to mark all of your takes in preparation for creating subclips. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 2, "Creating Subclips."

Note: If you're capturing an entire tape in order to follow the above workflow, it's vital to make sure that your tape has no timecode breaks. Make sure that Make New Clip is selected in the "On timecode break" pop-up menu in the General tab of the User Preferences window. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

For more information about media management, see Volume IV, Chapter 7, "Overview of the Media Manager."

This chapter covers the following:

• About Capturing Audio (p. 285)
• Capturing Audio-Only Media Files (p. 287)
• Capturing Multiple Audio Channels (p. 287)
- Adjusting Analog Audio Levels for Capture (p. 292)
• Capturing Audio From an Audio Deck Using Device Control (p. 294)
• Capturing From an Audio Device Without Device Control (p. 296)
• Capturing Synchronized Audio Independently From Video (p. 296)

Capturing audio in Final Cut Pro is essentially the same as capturing video—you enter a reel name, set In and Out points, log the clip, and then capture it. In most cases, you capture audio at the same time you capture video because they are both stored on the same tape. You can capture up to 24 audio channels at once, in either mono or stereo groupings, and you can also capture audio-only media files from video or audio-only devices.

If you want to import audio from audio CDs or audio files from other sound applications, see "About Importing Audio Files" on page 313.

When capturing from an audio deck or multichannel audio device (such as a digital audio workstation, or DAW), you need to make sure that:

Your audio device and computer audio interface are properly connected
Your computer's audio interface accepts the output format of the audio device
There are enough audio input channels on your audio interface to capture all the audio channels from your audio device

Most Macintosh computers have built-in stereo mini inputs, and some models also have optical S/PDIF (consumer digital) stereo audio connectors.

For more information about setting up an audio interface with Final Cut Pro, see "Connecting Audio Devices" on page 204.

Important: To ensure that Final Cut Pro can accurately capture and consistently recapture the exact same portion of the audio tape, your audio player must support remote device control. Many professional DAT recorders and multitrack recorders support remote device control. For more information, see “Capturing Audio From an Audio Deck Using Device Control” on page 294.

You can capture audio with accompanying video, or independently. Audio can come from a DV source (via the FireWire port on your computer), a third-party video interface which includes audio inputs, or a third-party audio interface. You can also use the Voice Over tool to record a mono audio track directly to the Timeline.

If you want to capture only audio from a video or audio device, you can disable video capture in the Clip Settings tab of the Log and Capture window.

1 Choose File > Log and Capture (or press Command-8).
2 Click the Clip Settings tab.
3 Deselect the video checkbox, and select the audio checkbox.

For information on setting up a capture preset for capturing audio by itself, see Volume IV, Chapter 24, "Capture Settings and Presets."

1 In the Capture Settings tab of the Log and Capture window, click Scratch Disks.
2 Deselect Capture Audio and Video to Separate Files.

When this option is disabled, audio files are captured to the Capture Scratch folder. If this option is enabled, audio files are captured to the Audio Capture Scratch folder.

Whether you are capturing audio only or video and audio together, you need to choose which audio channels are captured and how they are grouped together. Final Cut Pro can simultaneously capture up to 24 audio channels to a QuickTime media file, from any of the available input channels of a single audio interface.

Before you capture, you need to set up your audio interface with Final Cut Pro.

1 Choose File > Log and Capture (or press Command-8).
2 Click the Capture Settings tab.
3 From the Capture/Input pop-up menu, choose a capture preset that contains the audio interface you want to use.

If you have a third-party audio interface, you may need to create your own capture preset, or modify an existing one. For more information about customizing capture presets, see Volume IV, Chapter 24, "Capture Settings and Presets."

The audio area of the Clip Settings tab allows you to select which audio channels you want to capture, and whether each channel is grouped in a stereo pair or treated as an independent mono channel. Each audio input control corresponds to an input on the audio device or interface determined by your current capture preset. If you are using a third-party audio interface, it is important that you know which output channels of your deck are connected to the input channels of your interface.

If no audio interface is connected, you can choose how many audio inputs you want to capture from this pop-up menu. Select this option to enable video capture. Select this option to enable audio capture. Master Gain slider Audio Preview Stereo/Mono control 1 2 Individual audio channel meters Clipping indicator Capture Audio Channel control Log Clip Clip Clip Now Batch

Audio capture checkbox: Select this option to enable audio capture for the current clip.
Input Channels: When an audio interface is connected to your computer and selected in your current capture preset, Final Cut Pro automatically detects the number of input audio channels available. In this case, the pop-up menu is grayed out.

If no audio device is connected, you can choose how many audio inputs you eventually want to capture from (once an audio interface is connected). This is helpful when you are logging tapes without an audio device connected. Don't select more audio inputs than you will have available when you capture.

Note: If your audio interface is disconnected, and you log clips with more audio input channels than your audio interface has, Final Cut Pro restricts the number of audio channels that are captured to the number of available input channels on the interface. For example, if you log clips with eight audio input channels, and then batch capture those clips using an audio interface that only supports four input channels, only four channels are captured.

Preview: Select this option to listen to the incoming signal on the audio output selected in the Sound pane of System Preferences. Each audio channel you enable for capture is routed to a corresponding output on your audio interface, while disabled channels are not heard. If your audio interface has less audio outputs than the number of channels you are capturing, the audio is downmixed to two channels (mono channels are panned to the center and stereo pairs are previewed in stereo). This does not affect your captured media files; only the preview of audio during logging and capturing is affected.
Master Gain: This slider allows you to adjust the gain on all audio channels simultaneously. You can also enter a gain or attenuation value in decibels in the corresponding field.

Note: Not all devices support a master gain control from Final Cut Pro.

- Individual channel meter: Each audio channel meter shows the current level of the audio entering your audio interface.

Note: If the Preview option is enabled, and an audio channel is disabled for capture, then the audio meter does not display levels.

Clipping indicator: Each audio channel meter has a clipping indicator that lights up when audio levels above 0 dBFS are encountered. This indicator stays lit until you stop and start playback again.
Stereo/Mono control: Enabling this control tells Final Cut Pro to capture the two corresponding audio channels as a stereo pair. When this control is disabled, you can select one or both audio channels for capture. In this case, each channel is captured and handled as a discrete mono channel.
Capture Audio Channel control: Enabling this control tells Final Cut Pro to capture the corresponding audio channel.

1 Make sure your audio interface is connected and selected in your current capture preset.
2 Choose File > Log and Capture (or press Command-8).
3 Click the Clip Settings tab.
4 Check that the number of input audio channels in the Input Channels pop-up menu matches the number of channels available on your audio interface.

Note: The audio interface used for capturing is determined by the currently selected capture preset. For more information about capture presets, see Volume IV, Chapter 24, "Capture Settings and Presets."

5 Select which channels from your audio interface you want to capture.

Important: When you select channels in the Clip Settings tab, you are selecting input channels on the audio interface, not on the video or audio deck itself. For easy and consistent audio capturing, you should connect the audio outputs on your deck to the input channels with the same numbers. For example, if you are capturing from a Digital Betacam deck, you should connect output channels 1–4 of the deck to input channels 1–4 of your audio interface.

6 Click the Stereo/Mono control next to any pair of audio channels that you want to capture as a stereo pair, so it's darkened.

Stereo/Mono control is enabled. Stereo/Mono control is disabled. Audio inputs can be selected independently.

If you're using a DV camcorder, you typically record two channels of audio during production. By default, DV camcorders use a built-in stereo microphone, with the left side recorded on audio channel 1 and the right side recorded on audio channel 2 of the tape. This is a stereo grouping, where channel 1 represents the sounds on the left side and channel 2 represents sounds on the right side.

Throughout the editing process, you edit both the left and right sides of a stereo sound at the same time. In this case, channels 1 and 2 are grouped together as a single stereo pair.

However, if you use separate microphones to record independent sounds, such as dialogue from two actors, you can capture each audio track so that it is independent (discrete) from the other. These are called dual mono tracks.

Multichannel audio clips appear in the Viewer with a separate tab for each mono or stereo grouping of clip items. The example below shows an 8-channel audio clip open in the Viewer. Several of the clip items are mono, and some are grouped as stereo pairs.

Viewer: DebraEntersCafe_Multichannel in Cafe Video Stereo (a1a2) Mono (a3) Mono (a4) Stereo (a5a6) Mono (a7) Mono (a8) Filters Motion 00:00:38:05 02:10:40:13 Level 0 dB Pan -1 10:13 02:10:43:13 02:10:46:13 02:10:49:13 02:10:51 Audio Channel

Final Cut Pro stores multichannel audio media as QuickTime media files. Each audio channel captured is stored in its own track within a single QuickTime media file:

Mono grouping: Each mono channel is captured to its own track in the QuickTime media file.
Stereo grouping: Each stereo channel is captured to a single interleaved track in the QuickTime media file. A stereo interleaved audio track contains both left and right audio samples.

For example, suppose you are capturing from an 8-channel audio device. The way the audio is stored in QuickTime tracks depends on which channels you group as mono or stereo. Here is just one example of track layout within a multichannel QuickTime media file:

Audio device channels	Audio grouping chosen in Clip Settings tab	QuickTime media file track
Channels 1 and 2	Stereo pair	1 (Stereo)
Channel 3	Mono	2 (Mono)
Channel 4	Mono	3 (Mono)
Channels 5 and 6	Stereo pair	4 (Stereo)
Channel 7	Mono	5 (Mono)
Channel 8	Mono	6 (Mono)

DV video devices can record up to four tracks of audio, depending on the sample rate and bit depth chosen on the camcorder. However, Final Cut Pro can only capture two audio channels via the FireWire port of a device at a time. You need to choose or create a capture preset that captures the DV audio channels you want. For more information about creating or modifying a capture preset, see Volume IV, Chapter 24, "Capture Settings and Presets."

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings, then click the Capture Presets tab.
2 Click a preset you want to modify, then click Edit or Duplicate.
3 In QuickTime Audio Settings, choose DV Audio from the Device pop-up menu.
4 Choose one of the following options from the Input pop-up menu:

If your DV tape sample rate is 48 kHz and 16 bit: First 2 channels
If your DV tape sample rate is 32 kHz and 12 bit: Choose either First 2 channels, Second 2 channels, or Mix 4 channels.

The Mix 4 channels option mixes all four audio tracks into a single stereo pair.

5 Click OK, then click OK again.

Important: Before you begin shooting, always set your DV camcorder to record with a sample rate of 48 kHz and a bit depth of 16.

Along with the color bars at the beginning of your tape, there may also be a reference audio tone, usually at 1 kilohertz (kHz), set to 0 decibels (dB) on an analog meter. If you're capturing from a master tape in which the audio has already been mixed, all of the audio levels should have been mixed relative to the level of this reference tone.

The goal is to affect the audio signal as little as possible when you capture audio to your scratch disk. It's better to make audio level adjustments after you capture, because level changes you make in Final Cut Pro are nondestructive. You can always return to the original audio levels if necessary.

If you're capturing audio from a tape recorded on location, reference tone at the beginning of the tape is a good starting point for setting your levels, but chances are that the audio will vary from shot to shot. In this case, it is important to adjust the audio gain on your audio interface to record the best possible audio levels. You should set levels to avoid clipping the audio during capture. Clipped audio has a crackling, distorted sound that is unacceptable for professional work. Sometimes one setting will work for every clip on your tape. Other times, you may find yourself adjusting the audio levels for each clip. It all depends on how widely the audio levels vary on a given tape.

Note: When capturing digital audio, the gain level is already set and cannot be modified.

1 In the Log and Capture window, click the Clip Settings tab.
2 Do one of the following:

Cue your tape to the reference tone recorded at the beginning of the tape, if you're recording from a premixed tape that includes a reference tone.
Cue your tape to the clip with the loudest audio signal of all the clips you want to capture on that tape.

3 Play back your tape.
4 Verify that the levels coming from your deck match the audio input meters on your audio interface.
5 In the Clip Settings tabs of the Log and Capture window, enable the audio channels that you want to capture audio from.
6 Adjust the gain on each audio input of your audio interface so that the Final Cut Pro audio meters are equivalent to the meters on your deck.

Tone on analog media formats is usually set to 0 dB (analog). You need to choose an equivalent digital level on the Final Cut Pro audio meters. The level you choose is dependent on the bit depth you are using to capture your audio, as well as how much dynamic range your audio has:

16-bit audio: Typically, you should set a 0 dB analog tone to equal -12 dBFS digital.
20- or 24-bit audio: You should set a 0 dB analog tone to equal -18 or -20 dBFS.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - To adjust the audio gain levels before capturing analog audio: - 1

bar

| Category | Value | | -------------------- | ----- | | Generic VU meter | +7 | | Generic VU meter | +4 | | Generic VU meter | +2 | | Generic VU meter | 0 | | Generic VU meter | -2 | | Generic VU meter | -4 | | Generic VU meter | -7 | | Generic VU meter | -10 | | Generic VU meter | -20 | | Generic VU meter | -30 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | 0 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -6 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -12 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -18 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -24 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -36 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -48 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -66 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -∞ |

Relating 0 dB analog to -12 dB digital

For more information about bit depth, see Volume III, Chapter 3, "Audio Fundamentals."

Important: To avoid distortion, do not allow audio levels to go higher than 0 dBFS on the Final Cut Pro audio meters.

When you capture audio, clipping occurs if any part of the audio signal goes over 0 dBFS. Because 0 dBFS is the maximum digital level possible, all levels that would have been above 0 dBFS are set to the maximum audio level, causing clipping. Due to the nature of digital audio recording, such clipped audio typically results in a crackly, brittle-sounding clip that is unsuitable for use. All occurrences of clipped audio appear as 0 dBFS peaks. Excessive peaks indicate that your audio was recorded at unsuitable levels.

Final Cut Pro alerts you when an audio channel is peaking by lighting up its peak indicator in the Clip Settings tab of the Log and Capture window. If the peak indicator is lit, you should reduce the gain for that channel on your audio interface.

If you have already captured a clip and it has peaks in the audio, you can either recapture the audio at a better level or edit the audio appropriately to avoid the peaks. You can use the Mark Audio Peaks command to identify audio peaks in clips or sequences. It's then up to you to decide whether to avoid using those sections of audio or rerecord them. For detailed information about the Mark Audio Peaks command, see Volume IV, Chapter 9, "Diagnostic Tools for Clips."

Final Cut Pro allows you to capture audio from a device-controllable audio deck such as a professional DAT (digital audio tape) decks or a digital multitrack recorder. This is mainly useful when capturing audio that was acquired via dual system recording, in which video and audio were recorded simultaneously to different devices.

As with capturing video, your audio tapes must have timecode recorded on them or you cannot set In and Out points for capture. Audio decks may be controllable if they use one of the standard device control protocols (typically, RS-422) supported by Final Cut Pro.

If you're planning to capture dual system audio using device control, make sure that your audio deck is genlocked with the audio or video interface you are using for capture. For more information on connecting a device-controllable audio deck to your computer, see "Connecting Audio Devices" on page 204. For more information on capturing synchronized audio, see Volume IV, Chapter 24, "Capture Settings and Presets."

To capture audio from an audio-only device using device control:

1 Choose File > Log and Capture (or press Command-8), then click the Capture Settings tab.
2 Choose the appropriate device control preset from the Device Control pop-up menu.

This will usually be one of the serial RS-422 or RS-232 device control protocols. See the documentation that came with your audio device for information on which one to use.

Logging Clip Settings Capture Settings Device Control: FireWire NTSC Capture/Input: External Mic Choose the appropriate device control preset. Make sure you choose the appropriate audio capture preset.

3 Choose an audio-only capture preset from the Capture/Input pop-up menu.
For more information about creating an audio-only capture preset, see Volume IV, Chapter 24, "Capture Settings and Presets."
4 If you're capturing audio from a device-controllable audio deck that's genlocked to a video capture interface connected to your computer, you need to select "Sync audio capture to video source if present" in the General tab of the User Preferences window.
For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."
5 To locate material on an audio tape to capture, use the controls in the Log and Capture window. Log (or capture) clips the same way you would with any device-controllable video deck.
6 To capture material from an audio tape, capture clips the same way you would with any device-controllable video deck.

For more information, see Chapter 19, "Capturing Your Footage to Disk," on page 261.

7 To stop recording, or to interrupt batch capturing using device control, press Esc.

The audio clips you captured are placed in the logging bin in the Browser.

If your audio device does not support device control, you can manually press play on the audio device and click the Capture Now button in the Log and Capture window. However, without device control connected, Final Cut Pro cannot receive timecode. If you capture a media file without timecode, you will not be able to accurately recapture your footage again later.

If you want the ability to recapture your audio again later, you need to capture from media that has timecode using a deck that supports device control. One solution is to dub your audio onto a tape format that has a timecode track, such as DV or Digital Betacam. If you dub your audio to DV, make sure you use 16-bit (2-channel) audio mode so you record at the highest possible quality. Once your audio is transferred, you can capture your DV audio clips using FireWire and DV device control, the same way would capture DV video clips.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Transferring Audio to Media That Supports Timecode - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["CD"] --> B["Cassette"]
    B --> C["DAT without timecode"]
    D["DV tape"] --> E["Media with timecode"]
    F["DAT with timecode"] --> E

If you are editing material acquired via dual system recording, meaning that video and audio are recorded simultaneously to different devices, you need to capture your audio and video separately and then synchronize them together in Final Cut Pro. After capturing, you can combine the corresponding video and audio clips into a merged clip. Merged clips work in the same way as other clips in Final Cut Pro, but they refer to separate video and audio media files (whereas most other clips, such as clips captured from DV tape, refer only to a single media file that contains both video and audio). For more information about merged clips, see Volume II, Chapter 3, "Merging Clips From Dual System Video and Audio."

When capturing audio from an audio-only player such as a DAT player, it is important to precisely synchronize the sample clock of the digital audio player with the clock of your audio interface.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Capturing Synchronized Audio Independently From Video - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["PCI card"] -->|USB| B["USB-to-serial adapter"]
    B -->|Serial| C["Device controllable DAT deck"]
    C -->|Audio| D["Breakout box"]
    D -->|Reference video| E["Blackburst generator"]
    E -->|Reference video| C
    C -->|Audio| D
    D -->|Audio| E

Using a common timing signal for both your audio device and capture interface is especially important when you capture long segments of audio. If your audio deck is not set up in this way, the sync between the audio and video of merged clips you create can drift over time.

To capture and edit digital audio properly, make sure your footage and equipment meets the following requirements:

Matching timecode on videotapes and audio tapes: During production, recording the same timecode signal for both video and audio makes it easy to synchronize video and audio clips in postproduction. If timecode doesn't match, you can manually synchronize your video and audio clips in the Timeline and then create merged clips.
Remote device control: Your audio tape player needs to support device control so that Final Cut Pro can capture audio precisely and recapture consistently.
A video sync generator (blackburst generator): Provides a common timing signal for both the audio tape player and the audio interface you are using to capture.
External sync input on devices and interfaces: Ideally, your video and audio devices and your audio interface should accept an external sync signal so that all frame rates and audio sample rates are timed together exactly.

For more information about connecting a blackburst generator to your video and audio equipment, see "Synchronizing Equipment With a Blackburst Generator" on page 206.

There are alternatives to logging your tapes using Final Cut Pro. You can watch your tapes and take notes in another application, and then import this list to batch capture your clips.

This chapter covers the following:

• What Is a Batch List? (p. 299)
- Creating a Batch List (p. 300)
- Importing a Batch List (p. 303)

A batch list, also called a batch capture list, is a tab delimited text file that contains information about clips you want to capture and use in your project. These lists provide a convenient alternative to logging tapes and creating clips within Final Cut Pro.

In another application, you can create a list of clips with descriptive information such as reel name, timecode, log notes, director's comments, and so on, and then import the list into Final Cut Pro. The imported list becomes a group of offline clips in your project, which you can then batch capture from the original tapes. As long as you entered accurate reel and timecode information for each clip, the clips imported via a batch list are no different from clips created directly in Final Cut Pro.

There are various applications you can use to create a batch list such as AppleWorks, FileMaker Pro, or Microsoft Excel. You can even use text editors such as TextEdit, but it is generally easier to use a program that keeps columns of information (such as clip name, reel name, and timecode numbers) clearly separated. For more information, see "Creating a Batch List" on page 300.

You can use batch lists in several ways:

Producers and directors can create a list of clips for you to edit with and save you the tedium of reviewing every single take.
An editor or assistant editor can log the In and Out points of every shot and make a note about whether the director liked each one.
You can log material on one Final Cut Pro workstation for import and capture on another workstation.
You can watch your videotapes on a large projector to emulate a theater viewing experience and take your log notes on a PowerBook.

An Edit Decision List, or EDL, describes an entire edited sequence. After you import an EDL into Final Cut Pro, the sequence described in the EDL is automatically created.

A batch list is a simpler list that describes only the clips used in your project, not any chronological order or applied effects. After you import a batch list in Final Cut Pro, your project contains a series of offline clips, one for each entry in the batch list. You then need to recapture or relink the clips to use the media.

You can create a batch list using a VTR that can display timecode while you play your tapes back (assuming your tapes or other original media have timecode) and a spreadsheet program or word processor. Enter a reel name, Media Start, Media End, and clip name for each clip you want to log. Save this list as a text file, and then import it into Final Cut Pro. The result is a set of offline clips stored in your logging bin.

Professional VTRs (for example, Digital Betacam, Beta SP, and some DV decks) have an option to display a timecode window superimposed over the video. More expensive VTRs often have a separate output, labeled super (for superimpose) or monitor, dedicated to timecode display. Less expensive decks may have only one video output and a switch or menu option to turn the timecode window on or off.

Some VTRs are very expensive, and since watching your original footage can cause wear and tear on your tapes, it often makes the most sense to make copies of your footage onto a more affordable format, such as VHS or DV. You can then log your footage using the copies, noting reel name and timecode In and Out points (Media Start and Media End) for each clip on the tape. You can add as much additional logging information as you want.

If you receive dubs (copies) of your footage on a tape format that doesn't support remote deck control from Final Cut Pro, you need to have the timecode "burned-in" to the video image so you can read the timecode numbers manually. These are known as window dubs, window burns, or timecode burn-ins. Although the burned-in timecode numbers can be visually distracting, they provide the critical link between the timecode on the original tapes and your log notes. VHS is a common example of an inexpensive dubbing format that usually lacks the ability to be remotely controlled.

You can use any spreadsheet or word-processing program to create a batch list. Because spreadsheets are already set up to enter rows and columns of data, they are the easiest programs to use to create batch lists. However, even a very simple program such as TextEdit will work, as long as you use tabs instead of spaces to separate entries in your list.

◇	A	B	C	D	E	F	G
1	Name	Media Start	Media End	Reel	Log Note
2	leading officers into channel	00:01:31:26	00:01:56:25	1
3	approaching rail, near sea	00:01:56:25	00:02:23:17	1
4	under rail (better CU)	00:02:23:17	00:02:51:16	1
5	reel above cinema projector	00:02:51:16	00:03:10:18	1
6	Aurora visits AV area	00:03:10:19	00:03:22:18	1
7	Naval Academy, marina station	00:03:22:20	00:03:58:26	1
8	activity near construction area	00:03:58:26	00:04:36:25	1
9	visiting Academy (extra rev)	00:04:36:25	00:05:18:24	1
10	after race, near sea	00:05:18:24	00:06:01:07	2
11	running uphill (CU runner)	00:06:01:07	00:06:44:07	2
12	runners approach (camera lower)	00:06:44:07	00:07:31:06	2
13	opening landscape-additional video	00:07:31:06	00:08:19:27	2
14

If you format your list properly according to the columns Final Cut Pro expects, importing a batch list generated in another application is easy. Follow these rules:

The first row of your spreadsheet or line of your word-processing document must have field headings that exactly match the column titles found in the Browser.
You don't need to include every column in the Browser, but you must have Name, Media Start, Media End, and Reel column headings.

Note: In batch capture lists created for Final Cut Pro 1.2.5 or earlier, Media Start and Media End were previously referred to as In and Out. If you're using such a list, change the column titles In and Out to Media Start and Media End, or your clips won't import properly.

If you want the clips imported from a batch list to have drop frame timecode, make sure the last pair of digits is preceded by a semicolon, such as 01:20:00;15.
• Each entry must be tab delimited.

One way to guarantee a correctly formatted batch list is to export a batch list from Final Cut Pro and use it as a guide, or template, to create your own batch list for another project. Export a list that contains the Browser columns you want, then open the list in a text editor or spreadsheet program. The main structure of the list is then set up for use as a template.

Note: Batch lists always export clips using their native timecode display format. This prevents you from exporting batch lists with alternative timecode displays, such as frame display mode

1 Control-click in the Browser, then choose View As List from the shortcut menu.
2 Select a project tab or open a bin in its own window.
3 Arrange columns in the Browser in the order you want information exported.

All visible columns are included in the exported batch list.

To hide a column: Control-click the column heading, then choose Hide Column from the shortcut menu.
To display a hidden column: Control-click in any column heading, then choose Show "Column name" from the shortcut menu, where "Column name" is the name of the hidden column.

4 Choose File > Export > Batch List.
5 Select a location to save the file and enter a name for the list.
6 When you're ready to export, click Save.

You can import a batch list into Final Cut Pro and use it to capture clips to edit or to create a sequence originally done on another editing system. The frame rate of the batch list is determined by the currently selected sequence preset in the Audio/Video Settings window.

Note: A batch list must be a text file. In some cases, you may need to add the .txt file extension to your filename to ensure that Final Cut Pro can import your file.

1 In the Browser, open an existing bin, or create a new bin to store the offline clips and open it.

For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 1, "Organizing Footage in the Browser."

2 Choose File > Import > Batch List.

Note: The frame rate of the current sequence preset appears in the Import Batch List command name. For example, if you a DV NTSC preset is selected, the command is named Import Batch List at 29.97 fps.

3 Locate the batch list, select it, then click Choose.

The logged clips appear in the Browser as offline clips that you need to capture.

You can capture the clips all at one time by doing a batch capture. For more information, see "Batch Capturing Clips" on page 262.

Note: Make sure you have all the source tapes associated with the batch list before starting the capture process.

If you're having a problem importing a batch capture list, check the format of the text file. Final Cut Pro does not support importing RTF (Rich Text Format) text files. If you have an RTF file you need to import, open it in a text editing application such as TextEdit and save it as a plain text document first.

This chapter covers the following:

• What File Formats Can Be Imported? (p. 305)
- Importing Media Files (p. 306)
- About Importing Video Files (p. 310)
- About Importing Audio Files (p. 313)
- Importing Numbered Image Sequences (p. 316)

Importing files into Final Cut Pro for use in your sequences is fairly straightforward. You can import various kinds of files, including video, audio, still images and graphics, and numbered image sequences.

You can import any files that are recognized by QuickTime, including:

Video files: QuickTime Movie, AVI, and Macromedia Flash (video only—you won't be able to play any audio portions).
For details about these formats, see Volume IV, Chapter 17, "Learning About QuickTime."
Audio files: AIFF/AIFC, Audio CD Data (.cdda), Sound Designer II, System 7 Sound, uLaw (AU), WAVE, and MPEG-4.
For details about these formats, see "About Importing Audio Files" on page 313.
Graphics and still images: BMP, FlashPix, GIF, JPEG/JFIF, MacPaint (PNTG), Photoshop (layered), PICS, PICT, PNG, QuickTime Image File, SGI, TARGA (TGA), and TIFF. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 17, "Working With Still Images and Photographs."
Numbered image sequences: Numbered image sequences allow you to store a movie's frames as individual graphics files. Compositing applications, such as Shake, and film transfer equipment often use this format. Final Cut Pro does not convert image sequences into a single clip, but instead creates individual clips for each graphics file you import.

Importing is different from capturing in the following ways:

Capturing: When you capture, you transfer and often convert footage from an external video or audio device to your scratch disk.
Importing: You import files when they are already stored on your scratch disk. Importing media files creates clips in your project; these clips refer back to the media files on disk.

Since capturing creates media files, you can always import captured media files into your project at any time.

You can import single files, a folder, or a group of folders. If you import a group of folders that contain folders inside one another, Final Cut Pro imports all files in each folder and subfolder that are in formats it recognizes; incompatible file types are ignored.

Folders imported into your project appear as bins in the Browser. If you import a group of folders, Final Cut Pro creates bins and organizes the files in the same hierarchy as on your hard disk. However, unlike with clips and media files, there is no further relationship between bins and folders after you import. Changing the name or location of a bin in your project has no effect on the folders in the Finder, and vice versa.

1 In the Browser, select a project or bin where you want to store your imported clips.

To import files or folders into the main, or root, level of a project, click that project's tab.
To import files into a bin within a project, double-click the bin. The bin opens in a separate window.

For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 1, "Organizing Footage in the Browser."

To import files at the main level, click a project's tab. To place imported files into a bin, first open the bin by double-clicking it.

2 Do one of the following:

- Drag one or more files or folders from the Finder to a project tab or bin in the Browser. This is a fast and easy way to import many files.

Browser Dining Name Duration In Dining Room Dining sequence 00:02:00:14 Not Set Foyer Intro sequence 00:01:49:18 Not Set Music Outside House Truck Don talks to driver 1

- Choose File > Import, then choose File or Folder from the submenu. (To import a file, you can also press Command-I.) Select one or more files or folders in the dialog, then click Choose.

- Control-click in the Browser or a bin's window, then choose Import File or Import Folder from the shortcut menu. Select a file or folder in the dialog, then click Choose.

Import New Bin New Sequence Set Logging Bin View as List View as Small Icons View as Medium Icons View as Large Icons Arrange Text Size Paste Files... Folder... Batch List at 23.98 fps... EDL... Panasonic P2... VDU Data... XML...

Choose an import option, then in the dialog that appears, locate the file or folder you want to import and click Choose.

- You can also drag the files or folders from your desktop to the Timeline of a sequence.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:40:00 01:01:20:00 01:0 v1 V1 Master shot Debra MS 3 Clips you drag directly to the Timeline are independent (they have no master clips in the Browser). a1 A1 Don at table salad W a2 A2 Don at table salad W A3

Important: Dragging media files directly to a sequence in the Timeline creates independent clips, which have no master clips in the Browser. This can make media management more difficult later. For more information about master-affiliate clip relationships, see Volume IV, Chapter 4, "Working With Master and Affiliate Clips."

For more information, see "Creating and Saving Projects" on page 32.

When you import media files, keep the following in mind:

If you want to import media files from removable storage media, such as a CD, do not import the files directly. Instead, copy the files to the folder on your scratch disk where your other project media is stored. Clips that refer to removable media become offline when you eject the disc.
When importing QuickTime reference movies, the only file that will be recognized by Final Cut Pro is the main file that contains the references (to the other associated files). You may see error messages, such as "file unknown," if you try to import these referenced files.
While not necessary, it's a good idea to keep all of the media files used for any given project together, for organizational purposes. When you back up or archive your project file, you'll also want to back up or archive any graphics, audio, or QuickTime files that weren't captured from tape, so they don't get lost.
You can use clips compressed with different codecs in your sequence, but only clips with settings that match your sequence play back without rendering or using real-time processing. Unless it's necessary to combine clips with different codecs in your sequence, you will get the best editing performance by using clips with settings that match your sequence.
Final Cut Pro supports both RGB and Y'C_B C_R (YUV) color spaces, depending on the video codec used. When using the Y'C_B C_R color space, Final Cut Pro supports either 8- or 10-bit resolution.

You can import any QuickTime-compatible media files into Final Cut Pro, but to avoid rendering, your media files need to match your sequence settings. For example, if you create a motion graphics title sequence in another application and then export to a QuickTime movie for use in Final Cut Pro, make sure you export using the same settings as the sequence into which you plan to edit the title sequence.

1 Check the following sequence settings:

• Frame rate (editing timebase)
- Image dimensions
- Pixel aspect ratio
• Video codec and quality settings
• Audio sample rate and bit depth

For details on how to do this, see Volume IV, Chapter 26, "Sequence Settings and Presets."

2 Set your QuickTime export settings to match the settings of the sequence you want to edit your exported media file into.

To import a QuickTime movie file into Final Cut Pro, follow the steps in "Importing Media Files" on page 306.

If any of the settings in your imported QuickTime file don't match your sequence settings, a red video render bar appears in the Timeline when you add that clip to the sequence. You can check the settings of the clip by choosing

Edit > Item Properties > Format.

MXF is not a video format itself, but rather a format that can contain almost any kind of video or audio media. MXF is similar to QuickTime, which is not a single video signal, but a general media format that can contain video compressed with supported codecs, audio with different sample rates, video with different dimensions, frame rates, and so on.

A number of video formats can be stored within MXF files. For example, a DV movie can be stored within an MXF file. Final Cut Pro works with QuickTime media files, so you need to convert MXF data to QuickTime before you can start editing.

Some examples of popular video formats that are stored in an MXF container include:

IMX: A standard definition, MPEG-2, I-frame-only video format. IMX media can be stored on a tape, hard disk, or optical disc.
Panasonic P2 cards: These solid-state memory cards can store DV (25), DVCPRO, and DVCPRO 50 media.

For more information about importing these formats, see Working With High Definition and Broadcast Formats.

Final Cut Pro allows you to import media stored on a Sony Video Disk Unit. These hard disk-based devices are typically connected to a camcorder during production, so a copy of your footage can be recorded directly to disk. When shooting is finished, you can efficiently import your media from the VDU instead of your original tapes.

For more information about using this device, see Working With High Definition and Broadcast Formats.

Final Cut Pro captures and writes media files to maximize the number of simultaneous streams and real-time effects during playback. Video streams are defined in terms of the number of simultaneous media files that can be read from your scratch disk, and does not necessarily correspond to the number of video tracks in your sequence. For example, you may have ten tracks in a sequence, but if the clip in the topmost track covers all the others, only one video stream plays from the scratch disk.

In rare cases, Final Cut Pro alerts you if imported media files cannot be optimized for multiple-stream, real-time playback. These files are perfectly fine to use in your Final Cut Pro project. Unless you are editing with multiple uncompressed video streams that demand maximum media file performance, you can usually leave the files as they are and continue editing normally. Since Final Cut Pro always optimizes files when capturing, simply recapturing should maximize the file's performance.

Note: If you are editing standard definition DV captured in Final Cut Pro, your media files are already optimized.

Final Cut Pro may not automatically optimize the following:

Media files captured or created with a third-party codec not supported by Final Cut Pro
Some media files captured in early versions of Final Cut Pro

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > User Preferences.
2 Click the General tab.
3 Deselect "Warn when importing non-optimized media."

Final Cut Pro will no longer warn you when it discovers a media file that it cannot automatically optimize.

Final Cut Pro allows you to import audio files from other music and sound editing applications, as well as audio from audio CDs.

When you import audio files into Final Cut Pro, you need to make sure that their settings match your sequence settings. If your audio clips' settings don't match the sequence settings, you can still edit with them, but Final Cut Pro does real-time conversion which reduces overall playback performance. This chapter discusses the types of audio file formats you can import, as well as methods for converting audio files so they match your sequence settings.

For more information about digital audio, see Volume III, Chapter 3, "Audio Fundamentals."

Final Cut Pro allows you to directly import any audio format compatible with QuickTime. However, only uncompressed file formats such as AIFF and WAVE files can be used for editing. Final Cut Pro supports AIFF, WAVE, Sound Designer II, and single-track or multitrack QuickTime movies. Natively, Final Cut Pro captures to QuickTime movie files with one or more audio tracks.

Common sample rates and bit depths include:

32 kHz/12-bit: Consumer mini-DV camcorders can record four channels of audio using these settings. This is not recommended for most productions.
44.1 kHz/16-bit: Audio CDs and consumer DAT recorders use these audio settings.
48 kHz/16-bit: DV, HDV, and DVD all use these audio settings.
48 kHz/20-bit: Some professional video devices record natively in this format.
96 kHz/24-bit: These settings are becoming increasingly popular for professional sound and music production, although most video formats still record with 48 kHz.

For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 3, "Audio Fundamentals."

Ideally, the sample rate and bit depth of your audio files should match that of your sequence settings. When you play a sequence in Final Cut Pro, any audio files with sample rates that don't match your sequence sample rate are converted in real time. This is known as sample rate conversion, and it requires additional processing power. Clip items that require real-time sample rate conversion appear with a green render bar within the clip item. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 24, "Rendering."

Even though Final Cut Pro can perform real-time sample rate conversion, conversions can reduce your audio mixing and effects performance. The quality of this conversion is controlled by the Audio Playback Quality setting in the General tab of the User Preferences window. Higher-quality conversions reduce the number of audio tracks that Final Cut Pro can mix together in real time.

If the sample rates of all the audio in your sequence match, sample rate conversion is not necessary and the number of audio tracks that can play in real time increases. If you are working with someone who is creating music or audio files specifically for your project, you can request audio files at the settings you need to match your sequence.

However, If your audio clips don't match your sequence settings, you can improve audio playback performance by converting your audio files to the sample rate and bit depth of your sequence.

If you are working with preexisting audio material, such as music from audio CDs, you need to convert the audio files so they match your sequence settings. For example, if you plan to use a lot of sound effects or music from audio CDs (which have a sample rate of 44.1 kHz) in a DV sequence with a sample rate of 48 kHz, it's a good idea to convert your audio files to a sample rate of 48 kHz.

Most professional video formats, including DV, have a sample rate of 48 kHz and a bit depth of 16 (this is often abbreviated as 48 kHz/16-bit). Since these settings are so common for video postproduction, they are used for most sequences in Final Cut Pro.

Important: DV sequences sometimes use 32 kHz/12-bit settings, but these settings are not recommended. As long as you don't record your DV footage using 32 kHz/12-bit, you should not use these settings for your sequence.

Audio files can be converted using the Export Using QuickTime Conversion command.

1 Select a sequence, then choose Sequence > Settings.
2 Check the sample rate of the sequence in the Audio Settings area of the General tab, then click OK.
For DV sequences, the sample rate is usually 48 kHz.
3 Select an audio clip in the Browser that you want to convert to a new sample rate.
4 Choose File > Export > Using QuickTime Conversion.
5 Choose AIFF from the Format pop-up menu.
6 Click Options.
7 In the Sound section of the Movie Settings dialog, click Settings.
8 In the Rate pop-up menu, choose the sample rate of your sequence, then click OK.
Make sure the size is kept at 16-bit.
9 Click OK.
10 Choose a name and location for the new file, then click Save.
Once the conversion is complete, you need to import the new media file into Final Cut Pro.
11 In the Finder, navigate to the location of your newly converted audio media file, then select the file and drag it into your project in the Final Cut Pro Browser.
You may want to delete the old clip in your project so you aren't confused by two clips with the same name.
Tip: You can also convert multiple clips at once using the Batch Export command.

Mac OS X recognizes tracks on standard audio CDs as individual .cdda files. These files can be copied directly from a CD to your hard disk and then imported into Final Cut Pro without any conversion.

Since they come from a CD, .cdda files have a sample rate of 44.1 kHz and sample size of 16 bits. If you're working with a DV sequence, you can convert the sample rate using Final Cut Pro. For more information, see "Converting Audio Clips to Match Sequence Settings" on page 314.

Important: Do not import clips from a CD or DVD directly into Final Cut Pro. These clips will go offline as soon as you eject the disc from the drive. Make sure you copy the files to your hard disk before importing them.

You can import most graphic formats supported by QuickTime into your project. The most common ways to create or acquire still images to use in a Final Cut Pro sequence include:

• Capturing with a digital camera
- Scanning from a book or photograph
- Downloading from the web

Note: Be aware of copyright issues and don't use images that you don't have permission to use.

Capturing from a standard-definition or high-definition video camera
Creating with a desktop publishing or graphics application

Keep in mind that the image needs to be in one of the formats supported by Final Cut Pro: PICT, TIFF, TGA, PDF, Photoshop, or JPEG. Most of these file formats can also contain an alpha channel. For more information about alpha channels, see Volume III, Chapter 18, "Compositing and Layering." For detailed information about working with still images and graphics, see Volume III, Chapter 17, "Working With Still Images and Photographs."

Numbered image sequences are the lowest-common-denominator method for exchanging video across editing and compositing platforms. Image sequences are movies, but instead of storing all of the video frames in one file (such as a QuickTime movie file), each frame is stored in a separate, sequentially numbered file. While QuickTime is increasingly used to exchange video clips between platforms, image sequences are still very common.

Note: If you are exchanging media between Final Cut Pro and other postproduction applications, you should use a QuickTime file format for your movies unless there is a particular reason not to.

Some applications may be capable of exporting only numbered image sequences. In this case, you can use one of the following methods to import numbered image sequences into Final Cut Pro:

You can first use QuickTime Pro to convert a numbered image sequence into a QuickTime movie that can be imported into Final Cut Pro and used like any other clip. When you do this, the numbered image sequence is not used in Final Cut Pro.
You can import all your image files into Final Cut Pro, and then edit them sequentially into a sequence.

You can use QuickTime Pro to convert a numbered image sequence into a QuickTime movie. This is useful if you want to convert all your images into a single clip. You can then import the movie into Final Cut Pro and use it the way you use any other clip.

1 Open QuickTime Player.
2 Choose File > Open Image Sequence.
3 Locate the first numbered file of the image sequence you want to import, then click Open.

4 In the Image Sequence Settings dialog, choose a frame rate, then click OK.

You can choose any frame rate, but there is almost always an intended correct frame rate based on the original format. If you aren't sure, check with the person who generated the image sequence to make sure you choose the proper frame rate. NTSC uses 29.97 fps, PAL uses 25 fps, film traditionally uses 24 fps, and HD might use any of the above, as well as 59.94 or 60 fps. For more information, see Volume IV, Appendix B, "Frame Rate and Timecode."

Image Sequence Settings Frame rate: 24 frames per second Choose a frame rate for the movie from this pop-up menu. Cancel OK

Your image sequence is imported into QuickTime Player as an uncompressed video file.

5 Choose File > Save.

Note: You can also choose File > Export > QuickTime Movie. This gives you the option to customize the dimensions and codec of the movie. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 18, "Exporting QuickTime Movies."

6 Choose a location and enter a name for the file.

If you wish, enter a name for the file. Save exported file as... Save As: grandfather clock.mov Where: Desktop Choose a place to save the file. Choose a save option. Export: Movie to QuickTime Movie Options... Use: Most Recent Settings Cancel Save

7 Choose an option for how you want to save the movie, then click Save.

Save normally: If you choose this option, QuickTime Player creates a reference movie that points to the original folder of image files. No data is actually duplicated, so the reference movie itself is very small, takes very little hard disk space, and is quick to create. The resulting movie file is the same as a QuickTime movie file and can be imported into Final Cut Pro just like any other QuickTime file.
Note: Since a reference movie needs the original source material for playback, if you give this clip to someone else, you must give them the original image files as well.
Make movie self-contained: If you're going to be giving this clip to someone else, the easiest thing to do is to make it self-contained. This type of movie takes longer to save and consumes more hard disk space than a reference movie. However, a self-contained movie isn't dependent on other files and is a better option for exchanging and archiving files.

Because no compression is applied (other than any that may have been used in the original image sequence files), the saved movie is uncompressed and may not play back in real time. After you import the movie and edit it into a sequence, Final Cut Pro rerenders this clip using the codec specified in your sequence settings.

You can import a numbered image sequence as a set of individual image files. This gives you more flexibility because you have control over which files are imported and which of those are then edited into your sequence.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > User Preferences, then click the Editing tab.
2 Set the Still/Freeze Duration value to one frame (00:00:00:01).
3 Open the project where you want to import the files.

For more information, see "Opening and Closing Projects" on page 34.

4 Import all the image files associated with the numbered image sequence you want to use in your project.

For more information, see "Importing Media Files" on page 306.

5 Do one of the following:

Choose File > New > Sequence.
Control-click in the Browser, then choose New Sequence from the shortcut menu.

6 Double-click the new sequence to open it in the Timeline.
7 Select the newly imported bin with all the image clips in it, open it, and press Command-A to select all these clips.
8 Drag the clips to the Insert section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas.

Canvas: Image sequence in Dining Insert with Transition with Transition 01.00.00.01 Drag the clips to the Insert section of the Edit Overlay. Insert with Transition 01.00.00.01 Overwrite with Transition Replace Fit to Fill Superimpose

You can now edit this sequence into other sequences.

You can use one of the methods above to create your own animations as visual elements in your movie. You can even make a whole movie this way, although it takes patience to create 24 or more frames for every second of your finished movie.

Sources for still images include:

• Digital cameras (including your iPhoto image library)
- Scanners
- Freeze frames exported from Final Cut Pro

- Hand-drawn computer graphics created with a graphics application

All of your images should be the same dimensions, and should ideally match the dimensions of your output format (for example, NTSC DV is 720 x 480, HD is 1920 x 1080 or 1280 x 720, and so on).

After you collect a group of still image files together in one folder, name them sequentially, such as AbstractBackground0001.jpg, AbstractBackground0002.jpg, and so on. Then import the files into Final Cut Pro following the steps for importing a numbered image sequence.

When using analog devices, make sure they are calibrated for accurate brightness and color so there's no distortion when you capture and color correct your video.

This chapter covers the following:

• Using Color Bars (p. 321)
- Calibrating Brightness and Color on Analog Equipment (p. 322)
• How Digital Video Levels Are Measured in Final Cut Pro (p. 323)
• Measuring Analog Video During Output (p. 325)
• Using the Waveform Monitor and Vectorscope (p. 325)
- Outputting Accurate DV Black Levels Using FireWire (p. 330)
- Using an External Waveform Monitor and Vectorscope to Calibrate Analog Video Levels (p. 330)

Color bars are an electronically generated video signal that meet very strict specifications. Because the luma and chroma levels are standardized, you can use color bars passing through different components of a video system to see how each device is affecting the signal. For example, suppose you record color bars that have a 100 percent white level in a camcorder, and then play the videotape back on a VTR. If the white level output from the VTR is only 90 percent, you need to increase the luma level output of the VTR.

You should only evaluate color bars using a calibrated video scope, such as a waveform monitor (which measures video luma—the black and white signal) or a vectorscope (which measures chroma—color saturation and hue). Judging color bars by eye is not particularly helpful, except in the broadest terms: If a red color bar has turned green, you know your equipment needs to be adjusted, but you still need a scope to correct the problem precisely.

NTSC and PAL each have specific color bar standards, and even within NTSC and PAL there are several standards. When you evaluate color bars on a video scope, it is important to know which color bars standard you are measuring, or you may make improper adjustments. "SMPTE bars" is a commonly used standard.

Analog devices always need to be calibrated and adjusted, even if only by minute degrees. This is because heat, age, noise, cable length, and many other factors subtly affect the voltage of an analog electronic video signal, which affects the brightness and color of the video image. Any time you are using analog video equipment, you can use color bars and a calibrated video scope to measure and adjust the output of a device.

Professional analog VTRs allow you to make adjustments to the output analog signal, and many analog-to-digital video interfaces allow you to make subtle level adjustments as well, controlled by software. However, digital devices are not subject to any of these issues, and for the most part, you capture the exact information stored on tape without worrying about subtle signal degradation.

Broadcast video professionals use color bars to ensure that analog video shot in the field is adjusted for accurate brightness and color and that there's no distortion when this video is captured by Final Cut Pro. Color bars are also used to calibrate analog output back to tape, so that dubs of your final master tapes all have correct color and brightness.

Note: You calibrate using bars only if you use analog source tapes, such as Betacam SP or Hi-8, and you're capturing your material using an analog-to-digital video interface. If you're capturing digital video, you don't have to calibrate the interface because the digital data is copied exactly.

Typically, 30 to 60 seconds of color bars are recorded at the beginning of each new videotape shot in the field. Color bars from a professional camcorder are used to calibrate the on-location video monitor used to watch what's being shot, so that adjustments for brightness or color temperature made to the camcorder are made accurately. Later, the color bars recorded at the head of each source tape are used to calibrate the clip settings in Final Cut Pro. If you don't have bars on your tape, see

"Adjusting Color on Source Tapes Without Color Bars" on page 328.

Each source tape should be individually calibrated because tapes from various camcorders may have slightly different settings, or because the same camcorder may have fluctuated slightly over the course of the production.

Using a hardware waveform monitor and vectorscope to calibrate analog input or output is largely the same as using the software-based scopes in Final Cut Pro. When you use the waveform monitor, black is always represented on the digital scale as 0 percent, and white is represented as 100 percent. Percentages are used because the units vary depending on the bit depth of the digital video being measured. 8-bit video, such as DV, has 256 (0 to 255) possible brightness (or luma) values per pixel. 10-bit video, such as Digital Betacam and many third-party video interface codecs, uses 1024 (0 to 1023) possible luma values per pixel. Both 8- and 10-bit video are displayed as percentages on the waveform monitor in Final Cut Pro.

Digital video black and white are not set at the extreme values. Instead, there is a small safety margin, known as headroom, to handle exceptionally bright highlights during shooting. For example, 8-bit digital video uses the value 16 for black (0 percent on the waveform monitor in Final Cut Pro) and 235 for white (100 percent), but there is still some headroom higher than 235 to capture extremely bright highlights.

Many camcorders record super-white video levels, which are video levels that exceed a digital value of 100 percent (as high as 109 percent). Since 8-bit video extends beyond 235 (almost to 255, though 255 cannot be used), it is possible to record these super-white values even though they are not broadcast-legal. Final Cut Pro can capture these super-white levels and maintain them throughout editing, as long as the video codec used supports Y'C_B C_R (YUV) processing. For example, the Apple DV codec supports Y'C_B C_R processing and allows you to capture and process DV media with super-white video levels. If you have a third-party video interface, check its documentation to verify that the codecs it supports use Y'C_B C_R processing.

Important: If your video capture codec does not support Y^_BC_R processing, your video is processed in RGB color space. 8-bit RGB video spans 0 to 255 like Y^_BC_R , but black is set to 0 and white is set to 255. In other words, RGB has no headroom, or extra bits, available to record super-white values. A Y^_BC_R level of 235, which is considered white, is mapped to 255 when converted to RGB. However, what happens to the super-white levels such as 236, 240, 245, and so on? When converted to RGB, all these super-white values are mapped to RGB 255, which has the effect of flattening all the subtle brightness differences to a single white value. The result is sometimes referred to as luma clamping, or clipping. Visually, clamping appears as a loss of details in the highlights of the image, and a subtle darkening of the brightest values. When Final Cut Pro renders Y^_BC_R media in RGB color space, images with super-white luma levels (101 to 109 percent) are clamped to 100 percent. This effect is most noticeable when using a transition, such as a dissolve, between two clips. The super-white areas of the clip that's making the transition will suddenly appear to darken for the duration of the rendered transition. This is because the super-white media outside the transition is displayed in Y^_BC_R color space, but the rendered portion is processed in RGB color space.

If possible, you should aim to use a Y^_BC_R codec throughout the entire postproduction process.

For more information about managing luma and chroma levels, see Volume III, Chapter 20, "Color Correcting Clips." For more information about video processing, see Volume III, Chapter 24, "Rendering."

Analog video equipment measures signals using IRE units, a video-specific unit of voltage. IRE originally stood for Institute of Radio Engineers, which has since merged into the modern IEEE organization. One IRE is 7.143 milliVolts, but it's easier to remember that an analog video signal has a range of 1 volt, which spans 140 IRE units (–40 to 0 is for sync pulses; 0 to 100 is for picture information).

The picture information in an analog signal is measured between 0 and 100 IRE, although higher values are possible. Synchronization pulses, which are necessary for an analog television broadcast, are located between -40 and 0 IRE. The sharp voltage difference between sync pulses (located at -40 IRE) and the video picture information (starting at 0 or 7.5 IRE for black) is important to make sure that low picture information isn't accidentally confused as a sync pulse, which would cause video lines to draw on screen at the wrong time. In all cases, if you are working on video destined for analog broadcast, the absolute white value of your analog signal should never exceed 100 IRE.

Note: When analog video is digitized, only the picture information is recorded. The sync pulses are ignored because digital video has its own method of synchronization. If digital video signals are converted back to analog signals, new sync pulses are added at that point.

If you output to analog tape using the built-in FireWire interface of your computer with a consumer DV device, keep in mind that not all DV devices use the same analog black level. While the digital video signal output from FireWire always has a digital black value of 0 percent, some DV devices output analog black around 0 IRE, and others around 7.5 IRE, depending on the model. Professional video facilities are fairly stringent about keeping black levels at precisely 0 IRE for PAL and for NTSC in Japan, and at 7.5 IRE for NTSC in the United States. If your DV device outputs at the wrong analog black level, you may need to use a hardware proc amp (processing amplifier) to adjust your analog video signal accordingly.

Setup refers to the black level of an NTSC analog video signal. If you use a hardware proc amp to adjust an incoming or outgoing analog video signal, the setup control will allow you to adjust the analog video signal's voltage level for black.

If you are outputting back to analog tape using a third-party analog video interface, you should check the documentation that came with the video interface to determine how to configure the video interface for the U.S. standard for setup (7.5 IRE) or the Japanese standard (0 IRE). Most vendors of analog video interfaces include a software control panel that allows you to select which black level to use. Most vendors label this as "7.5 Setup" vs. "0 Setup," or in some cases "NTSC" vs. "NTSC-J."

If you're outputting back to digital tape using a digital signal (for example, SDI or HD-SDI) and a third-party digital video interface, you don't need to worry about setup levels, because the digital values for black and white specified by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) are standardized worldwide, and are the same as the digital values Final Cut Pro uses.

Before logging new clips, it's a good idea to check the bars of each new tape you log with the Waveform Monitor and Vectorscope in Final Cut Pro. You can also make adjustments to individual clips on tape, if necessary. Final Cut Pro saves individual image control settings with each clip you log. You can then have Final Cut Pro capture your offline clips using these individually saved image control settings.

The Waveform Monitor and Vectorscope can examine Y^_BC_R (also known as YUV) color values if the codec you're using supports Y^_BC_R processing. In this case, super-white and oversaturated colors will be represented. Y^_BC_R values will be used to analyze the signal whenever possible (for example, when using FireWire with the Apple DV codec). When using third-party video interfaces, however, the ability of Final Cut Pro to use Y^_BC_R values varies depending on the video codec being used. If Final Cut Pro cannot use Y^_BC_R values because the required video codec doesn't support Y^_BC_R processing, then an RGB conversion of the original Y^_BC_R signal will be used instead. As a result, the areas on the Waveform Monitor above 100 percent white and below 0 percent black will be grayed out, to notify the user that super-white and oversaturated color information cannot be displayed. As a result, the RGB values displayed may be somewhat less accurate.

1 Make sure your video deck is connected to the video interface in your computer.
2 Cue the videotape to the color bars recorded at the beginning of the tape.
3 Choose File > Log and Capture, click the Clip Settings tab, then click the Video Scopes button.

The Waveform Monitor and Vectorscope appear below the Log and Capture window. On the left is the Waveform Monitor, which displays the brightness levels of the color bars within the video frame as a graph. Each “step” of the graph corresponds to one of the color bars. The goal is to adjust the brightness and contrast so that the levels of the bars match their ideal targets, shown in purple.

Live Waveform Monitor and Vectorscope Waveform Monitor White 40 30 20 10 Black NTSW Vector scope 60 50 40 30 20 10 Waveform Monitor Vectorscope NTSW

Note: Don't worry if the graph appears to be "noisy"; this is normal for analog video played back from tape.

4 To display the ideal targets for color bars, Control-click in the Waveform Monitor or the Vectorscope and choose Targets from the shortcut menu.

Green ✓ White Magnify ✓ Targets High ✓ Medium Low Off Choose Targets from the shortcut menu.

5 Adjust video brightness and contrast using the Waveform Monitor for reference. Different third-party video interfaces have different controls for adjusting the video signal being captured.

- If your video interface uses Brightness and Contrast sliders:

Logging Clip Settings Capture Settings Video Scopes Use Digitizer's Default Settings Video Hue 180 Saturation 50 Brightness 50 Contrast 50 Blue Level 50 White Level 50

Adjust the Brightness slider so that all of the bars in the Waveform Monitor are set near the upper purple targets in the background.
Adjust the Contrast slider so that the tops of the bars and the bottoms in the Waveform Monitor are within the boundaries of the top and bottom targets.
Continue adjusting the Brightness and Contrast sliders until there is an acceptable range of brightness between the 100 and 0 percent targets.

- If your interface uses the Black Level and White Level sliders:

- Adjust the Black Level slider so that the third bar from the left is at the 0 percent target toward the bottom of the Waveform Monitor.

- Adjust the White Level slider so that the second bar from the left is at the 100 percent target at the top of the Waveform Monitor.

6 Adjust the clip's target settings using the Vectorscope for reference.

The Vectorscope is on the right and displays the color values of the different areas of the video frame as a point graph. Each point on the circular graph represents one of the color bars. The goal is to line up these points with their respective targets.

Vector scope NT50

a Adjust the Hue slider to rotate the points around the center of the graph.
b Adjust the Saturation slider to move the points closer to or farther from the center of the graph. If this slider is properly adjusted, each point falls within the purple target boxes.

If there are no color bars on your source tapes, you can adjust your tapes using the flesh tones of people in the shot. As long as a person's skin tones look accurate, chances are the rest of the colors in that shot will look fine. To help you find the correct flesh tone, a special marker appears in the vectorscope to the left of the center of the vectorscope scale. This line indicates the hue of a person's skin tones.

Regardless of ethnicity, the hues of human flesh tones, when recorded to videotape and measured on a vectorscope, fall along a fairly narrow range (although the saturation and brightness vary).

1 Cue your tape to a section that has a well-lit facial closeup.
2 Check to see if there's a spike on the Vectorscope near the Flesh Tone line.
3 Adjust this spike so that it falls approximately along the Flesh Tone line. While doing so, be sure to check the image quality of your clip on a broadcast monitor to make sure that your adjustment is accurate.

The Flesh Tone line is only meant to be an approximation; it's more important that the shot look correct than that it fit this line exactly.

The Flesh Tone line is here on the Vectorscope.

Vector scope NT50

A mistake beginners often make when creating graphics for video is to use colors that are vivid on the computer display, but have chroma and luma that are outside of the “legal” range of color that can be broadcast. Broadcasters must adhere to these specifications or risk fines from the FCC. Therefore, if you submit a tape with signals out of specification, it may not be accepted.

Many graphics and compositing applications have a “broadcast safe” filter that you can use to limit the color range of a graphic so that it will broadcast properly without distortion. However, you should only use these filters as a last resort. It’s best to be aware of the specifications of the video signal and keep your chroma and luma values within proper limits.

When outputting DV video using FireWire, Final Cut Pro outputs video with black at the industry standard digital value of 16 (as specified by the ITU-R BT.601-4 engineering specification for video). Consequently, video recorded to DV tape using either FireWire or the CCIR 601 SDI digital output of a professional video card has correct digital black and white levels.

If you use an NTSC DV camcorder or VT to output analog video, your device may translate digital black (16) into an analog value of 7.5 IRE, which is correct in the United States. However, some devices translate digital black (16) into the analog value of 0 IRE, which is used in Japan.

The following is a typical setup to calibrate FireWire converted to analog in order to adjust the black level of output video.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Outputting Accurate DV Black Levels Using FireWire - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["Computer"] -->|FireWire| B["DV VTR"]
    B -->|Analog video out to recording deck| C["Proc amp"]
    C -->|Analog out| D["Standard definition monitor"]
    D -->|Analog video through| E["Waveform monitor/vectorscope"]

For more information, see "What Is Setup?" on page 325.

In some cases, Final Cut Pro must base its measurements on RGB conversions of the original Y'C_B C_R video signals, which may not be accurate enough for the discerning video engineer. In addition, Final Cut Pro measures the digital values of your video as it exists in its captured state on your computer. Final Cut Pro can't examine the quality and levels of the analog signals output from your FireWire device or third-party video interface. Video engineers may want to monitor such analog output with dedicated video hardware to ensure that the resulting analog signal meets their criteria.

If you like, you can set up your Final Cut Pro workstation with a dedicated waveform monitor and vectorscope for measuring and adjusting video input and output more accurately.

This involves using two pieces of external video hardware:

- Processing amplifier (or proc amp): A proc amp provides hardware control of luma, or video gain (brightness), chroma gain (saturation), hue, pedestal (also referred to as setup, which is the black level), and Y/C delay. By connecting a proc amp between your analog VTR and your video interface, you can precisely control the incoming Y'C_B C_R video signal.

Note: Some VTRs have a built-in proc amp.

- Hardware waveform monitor or vectorscope: Having a dedicated hardware waveform monitor or vectorscope enables you to measure the actual analog Y'C_B C_R output from your video interface.

The following is a typical setup for calibrating the capture and output of analog broadcast video.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Using an External Waveform Monitor and Vectorscope to Calibrate Analog Video Levels - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["Analog or digital VTR"] --> B["Proc amp"]
    B --> C["Computer"]
    C --> D["Standard definition monitor"]
    D --> E["Waveform monitor/vectorscope"]
    C --> F["Input A"]
    D --> G["Input B"]
    F --> C
    G --> C

Videographers don't rely on the viewfinder of a camcorder to adjust the image being recorded. Viewfinders and camcorder LCD displays are often too small and have color fidelity that's too inaccurate to ensure proper focus, brightness, and color adjustments. Instead, a properly calibrated video monitor can be set up on location to monitor the video during shooting.

Similarly, editors and broadcast designers shouldn't rely on an uncalibrated monitor when making crucial adjustments to the color and brightness of their movie footage. Instead, it's important to use a calibrated broadcast monitor to ensure that any adjustments made to exposure and color quality are accurate. For more information about color bars, see "Using Color Bars" on page 321.

Monitors are calibrated using SMPTE standard color bars. Brightness and contrast are adjusted by eye, using the color bars onscreen. Adjusting chroma and phase involves using the "blue only" button found on professional video monitors. This calibration should be done to all monitors in use, whether they're in the field or in the editing room.

1 Connect a color bars or test pattern generator to the monitor you're using.
2 Alternatively, you can one of the built-in color bars generators in Final Cut Pro. Avoid using still image graphics of color bars.
3 Turn on the monitor and wait at least ten minutes for the monitor to reach a stable operating temperature.
4 Select the appropriate input on the video monitor so that the color bars are visible on the screen.

Near the bottom right corner of the color bars are three black bars of varying intensities. Each one corresponds to a different brightness value, measured in IRE. (IRE originally stood for Institute of Radio Engineers, which has since merged into the modern IEEE organization; the measurement is a video-specific unit of voltage.) These are the PLUGE (Picture Lineup Generation Equipment) bars, and they allow you to adjust the brightness and contrast of a video monitor by helping you establish what absolute black should be.

5 Turn the chroma level on the monitor all the way down.

This is a temporary adjustment which allows you to make more accurate luma adjustments. The chroma control may also be labeled color or saturation.

6 Adjust the brightness control of your monitor to the point where you can no longer distinguish between the two PLUGE bars on the left and the adjacent black square.

At this point, the brightest of the bars (11.5 IRE) should just barely be visible, while the two PLUGE bars on the left (5 IRE and 7.5 IRE) appear to be the same level of black.

7 Now, turn the contrast all the way up so that this bar becomes bright, and then turn it back down.

The point where this bar is barely visible is the correct contrast setting for your monitor. (The example shown below is exaggerated to demonstrate.)

When monitor brightness and contrast is properly adjusted, this strip should barely be visible above black.

When adjusting the contrast, also watch the white square in the lower left. If the contrast is too high, the white square appears to "spill" into the surrounding squares. Adjust the contrast until the luma of the white square no longer "spills" into surrounding squares.

8 Once you are finished adjusting luma settings, turn up the chroma control to the middle (detent) position.

Note: Some knobs stop subtly at a default position. This is known as the detent position of the knob.

9 Press the "blue only" button on the front of your monitor.

Note: This button is usually only available on professional monitors.

Notice how all of the differently colored bars turn into alternating light and dark ones.

If your monitor is correctly calibrated, all the gray bars will be evenly gray and all the black bars evenly black.
If the two outer gray bars don't match, adjust the chroma control of the monitor until they do. Then adjust the phase control to even out the inner bars.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - To calibrate your monitor: - 2

natural_image

Abstract geometric pattern with alternating black and gray vertical stripes (no text or symbols)

When the phase (similar to hue) of the monitor is correctly adjusted, you should see alternating bars of gray and black, as shown.

Note: NTSC and PAL video have brightness and contrast levels that are very different from those of RGB computer displays. Broadcast video viewed on a computer monitor often looks dull and dark, whereas the same video viewed on a broadcast monitor will be bright and clear. For this reason, the color bars above are shown for reference only and not to reflect what you should be seeing.

DATE CAMERA 4:24:48:20 SCENE TAKE ROLL

Apple Computer, Inc.

Apple, the Apple logo, DVD Studio Pro, Final Cut, Final Cut Pro, iDVD, Mac, Mac OS, PowerBook, QuickTime, and Soundtrack are trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries.

Cinema Tools and Finder are trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc.

.Mac is a service mark of Apple Computer, Inc.

Adobe and After Effects are trademarks or registered trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated in the U.S. and/or other countries.

15 Using Bins to Organize Your Clips

16 Creating New Bins

17 Opening Bins in the Browser

18 Opening Bins in a Separate Window or Tab

21 Moving Items Between Bins

23 Using Labels to Organize Your Clips

23 About Label Names and Colors

24 Assigning Labels and Setting Label Names to Help Manage Your Media

27 Sorting Items in the Browser Using Column Headings

28 Searching for Clips in the Browser and Finder

28 Revealing a Clip's Media File in the Finder

28 About Search Options

31 Searching for Items in the Browser

32 Manipulating Items in the Find Results Window

35 Learning About Subclips

39 Techniques for Breaking Large Clips Into Subclips

42 Creating Independent Media Files From Subclips After Capturing

45 Working With Dual System Video and Audio

46 Using Synchronization Points to Create Merged Clips

48 Duration of Merged Clips

50 Creating Merged Clips From the Timeline

51 Changing the Sync of Merged Clips

53 Learning About Markers

53 What Can You Do With Markers?

54 Differences Between Sequence and Clip Markers
55 Types of Markers
56 Working With Markers
56 Viewing Markers in the Viewer or Canvas
57 Viewing Markers in the Browser
57 Adding Markers in Clips and Sequences
60 Deleting Markers in Clips and Sequences
62 Navigating With Markers
64 Renaming Markers, Adding Comments, and Changing the Kind of Marker
64 Moving a Marker
66 Aligning Items in the Timeline by Their Markers
67 Extending a Marker's Duration
69 Editing Markers Into Sequences
69 Exporting Markers With Your QuickTime Movies

73 Working With Projects, Clips, and Sequences
74 Working With Projects
74 Working With Multiple Projects in the Browser
74 Choosing Whether the Last Previously Opened Project Opens on Launch
75 Viewing and Changing the Properties of a Project
76 Backing Up and Restoring Projects
77 Learning About the Different Types of Clips
78 Types of Clips
80 Sequences as Clips
80 Viewing and Changing the Properties of a Clip
80 Changing Clip Properties in the Browser
82 Viewing and Changing Clip Properties in the Item Properties Window
84 Changing the Properties of Affiliate Clips
85 Creating and Working With Sequences
85 Creating and Deleting Sequences
86 Opening and Closing Sequences
87 Duplicating a Sequence
88 Copying a Sequence Into Another Project
89 Nesting a Sequence
89 Basic Sequence and Timeline Settings

93 The Fundamentals of Adding Clips to a Sequence
93 Creating a Rough Edit
93 Basic Steps Involved in a Rough Edit
94 How Clips Appear in the Timeline

96 Undoing and Redoing Actions
96 Overview of Ways to Add Clips to a Sequence
96 Methods for Adding Clips to Sequences
98 Determining What Parts of Clips You Want in Your Sequence
98 Preparing a Sequence Order in the Browser
99 Sorting to Create a Sequence Order
99 Visually Storyboarding in the Browser

101 Setting Edit Points for Clips and Sequences
101 About In and Out Points
102 Learning About the Out Point Inclusive Rule
103 Things to Keep in Mind When Setting an Out Point
105 Setting Clip In and Out Points in the Viewer
106 Specifying an Edit Point Using Timecode
107 Setting In and Out Points to Include a Whole Clip
107 Reviewing Your Edit Points
108 Setting Sequence In and Out Points in the Canvas or Timeline
109 Options for Setting Sequence In and Out Points
114 Setting Sequence In and Out Points
115 Setting In and Out Points to Match a Clip or Gap
116 Setting In and Out Points Based on a Selection in the Timeline
118 Navigating to In and Out Points
119 Moving In and Out Points
120 Clearing In and Out Points

123 Working With Tracks in the Timeline
123 Adding and Deleting Tracks
124 Adding Tracks
126 Deleting Tracks
127 Specifying Destination Tracks in the Timeline
127 Understanding Source and Destination Controls
128 Setting Destination Tracks
129 Changing Source and Destination Control Connections
129 Disconnecting Source and Destination Controls
131 Resetting Destination Tracks to the Default State
132 Locking Tracks to Prevent Edits or Changes
133 Disabling Tracks to Hide Content During Playback
134 Customizing Track Display in the Timeline
135 Resizing Timeline Tracks
137 Saving Track Layouts
137 Creating a Static Region in the Timeline

141 Drag-to-Timeline Editing

141 Overview of the Drag-to-Timeline Editing Process

142 Dragging Clips to the Timeline

143 Doing Simple Insert and Overwrite Edits in the Timeline

146 Automatically Adding Tracks to Your Sequence While Dragging

149 Three-Point Editing

149 Understanding Three-Point Editing

149 Overview of the Three-Point Editing Process

150 Different Ways to Do Three-Point Editing

152 About Edit Types in the Edit Overlay

153 Performing the Different Types of Edits

154 Performing an Insert Edit

155 Performing an Insert With Transition Edit

157 Performing an Overwrite Edit

158 Performing an Overwrite With Transition Edit

160 Performing a Replace Edit

166 Superimposing Clips

169 Three-Point Editing Examples

169 Example: Editing a Specific Clip Into Your Sequence

171 Example: Editing a Clip Into a Gap in Your Sequence

172 Example: Backtiming a Clip Into Your Sequence

174 Example: Editing a Clip With No Specified In or Out Points Into Your Sequence

175 Finding and Selecting Content in the Timeline

175 Understanding What's Currently Selected

176 Identifying Selections in the Timeline

177 How Selections Are Prioritized in the Timeline

177 Direct Methods for Selecting Content in a Sequence

178 An Introduction to the Selection Tools

180 Selecting Clips

184 Selecting a Range of Timeline Content

185 Selecting All Clip Items on a Track

186 Selecting All Items on All Tracks Forward or Backward

188 Selecting or Deselecting All Clips in a Sequence

188 Finding and Selecting Based on Search Criteria

190 Selecting a Vertical Range Between In and Out Points

191 Using Auto Select to Specify Tracks for Selections

195 Arranging Clips in the Timeline

195 Snapping to Points in the Timeline

196 Moving Items Within the Timeline

197 Moving by Dragging

198 Moving Clips Numerically
200 Performing Shuffle Edits
202 Copying and Pasting Clips in the Timeline
202 Copying Clips by Option-Dragging
203 Copying, Cutting, and Pasting Clips in the Timeline
205 Example: Copying and Pasting Audio and Video Clip Items to Different Tracks in the Timeline
206 Deleting Clips From a Sequence
206 Deleting With a Lift Edit (Leaving a Gap)
207 Deleting With a Ripple Edit (Leaving No Gap)
209 Finding and Closing Gaps
212 Color-Coding Clips in the Timeline

Chapter 13 213 Cutting Clips and Adjusting Durations
213 Performing Basic Cut Edits
217 Changing the Duration of Clips in the Timeline
218 Opening Sequence Clips in the Viewer to Change Durations

Chapter 14 219 Linking and Editing Video and Audio in Sync
219 Linked Sync Relationships Between Video and Audio Clips
220 When Linked Clips Are Moved Out of Sync
223 Understanding Sync Relationships Between Multiple Linked Audio Items
224 Linking and Unlinking Video and Audio Clip Items in the Timeline
224 Linking Video and Audio Clip Items
226 Unlinking Video and Audio Clip Items
227 Selecting Individual Clip Items While They Are Linked
228 Getting Clip Items Back in Sync
228 Moving a Clip Into Sync
229 Slipping a Clip Item Into Sync
231 Moving or Slipping All Clip Items Into Sync at Once
233 Establishing a Different Sync Relationship Between Linked Clip Items
233 Marking a Clip as In Sync
235 Learning About Linking Behavior in Audio Channel Pairs
236 Synchronizing Dual System Recorded Video and Audio

Chapter 15 237 Split Edits
237 Learning About Split Edits
238 How Split Edits Look in the Viewer and Canvas
239 Setting Up Split Edit Points in the Viewer
240 Setting Up a Split Edit While Playing a Clip
241 Modifying and Clearing Split Edits
243 Split Edit Examples

247 Working With Multiclips
247 About Multiclips
249 Multiclip Workflow
250 Creating Multiclips and Multiclip Sequences
251 Preparing Clips to Be Used as Multiclip Angles
253 Creating Individual Multiclips
257 Creating Multiclip Sequences
266 Identifying and Naming Multiclips in the Browser
267 Working With Multiclip Angles in the Viewer
267 Viewing Multiclip Angles in the Viewer
268 Identifying Active Video and Audio Angles
269 Viewing Multiclip Overlays
270 Rearranging and Deleting Multiclip Angles in the Viewer
271 Adding Angles to a Multiclip in the Viewer
272 Resynchronizing Angles in the Viewer
273 Editing With Multiclips in Real Time
273 Using Keyboard Shortcuts and Shortcut Buttons for Multiclip Editing
274 Editing Multiclips Into the Timeline
275 Switching and Cutting Between Angles
279 Switching and Cutting Video and Audio Items Separately
281 Editing in Multiclip Playback Mode
284 Applying Filters, Speed, and Motion Parameters to Multiclips
286 Collapsing and Expanding a Multiclip
286 Multiclip Master-Affiliate Relationships
287 Match Frame Commands Used With Multiclips
288 Media Management and Project Interchange
288 Working With Multiclips in the Media Manager
288 Reconnecting and Recapturing Multiclips

289 Audio Editing Basics
289 The Goals of Audio Editing
291 Using Waveform Displays to Help You Edit Audio
292 Learning About the Audio Controls in the Viewer
295 Editing Audio in the Viewer
295 Opening Audio Clips in the Viewer
296 Viewing Audio Tracks in the Viewer
297 Zooming In or Out of the Waveform Display Area
299 Scrolling Through a Zoomed-In Audio Clip
300 Using the J, K, and L Keys to Hear Subtle Details
300 Turning Off the Audio Scrubbing Sounds
300 About Setting Edit Points for Audio
301 Dragging an Audio Clip to the Canvas, Browser, or Timeline
301 Trimming Audio Clips in the Viewer

304 Editing Audio in the Timeline
304 Timeline Audio Display Options
306 Zooming In and Out of Waveforms in the Timeline
307 Naming Audio Tracks
307 Moving Audio Items From One Track to Another at the Same Frame
308 Using Audio Transitions to Smooth Audible Changes
309 Creating or Separating Stereo Pairs
311 Working With Audio at the Subframe Level
311 Subframe Synchronization of Audio and Video
313 Examples of Ways to Easily Edit Audio
313 Example: Replacing Unwanted Audio With Room Tone
316 Example: Fixing Awkward Audio Cuts in the Timeline

Chapter 18 321 Performing Slip, Slide, Ripple, and Roll Edits
321 About Trimming With Slip, Slide, Ripple, and Roll Tools
321 Sliding Clips in the Timeline
323 Performing Slide Edits by Dragging
324 Performing Precise Slide Edits Numerically
325 Slipping Clips in the Timeline
326 Performing a Slip Edit Using the Slip Tool
328 Performing Precise Slip Edits Numerically
329 Using the Ripple Tool to Trim an Edit Without Leaving a Gap
330 Performing Ripple Edits
334 About Ripple Edits and Sync Relationships of Clip Items on Other Tracks
336 Doing Ripple Edits on Multiple Tracks at Once
336 Asymmetrical Trimming With the Ripple Tool
338 Using the Roll Tool to Change Where a Cut Occurs
339 Rolling the Position of an Edit Between Two Clips

345 What Is Trimming?

347 Controls That Affect Trim Edits

348 Selecting Edits and Clips to Trim

348 Tools for Selecting Edit Points

349 Selecting Single Edit Points

350 Selecting Multiple Edit Points

351 Trimming Clip In and Out Points

351 Trimming With the Selection Tool

352 Extending and Shortening Clips in the Timeline

354 Trimming Clips in the Viewer

355 Precision Editing Using Timecode
358 Understanding Alert Messages When Trimming

361 Trimming Clips Using the Trim Edit Window

361 Learning About the Trim Edit Window

363 Opening and Closing the Trim Edit Window

364 Controls in the Trim Edit Window

368 Using the Trim Edit Window

369 Playing Incoming and Outgoing Clips in the Trim Edit Window

369 Dynamic Trimming

369 Trimming an Edit in the Trim Edit Window

372 Reviewing and Playing Back Your Edits in the Trim Edit Window

372 Slipping a Clip in the Trim Edit Window

373 Listening to Audio While Trimming

375 Adding Transitions

375 Learning About Transitions

376 Common Types of Transitions

377 Using Transitions in Your Sequences

377 How Transitions Appear in the Timeline

378 Having Handles at Edit Points

378 Aligning a Transition in the Timeline

379 Adding Transitions

379 Adding Transitions With Clips You Add to the Timeline

380 Quickly Adding the Default Transition to Clips in Your Sequence

381 Adding Transitions to Clips in Your Sequence

383 Example: Transitioning To or From Black

384 Moving, Copying, and Deleting Transitions

384 Moving a Transition to Another Edit Point

385 Copying and Pasting Transitions

386 Deleting Transitions

386 Modifying Transitions in the Timeline

386 Changing the Duration of a Transition in the Timeline

388 Changing the Alignment of a Transition in the Timeline

388 Changing an Edit Point After Adding a Transition

389 Replacing Transitions

389 Working With Default and Favorite Transitions

390 Changing the Default Transition

390 Saving a Transition as a Favorite

391 Deleting Favorite Transitions

391 Detecting Duplicate Frames Over Transitions

392 Video Transitions That Come With Final Cut Pro

396 Using After Effects Transitions

397 Refining Transitions Using the Transition Editor

397 Using the Transition Editor

405 Applying a Modified Transition Directly to a Sequence in the Timeline

406 Trimming Transitions and the Surrounding Clips

410 Previewing and Rendering Transitions

413 Sequence to Sequence Editing

413 Methods for Editing Clips From One Sequence to Another

414 Opening More Than One Sequence at a Time

414 Copying Clips From One Sequence to Another

418 Nesting Sequences

423 Editing the Content of One Sequence Into Another Without Nesting It

427 Matching Frames and Playhead Synchronization

427 Working With Sequence Clips in the Viewer

428 Opening a Sequence Clip in the Viewer

429 Switching Between the Viewer, Canvas, and Timeline

429 Using the Viewer to Adjust Sequence Clip In and Out Points

430 Using the Viewer to Adjust Motion and Filter Parameters

430 Matching Frames Between Sequence and Master Clips

431 Matching Frames Between a Sequence Clip and Its Master Clip

432 Matching Frames Between a Sequence Clip and Its Media File in the Viewer

433 Matching a Master Clip to a Sequence Clip in the Canvas or Timeline

434 Synchronizing the Canvas/Timeline Playhead With the Viewer Playhead

434 Why Synchronize Playheads?

434 Working With Playhead Sync

439 Working With Timecode

439 About Timecode in Final Cut Pro

440 Displaying Timecode in Final Cut Pro

440 Choosing a Timecode Display Option

442 Displaying Timecode Affected by Speed Changes

442 Choosing Source and Auxiliary Timecode Track Display

443 Clip Time Versus Source Time

444 Changing Global Timecode Display Options

445 Timecode Overlays

446 Modifying Timecode in Media Files

449 Modifying Sequence Timecode

451 Working With 60 fps Timecode

451 Working With 24 @ 25 fps Timecode

452 Generating Timecode Window Burns

Organizing your footage before you edit makes editing go more smoothly. Read this section to learn how to organize and label clips, create subclips, and add markers to clips and sequences.

Chapter 1 Organizing Footage in the Browser

Chapter 2 Creating Subclips

Chapter 3 Merging Clips From Dual System Video and Audio

Chapter 4 Using Markers

After capturing media to your scratch disks, you can import clips into a project in the Browser and then organize them to save time during editing. You can also search for clips in various ways.

This chapter covers the following:

• Using Bins to Organize Your Clips (p. 15)
• Using Labels to Organize Your Clips (p. 23)
- Sorting Items in the Browser Using Column Headings (p. 27)
- Searching for Clips in the Browser and Finder (p. 28)

You can organize the clips and sequences in a project into bins, which are similar to folders. This creates a logical structure for your projects, making your source clips easier to manage.

Bins help you organize clips in your projects.

Browser Cafe Effects Name Media Start Media End Audio Cafe background audio Street background audio Debra In Cafe Walking Jacob In Cafe Talking to Joe Master sequence 01:00:00:00 01:01:04:15 Music Setting

Bins are unique to project files. Although they behave similarly to folders on your hard disk, bins are not actually connected to folders on your hard disk in any way. Changes you make to the contents of a bin, such as deleting, moving, and renaming clips or renaming the bin itself, have no effect on the original files or folders on disk where the media files are stored. If you delete a clip from a bin, its associated media file is not deleted from your scratch disk. Likewise, creating a new bin does not create a new folder on your disk.

You can create separate bins for different stages of your project or for different types of footage. For example, you can create bins for each location the footage was shot in, or you can create bins to separate your audio, video, and still image clips. You can organize bins hierarchically and open them in their own windows. You can even put bins inside other bins.

1 In the Browser, click the project tab where you want to add a bin.
2 Do one of the following:

Choose File > New > Bin.
Control-click in the Name column, then choose New Bin from the shortcut menu.
Press Command-B.

3 Enter a name for the new bin.

You can also create bins by dragging a folder from your hard disk to the Browser.

To create a bin by dragging a folder from your hard disk:

1 In the Finder, select the folder you want to be a bin.
2 Drag the folder from the Finder to the Browser.

As soon as you release the folder over the Browser, a bin with the same name as the folder is created in your project.

Note: Dragging folders and files from the Finder to the Browser creates bin and clip objects in your project file. However, unlike clips, which refer to media files on disk, bins do not refer to actual folders on disk.

There are several ways you can open a bin.

To open bins in icon or list view, do one of the following:

■ Select the bin, then press Return or Enter.
- Double-click a bin.
To reveal bin contents in list view, do one of the following:
- Press the Right Arrow key. Press the Right Arrow key again to select the first item in a bin. (Press the Left Arrow key to close a bin.)
- Click the disclosure triangle to the left of the bin you want to open. Click it again to close the bin.

Click the triangle to show the contents of a bin.

You must select a bin to navigate within it.

To preserve space on the screen or to avoid scrolling in the Browser, it's useful to open a bin in its own window or tab.

To open a bin in its own window:

■ Double-click the bin.

Browser Cafe Effects Bin: Debra Debra Name Duration In In Cafe Walking The bin appears in its own window.

The icon for this bin in the Browser indicates the bin is open in its own window.

Browser Cafe Effects Name Media Start Media End Audio Debra Jacob Master sequence 01:00:00:00 01:01:04:15 Music Setting

To close a bin that's open in its own window, do one of the following:

- Control-click the bin's tab, then choose Close Tab from the shortcut menu.

Bin: Debra Debra Close Tab Name Duration In In Cafe Walking

■ Make sure the bin is the active window, then press Control-W.
- Click the close button of the bin window.

For easy access to a bin, you can create a tab for it in the Browser.

To open a bin as a new tab in the Browser:

- Press and hold the Option key while double-clicking a bin in the Browser.

If multiple Browser windows are open, the tab is created in the Browser window that contains the bin.

To turn a bin in its own window into a tab in the Browser:

1 Double-click a bin to open it in its own window.
2 Drag the bin's tab from the bin window to the top of any column heading in the Browser.

Project: Cafe Cafe Name Media Scan Media End Audio Debra Jacob Master sequence 01:00:00:00 01:01:04:15 Music Setting

Drag the bin's tab above any column heading in the Browser.

The bin now has its own tab in the Browser. Audio Cafe Effects Browser Name Duration In Cafe background audio Street background audio

To close a bin's tab, do one of the following:

■ Control-click the tab, then choose Close Tab from the shortcut menu.

Browser Audio Close Tab Names Duration In Cafe background audio Street background audio

■ Make sure the bin is the active (frontmost) tab, then press Control-W.
- Drag the bin's tab out of the Browser, then click the close button to close the bin's window.

As you work on your project, you often reorganize clips and move them into different bins. Moving clips within bins has no effect on the original files or folders on disk where the media files are stored.

To move items between bins in list view, do one of the following:

- Select the desired items, then drag them to a bin. (The bin can be open or closed.)

Browser Cafe Effects Name Media Start Media End Audio Cafe background audio Street background audio Debra on cafe cafe WS Master shot Debra CU 02:04:33:13 02:05:27:06 Master shot Debra MS 02:00:38:00 02:01:33:11 Walking Debra enters cafe WS 02:10:40:13 02:11:18:17 Jacob Master sequence 01:00:00:00 01:01:04:15 Music Setting ...to this bin... This clip is moved...

If the bin in which you want to move items has its own window, drag items to that bin's window.

Bin: Debra Debra Name Duration In In Cafe Master shot Debra CU 00:00:53:18 02:04:33:13 Master shot Debra MS 00:00:38:00 02:00:55:12 Walking Debra sidewalking 00:00:28:12 Not Set Music 1 You can also move items into separate bin windows.

To move an item to the top level of a project:

- Drag the item to the Name column heading.

Browser Cafe Effects Name Music 3 Media Start Media End Audio Cafe background audio Street background audio Debra Jacob Master sequence 01:00:00:00 01:01:04:15 Music Music 1 00:00:00:00 00:04:50:09 Music 2 00:00:00:00 00:09:12:18 Music 3 00:01:21:15 00:02:03:10 Setting

Note: If you move items between projects, the items are copied, not moved. There is no relationship between items in different projects.

In Final Cut Pro, you can assign labels to clips, bins, and sequences. You can use labels to:

Categorize and sort your clips
Visually identify clips, bins, and sequences in the Browser, and clips within sequences
Mark a group of clips that you located with the Find command
Do any other task requiring you to organize your clips into identifiable groups

The Label property has several labels, each with an associated color and name. When you choose a label for a clip, that clip's icon becomes the color of that label, and that label's name appears in the Label column for the clip. If no label is specified for a clip, the label is set to None and there is no color associated with this item. You can change the label names, but not the colors.

The label colors and associated default names are:

No color: None
Orange: Good Take
Red: Best Take
• Blue: Alternate Shots
Purple: Interviews
Green: B-Roll

The names associated with the label colors above are stored in your User Preferences file, not in your project file. For example, if you change the name of the red label to "Do Not Use," any clips, bins, or sequences labeled red will have the label name "Do Not Use," regardless of what project they are in.

Because the label properties of a clip are shared among affiliated clips, changing the label of a clip changes the labels of all affiliated clips as well.

Note: Label assignments do not affect objects within other objects, such as clips within bins or a sequence. For example, you may label a bin with the "Best Take" label, but the clips within that bin can be assigned a different label.

If you click the heading of a Label column, all clips, bins, and sequences in the Browser are sorted by label.

Each item in Final Cut Pro has two label properties: Label and Label 2. Both label properties can be customized in different ways:

Label: This can be one of several names and associated colors as assigned in the Labels tab of the User Preferences window. This property affects the color of its clip, sequence, or bin.
Label 2: This can be any text you type in the Label 2 Browser column or Item Properties window. This field is not limited to the various labels in the User Preferences window for the Label property, but it also does not provide the convenient color-coding of that property.

Both label properties are displayed when you have Standard Columns selected in the Browser, but you can always choose to hide or show these columns as needed. (To choose Standard Columns, Control-click any column heading in the Browser, then choose Standard Columns from the shortcut menu.)

■ Control-click in the Label column of the clip, then choose a label from the shortcut menu.
■ Control-click a clip, choose Label from the shortcut menu, then choose a label from the submenu.
- Select a clip, choose Edit > Item Properties > Logging Info, Control-click in the Label field, then choose a label from the shortcut menu.

None Good Take Best Take Alternate Shots Interviews B Roll These are the various labels available.

To assign a label to multiple clips at once:

1 Select the clips you want to label in the Browser.

For information about selecting clips, see Volume I, Chapter 5, "Browser Basics."

2 Do one of the following:

Control-click one of the selected clips, choose Label from the shortcut menu, then choose a label from the submenu.
Control-click in the Label column of one of the selected clips, then choose a label from the shortcut menu.

Select the clips you want to label. Then Control-click in the Label column and choose a label.

To set and assign a label in the Label 2 property of a clip, do one of the following:

Click in the Label 2 column of the clip, type a label name, then press Return or Enter.
Select a clip, choose Edit > Item Properties > Logging Info, click in the Label 2 field and type a label name, then click OK.

If you've already specified at least one label in the Label 2 property of any clip in your project, you can assign one of those existing labels to the Label 2 property of other clips.

To assign a label in the Label 2 property of a clip:

■ Control-click in the Label 2 column of a clip, then choose a label from the shortcut menu.
All of the labels in the Label 2 fields of the clips in your project appear in this menu.

To assign a label in the Label 2 property for multiple clips at once:

1 Select the clips you want to label in the Browser.
For information about selecting clips, see Volume I, Chapter 5, "Browser Basics."

2 Control-click in the Label 2 column of one of the selected clips, then choose a label from the shortcut menu.

If you need label names that are different from the defaults, you can change them in the User Preferences window. For example, some projects may not have any interview footage, so you could change the default "Interview" label to a more appropriate category, such as "Special Effects," "Needs Color Correction," or "Temporary Footage."

Keep in mind that labels usually represent fairly broad categories, since there are only five to choose from. You can always use log notes, comments, and the Label 2 property to further refine the descriptions and categorization of your clips.

1 Choose Edit > User Preferences, then click the Labels tab.
2 Click a text field to highlight it, then enter a new name for the label.

User Preferences General Editing Labels Timeline Options Render Control Audio Outputs Good Take Best Take Alternate Shots Interviews B Roll If desired, enter different label names. Cancel OK

3 When you've finished, click OK or press Return.

After you set labels for clips, you can sort your clips in the Browser by their labels or use the Find command to find clips based on the label you've applied.

- Click the Label column heading.

All clips are sorted by label and alphabetically within each label name. Unlabeled clips, marked as None, are sorted at the beginning or the end of the list, depending on the direction of the sort order.

For more information on sorting, see the next section, "Sorting Items in the Browser Using Column Headings."

Clicking column headings in the Browser allows you to sort items by any property displayed in list view, such as Name, Reel, Label, Timecode, and so on. By default, items are sorted by Name. In addition to the primary sorting property, secondary, tertiary, and further sorting refinements can be made by Shift-clicking a column heading.

1 Make sure you are in list view by Control-clicking in the Browser and selecting View as List from the shortcut menu.
2 Click a column heading to sort by it.

Browser Cafe Effects Name Label Label 2 Audio None Debra None Jacob None In Cafe None Jacob reaction to customer CU Alternate Shots Master shot jacob CU Best Take Master shot jacob WS None Side master shot jacob MS Best Take Talking to Joe None Master sequence None Music None Setting None

A black arrow indicates the primary sort column and the sort order.

The heading of the primary sort column contains an arrow whose direction indicates the sort order—down for ascending (0–9, A–Z) and up for descending (Z–A, 9–0).

3 To switch between descending and ascending sort order, click the column heading.
4 To sort by secondary columns, Shift-click an additional column heading.

5 To switch between descending and ascending sort order in the secondary columns, click the arrow.

If you inadvertently select the wrong secondary column or too many secondary columns, you can clear all secondary sort columns by choosing a new primary sort column, and then selecting any secondary sort columns.

6 To sort by tertiary columns, you can Shift-click another column heading.

You can continue to refine your sort by Shift-clicking additional column headings.

Final Cut Pro provides a number of options for searching for clips in the Browser. You can also reveal a clip's media file in the Finder.

There are many situations in which you want to directly access a clip's media file in the Finder. In these cases, you can use the Reveal in Finder command.

1 Select a clip in a sequence or in the Browser.
2 Do one of the following:

Choose View > Reveal in Finder.
Control-click the clip and choose Reveal in Finder from the shortcut menu.

The Finder becomes the frontmost application, and the clip's media file is selected in a Finder window.

You can use the Find command to search for items in a project by any property or combination of properties. You can also limit your search to only the current project, or you can search every open project. If you are looking for clips you haven't included in any of your sequences, you can limit your search to "unused media". Or you may want to only search for clips that are included in your sequences. Search results appear in a separate window, called Find Results.

You can search by single item properties—the most obvious being searches by clip name—or by several properties at once, such as clip name, reel, and label.

Tip: Searching is a good way to find all of the unused clips in your project.

■ Make sure the Browser is the active window, then do one of the following:

Choose Edit > Find.
Press Command-F.

Find Search scope Search: Project: Cafe For: All Media Results: Replace Find Results Find Next Find All Cancel Less More Search criteria Omit Any Column Contains Click here to specify more search options.

Find Search: Project: Cafe For: All Media Results: Replace Find Results Find Next Find All Cancel Less More Additional search criteria after clicking the More button Match: All Omit Any Column Contains Omit Any Column Contains

When you are searching for clips, you may sometimes want to search within a single bin, while other times you may need to search every open project. The Find window allows you to define the scope of your search and specify search criteria.

Search: Choose an option from this pop-up menu to specify which open projects or folders you want to search—All Open Projects, the current open project, the Effects tab, or a single bin.
Note: You can only search a single bin if the bin is the frontmost window. Since the Find Results window is considered a bin, you can also limit your search within the Find Results window if it is the active window.
For: Choose an option from the pop-up menu to limit your search.
All Media: Includes all clips in your project, regardless of whether or not they are used in a sequence.
Used or Unused: These two options refer to whether or not clips are used within sequences in your project. You can also search within specific sequences.

Final Cut Pro considers a clip's media file to be used if it is in a sequence. If you have used a clip in a sequence, the assumption is that you intend to output the portion of media file it refers to in your final edit. Any clip not used in a sequence is considered unused.

• Results: Choose how you want the search results to be shown.

- Replace Find Results: Choose this to clear and replace any previous find results with new find results.

- Add to Find Results: Choose this to append the results of the current search to the contents of the Find Results window. This allows you to do several searches and accrue the results in a single window.

- More: Click this to refine your search by adding more criteria.

• Less: Click this to remove the last search criteria item.

- Match: You can narrow or broaden your search by using multiple criteria. Choose an option from the pop-up menu.

All: Finds clips that match all criteria.
Any: Finds clips that match any single criterion.

Note: If you are familiar with other database searches, "All" refers to a Boolean "and" search, and "any" refers to a Boolean "or" search.

Omit: Select this option to exclude clips that meet this criteria in your search.
Property name pop-up menu: This pop-up menu allows you to choose a specific Browser column or item property to search in.
Matching pop-up menu: Choose a matching option to further refine how your criteria is used: Starts With, Contains, Equals, Ends With, Less Than, or Greater Than.

For example, you may have some clip names that end with "birds," while others begin with "birds." To find only the clips whose names end with "birds," choose Ends With.

- Matching criteria: Enter your specific search criteria. If you are searching for clips that contain the name "wide shot", enter "wide shot" here.

Find Next: Click this to search for the next item that matches your search criteria. Once an item is found, it is selected in the currently open Browser. Press Command-G to continue the search in your currently selected bin or project.
Find All: Click this to search for all items that match your search criteria. This places all found items into a window called Find Results.

You can search in all open projects or restrict your search to a single project, or tab, in the Browser. You can search for one item at a time, or multiple items at once.

To search for a single item in the Browser:

1 Make the Browser active, then choose Edit > Find (or Press Command-F).
2 Select your search options, then enter your search criteria.

For more information, see "About Search Options" on page 28.

Specify your search criteria. Find Search: Project: Cafe For: Used Media in selected sequences Results: Add to Find Results Find Next Then click here. Find All Cancel Less More Omit Any Column Contains Copy

The above example shows a search for clips used in sequences selected in the Browser that have the word "Copy" in their names. (If a clip has been edited into a sequence, its media file is being used.)

3 Click Find Next.
The found item is highlighted in the Browser.
4 Press Command-G to search for the next item in the Browser that meets the search criteria.

You can also do a search to find multiple clips at once.

1 Make the Browser active, then choose Edit > Find (or Press Command-F).
2 Select your search options, then enter your search criteria.

For more information, see "About Search Options" on page 28.

Specify your search criteria. Find Search: Project: Cafe For: Used Media in selected sequences Results: Add to Find Results Find Next Find All Then click here. Cancel Less More Omit Any Column Contains

3 Click Find All.

A list of found items is displayed in the Find Results window.

If necessary, you can restrict a search to the elements of the Find Results window. For more information, see “Manipulating Items in the Find Results Window” on page 32.

You can search for unused clips in your project.

1 Do one of the following:

Open your project.
Make sure your project is the frontmost tab in the Browser.

2 Choose Edit > Find (or Press Command-F).
3 Choose your project from the Search pop-up menu.
4 Choose Unused Media from the For pop-up menu and deselect the "in selected sequences" checkbox to the right of the menu.
5 Click Find All.

When you do a search for multiple items, Final Cut Pro displays the list of found items in the Find Results window. The items displayed in the Find Results window are literally identical to the items in the Browser. They are not copies of found clips, but the clips themselves, shown in a new context. Selecting an item in the Find Results window also selects the item in the Browser.

By narrowing down all of the clips in your project to the results of your search, you can conveniently do things like:

Find all the clips that start with "Eiffel" and "Paris," and then select all the found clips in the Find Results window and drag them into a new bin in the Browser.
Find all the clips from reel 002 and reel 002A, and then select the clips in the Find Results window and drag them to a bin in the Browser labeled "002."
Find all the clips with the Good property unselected (in other words, bad takes), select the found clips in the Find Results window, and then remove those clips from the project.

The Find Results window works in much the same way as the Browser, and you can do many of the same operations:

Delete found items from a project.
Move or copy found items to another location in the Browser.
Sort and display found items.
Edit found items into a sequence.
Perform additional searches and combine the results.
Modify information in Browser columns for found clips.

For example, you can find all clips not used in your sequences (unused media) and set the Good column to No for all clips in the Find Results window. You could also assign the same label to all of the clips in the Find Results window.

1 Perform a Find All search.

See "Searching for Items in the Browser" on page 31.

2 In the Find Results window, press Command-A to select all items in the window.
3 Control-click in the column for the item property you want to modify, then choose a new option from the shortcut menu.

Find Results Find Results Name Debra enters cafe WS Debra sidewalking Master shot Debra CU Master shot Debra MS Master shot jacob CU Master shot jacob WS Side master shot jacob MS Label None None Good Take Best Take Alternate Shots Interviews B Roll None Control-click in a column, then choose the desired option. Show in Browser Remove from Project

To see where found items are in the Browser:

- Select the desired items in the Find Results window, then click Show in Browser.

Select items you want to see in the Browser.

Find Results Find Results Name Label Label 2 Debra enters cafe WS None Debra sidewalking None Master shot Debra CU None Master shot Debra MS None Master shot jacob CU None Master shot jacob WS None Side master shot jacob MS None Show in Browser Remove from Project Then click here.

- Select the desired items in the Find Results window, then click Remove from Project.

Note: As with deleting any clips in the Browser, the media on your scratch disk is not deleted. Only the clips in the project file are removed. Removing multiple clips from a project via the Find Results window can be undone.

1 With the Find Results window active, choose Edit > Find (or press Command-F).
2 Enter your search criteria, then select search options.

For more information, see "About Search Options" on page 28.

3 Choose Add to Find Results from the Results pop-up menu.
4 Click Find All.

The new results of your search replace the previous content in the Find Results window.

You can save and use custom column layouts in the Find Results window, just as you can in the Browser. Any custom column layouts created in the Browser also appear in the Find Results window, and vice versa. For more information, see Volume 1, Chapter 5, "Browser Basics."

Lengthy media files can be unwieldy for editing. If you capture an entire tape as a single media file, you can break the clip into shorter subclips. You can also break the media file into smaller media files.

This chapter covers the following:

• Learning About Subclips (p. 35)
- Techniques for Breaking Large Clips Into Subclips (p. 39)
- Creating Independent Media Files From Subclips After Capturing (p. 42)

For organizational purposes, you can break up a single large clip into several subclips. Subclips are defined by In and Out points or markers set in the original clip prior to the creation of subclips. New subclips automatically become their own master clips, with no affiliation to the clip from which they were created.

Debra Cafe Effects Name Clip Subclip Debra enters Debra enters Subclip

Subclips allow you to work more easily with lengthy media by breaking up a single clip into many smaller pieces. For example, you can open a 20-minute clip comprising 15 different shots in the Viewer and divide it into 15 subclips, one for each shot.

Final Cut Pro places new subclips in the same Browser bin as the original clip they came from, automatically appending the word "Subclip" to the name and numbering each successive subclip you create from a particular clip. For example, if the original clip is named "Debra enters cafe," the first subclip is named "Debra enters cafe Subclip," the second is "Debra enters cafe Subclip 2," and so on. When a new subclip is first created, its name is highlighted and ready to be changed.

Numbered subclips are placed in the same bin as the master clip.

Browser Cafe Effects Name Media Start Media End Cafe footage Debra enters cafe 02:10:40:13 02:11:18:17 Debra enters cafe Subclip 02:10:40:13 02:10:49:03 Debra enters cafe Subclip 2 02:10:49:03 02:10:50:19 Debra enters cafe Subclip 3 02:10:50:19 02:11:00:15 Master sequence 01:00:00:00 01:01:04:15 Music Original Footage

You can rename subclips, move them into different bins, and organize them in any way you choose. After you've created your subclips, you can open them in the Viewer and set new edit points, just as you can with any other clip. The original clip remains in the Browser, but is completely independent of your subclips. Any changes you make to a subclip are not applied to the original clip.

1 Open a clip in the Viewer.
2 Set In and Out points.
3 Do one of the following:

Choose Modify > Make Subclip.
Press Command-U.

A new subclip appears in the Browser below the master clip, defined by the In and Out points you set.

Browser Cafe Effects Name Media Start Media End Cafe footage Debra enters cafe 02:10:40:13 02:11:18:17 Debra enters cafe Subclip 02:10:40:13 02:10:49:03 Master sequence 01:00:00:00 01:01:04:15 Music Original Footage

Sometimes, you may be looking for a particular frame in a subclip, and realize that although those frames existed in the original clip, they were left out when you created the subclip.

If you've opened a subclip to a certain frame in the Viewer, but you'd rather find the same frame in the original media file (perhaps to pick an In or Out point outside the subclip limits), you can easily swap the two in the Viewer.

1 Open the subclip in the Viewer.
2 Find the frame you want to match.
3 Do one of the following:

Choose View > Match Frame > Source File.
Press Option-Command-F.

Final Cut Pro opens the subclip's entire media file as an independent clip in the Viewer. The playhead is located on the same frame in the new clip as in the original subclip. To make the independent clip in the Viewer into a master clip for editing, drag the clip from the Viewer to the Browser.

A subclip, just like a clip, refers to a media file on your scratch disk. The difference between a clip and a subclip is that a subclip imposes artificial limits (called subclip limits) to make the subclip appear shorter in Final Cut Pro than the actual media file. A subclip refers to only a portion of a media file, while a clip refers to the whole media file.

If you compare a clip and a subclip that both refer to the same media file, the only significant difference between them is that their Media Start and Media End properties are different. The subclip's Media Start time may be later than the clip's Media Start time, or its Media End time may be earlier than the clip's Media End time. Often, both are true.

A subclip's artificially imposed subclip limits can be removed at any time. The subclip becomes a normal clip that refers to the entire duration of the media file (from Media Start to Media End).

1 Open the subclip in the Viewer.
2 Choose Modify > Remove Subclip Limits.

The subclip becomes a normal clip, and now references the entire source media file. The subclip in the Browser no longer has a subclip icon, but instead a normal clip icon.

Important: When you remove a subclip's limits, all affiliated subclips also become normal clips.

When you create a new subclip, it has master clip status. When you edit the subclip into a sequence, an affiliate subclip is created. This behavior is identical to the behavior of all other clips with master-affiliate relationships.

You don't need to worry about master-affiliate relationships too much while you are editing. These issues only become important when you are managing your media files toward the end of a project, or when transferring your project and media files to another editing system. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 4, "Working With Master and Affiliate Clips."

There are a few ways you can create subclips in Final Cut Pro:

Create markers in a clip, and then turn them into subclips.
Create subclips manually, one at a time, by setting In and Out points in the original clip and choosing Modify > Make Subclip.

With some kinds of video footage (mainly DV), you can also create subclips from the start/stop data that is created by the camcorder and embedded in the video data. See Volume I, Chapter 19, "Capturing Your Footage to Disk."

Once a clip has markers, you can easily turn the markers into subclips. Subclips are defined from one marker to the next. If there is only one marker, the Out point of the subclip is determined by the clip Out point. If you double-click a marker in the Browser, it opens a subclip in the Viewer. For more information, see Chapter 4, "Using Markers," on page 53.

1 Click a clip's disclosure triangle in the Browser to reveal its markers.
2 Select the markers in the clip by dragging across all of them at once, or by clicking the first marker and then shift-clicking the last marker.

Captured Whole Cafe Browser Name Duration In Reel 12_jacob side 00:01:01:10 01:16:19:20 Reel 1_jacob close 00:00:34:17 01:12:14:10 Reel 7_jacob far 00:00:27:13 01:07:19:20 Marker 1 00:00:00:00 01:07:20:19 Marker 2 00:00:00:00 01:07:25:02 Marker 3 00:00:00:00 01:07:26:01 Marker 4 00:00:00:00 01:07:28:03 Marker 5 00:00:00:00 01:07:39:13

3 Do one of the following:

Drag the markers outside of the clip and into the Browser.
Choose Modify > Make Subclip.

Tip: If you are having a hard time dragging the markers out of the clip, try dragging the markers to the Name column heading in the Browser. When you see the Name column highlight with a rectangle, release the mouse button.

All of the material between the markers you selected should now appear as subclips.

Subclips, identified by special subclip icons, are created. If you dragged the markers out of the clip, the markers in the clip are removed. If you chose Modify > Make Subclip, the markers remain in the clip after the subclips are created.

Tip: Subclips are named based on the marker name. To create more meaningful subclip names, change the marker names in the Browser before creating subclips.

When you drag markers out of a clip, a subclip is created for each marker. The duration of a subclip is determined from one marker to the next. For example, a clip with four markers produces four subclips. The last subclip created from a marker always contains the Media End point of the clip from which it was derived.

Subclip 1 Subclip 2 Subclip 3 Subclip 4 Media End

The duration of a subclip can also be defined by a marker with extended duration. For more information about creating markers with duration, see "Extending a Marker's Duration" on page 67.

Subclips defined by marker boundaries Timeline: Master Sequence in Cafe Subclips defined by markers with extended duration Original clip Marker with duration of 0:00 Reel 001 Reel 002 Original clip Marker with extended duration

If you have long clips, you can also break them into subclips manually to help you manage your footage.

1 Open the clip in the Viewer.
2 Set In and Out points corresponding to the subclip you want to create.
3 Choose Modify > Make Subclip (or press Command-U).

A subclip appears in the Browser.

You can edit with subclips in the same way as with any other clips. You can even add markers to subclips and create subclips from those. This is no different than creating subclips from clips.

Final Cut Pro also allows you to edit directly with markers, turning them into subclips when you release them in the Timeline. However, it's usually best to not do this. A marker is never a master clip, so subclips created by dragging a marker into a sequence are independent clips. If you want to edit with subclips, you should convert markers into subclips first. This maintains a master-affiliate relationship between the affiliate subclips in a sequence and the master subclip in the Browser, which makes media management easier.

When you capture each source tape as a whole media file and then break it into smaller subclips, you will inevitably discover a number of subclips that you don't need for your project. If you are trying to save disk space, you can delete portions of media files that you know you don't need. This process affects your media files, so it is considered to be media management.

You can use the Media Manager to break the original media file into smaller media files—one media file for each subclip. You can then delete the media files for any subclips you don't want to keep.

Important: It's a good idea to break your media file into smaller media files before you begin editing.

1 In the Browser, create two bins named "Keep" and "Delete".
2 Review each subclip by playing it in the Viewer, then move it to the "Keep" bin or the "Delete" bin.
3 Continue watching and sorting subclips until all the subclips are in either the "Keep" or "Delete" bin.

There are many other techniques you could use to organize your subclips, such as using two different labels, or using the Good property for subclips you want to keep, and so on. Use whatever method works best for you.

1 Delete the master clip (the original clip that refers to the full-length media file).
2 In the Browser, select the subclips that you want to keep for use in your project.

If you used the method above for separating subclips into "Keep" and "Delete" bins, select the subclips in the "Keep" bin. These are the subclips that refer to portions of the media file you want to keep.

3 Choose File > Media Manager.
4 Choose Use Existing from the "Media referenced by selected items" pop-up menu.
5 Select the "Delete unused media from selected clips" checkbox.

This tells Final Cut Pro to delete any portions of the media file that are not referenced by the subclips you currently have selected in the Browser.

6 Choose "Clip Names" from the "Base media file names on" pop-up menu.

This option uses the names of your subclips to name the resulting media files.

7 Make sure the "Duplicate selected clips and place into a new project" checkbox is not selected.

Because this is a destructive process (meaning some of your media will likely be deleted), Final Cut Pro checks to see if any other clips in your project also refer to the same media file. If so, Final Cut Pro tells you how many other clips besides the subclips you have currently selected may be affected by deleting media. In this case, any subclips you didn't select originally will become offline unless you include them in your media management.

Add: Adds the other clips to your selection so that the portions of media they represent are also preserved along with the media of the original selected subclips. This may be useful if you forgot to select some subclips in the Browser before you opened the Media Manager. If a master clip for the media file still exists in the Browser, adding it to the current selection for media management will result in no deletion of media; since the master clip refers to all of the media, all of the media file is considered to be used.
Continue: Go on without adding any other clips to the selection. If you are confident that you have selected all the subclips you want to keep, choose this option.
Abort: If you are worried that you haven't selected all of the subclips you want to keep, you can stop the process and start the task over from the beginning, making sure you've selected the correct subclips.

Final Cut Pro warns you one final time that you are about to delete media from the hard disk, and that this process is not recoverable. This isn't really as bad as it sounds in most cases, since you can always recapture footage from tape (assuming your media files originally came from videotape).

If you choose Continue, a new, separate media file is created for each subclip. The original media file that contained the contents of the entire tape is deleted. The subclips in your project now refer to these individual media files. The subclips you originally selected become clips in the Browser, as indicated by their icons. The subclips that you didn't process with the Media Manager are now offline because the original media file was deleted.

From now on, when you need to recapture particular shots for any reason, you can capture only the clips you need (instead of the entire duration of the tape).

In Final Cut Pro, you can create merged clips that refer to independent video and audio media files simultaneously, making it easy to work with them together, in sync.

This chapter covers the following:

• Working With Dual System Video and Audio (p. 45)
• Using Synchronization Points to Create Merged Clips (p. 46)
• Duration of Merged Clips (p. 48)
- Creating Merged Clips From the Timeline (p. 50)
- Changing the Sync of Merged Clips (p. 51)

Many movies are made by recording picture and sound separately and then syncing them together during postproduction. While this adds a level of complexity to postproduction and editing, it also gives you more independent control of picture and sound throughout. Cinematographers can focus on capturing the images, while the production sound recordist and microphone operator can work independently to capture the best sound. The visible and audible clicking of the slate, along with timecode and edge code numbers, are used to sync picture and sound together in postproduction.

Dual system recording is used in productions such as:

Big-budget video productions that record audio separately from the video, typically using a DAT recorder.
Film shoots; since most film cameras record only picture, audio is always recorded separately, typically using a DAT recorder, Nagra, or hard disk recorder.

In Final Cut Pro, you can create merged clips so you can work with video and audio from a dual system production together, in sync. Most clips refer to a single media file on disk, and each clip item refers to a track within that single media file. In a merged clip, each clip item can refer to a different media file on disk. For example, a merged clip simultaneously refers to a video track in a QuickTime media file and audio tracks in one or more separate audio files. You can merge one video clip and up to 24 audio clip items.

When you create a merged clip from two or more clips, it becomes a new master clip, with no affiliation to the clips from which it was created. For more information on master-affiliate clip relationships, see Volume IV, Chapter 4, "Working With Master and Affiliate Clips."

It's always important to make sure that the timecode captured with your video and audio media is accurate before creating merged clips.

When capturing audio for use in a merged clip, make sure that your audio deck is synchronized to the same video timing signal used when capturing video. A blackburst generator (also referred to as house sync) can be used to supply both video and audio interfaces with a common timing signal. For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 15, "Connecting Professional and Non-DV Equipment."

Before actually merging clips, you need to find a synchronization point between them. There are different ways of doing this, depending on how you shot your footage:

If the timecode of your video and audio clips isn't identical, and you slated all your shots at the beginning with a clapboard, you can use In points to line up all the clips you want to merge.
If the timecode of your video and audio clips isn't identical, and you have one or more shots that you tail-slated at the end, you can use Out points to line up all the clips you want to merge.
If the timecode of the video and audio recorders used on the shoot was synchronized, you can use the timecode of both the video and audio clips to synchronize them.

If you have a complicated combination of syncing In and Out points, and your video and audio clips don't have matching, synchronized timecode, you can add auxiliary timecode to each clip so that the clips' sync points all fall on the same timecode number. You can then use the auxiliary timecode track (Aux TC 1 or 2) to merge your clips. This is just like using the main timecode track for syncing, but auxiliary timecode tracks are useful because you keep the original timecode track intact, which is critical for recapturing your media from the original source tapes. For more information about adding auxiliary timecode to a clip and its media file, see "Modifying Timecode in Media Files" on page 446.

1 Open the video clip you want to synchronize in the Viewer.

2 Scrub through the beginning or end of the clip and find the frame where the clapper on top of the slate first closes.

Viewer: Nancy at table MS in Dining 00:00:40:00 Stereo (A162) Filters Motion 59% 03:13:14:04 Video 3 BOLD 5A FATH 2 Drama 2 Cinema 2 CD3 1 MOS 100% 00:00:40:00 View 12:14:00

3 Set an In point if the "clap" appears at the beginning of your clip, or an Out point if at the end.
4 Open each audio clip you want to merge in the Viewer, and repeat steps 1 through 3, identifying instead the frame of audio where you first hear the clap.

Note: If you decide to use an In point in step 3, you should use an In point for each clip you want to include in the merged clip. If you don't set an In point yourself, the first frame (Media Start) of the clip is used instead. If you decide to synchronize by Out points, you should use an Out point for each clip to be merged. If you don't set an Out point yourself, the last frame of the clip is used.

Once all your clips are synchronized, you can merge them.

To create a merged clip from two or more clips in the Browser:

1 In the Browser, select all the synchronized clips you want to merge.

Browser Dining Effects Name Duration Good Capture Audio Bass 00:04:50.10 Not Yet Bird sounds 00:00:50.12 Not Yet Kids playing 00:02:39.20 Not Yet Passing car 00:01:42.27 Not Yet Viola 00:02:08.28 Not Yet Outside House Don approaches home rev 00:00:02.17 Not Yet Don rings door bell MS 00:00:09.09 Not Yet Nancy greets at door CU 00:00:12.14 Not Yet Truck

2 Choose Modify > Merge Clips.
3 In the New Merged Clip dialog that appears, select a method with which to synchronize the clips: In points, Out points, Timecode, Aux Timecode 1, or Aux Timecode 2.
4 Click OK.

A new merged clip appears in the Browser. Merged clips are named after the video clip. Merged clips with no video are named after the topmost selected audio clip in the Browser. In both cases, the word "Merged" is added at the end.

The beginning, end, and overall duration of a merged clip depend on the method you used to synchronize the original clips:

- If you synchronized all of the original clips using In points, the beginning of the resulting merged clip corresponds to the In point you used, and all clips line up at that point. The end of this merged clip corresponds to the end of the clip with the latest timecode value.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Duration of Merged Clips - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["Video"] --> B["Audio"]
    B --> C["Audio"]
    C --> D["Merged clip"]
    D --> E["Blue Arrow"]

- If you synchronized all of the original clips using Out points, the end of the resulting merged clip corresponds to the Out point you used, and all clips line up at that point. The beginning of this merged clip corresponds to the beginning of the clip with the earliest timecode value.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Duration of Merged Clips - 2

flowchart

graph TD
    A["Video"] --> B["Audio"]
    B --> C["Audio"]
    C --> D["Merged clip"]
    D --> E["Output"]

- If you synchronized all of the original clips using timecode, the beginning of the resulting merged clip corresponds to the beginning of the clip with the earliest timecode value, and the end of the resulting merged clip corresponds to the end of the clip with the latest timecode value.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Duration of Merged Clips - 3

flowchart

graph TD
    A["Video"] --> B["Audio"]
    B --> C["Audio"]
    C --> D["Merged clip"]
    D --> E["Output"]

Gaps appear in a particular track if one or more items in a merged clip is shorter than all the others, but they cause no problems.

You can also create merged clips by dragging a group of linked clip items from the Timeline to the Browser. This can be useful if you want to synchronize a group of audio and video clips visually, changing their sync relationship and duration using the various editing tools available in the Timeline. Viewing each clip item's timecode in the Canvas timecode overlays can also be helpful for synchronizing items.

1 In the Timeline, edit the clip items you want to merge into a sequence so that they overlap. Use the Selection, Ripple Edit, and Slip tools to line them up in the sync relationship you want.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:58:12 00:00 01:00:50:00 01:01:40:00 01:02:30:00 V2 V1 Don pain XCU a1 A1 Drums a2 A2 Bass Room Tone A3

2 Using the Selection tool, select all the clip items you've lined up.
3 Choose Modify > Link (or press Command-L) to link the clips items together.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:58:12 00:00 01:00:50:00 01:01:40:00 01:02:30:00 V2 Don pain XCU V1 a1 A1 Drums Bass a2 A2 A3 Room Tone

A line appears underneath the names of the selected clip items to show that they are linked.

The new merged clip appears in the Browser.

A new merged clip appears in the Browser, named after the topmost video or audio item in the Timeline.

Note: If you do not link the clip items you want to merge before you drag them into the Browser, each item is individually placed in the Browser.

Once a merged clip is created, the only way to modify the sync relationship of the items within it is to make subframe adjustments. (For more information on making subframe sync adjustments, see "Subframe Synchronization of Audio and Video" on page 311.)

To make larger changes to the sync of items within a merged clip, you must re-create it using the original items.

One way to re-create a merged clip quickly is to edit it into a sequence in the Timeline and make it independent by Control-clicking it and choosing Make Independent from the shortcut menu. Then unlink the clip items in the Timeline and make any sync changes. Relink the clip items and drag them back into the Browser to create a new merged clip.

This method creates a new merged clip, but does not affect any instances of the previously created merged clip that are already edited into sequences elsewhere in your project.

Markers are reference points you can place within clips or sequences to identify specific frames. You can use them for a variety of purposes, and export them with your finished movie.

This chapter covers the following:

• Learning About Markers (p. 53)
• Working With Markers (p. 56)

Markers are visible points on clips and sequences that can be used for commenting, synchronizing, editing, adding DVD chapter and compression markers, and even making subclips. By default, markers exist only on the frame where they were created, but you can also create markers that have a duration.

Markers let you perform a wide variety of tasks:

Mark several possible In or Out points for future use.
Quickly move the playhead to a marker in a clip or sequence.
Mark a range in a clip that you may want to use as a subclip.
Align a clip marker to a marker in an edited sequence to match a visual or audio cue.
Align a filter or motion keyframe to a marker for future reference.
Align other clip markers, clip boundaries, or transition boundaries to a marker in the Timeline.
Add visual notes about clips that will help you identify sections while editing.
Divide clips into subclips using the Make Subclip command.

You can also include markers in QuickTime movies you export. You can:

Export chapter markers for use with QuickTime and DVD-authoring applications.
Export compression markers for use with video compression applications.
Export scoring markers for use with supported music and audio applications.

You can add markers to both clips and sequences. There are differences between clip markers and sequence markers that could affect your work. Make sure you understand how you want to use markers in your project before you add them.

You add markers to a clip when you want to remember and mark important moments in a shot. You can also use them to separate a long piece of footage into several subclips by adding markers and then making them into subclips (see "Turning Markers Into Subclips" on page 39).

Markers can be added to sequences for a variety of reasons. You can mark specific points, such as audio cues, in your sequence for reference while editing. This includes musical beats to sync clips to. For example, if you are editing a music video, you can add a music clip to the Timeline, click Play, and then press the M key to the beat of the music, adding markers for each beat. Once the markers are in place, you can go back and snap clips to the markers you created. You can nudge your clips a few frames forward or backward if your markers are not perfectly on the beat.

You can also use markers to snap the playhead or clips to a specific point when performing an edit. Another way to use markers in a sequence is for creating points to navigate between. You can also use markers to add review comments and notes to a sequence, so that another person on the moviemaking team can then read these comments in the sequence at the appropriate place. Another important reason to add markers to sequences is so you can add MPEG compression markers and DVD chapter markers.

Markers in clips and sequences are visually different.

Clip markers appear on individual clips in the Viewer and Timeline and are colored pink. You can add these markers in the Viewer or in the Timeline.
Sequence markers appear both in the Timeline ruler and in the Canvas scrubber bar and are colored green. You can add these markers in the Canvas or in the Timeline.

Green sequence markers Debra sidewalking Side master shot jacob MS Debra sidewalking Jacob reaction to cus Debra sidewalking Side master shot jacob MS Debra sidewalking Jacob reaction to customer Cij Debra sidewalking Side master shot jacob MS Debra sidewalking Jacob reaction to customer Cij Music 1 Music 1 Music 1 Music 1 Pink clip markers

There are several kinds of markers that you can add in Final Cut Pro:

Note marker: This is the default marker that is created when you add a marker to a clip or sequence.
Chapter marker: These markers are automatically translated into DVD chapter markers in applications such as DVD Studio Pro. A chapter marker is distinguished by the text appearing in the Comment field of its Edit Marker window.
Compression marker: You should add compression markers when there is an abrupt change from one frame to the next, such as before and after each transition, and at each cut in your sequence. These markers can help to compress that section more smoothly. A compression marker is distinguished by the text appearing in the Comment field of its Edit Marker window in Final Cut Pro.
When you export your movie to an MPEG format, such as MPEG-2 for DVD, Final Cut Pro automatically adds an MPEG I-frame where these compression markers are located for better-quality encoding. I-frames, also known as reference or key frames, contain the complete image of the current frame, without reference to frames that precede or follow it.

For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 16, "Exporting Sequences for DVD."

Scoring marker: These markers are used for marking important visual cues to sync music to. They are visible when you open an exported QuickTime movie in Soundtrack. A scoring marker is distinguished by the text appearing in the Comment field of its Edit Marker window.
Audio peak marker: Any audio samples over 0 dBFS are marked when you choose Mark > Audio Peaks > Add. These markers show where in your clip the audio is digitally clipping, indicating you should reduce the level at that point. You can clear audio peak markers by choosing Mark > Audio Peaks > Clear.

For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 9, "Diagnostic Tools for Clips."

- Long frame marker: During capture, some frames may be captured with a longer duration than is acceptable. This can lead to playback and output problems. To mark long frames, you can choose Tools > Long Frames > Mark. If your clip has long frames, you can try recapturing the clip or avoid using that part of the media file.

For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 9, "Diagnostic Tools for Clips."

When you export a QuickTime movie with markers, some types of markers appear as chapters in the Chapter pop-up menu in QuickTime Player. You can select a chapter to jump to a specific part of your QuickTime movie.

You can create markers, add comments to them, and delete them at any point while you edit. You can also change the duration of markers.

Marker icons appear in the scrubber bar, as well as in overlays over the video image whenever the playhead is positioned at a marker. For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 6, "Viewer Basics." You can also refer to Volume I, Chapter 7, "Canvas Basics."

Viewer: Master shot Debra CU in Cafe 00:00:20:08 02:05:06:23 Marker 1 A marker overlay

When you add a marker to a clip that you've opened from the Browser, that marker is displayed in the Browser in list view.

To view a clip's markers in the Browser:

- Click the disclosure triangle next to a clip containing markers.

Clip markers are displayed hierarchically within the clip. You can change the name of a marker in the Browser, and you can also create subclips from markers. For more information about working with subclips, see Chapter 2, "Creating Subclips," on page 35.

You can add markers, name them, and attach comments to them. Both the name and the comments appear as overlays in the Viewer, Canvas, or Timeline whenever the frame containing the marker is displayed. You can also specify the kind of marker to add—notes (default), chapter, compression, or scoring. Audio peak and long frame markers can only be added by using the Mark Audio Peaks and Mark Long Frames commands, respectively. For details, see “Types of Markers” on page 55.

Markers can be set while a clip or sequence is playing or while the playhead is stopped. There is also no limit to the number of markers you can use in a clip or sequence.

By default, Final Cut Pro creates a Note marker. The first marker you add is named Marker 1, the second Marker 2, and so on. The default names indicate the order in which you've added them to a clip, not the chronological order in which they appear in a clip or sequence. You can rename markers to indicate the location they mark. For more information, see "Renaming Markers, Adding Comments, and Changing the Kind of Marker" on page 64.

If you want to quickly add markers to clips or sequences, and you don't care about the names, you can follow these instructions. By default, Note markers are created and each is automatically named by Final Cut Pro. If you prefer to add all of the information for a marker when you create the marker, see "Adding Markers Along With Detailed Information About Them" on page 59.

1 Open the clip in the Viewer.
2 Play the clip or sequence.
3 When the playhead reaches the point you want to mark, do one of the following:

Choose Mark > Markers > Add.
Press M.
Press ` (the accent key).
Click the Add Marker button.

Add Marker button

A clip marker appears, colored pink.

1 In the Timeline, do one of the following:

Select the clip to which you want to add a marker, then position the playhead where you want to place the marker.
Double-click the clip to which you want to add the marker, then in the Viewer, position the playhead where you want to place the marker in the clip.

2 Do one of the following:

Choose Mark > Markers > Add.
Press M.
Press ` (the accent key).
In the Canvas, click the Add Marker button.

A clip marker appears, colored pink.

Note: You can only add markers to sequence clips in the Timeline if the clip is selected and the playhead intersects the clip. If the playhead doesn't intersect the selected sequence clip, or if no sequence clip is selected, any markers you add are added to the sequence (appearing in the Timeline ruler).

1 In the Timeline, position the playhead where you want to place the marker in the sequence.

Make sure no clips are selected. If the playhead is over a selected clip in the Timeline, markers are added to the selected clip instead of to the sequence.

2 Do one of the following:

Choose Mark > Markers > Add.
Press M.
Press ` (the accent key).

- In the Canvas, click the Add Marker button.

A sequence marker appears, colored green, in the Timeline ruler.

If you like, you can name a marker, add comments, and choose the kind of marker when you first create it.

1 Do one of the following:

To add a marker to a clip in the Viewer: Open a Browser or sequence clip in the Viewer.
To add a marker to a clip in the Timeline: Select the sequence clip to which you want to add a marker, then position the playhead where you want to place the marker.

2 Navigate to the frame where you want to add a marker, then do one of the following:

Choose Mark > Markers > Add.
Press M.
Press ` (the accent key).
Click the Add Marker button in the Viewer or Canvas.

3 Press M or `(the accent key), or click the Add Marker button again, to open the Edit Marker window.

4 In the Edit Marker window, do any of the following, then click OK.

In the Name field, rename the marker.
In the Comment field, add any information you want to include with the marker.
Click a button to specify the kind of marker this is. The appropriate code is automatically added to the Comment field.

Edit Marker Name: Marker 1 Comment: Start: 00:01:04:22 Duration: 00:00:00:00 Delete Add Chapter Marker Add Compression Marker Add Scoring Marker Cancel OK Enter the desired name here. Add any comments in this field. If you want, click a button to choose the kind of marker.

Chapter, compression, and scoring markers can be used by external applications such as Compressor, DVD Studio Pro, iDVD, Soundtrack, and QuickTime Player. The Edit Marker dialog lets you specify a marker as chapter, compression, or scoring. To add a chapter, compression, or scoring marker to a sequence, follow the instructions above in "Adding Markers Along With Detailed Information About Them" on page 59.

Important: Since the chapter, compression, and scoring markers are only used for sequences, when you export, make sure that these markers have been added to the sequence itself in the Canvas or in the Timeline ruler, and not to individual clips.

You can delete markers at any time. Once they are deleted, they no longer appear in the Browser, Viewer, Canvas, or Timeline. You can also keep a marker while removing chapter, compression, or scoring annotations.

1 Click the disclosure triangle next to a clip containing markers.
2 Select the markers you want to delete.
3 Do one of the following:

- Press Delete.

- Choose Edit > Clear.

1 Move the playhead to the marker you want to delete.

Tip: You can easily navigate to the previous or next marker by choosing Mark > Previous > Marker or Mark > Next > Marker.

2 Do one of the following:

In the Viewer or Canvas, Option-click the Add Marker button.
Choose Mark > Markers > Delete.
Press Command-` (the accent key).
Press M or ` (the accent key) to open the Edit Marker window, then click Delete.

1 Open the clip in the Viewer.

2 Do one of the following:

Choose Mark > Markers > Delete All.
Press Control-` (the accent key).

1 In the Canvas or Timeline, move the playhead to the sequence marker you want to delete.

Note: Make sure no items are selected in the Timeline.

2 Do one of the following:

In the Canvas, Option-click the Add Marker button.
Choose Mark > Markers > Delete.
Press Command-` (the accent key).
Press M or ` (the accent key) to open the Edit Marker window, then click Delete.

1 Make the Canvas or Timeline active.

Note: Make sure no items are selected in the Timeline.

2 Do one of the following:

Choose Mark > Markers > Delete All.
Press Control-` (the accent key).

To keep a marker but remove chapter, compression, or scoring annotations:

1 In the Viewer, Canvas, or Timeline, move the playhead to the marker whose annotations you want to remove.
2 Press M or ` (the accent key) to open the Edit Marker window.
3 In the Comment field, delete the appropriate marker annotation text, then click OK.

To remove a chapter marker, delete the text .
To remove a compression marker, delete the text .
To remove a scoring marker, delete the text .

You can navigate through your clip or sequence using the markers you've set. This is useful when you want to quickly navigate to specific points in a clip or in the Timeline. For example, you can place markers in the Timeline to mark two different frames for matching during color correction, or you may place markers to quickly jump to different scenes in a sequence.

- Drag the playhead to the marker in the scrubber bar.

If snapping is turned on, the playhead snaps to the position of a nearby marker. When the playhead is over a marker in the Viewer or Canvas, the marker turns yellow.

■ Control-click in the Current Timecode field, then choose a marker from the shortcut menu.

Master sequence ✓ Non-Drop Frame Feet+Frame Frames ✓ View Native Speed Clip Time ✓ Source Time Marker 1 Marker 2 blurry Choose a marker.

To move the playhead to a clip or sequence marker in the Timeline, do one of the following:

- Drag the playhead to a sequence marker in the ruler.

If snapping is turned on, the playhead snaps to the position of a nearby marker.

■ Control-click the Timeline ruler, then choose a marker from the list of sequence and clip markers in the shortcut menu.

Open 'Side master shot jacob MS' Open in Editor Reveal in Finder Duration (00:01:01:10)... Make Independent Clip Item Properties Send To Cut Copy Paste Paste Attributes... Remove Attributes... Ripple Delete ✓ Clip Enable Speed... Composite Mode Dupe Frames Uncollapse Multiclip(s) Reconnect Media... Media Manager... Capture... Marker 1 Marker 2 blurry Choose a marker.

To move to the next marker (to the right), do one of the following:

Choose Mark > Next > Marker.
Press Shift-M.
Press Shift–Down Arrow.

To move to the previous marker (to the left), do one of the following:

Choose Mark > Previous > Marker.
Press Option-M.
Press Shift–Up Arrow.

After you add a marker, you can rename it, add information in the comment field, or change the kind of marker.

1 Stop playback if playback is in progress.
2 Move the playhead to the marker (see "Navigating With Markers" on page 62).
3 Do one of the following:

Choose Mark > Markers > Edit.
In the Browser, Control-click the marker, then choose Edit Marker from the shortcut menu.
Press M.
Press ` (the accent key).

4 In the Edit Marker dialog, do any of the following, then click OK.

In the Name field, rename the marker.
In the Comment field, add any information you want to include with the marker.
Click a button to specify the kind of marker.

Edit Marker Name: Marker 1 Comment: Enter a name for the marker here. Add any comments in this field. Start: 00:01:04:22 Duration: 00:00:00:00 Delete Add Chapter Marker Add Compression Marker Add Scoring Marker Cancel OK If you want, click a button to choose the kind of marker.

You can move a marker within a clip by repositioning the playhead or by entering a different starting timecode value. Using the playhead, you can only move a marker forward, not backward. If you want to move a marker backward or move a marker in a sequence, you must enter a new starting timecode value in the Edit Marker dialog.

To move a marker in a clip forward by repositioning the playhead:

1 In the Viewer or Timeline, move the playhead to the location where you want to move the marker.

You can only move a marker forward, not backward.

2 Do one of the following:

Choose Mark > Markers > Reposition.
Press Shift-` (the accent key).

Final Cut Pro moves the marker that is immediately to the left of the playhead's current position. Even if there are multiple markers, only the one immediately to the left of the playhead is moved.

To move a marker in a clip by entering a new timecode value:

1 In the Viewer, do one of the following:

- Move the playhead to the marker, then do one of the following:

Press M.
Click the Add Marker button.
Choose Mark > Markers > Edit.
Press Option-Command-M to edit the nearest marker to the left.

2 In the Edit Marker dialog, enter a new start time in the Start field, then click OK.

Edit Marker Name: Marker 1 Comment: Start: 00:01:04:22 Delete Duration: 00:00:00:00 Add Chapter Marker Add Compression Marker Add Scoring Marker Cancel OK Enter the new time here.

To move a marker in a sequence by entering a new timecode value:

1 In the Timeline or Canvas, move the playhead to the marker.
2 Do one of the following:

Press M.
Click the Add Marker button.
Choose Mark > Markers > Edit.

3 In the Edit Marker dialog, enter a new start time in the Start field, then click OK.

You can move a clip item in the Timeline by dragging one of its markers. When you do this with snapping turned on, the marker becomes the clip item's snap point. So while you're dragging a clip item by one of its markers, its In and Out points won't snap to anything. This allows you to quickly align markers in sequence clips to each other, or to markers in your sequence.

For example, suppose you have a sequence that contains a shot of a person dropping a glass and an audio clip of jarring music. You can easily align these elements to a specific point in your sequence by adding markers at the relevant points in your sequence clips, and then dragging each sequence clip by the marker with snapping turned on.

1 Add markers to important frames of individual video and audio clip items in your sequence.
2 Add a marker to the place in your sequence where you want to align your clip items.
3 Make sure snapping is enabled by doing one of the following:

Click the Snapping button in the Timeline.
Press N.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:02:00 01:00:04:00 01:00:06:00 v1 v1 Master shot jacob CU Snapping button Add a sequence marker for aligning the sequence clip items. Music 1 Music 1 a1 A1 Music 1 a2 A2 Music 1 Add markers to the audio clip items. Add a marker to the video clip item.

4 Drag the video clip item by its marker until it snaps to the sequence marker.
5 Drag the audio clip item by its marker until it snaps to the sequence marker.
6 The video and audio clip item markers are now aligned with the sequence marker.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:02:00 01:00:04:00 01:00:06:00 v1 V1 Master shot jacob CU Music 1 Music 1 a1 A1 Music 1 Music 1 a2 A2 A3 The video and audio clip item markers are aligned with the sequence marker.

When you create a marker in Final Cut Pro, it is simply a marker that 's associated with a particular frame; it doesn't have a duration. If you want, you can extend the duration of a marker so that it spans multiple frames. Markers with duration can be used to precisely define subclips in a clip. You can also use them to mark an entire area of a clip or sequence with notes, such as for color correction or audio mixing.

1 Position the playhead ahead (to the right) of the marker.
2 Do one of the following:

Choose Mark > Markers > Extend.
Press Option-` (the accent key).

An extended duration marker appears in the scrubber bar; it looks like a marker icon with a bar that extends along the scrubber bar.

Extended marker

To extend a marker's duration by entering a timecode value:

1 Move the playhead to the marker.
2 Do one of the following:

Press M.
Click the Add Marker button.
Choose Mark > Markers > Edit.
Press Option-Command-M to edit the marker to the left.

3 In the Edit Marker dialog, enter a duration value.

Edit Marker Name: Marker 1 Comment: Start: 00:01:04:22 Duration: 3:00 Delete Add Chapter Marker Add Compression Marker Add Scoring Marker Cancel OK Enter the desired marker duration here.

An extended duration marker appears in the scrubber bar.

1 Position the playhead within the duration of the marker.
2 Do one of the following:

Choose Mark > Markers > Extend.
Press Option-` (accent key).

The marker is shortened to the location of the playhead.

You can edit markers into your sequence as if they were clips. However, a marker edited directly from the Browser into a sequence becomes an independent clip, with no affiliation to the clip from which it came. In most cases, you should avoid this, because it can make media management more difficult later.

For more control over markers that you want to use for editing, you should use the Make Subclips command to turn markers inside of a clip into new subclips. For more information, see Chapter 2, "Creating Subclips," on page 35.

Final Cut Pro allows you to export markers in a clip or a sequence as text tracks in QuickTime movies that you create. These markers can be used by the QuickTime Player in a variety of different ways, and can be used for authoring in DVD Studio Pro, iDVD, and other applications, such as Soundtrack.

For information about exporting QuickTime movies with DVD Studio Pro, compression, and chapter markers, see Volume IV, Chapter 18, "Exporting QuickTime Movies." You can also refer to Volume IV, Chapter 16, "Exporting Sequences for DVD."

Learn the basics of adding, arranging, and synchronizing clips in a sequence to create a rough edit of your movie. If you are working with multicamera footage, you can learn how to edit it in real time.

Chapter 5 Working With Projects, Clips, and Sequences
Chapter 6 The Fundamentals of Adding Clips to a Sequence
Chapter 7 Setting Edit Points for Clips and Sequences
Chapter 8 Working With Tracks in the Timeline
Chapter 9 Drag-to-Timeline Editing
Chapter 10 Three-Point Editing
Chapter 11 Finding and Selecting Content in the Timeline
Chapter 12 Arranging Clips in the Timeline
Chapter 13 Cutting Clips and Adjusting Durations
Chapter 14 Linking and Editing Video and Audio in Sync
Chapter 15 Split Edits
Chapter 16 Working With Multiclips
Chapter 17 Audio Editing Basics

A project file contains everything you need to make your completed movie: clips, bins to organize clips, and sequences to arrange your clips into a finished movie.

This chapter covers the following:

• Working With Projects (p. 74)
- Learning About the Different Types of Clips (p. 77)
• Viewing and Changing the Properties of a Clip (p. 80)
- Creating and Working With Sequences (p. 85)

You may want to set the following general preferences before you start editing in Final Cut Pro. The following preferences are found in the General tab of the User Preferences window. To view them, choose Final Cut Pro > User Preferences, then click the General tab. (For a complete description of preferences, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences.")

Levels of Undo: This specifies the number of actions that can be undone (up to 99). The default is 10. The more levels of Undo you specify, the more memory is required.
Prompt for settings on New Sequence: By default, this option is disabled and new sequences use the sequence settings specified in the current Easy Setup. If you enable this option, when you create a new sequence, a message asks you to choose a sequence preset.
Autosave Vault: Several autosave options let Final Cut Pro automatically save backup copies of your opened projects at regular intervals while you work. (Your original project files aren't touched until you use the Save command.) You can specify how often to save, along with the number of backup copies saved for each project. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 2, "Backing Up and Restoring Projects."

Before you can even capture media, import clips into your project, and edit the clips into one or more sequences, you need a project in which to do all of this.

Note: Creating, opening, and closing projects is described in Volume I, Chapter 3, "Understanding Projects, Clips, and Sequences."

You can have multiple projects open in Final Cut Pro at the same time. Each project opens in a separate tab in the Browser.

Important: Master-affiliate clip relationships don't span multiple projects, so clips and sequences dragged or pasted from other projects lose their master-affiliate relationships.

By default, Final Cut Pro opens the last previously open project file (or files) when opened. You can select whether Final Cut Pro opens with the last open project or an empty project.

To start with a default, empty project instead of the last previously open project file:

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > User Preferences, then click the General tab.
2 Deselect the "Open last project on application launch" checkbox.

For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

Each project has a set of properties, including global timecode display options and custom Master Comment column names. You can change these properties at any time.

1 Click the project's tab in the Browser, then choose Edit > Project Properties.
2 Choose or enter your options, then click OK.

Choose a time display option.

Project Properties for Cafe Time Display: Timecode Reset Time Display Default Film Standard: 35mm 4p Time Mode: Source Time View Native Speed Comment Column Headings 1: Master Comment 1 2: Master Comment 2 3: Master Comment 3 4: Master Comment 4 Cancel OK You can change the Comment column headings shown in the Browser.

Time Display: Choose a global time display option for all clips in your project. Options include timecode, feet + frames, and frames.
Reset Time Display checkbox: This is a global checkbox that updates the time display option for all clips in your project. If this option is selected, all clips in your project are updated to the timecode display option you chose in the Time Display pop-up menu. This overrides custom time display options in individual clips in your project.
Default Film Standard pop-up menu: If you are editing film using Final Cut Pro, you can choose the format of your film here. For more information, see the documentation that came with Cinema Tools.
Time Mode pop-up menu: Choose whether all clips in the active project are displayed in source time or clip time.
View Native Speed: This is a global checkbox that changes the time display of all clips in your project.
Comment Column Headings: This allows you to customize the four Master Comment property names in the active project. For example, you can change "Master Comment 1" to "Director's Notes".

For more information, see Chapter 25, "Working With Timecode," on page 439.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > User Preferences (or press Option-Q).
2 Select the "Prompt for settings on New Project" option.

Regularly backing up your project file is an important part of the editing process. If your media files are lost, they can easily be recaptured, but losing a project file could mean re-creating hundreds of edit decisions made over weeks or months.

You should back up your projects on a regular schedule, regardless of what phase of the project you are in. You can back up hourly, daily, or even weekly, depending on the scope and pace of your project. It's also a good idea to back up at important project milestones, such as a completed rough edit or just before sending your project out for the final sound mix.

Project files contain the following items and information:

Clips, including notes, comments, labels, log notes, and other descriptive clip properties
Bins
Sequences
Effects and keyframe parameters applied to clips

Note: A project file does not contain media files, including any QuickTime, audio, or graphics files.

Two commands in the File menu can be used to open previously saved files—Revert Project and Restore Project.

Revert Project: This command lets you return to a previous version of a project that you saved, not one that Final Cut Pro autosaved. For more information, see the next section, "Using the Revert Project Command."
Restore Project: This command lets you choose from all of the available autosaved versions of the currently selected project, based on the time and date they were created. For more information about the autosave feature, see Volume IV, Chapter 2, "Backing Up and Restoring Projects."

Sometimes you may make a series of changes to a project on a trial basis. What if you don't like those changes and want to start over with your project the way it was the last time you saved it? You can use the Revert Project command to immediately return to the previously saved version of a project.

To revert to the previously saved version of a project:

1 Click a project's tab in the Browser or Timeline to make it active.
2 Choose File > Revert Project.
3 In the dialog that appears, click OK.

By continuing, you will lose all changes made to this project since it was last saved. Are you sure you want to do this? Cancel OK

While you're working, you may find it necessary to go back to an earlier version of a project you edited: perhaps you tried an alternate cut that didn't work, or maybe you're experiencing problems with your computer. The autosave feature in Final Cut Pro gives you the option to step back to previous stages of your project, which can save you valuable time (not to mention unnecessary headaches).

The autosave feature periodically saves a copy of each open project in a folder called the Autosave Vault. Your original project file is not touched until you use the Save command. You can change the location of the Autosave Vault in the Scratch Disks tab of the System Settings window. The Restore Project command allows you to choose from all of the available autosaved versions of the currently active project, based on the time and date they were created.

For detailed information about using the autosave feature, see Volume IV, Chapter 2, "Backing Up and Restoring Projects."

There are several kinds of clips in Final Cut Pro. Some clip types, such as still images and audio, are obviously different than others because of their unique icons. However, some clip types are almost identical and yet behave differently depending on where they are located (such as Browser clips versus sequence clips).

The following terms describe the various clips you work with in Final Cut Pro:

Video clip: A clip containing a video item. This kind of clip may also contain audio items.
• Audio clip: A clip containing only audio items.
Sequence clip: A clip that has been edited into a sequence. Clips in a sequence are made of individual video and audio clip items, which may or may not be linked together while you edit. When a sequence clip is opened in the Viewer, the scrubber bar displays sprocket holes so you know you are working on a clip from a sequence.
Clip item: Clips edited into a sequence are distributed to individual tracks as clip items. For example, when you edit a clip with one video and two audio items into the Timeline, the sequence contains one video clip item and two audio clip items, each on a separate track. Since these clip items came from the same clip in the Browser, they are automatically linked together. Linking clip items together keeps them in sync while you edit.
Master clip: When you log, capture, or import a media file into Final Cut Pro, a master clip is created. Master clips exist exclusively in the Browser, and they are used to manage and reconnect multiple instances of the same footage used throughout your project. Master clips have a number of clip properties that are shared among any copies (referred to as affiliates) of the clip. This allows you to reconnect or change the properties of many affiliate clips at once by changing the properties in the master clip or just one of the affiliate clips. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 4, "Working With Master and Affiliate Clips."
Affiliate clip: Any clip derived from a master clip in the Browser. Each time you edit a clip into a sequence, Final Cut Pro creates a new instance of that clip, called an affiliate clip because it shares properties with its master clip. This new sequence clip gets most of its properties from the master clip.
Subclip: A clip created to represent a limited portion of a media file. By artificially limiting the duration of a media file, a subclip allows you to work with smaller sections of a media file. These subclip limits can be removed at any time so you can work with the whole clip. For example, if an original media file is 10 minutes long, the Browser clip is also 10 minutes long. You can make a 1-minute subclip and work with the subclip as if the media were only 1 minute long. For more information, see Chapter 2, "Creating Subclips," on page 35.
Merged clip: A clip that refers to more than one media file at once. A merged clip can refer to one video file and up to 24 separate audio files. You need to merge a video clip with audio clips if you record picture and sound to separate devices during production. For more information, see Chapter 3, "Merging Clips From Dual System Video and Audio," on page 45.
Multiclip: Multiple clips synced together, in parallel, within a single clip. The main reason to use a multiclip is to edit multicamera footage in real time. You can sync together any footage you want in a multiclip, not just different camera angles. For instance, when making a music video, you could sync three different performances of the band playing and cut between them on the beat.

If a media file is modified, moved, or deleted, the Final Cut Pro clip that connects to that media file can no longer find it. In this case, the clip's media file is said to be offline. The clip itself is described as an offline clip.

An offline clip has a red slash through its icon in the Browser or its file in the Timeline. To view an offline clip properly in your project, you must capture the clip again or, if the clip's media file is already on your disk, reconnect the clip to the corresponding source file at the new location on disk.

Media Offline Dining room serving salad WS 3 Dining Room Dining room serving salad WS Don at table salad WS Don CU Nancy enters Don eats fish plate CU Don pain sweats right XCU Don pain XCU Grandfather clock face CU Lola rolls eyes CU Nancy at table CU Nancy at table MS Nancy drinking talking Dining sequence Foyer Intro sequence

For information on reconnecting offline clips, see Volume IV, Chapter 6, "Reconnecting Clips and Offline Media."

A clip is considered offline when:

The clip's Source property is incorrect (when there is no media file at the file path in the Source property). This happens when a media file is modified, moved, or deleted, the modification date of the media file is changed, or the scratch disk becomes unavailable.
The clip's Source property is empty. You can intentionally make clips offline by choosing Modify > Make Offline, or you can create a new offline clip by choosing File > New > Offline Clip. Final Cut Pro doesn't warn you about offline clips whose Source property is empty, because there is no media file path to check.

Sequences are special containers for clips arranged in chronological order. However, in some cases, sequences can also be treated as clips. For example, you can check the Item Properties of a sequence just as you can for a clip, and information about the sequence shows up in the Item Property columns in the Browser. You can also edit sequences into other sequences. This is called nesting a sequence. For more information, see "Nesting Sequences" on page 418.

Each item in the Browser, such as a clip, has a set of properties. You can view all the properties of a clip in the Item Properties window as well as in columns in the Browser. Some properties can be changed directly in the columns of the Browser; others can be changed in the Item Properties window.

Certain properties, such as frame size or video rate, are determined by a clip's media file and cannot be changed without using the Media Manager.

For a detailed table that describes all clip properties, see Volume IV, Chapter 3, "Elements of a Final Cut Pro Project."

Being able to change clip properties directly in the Browser columns is very convenient. You don't need to open any additional dialogs or windows unless you have a specific reason for doing so. For example, you can clear the In or Out point of a clip, or enter a comment in one of the Master Comment columns.

It's just as easy to change the properties for multiple clips as it is for a single clip, although some clip properties can only be changed one clip at a time. If you want to quickly change many properties of a single clip, it may be easier to use the Item Properties window.

For more information, see "Viewing and Changing Clip Properties in the Item Properties Window" on page 82.

To change a clip's property in a Browser column, do one of the following:

- Select a clip, click a column, then enter the new information in the text field.

Browser Cafe Effects Name Log Note Master Com Cafe scene Debra enters cafe WS noisy Debra sidewalking nice CU Jacob reaction to customer CL Master shot Debra CU Master shot Debra MS Master shot Jacob CU Master shot Jacob WS Side master shot Jacob MS Master sequence Music Music 1 Music 2 Enter the desired information.

If a text field doesn't appear when you click or Control-click a column, the property cannot be changed directly in the Browser. You may be able to change the property in the Item Properties window, or it may be a property you can't modify.

Once you've selected one text field in a column of the Browser that can be edited, you can press Tab to automatically select that clip's next editable property.

- Control-click a column for the clip or sequence you want to change, then choose an option or setting from the shortcut menu.

You can select multiple clips and change them all at once. Some columns that allow you to do this are the Good, Description, Pixel Aspect, Reel, and Anamorphic columns.

To change the properties of multiple clips in a Browser column:

1 Select the desired clips.

For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 5, "Browser Basics."

2 Control-click the column of one of the selected clips, then choose a new setting or option from the shortcut menu.

If you find yourself constantly scrolling through the Browser to find particular clip properties, you can save yourself some time by viewing the clip's properties in the Item Properties window instead. The Item Properties window is also a convenient way of viewing properties of clips that refer to multiple tracks within media files, or multiple media files on disk—for example, merged clips and multiclips. Three tabs in this window—Format, Timing, and Logging—allow you to view or change any clip property. An additional Film tab is used for viewing film metadata imported from Cinema Tools.

The Item Properties window displays a detailed view of each clip's properties in a consistent, organized way.

1 Select a clip in the Browser or Timeline, or double-click a clip to open it in the Viewer.
2 Do one of the following:

Choose Edit > Item Properties, then choose an option from the submenu.
Control-click a clip in the Browser, then choose an option from the Item Properties submenu in the shortcut menu.
Press Command-9.

3 In the Item Properties window, click a tab to see and modify a clip's properties.

For detailed information about item properties, see Volume IV, Chapter 3, "Elements of a Final Cut Pro Project."

With the exception of internally generated clips (such as slugs or color bars), all clips have a media file path in their Source property.

1 Select a clip in the Browser, then choose Edit > Item Properties > Format (or press Command-9).

The Item Properties window appears, displaying all of the properties of the clip. The clip's Source property contains a file path to the clip's media file. In some cases, the entire path may be truncated to fit within the limits of the window.

2 Click Cancel, press Command-. (period), or press Escape to close the Item Properties window without making any changes.

By definition, a clip's Media Start and Media End properties represent the first and last frames of a media file.

1 Select a clip in the Browser and choose Edit > Item Properties > Timing (or press Command-9), then click the Timing tab.

The Item Properties window appears, displaying all of the properties of the clip. The clip's Media Start and Media End properties show the starting and ending timecode numbers of the media file, representing the first and last video frames.

2 Click OK (or press Return or Enter) to close the Item Properties window.

Because master clips and their affiliate clips share certain properties, you need only change the property of one of the master or affiliate clips to change that property in all of them. For instance, if you want to change a clip's name, it doesn't matter whether you change the name in the master clip or any of its affiliate clips. Since they all share the same name property, all the clips will have the new name.

Changes to the following clip properties are applied to all affiliated clips:

Name
Reel
• TC
Media Start
Media End
Good
Log Note
Label
Label 2
Anamorphic
Capture
Offline
Scene
Shot/Take
Angle

• Master Comments 1–4

Most properties are shared between master and affiliate clips, but there are a few exceptions. For example, In and Out points are unique to each master and affiliate clip, so trimming one clip doesn't affect the duration of all the other affiliated clips.

Clip properties that are not shared between all affiliated clips are:

Comment A–B
• In
Out
Duration
Aux TC 1–2
Description
Film Safe
Composite
Reverse Alpha
Thumbnail

For more information about clip properties, see Volume IV, Chapter 3, "Elements of a Final Cut Pro Project."

A sequence is a container for editing clips together in chronological order. A sequence contains one or more video and audio tracks, which are empty when first created.

Before you can edit content together in Final Cut Pro, you need to create a sequence to edit it into. You can create as many new sequences as you want in a project. If you want to delete a sequence from your project, it's easy to do.

1 Do one of the following:

Choose File > New > Sequence.
Control-click in the Viewer, then choose New Sequence from the shortcut menu.
Press Command-N.

A new sequence appears with the name highlighted, so you can change its name right away.

Cafe Effects Browser Name Label Media Start Cafe scene None Master sequence None 01:00:00:00 Music None Music 1 None 00:00:00:00 Music 2 None 00:00:00:00 Sequence 2 None 01:00:00:00 Enter a new name for the sequence.

2 Enter a name for the sequence, then press Enter or Return.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > User Preferences, then click the General tab.
2 Select the "Prompt for settings on New Sequence" option.

For more information about sequence presets, see Volume IV, Chapter 26, "Sequence Settings and Presets."

To determine the default number of tracks for new sequences:

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > User Preferences, then click the Timeline Options tab.

2 Under "Default Number of Tracks," enter the default number of video and audio tracks you want created.

1 Select the sequence you want to delete in the Browser.

2 Do one of the following:

Choose Edit > Clear.
Press the Delete key.

Note: Deleting a sequence from your project does not affect the media files on disk.

You can only edit clips into a sequence when it is open in the Timeline or Canvas. When you open a sequence, the Timeline and the Canvas open together, if they're not open already. If the Timeline and Canvas are already open, a newly opened sequence appears in its own tab in front of any other sequence tabs.

■ Double-click a sequence in the Browser.
- Select the sequence in the Browser, then press Return.
■ Control-click the sequence, then choose Open Timeline from the shortcut menu.
- Select the sequence, then choose View > Sequence in Editor.

The sequence is displayed in the Timeline and Canvas windows.

You can also treat sequences like clips and open them in the Viewer. You can mark them with In and Out points and edit them into other sequences, or output them to tape using the Edit to Tape command. For information on editing sequences into other sequences, see Chapter 23, "Sequence to Sequence Editing," on page 413.

1 Select the sequence in the Browser.
2 Do one of the following:

- Choose View > Sequence.

- Drag the sequence icon from the Browser to the Viewer.

1 Select the sequence in the Browser.
2 Choose View > Sequence in New Window.

To close a sequence in the Timeline and Canvas, do one of the following:

With the sequence tab active in the Timeline or the Canvas, choose File > Close Tab.
■ Control-click a tab in the Timeline or Canvas, then choose Close Tab from the shortcut menu.
Press Control-W.

When you close the tab of a sequence in the Timeline, its tab in the Canvas automatically closes, and vice versa.

Note: If you close the Canvas by pressing Command-W, the Timeline also closes.

However, if you close the Timeline by pressing Command-W, the Canvas stays open.

This allows you to edit using only the Viewer and the Canvas, since some editors prefer to edit with the Timeline closed.

If you want to test changes to your edited sequence that are more extensive than a few levels of Undo will permit, or if you want to create several versions of your program for a client to review, you can duplicate your current sequence and make changes to the duplicate. Changes you make to a duplicate of a sequence do not affect the original in any way. You can make as many duplicate sequences as you like, renaming them in the Browser for reference and reediting them as extensively as you want.

1 Select the sequence in the Browser.
2 Do one of the following:

Choose Edit > Duplicate.
Control-click the sequence, then choose Duplicate from the shortcut menu.
Press Option-D.

Browser Cafe Effects Name工程项目 Name Media Start Cafe scene None Master sequence None 01:00:00:00 Master sequence Copy None 01:00:00:00 Music None Music 1 None 00:00:00:00 Music 2 None 00:00:00:00 Type a unique name for the copied sequence.

3 In the Browser, enter a new name for the duplicated sequence.

Sequences are independent of each other, so changes you make to the copied sequence do not affect the original sequence or its rendered files.

Note: When you duplicate a sequence, all clips in the new sequence are affiliated with the same master clips as the clips in the original version of the sequence.

If you have more than one project file open in the Browser, you can copy a sequence from one project and paste it into another project.

1 Select the sequence in the Browser.
2 Choose Edit > Copy (or press Command-C).
3 Open a new project and select its tab in the Browser.
4 Choose Edit > Paste (or press Command-V).

Important: When you copy a sequence from one project into another, the clips inside the copied sequence become independent, and are not affiliated with any master clips. For more information about master-affiliate clip relationships, see Volume IV, Chapter 4, "Working With Master and Affiliate Clips."

You can also copy a sequence into another project window by dragging.

1 Open the second project.

This project appears as another tab in the Browser.

2 Tear away the second project tab in the Browser to make it its own window.
3 Drag the sequence from the Browser in the second project window to the Browser in the first project.

Browser Dining Name Shot/Take Media Start Dining Room Dining sequence 01:00:00:00 Foyer Intro sequence 01:00:00:00 Music Outside House Truck Project: Cafe Cafe Name Media Start Media End Cafe scene Master sequence Music Intro sequence

The copied sequence appears in your first project.

To create master clips for a sequence pasted into a project:

1 Select the sequence in the Browser.
2 Choose Tools > Create Master Clips.

A bin is created called "Master Clips for Sequence Name", named after the sequence. Master clips are created for any independent clips in the sequence, and the independent clips become affiliate clips of the new master clips. If master clips already exist for all clips in the sequence, no bin or master clips are created.

In Final Cut Pro, you can treat sequences as clips and edit them into other sequences. This is called nesting a sequence, because you put one sequence inside of another. Nesting sequences is a common practice when you work on small, independent sequences for a while and then you want to quickly attach them together in another, master sequence. Nesting sequences does create some processing overhead, and can make media management more complicated.

For more information, see "Nesting Sequences" on page 418.

Before you began logging and capturing, you most likely chose an Easy Setup that established your basic sequence settings and Timeline display options. An Easy Setup is a preset group of capture, device control, sequence, external playback, and output settings for a particular video or audio format and hardware configuration. Each Easy Setup represents a simple workflow that maintains that same video format throughout capturing, editing, and output. If one of the available Easy Setups describes your workflow, you should have no need to adjust your sequence and Timeline settings. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 23, "Audio/Video Settings and Easy Setups."

However, some people have an output format that doesn't match their media files, such as when capturing DV footage but outputting to Digital Betacam. In these cases, there are several possible workflows. To avoid rendering during editing, your sequence settings should match the settings of your media files. For example, if your media files are DV, you can edit to a sequence with DV settings. When it is time to output, you can do one of two things:

Duplicate the sequence, make all the clips offline, then change the sequence settings to Digital Betacam. (Your sequence represents all of your final edit decisions, but your media files are not the right format. You must recapture all of them with Digital Betacam settings.)
Output your tape to DV, then go to a video facility to have your master DV tape dubbed to Digital Betacam.

Rendering slows down the creative editing process, so people try to avoid it at all costs. If you've ever seen a red bar appear in the Timeline as soon as you add a clip to a sequence, it's probably because the clip settings and the sequence settings don't match.

Final Cut Pro assumes your sequence settings match your intended output format, such as NTSC DV tape or a 320 x 240 Sorenson movie for the web. Whatever the format, any media from clips with settings different from the sequence settings, such as different image dimensions, must be conformed to match the sequence settings. Clips with settings that don't match the sequence settings may require rendering.

The capture and sequence settings that must match your output format settings include:

• Image dimensions
- Compressor (codec)
- Frame rate
- Field dominance
- Audio sample rate
- Audio bit depth

Note: Even when Final Cut Pro renders a clip's media file to match a sequence, the original media files are left untouched. Separate render files are created. This is part of the philosophy of nondestructive editing—your original media files are never processed.

Tip: Don't add clips with settings that don't match the sequence, unless you have a good reason. Otherwise, they'll need to be rendered to match the sequence.

Although the instances are rare, there are a few situations that may prompt you to change your sequence settings:

You've imported multiple video or audio formats, and you decide to change your sequence settings to accommodate the more dominant format in your sequence to reduce rendering.
You've changed your video interface or capturing setup, allowing you to work in the Y^_BC_R (YUV) color space rather than the RGB color space.
You've added an audio output device that allows you to output 8 channels of audio directly from Final Cut Pro.
Your intended output format has changed.

Sequence settings such as frame size, video compressor, and audio sample rate can be modified at any time.

Note: The one setting that may not be changed is the sequence frame rate (referred to as the editing timebase). You can change a sequence's frame rate (editing timebase) only if the sequence is empty. Once a sequence contains one or more clips, you can't change its editing timebase. Removing all the clips from the sequence allows you to change the sequence's editing timebase.

Changing sequence settings is discussed in Volume IV, Chapter 26, "Sequence Settings and Presets."

All sequences have settings as soon as they are created. When you first create a sequence, its settings are determined by the currently selected sequence preset in the Audio/Video Settings window, which is specified by your current Easy Setup.

1 Do one of the following:

Select a sequence in the Browser.
Open a sequence into the Timeline.

2 Choose Sequence > Settings.

For information about changing sequence settings, see Volume IV, Chapter 26, "Sequence Settings and Presets."

Once your clips are captured and organized to your satisfaction in the Browser, you can begin moving your content into a sequence.

This chapter covers the following:

Creating a Rough Edit (p. 93)
• Overview of Ways to Add Clips to a Sequence (p. 96)
• Preparing a Sequence Order in the Browser (p. 98)

During the rough editing phase of your project, the overarching structure of your movie begins to take shape. A rough edit is like an outline of your finished movie, and many details remain to be worked out. At this point, you arrange, copy, delete, and work with large groups of clips at once. You may even be missing footage still, but you can use placeholder clips, such as slug or text, to note areas that need work.

Basic rough assembly and editing involve the following steps:

Final Cut Pro allows you to add clips to your sequence in several ways. The simplest method is to select clips in the Browser or Viewer and drag them to the Timeline. You can also add clips to a sequence in a more precise way, setting In and Out points in both your source clip and destination sequence, and then dragging the clip to the Canvas. This is called three-point editing.

This is where you assemble the clips in the Timeline into the order you want by selecting, moving, copying, cutting, pasting, and deleting.

In the process of assembling the rough edit, you typically find you want to change the duration of some clips, trim the heads or tails of some clips, or divide clips into smaller pieces and reposition them.

Before you begin editing and arranging clips in a sequence in the Timeline, it's a good idea to look at how clips are represented when they're first edited into a sequence.

When you edit a clip into the Timeline, an affiliated copy of that clip is placed in your sequence. The clip in the Timeline looks like this:

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:41:16 00:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:40:00 01:01:00:00 v1 V1 Dining room serving salad WS Dining Video clip item a1 A1 Dining room serving salad WS Dining Audio clip items a2 A2 Dining room serving salad WS Dining An underline indicates items that are linked.

In the example above, a clip containing one video item and two audio items was added to the sequence. Each of these items is called a clip item.

The video clip item is placed in track V1 of the Timeline, and the two audio clip items are placed in tracks A1 and A2, respectively. Each of these items is named after the master clip in the Browser from which it came. All three clip items are linked together, which is indicated by the line under each clip item name. Linking clip items together keeps the items in sync with each other.

Since the audio and video items of each edited clip are linked, selecting the video clip item also selects the audio clip items, and edits you make to one are automatically made to the others. For example, if you move a video clip item from track V1 to track V2, the audio clip items move from tracks A1 and A2 to tracks A3 and A4.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:41:16 00:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:40:00 01:01:00:00 v1 V1 Dining room serving salad WS Dining a1 A1 Dining room serving salad WS Dining a2 A2 Dining room serving salad WS Dining A3 Audio clip items on A1 and A2

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:41:16 00:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:40:00 01:01:00:00 v1 V1 Dining room serving salad WS 00:00:00 When you move a video clip item to a new track... a1 A1 Dining room serving salad WS Dining a2 A2 Dining room serving salad WS Dining A3 ... A4 ... A5 ... A6 ...the audio clip items move as well because they are linked.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:41:16 00:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:40:00 01:01:00:00 V2 v1 V1 a1 A1 a2 A2 A3 A4 A5 A6 The video clip item is now on V2. Dining room serving salad WS Dining Dining room serving salad WS Dining Dining Linked audio clip items are on A3 and A4.

Video and audio clip items can be linked or unlinked at any time. For more information, see Chapter 14, "Linking and Editing Video and Audio in Sync," on page 219.

As you begin to edit in Final Cut Pro, rest easy with the knowledge that you can undo actions you take in your projects, sequences, and clips, including editing clips into sequences. The Undo command is helpful if you make a change you don't like, or make a mistake and want to revert to an earlier version. You can also redo actions that you have undone.

By default, you can undo 10 of your previous actions before quitting Final Cut Pro. You can set Final Cut Pro to undo up to 99 actions in the General tab of the User Preferences window. The more levels of Undo you select, the more memory is needed to save all of your changes. For more information on modifying the number of changes to undo, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

You can change the number of Undo levels here. User Preferences General Editing Labels Timeline Options Render Control Audio Outputs Levels of Undo: 10 actions Prompt for settings on New Project

Press Command-Z.
- Choose Edit > Undo.

■ Press Shift-Command-Z.
- Choose Edit > Redo.

When you edit, there are two basic ways to add clips to your sequence. Once you determine how you want to add clips, you can specify what part of each clip you want to add. You can also add entire clips or groups of clips to your sequence for your rough edit.

There are two basic approaches to placing clips into a sequence—drag-to-Timeline editing and three-point editing. Three-point editing can be more precise than dragging clips directly to the Timeline, but it requires a few additional steps. In the earliest stages of editing, you may prefer the expediency of the drag-to-Timeline method.

The faster, less precise way of editing content into a sequence is to drag a source clip from the Browser or the Viewer directly to tracks in the Timeline. This simple method is discussed more in Chapter 9, "Drag-to-Timeline Editing," on page 141.

Drag a source clip from the Viewer... ...to a track in the Timeline. Master shot jacob Cij Master shot jacob Cij Master shot jacob Cij

In three-point editing, you set In and Out points in both a source clip and a sequence to determine the duration and placement of an edit. You also choose the destination sequence tracks in which your source clip is placed. Three-point editing gets its name from the fact that Final Cut Pro needs no more than three In and Out points in the source clip and the destination sequence to perform the edit. Either the source clip or the sequence has both In and Out points set, while the other only has an In or an Out point set. The fourth edit point is inferred from the duration of the edit.

For example, if you set In and Out points in a source clip and an In point in a sequence, the Out point in the sequence is determined by the duration of the source clip. In this case, the sequence In point determines where the source clip is placed, and the source clip determines the duration of the edit.

(3) Sequence In point (4) Sequence Out point (inferred) (1 and 2) Source clip In and Out points

However, if you set In and Out points in a sequence and an In point in your source clip, the Out point of the source clip is determined by the duration between the sequence In and Out points. In this case, the sequence In and Out points limit how much of the source clip is placed in the sequence.

(1 and 2) Sequence In and Out points (3) Clip In point (4) Clip Out point (inferred)

For more details about three-point editing, see Chapter 10, "Three-Point Editing," on page 149.

To specify what part of a clip you want in your sequence, you open it in the Viewer and set In and Out points. The In point is the first frame of the clip you want to use in a sequence, and the Out point is the last frame. For information about setting In and Out points for clips, see Chapter 7, "Setting Edit Points for Clips and Sequences," on page 101.

If you like, you can also add an entire clip to your sequence, without setting In or Out points for it. For information, see "Dragging Clips to the Timeline" on page 142.

Instead of adding clips to your sequence one at a time, you can organize a group of clips in the Browser and drag all of them to your sequence at the same time. For information about adding groups of clips directly to your sequence, see the next section, "Preparing a Sequence Order in the Browser."

You can sort clips or visually arrange them (using icon view) in the Browser and then drag the sorted group of clips to the Canvas or Timeline to instantly edit them into your sequence in the arranged order. It's not necessary to arrange a sequence order of clips in the Browser before moving them into a sequence, but the techniques described here can save you some time.

The ability to sort by column information in the Browser (in list view) can help you quickly organize clips into the order in which you want them to appear in your sequence.

For example, if you entered scene and shot numbers when you logged your shots, you can sort by these two columns, and then select all of these shots to edit into your sequence in the correct order. Or, if you want to edit your footage into a sequence in the chronological order in which scenes were shot, you can sort by the Reel and Media Start columns, and then drag a group of clips into your sequence.

For more information on sorting, see "Sorting Items in the Browser Using Column Headings" on page 27.

If you display your clips in icon view in the Browser, you see a thumbnail of each clip, which provides a quick visual way to arrange the icons of your clips into a storyboard for your sequence. If you then drag all of the arranged clips to the Canvas or Timeline, the clips are laid out in your sequence according to their position in the Browser. You can then adjust, or fine-tune, the content of each clip in the Timeline.

For example, a group that's arranged like this:

1 2 3 Bin: Cafe scene Cafe scene 6 items Debra enters cafe WS 05:00 Master shot Debra MS 06:00 Master shot jacob CU 04:00 Master shot Debra CU 04:00 Master shot jacob WS 06:00 4 5

Goes into your sequence like this:

0:00 1 01:00:04:00 01:00 08:00 01:00:12:01 01:00:16:01 01:00:20:02 01:00:24:02 Debra enters cafe W Master shot Debra MS Master shot Master shot E Master shot jacob WS Debra enters cafe WS Master shot Debra MS Master shot jacob CU Master shot Debra CU Master shot jacob WS Jacob re Debra enters cafe WS Master shot Debra MS Master shot jacob CU Master shot Debra CU Master shot jacob WS Jacob re

1 Control-click in the Browser, then choose View as Large Icons from the shortcut menu.

2 Drag the clips into the order in which you want them to appear, keeping the rows of clips relatively straight, so that Final Cut Pro can properly determine their order.

Tip: To ensure clips are placed in the Timeline in the proper order, place each subsequent clip several pixels lower and to the right of the previous clip.

Bin: Cafe scene Cafe scene 6 items Debra enters cafe WS 05:00 Master shot Debra MS 06:00 Master shot jacob CU 04:00 Master shot Debra CU 04:00 Master shot jacob WS 06:00 Arrange the clips in the order you want, from left to right and top to bottom.

Note: If you don't want to use the entire duration of each clip, you can set In and Out points for each clip to specify the part you want to use (see "Setting Clip In and Out Points in the Viewer" on page 105).

To specify where a clip should be placed in your sequence, and to select a section of a clip for editing, copying, pasting, or any other operation, you set In and Out points.

This chapter covers the following:

• About In and Out Points (p. 101)
- Setting Clip In and Out Points in the Viewer (p. 105)
- Setting Sequence In and Out Points in the Canvas or Timeline (p. 108)
• Navigating to In and Out Points (p. 118)
- Moving In and Out Points (p. 119)
• Clearing In and Out Points (p. 120)

In and Out points allow you to define a specific portion of a clip or sequence for editing, deletion, copying, pasting, and so on. A clip In point marks the first frame of a clip to be edited into a sequence. A clip Out point specifies the last frame of the clip to be used. The areas beyond the In and Out point boundaries are called handles. Handles are additional media that you are not using for the edit, but which may be necessary when extra media is required, such as when you add a transition to the head or tail of a clip in your sequence. You set In and Out points for clips in the Viewer.

You can also set sequence In and Out points in the Canvas or Timeline. You can use these as placement points to determine where clips are placed in the Timeline when you're doing three-point editing.

Before you begin to set In and Out points, it's important to understand the "Out point inclusive" rule that Final Cut Pro follows, so you can avoid an unexpected extra frame at your Out point.

Out point inclusive means that when you set an Out point at the position of the playhead, the frame that the playhead is on is included in your edit. This rule means that whenever you set In and Out points, the minimum duration set is always one frame long. For example, if you place the playhead on a specific frame, and then set both an In point and an Out point, the In point is placed at the beginning of the frame and the Out point is placed at the end, resulting in a one-frame duration. If this rule did not exist, it would be possible to create edits with zero duration, which would be useless.

1 Double-click a sequence in the Browser to open it in the Timeline.
2 Choose Mark > Mark In (or press I) to set an In point in the sequence.
3 Move the playhead several seconds later in the Timeline.
4 Press Command-= (equal sign) to zoom in closely to the location of the playhead.
You can see that the ruler is highlighted directly after the playhead. The duration of this highlighted area is one frame.
5 Choose Mark > Mark Out (or press O) to set an Out point in the sequence.

The Out point is placed at the end of the duration of the frame. This is because the Out point includes the duration of the frame on which the playhead is currently positioned.

In point 01:00 24:16 The Out point includes the duration of the frame.

When you want to mark the duration of a clip in a sequence, you need to remember to set the Out point one frame earlier than you might expect, or you may also include the first frame of the next clip. This often happens when you have snapping turned on and you snap to clip start and end points to set In and Out points.

The Out point includes the first frame of the adjacent clip. Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:04:15 01:00:04:06 01:00:04:10 01:00:04:13 01:00:04:16 v1 V1 Intro Playground Classroom a1 A1 Intro Playground Classroom a2 A2 Intro Playground Classroom A3

For example, suppose a clip in the Timeline is a shot of a playground and the next clip is a shot of a classroom. When you move the playhead to snap to the end of the playground clip, you see the first frame of the classroom clip in the Canvas. If you then set an Out point and copy and paste the playground clip, you see one classroom frame at the end of the pasted content. You probably didn't intend to include the first frame of the classroom shot, but it was included because of the Out point inclusive rule.

To avoid accidentally selecting the first frame of the next clip, do one of the following:

- Press the Back Arrow key once before setting the Out point, so that you set it on the last frame of the clip you want to select. When you do this, the last frame of that clip is included with the Out point.

The Out point ends at the last frame of the clip. Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:04:14 01:00:04:06 01:00:04:10 01:00:04:15 01:00:04:16 v1 V1 Intro Playground Classroom a1 A1 Intro Playground Classroom a2 A2 Intro Playground Classroom A3

■ Make the Canvas active, then choose View > Show Overlays. Make sure you set an Out point when you see the overlay that indicates the end of the clip, not the start of the next clip.

Canvas: Master sequence in Cafe 00:00:01:00 01:00:06:20 Sequence Out point overlay Clip Out point overlay

- Use the Mark > Mark Clip feature (described in "Setting In and Out Points to Match a Clip or Gap" on page 115) to place In and Out points directly on the first and last frames of the clip.

When you set In and Out points for a clip in the Viewer, only the frames from the In point to the Out point will be edited into your sequence. If you haven't explicitly set an In or Out point, Final Cut Pro uses the Media Start and the Media End points, respectively.

1 Double-click the clip to open it in the Viewer.
2 Move the playhead to the location in the clip where you want to place the In or Out point.
3 Do one of the following:

Press I to set an In point or press O to set an Out point.
Click the Mark In or Mark Out button.

Mark In button (I) Mark Out button (O)

- Control-click in the scrubber bar, then choose Mark In or Mark Out from the shortcut menu.

Clear In and Out Clear In Clear Out Clear Split Mark In Mark Out Mark Split

- Choose Mark > Mark In, or choose Mark > Mark Out.

For many editors, it's much more intuitive to set the start (In) and end (Out) points of a clip while the clip is actually playing. This way you can set the In or Out point immediately when you hear or see the frame you want. With Final Cut Pro, this is easy to do.

1 Position the playhead at the beginning of the clip.
2 Press the Space bar or click the Play button to start playing a clip in the Viewer.
3 Do one of the following:

Press I once to set an In point or press O once to set an Out point.
Press and hold the I or O key.

The In or Out point is set at the location of the playhead when you release the key.

Click the Mark In or Mark Out button once.
Click and hold the Mark In or Mark Out button.

The In or Out point is set at the location of the playhead when you release the button.

After setting an In point, if you want a clip to have a specific duration, you can quickly define an Out point relative to your In point.

1 Select the clip in the Browser.
2 Click the In or Out point column of the clip in the Browser, then enter a new timecode number.
Tip: You can also make relative adjustments by adding or subtracting timecode from an existing In or Out point. For example, you can make a clip's Out point 1 second earlier by clicking the clip's Out point field in the Browser, entering -1:00, and then pressing Enter.

1 Double-click the clip to open it in the Viewer.
2 Use one of the methods in the previous task to set an In point.

Note: If no In point is set, the Out point is set relative to the very beginning (Media Start) of the clip.

3 Select the Timecode Duration field and enter the desired duration.

Final Cut Pro sets the location of the Out point by adding the duration you entered to the timecode value of the In point.

If you decide that you want to set In and Out points at the very beginning and end of your clip (the default), it's easy to do.

To set In and Out points at the clip Media Start and Media End (the beginning and end of the clip):

1 Open a clip in the Viewer.
2 Do one of the following:

- Click the Mark Clip button.

Mark Clip button

Choose Mark > Mark Clip.
Press X.

When you've set the In and Out points you think you want to use, check your edit points to make sure that you've included all the frames you need for the clip you're editing.

To view your clip from its In point to its Out point, do one of the following:

Click the Play In to Out button.
■ Press Shift-\ (backslash).
Choose Mark > Play > In to Out.

To view your clip from the position of the playhead to the clip's Out point:

1 Position the playhead where you want to start viewing your clip.
2 Choose Mark > Play > To Out (or press Shift-P).

To get a quick sense of what material is around a specific point in your clip, you can use the Play Around Current Frame option. This plays a section of your clip from before the current frame (based on a pre-roll setting) through the amount of time specified by the post-roll setting. (The preview pre-roll and post-roll settings are in the General tab of the User Preferences window. To change these settings, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences.")

To view your clip around the position of the playhead:

1 Position the playhead where you want to view your clip.
2 Do one of the following:

- Click the Play Around Current Frame button.

- Choose Mark > Play > Around.

- Press \ (backslash).

Once you've set In and Out points for a clip in the Viewer, you need to specify an In or Out point in your sequence before you can complete a three-point edit. (As mentioned earlier, for faster editing, you can simply drag a clip to the Timeline without setting any In or Out points.)

Setting In and Out points for a sequence in the Timeline is similar to setting In and Out points for a clip in the Viewer. You can set In and Out points while the sequence is playing or when it's stopped. Sometimes it's easier to set In and Out points while your program is playing, so you can set an edit point immediately when you hear or see the frame you want.

You have several options when setting sequence In and Out points. Each choice has certain ramifications, so make sure you understand the outcome when setting your In and Out points.

Setting no In or Out points: When no edit points are set, the playhead position is considered the In point. The clip is placed at the playhead position in the Timeline.
Setting only an In point: When an In point is set, that point determines where the source clip's In point is placed in your sequence. The sequence Out point is calculated based on the Out point of the source clip.
Setting only an Out point: When an Out point is set, that point determines where the source clip's Out point is placed in your sequence. The In point is determined by one of the following:

- Sequence playhead: If the position of the playhead is before the sequence Out point, the playhead is considered to be the sequence In point of the edit.

- Clip In point: If the sequence playhead is after the sequence Out point, the sequence In point is determined by the source clip In point.

- Sequence start: If the position of the playhead is after the sequence Out point, and neither the source clip nor the sequence have In points, the start of the sequence determines the sequence In point of the edit.

- Setting both In and Out points: If both points are set in the sequence, the edit is restricted to the duration between the sequence In and Out points, regardless of the duration set in the source clip.

If you don't set any In or Out points in the Canvas or Timeline, Final Cut Pro uses the playhead as an In point to determine the outcome of your edit.

The position of the playhead determines the In point if you haven't set any edit points in the Canvas or Timeline. Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Don eats fish plate CU Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Don eats fish plate CU Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Don eats fish plate CU

The new clip starts where the playhead was prior to the edit. After the edit, the playhead moves to the end of the clip. Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Nancy at table CU Don eats fish plate CU Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Nancy at table CU Don eats fish plate CU

If you set only one In or Out point, that point determines where the clip being edited into your sequence will start or end:

- If you set a sequence In point, the In point of the source clip is placed at the sequence In point, and the clip extends from the In point to the right for the duration of the source clip.

In point 01:00 01:00:30:00 01:01:00:00 01:01:30:00 02:00:00 01:02:30:00 01:03:00:00 Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Don eats fish plate CU Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Don eats fish plate CU Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Don eats fish plate CU

The new clip begins at the In point that you set. Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Nancy at Don eats fish plate CU Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Nancy at table CU Don eats fish plate CU Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Nancy at table CU Don eats fish plate CU

- If you set a sequence Out point, the Out point of the source clip is placed at the sequence Out point, and the clip is "backtimed" for the duration of the source clip, extending from the Out point to the left.

Out point 00:00 01:00:30:00 01:01:00:00 01:01:30:00 02:00:00 01:02:30:00 01:03:00:00 Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Don eats fish plate CU Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Don eats fish plate CU Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Don eats fish plate CU Don eats fish plate CU Don eats fish plate CU

The new clip ends at the Out point that you set. Dining room serving salad WS Don Nancy at table CU Don eats fish plate CU Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish pla Nancy at table CU Don eats fish plate CU Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish pla Nancy at table CU Don eats fish plate CU

Setting both sequence In and Out points limits the duration of your edit to the duration between these two points. How the source clip lines up within this duration depends on which clip In and Out points have been set in the Viewer:

- If you set an In point for the source clip, the clip's In point lines up with the In point in your sequence, and the clip extends to the right for the duration defined by the sequence In and Out points.

In and Out points are set in the Timeline. 01:00 01:00:30:00 01:01:00:00 01:01:30:00 01:02:00:00 01:02:30:00 01:03:00:00 Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Don eats fish plate CU Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Don eats fish plate CU Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Don eats fish plate CU

Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Nancy at Don eats fish plate CU Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Nancy at table CU Don eats fish plate CU Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Nancy at table CU Don eats fish plate CU The new clip's duration is defined by the sequence In and Out points you set.

If you set only an Out point for the source clip, the clip's Out point lines up with the Out point in the sequence, and the edit will be backtimed for the duration defined by the sequence In and Out points.
If you set both In and Out points for the source clip, the sequence In and Out points take precedence. Final Cut Pro lines up the source clip's In point with the sequence In point in the Timeline, and the source clip's Out point is ignored.

Note: If your source clip is not as long as the duration between the sequence In and Out points, then you'll get an "Insufficient content for edit" message.

You can set sequence In and Out points in the Canvas or Timeline. The In and Out points in the Canvas are the same as the ones in the Timeline—they refer to the same timecode values and affect the same part of your sequence. If you set In and Out points in the Timeline, they also appear in the Canvas, and vice versa.

1 Make the Canvas or the Timeline active by doing one of the following:

Click in the appropriate window.
Press Command-2 to make the Canvas active.
Press Command-3 to make the Timeline active.
Press Q to switch between the Viewer and the Canvas.

2 Move the playhead to the point in your sequence where you want to place the In or Out point.
3 Do one of the following:

- Press I to set an In point or press O to set an Out point.

- Click the Mark In or Mark Out button.

Mark In button Mark Out button

- Control-click in the scrubber bar of the Canvas (or the ruler of the Timeline), then choose Mark In or Mark Out from the shortcut menu.

Clear In and Out Clear In Clear Out Clear Split Mark In Mark Out Mark Split

Choose Mark > Mark In.
Choose Mark > Mark Out.

When you want to replace one clip with another using exactly the same location and duration in the Timeline, you can set both In and Out points simultaneously. This also comes in handy if you want to quickly set In and Out points to fit the boundaries of a gap in your sequence.

1 Place the Timeline playhead over a clip (or gap) in your sequence.

Note: Make sure the clip items beneath the playhead are on the destination tracks. For more information, see "Specifying Destination Tracks in the Timeline" on page 127.

2 Select the Auto Select control for the track (or tracks) containing the clip or gap you want to mark.

Dining sequence RT 01:03:04:22 v1 V1 Auto Select is enabled for these three tracks. a1 A1 a2 A2 A3 Dining ro Dining ro

Note: If the clip items of the Auto Select-enabled video and audio tracks have different durations, video clip items take precedence over audio clip items. Also, clip items take precedence over gaps. For more information about Auto Select controls, see "Using Auto Select to Specify Tracks for Selections" on page 191.

3 Do one of the following to set In and Out points:

Press X.
Click the Mark Clip button in the Canvas.

Canvas: Dining sequence in Dining 00:00:43:10 01:01:26:21 Mark Clip button in the Canvas

- Choose Mark > Mark Clip.

In and Out points are set at the boundaries of the clip or gap.

In and Out points are set at the clip's boundaries. Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Nancy at Don eats fish plate CU Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Nancy at table CU Don eats fish plate CU Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Nancy at table CU Don eats fish plate CU

You can use the Final Cut Pro selection tools to select a group of whole or partial clips in the Timeline, and then use the duration of the selection to set In and Out points using the Mark Selection command. For more information, see "Direct Methods for Selecting Content in a Sequence" on page 177.

Note: If you do not have contiguous items selected in the Timeline, this command sets your In and Out points using the selected clips farthest to the left and farthest to the right as the outer boundaries.

To set In and Out points based on the current selection in the Timeline:

1 Select clip items in the Timeline.

You can select part of a clip, several clips, or parts of several clips using the Selection, Group Selection, or Range Selection tools. For more information on how to use these tools, see Chapter 11, "Finding and Selecting Content in the Timeline," on page 175.

If you want to set only video or only audio In and Out points, select only video or audio items in the Timeline. You can also select a combination of video and audio clip items to set split In and Out points. For more information, see Chapter 15, "Split Edits," on page 237.

Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Nancy at table CU Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Nancy at table CU Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Nancy at table CU Select the desired clips or sections.

Note: Make sure the selected clip items are on the destination tracks. For more information, see "Specifying Destination Tracks in the Timeline" on page 127.

2 Do one of the following:

Press Shift-A.
Choose Mark > Mark Selection.

In and Out points are set for your selection. Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Nancy at table CU Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Nancy at table CU Dining room serving salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Nancy at table CU

Both In and Out points will be set using the boundaries of your selection. If the durations of the audio and video items you select are different, you'll see split In and Out markers. For more information, see Chapter 15, "Split Edits," on page 237.

Often, you'll want to position the playhead at the beginning or end of a specific clip, marker, or edit point in your sequence, in preparation for the next edit. Final Cut Pro makes it easy to jump quickly between all of the edit points in your sequence.

In the Canvas, click the Go to Next Edit button.
■ Press the Down Arrow key.
- Choose Mark > Next > Edit (or press Shift-E).

In the Canvas, click the Go to Previous Edit button.
■ Press the Up Arrow key.
- Choose Mark > Previous > Edit (or press Option-E).

You can move the playhead directly to an In or Out point. This can be useful if you need to make a slight adjustment to your In or Out point. Move the playhead to the edit point, then move it by the necessary frames and set the In or Out point again at the correct location.

- Choose Mark > Go To > In Point (or press Shift-I).

Shift-click the Mark Out button in the Canvas.
- Choose Mark > Go To > Out Point (or press Shift-O).

You can always change clip In and Out points by simply setting new ones. Here are a few other options for changing In and Out points.

To change the location of the In or Out point, do one of the following:

Drag In or Out point markers to the left or right.
To change the Out point, enter a new timecode number in the Timecode Duration field. Final Cut Pro calculates the new location of the Out point by adding the duration you entered to the timecode value of the In point. If no In point is set, the Out point will be set relative to the beginning (Media Start) of the clip.

Timecode Duration field 00:01:01:03

- Click the clip in the Browser, then select either the In, Out, or Duration timecode numbers and enter new ones.

You can also change the location of both In and Out points at the same time. The duration of the marked media doesn't change, just the location of the In and Out points. This is commonly referred to as slipping an edit. You can slip edit points in both the Viewer and the Canvas or Timeline.

To slip both the In and Out points together, do one of the following:

- Hold down the Shift key, then drag the In or Out point left or right in the scrubber bar.

Note: The cursor must be directly over the In or Out point, or the slip edit won't work and you will simply move the playhead.

Hold down the Shift key, then drag the In point or Out point to a new location.

- Select the Slip tool in the Tool palette, then drag a sequence clip in the Timeline to the left or right.

Slip tool

For more information, see "Slipping Clips in the Timeline" on page 325.

If you want to eliminate one or both edit points to start over again, there are several ways you can do so.

To clear an In point, do one of the following:

Press Option-I.
■ Option-click the Mark In button.
■ Control-click in the scrubber bar, then choose Clear In from the shortcut menu.
In the Viewer or Canvas, drag an In point vertically off the scrubber bar, either up or down.

To clear an Out point, do one of the following:

Press Option-O.
■ Option-click the Mark Out button.
■ Control-click in the scrubber bar, then choose Clear Out from the shortcut menu.
In the Viewer or Canvas, drag an Out point vertically off the scrubber bar, either up or down.

To clear both In and Out points at the same time, do one of the following:

Press Option-X.
■ Option-click the Mark Clip button.
■ Control-click in the scrubber bar, then choose Clear In and Out from the shortcut menu.

Note: If you set an In point later than an Out point, the Out point is automatically removed. If you set an Out point earlier than an In point, the In point is automatically removed.

In the Timeline, you view your clips horizontally (in chronological order) and also vertically (stacked in multiple tracks). You can add, delete, and lock tracks, and you can customize how tracks are displayed.

This chapter covers the following:

Adding and Deleting Tracks (p. 123)
Specifying Destination Tracks in the Timeline (p. 127)
Locking Tracks to Prevent Edits or Changes (p. 132)
Disabling Tracks to Hide Content During Playback (p. 133)
Customizing Track Display in the Timeline (p. 134)

Note: For information about navigating and zooming within the Timeline, see Volume I, Chapter 9, "Timeline Basics."

In Final Cut Pro, sequences can have up to 99 video and 99 audio tracks. Tracks contain clip items, which are the individual media items that make up a clip. When you edit, you arrange individual or linked clip items in a sequence.

You can add tracks to a sequence at any time. You can add tracks one at a time, or you can add multiple video and audio tracks at once.

To quickly add a track to a sequence, do one of the following:

- Drag a clip to the unused area above the top video track or below the bottom audio track. Final Cut Pro adds new tracks to accommodate any audio or video this new clip contains.

Timeline: Master sequence in CafeDefault_2wLIP Master sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:05:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:15:00 v1 V1 Debra sidewalking a1 A1 Debra sidewalking a2 A2 Debra sidewalking A3

Drag a clip to the unused area above the top video track.

■ Control-click anywhere in the area above the top video track or below the bottom audio track, then choose Add Track from the shortcut menu.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:02:00 01:00:04:00 v1 V1 Add Track Debra sidewalking Debra sidewalking a1 A1 Debra sidewalking Debra sidewalking a2 A2 Debra sidewalking Debra sidewalking A3

Control-click in the area above the top video track, then choose Add Track.

1 Choose Sequence > Insert Tracks.
2 In the Insert Tracks dialog, select your options, then click OK.

Select the types of tracks you want to add. Insert Tracks Insert 0 Video Tracks: Before Base Track After Last Track Insert 0 Audio Tracks: Before Base Track After Last Track Enter the number of tracks to add. Specify where you want to add the tracks. Cancel OK

Track type: Select the appropriate checkbox to add audio and/or video tracks.
Number of tracks: Enter the desired number of tracks for either video or audio. A sequence can have a total of 99 video tracks and 99 audio tracks.
Specify a location:
Before Base Track: This inserts the desired number of tracks before the first track in the Timeline. Existing tracks and their clips will be moved up. For example, if one video track is added before the base track of a sequence with two existing video tracks, V1 and V2, these tracks along with their clips will be moved to V2 and V3. Track V1 is the new, empty track.
After Last Track: This inserts the desired number of tracks after the last track in the Timeline. If your last track is V2, and you add three video tracks, tracks V3, V4, and V5 are created.

When you add a single video track before a track that contains clip items, those video clip items move up one track, but any audio items linked to them do not. This results in an offset between the track number of that clip's video and the track numbers of that clip's audio, but the clip's audio and video are still linked and in sync.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:02:00 01:00:04:00 v1 V2 Debra sidewalking Debra sidewalking V1 a1 A1 Debra sidewalking Debra sidewalking a2 A2 Debra sidewalking Debra sidewalking A3 ...but the audio tracks do not.

You can delete tracks from a sequence at any time. You can delete tracks one at a time, or you can delete multiple video and audio tracks at once. If you delete tracks that contain linked clip items, only the items on the deleted track are deleted; the linked items remain. For example, if you delete a video track, video clip items on that track are deleted, but the linked audio clip items remain in their tracks.

Note: If you delete the wrong track, you can use the Undo command to restore it.

■ Control-click anywhere in the track header (the area to the left of each track), then choose Delete Track from the shortcut menu.

You can also delete several empty tracks from a sequence in the Timeline.

1 Choose Sequence > Delete Tracks.
2 Select your options for deleting tracks, then click OK.

Options appear only after you select the type of track you want to delete.

Delete Tracks ✓ Video Tracks: All Empty Tracks All Empty Tracks at End of Sequence ✓ Audio Tracks: All Empty Tracks All Empty Tracks at End of Sequence Cancel OK

Track type: Select the appropriate checkbox to delete audio and/or video tracks.
Tracks to delete: Specify the type of track you want to delete.
All Empty Tracks: Select this option to delete all tracks in your sequence in the Timeline that don't contain clip items.
All Empty Tracks at End of Sequence: Select this option to delete all empty video tracks above and all empty audio tracks below the outermost tracks that contain clip items.

After tracks are deleted, all remaining tracks in the sequence are renumbered.

When you edit a source clip into a sequence, you need to specify the sequence tracks where your source clip items are placed. You use the Source and Destination controls in the Timeline to specify which sequence tracks receive clip items from the source clip. Source and Destination controls are most often used when you perform three-point edits, but they can also affect some aspects of drag-to-Timeline editing. For more information, see Chapter 10, "Three-Point Editing," on page 149.

The number of available Source controls corresponds to the number of clip items in the source clip currently open in the Viewer. For example, a typical clip has one video clip item and two audio clip items. In this case, one video and two audio Source controls appear in the Timeline. If, instead, you open a clip in the Viewer that has one video item and four audio items, one video and four audio Source controls appear in the Timeline.

Master sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 v1 V1 Destination control a1 A1 Source control a2 A2 A3 A4 Timeline patch panel A maximum of one video and twenty-four audio Source controls appear in the Timeline, depending on the number of clip items currently open in the Viewer.

Every track in your sequence has a Destination control. By assigning source clip items to destination tracks using these controls, you determine which items from your source clip go into which tracks when edits are performed.

Important: If you copy and paste clips, the paste destination is determined by Auto Select controls, not Source and Destination controls. For more information, see "Using Auto Select to Specify Tracks for Selections" on page 191.

To control which sequence track a source clip item is placed in, you connect the Source control to the corresponding Destination control. There are several different ways to do this.

Important: While editing, make sure that Source controls are connected to the Destination controls for the correct tracks. If you don't, individual video or audio items in your source clip will end up in the wrong tracks in the Timeline.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:28:12 v1 V1 Debra sidewalking Debra sidewalking a1 A1 Debra sidewalking Debra sidewalking a2 A2 Debra sidewalking Debra sidewalking

To assign a source clip item to a destination track in the Timeline, do one of the following:

Drag a Source control so that it connects to a Destination control.
■ Control-click a Source control, then choose a new destination track from the shortcut menu.
■ Control-click a Destination control, then select a Source control to assign to it.
Click a Destination control; the nearest Source control above is assigned to it.

To assign the v1 Source control to a destination video track:

- Press F6 and the number of the video track you want to assign as the destination track (this works for tracks 1 through 9).

To assign the a1 Source control to a destination audio track:

- Press F7 and the number of the audio track you want to assign as the destination track (this works for tracks 1 through 9).

To assign the a2 Source control to a destination audio track:

- Press F8 and the number of the audio track you want to assign as the destination track (this works for tracks 1 through 9).

For example, to assign the a2 source clip item to sequence track A4, press F8 and then press 4.

You can change source and destination track assignments in the Timeline in several ways.

Click a Destination control. The first Source control above that track moves to that track.
Option-click a Destination control. The first Source control beneath that track moves to that track.
Drag one Source control on top of another to switch their connections.

For example, suppose Source control a1 is connected to Destination control A1, and Source control a2 is connected to Destination control A2. If you drag the a2 Source control onto the a1 Source control, the connections are reversed (a1 is connected to A2, and a2 is connected to A1).

■ Control-click a Source control, then choose a track from the shortcut menu.
■ Control-click a Destination control, then choose a Source control from the shortcut menu.

You can prevent specific video or audio source clip items from being edited into your sequence by disconnecting Source and Destination controls. For example, if you disconnect the video Source control prior to making an edit, only the audio source clip items are edited into the Timeline.

For example, suppose you want to edit the video clip item in the Viewer into your sequence, but you don't want the audio clip items. You can simply disconnect all of the audio Source controls in the Timeline, leaving only the video Source and Destination controls connected. Performing an overwrite edit adds the video portion of the selected clip to your sequence, ignoring the source clip audio.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:28:12 00:00 01:00:08:00 01:00:16:00 01:00:24:00 Source clip item v1 is connected to destination video track V1. v1 v1 Debra sidewalking Debra sidewalking a1 A1 Audio Source controls are disconnected from the Destination controls. a2 A2

Disconnected Source controls remain disconnected even when you open a new clip in the Viewer. This is true even if the clip has a different number of video and audio clip items than the previously opened clip.

- Click the Source or Destination control to break the track assignment.

Connected Source and Destination controls a1 A1 a2 A2

Press Shift-F6 to deselect the current video destination track.
Press Shift-F7 to deselect the current audio channel 1 destination track.
■ Press Shift-F8 to deselect the current audio channel 2 destination track.

Note: You can also lock any track you don't want source clip items edited into by clicking that track's Lock Track control, located in the track header. If a track is locked, it is ignored as a destination track. (For more information see "Locking Tracks to Prevent Edits or Changes" on page 132.)

You can reset Source or Destination controls to their default state at any time. All available Source controls are reconnected to the accompanying Destination controls. For example, the a1 Source control is reconnected to the A1 Destination control, the a2 Source control is reconnected to the A2 Destination control, and so on.

■ Control-click in the Timeline patch panel, then choose Reset Panel from the shortcut menu.

There are several exceptions to the way you normally use Source and Destination controls to specify destination tracks for source clip items.

If you drag a clip from the Browser or Viewer directly into a specific track in the Timeline, it is placed on that track even if that track is not a destination track. However, the currently selected destination tracks modify this operation in two ways:

If the video Source and Destination controls are disconnected and you drag a clip to an audio track, no video is edited into your sequence, and vice versa.
If you connect nonadjacent Source controls, the source clip items are edited into the sequence using the track separation defined by the Source controls. For example, if A1 and A3 are the current audio destination tracks, a clip that you drag to your sequence will always have one empty track between the two source audio clip items, and will keep that one-track offset no matter which audio tracks you drag the items into.

If you edit a clip into your sequence using a superimpose edit, it is edited into the track above the currently selected destination track. Any clips that are already there are moved up to a new track, creating one or more additional tracks if necessary. (Superimpose edits are explained in Chapter 10, "Three-Point Editing," on page 149.)

The Voice Over tool records audio to the track connected to Source control a2. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 8, "Using the Voice Over Tool."

If you want to set one or more tracks as temporarily "off limits" to edits or changes, you can lock them using the Lock Track control in each track's header. While a locked track can be specified as a destination track, no media will be edited into a locked track.

Locked tracks appear cross-hatched in the Timeline.

- Click the Lock Track control to the left of the track.

The icon changes to a closed lock, and a crosshatch pattern is displayed on the track.

No edits will be placed on the locked track until you unlock it.

- Press F4 and the number of the track you want to lock (for tracks 1 through 9).

- Press F5 and the number of the track you want to lock (for tracks 1 through 9).

The control changes to the locked position. Click the control again to unlock the track.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:01:06:01 00:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:40:00 01:01:00:00 v1 v1 Debra Side mast Debr Jacol Debra er Master Maste M Si M Maste Master M Mas M Mas a1 A1 Debra Side mast Debr Jacol Debra er Master Maste M Si M Maste Master M Mas M Mas a2 A2 Music 1 Music 4 A3 Music 1 Music 4 A4

Press Shift-F4.

To lock all audio tracks in a sequence:

Press Shift-F5.

To lock all other audio or video tracks except the selected track:

- Press Option while clicking the Lock Track control for the desired track.

Clip items on locked tracks cannot be moved, edited, deleted, or modified in any way. However, they can still be selected, along with any linked items in other tracks.

The Editing tab of the User Preferences window has an option called "Pen tools can edit locked item overlays" (to view this window, choose Final Cut Pro > User Preferences). If this option is selected, you can use the Pen, Delete Point, and Smooth Point tools to modify the audio levels or opacity of clip items even though they're on locked tracks. Clip overlays only control audio levels and video opacity. No other clip parameters can be changed when a track is locked.

You can disable entire tracks to hide their contents during playback. The clips on a disabled track are not visible or audible when you play it, nor will they render or be output to tape.

You can still edit items on disabled tracks; they just won't appear in the Canvas during playback. A track can be enabled or disabled at any time. This does not permanently affect either your sequence or the clips edited into it.

There are several reasons you may want to disable a track:

A track contains audio that you want to temporarily turn off, while you focus on other parts of your audio mix.
A track contains an alternate edit of clips in your sequence that you haven't yet committed to using. By editing this alternate sequence into a spare video track, you can enable and disable it as necessary, to quickly switch between two different arrangements of clips.
A track contains effects that you want to temporarily disable, such as superimposed subtitles. By disabling this track, you can avoid rendering the effects before playing back your sequence, yet you can still keep them in the Timeline.

You can also enable a single track by disabling all of the other tracks in the sequence.

- Click the Track Visibility control of the track you want to disable.

Note: If your sequence has clip items that have been rendered, a dialog appears saying that the render files will be deleted. If you don't need the render files, click Continue.

For more information about rendering, see Volume III, Chapter 24, "Rendering."

Click the Track Visibility control to disable a track.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:40:00 01:01:00:00 V1 Debra Side mast Debr Jacol Debra er Master Master M S M Maste Master M Mas M Mas a1 A1 Debra Side mast Debr Jacol Debra er Master Master M S Maste Master M Mas M Mas a2 A2 Music 1 Music 1 A3 Music 1 Music 1 A4

- The disabled track is dimmed and will not appear (or be heard) when the sequence is played back.

- Press Option while clicking the Track Visibility control for that track.

All other video tracks or all other audio tracks except for the one you clicked are disabled.

You can modify the way tracks are displayed in the Timeline in several ways:

Tracks in the Timeline can be resized, either individually or collectively. For more information, see the next section, "Resizing Timeline Tracks."
Clip items on video tracks can be displayed with name only, name and thumbnail frame, or filmstrip. All video tracks in the sequence share the same display settings. If you display the Timeline in Reduced track size view, you can't see thumbnails. For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 9, "Timeline Basics."
Audio tracks can be displayed in the Timeline with or without waveforms, and audio tracks can be labeled as pairs (A1a & A1b, A2a & A2b) or as individually numbered tracks (A1, A2, A3).
You can show or hide the keyframe graph area of each track, adding additional space below each video and audio track in which to view and edit effect parameters that are applied to your clips. For more information on using the keyframe graph area in the Timeline, see Volume III, Chapter 13, "Adjusting Parameters for Keyframed Effects."

For more information about customizing Timeline display options, see Volume I, Chapter 9, "Timeline Basics."

You can change the size of tracks in the Timeline, either by dragging a track's boundary in the Timeline patch panel, or by using the Track Height control.

You can resize individual tracks directly in the Timeline.

If it's a video track: Drag the upper boundary of the track in the Timeline patch panel.
If it's an audio track: Drag the lower boundary of the track in the Timeline patch panel.

Timeline patch panel Master sequence RT 01:00:00:00 V1 a1 A1 Drag a boundary to resize a track. a2 A2 A3 A4

- Hold down the Option key, then drag a track boundary to resize it. If you drag a video track boundary, all video tracks in the Timeline are resized by the same amount. If you drag an audio track boundary, all audio tracks are resized by the same amount.

- Hold down the Shift key, then drag any track boundary to resize it. All tracks in the Timeline are resized by the same amount.

When you use the Track Height control to resize tracks, you resize all tracks together. By default, the Track Height control sets all tracks in the Timeline to the same size.

To resize all tracks using the Track Height control, do one of the following:

- Click the icon in the Track Height control that corresponds to the track size you want to use.

The selected track height is highlighted blue.

Track Height control

■ Control-click the Track Height control, then choose the track size you want from the shortcut menu.

In a sequence that has individually customized track heights, all custom track heights are resized to the new height.

You can also preserve relative track sizes.

To resize all tracks relative to their individual sizes:

- Hold down the Option key, then click the icon in the Track Height control that corresponds to the track size you want to use.

You can also use the Track Layout pop-up menu (to the right of the Track Height control) to choose Reduced, Small, Medium, or Large track heights.

To resize all tracks using the Track Layout pop-up menu:

- Click the disclosure triangle to the right of the Track Height control, then choose the track size you want.

Once you've created a custom track layout for your sequence, you can save it for future use. Saved custom track layouts appear in the Track Layout pop-up menu, and can be applied to any sequence that's open in the Timeline. Up to 40 custom track layouts can appear in the menu at once.

1 Arrange the track heights of your sequence as you want them.
2 Choose Save Track Layout from the Track Layout pop-up menu (located in the Timeline to the right of the Track Height control).
3 In the Save dialog that appears, choose a location where you want to save the layout, then click Save.

Note: Custom track layouts are saved by default to the following folder location: [Home]/Library/Preferences/Final Cut Pro User Data/Track Layouts

1 Choose Restore Track Layout from the Track Layout pop-up menu.
2 In the Open dialog that appears, navigate to the location where the desired track layout file is located, select it, then click Open.

If you are working with more tracks than you can see on the screen at once, and you spend a lot of time scrolling through multiple tracks in the Timeline, you may find it useful to create a static region in the middle of the Timeline for tracks that you always want to see. This region can contain video tracks, audio tracks, or both. Creating a static region results in three total regions in the Timeline: a top, scrollable region for your excess video tracks, a middle static region, and a bottom, scrollable region for your excess audio tracks. You can't scroll up or down in the static region, but it can be resized to accommodate more or fewer tracks.

For example, if you're working on the audio of a project with sync sound dialogue in audio tracks 1 and 2, and multiple tracks of music, sound effects, and audio ambience in the tracks below that, you can define a static region containing just tracks 1 and 2, leaving the rest of your audio tracks in a lower, scrollable region. This way, your dialogue tracks will always be visible. You can scroll up and down through your other audio tracks, editing and making various adjustments while using the audio tracks in the static region as a reference point.

To create a static region for video and audio tracks:

1 Drag the upper thumb tab in the vertical scroll bar up to create a static area for as many video tracks as you want to keep in the middle.
2 Drag the lower thumb tab in the vertical scroll bar down to create a static area for as many audio tracks as you want to keep in the middle.

When you have a static region in the Timeline, there are two dividers: one between the top scrollable region and the static region, and one between the static region and the bottom scrollable region. Each divider has its own thumb tab.

- Drag the dividers or thumb tabs to include tracks in (or exclude tracks from) the static region. As the static region gets larger or smaller, the size of the other regions is adjusted accordingly.

- Drag the center slider in the static region's scroll bar to move the entire region, automatically resizing the scrollable regions above and below the static region.

01:00:21:00 Drag the center slider to move the static region. Music 1

To eliminate tracks from the static region, do one of the following:

To eliminate video tracks from the static region: Drag the upper thumb tab of the static region down so that it overlaps the lower one, then release the mouse button.
To eliminate audio tracks from the static region: Drag the lower thumb tab of the static region up so that it overlaps the upper one, then release the mouse button.

01:00:21:00 Jag Debra cob reaction Debra enters cafe W Music 1 To eliminate audio tracks, drag this thumb tab up.

This chapter covers the following:

• Overview of the Drag-to-Timeline Editing Process (p. 141)
• Dragging Clips to the Timeline (p. 142)
- Doing Simple Insert and Overwrite Edits in the Timeline (p. 143)
• Automatically Adding Tracks to Your Sequence While Dragging (p. 146)

Drag-to-Timeline editing is as simple as dragging a clip from the Browser or Viewer and placing it where you want in the Timeline. Sequence In and Out points, as well as Source and Destination controls, are generally disregarded when you drag clips to your sequence, making it faster and easier to place clips where you want in the Timeline.

Note: There are some situations in which Source and Destination controls affect which clip items are dragged to the Timeline. See "Exceptions to Normal Use of Source and Destination Controls" on page 131 for details.

Drag-to-Timeline editing is most useful during the early rough editing phase, when you are adding clips more freely to the Timeline. However, once you have an established structure to your sequence, dragging clips to the Timeline may lack the precision you need to fine-tune your edits.

In drag-to-Timeline editing, only two steps are involved:

Here you specify which part of a clip you want to place in your sequence. You do this by opening the clip in the Viewer and setting the In and Out points (where the clip should start and end when placed in a sequence).

If you want to place a whole clip or group of clips in the Timeline, you can skip this step. For information on arranging a group of clips, see "Preparing a Sequence Order in the Browser" on page 98.

Drag one or more clips from the Browser or the Viewer to the Timeline.

An easy way to edit clips into your sequence is to drag them from the Browser or Viewer to an open sequence in the Timeline.

1 Double-click a clip in the Browser to open it in the Viewer.
2 Specify In and Out points for the clip.

For more information, see "Setting Clip In and Out Points in the Viewer" on page 105.

3 Drag the clip from the Viewer to your sequence in the Timeline.

1 Double-click a clip in the Browser to open it in the Viewer.
2 Choose Mark > Clear In and Out (or press Option-X) to delete the clip's In and Out points.
3 Drag the clip from the Browser to your sequence in the Timeline.

If you've arranged clips in the Browser according to the order you want them to appear in your sequence (creating a storyboard), you can drag all of them to the Timeline to quickly create a rough edit. If you want, you can also specify In and Out points for each clip in your storyboard, and then drag them to your sequence.

To edit multiple clips into a sequence at the same time:

1 Select the group of clips you want to edit into your sequence by dragging a box around them in the Browser.

Bin: Cafe scene Cafe scene 6 items Debra enters cafe WS 00:00:38:05 Debra sidewalking 00:00:28:12 Jacob reaction to customer 00:00:22:01 Master shot Debra CU 00:00:20:08 Master shot Debra MS 00:00:38:00 Master shot Jacob CU 00:00:34:17 Drag to select the clips you want to edit into your sequence.

For more information, see "Preparing a Sequence Order in the Browser" on page 98.

2 Drag the group of clips directly into your sequence in the Timeline.

The clips appear in your sequence according to how they're organized in the Browser.

When you drag clips to the Timeline, you can perform insert or overwrite edits. (For more information about insert and overwrite edits, see "Performing the Different Types of Edits" on page 153.) Each track in the Timeline is divided into two areas by a thin gray line. The region of the track you drag the clip into determines whether an insert or overwrite edit is performed.

RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:05:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:15:00 v1 v1 Insert edit area (upper third) Overwrite edit area (lower two-thirds)

As you move the pointer from one region of the track to the other, it changes to indicate the type of edit—a right arrow for an insert edit and a down arrow for an overwrite edit.

Note: If you are dragging clips from the Browser, the corresponding edit button is also highlighted in the Canvas window.

To drag a clip from the Video tab in the Viewer, click anywhere in the video picture in the Viewer and drag. To drag a clip from the Audio tab in the Viewer, click the drag hand and then drag.

Drag hand 04:12:58:10

Note: To drag a multiclip from the Viewer to the Canvas or Timeline, you need to hold down the Option key while you drag in the Viewer.

As you drag your clip into the Timeline, a two-up display appears in the Canvas to show you the sequence In and Out points for the edit you're performing. What appears in this display depends on the kind of edit.

- If you're performing an overwrite edit, the two-up display shows the frame before the clip being edited in (on the left) and the frame immediately after it (on the right). Clip names appear at the top of the display, and each frame's source timecode number appears at the bottom.

The last sequence frame before your incoming clip

Don eats fish plate CU 04:21:08:21

Don eats fish plate CU 04:21:29:12

The first sequence frame after your incoming clip

If you're performing an insert edit, the two-up display shows two adjacent frames, because the source clip you are inserting splits the underlying clip at the point where you insert it.
If you're editing a clip into an empty area of the Timeline, both of the frames in the two-up display are black, no matter what kind of edit you're performing.

Note: If the Caps Lock key is engaged, the two-up display is disabled.

- Drag the clip to the upper third of a track in the Timeline.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:03:09 00:00 01:00:30:00 01:01:00:00 01:01:30:00 v2 v1 V1 Dining room s Nancy drinking talking a1 A1 a2 A2 Dining room s Nancy drinking talking A3 Drag a clip to the upper third of a track to do an insert edit.

- Drag the clip to the lower two-thirds of a track in the Timeline.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Intro sequence Dining sequence RT 01:05:30:12 00:00 01:00:50:00 01:01:40:00 01:02:30:00 V2 v1 V1 Dining Nancy drinking talking a1 A1 Dining room serv Nancy drinking talking a2 A2 Dining room serv Nancy drinking talking A3 Drag a clip to the lower two-thirds of a track to do an overwrite edit.

Note: If you drag a sequence clip to another location within the sequence, an overwrite edit is performed by default. To perform an insert edit instead, hold down the Option key after you begin dragging the clip.

You can drag a source clip to the unused space above or below the current tracks to create a new track for that clip. If you drag your clip above the tracks already in the Timeline, you'll create a new video track. If you drag your clips below the tracks in the Timeline, you'll create a new audio track.

Clips with both audio and video clip items create both kinds of tracks by default, unless either the video or audio Source and Destination controls are disconnected.

When you drag a source clip to a track in the Timeline, all the clip's items are linked. The track you drag a clip to always receives a clip item, regardless of whether its Source and Destination controls are connected. However, additional clip items are only placed on tracks whose Source and Destination controls are connected.

For example, suppose you have a clip that contains a video clip item and two audio clip items. If you drag that clip to a video track in the Timeline, the video clip item is placed in the video track, even if the Source and Destination controls for the video track are disconnected. Each audio clip item is placed in the corresponding Timeline audio tracks, but only if the Source and Destination controls of those audio tracks are connected.

Timeline: Intro sequence in Dining Dining sequence Intro sequence RT 01:01:11:23 01:00 01:00:40:00 01:01:00:00 01:01:20:00 Video Source and Destination controls are disconnected. V2 v1 V1 salad WS Lola rolls eyes CU Lola rolls eyes CU Audio Source and Destination controls are connected. a1 A1 a2 A2 A3 Grandfather clock face CU Dragging a clip to this track edits in both audio and video.

If you connect nonadjacent Source and Destination controls, the source clip items are edited into the sequence using the track separation defined by the Source controls. For example, if audio tracks A1 and A3 are the current audio destination tracks, a clip that you drag to the Timeline will always have one empty track between the two source audio clip items, and will keep that one-track offset no matter which audio tracks you place the items into.

For more information about Source and Destination controls, see "Exceptions to Normal Use of Source and Destination Controls" on page 131.

When you're adding content to a sequence with three-point editing, you only need to set three edit points to tell Final Cut Pro what content should go where in the Timeline.

This chapter covers the following:

• Understanding Three-Point Editing (p. 149)
- About Edit Types in the Edit Overlay (p. 152)
• Performing the Different Types of Edits (p. 153)
• Three-Point Editing Examples (p. 169)

Unlike drag-to-Timeline editing, three-point editing allows you to use both source clip and sequence In and Out points to specify the duration of a source clip and where it should be placed in a sequence. In most cases, only three edit points are necessary, and the fourth edit point is inferred automatically by Final Cut Pro.

To edit content into a sequence using three-point editing, you first set edit points in your source clip and sequence, and then you perform the edit. Three-point editing gets its name from the fact that Final Cut Pro needs no more than three In and Out points (in the Viewer and in the Timeline or Canvas) to determine what part of the source clip to place in a sequence. The result of the edit is dependent on which three points are set in the clip and in the sequence.

Note: If you set fewer than three edit points, Final Cut Pro infers In or Out points using the playhead in the sequence and the Media Start or End times in the source clip.

Basic three-point editing follows several main steps:

Specify which part of a source clip you want to place in your sequence. You do this by opening it in the Viewer and setting the In and Out points (where the clip should start and end). If you only set an In point, the Out point will be determined by the sequence In and Out points or the Media End time of the clip.

Specify where you want the clip to appear in your sequence by setting In and Out points in the Canvas or Timeline. If the sequence has both In and Out points set, these determine the edit duration, regardless of the duration set in the source clip. If no In or Out points are set, the playhead is assumed to be the In point of the edit.

For information about setting In and Out points, see the sections that follow and Chapter 7, "Setting Edit Points for Clips and Sequences," on page 101.

Choose the tracks in the Timeline where the video and audio items from your source clip should appear.

Edit the clip into the Timeline by dragging it to the Edit Overlay in the Canvas, clicking a Canvas edit button, or using a keyboard shortcut.

Important: Sequence In and Out points always take precedence over source clip In and Out points. This means that if you set both In and Out points in a sequence, the duration of the edit is determined by the In and Out points of the sequence, regardless of the In and Out points of the source clip. This allows you to restrict the portion of your sequence affected by your edit.

There are several basic methods for three-point editing into a sequence: dragging a clip to the Edit Overlay in the Canvas, using the Canvas edit buttons, or using keyboard shortcuts. For information on the seven types of edits you can perform, see "About Edit Types in the Edit Overlay" on page 152.

When you drag a clip from the Browser or Viewer to the image area of the Canvas, the Edit Overlay appears. The overlay appears translucently over the image, with seven sections corresponding to seven types of edits you can perform. Drag to a section to perform the corresponding edit.

Note: If you don't drag directly to one of the overlay choices, the default edit is Overwrite, meaning the clip overwrites anything located at its destination in the Timeline.

Drag a clip to a section of the Edit Overlay. Edit Overlay with its seven sections

When you drag a clip to a specific section of the overlay, that section is outlined in its own color. If you drag your clip to the area to the left of the Edit Overlay, an overwrite edit is performed by default.

With a clip open in the Viewer, you click one of the edit buttons at the bottom of the Canvas to perform that type of edit. You can also drag a source clip to one of these buttons. These buttons perform the same edits as the sections of the Edit Overlay.

There are initially three edit buttons shown. When you click the arrow to the right of the three buttons, buttons for additional edit types appear. If you select one of these other edit types, that edit becomes the default function of the third button. Tooltips identify each of the buttons so you know which one to use.

Click the arrow next to the third button to display the additional edit buttons Drag a clip to one of the edit buttons.

With a clip open in the Viewer, you can also use keyboard shortcuts to perform each of the seven types of edits. All of the keyboard shortcuts use the function keys along the top of the keyboard. (If you forget a keyboard shortcut, position your pointer over one of the edit buttons and pause for a moment. A tooltip appears with that button's function, as well as its keyboard shortcut.)

F9: Insert edit
Shift-F9: Insert with transition edit
• F10: Overwrite edit
Shift-F10: Overwrite with transition edit
F11: Replace edit
Shift-F11: Fit to fill edit
• F12: Superimpose edit

Important: Some Mac OS X keyboard shortcuts may conflict with your Final Cut Pro keyboard shortcuts. For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 10, "Customizing the Interface."

There are seven choices for placing clips into your sequence for three-point edits. The two basic edits are overwrite and insert; the other options are variations on inserting or overwriting. You choose an edit based on how you want your source clip to fit into your sequence, including what you want to happen to any clips that are already there.

Most of these choices are covered in more detail in the following pages. A quick summary follows:

Insert: When you edit a clip into your sequence using an insert edit, all sequence clips in all unlocked tracks are cut at the In point of your edit and pushed forward in your edited sequence by the duration of your source clip.
Insert with transition: This is the same as an insert edit, except that the default transition is used at the In point of the edit to transition between the previous clip and your source clip. When you first install Final Cut Pro, the default video transition is a 1-second cross dissolve. You can change it to anything you want, however, using the Set Default Transition command in the Effects menu. For more information, see "Changing the Default Transition" on page 390.

• Overwrite: When you edit a clip into your sequence using an overwrite edit, any portions of clips that are already in the destination tracks are replaced by the source clip.
- Overwrite with transition: This is the same as an overwrite edit, except that the default transition is used at the In point of the edit to transition between the previous clip and your source clip.
- Replace: A replace edit replaces a clip in your sequence with the source clip, aligning the frame at the Viewer playhead location with the frame at the Canvas/Timeline playhead location. This type of edit does not use In and Out points in the same way as insert and overwrite edits. For more information, see "Performing a Replace Edit" on page 160.
- Fit to fill: This edit type changes the speed of your source clip so that its duration matches the duration determined either by sequence In and Out points, or by the duration of the clip in the Timeline that intersects the playhead. Unlike other edit types, this type requires you to select four In and Out points instead of three. See Volume III, Chapter 16, "Changing Clip Speed and Time Remapping."
- Superimpose: The video and audio of your source clip are automatically edited into tracks above and below the currently selected video and audio destination tracks, using either specified sequence In and Out points in the Timeline, or the duration of the clip in the destination track that intersects the playhead. You can use this edit to quickly add a video clip above another for subtitles, compositing, and so on. For more information, see "Superimposing Clips" on page 166.

The following section tells you how to perform the most common types of edits for adding content to a sequence. These procedures assume that you've already set In and Out points and destination tracks in the Timeline. For more information, see Chapter 7, "Setting Edit Points for Clips and Sequences," on page 101 and "Specifying Destination Tracks in the Timeline" on page 127.

An insert edit places the source clip into your sequence so that all items after the insertion point in your sequence are moved forward (or rippled) in the Timeline, to make room for the clip being added. No clips are removed from your sequence.

You can perform an insert edit with one or more clips. If you perform an insert edit in the middle of an existing sequence clip, that clip is cut at the insertion point and the second half is pushed, along with the rest of the footage to the right of the insertion point, to the end of the newly inserted clip. Even if your destination track is empty, clips on all other unlocked tracks are moved forward in time, from the insertion point to the right. Insert edits cause clips in your sequence to be rippled forward.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Performing an Insert Edit - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["Before edit"] --> B["D"]
    B --> C["A"]
    C --> D["B"]
    D --> E["C"]
    F["After edit"] --> G["A"]
    G --> H["D"]
    H --> I["B"]
    I --> J["C"]

By definition, an insert edit makes your sequence longer because the duration of the inserted clip is added to the sequence. Typically, you use insert edits when you want to add a new shot in the beginning or the middle of your sequence. You can also use an insert edit to interrupt the action in an existing clip with the action in the newly inserted clip. The action in the original clip then resumes after the inserted clip.

- Specify the necessary edit points and destination tracks, then do one of the following:

Drag a clip from the Viewer or Browser to the Insert section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas.
Click the Insert button in the Canvas.
Press F9.

Insert section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas Insert with Transition Overwrite with Transition Replace Fit to Fill Superimpose Insert button

After the edit, all clips on all unlocked tracks (including nondestination tracks) are moved forward in time, from the playhead position to the right, to make room for the clip or clips being inserted.

The insert with transition edit is a quick way to do an insert edit that includes the default transition between your new source clip and the clip before it in your edited sequence. When you first install Final Cut Pro, the default transition is a 1-second cross dissolve. For more information on how to choose a new default transition, see "Changing the Default Transition" on page 390.

An insert with transition edit is exactly the same as an ordinary insert edit, but it places the default transition into your sequence, centered on the edit point.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Performing an Insert With Transition Edit - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["Before edit"] --> B["D"]
    B --> C["A"]
    C --> D["B"]
    D --> E["C"]
    F["After edit"] --> G["A"]
    G --> H["D"]
    H --> I["B"]
    I --> J["C"]

Important: When you perform an insert with transition edit, make sure that there is enough media at the beginning of the new clip and at the end of the previously edited clip to create the transition. Each source clip must have enough unused frames outside the defined edit points to equal half the duration of the default transition.

Tip: You can also perform an insert with transition edit with multiple clips. If there are no other clips in your sequence at the In point, the first clip will make a default transition from black. Each successive clip will then use the default transition into the next one until all the clips you selected are laid out in a row.

- Specify the necessary edit points and destination tracks, then do one of the following:

Drag the clip from the Viewer or Browser to the Insert with Transition section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas.
Click the Insert with Transition button in the Canvas.
Press Shift-F9.

Insert with Transition section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas Insert Overwrite with Transition Replace Fit to Fill Superimpose Insert with Transition button

The source clip is inserted into the sequence with the default transition.

Before an insert with — transition edit Dining room serving salad WS Don at table salad Nancy at table MS Subclip Dining room serving salad WS Don at table salad WS Subclip Nancy at table MS Subclip Dining room serving salad WS Don at table salad WS Subclip Nancy at table MS Subclip

After an insert with transition edit Dining room serving salad WS Cross-Fade Lola rolls eyes CU Don at table salad Nancy at table MS Subclip Dining room serving salad WS Cross-Fade Lola rolls eyes CU Don at table salad WS Subclip Nancy at table MS Subclip New clip is inserted with transition

Since this is the most commonly used edit type, it occupies the biggest overlay area in the Canvas. If you drag a clip into any part of the Canvas to the left of the Edit Overlay, an overwrite edit is performed.

With this type of edit, the source clip overwrites any clip items starting at the sequence. In point for the duration of the source clip. No clip items are rippled forward, so the duration of your sequence remains the same. You can perform an overwrite edit with one or more source clips.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Performing an Overwrite Edit - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["Before edit"] --> B["A"]
    B --> C["B"]
    C --> D["C"]
    E["After edit"] --> F["A"]
    F --> G["D"]
    G --> H["C"]

For example, suppose you have a sequence clip of a comedian making a joke, but there's a long pause after the joke while the comedian stands there waiting for a reaction. You can overwrite the pause using a source clip of an audience laughing. To do this, you position the playhead at the frame right after the comedian finishes telling the joke, and then perform an overwrite edit. The pause is covered by the clip of the audience laughing.

- Specify the necessary edit points and destination tracks, then do one of the following:

Drag the clip from the Viewer or Browser to the Overwrite section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas.
Click the Overwrite button in the Canvas.
Press F10.

Insert with Transition Overwrite with Transition Replace Fit to Fill Superimpose Overwrite button

The clip overwrites all items on the destination tracks from the playhead position through the duration of your edit. No items are moved.

Before an overwrite edit After an overwrite edit New clip overwrites existing clips.

The overwrite with transition edit is a quick way to do an overwrite edit that includes a transition between your new source clip and the clip before it in your edited sequence. When you first install Final Cut Pro, the default transition is a 1-second dissolve. For more information on how to choose a new default transition, see “Changing the Default Transition” on page 390.

An overwrite with transition edit is exactly the same as an ordinary overwrite edit, but it places the default transition into your sequence, centered on the edit point.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Performing an Overwrite With Transition Edit - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["Before edit"] --> B["D"]
    B --> C["A"]
    C --> D["B"]
    D --> E["C"]
    F["After edit"] --> G["A"]
    G --> H["D"]
    H --> I["C"]

Important: When you perform an overwrite with transition edit, make sure that there is enough media at the beginning of the new clip and at the end of the previously edited clip to create the transition. Each source clip must have enough unused frames outside the defined edit points to equal half the duration of the default transition.

Tip: You can also perform an overwrite with transition edit with multiple clips. Each clip will use the default transition into the next one until all the clips you selected are laid out in a row.

- Specify the necessary edit points and destination tracks, then do one of the following:

Drag the clip from the Viewer to the Overwrite with Transition section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas.
Click the Overwrite with Transition button in the Canvas.
Press Shift-F10.

Insert with Transition Overwrite Replace Fit to Fill Superimpose Overwrite with Transition section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas Overwrite with Transition button

The clip overwrites other items on the destination tracks for the duration of the edit, and uses the default transition.

Before an overwrite with transition edit After an overwrite with transition edit New clip with transition overwrites existing clips

A replace edit is a specialized form of overwrite edit. A replace edit places the frame at the current Viewer playhead position at the Canvas/Timeline playhead location in your sequence. You can use a replace edit to:

Edit a clip into your sequence so that the current frame in the Viewer is placed at the current playhead location in your sequence
Quickly replace an entire shot that's already in your edited sequence
Resynchronize a video or audio clip item with an unlinked clip item in an adjacent track

For example, if you have two clips, each of which shows a different camera angle of the same action, you may decide you want to replace the shot currently used in the

Timeline with the other angle. You can place both the Viewer and Timeline playheads on frames where the action matches in each shot, and then replace the sequence clip with the clip from the Viewer.

Replace edits follow a few special rules:

Replace edits use the current playhead positions in the Timeline and the Viewer to place the source clip in the Timeline.
Replace edits never use clip In and Out points specified in the Viewer. If these points have been set, they will be ignored.
By default, a replace edit uses the duration of the sequence clip intersected by the Timeline playhead. However, if you set sequence In and Out points, the resulting sequence clip duration is determined by these points.

Note: If you do set In and Out points in the Timeline, they will be used even if they span multiple clips, as long as there's enough media on either side of the playhead in your source clip.

In and Out points spanning multiple clips Dining room serving salad WS Don at table salad Nancy at table MS Subclip Dining room serving salad WS Don at table salad WS Subclip Nancy at table MS Subclip Dining room serving salad WS Don at table salad WS Subclip Nancy at table MS Subclip

A replace edit places the source clip into your sequence so that the frame at the position of the playhead in the Viewer is located at the Canvas/Timeline playhead position. Therefore, it's important that you have enough media in your source clip to the left and right of the playhead in the Viewer to accommodate the space you'll be filling in the Timeline. If you don't, you'll see an "Insufficient content for edit" message.
If you perform a replace edit by dragging a clip directly from the Browser, Final Cut Pro uses the location of the Viewer playhead from the last time that clip was open in the Viewer. If the clip is newly imported and has never been opened in the Viewer, Final Cut Pro uses that clip's starting frame, since that is the default starting position for a clip.
You can only perform a replace edit with one clip at a time. If you select multiple clips, only the first one will be used.

The most basic use of the replace edit is to quickly and easily replace a clip in your edited sequence with a source clip synchronized around a similar action.

1 In the Timeline, move the playhead to a frame you want to match with a source clip.
For example, if both the sequence and source clip are shots of a person jumping, you could move the Canvas/Timeline playhead to the first frame where the person's feet leave the ground.
2 Make sure that the correct Source and Destination controls are connected in the Timeline for the clip you want to replace.
3 Double-click the replacement source clip to open it in the Viewer, then move the Viewer playhead to the frame you want to match in the Timeline. Do not set any edit points for the clip in the Viewer.

For example, if both the sequence and source clip are shots of a person jumping, you could move the Viewer playhead to the first frame where the person's feet leave the ground. This frame will be placed at the location of the playhead in the Timeline.

Drag the clip from the Viewer to the Replace section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas.
Click the Replace button in the Canvas.
Press F11.

Insert with Transition Overwrite with Transition Replace Fit to Fill Superimpose Replace button Replace section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas

Important: Make sure that the clip in the Viewer contains enough media on either side of the playhead to fill the duration of the clip you want to replace in the Timeline. If it's not, you'll see an "Insufficient content for edit" message.

Another common use of the replace edit is to line up a frame in a clip that's already in your edited sequence with an audio cue in an adjacent clip. For example, if you have a video clip of a man dancing and an audio clip in another track of music, you can use a replace edit to place a different portion of the same video clip into your sequence at the same location, aligning a frame showing a particular movement of his foot with a particular beat of the music.

To use a replace edit to resync a video clip to an audio clip in another track:

1 In the Timeline, choose Mark > Clear In and Out (or press Option-X) to delete any sequence In and Out points.
2 In the Timeline, find the audio cue you want to sync your video clip to, and position the playhead there.

Canvas: Master sequence in Cafe 00:00:34.11 59% 01:00:24.05 www Canvas

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:24:05 01:00:20:00 01:00:22:00 01:00:24:00 01:00:26:00 v1 V1 Debra enters cafe WS Subclip 2 Side master shot jacob MS Music 1 Music 2 a1 A1 Music 1 Music 2 a2 A2 A3 A4

3 Make sure that the Source and Destination controls in the Timeline are set to the tracks containing your video clip, and not your audio clip.

Master sequence RT 01:00:24:05 v1 V1 The video track should be the only destination track set. a1 A1 a2 A2 A3 A4

4 Without moving the Timeline playhead, press the F key to perform a match frame operation.

This opens the master clip that the video clip in your sequence came from in the Viewer, placing the playhead in the Viewer over the same frame that was under the playhead in the Timeline. For more information on match frame editing, see “Matching Frames Between Sequence and Master Clips” on page 430.

5 Move the playhead in the Viewer to the new frame that you want to align with the audio cue that you selected in the Timeline.
6 Now that the Timeline playhead is lined up with the audio cue in your sequence and the Viewer playhead is lined up with a video frame that you want to sync to it, perform the edit by doing one of the following:

- Drag the clip from the Viewer to the Replace section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas.

- Click the Replace button in the Canvas.

- Press F11.

The original video clip item in your sequence is replaced with a new copy of the clip, which is synchronized with your audio cue.

Canvas: Master sequence in Cafe 00:00:34.11 59% 01:00:24.05

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:24:05 01:00:20:00 01:00:23:00 01:00:26:00 01:00:26:00 v1 V1 Debra enters cafe WS Subclip 2 Jacob reaction to Customer CU Music 1 Music 2 Music 3 Music 2 A1 A2 A3 A4

If you set In and Out points in a sequence, a replace edit can overwrite more than one clip at a time. A replace edit still works the same way: the Timeline and Viewer playheads are used as the matching points for the edit.

1 In the Canvas or the Timeline, set In and Out points for the section of your sequence you want to replace.

In and Out points define the area you want to replace. Don at tal Don eats fish plate CU Subclip Don pain sweats right XCU Don at table salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Subclip Don pain sweats right XCU Don at table salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Subclip Don pain sweats right XCU

2 Move the playhead to the frame that you want the source clip to line up with.
This frame can be at any point between the In and Out points.
3 Make sure that the tracks containing the items you want to replace are set as destination tracks.
4 Double-click the clip you want to use to replace the selected area (to open it in the Viewer), then move the playhead to the frame you want to line up with the playhead in the Timeline.

Drag the clip from the Viewer to the Replace section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas.
Click the Replace button in the Canvas.
Press F11.

The selected area in the sequence is replaced by the source clip. Final Cut Pro automatically calculates the clip duration.

In some cases, you may want to place one clip directly above another clip in a different track. This is called a superimpose edit. You can use a superimpose edit to quickly stack a source clip on top of a clip already in your sequence. If there isn't an available track in your sequence, Final Cut Pro creates a new one for the source clip.

Superimpose edits obey the standard rules of three-point editing, except that if no In or Out points have been specified in the Canvas or Timeline, the position of the playhead in the Timeline is not used as a default In point. Instead, the clip that intersects the position of the playhead in the current destination track provides the In and Out points for the source clip (as it does when you use the Mark Clip command).

You can set the In and Out points in the Canvas or Timeline so that the superimpose edit spans multiple clips, as long as there's enough media in your source clip to cover the specified area.

If you perform several superimpose edits in the same location, each new source clip is edited into the video track directly above the current destination track, and all other previously superimposed video clips are moved up one track to make room. If your superimposed clip contains audio, the source audio is placed on new audio tracks immediately below any occupied audio destination tracks already in your sequence.

Likewise, if you perform a superimpose edit with several source clips at once, all of those clips are stacked on top of one another. The first clip in your selected group is on top, with each successive clip appearing underneath.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Superimposing Clips - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["Before edit"] --> B["D"]
    B --> C["A"]
    C --> D["B"]
    D --> E["C"]
    F["After edit"] --> G["D"]
    G --> H["A"]
    H --> I["B"]
    I --> J["C"]

1 Do one of the following:

Position the Timeline playhead over a clip above which you want to superimpose your source clip. The beginning and end of this clip are used as edit points for your source clip.
Set sequence In and Out points.

2 Set an In point in the Viewer to define the starting point of the source clip you want to edit into your sequence.
3 Do one of the following:

- Drag the clip from the Viewer to the Superimpose section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas.

- Click the Superimpose button in the Canvas.

- Press F12.

Insert with Transition Overwrite with Transition Replace Fit to Fill Superimpose Superimpose section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas Superimpose button

The clip in the Viewer is placed in the track above the destination track, starting at the beginning of the clip that intersects the Timeline playhead, or at the sequence In point. If there is no track above the destination track, one is created.

There are a few key things to keep in mind when you are doing three-point editing:

Edit points set	Results
Clip In and Out pointsSequence In point	The In point of the source clip is placed at the sequence In point, and the duration of the edit is determined by the clip In and Out points.
Clip In pointSequence In and Out points	The In point of the source clip is placed at the In point in the sequence, and the duration of the edit is determined by the sequence In and Out points.
Clip In and Out pointsSequence Out point	The Out point of the source clip is placed at the Out point of the sequence, and the duration of the edit is determined by the clip In and Out points.This is known as “backtiming” an edit. You can use this method when you want to make sure a particular frame of a clip ends at a specific point in a sequence. For example, you can use this method to make sure the last frame of a clip ends on a musical beat in the Timeline.
Clip Out pointSequence In and Out points	The Out point of the source clip is placed at the Out point of the sequence, and the duration of the edit is determined by the sequence In and Out points.If there is no sequence In point, the Timeline playhead is used as the In point.

The following are a few examples of how three-point editing works.

The simplest way to perform an edit is to specify In and Out points for a clip in the Viewer, and then specify the destination In point in your sequence by positioning the playhead in the Canvas or Timeline:

1 Double-click a clip to open it in the Viewer. (This is your source clip.)
2 Specify In and Out points for your source clip in the Viewer.

Viewer: Nancy greets at door CU in Dining Video Stereo (1:52) Filters Motion 00:00:12:14 02:01:49:15 In point Out point

3 In the Canvas or Timeline, move the playhead to the location in your sequence where you want the clip to start (the sequence In point).

Move the playhead to the location in the sequence where you want the clip to start. Lola gives coat and tie WS Lola gives coat and tie CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Lola gives coat and tie CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Lola gives coat and tie CU

4 Now, if you do an overwrite edit, you'll see that the duration of your clip, defined by the In and Out points in the Viewer, has been edited into the sequence.

Lola gives coat and tie WS Nancy greets at door CU Lola gives coat and tie CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Nancy greets at door CU Lola gives coat and tie CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Nancy greets at door CU Lola gives coat and tie CU The new clip starts where the playhead was.

As you can see, defining only three points—the clip In and Out points in the Viewer and the sequence In point in the Timeline—gives you total control of the edit that's performed.

You can also do the reverse of the previous editing example. Suppose you have a gap in your edited sequence and you want to fill it with a new clip. You know where you want the source clip to start, and you don't particularly care where it ends. You can specify an In point in the Viewer, and specify In and Out points in the Timeline to coincide with the gap:

1 Double-click a clip to open it in the Viewer. (This is your source clip.)
2 Specify an In point for the source clip in the Viewer.

Viewer: Truck pulls up to home in Dining Video Stereo (G120) Filters Motion 00:00:42:17 57% 01:04:16:19 In point

3 In the Timeline, move the playhead to the middle of the gap you want to fill.

Move the playhead into the gap. Workers walk up to tru Don talks to driver Subclip Don approaches hom Workers walk up to truck Subclip Don talks to driver Subclip Don approaches home rev Subclip Workers walk up to truck Subclip Don talks to driver Subclip Don approaches home rev Subclip

4 Choose Mark > Mark Clip (or press X) to set In and Out points around the gap.

Note: You must select the Auto Select controls for the tracks containing the gap. For more information, see "Using Auto Select to Specify Tracks for Selections" on page 191.

In and Out points 01:00:06:00 01:00:09:00 01:00:12:00 01:00:15:00 01:00:18:00 Workers walk up to tri Don talks to driver Subclip Don approaches hom Workers walk up to truck Subclip Don talks to driver Subclip Don approaches home rev Subclip Workers walk up to truck Subclip Don talks to driver Subclip Don approaches home rev Subclip

5 If you do an overwrite edit, you'll see that your clip, defined by the In and Out points in your sequence, has been edited into the sequence.

Instead of editing a clip into your sequence using clip In and Out points in the Viewer and a sequence In point in the Canvas or Timeline, you can edit clips using only an Out point in the Canvas or Timeline. This is called backtiming a clip. You can use this method when you want to make sure a particular frame of a clip ends at a specific point in a sequence. In the resulting edit, your source clip's Out point is placed at the Out point you set in your sequence, and the rest of the clip appears in your sequence before this point, to the left:

1 Double-click a clip to open it in the Viewer. (This is your source clip.)
2 Specify In and Out points for the source clip in the Viewer.

Viewer: Nancy greets at door CU in Dining Video Stokes (0:2) Filters Motion 00:00:12:14 53% 02:01:49:15 Out point In point

3 In the Timeline, move the playhead to the point in your edited sequence where you want your clip to end, and set an Out point.

Set an edit point at the location where you want the clip to end. Lola gives coat and tie WS Lola gives coat and tie CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Lola gives coat and tie CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Lola gives coat and tie CU

4 If you do an overwrite edit, you'll see that your clip has been edited into the sequence so that the Out point of your clip lines up with the Out point you specified in the Timeline. The rest of your clip has overwritten any material to the left of the Out point for the duration defined by the In and Out points set in the Viewer.

0:00 01:00:06:00 01:00:12:00 01:00:18:00 01:00:24:00 01:00:30:00 01 Lola gives coat and tie W Nancy greets at door CU Lola gives coat and tie CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Nancy greets at door CU Lola gives coat and tie CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Nancy greets at door CU Lola gives coat and tie CU

The new clip lines up with the Out point you specified in the Timeline.

If you don't specify In or Out points for a clip in the Viewer prior to editing, Final Cut Pro edits in the entire clip, either to the position of the playhead or to an edit point specified in the Canvas or Timeline:

1 Double-click a clip to open it in the Viewer, but don't set In or Out points.

View: Nancy greets at door CU in Dining Video Stereo (0.1x2) Filters Motion 00:00:40:09 53 02:01:49:15 No In or Out points are set.

2 In the Timeline, move the playhead to the location in your sequence where you want the clip to start (the sequence In point).

Move the playhead to the location where you want the new clip to begin. Lola gives coat and tie WS Lola gives coat and tie CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Lola gives coat and tie CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Lola gives coat and tie CU

3 Now, if you do an overwrite edit, you'll see that the entire clip in the Viewer has been edited into the sequence. Since you used an overwrite edit, any clip items that were already in those tracks in the sequence have been overwritten by the source clip.

The new clip begins where the playhead was located. The playhead moves to the end of the new clip. Lola gives coat and tie WS Nancy greets at door CU Lola gives coat and tie CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Nancy greets at door CU Lola gives coat and tie CU Lola gives coat and tie WS

When you want to arrange, copy, delete, or otherwise manipulate items in a sequence, the first thing you need to do is select them.

This chapter covers the following:

Understanding What's Currently Selected (p. 175)
Direct Methods for Selecting Content in a Sequence (p. 177)
• Finding and Selecting Based on Search Criteria (p. 188)
Selecting a Vertical Range Between In and Out Points (p. 190)
• Using Auto Select to Specify Tracks for Selections (p. 191)

Most commands in Final Cut Pro require a selection. Even when you have not explicitly selected items in the Timeline, Final Cut Pro often has a default selection, such as the clip currently beneath the Timeline playhead. In addition to learning different methods for selecting items in a sequence, it's important to understand which clips Final Cut Pro considers to be selected when you haven't made an explicit selection.

When you click a clip in the Timeline, it's highlighted to indicate it's selected.

Timeline: Intro sequence in Dining Dining sequence Intro sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:07:00 01:00:14:00 01:00:21:00 The selected clip is highlighted. v1 v1 Truck drives by front shot Don ta Work a1 A1 a2 A2 A3 Music 2 Music 2 Music 2 Music 2

Even if there are no clips highlighted, Final Cut Pro usually considers something in the Timeline to be selected. This occurs in two situations:

If no clips are highlighted and there are no In or Out points set, clips under the current position of the playhead are considered selected for many commands. For example, if you choose a filter from the Effects menu, it is applied to any clips under the playhead, even if nothing in the Timeline appears to be selected. This makes editing faster because you don't always need to explicitly select a clip to affect it.
If sequence In and Out points are set and no clips are selected, any content between the In and Out points is selected on all tracks with Auto Select enabled. The selected area is highlighted.

Timeline: Intro sequence in Dining Dining sequence Intro sequence RT 01:00:18:21 v1 V1 Truck drives by front shot Truck drives b a1 A1 Truck drives by front shot Truck drives b a2 A2 Truck drives by front shot Truck drives b A3 Music 1 Music 1 Music 1 The highlight indicates what is selected. Auto Select is turned on for these two tracks.

Auto Select controls are further explained in "Using Auto Select to Specify Tracks for Selections" on page 191.

With the exception of editing clips into a sequence, operations in the Timeline are prioritized in the following way:

If clips are selected, any operations you perform affect those clips.
If no clips are selected, content between In and Out points on tracks with Auto Select enabled is considered selected.
If no In and Out points are set, the clips under the playhead on tracks with Auto Select enabled are considered selected for many commands.

Note: Some commands operate on the topmost video clip items, regardless of which tracks' Auto Select controls are enabled. The topmost clip items are the ones you see in the Canvas, and so those are often the items you want to operate on.

For example, if sequence In and Out points are set and a clip is selected, the next operation is performed on the selected clip rather than the content between the In and Out points. If you deselect the clip, the portions of clips between the In and Out points on tracks with Auto Select enabled are affected. For more information, see

"Using Auto Select to Specify Tracks for Selections" on page 191.

As with many applications, the most basic way to select items in the Timeline is to click them. There are different selection tools designed to help you make such selections as easily as possible when working with a lot of material in a sequence.

Clip items: Any audio, video, or graphics clip item. This includes multiple items or a range of items.
A range of content: A range of content (for example, parts of clips) instead of a whole clip or group of clips.
• Transitions: Transitions such as dissolves or wipes that occur between two items in the Timeline. You can select these in order to trim or delete them.
Edits: The point where two items meet can be selected for further editing. This includes the point where a clip item meets a gap.
Gaps: The space between two clip items on the same track can be selected in order to close it or fill it with media.

Filter and motion bars and their keyframes: You can double-click a bar directly in the Timeline to view filter or motion details in the Viewer. Even though you can't select the keyframes, you can move them by dragging them.
Tracks: Tracks themselves can't be selected, although the contents of tracks can be selected using the track selection tools.

Several tools in the Tool palette can be used to select items.

Note: Remember that if you select an item that's linked to another item, the linked item is selected as well, unless you disable the Linked Selection option. (See "Linking and Unlinking Video and Audio Clip Items in the Timeline" on page 224.)

1 Move the pointer over a tool in the Tool palette, then press and hold down the mouse button.

All of the related tools appear.

2 Move the pointer to the tool you want to select, then release the mouse button.

The selected tool becomes the current tool in the Tool palette for that group of tools.

Click to select the desired tool. The selected tool becomes the default shown in the Tool palette.

These are the selection tools, in order of appearance:

- Selection: Selects individual items, such as a clip, transition, edit point, or keyframe, or multiple items if they're linked. The functions of this tool can be modified in a variety of ways using keyboard shortcuts. This is the default tool.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - To select a tool: - 2

Edit Selection: Selects an edit point between clips. You can select edits on as many tracks as you want, but you can only select one edit per track. When you double-click an edit, the Trim Edit window appears so you can precisely modify several edit points simultaneously. (For more information on using the Trim Edit window, see Chapter 20, "Trimming Clips Using the Trim Edit Window," on page 361.)
Group Selection: Selects multiple contiguous items. This tool automatically selects an entire item in the Timeline even if you only drag over a part of it. Any other items linked to it are selected as well. Use this tool to select several clips in their entirety.
Range Selection: Selects a range of multiple contiguous items. This tool does not automatically select an entire item, but only the part of the item that you drag across. Use this tool to select only a part of a clip, or to create a selection that includes portions of several clips.

Edit Selection Group Selection Range Selection

Select Track Forward: Selects all the items in a track after the selection point you click. Selected items are ready for any group operation, such as moving or deleting. Items linked to selected items in this track are selected also.
Select Track Backward: Selects all the contents of the track before the selection point.
Select Track: Selects the entire contents of a single track, as well as any items linked to those items.
Select All Tracks Forward: Selects all the contents of all tracks after the selection point.
Select All Tracks Backward: Selects all the contents of all tracks before the selection point.

Select Track Backward Select Track Forward Select Track Select All Tracks Forward Select All Tracks Backward

Note: When using the Slip or Slide tool, you can temporarily turn the Slip or Slide tool into the Selection tool by pressing the Command key for a noncontiguous selection or the Shift key for a contiguous selection.

Selecting individual clips is as straightforward as clicking, as long you are clicking with the right tool. Also included here are the tricks you need to know for selecting multiple contiguous and noncontiguous clips quickly.

Tip: When clip items are linked, but you need to select just an individual clip item, you can temporarily prevent linked items from being selected together by pressing the Option key while selecting. (The link status returns to the enabled state when you release the Option key.)

This is the simplest kind of selection you can make in the Timeline.

Click the Selection tool in the Tool palette.
Press A.

If the Canvas is set to display overlays, a cyan blue border appears around the video image to indicate that the clip beneath the playhead is selected. (To set the Canvas to display overlays, choose View > Show Overlays, so there is a checkmark next to it.)

Canvas: Intro sequence in Dining Dining sequence / Intro sequence 00:01:49:18 59% 01:01:43:06

A cyan border indicates the clip is selected.

Sometimes the fastest way to select a group of contiguous clips is to drag a box around them.

Select the Group Selection tool in the Tool palette.
Press the G key two times, so the Group Selection tool is displayed in the Tool palette.
Select the Selection tool in the Tool palette (or press A).

2 Drag a box around all of the desired clips to select them. Any clip you touch will be included, even if you don't drag across the entire clip.

Timeline: Intro sequence in Dining Dining sequence Intro sequence RT 01:01:53:18 01:01:00:00 01:01:30:00 v1 V1 Nancy g Lola g Lola gives co Na Nancy gree Lola gives coat and Lola gives coat and tie CU Na Nancy gree Lola gives coat and Lola gives coat and tie CU Music 2 Music 2 Music 2 Drag to select the desired clips. a1 A1 a2 A2 A3

The Shift and Command keys allow you to select multiple clip items in the Timeline, either contiguous or noncontiguous.

To select multiple noncontiguous clip items:

- Hold down the Command key while selecting the desired clip items using either the Selection tool or the Group Selection tool.

You can also Command-click a specific item again to deselect it.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Dining r Don at table salad WS Dining room serv Don at table sal Dining room serving s a1 A1 Dining room serving s Don at table salad WS Dining roo Don at table Dining room serv Don at ta a2 A2 Dining room serving s Don at table salad WS Dining roo Don at table Dining room serv Don at ta A3

To select multiple contiguous clip items with the Selection tool:

- Select a clip item, then hold down the Shift key and select another clip item farther down on the Timeline. All of the clip items between the two are selected.

If you select two clip items on the same track, only the items on that track (and items linked to items on that track) are selected.
If you select a clip item on one track and another clip item on a different track, all clip items between those two tracks are selected as well.

You can also select a range of contiguous clip items, and then select additional noncontiguous clip items using a combination of the instructions above.

Sometimes after selecting a number of clips, you want to deselect one or two of them. For example, if you want to select all clip items on track V1 except one in the middle, it is often easier to select all the clip items and then deselect the clip item in the middle.

1 Do one of the following:

Select the Selection tool in the Tool palette.
Press A.

2 Command-click the item you want to deselect.

When you want to copy, cut, or move an area of content that is not specified by clip boundaries, you can either select the area with the Range Selection tool, or use In and Out points to make a vertical selection across tracks. For more information about using In and Out points to select a range of content, see "Using Auto Select to Specify Tracks for Selections" on page 191.

- Select the Range Selection tool in the Tool palette.

Range Selection

- Press the G key three times, so the Range Selection tool is displayed in the Tool palette.

Timeline: Intro sequence in Dining Dining sequence Intro sequence RT 01:01:53:18 01:01:00:00 01:01:30:00 v1 V1 Nancy qree Lola gives coat and Lola gives coat and tie CU Na Nancy qree Lola gives coat and Lola gives coat and tie CU a1 A1 Na Nancy qree Lola gives coat and Lola gives coat and tie CU a2 A2 Music 2 Music 2 A3 Music 2 Music 2

Drag with the Range Selection tool to select an entire clip and part of a second clip.

Sometimes you may find that you want to select all of the clip items on a track in order to drag them to close a gap or to create space to accommodate new clip items in your sequence. After selecting a track's contents, you can perform different operations on all the track's items at once, such as moving, copying, or deleting them.

The track selection tools provide many additional ways of selecting some or all of the content of one or more tracks in your sequence.

Note: When selecting the contents of a track, remember that linked items on other tracks will also be selected if linked selection is enabled. If you don't want to select linked audio or video clip items, disable linked selection first. (See "Linking and Unlinking Video and Audio Clip Items in the Timeline" on page 224.)

1 Do one of the following:

Select the Select Track tool in the Tool palette.
Press the T key three times, so the Select Track tool is selected in the Tool palette.

2 Click anywhere in the track. All clips in the track are selected, as well as any items linked to those clips.

You can also select all items before or after a specified clip item. For example, if you want to select all clip items in track V1 except for the first item, you can use the Select Track Forward tool.

To select all clip items after a specified item on a single track:

1 Do one of the following:

Select the Select Track Forward tool in the Tool palette.
Press the T key once, so the Select Track Forward tool is selected in the Tool palette.

2 Click a clip item in the Timeline.

The item you click and all items after it are selected.

To select all clip items before a specified item on a single track:

1 Do one of the following:

Select the Select Track Backward tool in the Tool palette.
Press the T key twice, so the Select Track Backward tool is selected in the Tool palette.

2 Click a clip item in the Timeline.

The item you click and all items before it are selected.

Tip: You can temporarily disable linked selection by holding down the Option key while clicking a clip item.

When there are many clips in a sequence, it's difficult to see and select many of them at once, especially if you don't want to zoom in and out frequently. The Select All Tracks Forward and Select All Tracks Backward tools let you simply select all clip items before or after a selected clip.

To select all clip items on all tracks before or after a selected clip:

1 Do one of the following:

Select the Select All Tracks Forward or Select All Tracks Backward tool in the Tool palette.
Press the T key four times to select the Select All Tracks Forward tool, or press the T key five times to select the Select All Tracks Backward tool.

Select All Tracks Forward Select All Tracks Backward

2 Click the first clip item on any track that you want to include in the selection.

All clip items in all tracks from the point you click onward (either forward or backward) are selected, as well as any items linked to those items. You can select entire clip items only; you can't select a portion of a clip item.

Once you've selected a large group of clip items, you can always deselect individual clip items by Command-clicking them with the Selection tool.

To move or delete all clip items, you can select them all at once. To make sure no clip items are selected anywhere in the Timeline, you can deselect all of them.

1 Click in the Timeline to make it active (or press Command-3).
2 Choose Edit > Select All (or press Command-A).

1 Click in the Timeline to make it active (or press Command-3).
2 Choose Edit > Deselect All (or press Shift-Command-A).

In a large sequence you may want to locate a clip in the Timeline with a particular name, timecode number, or marker text, but it would take a lot of effort to find it by visually scrolling and scanning. Final Cut Pro can search your sequence for you and select clips that meet your criteria. You can search for individual items that meet the criteria, or select all matching items at once.

1 Open a sequence in the Timeline.
2 Do one of the following:

- To search for individual occurrences of an item starting at the beginning of a sequence, press Home to position the playhead at the start of the sequence.

Note: On a PowerBook, hold down the Function (Fn) and Left Arrow keys to position the playhead at the start of the sequence.

To search for individual occurrences of an item after a certain point in the Timeline, position the playhead where you want to start the search.
To find an item everywhere it appears in the sequence, place the playhead anywhere in the Timeline; in this case, you use the Find All option, so it doesn't matter where the playhead is positioned.
To search a selected portion of a sequence, set sequence In and Out points (see step 6).

3 Choose Edit > Find (or press Command-F).

4 Enter the text or timecode number you want to search for.

Enter the desired text here. Choose additional search options. Find in Intro sequence Find: Lola Search: Names/Markers Where: All Tracks Find Find All Cancel

5 Choose the type of item to search for from the Search pop-up menu.

Name/Markers Timecode (Source) Timecode (Aux1) Timecode (Aux2)

Names/Markers: Search for the text in clip names, marker names, and marker comments.
Timecode: Search for any source or auxiliary timecode in a clip.

6 Choose which tracks to search from the Where pop-up menu.

All Tracks: Search all tracks in the sequence.
Auto Select Tracks: Search only tracks with Auto Select enabled.
From In to Out: Search between the sequence In and Out points on all tracks.

7 To search, do one of the following:

Click Find to find the item.
Final Cut Pro finds the first item that matches the selected criteria from the current position of the playhead to the end of the sequence. It does not find clips that begin before the position of the playhead, nor does it wrap around to the beginning of the sequence. If a clip name is matched, the clip is selected.
Click Find All to find all clip items that match the search criteria.

All clip items that are found are selected in the Timeline. When a marker is found, the playhead is positioned at the nearest marker after the playhead.

To cycle through items in the Timeline that match the search criteria:

■ Follow the steps above, then choose Edit > Find Next (or press Command-G or F3).

To search for an item backward from the position of the playhead:

■ Follow the steps above, then press Shift-F3.

When you want to copy, move, or cut a selection of content that ranges vertically across multiple tracks, a quick method is to select it by setting In and Out points.

To select clip items between sequence In and Out points:

1 Set In and Out points in either the Canvas or the Timeline.

01:01:00:00 01:01:04:00 01:01:08:00 01:01:12:00 1:01:16:00 01:01:20:00 Don a Nancy greets at door CU Nancy greets at door CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Nancy greets at door Nancy greets at door CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Nancy greets at door Nancy greets at door CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Music 2 Music 2

2 In the Timeline, enable the Auto Select controls for tracks that contain clip items you want to select.

For more information, see the next section, "Using Auto Select to Specify Tracks for Selections."

3 Choose Mark > Select In to Out (or press Option-A) to select your clips.

01:01:00:00 01:01:00:00 01:01:10:00 01:01:15:00 01:01:20:00 01:01:25:00 Doi Nancy greets at door CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Nancy greets at do Nancy greets at door CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Nancy greets at do Nancy greets at door CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Music 2 Music 2

Only the parts of clip items between the In and Out points in tracks with Auto Select enabled are selected.

Final Cut Pro also allows you to create In and Out points from the current Timeline selection. For more information, see "Setting In and Out Points Based on a Selection in the Timeline" on page 116.

Auto Select controls determine which tracks are affected by an operation. When sequence In and Out points are defined, operations such as the Copy and Lift commands are limited to the regions of Auto Select-enabled tracks between the Timeline In and Out points. You can intentionally disable Auto Select controls for tracks that you don't want to operate on.

As you can see in the picture below, tracks A1 and A2 are not highlighted because Auto Select is not enabled for those tracks.

In and Out points Timeline: Intro sequence in Dining Dining sequence Intro sequence RT 01:00:18:21 00:00 1:00:06:00 01:00:12:00 01:00:18:00 v1 v1 Truck drives by front shot Truck drives by front shot Truck drives by front shot Truck drives by front shot Music 1 Music 1 Music 1 Auto Select is enabled for these two tracks.

The Auto Select controls provide precise control over which part of the Timeline you cut, copy, or delete from. Suppose you have a sequence with one video and two audio tracks. By disabling Auto Select on audio tracks A1 and A2, you can select items on track V1 by setting In and Out points in the Canvas or Timeline. Items in the audio tracks are not selected.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence Intro sequence RT 01:01:15:05 01:01:00:00 01:01:05:00 01:01:10:00 01:01:15:00 v1 v1 fish Nancy drinking talking Don eats fish plate CU Nancy dri Before deleting a1 A1 Nancy at table CU Nancy drinking talking a2 A2 Nancy at table CU Nancy drinking talking A3

If you press the Delete key, only the items on track V1 are deleted.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence Intro sequence RT 01:01:15:05 01:01:00:00 01:01:05:00 01:01:10:00 01:01:15:00 v1 V1 fish Nancy drinki Don eats Nancy dril After deleting; only the selected region is deleted. a1 A1 Nancy at table CU Nancy drinking talking a2 A2 Nancy at table CU Nancy drinking talking A3

- Click the Auto Select control for the track.

Dining sequence Intro sequence RT 01:05:47:06 v1 V1 a1 A1 at tabl Na a2 A2 at tabl Na A3 Auto Select control

- Option-click the Auto Select control on the track you want single out for Auto Select. (If Auto Select is off for all tracks, you need to Option-click the control twice.)

If you Option-click the Auto Select control on a video track, Auto Select is disabled on all other video tracks in the sequence. If you Option-click the Auto Select control on an audio track, Auto Select is disabled on all other audio tracks in the sequence. Option-clicking allows you to quickly target a single track for editing operations.

Dining sequence RT 01:00:18:21 v1 V1 Truck drive Truck drive Music 1 Music 1 Option-click the control for the track you want to single out for Auto Select.

1 Enable the Auto Select controls for tracks you want to select from, and disable the Auto Select controls for tracks you want to exclude from your selection.
2 Set In and Out points in the Timeline.
3 Choose Mark > In to Out (or press Option-A).

The region of clips between the In and Out points on tracks with Auto Select enabled is selected.

In some instances, the Auto Select controls are ignored:

If no Auto Select controls are enabled, nothing in the Timeline is automatically highlighted, and only selected clips will be operated upon (just as in earlier versions of Final Cut Pro).
If you use the Selection, Range Selection, or Edit Selection tool to select clips in the Timeline, these selections are prioritized over the region between sequence In and Out points on tracks with Auto Select enabled.
If you use a command that only applies to the topmost visible video clip item (such as switching or cutting between multiclip angles, or performing match frame operations), the clip item seen in the Canvas is affected by your command, not the clip on the lowest-numbered track with Auto Select enabled.

This chapter covers the following:

Snapping to Points in the Timeline (p. 195)
Moving Items Within the Timeline (p. 196)
Copying and Pasting Clips in the Timeline (p. 202)
Deleting Clips From a Sequence (p. 206)
• Finding and Closing Gaps (p. 209)
• Color-Coding Clips in the Timeline (p. 212)

Note: For information about navigating and zooming in the Timeline, see Volume I, Chapter 9, "Timeline Basics." For more information about working in the Timeline, including adding and deleting tracks, see Chapter 8, "Working With Tracks in the Timeline," on page 123.

The Timeline is where you arrange clip items, scene by scene and shot by shot. The snapping feature helps you line up large groups of clips without accidentally creating gaps. To arrange content, you need to know how to move, copy, cut, paste, and delete within a sequence.

The snapping behavior makes it easier and quicker to do things like line up a video and audio clip item on two tracks, or align the playhead to a particular marker. When snapping is turned on, items you move in the Timeline, including the playhead and selected clips, appear to jump, or "snap," directly to certain points in the Timeline.

Several elements trigger snapping in the Timeline:

Clip boundaries
The playhead
Markers
Keyframes
In and Out points

When you drag the playhead or a selected clip item in the Timeline, it "snaps" to these elements when it encounters them.

01:00-15:00 r CU Lola gives

A small pair of arrows appears above or below the edit, marker, or keyframe to indicate that the playhead has snapped to this item.

While snapping is extremely useful, it can also be a hindrance if you're trying to move a clip only a few frames among a series of markers and clip boundaries, and you don't want it to snap to any of these points. Fortunately, you can turn snapping on or off at any time, even while you're dragging a clip.

To turn snapping on or off, do one of the following:

Press N (you can do this even while you're dragging).
Choose View > Snapping. (A checkmark indicates snapping is on.)
Click the Snapping button in the Timeline.

If the Snapping button is not in the Timeline button bar, you can add it. For more information about customizing button bars, see Volume I, Chapter 10, "Customizing the Interface."

Snapping affects the functions of many of the editing tools in Final Cut Pro, such as the Ripple and Roll tools, as well as the playhead in both the Viewer and the Canvas.

Composing a sequence usually involves plenty of arranging and rearranging of content in the Timeline. There are a couple of ways to move clips around in the Timeline:

The fast, visual way is to drag the clips.
For precise, timecode-based movement, you can select the clips and enter timecode values in the Current Timecode field.

When dragging a clip to a new location, you can do either an overwrite or insert edit, depending on your use of a keyboard modifier.

To move a clip to a new position by dragging (and do an overwrite edit):

1 In the Timeline, drag the clip to the desired location. (The pointer looks like a down arrow.)
2 Release the mouse button.

Timeline: Intro sequence in Dining Intra sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:15:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip A Clip B Clip C -00:25:00 a1 A1 Clip A Clip B Clip C a2 A2 Music 2 Music 2 A3 Music 2 Music 2

The arrow pointing down indicates that an overwrite edit will be performed.

To move a clip to a new position by dragging (and do an insert edit):

1 In the Timeline, drag the clip to the desired location.
2 Press and hold down the Option key (after you've started dragging the clip).

The pointer looks like a right arrow.

3 Release the mouse button.

Timeline: Intro sequence in Dining RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:15:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Clip A Clip B Clip C -00:25:00 a1 A1 Clip A Clip B Clip C a2 A2 Music 2 Music 2 A3 Music 2 Music 2

The arrow pointing right indicates that an insert edit will be performed.

To move a clip to another track while keeping its horizontal position in a sequence the same:

1 In the Timeline, select the clip you want to move.
2 Press the Shift key while dragging it vertically to the new track.

The clip will be at the same timecode location, but on another track.

When you want to move clip items precisely, you can move them by entering positive or negative timecode values.

1 In the Timeline, select the clip item or items you want to move.
2 Type a relative timecode value for where you want the clip to be positioned.

For example, type +48 (or simply 48) to move the item 48 frames forward. To move 48 frames backward in time, type -48. When you type a number, a Move field appears above the track. You can also type a regular timecode value to move the clip to that location in the Timeline.

Note: Don't click in the Current Timecode field before you do this, or you'll move the playhead instead.

The clip moves to the new location if there aren't any other clip items in the way. If there are, you'll see a "Clip Collision" message indicating which track had a clip that interfered with your edit.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:06:00 01:00:12:00 01:00:18:00 v1 V1 Dining room serving salad WS Don at table salad WS Dining room serving a1 A1 Dining room serving salad WS Don at table salad WS Dining room serving Clip Collision on V1 a2 A2 Dining room serving salad WS Don at table salad WS Dining room serving A3 Clip Collision message

For more information about editing numerically using timecode, see Chapter 18, "Performing Slip, Slide, Ripple, and Roll Edits," on page 321 and Chapter 20, "Trimming Clips Using the Trim Edit Window," on page 361.

When you're dragging clips, edit points, or keyframes, usually the default one-to-one correspondence between the motion of your mouse and the motion of the item you're dragging works just fine. However, you can drag even more precisely by pressing the Command key to slow, or "gear down," the dragging speed after you've started dragging.

For example, holding down the Command key after you've started dragging a clip causes the motion of that clip in the Timeline to be much slower and more precise. This can be helpful if the Timeline is zoomed out so that individual clips look small. It's also useful if you want to make very small changes to an edit point, a keyframe parameter, a volume level, or anything else.

You can use the Command key to modify nearly any dragging operation in Final Cut Pro.

A shuffle edit (sometimes referred to as a swap edit) allows you to move a clip item to a different position in a track without leaving a gap. When you perform a shuffle edit, you insert a clip item from one position in your sequence to another, and all clip items before or after the clip insertion point are rippled so that the gap left by the moved clip is filled. Shuffle edits do not affect the length of the clips or the overall duration of your sequence, and clips on other tracks are not affected.

Before edit A B C D After edit A D B C

Shuffle edits may only be performed with one clip item at a time, and they can't be performed on clip items with transitions applied.

Tip: You may want to turn snapping on to make it easier to align the clips you are moving (see "Snapping to Points in the Timeline" on page 195).

1 Select a clip item you want to move in the Timeline with the Selection tool.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:46:14 00:00 01:00:15:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:45:00 v1 v1 Before Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D a1 A1 Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D a2 A2 Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D A3

2 Drag the selected clip item to the beginning of the clip item you want to insert the dragged clip item in front of.

If you have trouble aligning it with the edit point, press the N key to turn snapping on.

3 While continuing to hold down the mouse button, press the Option key.

The pointer turns into the Shuffle Edit pointer. The direction of the small arrow in the Shuffle Edit pointer indicates which direction clip items will be rippled around the insertion point of the moved item.

If the small arrow points right, all clip items to the right of the insertion point are rippled to the right, filling the gap where the moved clip item was previously located.
If the small arrow points left, all clip items to the left of the insertion point are rippled to the left, filling the gap where the moved clip item was previously located.

The cursor changes to the Shuffle Edit pointer. In this case, the small arrow points to the right, so all clip items to the right of the insertion point are rippled to the right.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:46:14 00:00 01:00:15:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:45:00 v1 V1 Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D -00:37.21 a1 A1 Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D a2 A2 Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D A3

4 Release the mouse button to place the selected clip at the insertion point.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:45:00 00:00 01:00:15:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:45:00 After v1 v1 Clip D Clip A Clip B Clip C a1 A1 Clip D Clip A Clip B Clip C a2 A2 Clip D Clip A Clip B Clip C A3 Clip D moves here. Clips A, B, and C move right and fill the gap left by Clip D.

Important: Shuffle edits are only possible if you move a clip item beyond the boundaries of its original position. If you don't move a clip item far enough, pressing the Option key while you drag the clip item allows you to perform an insert edit, but not a shuffle edit.

You can use the Copy, Cut, and Paste commands (or their keyboard equivalents) to arrange clips in a sequence. You can also copy clips by Option-dragging.

Copying by Option-dragging provides a fast, visual way to duplicate a clip in a new location. There is no need to position the playhead.

To copy a clip into another location in the Timeline by dragging:

1 In the Timeline, select a clip item.
2 Hold down the Option key and drag the clip item to the new location in the Timeline.

You can also make duplicates of sequence clips by dragging them from the Timeline to the Browser. These copies are affiliate clips that include any changes you've made to the clips in the sequence.

When you're working with clips in the Timeline, you can use the Option key to do one of three things:

Hold down the Option key while you select a clip to temporarily turn off linked selection (if it's on) or turn it on (if it's off).
Hold down the Option key after an item is selected, then drag the item from its original position to make a duplicate of that item.
Hold down the Option key after you've started dragging a clip and hold it down as you release the mouse button to perform an insert or shuffle edit (depending on where you drag the clip in the Timeline). For more information, see "Moving Items Within the Timeline" on page 196.

Note: If you use the Option key to modify a command and don't see the results you wanted, you probably held down the Option key too long or at the wrong time.

In some cases, you need to remember to release the Option key once you have achieved the result you want. For example, you may hold down the Option key while dragging a clip to duplicate it. Once you begin dragging the clip, however, Final Cut Pro already intends to duplicate the clip, and now the Option key tells Final Cut Pro to perform an insert edit. If you prefer to do an overwrite edit, you need to release the Option key.

Another situation is when you intend to duplicate a clip by pressing the Option key, but you instead turn off linked selection and only select one clip item. To avoid this, you need to select the clip first, release the mouse button, and then press the Option key before dragging it to duplicate it.

When you copy and paste clip items from tracks in the Timeline, Final Cut Pro pastes those clip items into the same tracks they were copied from unless you specify different tracks with Auto Select controls. If no Auto Select controls are selected between the time you copy and paste the clip items, the items are placed on the same tracks from which they were copied.

1 Select one or more clip items in the Timeline.
2 Do one of the following, depending on what you want:
- Copy the clip items by pressing Command-C.
- Cut the clip items by pressing Command-X.

3 Position the playhead where you want the paste to occur.

4 Paste the clip items at the playhead location by pressing Command-V.

Timeline: Sequence 1 in My Movie Sequence 1 RT 01:04:00:08 00:00 01:01:30:02 01:03:00:06 01:04:30: Copied Clip Pasted Clip v3 V2 v1 V1 a1 A1 Copied clip items a2 A2 A3 A4 A5 A6 Copied Clip Pasted Clip Copied Clip Pasted Clip

To copy (or cut) and paste clip items from one Timeline track to another:

1 Select one or more clip items in the Timeline.
2 Do one of the following, depending on what you want:

Copy the clip items by pressing Command-C.
Cut the clip items by pressing Command-X.

Timeline: Sequence 1 in My Movie Sequence 1 RT 01:00:00,00 00:00 01:01:30,02 01:03:00,06 01:04:30 Copied Clip V3 V2 v1 V1 a1 A1 a2 A2 A3 A4 A5 Copied Clip Copied Clip A6

3 Option-click the Auto Select control for the track you want to paste clip items into. (If no Auto Select Controls are enabled, Option-click twice.)
4 Position the playhead where you want the paste to occur.
5 Paste the clip items by pressing Command-V.

The copied clip items are pasted to the tracks with Auto Select enabled, except where no Auto Select change was made. Where no Auto Select change was made after copying, the clip items are pasted to the original tracks. See the picture below for an example of these results.

Tip: Because you can't Option-click a pair of audio tracks at once, Option-click the lowest-numbered audio track you want to paste into.

To copy and paste clip items from tracks V3, A5, and A6 to tracks V2, A2, and A3, you would do the following:

1 Select the clip items on V3, A5, and A6.
2 Copy the clip items by pressing Command-C.

Timeline: Sequence 1 in My Movie Sequence 1 RT 01:00:00.00 00:00 01:01:30.02 01:03:00.06 01:04:30. Copied Clip V3 V2 v1 V1 a1 A1 a2 A2 A3 A4 A5 Copied Clip Copied Clip A6

3 Position the playhead where you want to paste the items.
4 Option-click the track V2 Auto Select control.

The video clip item will now be pasted into track V2.

5 Option-click the track A2 Auto Select control to set the lowest-numbered audio paste destination track.

The lowest-numbered audio track for pasting is now set to A2.

6 Paste the clip items by pressing Command-V.

Timeline: Sequence 1 in My Movie Sequence 1 RT 01:04:00:08 00:00 01:01:30:02 01:03:00:06 01:04:30: V3 Copied Clip V2 Pasted Clip v1 V1 a1 A1 a2 A2 Copied Clip A3 Pasted Clip A4 Copied Clip A5 Copied Clip A6

Note: Track Source and Destination controls have no effect on copying and pasting.

As you edit, you can delete items from your sequence at any time, provided that the track you want to remove them from is not locked.

There are two ways to delete items from a sequence:

Lift edit: Leaves a gap in the sequence.
Ripple edit: Closes the gap from the deletion by moving all subsequent clips to the left.

Important: Removing clips from a sequence does not delete the original master clips from the Browser, nor does it delete source media files from your hard disk. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 7, "Overview of the Media Manager."

Deleting with a lift edit (also called a lift delete) removes any selected items from the sequence and leaves a gap. This is useful if you have a series of clips already edited into your sequence and you don't want to move them (for example, if they're all synchronized to a piece of music). If you want to remove one or more clips from the middle of such a sequence, the lift delete is the best way to do so.

Before edit A B C Selected clip After edit A C Gap

1 Do one of the following:

Select the clip item or range of items you want to remove using one of the selection tools.
Set In and Out points in the Canvas or Timeline, then make sure the Timeline is active.

2 Enable Auto Select for the tracks you want to affect.

Only clip items on tracks with Auto Select enabled will be deleted.

Choose Sequence > Lift.
Choose Edit > Cut (or press Command-X) to cut the material, if you want to paste it somewhere else.
Press Delete.

Don at table salad WS Lola rolls eyes CU Don eats fish plate CU Don at table salad WS Lola rolls eyes CU Don eats fish plate CU Don at table salad WS Lola rolls eyes CU Don eats fish plate CU Selected clip items

Don at table salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Don at table salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Don at table salad WS Don eats fish plate CU After a lift edit, a gap is left in the sequence.

Deleting with a ripple edit (also called a ripple delete) removes selected items from the sequence and closes the resulting gap by moving all subsequent items on unlocked tracks to the left. A ripple delete is useful if you want to remove one or more clip items from your sequence but you don't want to leave a gap. For example, if you're assembling a rough cut, and you decide that there's a clip you don't need in the middle, performing a ripple delete will remove it and move all subsequent clips in your sequence to the left to fill the gap. Performing a ripple delete is the opposite of performing an insert edit.

Before edit

After edit

1 Select the item or range of items you want to remove.
2 Do one of the following:

Choose Sequence > Ripple Delete.
Control-click the selected clip item or items, then choose Ripple Delete from the shortcut menu.
Press Shift-Delete.
Press Shift-X to cut the material, if you want to paste it somewhere else.

Don at table salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Don at table salad WS Don eats fish plate CU Don at table salad WS Don eats fish plate CU After the ripple delete, the clip items are removed, with no gap remaining.

As you edit, cut, paste, and move items around in Final Cut Pro, empty spaces (called gaps) may be left between clips in your sequence. Sometimes they are extremely small (one or two frames), which makes them difficult to see in the Timeline. When a sequence with gaps plays back in the Canvas, however, even tiny gaps are apparent as flashes of black, so you don't want to unintentionally leave them in the sequence.

There are two types of gaps:

Track gaps: These are empty spaces between two clips in the same track.
Gaps: These are track gaps that occur in every single track of your sequence.

Timeline: Intro sequence in Dining RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:15:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:45:00 v1 V1 Clip A Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip C a1 A1 Clip A Clip B Clip C a2 A2 Clip A Clip B Clip C A3 Music Music Music Music

1 Move the playhead to the beginning of the sequence to start looking from the beginning. Otherwise, you can look for gaps to the right or left of the playhead's current position.
2 Do one of the following:

- Choose Mark > Next, then choose Gap from the submenu (or press Shift-G).

- Choose Mark > Previous, then choose Gap from the submenu (or press Option-G).

The playhead moves to the beginning of the first gap found to the right or left of the playhead.

1 Decide which track to search and make it the destination track.
2 Do one of the following:

- Choose Mark > Next, then choose Track Gap from the submenu.

- Choose Mark > Previous, then choose Track Gap from the submenu.

The playhead moves to the beginning of the first track gap found.

Position the playhead anywhere within the gap, then choose Sequence > Close Gap (or press Control-G).
■ Control-click anywhere within a gap, then choose Close Gap from the shortcut menu.
Select the gap by clicking it, then press Delete.

All clips to the right of the gap move left to close the gap.

Because this command shifts all clips to the right of the gap to the left, the command is not available if a clip on another track overlaps this gap. (This would change the relationship of the overlapping clip to the rest of your sequence, or change the audio-video sync if it's an audio clip underneath a video clip.)

If you don't care about the sync relationship between the rest of your sequence and the overlapping clip, you can lock tracks containing overlapping clips and then use any of the above commands to close the track gap.

1 Click the Lock Track control of any tracks with clips that overlap the gap you're trying to close.
2 Close the gap by doing one of the following:

- Position the playhead anywhere within the gap, then choose Sequence > Close Gap (or press Control-G).

- Control-click anywhere within the gap, then choose Close Gap from the shortcut menu.

- Select the gap by clicking it, then press Delete.

1 Make sure snapping is turned on.

For more information, see "Snapping to Points in the Timeline" on page 195.

2 Select the Select Track Forward tool in the Tool palette.
3 Click the first clip to the right of the track gap.

All clips to the right are selected.

4 Drag the selected clips to the left until they close the gap and snap into place beside the earlier clip.

1 Option-click the Auto Select control for the track with the gap.
2 Position the playhead in the gap.
3 Do one of the following:

Choose Mark > Mark Clip.
Click the Mark Clip button in the Canvas.
Press X.

In and Out points set based on track gap on V1. Timeline: Intro sequence in Dining Intro sequence RT 01:00:07:06 00:00 01:00:05:00 1:00:10:00 01:00:15:00 Clip D Clip D v2 Clip A Clip A v1 v1 Auto Select control enabled a1 A1 Clip A Clip A a2 A2 Clip A Clip A Music Music

The track gap's duration appears in the Timecode Duration field in the Canvas.

Intro sequence 00:00:03:00

If you use labels to identify and sort your clips in the Browser, the clips' names will be highlighted in the color that matches each label. Using keyboard shortcuts, you can change the labels of clips directly in the Timeline.

Important: Changes made to the label of any clip are also applied to all affiliated clips in the Browser and in other sequences.

Keyboard shortcut	Color	Label
	None	None
	Orange	Good Take
	Red	Best Take
	Blue	Alternate Take
	Purple	Interviews
	Green	B-Roll

1 Select one or more clips in the Timeline.
2 Press a key combination (from the table above) for the label you want to assign to the clip items.

The color changes to reflect the new label.

For information about changing labels of clips in the Browser, see "Assigning Labels and Setting Label Names to Help Manage Your Media" on page 24.

This chapter covers the following:

• Performing Basic Cut Edits (p. 213)
- Changing the Duration of Clips in the Timeline (p. 217)
- Opening Sequence Clips in the Viewer to Change Durations (p. 218)

The most basic edit is a straight cut, like the ones performed with a razor blade on a piece of film. Basic cuts are described in this section, to help you in the rough editing process.

Each time you cut a clip in your sequence, it is split into two clips. You can make cuts with the Razor Blade tool, or you can make cuts during playback by pressing Control-V.

Razor Blade All tool Razor Blade tool

- Razor Blade: Adds an edit point to a sequence clip by cutting a single clip item, along with any clip items linked to it in the Timeline, into two pieces. This edit point is added at the frame of the clip item in the Timeline that you click.

This can be useful for quickly rearranging pieces of your sequence, for deleting a section of a clip, for applying an effect to a specific part of a clip, or for moving a piece of a clip to the same location on another track

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:06:00 01:00:12:00 01:00:18:00 v2 v1 V1 Clip A Clip B Clip C a1 A1 Clip A Clip B Clip C a2 A2 Clip A Clip B Clip C A3

The Razor Blade tool lets you cut a clip item into two pieces. After Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:00:00 01:00:06:00 01:00:12:00 01:00:18:00 Clip A Clip B Clip C a1 A1 Clip A Clip B Clip C a2 A2 Clip A Clip B Clip C A3

- Razor Blade All: Cuts all clip items on all tracks at the point where you click in the Timeline.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:06:00 01:00:12:00 01:00:18:00 v2 v1 V1 Clip A Clip B Clip C a1 A1 Clip A Clip B Clip C a2 A2 Clip A Clip B Clip C A3

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:06:00 01:00:12:00 01:00:18:00 After Clip A Clip B Clip C a1 A1 Clip A Clip B Clip B Clip C a2 A2 Clip A Clip B Clip B Clip C A3

The Add Edit command in the Sequence menu (Control-V) is similar to the Razor Blade All tool, cutting all clip items in the Timeline at the current position of the playhead. However, only clip items on tracks with Auto Select enabled are cut.

It can be very handy to use the keyboard shortcut for the Add Edit command during playback of your sequence, so that you can make cuts as the playhead moves along the Timeline. Each time you add an edit during playback, a red marker appears at the position of the cut you just made. When playback stops, each of these markers is replaced by a cut.

- Choose Sequence > Add Edit (or press Control-V).

Note: Only clip items on tracks with Auto Select enabled are cut.

Whenever you cut a clip item with the razor blade tool, the clip item is split into two pieces separated by a through edit. You can't see a through edit when you play back your sequence in the Canvas because the frames on either side of the edit are from a continuous section of a media file. However, you can enable through edit indicators—two red triangles above and below through edits—to see them in the Timeline. You can join through edits at any time, splicing the separated clip items back into a single clip item.

Joining the two items of a through edit reduces the number of edits in your sequence and simplifies Edit Decision Lists (EDLs). When you join two items of a through edit that have different properties (such as different filters, different opacity or audio levels, or different composite modes), the newly joined clip uses the properties of the item on the left only.

Select a through edit in the Timeline, then press Delete.
■ Control-click a through edit in the Timeline, then choose Join Through Edit from the shortcut menu.

Trim Add Transition 'Cross Dissolve' Paste Join Through Edit

The clip items on either side of the through edit become a single clip item.

Clips are represented in the Timeline as horizontal bars within tracks. The length of the bar represents the clip item's duration. The beginning and end of the bar represent the clip's In and Out points. You can drag the beginning or end of the clip to change the clip's duration, right in the Timeline. As you move your pointer over a clip, the pointer changes from an arrow (around the center of the clip) to a Resize pointer (at either the beginning or the end of the clip).

Resize pointer at beginning of clip

01:00:15:00 01:00:30:00 01:01:00:00 01:01:15:00 Nancy at table CU Nancy at table CU Nancy at table CU Nancy at table CU Nancy at table CU Nancy at table CU

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence Intro sequence RT 01:00:29:19 v1 V1 Nancy at table CU +00:17:12 (New Duration = 00:00:28:02) a1 A1 Nancy at table CU a2 A2 Nancy at table CU A3

Dragging the beginning or end of a clip changes the clip duration.

Box shows the changed length of the clip and the new duration of the clip.

You can open a sequence clip in the Viewer to adjust its duration. Any changes you make to that clip in the Viewer modify the clip in the edited sequence. How these changes occur also depends on the editing tool that's selected.

■ Double-click the sequence clip in the Timeline.
- Select the sequence clip, then choose View > Clip (or press Return).
- Position the playhead at the In point of the clip in the Timeline (using the Up or Down Arrow key) or anywhere within the clip in the Timeline, then press the Return key. The clip on the lowest-numbered Auto Select–enabled track opens in the Viewer, and the Viewer playhead is at the same frame as the one under the Timeline playhead.

The video and audio tabs that appear in the Viewer depend on whether the clip item you open from the Timeline is linked to other clip items, and whether linked selection is turned on.

If a clip item is linked to other clip items and linked selection is turned on, all items associated with the one you've opened in the Viewer are also opened. Video and audio clip items open in their own Viewer tabs.
If linked selection is off, or items in the Timeline aren't linked, only the item you selected will be opened in a tab in the Viewer.

When a sequence clip opens in the Viewer, the tab that appears in front depends on what you clicked in the Timeline.

If you double-clicked a video clip item, the video tab will be in front in the Viewer.
If you double-clicked an audio clip item, the audio tab will be in front in the Viewer.
If you double-clicked either the filter bar or the motion bar in the keyframes area of an item in the Timeline, the corresponding Filters or Motion tab will be in front in the Viewer. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 12, "Changing Motion Parameters." You can also refer to Volume III, Chapter 11, "Video Filters."
If you had a sequence clip already open in the Viewer with the Filters tab in front, another sequence clip opened in the Viewer appears with its Filters tab in front as well.

Changes made to a sequence clip apply only to that clip, and do not affect the master clip in the Browser. You can verify that a clip opened in the Viewer is a sequence clip instead of a Browser clip by checking that the scrubber bar displays sprocket holes, and that the name of the clip in the Viewer has "from Sequence Name" appended to it (where "Sequence Name" is the name of the sequence where the clip is located).

Final Cut Pro allows you to adjust the synchronization relationship between video and audio items in a clip. Linked clip items can be temporarily or permanently unlinked, resynchronized, and relinked.

This chapter covers the following:

Linked Sync Relationships Between Video and Audio Clips (p. 219)
Linking and Unlinking Video and Audio Clip Items in the Timeline (p. 224)
Selecting Individual Clip Items While They Are Linked (p. 227)
• Getting Clip Items Back in Sync (p. 228)
Establishing a Different Sync Relationship Between Linked Clip Items (p. 233)
Learning About Linking Behavior in Audio Channel Pairs (p. 235)
Synchronizing Dual System Recorded Video and Audio (p. 236)

Linking helps you keep video and audio clip items in sync. Clip items from the same media file are automatically linked to each other in the Timeline. You can also link unrelated clip items together.

Final Cut Pro keeps track of the sync relationship between video and audio clip items of all QuickTime media files that you've captured or imported into your project, as well as the sync between merged clips.

When video and audio clip items are linked in the Timeline:

- The names of the linked clip items are underlined to indicate that they're linked.

Lola gives coat and tie CU Lola gives coat and tie CU Don pain sweats right XCU Lola gives coat and tie CU Lola gives coat and tie CU Don pain sweats right XCU Lola gives coat and tie CU Lola gives coat and tie CU Don pain sweats right XCU The underlined clip name indicates the link between audio and video items.

- As long as linked selection is on in the Timeline (the Linked Selection button in the upper-right corner is green), clicking one clip item selects it and all the items linked to it.

Click the Linked Selection button to turn linked selection on and off. Lola rolls eyes CU

When you move clip items in the Timeline, Final Cut Pro checks to see if the relationship between linked items is still correct. If the relationship does not match, Final Cut Pro displays out-of-sync indicators in the Timeline. Out-of-sync indicators show the offset between the linked clip items.

Out-of-sync indicator Nancy at table CU Nancy at table CU -2.02 Don CU Nancy enters Nancy at table CU Nancy at table CU +2.03 Don CU Nancy enters Nancy at table CU Nancy at table CU +2.04 Don CU Nancy enters

Even when clip items are unlinked, Final Cut Pro keeps track of the relationship between clip items that come from the same media file. This means that you can move those items out of sync at any time, without worrying that you won't be able to resynchronize them later if you change your mind. Since merged clips contain clip items that do not come from the same media file, out-of-sync indicators are not shown when you unlink and move merged clip items. (For more information, see Chapter 3, "Merging Clips From Dual System Video and Audio," on page 45.

An out-of-sync indicator appears whenever the following conditions occur:

Audio and video clip items from the same media file are out of sync. Because they come from the same media file, these items always show out-of-sync indicators, even if they are not currently linked.
Audio and video clip items belonging to a merged clip have been moved out of sync. Because they come from different media files, these items only show out-of-sync indicators if they are linked.
Audio and video clip items have been linked together in the Timeline, and then moved out of sync.

Audio and video clip items that have a sync relationship must be vertically overlapping in the Timeline for out-of-sync indicators to appear when the items are moved out of sync. No indicator appears if linked audio and video clip items are so far apart that they no longer overlap.

01:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:40:00 01:00:50:00 Nancy at table CU Nancy at table CU Grandfather clock face Nancy at table CU Grandfather clock face CU Nancy at table CU Grandfather clock face CU Audio moved away from video clip

If you move these items back together so that they overlap, the indicators appear again.

01:00:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:40:00 01:00:50:00 Nancy at table CU Nancy at table CU -7.23 Grandfather clip Nancy at table CU +7.23 Grandfather clock face Nancy at table CU +7.23 Grandfather clock face Audio moved back under video clip

This also works with multiple instances of clips from the same media file on disk. For example, suppose you have three items in your sequence, all from different parts of the same media file.

Nancy drinking talking Nancy drinking talking Nancy drinking talking

If you move the audio item to the left, so that it overlaps the first video item, out-of-sync indicators appear. The same happens if you move the audio item to the right.

+5:00 Nancy drinking talking Nancy drinking talking -5:00 Nancy drinking talking -5:00 Nancy drinking talking

Nancy drinking talking +$5.00 Nancy drinking talking +$5.00 Nancy drinking talking

What if you move all three items so that they overlap, but all are out of sync with one another? The first two items show out-of-sync indicators relative to one another, and the third item shows an out-of-sync indicator relative to the item it overlaps.

+3:00 Nancy drinking talking -7:00 Nancy drinking talking -3:00 Nancy drinking talking -3:00 Nancy drinking talking

Up to 24 audio items can be linked to a single video item in the Timeline. As a result, some complex sync relationships may result if you slip more than one of a clip's audio items (for information on slip edits, see "Slipping Clips in the Timeline" on page 325). These are easily managed using the same out-of-sync indicators described earlier.

When you create a merged clip, or link multiple items together in the Timeline, the video item is considered the anchor item to which the sync of all other linked audio items is compared. If you're linking audio clip items without a video item, then the topmost audio item in the Timeline acts as the anchor item.

In the following example, three stereo pairs of audio items are linked to a single video item.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence Intro sequence RT 01:00:22:13 00:00 01:00:07:00 01:00:14:00 01:00:21:00 v1 V1 Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS a1 A1 Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS a2 A2 Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS Don at table salad WS Don at table salad WS A3 A4 A5 A6 Dining room serving salad WS Dining room serving salad WS

Moving a single pair of items out of sync results in a single out-of-sync duration, with out-of-sync indicators with positive and negative durations in both the video and audio items.

If you then move a second pair of audio items out of sync by a different amount, each audio item that is out of sync from the anchor item has an out-of-sync indicator noting its individual offset from the anchor item—in this example, the video item. The anchor item displays a mixed-sync indicator with no duration. This tells you that multiple linked items are out of sync by varying amounts.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence Intro sequence RT 01:00:22:13 00:00 01:00:07:00 01:00:14:00 01:00:21:00 v1 V1 Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS A1 A1 +1.03 Nancy at table MS +1.03 a2 A2 +1.03 Nancy at table MS +1.03 A3 A3 -19 Don at table salad WS -19 Don at table salad WS A4 A4 Dining room serving salad WS Dining room serving salad WS A5 A5 A6 Out-of-sync indicators

You can link additional clip items to already linked items, or remove items and then relink the remaining items.

When you link clip items, a sync relationship is established between those items, according to their position in the Timeline. All linked clip items are marked in sync, and this new sync relationship is tracked.

1 Arrange audio and video clip items in their respective tracks so that they line up the way you want them to.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence Intro sequence RT 01:00:30:14 01:00:10:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Dining room serving salad WS Music 1 Music 1 a1 A1 Music 1 Music 1 a2 A2 A3 A4 Video and audio clip items are not linked together.

2 Select up to one video clip item and up to 24 audio items on different tracks in the Timeline.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence Intro sequence RT 01:00:30:14 01:00:10:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Dining room serving salad WS Music 1 Music 1 a1 A1 Music 1 Music 1 a2 A2 A3 A4 Select video and audio clip item that you want to link.

Note: When you open linked items in the Viewer, each linked mono audio clip item or stereo pair of clip items appears in an Audio tab in the Viewer.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence Intro sequence RT 01:00:30:14 00:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Dining room serving salad WS Music 1 Music 1 a1 A1 Music 1 Music 1 a2 A2 A3 A4

Tip: Dragging linked clip items from the Timeline into the Browser creates a single merged clip containing those items. This makes managing your media and keeping it in sync much easier, especially if you want to use it in other sequences. For more information on working with merged clips, see Chapter 3, "Merging Clips From Dual System Video and Audio," on page 45.

When you don't want audio and video clip items to be linked in the Timeline, you can unlink them.

1 Select one or more linked items in the Timeline.
2 Choose Modify > Link (or press Command-L).

Even when clip items are linked together, you may want to perform an action on only a video or audio clip item. For example, you may want to copy just the audio, or delete just the video. The Linked Selection option tells Final Cut Pro whether linked items are selected together, or if clip items can be individually selected even when they are linked to other items.

The Linked Selection button is gray, indicating linked selection is turned off. With linked selection turned off, clicking a clip's video item selects only that item.

You can turn linked selection on or off at any time.

To turn linked selection on or off, do one of the following:

Press Shift-L.
- Click the Linked Selection button in the upper-right corner of the Timeline.

Even if linked selection is on, you can temporarily disable it by holding down the Option key while you select or edit a clip item. For example, if linked selection is turned on, but you press the Option key while you click the video item of a linked clip, only the video is selected.

To temporarily turn linked selection off while working in the Timeline, do one of the following:

Hold down the Option key while selecting individual clip items.
Hold down the Option key while using the Slip, Slide, Ripple, Roll, and other tools.

When linked selection is off, holding down the Option key temporarily enables it.

There are three ways to get clip items with out-of-sync indicators back into sync:

Move the clip item back into sync with the Move into Sync command in the out-of-sync indicator shortcut menu. This moves the clip item's position in the Timeline, if possible.
Slip the clip item back into sync with the Slip into Sync command in the out-of-sync indicator shortcut menu. This slips the clip item's In and Out points simultaneously, leaving the clip position the same in the Timeline. For more information, see "Slipping Clips in the Timeline" on page 325.
Redefine the sync relationship between the clip items so that the current relationship is considered to be in sync. You do this by choosing Modify > Mark in Sync.

Moving an out-of-sync clip item back into sync means repositioning the item in the sequence so that it's once again in sync with the video or audio anchor item to which it's linked. You can only move a selected item into sync if there's enough room on the track in which it appears. If another clip is in the way, the selected item moves as far as it can and then a message says "Unable to put item in sync. Another item is in the way."

To move a linked clip item into sync, do one of the following:

In the Timeline, Control-click the clip item's out-of-sync indicator, then choose Move into Sync from the shortcut menu.
- Select the clip item that is out of sync, then type the negative timecode offset value that appears in the out-of-sync indicator and press Return.

For example, if a clip item's out-of-sync indicator displays "4:12", select the clip item and enter "-4:12", then press Return.

If the item is an anchor item (either the sole video item among linked items, or the topmost audio item if there is no video item), it moves into sync with the topmost out-of-sync audio item in the group, starting on track A1 and going down. Otherwise, the selected item moves into sync with the anchor item to which it's linked.

Before syncing — Lola rolls eyes CU Lola rolls eyes CU +1.0 Move into Sync Slip into Sync Move Others into Sync Slip Others into Sync Lola rolls eyes CU Lola rolls eyes CU +1.08 Don CU Nancy enters Lola rolls eyes CU Lola rolls eyes CU +1.08 Don CU Nancy enters Control-click the out-of-sync indicator and choose Move into Sync.

After syncing Lola rolls eyes CU Lola rolls eyes CU Don CU Nancy enters Lola rolls eyes CU Lola rolls eyes CU Don CU Nancy enters The anchor item is moved into sync with the topmost audio item to which it's linked.

This operation leaves the out-of-sync clip item in the same position in your sequence, but slips the In and Out points within that item so that the item is in sync with the corresponding audio or video anchor item to which it's linked. This works in the same way as the Slip tool. For more information, see "Slipping Clips in the Timeline" on page 325.

In the Timeline, Control-click the out-of-sync indicator on a clip item, then choose Slip into Sync from the shortcut menu.

If the item is an anchor item, it slips into sync with the topmost out-of-sync audio item in the group, starting on track A1 and going down. Otherwise, the selected item slips into sync with the anchor item to which it's linked.

1 Select the Slip tool from the Tool palette (or press S).
2 If Linked Selection is on in the Timeline, click the Linked Selection button to turn it off.
3 Select the clip item you want to slip into sync.
You can temporarily turn the Slip tool into the Selection tool by holding down the Command key.
4 Type the negative timecode offset value that appears in the out-of-sync indicator and press Return. For example, if a clip item's out-of-sync indicator displays "4:12", select the clip item and enter "-4:12", then press Return.
If the clip item is an anchor item, the audio item is slipped into sync with it.

In cases where multiple audio items are out of sync by varying amounts from an anchor video or audio item, you have an additional option available to manage the sync relationships of all linked items at once.

1 In the Timeline, Control-click the out-of-sync indicator on the anchor clip item—either the sole video item in a group of linked items, or the topmost audio item if there is no video item among the linked items.
2 Choose Move Others into Sync from the shortcut menu.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence Intro sequence RT 01:00:37:23 v1 V1 -10.12 Nancy at table MS -10.12 Nancy at table MS Move into Sync Slip into Sync Move Others into Sync Slip Others into Sync -21 Don at table sal -21 Don at table sal -4.18 Dining roo -4.18 Dining roo Before syncing

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence Intro sequence RT 01:00:36:22 00:00 01:00:15:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Nancy at table MS a1 A1 Nancy at table MS a2 A2 Nancy at table MS Don at table salad W Don at table salad W A3 A4 A5 Dining room serv A6 Dining room serv After syncing

To slip all out-of-sync clip items into sync with the anchor item:

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence Intro sequence RT 01:00:39:11 00:00 01:00:15:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Move into Sync Slip into Sync Move Others into Sync Slip Others into Sync -7.01 Nancy at table MS -3.15 Don at table s -3.15 Don at table s -8.11 Dining roo -8.11 Dining roo Before syncing

2 Choose Slip Others into Sync from the shortcut menu.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence Intro sequence RT 01:00:39:11 00:00 01:00:15:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS a1 A1 Nancy at table MS a2 A2 Nancy at table MS Don at table salad W A3 Don at table salad W A4 A5 Dining room serv A6 Dining room serv After syncing

There are many reasons you might deliberately edit the video and audio items of a clip to be out of sync with one another:

Aligning the visuals of an actor reacting to a voice
Reediting an actor's audio from one take to match the visuals of a different take
Changing the sync of ambient sound behind an image without critical audiovisual sync points (such as dialogue)
Performing sophisticated audio edits to sweeten an actor's dialogue

If you've moved a selected clip item out of sync deliberately and you want to permanently change that item's sync relationship to its corresponding linked audio or video items in the sequence, you can use the Mark in Sync command. Final Cut Pro marks the items' current relationship in your sequence as being in sync.

If you move one of these items out of sync again, the out-of-sync indicator shows the number of frames to resync to the new sync point.

Note: Using Mark in Sync does not affect the original master clip in the Browser, nor does it affect your media file on disk. It only affects the selected clip items in the Timeline.

1 In the Timeline, select the items that you want to mark as in sync (one video and up to 24 audio items may be marked as in sync).

Lola rolls eyes CU Lola rolls eyes CU -2.07 Don CU Nancy enters Lola rolls eyes CU Lola rolls eyes CU +2.07 Don CU Nancy enters Lola rolls eyes CU Lola rolls eyes CU +2.07 Don CU Nancy enters Out-of-sync indicator.

The items are now marked as in sync, although their positions in the Timeline haven't changed.

Lola rolls eyes CU Lola rolls eyes CU Don CU Nancy enters Don CU Nancy enters Lola rolls eyes CU Lola rolls eyes CU Don CU Nancy enters Lola rolls eyes CU Lola rolls eyes CU Don CU Nancy enters The out-of-sync indicators disappear.

If you select just the audio and move it out of sync, out-of-sync indicators appear.

Lola rolls eyes CU Lola rolls eyes CU -16 Don CU Nancy enters Toggle Auto Select - V1 - ① Lola rolls eyes CU +16 Don CU Nancy enters Lola rolls eyes CU Lola rolls eyes CU +16 Don CU Nancy enters The out-of-sync indicators show the new offset, not the original offset.

The Mark in Sync command permanently affects the sync relationship of the selected clip items in your sequence. Once you've modified the sync relationship of clip items, the only way to restore the original sync relationship is to manually move the clip items into the old sync relationship and use the Mark in Sync command again, or to delete the clip items and reedit a new instance of that clip into your sequence from the Browser.

In addition to linking video or audio clip items together, you can also link pairs of audio items together in stereo pairs. Stereo linking is a specific kind of audio item linking, limited to two audio clip items that overlap in the Timeline.

Stereo pairs allow you to control audio levels, pan settings, and effects for two audio items at once. Any modifications made to one item in the pair affect the other item. This is convenient when you are working with audio such as music, stereo sound effects, or any other audio recorded in stereo. One item of a stereo pair cannot be selected separately, even if you turn off linked selection using the Linked Selection button.

For more information about stereo audio, see Volume III, Chapter 3, "Audio Fundamentals."

In the Timeline, each mono audio item is treated like any other linked item. Clicking one item selects both items with linked selection on; with linked selection turned off, you can select one at a time.
In the Viewer, each mono channel has its own tab, named Mono (a1) and Mono (a2), Mono (a3) and Mono (a4), and so on, depending on how many channels the clip has. Levels, pan settings, and filters applied to one mono channel are not applied to the other.

In the Timeline, the pair is treated as a single linked item. Stereo pair items are always the same length, and they cannot be modified or selected independently. If you select a stereo pair of audio items in the Timeline, you must select both together, even if linked selection is turned off.
In the Viewer, the stereo pair appears in a single tab, called Stereo (a1a2). If multiple stereo pairs are linked together, the numbers used by each successive stereo pair increase, for example, Stereo (a3a4), Stereo (a5a6), and so on. The waveforms of both audio channels are displayed in this one tab, and any levels or effects applied to one track are automatically applied to the other.

Details on creating or separating stereo pairs are given in Chapter 17, "Audio Editing Basics," on page 289.

If you are working with captured audio and video from different sources (dual system recording), you'll probably want to link the audio and video clips by merging them into single clips in the Browser after syncing them. This way you can easily work with them as single clips in the Timeline or the Browser, as if you had captured each one as a single clip and media file. Before actually merging two or more clip items, you first need to find a synchronization point between them. There are different ways of doing this, depending on how you shot your footage. See Chapter 3, "Merging Clips From Dual System Video and Audio," on page 45 for details.

• Learning About Split Edits (p. 237)
• How Split Edits Look in the Viewer and Canvas (p. 238)
- Setting Up Split Edit Points in the Viewer (p. 239)
- Setting Up a Split Edit While Playing a Clip (p. 240)
• Modifying and Clearing Split Edits (p. 241)
- Split Edit Examples (p. 243)

Final Cut Pro allows you to set separate video and audio In and Out points. These edits are known as split edits. Split edits are useful for conversation scenes, where the video and audio of two actors overlap. You can also use split edits to introduce the sound of a new scene before cutting to the video.

For example, suppose you are editing a sequence in which a man and a woman are talking to each other. It's common during a conversation scene to cut to the video of one person listening while the audio from the other person continues. You use a split edit to achieve this effect. This is how you would achieve the effect:

Cut to the video and audio of the man talking.
In the middle of the man talking, overwrite the video of the man talking with the video of the woman listening, while the audio of the man talking continues.
Once the man finishes talking, cut to the audio of the woman, now talking.

The resulting edit would look something like this:

Video edit point Video track Audio tracks Audio edit point

Split edits can be used in many different situations—in dialogue scenes, like the one described above, when cutting to illustrative B-roll footage during an interview, or when transitioning from one scene to another.

The scrubber bar in both the Viewer and the Canvas is divided in half by a light gray line. The upper half of the scrubber bar contains the video In and Out points, and the lower half contains the audio In and Out points.

When you set simple In and Out points, each pair of audio and video In and Out points joins to form small, inward-pointing triangles.

In point —— ▶ —— ▶ —— Out point

When you set video edit points that are different from the audio edit points, as you do for a split edit, the upper half of each triangle marks a video In or Out point, and the lower half marks the separate audio edit point, like this:

Video In point Audio In point Area of video included in edit Area of audio included in edit Audio Out point Video Out point

As with other types of edits, the Viewer scrubber bar shows edit points in your clip, while the Canvas scrubber bar shows edit points in your sequence. The light area between each set of edit points in the Viewer indicates which parts of the audio and video clip items in your source clip will be cut into your sequence. The light area between each set of edit points in the Canvas indicates where the audio and video clip items will appear in your sequence.

There are several ways you can create a split edit:

Set separate video and audio edit points for the clip in the Viewer before you edit the clip into the Timeline.
Edit your clips into the Timeline with standard In and Out points, and then trim the video or audio clip items independently by disabling linked selection. The Roll tool is the most common tool for adjusting an edit point in the Timeline. For more information, see Chapter 19, "Learning About Trimming Clips," on page 345.

It is more common to edit clips into a sequence and then create split edits in the Timeline, but there may be times when you want to set split edit points in the Viewer as well.

1 Double-click a clip in the Browser to open it in the Viewer.
2 Move the playhead to the location in your clip where you want to set the video In or Out point (separate from the audio).
3 To set a video In or Out point, do one of the following:

Press Control-I to set a video In point, or press Control-O to set a video Out point.
Control-click in the scrubber bar, choose Mark Split from the shortcut menu, then choose either Video In or Video Out from the submenu.
Choose Mark > Mark Split, then choose either Video In or Video Out from the submenu.

4 Now move the playhead to the location in your clip where you want to set your audio In or Out point.

5 To set an audio In or Out point, do one of the following:

Press Option-Command-I to set an audio In point, or press Option-Command-O to set an audio Out point.
Control-click in the scrubber bar, choose Mark Split from the shortcut menu, then choose either Audio In or Audio Out from the submenu.
Choose Mark > Mark Split, then choose either Audio In or Audio Out from the submenu.

The resulting combination of video and audio edit points in your scrubber bar should look something like this:

Screenshot of a media player interface showing playback controls and playback buttons

Once you've set your split edit points, you can perform your edit by using an overwrite edit or dragging directly into the Timeline.

You can mix and match simple edit points with split edit points, depending on what kind of edit you want to do. In fact, it's very common to first set a simple edit point, and then change it to a split edit while your clip is still playing.

1 Open a clip in the Viewer.
2 Play your clip.
3 At the frame where you want either your video or audio to start, press I to set an In point.
4 As your clip continues playing, do one of the following:

To set a split video In point later than the audio In point, press Control-I.
To set a split audio In point later than the video In point, press Option-Command-I.

5 As your clip continues playing, set an Out point at the desired location by pressing the O key.
6 If you want to set an additional split edit at the end of your clip, let playback continue and do one of the following:

To set a split video Out point, press Control-O.
To set a split audio Out point, press Option-Command-O.

7 Stop playback by pressing the Space bar.

Once you've set your split edit points, you can perform an overwrite edit or drag the clip directly into the Timeline.

You can also set split edit points in the Timeline using the same keyboard shortcuts.

If you've set up a split edit, but you want to adjust or remove any of the edit points, you have a number of options.

To move either the In or the Out points of a split edit at the same time:

- Drag either the video or audio In or Out points to a new position.

By default, the video or audio edit points move together.

To move either an audio or video split edit point individually:

- Option-drag just the split edit point you want to move.

That edit point moves independently of the others.

01:00:05:01 As you drag, a small box displays the timecode number you are moving the edit point to.

To move all split edit points at once, do one of the following:

Shift-drag any of the edit points.
- Select the Slip tool in the Tool palette, then drag any of the edit points.

Slip tool

The positions of the different edit points you've selected don't change relative to one another, but the selected area of your clip or sequence does. As it changes, you'll see the first selected frame of video updated in the Viewer, and the last frame of video updated in the Canvas.

The Viewer displays the updated frame of the In point with the new timecode value.

Lola rolls eyes CU 04:19:06:18 04:19:06:18 04:19:44:00

The Canvas displays the frame of the new Out point.

If you make the changes in the Timeline, you'll see a two-up display in the Canvas, showing the updated frames.

Canvas into sequences in being Lola rolls eyes CU 04:18:58:10 Lola rolls eyes CU 04:19:35:16 Two-up display in the Canvas

To remove one or more split edit points, do one of the following:

■ To clear both of your split In points, press Option-I.
■ To clear both of your split Out points, press Option-O.
- Choose Mark > Clear Split, then choose the edit points you want to remove from the submenu.
- Drag a split edit point up or down out of the scrubber bar until it disappears, then release the mouse button.
■ Control-click the split edit point, choose Clear Split from the shortcut menu, then choose the edit point you want to remove from the submenu.

The result of your split edit depends on the edit points you set. This section provides several examples of the combination of simple edit points and split edit points you might set up, along with their results.

If you set up a split edit in the Viewer and set a simple In point in the Canvas or Timeline (or if you simply use the position of the Canvas/Timeline playhead), Final Cut Pro lines up the earliest audio or video split edit point set in the Viewer (whichever appears first) with the In point you've set in the Canvas or Timeline.

1 Set up a split edit in the Viewer, with the audio In point preceding the video In point.
2 Set an Out point in the clip in the Viewer.

Viewer: Nancy at table MS in Dining Video Stereo (x1x2) Filters Motion 00:00:17:13 59% 03:13:21:20

The resulting edit points look like this.

3 Position the playhead in the Canvas or Timeline at the place where you want the audio of your source clip to start, or set a simple In point.

In point 01:00:05:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:15:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:25:00 01:00:30:00 Grandfather clock face CU Grandfather clock face CU Grandfather clock face CU

4 Drag the clip in the Viewer to the Overwrite section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas. The resulting edit looks like this:

01:00 01:00:05:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:15:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:25:00 01:00:30:00 Grandfather clock face CU Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS Grandfather clock face CU Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS Grandfather clock face CU Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS

The audio precedes the video and begins at the sequence In point.

If you set up a split edit in the Viewer and set a single split edit point in the Canvas or Timeline, Final Cut Pro matches the appropriate split edit point in the Timeline to the corresponding audio or video split edit point in the Viewer; audio to audio, or video to video. The other, overlapping media extends before or after this edit point as necessary. This method can be used to backtime a split edit, as well.

1 Set up a split edit in the Viewer, with the audio In point preceding the video In point.
2 Set an Out point in your clip in the Viewer.

Viewer: Nancy at table MS in Dining 00:00:17:13 59% 03:11:21:20 The resulting edit points look like this.

3 Set a single split video In point in the Canvas or Timeline at the place where you want the video of your source clip to start.

Split video In point 01:00:04:00 01:00:08:00 01:00:11 01:00:16:01 01:00:20:02 01:00:24:02 Grandfather clock face CU Grandfather clock face CU Grandfather clock face CU Grandfather clock face CU Grandfather clock face CU Grandfather clock face CU

4 Drag the clip in the Viewer to the Overwrite section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas. The resulting edit looks like this:

Video begins at the In point you set. Grandfather clock face CU Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS Grandfather clock face CU Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS Grandfather clock face CU Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS Audio precedes the video.

If you set simple edit points in the Viewer and a split edit in the Canvas or Timeline, Final Cut Pro lines up the In point of the clip in the Viewer with the corresponding split audio or split video In point that you set in the Canvas or Timeline. This method can be used to backtime a split edit, as well.

1 Set an In point in your clip in the Viewer.
2 Set an Out point in your clip in the Viewer.

Viewer: Nancy at table MS in Dining 00:00:15:07 59 03:11:18:09 The resulting edit points look like this.

3 Set up a split edit in the Canvas or Timeline at the place where you want your source clip to appear.

Split edit with audio preceding video 01:00:04:00 01:00:08:00 01:00:12:00 01:00:16:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:24:00 Grandfather clock face CU Grandfather clock face CU Grandfather clock face CU Grandfather clock face CU Grandfather clock face CU Grandfather clock face CU Grandfather clock face CU Grandfather clock face CU

4 Drag the clip in the Viewer to the Overwrite section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas. The resulting edit looks like this:

Video begins at the split video In point. Grandfather clock face CU Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS Grandfather clock face CU Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS Grandfather clock face CU Nancy at table MS Audio precedes the video, and begins at the split audio In point.

This chapter covers the following:

• About Multiclips (p. 247)
• Multiclip Workflow (p. 249)
- Creating Multiclips and Multiclip Sequences (p. 250)
• Working With Multiclip Angles in the Viewer (p. 267)
• Editing With Multiclips in Real Time (p. 273)
• Media Management and Project Interchange (p. 288)

A multiclip is a set of clips grouped together and synchronized by a common sync frame. Each clip in a multiclip is known as an angle, and you can switch between angles as necessary. The angle whose video and audio is seen and heard when you play your sequence is called the active angle.

Sync point Multiclip Angle 1 Angle 2 Active angle Angle 3 Angle 4

Multiclips can be used to edit footage from multicamera shoots or other synchronized footage in real time. For example, if you shot a live concert with four different cameras, you can synchronize the angles together into a single multiclip and cut between them in real time.

You can also group unrelated footage together for real-time montage editing (such as for music videos). For example, if you are editing a music video, you could add several angles of abstract visuals and cut to those angles on specific beats of the music.

Working with multiclips in Final Cut Pro is a flexible and fluid process. While the active angle plays in the Canvas, you can also view all angles playing simultaneously in the Viewer. You can add or remove angles from a multiclip at any time, and easily adjust the synchronization between angles after you have created the multiclip.

Angles appear in the Viewer, with the active angle highlighted.

Concert: Concert, 2014 Film Concert Sequence Video Stereo (a1x2) Filters Motion Concert sequence 00:04:21:24 09:09:10:04 00:08:15:05 01:06:07:07 Canvas: Concert sequence in Concert

The active angle plays in the Canvas.

Multiclips have the following limitations and requirements:

- Clips in a multiclip are not required to have the same duration, but they must all use the same codec, image dimensions, and frame rate.

Important: The same capture preset should be used for all footage you plan to make into a multiclip.

Multiclips can be created from any clips in the Browser: video and audio clips, merged clips, still images and graphics, and even other multiclips.
Multiclips can have a maximum of 128 angles, but only the first 16 can be played back in real time.
• Each angle can be a clip with video and audio, video only, or audio only.
A multiclip can have only one active video item and up to 24 active audio items at a time.
The number of audio items in a multiclip is determined by the angle with the highest number of audio items. For example, consider a multiclip that contains three angles with the following number of items:

• Angle 1: 2 audio items
• Angle 2: 4 audio items
• Angle 3: 8 audio items

The resulting multiclip has 8 audio items. Extra empty audio items are added to angles 1 and 2 so that all angles have the same number of audio items.

- The active video and audio items can be independently switched to different angles.

The following steps describe the basic multiclip workflow in Final Cut Pro:

A multicamera shoot uses multiple cameras to record the same subject or event from different angles and distances. The recorded tapes are known as iso reels (short for isolated reels) because each camera angle is recorded separately.

In professional multicamera shoots, each camcorder or VTR receives the same timecode from a master timecode generator, or you can jam sync the timecode generator of each camera at the beginning of the shoot. If you are using consumer DV camcorders, which cannot accept external timecode, you need to record a visual cue, such as a clapboard closing or a camera flash, on all cameras. You can use this to synchronize the clips together during postproduction.

Log and capture each tape as individual clips, or use Capture Now to capture the entire length of each tape.

Important: Make sure to log an angle number for each clip you capture. Final Cut Pro uses a clip's Angle property to determine how it is sorted within a multiclip.

Logging Clip Settings Capture Settings Log Bin: Concert Reel: 002 Name: song title_4_3 Description: song title Scene: Shot/Take: 4 Angle: 3 Log Note: wide shot of band Prompt Good Angle field

If you capture entire reels using Capture Now, you can break your footage into shorter subclips. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 2, "Creating Subclips."

In the Browser, select the clips, subclips, or bins of clips that you want to group together into a multiclip. You can create multiclips using either the Make Multiclip or the Make Multiclip Sequence command.

When creating a multiclip, you can choose one of several methods to synchronize the clips, such as by In point, Out point, or matching timecode. After a multiclip is created, you can rearrange, add, and delete angles in the Viewer.

For more information, see "Creating Multiclips and Multiclip Sequences" on page 250 and "Working With Multiclip Angles in the Viewer" on page 267.

Once you edit a multiclip into a sequence, you can enable the Multiclip Playback option to watch all angles simultaneously in the Viewer while switching or cutting to different angles in real time in the Canvas. The Multiclip Playback option allows you to cut an entire show as if it were live, and then fine-tune your edits in the Timeline just as you would for any other program.

You can cut and switch between video and audio at the same time or independently. For example, you can use the audio from angle 1 while switching the video between angles 1–4. For more information, see "Editing With Multiclips in Real Time" on page 273.

After you have finished editing, you can collapse multiclip in the Timeline to the currently active angle, at which point you can work with them as regular clips. This is useful when you transfer your project to a color correctionist, effects artist, or audio engineer who only needs to see the active angles you chose during editing. Collapsing a multiclip is not permanent. If you need to make multiclip changes later, you can expand the multiclip and all of the angles become available. For more information, see "Collapsing and Expanding a Multiclip" on page 286.

You can output multiclip sequences to tape or export to a project interchange format, such as an EDL, OMF, or XML file. For compatibility with other video editing systems, most output and export formats only include the active angle. The Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format supports export of all multiclip angle information, while EDL and OMF files only include information about the currently active angle of each multiclip.

You can create individual multiclips or an entire sequence of multiclips, using one of the following commands:

Make Multiclip: Creates one multiclip at a time, synchronizing each angle by In point or Out point (such as the frame where the slate closes), or timecode.
Make Multiclip Sequence: Creates many multiclips at once and places them in a new sequence in chronological order. This command uses timecode to synchronize angles, and gives you options for synchronizing clips that were recorded with the same timecode, but have slightly different starting and ending timecode numbers.

Before you create multiclips, you must assign an angle number to each clip, or name the clips so that Final Cut Pro can derive angle numbers automatically. Final Cut Pro looks for angle numbers in several places, in the following order:

Angle property of the clip: This may be a number or a letter. Final Cut Pro interprets letters A–E as angle numbers 1–5, respectively.
Clip name using Cinema Tools clip-naming conventions: Cinema Tools uses a standard clip-naming convention that contains the angle name. For more information, see "Cinema Tools Clip-Naming Conventions," below.
Reel name: For many multicamera shoots, the reel name also indicates the camera angle. For example, on a four-camera shoot, reel names 1–4 may indicate camera angles 1–4.
Media filename: If no other angle information is found, Final Cut Pro looks at the names of the media files to sort angles within the multiclips.

When you create a multiclip, the selected clips' angle numbers determine the order in which the clips are sorted within the multiclip.

You can assign angle numbers to clips in the Log and Capture window, in the Item Properties window, or in the Browser.

1 Select a clip in the Browser whose Angle property you want to change.
2 Choose Edit > Item Properties > Format (or press Command-9).
3 Type a number or letter in the Angle field, then click OK.

Note: Final Cut Pro supports letters A–E as camera angles.

You can also change a clip's Angle property in the Angle column in the Browser. For information about using Browser columns, see Volume I, Chapter 5, "Browser Basics."

Clips created in the film industry and logged in Cinema Tools often have names such as "C-3-A2," which indicates that:

"C" is the scene
"3" is the take
"A2" is the camera (or angle)

When you create a multiclip, Final Cut Pro sorts the clips you selected by the values in their Angle properties. If a clip's Angle property is empty, Final Cut Pro looks at the clip name, reel name, and finally the media filename to derive angle information. Final Cut Pro assumes the first number in the reel name or filename is an angle number.

For example, suppose you have three clips with the following names:

Camera3_Take2
Camera16_Take2
Camera17_Take2

If all three clips' Angle properties are empty, Final Cut Pro looks at the first number in each clip name to determine the order in which to sort the clips. In this case, Final Cut Pro would sort the clips in the following way:

Camera17_Take2: This clip is considered angle "1" because Final Cut Pro only derives angles 1–16 from a clip or reel name.
Camera3_Take2: This clip is considered angle "3".
Camera16_Take2: This clip is considered angle "16".

If two or more clips have the same angle number, Final Cut Pro sorts the clips in the order that they appeared in your Browser selection and places clips with duplicate angle numbers after the numerically sorted clips.

If Final Cut Pro cannot determine an angle number from a clip's Angle property, reel name, or media filename, clips are sorted alphabetically by filename and assigned the remaining angle numbers in ascending order.

The Make Multiclip command allows you to make one multiclip at a time, grouping several clips together that are synchronized by In point, Out point, or timecode number.

The following options are available in the Make Multiclip dialog:

"Synchronize using" pop-up menu: Select In Points, Out Points, or Timecode to determine the method you want to use for synchronizing your multiclip angles. For details, see "Synchronizing Angles in a Multiclip" on page 254.
Include Angle checkboxes: Deselect a checkbox if you don't want to include a clip in the multiclip you create.
Media Alignment column: This column shows how each clip is synchronized within the multiclip.
Sync Time column: This column shows the starting timecode number of each clip.

When you create multiclips using the Make Multiclip command, you can choose to synchronize the clips by In points, Out points, or matching timecode numbers.

In point
APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Synchronizing Angles in a Multiclip - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["Step 1"] --> B["Step 2"]
    B --> C["Step 3"]
    C --> D["Step 4"]

Out point
APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Synchronizing Angles in a Multiclip - 2

natural_image

Three parallel horizontal blue bars with black arrowheads pointing downward (no text or symbols)

Timecode
01:00:00:00 01:00:00:00 01:00:00:00 01:00:00:00

- In points: This option aligns all clips so the In point of each clip is synchronized. If you use this method, you first need to visually identify a common sync point (such as a clapboard closing) in each clip by setting an In point. If a clip has no In point set, the Media Start is used.

Make Multiclip Synchronize using: In Points Angle Name Media Alignment Sync Time In point of each clip [1] - Concert_1_2 00:00:20.08 [2] - Concert_2_2 00:00:28.22 [3] - Concert_3_2 00:00:06.18 [4] - Concert_4_2 00:00:00.00 [5] - Concert_5_2 00:00:36.22 Cancel OK

- Out points: This option aligns all clips so the Out point of each clip is synchronized. Before you use this method, you need to establish a common sync point by setting an Out point in each clip. This method is useful if your footage has a tail slate (a clapboard recorded after a scene ends). If a clip has no Out point set, the Media End is used.

Make Multiclip Synchronize using: Out Points Angle Name Media Alignment Sync Time Out point of each clip [1] - Concert_1_2 00:03:25:05 [2] - Concert_2_2 00:03:39:24 [3] - Concert_3_2 00:03:21:12 [4] - Concert_4_2 00:03:39:24 [5] - Concert_5_2 00:03:45:13 Cancel OK

- Timecode: This option aligns all clips by the first timecode number in common. Normally, you use this option with multicamera footage recorded with cameras or decks that received the exact same timecode signal.

This method works even if each clip has a different duration, as long as each clip has an overlapping timecode number. For example, one clip may end at 01:00:00:00, and a second clip may begin at 01:00:00:00, so the angles only overlap by a single frame.

Make Multiclip Synchronize using: Timecode Angle Name Media Alignment Sync Time [1] - Concert_1,2 09:03:02:21 [2] - Concert_2,2 09:03:04:21 [3] - Concert_3,2 09:03:04:21 [4] - Concert_5,2 09:02:58:19 [5] - Concert_4,2 09:03:00:21 Overlapping timecode numbers Cancel OK

- Aux Timecode 1 or 2: These options are just like the timecode option above, but use the Aux 1 or Aux 2 timecode track in each clip's media file. These options are useful when you want to synchronize via timecode, but your clips' main timecode tracks were not recorded in sync. Although you could modify your clips' source timecode tracks, it's better not to do this because this makes recapturing media from tape impossible. Instead, you can add an auxiliary timecode track to each clip's media file so that the clips align on a common timecode number.

For more information about modifying or adding timecode tracks to a clip's media file, see "Modifying Timecode in Media Files" on page 446.

Note: Aux 1 or Aux 2 timecode must exist in all selected items or these options are not available.

Tip: You can use the Viewer to adjust an angle's synchronization after you create a multiclip. For more information, see "Resynchronizing Angles in the Viewer" on page 272.

Once you have clips prepared, you can group them together into a multiclip.

1 Assign angle numbers to each clip you want to include in your multiclip.
For more information, see "Deriving Clip Angle Numbers From Reel Names and Filenames" on page 252.
2 If you want to align your clips by In or Out points, open each clip in the Viewer and set the appropriate In point or Out point.
3 In the Browser, select the clips you want to include in your multiclip.
Tip: You can also select one or more bins containing clips, or even other multiclips.
4 Do one of the following:

Choose Modify > Make Multiclip.
Control-click one of the selected clips, then choose Make Multiclip from the shortcut menu.

The Make Multiclip dialog appears, showing the angle order and relative media alignment of the selected clips. If a clip's Angle property is empty, Final Cut Pro looks at the reel name or media filename to derive an angle number. See "Deriving Clip Angle Numbers From Reel Names and Filenames" on page 252 for more information.

5 Choose a synchronization method from the "Synchronize using" pop-up menu.

For more information about angle synchronization, see "Synchronizing Angles in a Multiclip" on page 254.

6 If you don't want to include a clip in your multiclip, deselect the checkbox next to the clip.

Make Multiclip Synchronize using: Timecode Angle Media Sync Name Alignment Time [1] - Concert_1_2 09:03:02:21 [2] - Concert_2_2 09:03:02:21 [3] - Concert_3_2 09:03:02:21 [4] - Concert_4_2 09:03:02:21 This clip will not be included when the multiclip is created. Cancel OK

7 Click OK.

A new multiclip called “Multiclip N” appears in the Browser (where N is the automatically assigned multiclip number). This number increments each time you create a new multiclip. You can change the name of the multiclip at any time. For more information about naming multiclips, see “Identifying and Naming Multiclips in the Browser” on page 266.

The Make Multiclip Sequence command allows you to create multiple multiclips at the same time. When you capture a lot of media files from a multicamera shoot, it can be time-consuming to create multiclips one at a time using the Make Multiclip command. When you need to make a lot of multiclips at the same time, you can use the Make Multiclip Sequence command to create multiclips based on the starting timecode numbers of your clips.

Consider the following example. Suppose you recorded a soccer game with four camcorders (each starting with the same timecode), and you captured each reel as ten individual media files (each representing a different phase of the event). The total number of clips in your project is 40 (4 reels x 10 media files). Instead of creating each of the ten multiclips individually, you can select all the clips at once and use the Make Multiclip Sequence command. A sequence containing ten multiclips is created and the multiclips are placed in chronological order.

You may want to use the Make Multiclip Sequence command in the following situations:

Whenever you have a large number of clips or subclips that you want to make into multiclips.
If you have footage from a professional multicamera production, in which all tapes recorded matching timecode from a master timecode generator.
If you have footage in which all the tapes begin with matching timecode, but some camcorders recorded continuously while others stopped and started. As long as events occur on each tape at the same timecode number, you can use the Make Multiclip Sequence command.

Important: If you shot an event with camcorders that were not recording simultaneous identical timecode, you should use the Make Multiclip command and use In or Out points to visually synchronize each camera angle. For more information, see "Creating Individual Multiclips" on page 253.

The Make Multiclip Sequence dialog works similarly to the Make Multiclip dialog, but there are some important differences.

The Make Multiclip Sequence command always groups clips together into multiclips assuming that your footage has matching timecode, so that the same event is recorded on each tape at the exact same timecode number. However, since some cameras may not be continuously recording during the shoot, and you may not always capture media files with exactly the same start and end timecode numbers from each reel, the Make Multiclip Sequence dialog provides options for grouping clips using a specified range of starting timecode numbers. This range is referred to as the timecode synchronization offset.

The Make Multiclip Sequence dialog has the following features:

- Multiclip grouping area: Your selected clips are displayed as one or more multiclips, sorted and grouped based on the timecode of each clip. By default, if the starting timecode numbers of two or more clips are the same, they are grouped together into a multiclip. If a clip has a unique starting timecode number, it is grouped as its own multiclip.

Note: You can adjust the timecode synchronization offset to group multiclips differently.

Media Alignment column: This column shows how each clip is synchronized within the multiclip.
Sync Time column: This column shows the starting timecode number of each clip.
Timecode Synchronization pop-up menu and value: You can adjust the timecode synchronization offset so that clips with slightly different starting timecode numbers are grouped together into one multiclip. This allows you to group together clips that have overlapping timecode numbers but not the same starting timecode number. This may happen if you captured your clips using Capture Now, or if several of your camcorders started later than the others.

There are two choices for timecode synchronization:

Use Starting Timecode/Starting timecode delta: This option allows you to set a specific timecode offset value when your clips are grouped together as multiclip angles. For example, if you enter 1:00 in the "Starting timecode delta" field and then click Update, the following clips would be grouped together in a multiclip: clip A (01:00:10:00), clip B (01:00:09:00), and clip C (01:00:11:00). Any clips that fall within this +/-1:00 range would also be grouped together, such as clip D (01:00:10:15) and clip E (01:00:09:06).
Use Overlapping Timecode/Minimum overlap: This option allows you to choose how much clips' timecode numbers must overlap to be grouped together into a multiclip. The lower you set this percentage, the less clips' timecode must overlap to be grouped together. For example, if you enter 100% in the "Minimum overlap" field, multiclip are only created with clips that have the same exact starting and ending timecode numbers. However, suppose you have the following two clips:

Name	Timecode	Duration	Overlaps other clip	Overlap duration
Clip A	01:00:00:00–02:00:00:00	01:00:00:00	01:30:00:00–02:00:00:00	00:30:00:00
Clip B	01:30:00:00–02:15:00:00	00:45:00:00	01:30:00:00–02:00:00:00	00:30:00:00

In this case, if you set the minimum overlap value to 66% (or any value lower than this), clip B is grouped together with clip A into a single multiclip. This is because 66% of clip B's timecode numbers overlap clip A's timecode numbers.

Make Multiclip Sequence Use Overlapping Timecode Minimum overlap 66 % Minimum overlap is set to 66%. Automatically edit new multicl(p(s) into a new sequence. Angle Media Sync Name Alignment Time [1] - clip A 01:00:00:00 [2] - clip B 01:30:00:00 Cancel OK

For more information, see "Multiclip Sequence Examples" on page 262.

Update button: Click here to update the current multiclip grouping based on the value in the "Starting timecode delta" field. This button only appears when you select Use Starting Timecode from the Timecode Synchronization pop-up menu.
Automatically edit new multiclip(s) into a new a sequence: If you select this option, a new sequence with settings that match your multiclips is created. The new sequence contains each multiclip in chronological order. This effectively re-creates the entire live event as a sequence of multiclips.
Include Angle checkbox: Deselect the checkbox for a clip if you don't want to include the clip in the multiclip you create.

Once you have clips prepared, you can group them together into multiclips and automatically create a multiclip sequence.

1 Select multiple clips in the Browser, or select one or more bins of clips.

The Make Multiclip Sequence dialog appears. Clips with the same starting timecode numbers are grouped into multiclips, and clips with unique starting timecode numbers are grouped into separate multiclips.

If your clips have different starting timecode numbers, you can adjust the timecode offset to change how clips are grouped into multiclips.

Use Starting Timecode
Use Overlapping Timecode

Enter a value in the "Starting timecode delta" field, then click Update.
Enter a percentage in the "Minimum overlap" field, or drag the slider.

You can also click the triangles to the left and right of the slider to increment the percentage one whole number at a time.

The clips are shown in new multiclip groupings based on the options you chose. If the clips are still not grouped as you want, repeat the last step.

6 Select the "Automatically edit new multiclip(s) into a new a sequence" option to create a sequence containing your new multiclips.
7 Click OK.

A new sequence is created that contains all of the multiclips in chronological order. The location of the multiclips in the Timeline is based on the starting timecode number of each multiclip.

Multicips created using Make Multiclip Sequence Multiclip sequence Sequence starting timecode is the same as the starting timecode of the first multiclip. Multicips placed chronologically into the sequence Multiclip Sequence 1 Timeline: Multiclip Sequence 1 in Concert

Note: If the combined length of all the multiclips exceeds the maximum allowed sequence length, multiple sequences are created.

In the examples below, five camcorders recorded footage with consistently synchronized timecode, but not all camcorders started at exactly the same moment. As a result, the captured media files do not all have the same starting timecode number, even though they show the same visual events occurring at the same timecode numbers. Some clips are offset from each other by 1:00 (1 second) or less, while others are offset by as much as 10:00. In these examples, the goal is to create three multiclips, each containing five angles.

By adjusting the starting timecode offset value and clicking the Update button, you can precisely control how clips are grouped together into multiclips.

When the "Starting timecode delta" field is set to 0:00, most of the clips are grouped as individual multiclips. Only the few clips that have the exact same starting timecode numbers are grouped together. To group more of the clips into fewer multiclips overall, a larger timecode offset is needed.

In this example, clips that have starting timecode numbers within a 5-second range are grouped together. The first multiclip contains five angles, but the other multiclips are not yet grouped properly. A larger timecode offset is required.

In this example, clips that have starting timecode numbers within a 10-second range are grouped together. There are now three multiclips, each containing five angles.

Timecode offset is set to 10:00.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Starting Timecode Offset Is 10:00 - 1

bar

| Angle Name | Media Alignment | Sync Time | | --- | --- | --- | | [1] - Concert_Song1_1 | 0.00:00:10 | 01:00:00:10 | | [2] - Concert_Song1_2 | 0.00:00:10 | 01:00:00:10 | | [3] - Concert_Song1_3 | 0.00:01:10 | 01:00:01:10 | | [4] - Concert_Song1_4 | 0.00:00:10 | 01:00:00:10 | | [5] - Concert_Song1_5 | 0.00:01:10 | 01:00:01:10 | | [1] - Concert_Song2_1 | 0.01:00:11 | 01:01:00:11 | | [2] - Concert_Song2_2 | 0.01:05:11 | 01:01:05:11 | | [3] - Concert_Song2_3 | 0.01:20:11 | 01:01:20:11 | | [4] - Concert_Song2_4 | 0.01:15:11 | 01:01:15:11 | | [5] - Concert_Song2_5 | 0.01:10:11 | 01:01:10:11 | | [1] - Concert_Song3_1 | 0.02:00:10 | 01:02:00:10 | | [2] - Concert_Song3_2 | 0.02:03:10 | 01:02:03:10 | | [3] - Concert_Song3_3 | 0.02:09:10 | 01:02:09:10 | | [4] - Concert_Song3_4 | 0.02:06:10 | 01:02:06:10 | | [5] - Concert_Song3_5 | 0.02:12:10 | 01:02:12:10 | Cancel OK

When you adjust the minimum overlap percentage value, the multiclip grouping is automatically updated. When the starting timecode numbers of each group of angles varies significantly, this method is often faster and more intuitive than the Use Starting Timecode option.

When the minimum overlap is set to 100%, only clips with exactly matching timecode numbers are grouped together.

In this example, the clips are properly grouped into multiclips when the minimum overlap is set to 38%. Because this value is set quite low, the timecode overlap between clips only needs to be 38% of the duration of the longest clip for the clips to be grouped together into a multiclip. Depending on the timecode of your footage, you'll need to set a different value to group your clips into multiclips as you intend.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Minimum Overlap Is 38% - 1

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Make Multiclip Sequence | Angle Name | Media Alignment | Sync Time | |---|---|---| | [1] - Concert_Song1_1 | 0.00:00.10 | 01:00:00.10 | | [2] - Concert_Song1_2 | 0.00:00.10 | 01:00:00.10 | | [3] - Concert_Song1_3 | 0.00:01.10 | 01:00:00.10 | | [4] - Concert_Song1_4 | 0.00:00.10 | 01:00:00.10 | | [5] - Concert_Song1_5 | 0.00:01.10 | 01:00:00.10 | | [1] - Concert_Song2_1 | 0.01:00.11 | 01:01:00.11 | | [2] - Concert_Song2_2 | 0.01:05.11 | 01:01:05.11 | | [3] - Concert_Song2_3 | 0.01:20.11 | 01:01:20.11 | | [4] - Concert_Song2_4 | 0.01:15.11 | 01:01:15.11 | | [5] - Concert_Song2_5 | 0.01:10.11 | 01:01:10.11 | | [1] - Concert_Song3_1 | 0.02:00.10 | 01:02:00.10 | | [2] - Concert_Song3_2 | 0.02:03.10 | 01:02:03.10 | | [3] - Concert_Song3_3 | 0.02:09.10 | 01:02:09.10 | | [4] - Concert_Song3_4 | 0.02:06.10 | 01:02:06.10 | | [5] - Concert_Song3_5 | 0.02:12.10 | 01:02:12.10 | Cancel OK

Note: With some minimum overlap percentages, the same clip may be grouped into more than one multiclip at a time. In this case, you can either adjust the minimum overlap to correct this, or you can simply deselect the Include Angle checkbox for any clips you do not want to include in a multiclip.

A multiclip can be identified in the Browser by its multiclip icon and the fact that its name is italicized. The name of a multiclip appears in the following format:

ANGLE NAME [ANGLE NUMBER]-MULTICLIP NAME

A multiclip has a Name property like any other clip, but the multiclip's active angle name and number are added before the multiclip name. For example, consider a multiclip named "Multiclip 1." If the active angle is 3, and the clip contained in that angle is named "Firefly Close Up", the multiclip's displayed name in the Browser is "Firefly Close Up [3]-Multiclip 1". If you switch to angle 4, the multiclip's displayed name changes to "Firefly Wide Shot [4]-Multiclip 1".

When you highlight a multiclip to change its name, only the name of the multiclip itself can be changed, since the other parts of the name are added automatically.

1 Click a multiclip in the Browser to select it.
2 Click the name of the multiclip.

The name of the multiclip is highlighted.

3 Type a new name for the multiclip, then press Return or Enter.

You can use the Viewer to display, rearrange, resynchronize, and switch between the angles of a multiclip.

When you open a multiclip in the Viewer, multiple angles are displayed simultaneously in a grid. You can choose to view 1, 4, 9, or 16 angles at a time.

View pop-up menu Viewer: Concert 1.1 & Concert Video Stereo (x1x2) Filters Motion 00:04:24:02 59% 09:09:10:00

4-up view

View: Concert_3_1 in Concert Video Stevno (a1a2) Filters Motion 00:06:43:23 59% 09:09:18:12 vane@sc.org

9-up view

- Choose a multiclip view option from the View pop-up menu.

For example, if you want to view 9 angles at once, choose Multiclip 9-Up from the View pop-up menu.

If your multiclip has more angles than are currently displayed, you can scroll up or down in the Viewer using the multiclip scroll arrows that appear when you place the pointer in the Viewer.

An up or down arrow (or both) appears in the Viewer.

Click the arrow to view additional angles.

If an arrow is green, the active angle is not visible, but you can scroll to it by clicking the arrow.

The active video angle is highlighted with a blue outline, and the active audio angle is highlighted with a green outline. If an angle doesn't have media at the current time, or if it is an audio-only angle, a black frame is shown for that angle. If an angle is offline, a "Media Offline" frame is shown. The currently active audio clip items appear in the Audio tab.

There are several ways to determine the active video and audio angles of a multiclip in the Viewer:

Colored outlines: The active video and audio angles are highlighted in specific colors.
• Blue: Indicates the active video angle.
Green: Indicates the active audio angle.
Blue and green: Indicates that the active video and audio come from the same angle.

The active video angle has a blue outline. The active audio angle has a green outline.

- Playhead Sync pop-up menu: Checkmarks appear next to the active video and audio items.

You can display information about each angle in a multiclip by turning on multiclip overlays in the Viewer.

The following information appears when you turn on multiclip overlays:

Angle number
Angle's clip name
Timecode number for each angle frame currently displayed in the Viewer
Note: The current timecode number is always the clip's source timecode.

- Choose Show Multiclip Overlays from the View pop-up menu.

View pop-up menu Angle number 1 09 10 16.14 2 09 10 16.14 Concert_1_3 Concert_2_3 3 09 10 16.14 4 09 10 16.14 Concert_3_3 Concert_4_3 Angle timecode Angle name

Multiclip overlays are only visible during scrubbing, not during playback.

Note: Title safe and standard timecode overlays are not available when a multiclip is open in the Viewer.

After you create a multiclip, you can rearrange the order of the angles in the Viewer. You can also delete angles you don't want. You can undo any of these operations.

To move an angle to a different position in a multiclip:

1 Double-click a multiclip in the Browser or Timeline to open it in the Viewer.
2 Command-click the angle you want to move and drag it over an existing angle.
The other angles shift position to make room for the angle you are moving.

Viewer: Concert_1.3 in Concert 00:04:24.02 59% 09:10:16:14

3 Release the mouse button.

The moved angle is dropped into its new position and the other angles shift to new positions. All of the angle numbers change accordingly.

1 Double-click a multiclip in the Browser or Timeline to open it in the Viewer.
2 Command-click the angle you want to delete and drag it outside of the Viewer, then release the mouse button.
The dragged angle is deleted from the multiclip, and the other angles shift position to fill in the empty space.

Note: The active angle cannot be deleted.

Once you create a multiclip, you can add new angles or replace existing ones. If you change your mind, you can undo these operations.

1 Double-click a multiclip in the Browser or Timeline to open it in the Viewer.
2 Drag a clip from the Browser or Timeline to one of the multiclip angles displayed in the Viewer.
3 Continue to hold down the mouse button until the Insert New Angle and Overwrite Angle overlays appear in the Viewer.

View: Concert_1.1 in Concert Video Stereo (a1x2) Filters Motion 09 04 24.02 58% 09 09 10.00 Insert New Angle Concrt_1.2 Overwrite Angle

Drag a clip to an angle, then choose Insert New Angle.

Note: If you move the pointer over the active angle, only the Insert New Angle overlay appears.

4 Move the pointer over the Insert New Angle overlay, then release the mouse button.

5 The dragged clip becomes a new angle in the multiclip, and all subsequent angle numbers are incremented by one.

Tip: You can add more than one angle to a multiclip at once by dragging more than one clip to the Viewer.

To overwrite an existing multiclip angle with a different clip:

1 Double-click a multiclip in the Browser or Timeline to open it in the Viewer.
2 Drag a clip from the Browser or Timeline to the multiclip angle you want to replace in the Viewer.
3 Continue to hold down the mouse button until the Insert New Angle and Overwrite Angle overlays appear in the Viewer.
4 Move the pointer over the Overwrite Angle overlay, then release the mouse button.

Video Stereo (A162) Filters Motion 00:04:24.02 59% 09:09:10:00 Insert New Angle Overwrite Angle Concert_1_2

Drag a clip to an angle, then choose Overwrite Angle.

The dragged clip replaces the angle in the multiclip.

Note: You can't overwrite the active angle.

If you want to adjust the starting time of a multiclip angle relative to all the other angles, you can scrub through a single angle in the Viewer to resynchronize it.

1 Double-click a multiclip in the Browser or Timeline to open it in the Viewer.
2 Hold down the Control and Shift keys, then click the angle you want to adjust and drag left or right.

Press Control and Shift while dragging over an angle in the Viewer.

Video Stereo (a162) Filters Motion 00:04:24:19 59% 09:09:10:07 Monitor 13 Monitor 13

The pointer becomes the Scrub tool. As you drag to the left or right, the video frames jog backward or forward. A box with a positive or negative offset value also appears, showing the number of frames you are adjusting this angle's starting point relative to the others.

The angle is now resynchronized relative to the other angles in the multiclip. If you change your mind, you can undo by pressing Command-Z.

Unlike traditional film and video editing, where each edit can be deliberated for as long as necessary, live events like broadcast news and sports are edited in real time. For live events, multiple cameras are connected to a single video switcher, which allows the director (or technical director) to cut between camera angles, making instantaneous editing decisions. The director usually watches all of the camera angles on a grid of monitors, which helps when deciding which angle to switch to.

A multiclip behaves a lot like a video switcher during a live video event. A multiclip contains multiple camera angles or other video sources, synchronized together. During playback in the Timeline, you can switch or cut between these angles in real time, just as you would with a video switcher during a live event. You can watch all the angles simultaneously in the Viewer, so you can choose which angle you want to switch to next. You can also switch or cut between angles when your sequence isn't playing back.

To make editing more efficient, you can assign multiclip commands to custom keyboard shortcuts in the Keyboard Layout tool. You can also add multiclip shortcut buttons to the button bars in the Viewer, Canvas, Timeline, and so on.

You can assign the following multiclip commands to keyboard shortcuts or button bars:

Switch Video to Angles 1–16
Switch Video to Previous or Next Angle
Switch Audio to Angles 1–16
Switch Audio to Previous or Next Angle
Cut Video to Angles 1–16
Cut Audio to Angles 1–16
Switch Video with Effects to Angles 1–16
Switch Video with Effects to Previous or Next Angle
Switch Audio with Effects to Angles 1–16
Switch Audio with Effects to Previous or Next Angle

Tip: For a complete list of multiclip commands, choose Tools > Button List, then click the disclosure triangle next to "Multiclip."

You can set any keyboard shortcuts you want for the multiclip commands in Final Cut Pro. By default, most multiclip commands use the keys of the number pad with modifier keys to switch and cut between multiclip angles. For more information on setting keyboard shortcuts, see Volume I, Chapter 10, "Customizing the Interface."

Final Cut Pro also comes with a preinstalled keyboard layout and button bars for multicamera editing. These are usually sufficient for most multiclip editing.

To load the built-in keyboard layout for multiclip (multicamera) editing:

- Choose Tools > Keyboard Layout > Multicamera Editing.

To load the built-in button bars for multiclip editing:

- Choose Tools > Button Bars > Multiclip.

Note: All multiclip keyboard shortcuts and shortcut buttons can be used during playback or scrubbing.

You can edit with multiclips in the same way you edit with other clips. You can drag a multiclip from the Browser or Viewer into the Timeline, or you can drag the multiclip to a section of the Canvas Edit Overlay.

Note: Because clicking in the Viewer selects multiclip angles, you must hold down the Option key if you want to drag a multiclip from the Viewer to the Timeline or Canvas to make an edit.

To edit a multiclip from the Viewer to the Timeline or Canvas:

1 Double-click a multiclip in the Browser to open it in the Viewer.
2 Set In and Out points for the multiclip in the Viewer.
3 Hold down the Option key while dragging from the Viewer to the Timeline or the Canvas Edit Overlay.

When you work with multiclips in Final Cut Pro, switching and cutting have distinct meanings:

- Switching: This means changing the active angle of a multiclip without creating a cut. You can switch the active angle of a multiclip in the Viewer or the Timeline.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Switching and Cutting Between Angles - 1
Before the switch, the active multiclip angle is 1.
After the switch, the active multiclip angle is 4.

- Cutting: Like switching, cutting changes the active angle of a multiclip, but an edit is added to the multiclip at the moment you change the active angle. You can see the results of cutting in the Timeline. When you cut from one angle to another, the result is two multiclips in the Timeline: one before the cut point and one after.

Before the cut, the active multiclip angle is 1.

Timeline: Concert sequence in Concert RT 01:01:45:12 00:00 01:01:30:00 01:03:00:00 01:0 v1 V1 Concert_1.2 [1]-Multiclip 1 a1 A1 Concert_1.2 [1]-Multiclip 1 a2 A2 Concert_1.2 [1]-Multiclip 1 A3 Concert_1. Concert_1.

You can switch the active angle for a multiclip at any time, whether you are organizing multiclips in the Viewer or playing multiclips in the Timeline. Using the Multiclip Playback option, you can even switch angles while your multiclips play in real time.

1 Double-click a multiclip in the Browser or Timeline to open it in the Viewer.
2 Do one of the following:

Click an angle in the Viewer to make it active.
Choose a video or audio angle from the Playhead Sync pop-up menu in the Viewer.
Press the assigned shortcut key to switch to the angle you want to make the active angle. For more information about using keyboard shortcuts for multiclip editing, see "Using Keyboard Shortcuts and Shortcut Buttons for Multiclip Editing" on page 273.

■ Control-click a multiclip in the Timeline, choose Active Angle from the shortcut menu, then choose an angle from the submenu.

- When the playhead is over the multiclip whose angle you want to switch, press a keyboard shortcut assigned to the Switch Video to Angle N command, where N is the angle number you want to switch to.

If the Multiclip Playback option is enabled in the Real-Time Effects (RT) pop-up menu in the Timeline, you can switch angles in real time while your sequence plays back. For more information, see "Editing in Multiclip Playback Mode" on page 281.

Instead of simply switching the active angle of a multiclip in the Timeline, you can create a cut in a multiclip whenever you change angles. You can even add edits to multiclips during playback, allowing you to do real-time editing.

1 In the Browser, double-click a sequence containing multiclips to open it in the Timeline and Canvas.
2 Before editing, assign keyboard shortcuts to the Cut Video to Angle N commands, or add the corresponding shortcut buttons to the button bar in the Timeline.

Cut Video to Angle 1-4 buttons 01:04:00:08 01:06:00:12

For more information about assigning keyboard shortcuts to commands or adding shortcut buttons to the button bar, see Volume I, Chapter 10, "Customizing the Interface."

3 Press a shortcut key or click a button in the button bar that corresponds to the angle you want to cut to.

An edit is made to the multiclip at the current playhead location, separating it into two multiclips. If you cut to the angle that was already active, a through edit is created.

If the Multiclip Playback option is enabled in the RT pop-up menu in the Timeline, you can perform the same steps to cut in real time. For more information, see "Editing in Multiclip Playback Mode" on page 281.

1 In the Browser, double-click a sequence containing multiclips to open it in the Timeline and Canvas.

2 Do the following:

Enable the Multiclip Playback option in the RT pop-up menu in the Timeline.
In the Canvas or Viewer, choose the Open option from the Playhead Sync pop-up menu.

3 Press the Space bar to play the sequence.

The sequence begins playing back, with all the angles in the Viewer playing simultaneously and the active angle playing back in the Canvas.

4 In the Viewer, click the angle that you want to cut to.

The angle you click becomes the active angle. A temporary marker is placed in the Timeline at the cut point, and the new angle now plays in the Canvas.

5 If you want, continue adding cuts by clicking different angles in the Viewer.
6 Press the Space bar to stop playback.

When playback stops, the cuts you made are added to the multiclip.

By default, when you switch or cut angles in a multiclip, both video and audio items of a multiclip change together. Final Cut Pro allows you to change the active video and audio items of a multiclip independently. This is helpful when you want to switch or cut to a different video angle without changing the audio, or vice versa. For example, you may need to cut video between four different camera angles, but keep dialogue audio from angle 4 playing throughout. In this case, you need to tell Final Cut Pro to switch only the video item, not the video and audio items together.

Note: A multiclip can have one active video item and up to 24 active audio items at a time.

Individual audio items Video item Viewer: Concert Sing 4 in Concert Video Mono (a1) Mono (a2) Mono (a3) Mono (a4) Filters Motion 00:03:51:11 09:05:07:03 Video item

When you switch video or audio independently, the results differ depending on whether the multiclip in the Viewer is opened from the Browser or from a sequence. This is because switching video and audio independently affects the linking relationships between video and audio items.

In a Browser clip, all items are always linked. Therefore, when you open a Browser multiclip in the Viewer, all of the active audio items of the multiclip must come from the same angle. Although you can switch video and audio items separately in a Browser multiclip, you can't switch individual audio items. For example, suppose you have a 16-angle multiclip with four audio items. If you try to switch only audio item 4 to the audio in angle 2, all four audio items switch to the audio items in angle 2.
In a sequence multiclip, you can change each audio item independently. For example, if you have a sequence multiclip with four audio items open in the Viewer, you can independently cut to a new angle for audio item 4 without changing the angles for audio items 1–3.

However, independently switching video or audio angles breaks linking relationships between a multiclip's clip items in the Timeline. After you perform the switch, only the audio item whose angle you switched remains linked to the video item.

- Choose View > Multiclip Active Tracks, then select one of the following options:

• Video + Audio: Both video and audio change at the same time.
• Video: Only video changes.
• Audio: The specified audio items change:

• All: All audio items change at once.
- A1+A2: Audio items 1 and 2 change simultaneously.
- A3+A4: Audio items 3 and 4 change simultaneously.
• A1: Only audio item 1 changes.
• A2: Only audio item 2 changes.
- A_N : Only audio item N changes.

Note: The same menu items are available in the Playhead Sync pop-up menu in the Viewer.

To switch only the video of the active multiclip angle in the Viewer:

1 Double-click a multiclip in the Browser or Timeline to open it in the Viewer.
2 Choose View > Multiclip Active Tracks > Video.
You can also choose this option from the Playhead Sync pop-up menu in the Viewer.

3 Click an angle to make it active.

A blue outline highlights the active video angle.

To switch only the audio of the active multiclip angle in the Viewer:

1 Double-click a multiclip in the Browser or Timeline to open it in the Viewer.
2 Choose View > Multiclip Active Tracks > Audio.
You can also choose this option from the Playhead Sync pop-up menu in the Viewer.

3 Click an angle to make it active.

A green outline highlights the active audio angle.

Important: Final Cut Pro always remembers the last track switching mode you used, so make sure you check this before you begin editing your multiclips.

The Multiclip Playback option allows you to switch and cut between multiclip angles in real time. Multiclip Playback enables the following features:

In the Canvas, you see an angle as soon as you switch or cut to it.
In the Viewer, you see all of a multiclip's angles playing simultaneously.

If you enable the Open option in the Playhead Sync pop-up menu (in the Canvas or Viewer), you can watch all of your multiclip angles playing simultaneously in the Viewer while also seeing the results of switching and cutting in the Canvas, all in real time. When you want to cut to a new angle, you simply click the angle in the Viewer. The active angle switches to the angle you clicked, and a cut is added to your multiclip in the sequence. To switch angles in real time, you can use assigned keyboard shortcuts or shortcut buttons in the button bar.

Note: If the Multiclip Playback option is not enabled, you can still switch and cut during playback, but the angle in the Canvas is not updated until playback stops. Also, multiclip angles are not played simultaneously in the Viewer. Instead, only the active angle is played.

To set up Final Cut Pro to edit multiclips in real time, choose the following options:

Multiclip Playback option: Enable this option in the Real-Time Effects (RT) pop-up menu in the Timeline so that all multiclip angles play in real time in the Viewer. This option and the Open playhead sync option allow you to view all of your multiclip angles in real time while you play your sequence.
Open playhead sync option: Choose the Open option from the Playhead Sync pop-up menu in the Viewer or Canvas. This option automatically opens the multiclip beneath the Timeline playhead in the Viewer, so you can view all of its angles at once.
View options in the Viewer: Choose the number of multiclip angles you want to display in the Viewer from the View pop-up menu.

1 Open a sequence that contains multiclips.
2 Choose Multiclip Playback from the RT pop-up menu in the Timeline.
You can also enable the Multiclip Playback option by choosing
Final Cut Pro > System Settings, clicking the Playback Control tab, and then enabling the Multiclip Playback option.

When the Multiclip Playback option is enabled, Final Cut Pro plays multiple media files from disk at once. To improve playback performance, you can do the following:

- Use the fastest scratch disk available for your system.

The speed of your scratch disk and the data rate of your media files limit the number of streams you can play back in real time.

- Reduce real-time playback quality in the Canvas.

You can reduce playback quality in the Canvas to improve multiclip playback performance. You can reduce both video quality and frame rate. For more information about changing real-time playback settings, see Volume III, Chapter 23, "Using RT Extreme."

Note: Each angle of a multiclip in the Viewer uses the quality selected in the RT pop-up menu in the Timeline.

Choose dynamic real-time playback options from the RT pop-up menu. For more information about changing real-time playback settings, see Volume III, Chapter 23, "Using RT Extreme."
Disable the Show Source Angle Effects option in the View pop-up menu in the Viewer.

When the Multiclip Playback option is enabled, you can choose whether the Viewer or the Canvas is displayed on an external video monitor.

- Choose View > Show Multiclip Angles, so that there's a checkmark next to it.

Note: If no sequence is open, choosing the Show Multiclip Angles option has no effect. In this case, you always see the Viewer on the external video monitor.

Individual angle's clips can have filters, motion parameters, and speed adjustments applied. However, effects cannot be applied globally to a multiclip. For example, you can create a multiclip in which each angle's clip has an individual Color Corrector filter applied, but the multiclip itself cannot have a Color Corrector filter applied. The Filters and Motion tabs of a multiclip display filters and motion parameters for the active angle's clip, not for the entire multiclip.

When you create a multiclip, any source clips that have effects applied also have effects applied within the multiclip. For example, if you create a multiclip in which one of the selected clips has a Gaussian Blur filter applied, that angle in the resulting multiclip also has a Gaussian Blur filter.

You can add video and audio filters, motion, and speed settings to a multiclip just as you would to any other clip. However, only the multiclip's active angle is affected.

Important: Speed changes to an angle can change the duration of a multiclip.

To apply a video or audio filter to the active multiclip angle in the Viewer:

1 Double-click a multiclip in the Browser or Timeline to open it in the Viewer.
2 Drag a filter from the Effects tab of the Browser to the Viewer, or choose a filter from the Effects menu.

The filter is applied to the active angle.

If angles in your multiclip have filters applied, you can choose whether or not you see the filters applied in the Viewer.

To see filters rendered to multiclip angles in the Viewer:

- Choose Render Filters in Multiclip Display from the View pop-up menu.

Viewer: Concert 1.3 in Concert Video Stereo (a122) Filters Motion 00:04:24.02 5% 09:07:57.22 Angle with effects applied

To apply a video or audio filter to the active multiclip angle in the Timeline:

1 Drag a video or audio filter from the Effects tab of the Browser to the multiclip in the Timeline.

An overlay appears with two options.

2 While continuing to hold down the mouse button, do one of the following:

To permanently apply the filter to the active angle: Drag the pointer over the Share with Active Angle overlay. This permanently applies the filter to the active angle, even if you switch or cut to another angle.
To apply the filter to the currently active angle: Drag the pointer over the Apply to Clip Only overlay. This option applies a filter to the active angle, but the filter is not retained unless you use the Switch with Effects commands when switching to other angles.

If you switch to a new multiclip angle, any filters, motion, or speed settings that you added to the previously active angle are not maintained (unless you applied the effect using the Share with Active Angle overlay). When you switch back to the previously active angle, the effects are no longer applied. However, you can choose to switch to a new angle and transfer the effects that were applied to the last active angle. This is called switching with effects.

Switching with effects allows you to maintain any filters, motion, and speed parameters you have applied.

Note: Audio levels and pan settings are not maintained when you switch angles with effects.

To switch to a new video angle while maintaining the effects of the active angle:

- Press the keyboard shortcut or click the shortcut button assigned to the Switch Video with Effects to Angle N command, where N is the video angle you want to switch to.

For more information about assigning keyboard shortcuts for multiclip editing, see "Using Keyboard Shortcuts and Shortcut Buttons for Multiclip Editing" on page 273.

To switch to a new audio angle while maintaining the effects of the active angle:

- Press the keyboard shortcut or click the shortcut button assigned to the Switch Audio with Effects to Angle N command, where N is the audio angle you want to switch to.

Note: Effects will not be updated for Switch with Effects operations until playback has stopped.

Once you have made all of your edits, you can prevent switching of angles by collapsing a multiclip down to its active angle. When you collapse a multiclip, it is replaced by the active angle of the multiclip. This is useful when you want to send a sequence to a color correctionist or effects artist, and you want them to focus only on the angles you chose during editing. Collapsing multiclips also improves performance because less video is streaming from disk.

Collapsing a multiclip is not permanent, which means that you can expand the active angle at any time to return to the full multiclip, even after you close and reopen a project.

1 Select the multiclips you want to collapse in the Timeline.
2 Do one of the following:

Choose Modify > Collapse Multiclip(s).
Control-click one of the selected multiclips in the Timeline, then choose Collapse Multiclip(s) from the shortcut menu.

The selected multiclips are collapsed to the clips of their active angles.

1 Select the multiclips you want to expand in the Timeline.
2 Do one of the following:

Choose Modify > Uncollapse Multiclip(s).
Control-click one of the selected multiclips in the Timeline, then choose Uncollapse Multiclip(s) from the shortcut menu.

The selected multiclips are expanded to the clips of their active angles.

In a multiclip, each angle's clip is an affiliate of the clip used to create the multiclip. The master clip of the active angle's clip is also the master clip of the multiclip. Therefore, when you reveal a multiclip's master clip, you are revealing the master clip of the active angle's clip. If you change the name of a master clip, the names of the affiliate clips within any multiclips also change.

A multiclip in the Timeline shares its name with the Browser multiclip from which it was created. If you change the multiclip name in the Browser, the names of all instances of that multiclip in sequences are also changed.

Note: Each multiclip angle's clip has its own master or affiliate clip status. If, after creating a multiclip, you delete the master clips used to create the multiclip, the clips within the multiclip become master clips.

To reveal the master clip for the active multiclip angle:

1 Select the multiclip in the Timeline or Browser, or place the Timeline playhead over the multiclip.
2 Choose View > Reveal Master Clip (or press Shift-F).

The master clip for the active angle's clip is selected in the Browser. If this master clip happens to be within a multiclip, the multiclip is selected.

The match frame commands in Final Cut Pro allow you to match a frame of a clip in the Canvas or Viewer with the exact same frame of the clip's master or affiliate clip. This works in two ways, depending on whether you are working in the Canvas or the Viewer.

In the Canvas: The master clip of the clip displayed in the Canvas is opened in the Viewer, and the Viewer playhead jumps to the frame shown in the Canvas.
In the Viewer: If the current sequence contains an affiliate clip of the clip in the Viewer, the Canvas/Timeline playhead jumps to the frame shown in the Viewer.

When you work with multiclips, you can choose to match to the original Browser multiclip, or to the master clip of the multiclip's active angle.

To match the active multiclip angle in the Canvas to its master clip:

1 Move the playhead to a specific frame of the multiclip in the Timeline or Canvas.
2 Choose View > Match Frame > Master Clip (or press F).

The master clip of the multiclip's active angle is opened in the Viewer to the same frame as the active angle of the multiclip in the Canvas. This is a convenient way to get back to an angle's master clip from within a multiclip.

To match the active multiclip angle in the Canvas to its associated multiclip in the Browser:

1 Select the multiclip in the Timeline, or place the Timeline playhead over the multiclip.
2 Choose View > Match Frame > Multiclip Angle.

The multiclip in the Browser is opened in the Viewer to the same multiclip frame that appears in the Canvas, with the active angle highlighted.

To match the active multiclip angle in the Viewer to its associated multiclip in the Timeline:

1 Double-click a multiclip in the Browser to open it in the Viewer.
2 Choose View > Match Frame > Multiclip Angle.

If the multiclip in the Viewer exists in the Timeline, and the active angle in the Viewer is also active in the Timeline, the Timeline playhead jumps to the frame that is displayed in the Viewer.

Multiclips are a unique aspect of Final Cut Pro, so you need to be aware of how Final Cut Pro translates multiclips during media management or when exporting to a project interchange file such as an EDL.

The Media Manager has an option to include all multiclip angles, so the media file for every angle is processed. If you deselect this option, only the media file of the active angle is processed. With multiclip sequences that use a lot of angles, deselecting this option can significantly reduce the amount of media processed. By default, this option is not selected, so only the media file for the active multiclip angle is processed.

Project: ✓ Duplicate selected clips and place into a new project. ✓ Include nonactive multiclip angles.

For more information about using the Media Manager, see Volume IV, Chapter 7, "Overview of the Media Manager."

When a media file for a multiclip angle is offline, Final Cut Pro indicates that the entire multiclip is offline (a red slash appears through the icon). When you view a multiclip in the Viewer, offline angles are indicated by a "Media Offline" frame.

Reconnecting media files for angles in a multiclip is the same as reconnecting media files for other clips. When you reconnect media files to multiclip angles, you can reconnect angles that are offline, online, or both.

When you batch capture a multiclip, Final Cut Pro captures the media files for all angles.

Good audio edits are usually subtle and go unnoticed by the listening audience. After you assemble your video and audio, you can edit your audio independently in the Timeline.

This chapter covers the following:

• The Goals of Audio Editing (p. 289)
• Using Waveform Displays to Help You Edit Audio (p. 291)
- Learning About the Audio Controls in the Viewer (p. 292)
• Editing Audio in the Viewer (p. 295)
• Editing Audio in the Timeline (p. 304)
- Creating or Separating Stereo Pairs (p. 309)
• Working With Audio at the Subframe Level (p. 311)
• Examples of Ways to Easily Edit Audio (p. 313)

Note: For details about audio mixing, see Volume III, Chapter 1, "Overview of Audio Mixing."

Most viewers are quite good at distinguishing audio changes from one clip to the next, as well as incorrect audio-video synchronization. As you work on refining the audio in your project, your edits will focus on eliminating these major distractions to the audience. In particular, keep in mind three important goals:

Editing audio clips in a sequence mainly involves finding good edit points that sound natural. Audio edit points are often more effective when they are offset from the corresponding video edits. Although you may set your initial audio and video edit points in the same place to create a quick rough cut, editing your audio more finely may involve changing many of your edit points to split edits. Some of those split edits may have only a few frames offset between the audio and video edit points, but those frames will turn an otherwise obvious cut into a much smoother transition.

Besides making clean-sounding cuts, there are other reasons to edit the audio in your sequence separately from the video. You can edit mistakes in dialogue, adjust the sync of off-camera or rerecorded dialogue, or even replace the entire audio of a clip with another take of the same audio.

For more information, see "Split Edits" on page 237.

As you edit your audio, you may sometimes find it necessary to adjust the sync relationship between video and audio clip items. Audiences are quick to notice when audio is out of sync with the picture, so you need to be extra cautious when you're editing. Here's a good rule of thumb: If you're finding an audio-video sync issue distracting, your audience probably will too. In this case, you should make adjustments.

Final Cut Pro keeps track of the sync between video and audio clip items when they come from the same source media file, or when they have been intentionally linked together. Red out-of-sync indicators on clip items show you exactly how far the items are out of sync. You can establish new sync relationships by selecting the clip items and choosing Modify > Mark in Sync.

For more information about establishing sync between video and audio clip items, see Chapter 14, "Linking and Editing Video and Audio in Sync," on page 219.

All audio has some kind of background noise, often referred to as ambience or room tone. Sometimes you'll find that the audio from the different shots you're using in the same sequence has differences in the background ambience. For example, if you shoot a conversation in a city park, and the shoot lasts all day, you may notice that some shots have more traffic noise in the background because of rush hour. Assuming you don't want to rerecord the dialogue for the whole scene, you'll need to edit more "rush hour" background noise into the clips that don't have any so that all the clips sound the same within the same two-minute scene. Otherwise, the traffic noise in the background will pop in and out from one shot to the next, which will call attention to your edits and distract the viewer. Usually, the shot with the highest ambient background noise level dictates the ambient noise level for the entire scene.

As you work in Final Cut Pro, waveform displays can be very useful for navigating through parts of your audio and seeing at a glance how the levels in a track indicate things like the words and pauses in dialogue and the beats in a piece of music.

Waveforms are displayed in the audio tabs of the Viewer.

Viewer: Music 3 in Dining Stereo (a1a2) Filters 00:00:41:26 Level 0 dB Pan -1 Waveforms for a stereo pair of audio items

You can also view waveforms in the Timeline, but you need to explicitly turn them on (see "Displaying Waveforms in the Timeline" on page 304).

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:00:00 V1 a1 A1 a2 A2 A3 Music 3 Music 3 Music 3

Viewing waveforms should not take precedence over listening to audio tracks during playback. When you're making editorial decisions, the waveform display is no substitute for your own ear.

For example, even though a particular frame of a waveform may look like a good place to cut into a drumbeat or a spoken word, the only way you'll know for sure is to play through the clip and listen carefully. Setting your edit points even a few frames too early or too late can make a big difference, and it's time-consuming to zoom in and out of a waveform display repeatedly to see a high level of detail.

Use the J, K, and L keys to shuttle through your clips, and learn to listen for the edit points you want. Once you have set In and Out points, you can use the Play In to Out (Shift-) and Play to Out (Shift-P) commands to preview your edits. As you do this, you'll find yourself trimming one or two frames at a time and then setting new edit points, repeating the process until you've found the perfect audio editing points.

When you click an audio tab in the Viewer, the controls at the bottom of the window are the same as those in the Video tab. These controls allow you to navigate through your clip, set In and Out points and markers, create split edits, and so on. The In and Out points that you see in an audio tab are the same as the In and Out points shown in the Video tab. Similarly, the two timecode fields in the top area of the window are the same as those in the Video tab. For more information on those controls and fields, see Volume I, Chapter 6, "Viewer Basics."

Level Keyframe buttons Reset button Level slider adjusts volume. Pan slider adjusts stereo sound placement. Waveform display area Zoom control Video: Dining room serving salad WS in Dining 00:01:00:03 Level 48 Pan 0 03:08:46:13 03:08:52:13 Drag hand Ruler Pan Keyframe buttons Pan overlay line Level overlay line Zoom slider

The following controls are found only in audio tabs:

Waveform display area: Displays a graphical representation of the audio clip, showing the sample values of your audio over time. If you zoom in on the waveform display, you can see progressively more detail in your waveform. Clicking anywhere in the waveform area moves the playhead to that frame, and dragging scrubs through the clip.
Pan overlay line: Drag this line up or down to change the pan for this clip. If you add keyframes to the overlay, you can create changes in pan over time.
Level overlay line: Drag this line up or down to change the sound level. If you add keyframes to the overlay, you can create changes in level over time.

- Level slider: This slider adjusts the amplitude, or volume, of the currently selected audio clip between +12 and -inf dB. As you drag the slider, the number in the dB field and the level overlay line are both updated.

You can also adjust the volume by typing a number in the dB field to the right of the Level slider. The number you enter can include a decimal value, such as 6.23.

If there are no level keyframes in the current clip, adjusting the Level slider affects the level of the entire clip. If there are level keyframes, using this slider will either:

Adjust the level of a keyframe at the current position of the playhead.
Add a new keyframe to the level overlay and adjust it to the new level.

A change in level between any two keyframes appears as a slope on the level overlay line in the Audio tab of the Viewer. Changes to the level overlay in the Viewer are mirrored by the level overlay on that clip in the Timeline.

Tip: Hold down the Command key while dragging the Level slider to adjust the audio level with more precision.

Level Keyframe button: The keyframe button to the right of the Level slider places a keyframe at the current playhead location on the level overlay. You can use keyframes to adjust the audio level of your clip over time.
Level keyframe navigation buttons: These buttons, to the left and right of the Level Keyframe button, allow you to move the playhead forward or backward from one keyframe on the level overlay to the next. You can also press Shift-K or Option-K, respectively.
Pan slider: This slider works in two ways, depending on what kind of audio you've opened in the Viewer:
If the clip items in the audio tab are a stereo pair, this slider simultaneously adjusts the left and right stereo placement of both tracks. The default setting of -1 sends the left track to the left channel output and the right track to the right channel output. A setting of 0 outputs the left and right tracks equally to both speakers, essentially creating a mono mix. A setting of +1 swaps the channels, outputting the left track to the right output channel and the right track to the left output channel.
If the clip items in an audio tab are single, mono tracks, this slider lets you pan the audio track in the current audio tab between the left and right output channels.

As with the Level slider, if there are no pan keyframes in the current clip, adjusting the Pan slider affects the pan of the entire clip. If there are pan keyframes, using this slider will either:

Adjust the pan of a keyframe at the current position of the playhead.
Add a new keyframe to the pan overlay and adjust it between the left and right output channels.

A change in pan settings between any two keyframes appears as a slope on the pan overlay in the audio tab of the Viewer.

Pan Keyframe button: The keyframe button to the right of the Pan slider places a keyframe at the current playhead location on the pan overlay. You can add keyframes to change pan settings over time.
Pan keyframe navigation buttons: These buttons, to the left and right of the Pan Keyframe button, allow you to move the playhead forward or backward from one keyframe on the pan overlay to the next. The left button moves the playhead to the next keyframe to the left of the playhead's current position, and the right button moves the playhead to the next keyframe to the right.
Reset button: This button deletes all marked keyframes on both the level overlay and the pan overlay of the currently selected audio track, and resets the level and pan values to their original captured states (0 dB for the audio level, and -1 for the pan level).
Drag hand: Use this to drag the current audio clip to the Canvas, the Timeline, or the Browser. This control is necessary because clicking the waveform itself moves the playhead to the frame on which you clicked.
Ruler: When you're looking at the contents of an audio tab in the Viewer, you'll see two playheads, both of which are locked together. The normal Viewer playhead is located in the scrubber bar below the waveform display area, but there's also a second playhead within the waveform display area.

The ruler above the waveform display area shows the currently displayed range of your clip. If you zoom all the way out (press Shift-Z), this ruler shows the clip from its start point to its end point, and the movement of the Viewer playhead in the scrubber bar matches that of the playhead in the waveform display area.

The playhead in the waveform display area lets you move around in an audio clip with more precision, using the waveform itself for reference as you perform edits or set keyframes for level and pan (down to 1/100th of a frame, if necessary). Clicking anywhere on the ruler or in the waveform display area moves the playhead to that frame in your audio clip. You can also drag the playhead to scrub through the clip, or shuttle through the clip using the shuttle control or the J, K, and L keys. If you hold down the Shift key while dragging the playhead in the waveform display area, you can move the playhead in increments of 1/100th of a frame, which lets you trim edits at a subframe level.

The playhead in the scrubber bar works the same way it does in the Video tab of the Viewer. The whole length of the scrubber bar represents the entire length of the audio clip opened in the Viewer, and clicking or dragging the playhead in the scrubber bar immediately takes you to that part of your clip.

The markers and In and Out points for your clip also appear in the ruler.

- Zoom control: Using this control, you can expand or contract the ruler, decreasing or increasing the amount of the clip's waveform that is displayed.

- Zoom slider: This slider lets you zoom in and out of the waveform displayed by dragging the thumb tabs on either side, which adjusts both thumb tabs and leaves the visible area of the keyframe graph centered. Pressing the Shift key and dragging one of the thumb tabs zooms in or out of the waveform, locking the opposite thumb tab and moving the visible area of the waveform in the direction in which you're dragging.

More detailed instructions on using these controls and adjusting levels and pan are described in Volume III, Chapter 7, "Mixing Audio in the Timeline and Viewer."

You can use the Viewer's audio tabs to edit the audio of a clip opened from the Browser or Timeline. The audio tabs let you view audio waveforms, set In and Out points, markers, and keyframes, and change volume levels and stereo pan settings.

Many clips contain both video and audio items. To look at an audio clip item, you need to open the clip in the Viewer and then click one of the audio tabs.

1 Do one of the following:

Drag the clip to the Viewer.
Double-click the clip in the Browser.
Select the clip and press the Return key.

2 If the clip contains both video and audio items, click one of the audio tabs (labeled Mono or Stereo, as described next) in the Viewer to see the waveform display.

1 Do one of the following:

Double-click an audio clip item in your sequence.
If the audio clip item is linked to other items, all of the clip items are opened in the Viewer in separate tabs. If the audio clip item is part of a stereo pair, the stereo clip item appears in a Stereo tab in the Viewer. Otherwise, it appears in a Mono tab.
Drag a clip item from your sequence to the Viewer.
Move the Canvas or Timeline playhead over the clip item you want to open, then press the Return key.

Note: Make sure the track that contains the clip item is the lowest-numbered track with Auto Select enabled.

2 If the clip contains both video and audio items, click one of the audio tabs (labeled Mono or Stereo, as described next) in the Viewer to see the waveform display.

Clips in Final Cut Pro can have up to 24 audio items. Clips with multiple audio items have a separate tab for each mono audio item or pair of stereo audio items in the clip.

The way audio clips appear in the Viewer depends on whether they're mono or stereo.

- If audio clip items are mono, they're represented by individual mono tabs in the Viewer, called Mono (a1), Mono (a2), and so on. Each mono tab displays the waveform for one clip item, and levels applied to one are completely independent of any other. Mono clip items are also referred to as discrete audio.

Discrete mono audio is useful when you recorded to separate channels with independent microphones. (For example, separate lavalier and boom microphones are often used during interviews to capture the same voice two different ways—providing a backup audio track in case one microphone records poorly.) Using discrete audio allows you to adjust levels and pan settings independently for each audio clip item. You can also trim the In and Out points of each audio item separately in the Timeline.

Mono (a1) and (a2) tabs Viewer: Dining room serving salad WS from Dining sequence Video Mono (a1) Mono (a2) Filters Motion 00:01:00:03 03:09:16:14 Level 0 dB Pan 0 13 03:08:52:13 03:08:55:13 03:08:58:13 03:09:01:13

- If two audio clip items are linked as a stereo pair, they're represented in a single Stereo tab that contains the waveforms of that pair's left and right audio channels. Level changes applied to one item are automatically applied to the other. Editing audio as a stereo pair is useful for intrinsically stereo material, such as music mixed in stereo and built-in stereo camcorder audio.

Stereo audio tab Viewer: Music 3 from Dining sequence Stereo (a1a2) Filters 00:00:41:20 Level 0 dB Pan -1 00:01:36:15 Audio track a1 Audio track a2

Navigating through audio clips in the Viewer is largely the same as navigating through video clips in the Video tab. There are some additional features, however, that you should be aware of.

When you navigate through a clip in the Video tab of the Viewer, you only see the frame at the location of the playhead. Zooming in to this frame enlarges the visual image, but doesn't change your position in time. Waveforms in an audio tab work differently. Since they represent your entire audio clip, you can navigate through a waveform as you would a clip in the Timeline. As you move through the waveform, you'll notice that the playhead in the scrubber bar under the waveform display area moves in conjunction with the playhead in the waveform area.

The scrubber bar in the Viewer always represents the entire duration of the clip in the Viewer. The ruler above the waveform display area, on the other hand, is not so constrained. Using the Zoom control and the Zoom slider at the bottom of the waveform display area, you can zoom in and out of the waveform display area in the Viewer. This expands and contracts the audio ruler, allowing you to see more or less detail in an audio clip's waveform. While the smallest unit you can see in the video track of a clip is a single frame, you can see a clip's audio waveform in increments as small as 1/100th of a frame.

Note: While this section covers how to zoom in the audio tabs of the Viewer, you can also use these instructions to zoom in and out of waveform displays of sequence clips in the Timeline.

Zoom control Zoom slider

To zoom in and out of the audio waveform using the Zoom control:

- Click or drag the Zoom control to zoom in or out while keeping the material in the waveform display area centered.

Clicking to the right of the control zooms out to show more of the duration of your clip; clicking to the left zooms in to show more detail.

To zoom in and out of the audio waveform using the Zoom slider, do one of the following:

- Drag the thumb tabs on either side of the Zoom slider to adjust both ends of your view at the same time.

If the playhead is visible, it stays centered during the zoom. If the playhead is not visible, the visible area of the Timeline stays centered.

- Hold down the Shift key while you drag one of the thumb tabs from the selected end of the Zoom slider, while keeping the other thumb tab locked in place.

Zooming in and out of an audio clip's waveform using menu commands or keyboard shortcuts keeps the visible area of the waveform display area centered as you zoom.

To zoom in and out of the audio waveform using keyboard shortcuts or menu commands:

1 Move the playhead to the position in the waveform display area where you want zooming to be centered.

2 Do one of the following:

- To zoom in: Choose View > Zoom In, or press Command-= (equal sign). Pressing Command-+ (plus) repeatedly shows more and more detail, down to the individual frames of your audio clip.

- To zoom out: Choose View > Zoom Out, or press Command-- (minus). Zooming out reduces the amount of detail and shows more of the audio clip's waveform. When the entire clip fits in the waveform display area, zooming out stops.

If you zoom in to the waveform display area, you won't be able to see all of the displayed waveform at once. There are three ways you can navigate through a zoomed-in audio clip:

If you play back your audio clip and then stop playback, the waveform display area shows the section of your audio clip that the playhead moved to.
If you click or drag in the Viewer's scrubber bar, the playhead and view inside the waveform display area match the position where you clicked or dragged.
If you want to move to another portion of the audio clip without moving the playhead, use the Zoom slider.

The length of the scroll bar under the waveform display area represents the total duration of your audio clip.

Note: While this section covers how to scroll through waveform displays in the audio tabs of the Viewer, you can also use these instructions for scrolling through waveform displays of sequence clips in the Timeline.

- Drag the Zoom slider left or right.

The displayed area of the audio waveform moves in the direction you drag.

- Click the scroll arrows at either end of the scroll bar to move the displayed area of the audio waveform incrementally to the left or right.

- Click inside the scroll bar to the left or right of the Zoom slider to move the displayed area of the audio waveform by one length of the Zoom slider's current scale.

- Press the Up Arrow or Down Arrow key to move the visible area of the audio waveform between the beginning, In point, Out point, and end of your clip.

When an audio clip is displayed in the Viewer, you hear a fragmented version of the sound as you drag the playhead (or scrub through the clip). You can drag the playhead in the ruler above the waveform in the Viewer or in the waveform display area to scrub through the clip. This can be extremely useful for quickly navigating through a clip, but will probably not be very helpful for making detailed audio edits.

To hear audio more clearly as you move through it at different speeds, use the J, K, and L keys to play your clip in the Viewer. Unlike the scrubber bar, which skips samples to give the illusion of faster playback at the cost of stuttery-sounding audio, the J, K, and L keys actually shift the pitch of the audio you're playing back, enabling you to hear all the subtle details of the audio at various speeds, both slower and faster than real time.

To learn more about using the J, K, and L keys for scrubbing, see Volume I, Chapter 8, "Navigating and Using Timecode in the Viewer and Canvas."

As you're editing audio, you may find the sound of scrubbing through audio distracting when you move the playhead from one location to another. You can turn off audio scrubbing in the Viewer so that you don't hear any sound as you scrub through a clip.

Note: This control affects audio scrubbing in the Canvas and Timeline, as well as in the Viewer.

To turn audio scrubbing off, do one of the following:

Choose View > Audio Scrubbing, so that there's no checkmark next to it.
Press Shift-S.

You set edit points in the audio tabs of the Viewer in the same way that you set edit points in the Viewer's Video tab. Whether your clips have been opened from the Browser in preparation for editing into a sequence, or opened from a sequence in the Timeline for trimming, edit points work the same way.

Sometimes you want to set the In and Out points of your audio at different spots from those of your video, such as when you cut away from a visual of someone talking to show something else while the talking voice continues on the audio track. This is called a split edit (for more information, see Chapter 15, "Split Edits," on page 237).

To move an audio clip from the Viewer to the Canvas, Timeline, or Browser, use the drag hand at the top of the audio tab. (Clicking the waveform itself moves the playhead to the frame you clicked, and does not select the clip for dragging.)

01:12:35;01 Use the drag hand to move an audio file. 01:12:34;07

You can trim an audio clip to be shorter or longer. Trimming generally refers to precision adjustments, anywhere from one frame to several seconds. For more about techniques for trimming clips in your sequence, see Chapter 19, "Learning About Trimming Clips," on page 345.

Note: If you want to open a sequence audio clip item in the Viewer, independently of its linked video clip item, you need to make sure that linked selection is turned off. For more information, see Chapter 14, "Linking and Editing Video and Audio in Sync," on page 219.

To trim a sequence audio clip item in the Viewer:

1 Disable linked selection by doing one of the following:

If linked selection is on, click the Linked Selection button (or press Shift-L) to turn it off.
Hold down the Option key and click the audio item.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:30:00 01:01:00:00 v1 V1 Dining room serving salad WS Don CU Nancy enters a1 A1 Dining room serving salad WS Don CU Nancy enters a2 A2 Dining room serving salad WS Don CU Nancy enters A3 Music 3 Music 3 Audio selected independently of video

2 Drag the audio item from the sequence to the Viewer.

The audio item opens in the Viewer by itself.

You can also double-click the audio clip item to open it in the Viewer, but you may need to hold down the Option key to make sure that only the audio clip item is selected when you double-click.

The link between the audio and video in your clip has not been broken, but you can now trim the audio independently of the video to which it's linked.

The audio opens in the Viewer by itself.

3 Select the Selection, Ripple, or Roll tool by clicking in the Tool palette, or by using the appropriate keyboard shortcut.
4 Set new In and Out points as you would for any other clip.

Viewer: Dining room serving salad WS from Dining sequence Stereo (ala2) Filters 00:00:28:15 Level 0 dB Pan -1 03:08:45:03 New Out point set

Changes you make to sequence clips in the Viewer are mirrored in the Timeline.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:28:17 00:00 01:00:30:00 01:01:00:00 V1 Dining room serving salad WS Don CU Nancy enters a1 A1 Dining room serving salad WS Don CU Nancy enters a2 A2 Dining room serving salad WS Don CU Nancy enters A3 Music 3 Music 3 The Out point of audio changes to match that in the Viewer. Original Out point

After editing a number of clips into a sequence, you can further trim the audio clips directly in the Timeline. While you can trim audio more precisely in the Viewer, trimming the audio in the Timeline has other advantages:

You can see the audio item you're trimming in relation to the rest of the clips in your sequence.
You can work with multiple clips in your sequence, rather than just one.

To help you work with audio clips in the Timeline more efficiently, you can customize the appearance of audio clips in the Timeline. There are a few ways you can control how audio is displayed in the Timeline. For example, you may want to see audio waveforms in the Timeline, or you may want the audio tracks to appear larger so that you can see more detail, especially for working with audio keyframes.

Final Cut Pro allows you to turn on and off audio waveform display in the Timeline.

To turn on audio waveform display in the Timeline, do one of the following:

Choose Sequence > Settings, click the Timeline Options tab, then select Show Audio Waveforms.
Choose Show Audio Waveforms from the Track Layout pop-up menu in the Timeline.

Click here to access the Track Layout pop-up menu.

■ Press Option-Command-W.

Turning off audio waveforms speeds up the time it takes to redraw the clips in the Timeline, which can improve performance, especially when you are not focused on audio editing. You can turn audio waveforms on and off at any time by pressing Option-Command-W.

01:00 01:00:15:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:45:00 01:01:00:00 01:01:15:00 Nancy greets at door CU Truck drives by front shot Subclip Lola gives coat and tie CU Subclip Waveform on — Music 2 Music 2 Music 2

01:00:01:50:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:45:00 01:01:00:00 01:01:15:00 Nancy greets at door CU Truck drives by front shot Subclip Lola gives coat and tie CU Subclip Music 2 Music 2 Music 2 Waveform off ——

If you want to display waveforms in the Timeline, you may want to show audio level overlays and adjust the track height.

Clip Overlays control Track Height control

Clip Overlays control: You can display or hide clip overlays at any time by clicking the Clip Overlays control at the bottom of the Timeline window. Audio level overlays appear as thin pink lines that indicate the sound level of each audio clip item. Any keyframes added to the levels will appear as handles directly on top of the overlay. For more information on adjusting audio levels using overlays, see Volume III, Chapter 7, "Mixing Audio in the Timeline and Viewer."
Track Height control: You can click the Track Height control to switch between four track display sizes—Reduced, Small, Medium, and Large. The current setting is highlighted in blue and has a small dot in the center.

Note: When the track size is set to Reduced, thumbnails and audio waveforms are not displayed.

For more information about Timeline display options, see Volume I, Chapter 9, "Timeline Basics."

There are several ways you can zoom in and out of waveform displays in the Timeline. Make sure you have waveform displays turned on (see "Displaying Waveforms in the Timeline" on page 304).

You can also use the Zoom control and Zoom slider in the Timeline. These controls work the same way they do in the audio tabs of the Viewer. For information on using these controls, see "Zooming In or Out of the Waveform Display Area" on page 297.

1 Select the Zoom In or Zoom Out tool in the Tool palette (or press Z).
2 Do one of the following:

- Click in the waveform area of a track in the Timeline.

- Drag to select a region to zoom in or out on.

Clicking or dragging repeatedly increases or decreases the zoom factor, depending on which tool is selected. When the Timeline is zoomed in or out to the maximum level possible, the + (plus) and – (minus) signs on the zoom tools disappear.

Tip: Pressing the Option key with either the Zoom In or the Zoom Out tool selected temporarily changes it to the opposite tool.

Before zooming in Music 2 Music 2 Zoom In tool After zooming in Music 2 Music 2 Nancy greets at door CU Subclip Truck drives by front shot Subclip Lola gives coat and tie CU Subclip Nancy greets at door CU Subclip Music 2 Music 2 Music 2

You have two choices regarding the way audio tracks are named in your sequence. Audio track labeling can be changed in the Timeline Options tab of the Sequence Settings window for each sequence (choose Sequence > Settings, then click the Timeline Options tab).

Sequential: This option labels each audio track consecutively A1, A2, A3, and so on. Each audio track is identified individually.
Paired: This option identifies audio tracks in pairs: A1a, A1b; A2a, A2b; A3a, A3b; and so on. This labeling scheme is useful if you have a lot of stereo material, and you want an easy way to see the relationship between each stereo pair of tracks.

You can modify the way tracks are displayed in the Timeline in the Sequence Settings window for a sequence. For more information on changing sequence settings, see Volume I, Chapter 9, "Timeline Basics."

From time to time, you'll want to move an audio clip up or down to an adjacent track, but keep its In and Out points at the same location in your sequence. You might do this to:

Move a sound effect to another track to make room for another clip
Organize the audio clips you've edited into your sequence into separate dialogue, music, and effects tracks
Place one actor's dialogue on one track and another actor's dialogue on another track

To move a clip to an adjacent track without changing its position in the Timeline:

1 Press and hold down the mouse button over the clip in the Timeline.
2 Press and hold down the Shift key.
3 Drag the clip up or down to an adjacent track.

Note: As you move the clip up and down into other tracks in the Timeline, you'll notice that it's constrained from moving forward or backward in your sequence. It can only move up and down. This works for both audio and video clips.

Nancy greets at door CU Truck drives by front shot Subclip Lola gives coat and tie CU Subclip Music 2 Music 2 Music 2 Music 2 Music 2 Music 2 00:00:00

Sometimes, a cut in the audio will be quite noticeable despite your best efforts to find just the right frame on which to place the edit. In these cases, you can apply a cross fade to the edit point to try to smooth out the transition from one audio clip to the next.

Final Cut Pro comes with two audio transitions: a +3 dB cross fade (the default) and a 0 dB cross fade. Each cross fade results in a different audio level change as the transition plays. Your choice of cross fades depends on the clips you're transitioning between. Try one, then try the other to see which sounds better. For information on applying transitions, see Chapter 21, "Adding Transitions," on page 375.

Although stereo pairs are meant to be used for intrinsically stereo audio like music or stereo sound effects, any two clips of audio in the Timeline can be made into a stereo pair or separated into two mono clips. This operation can only be performed in the Timeline.

Note: Stereo pair linking is not the same as clip item linking. It is not necessary to break the link between clips prior to disabling stereo pairing.

1 Select a pair of mono audio clip items in the Timeline. (Use the Command key to select the second item, if necessary.) If you click one item of a linked pair, the other item is also selected.
2 Choose Modify > Stereo Pair (or press Option-L).

The stereo pair indicators appear on the selected clip items in the Timeline.

00:00 01:00:15:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:45:00 01:01:00:00 01:01:15:00 Nancy greets at door CU Truck drives by front shot Subclip Lola gives coat and tie CU Subclip Music 1 Music 2 Music 3 Music 1 Music 2 Music 3 Mono clip items (unlinked) Mono clip items (linked). Underlines indicate linking. Stereo pair. Green arrows indicate stereo pair; underlines indicate linking.

If the clip items you want to make into a stereo pair have different durations, the clip items are trimmed to the region where they both overlap. The levels, pan settings, and filters that were applied to the top clip are applied to both, and the clip attributes from the bottom clip are ignored.

Before Volume level overlays Music 3 Music 3 Music 1 Left Music 1 Left Music 3 Music 3 Music 1 Right Two clips that are not a stereo pair; length and volume levels differ.

Volume level overlay (the same on both tracks) After Nancy greets at door CU Truck drives by front shot Subclip Lola gives coat and tie CU Subclip Music 3 Music 3 Music 1 Left Music 3 Music 3 Stereo pair indicators Music 1 Right Only overlapping parts of the clips remain, and the volume is copied from the top clip to the bottom clip.

1 Select a stereo clip item.
2 Do one of the following:

Choose Modify > Stereo Pair, so that the menu item is unchecked.
Press Option-L.

While the smallest unit of video is a single frame, the smallest adjustable unit of audio in Final Cut Pro is 1/100th of a frame. Audio level and pan keyframes, as well as the sync between the video and audio tracks of a clip, can be set with an accuracy of 1/100th of a frame.

When you're editing an audio clip in the Viewer, you can zoom in so far that the playhead is the width of a single video frame on the waveform. You can use this single-frame view, along with the subframe scrubbing function in Final Cut Pro, to match the beats of musical clips you edit together; or you can use it to set subframe keyframes to eliminate pops or clicks that occur at the audio edit points you've chosen. If you do not hear audio from the monitoring speakers while scrubbing, you may need to turn up the volume, or you may have audio turned off (see "Turning Off the Audio Scrubbing Sounds" on page 300).

When you're synchronizing audio and video, audio that's as little as 300 samples off perfect sync can be noticeable. For this reason, Final Cut Pro allows you to resynchronize your audio in increments of 1/100th of a frame. There are several cases in which this will come in handy:

When editing music clips together, it's essential that you edit them together precisely on the beat. Even a subtle offset can upset the rhythm.
Video and audio that were recorded from separate sources and resynchronized on tape may be subtly out of sync.
Audio that was recorded with a microphone far away from the audio source might have an offset between the video and audio, since sound moves through the air more slowly than images.

1 Open a clip in the Viewer.
2 Hold down the Shift key while dragging the playhead within the duration of a single video frame.

This allows you to move the playhead in increments of 1/100th of a frame. When you set a new edit point in the clip, the clip's audio item slips a fraction of a frame, establishing a new sync relationship between the video and audio items.

To slip an audio clip item by subframe units:

1 Open a clip with both video and audio items in the Viewer, then click the audio tab.
2 Move the playhead to the In or Out point of the clip, then press Command- = (equal sign) to zoom in on the audio waveform as far as possible.

Viewer: Perfect timing in Cafe Mono (a1) Filters 00:00:47:06 Level 0 dB Pan 0 46:04 02:00:46:06 02:00:46:08 A wide playhead bar in the Viewer represents one video frame at full magnification.

3 Press the Shift key and position the playhead within the frame to a new point with better sync.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - To navigate through a clip by subframe units: - 2

Final Cut Pro slips the audio item in the clip by the offset from the subframe position of the playhead to the boundary of the previous whole frame.

As you work with audio, you may find it helpful to read through these two examples of ways you can fix audio issues using Final Cut Pro.

As you edit dialogue, you'll often need to cut out pieces of audio that you don't want in the sequence. For example, the director may have given directions in between an actor's lines, or the sound recordist might have bumped into something while shooting on location for a documentary. As long as there's no dialogue happening at the same time, it's pretty easy to cut out unwanted sounds. If you simply delete the sound, however, you'll be left with a gap in your audio that sounds artificial. Since there's always a low level of background noise, known as room tone, in any recording, a moment of complete silence is jarring.

In order to edit out unwanted sections of audio without creating obvious gaps, it's common practice to record a certain amount of room tone during a shoot. The recordist simply has everyone stand quietly for thirty seconds or so, and records the ambient sound of the room. If you've recorded some room tone during your shoot, you can capture it so that, as you edit, you have a long piece of "silence" that you can edit in whenever you need to cover a gap in the location audio.

If, for some reason, room tone was not captured for a particular scene, but you have a gap you need to fill, you can try to copy a section from another clip in the same scene that has a pause in the dialogue, and paste it to fill the gap. If you have no pauses that are long enough to cover your gap, you can try to copy and paste a short pause multiple times. But there's a chance that it will end up sounding like a loop, which will be too noticeable. In this case, you can use the following method to obtain a long section of room tone from a short copied pause in the dialogue.

1 Find the longest pause you can in the dialogue clip with the gap you need to fill, then copy the section that contains the pause. If you're in the Timeline, you can use the Range Selection tool.

Dining room serving salad WS The long pause in your clip is selected.

2 Create a new sequence, name it "Room Tone," and paste the audio pause into it twice.

Dining room serving salad WS Dining room serving salad WS Dining room serving salad WS Paste the pause section you just copied twice into a new sequence.

3 Select the clip containing the second pause, then choose Modify > Speed.
4 In the Speed dialog, click the Reverse checkbox to select it.

Speed Constant Speed Duration: 00:00:02:10 Speed: 100 percent ✓ Reverse □ Frame Blending Cancel OK

5 Play the resulting clips.

The looping sound should be gone, but if you hear a clicking at the edit point between the two clips, you may have to add a cross fade transition between them to smooth this out. For more information, see Chapter 21, "Adding Transitions," on page 375.

If the looping effect is not obvious, you may want to skip the speed reversal step. You may also need a longer section of ambient tone, or several different sections.

Experiment to see what works best.

6 Cut and paste as many pairs of these clips as you need to fill the necessary duration, adding cross fades between each pair.

7 Render the Room Tone sequence, then edit the sequence into the gap in your program, just as you would a clip.

Dining room serving salad WS Dining room serving salad WS Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone Room Tone

1 Make the tracks that contain the unwanted audio the audio destination tracks, then disconnect the video destination track.
2 Play your clip using the J, K, and L keys, and set In and Out points right before and after the section of audio you want to replace.

Dining room serving salad WS Dining room serving salad WS Music 1 Dining room serving salad WS Music 1 Dining room serving salad WS In and Out points are set to mark the section you want to replace with room tone.

3 Move the Canvas or Timeline playhead to the In point.
4 Drag your Room Tone sequence into the Viewer, and move the Viewer playhead to the start of the section of room tone you want to use.
5 Set an In point in the Viewer.

6 Edit the room tone into your sequence by doing one of the following:

Drag the Room Tone sequence from the Viewer to the Overwrite section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas.
Click the Overwrite button in the Canvas.
Press F10.

01:00:05:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:15:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:25:00 Dining room serving salad WS Dining room serving salad WS Music 1 Dining room serving salad WS Room Tone Room Tone Dining room serving salad WS Music 1 Dining room serving salad WS Room Tone Dining room serving salad WS The section of unwanted audio is replaced with room tone.

Once you've edited a group of clips into a sequence in the Timeline, you can adjust the edit points between audio items without affecting their corresponding video items. To do so, you disable linked selection. For example, suppose you're cutting between two people having a conversation. The first person says something, and then the second person pauses for a moment and replies. It might look something like this:

01:00:44:16 01:00:45:08 01:00:46:00 01:00:46:16 01:00:47:08 01:00:48:00 Nancy at table CU Don CU Nancy enters Nancy at table CU Don CU Nancy enters Nancy at table CU Don CU Nancy enters Audio in first clip gets cut off. Second clip starts quietly.

The timing of the video is what you wanted, but as the audio waveform shows, the last syllable of the last word of dialogue in the first shot gets cut off, which sounds awkward. To fix this, you can create a small split edit in the Timeline. (A split edit has different video and audio In and Out points. See Chapter 15, "Split Edits," on page 237.)

1 Disable linked selection by doing one of the following:

Click the Linked Selection button (or press Shift-L) so that it's off.
For more information, see "Linking Video and Audio Clip Items" on page 224.
Click the edit point between the two audio items while holding down the Option key.

2 Select the Roll tool from the Tool palette (or press the R key).

Screenshot of a software toolbar with icons and control buttons, showing geometric symbols like '∅', 'φ', and directional arrows.

3 Drag the audio edit point to the right so that the entire word plays at the end of the first clip.

01:00:44:16 01:00:45:08 01:00:46:00 01:00:46:16 01:00:47:08 01:00:48:00 Nancy at table CU Don CU Nancy enters Nancy at table CU Don CU Nancy enters Nancy at table CU Don CU Nancy enters

Now when you play through this cut, you can hear all of the words the first person is saying, and then the second person's reply.

Learn how to refine your edit by using trimming tools, adding transitions, nesting sequences within sequences, and synchronizing the Viewer, Canvas, and Timeline playheads together.

Chapter 18

Performing Slip, Slide, Ripple, and Roll Edits

Chapter 19

Learning About Trimming Clips

Chapter 20

Trimming Clips Using the Trim Edit Window

Chapter 21

Adding Transitions

Chapter 22

Refining Transitions Using the Transition Editor

Chapter 23

Sequence to Sequence Editing

Chapter 24

Matching Frames and Playhead Synchronization

Chapter 25

Working With Timecode

Once your rough edit is complete, you will want to fine-tune your edit. The advanced editing tools in Final Cut Pro allow you to make fine adjustments to clips in your sequence.

This chapter covers the following:

About Trimming With Slip, Slide, Ripple, and Roll Tools (p. 321)
• Sliding Clips in the Timeline (p. 321)
• Slipping Clips in the Timeline (p. 325)
• Using the Ripple Tool to Trim an Edit Without Leaving a Gap (p. 329)
• Using the Roll Tool to Change Where a Cut Occurs (p. 338)

The Slip, Slide, Ripple, and Roll tools are specialized tools that you can use to make fine adjustments to the In and Out points of clips in your sequence. Fine-tuning your edits with these tools is also referred to as trimming. For more information about trimming tools not covered in this chapter, see Chapter 19, "Learning About Trimming Clips," on page 345 and Chapter 20, "Trimming Clips Using the Trim Edit Window," on page 361.

Performing a slide edit allows you to move a clip's position in the Timeline between two others without creating a gap. The content of the clip does not change; only its position in the Timeline changes. When you slide a clip, the adjacent clips on either side get longer and shorter to fill any gaps that would normally be created. The combined duration of these three clips does not change, and therefore the sequence's duration remains unchanged as well.

Before edit

After edit

You can achieve the same results using the Selection tool, but with the Selection tool you sometimes create gaps when you move clips. The Slide tool never creates gaps (with the exception of sliding the first or last clip).

In the following example, clip B slides to the left. The slide edit changes the Out point of clip A and the In point of Clip C, but the In and Out points of clip B stay the same. The duration of clip B does not change, nor does the overall length of the sequence.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:15:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:45:00 v1 V1 Clip A Clip B Clip C a1 A1 Clip A Clip B Clip C a2 A2 Clip A Clip B Clip C A3

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:15:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:45:00 v1 V1 Clip A Clip B Clip C a1 A1 Clip A Clip B Clip C a2 A2 Clip A Clip B Clip C A3

Note: To slide a clip between two others, the preceding and following clips must have handles (extra media beyond the clip In and Out points).

You can perform slide edits by dragging or, for greater precision, by using timecode.

Selecting a clip with the Slide tool and dragging it is an easy way to perform a slide edit.

1 Select the Slide tool in the Tool palette (or press the S key twice).
2 Select the clip, then drag it left or right.

The clip moves to a new position in the Timeline. Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Clip E Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Clip E Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Clip E

As you drag, the Canvas displays the Out point frame of the clip to the left and the In point frame of the clip to the right.

Clip 8 02:00:55:18 Clip D 02:04:51:03

3 Release the mouse button.

This clip is shorter. This clip is longer. Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Clip E Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Clip E Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Clip E This clip's duration is the same.

If you need to slide a clip just two or three frames, using the mouse may be difficult. For precision edits, it is much less cumbersome to slide a clip numerically.

1 Select the Slide tool in the Tool palette (or press the S key twice).
2 Select a clip in the Timeline, or hold down the Shift key to select multiple clips. You can also select noncontiguous clips using the Command key.

Tip: You can slide multiple clips at once. However, if one of the clips cannot be slid, then none of them are moved.

3 Do one of the following:

- Type + (plus) or – (minus) and the number of frames to slide, then press Return.

The timecode entry field shows the duration of the slide. Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Clip E Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Clip E Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Clip E

Press [ (left bracket) or < (left angle bracket) to slide the clip one frame to the left.
Press ] (right bracket) or > (right angle bracket) to slide the clip one frame to the right.
Press Shift-[ or Shift-< to slide the clip a default number of frames to the left.
Press Shift-] or Shift-> to slide the clip a default number of frames to the right.

Note: You can specify the default number of frames to trim by changing the Multi-Frame Trim Size setting in the General tab of the User Preferences window. (For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences.")

Performing a slip edit does not change a clip's position or duration in the Timeline, but instead changes what portion of the clip's media appears in the Timeline. The Slip tool allows you to move a clip's In and Out points simultaneously.

Whenever you arrange clips in the Timeline so that edit points line up with musical beats or other fixed sync points in a sequence, you want to keep your clips in position. These situations leave you with very little room to adjust your clip because you cannot change the clip's duration. You also cannot move the clip elsewhere in the Timeline, because it would no longer be aligned with the music beats or other sync points in the sequence. Therefore, all you can do is move both the In and Out points of the clip simultaneously, keeping the clip's duration fixed.

You slip items using the Slip tool.

The portion of the clip seen in the sequence changes, while its position in the sequence stays the same. Surrounding clips are not affected, nor is the overall duration of your sequence.

Before edit 00:00:10:00 00:00:30:00 A B C After edit 00:00:17:00 00:00:37:00 A B C

In the example above, the slip edit changes the In and Out points of clip B, but not its duration or position with the sequence. When the sequence plays back, a different portion of clip B's media will be shown.

Note: To slip a clip, it must have handles on both sides, meaning that there must be additional media available on both the head and the tail of the clip. If you are having trouble slipping a clip, check that the clip has handles on both sides.

You can perform slip edits in the Viewer or the Timeline.

1 Double-click a sequence clip to open it in the Viewer.
2 Select the Slip tool in the Tool palette (or press the S key).
3 Drag either the In or Out point along the Viewer's scrubber bar.

The duration of the sequence clip does not change.

Viewer: Side master shot jacob MS from Master sequence 00:00:07:10 Stereo (a1x2) Filters Motion 59% 01:16:19:20

The sequence clip's In and Out points move together.

4 Release the mouse button when the clip is positioned at a range of frames that you like. The In and Out points move together, maintaining the clip's duration.
5 Click the Play In to Out button (or press Shift-) to review the new section between your sequence clip's In and Out points.
The clip is automatically updated in the Timeline. The duration of the clip and the sequence remain the same, and the surrounding clips are not affected.

To slip a clip in the Timeline using the Slip tool:

1 Select the Slip tool in the Tool palette (or press the S key).
2 Click a clip, then drag it left or right.

As you drag, an outline of the entire range of that clip is shown, indicating the amount of media available to the left and right of the current range selected in the clip.

This box shows how far the clip's In and Out points are slipping. Drag point +00:02:00 Entire length of media file shown during slip

At the same time, the Canvas displays the frames at the In point and the Out point.

Clip B 02:04:51:10 Clip B 02:04:57:09

3 Release the mouse button when the clip is positioned at a range of frames that you like. The duration and location of all clips in your sequence remain the same after this operation.

0:00 01:00:08:00 01:00:16:00 01:00:24:00 1:00:32:00 01:00:40:00 01:00:48:00 Clip A Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip C Clip A Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip C Clip A Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip C

4 Click the Play In to Out button (or press Shift-) to review the new section between your sequence clip's In and Out points.

Slipping a clip by just a few frames using the mouse can be difficult. It's much less cumbersome to precisely slip a clip numerically.

To slip a clip in the Timeline using timecode:

1 Select the Slip tool in the Tool palette (or press the S key).
2 Select a clip in the Timeline.

Note: To select multiple clips, hold down the Shift key as you select each clip.

3 Do one of the following:

Type + (plus) or – (minus) and the number of frames to slip, then press Return.
Press [ (left bracket) or < (left angle bracket) to slip the clip one frame to the right.
Press ] (right bracket) or > (right angle bracket) to slip the clip one frame to the left.
Press Shift-[ or Shift-< to slip the clip a default number of frames to the right.
Press Shift-] or Shift-> to slip the clip a default number of frames to the left.

Note: You can specify the default number of frames to trim by changing the Multi-Frame Trim Size setting in the Editing tab of the User Preferences window. (For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences.")

The timecode entry field shows how far you are slipping the clip.

4 Click the Play In to Out button (or press Shift-) to review the new section between your sequence clip's In and Out points.

To slip multiple clip items at once in the Timeline:

1 Select the Selection tool in the Tool palette (or press A).

You can also temporarily turn the Slip tool into the Selection tool by holding down the Command key.

2 Select multiple clip items in the Timeline.

The selected clip items can be in one or more tracks. Selected clip items do not have to be adjacent. For example, you can hold down the Command key while clicking clip items to make a noncontiguous selection.

3 Select the Slip tool in the Tool palette (or press S).

4 Type a positive or negative timecode number to slip all selected clip items by that amount, then press Enter.

The selected clip items slip by the duration you enter. If one of the selected clip items cannot be slipped, none of the items are slipped.

A ripple edit adjusts a clip's In or Out point, making the clip longer or shorter, without leaving a gap in the Timeline. The change in the clip's duration ripples outward, moving all subsequent clips earlier or later in the Timeline. If you don't use a ripple edit when you change the duration of a clip, you will either leave a gap when you make a clip shorter, or overwrite part of an existing clip if you make a clip longer. Using the Ripple tool is the main way that you perform ripple edits, but you can also select one or more clips in the Timeline and perform a ripple cut or ripple delete. This is when a clip is deleted and all subsequent clips move earlier in the Timeline to fill the gap.

A ripple edit is a one-sided edit, meaning that only an In or Out point of a single clip item is affected. All clips following the shortened or extended clip are moved accordingly in the Timeline, so ripple edits affect both the trimmed clip and the position of all subsequent clips in the Timeline. This is a much more major operation than simply trimming an individual clip's length.

Before edit

After edit

Important: Ripple edits can be dangerous if you are trying to maintain sync between clip items on different tracks, since all of the clip items on one track may move forward or backward while the clip items on other tracks don't.

Clip items with In points later in the Timeline than the edit point(s) you are adjusting will move, or ripple, after you perform a ripple edit. All other clip items remain in the same position in the Timeline.

Take special care when performing ripple edits with complex edit point selections on multiple tracks. To make sure you understand how an edit affects the clip items in your sequence, you can undo (Command-Z) and redo (Shift-Command-Z) your edit several times to compare the sequence before and after the ripple edit was performed.

A ripple edit changes the duration of a clip item by shortening or extending its In or Out point. In addition, all clip items beyond the edit point are moved by the same amount.

Ripple edits are done using the Ripple tool.

Note: You can select an edit point in the Timeline when you are using the Ripple tool. You can also open a sequence clip in the Viewer when the Ripple tool is selected by double-clicking the clip in the Timeline.

When you use the Ripple tool to adjust the duration of a clip in the Timeline, always pay attention to where Final Cut Pro previews the location of the new clip Out point. Even when you are adjusting a clip's In point with the Ripple tool, the location of the clip's Out point is what you should pay attention to.

Important: When you adjust a clip's In point with the Ripple tool in the Timeline, it appears that the clip's In point is moving in the Timeline, and that the clip's duration is changing from both its In and Out points. This is not true. The position of the clip's In point in the Timeline never changes after a ripple edit is performed. Final Cut Pro is actually showing you two things at once:

The duration by which the clip is being trimmed
The new Out point that will result from performing the Ripple edit

Amount the clip's Out point is trimmed Position of clips C and D before the ripple edit Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:00:00 01:00:30 01:00:00 01:01:00:00 v1 V1 Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D -00:22:05 Before edit a1 A1 Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D a2 A2 Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D A3 A4

Clip B has a shorter duration. Clip C and D are positioned earlier in the Timeline. Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:00:00 01:01:30:00 v1 V1 Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D After edit a1 A1 Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D a2 A2 Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D A3 A4

1 Select the Ripple tool in the Tool palette (or press the R key twice).
2 Select a clip item's In or Out point by clicking near the clip item boundary.

The Ripple tool changes direction to indicate which clip item boundary you are about to select. If linked selection is on, the edit points of linked clip items are also selected.

For more information, see "Selecting Edits and Clips to Trim" on page 348.

3 Do one of the following:

Type + (plus) or – (minus) followed by the number of frames to add or subtract from the current edit, then press Return.
Drag the edit point to lengthen or shorten the clip in the sequence. Pay attention to the clip boundary previewed in the Timeline.

Edit point being trimmed
Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:30:00 01:01:00:00 01:01:30:00 v1 V1 Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D -00:15:05 a1 A1 Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D a2 A2 Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D A3 A4

The Out point of this clip is being adjusted.

Clip B 02:05:12:01

Clip C 01:12:17:18

The In point of this clip stays the same and is not adjusted.

While you adjust the clip with the Ripple tool, the Canvas shows a two-up display with the Out point of the outgoing clip item on the left and the In point of the incoming clip item on the right (see also "About the Two-Up Display in the Canvas" on page 406).

Use these two frames to decide exactly where to place the edit point.

All clip items after the edit point move either left or right to accommodate the new duration of your clip.

These clips move left to fill the gap. Master sequence Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:30:00 01:01:00:00 01:01:30:00 v1 V1 Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D a1 A1 Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D a2 A2 Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D A3 A4 This clip shortens.

In some cases, you may want to look at the media for an entire clip before deciding at which frame to make an edit. In this case, it can be easier to open a sequence clip in the Viewer. As long as the Ripple tool is selected when you set an In or Out point in the Viewer, a ripple edit is performed in the Timeline.

1 Double-click a sequence clip in the Viewer.
2 Select the Ripple tool in the Tool palette (or press the R key twice).
3 Do one of the following:

Use the transport controls or the J, K, and L keys to move the playhead in the Viewer to a new point in your clip. Then set a new In or Out point using the Mark In and Mark Out buttons or the I and O keys.
Drag the In or Out point along the Viewer's scrubber bar to a new point in your clip.

Look in the Timeline to make sure the ripple edit did what you expected, since other clips in the Timeline move when you perform a ripple edit.

When you perform ripple edits, it is fairly easy to cause linked clip items across tracks to go out of sync with each other. This usually happens when you perform a ripple edit on one track while other tracks are locked, so the clip items on that track can't move in sync after the ripple edit.

For example, if you have video clip items edited to the rhythm of a music track, rippling clips in the video track moves them out of sync with the music. In this case, you probably shouldn't use the Ripple tool. Instead, you can change the length of a clip item without moving other clips in the Timeline. If you shorten the clip item, this means there will be a gap in the video track that you need fill, but at least all of your other clips won't be out of sync with the music.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - About Ripple Edits and Sync Relationships of Clip Items on Other Tracks - 1
Before the edit, clips are in sync with markers on the audio tracks.
After a ripple edit, the sync relationship has changed.

Final Cut Pro tries to prevent you from performing ripple edits that will cause linked clip items to go out of sync. Final Cut Pro assumes that any overlapping clip items should maintain the same sync relationship before and after an edit. Furthermore, a ripple edit cannot cause any clips to overwrite other clips.

In the example below, Final Cut Pro won't allow you to perform a ripple edit because the second music clip in tracks A3 and A4 would either need to be shortened, or would overwrite part of the first music clip in order to stay in sync with the clip items in V1, A1, and A2. Since the ripple edit cannot force the second music clip to overwrite the first music clip, Final Cut Pro warns you that the ripple edit cannot be performed because there is a clip collision on track A3 (and A4).

Although your intention is to only ripple the selected clips... ...Final Cut Pro won't allow the edit because the second music clip in tracks A3 and A4 cannot overwrite the first music clip.

There are three ways to solve this problem:

Lock tracks A3 and A4 so that Final Cut Pro does not attempt to ripple the second music clip (see "Locking Tracks to Prevent Edits or Changes" on page 132).
In addition to selecting the clip Out points in tracks V1, A1, and A2, you can also select the first music clip's Out points in A3 and A4.
Instead of selecting the first music clip's Out points, you can perform an asymmetric edit by selecting the clip Out points in tracks V1, A1, and A2, and the second music clip's In points on tracks A3 and A4. This causes the first clip to be shortened from the Out point while the second clip is shortened from its In point. For more information about asymmetric editing, see "Asymmetrical Trimming With the Ripple Tool" on page 336.

You can perform a ripple edit to edit points in multiple tracks to modify several video and audio items simultaneously.

To perform a ripple edit on multiple tracks simultaneously:

1 Do one of the following:

Press the Command key while clicking to select multiple edit points.
Select the Edit Selection tool in the Tool palette, then drag a box around multiple edit points.

2 Drag one of the edit points using the Ripple tool to perform a ripple edit across all tracks with selected edit points.

You can also enter timecode values to edit numerically.

Asymmetrical trimming allows you to simultaneously ripple edit points on clip items in different tracks in opposite directions. For example, suppose you want to extend the Out point of a video clip item by 2 seconds. If you do this by extending only the video clip item, a 2-second gap is created on other tracks. If you select the In point of clip items on other tracks and use asymmetrical trimming, you can simultaneously extend the In points of the clip items, making them start 2 seconds earlier. The result is that the video clip item is 2 seconds longer, and the audio clip items fill in the gap because they are 2 seconds longer.

Asymmetrical trimming is a convenient way to create a split edit between two adjacent sequence clips, but you can also use this feature with audio-only and video-only clip items.

Asymmetrical trimming can be done either in the Timeline or in the Trim Edit window.

Tip: If you are doing a lot of asymmetrical trimming, you may find it helpful to turn off linked selection by pressing Shift-L or clicking the Linked Selection button in the upper-right corner of the Timeline. For more information about linked selection, see Chapter 14, "Linking and Editing Video and Audio in Sync," on page 219.

1 Select the Ripple tool.
2 Hold down the Option key, then click the Out point of a video clip to select it.

Holding down the Option key while selecting an edit point selects only that point, ignoring any other items linked to that clip.

3 Hold down the Command key, then click the In point of an adjacent audio clip.

Holding down the Command key while selecting an edit point allows you to add edit points to the current selection without deselecting previously selected edit points.

Intended video edit point Current Out point of outgoing video clip Before Cafe sequence Timeline: Cafe sequence in Cafe RT 01:00:26:22 01:00:24:00 01:00:27:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:33:00 a enters cafe WS Master shot Debra MS WS Master shot Debra MS Master a1 A1 WS Master shot Debra MS a2 A2 WS Master shot Debra MS Master A3 A4 In point of incoming audio clips

4 Use the Ripple tool to trim the above selection.

The video and audio edit points move in opposite directions, creating a split edit. Audio-video synchronization is maintained in both clips.

Note: In this example, Command-clicking the In point of a stereo pair of audio clip items results in adding both audio items to the selection. You can also Option-Command-click a single audio item to add it to the selection individually, without including other audio items linked to it. This can be especially useful for clips in which many audio items are linked to a single video item in the Timeline.

If you lengthen a clip item, clip items on the same track move forward in time. Clip items on other unlocked tracks that begin after the original location of the edit point you are adjusting also move forward in time.
If you shorten a clip item, clip items on the same track move backward in time, as do clip items after the initial location of the edit you are adjusting on other unlocked tracks.
If you can't ripple due to a "Collision" message, it is because clip items on other tracks can't move back in time without bumping into other clip items.
All tracks are affected when you use the Ripple tool. If you don't want other tracks in the sequence to be affected by the Ripple tool, lock those tracks (see "Locking Tracks to Prevent Edits or Changes" on page 132).
You can temporarily turn the Ripple tool into the Roll tool by pressing the Shift key. Release the Shift key to return to the Ripple tool.
While dragging, press the Command key to "gear down" and make a more precise edit.

A roll edit adjusts the Out point and In point of two adjacent clips simultaneously. If you like where two clips are placed in the Timeline, but you want to change when the cut point happens, you can use the Roll tool. No clips move in the Timeline as a result; only the edit point between the two clips moves. This is a two-sided edit, meaning that two clips' edit points are affected simultaneously; the first clip's Out point and the next clip's In point are both adjusted by a roll edit. However, no other clips in the sequence are affected.

Note: When you perform a roll edit, the overall duration of the sequence stays the same, but both clips change duration. One gets longer while the other gets shorter to compensate. This means that you don't have to worry about causing sync problems between linked clip items on different tracks.

Using the Roll tool, you move the Out point of the outgoing clip and the In point of the incoming clip simultaneously.

Before edit	A	B		C
After edit	A	B	C

In the example above, clip B gets shorter while clip C becomes longer, but the combined duration of the two clips stays the same.

Roll edits are done using the Roll tool.

Roll edits are useful when the relative Timeline position of two clips is good, but you want to change when the edit point occurs between them. For example, suppose your sequence has two clips showing an Olympic diver diving into a pool from two different angles. The first thing you need to do is adjust each clip until their edit points align on a similar action. This is called matching on action, or a match cut. You could align the edit point in the Timeline so that when the diver hits the water in one camera angle, the diver is also hitting the water in the second angle. Once you have a cut point with matching action, you can roll the edit point earlier or later to change when the edit occurs. For example, you could roll the edit to the point where the diver is midway between the diving board and the water.

The easiest place to see how a roll edit affects your clips is the Timeline.

1 Select the Roll tool in the Tool palette (or press the R key).
2 Select an edit point between two clips.

If linked selection is on, the edit points of linked items are also selected. For more information, see "Controls That Affect Trim Edits" on page 347.

Selected edit point

Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Music 1 Music 1 Music 2 Music 2 Music 1 Music 1 Music 2 Music 2

3 Do one of the following:

- Drag the edit point left or right.

As you drag, the Canvas shows a two-up display with the Out point of the outgoing clip on the left and the In point of the incoming clip on the right (see also "About the Two-Up Display in the Canvas" on page 406).

Clip B 02:04:59:20 Clip C 01:12:15:20

- Type + (plus) or – (minus) followed by the number of frames to add or subtract from the current edit, then press Return.

Edit being rolled Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Music 1 Music 1 Music 2 Music 2 Music 1 Music 3 Music 2 Music 2 After the roll edit, the outgoing clip is shorter and the incoming clip is longer. Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip C Clip D Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip C Clip D Music 1 Music 1 Music 2 Music 2 Music 1 Music 2 Music 2

Press the Command key while clicking to select multiple edit points.
Select the Edit Selection tool in the Tool palette (or press the G key), then drag to select the desired edit points.

Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Music 1 Music 1 Music 2 Music 2 Music 1 Music 2

Before Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D -00:07:00 Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Music 1 Music 2 Music 1 Music 2 Music 2

After Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Music 1 Music 2 Music 2 Music 1 Music 2 Music 2

Final Cut Pro allows you to perform roll edits in the Viewer by setting In or Out points while the Roll tool is selected.

1 Open a sequence clip in the Viewer.
2 Select the Roll tool in the Tool palette (or press the R key).
3 Do one of the following:

Drag the In or Out point along the Viewer's scrubber bar to roll the edit.
Press I or O to set a new In or Out point.

Look in the Timeline to make sure the roll edit did what you expected.

If you can't drag any further while rolling an edit, you have reached the end of the media on one of the two clips. Final Cut Pro displays a Media Limit message in this case.
With the Roll tool selected, hold down the Shift key to switch temporarily to the Ripple tool.
While dragging, press the Command key to "gear down" and make a more precise edit.

This chapter covers the following:

• What Is Trimming? (p. 345)
• Controls That Affect Trim Edits (p. 347)
- Selecting Edits and Clips to Trim (p. 348)
• Trimming Clip In and Out Points (p. 351)

After you have roughly assembled your clips in chronological order in a sequence, you begin to fine-tune the cut point (or edit point) between each clip. Any time you make a clip in a sequence longer or shorter, you are trimming that clip. However, trimming generally refers to precision adjustments (anywhere from one frame to several seconds). If you are adjusting clip durations by much larger amounts, you are still trimming, but you may not be in the fine-tuning phase of editing yet.

Getting an edit to work is an intuitive process, so you need to watch the results of your trimming adjustments repeatedly as you trim. Many factors go into the decision of when exactly you cut from one shot to the next. When you fine-tune your sequence, you are no longer focused on the larger structure of the movie, but how each shot flows to the next. You focus on individual edit points between clips instead of large groups of clips. In most cases, you aim to achieve a certain visual and psychological continuity.

You can trim edits anywhere you can adjust a sequence clip's In and Out points—the Timeline, the Viewer, and the Trim Edit Window, which is designed specifically for fine-tuning edits.

Viewer: You can open a sequence clip in the Viewer and adjust its In or Out point. This is useful if you want to find a particular frame for your In or Out point by looking at the clip's entire media file. However, if you are trying to adjust edit points on two clips simultaneously (a "two-sided" edit), the Timeline or Trim Edit window is better.
Timeline: In the Timeline, you can roll an edit point between two clips. A roll edit adjusts the Out point and In point of two adjacent clips simultaneously. The result is that the edit point between the two clips moves, but no clips change position in the Timeline. For more information, see "Using the Roll Tool to Change Where a Cut Occurs" on page 338.

You can also trim edit points in multiple tracks simultaneously. The Timeline makes it easy to drag clip In or Out points to make a clip longer or shorter, and to quickly trim multiple clips at once.

You can adjust the level of precision of your editing by setting the zoom level in the Timeline. By zooming in, you can make changes all the way down to a clip's individual frames. If you want to trim clips by a precise number of frames or seconds, you can enter exact timecode values for trimming. This is sometimes referred to as numeric editing, or trimming using timecode.

- Trim Edit window: The Trim Edit window allows you to focus on a specific edit point in the Timeline, visually trim one or more edits with precision, and preview the edit at the same time. It combines the convenience of trimming in the Timeline with additional options available in the Viewer. The changes you make using the Trim Edit window only affect the clips in the Timeline.

Clips from either side of an edit point are shown, each in its own Viewer-like display. The outgoing clip is the clip before the edit point, and the incoming clip is the clip after the edit point.

Almost any trimming you can do in the Timeline can be done in the Trim Edit window, including trimming multiple clip items at once. For more information, see Chapter 20, "Trimming Clips Using the Trim Edit Window," on page 361.

Outgoing Clip: Nancy drinking talking 00:00:06:01 Track V1 01:00:59:13 01:01:16:16 00:00:08:17 Incoming Clip: Don pain XCU 01:00:12:16 Out Shift: 00:00:00 In Shift: 00:00:00

Before you perform a trimming operation, make sure to check that the following controls are set properly for the operation you need to perform.

Clip items that refer to the same media file are linked together when you edit them into the Timeline. You can also link unrelated clip items together so you can operate on them simultaneously, keeping them in sync.

For your convenience, you can keep linked selection turned on and temporarily disable it as necessary. You can temporarily disable linked selection by holding down the Option key while selecting or trimming a clip item in the Timeline. This allows you to adjust one clip item at a time, even if it is linked to others. This is a good way to create split edits, where the audio In or Out point is different from that of the video.

sequence in Dining 01:00:10:00 Click here to turn linked selection on and off.

If snapping is on, when you drag an edit point in the Timeline or Viewer, it snaps to In or Out points, markers, keyframes, the playhead, and edits on other tracks. This can help you quickly line up edits with other items in the sequence. You can turn snapping on and off at any time, even in the middle of dragging edits and clips. You turn snapping on and off by choosing View > Snapping, pressing the N key, or clicking the Snapping button in the Timeline. For more information, see "Snapping to Points in the Timeline" on page 195.

sequence in Dining 01:00-10:00 Click here to turn snapping on and off.

Trim operations with the Ripple tool will only affect clip items on unlocked tracks. If there are clip items on certain tracks you don't want to change inadvertently while trimming, you can lock these tracks in your sequence to prevent unwanted changes.

Linked items on locked tracks aren't affected when you move other linked clip items. For example, if you select a video item to trim that's linked to an audio item in a locked track, moving the video item does not move the audio item, so they become out of sync.

For more information, see "Locking Tracks to Prevent Edits or Changes" on page 132. For information about synchronizing clip items, see Chapter 14, "Linking and Editing Video and Audio in Sync," on page 219 and "Tips for Edits Made With the Ripple Tool" on page 338.

The Command key is useful if you want to make very small changes to edit points or clips in your sequence. When you drag clips or edit points to perform trimming operations, the ratio between the motion of your mouse and the motion of the item you're changing is determined by the zoom level of the Viewer, Canvas, or Timeline. If you have trouble trimming to a specific frame because you're zoomed out too far, you can force this motion to be a more precise 1-to-1 ratio (regardless of your zoom level) by pressing the Command key after you start dragging.

For example, holding down the Command key after you start dragging an edit point with the Roll tool makes the edit point move much more slowly as you drag.

Regardless of where you actually trim your clips, you almost always select the edit points in the Timeline. Selecting an edit point is a lot like selecting an entire clip, except that you are only selecting a clip's In point or Out point, or the Out point and In point of two adjacent clips. If linked selection is turned on, any edit points or clips that are linked to the one you select are selected as well.

There are two tools in the Tool palette that can be used to select edit points in the Timeline—the Selection tool and the Edit Selection tool.

You can select individual edit points by clicking them with the Selection tool. Select the Selection tool by clicking it in the Tool palette or pressing the A key.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Selection Tool - 1

+00:00:15 (New Duration = +00:03:06) When you use the Selection tool to adjust a clip's edit point, the icon changes to indicate it can be used for trimming.

If you double-click an edit point using the Selection tool, the Trim Edit window appears, showing the clips on either side of the edit point.

Instead of selecting individual edit points by clicking them with the Selection tool, you can select multiple edit points (on multiple tracks) at once by using the Edit Selection tool, designed specifically for selecting edit points. The Trim Edit window appears as soon as you select edit points with this tool, showing the clips on either side of the edit point. You can select the Edit Selection tool by clicking it in the Tool palette or pressing the G key.

Edit Selection tool

Press a key when you click the Edit Selection tool to add these functions:

Command key: Allows you to add and subtract edits from the current selection.
Option key: Temporarily turns linked selection on if it is currently off, or off if it is currently on.
Shift key: Temporarily turns the Edit Selection tool into the Ripple tool, until you release the Shift key.

A single edit point refers to a single clip item's In point or Out point, or two adjacent clip items' Out and In points, respectively.

To select a single edit point in the Timeline, do one of the following:

- Select the Selection tool in the Tool palette, then click an edit point to select it in the Timeline.

Note: You can double-click the edit point to open the edit in the Trim Edit window. See Chapter 20, "Trimming Clips Using the Trim Edit Window," on page 361 for information about using the Trim Edit window.

■ Press V to select the nearest edit point.
If an edit point is already selected, you can do the following:

- Press ' (single quote) or the Up Arrow key to move the playhead in the Canvas and Timeline to the next edit point, which is automatically selected.

- Press ; (semicolon) or the Down Arrow key to move the playhead in the Canvas and Timeline to the previous edit point, which is automatically selected.

Note: You can also select the Ripple or Roll tools, and then select an edit point. For more information, see Chapter 18, "Performing Slip, Slide, Ripple, and Roll Edits," on page 321.

You can select edit points on more than one track. Only one edit point can be selected per track.

To select multiple edit points in the Timeline, do one of the following:

- Select the Selection tool in the Tool palette (or press Command-A), then Command-click the edge of each clip.

Multiple edit points are selected.

Note: If you have trouble selecting specific edit points with the Selection tool, you may be zoomed out too far. Use the Zoom slider to get a more detailed view, then select your edit again.

- Select the Edit Selection tool in the Tool palette (or press Command-G), then drag to select edit points on one or more tracks.

As you drag in the Timeline, this tool selects one edit per track. The edits don't have to be aligned in time. When you release the mouse button, the Trim Edit window appears.

One edit per track is selected.

- Select the Ripple or Roll tool in the Tool palette, then click the edge of the clip. Command-click to select multiple edit points. (See Chapter 18, "Performing Slip, Slide, Ripple, and Roll Edits," on page 321 for information about the Ripple and Roll tools.)

In this section, you'll learn how to trim edit points. Make sure you have the right tool selected for the trimming you want to do or you may not get the results you expected.

Note: The cursor usually shows which tool is selected, but you can also see which tool is highlighted in the Tool palette.

You can use the Selection tool to change the In or Out point of a single sequence clip, leaving a gap. Because a gap is left, the total duration of your edited sequence is not changed. This is important because it means this kind of trim edit doesn't ripple clip items out of sync with each other.

Before edit A B C After edit A B C Gap

Note: If you want to extend a clip's In or Out point so that it overwrites an adjacent clip, you can't do this with the Selection tool. Instead, you can use the Roll tool, or select the clip and drag it with the Selection or Slide tool.

Performing edits using the Selection tool is useful for filling in gaps between two clips and for creating gaps in preparation for another editorial operation. When you trim an edit point with the Selection tool, the Selection tool appears as a trimming tool.

1 Select the Selection tool in the Tool palette (or press the A key).
2 Move the pointer to the In or Out point of a clip in the Timeline.

The pointer changes to a Resize pointer.

Before — Nancy at table MS Don at table salad WS Cross Diss Cross Diss Nancy at table MS Don at table salad WS Nancy at table CU Nancy at table MS Don at table salad WS Nancy at table CU

3 Drag to the left to create a gap in your sequence (by making the clip shorter) or to the right to cover an existing gap (by making the clip longer).

Nancy at table MS -00:02:04 (New Duration = 00:00:03:00) Nancy at table MS Don at table salad WS Nancy at table CU Nancy at table MS Don at table salad WS Nancy at table CU As you drag to adjust the length of a clip, the Canvas shows the frame at the current edit point.

After Nancy at table MS Don at table salad WS Cross Diss Cross Diss Nancy at table Don at table salad WS Nancy at table CU Nancy at table Nancy at table CU Resulting gap Later clips in the sequence are unaffected. They do not ripple to the left to fill in the gap.

You can also achieve the same results by opening a sequence clip in the Viewer and setting a new In or Out point. The clip changes duration in the Timeline, as long as the new In or Out point doesn't cause an adjacent clip to be overwritten.

A convenient way to extend or shorten a clip in the Timeline is to tell Final Cut Pro to adjust an edit point to the current position of the playhead. An extend edit moves an edit point between two clips to the playhead position in the Timeline.

Note: Although these are often referred to as extend edits, you can just as easily shorten clips with this method.

Before edit A After edit (extend) A Before edit A After edit (shorten) A

When linked selection is disabled, extend edits are very useful for creating split edits. You can also use extend edits to quickly line up a lot of edit points to the same position in the Timeline. For example, to make all of the clips at the end of your movie end at exactly the same place, you can select the last edit points in each track in the Timeline, move the playhead to the position where you want all the clips to end, and then use an extend edit to move all of the edit points to the playhead position at once.

1 Select the edit points for the clips you want to extend using either the Selection tool or the Edit Selection tool.

Note: To create a split edit, disable linked selection by clicking the Linked Selection button in the Timeline, or hold down the Option key to temporarily disable linked selection while you select edit points.

2 Move the playhead to the position in your sequence where you want to put the selected edit point.

Before — 01:00:55:00 01:01:00:00 01:01:05:00 01:01:10:00 01:01:15:00 01:01:20:00 at tab Don eats fish p Nancy drinking talking Don eats fish plate CU Nancy drinking Don pain XCU Nancy at table CU Nancy at table CU Nancy drinking talking Nancy drinking Nancy at table CU Nancy at table CU Nancy drinking talking Nancy drinking

3 Choose Sequence > Extend Edit (or press E).

The selected edit point is rolled to the position of the playhead.

This clip lengthens. This clip shortens. After — at tab Don eats fish Nancy drinking talking Don Nancy drinking Don pain XCU Nancy at table CU Nancy at table CU Nancy drinking talking Nancy drinking Nancy at table CU Nancy drinking talking Nancy drinking

If you selected multiple edit points on clip items on several tracks using the Edit Selection tool, all of these clip edit points are moved to the position of the playhead.

Note: If you try to extend an edit farther than the total amount of media available in a clip, Final Cut Pro does not extend the edit point.

You can trim clips in your sequence by opening them in the Viewer and adjusting the clip In and Out points.

To open a clip in your sequence in the Viewer, do one of the following:

■ Double-click the clip in the Timeline.
- Select a clip in the Timeline, then press Return.
- Double-click the clip in the Canvas. The clip currently beneath the playhead is opened in the Viewer.
If the clip is in a nested sequence, hold down the Option key, then double-click the clip.

Note: If you just double-click the nested sequence, the nested sequence opens as a sequence tab in the Canvas and Timeline, not as a clip in the Viewer.

When a sequence clip is opened in the Viewer, the scrubber bar shows sprocket holes to indicate that the clip is part of a larger sequence. Always check the scrubber bar in the Viewer to make sure you are working with a clip from a sequence instead of a clip opened from the Browser.

The Viewer scrubber bar has two rows of small dots when a sequence clip is open.
Viewer: Don pain XCU from Dining sequence 00:00:04:13 59% 04:27:45:15

The title area shows the name of the sequence clip and includes the name of the sequence that contains it.
This is the Out point of the sequence clip.

When you open a sequence clip, it opens in the Viewer to the same frame where the playhead is positioned in the Timeline or Canvas. If the Timeline playhead was beyond the clip's In or Out point, the Viewer playhead is placed on the clip's In or Out point, whichever was closest to the Timeline playhead.

1 Open a clip from your sequence in the Viewer.

The scrubber bar shows virtual "sprocket holes," which indicate that the clip is from your sequence (not from the Browser).

2 Do one of the following:

Use the transport controls or the J, K, and L keys to move the playhead in the Viewer to a new point in your clip. Then set a new In or Out point using the Mark In and Mark Out buttons or the I and O keys.
Drag the In or Out point along the Viewer's scrubber bar to a new point in your clip.

You can't set a new edit point or drag a clip's edit point so that it overwrites an adjacent clip in the Timeline. If you do, Final Cut Pro warns you that the clip you are trimming has collided with another clip in the Timeline, and the trim edit is not performed. (See "Understanding Alert Messages When Trimming" on page 358.) If you want to move a clip's edit point so that it overwrites an adjacent clip, you should roll the edit point between the two clips using the Roll tool. See "Using the Roll Tool to Change Where a Cut Occurs" on page 338 for information about using the Roll tool.

Most of the editing and trimming tools in the Timeline can be used numerically instead of manually. You can select one or more clip items or edit points and then enter a positive or negative number of frames, seconds, or even minutes or hours to adjust the position of the clip items or edit points. This allows you to make precise adjustments, or to quickly move clip items and edit points by specific values.

When you type a number in the Timeline, the current selections determine what kind of edit occurs. For example, if both sides of an edit point are selected, typing +15 rolls both sides of the edit 15 frames forward (to the right). In this case, it doesn't matter whether the Roll tool or Selection tool is currently selected in the Tool palette. If an entire clip is selected and the Slide tool is selected in the Tool palette, typing +15 slides the selected clip forward by 15 frames. If the Slip tool was selected instead, typing +15 would slip the selected clip by 15 frames.

You can move the playhead in the Timeline using absolute timecode values (hours, minutes, seconds, and frames) or relative timecode amounts (in which case you only need to enter the relevant amount of information—just frames, or seconds and frames, for example).

You can move the playhead by entering a new timecode number in the Current Timecode field, or if no clips or edit points are currently selected, you can type a timecode number directly in the Timeline and the playhead moves to the new position.

Tip: To avoid typing zeroes when moving by larger amounts, you can type a period as a substitute for double zeroes (00). For example:

To move to timecode 00:00:03:00, type "3." (3 and a period). The period is automatically interpreted by Final Cut Pro as 00 in the frames field.
To move to 00:03:00:00, type "3.." (3 and two periods). These periods insert 00 into both the seconds and frames fields.
To move to 03:00:00:00, type "3..." (3 and three periods).

Instead of moving the playhead to an absolute timecode number, you can move it relative to its current position by pressing the + (plus) and - (minus) keys.

To move the playhead 15 frames forward from the current position, type “+15”.
To move the playhead 1 minute and 20 frames backward from the current position, type “-01.20” (the period automatically adds 00 to the seconds field).

You can move one or more selected clips in the Timeline using timecode, even if they are nonadjacent. However, if the resulting clip movement will cause an overwrite, Final Cut Pro does not allow the clips to move. In this case, you can manually move the clips.

1 Select one or more clips in your sequence.
2 Do one of the following:

- To move the clips forward, press + (plus) and type a timecode duration for the move. - To move the clips backward, press – (minus) and type a timecode duration for the move.

The timecode entry field appears when you type. Move: +50d at door CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Lola gives coat and tie CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Lola gives coat and tie CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Lola gives coat and tie CU

3 Press Return.

01:01:10:00 01:01:20:00 01:01:30:00 01:01:40:00 01:01:50:00 01:02:00:00 Lola gives coat and tie WS Lola gives coat and tie CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Lola gives coat and tie CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Lola gives coat and tie CU The clips move forward by the duration entered.

If you're trimming a clip in the Viewer, you can use timecode to navigate to a specific frame, rather than trying to find the frame you want using the transport controls or the J, K, and L keys. You then select the edit tool for the trimming operation you want to perform and set a new In or Out point. For more information on navigating in the Viewer using timecode, see Volume I, Chapter 8, "Navigating and Using Timecode in the Viewer and Canvas."

1 Open a clip in the Viewer.
2 Move the playhead by doing one of the following:

- Enter a timecode number for the frame where you want to place the new In or Out point of the clip, then press Return.

For example, to move the In point from 02:40:30:10 to 02:40:30:27, enter 2403027, then press Return.

- Press Shift-I or Shift-O to move the playhead to the current In or Out point. Then enter a relative timecode value to move the playhead.

For example, to establish a new Out point 2 seconds prior to the current Out point, press Shift-O, enter -2:00, then press Return.

3 Select an edit tool in the Tool palette for the trimming operation you want to perform.
4 Do one of the following:

Click the Mark In or Mark Out button.
Press I to set an In point or press O to set an Out point.

The scrubber bar in the Viewer shows the new position of the In or Out point, and the Canvas/Timeline playhead moves to the adjusted edit point.

If you try to perform an edit that isn't possible, Final Cut Pro displays an alert message.

This message appears when you try to perform a three-point edit (for example, when dragging from the Browser or Viewer to the Canvas), and the source clip's media file doesn't have enough frames to achieve the requested edit. Click OK to close this dialog.

For example, suppose you set sequence In and Out points to create an edit that is 10 seconds long. Next, you drag a 5-second source clip from the Browser to the Overwrite section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas. The “Insufficient content for edit” message appears because the source clip does not have enough media to fill the 10-second duration marked in the sequence.

This message indicates that one of the sequence clip items you are trimming no longer has enough media to continue trimming. This happens even though other clip items in your selection still have additional media.

Timeline: Intro sequence in Dining Intro sequence RT 01:01:05:15 01:01:00:00 01:01:10:00 01:01:20:00 01:01:25:00 v1 V1 Nancy greets at door CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Media Limit message 00:00:00 (Media Limit on V1) Nancy grn Nancy greets at door CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Nancy grn Nancy greets at door CU Lola gives coat and tie WS Music 2 Music 2

For example, suppose you select the Out points of clip items on tracks V1, A1, and A2, and then roll the edit points to the right. If the clip item on V1 is shorter, a "Media Limit on V1" message appears. You cannot roll these edit points beyond the media limits of any of the clip items.

This message appears when you try to perform an edit that might inadvertently cause unselected clip items to overwrite others. This usually happens when you are trying to perform a ripple edit on one track, and unselected clip items on other tracks cannot ripple because there are other clip items in the way.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:00:00 01:00:24:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:36:00 v1 V1 Don at table sa Dining room serving salad WS Nancy at table 00:00:00 (Clip Collision on A1) a1 A1 le salad Dining room serving salad Nancy at table M Don at tab a2 A2 le salad Dining room serving salad Nancy at table M Don at tab A3 Don at table salad WS A4 Don at table salad WS

For example, suppose you are rippling a clip item on track V1 to make it 10 seconds shorter. In a ripple edit, all clip items that occur to the right of the edit point move left or right by the amount you are trimming. In this case, all clip items should move 10 seconds to the left to fill the gap. However, clip items in A1 and A2 cannot move to the left by 10 seconds because there are other clip items on those tracks that are in the way. The “clip collision” message appears.

Clip collision messages are important because they indicate that Final Cut Pro is making sure that clip items in your sequence aren't accidentally overwritten. This is especially important when you are performing ripple edits in a small portion of your sequence and you can't see how clip items later in your sequence are being affected.

You can trim edits precisely in the Trim Edit window. As you trim, you can play back the section of your sequence around the selected edit point to see your changes.

This chapter covers the following:

Learning About the Trim Edit Window (p. 361)
Opening and Closing the Trim Edit Window (p. 363)
• Controls in the Trim Edit Window (p. 364)
• Using the Trim Edit Window (p. 368)
• Listening to Audio While Trimming (p. 373)

The Trim Edit window is a special environment for trimming one edit point at a time while reviewing the complete media for both the incoming and outgoing clips. You can also watch how your editing adjustments affect the cut point without stopping playback. For many editors, this immediate visual feedback makes it much easier to match action from the outgoing and incoming shots, align an edit point precisely to an audio cue, or use the unique dynamic trimming function to instantly assign new edit points while you play back your footage using the J, K, and L keys.

This window shows a two-up display, with the Out point of the outgoing clip on the left and the In point of the incoming clip on the right. Two green bars—one at the top of each clip—highlight which edit points the Trim Edit window will affect. Using the Trim Edit window, you can perform a ripple edit to either side of the selected edit point, or a roll edit to both sides. You can also slip clip In and Out points together to change what part of the clip appears in the Timeline (see “Slipping Clips in the Timeline” on page 325).

Outgoing Clip: Nancy drinking talking 00:00:06:01 Trim Edit track VI 01:00:59:13 01:01:16:16 00:00:08:17 Incoming Clip: Don pain XCU 01:00:12:16 Outgoing clip Green bar Incoming clip Out Shift: 00:00:00 3 Dynamic 3 In Shift: 00:00:00

There are four ways you can perform trim edits in this window:

Drag the clip In and Out points in the Trim Edit window scrubber bars.
Use the jog and shuttle controls to move the playheads on either side of the edit, and then set new In and Out points using the Mark In and Mark Out buttons (or the I and O keys).
Move the playhead using the J, K, and L keys to find new Out and In points for the selected edit point. If the dynamic trimming option is enabled, the selected edit point moves to the new position of the playhead whenever you press K to stop playback.
Use the Trim Forward and Trim Backward buttons (Shift-] and Shift-[]) to perform the selected trim operation to the outgoing and incoming clips on either side of the edit point. The inner trim buttons trim an edit point by one frame, while the outer, multi-frame trim buttons adjust edit points by a default duration of five frames. You can perform ripple and roll edits using these buttons while the selected edit plays back, trimming frame by frame while you watch the selected edit loop over and over.

Note: The number of frames the multi-frame trim buttons add or subtract can be changed in the Editing tab of the User Preferences window. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

The Trim Edit window opens when you select edit points with certain tools. You can also open the Trim Edit window manually at any time.

To open the Trim Edit window, do one of the following:

- Choose Sequence > Trim Edit (or press Command-7).

The playhead jumps to the closest edit point on the lowest-numbered track with Auto Select enabled. The Trim Edit window shows the clips surrounding this edit point. By default, both sides of the edit point are selected, so the Trim Edit window is set up to perform a roll edit.

■ Double-click an edit point in the Timeline with the Selection, Ripple, or Roll tool.

on eats fish p Nancy drinking talking Don eats fish plate CU Nancy drinking Don pain XCU CU Nancy at table CU Nancy drinking talking Nancy drinking talking CU Nancy at table CU Nancy drinking talking Double-click an edit point to open the Trim Edit window.

The Trim Edit window displays the clips surrounding the edit point. The selected tool and the part of the edit point you clicked determine the initial state of the green bars, which define the kind of edit you can perform. Press the U key to switch between the Ripple Outgoing, Roll, and Ripple Incoming trimming modes.

- Click an edit point or drag around one or more edit points using the Edit Selection tool.

Nancy drinking talking Don eats fish plate CU Nancy drinking Don pain XCU Cru Nancy at table CU Nancy drinking talking Nancy drinking talking Nancy at table CU Nancy drinking talking You can also drag around an edit point with the Edit Selection tool to open the Trim Edit window.

The Trim Edit window displays the clip items adjacent to the edit points you selected. If you selected multiple edit points, the clip items located on the topmost video track are displayed. You can change this using the Track pop-up menu.

To close the Trim Edit window, do one of the following:

■ Move the playhead in the Timeline or Canvas away from the edit point.
- Click anywhere in the Timeline away from an edit point to deselect all edit points in the Timeline.
Press Command-W.

Before you begin using the Trim Edit window, you may want to familiarize yourself with the controls.

Current sequence timecode Track pop-up menu Outgoing Clip: Nancy drinking talking Trim 01 01:00:59:13 01:01:16:16 00:00:08:17 Incoming Clip: Don pain KCU 01:00:12:16 Green bar Incoming clip Outgoing clip Transport controls Jog control Shuttle control Scrubber bar Shuttle control Outset: 00:00:00 Playback controls for the outgoing clip Trim buttons Playback controls for the incoming clip

Current sequence timecode: Shows the timecode number of the currently viewed edit point in the sequence. You can type + (plus) or – (minus) and a timecode duration to adjust the edit forward or backward using the current mode (ripple or roll).
Track pop-up menu: If you've selected multiple edit points, this lets you choose the track that you want to view in the Trim Edit window. You can change the track you're viewing at any time.
Green bar: Indicates what kind of trimming operation you're about to perform:
On the left side (over the outgoing clip): A ripple edit to the outgoing clip's Out point
On the right side (over the incoming clip): A ripple edit to the incoming clip's In point
• Over both: A roll edit to the edit point between both clips

You can switch between these operations by pressing U or by clicking the relevant part of the Trim Edit window (as described in "Trimming an Edit in the Trim Edit Window" on page 369).

Scrubber bar: The scrubber bar runs along the entire width of each of the two viewer areas in the Trim Edit window, below the video image. To scrub, or move, through a clip or sequence, drag the playhead across the scrubber bar. You can also click anywhere in the scrubber bar to instantly move the playhead to that location.
Jog control: The jog control allows you to move the playhead as if you were actually moving it with your hand, with a one-to-one correspondence between the motion of your mouse and the playhead's motion. For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 6, "Viewer Basics." You can also refer to Volume I, Chapter 7, "Canvas Basics."
Shuttle control: This control lets you quickly play through clips and sequences at different speeds, in fast and slow motion. Drag the slider to the right to fast-forward and to the left to rewind. Playback speed varies depending on the distance of the slider from the center of the control. For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 6, "Viewer Basics." You can also refer to Volume I, Chapter 7, "Canvas Basics."

The Go to Previous Edit and Go to Next Edit buttons allow you to change which edit point in your sequence is shown in the Trim Edit window. Other controls allow you to play back only the edit you're trimming to see how it works.

Go to Previous Edit Play In to Out -5 -1 Dynamic +1 +5 Play Around Edit Loop Stop Go to Next Edit

Go to Previous Edit: Click to move the previous edit point in your sequence into the active area of the Trim Edit window.
Play In to Out: Click to play from the beginning of the first clip to the end of the second clip.
Play Around Edit Loop: Click to play from a point before the current playhead position to a point following. The time intervals before and after the playhead position are determined by the preview pre-roll and post-roll settings in the Editing tab of the User Preferences window. (For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences.")
Stop: Click to stop playback and position the playhead on the edit point.
Go to Next Edit: Click to move the next edit point in your sequence into the active area of the Trim Edit window.

These controls allow you to move the playhead on either side of the edit point without modifying the edit point itself. The outgoing and incoming clips have separate playback controls, which can also be controlled by the J, K, and L keys. The playback controls are for viewing only; they don't change the position of an edit point.

Out Shift: 00:00:00 Previous Frame Play Next Frame

Previous Frame and Next Frame: Use these controls to jog the clip backward or forward, one frame at a time.
Play: Use this control to play the clip at normal speed.

Important: The Space bar plays around the selected edit point in the Timeline; it does not control playback in either side of the Trim Edit window. For more information, see "Playing Incoming and Outgoing Clips in the Trim Edit Window" on page 369.

Trim Backward buttons Dynamic Trimming checkbox +1 +5 -5 -1 Dynamic +1 +5 Trim Forward buttons

Trim Forward and Trim Backward: Click these buttons to add or subtract frames from the duration between the In and Out points.
You can set the -5 and +5 buttons to trim a different number of frames by changing the Multi-Frame Trim Size setting in the Editing tab of the User Preferences window. The number of frames to trim can be set from 1 to 99. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."
Dynamic Trimming: Select this checkbox to toggle dynamic trimming on and off, without having to go to the User Preferences window. For more information, see "Dynamic Trimming" on page 369.

Outgoing clip name Current timecode for the outgoing clip Outgoing clip duration Outgong Clip: Don eats fish plate CU Track V1 00:00:33:20 01:01:45:00 01:01 Playhead Out Shift +00:26:19 Mark Out button Out point

Outgoing clip duration: Displays the total time between the current In and Out points for the outgoing clip. This value changes to reflect any trim edits.
Current timecode for the outgoing clip: Displays the clip's source timecode for the current position of the playhead.
Out Shift: Indicates the number of frames the Out point has been adjusted.
Mark Out button: Click this to set a new Out point for the outgoing clip at the current playhead position. This will perform a trim edit using the current mode (ripple or roll).
Out point: Displays the current Out point for the outgoing clip.
Playhead: The playhead for the outgoing clip lets you locate and jump to different parts of the clip quickly.

Incoming clip duration Incoming clip name Current timecode for the incoming clip Playhead In point Mark In button In Shift 00:00:00

Incoming clip duration: Displays the total time between the current In and Out points for the incoming clip. This value changes to reflect any trim edits.
Current timecode for the incoming clip: Displays the clip's source timecode for the current position of the playhead.
In Shift: Indicates the number of frames the In point has been adjusted.
Mark In button: Click this to set a new In point for the incoming clip at the current playhead position. This will perform a trim edit using the current mode (ripple or roll).
In point: Displays the current In point for the incoming clip.
Playhead: The playhead for the incoming clip lets you locate and move or jump to different parts of the clip quickly.

You use the Trim Edit window to trim one or more edit points at a time. When trimming multiple edit points at once, you can choose which edit point the Trim Edit window displays and trim each edit point differently. If you change the type of edit you are performing in the Trim Edit window, this change affects all of your selected edit points.

If you are performing a ripple edit in the Trim Edit window, the side of the Trim Edit window with a highlighted green bar is controlled by the J, K, and L keys. However, if you are performing a roll edit, both sides are highlighted. In this case, you choose whether the outgoing or incoming clip is controlled by the J, K, and L keys by moving the pointer over the outgoing or incoming side of the window. The Play button on the active Trim Edit viewer is highlighted.

Important: The Space bar does not control playback on the incoming or outgoing sides of the Trim Edit window.

To enable playback with the J, K, and L keys in one side of the Trim Edit window:

1 Move the pointer over the side you want to play.

The Play button highlights to indicate the side is active.

2 Use the J, K, and L keys to control playback on that side.

When the Dynamic Trimming checkbox is selected, the selected edit point moves to the new position of the playhead whenever you use the J, K, or L keys. Press L to move forward, press J to reverse playback, and press K to stop. Press J or L repeatedly to speed up and slow down playback. Press K and either L or J together to perform slow-motion playback. The playhead in the active Trim Edit viewer moves until you press K to stop. When playback stops, the edit point in the active Trim Edit viewer is adjusted to the new position of the playhead. A ripple or roll edit is performed depending on whether one side of the edit point is selected, or both.

Depending on how you like to work, you can choose one of several ways to use the Trim Edit window.

To trim an edit point in the Trim Edit window:

1 Select one or more edit points to trim using the methods described above.

2 If you're trimming multiple edit points, choose the track you want to view from the Track pop-up menu.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Trimming an Edit in the Trim Edit Window - 1

- Click the left image to trim the outgoing clip with a ripple left edit.

Trimming indicator bar only appears above the outgoing clip. The pointer temporarily turns into a Ripple tool.

- Click the center area between the images to do a roll edit.

Trimming indicator bar appears over both clips. Tracing Clip: Don eats fish plate CU 00:00:04:20 01:00:46:07 01:00:58:01 00:00:06:18 Incoming Clip: Nancy drinking talking 01:00:37:17 The pointer temporarily turns into a Roll tool. Out Shift: 00:00:00 In Shift: 00:00:00

- Click the right image to trim the incoming clip with a ripple right edit.

Outgoing Clip: Don eats fish plate CU 00:00:04:20 Track 51 01:00:46:07 01:00:58:01 00:00:06:18 Incoming Clip: Nancy drinking talking 01:00:37:17 Trimming indicator bar only appears above the incoming clip. The pointer temporarily turns into a Ripple tool. Out Shift: 00:00:00 In Shift: 00:00:00

- Press the U key to toggle between the three available trimming modes. A green bar appears above either or both sides of the edit to show you what kind of trimming operation you're performing.

4 Trim the edit point by doing any of the following:

Click the trim buttons or use their keyboard equivalents to trim to the left or right using the displayed frame increments.
Press [ (left bracket) or ] (right bracket) to trim backward or forward one frame.
Press Shift-[ or Shift-] to trim backward or forward five frames. The number of frames to trim can be customized with the Multi-Frame Trim Size setting in the Editing tab of User Preferences. (For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences.")
Type + (plus) or – (minus) and the number of frames to add or subtract, then press Return.
Drag an edit marker in the scrubber bar to a new point in the outgoing or incoming clip.
Use the jog and shuttle controls to move the playhead within the outgoing or the incoming clip. Then set a new Out point for the outgoing clip by pressing O or a new In point for the incoming clip by pressing I.
Use the playback controls to play the clip. Set a new Out point for the outgoing clip or a new In point for the incoming clip.
Use the J, K, and L keys to shuttle the playhead on either side of the edit point (you choose which side by positioning the pointer there). As you move the pointer between the left and right sides of the Trim Edit window, the left and right Play buttons become highlighted. Don't click, or you'll change the selected trim operation.

Press L to move forward, press J to reverse playback, and press K to stop. Press J or L repeatedly to speed up and slow down playback. Press K and either L or J together to perform slow-motion playback.

If the Dynamic Trimming checkbox is selected, the selected edit point moves to the new position of the playhead whenever you stop playback.

For all the above trimming methods, the In Shift and Out Shift fields show the total number of frames that have been modified. The sequence and playhead in the Timeline automatically update to reflect your changes.

5 Review your edit.

See "Reviewing and Playing Back Your Edits in the Trim Edit Window" on page 372.

6 To trim another edit point in the same track, use the Go to Previous Edit and Go to Next Edit buttons to move to another edit point and display it in the Trim Edit window.

You can also select one or more edit points in the Timeline, and then go back to the Trim Edit window to perform additional trim operations.

7 When you are finished trimming, do one of the following:

Move the playhead away from the edit point in the Canvas or Timeline.
Click in the Timeline to deselect all edit points.
Close the Trim Edit window.

To play the edit using the transport controls, do one of the following:

Click the Play In to Out button to play from the beginning of the first clip to the end of the second clip.
Click the Play Around Edit Loop button or press the Space bar to loop the playback of the edit. Extra frames surround your edit point, defined by the pre-roll and post-roll settings set in the Editing tab of the User Preferences window. (For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences.")
Click the Stop button to stop playback and position the playhead on the edit.

To view an individual clip in the Trim Edit window, do one of the following:

■ Use the playback controls for the outgoing or incoming clip.
■ Activate the outgoing or incoming clip by moving your pointer over it. Press L to move forward, press J to reverse playback, and press K to stop. Press J or L repeatedly to speed up or slow down playback. Press K and either L or J together to perform slow-motion playback.

Tip: As you use the J, K, and L keys, the audio shifts pitch smoothly rather than stuttering, as it does when you scrub. For more information, see the next section, "Listening to Audio While Trimming."

The Slip tool changes the clip's In and Out points simultaneously while maintaining the clip's duration. Surrounding clips are not affected. You can slip either of the clips displayed in the Trim Edit window.

To slip an edit in the Trim Edit window:

1 Double-click an edit point in the Timeline to open it in the Trim Edit window.
2 Do one of the following:
- Shift-drag the edit point on either scrubber bar to slip that clip.
- Select the Slip tool in the Tool palette, then drag the edit.
As you drag, the display shows the In and Out point frames for the clip you are slipping.

3 Release the mouse button.

4 When you've finished trimming, close the Trim Edit window.

When you play back the outgoing or incoming clip in the Trim Edit window (using the J, K, and L keys), you can choose which audio tracks you hear.

The following options are available in the Editing tab of the User Preferences window:

Trim with Sequence Audio: With this option selected, you hear the entire audio mix when you play back the clip on either side of the Trim Edit window. This helps you set a new In or Out point based on audio cues in tracks where edit points aren't selected. This option is selected by default.
Trim with Edit Selection Audio (Mute Others): Any audio tracks with selected edits are played back. All others are muted.

If both options are deselected, you will hear any tracks with selected edits, but clip item linking is also taken into account. For example, if you select an edit point on V1, and the clip item is linked to audio clip items on A1 and A2, you hear tracks A1 and A2. However, if clip items on A1 and A2 are not linked to a clip item on V1, you won't hear them.

Tip: In most situations, you will want to keep the Trim with Sequence Audio checkbox selected. If you want to hear only specific audio tracks while trimming, select Trim with Edit Selection Audio (Mute Others).

When you use the J, K, and L keys to play the outgoing or incoming clip, you may want to hear all of the audio tracks in your sequence, such as music, sound effects, and voiceover. This can be useful if you are listening for a particular audio cue to determine when to make a cut.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > User Preferences, then click the Editing tab.
2 Select the Trim with Sequence Audio checkbox.
3 Select edit points in the Timeline and double-click them to open the Trim Edit window.
4 Move the pointer over the side of the Trim Edit window you want to listen to, then use the J, K, and L keys to play back the incoming or outgoing clip.

To hear only the selected audio tracks in the Timeline while using the J, K, and L keys in the Trim Edit window:

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > User Preferences, then click the Editing tab.
2 Select the Trim with Edit Selection Audio (Mute Others) checkbox.

Important: Make sure the Trim with Sequence Audio checkbox is also selected.

3 Select edit points in the Timeline and double-click them to open the Trim Edit window.
4 Move the pointer over the side of the Trim Edit window you want to listen to, then use the J, K, and L keys to play back the incoming or outgoing clip.

Note: When you are working with multiple edit points in the Timeline, selecting an audio track from the Track pop-up menu allows you to listen to only that audio track during playback on either side of the Trim Edit window.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - To listen to all sequence audio tracks while using the J, K, and L keys in the Trim Edit window: - 1

You can add cross dissolves and other transitions between cuts to make your program more interesting. You can also add a cross fade audio transition to smooth abrupt changes in audio.

This chapter covers the following:

• Learning About Transitions (p. 375)
- Adding Transitions (p. 379)
- Moving, Copying, and Deleting Transitions (p. 384)
- Modifying Transitions in the Timeline (p. 386)
• Working With Default and Favorite Transitions (p. 389)
• Detecting Duplicate Frames Over Transitions (p. 391)
• Video Transitions That Come With Final Cut Pro (p. 392)

Note: This chapter mainly focuses on video transitions. However, Final Cut Pro does come with two audio transitions you can use to smooth audible changes between clips. For information about using audio transitions, see "Using Audio Transitions to Smooth Audible Changes" on page 308. To apply transitions, both video and audio, use this chapter.

A transition is a visual effect used to change from one clip in your edited sequence to the next. In the early days of film editing, the only transition you could immediately view was a cut. Even the simplest transition, the dissolve, had to be specially set up in an optical printer and sent back to the editor for viewing. The whole process was expensive and could take several days.

Video made this process faster and easier. By mixing two video signals together, you could watch a dissolve immediately and decide how you liked it. The more quickly you can see how an effect will look, the more quickly you can refine it to suit your needs. Film editors had to anticipate how transitions would look and how long they should last without actually being able to preview them; there was never the time or budget to try transitions during editing. It's much easier to preview cross dissolves, fades, and other transitions in a video system, and particularly in a nonlinear editing system. In Final Cut Pro, you can continue to adjust a transition and preview it until you get it just right.

If cuts are the "glue" that holds the individual clips of a scene together, transitions are the visual cues that take us from one scene to the next. A cut registers immediacy, usually leading the viewer to believe that the next shot happens immediately after the previous one. There are three very common transitions used that occur over time: fades, cross dissolves, and wipes.

A fade-out begins with a shot at full intensity and reduces until it is gone. A fade-in begins with a shot at no intensity and increases until it is full. These are the common "fade to black" and "fade up (from black)" transitions.
A cross dissolve involves two shots. The first shot fades out while the second shot simultaneously fades in. During the cross dissolve, the two shots are superimposed as they fade.
A wipe is where the screen splits, moving from one side of the image to the other to gradually reveal the next shot. It is more obvious than a fade or cross dissolve.

Final Cut Pro also comes with two audio transitions: a +3 dB cross fade (the default) and a 0 dB cross fade

- Cross Fade (+3 dB): Performs the same operation as Cross Fade (0 dB), but applies an equal-power ramp to the volume level, rather than a linear ramp.

Note: An equal-power ramp uses a quarter-cycle cosine fade-out curve and a quarter-cycle sine fade-in curve. As a result, the volume is maintained at a constant level throughout the cross fade.

- Cross Fade (0 dB): Fades the first clip out, while simultaneously fading the second clip in. This effect applies a linear ramp to the volume level. As a result, the volume level dips in the middle of the cross fade.

Each cross fade results in a different audio level change as the transition plays. Your choice of cross fades depends on the clips you're transitioning between. Try one, then try the other to see which sounds better.

Transitions, especially dissolves, generally give the viewer an impression of a change in time or location. When very long transitions are used, they become more of a special effect, useful in creating a different atmosphere in your sequence. You can use transitions to:

Convey the passing of time between scenes
Fade up at the beginning of the movie or scene
• Create a montage of images
Fade out at the end of the movie or scene
• Create motion graphic effects
Soften jump cuts (cuts between two different parts of the same footage)

Final Cut Pro comes with a variety of transitions you can use in your programs, but you'll probably use dissolves and wipes more than any others. For more information, see "Video Transitions That Come With Final Cut Pro" on page 392.

Transitions are applied between two adjacent clips in the same track of a sequence in the Timeline. In the Timeline, a transition is displayed as an object overlapping two adjacent clips. You can still see the cut point between the two clips. A dark gray slope in the transition's icon in your sequence indicates the speed, alignment, and direction of your transition.

A transition between two clips Debra enters cafe WS Cross Dissolve Master shot Debra MS Master shot jacob WS Debra enters cafe WS Master shot Debra MS Master shot jacob WS Debra enters cafe WS Master shot Debra MS Master shot jacob WS The center line indicates the original edit point or cut.

By default, transitions have a total duration of 1 second. To change this, see “Changing the Duration of a Transition in the Timeline” on page 386.

To apply a transition, both clips must have additional media (handles) that overlap past the edit point.

Clips must have handles if you want to transition between them. Handles are additional media frames before the In point and after the Out point of your clips. The first shot in a transition (the outgoing clip) needs a handle after its Out point, while the second shot in a transition (the incoming clip) needs a handle before its In point.

Handle of incoming clip Outgoing clip Edit point Handle of outgoing clip Incoming clip

If the In point of your incoming clip begins on the first frame of the clip's media file, you have no handle at the beginning (or head) of your clip. Likewise, if the Out point of your outgoing clip ends on the last frame of the clip's media file, you have no handle at the end (or tail) of your clip. If the clips don't have enough media for the transition, Final Cut Pro attempts to make the longest transition possible with the available clip handles. In some cases, you may end up with transitions as short as one frame, which may be difficult to see in the Timeline and are generally not intended or useful.

You can place a transition so that it starts on, centers on, or ends on the edit point between two clips in the Timeline. You should choose a transition alignment based on the editorial effect you want to achieve:

- Starting on the cut: Choose this alignment if you want the last frame of the outgoing clip to be fully visible before the transition begins.

01:00:24:00 01:00:27:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:33:00 01:00:36:00 Cross Dissolve Master shot Debra MS Master shot jacob WS Master shot Debra MS Master shot jacob WS Master shot Debra MS Master shot jacob WS Master shot Debra MS A transition starting on the cut

- Centered on the cut: Choose this alignment if you want the cut point between the two clips to be the midpoint in the transition.

01:00:21:00 01:00:24:00 01:00:27:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:33:00 Debra enters cafe WS Cross Dissolve Master shot Debra MS Master shot Jacob Debra enters cafe WS Master shot Debra MS Master shot Jacob Debra enters cafe WS Master shot Debra MS Master shot Jacob A transition centered on the cut

- Ending on the cut: Use this alignment if you want the first frame of the incoming clip to be fully visible.

01:00:21:00 01:00:24:00 01:00:27:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:33:00 Debra enter Cross Dissolve Master shot Debra MS Master shot jacob WS Debra enters cafe WS Master shot Debra MS Master shot jacob WS Debra enters cafe WS Master shot Debra MS Master shot jacob WS A transition ending on the cut

You can add transitions when you edit a clip into the Timeline, or you can add transitions between clips already in a sequence.

You can choose the Insert with Transition or Overwrite with Transition options in the Canvas Edit overlay when you edit a clip into your sequence. This adds the default transition at the In point of the incoming clip and the Out point of the outgoing clip. The default video transition is a 1-second cross dissolve, but you can change this if you want (see "Changing the Default Transition" on page 390).

For information on performing edits with transitions, see "Performing an Insert With Transition Edit" on page 155 and "Performing an Overwrite With Transition Edit" on page 158.

You can quickly add the default transition between two clips in your sequence. The default video transition is a 1-second cross dissolve and the default audio transition is a +3 dB cross fade. You can change the default transition if you want (see "Changing the Default Transition" on page 390).

- Select an edit point between two video clips or position the Canvas or Timeline playhead at the desired edit point, then press Command-T.

01:00:21:00 01:00:24:00 01:00:27:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:33:00 Debra enters cafe WS Master shot Debra MS Master shot jacob Debra enters cafe WS Master shot Debra MS Master shot jacob Debra enters cafe WS Master shot Debra MS Master shot jacob Select an edit point where you want to add a transition.

■ Control-click an edit point between two video clips in the Timeline, then choose Add Transition from the shortcut menu.

The name of the current default transition appears next to the command in the shortcut menu.

Debra enters cafe WS Master shot Debra MS Trim Add Transition 'Cross Dissolve' Paste Join Through Edit Debra enters cafe WS Master shot Debra MS Master shot jacob Debra enters cafe WS Master shot jacob

If there are enough overlapping frames on both sides of the edit point, the selected transition is added to your edit, centered at the edit point.

The added transition, centered on the edit point. Debra enters cafe WS Cross Dissolve Master shot Debra MS Master shot Jacob Debra enters cafe WS Master shot Debra MS Master shot Jacob Debra enters cafe WS Master shot Debra MS Master shot Jacob

To change the position of the transition, see "Changing the Alignment of a Transition in the Timeline" on page 388.

Select an edit point between two audio clips or position the Canvas or Timeline playhead at the desired edit point, then press Option-Command-T.
■ Control-click an edit point between two audio clips in the Timeline, then choose Add Transition from the shortcut menu.

The name of the current default transition appears next to the command in the shortcut menu.

Once a transition has been applied, you can change the type of cross fade it is (0 or +3 dB) by Control-clicking it again and choosing the appropriate transition from the shortcut menu.

You can add any type of transition, whether or not it's the default transition, using the Effects menu or the Effects tab in the Browser.

Click an edit point between two clips in your sequence to select it.
Position the Canvas or Timeline playhead at the desired edit point.
Position the Canvas or Timeline playhead on a transition that's already been edited into your sequence.

Choose Effects > Video Transitions, choose the type of transition, then choose the desired transition from the submenu.
Choose Effects > Audio Transitions, then choose the desired transition from the submenu. If there are enough overlapping frames on both sides of the edit point, the selected transition is added to your edit, centered at the edit point. To reposition the transition, see “Changing the Alignment of a Transition in the Timeline” on page 388.

Tip: All of the transitions that come with Final Cut Pro will be centered at the edit point if applied from the Effects menu. If you add a favorite transition that you've customized to appear either before or after the edit point, the transition is placed according to its settings, provided there's enough overlap at the selected edit point.

- Drag a transition from the Effects tab in the Browser to an edit point in the Timeline.

If there are enough overlapping frames between the two clips, you can drag the transition to start on, center on, or end on an edit point. The transition snaps to one of these three areas as you drag it close to the edit point. To reposition the transition, see "Changing the Alignment of a Transition in the Timeline" on page 388.

You can limit the transition alignment to the start or end of the edit point by holding down the Command key while you drag a transition around an edit point.

A fade to black is really just a cross dissolve from a clip to black. In Final Cut Pro, you can add black to the Timeline by adding a slug, which is a built-in Final Cut Pro video generator. It's often better to have an actual black clip to trim or adjust as needed. However, you can create a cross dissolve from a clip to a gap for a similar effect.

Important: Fading to black by creating a cross dissolve from a clip to a gap works only if there are no other video tracks with clips beneath the gap.

- Add a cross dissolve transition to one of the following:

The beginning of the first clip in your sequence
The end of the last clip in your sequence
The beginning or end of any clip with a gap on one or both sides

For more information, see "Adding Transitions to Clips in Your Sequence" on page 381.

Cross Dissolve Cross Dissolve Debra sidewalking Debra sidewalking Debra sidewalking If the transition starts at the beginning of the sequence, you'll see a fade from black.

01:01:01:14 01:01:02:03 01:01:02:16 01:01:03:05 01:01:03:18 01:01:04:06 01:01:04:19 Master shot Debra MS Cross Dissolve shot Debra MS Master shot Debra MS shot Debra MS Master shot Debra MS If the transition is placed at the end of the last clip, you'll see a fade to black.

Edit Decision Lists (EDLs) were developed for older tape-to-tape editing systems with limited capabilities. Therefore, they can only describe a narrow range of transitions. Typically, these transitions match standard transitions found on most broadcast video switchers, designated by codes that have been standardized by the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE).

Although today's nonlinear editing systems have introduced a much wider variety of transitions and effects, the EDL format continues to reflect the simplicity of older systems. As a result, not everything that you can do in a Final Cut Pro sequence will show up as expected in an exported EDL.

Keep the following in mind when creating a sequence that you may export as an EDL:

EDLs don't support transitions in any tracks other than V1. If you use transitions in other tracks, they won't appear in the EDL.
Anything other than a cross dissolve or simple wipe is mapped to the closest approximate SMPTE standard wipe pattern.

For more information on EDLs, see Volume IV, Chapter 10, "Importing and Exporting EDLs."

After you add a transition, you can move it or change its edit point. You can also copy transitions to quickly add the same transition at another point in your sequence (then modify its properties later, if desired). You can also delete the transition.

You can move a transition from one edit point to another. The transition is removed from the previous edit point and located at the new edit point. If there's already a transition at the new edit point, it's replaced by the new transition.

In the Timeline, drag a transition from its current edit point to the desired edit point.

If there are enough overlapping frames on either side of the edit, you can drag it before the edit point, on the edit point, or after the edit point.

Cross Dissolve Side master shot jacob MS Master shot Debra CU Master shot Debra MS Side master shot jacob MS Master shot Debra CU Master shot Debra MS Side master shot jacob MS Master shot Debra CU Drag the transition to the new edit point.

To add the same transition quickly elsewhere within your sequence, you can copy and paste a transition to other edit points. This is helpful if you've changed a transition's default settings and want to use the modified transition again. (You can also make frequently used transitions "favorites." For more information, see "Saving a Transition as a Favorite" on page 390.

1 Do one of the following:

In the Timeline, select the transition you want to copy, then press Command-C.
Control-click the transition, then choose Copy from the shortcut menu.

2 Do one of the following:

Select the edit point where you want to add the transition, then press Command-V.
Control-click the edit point where you want to add the transition, then choose Paste from the shortcut menu.

- Hold down the Option key while dragging an existing transition to another edit point.

Transitions that you've added to your sequence can easily be removed.

1 Select the transition you want to remove in the Timeline.
2 Do one of the following:

- Choose Edit > Clear (or press Delete).

- Control-click the transition, then choose Cut from the shortcut menu.

Once a transition is placed on a track, you may want to alter the duration to make it longer or shorter, or change its alignment by choosing where the transition begins relative to the edit point between two clips. You can also replace transitions.

Note: To make very precise adjustments to transitions, you can use the Transition Editor. For more information, see Chapter 22, "Refining Transitions Using the Transition Editor," on page 397.

You can change the duration of a transition, as long as there are enough overlapping frames to accommodate your new duration. When you change the duration of a transition in the Timeline, the way the duration changes depends on the alignment of the transition.

If the transition ends on the edit point, the duration affects the clip to the left of this point (the outgoing clip).
If the transition is centered on the edit point, changes in duration extend in both directions.
If the transition starts on the edit point, the duration affects the clip to the right of this point (the incoming clip).

You can change the duration of a transition by dragging or by using timecode.

To change a transition's duration in the Timeline by dragging:

1 Select the Selection tool, then move the pointer to the beginning or the end of the transition in the Timeline.
2 Drag either side of the transition to make the duration longer or shorter.

master shot jacob MS Cross Dissolve Master shot Debra CU +00:00:12 (New Duration = 00:00:01:10) master shot jacob MS Master shot Debra CU Master shot Debra CU The pointer changes to the Resize pointer, indicating that you can drag to the duration you want.

1 Do one of the following:

Double-click the transition in the Timeline.
Control-click the transition in the Timeline, then choose Duration from the shortcut menu.
Select the transition in the Timeline, then press Control-D.

2 In the Duration dialog, enter a new duration for the transition, then click OK.

Duration Duration: 00:00:01:00 Enter the desired duration here. Cancel OK

Tip: If you enter a duration that's longer than the available amount of overlap between these two clips, you hear an alert sound and the maximum duration possible is displayed in the dialog. You can change the duration or click OK to use the maximum duration. A convenient way to determine the maximum duration of a transition is to enter a high number here, such as 9999 (in most cases, much less will do) and click OK. The maximum duration possible appears in the dialog.

Transitions can either start on, center on, or end on an edit point. This alignment can be changed at any time. Changing the alignment of a transition allows you to precisely control which frames are fully visible when a transition begins or ends.

To change the alignment of a transition in a sequence, do one of the following:

In the Timeline, select the transition, choose Sequence > Transition Alignment, then choose another alignment from the submenu.
■ Control-click a transition, then choose another alignment from the shortcut menu.
■ Select a transition, then do one of the following:

To start the transition at the edit point: Press Option-1.
To center the transition on the edit point: Press Option-2.
To end the transition at the edit point: Press Option-3.

The transition moves to the new alignment position.

Even with transitions applied, you can still trim one or both sides of the edit point (for example, using the Ripple, Roll, Slip, or Slide tool). Both the alignment and duration of the transition remain the same. For more information on these types of edits, see Chapter 18, "Performing Slip, Slide, Ripple, and Roll Edits," on page 321.

Before a roll edit — Master shot Debra MS Side master shot Jacob MS Cross Dissolve -00:00:14 Master shot Debra CU Master shot Debra MS Side master shot Jacob MS Master shot Debra CU After a roll edit with the transition moved. Debra MS Side master shot Jacob MS Cross Dissolve Master shot Debra CU Master shot Debra MS Side master shot Jacob MS Master shot Debra CU

Note: The transition itself limits how far you can trim clips on either side of the edit point, because the transition requires a certain amount of media on one or both sides of the edit point.

If you change your mind about which transition you want in an edit, it's easy to change it.

To swap a transition in your sequence with another, do one of the following:

Move the Timeline playhead over the transition you want to change (or click to select it), choose Effects > Video Transitions or Effects > Audio Transitions, then choose another transition from the submenu.
Drag a transition from the Effects tab in the Browser onto the transition you want to change in the Timeline.

When the pointer is over the old transition, it will be highlighted to show it's about to be replaced.

Note: If you replace a transition in your sequence with a transition you've saved as a favorite, the favorite transition's duration overrides that of the transition it's replacing. For more on favorite transitions, see "Saving a Transition as a Favorite" on page 390.

■ Control-click an audio transition, then choose another transition from the shortcut menu. Since there are only two kinds of audio transitions, they both appear in this menu.

Final Cut Pro comes with default transitions; a 1-second cross dissolve is the default video transition and a +3 dB cross fade is the default audio transition. You can change the default to be another transition, including one that you've customized. If you use the same transition multiple times, you may want to consider making it a favorite, so it's easier to add to your sequence.

You can change the default transition to any transition that comes with Final Cut Pro, or to a transition you've customized.

1 Click the Effects tab of the Browser.
2 Click the disclosure triangle next to Video Transitions or Audio Transitions.
3 Click the disclosure triangle of the transitions bin containing the transition you want as the default.
4 Do one of the following:
- Select a video or audio transition, then choose Effects > Set Default under the Video Transitions or Audio Transitions section of the menu.
- Control-click a transition, then choose Set Default Transition from the shortcut menu.

The default transition appears with underlined text in the Effects tab of the Browser as well as in the Effects menu.

You can save a transition as a favorite so you can quickly use it again in the future. This is handy if you've customized a transition or set a transition to a specific duration. You can name each favorite to reflect its effect, such as a modified duration. You can create bins in the Favorites bin by dragging an existing bin from the Effects tab or the current project tab.

Drag a transition from a sequence in the Timeline to the Favorites bin in the Effects tab of the Browser.
Drag a transition from the Video Transitions or Audio Transitions bin to the Favorites bin in the Effects tab of the Browser.

The transition now appears as a copy. Cross Dissolve Video Transitions Video Filters Video Generators Audio Transitions Audio Filters Browser Cafe Effects Name Implicator Type Length Favorites in Video Transition 00:00:00:15 in in in in in

1 Select the transition in the Favorites bin in the Effects tab of the Browser.
2 Click the transition's name to highlight the name field.
3 Enter a new name, then press Return.

Browser Cafe Effects Name Type Length Favorites Bin 315 Frame Dissolve Video Transition 00:00:00:15 Video Transitions Bin Video Filters Bin Audio Generators Bin Audio Transitions Bin Audio Filters Bin

If you've added a transition as a favorite, you can delete it at any time from the Favorites bin. If it's a transition that comes with Final Cut Pro, it will still appear in the Video Transitions or Audio Transitions bin.

1 Select the transition in the Favorites bin in the Effects tab of the Browser.
2 Select Edit > Clear (or press Delete).

When Show Duplicate Frames is turned on in a sequence's settings and a clip appears more than once within a single edited sequence, the duplicate frames are marked by a colored bar appearing at the bottom of the clip's video item in the Timeline.

01:00:18.00 01:00:24.00 Crisis D Lola gives coat and Lola gives coat and tie CU The red bars indicate duplicate frames used within a sequence. Lola gives coat and tie CU

However, if the duplicated frames fall outside the boundaries of the clip in the Timeline or fall within a transition, a special indicator—four white dots—appears where the duplicate frames are located. The dots can appear on either side or both sides of the transition. The side of the transition the dots appear on indicates the clip or clips that use duplicate frames. When you zoom out, the white dots decrease in range from four to zero, depending on the zoom level.

01:00:18:00 01:00:24:00 Criss D Lola gives coat and Lola gives coat and tie CU The white dots indicate duplicate frames used in a transition. Lola gives coat and tie CU

For more information about duplicate frame detection, see Volume I, Chapter 9, "Timeline Basics."

Video Transitions That Come With Final Cut Pro

3D Simulation
Cross Zoom	Causes the video to zoom in on the first clip, switch to the second, and zoom out. You can specify the center point, the amount of magnification in the zoom, and the degree of blur applied during the zoom.
Cube Spin	Creates a three-dimensional cube from each clip and spins it in the direction you choose. You can also view the cube from the inside or the outside.
Spin3D	Spins the first clip around its center point, revealing the second clip. You can choose the angle of the spin axis.
Spinback3D	Spins the first clip around its center point until the clip is viewed from its edge, and then switches to the second clip, which spins into view. You can choose the angle of the spin axis.
Swing	Creates the effect of swinging the first clip in toward the viewer or out toward the second clip, which is revealed as the swing widens. You can choose the angle of the swing axis.
Zoom	Zooms the second clip in from a single center point to full-frame size, over the top of the first clip. You can specify the center point (relative to the first clip) where the zoom begins.

Dissolve

Additive Dissolve	Adds the two clips so that the first clip fades out and the second fades in.
Cross Dissolve1	Blends the first clip into the second clip.
Dip to Color Dissolve	Blends the first clip into the plain color of your choice, and then blends the plain color into the second clip. You can adjust the speed of the blend.
Dither Dissolve	Dissolves the first clip into the second by removing random pixels from the first clip to reveal the second clip.
Fade In, Fade Out	Fades in the incoming clip as the outgoing clip fades out. Reveals the track below the current track in a transition.
Non-Additive Dissolve	Compares the pixels in the two clips and displays the lighter of the two as the first clip fades out and the second fades in.
Ripple Dissolve	Applies a pond ripple effect to the first clip, simultaneously blending it into the second. You can choose the number of ripples, their center point on the first clip, and their amplitude and acceleration. You can also apply a circle highlight to the ripples.

^1 Renders with 10-bit precision if your sequence is set for 10-bit precision in the Video Processing tab of the Sequence Settings window.

Iris

Cross, Diamond, Oval, Point, Rectangle, and Star

These effects are similar, but have different shapes. They all create the impression of an iris, which contains the first clip, opening to reveal the second. In each iris effect, you can specify the center point around which the opening is defined and feather the edges, which blends the edges of the clips together and gives a diffused iris.

Map

Channel Map	Maps channels from the first and second clip, or fills the channels with black. You can invert individual channels.
Luminance Map	Maps color using the luminance of a clip.

Page Peel

Peels the first clip away to reveal the second clip. You can adjust the appearance of the peel.

QuickTime

QuickTime includes a set of built-in video effects listed here, some of which are implementations of standard effects defined by the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE).For more information, visit the Apple QuickTime website at http://www.apple.com/quicktime.
Channel Compositor	Combines two images using the alpha channels of the images to control the blending. It provides the standard alpha blending options and can handle pre-multiplying by any color, although white and black are most common and often run faster.
QuickTime
Chroma Key	Combines two sources by replacing all the pixels of the first source that are the specified color with the corresponding pixels of the second source. This allows the second source to show through the first. This appears to put the second clip behind the first clip and make the selected color transparent.
Explode	The second clip grows from a single point, expanding outward until it entirely covers the first clip. The center point of the explosion is defined in the effect parameters.
Gradient Wipe	Uses a matte image to create a transition between two source images. The transition from the first clip to the second clip occurs first where the matte image is darkest, last where the matte image is brightest.
Implode	The first clip shrinks down to a single point, revealing the second clip. The center point of the implosion is defined in the effect parameters.
Iris	The first clip opens like an iris to reveal the second clip.
Matrix Wipe	These are a series of matrix reveal type effects that take place between two sources.
Push	One source image replaces another, both images moving at the same time. For example, the first clip occupies the entire frame, then the second clip pushes in from the right while the first clip slides out to the left.Unlike the slide effect, both sources are moving. The push effect executes from the top, right, bottom, or left.
Radial	The first clip sweeps in a radial (or semi-circular) way to reveal the second clip.
Slide	The second clip slides onto the screen to cover the first clip. The angle from which the second clip enters the frame is stored in a parameter, with 0 degrees being the top of the screen.
Wipe	The first clip wipes to reveal the second clip.
Zoom	One clip zooms in or out of the other clip.

Slide
Band Slide	Bands of the first clip slide in parallel directions to reveal the second clip. You can adjust the number of bands and the slide direction.
Box Slide	Bands of the first clip slide one at a time in perpendicular directions to reveal the second clip. You can adjust the number of bands and the slide direction.
Center Split Slide	Reveals the underlying clip by splitting the current clip down the center and horizontally sliding the two halves away from each other.
Multi Spin Slide	Boxes of the first clip spin and zoom out to reveal the second clip. You can adjust the spin about the center of the first clip and the spin about the center of the box, as well as the number of boxes.
Push Slide	The second clip pushes the first clip out of view. You can adjust the push direction.
Spin Slide	Boxes of the first clip spin and zoom out to reveal the second clip. You can adjust the spin about the center of the box and the number of boxes.
Split Slide	The first clip splits at specific points and slides to reveal the second clip. You can adjust the orientation of the split.
Swap Slide	The first (top) and the second (bottom) clips slide in opposite directions, swap places, and slide back, revealing the second clip. You can adjust the slide direction.

Stretch
Cross Stretch	The first clip is squeezed as the second clip stretches from the specified edge to the opposite edge.
Squeeze	The first clip is squeezed from the opposite edges toward the center to reveal the second clip. You can specify the squeeze orientation.
Squeeze and Stretch	The first clip is squeezed from the opposite edges toward the center and stretches in a perpendicular direction to reveal the second clip. You can adjust the squeeze orientation.
Stretch	The second clip stretches from the specified edge over the first clip.

Wipe
Band Wipe	Wipes a band across the first clip to reveal the second. You can specify the number of bands and the wipe direction.
Center Wipe	A linear wipe from a specified point on the first clip reveals the second clip. You can adjust the wipe direction.
Checker Wipe	Checkered boxes appear on the first clip to reveal the second clip. You can adjust the number of boxes and the wipe direction.
Checkerboard Wipe	Checkered boxes wipe individually on the first clip to reveal the second. You can adjust the number of boxes and the wipe direction.
Clock Wipe	A rotational wipe over the first clip reveals the second. You can adjust the start and direction of the wipe and the center point of the rotation.
Edge Wipe	A linear wipe from the edge of the first clip reveals the second clip. You can adjust the wipe direction.
Gradient Wipe	Uses a gradient wipe image to wipe across the first clip, revealing the second clip. You can adjust the softness of the wipe and invert the gradient wipe image. By default, the transition wipes horizontally from left to right. You can override this by dragging an image onto the gradient clip well.
Inset Wipe	A rectangular wipe from the specified edge or corner of the first clip reveals the second clip.
Jaws Wipe	A jagged-edged wipe from the center of the first clip reveals the second clip. You can adjust the wipe direction and the shape of the jagged edge.
Random Edge Wipe	A linear wipe with a random edge from the edge of the first clip reveals the second clip. You can adjust the direction of the wipe and the width of the random edge.
V Wipe	A V-shaped wipe from the specified edge of the first clip reveals the second clip.
Venetian Blind Wipe	Bands wipe across the first clip to reveal the second. You can adjust the angle and the number of bands.
Wrap Wipe	Bands wipe in the specified direction across the first clip to reveal the second clip. You can specify the start and orientation of the wipe and the number of bands.
Zigzag Wipe	Bands wipe in a zigzag pattern over the first clip to reveal the second clip. You can specify the start and orientation of the wipe and the number of bands.

Final Cut Pro supports After Effects plug-ins that have been specifically designed to be used as Final Cut Pro transitions. These plug-ins appear in the Video Transitions folder of the Effects tab. After Effects transitions can be applied, modified, and removed like any other transition effect in Final Cut Pro.

- Copy the After Effects transitions into the Plugins folder, in the following folder location: /Library/Application Support/Final Cut Pro System Support/Plugins.

Not all After Effects filters are supported in this way. If you install a set of plug-ins and then begin to have problems, take them out of the Plugins folder.

Important: After Effects filters don't take advantage of the ability of Final Cut Pro to render video using Y'C_B C_R. All After Effects plug-ins render only in RGB color space.

This chapter covers the following:

• Using the Transition Editor (p. 397)
- Applying a Modified Transition Directly to a Sequence in the Timeline (p. 405)
- Trimming Transitions and the Surrounding Clips (p. 406)
- Previewing and Rendering Transitions (p. 410)

If you want to make more precise changes to a transition than editing in the Timeline allows, or if you want to create custom settings for transitions that you use frequently, you can use the Transition Editor.

The Transition Editor allows you to:

Change the duration of a transition
Adjust the alignment of a transition
Trim the edit point between the two clips adjacent to the transition
Ripple edit each clip to either side of a transition's edit point
Adjust the percentage of completion of a transition at its start and end points
Reverse the direction of a transition
Modify custom settings for a transition

When you double-click a transition in the Timeline or the Effects tab of the Browser, a special tab for the transition opens in the Viewer. This Transition Editor window indicates that the transition is "loaded," or opened, so you can view and modify the transition's settings.

The following are property and edit point controls common to all transitions.

This timecode field displays the current duration of your transition. Changing the value in this field shortens or lengthens the duration of the applied transition up to the maximum amount of overlapping frames available at the edit point. (To change the duration in the Timeline, see “Changing the Duration of a Transition in the Timeline” on page 386.)

Cube Spin 00:00:01:00 Timecode Duration field 01:00:12:16 01

How the duration will change depends on the alignment of the transition. If the transition occurs before the edit point, the duration affects the clip to the left of this point, or the outgoing clip. If the transition is centered on the edit point, changes in duration extend in both directions. If the transition occurs after the edit point, the duration affects the clip to the right of this point, or the incoming clip.

The selected button indicates the current alignment of your transition. You can change the alignment of a transition by clicking a button (if there are enough overlapping frames in the direction in which you want to realign the transition).

Vie Alignment buttons 13:08

This control lets you choose from a list of recently used clips. A clip is added to this list when another clip replaces it in the Viewer (not when the clip is opened in the Viewer). The last clip that was replaced in the Viewer appears at the top of the list.

Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D Recent Clips pop-up menu

By default, the maximum number of clips shown in this list is 10; you can change this number in the General tab of the User Preferences window. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

Once the maximum number of entries is reached, a clip is removed from the bottom of the list each time another clip is replaced in the Viewer.

If you want to apply the current transition to another edit point in your sequence in the Timeline, you can drag this to the desired location in your sequence. This is true for transitions opened from the Browser and from a sequence in the Timeline.

Drag hand 01:00:14:16

The ruler displays a close-up view of the frames surrounding the transition in your sequence. The ruler and playhead in the Transition Editor are locked to those in the Timeline. The time scale of the ruler can be changed by using the Zoom In and Zoom Out tools or pressing Command-+ (plus) or Command-- (minus).

Cube Spin 00:00:01:00 01:00:12:16 01:00:13:08 01:00:14:00 01:00:14:16 Viewer Ruler

A transition that appears as two overlapping clips on the same track in the Timeline is represented differently in the Transition Editor. The outgoing clip and its Out point appear on the top track, the incoming clip and its In point appear on the bottom track, and the transition itself appears on a track between the two.

Cube Spin 00:00:01:00 01:00:12:16 01:00:13:08 01:00:14:00 01:00:14:16 Don at table salad WS +00:00:01 Dining room serving salad WS Outgoing clip Incoming clip

Both the Out point of the outgoing clip and the In point of the incoming clip are handles that you can drag to perform ripple edits, modifying the edit points of these clips in your sequence in the Timeline. (A ripple edit adjusts the length of a clip by changing the In or Out point of the clip. Ripple edits do not cause gaps in your edited sequence. For more information, see "Doing a Ripple Edit to Adjust the Length of a Clip in a Transition" on page 408.)

The transition appears as a bar with start and end points that you can drag. Depending on the alignment of your transition, the edit point appears to the right, in the center, or to the left of this bar.

Viewer Cube Spin 00:00:01:00 01:00:12:16 01:00:13:08 01:00:14:00 01:00:14:16 Edit point in the center of the transition bar Don at table salad WS +00:00:08 (New Duration = 00:00:01:08) Dining room serving salad WS Transition bar with the start point being moved Start: 0 % End: 100 %

Dragging the transition bar from the middle results in a roll edit, which moves the edit point between two clips in a sequence. Dragging either of the transition edges shortens or extends the transition.

Note: A roll edit adjusts the location of an edit point shared by two clips; the Out point of the first clip and the In point of the second clip are moved simultaneously, or rolled. This changes the location of the edit point in the sequence, as well as the duration of each clip. For more information, see "Using the Roll Tool to Change Where a Cut Occurs" on page 338.

These sliders allow you to set the starting and ending percentages of the transition's visual effect. For example, if you are using an edge wipe, the default starting percentage of 0 percent places the border of the wipe all the way to the left of the image, essentially revealing all of the outgoing clip.

Start: 0 % End: 75 %

Canvas. Intro sequence in Dining Intro sequence 00:01:59:03 01:00:07:18

The start of an edge wipe transition

Halfway through the wipe, at the edit point, the wipe is at 50 percent, placing the border of the wipe in the middle of the picture. You can now see half of the incoming clip to the left and half of the outgoing clip to the right.

Canvas: Intro sequence in Dining Intro sequence 00:01:59:03 59% 01:00:12:09

The middle of an edge wipe transition

At the end of the edit, with the transition finished and the default ending percentage of 100%, the border of the wipe is all the way to the right, revealing the entire incoming clip.

Intro sequence 00:01:59:03 99% 01:00:16:11

Near the end of an edge wipe transition

You can change the starting and ending percentages for the transition. This is an excellent way of creating split-screen effects if you plan to export your sequence as an EDL for import into another editing system. For more information on exporting EDLs, see Volume IV, Chapter 10, "Importing and Exporting EDLs."

For example, you can set both the starting and ending percentages to 50 percent. At the start of the transition, a split-screen effect is created; half of the outgoing clip and half of the incoming clip are revealed simultaneously and throughout the duration of the transition.

Edge Wipe 00:00:03.02 01:00:09.00 01:00:12.00 01:00:15.00 Nancy grade at door CU Don ringa door bell MS Start: 50 % End: 50 % Angle 90 Border 0 Color Feather Edges The start of the edge wipe transition, where the start percentage is 50% Intro sequence 00:01:59.03 01:00:10.19 The start of the transition in the Canvas

When the transition is complete, the image becomes the full-screen picture of the incoming clip.

Edge Wipe 00:00:03:02 01:00:09:00 01:00:12:00 01:00:15:00 Nancy greets at door CU Don rings, door bell MS Start: 50% End: 50% Angle 90 Border 0 Color Feather Edges The end of the edge wipe transition, where the end percentage is 50% Macro sequence 00:01:59:03 99% 01:00:12:08 The end of the transition in the Canvas; the split-screen effect is maintained throughout the transition.

Some transition effects have a default direction. For example, a wipe goes from the left to the right, a clock wipe's border travels in a clockwise direction, and the spin 3D transition spins the outgoing clip out to the right.

50 % Reverse Transition button 90

To reverse the direction of an effect, click the Reverse Transition button. If you reverse the direction for the above examples, the wipe moves from right to left, the clock wipe moves in a counter-clockwise direction, and the spin 3D transition spins the incoming clip in to the left.

Click this to reset all of a transition's parameters to the default values.

50 % 90 Reset button

Many transitions have additional parameters that you can use to further customize their effect. These parameters appear below the controls for the properties and may include such visual effects as the center point of the effect, the width of the transition border, and the color and feathering of this border. More complex transitions have more elaborate effects.

The way clips are displayed in the Transition Editor depends on the current thumbnail display setting for the sequence. (For information on changing this display in the sequence settings, see Volume IV, Chapter 26, "Sequence Settings and Presets.") You can also increase or decrease the scale of the ruler in the Transition Editor by zooming in or out.

To zoom in on the ruler in the Transition Editor, do one of the following:

Click the Transition Editor to make it active, then choose View > Zoom In.
Select the Zoom In tool, then click either clip or the transition shown in the Transition Editor.
■ Press Command-+ (plus).

To zoom out of the ruler in the Transition Editor, do one of the following:

Click the Transition Editor to make it active, then choose View > Zoom Out.
Select the Zoom Out tool, then click either clip or the transition shown in the Transition Editor.
■ Press Command-- (minus).

To zoom to fit the ruler in the Transition Editor:

Press Shift-Z.

This zooms the ruler to a medium size in the Transition Editor.

When you open a transition from your sequence in the Timeline in the Transition Editor, you can modify and trim it much more precisely than you can in the Timeline. All the transitions that come with Final Cut Pro are different, but all of them share some essential properties and edit points that you can modify in the Transition Editor.

If you open a transition from a sequence in the Timeline: Changes you make immediately alter that transition in your edited sequence.
If you open a transition from the Effects tab of the Browser: This opens a copy of the transition. Changes you make have no effect until you apply the modified transition to an edit point in the Timeline or save the transition as a favorite.

To open a transition from the Timeline, do one of the following:

■ Double-click the transition.
■ Control-click the transition, then choose Open from the shortcut menu.
- Select the transition's icon, then choose View > Transition in Editor.

To open a copy of a transition from the Effects tab, do one of the following:

■ Double-click a transition in the Effects tab.
■ Select a transition, then press Return.
■ Control-click the transition, then choose Open Viewer from the shortcut menu.

This opens a copy of the transition. If you change settings and want to use the changed version, you need to save it as a favorite (see "Saving a Transition as a Favorite" on page 390) or apply it directly to an edit point in the Timeline by dragging its drag hand to an edit point. For more information, see the next section, "Applying a Modified Transition Directly to a Sequence in the Timeline."

After you modify a transition's settings in the Transition Editor, you can apply the transition directly to an edit point in the Timeline. If you do this, the modified transition is only saved in the Timeline. To use this transition again, make it a favorite (see "Saving a Transition as a Favorite" on page 390) or copy it (see "Copying and Pasting Transitions" on page 385).

To apply a modified transition directly to your sequence in the Timeline:

- Drag the transition's drag hand to an edit point in the Timeline.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Intro sequence Dining sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:06:00 01:00:12:00 01:00:18:00 v1 v1 Don at table salad WS Dining room a1 A1 Dining room serving salad WS Dining room set Don at table s a2 A2 Dining room serving salad WS Dining room set Don at table s A3 Don at table salad WS Drag the hand from the Transition Editor to an edit point in your sequence.

Trimming is the process of modifying the edit points of clips that are already in your sequence. After you've opened a transition in your sequence in the Transition Editor, you can fine-tune your edit. This is done using the handles on the Out point of the outgoing clip and the In point of the incoming clip that meet to form your transition's edit point.

Changes you make to a transition in the Transition Editor (if it's opened from the sequence in the Timeline and not the Browser) immediately affect this transition in your sequence.

Duration of the outgoing clip Handle of the outgoing clip Out point of the outgoing clip Transition start point Transition end point In point of the incoming clip Duration of the incoming clip

You can drag the pointer in the Transition Editor to trim the transition and change the duration of the transition or the actual location, or edit point, where the transition occurs between two clips. When you do this, a dual frame display appears in the Canvas to show how your change affects the clips surrounding this transition.

The frame on the left: This displays the current frame at the transition's start point in the outgoing clip.
The frame on the right: This displays the current frame at the transition's end point in the incoming clip.

The name of each clip is at the top of each display and the timecode for the transition's start or end point is visible at the bottom of each display.

The start point of the transition in the outgoing clip

Nancy greets at door CU 02:01:54:15 Don rings door bell MS 01:09:12:02

The end point of the transition in the incoming clip

When you move the pointer to either edge of a transition in the Transition Editor, it changes to a Resize pointer. You can then change the duration of the transition, depending on how much clip overlap is available.

1 Open the transition in the Transition Editor.
2 Do one of the following:

Enter a new duration in the Timecode Duration field, then press Return.
Drag the beginning or end of the transition to the desired length. When you do this to a transition centered at the edit point, both sides of the transition change duration, but the edit point itself doesn't move.

01:00:06:00 01:00:09:00 01:00:12:00 Nancy greets at door C# -00:00:06 (New Duration = 00:00:05:00) Don rings door bell MS Start: 0 % End: 100 Drag either end of the transition to the desired length.

If you move the pointer over the middle of a transition in the Transition Editor, it changes to the Roll tool. You can then move the edit point along with the transition to the left or to the right, as long as there is available overlap between the outgoing and incoming clips.

1 Open the transition in the Transition Editor.
2 Place the pointer anywhere on the transition.
3 When the pointer changes to the Roll tool, drag the edit point and the transition to the new location.

01:00:06:00 01:00:09:00 01:00:12 Nancy greets at door CU +00:00:20 Don rings door bell MS Start: 0 % End: 100 Using the Roll tool, drag the edit point to a new position.

Nancy greets at door CU 02:01:49:05 Don rings door bell MS 01:09:12:07 Check the two-up display in the Canvas to help you determine where to place the transition.

Even when a transition is applied between two clips, you can change the duration of the outgoing or incoming clip using the Ripple tool. Ripple edits do not cause gaps in your edited sequence.

Rippling the Out point of the outgoing clip: This moves the transition and the edit point at the same time so that the outgoing clip is shortened or extended. The rest of your edited sequence moves forward or back to accommodate this change.
Rippling the In point of the incoming clip: This has no effect on the location of the edit point or the transition, but shortens or lengthens the incoming clip. All subsequent clips are moved to the left or right so that there is no resulting gap.

When you trim the outgoing or incoming clip with the Ripple tool, the Canvas shows the current frame of the edit point you're dragging, along with the clip's name and the current timecode value of the clip in a single frame display. A tooltip is displayed at the location of the pointer in the Transition Editor to show the offset between the new edit point you're selecting and the original edit point.

1 Open the transition in the Transition Editor.
2 Place the pointer at the Out point of the outgoing clip or at the In point of the incoming clip.

Edge Wire 00:00:04.02 01:00:06.00 01:00:09.00 01:00:12.00 Namp greets at door CU Down/mags door MS -00:00:02 End Start: Angle 90 Border Color Feather Edges

When you do a ripple edit, a tooltip shows the offset between the new and old edit points.

Don rings door bell MS 01:09:08:13

- In the Canvas, the frame of the new edit point is shown.

3 When the pointer changes to the Ripple tool, drag the edit point to another frame in your clip.

Many transitions can play back in real-time, depending on your system and the transition you're applying. Those that can't need to be rendered. Rendering is the process of combining your video and audio with the applied effects, such as transitions or filters, one frame at a time. The result is a new file, called a render file, which can be played back in real time. The render bar, above the ruler in the Timeline, indicates the render status of all transitions you've edited into your sequence (as well as other items in your sequence).

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:06:00 01:00:12:00 01:00:18:00 v1 V1 Render bar Dining Cross Dissolve Don at table Dip to Color Dissolv Dining Clock Wipe Band Wipe a1 A1 Dining room serving salad WS Don at tabi Cross Fade (+3dB) Dinir Don at tab a2 A2 Dining room serving salad WS Don at tabi Cross Fade (+3dB) Dinir Don at tab A3

The render bar has two regions, one for video and the other for audio. Since you may have audio transitions that need to be rendered associated with sections of video that don't need rendering, audio and video are kept separate.

• Upper region: Indicates the presence and render status of video effects items.
- Lower region: Indicates the presence and render status of audio effects items.

The upper area indicates the render status of video items. The lower area indicates the render status of audio items.

Colors in the render bar above items indicate whether the items need to be rendered. Items that don't need to be rendered have dark gray bars above them. For more information about real-time effects, see Volume III, Chapter 23, "Using RT Extreme." For more information on rendering, see Volume III, Chapter 24, "Rendering."

If you have to render your transitions, it's a good idea to preview complex transitions first. You can preview transitions while you're modifying them or any time before rendering them.

To preview a transition, do one of the following:

■ Move the playhead in the Canvas, the Timeline, or the Transition Editor over a frame of the transition.
That frame of your transition is rendered and displayed in the Canvas, on your external monitor, or both, depending on how your external video settings are configured.
Note: Make sure the Caps Lock key is not engaged. The Caps Lock key disables rendering.
- Move the playhead in the Canvas or Timeline to a frame just before your transition, then choose Mark > Play > Every Frame (or press Option-\ or Option-P).
Final Cut Pro plays every frame of your transition, although not in real time.

If you need to render your transitions, you can render all the transitions and effects in your sequence or only selected transitions. Rendering transitions is just like rendering clips with filters applied. For detailed information on setting up and using render quality settings, see Volume III, Chapter 24, "Rendering."

1 Select one or more transitions in the Timeline.
2 Choose Sequence > Render Selection > Both (or press Command-R).
To cancel rendering, click Cancel in the status box or press Esc.

1 Open a sequence in the Timeline.
2 Choose Sequence > Render All, and make sure Needs Render is the only option enabled in the submenu.
3 Choose Sequence > Render All > Both.
To cancel rendering, click Cancel in the status box or press Esc.

1 Open a sequence in the Timeline.
2 Choose Sequence > Render All > Both (or press Option-R).
To cancel rendering, click Cancel in the status box or press Esc.

This chapter covers the following:

• Methods for Editing Clips From One Sequence to Another (p. 413)
- Opening More Than One Sequence at a Time (p. 414)
- Copying Clips From One Sequence to Another (p. 414)
- Nesting Sequences (p. 418)
• Editing the Content of One Sequence Into Another Without Nesting It (p. 423)

Note: If you're looking for basic information about sequences, see Chapter 5, "Working With Projects, Clips, and Sequences," on page 73.

Often when you're editing, you'll be working with more than one sequence. For example, you may create one sequence for each scene in a movie, or use different sequences for various versions of your project. At some point, you may need to copy clips from one sequence to another. Copying information between sequences is fairly easy and can be done several ways. You can also edit entire sequences into other sequences, commonly called nesting.

There are a few different ways to add content from one sequence to another:

Copying and pasting clips from one sequence into another
Using three-point editing to edit clips from a sequence open in the Viewer to a destination sequence in the Canvas or Timeline

Important: Editing clips between sequences with different dimensions, frame rates, and codecs will apply motion parameters, such as distortion and aspect ratio adjustments, to the resulting clips in the destination sequence. To remove these parameters, see Volume III, Chapter 14, "Reusing Effect and Motion Parameters."

To copy, edit, or nest a sequence into another sequence, the destination sequence must be open in the Timeline or Canvas. When you open a sequence, the Timeline and the Canvas open together, if they're not open already. If the Timeline and Canvas are already open, a newly opened sequence appears in its own tab on top of any other sequence tabs.

If you want to view your sequences separately, you can move each into its own window. This eliminates the constant need to click back and forth between sequence tabs in the Timeline. For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 4, "Overview of the Final Cut Pro Interface."

You can quickly copy clips between sequences if you want to use the same portion of the clip in both sequences. You can copy clips between sequences by dragging or by using the Copy and Paste commands.

To copy clips from one sequence to another by dragging:

1 Open both sequences in the Timeline.
2 Drag one sequence by its tab out of the Timeline to create a new window.
Make sure the two Timeline windows are viewable on screen and not overlapping other windows.
3 Select one or more clips that you want to copy.

- To do an insert edit, drag the clips where you want them to appear in the other sequence, positioning the pointer in the upper part of the track (the pointer looks like a right arrow).

- To do an overwrite edit, drag the clips where you want them to appear in the other sequence, positioning the pointer in the lower part of the track (the pointer looks like a down arrow).

5 Release the mouse button.

The selected clips from the first sequence are copied into the second sequence.

To copy clips from one sequence to another using the Copy and Paste commands:

1 Open the sequence that contains the clip or clips you want to copy.
2 In the Timeline, select one or more clips, then choose Edit > Copy (or press Command-C).
3 Open the sequence into which you want to copy the clips.
4 Make sure the Auto Select controls are enabled for the tracks you want to paste the clips into.

For more information, see "Using Auto Select to Specify Tracks for Selections" on page 191.

If all or none of the tracks have Auto Select enabled, the clips are placed on V1, A1, and so on (depending on how many audio clip items are pasted).

5 In the Timeline for the second sequence, do one of the following:

Position the playhead where you want to place the beginning of the copied clip or clips.
In the Current Timecode field, enter the timecode number where you want to place the beginning of the copied clip or clips.

Timeline: Dining Sequence in Dining RT 01:00:07:03 00:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D a1 A1 Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D a2 A2 Clip A Clip B Clip C Clip D A3 Music 1 Music 1 Music 2 A4 Music 1 Music 1 Music 2

6 Choose Edit > Paste (or press Command-V).

Timeline: Dining Sequence in Dining RT 01:00:14:22 00:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Clip A Clip W Clip X Clip B Clip C Clip D a1 A1 Clip A Clip W Clip X Clip B Clip C Clip D a2 A2 Clip A Clip W Clip X Clip B Clip C Clip D A3 Music 1 Music 1 Music 2 A4 Music 1 Music 1 Music 2

The copied clips are pasted into the second sequence.

Important: If you copy and paste clips between sequences in different projects, all pasted clips are independent, because master-affiliate relationships do not span projects. To create master clips for the independent clips, you can select the sequence and choose Tools > Create Master Clips.

Final Cut Pro allows you to treat sequences as clips. You can open sequences in the Viewer and set In and Out points, and you can even edit sequences into other sequences. Putting one sequence inside another is called nesting a sequence. The sequence inside another sequence is the nested sequence. The sequence that contains the nested sequence is sometimes called the parent sequence.

Nested sequences can be used in the same way as clips. You can add audio and video filters to them, set their opacity and level overlays in the Timeline, work with their audio in the Audio tab of the Viewer, and adjust their motion parameters in the Motion tab of the Viewer.

Note: A sequence can't be edited into itself.

Nesting sequences is useful in various situations:

You can edit a movie using multiple sequences; for example, you can create a sequence for each scene. You can then place all of the sequences, in order, into a master sequence and output to tape or export a QuickTime movie.
You can also use nested sequences to reduce the amount of rendering when working with effects. You can place all of the effects-intensive audio or video sections of your program into separate sequences, and render them. When you then nest these sequences into your main program sequence, you can change the In and Out points of the nested sequences without having to rerender all of clips inside of them.
Another reason to nest sequences is to control the rendering order of effects used in your project. This is useful for motion graphics work. You can apply filters to clips inside a nested sequence, and then apply additional effects to the nested sequence itself.

Before you start using nested sequences in your project, it's important to understand some of the advantages and disadvantages of working with them.

- Nesting allows you to reuse an entire sequence of clips over and over. You can change a nested sequence and the changes are reflected everywhere.

Multiple levels of sequence nesting can take a while to display, since they require additional processing.
If you are exporting an EDL, nested sequences may generate confusing timecode numbers and reel names.
If you are exporting an OMF file, nested sequences will be mixed together and exported as a single audio media file.
Nested sequences make media management more complicated.

If you decide you don't want to nest a sequence, you can still edit content from one sequence to another. For more information, see "Editing the Content of One Sequence Into Another Without Nesting It" on page 423.

When you nest one sequence inside of another, the nested sequence has only one video item, regardless of how many video tracks it has in its own Timeline window. However, the number of audio items that are nested is equal to the number of audio output channels specified in the Audio Outputs tab of the Sequence Settings window for the nested sequence.

For example, if sequence A uses a single pair of stereo audio outputs, editing it into sequence B results in a nested clip with one video and two audio items.

However, if sequence A has six audio outputs assigned in its sequence settings, editing it into sequence B results in a nested sequence with one video and six audio items. This is true regardless of how the audio tracks are assigned to audio output channels in the nested sequence. For example, if you only have two audio tracks in the Timeline of the nested sequence, and they are assigned to audio output channels 1 and 2, the nested sequence still has six audio items when edited into another sequence.

You can edit the contents of a sequence, render it, and then edit that sequence into another sequence. This section explains the various ways you can nest a sequence into another sequence.

1 Open the sequence you want to nest in the Viewer by doing one of the following:

Drag the sequence from the Browser to the Viewer.
Hold down the Option key, then double-click a sequence in the Browser (this opens it in its own Viewer window).

2 In the Viewer, set In and Out points for the source sequence.

This lets you nest all or just a part of the sequence.

3 Edit the sequence into another sequence in the Timeline as you would a clip.

- Drag the sequence from the Browser or Viewer to another sequence in the Timeline, as you would a clip.

To copy and paste a sequence into another sequence:

1 In the Browser, copy the sequence by doing one of the following:

Select a sequence in the Browser, then choose Edit > Copy (or press Command-C).
Control-click a sequence in the Browser, then choose Copy from the shortcut menu.

2 In the Canvas or Timeline, open the destination sequence, then move the playhead to the location where you want to paste the nested sequence.
3 Specify the destination tracks where you want the nested sequence to go.
4 Choose Edit > Paste (or press Command-V).

The selected sequence is now nested, or placed, into the second sequence.

Instead of adding a nested sequence, you can also turn an existing range of clips in a sequence into a nested sequence using the Nest Items command.

1 In the Timeline, select a range of clip items that you want to replace with a nested sequence.

Note: If the clip items are linked, any items that are linked to those items in the Timeline are also selected.

Timeline: Intro sequence in Dining Intro sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:40:00 01:01:00: V2 Title 3D Title 3D Title 3D Title 3D Truck drives by front sho Don tal Workers w Don talks i Truck pulls Don Don rings doo Doi Nancy v1 V1 Music 2 Music 2 Nan a1 A1 Music 2 Music 2 Nan a2 A2 A3

2 Choose Sequence > Nest Item(s) (or press Option-C).

3 In the Nest Items dialog, enter a name for the new sequence into which the selected items will be placed.

Nest Items Name: New Title Sequence Width Height Aspect Ratio 720 x 480 NTSC DV (3:2) ✓ Keep Effects, Markers, and Audio Levels with Clip □ Mixdown Audio Cancel OK

4 Choose a width and height (frame size) for the new sequence that will be created to contain the selected clips.
You should usually use the default settings provided, since these match the sequence that your new sequence will be nested inside.
5 To move all effects, markers, and audio levels associated with the selected clips into the new sequence, select the Keep Effects, Markers, and Audio Levels with Clip checkbox.
6 To render all of the audio in the new sequence, select the Mixdown Audio checkbox.

This minimizes the audio processing requirements for the nested sequence. For more information on the real-time audio rendering capabilities of Final Cut Pro, see Volume III, Chapter 24, "Rendering."

7 Click OK.

All the items you selected are placed in a new sequence, and the new sequence replaces the selected items in the Timeline.

Timeline: Intro sequence in Dining Intro sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:40:00 01:01:00: V2 v1 V1 New Title Sequence New Title Sequence Nancy a1 A1 New Title Sequence New Title Sequence Nan a2 A2 New Title Sequence New Title Sequence Nan A3

Tip: If you change your mind, the nesting operation can easily be undone using the Undo command.

When you first nest a sequence into another sequence (sometimes known as the parent sequence), changes in the original nested sequence that affect its duration are reflected in the parent sequence. For example, if you shorten a clip in the original nested sequence, the overall sequence duration changes. As a result, the duration of the nested sequence within the parent sequence is also shortened, and the subsequent clips in the parent sequence are rippled to compensate for the shorter nested sequence.

This is quite helpful, since otherwise you'd end up with gaps in your parent sequence whenever you change the length of one of your nested sequences. This is convenient when each of your movie scenes is in a separate sequence. After you've edited all your scenes together, if you decide to reedit any of the scene sequences, the changes you make will automatically ripple items in the entire master sequence.

For example, suppose sequence B, which has a duration of 10 seconds, is nested inside another sequence, with more clips appearing to the right of it.

Sequence B Don talks to drive Workers walk up to truck Sequence B Music 2 Music 2 Sequence B Music 2 Music 2 Nested sequence B inside another sequence

You open sequence B and add two more clips to the end of it, extending its duration from 10 to 15 seconds. Once you've done this, all of the clips in the parent sequence that are to the right of the nested sequence B are automatically rippled 5 seconds to the right to accommodate the lengthening of the nested sequence B.

01:00:05:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:15:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:25:00 01:00:30:00 Sequence B Sequence B Don talks to drive Workers walk up to truck Sequence B Sequence B Music 2 Music 2 Adding clips to sequence B ripples the parent sequence. Sequence B Sequence B Music 2 Music 2

Important: If you modify a nested sequence duration in a parent sequence, or if you specifically set In and Out points in a sequence before you nest it into a parent sequence, the nested sequence may no longer ripple clips in the parent sequence when you adjust content in the nested sequence.

Instead of nesting one sequence inside another, you can simply edit the clips of a sequence into another sequence.

To help you understand how it works, suppose Sequence A has the following content edited into it:

Sequence A — Grandfather clock f Don pain XCU Nancy drinking talking Cros Grandfather clock face CU Nancy drink Nancy drinking talking Nancy drinking talking Nancy drinking talking Music 1 Music 1 Music 1 Music 1

If you drag Sequence A into the Canvas to edit it into Sequence B, the resulting nested sequence typically has one video track and two audio tracks (assuming Sequence A has two audio output channels).

Nesting Sequence A into Sequence B results in Sequence A becoming one clip in Sequence B. Sequence B at door CU Lola gives coat and tie Lola gives coat and tie CU Sequence A Sequence A sreets at door Lola gives coat and tie WS Lola gives coat and tie CU Sequence A Sequence A sreets at door Lola gives coat and tie WS Lola gives coat and tie CU Sequence A Sequence A

If you hold down the Command key while dragging Sequence A into the Canvas, you'll edit the clips contained within Sequence A into Sequence B. So each clip in Sequence A is still an individual clip in Sequence B. This allows for more flexibility should you want to make changes to any clips that are in Sequence A. However, future changes in Sequence A have no effect on Sequence B; Sequence B does not automatically update to reflect the changes.

This section describes how you can edit clips from one sequence into another sequence. There are a few different methods:

Edit content from the Viewer using the Canvas Edit Overlay or corresponding keyboard shortcuts.
Hold down the Command key while dragging clips directly into the Timeline.

You can drag content from the Browser to the Timeline, or use three-point editing rules. You can also create split edits from one sequence to another.

1 Open your destination sequence (where the copied clips will go) in the Timeline, then set an In point for the incoming clips by doing one of the following:

Position the playhead in the Timeline.
Set an In point in the Timeline or Canvas.

Set an In point where you want to place clips from the source sequence. Nancy greets at door CU Lola gives coat and tie Lola gives coat and tie CU Nancy Nancy greets at door Lola gives coat and tie WS Lola gives coat and tie CU Nancy Nancy greets at door Lola gives coat and tie WS Lola gives coat and tie CU

2 If necessary, create additional tracks for each track present in the source sequence.

Important: If you don't create additional tracks, only clips on V1, A1, and A2 will be copied from the source sequence.

3 Hold down the Command key, then drag your source sequence (the sequence you want to copy clips from) from the Browser or the Viewer to the Overwrite or Insert section of the Canvas Edit overlay.

01:00:15:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:45:00 01:01:00:00 01:01:15:00 Nancy greets at door CU Lola gives coat and tie Lola gives coat and tie CU Nancy drinking talkin Nancy drinking talking Nancy greets at door Lola gives coat and tie WS Lola gives coat and tie CU Nancy drinking talkin Nancy drinking talking The content of the source sequence is edited into the currently active sequence in the Timeline.

1 Open your destination sequence (where the copied clips will go) in the Timeline, then set an In point for the incoming clips by doing one of the following:

Position the playhead in the Timeline.
Set an In point in the Timeline or Canvas.

2 If necessary, create additional tracks for each track present in the source sequence. If you don't create additional tracks, only clips on V1, A1, and A2 will be copied from the source sequence.

3 In the Browser, select the sequence you want to copy clips from (the source sequence).
4 Do one of the following:

• To perform an insert edit: Press Command-F9.
• To perform an overwrite edit: Press Command-F10.

The content of the source sequence is edited into the destination sequence in the Timeline.

1 In the Timeline, open the destination sequence (where the copied clips will go) by clicking the sequence's tab.
2 If necessary, create additional tracks for each track present in the source sequence.

Important: If you don't create additional tracks, only clips on V1, A1, and A2 will be copied from the source sequence.

3 Drag a sequence from either the Browser or the Viewer to the area of the Timeline you want to edit it into.

01:00:00 01:00:15:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:45:00 01:01:00:00 01:01:15:00 Nancy greets at door CU Lola gives coat and tie Lola gives coat and tie CU SOLVENT KAT Nancy Nancy greets at door Lola gives coat and tie WS Lola gives coat and tie CU Nancy Nancy greets at door Lola gives coat and tie WS Lola gives coat and tie CU A highlighted area shows where the content from the source sequence will go.

4 Keeping the mouse button held down, press the Command key.
5 Keeping the Command key held down, release the mouse button.

The content of the sequence you dragged is edited into the currently active sequence in the Timeline, with all clips appearing individually.

00:00	01:00:15:00	01:00:30:00	01:45:00		01:01:00:00	01:01:15:00
	Nancy greets at door CU	Lola gives coat and tie	Lola gives coat and tie CU	Nan	Nancy drinking talkin	Nancy drinking talking
Nancy	Nancy greets at door	Lola gives coat and tie WS	Lola gives coat and tie CU	Nan	Nancy drinking talkin	Nancy drinking talking
Nancy	Nancy greets at door	Lola gives coat and tie WS	Lola gives coat and tie CU	Nan	Nancy drinking talkin	Nancy drinking talking

You can use the Viewer to modify sequence clip parameters as you play and edit your sequence in the Canvas and Timeline, and the playheads in all three windows can be synchronized.

This chapter covers the following:

• Working With Sequence Clips in the Viewer (p. 427)
- Matching Frames Between Sequence and Master Clips (p. 430)
- Synchronizing the Canvas/Timeline Playhead With the Viewer Playhead (p. 434)

The Viewer is a versatile window used for several different purposes. In the early stages of editing, the Viewer is used independently of the Canvas and Timeline, mostly to set In and Out points for clips before they are edited into your sequence. In the later stages, when you are fine-tuning, you can use the Viewer, in combination with the Canvas and Timeline, as another way of viewing portions of your sequence.

You work with sequence clips in the Viewer to:

Precisely trim clip In and Out points. You can make most of the same clip adjustments in the Viewer that you can in the Timeline, such as ripple, roll, and slip edits, but the process and visual feedback are very different.
Adjust motion and effects parameters. For example, if each sequence clip has a color correction filter applied, you access each clip's filter parameters by opening the sequence clip in the Viewer and clicking the Filters tab.

Note: Sequence clips display sprocket holes in the Viewer's scrubber bar to indicate that they are part of a larger sequence; Browser clips don't display sprocket holes.

Sprocket holes indicate that this is a sequence clip.

Screenshot of a media player interface with playback controls and track controls

When you open a sequence clip in the Viewer, you can work with it directly in the Viewer instead of in the Timeline.

■ Double-click a clip in the Timeline.
- Select the clip, then choose View > Clip (or press Return).
- Position the playhead at the In point of the clip in the Timeline (using the Up or Down Arrow key) or anywhere within the clip in the Timeline, then press the Return key.
The clip on the lowest-numbered Auto Select-enabled track opens in the Viewer and the Viewer playhead is at the same frame as the one under the Timeline playhead.

1 Make sure no clips are selected in the Timeline by choosing Edit > Deselect All (or pressing Shift-Command-A).
2 In the Timeline or Canvas, move the playhead to the frame you want to open in the Viewer.
3 Do one of the following:
- Double-click the image in the Canvas.
- Press Enter or Return.

The corresponding sequence clip opens in the Viewer to the specified frame.

1 In the Timeline, click the Linked Selection button to turn off linked selection (if it's on), or hold down the Option key.

2 Double-click the clip item you want to open in the Viewer.

Only the selected clip item is opened in the Viewer. Any items linked to this clip item are not opened in the Viewer.

When you work with sequence clips in the Viewer, you can quickly switch between the Viewer and the Canvas or Timeline. For example, opening a sequence clip in the Viewer activates the Viewer, but you might want to open the clip in the Viewer and then play the sequence.

- Press the Q key.

■ To make the Viewer active: Press Command-1.
■ To make the Canvas active: Press Command-2.
■ To make the Timeline active: Press Command-3.

Note: If you press a key combination for a window that is already active, the window closes. Pressing the key combination again opens the window. When you close a window by pressing the window's key combination, the content of that window is still remembered when you open that window again. This is different from closing a window by pressing Command-W or clicking the close button; in these cases, the content of the window is not remembered when you open the window again.

Adjusting clip In and Out points in the Timeline is very intuitive. You simply drag the boundary of the clip to make the clip longer or shorter. However, you can also open a sequence clip in the Viewer and set an In or Out point on the exact frame you want. Ultimately, the results are the same whether you adjust a clip in the Viewer or the Timeline, but there are times when one method may better help you visualize the result.

The advantage of working with sequence clips in the Viewer is that you can navigate through the whole clip, even beyond the clip In and Out points. Making an edit in the Viewer is a two-step process, but in some cases you may prefer the visual precision of this approach over dragging clip boundaries in the Timeline. With this method, you always know exactly which frames the In and Out points are set on.

In the Viewer, as well as in the Canvas and Timeline, the active tool, such as the Ripple, Roll, or Selection tool, determines the result of the edit.

To make a ripple, roll, slip, or duration change to a sequence clip in the Viewer:

1 Open the sequence clip in the Viewer.
2 Select the appropriate tool for the type of edit you want to do.
3 In the Viewer, navigate to the frame you want to use for the clip's new In point.
4 Press I to set a new In point.
5 Navigate to a new Out point and press O to set a new Out point.

If the new In or Out point is not accepted, check to see if Final Cut Pro displays an alert message. Some edits are not possible because they would cause other sequence clips to be partially overwritten or moved out of sync. For more information, see "Understanding Alert Messages When Trimming" on page 358.

When you want to adjust effects and motion parameters for a sequence clip, you open the clip in the Viewer to make adjustments in the Motion and Filters tabs. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 12, "Changing Motion Parameters." You can also refer to Volume III, Chapter 11, "Video Filters."

Sequence clips, which are usually affiliate clips, have a relationship to other clips in your project. Because of this relationship, you can tell Final Cut Pro to open the following clips in the Viewer:

The sequence clip's master clip, located in the Browser
The sequence clip's source media file, located on disk

When Final Cut Pro opens one of these items in the Viewer, the playhead is positioned at the exact same frame in the Viewer as in the Canvas and Timeline. This is known as a match frame.

Important: If a sequence clip is not an affiliate clip, it is independent, so it isn't related to a master clip in the Browser. You can't match an independent clip back to a master clip, because it doesn't have one. However, you can still match back to the original media file. For more information about master-affiliate clip relationships, see Volume IV, Chapter 4, "Working With Master and Affiliate Clips."

1 Select a clip in the Timeline, or move the playhead over a clip in the Canvas or Timeline.
2 Choose View > Reveal Master Clip.

If the Reveal Master Clip menu item is dimmed, the selected sequence clip does not have a master clip, and it is therefore independent.

Sometimes you'll want to view the master clip that a sequence clip came from. Here are several reasons why:

You want to open the original master clip without any of the motion, filter, or audio parameters from the sequence clip. This is useful when you want to add a "fresh" copy of the clip to your sequence.
You want to open the master clip with all of its video and audio items, instead of the sequence clip, which may only be a single clip item.

For example, your sequence clip may be a video clip item that no longer has its corresponding audio. You can get those audio clip items back by opening the video clip item's master clip in the Viewer. The master clip in the Viewer contains all the video and audio items, so you can edit the audio items from the master clip back into the sequence using a replace or overwrite edit. For details about replace edits, see "Performing a Replace Edit" on page 160.

1 In the Timeline or Canvas, move the playhead to the frame you want to open in the Viewer.
2 Choose View > Match Frame > Master Clip.

The master clip for the sequence clip opens in the Viewer. The playhead in the Viewer is set to the same frame as seen in the Canvas (thus, the frames match in the Canvas and Viewer).

When the clip's master clip opens in the Viewer, notice that there are no "sprocket holes" in the scrubber bar. This is because you're seeing the clip from the Browser, not the sequence clip. When you view the master clip, it has the same In and Out points as the sequence clip.

Viewer: Nancy greets at door CU in Dining Video Stereo (x1x2) Filters Motion 00:00:16:17 598 02:01:49:05 00:01:49:18 01:01:07:22 The current frame in the Viewer matches the frame in the Canvas.

To reveal a sequence clip's master clip in the Browser:

1 Select a clip in the Timeline, or move the playhead over a clip in the Canvas or Timeline.
2 Choose View > Reveal Master Clip (or press Shift-F).

The sequence clip's master clip is selected in the Browser, and the Browser becomes the active window.

There are some situations in which you may want to reveal the original media file of a clip instead of the clip's master clip. For example, if you are working with a subclip in the Timeline and you want to see all of the original media (instead of only the portion defined by the subclip limits), you can match to the original media file. This opens the entire media file as an independent clip in the Viewer. This clip has no filters or motion parameters applied, and has no In or Out points set.

Important: If you open a source media file in the Viewer and drag it to the Browser, a new master clip is created. If you drag it to the Timeline or Canvas, an independent clip is created in the sequence. This is true whenever you open a media file in the Viewer—either by using a match frame command or by dragging a media file from the Finder directly to the Viewer.

Independent sequence clips can cause complications during media management and recapturing, so you should avoid editing with these clips. You should also be careful not to unnecessarily create more than one master clip that references the same media file. Subclips are an example of master clips that can refer to the same media file, but each subclip refers to a different portion of the media file. Multiple master clips that refer to the exact same parts of the same media file are usually unnecessary.

1 In the Timeline, Canvas, or Viewer, move the playhead to the frame you want to open in the Viewer.
2 Choose View > Match Frame > Source Media File.

An independent clip is created in the Viewer that refers to the media file on disk. No In or Out points are set, but the Viewer displays the same frame as the Canvas (or the Viewer, if you were matching frames from a clip in the Viewer).

Just as you can match a sequence clip's frame to the same frame in its master clip, (see "Matching Frames Between a Sequence Clip and Its Master Clip" on page 431), you can also find frames in a sequence that match a clip open in the Viewer. This is a very powerful feature because you can instantly check to see if footage open in the Viewer is used anywhere in the current sequence.

1 Open a sequence in the Timeline.
2 Open a Browser clip in the Viewer and navigate to the frame you want to match in the current sequence.
3 Choose View > Match Frame > Master Clip (or press F).

If the frame shown in the Viewer exists in an affiliate clip in the sequence, the Canvas/ Timeline playhead moves to that frame. If there are several occurrences of the affiliate clip frame in the sequence, Final Cut Pro moves the Timeline playhead to the nearest frame after the current playhead location.

When a sequence clip is open in the Viewer, you can keep the Viewer playhead in sync with the Canvas/Timeline playhead. If you want to work with a sequence clip in the Viewer instead of the Timeline, you can synchronize the Viewer and Canvas/Timeline playheads together so you see the same frame in both windows.

Final Cut Pro has several options for synchronizing, or ganging, the Viewer and Canvas/ Timeline playheads together, so that if you move one, the other moves by the same amount. When the playheads are synchronized, you can control the playheads from the Viewer, Canvas, or Timeline. Playhead sync only works between the Canvas and Timeline windows and the Viewer window.

Reasons for using playhead sync include:

Automatically opening sequence clips in the Viewer to quickly make filter adjustments (for example, adjusting each sequence clip's Color Correction filter).
Using the Viewer as an alternative to the Trim Edit window, to look at prospective new In and Out points for a sequence clip. Although the end result is the same, this method provides a different experience than editing in the Timeline or the two-up view you see in the Canvas while trimming.
Temporarily syncing a Browser clip to a sequence, using any sync relationship you want.
Enabling real-time multiclip editing. When the Multiclip Playback option is selected, the Open playhead sync option is automatically selected.

The Playhead Sync pop-up menu appears in both the Canvas and the Viewer. You can choose only one playhead sync option at a time in Final Cut Pro, but you can do so in either window. The playhead sync option you choose remains active until you close the Viewer or Canvas. Once either window is closed, playhead sync is set to Sync Off.

To synchronize (or gang) the Viewer and Canvas/Timeline playheads:

In the Viewer or Canvas, choose an option from the Playhead Sync pop-up menu—Sync Off, Open, or Gang.

Viewer: Nancy greets at door CU in Dining Video Stereo (a1x2) Filters Motion Sync Off 02:01:52:01 00:00:12:14 Open Cang

Playhead Sync pop-up menu in the Viewer

The playhead sync options are:

Sync Off: Disables playhead sync. This is the default behavior.
Open: Automatically opens the sequence clip beneath the Canvas/Timeline playhead in the Viewer. The Viewer playhead is set to the same frame as the Canvas/Timeline playhead.
Gang: You can sync the clip in the Viewer with the sequence in the Canvas and Timeline arbitrarily, regardless of what clips or sequences are open. You set a new sync relationship between the Canvas/Timeline and Viewer playheads each time you choose the Gang option from the Playhead Sync pop-up menu.

For more details about each option, see the next few sections.

The Open playhead sync option opens the sequence clip at the current location of the Canvas/Timeline playhead in the Viewer. Navigating from one clip to the next in the Canvas or Timeline causes the corresponding sequence clips to open in the Viewer. The tab currently selected in the Viewer remains the selected tab, even though a new clip has been opened in the Viewer.

The Open ganging option is useful for making filter adjustments to multiple clips in a sequence. For example, if you have multiple clips that have color correction filters applied to them, you can move the playhead from clip to clip, and the Color Corrector tab changes to the current clip's filter settings.

You can lock the playhead in the Viewer to the playhead in the Canvas and Timeline so that they move together while scrubbing through clips. This is known as ganging the clip in the Viewer window to the sequence in the Canvas and Timeline windows.

When this option is selected, the offset between the current position of the Canvas/ Timeline playhead and the current position of the Viewer playhead is maintained as both playheads move together. This mode is useful for editing operations in which you want to set In or Out points in the Viewer using durations defined by items or markers in the Timeline as your reference.

The Gang playhead sync option can help you perform precise trimming operations. For example, suppose you want to trim the Out point of a Browser clip in the Viewer by the duration of the last sequence clip in the Timeline.

1 Double-click a Browser clip to open it in the Viewer.
2 Press Shift-O to move the playhead in the Viewer to the Out point of the clip.

Viewer: Nancy greets at door CU in Dining Video Stereo (x1x2) Filters Motion 00:00:16:17 59% 02:01:56:04

The Out point is the sync point for the clip in the Viewer.

3 Move the Canvas/Timeline playhead to the Out point of the last clip in the sequence.

Timeline: Intro sequence in Dining Dining sequence Intro sequence RT 01:01:49:18 00:00 01:00:40:00 01:01:20:00 v1 V1 Lola a1 A1 N Nancy Lola gives co Lola gives coat au a2 A2 N Nancy Lola gives co Lola gives coat au A3 Music 2 Music 2 Music 2 Music 2

The Out point of the last clip in the sequence is the sync point in the Timeline and Canvas.

4 In either the Viewer or the Canvas, choose Gang from the Playhead Sync pop-up menu.
5 Move the playhead in the Timeline to the In point of the last clip in the sequence.

Timeline: Intro sequence in Dining Dining sequence Intro sequence RT 01:01:29:16 00:00 01:00:40:00 01:01:20:00 v1 V1 N Nancy Lola gives co Lola gives coat ar a1 A1 N Nancy Lola gives co Lola gives coat ar a2 A2 N Nancy Lola gives co Lola gives coat ar A3 Music 2 Music 2 Music 2

The playhead is moved to the In point of the last clip in the sequence.

The playhead in the Viewer moves to the left by the same amount.

6 In the Viewer, press O to set a new Out point.

The clip in the Viewer is now shorter by the duration of the last clip in the sequence.

This is just one example of how you can use playhead sync relationships between the Viewer window and the Canvas and Timeline windows.

Timecode provides a unique address for each video frame on your tapes. Timecode is the vital organizational link between your original camera tapes, media files on disk, and clips in your Final Cut Pro project.

This chapter covers the following:

About Timecode in Final Cut Pro (p. 439)
Displaying Timecode in Final Cut Pro (p. 440)
Modifying Timecode in Media Files (p. 446)
• Working With 60 fps Timecode (p. 451)
• Working With 24 @ 25 fps Timecode (p. 451)
Generating Timecode Window Burns (p. 452)

Final Cut Pro works with SMPTE standard timecode, which is displayed in the following format:

hours:minutes:seconds:frames, or HH:MM:SS:FF

Each frame on a videotape has a unique timecode number, which helps you keep track of video frames. The frame counter (FF) changes depending on the frame rate. For example, with 30 fps (frames per second) timecode, the frame counter counts from :00 to :29, and then back to :00 again. The frame counter in 25 fps timecode counts from :00 to :24.

Note: Some videotapes that are recorded improperly may have the same timecode numbers in more than one location (for example, multiple occurrences of 00:00:00:00), which makes it hard to identify where on a tape a particular shot is located. For more information about handling these tapes, see Volume I, Chapter 19, "Capturing Your Footage to Disk."

The frame rate of film, videotape, or media files determines how quickly frames are recorded or played back. Timecode (or edge code in the case of film) is a unique address for each frame, providing easy navigation, logging, recapturing, and final Edit Decision Lists (EDLs) that accurately refer back to original camera reels. In most cases, the frame rate and the timecode rate are the same, but film-to-video and 24p workflows often use media files with differing video and timecode rates.

For more information about frame rate and timecode, see Volume IV, Appendix B, "Frame Rate and Timecode."

By default, when Final Cut Pro displays a clip's timecode, it reads the timecode from the timecode track of the clip's media file. This timecode is permanently stored in the media file, not in the clip, and it is referred to as the source timecode because it is the same as the timecode from the original source tape. When you display source timecode, you see the timecode directly from the media file timecode track.

Note: It is possible to permanently modify the timecode in a media file's timecode track, but in most cases this is not recommended, because the whole point of the timecode track is that it allows you to refer back to the original videotape when necessary. If you change the timecode in the media file, the timecode no longer corresponds to the timecode on the original tape, making recapture difficult and project interchange files (such as EDL and OMF files) inaccurate.

Final Cut Pro has the following timecode display options, although not all options are available for all frame rates:

Non-Drop Frame: The timecode counter counts at a consistent rate without dropping any numbers from the count. Non-drop frame timecode is available as a display option for every frame rate.
Drop Frame: Frames 0 and 1 are skipped the first second of every minute, unless the minute number is exactly divisible by 10. The dropped numbers do not appear in the Final Cut Pro timecode fields because they've been dropped and are not on your tape. Drop frame timecode is only available as a display option for 29.97 fps (NTSC) media files.
60 @ 30: Displays 60 fps video with 30 fps timecode. This option is used to display timecode for 60 fps formats (such as 720p60) using 30 fps timecode. This option matches the timecode display on many VTRs that can play 60 fps formats (such as a DVCPRO HD deck). Each timecode number represents a pair of video frames, with the second frame distinguished by an asterisk (*). This option is available only for 60 and 59.94 fps (high definition) media files.
Frames: Shows an absolute frame count instead of hours, minutes, seconds, and frames. This option is available for any frame rate.
Feet + Frames: Displays a film feet and frames counter using the default film standard assigned in the Project Properties. To change the current film standard in your project, choose Edit > Project Properties and select an option from the Default Film Standard pop-up menu.

Final Cut Pro can display a clip's timecode in several different display formats without modifying the timecode itself. For example, for animators, an absolute frame counter (simply called frames in Final Cut Pro), can be more helpful than SMPTE timecode. It is simple to change the timecode display in the Viewer, Canvas, Browser, or Timeline to show an absolute frame count instead of hours, minutes, seconds, and frames. You can switch back to a normal timecode display at any time.

If you aren't using NTSC footage, there is no option for drop frame timecode display because only 30 fps timecode has a drop frame mode. PAL (25 fps) footage and 60 fps high definition footage only have a non-drop frame display mode. Non-drop frame simply means that the timecode counter counts at a consistent rate without dropping any numbers from the count. You can think of "non-drop frame" to mean "normal" timecode display. In most cases, you only have the option to display your timecode as non-drop frame (normal timecode count) or frames (an absolute frame counter).

■ Control-click a timecode field in the Viewer, Canvas, Timeline, or Browser, then choose one of the available timecode display options from the shortcut menu.

Important: Changing the timecode display of a clip does not modify the actual timecode track in the media file.

Non-drop frame timecode has a colon (:) between the seconds and frames fields. 01:22:45:26
Drop frame timecode has a semicolon (;) between the seconds and frames fields. 01:22:45;26

If you alter the speed of a clip by applying a constant or variable speed change, the frames of the media file are no longer played at their original rate. By default, Final Cut Pro displays the timecode in italics whenever a clip is not playing at normal speed. This option, called View Native Speed, is selected by default.

When View Native Speed is selected, Final Cut Pro displays the clip's source timecode (the timecode stored in the media file's timecode track), so you may see timecode numbers repeated or skipped because the video frames themselves are repeated or skipped to create the speed change.

For example, if you adjust a clip's speed by 200% , Final Cut Pro plays the media file at twice the normal speed, which actually means only half the frames are played (every other frame is skipped). The timecode display shows the actual timecode number of each frame, so the timecode numbers skip, just as the video frames do.

When View Native Speed is deselected, Final Cut Pro increments the timecode number for every frame of the speed-adjusted clip, regardless of which frame of the media file is shown. This timecode display has no accurate relationship to the timecode of the media file or original source tape, but is helpful if you want to see the timecode display increment each time you move forward or backward within the clip. When you turn off View Native Speed, Final Cut Pro creates the illusion that every frame you see in the speed-adjusted clip has a unique timecode number, instead of the timecode numbers incrementing whenever a different frame from the media file is shown.

Usually, it's best to keep View Native Speed selected because it shows you the actual timecode number for each frame in the media file. If you want to reference a particular frame on your source tape or in the media file, you should have View Native Speed selected so you see the correct source timecode number associated with that frame.

QuickTime media files can have several timecode tracks, although they typically start with one. The timecode track written when you first capture a media file is called the source timecode track. You can add additional timecode tracks to the media file after you capture. These are called auxiliary (aux) timecode tracks.

Auxiliary timecode tracks do not refer to the original timecode from your source tape, since this is the purpose of the source timecode track. Instead, they can refer to timecode on a different tape, such as an independent audio tape recorded at the same time as the video. In these dual system productions (in which video and audio were recorded separately), the timecode on the videotape and the audio tape are often not the same; yet in postproduction, you need to synchronize the video and audio media files together to edit.

Adding auxiliary timecode tracks to your media files allows you to add matching timecode to both media files without removing the original source timecode—which is still important for referring back to your original tapes.

In Final Cut Pro, you can choose which timecode track to display for each clip: source, Aux 1, or Aux 2. Many clips only have a source timecode track, so in these cases there is no option to display Aux 1 or Aux 2 timecode.

In most situations, it's best to view the source timecode track of your media file. Because you usually need to refer back to the original source tapes at some point during your project, Final Cut Pro displays source timecode by default. However, if you are working with media files that have a different video frame rate and source timecode rate (such as a 23.98 fps video rate with 30 fps timecode), you may want to display timecode that counts at the video frame rate instead of the actual source timecode track. In Final Cut Pro, this is known as clip time.

For example, if you are editing 23.98 fps (24p) video that came from 29.97 fps tapes, the frame rate of your media files is 23.98 fps, but the timecode track still runs at 30 fps. To see 24 fps timecode that matches the video frame rate, you need to display clip time.

Another example is when you are editing 24 fps clips that came from 25 fps (PAL) tapes. In this case, you can display the original 25 fps timecode (source time) or have Final Cut Pro display 24 fps timecode (clip time).

Note: If your media file's timecode track and video track have the same rate, there is no difference between source time and clip time. To avoid confusion, you should always display source time unless you have a specific reason to use clip time.

Important: Clip time does not accurately reflect timecode that matches back to the media file or videotape timecode. Do not rely on clip time when trying to refer back to original media files or tapes.

Timecode display settings can be globally adjusted for an entire project. For most situations, it's best to stick with the Final Cut Pro default settings:

• Timecode: Source Time
• View Native Speed: Enabled

Note: If you customize a particular clip's timecode display, its display option overrides the global timecode display option. Affiliate clips are not affected when you change the timecode display of a master or other affiliate clip.

1 In the Browser, click the tab of the project for which you want to change timecode display settings.
2 Choose Edit > Project Properties.

Project Properties for Dining Time Display: Timecode Reset Time Display Default Film Standard: 35mm 4p Time Mode: Source Time View Native Speed Comment Column Headings 1: Master Comment 1 2: Master Comment 2 3: Master Comment 3 4: Master Comment 4 Cancel OK

3 Choose a new timecode display from the Time Display pop-up menu.
4 Click OK.

To reset the timecode display for all clips in the active project:

1 In the Browser, click the tab of the project for which you want to change timecode display settings.
2 Choose Edit > Project Properties.
3 Choose a timecode display from the Time Display pop-up menu.
4 Select the Reset Time Display checkbox.
5 Click OK.

To set all clips in the active project to display source time or clip time:

1 In the Browser, click the tab of the project for which you want to change time mode settings.
2 Choose Edit > Project Properties.
3 Choose Source Time or Clip Time from the Time Mode pop-up menu.
4 Click OK.

To change the native clip speed display mode for all clips in the active project:

1 In the Browser, click the tab of the project for which you want to change time mode settings.
2 Choose Edit > Project Properties.
3 Select or deselect the View Native Speed checkbox.
4 Click OK.

Timecode overlays in the Viewer and Canvas always display source time from the media file (not clip time). Timecode overlays are not affected when clip time is selected or View Native Speed is deselected.

- Choose View > Show Timecode Overlays, so there's a checkmark next to it (or press Option-Z).

Each timecode overlay is colored to indicate linked video and audio clips. A plus sign (+) next to the video or audio overlay title indicates that there are additional timecode overlays that cannot fit. Changing the size of the Canvas or Viewer can sometimes reveal additional timecode overlays.

You can use timecode overlays to verify that video "window burn" timecode (visible timecode in the video picture itself) matches the source timecode of the media file.

In Final Cut Pro, you can modify media file timecode in several ways:

Individual clips can be adjusted by choosing Modify > Timecode.
Multiple clips can be adjusted in the Browser timecode columns (such as Media Start and Media End).

In general, choosing Modify >Timecode provides deeper control over your timecode modifications, but the Browser allows you to modify multiple clips at once.

Timecode modification	Using Modify > Timecode	Using Browser
Adding or deleting timecode tracks in a media file	Allowed	Not allowed
Modifying timecode (Media Start)	Allowed on any clip	Allowed only with offline clips not associated with media files
Modifying reel names (Reel, Aux 1 Reel, Aux 2 Reel)	Allowed	Allowed with alert message
Modifying timecode rate (TC Rate)	Allowed	Allowed
Choosing source time timecode track (TC)	Unavailable	Allowed. Control-click in the TC field.
Viewing different timecode display formats	Allowed	Allowed. Control-click in any timecode field.

In the Browser (or the Item Properties window), you can only adjust Media Start and Media End fields for offline clips that are not associated with media files (in other words, the clip must be completely offline, which means the file path in its Source property must be empty).

You should rarely need to adjust a media file's source timecode track. One exception is when you are logging (before media files have been captured) and you need to adjust the start timecode of an offline clip. In this case, you can modify Media Start and End timecode in the Browser columns.

Warning: Modifying or deleting your source timecode track or reel name may make recapturing from source tapes impossible and EDLs inaccurate. Unless you have a good reason for modifying the source timecode track, it's best not to modify the timecode captured from tape.

Timecode tracks in your media files can be added, altered, and even removed in the Modify Timecode dialog.

Each media file can have up to three timecode tracks and corresponding reel names:

Source timecode track and reel name
Aux 1 timecode and Aux 1 reel name
Aux 2 timecode and Aux 2 reel name

When you select a checkbox next to a timecode track, you are adding that timecode track to your media file. Deselecting the checkbox deletes that timecode track from the media file.

Important: Be careful not to delete the source timecode track of your media file by deselecting its checkbox.

Note: Some timecode rates may not be allowed for some media files. These limitations are based on the frame rate of the media file, since some timecode rates are unnecessary for certain video frame rates.

1 In the Browser, select the clip or sequence with the timecode you want to change.
2 Choose Modify > Timecode.

• Frame to Set: Choose the frame you want to alter.
- Current: Choose this to alter the timecode of the current frame in the clip or sequence.
- Starting: Choose this to change the timecode of the starting frame of the clip or sequence.
- Source TC: Select this checkbox to add or alter the timecode of the source clip or sequence's media file on disk.
- Aux TC 1 and Aux TC 2: Select these checkboxes to create or change the properties of auxiliary timecode clips or sequences.
- Reel/Roll: The reel number is displayed here. If you need to change the reel number, enter the reel number here.

Tip: You can also change the reel number in the Browser or the Item Properties dialog. For more information, see "Changing Clip Properties in the Browser" on page 80 and "Viewing and Changing Clip Properties in the Item Properties Window" on page 82.

Timecode: The current timecode is displayed here. If you choose to modify the timecode, enter the new timecode here.
Format: Choose Drop Frame or Non-Drop Frame from the pop-up menu.
Rate: Choose a timecode rate from the pop-up menu.

4 Enter the new timecode in the Timecode field.

5 Click OK to permanently change the timecode.

Most timecode settings can be modified in the Browser or the Item Properties window, but some fields are restricted to prevent accidental changes to many media files at once. When you modify particular Browser columns, Final Cut Pro warns you that the media file, not just the clip, will be affected. For more information, see "Viewing and Changing Clip Properties in the Item Properties Window" on page 82.

The TC Rate item property (visible in both the Browser columns and the Item Properties window), always shows the rate of the source timecode track of a clip's media file. The Aux 1 or Aux 2 timecode rates are never shown here. Use the TC Rate column in the Browser to adjust the timecode rate for many clips at once. Some timecode rates are not allowed for some video frame rates.

Note: The TC Rate property is the rate of the source timecode track in a media file. The Vid Rate property is the rate of the video track in a media file. In many instances, these are the same, but not always. For example, an NTSC media file has a video rate of 29.97 fps, but a timecode rate of 30 fps.

If you select a merged clip and choose Modify > Timecode, each item in the clip that's linked to a separate source media file appears in its own tab. This allows you to change the timecode of each item in a merged clip separately. For example, a merged clip with items from three sources has three tabs in the Modify Timecode dialog. For more information, see Chapter 3, "Merging Clips From Dual System Video and Audio," on page 45.

Modify Timecode Frame To Set: Current Don talks to driver 1 Music 1 Music 2 Reel/Roll: Timecode: Format: Rate: Source TC: 005a 05:17:45:08 Non-Drop Frame 24 Aux TC 1: Aux TC 2: WARNING: Modifying a timecode will change the timecode for all users of this file, including other clips and other programs. Cancel OK

The starting timecode number of a sequence can be changed in the Sequence Settings window. You can also modify the timecode rate of the sequence (independently of the frame rate, or editing timebase). To do this, you need to use the Modify Timecode dialog.

Warning: It is not a good idea to choose a video frame rate (timebase) that is different from the timecode rate for your sequence unless you have a good reason.

1 Select a sequence in the Browser, or make a sequence active by clicking the sequence's tab in the Canvas or Timeline.
2 Choose Sequence > Settings.
3 In the Sequence Settings window, click the Timeline Options tab.
4 Type a new timecode number in the Starting Timecode field.
5 Click OK.

In special editing scenarios, the video frame rate (timebase) and timecode rate of a sequence need to be different. For example, if you are editing 24 @ 25 film-to-PAL video, you use a sequence with a video frame rate of 24 fps with a timecode track modified to 25 fps.

For more information about the 24 @ 25 PAL editing process, see "Working With 24 @ 25 fps Timecode" on page 451.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings.
2 Click the Sequence Presets tab.
3 In the list of presets, click the unlocked sequence preset you want to modify.
4 Click the Edit button to edit the selected preset, or click the Duplicate button to edit a new copy of the selected sequence preset.

The sequence video frame rate (timebase) and timecode rate can now be set in the Sequence Preset Editor window. By default, the timecode rate matches the video frame rate, as indicated by the Same As Editing Timebase option in the Timecode Rate pop-up menu.

5 Choose a video frame rate from the Editing Timebase pop-up menu.

6 Choose a timecode rate from the Timecode Rate pop-up menu.

Note: Not all timecode rates are available for all video frame rates (timebases).

7 Click OK to accept the changes, then click OK again to close the Audio/Video Settings window.

The new sequence preset can be applied to existing sequences or used in Easy Setups.

If you already have a sequence for which you'd like to modify the timecode rate, you can also use the Modify Timecode dialog. However, it's usually best to alter the timecode rate of a sequence before you begin editing with it.

1 Select a sequence in the Browser.
2 Choose Modify > Timecode.
3 Adjust, add, or remove timecode tracks as needed.

Some high definition video formats, such as 720p60, have a video frame rate of 60 (or 59.94) fps. Final Cut Pro can display 60 fps timecode for 60 fps media files, or you can choose to view the timecode at 30 fps, using the special 60 @ 30 timecode display option.

60 @ 30 is a timecode display option used specifically with 59.94 and 60 fps video footage. Because 30 fps is a more universally accepted timecode rate than 60 fps, it can be useful to view your timecode this way. Also, most DVCPRO HD VTRs display this timecode rate when playing back 60 fps tapes. Each 60 @ 30 timecode number represents a pair of video frames, with the second frame distinguished by an asterisk (*).

When you are using 60 @ 30 timecode, Final Cut Pro recognizes asterisks when you type them into timecode fields. Typing + (plus) followed by * (asterisk) in 60 @ 30 mode is the same as typing +1 in 60 fps timecode.

Note: Mapping 60 frames to 30 numbers per second is not a new concept. VITC timecode represents each pair of fields (in other words, each frame) with a single timecode number. Fields 1 and 2 are distinguished by an asterisk placed on field 2. 60 @ 30 timecode works similarly.

Final Cut Pro has a special timecode format for editing 24 fps film that was transferred to 25 fps PAL video.

24 @ 25 timecode displays 25 fps timecode while you edit 24 fps video. This allows you to see the actual source timecode from the 25 fps PAL videotape even though you are editing at a frame rate of 24 fps. Editing at 24 fps is important because this is how the final film will be projected, but 25 fps timecode is important because this accurately shows you where each video frame comes from on the PAL videotapes. The PAL videotapes, in turn, correspond to the original film edge code numbers. If you don't maintain the 25 fps timecode while editing in Final Cut Pro, you can't accurately trace your footage back to the original film negative to make a proper negative cut.

For more information about 24 @ 25 fps editing, see the documentation that came with Cinema Tools.

If you need to create a videotape or QuickTime movie that displays timecode directly in the image (known as a timecode window burn, or window burn for short), you can use the Timecode Reader or Timecode Generator filters. Both are located in the Video bin inside the Video Filters bin in the Effects tab of the Browser.

Note: In versions of Final Cut Pro earlier than 4.5, timecode reading and generation were contained in a single filter called the Timecode Print filter. Older projects that use the Timecode Print filter will still function properly.

Timecode Reader: This filter generates a visible timecode counter based on the video frame rate (timebase) of the clip or sequence to which the filter is applied.
Timecode Generator: This filter generates a visible timecode counter independent of the timebase and timecode format of the affected clip (or sequence). For example, you can apply a Timecode Generator filter counting at 24 fps while the affected sequence has a timebase of 29.97 fps.

To generate a visible timecode "window burn," you can apply the Timecode Reader filter to individual clips or an entire sequence. For information on applying filters to individual clips, see Volume III, Chapter 11, "Video Filters."

1 Nest your original sequence within a second sequence with matching sequence settings. For information about nesting sequences, see "Nesting Sequences" on page 418.
2 In the second sequence, apply the Timecode Reader filter to the nested, original sequence.

DATE CAMERA 4:24:48:20 SCENE TAKE ROLL

Apple Computer, Inc.

Apple, the Apple logo, Final Cut, Final Cut Pro, FireWire, Logic, Mac, Macintosh, Mac OS, PowerBook, QuickTime, Shake, and TrueType are trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries.

Cinema Tools, Finder, LiveType, and OfflineRT are trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc.

.Mac is a service mark of Apple Computer, Inc.

Adobe, Photoshop, and PostScript are trademarks or registered trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated in the U.S. and/or other countries.

Helvetica is a registered trademark of Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG, available from Linotype Library GmbH.

Chapter 1 15 Overview of Audio Mixing

15 Audio Finishing Features in Final Cut Pro

17 Overview of Audio Sweetening in Final Cut Pro

19 Making the Final Mix

Chapter 2 23 Setting Up Audio Equipment

23 Choosing External Audio Monitoring Components

24 Choosing an Audio Interface

25 Choosing Speakers and an Amplifier for Monitoring

27 Setting Up a Proper Audio Monitoring Environment

28 Audio Cables, Connectors, and Signal Levels

28 About Balanced Audio Signals

30 Microphone, Instrument, and Line Level

30 Audio Connectors

32 Configuring External Audio Monitors

32 Connecting Speakers to Your Editing System

34 Setting Monitoring Levels and Muting System Sound Effects

Chapter 3 37 Audio Fundamentals

37 What Is Sound?

38 Fundamentals of a Sound Wave

39 Frequency Spectrum of Sounds

40 Measuring Sound Intensity

42 Signal-to-Noise Ratio

42 Headroom and Distortion

43 Dynamic Range

44 Stereo Audio

46 Digital Audio

47 Sample Rate

48 Bit Depth

51 Audio Levels, Meters, and Output Channels

51 About Audio Meters

51 Average and Peak Audio Levels

52 Average Versus Peak Audio Meters

53 Analog Versus Digital Meters

55 About Audio Meters in Final Cut Pro

57 Audio Peak Detection

58 Setting Proper Audio Levels

58 Setting Levels for Capture

58 What Reference Level Should You Use for Mixing?

60 Outputting Bars and Tone at the Head of Your Tape

61 Working With Multiple Audio Output Channels

61 About Audio Output Presets

64 Downmixing Multiple Audio Channels to a Stereo Mix

65 Stereo Versus Dual Mono Audio

67 Overview of the Audio Mixer

67 About the Audio Mixer

68 Controls in the Audio Mixer

77 Using Audio Mixer Views

79 Using the Audio Mixer

79 Making Basic Audio Adjustments With the Audio Mixer

80 Using the Mute Button to Silence Audio Tracks

82 Using the Solo Button to Listen to Individual Tracks

83 Using Faders to Adjust Audio Levels

86 Adjusting the Master Level of Your Sequence

87 Making Stereo Pan Adjustments With the Audio Mixer

87 Stereo Versus Dual Mono Output Channels

87 Stereo Versus Dual Mono Audio Clips

88 Changing a Clip's Pan

89 About Mixer Automation and Keyframe Recording

90 Specifying Audio Keyframe Recording Resolution

90 Recording Audio Level and Pan Keyframes

94 Looping Playback to Mix Each Track

96 Modifying Recorded Keyframes

98 Deleting Audio Level and Pan Keyframes

98 Using a Control Surface With the Audio Mixer

99 Connecting a Control Surface

104 Using a Control Surface With the Audio Mixer

106 Recording Audio Mixer Keyframes Using a Control Surface

Chapter 7 109 Mixing Audio in the Timeline and Viewer
109 Adjusting Audio Levels in the Timeline and Viewer
109 Adjusting Audio Levels in the Timeline
114 Changing Audio Levels in the Viewer
117 Panning Audio in the Timeline and Viewer
117 Panning Audio in the Timeline
118 Changing the Pan of Audio in the Viewer
119 Changing Pan for an Entire Clip
120 Copying, Pasting, and Removing Audio Attributes
121 Adjusting Clip Levels and Pan Using Keyframes
121 Tools for Adjusting Keyframes
122 Creating, Modifying, and Deleting Keyframes in the Viewer
127 Example: Using Keyframes to Adjust Audio Levels
128 Example: Using Keyframes in the Timeline to Automate Audio Levels
129 Example: Setting Subframe Audio Level Keyframes to Eliminate Clicks
132 Example: Using Keyframes to Control Pan

135 About the Voice Over Tool

136 Setting Up Your Computer to Record Voiceover

139 Controls in the Voice Over Tool

143 Defining the Recording Duration and Destination Track

148 Recording a Voiceover

151 About Audio Filters

152 Overview of Audio Filters

157 Echo and Reverb Filters

159 Working With Audio Filters

161 Applying Filters to an Audio Clip

164 Displaying Filter Keyframes in the Timeline

165 Modifying and Removing Filters

166 Making Real-Time Audio Filter Adjustments

168 Automating Audio Filter Parameters With Keyframes

173 Saving a Filter or Transition as a Favorite

173 Installing Third-Party Audio Units Filters

173 When Audio Filters Are Missing

175 Learning to Describe Sound Accurately

175 Efficiently Using the Frequency Spectrum

176 Tips for Cutting Dialogue

179 Tips for Cutting Music

181 Organizing Your Tracks

185 Different Ways to Use Filters

186 Applying a Filter to a Clip

190 Applying Multiple Filters to Clips

192 Viewing and Adjusting a Filter's Parameters

199 Displaying Filter Bars in the Timeline

200 Enabling and Rearranging Filters

201 Copying and Pasting a Clip's Filters

202 Removing Filters From Clips

202 Using After Effects Filters

203 Video Filters Available in Final Cut Pro

217 Creating Motion Effects in the Viewer

218 Adjusting Parameters in the Motion Tab

223 Using Cartesian Geometry to Position Clips

225 Examples Using Motion Settings

236 Creating Motion Effects in the Canvas

236 Choosing a Wireframe Mode

237 Manipulating Images in the Canvas

239 Zooming In to the Canvas

240 Using Wireframe Handles to Transform, Scale, and Rotate

244 Example: Using Motion Parameters and Wireframe Handles

249 Animating Motion Effects Using Keyframes

250 How Keyframing Works

251 Determining the Number of Keyframes to Use

253 Keyframing Controls in the Viewer

255 Keyframing Tools in Final Cut Pro

256 Setting Keyframes

258 Adjusting and Deleting Keyframes

260 Moving Between Keyframes

261 Zooming In to the Keyframe Graph
263 Example: Using Keyframes to Make Opacity Changes
266 Example: Keyframing Opacity in the Timeline
268 Smoothing Keyframes With Bezier Handles
269 Understanding Bezier Handles and Curves
271 Smoothing Keyframes
272 Creating Keyframed Motion Paths in the Canvas
273 What Are Motion Paths?
274 Creating Motion Paths
275 Adding, Moving, and Deleting Keyframes in Motion Paths
275 Creating Curved Motion Paths Using Bezier Handles
278 Controlling Speed Along a Motion Path
281 Moving an Entire Motion Path in the Canvas
281 Creating and Applying Motion Favorites
283 Using the Timeline Keyframe Graph Area
283 About the Keyframe Graph Area
284 Customizing the Keyframe Graph Area in the Timeline

Chapter 14 287 Reusing Effect and Motion Parameters
287 Copying and Pasting Specific Clip Attributes
288 About the Paste Attributes Dialog
290 Copying and Pasting Clip Attributes
291 Removing Attributes From a Clip
291 Reapplying the Most Recently Used Effect
292 Applying Filters Across Multiple Tracks at Once
293 Creating and Applying Favorite Filters and Transitions
294 Creating Favorite Filters and Transitions
296 Organizing and Renaming Favorites
297 Applying Favorite Filters and Transitions

Chapter 15 299 Previewing Effects and Comparing Frames

299 Comparing Two Frames in the Frame Viewer

300 Displaying Images in the Frame Viewer Tab

302 Choosing Display Options in the Frame Viewer

303 Viewing Your Composition in the QuickView Tab

303 Controls in the QuickView Tab

304 Playback in the QuickView Tab

Chapter 16 307 Changing Clip Speed and Time Remapping

307 Speed Basics

308 How Changing Speed Affects a Clip's Duration

308 Performing a Fit to Fill Edit

311 Constant and Variable Speed Settings

311 Constant Speed
311 Variable Speed (or Time Remapping)
312 Differences Between Constant and Variable Speed Changes
312 Frame Blending and Reverse Speed
314 Making Constant Speed Changes
315 Making Variable Speed Changes
315 How Time Remapping Works
318 Where You Can Make Time Remapping Adjustments
318 Viewing Time Remapping Parameters Applied to Your Clips
320 Learning to Read Timeline Speed Indicators
323 Using the Time Remap Tool
328 Adjusting Time Remap Keyframes in the Motion Bar
329 Time Remapping Using the Time Graph
332 Time Remapping in the Motion Tab

Chapter 17 335 Working With Still Images and Photographs
335 Using Still Images and Graphics in Your Sequences
336 Creating Freeze Frame Stills From a Video Clip
337 Considerations Before Creating and Importing Stills
347 Changing the Duration of Still Images
348 Example: Adding Camera Motion to Still Images

Chapter 18 355 Compositing and Layering

355 Compositing Strategies and Modes

356 What Can You Do With Compositing?

357 Different Ways to Layer Clips in the Timeline

358 Adjusting Opacity Levels of Clips

361 Working With Composite Modes

367 Using Travel Mattes to Hide or Reveal Parts of a Clip

368 Working With Layered Photoshop Files

369 What Happens When You Import a Multilayered Photoshop File

371 Using Video and Graphics Clips With Alpha Channels

371 Types of Alpha Channels Recognized in Final Cut Pro

373 Working With Clips That Have Alpha Channels

374 Importing Clips With Alpha Channels

374 Changing a Clip's Alpha Channel Type

377 Options for Displaying Alpha Channel Information

379 Viewing RGB and Alpha Channels in the Viewer

380 Choosing a Background

381 Temporarily Excluding Clips From Playback or Output

382 Temporarily Disabling a Single Clip

383 Soloing Clips in Multitrack Sequences

385 Keying, Mattes, and Masks
385 Ways to Layer and Isolate Elements in Clips
385 What Are Mattes and How Can You Use Them?
386 What Is Keying and How Can You Use It?
387 What Are Masks and How Are They Used?
388 Using Keying to Isolate Foreground Elements
388 Shooting Footage That Keys Well
391 Overview of Compositing Using the Chroma Keyer Filter
393 Working With the Chroma Keyer Filter
404 Using Mattes to Add or Modify Alpha Channels
404 Matte Filters Available in Final Cut Pro
404 Example: Using the Four-Point Garbage Matte Filter
406 Example: Keyframing Garbage Mattes
407 Using Masks to Replace or Modify Alpha Channels
407 Mask Filters Available in Final Cut Pro
408 Example: Using the Image Mask and Mask Feather Filters

411 Color Correcting Clips
411 What Is Color Correction?
412 Why Color Correct Your Footage?
413 Color Correction Starts During Your Shoot
414 Managing Color During Postproduction
417 Tools for Measuring Color and Brightness in Final Cut Pro
418 Measuring and Evaluating Video
418 Luma (Luminance)
419 Chrominance (Chroma)
420 Blacks, Mids, and Whites
421 Illegal Broadcast Levels
422 Displaying Excess Luma and Chroma Levels in the Viewer and Canvas
423 Screen Layouts for Color Correction in Final Cut Pro
424 Working With Final Cut Pro Video Scopes
427 Learning to Read the Waveform Monitor
429 Learning to Read the Vectorscope
431 Learning to Read the Histogram
432 Learning to Read the Parade Scope
434 The Color Correction Process
436 Using Scopes Versus Looking at the Picture
437 The Final Cut Pro Color Correction Filters
439 The Color Corrector and Color Corrector 3-Way Filters
439 General Controls
440 Copy Filter Controls
444 Color Balance Controls
445 The Color Corrector Filter Controls

453 Color Corrector 3-Way Filter Controls
471 Hue Matching Controls in the Color Corrector and Color Corrector 3-Way Filters
476 Limit Effect Controls in the Color Corrector and Color Corrector 3-Way Filters
483 The Desaturate Highlights and Desaturate Lows Filters
486 The Broadcast Safe Filter

489 What Is a Generator Clip?

490 Different Ways to Use Generators in Your Sequence

491 Graphical Video and Audio Generators Available in Final Cut Pro

493 Creating and Adding Generated Clips to Sequences

495 How You Can Use Titles in Your Project

496 Installing and Choosing Fonts

497 Making Sure Titles Fit on TV Screens

498 Text Generators Available in Final Cut Pro

500 Creating and Adding a Title Clip

503 Other Options for Creating and Adding Titles

504 Using LiveType to Create Titles for Your Project

509 Using RT Extreme

509 Introduction to Real-Time Processing Using RT Extreme

510 How Many Effects Can Be Played in Real Time?

516 Available Real-Time Effects

517 Supported RT Extreme Playback Codecs

517 Display Quality and Accuracy of RT Extreme

519 Using Real-Time Controls in Final Cut Pro

519 About Render Status Bars

520 Identifying Which Effects Can Be Processed in Real Time

521 Setting Real-Time Playback Options

528 Using RT Extreme for Video Output

529 Real-Time Audio Mixing in Final Cut Pro

529 Calculating the Number of Tracks Played Back in Real Time

530 Improving Real Time Audio Performance

531 Choosing Real-Time Playback Versus Rendering

532 Using a Third-Party Video Effects Accelerator Card

533 Rendering

533 What Is Rendering?

534 Reasons for Rendering

535 Render Indicators in Final Cut Pro
535 About Render Status Bars in the Timeline
538 About Item-Level Render Bars
539 The Rendering Process
539 Rendering Effects in Sequences
541 Commands for Rendering Effects
544 Rendering One or More Sequences
545 Rendering Part of a Sequence
546 Rendering Audio Items in a Sequence
546 Using the Mixdown Command
547 Temporarily Disabling Rendering
548 Auto-Rendering While You Are Away From Your Computer
549 Changing Render Settings
549 Overview of Video Processing Settings
553 About Settings in the Video Processing Tab
556 Changing Settings in the Video Processing Tab
557 Changing Settings in the Render Control Tab
559 Managing Your Render Files
559 Locating Render Files
560 Using the Render Manager
562 Preserving Render Files
563 Tips for Avoiding Unnecessary Rendering
564 Reducing Render Time

Find instructions for connecting audio equipment and using the Final Cut Pro audio mixing tools to complete your movie's soundtrack.

Chapter 1

Overview of Audio Mixing

Chapter 2

Setting Up Audio Equipment

Chapter 3

Audio Fundamentals

Chapter 4

Audio Levels, Meters, and Output Channels

Chapter 5

Overview of the Audio Mixer

Chapter 6

Using the Audio Mixer

Chapter 7

Mixing Audio in the Timeline and Viewer

Chapter 8

Using the Voice Over Tool

Chapter 9

Using Audio Filters

Chapter 10

Tips for Better Audio

This chapter covers the following:

• Audio Finishing Features in Final Cut Pro (p. 15)
• Overview of Audio Sweetening in Final Cut Pro (p. 17)
• Making the Final Mix (p. 19)

Once your movie is edited and the picture is locked, you “sweeten” the soundtrack by adding music, voiceover, and sound effects. When all the audio elements are in place, you mix the audio by adjusting levels and pan settings and adding filters.

You can finish your movie soundtrack directly in Final Cut Pro, or you can export your audio tracks to another audio editing application, create a final mix, and then import the finished mix into Final Cut Pro for final output.

Final Cut Pro provides tools for audio sweetening (including cleanup) and real-time mixing. Audio sweetening features in Final Cut Pro allow you to:

Edit and synchronize audio and video clips. (See Volume II, Chapter 17, "Audio Editing Basics.")
Add voiceover and rerecord production dialogue in sync with your sequence video. (See Chapter 8, "Using the Voice Over Tool," on page 135.)
Add additional audio tracks for Foley effects, sound effects, and music.
Add audio filters for cleaning up original production sound by filtering out unwanted frequencies and compressing or expanding the dynamic range of your mix. (See Chapter 9, "Using Audio Filters," on page 151.)
Add audio cross fades to smooth over cuts between audio clip items in the Timeline. (See Volume II, Chapter 21, "Adding Transitions.")

You can use Final Cut Pro to create a finished audio mix for your movie, or you can export your audio tracks for finishing in another audio application. You can mix your audio in the following ways:

Check audio levels using track and Master meters in the Audio Mixer, as well as the floating Audio Meters. (See Chapter 4, "Audio Levels, Meters, and Output Channels," on page 51.)
Adjust audio levels and pan using clip overlays in the Timeline or Viewer. (See "Adjusting Audio Levels in the Timeline and Viewer" on page 109.)
Adjust audio levels and pan using the faders and panning sliders in the Audio Mixer. (See Chapter 5, "Overview of the Audio Mixer," on page 67.)
You can also control the Audio Mixer using an external hardware control surface. (See Chapter 6, "Using the Audio Mixer," on page 79.)
Add keyframes, or mixer automation, to precisely control level adjustments over time. (See Chapter 6, "Using the Audio Mixer," on page 79.)
Add audio filter keyframes to change filter parameters over time. (See Chapter 13, "Adjusting Parameters for Keyframed Effects," on page 249.)

If you want to mix or process your audio in another application, you can export audio tracks or output to tape in several ways:

Export individual audio files, one per track in your sequence.
Export an OMF file that contains both the media files and the sequence with Timeline, level, and pan information.

Note: OMF files are useful when you are sending your audio to non-Final Cut Pro editing systems, such as ProTools or Avid. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 11, "Exporting Audio for Mixing in Other Applications."

- Output up to eight audio tracks to a multitrack recorder such as an Alesis ADAT, a Tascam DA-88, a digital audio workstation (DAW), or a similar device.

Final Cut Pro can send sequence audio to the built-in audio outputs on your computer, to a DV device (via the FireWire port), or to a third-party audio interface. You can connect external speakers to one of these audio outputs to precisely monitor your audio while you mix. For more information, see Chapter 2, "Setting Up Audio Equipment," on page 23.

Once you finish editing your movie, you need to sweeten the soundtrack, which means adding additional sound effects, music, narration, and so on. You can create multiple audio tracks in your sequence to organize your audio, and add markers to indicate where specific sound and musical accompaniment is required.

Postproduction sound is broken down into the following categories:

Dialogue: Actors speaking onscreen, voiceover, or narration.
Automatic dialogue replacement (ADR): Dialogue recorded during postproduction to replace missing or problem production dialogue. Also referred to as looping or automated dialogue replacement.
Foley effects: These effects capture the sounds of humans interacting with their environment. The movements of actors onscreen are re-created by Foley artists while the sounds are recorded and later placed in sync with the picture. Foley effects include footsteps, punches, clothing rustle, silverware or glass on tables, and so on.
Sound effects: Sound effects enhance the believability or mood of a scene. You can purchase stock sound effects libraries for use in your projects, or you can create your own sound effects. Sound effects are usually recorded during postproduction, once the picture is edited and it is clear what sounds are required. Examples include mechanical sounds, explosions, vehicles, animals, a clock ticking, a telephone ringing, and so on.
Ambient sounds: These sound effects are added during postproduction to establish the sonic environment of a scene and to keep background noise levels consistent from cut to cut. These are sometimes referred to as sound beds. For example, cricket sounds are often added to night scenes; car and traffic noise for city scenes; crowd sounds for a busy bar or restaurant scene, and so on.
Music: Music has many different uses, depending on the type of project you are working on. For example, in a music video, the music influences the picture by establishing the rhythm of the editing, while narrative movies use music in the background to influence the mood of a scene.

Final Cut Pro sequences support up to 99 audio tracks, so you can create discrete tracks, or groups of tracks, for each category of sound. For example, you can use a separate track for each actor in a scene, or each character's Foley track, such as footsteps, clothing rustles, and so on. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 8, "Working With Tracks in the Timeline."

It's common for editors or directors to play through an edited sequence and locate, or spot, places in the Timeline where sound effects should go. This is sometimes referred to as a sound effects spotting session. You can add markers to your sequence to indicate where the editor or sound designer should place sound effects. For more information about adding markers, see Volume II, Chapter 4, "Using Markers."

You can also add music scoring markers to indicate video frames where you want specific musical cues to line up. Scoring markers can be exported along with a QuickTime reference movie into Soundtrack to create original, synchronized musical scores.

Once you've organized your audio tracks by sound category and properly placed your sound effects and music, you can clean up noisy audio clips and fine-tune levels in preparation for the final audio mix.

Even when you strive for the best location recording possible, you'll usually need to do a certain amount of cleanup for every track recorded in the field. If you're working with vocal tracks, you might find yourself editing out background noises between lines, deleting comments from the director, or even trying to replace words that the actors tripped over during an otherwise perfect take. Final Cut Pro gives you a fine degree of control when editing audio clips, so you can make these kinds of changes.

You can also choose to edit your audio in a different application. For example, setting an audio editing application capable of destructive changes as your audio file editor would allow you to quickly make permanent changes directly to the source audio files on disk. (You might want to do this to use a noise reduction filter available in that application to clean up a particularly noisy clip.) In this way, you can apply effects or special sound-sweetening filters before continuing work on your edit. For more information on specifying external editing applications, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

Along with setting volume levels for the audio clips in your sequence, you may need to apply audio filters. Some filters, like Compression and Equalization, can be used to improve audio that's already good, making the dynamic range of a clip more manageable or further clarifying an actor's voice. For audio clips with distortion, interference, or unwanted sound, you may be able to use a filter such as Hum Remover or DePopper to try to make the clips usable.

You can adjust the volume level of all the clips in a sequence relative to each other so that the audio blends together effectively. For example, if you're editing a narrator speaking over music in the background, you don't want the music to overwhelm the sound of the narrator's voice. To achieve a balanced mix, you can bring up the level of the narration and reduce the level of the music.

Depending on the scale of your project, you may need to premix categories of sound together to make the final mix more manageable. This may be necessary if you have multiple Foley effects, sound effects, music, and dialogue tracks. A premixed category of sound is also referred to as a stem mix, or simply a stem. For example, you may have a dialogue stem, a music stem, a Foley stem, and so on. Working with stems also allows different sound departments to work independently on different categories of sound at the same time. A complete Foley mix may be created in one facility while sound design and effects are created somewhere else.

During the final mix, you choose exactly how to balance dialogue, effects, and music for optimal clarity and impact. You can make a final mix with your original tracks or, if you created stem mixes, you can use these for mixing. If you simply combine all the stems together without adjusting levels, the combined level may be too high, dialogue may be inaudible, and sound effects or music that worked in the individual stem mixes may feel wrong in the context of the other audio.

To make the final mix, it's critical that you use audio monitors you can trust. Once the final mix sounds good and the levels are consistent, you can then output to tape or digital audio files.

When you mix, keep the following goals in mind:

Keep levels consistent throughout your sequence, especially from shot to shot within a continuous scene.
Avoid low signal levels, which can result in unintelligible and noisy audio.
Avoid distortion caused by overly high levels.
Make sure all dialogue is clearly audible, well above background noise and music.
Remove background noise that interferes with dialogue. This includes low-frequency rumble caused by wind or vehicle noise.

Early audio systems were monophonic, capable of recording and playing back a single channel of audio. However, soon after sound was introduced to movies, filmmakers began exploring the creative possibilities of mixing multiple audio channels together to create a monophonic mix, and later two (stereo) or more (surround) speakers.

Before you begin your final mix, you need to know how many speakers you are mixing for. The most common configurations are:

Mono: A single speaker. This is typical on older radios, televisions, and film projectors.
Stereo: A two-channel system with speakers on the left and right, corresponding to each ear. Today, almost all forms of media support stereo audio.
Surround: Several surround sound standards exist today. The most common standard is a 5.1-channel system (often referred to as Dolby Digital), which has left, right, center, back (or surround) left, and back (or surround) right speakers. Other multichannel audio systems exist, such as LCRS (left, center, right, and surround), and 6.1-channel, 7.1-channel, and 10.2-channel systems.

Note: The so-called ".1" channel is used exclusively for low-frequency effects (LFE), such as explosions and rolling thunder. This LFE channel is normally sent to a subwoofer speaker capable of producing very low frequencies (3–120 Hz).

Once you know how many speakers you are mixing for, you can set up Final Cut Pro with an audio interface, a corresponding audio output preset, and the appropriate number of speakers for monitoring. For more information, see "About Audio Output Presets" on page 61.

Note: For true surround sound panning, you should export each of your audio tracks discretely to use in a surround sound-capable audio application. If you decide to mix in an audio application other than Final Cut Pro, you can export each track as a discrete audio file, or the entire sequence and its media as an OMF file. You can also output each track discretely to a multitrack tape format such as Alesis ADAT, Tascam DA-88 or DA-98, or to a digital audio workstation (DAW). For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 11, "Exporting Audio for Mixing in Other Applications." You can also see Volume IV, Chapter 12, "Importing and Exporting Final Cut Pro XML."

In Final Cut Pro, each clip has its own audio level control. As you adjust levels, watch the audio meters to check that the average levels are acceptable and that the peaks aren't too high. Check individual track meters in the Audio Mixer first, then check the Master meter to make sure the overall level is at a consistent level. If the audio output is too high (above 0 dBFS), the sound will be distorted.

In Final Cut Pro, you can adjust audio levels in the Viewer or Timeline, or by using the Audio Mixer. You can view individual track meters and Master meters in the Audio Mixer. You can also view levels by using the floating audio meters, though they show only the two loudest output channels. For more information, see Chapter 7, "Mixing Audio in the Timeline and Viewer," on page 109 and Chapter 6, "Using the Audio Mixer," on page 79.

Panning allows you to control the placement of each sound in your mix. Using pan controls, you can position each sound to whichever speaker/output channel you want, or distribute it to both left and right speakers at once. For example, if an audio signal is hard-panned to the left, it only comes out of the left speaker. However, if the signal is center-panned, the signal is equally present in the left and right speakers.

A knob or slider controls stereo pan. As you move the pan control from left to right, the sound moves from the left speaker to the right speaker. Moving sounds, such as a car passing in front of the screen, can be simulated by quickly panning a single (mono) sound from one speaker to the other.

In Final Cut Pro, you can adjust pan controls for each clip in the Viewer, in the Audio Mixer, or in the Timeline. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 5, "Overview of the Audio Mixer." You can also refer to Volume III, Chapter 7, "Mixing Audio in the Timeline and Viewer."

In most movies, the most important audio (though not always the loudest) is the sound of people's voices: the actors, the interviewees, or the narrator. What these people say is the point of the show, so it's a safe bet that the average level will be determined by the level you set for these voices. As a result, all other sound levels in your program will be adjusted relative to these voices.

This can change, of course, depending on the requirements of your program. If, at some point in your program, the music becomes more important (such as during a montage that shows the passing of time), you can raise the levels of your music clip to the level of the average loudness, and set the voice clips to a lower level. As soon as the voices become important again, you can raise their levels, and lower those of the music. This is what mixing is all about.

To mix the levels of the various clips in your sequence, you must determine the loudest sound in your program, and then set that as the highest level in your mix. You set the average levels of the dialogue in your program to match the reference level you choose, making sure that any peaks in the dialogue do not exceed those of the loudest sound in the program. Finally, you set the levels of all the other audio clips in your program (music, sound effects, background ambience) so that they do not interfere with the dialogue.

The built-in audio interface in your computer can be acceptable for rough editing, but for a professional sound mix, an external audio monitoring system is essential.

This chapter covers the following:

Choosing External Audio Monitoring Components (p. 23)
• Audio Cables, Connectors, and Signal Levels (p. 28)
Configuring External Audio Monitors (p. 32)

This section describes the basic equipment necessary for a professional audio monitoring system and explains how to set up Final Cut Pro to work with this equipment.

An external audio monitoring system requires:

An audio interface to connect audio devices to your computer
An audio amplifier (one for each speaker—this is usually a single stereo amplifier)
A pair of professional speakers (for stereo monitoring)
Proper placement of speakers and acoustic treatment of your editing suite
A pair of low-quality speakers, or a television monitor (for listening to your audio as it will sound to most viewers—optional)
• Headphones for critical listening to audio, especially for low-level noise
An external audio mixer for routing and controlling levels of multiple audio channels (optional)

An audio interface provides high-quality audio input and output between your computer and audio equipment. This includes analog-to-digital (A-to-D) and digital-to-analog (D-to-A) converters, a stable digital audio clock, and input connectors that are compatible with your equipment, such as 1/4" phone (tip-ring-sleeve) and XLR connectors.

When you select an audio interface, make sure it has the following:

Connectors that match your audio equipment, such as XLR, 1/4" TRS, RCA, or TOSLINK (optical connector)
Support for audio signal formats that your audio equipment uses, such as AES/EBU, S/PDIF, or ADAT Lightpipe
Enough audio inputs and outputs to connect your equipment
Sample rate and bit depth at least as high as your audio equipment. For example, if you have an audio device with a sample rate of 96 kHz and 24 bits, your audio interface should at least match this.

Some PCI card audio interfaces include a breakout box. A breakout box allows you to extend the interface's audio connectors away from the back of the computer, such as on a desk or even in an equipment rack.

The most common kinds of audio interfaces are described below.

For basic mixing, you can connect the built-in audio output on your computer to a pair of external speakers. This gives you two output channels, which can be configured for dual mono or stereo playback.

If your sequence uses a DV codec, you can output audio via the FireWire port on your computer. This allows you to use a DV deck, camcorder, or DV-to-analog converter as an audio interface. In this case, you connect your FireWire cable to your DV device, and then connect the audio outputs of the DV device to external speakers or a television monitor.

Third-party audio interfaces support more audio channels than your computer's built-in interface, and they often have professional connectors such as XLR or 1/4" phone (tip-ring-sleeve). Most video interfaces, such as the AJA Io, have both video and audio connectors, so in some situations your video interface can handle audio input and output.

Important: If you are considering purchasing an interface, make sure it supports Mac OS X Core Audio.

Professional audio engineers mix by listening, so they have to be able to trust the sound coming from their speakers. When you mix your audio, you need audio monitors that can handle the full range of audio intensities and frequencies. Ideally, your monitors will have a flat frequency response from 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz (or 20 kHz). This means that they neither attenuate nor amplify any frequencies. Flat frequency response is important for critical listening because the speakers themselves are not coloring the sound.

In addition to the speaker quality itself, additional factors affect your audio monitoring environment:

Size and materials of the room
Placement of the speakers within the room, such as distance from walls and angle of speakers
Listener position between speakers

Speaker quality varies greatly depending on their purpose as well as their price. For example, speakers in a boombox or television are designed to play audio that has already been mastered by a mixing engineer. Mastered audio such as audio CD, radio, television, and movie sound has a compressed dynamic range (meaning levels are fairly consistent and loud).

Speakers and amplifiers that are designed for mastered audio often intentionally emphasize certain frequencies, as is done with the bass enhancement feature found on many systems. This may make an audio CD sound better but it is not recommended for mixing production sound because you get a false impression of the audio signal. For example, if your speakers overemphasize frequencies around 2 kHz, you may compensate during mixing by reducing the intensity of audio around 2 kHz. If you then play your mix on a different set of speakers with a flat frequency response, the frequencies around 2 kHz will sound too muffled.

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| Frequency | Value | | --------- | ----- | | 20 Hz | + dB | | 200Hz | + dB | | 1 kHz | + dB | | 5 kHz | + dB | | 20 kHz | + dB |

Flat

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| Frequency | Value (dB) | | --------- | ---------- | | 20 Hz | -dB | | 200 Hz | +dB | | 1 kHz | +dB | | 5 kHz | +dB | | 20 kHz | -dB |

Not flat

Audio speakers require signals with higher voltage than consumer and professional equipment can provide directly. Speakers require speaker level audio signals, while audio devices such as tape recorders and audio mixers usually provide line level signals. An audio amplifier boosts line level signals to speaker levels to properly drive speakers. Wide gauge speaker cables that can handle the higher electrical strength of speaker levels are used to connect the amplifier to speakers. For more information about audio signal levels, see “Microphone, Instrument, and Line Level” on page 30.

Speakers powered by an external amplifier are called passive speakers. When you use separate amplifiers and passive speakers, complex factors such as impedance matching and cable length affect the overall frequency response and quality of your audio. Instead of using a separate amplifier and speakers, a simpler option is to use self-powered speakers (speakers with built-in amplifiers). These have become increasingly popular, especially for studio monitoring and video editing.

Self-powered speakers deliver more consistent performance because both components are designed to work together and are housed in a single enclosure. For video editing systems, self-powered speakers are a good, easy-to-use solution. Self-powered speakers accept line level inputs, so it's fairly easy to connect them to your audio interface.

It's critical that you monitor your mix in an environment that closely matches the final viewing environment. A movie destined for a theater should be mixed on an audio system that matches the theater sound system. Likewise, a movie destined for DVD release for home viewing should be mixed on a system that resembles a home viewing environment.

Room shape and material are just as important as the quality of the speakers themselves. Every surface in a room potentially reflects sound, and these reflections mix together with the sound originating from the speakers. Rooms with parallel walls can create standing waves, which are mostly low-frequency sound waves that reinforce and cancel each other as they bounce back and forth.

Standing waves cause some frequencies to be emphasized or attenuated more than others, depending on your listening position. When you mix in a room that creates standing waves, you may adjust certain frequencies more than necessary. However, you may not notice until you play back your audio in a different listening environment, in which those frequencies may sound overbearing or nonexistent.

Tip: A much cheaper alternative to building new walls is to mount angled pieces of material to the existing walls to eliminate parallel surfaces.

If the material in a room is very reflective, the room sounds "brighter" because high frequencies are easily reflected. Mounting absorbing material (such as acoustic foam) on the walls can reduce the brightness of a room. A "dead room" is one that has very little reflection (or reverberation). Try to cover any reflective surfaces in your monitoring environment.

Most video editing suites use nearfield monitors, which are speakers designed to be listened to at fairly close range. Speakers should be at least a foot or two away from any walls to prevent early reflections of sound which combine with and muddy up the original sound.

Position the speakers as far from your listening position as they are from each other (forming an equilateral triangle). For example, if the distance between the speakers is six feet, you should place yourself six feet from each speaker. The apparent width of the sound stage, or stereo image, increases as the distance between the speakers increases. However, if the two speakers get too far apart, sound information appearing in the center (between both speakers) starts to disappear.

Many people use headphones as an alternative to critical monitoring speakers. Headphones can help you identify sounds that may not be obvious in your speakers. However, you shouldn't rely solely on headphones for mixing because many viewers don't listen to movies with headphones.

When connecting audio devices, you use cables with the appropriate connector on each end. Audio cables can be either balanced or unbalanced, depending on their intended use.

For long cable runs, especially when using relatively low microphone levels, a three-wire balanced audio circuit reduces noise. Balanced audio cables use the principle of phase cancellation to eliminate noise while maintaining the original audio signal. See "Phase" on page 38 for more information.

Here's how it works:

A balanced audio cable sends the same audio signal on two wires, but inverts the phase of one signal by 180 degrees.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - About Balanced Audio Signals - 1

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Simple blue sine wave pattern on white background (no text or symbols)

Original signal

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - About Balanced Audio Signals - 2

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Inverted signal (reverse phase)

When noise is introduced into the cable, it is introduced equally to both the original and the inverted signal.

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| X | Y | |---|---| | 0 | 0 | | 1 | 1 | | 2 | -1 | | 3 | 2 | | 4 | -2 | | 5 | 3 | | 6 | -3 | | 7 | 4 | | 8 | -4 | | 9 | 5 | | 10 | -5 | | 11 | 6 | | 12 | -6 | | 13 | 7 | | 14 | -7 | | 15 | 8 | | 16 | -8 | | 17 | 9 | | 18 | -9 | | 19 | 10 | | 20 | -10 | | 21 | 11 | | 22 | -11 | | 23 | 12 | | 24 | -12 | | 25 | 13 | | 26 | -13 | | 27 | 14 | | 28 | -14 | | 29 | 15 | | 30 | -15 | | 31 | 16 | | 32 | -16 | | 33 | 17 | | 34 | -17 | | 35 | 18 | | 36 | -18 | | 37 | 19 | | 38 | -19 | | 39 | 20 | | 40 | -20 | | 41 | 21 | | 42 | -21 | | 43 | 22 | | 44 | -22 | | 45 | 23 | | 46 | -23 | | 47 | 24 | | 48 | -24 | | 49 | 25 | | 50 | -25 | | 51 | 26 | | 52 | -26 | | 53 | 27 | | 54 | -27 | | 55 | 28 | | 56 | -28 | | 57 | 29 | | 58 | -29 | | 59 | 30 | | 60 | -30 | | 61 | 31 | | 62 | -31 | | 63 | 32 | | 64 | -32 | | 65 | 33 | | 66 | -33 | | 67 | 34 | | 68 | -34 | | 69 | 35 | | 70 | -35 | | 71 | 36 | | 72 | -36 | | 73 | 37 | | 74 | -37 | | 75 | 38 | | 76 | -38 | | 77 | 39 | | 78 | -39 | | 79 | 40 | | 80 | -40 | | 81 | 41 | | 82 | -41 | | 83 | 42 | | 84 | -42 | | 85 | 43 | | 86 | -43 | | 87 | 44 | | 88 | -44 | | 89 | 45 | | 90 | -45 | | 91 | 46 | | 92 | -46 | | 93 | 47 | | 94 | -47 | | 95 | 48 | | 96 | -48 | | 97 | 49 | | 98 | -49 | | 99 | 50 | | 100 | -50 |

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - About Balanced Audio Signals - 4

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Noise on line
(affects both signals)

When the signal arrives at its destination, the inverted signal is put back in phase and both signals are combined. This puts the original and inverted signals back in phase, but it causes the noise signals on each line to be out of phase.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - About Balanced Audio Signals - 5

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| x | y | | ---- | ----- | | 0 | 0.0 | | 1 | 0.5 | | 2 | -0.5 | | 3 | 0.8 | | 4 | -0.2 | | 5 | 0.6 | | 6 | -0.7 | | 7 | 0.9 | | 8 | -0.4 | | 9 | 0.7 | | 10 | -0.6 | | 11 | 0.5 | | 12 | -0.8 | | 13 | 0.3 | | 14 | -0.9 | | 15 | 0.6 | | 16 | -0.3 | | 17 | 0.4 | | 18 | -0.7 | | 19 | 0.2 | | 20 | -0.5 | | 21 | 0.7 | | 22 | -0.6 | | 23 | 0.4 | | 24 | -0.8 | | 25 | 0.1 | | 26 | -0.9 | | 27 | 0.3 | | 28 | -0.4 | | 29 | 0.6 | | 30 | -0.7 | | 31 | 0.2 | | 32 | -0.5 | | 33 | 0.8 | | 34 | -0.6 | | 35 | 0.4 | | 36 | -0.8 | | 37 | 0.1 | | 38 | -0.9 | | 39 | 0.5 | | 40 | -0.3 | | 41 | 0.7 | | 42 | -0.6 | | 43 | 0.3 | | 44 | -0.8 | | 45 | 0.6 | | 46 | -0.2 | | 47 | 0.4 | | 48 | -0.7 | | 49 | 0.2 | | 50 | -0.9 | | 51 | 0.7 | | 52 | -0.4 | | 53 | 0.5 | | 54 | -0.6 | | 55 | 0.3 | | 56 | -0.8 | | 57 | 0.6 | | 58 | -0.2 | | 59 | 0.4 | | 60 | -0.7 | | 61 | 0.2 | | 62 | -0.9 | | 63 | 0.7 | | 64 | -0.3 | | 65 | 0.5 | | 66 | -0.6 | | 67 | 0.4 | | 68 | -0.8 | | 69 | 0.1 | | 70 | -0.9 | | 71 | 0.3 | | 72 | -0.2 | | 73 | 0.6 | | 74 | -0.7 | | 75 | 0.2 | | 76 | -0.9 | | 77 | 0.7 | | 78 | -0.3 | | 79 | 0.5 | | 80 | -0.6 | | 81 | 0.4 | | 82 | -0.8 | | 83 | 0.1 | | 84 | -0.9 | | 85 | 0.3 | | 86 | -0.2 | | 87 | 0.6 | | 88 | -0.7 | | 89 | 0.2 | | 90 | -0.9 | | 91 | 0.7 | | 92 | -0.3 | | 93 | -0.8 | | 94 | -0.2 | | 95 | -0.7 | | 96 | -0.4 | | 97 | -0.6 | | 98 | -0.8 | | 99 | -1.1 | |100* | -1.3

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - About Balanced Audio Signals - 6

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Abstract waveform diagram with no text or symbols

Inverted signal (inverted again)

Now, both audio signals are in phase, but the noise is inverted, causing the noise to be canceled. At the same time, the original signal gets a little stronger because it is sent on two wires and combined. This helps compensate for the reduction in signal strength that occurs naturally on a long cable run.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - About Balanced Audio Signals - 7

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Pure sine wave pattern without any text, numbers, or symbols

Combined signals (noise eliminated)

Any noise introduced into the cable across its long run is almost completely eliminated by this process.

Note: Unbalanced cables have no way of eliminating noise, and are therefore not as robust for long-distance cable runs, microphone signals, and other professional applications.

Audio equipment can output line level at -10 dBV (consumer level), +4 dBm/dBu (professional level), or microphone level, which is around 50 or 60 dB less than line level. When you use a microphone, the level is very low, requiring a preamplifier to raise the signal to line level before it can be recorded or processed. Most audio mixers, cameras, and professional portable recording devices have built-in preamplifiers.

Instrument level is between microphone and line level, around -20 dBV or so. Guitars and keyboards usually output at instrument level.

Professional audio equipment typically uses higher voltage levels than consumer equipment, and also measures audio on a different scale.

Professional analog devices measure audio using dBu (or dBm in older equipment). 0 dB on the audio meter is usually set to +4 dBu, which means optimal levels are 4 dB greater than 0 dBu (.775 V), or 1.23 V.
Consumer audio equipment measures audio using dBV. The optimal recording level on a consumer device is -10 dBV, which means the levels are 10 dB less than 0 dBV (1 V), or 0.316 V.

Therefore, the difference between an optimal professional level (+4 dBu) and consumer level (-10 dBV) is not 14 dB, because they are referencing different signals. This is not necessarily a problem, but you need to be aware of these level differences when connecting consumer and professional audio equipment together.

Different audio connectors are suited for different purposes. Audio connectors are often indicative of the kind of signal they transmit. However, there are enough exceptions that it's important to know what kind of audio signal you are connecting, in addition to the connector type. An important distinction is whether an audio connector carries a balanced or an unbalanced signal.

These are very small, unbalanced audio connectors. Many computers have 1/8" mini inputs and outputs at -10 dBV line level, and many portable audio devices such as CD players, Walkmans, and MP3 players use these connectors for headphone outputs. Portable MiniDisc and DAT recorders often use 1/8" mini connectors for connecting microphones.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - 1/8" Mini Connectors - 1

- Mono miniplug connector

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - 1/8" Mini Connectors - 2

- Stereo miniplug connector

Most consumer equipment uses RCA connectors, which are unbalanced connectors that usually handle -10 dbV (consumer) line levels.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - RCA Connectors - 1

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - RCA Connectors - 2

RCA connector

1/4" connectors with a tip and a ring are unbalanced connectors often used for musical instruments like electric guitars, keyboards, amplifiers, and so on.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - 1/4" Tip-Ring (TR) Connectors - 1

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - 1/4" Tip-Ring (TR) Connectors - 2

1/4-inch Tip-Ring (TR) connector

Professional equipment often uses 1/4" TRS (tip-ring-sleeve) audio connectors with +4 dBu line level. TRS connectors connect to three wires in an audio cable: hot, neutral, and ground, and usually carry a balanced audio signal. In some situations, the three wires may be used to send left and right (stereo) signals, making the signals unbalanced.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - 1/4" Tip-Ring-Sleeve (TRS) Connectors - 1

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - 1/4" Tip-Ring-Sleeve (TRS) Connectors - 2

1/4-inch Tip-Ring Sleeve (TRS) connector

Note: Tip-ring and tip-ring-sleeve connectors (also called phone connectors) look almost identical. Some audio equipment (especially mixers) accept a TR connector in a TRS jack, but you should always check the equipment documentation to be sure. Remember that most 1/4" tip-ring connectors connect to -10 dBV line level equipment, while 1/4" tip-ring-sleeve connectors usually expect a +4 dBu line level.

These are the most common professional audio connectors. They almost always carry a balanced signal. Many cables use an XLR connector on one end and a 1/4" TRS connector on the other. The signal may be microphone level (when using a microphone) or +4 dBu/dBm (professional) line level.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - XLR Connectors - 1

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - XLR Connectors - 2

XLR connector

The following section describes how to connect external audio speakers to your editing system, how to select an audio interface for output, and how to make audio volume adjustments in Final Cut Pro and Mac OS X.

When you add audio speakers to your editing system, you need to make sure that the speakers are properly connected to your audio interface or built-in computer audio output, and that the interface is properly configured in Final Cut Pro.

Connect the main left audio output of your audio interface to the left speaker, and connect the main right audio output of your audio interface to the right speaker.
For more information about types of audio connectors and adapters, see "Audio Connectors" on page 30.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings, then click the A/V Devices tab.

2 Choose an audio interface from the Audio pop-up menu. This device is used for playing audio from the Viewer, Canvas, and Timeline.

Default: This option uses the output device you have selected in the Output tab of the Sound pane of Mac OS X System Preferences (or in the Audio MIDI Setup utility). If you want to control the audio output of Final Cut Pro from these locations, choose this option. This is the default setting for audio output.
Built-in Audio: This is your computer's built-in audio interface.
FireWire DV: If you connect a DV camcorder or deck to your computer, this option becomes the default setting.
Other available audio interfaces: If you have a third-party video or audio interface installed, it appears in this list.

Depending on your hardware, additional options may be available to configure your audio interface.

3 Click Options, then make choices for the following:

Audio Device Options Channels: 2 Bit Depth: 16 Sample Rate (Hz) 44100.00 Cancel OK

Channels: Choose the number of channels your audio interface is capable of outputting. You can assign sequence tracks to these channels by creating an audio output preset.
Bit Depth: Choose a supported bit depth for the audio. 16-bit audio is compatible with most DV equipment. For high-resolution output and export, 24-bit audio is preferred.
Sample Rate (Hz): Choose a standard sample rate from the pop-up menu. For professional audio applications, 48 kHz is typical, though 96 kHz is becoming more popular.

Note: If Final Cut Pro considers the selected interfaces in the Video and Audio pop-up menus to be paired together (or part of the same interface), the Audio pop-up menu is controlled by the Video pop-up menu. This means that changing the selected video interface automatically switches the audio to the same interface. This behavior is known as audio follows video. If the selected audio interface is different from the selected video interface, changing the video interface has no effect on your audio output.

4 Enable or disable the following alert message options:

Do not show External A/V Device Warning when device not found on launch: Select this option to turn off the alert message when selected devices cannot be found during application startup.
Do not show warning when audio outputs are greater than Audio device channels: When selected, this option disables the following message: "The selected external audio device does not support N outputs. Unsupported outputs will be ignored during playback on this machine." This message appears when you assign more audio output channels to a sequence than the currently selected audio interface in the Audio/Video Settings window can support. For more information about setting audio outputs, see "Working With Multiple Audio Output Channels" on page 61.

1 Choose View > Video Playback, then select a video output from the submenu.
2 Choose View > Audio Playback > Audio Follows Video, and make sure that the option is enabled (indicated by a checkmark).
With the Audio Follows Video option enabled, you can now select a video interface and the corresponding audio interface or device is selected automatically.
Tip: If you don't see your audio interface appear in the list of audio outputs, choose View > Refresh A/V Devices, then try to select your output again.

When you mix your audio, it's important to monitor using a consistent volume setting. If a sound is too loud in the mix, you should adjust the level of the audio in Final Cut Pro, not the volume on the speakers themselves. Once you set up your audio monitoring levels, you should not need to adjust the overall volume of your audio very often.

If all of your audio is consistently too quiet or too loud, you should probably change the overall volume setting for your speakers, and then keep it at this new level. There are a few different places to adjust the volume, including the volume knob on the speakers themselves.

If you are using the built-in audio output of your computer, you can adjust its volume in the Sound pane of Mac OS X System Preferences or by using the volume control keys on the keyboard.

To adjust the built-in volume of your computer using the volume slider in the menu bar:

1 Open System Preferences by choosing Apple menu > System Preferences, then click Sound.

2 In the Sound pane of System Preferences, make sure the "Show volume in menu bar" checkbox is selected.

When the checkbox is selected, a volume icon appears in the menu bar.

3 Adjust the volume in the menu bar.

You can also adjust the volume in the Sound pane of System Preferences.

To mute all alert and Mac OS X user interface sound effects:

1 Choose Apple menu > System Preferences, then click Sound.

2 Click the Sound Effects button.

3 Deselect the "Play user interface sound effects" checkbox.

4 Deselect the "Play feedback when volume keys are pressed" checkbox.

5 Slide the Alert volume slider all the way to the left.

If you are using an audio interface other than the built-in audio, you can route the alert sound effects to the built-in speakers, but monitor Final Cut Pro audio from your audio interface.

To route Mac OS X alerts and sound effects through your computer's built-in speakers:

1 Choose Apple menu > System Preferences, then click Sound.

2 Click the Sound Effects button.

3 Choose "Built-in Audio: Internal speakers" from the "Play alerts and sound effects through" pop-up menu.

While monitoring the audio of your program, avoid changing the volume of your speakers unless it is absolutely necessary. A consistent monitoring level allows you to get used to the average loudness you're establishing for your mix, so that you can better judge how well the louder and softer sections of your mix are working together.

To adjust the volume of your speakers, try playing a signal that represents the average volume you want to monitor. Avoid setting speaker volume so high that it fatigues your ears or distorts in the speakers.

Some people use the 1 kHz tone of the Bars and Tone generator to set the volume of their speakers. However, you may find that the 1 kHz tone causes you to turn down your speakers down lower than you would for normal audio because the tone is so incessant and your ears are particularly sensitive to this frequency. Generally, 1 kHz tones are useful for setting levels from device to device when looking at meters, but not as helpful for setting average listening levels.

To successfully create your movie soundtrack, it's important to learn about the basic properties of sound and digital audio.

This chapter covers the following:

• What Is Sound? (p. 37)
• Digital Audio (p. 46)

All sounds are vibrations traveling through the air as sound waves. Sound waves are caused by the vibrations of objects, and radiate outward from their source in all directions. A vibrating object compresses the surrounding air molecules (squeezing them closer together), and then rarefies them (pulling them further apart). Although the fluctuations in air pressure travel outward from the object, the air molecules themselves stay in the same average position. As sound travels, it reflects off objects in its path, creating further disturbances in the surrounding air. When these changes in air pressure vibrate your eardrum, nerve signals are sent to your brain and are interpreted as sound.

The simplest kind of sound wave is a sine wave. Audio sine waves rarely exist in the natural world, but are a useful place to start because all other sounds can be broken down into combinations of sine waves. A sine wave clearly demonstrates the three fundamental characteristics of a sound wave: frequency, amplitude, and phase.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Fundamentals of a Sound Wave - 1

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| Time (ms) | Amplitude (dB) | | --------- | -------------- | | 0 | 0 | | 1 | 0 | | 2 | 1 | | 3 | 0 | | 4 | -1 | | 5 | 0 | | 6 | 1 | | 7 | 0 | | 8 | -1 | | 9 | 0 | | 10 | 1 |

Frequency is the rate, or number of times per second, that a sound wave cycles from positive to negative to positive again. Frequency is measured in cycles per second or hertz (Hz). Humans have a range of hearing from 20 Hz (low) to 20,000 Hz (high). Frequencies beyond this range exist, but they are inaudible to humans.

Amplitude (or intensity) refers to the strength of a sound wave, which we interpret as volume or loudness. People can detect a very wide range of volumes, from the sound of a pin dropping in a quiet room to a loud rock concert. Because the range of human hearing is so large, audio meters use a logarithmic scale (decibels) to make the units of measurement more manageable.

Phase compares the timing between two similar sound waves. If two periodic sound waves of the same frequency begin at the same time, the two waves are said to be in phase. Phase is measured in degrees from 0 to 360, where 0 degrees means both sounds are exactly in sync (in phase) and 180 degrees means both sounds are exactly opposite (out of phase). When two sounds that are in phase are added together, the combination makes an even stronger result. When two sounds that are out of phase are added together, the opposing air pressures cancel each other out, resulting in little or no sound. This is known as phase cancellation.

Phase cancellation can be a problem when mixing similar audio signals together, or when original and reflected sound waves interact in a reflective room. For example, when the left and right channels of a stereo mix are combined to create a mono mix, the signals may suffer from phase cancellation.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Phase - 1

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Two overlapping sine waveforms with no text or symbols

In phase

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Phase - 2

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Pure sine wave pattern without any text, numbers, or symbols

Out of phase

With the exception of pure sine waves, which rarely exist in nature, sounds are made up of many different frequency components vibrating at the same time. The particular characteristics of a sound are the result of the unique combination of frequencies it contains. Musical sounds usually have a fundamental frequency, or pitch, and additional frequencies, called overtones, or harmonics, that are related to the fundamental frequency. The lower the fundamental frequency, the lower the pitch of the sound. For example, a 440 Hz piano note sounds lower than an 880 Hz piano note.

Sounds contain energy in different frequency ranges, or bands. If a sound has a lot of low-frequency energy, it has a lot of bass. The 250–4000 Hz frequency band, where humans hear best, is described as midrange. High-frequency energy beyond the midrange is called treble, and this adds crispness or brilliance to a sound.

Note: Different manufacturers and mixing engineers define the ranges of these frequency bands differently, so the numbers described above are approximate.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Frequency Spectrum of Sounds - 1

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| Frequency | Amplitude (dB) | | --------- | -------------- | | 20 | Low | | 200 | Medium | | 1 kHz | Medium | | 5 kHz | High | | 20 kHz | Medium |

Tip: The human voice is mostly in the 250–4000 Hz range, which likely explains why people's ears are also the most sensitive to this range. If the dialogue in your movie is harder to hear when you add music and sound effects, try reducing the midrange frequencies of the nondialogue tracks using an equalizer filter. Reducing the midrange creates a "sonic space" for the dialogue to be heard more easily.

Our ears are remarkably sensitive to vibrations in the air. The threshold of human hearing is around 20 microPascals ( P), which is an extremely small amount of atmospheric pressure. At the other extreme, the loudest sound a person can withstand without pain or ear damage is about 200,000,000 P, such as a loud rock concert or a nearby jet airplane taking off.

Because the human ear can handle such a large range of intensities, measuring sound pressure levels on a linear scale is inconvenient. For example, if the range of human hearing were measured on a ruler, the scale would go from 1 foot (quietest) to over 3000 miles (loudest)! To make this huge range of numbers easier to work with, a logarithmic unit—the decibel—is used. Logarithms map exponential values to a linear scale. For example, by taking the base-ten logarithm of 10(10^1) and 1,000,000,000(10^9) , this large range of numbers can be written as 1–9, which is a much more convenient scale.

Since our ears respond to sound pressure logarithmically, using a logarithmic scale corresponds to the way we perceive loudness. Audio meters and sound measurement equipment are specifically designed to show audio levels in decibels. This makes audio meters very different from linear measuring devices like rulers, thermometers, and speedometers. Each unit on an audio meter represents an exponential increase in sound pressure, but a linear increase in perceived loudness.

Important: When you mix audio, you don't need to worry about the mathematics behind logarithms and decibels. Just be aware that to hear incremental increases in sound volume, exponentially more sound pressure is required.

The decibel measures sound pressure or electrical pressure (voltage) levels. It is a logarithmic unit that describes a ratio of two intensities, such as two different sound pressures, two different voltages, and so on. A bel (named after Alexander Graham Bell) is a base-ten logarithm of the ratio between two signals. This means that for every additional bel on the scale, the signal represented is ten times stronger. For example, the sound pressure level of a loud sound can be billions of times stronger than a quiet sound. Written logarithmically, one billion (1,000,000,000 or 10^9 ) is simply 9. Decibels make the numbers much easier to work with.

In practice, a bel is a bit too large to use for measuring sound, so a one-tenth unit called the decibel is used instead. The reason for using decibels instead of bels is no different than the reason for measuring shoe size in, say, centimeters instead of meters; it is a more practical unit.

Number of decibels	Relative increase in power
0	1
1	1.26
3	2
10	10
20	100
30	1000
50	100,000
100	10,000,000,000

Audio meters measure sound level using decibels. Since decibels describe the ratio between two signals, audio meters always display the incoming signal as if it is being compared to an assumed reference signal.

Several reference levels have been used in audio meters over the years, starting with the invention of the telephone and evolving to present day systems. Some of these units are only applicable to older equipment. Today, dBu is used for most professional equipment, and dBV is used for most consumer equipment. dBFS is used for digital meters.

dBm: The m stands for milliwatt (mW), which is a unit for measuring electrical power. (Power is different from electrical voltage and current, though it is related to both.) This was the standard used since the early days of telephone technology, and remained the professional audio standard for years.
dBu: This reference level measures voltage instead of power, and uses a reference level of 0.775 volts. dBu has mostly replaced dBm on professional audio equipment. The u stands for unloaded, because the electrical load in an audio circuit is no longer as relevant as it was in the early days of audio equipment.
dBV: This also uses a reference voltage like dBu, but in this case the reference is 1 volt, which is more convenient than 0.775 in dBu. dBV is often used on consumer and semiprofessional devices.
dBFS: This scale is very different from the others because it is used for measuring digital audio levels. FS stands for full-scale, which is used because, unlike analog audio signals that have an optimum signal voltage, the entire range of digital values is equally acceptable when using digital audio. 0 dBFS is the absolute highest possible digital audio signal you can record without distortion. Unlike analog audio scales like dbV and dBu, there is no headroom past 0 dBFS. For more information about digital audio metering, see “About Audio Meters” on page 51.

Every electrical system produces a certain amount of low-level electrical activity called noise. The noise floor is the level of noise inherent in a system. It is nearly impossible to eliminate all the noise in an electrical system, but you don't have to worry about the noise if you record your signals significantly higher than the noise floor. If you record audio too low, you raise the volume to hear it, which also raises the volume of the noise floor, causing a noticeable hiss.

The more a signal is amplified, the louder the noise becomes. Therefore, it is important to record most audio around the nominal (ideal) level of the device, which is labeled 0 dB on an analog audio meter.

The signal-to-noise ratio is the difference between the nominal recording level and the noise floor of the device, and is typically measured in dB. For example, the signal-to-noise ratio of an analog tape deck may be 60 dB, which means the inherent noise in the system is 60 dB lower than the ideal recording level.

If an audio signal is too strong, it will “overdrive” the audio circuit, causing the shape of the signal to distort. In analog equipment, distortion increases gradually the more the audio signal overdrives the circuit. For some audio recordings, this kind of distortion can add a unique “warmth” to the recording that is difficult to achieve with digital equipment. However, for audio postproduction, the goal is to keep the signal clean and undistorted.

0 dB on an analog meter refers to the ideal recording level, but there is some allowance for stronger signals before distortion occurs. This safety margin is known as headroom, meaning that the signal can occasionally go higher than the ideal recording level without distorting. Having headroom is critical when recording, especially when the audio level is very dynamic and unpredictable. Even though you can adjust the recording level while you record, you can't always anticipate quick, loud sounds. The extra headroom above 0 dB on the meter is there in case the audio abruptly becomes loud.

Dynamic range is the difference between the quietest and loudest sound in your mix. A mix that contains quiet whispers and loud screams has a large dynamic range. A recording of a constant drone such as an air conditioner or steady freeway traffic has very little amplitude variation, so it has a small dynamic range.

You can actually see the dynamic range of an audio clip by looking at its waveform. For example, two waveforms are shown below. The top one is a section from a well-known piece of classical music. The bottom one is from a piece of electronic music. From the widely varied shape of the waveform, you can tell that the classical piece has the greater dynamic range.

Waveform from a well-known classical piece Waveform from an excerpt of electronic music

Notice that the loud and soft parts of the classical music vary more frequently, as compared to the fairly consistent levels of the electronic music. The long, drawn-out part of the waveform at the left end of the top piece is not silence—it's actually a long, low section of the music.

Dynamic sound has drastic volume changes. Sound can be made less dynamic by reducing, or compressing, the loudest parts of the signal to be closer to the quiet parts. Compression is a useful technique because it makes the sounds in your mix more equal. For example, a train pulling into the station, a man talking, and the quiet sounds of a cricket-filled evening are, in absolute terms, very different volumes. Because televisions and film theaters must compete with ambient noise in the real world, it is important that the quiet sounds are not lost.

The goal is to make the quiet sounds (in this case, the crickets) louder so they can compete with the ambient noise in the listening environment. One approach to making the crickets louder is to simply raise the level of the entire soundtrack, but when you increase the level of the quiet sounds, the loud sounds (such as the train) get too loud and distort. Instead of raising the entire volume of your mix, you can compress the loud sounds so they are closer to the quiet sounds. Once the loud sounds are quieter (and the quiet sounds remain the same level), you can raise the overall level of the mix, bringing up the quiet sounds without distorting the loud sounds.

When used sparingly, compression can help you bring up the overall level of your mix to compete with noise in the listening environment. However, if you compress a signal too far, it sounds very unnatural. For example, reducing the sound of an airplane jet engine to the sound of a quiet forest at night and then raising the volume to maximum would cause the noise in the forest to be amplified immensely.

Different media and genres use different levels of compression. Radio and television commercials use compression to achieve a consistent wall of sound. If the radio or television becomes too quiet, the audience may change the channel—a risk advertisers and broadcasters don't want to take. Films in theaters have a slightly wider dynamic range because the ambient noise level of the theater is lower, so quiet sounds can remain quiet.

We hear sounds in stereo, and our brains use the subtle differences in sounds entering our left and right ears to locate sounds in our environment. To recreate this sonic experience, stereo recordings require two microphones, two tracks of recording, and two speakers for playback. The microphones and speakers must be properly positioned to the left and right to accurately recreate a stereo image.

If any one of the above elements is missing, the stereo image will most likely be compromised. For example, if your playback system has only one speaker, you will not hear the intended stereo image, even if the rest of your recording system meets the above requirements.

Important: All stereo recordings require two channels, but two-channel recordings are not necessarily stereo. For example, if you only use one microphone but record that signal on two tracks, you are not making a stereo recording. A proper stereo recording must meet all of the above requirements.

When you are working with two-channel audio, it is important to be able to distinguish between true stereo recordings and two tracks used to record two independent mono channels. These are called dual mono recordings.

Examples of dual-channel recordings that are not stereo include:

Two independent microphones used to record two independent sounds, such as two different actors speaking. These microphones independently follow each actor's voice, and are never positioned in a stereo left-right configuration. In this case, the intent is not a stereo recording, but two discrete, mono channels of synchronized sound.
Two channels with the exact same signal. This is no different than a mono recording, because both channels contain exactly the same information. Production audio is sometimes recorded this way, with slightly different gain settings on each channel. This way, if one channel distorts, you have a safety channel recorded at a lower level.
Two completely unrelated sounds, such as dialogue on track 1 and a timecode audio signal on track 2, or music on channel 1 and sound effects on channel 2. Conceptually, this is not much different than recording two discrete dialogue tracks in the example above.

The important point to remember is that if you have a two-track recording system, each track can be used to record anything you want. If you use the two tracks to record properly positioned left and right microphones, you can make a stereo recording. Otherwise, you are simply making a two-channel, mono recording.

When you are trying to decide how to treat an audio clip in Final Cut Pro, you need to know whether a two-channel recording was intended to be stereo or not. Usually, the person recording production sound will have labeled the tapes or audio files to indicate whether they were recorded as stereo recordings or dual-channel mono recordings. However, things don't always go as planned, and tapes aren't always labeled as thoroughly as they should be. As an editor, it's important to learn how to differentiate between the two.

Here are some tips for distinguishing stereo from dual mono recordings:

- Stereo recordings must have two independent tracks. If you have a tape with only one track of audio, or a one-channel audio file, your audio is mono, not stereo.

Note: It is possible that a one-channel audio file is one half of a stereo pair. These are known as split stereo files, because the left and right channels are contained in independent files. Usually, these files are labeled accordingly: AudioFile.L and AudioFile.R are two audio files that make up the left and right channels of a stereo sound.

- Almost all music, especially commercially available music, is mixed in stereo.

- Listen to a clip using two (stereo) speakers. If each side sounds subtly different, it is probably stereo. If each side sounds absolutely the same, it may be a mono recording. If each side is completely unrelated, it is a dual mono recording.

Digital audio can send a stereo signal within a single stream by interleaving the digital samples during transmission and de-interleaving them on playback. The way the signal is stored is unimportant as long as the samples are properly split to left and right channels during playback. With analog technology, the signal is not nearly as flexible.

Split stereo files are two independent audio files that work together, one for the left channel (AudioFile.L) and one for the right channel (AudioFile.R). This mirrors the traditional analog method of one track per channel (or in this case, one file per channel).

Digital audio recording works by recording, or sampling, an electronic audio signal at regular intervals (of time). An analog-to-digital (A/D) converter measures and stores each sample as a numerical value that represents the audio amplitude at that particular moment. Converting the amplitude of each sample to a binary number is called quantization. The number of bits used for quantization is referred to as bit depth. Sample rate and bit depth are two of the most important factors when determining the quality of a digital audio system.

The sample rate is the number of times an analog signal is measured—or sampled—per second. You can also think of the sample rate as the number of electronic snapshots made of the sound wave per second. Higher sample rates result in higher sound quality because the analog waveform is more closely approximated by the discrete samples. Which sample rate you choose to work with depends on the source material you're working with, the capabilities of your audio interface, and the final destination of your audio. It is always better to start with a higher sample rate, even if you are going to reduce to a lower sample rate later.

For years, the digital audio sampling rate standards have been 44,100 Hz (44.1 kHz) and 48 kHz. However, as technology improves, 96 kHz and even 192 kHz sampling rates are becoming common.

Audio sample rates	When used
8 kHz–22.225 kHz	These lower sample rates are used strictly for multimedia files.
32 kHz	32 kHz is generally used with 12-bit audio on DV.
44.1 kHz	This sample rate is used for music CDs and some DAT recorders.
48 kHz	DV, DVCAM, DVCPRO, and Digital Betacam all use this sample rate.
88.2 kHz	A multiple of 44.1 kHz. This is useful for high-resolution audio that needs to be compatible with 44.1 kHz. For example, if you eventually plan to burn an audio CD, this sample rate is a good choice.
96 kHz	A multiple of 48 kHz. This is becoming the professional standard for audio postproduction and music recording.
192 kHz	A multiple of 48 and 96 kHz, this is a very high-resolution sample rate used mostly for professional music recording and mastering.

In general, higher sampling rates are better than lower ones, but there is a threshold at which higher sampling rates don't yield noticeably better results. The ideal sampling rate is still a widely debated topic among digital enthusiasts, and many analog proponents shun digital technology altogether because no matter how high the sample rate, some information is always missing. The best test is to listen for yourself and decide.

Unlike analog signals, which have an infinite range of volume levels, digital audio samples use binary numbers (bits) to represent the strength of each audio sample. The accuracy of each sample is determined by its bit depth. Higher bit depths mean your audio signal is more accurately represented when it is sampled. Most digital audio systems use a minimum of 16 bits per sample, which can represent 65,536 possible levels (24-bit samples can represent over 16 million possible levels).

To better understand bit depth, think of each digital audio sample as a ladder with equally spaced rungs that climb from silence to full volume. Each rung on the ladder is a possible volume that a sample can represent, while the spaces between rungs are in-between volumes that a sample cannot represent.

Often, when a sample is made, the audio level of the analog signal falls in the spaces between rungs. In this case, the sample must be rounded to the nearest rung. The bit depth of a digital audio sample determines how closely the rungs are spaced. The more rungs available (or, the less space between rungs), the more precisely the original signal can be represented.

The diagram on the far right has the highest bit depth, and therefore the audio samples more accurately reflect the shape of the original analog audio signal.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Bit Depth - 1

Any audio level that cannot be represented must be rounded to the nearest acceptable value. For example, a 1-bit system (a ladder with only two rungs) can represent either silence or full volume, and nothing in between. Any audio sample that falls between these rungs must be rounded to full volume or silence. Such a system would have absolutely no subtlety, rounding smooth analog signals to a square-shaped waveform.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Bit Depth - 2

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Simple blue sine wave pattern on white background (no text or symbols)

Sine

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Bit Depth - 3

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Pure electrical circuit lines without any symbols

Square

When the number of bits per sample is increased, each sample can more accurately represent the audio signal.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Bit Depth - 4

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Pure electrical circuit lines without any symbols

1 bit

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Bit Depth - 5

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| X | Y | |---|---| | 0 | 0 | | 1 | 1 | | 2 | 2 | | 3 | 1 | | 4 | 0 | | 5 | -1 | | 6 | -2 | | 7 | -3 | | 8 | -4 | | 9 | -5 | | 10 | -6 | | 11 | -7 | | 12 | -8 | | 13 | -9 | | 14 | -10 | | 15 | -11 | | 16 | -12 | | 17 | -13 | | 18 | -14 | | 19 | -15 | | 20 | -16 | | 21 | -17 | | 22 | -18 | | 23 | -19 | | 24 | -20 | | 25 | -21 | | 26 | -22 | | 27 | -23 | | 28 | -24 | | 29 | -25 | | 30 | -26 | | 31 | -27 | | 32 | -28 | | 33 | -29 | | 34 | -30 | | 35 | -31 | | 36 | -32 | | 37 | -33 | | 38 | -34 | | 39 | -35 | | 40 | -36 | | 41 | -37 | | 42 | -38 | | 43 | -39 | | 44 | -40 | | 45 | -41 | | 46 | -42 | | 47 | -43 | | 48 | -44 | | 49 | -45 | | 50 | -46 | | 51 | -47 | | 52 | -48 | | 53 | -49 | | 54 | -50 | | 55 | -51 | | 56 | -52 | | 57 | -53 | | 58 | -54 | | 59 | -55 | | 60 | -56 | | 61 | -57 | | 62 | -58 | | 63 | -59 | | 64 | -60 | | 65 | -61 | | 66 | -62 | | 67 | -63 | | 68 | -64 | | 69 | -65 | | 70 | -66 | | 71 | -67 | | 72 | -68 | | 73 | -69 | | 74 | -70 | | 75 | -71 | | 76 | -72 | | 77 | -73 | | 78 | -74 | | 79 | -75 | | 80 | -76 | | 81 | -77 | | 82 | -78 | | 83 | -79 | | 84 | -80 | | 85 | -81 | | 86 | -82 | | 87 | -83 | | 88 | -84 | | 89 | -85 | | 90 | -86 | | 91 | -87 | | 92 | -88 | | 93 | -89 | | 94 | -90 | | 95 | -91 | | 96 | -92 | | 97 | -93 | | 98 | -94 | | 99 | -95 | | 100 | -96 |

2 bit

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Bit Depth - 6

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| x | y | |---|---| | 0 | 0 | | 1 | 1 | | 2 | 0 | | 3 | -1 | | 4 | 0 | | 5 | 1 | | 6 | 0 |

4 bit

Diagram showing a waveform with a highlighted region and a blue square with a stepped arrow, likely indicating a step change or transition.

16 bit

These analog-to-digital rounding errors are known as quantization errors. Each time a digital signal is processed, it is subject to rounding, which can compound errors over time. To avoid rounding errors, you should always use the highest bit depth your equipment supports. Most digital video devices use 16- or 20-bit audio, so you may be limited to one of these bit depths. However, professional audio recording devices usually support 24-bit audio, which is quickly becoming the industry standard.

Bit depth	When used
32-bit floating point	Internal resolution of the Final Cut Pro Audio Mixer. This allows audio calculations, such as fader levels and effects processing, to be performed at very high resolution with a minimum of error, which preserves the quality of your digital audio.
24-bit	This is becoming the audio industry standard for most audio recording formats. Most professional audio interfaces and computer audio editing systems can record with 24-bit precision.
16-bit	DAT recorders, Tascam DA-88 and ADAT multitracks, and audio CDs all use 16-bit samples. Many digital video formats, such as DV, use 16-bit audio. ^1
8-bit	In the past, 8-bit audio was often used for CD-ROM and web video. Today, 16-bit audio is usually preferred, but available bandwidth and compatibility with your target user's system are your chief considerations when outputting audio for multimedia use.

^1 Many consumer DV camcorders allow you to record 4 audio channels using 12-bit mode, but this is not recommended for professional work.

You use audio meters to keep levels consistent throughout your movie and to make sure audio signals never get so high that they distort.

This chapter covers the following:

• About Audio Meters (p. 51)
- Setting Proper Audio Levels (p. 58)
• Working With Multiple Audio Output Channels (p. 61)

Audio meters display the level of your audio signal in an objective way, helping you to set consistent levels throughout your program and ensuring that you have sufficient headroom and dynamic range.

Before you begin to adjust audio levels, take a closer look at an audio waveform to better understand how it corresponds to what you hear during playback.

Peaks Average loudness of track Waveform from an excerpt of electronic music

The most important distinction is the difference between an audio clip's peaks and its average loudness:

Peaks are short, loud bursts of sound. In spoken dialogue, letters like P, T, and K at the beginning of words can result in peaks if the person speaking is close to the microphone. In music, peaks occur at the very beginning of sounds from percussive instruments such as drums.
The average loudness of a clip generally determines its overall perceived volume, and this is probably somewhat lower than the level of the peaks. In the sample waveform, the level of average loudness appears as the densest, darkest part around the middle. Average loudness, rather than the brief peaks, tends to influence your decision about mixing a sound higher or lower.

There are several kinds of audio meters, but two of the most common are average and peak audio meters. Average meters react to sound somewhat slowly, and don't show very fast transient peaks in the signal. Peak meters react to sound more quickly, displaying even the quickest spikes in the signal.

Since digital audio signals are restricted to a range of sample values, or amplitudes (for example, from 0 to 65,535 when using 16-bit audio), it is important that your signal never goes above the highest sample value. If your signal peaks, there are no higher sample values to assign these peaks, so all the peaks are clipped, which means that they are set to the same maximum sample value. A gently curving waveform becomes flattened, causing unacceptable distortion. Because digital peaks must be avoided, Final Cut Pro uses peak audio meters so you can always see the highest sample values of your audio signal.

The way you set your levels with a digital meter is different from the way you'd set levels on an analog meter. Compare a traditional analog audio meter with one of the digital audio meters in Final Cut Pro:

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Analog Versus Digital Meters - 1

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| Measurement Type | Value | | ---------------- | ----- | | Generic VU meter | +7 | | Generic VU meter | +4 | | Generic VU meter | +2 | | Generic VU meter | 0 | | Generic VU meter | -2 | | Generic VU meter | -4 | | Generic VU meter | -7 | | Generic VU meter | -10 | | Generic VU meter | -12 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | 0 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -6 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -12 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -18 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -24 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -36 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -48 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -66 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -∞ |

A digital meter displays the sample values of a digital audio signal. The scale on the meter is known as digital full scale, or dBFS. On this scale, 0 dBFS represents the highest possible sample value. Any samples above 0 dBFS are clipped, distorting the original shape of the audio waveform. Once a signal is clipped, the original shape of the waveform cannot be recovered.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Analog Versus Digital Meters - 2

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| Time | Amplitude (dBFS) | |------|------------------| | 0 | 0 |

Original

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| Time (dBFS) | Amplitude | |-------------|---------| | 0 | 0 | | 1 | 0.2 | | 2 | -0.1 | | 3 | 0.3 | | 4 | -0.2 | | 5 | 0.4 | | 6 | -0.3 | | 7 | 0.5 | | 8 | -0.4 | | 9 | 0.6 | | 10 | -0.5 | | 11 | 0.7 | | 12 | -0.6 | | 13 | 0.8 | | 14 | -0.7 | | 15 | 0.9 | | 16 | -0.8 | | 17 | 1.0 | | 18 | -0.9 | | 19 | 1.1 | | 20 | -1.0 | | 21 | 1.2 | | 22 | -1.1 | | 23 | 1.3 | | 24 | -1.2 | | 25 | 1.4 | | 26 | -1.3 | | 27 | 1.5 | | 28 | -1.4 | | 29 | 1.6 | | 30 | -1.5 | | 31 | 1.7 | | 32 | -1.6 | | 33 | 1.8 | | 34 | -1.7 | | 35 | 1.9 | | 36 | -1.8 | | 37 | 2.0 | | 38 | -1.9 | | 39 | 2.1 | | 40 | -2.0 | | 41 | 2.2 | | 42 | -2.1 | | 43 | 2.3 | | 44 | -2.2 | | 45 | 2.4 | | 46 | -2.3 | | 47 | 2.5 | | 48 | -2.4 | | 49 | 2.6 | | 50 | -2.5 | | 51 | 2.7 | | 52 | -2.6 | | 53 | 2.8 | | 54 | -2.7 | | 55 | 2.9 | | 56 | -2.8 | | 57 | 3.0 | | 58 | -2.9 | | 59 | 3.1 | | 60 | -3.0 | | 61 | 3.2 | | 62 | -3.1 | | 63 | 3.3 | | 64 | -3.2 | | 65 | 3.4 | | 66 | -3.3 | | 67 | 3.5 | | 68 | -3.4 | | 69 | 3.6 | | 70 | -3.5 | | 71 | 3.7 | | 72 | -3.6 | | 73 | 3.8 | | 74 | -3.7 | | 75 | 3.9 | | 76 | -3.8 | | 77 | 4.0 | | 78 | -3.9 | | 79 | 4.1 | | 80 | -4.0 | | 81 | 4.2 | | 82 | -4.1 | | 83 | 4.3 | | 84 | -4.2 | | 85 | 4.4 | | 86 | -4.3 | | 87 | 4.5 | | 88 | -4.4 | | 89 | 4.6 | | 90 | -4.5 | | 91 | 4.7 | | 92 | -4.6 | | 93 | 4.8 | | 94 | -4.7 | | 95 | 4.9 | | 96 | -4.8 | | 97 | 5.0 | | 98 | -4.9 | | 99 | 5.1 | | Note: The data is in dBFS format for each of the plotted values at specific time points (e.g., '0' and '1'). The values are estimated based on the given code.

Too much gain causes clipping

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Analog Versus Digital Meters - 4

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| Time | Amplitude (dBFS) | |------|------------------| | 0 | 0 | | 1 | 0.5 | | 2 | 0.3 | | 3 | 0.7 | | 4 | 0.4 | | 5 | 0.6 | | 6 | 0.8 | | 7 | 0.5 | | 8 | 0.9 | | 9 | 0.6 | | 10 | 0.7 | | 11 | 0.8 | | 12 | 0.9 | | 13 | 0.7 | | 14 | 0.6 | | 15 | 0.8 | | 16 | 0.5 | | 17 | 0.7 | | 18 | 0.9 | | 19 | 0.6 | | 20 | 0.8 | | 21 | 0.7 | | 22 | 0.9 | | 23 | 0.5 | | 24 | 0.6 | | 25 | 0.8 | | 26 | 0.7 | | 27 | 0.9 | | 28 | 0.6 | | 29 | 0.8 | | 30 | 0.7 | | 31 | 0.9 | | 32 | 0.5 | | 33 | 0.6 | | 34 | 0.8 | | 35 | 0.7 | | 36 | 0.9 | | 37 | 0.6 | | 38 | 0.8 | | 39 | 0.7 | | 40 | 0.9 | | 41 | 0.5 | | 42 | 0.6 | | 43 | 0.8 | | 44 | 0.7 | | 45 | 0.9 | | 46 | 0.6 | | 47 | 0.8 | | 48 | 0.7 | | 49 | 0.9 | | 50 | 0.5 | | 51 | 0.6 | | 52 | 0.8 | | 53 | 0.7 | | 54 | 0.9 | | 55 | 0.6 | | 56 | 0.8 | | 57 | 0.7 | | 58 | 0.9 | | 59 | 0.5 | | 60 | 0.6 | | 61 | 0.8 | | 62 | 0.7 | | 63 | 0.9 | | 64 | 0.6 | | 65 | 0.8 | | 66 | 0.7 | | 67 | 0.9 | | 68 | 0.5 | | 69 | 0.6 | | 70 | 0.8 | | 71 | 0.7 | | 72 | 0.9 | | 73 | 0.6 | | 74 | 0.8 | | 75 | 0.7 | | 76 | 0.9 | | 77 | 0.5 | | 78 | 0.6 | | 79 | 0.8 | | 80 | 0.7 | | 81 | 0.9 | | 82 | 0.6 | | 83 | 0.8 | | 84 | 0.7 | | 85 | 0.9 | | 86 | 0.5 | | 87 | 0.6 | | 88 | 0.8 | | 89 | 0.7 | | 90 | 0.9 | | 91 | 0.6 | | 92 | 0.8 | | 93 | 0.7 | | 94 | 0.9 | | 95 | 0.5 | | 96 | 0.6 | | 97 | 0.8 | | 98 | 0.7 | | 99 | 0.9 | | Note: The actual values may vary due to the random nature of the data generation process shown in the code.

Clipping remains after gain is reduced

Even though audio is exclusively digital in Final Cut Pro, it is likely that your audio will exist in an analog context at some point. Even an entirely digital workflow begins with microphones and ends with speakers, which are both analog devices.

When you look at the meters in Final Cut Pro, you need to consider how the signal level will correspond to an analog meter. Specifically, you need to choose a point on the digital meter that corresponds to 0 dB on an analog meter.

This point is where your average signal level should be, providing headroom for occasional peaks. Headroom is particularly important in digital audio because any audio that goes beyond 0 dBFS on the digital meter instantly clips and sounds distorted.

The level you choose for your average audio level affects the potential dynamic range of your mix. The lower your average signal is allowed to be, the greater the difference between the average and loudest sounds, providing a larger dynamic range.

There are several common digital levels used to correspond to 0 dB on an analog meter:

-12 dBFS: This level is often used for 16-bit audio such as DV audio, and for projects with compressed dynamic ranges, such as for television or radio.
-18 or -20 dBFS: This is more common on projects with higher dynamic range, such as professional postproduction workflows using 20- or 24-bit audio.

On an analog meter, 0 dB is the optimal recording or output level of a device. If the voltage is much higher, it may distort. If it is much lower, it may be lost in the noise inherent in the device. On a digital meter, 0 dBFS refers to the highest audio level allowed before clipping.

Final Cut Pro uses peak audio meters, which respond very quickly to the audio signal, alerting you to potential peaks over 0 dBFS. The meters in Final Cut Pro display a peak level indicator, which is a yellow line that shows the most recent peak level for 3 seconds (assuming a higher peak hasn't been reached).

12 6 0 -6 -12 -18 -24 -30 -42 -60 -96 Yellow peak level indicator 0

The peak level indicator helps you get a sense of the dynamic range of your mix because you can compare the current levels to the most recent peak. For more information about peak meters, see "Average Versus Peak Audio Meters" on page 52.

There are several audio meters in Final Cut Pro:

Input audio meters in the Clip Settings tab of the Log and Capture window (see Volume I, Chapter 17, "Overview of Logging and Capturing.")
Track meters in the Audio Mixer (see "Track Strips Area" on page 70.)
Master meters in the Audio Mixer (see "Master Area" on page 73.)
Floating audio meter window (see "Floating Audio Meters" on page 57.)

The Master meter and the floating audio meters have a clip indicator which lights up when the output signal reaches 0 dBFS. Once the clip indicator is lit, it stays on during playback to let you know that part of your signal clipped. The clip indicator also stays on after you stop playback, but it is turned off each time you start playback.

- Click the clip indicators on the Master meters or floating audio meter.

Red clip indicator 12 6 0 -6 -12 -18 -24 -30 -42 -60 -96 0

The floating audio meters display the output levels of the Viewer or Timeline with a simplified stereo display. If you've set up more than two audio outputs in the Audio Outputs tab of your Sequence Settings, the floating audio meters display the highest levels of any audio outputs in either the right or left channel. The highest level of any odd-numbered audio channel is displayed in the left meter, and the highest level of any even-numbered audio channel is displayed in the right meter.

Unlike the track and Master meters, the floating audio meters do not show levels above 0 dBFS.

0 dBFS Floating audio meter Levels above 0 dBFS Master meter 0

When you capture audio, clipping occurs if any part of the audio signal goes over 0 decibels (dBFS). Because 0 dBFS is the maximum digital level possible, all levels that would have been above 0 dBFS are set (clipped) at 0 dB. Because of the nature of digital audio recording, such clipped audio typically results in a crackly, brittle-sounding clip that is unsuitable for use in most projects. All occurrences of clipped audio appear as 0 dBFS peaks. Excessive peaks indicate that your audio was recorded at unsuitable levels.

If your program has peaks in the audio, you can either recapture the audio at a better level, or edit the audio appropriately to avoid them. Use the Mark Audio Peaks command (in the Tools menu) to automatically identify audio peaks in clips or sequences. It's then up to you to decide what to do—not use those sections of audio or rerecord them. For more information on this command, see Volume IV, Chapter 9, "Diagnostic Tools for Clips."

When you work with audio, you need to make sure you set proper levels during capture, mixing, and output.

When you capture digital audio, you usually cannot make level adjustments because an exact copy of the digital information is transferred to your hard disk. However, if you are capturing analog audio using a third-party audio interface, make sure you set each input channel so the meters in the Clip Settings tab of the Log and Capture window match the audio meters on your video or audio device. For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 20, "Capturing Audio."

The dynamic range of your mix is dependent on the final viewing environment. For example, movie theaters have large, relatively expensive sound systems that can reproduce a large dynamic range. Television speakers are much smaller, and often the listening environment has more ambient noise, so very quiet sounds may not even be noticeable unless the overall signal is compressed and the level increased, which reduces the dynamic range.

For example, television stations normally accommodate only 6 dB between the average loudness and the peaks. Dolby Digital feature film soundtracks, on the other hand, can accommodate up to 20 dB between average and peak levels. This is why loud sounds in a movie theater sound so loud: they are much louder than the average level.

Venue	Acceptable amount of dynamic range
Theatrical Dolby Digital	20 dB
Average videotape	12 dB
Television broadcast	6 dB

When you mix your final audio, you choose a consistent reference for the average level. When you choose the average reference level, you are actually choosing how much additional headroom you have before your signal distorts. The higher you set the average level, the less safety margin you have for peaks in the signal. This means that the loudest sounds in your mix cannot be much louder than the average levels, and so the mix is less dynamic.

If you set the reference level of the Final Cut Pro floating audio meter to -20 dBFS, you have nearly 20 dB of headroom, since 0 dBFS is the digital limit for the loudest sound. If you set the reference level in your sequence to -12 dBFS instead, you have less headroom. Even though the average level of your audio is higher, there won't be as much dynamic range.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - What Reference Level Should You Use for Mixing? - 1

bar

| Category | Value | |---|---| | Top Bar | 0 | | Bottom Bar | -∞ |

Available headroom with a reference level of -12 dBFS

How much dynamic range you allow in your audio mix depends on its ultimate destination. If you're editing a program for TV broadcast, a reference level of -12 dBFS is fine, since you are only allowed 6 dB of dynamic range anyway. But if you're working on a production to be shown in movie theaters, consider using a reference level closer to -18 or even -20 dBFS (both of these are frequently used standards).

Remember that the ultimate goal is to ensure that audio doesn't peak over 0 dBFS in your mix (as displayed in the Final Cut Pro audio meters) and won't peak over +3 dB or so on an analog meter.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - What Reference Level Should You Use for Mixing? - 2

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| Measurement Type | Value | | ---------------- | ----- | | Generic VU meter | +7 | | Generic VU meter | +4 | | Generic VU meter | +2 | | Generic VU meter | 0 | | Generic VU meter | -2 | | Generic VU meter | -4 | | Generic VU meter | -7 | | Generic VU meter | -10 | | Generic VU meter | -20 | | Generic VU meter | -30 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | 0 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -6 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -12 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -18 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -24 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -36 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -48 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -66 | | Final Cut Pro audio meters | -∞ |

When you output your program to a tape for duplication or delivery to a broadcast facility, you'll typically include a 1 kHz reference tone at the beginning of the tape. The level of this tone is supposed to indicate what the average level of your audio mix is. For this tone to be meaningful, you must mix your audio so that the average level of your mix matches the level of the tone. Here's why:

If you are duplicating the tape: Most tape duplication facilities use the reference tone at the beginning of the tape to set the audio recording levels when copying your master tape. If your average mix levels are too quiet or too loud relative to this tone, the copies will either be too low or distorted, respectively.
If you're delivering your program for broadcast: Most broadcast facilities have very stringent requirements about what they'll air. If your program's audio levels are too hot (loud) or too soft, you might run into trouble with the broadcast engineer. In the worst cases, they'll return your tape to you as unsuitable for broadcast, and require you to send them a new one with proper levels.

If you're outputting to a digital format, make sure you note what level your 1 kHz tone is set to on the label of your tape. If you're outputting to an analog format, like Betacam SP, you'll always set your 1 kHz tone to 0 dB.

If you're creating a digital master tape, it's also a good idea to make a note of the level (in dB) of the highest audio peak in your program. You do this so that if your reference level isn't set to what the recipient expects, they'll know how much dynamic range is in your program and won't turn the levels up too high.

For example, if you've decided to output your project with a -18 dB reference tone, and the highest peak in your program is at -7 dB, you'd write both these values on the label of your master tape.

Each Final Cut Pro sequence can have up to 99 audio tracks, each of which can be routed to any physical audio output channel on your audio interface. You can also assign more than one track to the same physical output. In this case, the signals from each track are added together, increasing the overall level of that output channel.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Working With Multiple Audio Output Channels - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["Master sequence"] --> B["Timeline"]
    B --> C["Debra sidewalking"]
    C --> D["Side master shot jacob MS"]
    D --> E["Debra sidewalking"]
    E --> F["Music 1"]
    F --> G["Music 2"]
    G --> H["Audio interface"]
    H --> I["Left"]
    H --> J["Speakers"]
    I --> K["Right"]

Final Cut Pro can route sequence audio tracks to any supported Mac OS X Core Audio interface. An audio output preset defines the number of hardware output channels you want to use with your sequence. Up to 24 audio output channels can be assigned, and each pair of outputs can be grouped together as a stereo pair, or as two independent, mono channels.

Sequence Settings Name: Master sequence General Video Processing Timeline Options Render Control Audio Outputs Load Audio Output Preset... Outputs 8 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Downmix (dB): -3 -3 0 0 0 Grouping: Stereo Dual Mono Stereo Dual Mono Stereo Dual Mono Stereo Dual Mono Load Sequence Preset... Cancel OK

When a sequence is created, it uses a default audio output preset defined in the User Preferences Audio Outputs tab. You can choose a different audio output preset for a sequence at any time in the Audio Outputs tab of the Sequence Settings window.

If your audio interface does not support the number of output channels in your audio output preset, Final Cut Pro warns that you will not hear audio tracks assigned to unavailable hardware outputs, but you are still allowed to use this preset. For example, if you are using the stereo (2-channel) built-in audio output on your computer, but you have selected a 4-channel audio output preset for your sequence, Final Cut Pro warns you that any tracks assigned to outputs 3 or 4 will not be heard. This is helpful when trading projects between systems with different audio interface configurations.

By default, Final Cut Pro uses a stereo audio output preset that corresponds to the built-in stereo output of your computer as well as most DV camcorders. If you add an audio interface with more than two channels for mixing and outputting audio in Final Cut Pro, you can modify a sequence's existing audio output preset or create a new one and assign it to your sequence. If you use this preset regularly, you can make it the default audio output preset for all new sequences by choosing it in the Audio Outputs tab of the User Preferences window.

1 Select a sequence in the Browser or Timeline.
2 Choose Sequence > Settings (or press Command-0), then click the Audio Outputs tab.
3 Choose an Audio Output preset from the Load Audio Output Preset pop-up menu, then click OK.

1 Select a sequence in the Browser or Timeline.
2 Choose Sequence > Settings (or press Command-0), then click the Audio Outputs tab.
3 Choose the number of audio channels you want to access on your audio interface.
Note: Final Cut Pro supports up to 24 audio output channels.
4 For each pair of audio channels, choose Stereo to allow for panning clip items between the pair of channels, or choose Dual Mono so that each channel can be used as a discrete output.
5 Choose a downmix level for each pair of outputs.
For more information about downmix levels, see "Downmixing Multiple Audio Channels to a Stereo Mix" on page 64.
6 Click OK.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > User Preferences, then click the Audio Outputs tab.
2 Choose a preset from the audio output Presets list, then click Edit or Duplicate.
3 In the Audio Outputs Preset Editor, enter a name and description for the preset.
4 Choose the number of audio channels you want to access on your audio interface.
5 For each pair of audio channels, choose Stereo to allow for panning clips between the pair of channels, or choose Dual Mono so that each channel can be used as a discrete output.
6 Choose a downmix level for each pair of outputs.

For more information about downmix levels, see "Downmixing Multiple Audio Channels to a Stereo Mix," below.

7 Click OK, then click OK again.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > User Preferences, then click the Audio Outputs tab.
2 Select an Audio Output preset from the Presets list by clicking in the column next to the preset's name.
3 Click OK.

The selected audio output preset is automatically assigned to all new sequences you create.

Even when you use multiple audio channels during editing and mixing, you often need to create a stereo mix when outputting or distributing your movie. Downmixing combines all audio output channels into a single stereo output. If you are working with multiple output channels and you need to output or monitor a stereo mix, you can select the Downmix option in the Audio Mixer.

With Downmix selected, all audio outputs in your sequence are output as stereo whenever they're played back, output to tape, or written to a movie file.

Audio Mixer View: 1 2 3 4 Source: Auto Tracks A1 A2 A3 A4 A5 A6 A7 A8 Master Downmix button enabled All output channels are downmixed to a single stereo pair. 10 10 -4.5 -4.5 5 5 -22.8 -22.8 0

You can turn Downmix off at any time and your audio will be output to multiple channels again. This is much more convenient than reassigning all of your tracks to a single stereo channel and then reassigning your tracks to multiple outputs again.

Audio Mixer View: 1 2 3 4 Source: Auto Tracks A1 A2 A3 A4 A5 A6 A7 A8 Master Downmix button disabled All channels are output independently.

When a sequence is downmixed, odd-numbered audio outputs are sent to the left channel, and even-numbered audio outputs are sent to the right channel. Since downmixing combines multiple output channels, the level of the stereo output may be too high. To counteract these high levels, each audio output channel has its level reduced by the dB specified in its Downmix pop-up menu in the Audio Outputs tab for the current sequence's settings (in the Sequence Settings window).

Downmix (dB): 1 2 -3 -3

Typically, the more channels you are downmixing, the more reduction is necessary for each channel to make sure the downmixed stereo signal doesn't distort.

Final Cut Pro handles stereo and mono audio slightly differently. If you have a clip with stereo audio, the level and pan controls for both channels are linked. You cannot independently adjust the left or right levels, and the pan control moves both channels at the same time. Pan and level settings for mono audio clips can be set independently.

Initially, you choose whether clip items are mono or stereo during capture, but you can change this when you edit in the Timeline. Furthermore, changing a track's output channel to stereo or mono affects how clips are treated during mixing.

When you capture a pair of audio channels to a media file, you tell Final Cut Pro how you intend to work with that audio:

Dual mono: Choose this option when you want separate level and pan control over each channel.
Stereo: Choose this option when you want to capture and work with left and right channels of audio at the same time, such as with stereo music, sound effects, or sound recorded with a built-in stereo camcorder microphone.

For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 20, "Capturing Audio."

While you edit in the Timeline, you can link two audio clip items together into a stereo pair so that you can control both clips' levels or pan settings at the same time. You can also unlink stereo clip items so they are two independent, mono clip items. For more details about linking and unlinking stereo audio items, see Volume II, Chapter 17, "Audio Editing Basics."

When you mix your sequence audio, you can assign each track to either a single (mono) output channel or a pair of output channels (stereo). If a track is assigned to a mono output channel, the track's panning slider in the Audio Mixer is disabled, regardless of whether the clip item in the track is mono or part of a linked stereo pair. Pan settings have no effect when you output audio to a mono output. However, if you assign two tracks to a pair of stereo output channels, and you have two clip items linked as a stereo pair placed on these two tracks, you can control the stereo pan on both clips with the panning sliders in the Audio Mixer.

For more information about assigning tracks to dual mono or stereo output channels, see "About Audio Output Presets" on page 61.

You can use the Audio Mixer to monitor audio levels for all of your sequence clips, as well as adjust audio levels and pan settings in real time.

This chapter covers the following:

• About the Audio Mixer (p. 67)
• Controls in the Audio Mixer (p. 68)
• Using Audio Mixer Views (p. 77)

The Audio Mixer provides faders, panning sliders, and solo and mute controls for each track in your sequence. There are also Master meters for each audio output channel in your sequence (determined by the audio output preset of the sequence).

As you make level and pan adjustments in real time, you can record these adjustments as keyframes, allowing you to automate your mix when you play the sequence back. You can also use a hardware control surface to control and automate multiple faders at once. For more information, see "Using a Control Surface With the Audio Mixer" on page 98.

After you record level and pan keyframes, you can fine-tune them in the Timeline or the Viewer using the Pen tool to adjust the clip overlays. For more information, see "Changing Audio Levels in the Viewer" on page 114, "Adjusting Audio Levels in the Timeline" on page 109 and "Panning Audio in the Timeline" on page 117.

The controls in the Audio Mixer are comparable to those of an automated hardware mixing console. Each audio track in the currently selected sequence (or audio track in the Viewer) is represented by a track strip, complete with solo and mute buttons, a stereo panning slider, a level fader, and a peak meter.

The Audio Mixer tab appears in the Tool Bench window and is divided into three areas:

Track Visibility area
Track Strips area
Master area

Additional Audio Mixer controls appear above these three main areas:

• Record Audio Keyframes button
- View buttons
- Source pop-up menu

Record Audio Keyframes button View buttons Source: Auto Source pop-up menu Audio Mixer View: 1 2 3 4 Tracks A1 A2 A3 A4 0 0 0 0 Track Visibility area Track Strips area Master area

To open the Audio Mixer, do one of the following:

Choose Tools > Audio Mixer.
Press Option-6.

In this area, you can choose which track faders are shown in the Audio Mixer.

- Click the disclosure triangle in the upper-left corner of the Audio Mixer.

Audio Mixer View: 1 2 Tracks A1 A2 A3 A4 A5 A6 You can show and hide the Track Visibility area by clicking the disclosure triangle.

The Track Visibility area includes the following controls:

Track Visibility control: Click the Track Visibility control for a track to toggle the visibility of that track's track strip in the Audio Mixer. This doesn't enable or disable the corresponding audio track in your edited sequence, nor does it mute the audio played back from that track.
Track name: Corresponds to the audio track name listed in the currently selected sequence in the Timeline. This name also appears at the top of the track strip for each track.
Output Channel shortcut menu: Control-click a track name in the Track Visibility area to assign that audio track to one of the available audio interface output channels. These audio output channels correspond to the external audio interface selected in the A/V Devices tab of the Audio/Video Settings window.

Show All Outputs ✓ 1 & 2 3 & 4 5 & 6 Output Channel shortcut menu

For more information on setting up the audio output channels of a sequence, see "Working With Multiple Audio Output Channels" on page 61.

In a typical audio mixer, each channel has a corresponding channel strip with level and pan controls. In the Final Cut Pro Audio Mixer, each track in your sequence has a corresponding track strip with mute, solo, pan, and audio level controls. If a track's Track Visibility control is turned off in the Track Visibility area, its track strip does not appear here. If an audio track is disabled in the Timeline, that track's track strip controls are dimmed.

Mute button Panning slider Fader Track name Solo button Track level meter -1 0 -1 1 -1 1 0 -3.7 -12 -12 0 0

The Track Strips area includes the following controls:

Track name: Corresponds to the audio track in the current sequence (or in the Viewer).
Mute button: Click to turn off audio playback for that track. The same mute control is available in the Timeline. Use the mute button to quickly mute or unmute a track while your sequence plays. For example, if you want to briefly compare what your audio mix sounds like with or without the track, you can use the mute button while the sequence plays.

Muting a track does not delete pan or audio level keyframes, nor does it prevent fader automation. Muting tracks only affects playback; muted tracks are still output during Print to Video and Edit to Tape operations, or during export to audio or movie files.

Note: To prevent a track from being printed or edited to tape, or output to exported video and audio files, you need to disable the track in the Timeline. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 8, "Working With Tracks in the Timeline."

- Solo button: Click to mute all tracks that don't have solo enabled. Use the solo button to listen to a track isolated from the others. For example, if you click the solo button on track A1, all other audio tracks are muted. If you enable the solo button on A1 and A2, both A1 and A2 play back, while all other tracks are muted.

Tip: Option-clicking a track's solo button will solo all of the tracks. Option-clicking a solo button that is already highlighted will turn off all of the tracks' solo buttons.

Soloing tracks only affects playback; soloed tracks are still output during Print to Video and Edit to Tape operations, or during export to audio or movie files.

- Panning slider: Use to change a clip's stereo pan. The panning slider in the Audio Mixer works the same way as the Pan sliders in the Viewer's audio tabs. Changes made to the panning slider can be recorded as keyframes in the clip currently beneath the playhead. Upon playback, the panning slider is automated by the keyframes, and animates to display the changing pan values in your program. When you adjust the pan of a stereo audio clip from the Audio Mixer, the panning sliders of both tracks on which the stereo pair clip appears are locked together. Any adjustments made to one panning slider affect the other panning slider inversely. Below the panning slider is a field that displays the exact pan value assigned to the audio track. To adjust the panning slider numerically, enter a value directly into this field.

Note: If a clip is on a track that is assigned to a mono (discrete) output, the panning slider for that track is disabled.

- Fader: Faders are vertical sliders used to adjust the audio levels of clips at the position of the playhead. Using the fader, you can adjust the audio level of a clip from +12 dB to -∞ dB (silence).

If the Record Audio Keyframes button is selected, changes made to a fader are recorded as keyframes in the current clip or clips beneath the playhead. Upon playback, faders are automated by keyframes, and animate to display the changing levels.

Below each fader is a field that displays the exact audio level setting of the fader. To adjust the fader numerically, enter a value directly into this field.

Tip: The height of the Tool Bench window affects the displayed resolution of the faders in the Audio Mixer. For example, if you compare the length of faders in taller and shorter Tool Bench windows, an identical movement results in a greater level change with the shorter fader, and a smaller level change with the longer fader. This means that you can achieve more subtle control of a clip's levels, if necessary, by making the Tool Bench window taller.

- Track level meter: Each track in the Audio Mixer tab corresponds to a track in your sequence (or in the Viewer) and has an individual meter with a scale from +12 dBFS to -∞ dBFS (silence). A track level meter shows the levels of the current audio clip item in a track. Use these meters to make sure the average level of each clip is consistent with similar audio material and that peaks are not above 0 dBFS.

Each fader has tic marks that indicate the current strength of the signal in decibels (dBFS).

Note: Although you want to avoid levels above 0 dBFS, the track level meters can display these levels. This is because Final Cut Pro mixes audio internally at 32-bit floating-point resolution, which is a much higher resolution than the 16- or 24-bit audio you are using in your project. The internal mixing resolution allows Final Cut Pro to mix with an enormous amount of additional headroom. This lets you mix many audio channels together without clipping internally. As a result,

Final Cut Pro can show you how far beyond 0 dBFS your current audio mix will clip in 16- or 24-bit. However, you still need to make sure your signal does not go above 0 dBFS on your Master audio meters.

Audio Mixer View: 1 2 3 4 Source: Auto A1 A2 A3 A4 -1 1 0 0 Master Acceptable range 6 6 -inf -inf 12 0.0 6 6 0 -6 0 -12 0 -18 0 -24 0 -30 0 -36 0 -42 0 -48 0 -54 0 -60 0 -66 0 -72 0 -78 0 -84 0 -90 0 -96 0 0 Clipping range Acceptable range

Using the master fader controls, you can mute, downmix, and adjust the audio levels of all audio tracks at once. The controls in the Master area cannot be automated, but the current state of all controls in the Master area is stored in each clip in your project.

- Click the disclosure triangle in the upper-right corner of the Audio Mixer tab.

Master mute button Downmix control Master fader Clipping indicators Master audio meters 0

The Master area includes the following controls:

Master mute button: Click this button to mute the entire sequence output. Like the individual track mute buttons, the Master mute button only affects playback, not output during Print to Video and Edit to Tape operations, or during export to audio or movie files.
Downmix control: When this control is selected, all output channels are mixed down to a single stereo pair of outputs. This is useful if you need to monitor, print to tape, or export files of your mix in stereo, even though your mix is set up for multichannel output. With Downmix selected, all audio outputs in your sequence are output as stereo during playback, output to tape, or export to audio or movie files. For more information about downmixing, see "Downmixing Multiple Audio Channels to a Stereo Mix" on page 64.
Master fader: The Master fader controls the level of your entire mix after the individual track faders are applied. It has no effect on the volume level overlays of clips in your sequence. Unlike individual track faders, the Master fader cannot be automated.
The Master fader affects the main output levels during playback, output to tape, or export to a movie file.

- Master audio meters: There is a Master audio meter for each output channel specified in the current sequence's Audio Outputs tab (in the Sequence Settings window). For example, if your sequence has an audio preset that has six output channels, there are six Master audio meters in the Audio Mixer. Each meter has a scale from +12 dBFS to -∞ dBFS (silence). Since the Master audio meters show the final level that will be output to your audio interface, you should make sure that no level goes above 0 dBFS. Each Master audio meter is fed by all the tracks in the current sequence that are assigned to a particular output channel. For example, if tracks 1, 2, 5, 7, and 9 are all assigned to audio output channel 1, Master audio meter 1 displays the combination of all those tracks' audio levels mixed together.

Note: Even though 0 dBFS is the highest audio level that you can output from Final Cut Pro, an additional +12 dB appears at the top of the scale of the Master audio meters. This “clipping area” allows you to see how far you’re clipping over 0 dBFS, so you know how much you need to lower the level of your mix to avoid distortion.

Tip: You can also use the track meters and Master audio meters for individual clips in the Viewer. Each clip retains both individual track levels and master levels. Master levels for a clip can only be adjusted in the Audio Mixer, not in the Viewer itself.

- Clipping indicators: At the top of each meter is a clipping indicator that lights up when that output channel reaches 0 dBFS. Once the clipping indicator lights up, it remains lit until playback is stopped and restarted. Since audio clipping usually causes noticeable digital audio distortion, this indicator lets you know which audio output clipped even after you have stopped playback. This way, you can go back to the clips on that track to reduce their levels.

Note: Unlike hardware audio meters that light up only when an audio signal is playing, the Final Cut Pro audio meters display and hold the current level whenever the playhead in the Viewer, Timeline, or Canvas appears over an audio clip, whether playing or paused.

The View buttons allow you to organize the Audio Mixer into different subsets (or "banks") of visible track strips. For example, you might choose to create two separate views to mix your sequence—one for viewing only music tracks and another for viewing dialogue tracks. This is especially useful when mixing a sequence that has more audio tracks than will fit in the Audio Mixer tab at once. Each sequence in a project stores four views.

Audio Mixer View: 1 2 3 4 Tracks A1 A2 A3

For more information on how to use the View buttons, see the next section, "Using Audio Mixer Views."

When Record Audio Keyframes is enabled, new keyframes are created whenever an audio control is moved. Audio controls that can be used to create keyframes during playback include the faders and panning sliders in the Audio Mixer, the Level and Pan sliders in the audio tabs of the Viewer, or the faders and controls on a connected audio control surface.

Source: Auto Master

The Record Audio Keyframes option must be selected to record real-time level and panning automation during playback. If not, changes made to level and panning sliders only affect the overall levels of clips that have no keyframes, or modify whatever keyframes already exist without creating new ones.

To add keyframes whenever you move an audio fader or panning slider, do one of the following:

Select the Record Audio Keyframes button in the button bar at the top of the Audio Mixer (in the Tool Bench window).
Select the Record Audio Keyframes checkbox in the Editing tab of the User Preferences window.
■ Press Shift-Command-K.

The Record Audio Keyframes button and the checkbox in User Preferences are the same control; they are just located in two different places for convenience.

Important: If the Record Audio Keyframes button is missing from the Audio Mixer button bar, you can drag it to the button bar from the Button List. For more information about using the Button List, see Volume I, Chapter 10, "Customizing the Interface."

You use this Pop-up menu to choose whether Canvas or Viewer audio levels are controlled by the Audio Mixer. If you want the Audio Mixer to automatically switch between the Canvas and Viewer depending on which window is active, choose Auto.

Auto Canvas Viewer

When you work on sequences with many audio tracks, some of the track strips in the Audio Mixer may appear offscreen. To avoid having to constantly scroll back and forth, you can hide the track strips of tracks you don't immediately need to work with.

You can also create different views to organize groups of tracks in your sequence according to their content. Using the Audio Mixer View buttons, you can save four different sets of hidden and displayed track strips for each sequence in your project.

When you first open the Audio Mixer, the default view is View 1, showing all audio tracks in your sequence. Any tracks you show or hide using the Track Visibility controls while the View 1 button is selected are remembered as View 1.

View 1 showing only the first four audio track strips Audio Mixer View: 1 2 3 4 Source: Auto Tracks A1 A2 A3 A4 0 0 -1 1 0 0 -31.6 -31.6 Master 12- 6- 0- -6- -12- -18- -24- -30- -42- -60- -96- 0

If you click the View 2 button and then show or hide audio track strips, that altered layout is remembered as View 2.

View 2 showing only the last three audio track strips Audio Mixer View: 1 2 3 4 Source: Auto Tracks A6 A7 A8 A1 A2 A3 A4 A5 A6 A7 A8 1 -1 1 -14.1 -6.7 -6.7 Master 12- 6- 0- -6- -12- -18- -24- -30- -42- -60- -96- 0

Clicking the View 1 button restores the state of the Audio Mixer to View 1, the way it was before you clicked the View 2 button.

Organizing track strips this way is especially helpful if you organize your audio tracks according to their content. For example, you could set up View 1 to display only the track strips for audio tracks in your program containing dialogue clips. View 2 could then show only the track strips for audio tracks containing music clips, View 3 could show track strips for tracks containing sound effects, and View 4 could show track strips for tracks containing ambience clips. This way, you can quickly jump back and forth between related groups of track strips as you refine your audio mix.

Note: New audio tracks added to your sequence after you've customized your views are displayed by default in all four views. To hide them, you must go to each view and hide new tracks with the corresponding visibility controls.

1 If necessary, click the disclosure triangle in the upper-left corner of the Audio Mixer to display the Track Visibility area.
2 Click the Track Visibility control to the left of the track label for the track strip you want to show or hide.

Audio Mixer View: 1 2 Tracks A1 A2 A3 A4 A5 A6 A7 A8 These tracks are hidden. A1 0

1 Click the View button you want to customize.
2 Click the Track Visibility controls for the track strips you want to show or hide.
The settings are remembered whenever you switch back to that view.

■ Control-click a Track Visibility control, then choose Show All from the shortcut menu.

You can use the faders and sliders in the Audio Mixer to quickly set audio levels and pan for clips, or record keyframes to create mixer automation over time.

This chapter covers the following:

Making Basic Audio Adjustments With the Audio Mixer (p. 79)
Making Stereo Pan Adjustments With the Audio Mixer (p. 87)
About Mixer Automation and Keyframe Recording (p. 89)
• Using a Control Surface With the Audio Mixer (p. 98)

In most cases, when editors first start working on a movie, their primary focus is on the visuals and the content of the accompanying audio. At this early stage, adjustments are limited to the overall levels of the audio, and not the details of the final mix. The Audio Mixer's mute and solo buttons, along with the level faders and panning sliders, let you quickly manage the audio tracks and clips in your program so that you can make early decisions about how your audio should fit together while you edit.

Note: Mute and solo controls are used only for monitoring your audio during playback. They are ignored during Print to Video or Edit to Tape operations, or during export as a movie or audio file.

There are several instances when the controls of a given track's track strip aren't available.

If there is no clip on that track at the position of the playhead: The fader on that track's track strip is set to indicate that there is complete silence at the gap in the track. It is not possible to adjust a given track's fader if there is no clip at the current position of the playhead.
If the clip at the position of the playhead is not enabled: The result is the same as if there were no clip on the track. Because the clip is disabled in the track, the track strip cannot control it. You can enable or disable a clip by choosing Modify > Clip Enable.
If that track is locked in the Timeline: The track strip for that track is unavailable, preventing you from making changes to that track. The fader and panning slider continue to animate, however, as audio from that track is still being output.
If the entire track is disabled in the Timeline: The track strip for that track is dimmed, preventing you from making changes to the track. Fader and pan automation set for clips in that track remain untouched, however, and are preserved when you reenable that track.

Sometimes, while monitoring your sequence audio, you may want to disable the playback of certain audio tracks. For example, if you're editing a section of dialogue and you want to hear it without the music on another track, you can mute the tracks with the music clip without stopping playback.

Muting a track does not remove audio or pan keyframes; it simply turns off the audio output of that track until you turn it back on. Muting a track also doesn't delete audio render files associated with clips on that track. A track's mute status overrides its solo status, so even if a track is soloed, you won't hear it if it is muted.

Note: Mute buttons cannot be automated.

To mute one or more tracks, do one of the following:

- In the Audio Mixer, click the mute button in the track strip for the track you want to silence.

Mute button in the Audio Mixer

In the Timeline, click the Audio Controls button to display the mute and solo buttons for each track, then click the mute button on the audio track you want to silence.

Master sequence RT 01:00:00:00 v1 v1 Mute button in the Timeline a1 A1 a2 A2 A3 A4 Audio Controls button

To disable mute on all tracks at once:

- Control-click the mute button of any track's track strip in the Audio Mixer, then choose Reset All Mutes from the shortcut menu.

To mute the master output:

In the Audio Mixer, click the Master mute button.

To mute all tracks at once:

- Option-click any dimmed mute button.

If your sequence contains several audio tracks and you want to listen to a track in isolation, you can temporarily solo only that track. When you enable a track's solo button, all other tracks are automatically muted. However, if other tracks' solo buttons are enabled, these tracks still remain soloed. If you enable the solo button on multiple tracks, all tracks with solo enabled play back, while all other audio tracks in your sequence are muted.

Note: Solo buttons cannot be automated.

In the Audio Mixer, click the solo button in the track strip for the track you want to solo. All non-soloed tracks are silenced.

Solo button in the Audio Mixer

In the Timeline, click the Audio Controls button to display the mute and solo buttons for each track, then click the solo button on the audio track you want to solo. All non-soloed tracks are silenced.

Master sequence RT 01:00:00:00 Solo button in the Timeline Audio controls button

- Control-click on the solo button of any track's track strip in the Audio Mixer, then choose Reset All Solos from the shortcut menu.

Final Cut Pro stores audio level information in clips, not in tracks. When you adjust faders in the Audio Mixer, you affect only the clips currently beneath the playhead. This is the same as adjusting a clip's audio level directly in the Timeline or Viewer.

Changes made to faders in the Audio Mixer ... ...affect only the audio clip items below the playhead in the Timeline.

If an audio track at the position of the playhead does not contain a clip, the fader corresponding to that track is automatically set to - dB (total silence), and you are unable to move the fader slider.

You can change the audio levels of clips in the Timeline while the sequence is playing or while it is paused. If the Record Audio Keyframes button is unselected, adjusting a fader level does not add keyframes, but instead the audio level is adjusted for the clip's entire duration. If the clip already has keyframes, the level is adjusted between the previous and subsequent keyframes.

You can also select the Record Audio Keyframes checkbox in the Editing tab of the User Preferences window.

Track faders in the Audio Mixer control each audio clip independently unless two clips are a stereo pair:

Dual mono clips: Track faders can be adjusted independently. For example, if you've captured a clip that has two actors whose dialogue was recorded independently, one on the left channel and one on the right channel, you can control their levels separately.
Stereo pair clips: The faders of both audio tracks are locked together and move as one. This is useful for stereo music clips, to ensure that level changes are consistent in both the left and right audio channels.

1 Make sure the clip doesn't have any level keyframes already applied.
2 Make sure that the Record Audio Keyframes button in the button bar at the top of the Audio Mixer is not selected.
3 In the Timeline, position the playhead so that it's directly over the clip whose audio level you want to change.

Debra sidewalk Side master shot jacob MS Debra su jacob react Debra enters cafe W$ Master s Debra sidewalking Side master shot jacob MS Debra sidewalking jacob reaction to custom Debra enters cafe W$ Master shot Debra M Music 1 Music 1

4 In the Audio Mixer, drag the track's fader up or down to adjust the level.

While you move the fader, the audio level field indicates the numeric value of the current level. Once you release the fader, the audio clip's audio overlay in the Timeline changes to reflect the change you've made.

Adjust the fader for the clip. Audio level field

The audio overlay in the Timeline changes to reflect the change you've made.

To reset a fader to 0 dB, do one of the following:

■ Control-click the fader, then choose Reset from the Shortcut menu.
- Option-click anywhere in the fader.

To reset all faders in the Audio Mixer to 0 dB:

- Control-click an active track's fader, then choose Reset All from the shortcut menu.

Valid values range from +12 dB to -167 dB. Numbers lower than -167 dB are automatically changed to - dB, or total silence.

5 Press Return.

The fader moves to reflect the new value.

The Master fader raises or lowers the combined output level of all the tracks in your sequence at the same time. However, you should wait to use the Master fader until you have set individual track levels. Once the Master audio meters show acceptable levels throughout your mix, you can use the Master fader to increase or decrease the overall level while retaining the same relative mix. This can be helpful in the following cases:

Your audio mix has a good level for output to a particular video deck, but is too strong for another deck. In this case, you can easily bring down the overall level with the Master fader.
If you are using a lot of audio tracks, the overall mix may be too loud even when the individual track levels are fairly low. If the individual track faders are all low, mixing can be inconvenient. To keep the individual track faders higher without making the overall mix too hot, you can bring down the Master fader by several dB.

Important: You should not use the Master fader to adjust the volume of your external monitoring speakers. Use the Master fader to make sure your meters show an acceptable level. Use the volume controls on your external monitors to adjust the loudness of your audio while you mix.

Note: The Master fader cannot be automated.

You can use the panning sliders in the Audio Mixer to make adjustments to the stereo placement of clips in audio tracks that have been assigned to stereo output channels. Panning sliders appear in a track's track strip, below the mute and solo buttons. Like adjustments made to audio faders, adjustments made using a track's panning slider only affect the stereo imaging of the clip that appears at the position of the playhead, and can be automated. For more information on creating pan automation, see "About Mixer Automation and Keyframe Recording" on page 89.

Panning sliders have different behaviors depending on the output channel that a track is assigned to, and whether the clip has stereo or dual mono audio. For more information about working with stereo audio in Final Cut Pro, see "Stereo Audio" on page 44.

The output channel a track has been assigned to dictates whether or not stereo pan is possible for audio clips appearing on that track. If a track is assigned to a stereo output channel, the panning slider for that track is enabled. Otherwise, the panning slider is disabled.

When two tracks are assigned to a stereo output channel, and a pair of linked stereo clip items is placed on those two tracks, you can use the panning sliders in the corresponding track strips in the Audio Mixer to control the stereo pan.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:04:00:00 01:08:00:00 01:12:00:00 v1 v1 Music 2 Music 2 a1 A1 Music 2 Music 2 a2 A2 A3 A4 When clip items linked as a stereo pair are placed in tracks assigned to stereo outputs...

A1 A2 -1 1

...both panning sliders move at the same time in opposite directions.

Stereo pair clip items: The panning sliders of tracks containing a pair of stereo clip items at the position of the playhead are locked together with an inverse relationship, giving you control over the stereo image of the clips. Changing the stereo distribution of one of the audio items inversely adjusts the stereo distribution of the other, resulting in a gradual swapping of the left and right audio items in these tracks. Control over the stereo image of a clip is most useful when swapping the left and right channels of a two-channel audio clip that already has stereo imaging associated with it, such as a piece of music.
Mono clips, or clips that are linked as part of a dual mono pair: Mono audio clips at the position of the playhead have panning sliders that can be adjusted independently of each other.

If two audio items are linked together as part of a dual mono pair, the stereo distribution of each item can be independently controlled using the panning slider in the corresponding track strip. This is useful when panning mono audio clips, such as sound effects, between the left and right channels to create specific stereo imaging, such as to create the illusion that a car is passing from left to right across the screen.

Both stereo and mono clip items can be panned in the Audio Mixer. When you adjust a stereo clip item's pan, the other clip item in the pair is adjusted by an equal and opposite amount. Mono clip items' pan is adjusted independently.

1 Make sure the clip doesn't have any pan keyframes already applied.
2 Make sure that the Record Audio Keyframes button in the button bar at the top of the Audio Mixer is not selected.
3 In the Timeline, position the playhead so that it's over the clip you want to change.
4 Drag the panning slider of the relevant track strip.

Sliding it to the left pans that clip's audio increasingly to the left channel. Sliding it to the right pans that clip's audio increasingly to the right channel.

A1 A2 A3 -1 1 0.85

- Hold down the Option key, then click the panning slider you want to reset.

- Control-click at the top of any track's track strip, then choose Reset All Panners from the shortcut menu.

Note: Stereo pan can also be modified in the Audio tabs of the Viewer. For more information on how to modify stereo pan in the Viewer, see “Changing the Pan of Audio in the Viewer” on page 118.

Whenever you play back a sequence, the audio level and pan keyframes in the clips control the mix automatically. This is called mixer automation, and is especially important when you have a lot of tracks in a long sequence. Audio level and pan keyframes allow you to build up a complete audio mix by recording keyframes on just one track at a time. With keyframes, you can orchestrate a complete mix of audio tracks by yourself, a task that once required several people, with each person focused on a group of tracks.

There are several ways to add audio keyframes to your clip items and modify them in the Timeline or Viewer. You can:

Manually add keyframes with the Pen tool
Enable the Record Audio Keyframes button in the Audio Mixer button bar, and then do one of the following:
Use the controls in the Audio Mixer to record fader and panning slider adjustments in real time.
Use a supported control surface with physical faders and pan controls. This allows you to adjust multiple faders and panning sliders simultaneously.

Note: Although the steps described below generally refer to using the controls in the Audio Mixer to automate your mix one track at a time, these steps can also apply to using a control surface. For more information about using a control surface, see "Using a Control Surface With the Audio Mixer" on page 98.

Before you start recording keyframes using the Audio Mixer, you must define the frequency with which Final Cut Pro records level and pan keyframes. Final Cut Pro can record every subtle movement of an audio fader and panning slider or a reduced ("thinned") number of those keyframes.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > User Preferences.

2 In the Editing tab of the User Preferences window, choose an option from the Record Audio Keyframes pop-up menu:

All: Records the maximum number of keyframes possible while you move a track strip's fader or panning slider. The end result is an ultra-precise re-creation of the levels you set using the Audio Mixer. The drawback to this option is that you might end up with an extremely dense cluster of keyframes in the audio level overlays of the affected clips that can be difficult to edit later. Unless you are doing very fast, precise audio mixing, you may want to avoid this option.
Reduced: Records only a subset of keyframe information created when you move a track strip's fader or panning slider. The resulting level or pan overlay in the Timeline or Viewer is still a fairly accurate reproduction of the levels you set, but the number of keyframes recorded is much lower than when the All option is chosen.
Peaks Only: Records only the minimum number of keyframes necessary to approximate the levels you recorded when moving a track strip's fader or panning slider. Keyframes recorded using the Peaks Only option reflect only the highest and lowest levels that were recorded. This is primarily useful when you want to record a minimum number of keyframes to edit later in the Timeline or Viewer.

As long as the Record Audio Keyframes button at the top of the Audio Mixer is selected, level and pan keyframes are recorded whenever a fader or panning slider is adjusted. Keyframes can be recorded both during playback and pause.

During playback, keyframe recording begins when you position the pointer on a fader or panning slider and press the mouse button, and continues until you release the mouse button. The density of recorded keyframes depends on what you specified in the Record Audio Keyframes pop-up menu in the Editing tab of the User Preferences window.

Note: Instead of using the mouse to adjust your faders, you can also use a supported control surface to adjust multiple faders and panning sliders simultaneously.

Keyframe recording continues as long as the mouse button is held down, so it's best to mix groups of short, consecutive clips in a track all at once. For example, suppose you've edited a dialogue sequence with multiple angles of coverage so that the dialogue spoken by a single character is broken up into six different clips on tracks A1 and A2.

Debra sidewalking	Side master shot jacob MS	Debra sidewalking	Jacob reaction to cues	Debra enters cafe W5	Master shot Debra MS
Debra sidewalking	Side master shot jacob MS	Debra sidewalking	Jacob reaction to cues	Debra enters cafe W5	Master shot Debra MS
Debra sidewalking	Side master shot jacob MS	Debra sidewalking	Jacob reaction to cues	Debra enters cafe W5	Master shot Debra MS
Music 1					Music 1
Music 1					Music 1

Since each clip has its own independent audio levels, to use the Audio Mixer to set the levels for the entire group, you need to keep the mouse button held down continuously to record mixer keyframes as you play back all five clips. If you stop halfway through clip 4, the level overlays for these clips look like this:

This is because no fader movement was detected in either clip 5 or 6, so the levels were not adjusted for these clips. If this happens, it's easy to move the playhead back to the beginning of the section you're working on and record any additional keyframes.

When you release the mouse button, keyframe recording ends and the fader for that track goes back to displaying the previously set levels. The same rules apply to recording pan information.

Important: If the Record Audio Keyframes button is not selected, no keyframes are recorded when you move fader or panning sliders. However, you can still modify keyframes and levels between any two keyframes.

1 Select the Record Audio Keyframes button in the button bar at the top of the Audio Mixer.
Tip: You can select or deselect the Record Audio Keyframes button during playback, if necessary.
2 In the Viewer or Timeline, move the playhead to the area of your sequence where you want to record keyframes.

It's a good idea to start a few seconds before the section you'll actually be mixing, to give yourself time to get ready.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:01:00 00:00 01:00:03:00 01:00:06:00 01:00:09:00 v1 V1 Debra sidewalk Side master shot jacob MS a1 A1 Debra sidewalking Side master shot jacob MS a2 A2 Debra sidewalking Side master shot jacob MS A3 Music 1 Music 1

3 Begin playback of your sequence.
4 As your sequence plays, position the pointer over the fader or panning slider in the relevant track strip, then press and hold down the mouse button to begin automation recording for clips playing back in that track.

Place the pointer over the fader slider to start automation recording.

5 Hold down the mouse button to continue recording mixer automation, and move the fader or panning slider to adjust the clip's audio or pan levels in real time while playback continues.
6 When you've finished, release the mouse button to stop recording keyframes.

The sequence continues to play, and the fader and pan controls return to the previously set levels.

7 If there are any other Audio Mixer controls you want to adjust at this time, repeat steps 4 through 6.
8 When you've finished making adjustments, stop playback.

Once you finish recording automation for a track, you can move the playhead back to the beginning to record keyframes for additional tracks. This way, you can create your audio mix one track at a time, adding keyframes for each track until you've set levels for all the clips in your sequence. Ultimately, it doesn't matter whether you use the Audio Mixer in real time or set levels directly in the Timeline or Viewer. You can choose whatever method works for a particular track or clip.

Note: You can also make changes to levels in tracks you've already mixed. New changes made to the fader and pan controls overwrite previously set levels.

You can set up a section of your Timeline to loop so that you can mix each track without stopping playback. As the section of your sequence loops, you can go from one track level fader to the next, adjusting (or overwriting) keyframes until your mix is perfect.

It's a good idea to place In and Out points several seconds earlier and later than you need, to give yourself time to manipulate the controls before reaching the boundaries of the loop. Otherwise, you may overwrite keyframes you previously set when playback resets to the In point.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:01:04 00:00 01:00:05:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:15:00 v1 V1 Debra sidewal Side master shot jacob MS a1 A1 Debra sidewal Side master shot jacob MS a2 A2 Debra sidewal Side master shot jacob MS A3 A4

3 Choose View > Loop Playback to enable looped playback.
4 To begin looped playback, choose Mark > Play > In to Out (or press Shift-).
5 Position the pointer over any fader or panning slider you want to adjust, then press and hold down the mouse button to begin recording keyframes.
6 Hold down the mouse button to continue recording mixer automation, and move the control you've selected to adjust the clip's audio or pan levels in real time while playback continues.
7 When you've finished, release the mouse button to stop keyframe recording.

The sequence continues to play, and the fader and pan controls return to previously set levels. When playback loops, you can click another control to continue making adjustments to clips in other tracks. You can also make changes to clips in tracks you've already mixed.

Note: New changes made using a track's fader and panning slider overwrite any previous levels.

8 When you've finished making adjustments, stop playback.

If keyframe recording stops before the end of a clip, the audio or pan level of the remaining duration of that clip depends on whether or not there were already keyframes in the clip.

- If there were no keyframes in the clip prior to recording keyframes: The audio level or pan overlay remains at the level of the last recorded keyframe for the remaining duration of that clip.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:14:06 00:00 01:00:05:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:14:00 v1 V1 Debra sidewal Side master shot jacob MS a1 A1 Debra sidewal Side master shot jacob MS a2 A2 Debra sidewal Side master shot jacob MS A3 A4

- If there were keyframes in the clip prior to recording keyframes: The audio level or pan values are interpolated from the level of the last recorded keyframe to the level of the next keyframe.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:10:04 00:00 01:00:05:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:15:00 v1 V1 Debra sidewal Side master shot jacob MS a1 A1 Debra sidewal Side master shot jacob MS a2 A2 Debra sidewal Side master shot jacob MS A3 A4

Unlike setting audio levels, adjusting stereo pan is largely an aesthetic decision. You should resist the temptation to create too many directional sound effects. Many viewers may hear your movie in mono, so they won't be able to hear the stereo effects. (This is especially true of video that's compressed for Internet playback and some television playback.) This doesn't mean you should avoid stereo. Using stereo can be a great way to enhance the audience's experience of your movie, but it's important to take the listening environment into consideration.

Even if your intended audience can hear stereo effects (with theatrical or DVD distribution, for example), excessive use of stereo can be tedious. You can use stereo pan, but don't use it so much that viewers are distracted. This is especially true for dialogue. Even in feature films released on DVD with 5:1 surround sound, most dialogue is placed in the center channel. In a stereo mix in Final Cut Pro, you can center a track by setting the pan value to 0. Avoid positioning dialogue exclusively on the left or right channels.

Music and ambient effects can be positioned in stereo with fewer distractions. For this reason, it's always a good idea to preserve the original stereo image of any music clips you capture or import, so that you can use this quality in your mix.

After you've recorded keyframes for a series of clips on a particular track, the level and pan keyframes for clips on that track appear in the Timeline with the audio level keyframes you've set. There are two ways you can make modifications to the levels you've set with the Audio Mixer: by using the Audio Mixer or by modifying keyframes in the Viewer or Timeline.

You can use the Audio Mixer to make further changes to audio clips in your sequence that already have level and pan keyframes applied. How these changes are made depends on whether or not the Record Audio Keyframes button is selected.

If the Record Audio Keyframes button is selected: Changes you make with the Audio Mixer during playback create a new set of keyframes, completely overwriting any previously existing keyframes. Changes you make while playback is paused insert new keyframes at the position of the playhead.
If the Record Audio Keyframes button is not selected: Changes you make with the Audio Mixer during playback do not create new keyframes. Instead, existing keyframes are modified to match the levels set when the playhead passes over them. Individual keyframes can be adjusted if the playhead is directly over them. If the playhead is between two keyframes, the level of both keyframes is raised to adjust that entire section of the overlay.

During playback, every fader and panning slider in the Audio Mixer animates, displaying the current levels in your sequence. At any time during playback, you can adjust a fader or panning slider to begin recording new automation or modifying existing automation. This helps you to maintain a smooth transition from any previously recorded levels to the new levels you're setting.

You can also make changes directly to the audio level and pan keyframes in the Timeline. By displaying level overlays in the Timeline (click the Clip Overlays control), you can modify the keyframes you recorded, using the Selection and Pen tools to make precise adjustments. For more information on adjusting audio level and pan keyframes in the Timeline, see “Adjusting Audio Levels in the Timeline” on page 109 and “Panning Audio in the Timeline” on page 117.

To modify pan keyframes you've added using the panning sliders in the Audio Mixer, you can do one of the following:

Open the clip in the Viewer. Stereo pan keyframes appear on their own overlay in the clip's Audio tab. For more information on adjusting stereo pan keyframes in the Viewer, see "Changing the Pan of Audio in the Viewer" on page 118.
In the Timeline, enable the Clip Keyframes control, then control-click in the Keyframe editor area of an audio track and choose Pan from the shortcut menu. Pan keyframes are now displayed in the keyframe editor for the audio tracks in the Timeline, and you can adjust them with the Pen tool.

You can easily remove level and pan automation from clips in a sequence using the Remove Attributes command. Audio level and pan keyframes can be removed separately or together.

- Select one or more clips in the Timeline, then choose Edit > Remove Attributes.

- Select one or more clips in the Timeline, Control-click one of the selected clips, then choose Remove Attributes from the shortcut menu.

Remove Attributes Video Attributes: Basic Motion Crop Distort Opacity Drop Shadow Motion Blur Filters Speed Clip Settings (capture) Audio Attributes: Levels Pan Filters Speed Cancel OK Click one or both of these checkboxes to delete keyframes from overlays.

All level and pan keyframes are removed from the selected clip, and the audio level is reset to 0 dB.

A control surface is a hardware device with faders, knobs, and buttons that can control the Final Cut Pro Audio Mixer. You can use a supported control surface to remotely control audio faders, pan settings, mute and solo buttons, and even the transport controls in your sequence. Control surfaces emulate traditional audio mixing consoles, giving you tactile control over multiple faders at once.

Control surfaces send and receive MIDI data to communicate fader positions, pan knob settings, track names, and timecode.

To set up your control surface, you need the following:

An external MIDI interface with at least one input and output
• Mac OS X MIDI driver software that corresponds to your MIDI interface (if necessary)
• One or more supported control surfaces

MIDI, or Musical Instrument Digital Interface, is a standard protocol that allows electronic music devices and control surfaces to send and receive performance data. This allows you to do things such as control a synthesizer with a keyboard, or control an audio mixing application such as Final Cut Pro with a control surface.

There is a wide variety of MIDI interfaces available. When you select a MIDI interface, consider the following:

You need a MIDI interface that is compatible with Mac OS X.
Most interfaces connect to your computer via the USB port, although some PCI and FireWire audio interfaces include MIDI ports.
You should purchase a MIDI interface that supports the number of control surfaces you need, plus any additional MIDI equipment you may want to connect to your computer.

In many cases, installing a MIDI interface is as simple as connecting the interface to your computer. If your MIDI interface does not appear in the Control Surfaces Configuration dialog, the MIDI interface may require driver software. This may be included with the MIDI interface, or you may be able to download MIDI drivers from the manufacturer's website. Make sure you follow the installation instructions that came with your MIDI interface.

1 Install any MIDI drivers necessary for the MIDI interface.
2 Connect a USB cable between the USB port on your computer and the MIDI interface.
3 Make sure the MIDI interface is connected and turned on.

Different control surfaces use slightly different communications protocols, so not all control surfaces are compatible. Final Cut Pro supports Mackie and Logic Control, as well as Mackie and Logic Control XT control surfaces.

Once you have your MIDI interface connected to your computer, setting up a control surface is simple.

1 Connect the MIDI output port of the control surface to a MIDI input port on the MIDI interface.
2 Connect a MIDI output port on your MIDI interface to the MIDI input port on your control surface.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - To connect your control surface to your MIDI interface: - 1

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - To connect your control surface to your MIDI interface: - 2

MIDI Connector

3 Make sure the control surface is turned on.

Once a control surface is connected to your MIDI interface, you need to establish communication between the control surface and Final Cut Pro. You set up control surfaces in Final Cut Pro in the Control Surfaces Configuration dialog.

Control Surface Configuration Shift Order Left and Right buttons Control surface arrangement area Add and delete buttons Summary Control Surface Type: Logic Control Input Connection: MIDI Timepiece AV - Port 1 Output Connection: MIDI Timepiece AV - Port 1 Summary area Cancel OK

- Control surface arrangement area: This area displays icons of the currently assigned control surfaces. You can click a control surface icon to select it, and double-click the icon to adjust its settings. If you have multiple control surfaces, you can drag a control surface icon to rearrange its order.

The order of control surface icons affects the fader ordering on your physical control surfaces. For more information, see "Arranging Control Surface Order" on page 102.

Add and Delete buttons: These buttons allow you to add or remove control surfaces in your configuration. The number of control surfaces allowed is limited to the number of MIDI ports on your MIDI interface.
Shift Order Left and Right buttons: These buttons allow you to move the selected control surface icon to rearrange its order.
Summary area: This area displays information about the currently selected control surface.

1 Choose Tools > Control Surfaces.

The Control Surfaces Configuration dialog appears.

2 If there is not already a control surface icon in the control surface arrangement area, click the Add (+) button (or press Command-+).

A sheet appears with configuration settings.

3 Choose the following settings:

The type of control surface
The MIDI interface output port to which your control surface MIDI input is connected
The MIDI interface input port to which your control surface MIDI output is connected

Note: The names of external devices configured in Audio MIDI Setup appear in parentheses after the name of each port of your MIDI interface. Audio MIDI Setup is a utility included with Mac OS X that allows you to name and configure the devices, instruments, and ports of your MIDI setup.

4 Click OK, then click OK again to accept changes to your control surface configuration.

You can add and configure additional control surfaces using the steps above.

1 Choose Tools > Control Surfaces.

The Control Surfaces Configuration dialog appears.

2 Double-click the control surface icon.

A sheet appears with configuration settings.

3 Change the control surface settings as needed.

4 Click OK, then click OK again to accept changes to your control surface configuration.

1 Choose Tools > Control Surfaces.

2 Do one of the following:

Click a control surface icon, then press Command-Delete.
Drag a control surface icon outside of the Control Surfaces Configuration dialog, then release the mouse button.
Click a control surface icon, then press the Delete (−) button.

3 Click OK.

The track number assigned to a physical fader corresponds to the track strips visible in the Audio Mixer. For example, if only tracks A1 and A8 are visible in the Audio Mixer, they correspond to the first and second faders on your control surface.

For more information about showing and hiding track strips in the Audio Mixer, see "Track Visibility Area" on page 69.

If you have more than one control surface configured to work in Final Cut Pro, the physical faders are numbered so that control surfaces whose icons appears toward the left side of the configuration window have lower-numbered faders. Control surfaces whose icons appear toward the right side have higher-numbered faders.

Important: For proper track numbering, the order of control surface icons in the Control Surfaces Configuration dialog should match the physical layout of your control surfaces.

Tracks 1-8 Tracks 9-16 Control Surface Configuration

Tracks 1–8 Tracks 9–16 Control Surface Configuration

1 Choose Tools > Control Surfaces.

Note: There must be at least two control surfaces connected if you want to rearrange their order.

2 Do one of the following:

Click a control surface icon to select it, then drag the icon to a new position to the left or right.
Press the Left Arrow or Right Arrow key to select a control surface icon, then click the Shift Order Left or Shift Order Right button to move the control surface icon.
Press Shift-< (left angle bracket) or Shift-> (right angle bracket).

3 Click OK.

The control surface faders are renumbered according to their new order in the control surface arrangement area.

If your Final Cut Pro sequence has more tracks than your control surface has faders, you can still control the remaining faders by using another fader bank on the control surface. Fader banks allow you to multiply the number of tracks your control surface can control by temporarily assigning the physical faders to higher-numbered tracks.

For example, if your control surface has eight faders, the first fader bank can control the first eight visible tracks in the Audio Mixer. The second bank can control the second group of eight visible faders, and so on. If all tracks are visible in the Audio Mixer, the first fader bank controls tracks 1–8, the second fader bank controls tracks 9–16, and so on.

When your sequence has more tracks than the control surface, Final Cut Pro automatically assigns additional tracks to new fader banks. No additional configuration is necessary.

- Press the Bank Left or Bank Right button on the control surface.

The previous or next fader bank is selected, allowing you to control a different range of tracks in the Audio Mixer.

If you have multiple control surfaces configured, the fader bank button increases the control surface track numbering by the total number of physical faders. For example, if you have two control surfaces, each with eight faders, the first fader bank controls tracks 1–16, the second fader bank controls tracks 17–32, and so on.

A control surface allows you to remotely control the faders, panning sliders, and buttons in the Audio Mixer, providing you control over multiple tracks simultaneously, as well as more fluid, tactile control over your audio mix. Before you can use a control surface, you need to configure it properly. For more information, see “Connecting a Control Surface” on page 99.

A control surface can perform exactly the same actions that the Final Cut Pro Audio Mixer is capable of. In Final Cut Pro, audio level and pan information is stored in clips, not in tracks. When a track does not contain a clip, the corresponding audio fader level is set to - dB.

Important: The Audio Mixer must be open or the control surface has no effect. To open the Audio Mixer, choose Tools > Audio Mixer (or press Option-6).

The Audio Mixer can control audio settings in the Canvas (and Timeline) as well as in the Viewer. You can choose which window the Audio Mixer affects by choosing an option in the Source pop-up menu in the upper-right corner of the Audio Mixer. If you choose Auto, the Audio Mixer controls the most recently active window (Canvas or Viewer).

Once your control surface is properly configured, you can open a sequence and begin mixing. Adjustments you make on the control surface are immediately reflected in the Audio Mixer, and the reverse is also true: Changes in the Audio Mixer are immediately reflected in the control surface.

1 Double-click a sequence in the Browser to open it in the Timeline and Canvas.
2 Choose Tools > Audio Mixer (or press Option-6).

The Audio Mixer appears with faders corresponding to tracks in the Timeline. The motorized faders on the control surface automatically adjust to reflect the current fader levels in the Audio Mixer. Pan settings, mute buttons, and solo buttons are also updated to reflect the current Audio Mixer status.

3 Adjust a fader on the control surface.

The corresponding fader slider in the Audio Mixer automatically moves to the same position.

4 In the Audio Mixer, drag a fader slider up or down.

The corresponding motorized fader on the control surface automatically moves to the same position.

Adjusting pan, solo, and mute controls in the Audio Mixer also updates the control surface, and vice versa.

If your sequence has more tracks than your control surface, you can switch to the next fader bank to control additional tracks. For more information about fader banks, see "Working With Fader Banks" on page 103.

You can remotely control playback in Final Cut Pro using the transport controls on your control surface. The current timecode of your sequence (or clip in the Viewer) is displayed in the Time Display readout on the control surface.

Important: The Audio Mixer must be open or the control surface transport controls have no effect in Final Cut Pro.

The play, rewind, fast-forward, and stop buttons on the control surface work in the same way as the transport controls in the Viewer and Canvas. You can also jog frame by frame using the jog/scrub wheel on the control surface.

In addition to the main functions described above, the following control surface buttons can be used to trigger Final Cut Pro commands:

Control surface button	Final Cut Pro command
Jog/scrub wheel	Jog only
Arrow keys	Same
Function keys (F1–F8); modifier keys (Shift, Command, Option, Control)	Same
Save, Undo, Cancel, Enter	Same
Marker	Go to Previous Marker
Nudge	Go to Next Marker
Cycle	Home
Solo	End

Recording audio mixer automation with a control surface is identical to recording keyframes by adjusting faders in the Audio Mixer. The only difference is that you can control multiple faders and pan knobs simultaneously with a control surface, while adjusting faders with the mouse allows you to control only one fader at a time. Using a control surface lets you perform more nuanced mixes, adjusting multiple tracks at once. For information about recording audio keyframes, see “About Mixer Automation and Keyframe Recording” on page 89.

1 Make sure your control surface is connected and properly configured.
2 Press Option-6 to open the Audio Mixer.
3 Enable the Record Audio Keyframes button (located in the button bar of the Tool Bench window).
4 Press the Space bar to begin playing your sequence.
5 Adjust faders and panning knobs on the control surface.

Audio level and pan keyframes are added to the clips in your sequence.

When you play back a clip or sequence, the faders in the Audio Mixer and the control surface are automatically controlled by audio level and pan keyframes. Keyframe recording begins when you touch the fader and finishes when you release the fader.

You can even adjust a fader to a new position while it is moving. For example, if a fader on the control surface is slowly moving down from a 0 dB keyframe to a -60 dB keyframe, you can move the motorized fader up to +12 dB, creating new keyframes.

Viewer: Music 1 from Master sequence Stereo (a1a2) Filters 00:01:04:16 Level + -2.39 dB Pan -1 03:02:00 00:03:04:16 00:03:06:00 00:03:08:00 00 fctm-1 M AI

When you release the fader, it returns to its trajectory moving toward the -60 dB keyframe.

Viewer: Music 1 from Master sequence Stereo (a1a2) Filters 00:01:04:16 Level + 9.38 dB Pan -1 03:02:00 00:03:04:00 00:06:00 00:03:08:00 00 futahashu@ch#y.com

You can control audio levels and pan in the Timeline, the Viewer, or the Audio Mixer window. You can make adjustments to multiple clips at once, as well as add keyframes to automate mixing levels over time.

This chapter covers the following:

Adjusting Audio Levels in the Timeline and Viewer (p. 109)
Panning Audio in the Timeline and Viewer (p. 117)
Adjusting Clip Levels and Pan Using Keyframes (p. 121)

You can adjust audio levels directly in the Timeline or in the Viewer, or by adjusting faders in the Audio Mixer window. For more information about the Audio Mixer, see Chapter 5, "Overview of the Audio Mixer," on page 67 and Chapter 6, "Using the Audio Mixer," on page 79.

Changing audio levels directly in the Timeline is fast, and is especially useful when you need to mix the levels of clips relative to other clips playing at the same time. For example, if you want to raise and lower the volume of a music clip to correspond with a voiceover recording, you can see how the narrator's dialogue lines up with the music clips if you turn on audio waveforms in the Timeline. That way, you can easily see exactly where you need to set your keyframes to achieve the desired levels.

To use all the commands and tools described in this section, you need to turn on the Clip Overlays control in the Timeline to display the volume and pan overlays. Displaying audio waveforms is also useful for audio mixing in the Timeline.

1 Open a sequence in the Timeline, then choose Sequence > Settings.
2 Click the Timeline Options tab, then select the Show Keyframe Overlays checkbox.

You can also toggle the Clip Overlays control in the Timeline.

1 Open a sequence in the Timeline, then choose Sequence > Settings.
2 Click the Timeline Options tab, then select the Show Audio Waveforms checkbox.

Tip: To avoid opening Sequence Settings, you can also press Option-Command-W while the Timeline is active.

1 Enable the Clip Overlays control at the bottom of the Timeline to display overlays.
2 Drag the volume level overlay up or down to adjust volume. The overlay is a red line if the clip is not selected, and a green line if it is.

The pointer changes to an Adjust Line Segment pointer when it's directly over the volume level overlay, and a box displays the change in levels as you drag.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:36:14 00:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Debra enters cafe WS Debra enters cafe WS -4 dB Volume level overlay a1 A1 a2 A2 Change in volume level

To add a keyframe to the volume overlay of a clip in the Timeline:

1 Do one of the following:

Select the Pen tool in the Tool palette (press the P key).
If you're using the Selection tool, press and hold down the Option key.

2 Move the Pen tool to the point in your sequence where you want to set a keyframe, then click the overlay to set the keyframe.

Debra enters cafe WS -2 dB The keyframe appears as a small diamond at the point where you clicked.

Place the Selection tool directly over a keyframe, so that it turns into a crosshair pointer. You can now adjust a single keyframe by dragging it up and down to change its level, or from side to side to move it forward and backward in time.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:36:14 00:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Debra enters cafe WS Debra enters cafe WS -00:00:02 | 3 dB a1 A1 a2 A2

To adjust a section of a clip's overlay in the middle of four keyframes:

- Drag just that section up or down, as if you were dragging the entire overlay.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:36:14 00:00 01:00 10:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Debra enters cafe WS Debra enters cafe WS a1 A1 2 dB a2 A2

To delete volume keyframes in the Timeline, do one of the following:

■ Control-click the keyframe you want to delete, then choose Clear from the shortcut menu.
- Select the Delete Point tool in the Tool palette (press the P key twice). Place the Delete Point tool on the keyframe you want to delete, then click to delete the keyframe.
- With the Selection tool selected, press and hold down the Option key, then move the pointer to the keyframe you want to delete. When the pointer turns into the Delete Point tool, click to delete it.

To select a range of keyframes to modify:

- Use the Range Selection tool to select a group of keyframes. You can now move, delete, or change the level of just those keyframes.

1 In the Timeline, select a group of audio clips whose levels you want to adjust.
2 Choose Modify > Levels.
3 Use the slider to adjust the volume level and choose Relative or Absolute from the pop-up menu, then click OK.

Gain Adjust Adjust gain by: -6 dB Make Changes: Relative Absolute Cancel OK

Relative adjusts each track's volume relative to the current level.
Absolute changes all selected tracks to the value indicated next to the slider.

You can use keyboard shortcuts to change the volume levels of clips in a sequence while it's playing. Your changes affect the clip on the lowest-numbered audio track whose Auto Select control is enabled. The level of the clip at the current playhead position is adjusted. Use the following shortcuts:

• Control-+ (plus) to raise the level by 1 dB
- Control- – (minus) to lower the level by 1 dB

When you use the shortcut, you hear a brief pause, then playback resumes almost immediately.

You can control the audio levels and placement of sound (pan) in a clip in the Viewer using the sliders at the top of the Audio tab, the number fields next to the sliders, or the overlays in the middle of the waveform display area. The detail displayed in the Audio tabs of the Viewer is good for modifying keyframes recorded using the Audio Mixer.

Drag the Level slider to change volume. Numeric entry field (level) Viewer: Music 1 in Cafe Mono (a1) Filters 00:09:54:10 00:01:19:21 Level Pan 0 88 -0 00:00:40:00 00:01:20:00 00:02:00:00 Numeric entry field (pan) Level overlays

How these controls affect the level of your clip depends on whether or not you've set keyframes for either level or pan.

If no keyframes are set, moving the sliders or entering a numeric value changes the audio or stereo levels for the entire clip. Similarly, dragging one of the overlays changes the volume or pan levels for the entire clip.
If keyframes are set, moving the sliders or entering a numeric value modifies the value of whatever keyframe is at the current position of the Viewer playhead. If there is no keyframe at the current position of the playhead, one will be added. There must be at least two keyframes on an overlay to change the volume or pan from one level to another.

Whether or not the audio item in the Viewer is a stereo pair also affects how volume and pan levels are set. Clips can have up to 24 tracks of audio, and each item can be mono or part of a stereo pair.

If you opened mono items, each channel is in its own tab in the Viewer, and is mixed separately from all others.
If you opened a stereo pair, both waveforms appear in the same tab, named Stereo. Adjusting the levels of one channel adjusts the levels of the other.

As you adjust the volume and pan levels of clips in Final Cut Pro, your changes can be played back immediately. Final Cut Pro mixes the audio levels in real time, so you don't need to render your audio as long as your computer can handle the number of tracks you're working on. Real-time audio processing is covered in more detail in "Real-Time Audio Mixing in Final Cut Pro" on page 529.

Tip: Using effects like cross fades and filters requires processing power, which reduces the total number of tracks you can mix in real time. If you exceed the number of tracks your computer can handle, you'll need to render your tracks. Audio usually renders much faster than video, however, so it shouldn't take too long.

When you edit a new clip into a sequence, its level is set to 0 decibels (dB) by default. You can change the level to be any value you like, up to +12 dB. You can use three controls to adjust the audio level of a clip. Each of these controls is mirrored by the other controls as you make adjustments. If no keyframes are set in the clip in the Viewer, using these controls adjusts the level of the entire clip.

- Drag the Level slider to the left or right.

Viewer: Music 1 in Cafe Mono (a1) Filters 00:09:54:10 Level + -17 dB Pan + 00:01:19:21 00:00:40:00 00:01:20:00 00:02:00:00

1 Enter a value in the Level field.

To enter a negative value, type - (the minus sign) and the number.

Viewer: Music 1 in Cafe Mono (all) Filters 00:09:54:10 Level -17 dB Pan -0 Enter a new value in this field.

2 Press the Return key to apply this value to your clip.

To adjust the volume by dragging the level overlay:

1 Place the pointer over the level overlay of your clip in the waveform display area of the Viewer (the overlay looks like a pink line, or—for stereo—two pink lines).

The pointer turns into an Adjust Line Segment pointer.

Viewer: Music 1 in Cafe Mono (a1) Filters 00:09:54:10 Level -1 dB Pan -0 00:00 00:00:40:00 00:01 20:00 00:02:00:00 Adjust Line Segment pointer

2 Drag the overlay up or down to change the level of the clip.

As you drag, a box displays the new audio level.

Tip: Hold down the Command key while you drag to "gear down" the speed at which the level is adjusted.

To adjust the volume by using the Modify menu:

1 Select one or more clips in the Timeline, or place the Canvas or Timeline playhead over the clip whose volume level you want to modify.
2 Choose Modify > Audio, then choose one of the Gain items from the submenu to indicate how much you want to modify the level.

The volume of your clip is increased or decreased from its current value by the increment you choose. If you selected multiple clips, all clips are modified relative to their current values.

You can adjust audio pan settings directly in the Timeline, in the Viewer, or by adjusting faders in the Audio Mixer window. For more information, see Chapter 5, "Overview of the Audio Mixer," on page 67 and Chapter 6, "Using the Audio Mixer," on page 79.

You can adjust the pan of one or more clips in the Timeline using the Audio command in the Modify menu, but you can't make as many adjustments as you can in the Viewer. Using the menu, you can set a clip's pan all the way to the left, the center, or the right of the stereo output channels.

Note: If you use this method to change the pan of a clip that's a stereo pair, the pan setting for both audio channels changes simultaneously. The pan setting is applied to the uppermost channel of the stereo pair, and the lower channel is panned to the opposite side.

1 In the Timeline, select the clip or clips you want to pan.
2 Choose Modify > Audio, then choose a pan option from the submenu.

Pan Left: Pans audio all the way to the left stereo output (Control-comma).
Pan Center: Centers audio evenly between left and right stereo outputs (Control-period).
Pan Right: Pans audio all the way to the right stereo output (Control-/).

To adjust the stereo placement of your sound, you can change the pan of your audio clips. The Pan slider is actually one control with two modes. What the control does depends on what kind of audio you've opened in the Viewer:

If the audio clip in the Viewer is a stereo pair, this slider lets you swap the left and right channels. The default setting of -1 sends the left audio channel of your clip to the left output channel and the right audio channel to the right output channel. A setting of 0 outputs the left and right audio channels equally to both speakers, essentially creating a mono mix. A setting of +1 swaps the channels, outputting the left audio channel to the right speaker and the right audio channel to the left speaker.
If the audio clip in the Viewer is not a stereo pair, this slider lets you pan the audio channel in the currently selected audio tab between the left and right channels.

Pan slider

Viewer: Music 1 in Cafe Mono (a1) Filters 00:09:54:10 Level + -1 dB Pan + -0 00:00:40:00 00:01:20:00 00:02:00:00

As with the Level slider, if there are no pan keyframes in the current clip, adjusting the Pan slider affects the pan of the entire clip. If there are pan keyframes, using this slider will do one of the following:

Adjust the pan of a keyframe at the current position of the playhead
Add a new keyframe to the pan overlay and adjust it between the left and right output channels

Working with keyframes is explained in more detail in "Adjusting Clip Levels and Pan Using Keyframes" on page 121.

When you edit a new clip into a sequence, the default stereo value depends on what kind of audio clip it is.

If it's a mono clip, its stereo pan is centered with a value of 0 by default. You can change this level to whatever you like, from -1 to +1.
If it's a stereo pair, the pan value defaults to -1, putting the left audio track out of the left channel, and the right audio track out of the right channel.

You can use three controls to adjust the pan of a clip. Each of these controls is mirrored by the other controls as you make adjustments. If no keyframes are set in the clip in the Viewer, using these controls adjusts the pan of the entire clip.

- Drag the Pan slider to the left or right to adjust the stereo placement of your clip.

For a mono item, dragging the Pan slider left moves the audio toward the left stereo output channel; dragging right moves it toward the right stereo output channel.
For a stereo pair, dragging the Pan slider left or right transposes the left and right channels of a stereo pair clip.

1 Enter a new value in the Pan field.

To enter a negative value, type - (minus) and the number.

For a mono item, enter a value between -1 and 1. -1 moves the audio all the way to the left stereo output channel. 1 moves the audio all the way to the right stereo output channel.
For a stereo pair, enter a value between -1 and 1. -1 is the original left and right stereo placement captured with your clip. 1 reverses the left and right channels.

Viewer: Music 2 in Cafe Stereo (a1a2) Filters 00:13:16:02 Level 0 dB Pan -0.5 Enter a value in one of these two fields.

2 Press Return to apply this value to your clip.

1 In the waveform display area of the Viewer, place the pointer over the pan overlay of your clip (the overlay looks like a purple line, or—for stereo—two purple lines).

The pointer turns into an Adjust Line Segment pointer.

2 Drag the overlay up or down to change the pan of your clip.

-0.50 As you drag, a box displays the new pan value.

The Paste Attributes command in the Edit menu is a valuable tool for selectively copying certain attributes—such as levels and pan—from one clip to another without having to open clips in the Viewer. This eliminates the need to repeat steps when applying identical effects to multiple clips. For more information, see “Copying and Pasting Specific Clip Attributes” on page 287.

If you want to remove a clip's attributes, including levels and pan, you can do so by using the Remove Attributes command. For more information, see "Removing Attributes From a Clip" on page 291.

Instead of setting the volume or pan of an entire clip to the same level, you can mix your levels and stereo placement dynamically, raising and lowering the volume level or changing the stereo pan of a clip numerous times within the same clip. To do this, you use keyframes.

Keyframes can be used throughout Final Cut Pro with any feature whose parameters can be changed over time. Keyframes allow you to specify different volume or panning settings in an audio clip at different points in time. The level overlay in your clip automatically adjusts from one keyframed level to another using a smooth curve.

You can also record volume level and panning automation using the Audio Mixer, which creates keyframes. These keyframes can be adjusted by hand, directly in the Viewer or the Timeline.

Note: Unlike the visual keyframes that you can set for motion settings, the shape of volume and pan level curves can't be altered.

When you adjust audio levels and panning settings in the Timeline and Viewer, you mainly use the Selection and Pen tools. The Pen tools allow you to add, move, and delete volume and panning keyframes in the clip overlays in the Timeline, as well as in the Viewer.

Pen tool Delete Point tool

Pen tool: The Pen tool allows you to add keyframes to the volume overlay (press the P key).
Delete Point tool: The Delete Point tool allows you to remove keyframes from the volume overlay (press the P key twice, or hold down the Option key while you are using the Pen tool).

When using the Selection tool, holding down the Option key and moving the pointer over the volume level overlay in the Timeline makes the Pen tool the active tool. This is a fast and easy way to create keyframes to mix your levels.

Holding down the Option key and moving the pointer to an existing keyframe temporarily enables the Delete Point tool, so that you can quickly delete keyframes you don't want.

In Final Cut Pro, items you drag onscreen normally move at the same speed at which you move your mouse across your work surface. When you're dragging the volume level overlay, this usually works just fine. However, you can drag even more precisely by pressing the Command key after you start dragging an item.

If you hold down the Command key while dragging the volume level overlay, the overlay moves much more slowly, and its numeric value changes in much smaller increments. This is especially valuable when mixing levels in the Timeline, where the small height of clips can make precise level adjustment difficult.

Note: The Command key works with nearly any dragging operation in Final Cut Pro.

The keyframe controls are located next to the slider controls in the Viewer.

Level Keyframe button Stereo (a1a2) Filters 00:13:16:02 Level 0 dB Pan -0.5 00:00:00:00 Reset button Pan Keyframe button

Level Keyframe button: The keyframe button to the right of the dB field places a keyframe on the level overlay at the current playhead location. You place keyframes on the audio level in preparation for creating a dynamic change in the level when you're mixing.
Level keyframe navigation buttons: These buttons, to the left and right of the Level Keyframe button, allow you to move the playhead forward or backward from one keyframe on the level overlay to the next.
Pan Keyframe button: This button, to the right of the Pan slider, places a pan keyframe at the current playhead location on the pan overlay. These keyframe markers can be used in preparation for dynamically panning an audio clip's output from one stereo channel to another.
Pan keyframe navigation buttons: These buttons, to the left and right of the Pan Keyframe button, allow you to move the playhead forward or backward from one keyframe on the pan overlay to the next.
Reset button: This button deletes all marked keyframes on both the level overlay and the pan overlay of the currently selected audio track, and resets both to their original values (0 dB for the audio level, and -1 for the pan level).

Until you create at least one volume or pan keyframe in your audio clip, changes you make affect the level or stereo placement of your entire clip. While you need two keyframes to do anything useful, once you set the first volume or pan keyframe, any changes you make to the keyframed levels anywhere else in the clip generate additional keyframes.

■ Move the playhead in the Viewer to the place where you want to set a keyframe, then click the Level or Pan Keyframe button.

00:01:20:00 00:02:00:00 00:02:40:00 00:03:20:00 A keyframe appears at the location of the playhead.

- Select the Selection tool (or press A), then press the Option key and move the pointer over the level overlay. The pointer turns into the Pen tool. Click a level overlay with the Pen tool to add a keyframe at that point.

00:01:20:00 00:02:00:00 00:02:40:00 00:03:20:00 Pen tool

The keyframe appears as a small diamond on the overlay.

1 Move the playhead to another point in the clip where you want to set a keyframe.
2 Do one of the following:

Drag the Level or Pan slider to set a new keyframe at that level or value.
Type a number in the appropriate field to set a new keyframe at that level or value.
Click a keyframe button to add a keyframe to the volume level or pan overlay at the overlay's current level.
Press the Option key and click an overlay with the Pen tool to add a keyframe at that point without changing the level of the overlay. You can add as many keyframes as you want by clicking repeatedly with the Option key held down.

The keyframe appears as a small diamond on the overlay you added it to.

Click the left and right Level or Pan keyframe navigation buttons to move the playhead to the next keyframe to the left or right of the playhead.
Press Option-K to move the playhead to the next keyframe to the left of the playhead.
Press Shift-K to move the playhead to the next keyframe to the right of the playhead.

Move the playhead to the keyframe you want to adjust, then drag the appropriate slider to a new value.
Move the playhead to the keyframe you want to adjust, type a new value in the appropriate field, and press the Return key.
Move the pointer over the keyframe you want to modify. When it becomes a crosshair pointer, drag the keyframe you want to modify.
Dragging a volume level keyframe up raises the volume; dragging down lowers it. As you drag, a box shows you the current level of the keyframe.
Dragging a pan keyframe up moves the audio toward the left stereo output channel; dragging down moves it to the right stereo output channel. As you drag, a box shows you the pan setting of the keyframe.
Dragging a pan keyframe for a stereo pair vertically in the waveform display area transposes the left and right channels of a stereo pair.

To adjust a section of an overlay in the middle of four keyframes:

- Move the pointer over the section you want to adjust. When it turns into the Adjust Line Segment pointer, drag the section up or down to modify it. The rest of the overlay before and after the four keyframes remains untouched.

00:00 00:01:30:00 00:03:00:00 00:04:30:00 Adjust Line Segment pointer L

To move a keyframe forward or backward in time:

- Place the pointer over the keyframe you want to modify. When it becomes a crosshair pointer, drag the keyframe forward or backward along the overlay.

00:00 00:01:30:00 00:03:00:00 00:04:30:00 Keyframe being moved -00:19:20

As you drag, a box displays the timecode duration of the change you're making.

To delete a keyframe, do one of the following:

Move the playhead to the position of the keyframe you want to delete, then click the Level or Pan Keyframe button to delete it.
Place the pointer over the keyframe you want to delete. When it becomes a crosshair pointer, drag the keyframe up or down out of the waveform display area. When the pointer turns into a small trash can, release the mouse button.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - To adjust the level or pan of a single keyframe, do one of the following: - 3

Release the mouse button when the pointer becomes a trash can.

- Press the Option key and move the pointer over an existing keyframe. The pointer turns into the Delete Point tool. Click an existing keyframe with the Delete Point tool to delete that keyframe.

Click the Delete Point tool on the keyframe you want to delete.

■ Control-click the keyframe you want to delete, then choose Clear from the shortcut menu.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - To adjust the level or pan of a single keyframe, do one of the following: - 5

To delete all keyframes:

- Click the Reset button.

00:02:31:22 Reset button 00:03:20:00

All keyframes (both level and pan) are deleted, and the volume level of your clip is reset to 0 dB.

You need at least two keyframes to make any dynamic change from one volume level to another in a clip.

00:46:04:14 00:46:05:04 00:46:05:25 00:46:06:15 -30 dB

In the example above, the section of the clip to the left of the keyframes is at -30 dB, and the rest of the clip to the right of the keyframes is at 0 dB. This is the simplest type of level change you can make.

A more sophisticated change in levels— for example, introducing a slight boost in the level of a few notes in a music track—requires three keyframes:

01:00:25:22 01:00:27:22 6 dB 01:00:25

In this example, the volume level of the clip starts at -3 dB and then rises along a curve, peaking at +6 dB on the note that's playing at that point. The volume level then lowers along another curve, ending back at -3 dB.

Three keyframes allow you to boost or attenuate (lower) a section of audio along a curve, but to make less gradual changes to longer sections of audio, you'll need to use four.

01:00:25:22 01:00:27:22 01:00:24 -26 dB

In this example, the volume level, instead of rising or lowering constantly, changes from -3 dB to -26 dB during the first two keyframes, and then remains constant. The final two keyframes boost the level back to -3 dB, where it remains for the duration of the clip.

Suppose you've edited a music clip and a clip with a voice narration together in your sequence.

Narration Track Narration Track Narration Track Music Music Music Music

There are long pauses between the narrator's lines, during which you want the music to be the dominant audio track. So you set the overall level of your music to -4 dB, since that's the level at which the audio sounds best between the actor's lines. When the narrator speaks, however, you want the level of the music to drop so it doesn't compete with the narrator for attention.

If you hold down the Option key (while the Selection tool is selected) and click the level overlay of the music clip with the Pen tool, you can place groups of four keyframes at each place where a line is spoken by the narrator:

Narration Track Narration Track Narration Track Music Music Music Music Keyframes set

Then, releasing the Option key, you can drag the area in the middle of each group of four keyframes down, to lower the level of the music, while the narrator speaks.

Narration Track Narration Track Narration Track Music Music Music Music -23 dB Lowered levels

Finally, you'll want to move the outside pair of each group of four keyframes outward a bit, so the volume of the music doesn't change too abruptly and startle the audience. Less steep slopes between keyframes result in more gradual fades from one volume level to the next.

Narration Track Narration Track Narration Track Music Music Music +00:00:20 Music Music Adjust the slope of the level change.

Sometimes, when you find the perfect edit point for cutting a clip into your sequence, you'll notice a pop or click in the audio. This happens when you make a cut on an awkward sample that just happens to occur at a frame boundary.

You can eliminate pops and clicks by setting keyframes for your audio levels to within 1/100th of a frame. Usually, changing an audio edit point by just a few hundredths of a frame eliminates the clicking.

1 Open the clip in the Viewer and click the Audio tab.
2 Move the playhead to the edit point that's causing the click by pressing Shift-I or Shift-O, or by using the Up and Down Arrow keys to move from one sequence edit point to the next.

3 Zoom in to the clip as far as possible.

Viewer: Really Important Audio in Movie of the Week Stereo 1 Filters 00:00:01:12 Off 01:00:00:00 Level 0 dB Pan -1 When you've zoomed in all the way, the playhead in the Viewer is the width of one video frame.

4 Hold down the Shift key as you drag the playhead to the exact place where the click occurs.

Viewer: Really Important Audio in Movie of the Week Stereo 1 Filters 00:00:01:12 Off 01:00:00:00 Level 0 dB Pan -1 01:00:00:02 01:00:00:04 Laser/Video Player (Audio Player)

5 Click the Level Keyframe button to mark four keyframes in a row.

The two inner keyframes surround the problem samples, while the two outer keyframes are placed a few hundredths of a frame outside of these.

Viewer: Really Important Audio in Movie of the Week Stereo 1 Filters 00:00:01:12 Off Level 0 dB Pan -1 01:00:00:06 01:00:00:08 01: The problem samples

6 Drag the part of the level overlay between the two inner keyframes down until the box indicates -60 dB.

Viewer: Really Important Audio in Movie of the Week Stereo 1 Filters 00:00:01:12 Off 01:00:00:00 Level 0 dB Pan -1 01:00:00:06 01:00:00:08 01: The overlay looks something like this.

The unwanted noise should be gone, and the rest of your clip's audio is not affected.

Setting keyframes to change pan dynamically works the same way as it does with levels. You need to set at least two keyframes to effect a change over time.

Changing pan over time is often done to achieve stereo effects such as making a car sound zoom from left to right, or putting a particular sound effect on one side or the other of a stereo image. You want the car sound effect in your edited sequence to zoom from the left to the right to match the movement of an onscreen car. Here are the steps you would take:

1 Open the car sound effect in the Viewer so you can see it in more detail.

Viewer: car in Cafe Mono (a1) Filters 00:00:22:01 01:03:22:18 Level 0 dB Pan 0 01:03:24:01 01:03:24:18 01:03:25:10 01:03:26:03 Audio Channel Selectator

2 Move the Viewer playhead to the beginning of the car effect's waveform, right before the car sound starts playing, and click the Pan Keyframe button to set a keyframe.

Viewer: car in Cafe Mono (a1) Filters 00:00:22:01 01:03:24:12 Level 0 dB Pan 0 01:03:24:01 01:03:24:18 01:03:25:10 01:03:26:03 100% M A

3 Drag the Pan slider all the way to the left, so that the sound starts playing out of the left speaker.

Viewer: car in Cafe Mono (a1) Filters 00:00:22:01 01:03:24:12 Level 0 dB Pan -0.97 01:03:24:15 01:03:25:10 01:03:26:03 futu-rotu: music/rotu

4 Now, move the playhead to a position after the car sound effect has finished playing.

Viewer: car in Cafe Mono (a1) Filters 00:00:22:01 01:03:25:22 Level 0 dB Pan -0.97 01:03:24:01 01:03:24:18 01:03:25:10 01:03:26:03 futah-futah: music/voice

5 Drag the Pan slider all the way to the right, so that the sound ends playing out of the right speaker. Because you've already set a keyframe for this clip, dragging the Pan slider at another point in the clip automatically produces a new keyframe.

Viewer: car in Cafe Mono (a1) Filters 00:00:22:01 01:03:25:22 Level 4 0 dB Pan 1 01:03:24:01 01:03:24:18 01:03:25:10 01:03:26:03 futu-rotu futu-rotu

When you play back the clip, you'll hear the car sound move from left to right.

The Voice Over tool lets you record a single audio track directly into a sequence while you watch it. You can use the Voice Over tool to record narration, Foley effects, or any other single-channel audio source.

This chapter covers the following:

Setting Up Your Computer to Record Voiceover (p. 136)
• Controls in the Voice Over Tool (p. 139)
Defining the Recording Duration and Destination Track (p. 143)
• Recording a Voiceover (p. 148)

The Voice Over tool records directly to an audio track in the Timeline between the sequence In and Out points. To get audio into Final Cut Pro, you can use any Mac OS X-compatible audio interface connected to your computer's PCI slot, FireWire port, or USB port. You can also use the built-in audio input on your computer. While you record, you can monitor the sequence audio using the selected playback audio device. For more information about selecting an audio device for output, see "Configuring External Audio Monitors" on page 32.

You can set up your computer to use the Voice Over tool in a studio, or set up a PowerBook so you can record in the field.

The quality of your sound recording is dependent on the quality of the microphone and preamplifier used. A microphone converts (or transduces) sound to electricity, and the preamplifier (or preamp) boosts the tiny microphone level to line level for recording.

Condenser microphones are much more sensitive than dynamic microphones and are usually best for voice recordings. Condenser microphones require power to operate, while dynamic microphones do not. Some condenser microphones can use batteries to provide the necessary power, and most preamplifiers can also provide “phantom power” to the microphone via an XLR connector and cable.

Preamps are often selected because of the way they "color" the sound of the microphone, emphasizing some frequencies over others. Analog, tube preamplifiers are often used for their warm, full sound.

Condenser microphones are usually more expensive than dynamic microphones, but they make a big difference in vocal recordings.

A good voiceover recording requires an extremely quiet acoustic environment. Air conditioning, noise from outside, and room reverberation can all be potential problems. Most voiceovers are recorded in a professional studio or voiceover booth to minimize noise.

Setting up your computer to record voiceover involves several steps.

An audio interface can be your computer's built-in audio port, a PCI audio card, a USB audio device, or a DV camcorder connected via FireWire. Regardless of which audio interface you use, it must be compatible with Mac OS X. Once your recording device is connected, the Voice Over tool automatically detects it and adds it to the list of devices in the Source pop-up menu. (If you connect a USB audio device, it can take up to 10 seconds for Final Cut Pro to detect it.)

Microphone Microphone input USB audio interface USB PowerBook Headphones Headphone out

Important: If you select a DV camcorder as your recording device and External Video is enabled in the View menu, a message appears saying that you cannot record using DV audio. Before you can record, choose View > External Video > Off.

Some audio interfaces have microphone preamplifiers built in. For more information, see the documentation that came with the audio interface.

You need to set up the Voice Over tool to correspond to the audio equipment you've connected.

1 Choose Tools > Voice Over.
2 Choose your audio interface from the Source pop-up menu.
3 Choose the audio interface input your microphone is connected to from the Input pop-up menu. For example, if you connected your microphone to input 2 on your audio interface, choose input 2 here.
4 Choose a sample rate that matches your sequence sample rate.
To determine the audio sample rate of your sequence, see Volume IV, Chapter 26, "Sequence Settings and Presets."

In the Browser, select and open the sequence to which you want to add a voiceover, then set In and Out points where you want the voiceover to begin and end.

Every digital recording device has some latency from the time audio enters the microphone to the time it's processed. This latency can cause your narration to be offset by a few frames from your video. You can adjust this offset in the Voice Over tool window so that your audio is recorded exactly in sync with your sequence. In general, USB audio interfaces have an offset of one frame and DV camcorders have an offset of three frames. Other interfaces may have different offsets.

1 Set the In point of your Timeline at 10 seconds, then set the Out point at 20 seconds.
2 Hold the microphone that's connected to your audio recording device to the speaker of your computer.
3 Choose Tools > Voice Over, then click the Record button.
(What you're doing is recording the audio cue beeps that your computer plays back.) Recording stops automatically and this new audio clip is placed in the Timeline.
4 In the Timeline, drag the end of the newly recorded audio clip to the right to show the last 2 seconds of the audio recorded after the Out point.
5 Compare the position of the first frame of the final cue beep's waveform to the position of the Out point in the Timeline.

To toggle the audio clip's waveform in the Timeline, press Command-Option-W.

20-second point 01:00:19:00 01:00:19:10 01:00:19:20 01:00:20:00 Voice Over 3 Voice First frame of the ending beep that occurs two frames later

6 If there's a difference, add this number of frames to the offset already selected, then choose this new number from the Offset pop-up menu.

Alternatively, you can move the clip after recording it to compensate for latency.

Connect your headphones to the headphone port of your computer, and you're ready to start recording.

The Voice Over tool stores audio in RAM during recording, then writes the audio data to the currently specified scratch disk. Make sure your system has enough RAM to accommodate the duration of your recording. The following chart shows some sample lengths for audio clips created with the Voice Over tool and the amount of additional memory required.

Clip length	Memory required (approximate)
30 seconds	3 MB
1 minute	6 MB
5 minutes	30 MB
10 minutes	60 MB
30 minutes	180 MB

The Voice Over tool appears as a tab in the Tool Bench window.

To open the Voice Over tool:

- Choose Tools > Voice Over.

The Tool Bench appears with the Voice Over tab.

Tip: If you want to organize the arrangement of windows, choose Window > Arrange > Color Correction. This places the Viewer, Canvas, and Tool Bench on the top part of the screen as windows of equal size, and the Browser and Timeline on the bottom part of the screen.

Record/Stop: Click this button to begin the audio recording and Timeline playback. While you're recording, the button functions as a Stop button. Recording can also be stopped by pressing the Escape key. If recording is stopped, the partial audio clip that was recorded is saved to disk and placed in the Timeline.
Review: Click this button to play back the section of the Timeline you've defined, using the sequence In and Out points or the position of the playhead and the end of your sequence. This lets you preview the defined range of the Timeline while you practice your voiceover.
Discard Last Recording: Click this button to delete the previously recorded voiceover clip. (This button is only available after you've used the Voice Over tool once.)

Important: Discarding is not undoable.

- Status area: Displays the recording status of the Voice Over tool, along with a progress bar that indicates the percentage of the defined area of the Timeline that's been recorded. There are five states:

Ready to Record: Indicates that the Voice Over tool is ready and waiting to be activated.
Starting: Appears along with a progressive change in color from yellow to red and a numeric countdown during the 5-second countdown that occurs when you first click the Record button. Audio is actually recorded during the countdown, and the resulting clip has a 5-second handle at the beginning.

- Recording: Appears once you've started recording in the Timeline. While you're recording, the status area is red. Fifteen seconds before the end of your recording, you are cued with a single audible beep. During the last 5 seconds of recording, the status area displays a countdown from 5 to 0, accompanied by five beeps, to let you know when the recording time is up.

- Finishing: Appears once playback comes to the end of the defined area of the Timeline. Recording continues 2 seconds past the end of your specified Out point to prevent your last word from being cut off.

- Saving: Appears after recording, when your clip is being saved from RAM to the currently specified scratch disk.

Audio File Target: "Tis of Thee" Sequence - (New) Track A2 Name: Voice Over 3

Target: This line displays the sequence name and track number where audio recorded with the Voice Over tool will be placed. As subsequent takes are recorded, the audio destination track automatically moves down to the next available track.
Name: This text field displays the name that will be used for the recorded media file on disk. To change the audio clip name, click in this field, then enter the desired name.
As subsequent takes are recorded, this name is automatically appended with numbers. For example, the default name of "voiceover" changes to "voiceover 1" after you record your first voiceover clip.
If the name in this field is already in use by another clip on the selected scratch disk, an appropriate take number is automatically appended to the name. For example, "Narration" is changed to "Narration 1."

Input Level: Source: DV Audio Offset: 1 Frame Input: Internal microphone Rate: 44100 Hz Gain: 100 %

Level: This audio meter displays the input audio levels coming in via the chosen audio interface device.
Source: This pop-up menu lets you choose a connected Mac OS X-compatible audio device to record your audio. For example, if you're using a microphone connected to an audio interface, you choose the audio interface here.
Offset: This pop-up menu allows you to correct for audio signal latency (delay), which is inherent in all digital audio interfaces. Even though your voiceover performance may be perfect, latency can cause the recorded audio to be slightly offset from the video. Different digital audio capture devices have different amounts of latency. Typically, most USB capture devices have a latency of one frame; most DV camcorders have a latency of three frames.
Input: If the audio input device you're using has multiple inputs, this pop-up menu lets you select which one you use to record. If there are multiple audio devices you can use, Final Cut Pro remembers the input you select for each device, if you change devices.
Rate: This pop-up menu lets you choose an audio sample rate supported by the selected audio device to record your voiceover clips. It's best to use the same audio sample rate used in your sequence. If the selected audio device cannot support your sequence's sample rate, choose the next closest available sample rate. For example, if your sequence is set to 48 kHz but your audio device doesn't support that sample rate, choose 44.1 kHz.
Gain: This slider allows you to adjust the recording level used by the Voice Over tool.

Note: Audio input selections made in the Voice Over tool do not affect your selected capture preset.

Headphones Volume: ← → -12 dB ✓ Sound Cues

Volume: Use this slider to adjust the volume of audio that plays through the headphone port while the Voice Over tool is recording. You can also enter a value, in decibels (dB), in the field next to the slider.
Sound Cues: Check this box to hear audible beeps that indicate the status of recording. These include a beep at the 5-second starting phase of recording with the Voice Over tool, and at 15 seconds prior to the end of the defined range for recording. These sound cues play through the headphone port and are not recorded as part of the voiceover clip.

Note: To prevent the recording microphone from picking up audio from your program, use a pair of headphones to monitor your program's audio when using the Voice Over tool. Otherwise, set the volume slider to -60 and disable the Sound Cues checkbox.

Before using the Voice Over tool, you need to specify the duration you're recording and the target audio track (where clips recorded with the Voice Over tool will be placed in your sequence).

You can define the recording duration by setting In and Out points or positioning the playhead:

- If both In and Out points are set in the Timeline, they define the duration of the recording. (This is the easiest method.)

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:31:22 00:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Side m Deb Master sh a1 A1 Debra sidew Side master shot jar Debra sic Jacob reag Debra enters cafe Master shot Debra MS a2 A2 Debra sidew Side master shot jar Debra sic Jacob reag Debra enters cafe Master shot Debra MS A3

- If no In point is set, the position of the playhead defines the In point, and recording continues to the Out point.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:08:05 00:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Side m Deb Master sh a1 A1 Debra sidew Side master shot iav Debra sic Jacob reag Debra enters cafe Master shot Debra MS a2 A2 Debra sidew Side master shot iav Debra sic Jacob reag Debra enters cafe Master shot Debra MS A3

- If no Out point is set, the end of the sequence is used, defined by the end of the last clip in the Timeline.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:06:12 00:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Side m Deb Master sh a1 A1 Debra sidew Side master shot iak Debra sic Jacob reag Debra enters cafe Master shot Debra MS a2 A2 Debra sidew Side master shot iak Debra sic Jacob reag Debra enters cafe Master shot Debra MS A3

If Final Cut Pro doesn't have enough available memory to record the duration specified, a message appears when you click the Record button in the Voice Over tab, prompting you to set a shorter recording duration.

Important: Depending on the duration specified, the sync of audio recorded using the Voice Over tool may drift slightly, relative to your sequence's other audio clips. This varies depending on your audio interface and may be approximately one frame every 10 minutes. For the short clips you typically record as part of a narration track, this won't be noticeable.

Audio that you record using the Voice Over tool is placed in the audio track connected to the audio channel 2 Source control.

The following example shows a sequence with one video track and three audio tracks. A video montage is edited onto track V1, with accompanying music edited onto tracks A1 and A2. To record on audio track 3, you need to connect the audio channel 2 Source control to audio track A3.

Before Connect the a2 Source control to the A3 Destination control. After The newly recorded audio clip is placed into track A3.

If the track connected to the audio channel 2 Source control already contains audio, audio recorded with the Voice Over tool is placed in the audio track directly below. If no audio track currently exists below the selected audio channel 2 destination track, one is created.

In the next example, all three audio tracks already have audio edited onto them, and the audio channel 2 Source control is connected to track A3. After using the Voice Over tool, a new track A4 is created, and the new audio clip is placed there.

If another audio clip is already present in the audio track below the track connected to the audio channel 2 Source control, a new audio track is inserted below this track. All previously existing audio tracks below this are moved down to accommodate the new audio track.

In the example below, tracks V1, A1, and A2 contain the video and audio for an interview clip. Tracks A3 and A4 contain a stereo music clip. Suppose you connect the audio channel 2 Source control to track A2. After using the Voice Over tool, a new audio clip is created and placed on track A3, and the music clip is moved to tracks A4 and A5.

Before V1 a1 A1 a2 A2 A3 A4 01:00:41:19 00:00 01:00:00 01:00:14:00 01:00:21:00 01:00:28:00 01:00:35: Interview Interview Interview Interview Interview Interview Interview Interview Interview Music Music Music Music

After The newly recorded audio clip

After you've set up your microphone and audio interface, and the duration and destination audio track are defined, you can record your voiceover.

To record a voiceover (or any other single-channel audio source):

1 Choose Tools > Voice Over.

In the Voice Over tab, the status area is green and displays Ready to Record.

2 Click the Record button in the Voice Over tab.

Once you do this, several things happen before your clip is placed in the Timeline.

Any audio within the defined duration of your sequence that requires rendering is rendered.
The playhead moves back 5 seconds before the specified In point, and a five-second pre-roll plays to prepare you for recording.

The last 3 seconds of this pre-roll are indicated by beeps to give you a timing cue. Also, the entire duration of the pre-roll is indicated by a countdown to 0, along with a progressive change in color from yellow to red in the status area. Even though this countdown happens before the duration you've specified in the Timeline, audio is recorded during this pre-roll to avoid cutting off the first word you say.

Note: During the 5 seconds of pre-roll, audio that occurs before the beginning of the Timeline cannot be recorded.

3 Once the pre-roll has played, begin your voiceover.

The status area is red and displays Recording to indicate that you're recording; a bar graph shows you how much of the specified duration still needs to be recorded.
Fifteen seconds before the end of your recording, you are cued with a single warning beep.
During the last 5 seconds of recording, the status area displays a countdown from 5 to 0, and you hear five beeps, to let you know your time is nearly up. The last beep is longer and has a lower pitch.
Recording continues 2 seconds past the end of your specified Out point to prevent your last word from being cut off. During this time, the status area displays Finishing.
The status area displays Saving while the audio clip is saved to the specified scratch disk.
Finally, the recorded clip is automatically edited into your sequence and the status area displays Ready to Record.

Each time you record a clip using the Voice Over tool, the audio channel 2 destination track automatically moves down one track. You can record multiple takes, one after the other, with the same specified duration in the Timeline. These new audio clips are placed beneath the one previously recorded. Recording multiple takes this way results in a stack of alternate takes, lined up at the same In point of the Timeline. This lets you edit the best parts of multiple takes together to assemble one perfect performance.

RT 01:00:40:18 00:00 01:00:36:00 01:00:14:00 01:00:21:00 01:00:28:00 01:00:35: v1 V1 Interview Interview Interview a1 A1 Interview Interview Interview Narration Voice Over 1 Narration Voice Over 6 Narration Voice Over 7 Narration Voice Over 8 a2 A5 Multiple takes of the same voiceover clip

Note: When recording is finished, the newly recorded audio clip is automatically selected. If you want to record another take, press Control-B to disable this audio clip so it won't play back.

You rarely record your voiceover track in a single take, especially if it includes long stretches of narration. Instead, you may record several takes of a voiceover track, and then edit together the best parts of each take to create your final voiceover track. You can also isolate parts of the first take that you don't like and rerecord just those parts.

For example, suppose you were trying to record a long piece of narration. Instead of rerecording the same clip over and over in an attempt to get a single perfect take, record your first take. If there is any part of it you don't like, simply set new In and Out points isolating that section of your recording. Then record another clip where you narrate just that part.

Eventually you'll have a few different takes, each with a sentence or two from different sections of your narration that you like the best. Combining all of the best parts of these various takes lets you get the best overall performance for your program.

Audio is recorded during the pre- and post-roll each time you use the Voice Over tool, giving you extra audio for trimming at the head and tail. Each clip has a 5-second handle at the head and a 2-second handle at the end. By definition, handles do not appear in the sequence clip, but are visible if you open the clip in the Viewer. In the Viewer, you'll see that the In and Out points for that clip match the beginning and end of the specified recording duration. The extra handles are there if you need to extend the clip head or tail.

Placed in Timeline 5-second pre-roll In point Out point 2-second post-roll

Audio filters are used for a variety of purposes, from audio cleanup to special effects. Filter parameters can be copied, pasted, automated, and adjusted in real time.

This chapter covers the following:

• About Audio Filters (p. 151)
• Overview of Audio Filters (p. 152)
• Working With Audio Filters (p. 159)
• Installing Third-Party Audio Units Filters (p. 173)

The goal of audio mixing and processing is to create a believable sonic environment that is not distracting. Audio filters can help to remove distracting frequencies, reduce loud sounds, and add ambience to a sonic space. Generally, filters are much better at removing components of a mix as opposed to adding something that wasn't in the original recording. An audio engineer with a thorough understanding of how sound works and how filters affect sound can produce excellent results with just a few equalizer and compression filters.

Final Cut Pro includes a set of audio filters that you can use for equalization, compression and expansion, adding reverb, vocal cleanup, and noise removal. Final Cut Pro uses the Mac OS X Audio Units plug-in format.

Audio filter parameters can be adjusted in real time, so you can make changes to a filter's settings while the clip plays back. When the Record Audio Keyframes button in the Audio Mixer is selected, Final Cut Pro records all changes you make to audio filter parameters as keyframes; those keyframes appear in the keyframe graph overlay of the parameter you are adjusting in that clip's Filters tab in the Viewer. For more information, see "Automating Audio Filter Parameters With Keyframes" on page 168.

Filters in Final Cut Pro are always nondestructive, meaning they are applied to clips but not to the media files themselves. You can disable or remove filters at any time, so you can experiment without worrying about altering your media.

The most useful Final Cut Pro audio filters can be separated into four broad categories:

Equalization (EQ)
• Dynamics (compression and expansion)
Noise reduction
Echo and reverb

Note: You can install additional third-party Audio Units plug-ins as needed.

Filter parameters can be viewed and adjusted in the Filters tab in the Viewer. Apply an audio filter to an audio clip, then click the Filters tab. You can also double-click a filter in the Effects tab to view its parameters in the Viewer, but you won't be able to hear any changes you make since the filter is not applied to a clip. For more information about applying filters and adjusting parameters, see "Applying Filters to an Audio Clip" on page 161 and "Making Real-Time Audio Filter Adjustments" on page 166.

An audio equalizer allows you to increase or decrease the strength of an audio signal within selected frequency ranges, or bands. For example, a three-band equalizer may have a gain control for the lows, midrange, and highs, so you can change the sonic "shape" of a sound by turning up some frequencies or reducing others. In general, it is much better to subtract frequencies than to amplify them, as this eliminates the possibility of distortion.

If you find that a sound is lacking “brilliance,” or high-end frequencies, try filtering out some of the bass or midrange frequencies. The overall effect is that the high-end frequencies are stronger than the lower-range frequencies. It’s easy to go too far when amplifying some frequencies, so get in the habit of reducing frequencies first. Particular kinds of sound—men’s voices, women’s voices, tape hiss, and traffic noise—all appear at different frequencies of the audio spectrum. EQ filters can be used for many things, from minimizing background noise in a recording to accentuating a narrator’s voice over background music. EQ filters can also create effects like making a voice sound like it is coming through a telephone or loudspeaker (this is because telephones and loudspeakers generally don’t reproduce the high and low frequencies, only the midrange).

The entire range of human hearing, from 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz, can be broken into a spectrum of frequency bands: low, midrange, and high.

Note: Different devices define these ranges differently; the following ranges are approximate.

Audible bass frequencies start around 20 Hz, though many speakers cannot reproduce frequencies this low. This is an example of where audio meters can be deceiving because the meters may show very high signals but the speakers are not capable of making sounds that low. The lowest frequencies are felt as well as heard, and require the most power to amplify. Often, subwoofer speakers are used just to handle the low frequencies in the mix (the 0.1 channel in a 5.1 surround sound mix is a dedicated low-frequency effects channel).

If you are trying to increase the impact of sounds like kick drums or explosions, add gain around 30 Hz or so. Filtering out 60–80 Hz removes a lot of low end noise and rumble from wind or microphone handling. Between 150–250 Hz, you can add "warmth" to the audio signal (or subtract it).

Humans are most sensitive to this part of the audio spectrum. Most of the frequencies that make speech intelligible are in this range. You can make audio tracks stand out more in the mix by subtly increasing the frequencies in this range. At the top of this range, around 4 kHz, is where vocal sibilance occurs. Too much sibilance can be grating, but a little bit can make the voice sound crisp and detailed. If your track has too much sibilance, try reducing the 4 kHz range.

The high end of the frequency spectrum adds “brightness” or “brilliance” to a mix, but no longer affects factors such as impact (bass) or speech intelligibility. High-end frequencies can be grating, so don’t boost these frequencies too much.

All of the Final Cut Pro EQ filters use a combination of three controls. This example looks at the Parametric Equalizer filter:

Parametric Equalizer
Frequency	1000
Q	3
Gain(dB)	0

Frequency: This slider lets you select the audio frequency you want to boost or attenuate. The lowest available frequency varies from 10 Hz for the High Pass filter, to 80 Hz for the 3 Band Equalizer. The highest available frequency for all EQ filters is 20,000 Hz.
Q: This setting, when available, allows you to select the range of frequencies affected. A lower number means a wider frequency range is affected.
Gain: This setting controls how much you'll be boosting or attenuating the specified frequency range.

An audio compressor reduces dynamic range by attenuating parts of a signal above a certain threshold. Compression is a very important tool because most listening environments (movie theaters, home stereos, and televisions) have to compete with a certain amount of ambient noise that must be overcome by the quietest sounds in your mix. The problem is that if you simply bring up the level of your audio mix to make the quiet sounds louder, the loud sounds get too loud and distort. By reducing the level of the loud sounds, you can increase the overall level of the mix, resulting in higher levels for the quiet parts of the mix and the same levels for the loud parts.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Compression - 1

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Before compression

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Compression - 2

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After compression

A compressor watches the incoming audio signal and reduces the signal by a specified ratio whenever the signal is too strong (as determined by the threshold). Any audio signal below the threshold is unaffected. Since louder parts get quieter and quiet parts stay the same, the overall difference between quiet and loud sounds is reduced.

The Final Cut Pro Compressor/Limiter filter allows you to adjust the dynamic range of an audio clip so that the loudest parts of a clip are reduced while the quieter parts remain the same.

The Compressor/Limiter filter has five controls:

Compressor/Limiter
Threshold(dB)		-40
Ratio		1
Attack Time		5
Release Time		100
Preserve Volume

Threshold: This parameter defines how loud the signal must be before the compressor is applied. This is the most important setting you need to adjust.
Ratio: This slider determines how much compression is applied. Don't overdo the compression; a little goes a long way. Too much compression can reduce the dynamic range to a flat, unvarying signal.
Attack Time: This setting determines how quickly the filter reacts to changes in volume (the default is usually acceptable, but you may want to experiment).
Release Time: This defines how slowly the filter lets go of the change in volume that it made (again, the default should work well, but feel free to experiment).
Preserve Volume: Compensates for the attenuation of the clip caused by compression by raising the level of the entire clip by a uniform amount.

An expander increases the dynamic range of an audio signal by attenuating (reducing the gain of) the signal when it drops below a certain level (the threshold). This has the effect of making relatively quiet portions of the audio signal even more quiet proportionally, so the difference between the loud and quiet parts of the audio are increased.

An expander makes quieter portions of audio even quieter by decreasing the volume if it drops below a specified level. The lower a level is relative to the specified volume threshold, the more it is decreased, depending on the Ratio setting. An expander with a very high ratio value is called a noise gate, and is used to make the level of all sound below the specified volume threshold as close to silence as possible.

Unlike a compressor, which affects the loud parts of a signal, expansion affects the quiet parts of the signal:

Threshold: This slider defines how low the lowest portion of the clip can be before expansion is applied. This is the first setting you'll adjust.
Ratio: This affects how much expansion is applied to boost the signal.
Attack Time: This defines how quickly the filter reacts to changes in volume (the default is usually fine, but you may want to experiment).
Release Time: This defines how slowly the filter lets go of the change in volume it made (the default is usually fine, but you may want to experiment).

Final Cut Pro has three noise reduction filters for use in specific situations:

Hum Remover
Vocal DeEsser
Vocal DePopper

The Hum Remover lets you get rid of “cycle hum” that may have been introduced into your audio recording by power lines crossing your cables, or by a shorted ground wire in your setup. Hum from power sources generally sounds like a low buzzing and has a frequency that corresponds to the electrical power in your country (for example, countries in North America use 60 Hz AC power, while most countries in Europe use 50 Hz power).

Hum Remover Frequency 60 Q 10 Gain(dB) -60 1st Harmonic ✓ 2nd Harmonic ✓ 3rd Harmonic ✓ 4th Harmonic ✓ 5th Harmonic ✓

Frequency: This slider lets you select the frequency of hum that this filter will attempt to remove. Different countries use different power frequencies, so you need to specify exactly what frequency to tune out. In general, most AC (alternating current) operates at either 50 or 60 Hz.
Q: This slider allows you to select a range of frequencies to filter. If the important elements of your recording overlap into the frequencies that are being filtered out, you might want to narrow this value somewhat.
Gain: This filter lets you set how much of the signal you're attenuating. By default, it's set to the maximum -60 dB.
Harmonics: These options allow you to attenuate additional frequencies that may be introduced into your signal as a result of the primary cycle hum. These frequencies are automatically derived by the filter, and you can specify up to five.

The Vocal DeEsser allows you to attenuate the “ess” sounds produced by an actor with a “sibilant” voice (that is, someone whose “ess” sounds are very pronounced), or by a microphone that accentuates high frequencies. This filter is essentially a specialized EQ that reduces, but does not eliminate, these high frequency “ess” sound components.

The Vocal DePopper lets you attenuate the harsh "P" sounds that result from puffs of breath bursting into the microphone. Proper miking should prevent this in the first place, and if you have just one or two pops, you can use keyframes to reduce the level of the frames with the pop. (See "Example: Setting Subframe Audio Level Keyframes to Eliminate Clicks" on page 129.)

Still, if you have a clip with a lot of pops, this filter may reduce these to an acceptable level.

Two of the “effects” filters you’ll use most frequently are the Echo and Reverb filters. You can use Reverb to add the reverberation effects of a particular acoustic space to a sound that was recorded in isolation. Be careful not to add too much reverb because it muddies the clarity of the sound (especially dialogue) and, more often than not, it can sound artificial. When possible, it’s best to rerecord dialogue in the same, or similar, environment as the original production.

Echo filter settings Effect Mix 50 Effect Level (dB) 0 Brightness 0 Feedback (mSec) 900 Delay Time (mSec) 100 Reverb filter settings Effect Mix 50 Effect Level (dB) 0 Brightness 0 Type Room (Medium)

Both echo and reverb filter settings are described below:

Effect Mix: This slider determines how much of the "dry," or original, sound from the audio clip is mixed with the affected audio. By keyframing this parameter over time, you can make it sound as if someone is walking from far away in a room (where there would be more reverb) toward the microphone (where there would be less reverb the closer they came).
Effect Level: This slider defines how loud the reverb or echo effect will be.
Brightness: This slider affects the quality of the reverb or echo. Boosting this parameter makes the effect seem more intense.
Type: This pop-up menu (Reverb only) lets you specify the kind of acoustic environment the filter will attempt to reproduce.

Room (Small) Room (Medium) Room (Large) Ambient Room Hall (Small) Hall (Medium) Hall (Large) Tunnel Thin Plate (Short) Thin Plate (Medium) Thin Plate (Long) Delayed Plate (Short) Delayed Plate (Medium) Delayed Plate (Long) Fat Plate (Medium) Fat Plate (Long)

Feedback: This slider (Echo only) affects how long the echoes produced by the filter will last. As they repeat, they'll interact with themselves to produce a complex series of echo effects.
Delay Time: This slider (Echo only) lets you determine the pause, in milliseconds, between each echo. The longer the pause, the bigger the apparent space of the environment.

Filters can be added to any audio clip in a project. You can add filters individually or in groups. When you add filters to a clip, they appear in the Filters tab of the Viewer when that clip is opened in the Viewer. How they appear depends on whether the audio clip in the Viewer is a stereo pair:

- If the audio clip in the Viewer is a stereo pair, every filter you add is applied to both channels equally, and only one set of controls appears.

Viewer: Really Important Audio in Movie of the Week Stereo 1 Filters Name Parameters Nav 00:00 01:00:01:00 Stereo 1 Filters ✓ 3 Band Equalizer Low Frequency 100 Low Gain(dB) 11 Mid Frequency 2500 Mid Gain(dB) -14 High Frequency 10000 High Gain(dB) 4

- If the audio clip in the Viewer is not a stereo pair, every filter you add is applied to both channels, but each channel can have individual settings.

Viewer: Untitled 0001 from Dialogue Sequence Mono 1 Mono 2 Filters Name Parameters Nav 01:00:21:00 Mono 1 Filters ✓ AUPeakLimiter attack time -1 0 decay time -1 0 pregain -1 -27 Mono 2 Filters ✓ AUPeakLimiter attack time -1 0.03 decay time -1 0.02 pregain -1 29

All filters have several controls in common:

Enable checkbox and name of filter Parameter pop-up menu Parameter disclosure triangle Parametric Equalizer Frequency 1000 Q 3 Gain(dB) 0 Reset button

Parameter disclosure triangle: This allows you to show or hide a filter's parameters.
Enable checkbox: This allows you to enable or disable filters without removing them from the clip. You can use it to disable filters temporarily to preview a different filter.
Parameter pop-up menu: Allows you to enable and disable specific settings for a filter.
Reset button: Resets a filter's settings to the default values.

Each filter also has a unique set of controls. These controls usually include sliders and numeric fields that let you adjust the filter's parameters.

Parametric Equalizer Frequency 1000 Q 3 Gain(dB) 0 Sliders Text and numeric entry fields

Applying audio filters to clips in Final Cut Pro is easy.

To apply an audio filter to a clip in a sequence, do one of the following:

- Drag an audio filter from the Effects tab in the Browser to a clip in a sequence in the Timeline.

If you drag the audio filter to a video clip, it's applied to any audio items linked to that clip.

- Select one or more clips in a sequence in the Timeline, choose Effects > Audio Filters, then choose a filter from the submenu.

The filter is applied to all the clips you selected. If you selected video clips, the filter is applied to any audio items linked to those clips.

If a sequence clip is open in the Viewer, you can:

Drag a filter from the Effects tab of the Browser directly to the Viewer.
Choose a filter from the Audio Filters submenu of the Effects menu. The filter is applied to the clip in the Viewer.

If you apply more than one filter to an audio clip, the filters are applied serially. In other words, the first audio filter is applied, then the resulting audio signal is fed through the next audio filter, and so on.

If you apply multiple filters to a clip, the order in which they appear in the Filters tab for that clip in the Viewer determines how the clip sounds. Although the initial order of filters in the tab depends on when they were applied, you can change the order at any time.

To apply multiple filters to a clip in a sequence, do one of the following:

Continue to apply more filters to the clip, one at a time, using any of the methods described previously.
Shift-click, or Command-click, multiple filters in the Effects tab of the Browser, then drag them all to one or more selected clips in a sequence in the Timeline.

Filters are applied to clips in the order they appear in the Effects tab.

Master sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:05:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:15:00 Debra sidewalking Side master shot jacob MS Debra sidewalking Side master shot jacob MS Debra sidewalking Side master shot jacob MS Debra sidewalking Side master shot jacob MS Music 1 Music 1 Music 1 Music 1 Select several filters in the Browser, ... then drag them to the Timeline.

Filters can also be copied, along with all of their settings, and pasted into one or more clips in the same sequence, or in another sequence.

When you copy a clip in the Timeline, you also copy all of that clip's settings. These settings include filters that have been applied to the clip. Instead of pasting the clip, you can paste only that clip's filters into other clips that you've selected. To do this, you use the Paste Attributes command.

1 Select a clip in the Timeline with a filter applied to it.
2 Copy the clip.
3 Select one or more clips in the Timeline to apply the filter to.
4 Choose Edit > Paste Attributes (or press Option-V).
5 In the Paste Attributes dialog, select these options:

Scale Attribute Times: Shrinks or stretches the keyframes of your copied clip attributes to fit the duration of longer clips you may paste them into.
Audio Attributes: Determines which attributes of the audio clip are pasted.

- Filters: Applies the parameter values and keyframes you have set for all filters in the clip you copied.

Paste Attributes Attributes from Side master shot jacob MS: ✓ Scale Attribute Times Video Attributes: Content Basic Motion Crop Distort Opacity Drop Shadow Motion Blur Filters Speed Clip Settings (capture) Audio Attributes: Content Levels Pan Filters Cancel OK

Warning: Pasting attributes into clips that have different frame rates will produce erratic results.

6 Click OK.

The filters are pasted into the clips you selected.

Once a filter has been applied to an audio clip in a sequence, you can use the Clip Keyframes control in the Timeline to add additional space underneath each audio and video track in the Timeline to view audio filters that have been applied to your clips.

- Click the Clip Keyframes control in the lower-left corner of the Timeline.

Clip Keyframes control

This area can be divided into three parts for audio tracks in the Timeline.

Filter bar: If a clip has one or more audio filters applied, a green bar appears in this space for the duration of that clip. If keyframes are added to a filter in a given clip, those keyframes appear as diamonds on this bar, where they can be edited or moved using the Selection tool.
Keyframe editor: The keyframe editor shows you keyframe graphs for audio filters applied to clips in your sequence, identical to those found in the keyframe graph area of the Motion and Filters tabs of the Viewer. You can edit the keyframes of audio filter parameters in the keyframe editor using the Selection and Pen tools. The keyframe editor can only display the keyframe graph of one filter parameter at a time. You can choose the one you want to see by Control-clicking the keyframe editor and choosing an audio filter parameter from the shortcut menu.
Speed indicators: Speed indicators show you the speed of clips in your sequence using tic marks. The spacing and color of these tic marks indicate the speed and playback direction of your clips. For more information about viewing speed indicators while making speed changes to clips in a sequence, see “Learning to Read Timeline Speed Indicators” on page 320.

The Clip Keyframes area for audio tracks in the Timeline can be customized separately from the Clip Keyframes area for video tracks.

To view the filter bar in the Clip Keyframes area:

■ Control-click the Keyframe Editor button, then choose Audio > Filter Bar.

To view the keyframe editor in the Clip Keyframes area:

■ Control-click the Keyframe Editor button, then choose Audio > Keyframe Editor.

To view the speed indicators in the Clip Keyframes area:

■ Control-click the Keyframe Editor button, choose Audio, then choose Speed Indicators from the submenu.

For more information about customizing the clip keyframes area, see "About the Keyframe Graph Area" on page 283.

To modify filters in a sequence, open the clip to which the filter applies into the Viewer.

Note: Filters can be added to clips even if the clips aren't in a sequence. If you want to modify or remove a filter for a clip in a sequence, make sure the sequence clip is open in the Viewer, not the master clip from the Browser.

If your sequence clip is already open in the Viewer, click the Filters tab.
- Double-click the filter bar in the keyframes area of a clip in the Timeline. The clip opens in the Viewer with the Filters tab in front.
If a sequence clip was open in the Viewer with its Filters tab in the front, a new sequence clip opened in the Viewer will also appear with its Filters tab in front.

Using the Filters tab, you can make adjustments to the parameters of individual filters. Since filters vary widely, see "Applying Filters to an Audio Clip" on page 161 for general guidelines on how to use them.

In addition to adjusting individual settings for each filter, you can also enable and disable the filters without removing them from your clip, rearrange their order to modify their effects, and remove them from your clips.

- Click the checkbox by the filter name in the Filters tab. If you uncheck the box, the filter is disabled, but not removed from the clip. This is a useful way to preview different combinations of filters, without constantly applying and deleting the same filters.

Since filters are applied serially, if you apply multiple filters to a clip, the order in which they appear is very important. (See "Applying Filters to an Audio Clip" on page 161.)

- Drag a filter in the Filters tab to change its place in the list of filters applied to that clip.

Note: To make it easier to drag the filter, click the disclosure triangle to the left of the filter's name to hide the filter's parameters.

- Select a filter in the Effects tab, then choose Edit > Clear (or press the Delete key).

- Click the filter category bar in the Filters tab to select all of the filters applied to a clip, then choose Edit > Clear (or press the Delete key).

You may find it easier to make adjustments to an audio filter while the clip it's applied to plays. This way, you can hear how the adjustment sounds as you modify the filter's parameter.

1 In the Timeline, double-click the sequence clip with the audio filter you want to modify to open it in the Viewer.
2 In the Viewer, click the Filter tab to see that clip's audio filter parameters.
3 Move the playhead to the position in your clip where you want to make a filter parameter change.
4 Play the sequence.
5 Modify any audio filter parameter controls you wish.
You hear your changes immediately.
6 When you've finished making changes, stop playback.

Once you release the mouse button, your change is applied to the filter parameter.

Ordinarily, playing back your sequence clip in the Viewer plays back your entire clip, from the starting position of the playhead forward. If you instead want to loop a limited section of your clip as you adjust a filter's parameters, you can enable Looped Playback, set In and Out points to determine how much of your clip plays back, and use the Play In to Out command to loop playback.

1 With your clip opened in the Viewer, set In and Out points in the keyframe graph area of the Filters tab.

Viewer: MS Diane Shot 5 in Music Video Name Parameters Nav 25:00 00:04:30 05 Video Filters Stereo 1 Filters 3 Band Equaliz Low Frequency 100 Low Gain(dB) 0 Mid Frequency 2500 Mid Gain(dB) 0 High Frequency 10000 High Gain(dB) 0 In and Out points in the keyframe graph area

2 In the keyframe graph ruler, move the playhead to the In point.
3 Choose View > Loop Playback to enable looped playback.
4 To loop playback, choose Mark > Play > In to Out (or press Shift-).

Playback loops repeatedly between the In and Out points, and you can make real-time changes to any desired audio filter parameters.

To stop playback, press the Space bar or the J key, or click the Stop button in the Canvas.

As long as the Record Keyframes checkbox at the top of the Audio Mixer is selected, keyframes are recorded whenever an audio filter is adjusted during playback.

Automation recording begins when you position the pointer on an audio filter control and press the mouse button, and continues until you release the mouse button. The number of recorded keyframes depends on which option you select in the Record Audio Keyframes pop-up menu in the Editing tab of the User Preferences window.

1 Choose Tools > Audio Mixer (or press Option-6).
2 Select the Record Audio Keyframes button at the top of the Audio Mixer.

Tip: You can enable or disable the Record Audio Keyframes button during playback, if necessary.

3 With your clip opened in the Viewer, move the playhead to the area of the keyframe graph area in the Filters tab where you want to record audio filter automation.

It's a good idea to start a few seconds before the section you'll be mixing, to give yourself time to get ready.

4 Begin playback.
5 Position the pointer over the audio filter control you want to adjust, and press the mouse button to begin automation recording.
6 Hold down the mouse button to continue recording automation, and move the control you've selected to adjust the audio filter parameter in real time while playback continues.
7 When you've finished, release the mouse button to stop automation recording.

The sequence continues to play, and the audio filter controls return to the previously set levels.

8 If there are any other audio filter controls you want to adjust at this time, repeat steps 4 through 6.
9 When you've finished making adjustments, stop playback.

After you've finished adjusting one audio filter control, you can move the playhead back to the beginning to record automation for other controls. The changes you've already made play back, so that you can make further adjustments in relation to those you've already set. In this way, you can continue layering automation using different audio filter controls until you've adjusted the filter to your satisfaction.

Note: You can also make changes to clips with filter parameters for which you've already recorded keyframes. New changes made to audio filter controls overwrite previously recorded keyframes.

You can add keyframes for any audio filter parameter just as you can with video parameters. Unlike video parameters, you can add keyframes to an audio filter parameter during playback as long as the Record Audio Keyframes button is enabled in the Audio Mixer window.

To the right of each control is a set of keyframe controls. Like volume levels or stereo pan, filters can be keyframed to change their effect on your clip over time.

Keyframe navigation buttons Keyframe display area viewer: Carmen MCU from Carmen Getit Solo Video Stereo 1 Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 05:00 01:00:10:00 Video Filters Stereo 1 Filters AUParametricEQ Center frequency 2000 Q 10 gain 15 Keyframe button 20 -20 Section of clip currently used Enable checkbox Name bar

For a detailed description of these controls, see "Viewing and Adjusting a Filter's Parameters" on page 192.

You can add keyframes to audio filter parameters using the Selection and Pen tools, just as you would adjust video filters.

To set a keyframe while playback is paused, do one of the following:

■ Move the playhead in the keyframe display area of the Viewer to the time where you want to put a keyframe, and click the Keyframe button for the parameter you want to set.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Adjusting Audio Filter Parameters - 1

Click here to create a keyframe for that parameter.

- With the Option key held down, move the pointer over a parameter overlay. When the pointer turns into a Pen tool, click the parameter overlay to add a keyframe to the overlay at that point.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Adjusting Audio Filter Parameters - 2

The Pen tool lets you add a keyframe.

The keyframe appears as a small diamond on top of the overlay.

To set additional keyframes for a parameter while playback is paused:

1 Move the playhead to another point in the Viewer's keyframe display area where you want to set a keyframe.

2 Do one of the following:

Drag the parameter slider to set a new keyframe with that value.
Type a number into the appropriate field to set a new keyframe at that value.
Click the appropriate keyframe button to add a keyframe to the overlay of that parameter at the overlay's current value.
With the Option key held down, click anywhere on a parameter overlay with the Pen tool to add a keyframe at that point without changing the value of the overlay. You can add as many keyframes as you want by clicking repeatedly with the Option key held down.

The new keyframe appears as a small diamond on top of the overlay.

1 In the Viewer or Timeline, move the playhead to the area of your sequence where you want to record keyframes.

It's a good idea to start a few seconds before the section you'll actually be mixing, to give yourself time to get ready.

Note: You can only record keyframes in an audio filter parameter during playback if the Record Audio Keyframes button is enabled in the Audio Mixer window.

2 Begin playback of your sequence.
3 As your sequence plays, position the pointer over the relevant audio filter control in the Filters tab of the Viewer, and press the mouse button to begin adjusting that parameter.
4 When you've finished making a particular adjustment, release the mouse button to insert an additional keyframe at the position of the playhead.

The sequence continues to play.

5 If there are any other audio filter parameters you want to adjust at this time, repeat steps 3 and 4.
6 When you've finished making adjustments, stop playback.

To move the playhead in the Viewer from one keyframe to another, do one of the following:

Click the left or right keyframe navigation button for a parameter to move the playhead to the next keyframe to the left or right of the current position of the playhead.
Press Option-K to move the playhead to the next keyframe to the left of the playhead.
Press Shift-K to move the playhead to the next keyframe to the right of the playhead.

To adjust the value of a single keyframe, do one of the following:

Move the playhead to the keyframe you want to adjust, then adjust the appropriate parameter control to a new value.
Move the playhead to the keyframe you want to adjust, type a new value in the appropriate field, and press the Return key.
Move the pointer over the keyframe you want to modify. When the pointer becomes a crosshair pointer, drag the keyframe up or down to change its level, or left or right to change its location.

To adjust a section of an overlay in the middle of four keyframes:

- Move the pointer over this section of overlay. When the pointer turns into the Adjust Line Segment pointer, drag just that area up or down to modify it.

The rest of the overlay before and after the four keyframes remains untouched.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - To record keyframes for a parameter during playback: - 1

To move a keyframe forward or backward in time:

- Move the pointer over the keyframe you want to move. When the pointer becomes a crosshair pointer, drag the keyframe forward or backward along the overlay.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - To record keyframes for a parameter during playback: - 2

As you drag, a box displays the timecode duration of the change you're making.

To delete a keyframe, do one of the following:

Move the playhead to the keyframe you want to delete, then click that parameter's keyframe button to remove it.
Move the pointer over the keyframe you want to delete. When it becomes a crosshair pointer, drag the keyframe up or down out of the keyframe display area. When the pointer turns into a small trash can, release the mouse button.

Trash can icon

■ Control-click the keyframe you want to delete, then choose Clear from the shortcut menu.

Clear Smooth

- Hold down the Option key and move the pointer over an existing keyframe. When the pointer changes to the Delete Point tool, click an existing keyframe with the Delete Point tool to delete that keyframe.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - To record keyframes for a parameter during playback: - 5

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Simple green line diagram with diamond markers and a central triangle, no text or symbols present

To delete all keyframes:

- Click that filter's Reset button to clear all keyframes from all parameters for that filter and restore the parameters to the default values.

Reset button

If you've set up a filter with parameters that you know you'll want to use again in the future, you can save that filter as a favorite for easy access.

Select the filtered clip in the Timeline, then choose Effects > Make Favorite Effect (or press Option-F).
Drag the filter you want to save from the Filters tab in the Viewer to the Favorites bin in the Effects tab in the Browser.

You can apply favorites in the same way as any other filter. Favorite audio filters appear in the Favorites bin in the Effects tab, and they also appear in the Audio Filters submenu of the Effects menu.

1 Select the filter in the Favorites bin of the Effects tab in the Browser.
2 Do one of the following:

- Press the Delete key.

- Choose Edit > Clear.

If you install third-party Audio Units filters, they will be available to all applications on your computer that are capable of using them, including Final Cut Pro. You only need to install them in one location.

Before purchasing third-party Audio Units filters for use with Final Cut Pro, check with the third-party manufacturer to make sure the filters are compatible. Currently, Final Cut Pro works only with Audio Units filters that are capable of accepting mono audio as input and can output a mono signal. Also, Audio Units filters that don't support certain properties required by Final Cut Pro for real-time playback may require rendering before playback.

For information on how to install third-party audio filters, see the information that came with the filters.

If you open a project that uses a filter that is not installed on your computer, Final Cut Pro warns you that the filter is missing. If you install the filter and open Final Cut Pro, the warning goes away. Clips that have missing filters applied still play back in the Timeline, but the effects are missing.

This chapter covers the following:

Learning to Describe Sound Accurately (p. 175)
• Efficiently Using the Frequency Spectrum (p. 175)
• Tips for Cutting Dialogue (p. 176)
• Tips for Cutting Music (p. 179)
Organizing Your Tracks (p. 181)

Even if you aren't destined to be a full-time sound designer, it is important to be able to communicate about sound with sound designers and engineers. Practice verbally describing what you hear, but avoid abstract adjectives whenever possible. Try to be as specific as possible. Instead of asking for "outdoor sounds", try "crickets near dusk, and an occasional car passing on a distant highway". Instead of saying "city sounds", try "blaring horns, footsteps on pavement, and an occasional helicopter sound." These are the details that make a sound mix convincing.

It's fairly obvious that the most important sound in the mix should have the highest level, but there are other methods for blending without increasing loudness. Most sounds occupy a particular frequency range, so if you mix sounds in different ranges, you can still maintain clarity without too much level adjustment. Too many sounds in the same range can create cacophony.

You can use equalizers to shape sound, making "holes" in the used frequency spectrum in which you can then place other sounds. For example, if you are trying to make dialogue in the 1–3 kHz range more audible over existing background sound, you could try filtering the background sound to reduce the 1–3 kHz range instead of reducing the level of the entire track. Equalization allows you to reduce the volume of sounds only at selected frequencies, making the mix clearer in that part of the spectrum.

Use cross fades to smooth out problem edits.

If you're having trouble finding an edit point between two audio clips that sounds smooth, try using a transition instead of a straight cut. More information on audio transitions can be found in Volume II, Chapter 21, "Adding Transitions."

MCU Rothchild Cross Fade (+3dB) Ester CU Ester CU

If there is a popping or clicking sound at an edit point that you can't get rid of, you can eliminate it by opening the clip in the Viewer, setting audio level keyframes within the frame with the clicking, and fading those few audio samples all the way down to -60 dB. See "Example: Setting Subframe Audio Level Keyframes to Eliminate Clicks" on page 129 for instructions.

Viewer: Really Important Audio in Movie of the Week Stereo 1 Filters 00:00:01:12 Off 01:00:00:00 Level 0 dB Pan -1 01:00:00:06 01:00:00:08 01: Shows how you can eliminate unwanted clicks at edit points

Use keyframes to eliminate microphone pops in a voiceover recording.

Although you can use the Vocal DePopper filter in extreme problem cases, if you just have one or two pops in your audio resulting from words with the letter P, you can get rid of them by opening the clip in the Viewer, zooming in on the P sound, and setting four keyframes to lower the audio level and soften the sound.

Use room tone to fill in audio gaps in a scene.

When you edit dialogue, any part of a scene that doesn't have dialogue or clean source audio should be replaced with room tone from that scene, as described in Volume II, Chapter 17, "Audio Editing Basics." This includes the beginning and the end of a scene, even if nobody's talking. If room tone only happens while people are speaking, it will sound odd. The entire scene should have the same background noise.

If someone mumbles a single word, salvage the rest of the take.

If someone messes up part or all of a word, either by mumbling or swallowing part of it, you can sometimes take part or all of another instance of that word, or of another word that has the sound you need, and use it to replace part or all of the misspoken word.

For example, suppose an actor was supposed to say, "Get those cats out of that tree," and instead said, "Get dose cats out of that tree," accidentally swallowing the "th" sound in the word "those." If you need to use that take, you could copy the "th" sound from the word "that" and paste it over the botched beginning of the word "dose." The change is so small that nobody will notice the difference. The result in your sequence would look something like this:

"Cats" Take 2 "Cats" Take 2 "Cats" Take 2 "Cats" Take 2 "Cats"

When you do this kind of edit, watch out for the beginnings and endings of words.

Sometimes people run words together if they speak quickly. If you're replacing a word in clip 1 with the same word from clip 2, make sure the sound that comes before the new word in clip 2 is the same as the sound that comes before the word it's replacing in clip 1.

Cut away to another image to smooth cuts in dialogue.

If you need to remove a word or phrase from someone's speech, you can use a cutaway shot or B-roll footage at the same point. This allows you to change the audio without viewers noticing an obvious jump cut.

One reason shots of the interviewer are included in documentary-style programs is to give the editor the freedom to edit the speaker's dialogue without introducing a jump cut in the picture. That way, if the person on camera says the same thing twice, you can cut it out without the audience's knowing and make the subject sound better.

You can also do this in narrative programs. If you decide to rearrange an actor's lines by adding or removing dialogue, you can cut to a reaction shot of the person who's listening to smooth your changes to the speaker's audio.

As long as the speaker is off camera, you can do other things as well. For example, you can easily change the pacing of what's being said, making the sentence sound more or less dramatic. The key is to have footage you can cut away to that will seem plausible. An audience shot or another actor listening are two examples of plausible cutaway shots.

Remember, if you create any gaps as a result of editing your audio, fill them in with room tone.

Sometimes you'll have multiple takes of a particular shot, each with something good in it. For example, say you have a series of takes of an actor saying "Wow! That's a big piece of pie!"

Each take is shot from a slightly different angle, and there's one visual take that you like more than the others, even though the dialogue in it isn't that great. In another take, the actor said the word "wow" really well. A third take has the best version of the line "That's a big piece of pie!" If the actor was good and the pacing of each of these takes is roughly the same, it's fairly easy to combine all three clips into one good take.

"Wow, what a big..." (take 11) "Wow, what a big..." (take 11) Wow! (take 2) "What a big piece of pie!" (take 47) Wow! (take 2) "What a big piece of pie!" (take 47)

People use different intonations as they speak a sentence, and it's important to listen for this. Sometimes, you'll be unable to combine two sentences because they won't sound right together.

For example, suppose you have two clips of someone talking. In one clip the actor says, "I'm going to throw that suitcase out the window!" In a second clip, he says "Should I put the box in the closet?" You want to cut from the actor to a shot of the closet when he says "that suitcase" so you can combine the line "I'm going to throw that suitcase" with "in the closet." Unfortunately, the second sentence is a question, so the two pieces of dialogue don't really sound right together. Since the difference is jarring, you'll have to try something else.

If you're cutting from one clip to another, but there's a loud sound right at the edit point, such as a car or a plane passing, you can edit in sound to mask the cut. You won't be able to eliminate the noise, but if you take another car or plane sound effect that sounds similar to the noise at your edit point, you can edit in just enough of the sound effect in an adjacent audio track to complete the noise of the car or plane passing that was cut off by your edit. You'll need to play with the levels, mixing up the sound effect prior to the edit point and mixing it down afterward, but you'll be able to mask it so that the cut sounds completely natural.

If you want to replace the sound of a door slamming in your source audio track with a more dramatic door-slam sound effect, you can easily and quickly line up the new sound effect waveform with the old one by doing a replace edit, so that the new sound is perfectly in sync.

Use the natural beginnings and endings of music clips for your edits.

Instead of fading a piece of music in and out of a sequence at random points, try matching specific parts of the music with parts of the video clips in the sequence for a dramatic impact. Then, at the points where you need to start and end this music in your sequence, edit in the beginning and the ending from that track, lining them up to match the rhythm and melody of the part of the track that you're using.

Using a music track's natural beginning and end sounds much better than just cutting into the middle of it, and you can usually create a series of edits using different pieces of the same musical track to make it work.

Use subframe syncing to keep music on the beat.

Since music has a consistent rhythm, inconsistencies in the rhythm caused by edits to a music track can be painfully obvious. Since one-frame increments are rarely detailed enough to ensure perfect sync of rhythm in a track, use subframe syncing for each segment that you edit to make sure the edit points between two clips from the same song are in rhythm.

Checkerboard the audio segments you're using to create better cross fading.

Instead of using cross fades to transition between two edited clips from the same music track, edit them together across multiple tracks in your sequence:

Now, you can use the volume level overlay to create cross fades that are as long as you need, using whichever shape will make the transition from one clip to the next least noticeable.

When you cut from a picture to music, don't always cut on the beat.

Sometimes, lining up a video edit on a significant beat in the music can have fantastic results. Sometimes, however, it's overused. Especially in music videos, remember to make some cuts that don't match the beat of the music. Otherwise, your edits will be predictable, and ultimately tedious, to the viewer.

As you edit audio into your sequences, it's important to keep your tracks organized. Not only will this make it easier for you to keep your tracks straight when you edit new clips in, it will make your job much easier when it's time to mix your tracks together.

The Audio Mixer is easiest to use when you organize the audio clips in your edited sequences based on their type. For example, put all sync-sound dialogue clips into one group of tracks, background ambiences in another group of tracks, sound effects in another group of tracks, and music in a different group of tracks.

You might put one actor's voice on track A1, and another actor's voice on track A2. Narration recorded with the Voice Over tool might go on track A3. Background ambience clips such as wind and rain might go on tracks A4 and A5. Sound effects could go on tracks A6, A7, and A8. Finally, four tracks for overlapping stereo music clips would be dedicated to tracks A9, A10, A11, and A12.

If you're working on a project that may be distributed to an international audience, you should also keep your final mix separated into D, M, and E stems (dialogue, music, and effects). This will allow foreign distributors to dub over the voices of your actors without losing the music, ambience, and effects that you've edited into your program.

Categories of audio tracks
Dialogue	This includes most of the audio that was captured with your video. Whether or not you place each character's lines on a separate dialogue track is between you and your audio editor.
Voiceover	Narration should be put on a separate track from dialogue, as it will probably have different EQ settings.
Music	Stereo music from any source could use up to four tracks, if you're doing complicated music edits or cross fades.
Ambience	Ambient tracks include background tones, atmospheric sound effects, and possibly room tone.
Sound effects	Effects include material from effects libraries as well as effects clips you record yourself. If you've edited in Foley effects, they should occupy a separate set of audio tracks.

Learn how to use the powerful effects capabilities of Final Cut Pro to enhance your project. Add filters, create motion effects, generate titles, composite graphics together, and color correct your footage.

Chapter 11

Video Filters

Chapter 12

Changing Motion Parameters

Chapter 13

Adjusting Parameters for Keyframed Effects

Chapter 14

Reusing Effect and Motion Parameters

Chapter 15

Previewing Effects and Comparing Frames

Chapter 16

Changing Clip Speed and Time Remapping

Chapter 17

Working With Still Images and Photographs

Chapter 18

Compositing and Layering

Chapter 19

Keying, Mattes, and Masks

Chapter 20

Color Correcting Clips

Chapter 21

Using Built-in Generated Clips

Chapter 22

Creating Titles

This chapter covers the following:

• Different Ways to Use Filters (p. 185)
- Applying a Filter to a Clip (p. 186)
- Applying Multiple Filters to Clips (p. 190)
- Viewing and Adjusting a Filter's Parameters (p. 192)
- Displaying Filter Bars in the Timeline (p. 199)
- Enabling and Rearranging Filters (p. 200)
- Copying and Pasting a Clip's Filters (p. 201)
- Removing Filters From Clips (p. 202)
• Using After Effects Filters (p. 202)
• Video Filters Available in Final Cut Pro (p. 203)

Filters allow you to modify and enhance clips in various ways. You can:

- Adjust a clip's image quality: Use color correction filters to adjust specific qualities of your clip, such as color, brightness and contrast, saturation, and sharpness. These filters allow you to compensate for mistakes in exposure by adjusting the color balance and exposure of clips after shooting. You can fine-tune the clips in your edited sequence, making sure that the color and exposure of all the clips in a scene match as closely as possible. You can also use color correction filters to stylize the clips in your project, manipulating color and exposure to create specific effects. For more information, see Chapter 20, "Color Correcting Clips," on page 411.

- Create visual effects: Certain filters, such as the Ripple or Fisheye filter, create bold visual effects. You can apply and combine these filters to create effects ranging from spinning your clip in simulated 3D space to blurring, rippling, and flipping a clip's image in the Canvas.

- Create and manipulate transparency effects: Use filters like the Chroma Keyer or Garbage Matte to create and manipulate the alpha channel information of clips in your project. Keying filters create alpha channels based on blue, green, white, or black areas in the image. Other filters, such as the Widescreen or Soft Edges filter, allow you to further manipulate the areas of transparency in a keyed clip, expanding, contracting, and feathering the area of transparency to fine-tune the effect. Filters like the Mask Shape or Composite Arithmetic filter generate a new alpha channel based on simple geometric shapes or copy an alpha channel from one clip to another. For more information, see Chapter 19, "Keying, Mattes, and Masks," on page 385.

Final Cut Pro includes a wide selection of video filters, grouped into several categories. For detailed information, see "Video Filters Available in Final Cut Pro" on page 203.

Third-party filters are available if you want a particular effect that isn't built in. You can create your own filters with the built-in FXScript effects language or modify existing filters. For more information, go to http://developer.apple.com/documentation/AppleApplications.

Like most parameters in Final Cut Pro, filter parameters can be keyframed to change their effect on a clip over time. Keyframing filters works the same way as keyframing motion settings. For more information, see Chapter 13, "Adjusting Parameters for Keyframed Effects," on page 249.

You can apply filters to clips in a sequence or to clips in the Browser, but it's very important to understand the distinction between these two methods.

If you apply filters to a sequence clip, they are applied only to that clip. The master clip in the Browser remains untouched.
If you apply filters to a master clip in the Browser, instances of that clip already in other sequences are untouched, but if you edit the master clip into a sequence, the new filter accompanies the clip into the sequence.

In most cases, you apply filters to individual clips in sequences, not to master clips in the Browser. There may be occasions where you want every instance of a master clip edited into a sequence to have the same filter applied, such as color correction. In this case, apply the color correction filter to the master clip in the Browser. However, filters applied to clips are still independent of each other. If you modify the filter parameters for a master clip, the same filter parameters in affiliate clips are not modified.

Tip: To maintain consistent filter settings across multiple clips, you can copy and paste filter settings using the Paste Attributes command.

To apply a filter to a clip in a sequence, do one of the following:

- Select one or more clips in the Timeline, then drag a filter from the Effects tab of the Browser to one of the selected clips in the Timeline.

- Select one or more clips in the Timeline, choose Effects > Video Filters, then choose a filter from the submenus.

- Open a sequence clip into the Viewer, then do one of the following:

Choose Effects > Video Filters, then choose a filter from the submenus.
Drag a filter from the Effects tab of the Browser directly into the Viewer.

You can apply a filter to an entire clip or just part of a clip.

To apply a filter to part of a clip in a sequence:

1 Select the Range Selection tool in the Tool palette (or press the G key three times).

Range Selection tool

2 In the Timeline, drag across the part of the clip to which you want to apply the filter.

00:00 01:00:04:00 01:00:08:00 01:00:12:00 01:00:16:00 01:00:20:00 Nancy drinking talking Nancy g W Don CU Nancy enters Music 1 Music 1 Drag to select the section of the clip to which you want to apply the filter.

3 Do one of the following:

Drag a filter from the Effects tab of the Browser to the selected portion of the clip.
Choose Effects > Video Filters, then choose a filter from the submenus.

The filter is applied to the selected part of the clip only. When you open this clip into the Viewer, filter Start and End points appear in the keyframe graph area.

Viewer: Nancy drinking talking from Dream Sequence Video Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 00:00 01:00:07:00 Video Filters Diffuse Direction 360 Radius 10 -360 Direction Uni-directional Random Repeat Edges Start and End points for the filter

In the keyframe graph area, drag the Start or End point of the filter to the new time or location.

Viewer: Nancy drinking talking from Dream Sequence Video Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 00:00 01:00:07:00 Video Filters Diffuse Direction 360 Radius 10 Direction Uni-directional Random Repeat Edges The End point dragged to the new time Drag the Start or End point to change it.

You can apply one or more filters to a clip at a time. You can also add one or more filters to multiple clips at the same time. You can add as many filters as you like to a clip. If you apply more than one filter to a clip, the filters are applied sequentially (the first filter is applied, and then the next filter is applied, and so on).

The order in which a clip's video filters appear in the Filters tab of the Viewer determines how that clip looks. For example, if you apply a Blur filter and then a Pond Ripple filter to a clip, the clip is blurred first, and then the blurred image is rippled. If you switch the order, the image is rippled first and then blurred.

Once multiple filters are applied to a clip, you can change the order in which they take effect by dragging them up and down the list in the Filters tab. See "Enabling and Rearranging Filters" on page 200.

To apply multiple filters to a clip in a sequence, do one of the following:

■ Apply filters to a clip one at a time (described earlier).
- Select a filter in the Effects tab of the Browser, copy it, then paste it into the clip's Filters tab in the Viewer.
- Copy filters from one clip's Filters tab, then paste them into another clip's Filters tab (regardless of whether it's a sequence clip in the Timeline or a master clip in the Browser).
Shift-click or Command-click to select multiple filters in the Effects tab of the Browser, then drag them to one or more selected clips in the Timeline.

- Drag one or more filters from a clip's Filters tab in the Viewer to a clip (or multiple selected clips) in the Timeline.

Once you apply one or more filters to a clip, you must display filter parameters before you can adjust them.

Note: If you want to show or modify parameters for a filter applied to a clip in your sequence, make sure that you open the sequence clip in the Viewer, rather than opening the master clip from the Browser.

To view the filters applied to a clip, do one of the following:

Open a clip into the Viewer, then click the Filters tab.
If a sequence clip is already open in the Viewer, click the Filters tab.
In the video track of a clip in the Timeline, double-click the filter bar.

The clip is opened into the Viewer with the Filters tab open.

Note: If a sequence clip is already open in the Viewer with the Filters tab open and you open another sequence clip, the new clip appears with the Filters tab open as well.

In the Filters tab, click the disclosure triangle next to the parameter.

There are various controls you can use to manipulate filters in Final Cut Pro. While each filter has its own individual parameters and controls, all filters have some controls in common.

Filter category bar: Video filters are listed first, then audio filters. (This is for clips with both video and audio items.) Click the Video Filters bar or the Audio Filters bar to select all the filters in that category.
Name bar: Each filter has a name bar that contains a disclosure triangle, on/off checkbox, and the filter's name. Drag the name up or down to change a filter's position in the list. (It's easier to do this if the filter's controls are hidden.)
Reset button: The Reset button is in the Name bar, under the Nav column. Click to delete all keyframes for the corresponding parameter or parameters and reset those parameters to their default value.
Show/Hide keyframes pop-up menu: This pop-up menu is in the Name bar, under the Nav column. Use this pop-up menu to choose the parameters that have keyframes displayed (or hidden) in the keyframe graph area of the Name bar.
Enable/Disable checkbox: Click to enable or disable a filter. When this checkbox is not selected, the filter isn't applied or rendered.
Disclosure triangle: Click to show and hide all of the controls for a filter.
Parameter controls: Each filter has its own set of parameter controls.
Timecode navigation field: This field displays the position of the playhead in the keyframe graph area. When you enter a new timecode value, the playhead moves to that time.

Keyframe button Keyframe navigation buttons

Keyframe button: Click to place a keyframe for the corresponding parameter at the playhead location in the keyframe graph, in preparation for creating a dynamic change in an effect.
Keyframe navigation buttons: Use to move the playhead from one keyframe to the next on the corresponding overlay, either forward or backward.

Keyframe graph ruler Filter Start and End points Keyframe graph area Section of clip not used

Keyframe graph area: The keyframe graph area shows all the keyframes and interpolated values associated with parameters currently displayed in the Viewer.
Keyframe graph ruler: The keyframe graph ruler corresponds to the duration of the clip or the location of a clip in a sequence:

- If a clip is opened from the Browser, the keyframe ruler shows the duration of the clip itself. The playhead in the Viewer moves independently of the playhead in the Timeline or Canvas.

- If a clip is opened from a sequence in the Timeline, the keyframe ruler shows the section of the Timeline that the clip is edited into. The playhead in the Viewer is locked to the playhead in the Timeline and the Canvas.

Filter Start and End points: If a filter is applied to part of a clip, filter Start and End points appear in the clip's keyframe graph area.
Section of clip not currently used: The frames of a clip displayed in the Viewer's Filters tab that are outside the duration specified by the clip's In and Out points are darker gray than the part of the clip in use. This helps you know where to apply keyframes.

Zoom control Zoom slider

Zoom control: This control lets you zoom in and out on the duration displayed by the ruler in the keyframe graph area, expanding and contracting the keyframe graph ruler as you do so. This also keeps the area of the visible keyframe graph centered as you zoom in or out. For more information, see "Zooming In to the Keyframe Graph" on page 261.
Zoom slider: This slider lets you zoom in and out of the duration displayed by the keyframe graph ruler by dragging the thumb tabs on either side, adjusting both thumb tabs and leaving the visible area of the keyframe graph centered. Pressing the Shift key and dragging one of the thumb tabs zooms in or out of the keyframe graph, locking the opposite thumb tab and moving the visible area of the keyframe graph in the direction in which you're dragging. For more information, see "Zooming In to the Keyframe Graph" on page 261.

Each filter has its own graphical (visual) and numeric controls, including sliders, point and angle controls, and clip and color controls. Some filters, such as the Color Corrector 3-way and Chroma Keyer, have alternate visual controls that you can use to modify their effects. The parameters set by visual controls are mirrored in the numeric controls and vice versa. These filters are discussed in detail in separate chapters. For more information, see “The Color Corrector and Color Corrector 3-Way Filters” on page 439 and “Overview of Compositing Using the Chroma Keyer Filter” on page 391.

Note: All the controls described here are also available when you use FXScript to create custom filters. For more information, see the separate PDF document, Using FXScript, available from the Help menu.

By default, sliders only show whole integer values.

Viewer: Clapping from Sax Solos Name Parameters Nav 01:00:30:00 Video Filters ✓ Find Edges Invert Amount 14 ✓ Stop Motion Blur Typical slider Numeric value of the slider

To adjust the corresponding value to within two decimal places of precision:

- Hold down the Shift key while dragging a slider.

To gear down a slider, allowing you to make more precise changes to the parameter:

- Hold down the Command key while dragging a slider.

As you move the handle on a logarithmic slider, the rate of change increases faster in one part of the slider than in other parts. The tic marks for logarithmic sliders are unevenly spaced; where they're closer together, the change in the parameter's value occurs more slowly. Final Cut Pro uses two types of logarithmic sliders:

Logarithmic slider: This slider has tic marks closer together only on one end, indicating that the rate of change increases faster at the other end.
Double-sided logarithmic slider: This type of slider has tic marks closer together in the center, indicating that the rate of change increases faster at the center and more slowly at the ends.

Viewer: Sax 2 ShotWS from Sax Solos Video Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 00:00 01:00:03:00 Video Filters Bumpmap Map Image 323 Luma Scale 22 Direction 360 Outset 0 -360 Repeat Edge Double-sided logarithmic slider

Logarithmic sliders are useful for parameters that have a huge range of possible values, with a particular range at the top or at the bottom being more useful than the others.

Point controls are used to specify locations in the Canvas.

1 In the Filters tab of the Viewer, click the point control.

Viewer: Sax 2 ShotWS from Sax Solos Video Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 00:00 01:00:03:00 Video Filters ✓ Channel Offset Channel Red Center Offset 7, 12 Edges Wrap Point control X and y coordinates

2 Move the pointer to the Canvas.

The pointer changes to the crosshair pointer in the Canvas.

3 Click anywhere in the Canvas to choose that coordinate.

Tip: You can also drag in the Canvas, and then release the mouse button when the pointer is at the appropriate location. If you drag instead of clicking, the values update as the crosshair moves.

For more information about positioning clips in the Canvas, see "Using Cartesian Geometry to Position Clips" on page 223.

This control specifies angles and rotations. The longer, black hand of the dial indicates the angle. The smaller, red hand indicates how many total rotations forward or backward are specified.

Viewer: Sax 2 ShotWS from Sax Solos Video Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 00:00 01:00:03:00 Video Filters Radial Blur Angle 42 90 -90 Angle control

To constrain the dial to 45-degree increments:

■ Press the Shift key while you adjust the angle control.

To gear down the dial's movement for a more precise value:

■ Press the Command key while adjusting the control.

To reset the dial to its previous setting while adjusting a parameter:

- Drag the pointer all the way out of the effect parameter.

The color controls give you several ways to select a color value.

Eyropper button Hue direction control Click the disclosure triangle to display the hue, saturation, and brightness controls. Viewer: Sax 2 ShotWS from Sax Solos Name Parameters Nav 00:00 01:00:03:00 Video Filters ✓ Arithmetic Operator Screen Channel RGB Color H 275.36 S 31 B 71 Color picker Hue, saturation, and brightness controls

Disclosure triangle: Click to display sliders and number fields corresponding to the hue, saturation, and brightness of the range of colors available.
Eyedropper button: This button lets you quickly select a color that's in an image in the Viewer or Canvas. Click this button, then click an image in the Viewer or the Canvas to pick up that color.
Hue direction control: If you're keyframing changes in color, click this control to indicate the direction on the color wheel Final Cut Pro uses to interpolate the color change.
• Color picker: Click to choose a color using the standard color picker.
Hue, Saturation, and Brightness controls (H, S, and B): Hue determines which color is chosen; saturation determines how vivid the color is. If saturation is 0, the resulting color is always white. Brightness determines how bright or dark the color is. If brightness is 0, the resulting color is black; if brightness is 100, the color is the lightest possible value.

You can use the image from one clip in a filter to change another clip.

- Drag any clip from your sequence to this control to apply it to the filter.

Tip: You can drag Final Cut Pro generators to clip controls as with any other clip.

Viewer: Sax 2 ShotWS from Sax Sales Name Parameters Nav 00:00 01:00:03:00 Video Filters Bumpmap Map Image Luma Scale 3 Shot Band Clip control

To clear a clip that's currently attached:

■ Control-click the clip control, then choose Clear from the shortcut menu.

Once you've added filters to one or more clips, you can choose whether or not to display filter indicators, or bars, in the Timeline to indicate that the clips have filters applied to them. Filter bars are green and appear in the space below each video and audio track in the Timeline for the duration of that clip. If keyframes are added to the filter of a clip, those keyframes appear on top of the bar to which they apply. Filter bars can be displayed or hidden at any time. For more information, see "About the Keyframe Graph Area" on page 283.

Timeline: Dream Sequence in Dining RT 01:00:06:17 00:00 01:00:04:00 01:00:08:00 01:00:12:00 v1 V1 Nancy dinking talking Nancy W Music 1 Music 1 Music 1 a1 A1 a2 A2 A3 Clip Keyframes button Filter bar for a video track

To show or hide filter bars, do one of the following:

Click the Clip Keyframes button in the Timeline.
Choose Sequence > Settings, then click the Timeline Options tab. Enable or disable the Show Filter and Motion Bars checkboxes.

To open a clip into the Viewer using filter bars:

In the Timeline, double-click a green bar or keyframe to open that clip into the Viewer.

The Filters tab is automatically selected.

For more information about adjusting filter parameters in the Timeline, see "Using the Timeline Keyframe Graph Area" on page 283.

You can turn a filter on or off without removing it from a clip. This is useful for previewing different combinations of filters without having to repeatedly apply and delete them. You can also rearrange the order in which filters appear to modify the way they work together.

To turn individual filters on or off:

- Click the checkbox next to the filter's name.

To rearrange the order of filters in the Filters tab:

- Drag a filter up or down in the list to change the order in which filters are applied.

Viewer: Sax 2 ShotWS from Sax Solos Name Parameters Nav Video Filters ✓ Arithmetic Operator Screen Channel RGB Color ✓ Flop Flop Horizontal ✓ Basic Border Move the selected filter up or down in the list to change the order in which it is applied to the clip.

Tip: Rearranging filters may be easier if you collapse the filters' settings before dragging. Click the small disclosure triangle to the left of the filter's name.

When you copy a clip from the Timeline, you also copy all of that clip's settings, including filters applied to that clip. Instead of pasting duplicates of the clip you've copied, you can paste only that clip's filters into other clips by using the Paste Attributes command in the Edit menu.

Warning: Pasting attributes into clips that have different frame rates produces erratic results.

1 Select a clip in the Timeline that has a filter (or filters) whose settings you want to copy.
2 Choose Edit > Copy.
3 Select one or more clips in the Timeline to apply the filter or filters to.
4 Do one of the following:

Choose Edit > Paste Attributes.
Control-click the clip or clips you've selected in the Timeline, then choose Paste Attributes from the shortcut menu.
Press Option-V.

5 In the Paste Attributes dialog, select the Filters checkbox under Video Attributes.

Paste Attributes Attributes from Nancy drinking talking: Scale Attribute Times Video Attributes: Content Basic Motion Crop Distort Opacity Drop Shadow Motion Blur Filters Speed Clip Settings (capture) Audio Attributes: Content Levels Pan Filters Cancel OK To copy a clip's filter, make sure the Filters checkbox is selected.

6 Choose any other options, then click OK.

The parameter values and keyframes of the filters in the clip you copied from are copied into the selected clip or clips.

You can remove one or more filters from a clip at any point in your project.

Select the filter in the Filters tab, then press Delete.
Select the filter, then choose Edit > Clear.
■ Select the filter, then choose Edit > Cut.
■ Control-click a filter, then choose Cut from the shortcut menu.

1 Click the Video filters category bar in the Filters tab.
2 Do one of the following:

- Choose Edit > Clear.

- Press Delete.

You can also use various After Effects filters in Final Cut Pro. When working with After Effects filters, keep the following in mind:

• After Effects filters may use more memory than Final Cut Pro filters.
- Not all After Effects filters are supported. If you install a set of filters and then begin to have problems, take them out of the Plugins folder.
- For After Effects filters that have clip parameters, you can use the clip itself as the parameter for the input clip. To do so, Control-click the clip parameter and choose Self from the shortcut menu.

Important: After Effects filters don't take advantage of the ability of Final Cut Pro to render video using Y'C_B C_R. All After Effects filters render only in RGB color space.

- Copy the filters into one of two locations, depending on where you are saving other files:

• /Library/Application Support/Final Cut Pro System Support/Plugins
- [Home]/Library/Preferences/Final Cut Pro User Data/Plugins

There are numerous filters that come with Final Cut Pro. The following tables give you a short description of each type of video filter, followed by a detailed list of available filters of that kind.

Blur filters are commonly used to make stylized background graphics out of video clips. With enough blur applied, you can turn almost any video image into a stylized blend of colors and shapes.

Filter	Result
Gaussian Blur ^1	Blurs the entire frame of a clip. A pop-up menu lets you choose which channel to blur. You can blur one or all of the color and alpha channels together or separately. The Radius slider lets you select how much to blur the clip.
Radial Blur	Creates the illusion that the image is spinning about a center point. The Angle control allows you to adjust the maximum amount of blur. Adjust the smoothness of the blur using the Steps slider. You can also specify the center point in the frame about which the blur rotates.
Wind Blur	Creates the illusion that the image is moving in a linear direction. Use the Angle control to adjust the direction in which the blur travels. Use the Amount slider to specify the distance between each increment of blur. Adjust the smoothness of the blur using the Steps slider.
Zoom Blur	Creates the illusion that the image is moving toward you or away from you. A pop-up menu lets you select whether the blur moves in or out. The Radius slider determines the distance between increments of blur and the Steps slider determines how smooth the blur appears.

^1 Works in 16-bit if your sequence is set for 16-bit precision in the Video Processing tab of the Sequence Settings window.

Border filters let you create borders using the total frame of your clips.

Filter	Result
Basic Border	Draws a border around the edges of the clip and ignores any alpha channel information associated with that clip. Use the Border slider to adjust the width and the color controls to select the border color.
Bevel	Draws a beveled border around the edges of the clip. The Light Angle control lets you specify the direction of the light. The Bevel Width slider lets you adjust the width of the border, the Opacity slider allows you to adjust the relative strength of the bevel effect on the border, and the Light color controls let you specify the color of the light that gives the border its beveled look.

Channel filters allow you to manipulate the color and alpha channels of clips in your sequence to create effects.

Filter	Result
Arithmetic	Performs an arithmetic operation, blending a specific color channel of your clip with another color. You can choose the operator used and the channel it's applied to from pop-up menus. The color controls allow you to specify the color with which the channel interacts.
Channel Blur	Allows you to apply varying amounts of blur to each of the color and alpha channels of your clip simultaneously. Sliders let you control how much blur is applied to each channel.
Channel Offset	Offsets the position of one or all of a clip's channels. You can specify the channel to be offset from the Channel pop-up menu, the amount of offset using the Center Offset control, and the type of edge to be used from the Edges pop-up menu.
Color Offset	Offsets the color of individual channels in the clip. Using this filter, you can create posterizing style effects. You can invert the image or wrap the colors. Sliders let you control the offset value for each color channel in the clip.
Compound Arithmetic	Performs an arithmetic operation on the clip and a second specified clip. You can choose the operator and the channel from pop-up menus.
Invert	Inverts one or all channels of the selected clip. A Channel pop-up menu allows you to select which channel or channels to invert, and the Amount slider lets you adjust the amount of inversion to apply.

Color correction filters let you adjust the black, white, and midtone color balance of your clips. For detailed information on using these filters, see Chapter 20, "Color Correcting Clips," on page 411.

Filter	Result
Broadcast Safe1	Gives you a fast method for dealing with clips that have luminance and chrominance levels that exceed the broadcast limits for video. This single filter allows you to address illegal values in the luminance and chrominance of your clips at the same time.
Color Corrector1	A basic filter for performing simple color correction. While not as fully featured as the Color Corrector 3-way filter, it's more likely to be supported by real-time hardware.
Color Corrector 3-way1	Gives you more precise color control with separate adjustments to the color balance of the blacks, mids, and whites of your image.
Desaturate Highlights1	Lets you eliminate unwanted color that sometimes appears in the highlights of an image when you apply one of the color correction filters.
Desaturate Lows1	Lets you eliminate unwanted color that sometimes appears in the blacks of an image when you apply one of the color correction filters.
RGB Balance	Allows you to raise or lower the levels of the highlights, midtones, and blacks of each channel—red, green, and blue—in RGB color space individually.

^1 Works in 32-bit floating point if your sequence is set for high precision in the Video Processing tab of the Sequence Settings window.

The Final Cut Pro Distort filters are design-oriented filters that create texture effects.

Filter	Result
Bumpmap	Offsets pixels in a clip using the luminance of a second selected image, called the map. Use the Direction and Outset controls to define the direction and amount of the offset, and the Luma Scale and Repeat Edge controls to define the appearance of the offset.
Cylinder	Distorts the clip as if it were wrapped around a cylindrical object. You can adjust the Radius and Center sliders to affect the appearance of this filter, as well as enable or disable the Vertical checkbox. The Amount slider controls the effect this filter has on your image.
Displace	Distorts the clip by offsetting pixels using the red and green channels. You can adjust the horizontal offset using the red channel and the vertical offset using the green channel. Horizontal and Vertical Scale sliders define the direction and amount of the offset; the Luma Scale slider and Repeat Edge checkbox define the appearance of the offset.
Fisheye	Distorts the clip as if it were bulging outward. You can adjust the Radius and Amount sliders to change the effect, and use the Center point control to adjust the center of the bulge.
Pond Ripple	Distorts the clip as if it were mapped onto a pond ripple. The Center point control allows you to set the center of this effect in the frame of your clip. You can adjust the number and size of the ripples using the Radius, Ripple, Amplitude, Acceleration, High Light, and Decay sliders.
Ripple	Distorts the clip in a wave pattern, both horizontally and vertically. You can adjust both parameters independently using the Amplitude, Wavelength, Horizontal Speed, and Vertical Speed sliders. The Repeat Edges checkbox ensures that no black appears at the edges of the frame.
Wave	Distorts the clip in a simple zigzag pattern, either horizontally or vertically. You can adjust the Amplitude, Wavelength, and Speed sliders to change the effect. The Vertical checkbox defines the orientation of the effect. The Repeat Edges checkbox ensures that no black appears at the edges of the frame.
Whirlpool	Distorts the clip in a swirling, whirlpool pattern. You can adjust the Center point control. The Amount Angle control defines the rotation of the whirlpool. The Repeat Edges checkbox ensures that no black appears at the edges of the frame.

Image Control filters let you manipulate the levels of black, white, and color in your clips. They can be used to correct clips with color or exposure problems or to create other, more extreme color effects. For more detailed control over the color in your clips, use the color correction filters.

Filter	Result
Brightness and Contrast (Bezier)	Lets you change the brightness and contrast of a clip by -100 to 100 percent to darken or lighten the image. Brightness and contrast affect all colors and luminance values of a clip at once; if used to extremes they can give a washed-out appearance to your clip.
Color Balance	Allows you to adjust the amounts of red, green, and blue in a clip independently. Select whether this filter affects the highlights (bright areas), midtones, or shadows (dark areas) of your clip. Color balance can be used to correct for inaccurate white balance on video footage or to create color effects.
Desaturate	Removes color from a clip by the specified amount. 100 percent desaturation results in a grayscale image.
Gamma Correction	Changes the gamma of a clip by the specified amount. This filter can be used to pull detail out of underexposed footage or to bring overexposed footage down without washing out your clip.
Levels	Like the Gamma Correction filter, but allows for greater control. You can specify a particular alpha or color channel of your clip. Use the Input, Input Tolerance, Gamma, Output, and Output Tolerance sliders to change the effect.
Proc Amp ^1	Simulates the controls available on a composite video processing amplifier (proc amp). This filter gives you excellent control over the black levels, white levels, chroma, and phase of your clip. The Setup slider lets you adjust the black level of your clip. The Video slider lets you adjust the white level. The Chroma slider allows you to cut or boost the levels of color in your clip, and the Phase Angle control lets you adjust the hue.
Sepia ^1	Tints the clip with a sepia color by default. You can adjust the amount of tint and the brightness of tint using the Amount and Highlight sliders. You can also select another color with the Tint Color controls.
Tint ^1	Tints the clip with the specified color. Only the amount of tinting is adjustable with this filter.

^1 Works in 32-bit floating point if your sequence is set for high precision in the Video Processing tab of the Sequence Settings window.

Key filters are generally used to key out background areas of video in order to isolate foreground elements to composite against a different background. Keying filters are commonly used with the Matte Choker filter. For detailed information on applying these filters, see Chapter 19, "Keying, Mattes, and Masks," on page 385.

Filter	Result
Blue and Green Screen	Keys the blue or green area of a clip and uses the selected color as a transparency mask for compositing foreground elements against a background scene.A View pop-up menu allows you to look at the source of the clip (with no key applied), the matte created by the filter, the final matted image, or a special composite of the source, matte, and final image for reference. A Key Mode pop-up menu allows you to select blue, green, or a blue/green difference as the key color. The Color Level slider lets you select the amount of blue or green in your clip to key out, and the Color Tolerance slider allows you to expand the key into adjacent areas containing other shades of the key color.The Edge Thin slider allows you to expand or contract the matte area to try to eliminate fringing, and the Edge Feather slider lets you blur out the edges of the matte to create a smoother key. (Before you use these sliders, try using a Matte Choker filter instead.) An Invert checkbox allows you to invert the matte, making what was masked solid and what was solid masked.
Chroma Keyer1	Allows you to create a key using any range of color you want, including (but not limited to) the usual blue and green. You can also fine-tune your composite by adjusting the color value, saturation, and luminance ranges used to define your key, together or separately. For example, if you only want to perform a luma key, you can disable color and saturation. Even when performing a color key, you'll get superior results by manipulating the Color Range and Saturation controls separately.
Color Key	Keys on any color in a clip. Color controls allow you to select a color from your clip as the specified key color. Sometimes referred to as chroma key.
Color Smoothing - 4:1:1Color Smoothing - 4:2:2	Improves the quality of chroma keys and reduces diagonal “stair-stepping” that can occur in video clips with areas of high-contrast color.Use 4:1:1 Color Smoothing with NTSC or PAL DV-25 video sources. (The exception is PAL mini-DV/DVCAM, which uses 4:2:0 color sampling.) Use 4:2:2 Color Smoothing for DVCPRO 50, DVCPRO HD, and 8- and 10-bit uncompressed video.To improve the quality of your chroma key, apply the appropriate smoothing filter to the clip you want to chroma key first. As you add additional keying filters, make sure that the Color Smoothing filter remains the first one in the video section of the Filters tab.
Difference Matte	Compares two clips and keys out areas that are similar. A View pop-up menu allows you to look at the source of the clip (with no key applied), the matte created by the filter, the final matted image, or a special composite of the source, matte, and final image for reference. The Difference Layer clip control allows you to specify another clip to compare the current image to for keying. Threshold and Tolerance sliders let you adjust the key to try to isolate the parts of your image that you want to keep.
Luma Key	Similar to a chroma (color) key, except that a luma key creates a matte based on the brightest or darkest areas of an image. Keying out a luminance value works best when your clip has a large discrepancy in exposure between the bright or dark areas in the frame that you want to key out, and the foreground images you want to preserve.A View pop-up menu allows you to look at the source of the clip (with no key applied), the matte created by the filter, the final matted image, or a special composite of the source, matte, and final image for reference. A Key Mode pop-up menu allows you to specify whether this filter keys out brighter, darker, similar, or dissimilar areas of the image. A Matte pop-up menu lets you create either alpha channel information for that clip, or a high-contrast matte image applied to the color channels of your clip, based on the matte created by this filter.
Spill Suppressor - Blue	When you use the blue and green screen key to key out the blue in a clip, sometimes there is residual blue fringing, referred to as spill, around the edge of the foreground image. This filter removes this blue fringing by desaturating the edges where the fringing appears. This filter should always appear after a color key in the filter list shown in the Filter tab of the Viewer. It may have a slight effect on the color balance of your image.
Spill Suppressor - Green	Works the same as the Spill Suppressor - Blue, on green fringing.

^1 Works in 32-bit floating point if your sequence is set for high precision in the Video Processing tab of the Sequence Settings window.

Matte filters can be used by themselves to mask out areas of a clip, or to create alpha channel information for a clip to make a transparent border so that the clip can be composited against other layers. Matte filters can also be used to make further adjustments to layers with keying filters applied to them. For detailed information, see "Using Mattes to Add or Modify Alpha Channels" on page 404.

Filter	Result
Eight-Point Garbage Matte	Generates an eight-point polygon you can use to crop out portions of a clip. Eight-point controls allow you to define the polygonal matte. The Smooth slider rounds off the corners of the polygon to create rounder mattes. The Choke slider allows you to expand or contract the matte, and the Feather slider allows you to blur the edges of the matte. The Invert checkbox reverses what's matted and what's transparent, and the Hide Labels checkbox hides the number labels, which indicate which point of the matte corresponds to which point control of the filter.
Extract	Produces a matte around the clip, similar to a Luma key. A View pop-up menu allows you to look at the source of the clip (with no key applied), the matte created by the filter, the final matted image, or a special composite of the source, matte, and final image for reference. Use the Threshold, Tolerance, and Softness sliders to adjust the matte. The Copy Result pop-up menu allows you to copy the luminance result to the RGB or alpha channel of your clip, and the Invert checkbox allows you to invert the result.
Four-Point Garbage Matte	Similar to the Eight-Point Garbage matte, but it creates a four-point polygonal matte.
Image Mask	Takes the alpha channel or luminance from another clip and uses it to create a matte for the current clip. The Mask clip control allows you to select the clip from which to take the alpha channel or luminance values. The Channel pop-up menu lets you choose whether to use the clip's alpha channel or luminance level. The Invert checkbox allows you to invert the resulting matte.This filter is especially useful for taking custom edge masks that you can create with any image editor and applying them to clips in your sequence that you want to matte the edges out of. Unlike the Travel Matte composite mode, the Image Mask filter attaches a matte to the selected clip. You can use motion effects to move the affected clip around, and the matte follows.
Mask Feather	Blurs the alpha channel of the clip by the amount you specify with the Soft slider.
Mask Shape	Generates a mask shape to use to matte out the clip. You can choose a diamond, oval, rectangle, or round rectangle from the Shape pop-up menu. Use the Horizontal Scale and Vertical Scale sliders to adjust the size and aspect ratio of your mask shape. The Center point control allows you to specify the center of the mask, and an Invert checkbox lets you reverse what's transparent and what's solid.
Matte Choker	Usually used in conjunction with a keying filter to manipulate the edges of the key. The Edge Thin slider in the Matte Choker is often used instead of the Edge Thin slider in the keying filter because it can produce a more realistic result.When you use the Matte Choker, moving the Edge Thin slider to the right gradually eats into marginally keyed areas of a filter, eliminating fringe and smoothing out the edges of your matte. When you move the Edge Thin slider to the right, marginally keyed areas of a clip are expanded, spreading out the matte and filling in holes in your foreground image that may have been created by the keying filter you're using.Matte Chokers always appear after the keying filter in the Filters tab. Matte Chokers are also commonly used in groups. The first Matte Choker eliminates the fringing in the areas you want to key out, but may create holes in the foreground image. The second Matte Choker, applied in reverse, fills in these holes to make the foreground image as solid as possible. More Matte Chokers can further fine-tune your key.
Soft Edges	Blurs the four edges of the clip individually by the specified amount to create an old-fashioned vignetting effect. Each of the four edges of your clip can be individually adjusted using the Left, Right, Top, and Bottom sliders. The Dither and Gaussian checkboxes are used to modify the quality of the blurred edge, and the Invert checkbox allows you to toggle between masking out the edges and creating a hole in your image.
Widescreen	Generates a widescreen matte in the clip to create a letterboxed image. The Type pop-up menu allows you to adjust the aspect ratio of the top and bottom mask using standard academy ratios. The Offset slider lets you move the affected clip up or down in order to display the area that's most important. The Border slider moves the top and bottom of the letterbox inward by up to ten pixels. The color controls allow you to specify a border color for the letterbox other than black, and a Feather Edges checkbox blurs the edges of the letterbox.

Perspective filters allow you to move your clips spatially within their frames. To move a filter spatially using the entire frame of the Canvas, use motion effects instead.

Filter	Result
Basic 3D	Creates the illusion that your clip is suspended in 3D space. You can adjust the rotation around the X, Y, and Z axes using angle controls. The Center point control allows you to set the center of transformation, and the Scale slider enlarges and reduces the size of the entire affected layer.You cannot enlarge a clip past the frame size of that clip.
Curl	Curls the clip as if it were a piece of paper. You can adjust the direction, radius, and amount of curl. The Peel checkbox toggles the effect between curling up in a roll and peeling up like a sticker. The Back clip control allows you to use a different clip as the back side of the curled object.
Flop	Allows you to flop a clip horizontally, vertically, or both.
Mirror	Reflects a mirror image of the clip. Use the Reflection Center point control to change the center of the reflection, and the Reflection Angle control to modify the angle of the mirror effect.
Rotate	Rotates the clip by 90 degrees or by 180 degrees. Choose the angle of rotation from the Rotate pop-up menu. This filter scales the result to fit the frame size, distorting the clip.

Sharpen filters manipulate the contrast of clips in a sequence to bring out more detail in your images.

Filter	Result
Sharpen	Increases the contrast between adjacent pixels to increase the perception of sharpness in the image. When overused, can result in a harsh, grainy look.
Unsharp Mask	Increases the contrast of adjacent pixels with greater control than the Sharpen filter. You can adjust the amount, radius, and threshold of sharpness to soften this filter's effect.

Stylize Filters

Stylize filters can be used to create an assortment of visual effects.

Filter	Result
Anti-alias	Blurs the high-contrast areas in the clip to soften the borders between elements in the frame. Use the Amount slider to soften "stair-stepping."
Diffuse	Randomly offsets pixels in the clip to create a textured blur. The Direction Angle control allows you to adjust the direction of diffusion. The Radius slider adjusts how extreme the diffusion is. The Direction pop-up menu lets you specify whether the diffusion should be unidirectional (random on one axis), bidirectional (random on two axes), or nondirectional (all directions). The Random checkbox increases the amount of chaos in the effect, and the Repeat Edges checkbox eliminates any black that might appear around the edge of the frame.
Emboss	Produces the illusion of raised edges where there is high contrast in the clip. The Direction Angle control allows you to specify the direction of the emboss effect. The Depth slider lets you raise or lower the apparent depth of the embossing. The Amount slider controls the blend between the original clip and the emboss effect.
Find Edges	Creates an effect of extreme contrast used to outline the edges in the clip. The Invert checkbox lets you toggle between using a light-on-dark and dark-on-light effect. The Amount slider controls the blend between the original clip and the find edges effect.
Posterize	Maps the colors in the clip to a specified number of colors, creating an image with limited color range, which produces banding in areas of graduated color. Red, Green, and Blue sliders allow you to adjust the amount of posterization.
Replicate	Tiles the clip to create a duplicate video wall effect. You can adjust the number of tiles independently for the horizontal and vertical axes, up to 16 repetitions.If the horizontal and vertical repetitions are not the same, the repeated images appear distorted.
Solarize	Minimizes the midtones and maximizes the highlights and shadows in the clip, like the photographic solarizing effect. This effect can be inverted using a checkbox and adjusted using the Amount slider.

Video filters are generally used to solve specific problems with clips in your sequence, although there are design-oriented filters in this category as well.

Filter	Result
Blink	Flashes the clip on and off. You can adjust the frequency independently using the On Duration and Off Duration sliders, and the maximum dip in opacity using the Opacity slider.
De-Interlace	Can be used to remove the upper (odd) or lower (even) field from an interlaced video clip. The remaining fields are interpolated to create a whole image, with marginal softening of the image as a result. A pop-up menu allows you to remove either the upper or lower field.The De-Interlace filter is useful when you want to create a still image from interlaced video clips of people or objects moving at high speed. Since each frame of video is a combination of two interlaced fields created sequentially over time, this can result in a flickering image. The De-Interlace filter can also be useful if you're outputting a QuickTime movie for computer playback, since computer screens display lines progressively.
Flicker	Reduces flicker caused by interlacing in still frames that have thin vertical lines, such as title pages with small text. Three settings are available: minimal, medium, and max. These settings allow you to selectively trade off between the amount of flicker and the amount of vertical softness in the resulting video image.
Image Stabilizer	Stabilizes motion in a jittering clip. It is best used on a clip that's supposed to have no camera movement, but has wiggling from an unsteady tripod mount or from handheld operation.The Source pop-up menu allows you to view the clip before and after image stabilization has been applied. The Center point control allows you to select a particular element in your video clip to use as the target for stabilization. The selected target should be a high-contrast element with a clearly defined shape.The Scan Range slider allows you to define the areas of your clip that are analyzed to track the motion of the selected target. Clips with greater motion should use a larger scan range; clips with more subtle motion can use a smaller one. The Show Scan Area checkbox shows and hides the image stabilization target.
Stop Motion Blur	Blends frames in the clip. You can adjust the time, steps, opacity, and operation used to blend the frames.
Strobe	Lowers the apparent frame rate of a clip in your sequence by freezing the frames of the clip for a specified amount of time. The Strobe Duration slider allows you to define the duration of each freeze frame.
Timecode Generator	Generates a visible timecode counter independent of the timebase and timecode format of the affected clip (or sequence). For example, you can apply a Timecode Generator filter counting at 24 fps while the affected sequence has a timebase of 29.97 fps.
Timecode Reader	Generates a visible timecode counter based on the frame rate (timebase) and selected time display option of the clip or sequence to which the filter is applied.
View Finder	Displays a simulated camcorder viewfinder overlay. Various elements can be included, such as rec/play/pause mode (or custom text), title/action safe, and a blinking lamp. You can also adjust the text and color of the mode text.

Every video and graphics clip in a project has a set of parameters that can be edited in the Motion tab of the Viewer. These parameters include scale, rotation, center point, cropping, and corner pin distortion.

This chapter covers the following:

Creating Motion Effects in the Viewer (p. 217)
Creating Motion Effects in the Canvas (p. 236)

Every video, graphics, and generator clip in Final Cut Pro has a set of corresponding motion attributes, each of which contains one or more adjustable parameters. When you change these parameters, you create a motion effect. By adjusting a clip's motion settings, you can change its geometry to move, shrink, enlarge, rotate, and distort the clip in nearly any way you like, relative to your overall project. You can also adjust motion settings graphically, by manipulating them directly in the Canvas.

Using keyframes, you can dynamically adjust motion effects over time. You can keyframe each clip's motion parameters to animate clips in your sequence, making them move across the screen, rotate, and grow or shrink over time. You can also change a clip's opacity to make it fade in and out and dynamically adjust any applied filter effects—for example, to make a clip go from a blur to sharp focus as a sequence plays. For details on keyframing, see "Animating Motion Effects Using Keyframes" on page 249.

Note: Audio parameters can be keyframed as well. For more information, see "Automating Audio Filter Parameters With Keyframes" on page 168.

Motion parameters are located in the Motion tab of the Viewer. When you first edit a clip into your sequence (assuming you didn't change any of its motion parameters in the Viewer), it has certain default parameters:

• Center, Anchor Point: 0, 0
- Scale: 100
- Rotation, Crop, Aspect Ratio, Drop Shadow, and Motion Blur: 0
• Distort: Corner points of the clip
- Opacity: 100

- Open a clip into the Viewer, then click the Motion tab.

The parameters in the Motion tab are divided into seven attribute sets. Each parameter has its own visual and numeric controls.

In the Motion tab, click the disclosure triangle next to the attribute.

Viewer: Brick Wall.tif in Steve Lucky & the Rhumba Bums Video Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 00:00 00:01:30:0 Basic Motion Scale 100 Rotation 0 432 Center 0, 0 -432 Anchor Point 0, 0 Crop Distort Opacity 100 Opacity Drop Shadow Motion Blur Time Remap Distort attribute 00:00:00:00

Some attributes—Drop Shadow and Motion Blur—must be enabled before you can adjust their parameters.

- Click the checkbox next to Drop Shadow or Motion Blur.

Some parameters must be enabled to use them. Drop Shadow parameters Motion Blur parameters Video Stereo 1 Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav Basic Motion Crop Distort Opacity ✓ Drop Shadow Offset 10 Angle 135 Color 10 Softness 50 Opacity 50 ✓ Motion Blur % Blur 500 Samples 4 Time Remap 02:32:32:28

Drag the slider.
- Enter a new value in the number field, then press Return.
- Drag the corresponding overlay in the keyframe graph.
- For settings with a dial control: Drag the hand on the dial. The black hand indicates the current angle of the clip; the small red hand indicates the total rotations forward or backward.
For settings that use x and y coordinates: Enter new coordinates in the number fields to the right, then press Return. Some coordinate settings also have a point control; click the control, then click the crosshair pointer on the appropriate point in the Canvas.

Tip: Any motion, audio, or filter parameter can be adjusted in the Keyframe Graph area of the Timeline. For more information, see "Adjusting and Deleting Keyframes" on page 258.

For more information about adjusting keyframe graphs in the Timeline, see "Working With the Timeline Keyframe Editor" on page 286.

To adjust the value by two decimal places of accuracy, hold down the Shift key.
To slow down a slider's movement and select a more precise value, hold down the Command key.

To constrain the dial to 45-degree increments, hold down the Shift key.
To slow down a dial's movement and select a more precise value, hold down the Command key.
To reset the parameter to 0, drag out of the dial.

The following section describes the attributes and related parameters in the Motion tab in the Viewer.

The Basic Motion parameters allow you to add motion to a clip—changing the scale, rotating a clip, moving the center point, and setting an anchor point.

Scale slider: Changes the overall size of a clip without changing its proportions.
Rotation: Rotates a clip around its center axis without changing its shape. Clips can be rotated plus or minus 24 rotations.
Center: Specifies the center point of the clip, allowing you to move a clip somewhere else in the frame. The center parameter actually refers to the location of the clip's anchor point in the Canvas.
Anchor Point: Specifies the point that is used to center a clip's position and rotation. A clip's anchor point does not have to be at its center.

Left, Right, Top, and Bottom sliders: Crops the clip from the specified side. You can crop the top, left, right, and bottom of a clip independently. Values in the number fields represent pixels.
Edge Feather slider: Applies a soft border with its outer edge at the crop line. The higher you set the Edge Feather slider, the further into your clip the feathering effect goes.

Upper Left, Upper Right, Lower Right, Lower Left: You can change the shape of a clip by moving each of four corner points independently of one another. The corner points defining the relative distortion of a clip are offset relative to the center of the clip.
Aspect Ratio: Allows you to squeeze a clip horizontally or vertically to change the ratio of its width to its height. This parameter never increases a clip's size. You can enter values between -10,000 and 10,000 in the number field.

- Opacity slider: Increases or decreases the transparency of a clip.

This attribute places a drop shadow behind a clip.

Offset slider: Determines how far away from the clip the drop shadow falls.
Angle: Determines which angle the drop shadow falls toward.
Color: There are several controls you can use to determine the color of the drop shadow.

- Disclosure triangle: Click to display sliders and number fields corresponding to the hue, saturation, and brightness (H, S, and B) of the chosen color for the drop shadow.

- Eyedropper button: Lets you quickly select a color that's in an image in the Viewer or the Canvas. Click this button, then click an image in the Viewer or the Canvas to pick up that color.

- Hue direction button: If you're keyframing changes in color, click this control to determine the direction on the color wheel Final Cut Pro uses to interpolate the color change.

• Color picker: Click to choose a color using the standard color picker.

Softness slider: Blurs the drop shadow around its edges.
Opacity slider: Sets the transparency of the drop shadow.

Motion blur affects any clip that has motion, whether it's a moving subject in a video clip, or keyframed motion effects that you've created.

The Motion Blur parameter allows you to create or exaggerate motion blur in ordinary video clips. For example, if you apply motion blur to a clip where someone is standing still and waving an arm, the arm becomes blurred, while the rest of the image remains sharp. This happens even though the arm waving is not a keyframed motion effect. The Motion Blur parameter also lets you add motion blur to video clips that have none, such as computer animation that was rendered without it.

Motion Blur can also add blur to layered clips that are moving due to keyframed motion effects, such as animated motion along a path, rotation, changes in scale, or distortion. This way, animated motion within Final Cut Pro can be given a more natural look, as if the moving clips were actually recorded with a camera.

The amount of blur that appears in either case depends on the speed of the moving subject. The faster the subject moves, the more blurred it becomes, similar to a motion picture film or video image. The amount of blur that is added can be modified using two parameters.

% Blur: Affects the smoothness of the motion blur. 1000% blurs over 10 frames; 100% blurs on one frame.
Samples: Determines the detail of the applied motion blur, which is dependent upon the speed of the motion effects applied to a clip. Additional samples appear as additional layers of blurring. To change the number of samples, choose a number in the Samples pop-up menu.

Tip: Motion blur can also be used to soften the strobing effect that may appear in clips with extremely slow motion applied to them.

Time remapping allows you to alter the speed of a clip to create either constant or variable speed fast- or slow-motion effects. You can apply constant speed changes or variable speed changes. Applying a constant speed change to a clip alters the entire clip's playback speed by the same percentage. Applying variable speed to a clip allows you to dynamically alter the speed of a clip, making a clip alternate between a range of speeds, throughout any duration you specify. You can also reverse the speed of a clip, making it play backward. For a detailed description of the Time Remap parameters, see "Time Remapping in the Motion Tab" on page 332.

As you composite multiple clips together in Final Cut Pro, it's important to take advantage of whatever shortcuts you can to eliminate steps and save time.

The Paste Attributes command in the Edit menu (keyboard shortcut Option-V) is a valuable tool for selectively copying attributes from one clip to another without having to open clips into the Viewer. It also eliminates the need to repeat steps when applying identical effects to multiple clips. For detailed information about this command, see "Copying and Pasting Specific Clip Attributes" on page 287.

Note: The examples starting on page 225 show how you can use the Paste Attributes command when compositing clips and creating motion effects.

Final Cut Pro compositing features use simple Cartesian geometry to position clips within the frame defined by the Canvas. This makes the process of symmetrically arranging layered clips easier and more precise. Even though it's possible to eyeball a lot of compositions, a little math can go a long way, especially when you want to start creating more precise motion effects using keyframes.

In Final Cut Pro, the center point of a layer is always relative to the center point of the Canvas; the center point of the Canvas is always 0,0.

Canvas center point (0, 0) -240 pixels -360 pixels +360 pixels +240 pixels

To position clips using their x and y coordinates, you enter appropriate values in the Center number fields for the Basic Motion parameters.

- Enter a positive value in the clip's x coordinate.

- Enter a negative value in the clip's x coordinate.

- Enter a positive value in the clip's y coordinate.

- Enter a negative value in the clip's y coordinate.

For example, suppose the center point of the clip on track V2 is -218, -119. This puts the clip 218 pixels to the left and 119 pixels up from the Canvas center point.

Clip center point (-218, -119) Y offset (-119) X offset (-218) Canvas center point (0, 0)

When you copy and paste these attributes to the clip on track V3, the clip appears in exactly the same place. However, when you change its x coordinate from negative 218 to positive 218 (in step 12), you put that clip's center point 218 pixels to the right of the Canvas center point, which moves it to the other side.

Clip center point (+218, -119) Y offset (-119) Canvas center point (0, 0) X offset (+218)

The following two examples demonstrate how you can use motion settings to integrate a group of clips together to create a single, multilayered broadcast design shot.

In the first example, you'll create a layered interview segment using the Scale, Rotation, and Center Point parameters. This example assumes you've already created a new sequence and opened it in the Timeline.

Note: This example uses a sequence created for DV clips, with a frame size of 720 x 480.

1 Open a clip into the Viewer that you want to use as a background layer (against which all other composited layers are to appear), then edit this clip into the Timeline or Canvas onto track V1.

Note: If you don't use a background layer (such as a graphic, video clip, or Final Cut Pro generator clip), all layered clips appear against black by default.

Timeline: End Credits in Cafe End Credits RT 00:00:10:00 00:00 00:00:03:00 00:00:06:00 00:00:09:00 V4 V3 V2 v1 V1 curtain.psd curtain.psd a1 A1 Initial background layer

2 Set the sequence In and Out points to be the duration of this background clip (choose Mark > Mark Clip or press X).

Timeline: End Credits in Cafe End Credits RT 00:00:05:06 00:00 00:00:03:00 00:00:06:00 00:00:09:00 Sequence In and Out points V4 V3 V2 v1 V1 curtain.psd curtain.psd a1 A1

3 From the Browser, open the first clip you want to arrange in the background of your composition, then edit it into the sequence using a superimpose edit.

Timeline: End Credits in Cafe End Credits RT 00:00:10:00 00:00 00:00:03:00 00:00:06:00 00:00:09:00 V4 V3 V2 v1 V1 Master shot jacob CU Master shot jacob CU curtain.psd curtain.psd a1 A1 A new track is created above the current V1 video track, and your clip is inserted into it.

4 Double-click the sequence clip you've just edited into the Timeline (not the background clip), to open it into the Viewer, then click the Motion tab.

Dots in the scrubber bar indicate the clip is in a sequence. Video Filters Motion 00:00:10:00 5% 01:12:15:12 Video Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav Basic Motion Scale 100 Rotation 0 Center 0 Anchor Point 0 Crop Distort Opacity Drop Shadow Motion Blur Time Remap 01:00:08:22 01:00:06:00 432 432 Motion settings for this clip

First, you'll change the size of the clip so it's smaller, then you'll change the rotation so the clip is angled.

5 Click the disclosure triangle next to the Basic Motion parameter, then drag the Scale slider to 38 (or enter 38 in the Scale number field, then press Return).

As you adjust the Scale slider to the left (lower), the clip gets smaller in the Canvas.

6 Drag the Rotation dial control to the left so that it reads -28.

A negative value rotates the clip to the left; a positive value rotates it to the right.

This is the angle in degrees that your clip is rotated. The change is also reflected in the Canvas.

Next, you'll change the position of this clip in the Canvas.

7 Click the point control for the Center parameter, move the pointer to the Canvas (it changes to a crosshair), then click the crosshair in the upper-left corner of the Canvas.

Point control for the Center parameter

Viewer: Master shot jacob Ctl from End Credits Name Parameters Nay Basic Motion 00:00 00:00 06:00 Scale 3.8 Rotation 43.2 Center -2.8 -4.2 Anchor Point Crop Distort Opacity Drop Shadow Motion Blur Time Remap The new coordinates of the clip's center point appear in these number fields. End Credits The change is also reflected in the Canvas.

Clicking in the Canvas with the crosshair moves the x and y values of that clip's center point to the pixel you clicked. In this case, the first (x) coordinate reads -218 and the second (y) coordinate reads -119.

Note: For more information about using basic geometry to position clips, see "Using Cartesian Geometry to Position Clips" on page 223.

Next, you'll add another clip to your composite.

8 In the Timeline, choose track V2 as the current destination track (click the Destination control). Then, using a superimpose edit, edit in a second clip you want to place in the background.

Timeline: End Credits in Cafe End Credits RT 00:00:09:23 00:00 00:00:03:00 00:00:06:00 00:00:09:00 V4 V3 V2 v1 V1 Master shot Debra MS Master shot Debra MS Master shot jacob CU Master shot jacob CU curtain.psd curtain.psd a1 A1

A second clip is placed in track V3 of the sequence, using the same In and Out points.

Now, you want to copy all the motion settings from the first clip and selectively apply them to this second clip.

9 Select the clip in track V2 that you resized and repositioned, then choose Edit > Copy. Next, select the clip in track V3, then choose Edit > Paste Attributes.

Select the clip in track V3, so you can paste attributes into it.

The Paste Attributes dialog appears. By checking various options in this dialog, you can selectively paste only the attributes you want to use from the clip you copied into the currently selected clip.

Paste Attributes Attributes from Master shot jacob CU: Scale Attribute Times Video Attributes: Content Basic Motion Crop Distort Opacity Drop Shadow Motion Blur Filters Speed Clip Settings (capture) Audio Attributes: Content Levels Pan Filters This setting is the only attribute you want to copy. Cancel OK

The two clips occupy the same position in the Canvas with the clip on track V3 taking precedence, so you'll see that one in the Canvas.

Canvas: End Credits in Cafe The new clip on track V3 now has the same motion settings as the other clip in track V2.

Although you want to keep the size of this new clip the same, you want to position it on the right corner, as a mirror image of your original clip.

11 Double-click the clip on track V3 to open it in the Viewer, then click the Motion tab.

12 In the left number field of the Center parameter (the x coordinate), delete the - (minus sign), then press Return.

Canvas: End Credits in Cafe End Credits 00:00:10:00 59% 00:00:08:22 www Canvas & Drawing

The value changes from negative 218 to positive 218. The results appear immediately in the Canvas.

Note: The x and y coordinates of a clip in the Canvas are based on the offset between that clip's center point and the center point of the Canvas. See "Using Cartesian Geometry to Position Clips" on page 223 for more information.

Now, you want to make this clip rotate to the right rather than to the left.

13 Delete the – (minus sign) from the Rotation number field, then press the Return key.

Canvas: End Credits in Cafe End Credits 00:00:10:00 59% 00:00:08:22

- The two clips are now on opposite sides, rotated differently.

Now that you have all your background layers set up, it's time to edit in the foreground clip that's going to appear in front of these layers.

14 Using the same sequence In and Out points that you've been using, set the destination track of your sequence to V3, then edit in the foreground clip using a superimpose edit.

Timeline: End Credits in Cafe End Credits RT 00:00:10:00 00:00 00:00:03:00 00:00:06:00 00:00:09:00 V4 director director v1 V3 Master shot Debra MS Master shot Debra MS V2 Master shot jacob CU Master shot jacob CU V1 curtain.psd curtain.psd a1 A1

15 Open this new clip in the Viewer, then select the Motion tab.
16 Open the Basic Motion parameter and adjust the Scale slider to 66, so that this clip is 66% of its original size.

Set the Scale to 66. The foreground clip is now 66% of its original size.

Now you need to move this clip down so it doesn't obscure the clips in the background as much. To make sure important elements in your sequence are not cut off at the edges when you're layering these clips, you should show the title safe boundaries. The Title Safe indicators show the boundaries for title safe and action safe, so you can position your composited clips and titles accordingly.

17 Choose View > Show Title Safe.

Canvas: End Credits in Cafe 00:00:10:00 59% 00:00:08:22

The action safe boundary is 10% smaller than the size of the video frame.

The title safe boundary is 20% smaller than the size of the video frame.

Tip: Viewing title safe boundaries is especially important when creating work that will be broadcast on television. Televisions cut off the edge of the video frame to give the illusion that the picture takes up the entire TV screen. The amount that gets cut off varies from manufacturer to manufacturer.
18 In the right number field of the Center setting, enter 37.

Viewing the action safe guidelines, you see that you're within the area that is viewable on most television monitors.

Enter 37 here to move the clip down 37 pixels.

Viewer: director from End Credits Name Parameters Nav Basic Motion 00:00:00 Scale 66 Rotation 432 Center 0 37 Anchor Point 0 0 Crop 00:00:00 Distort 00:00:00 Opacity 00:00:00 Drop Shadow 00:00:00 Motion Blur 00:00:00 Time Remap 00:00:00 00:00:08:22

End Credits 00:00:10:00 59% 00:00:08:22 end credits in Live 播放时间 00:00:08:22

You can now see more of the clips in the background.

In this example, the Crop, Feather, Opacity, and Drop Shadow settings are changed to further customize the sequence you created in "Example 1: Using Motion Settings to Create a Multiclip Layout."

1 Open the clip on track V4 of your sequence into the Viewer, then click the Motion tab.

Viewer: director from End Credits Video Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 6:00 01:00:12:00 Basic Motion Scale 66 Rotation 0 432 Center 0 37 -432 Anchor Point 0 0 Crop Distort Opacity Drop Shadow Motion Blur Time Remap 01:00:08:22

First, you'll feather the edges of your foreground clip to give it a soft border.

2 Click the disclosure triangle next to the Crop parameter.
3 Drag the Edge Feather slider to the right until it's set to 64.

Next, you'll apply the same amount of feathering to the other two background clips without opening the clips.

4 Select the foreground clip on track V2, then choose Edit > Copy.
5 Drag a box around the two background clips on tracks V3 and V2 to select both clips, then choose Edit > Paste Attributes.

6 In the Paste Attributes dialog, check the Scale Attribute Times and Crop boxes, leaving all other options unchecked, then click OK.

Canvas: End Credits in Cafe 00:00:10:00 59% 00:00:08:22

The feathering you set in the foreground clip is now applied to the background clips.

Now, you'll make two further adjustments to the foreground clip, making it seem a bit wider and allowing the clips in the background to be more visible.

7 Drag the Top and Bottom sliders in the Crop parameter to the right until they are set to 5.

Viewer: director from End Credits Name Parameters Nav Basic Motion 16 Crimp Left 18 Right 0 Top 5 Bottom 5 Edge Feather 64 Distort Opacity 0 Drop Shadow 0 Motion Blur 0 Time Remap 00:00:08:22 End Credits 00:00:10:00 59% 00:00:08:22 The resulting change to the clip is displayed in the Canvas.

Now, you'll add a drop shadow to these three layers.

8 With the Motion tab of the foreground clip still open in the Viewer, click the checkbox next to Drop Shadow to enable it, then click the Drop Shadow's disclosure triangle. Using the appropriate controls, set the offset to 10, angle to 135, softness to 23, and opacity to 65.

Adjust the settings in the Drop Shadow parameter.

9 To apply these settings to the other two clips, select the clip on track V4 in the Timeline, then choose Edit > Copy. Select the clips on tracks V2 and V3, then choose Edit > Paste Attributes.

10 In the Paste Attributes dialog, click the Drop Shadow checkbox, then click OK.

Canvas: End Credits in Cafe End Credits 00:00:10:00 59% 00:00:08:22

Both selected clips now display a drop shadow.

Finally, you want to darken the background layer, since it's competing with the foreground layers.

11 Open the background clip on track V1, then click its Motion tab. Click the Opacity parameter's disclosure triangle, then set the opacity to 50 percent.

Viewer: curtain.psd from End Credits Video Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 00:00 00:00:06:00 Basic Motion Crop Distort Opacity Opacity Drop Shadow Motion Blur Time Remap

End Credits 00:00:10:00 59% 00:00:08:22 Cancas End Credits in Auto

The background clip now appears darker in the Canvas.

Now you have your completed composite: three clips layered, cropped, scaled, and rotated, with edges feathered.

In the previous section, you learned about default motion parameters for clips and how to adjust those settings in the Viewer using the Motion tab. The motion settings of sequence clips can also be manipulated directly in the Canvas.

If you want to adjust a clip's motion settings in the Canvas, the Canvas must be in one of the "wireframe" modes. When the Canvas is in Image+Wireframe or Wireframe mode, the currently selected clip has a turquoise bounding box which shows its scale, position, rotation, distortion, and cropping, if any are applied. If you are in Image+Wireframe mode, you also see the clip's image; in Wireframe mode, unselected clips are represented by a black background with a gray outline.

Canvas: Conversation in Cafe Conversation 00:00:35:00 01:00:00:00 Selected clip in Image+Wireframe mode

To put the Canvas into a wireframe mode, do one of the following:

Choose View > Image+Wireframe or Wireframe.
Press W to put the Canvas in Image+Wireframe view. Press W again to display Wireframe view. Press W a third time to return to Image view.
Choose Image+Wireframe or Wireframe from the View pop-up menu at the top of the Viewer or Canvas.

Choose one of the wireframe modes. Image+Wireframe Wireframe Show Overlays Show Title Safe Show Timecode Overlays Show Excess Luma RGB Alpha Alpha+RGB Black White Checkerboard 1 Checkerboard 2

There are several view and background options you can specify that make it easier to work with composited layers in your sequence, specifically in the Canvas. For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 7, "Canvas Basics."

Image+Wireframe: Use this option when adjusting motion effects directly in the Canvas.
Wireframe: This option is useful if you're working on high-resolution clips and you want to make a lot of changes quickly, without having to wait for your image to update. The wireframe option is also useful for quickly previewing motion you've created using keyframes (discussed in the next section).
RGB and Alpha views: You can view your sequence in the Canvas with RGB, Alpha, or Alpha+RGB enabled. When compositing, you may want to look at the alpha channel of your clip, which defines areas of transparency and can change if various filters are applied. This can show you which areas of your frame are solid or transparent so you can make sure the clip is properly set up.
Background options: When working with clips that have an alpha channel, or with a series of small clips that you're compositing against nothing, you can choose different backgrounds to make it easier to see which areas of your composition are transparent or in the background. For example, translucent clips or generated text may be more visible if you choose a background that emphasizes them, such as checkerboard 1 or 2.

When a clip is selected in the Timeline or Canvas (and you are in a wireframe mode), there are handles attached to the clip that allow you to perform different geometrical manipulations. A number at the center of the selected clip shows which track the clip is on. Shown below are the different handles on a selected clip in the Canvas.

Canvas End Credits in Cafe End Credits 00:00:10:00 35% 01:00:08:22 Rotational handle Scale/Distort handle Center handle (the number indicates that this clip is on track V4)

Using the Selection, Crop, and Distort tools in the Tool palette, you can drag a clip's handles directly in the Canvas to create various effects.

Center handle: Drag this handle of a clip's wireframe with the Selection tool to reposition the clip in the Canvas (changing its Center setting in that clip's Motion tab).
Rotational handle: Drag one of these four rotation handles with the Selection tool to rotate the clip in the Canvas (changing its Rotation setting in that clip's Motion tab).
Scale/Distort handles: Drag one of the four corner points of a clip with the Selection tool to modify its Scale setting. Drag one of these four points with the Distort tool to move that point independently of the others (changing the appropriate Distort setting in that clip's Motion tab).
Crop handles: You can also drag one of a clip's four sides with the Crop tool to adjust how the clip is cropped (changing the appropriate Crop setting in that clip's Motion tab).

The Crop and Distort tools can be used to manipulate images directly in the Canvas, instead of setting parameter values in a clip's Motion tab.

Crop tool Distort tool

Crop tool: Allows you to drag each of a clip's four sides inward to crop just that side. You press the C key to select the Crop tool.
Distort tool: Lets you drag each of a clip's corner points independently, in order to create perspective effects and other geometric distortion. You press the D key to select the Distort tool.

In the Canvas, you can choose a magnification level to help you work with your clips as you manipulate them. By zooming into the Canvas, you can get a more detailed look at your layers, which can help you make more precise positioning decisions. By zooming out of the Canvas and making the image smaller, you can more easily move clips out of the frame, in preparation for creating keyframed motion from the outside of the frame to the inside.

Note: The zoom level you specify changes the display size of the image only and doesn't affect the frame size of your edited sequence.

Choose View > Level, then choose a magnification level from the submenu.
Choose a magnification level from the View pop-up menu in the Canvas.
With the Canvas active, press Command-+ (plus) to zoom in; press Command- - (minus) to zoom out. The zoom increments are the same as those in the View pop-up menu.

59 ✓ Fit to Window Fit All 800% 400% 200% 100% 50% 25% 12% ✓ Show As Sq. Pixels Magnification levels

Tip: To reset the zoom level to the current size of the Canvas, make the Canvas active, then choose View > Level > Fit to Window (or press Shift-Z). This command also works in the Viewer.

In many instances, you may find that dragging the handles of a selected clip in the Canvas is faster and more intuitive than adjusting its parameters in the Motion tab of the Viewer.

Note: You must be in Image+Wireframe or Wireframe mode to use wireframe handles.

1 Select a clip in the Timeline.
2 Select the Selection tool in the Tool palette, then do one of the following:

- To scale the clip proportionally: Drag a corner handle.

Canvas: Conversation in Cafe 00:00:35:00 59% 01:00:00:01 Drag a corner handle to scale proportionally.

- To scale the clip without constraining the proportions: Shift-drag a corner handle.

Canvas: Conversation in Cafe 00:00:35:00 Shift-drag a corner handle to scale in one direction or the other.

1 Select a clip in the Timeline.
2 Select the Selection tool in the Tool palette, then drag the layer to a new position.

Canvas: Conversation in Cafe Conversation 00:00:35:00 59% 01:00:00:01 Timeline Tools

You can move a clip partially or completely outside the Canvas.

1 Select a clip in the Timeline.
2 Select the Selection tool in the Tool palette, then drag any edge of the selected clip's border in an arc around the clip's center point.

Canvas: Conversation in Cafe Conversation 00:00:35:00 59% 01:00:00:01

Drag any edge with the Selection tool to rotate the clip.

The farther away you drag from the clip's center point, the more precise control you have over the rotation.
To constrain rotation to 45-degree increments, hold the Shift key while dragging.
Continuous dragging increases the total number of rotations performed, if you're creating keyframed movement.

To scale and rotate a clip:

■ Command-drag a corner handle.

Canvas: Conversation in Cafe Conversation 00:00:35:00 59% 01:00:00:01 Timeline: 2006.10.10

Command-drag a corner handle to scale and rotate the clip.

1 Select a clip in the Timeline.
2 Select the Distort tool in the Tool palette, then drag a corner handle.

Canvas: Conversation in Cafe Conversation 00:00:35:00 59% 01:00:00:01 www Canvas@coa

Drag a corner with the Distort tool to distort the clip.

Tip: To shorten one side and lengthen the other side of an image, hold down the Shift key while dragging.

Canvas: Conversation in Cafe Conversation 00:00:35:00 39% 01:00:00:01 00:00:35:00 01:00:00:01

Hold down the Shift key as you drag to change all four points simultaneously and give the appearance of a change in perspective.

1 Select a clip in the Timeline.

2 Select the Crop tool in the Tool palette, then do one of the following:

- To crop a particular side: Drag in from the edge of the clip.

Canvas: Conversation in Cafe 00:00:35:00 01:00:00:01 Drag an edge with the Crop tool to crop that side of the clip.

- To crop two sides at one time: Drag one of the corners of the wireframe.

Canvas: Conversation in Cafe 00:00:35:00 01:00:00:01 Drag a corner with the Crop tool to crop two sides at once.

- To constrain the rectangle's aspect ratio: Hold down the Shift key while dragging a corner.

Canvas: Conversation in Cafe 00:00:35:00 Shift-drag a corner with the Crop tool to maintain the aspect ratio.

In this example, you'll put a graphic on the side of a building as if it were a sign. You'll use the Scale, Center, and Distort parameters (in the Motion tab of the Viewer) to match the perspective of the building with the perspective of the sign, and the Selection and Distort tools to manipulate the graphic directly in the Canvas. This example assumes you've already created a new sequence and opened it in the Timeline.

Note: This example uses a sequence created for DV clips, with a frame size of 720 x 480.

1 Edit a shot of a building into track V1 of your sequence.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Example: Using Motion Parameters and Wireframe Handles - 1

natural_image

Exterior view of a white building with gray walls and a clear blue sky (no signage or text visible)

The clip shown here is a locked-down shot of a building from a 3/4 angle (a locked-down shot is one where the camera does not move).

2 Import a graphics file (such as a PICT file) of a sign into your project, then open it in the Viewer.

Video Filters Motion 00:00:10:00 25% 00:01:00:00 Coffee by Jake

This shows the graphic you'll place on the side of the building.

3 In the Canvas or Timeline, position the playhead over the clip you just edited into track V1, then set the sequence In and Out points to be the duration of the building clip (choose Mark > Mark Clip or press X).

Timeline: Exterior sequence in Cafe RT 00:00:05:15 00:00 00:00:03:00 00:00:06:00 00:00:09:00 Position the playhead anywhere within the clip. building.psd building.psd Set the In and Out points for the duration of this clip.

4 Perform a superimpose edit to superimpose the sign into track V2 for the duration of the shot.

Canvas: Exterior sequence in Cafe 00:00:10:00 59% 00:00:05:15 Coffee by Jake The sign is now on top of the building.

Instead of changing settings in the Motion tab, you'll manipulate the images in the Timeline.

5 In the Timeline, select the image, then choose Image+Wireframe from the View pop-up menu in the Canvas.

Exterior sequence 00:00:10:00 Coffee by Jake

The selected layer in track V2 is outlined in turquoise.

6 With the Selection tool, hold down the Shift key, then drag one of the corners of the sign graphic to change its scale to match that of the building.

Exterior sequence 00:00:10:00 59% 00:00:04:10 Coffee by juice

Scale down the size of the sign graphic.

7 With the Selection tool, drag the center point of the sign graphic to move it so that its position matches that of the wall.

Canvas: Exterior sequence in Cafe Exterior sequence 00:00:10:00 Coffee by Jake

Move the graphic so it's positioned entirely on the building's side.

8 Select the Distort tool in the Tool palette, then drag each of the four corners of the sign graphic until they match the perspective of the side of the building.

Canvas: Exterior sequence in Cafe Exterior sequence 00:00:10:00 Coffee by Jane

Use the Distort tool to match the perspective of the building.

Tip: To make the sign look more convincing, you can also add a subtle drop shadow by enabling the Drop Shadow attribute in the Motion tab of the sign clip.

Automated audio level adjustments, opacity changes between layers, shifting color values, and spinning video clips are examples of what's possible when using keyframes to adjust clip parameters over time.

This chapter covers the following:

Animating Motion Effects Using Keyframes (p. 249)
Smoothing Keyframes With Bezier Handles (p. 268)
Creating Keyframed Motion Paths in the Canvas (p. 272)
• Using the Timeline Keyframe Graph Area (p. 283)

The word keyframe comes from the traditional workflow in the animation industry, where only important (key) frames of an animated sequence were drawn to sketch a character's motion over time. Once the keyframes were determined, an in-between artist drew all the frames between the keyframes. With Final Cut Pro, you can set parameters to specific values at specific times and Final Cut Pro acts as an automatic, real-time in-between artist, calculating all the values between your keyframes.

Effects, such as opacity, position, and any other of a clip's Motion tab settings, can be dynamically changed over the course of your sequence using keyframes. Keyframes are available throughout Final Cut Pro for any feature with parameters that can be changed over time, and can be used to create sophisticated motion, filter, and transparency effects.

Many clip parameters can be keyframed:

Opacity
Motion settings
Generators
Filters
Volume level
Pan settings

Since you can add keyframes to filters and generators, as well as motion settings, the information presented in this chapter can also be used to modify filters and generators (discussed in Chapter 11, "Video Filters," on page 185 and Chapter 21, "Using Built-in Generated Clips," on page 489).

You place keyframes at specific points in a clip or sequence to change parameters at those points. For example, if you want the last clip in your sequence to fade to black, you set two Opacity keyframes at two different times: one with the value of 100 (fully visible) and a second with the value of 0 (fully transparent). Final Cut Pro interpolates the values between 100 and 0, creating a smooth fade to black.

To add keyframes to a sequence clip, you can use the Canvas or Timeline, or open the clip in the Viewer. If you're keyframing motion, you set keyframes in the Motion tab of the Viewer; if you're keyframing filter effects, you set keyframes in the Filters tab of the Viewer.

Note: You can also add keyframes to master clips that are opened into the Viewer from the Browser, but these keyframed effects accompany the clip whenever it's edited into a sequence.

When you use two or more keyframes to change an effect over time, Final Cut Pro automatically interpolates the values between the keyframes so that there's a smooth change in that parameter. For example, when you look at a clip with a change in opacity using two keyframes, you can see the gradual change from one keyframe to the other in the slope of the Opacity overlay, as shown below in the Timeline.

0:00 01:00:00:16 01:00:01:08 01:00:02:00 01:00:02:16 01:00:03:08 01 Intro title Intro title Debra side walking First keyframe Second keyframe Overlay in the Timeline for the Opacity parameter

Adding additional keyframes increases the complexity of the effect, but the area in between each pair of keyframes in your clip is still smoothly interpolated.

Using more keyframes creates additional complexity, shown in the overlay.

2:00 01:00:00:16 01:00:01:08 01:00:02:00 01:00:02:16 01:00:03:08 01 Intro title Intro title Debra sidewalking

The complexity of the changes in your effects depends on the number of keyframes that you add to a clip. You need at least two keyframes in a clip to make a dynamic change from one value in an effects parameter to another. A more sophisticated change requires three keyframes. To isolate a keyframe change to a certain section of the entire overlay for an effect, you need at least four keyframes.

The simplest thing you can do to make a change is to add two keyframes. For example, you can change the size, or scale, of a clip by adjusting its scale from 25 percent in the first keyframe to 75 percent in the second keyframe.

Name Parameters Nav 00:00 01:00:04:00 Basic Motion Scale 75 1000 0 Two keyframes let you create a basic change.

With three keyframes, you can create more complex effects, such as a curved motion path. In the example below, the position of the clip starts at the location specified by the first keyframe, moves to the position specified by the second keyframe, and then continues on its journey until it reaches the position specified by the third keyframe. (For more information about creating motion paths in the Canvas, see “Creating Keyframed Motion Paths in the Canvas” on page 272.)

Canvas: Opening Titles in Cafe 00:01:16:10 01:00:00:01 Keyframe 2 Keyframe 1 Keyframe 3

You can make isolated changes to sections of an overlay for an effect if you have at least four keyframes. For example, if you have a superimposed clip that's set at 50 percent opacity for the duration of the clip, but you need it to go to 100 percent for 3 seconds right in the middle, you'd create four keyframes on that clip's opacity overlay. Now you can have the opacity level of the clip start at 50 percent, jump to 100 percent for the duration the keyframes specify, and then drop back to 50 percent for the remaining duration of the clip.

Using four keyframes, you can isolate changes to specific sections of a clip's overlay.

You can use various controls for keyframing motion effects. While motion effects, filters, and generator clips have their own individual settings and controls, they use the same controls for keyframing.

Viewer: Learning from Compositing Fun Video Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 27:07 01:37:07 Basic Motion Scale 100 1000 Rotation 432 Center 0 0 Anchor Point 0 0 Crop Left 0 Right 0 Top 0 Bottom 0 Edge Feather 0 Distort Opacity Drop Shadow Motion Blur Time Remap Keyframe button Keyframe navigation buttons Reset button 01:12:27:07

- Keyframe button: Click to place a keyframe for the corresponding parameter in the keyframe graph area at the current playhead location.

Note: When the playhead in the keyframe graph area is directly on a keyframe, the keyframe button for that setting becomes a green diamond.

Keyframe navigation buttons: Click these buttons, to the left and the right of the keyframe button, to move the playhead from one keyframe to another.
Reset button: Click to delete all marked keyframes and reset the parameter to its default value.

Keyframe graph area Name Parameters Nav Basic Motion Scale 75 1000 0 0.04:00 Keyframe graph ruler Section of clip not used Section of clip not used

• Keyframe graph area: Shows all the values and keyframes associated with parameters currently displayed in the Viewer.
• Keyframe graph ruler: Corresponds to the duration of the clip or the location of a clip in a sequence:

- If a clip is opened from the Browser, the keyframe graph ruler shows the duration of the clip itself. The playhead in the Viewer moves independently of the playhead in the Timeline or Canvas.

- If a clip is opened from a sequence in the Timeline, the keyframe graph ruler shows the section of the Timeline that the clip is edited into. The playhead in the Viewer is locked to the playhead in the Timeline and the Canvas.

- Section of clip currently used: The frames of a clip in the Viewer that are outside the duration specified by its In and Out points are dimmed so that you know where to apply your keyframes.

01:00:20:23 Timecode navigation field Zoom control Zoom slider

Timecode navigation field: Displays the position of the playhead in the keyframe graph area. You can enter a new timecode value to move the playhead to another position.
Zoom control: Lets you zoom in and out on the duration displayed by the ruler in the keyframe graph area, expanding and contracting the keyframe graph ruler as you do so. This also keeps the area of the visible keyframe graph centered as you zoom in or out. For more information, see "Zooming In to the Keyframe Graph" on page 261.
Zoom slider: Lets you zoom in and out of the duration displayed by the keyframe graph ruler. Drag the thumb tabs on either side of the slider to adjust both thumb tabs and leave the visible area of the keyframe graph centered. Press the Shift key and drag one of the thumb tabs to zoom in or out of the keyframe graph, locking the opposite thumb tab and moving the visible area of the Timeline in the direction in which you're dragging. For more information, see "Zooming In to the Keyframe Graph" on page 261.

Three tools in the Tool palette allow you to add, modify, or remove keyframes on a parameter's keyframe graph line in the keyframe graph area.

Pen tool Pen Smooth tool Pen Delete tool

Pen: Allows you to add keyframes to a parameter in the Motion tab or Timeline keyframe graph by clicking it (you can also press the P key).
Pen Delete: Lets you delete a keyframe from a parameter by clicking the keyframe itself (you can also press the P key twice).
Pen Smooth: Allows you to smooth a keyframe's interpolation by clicking the keyframe itself (you can also press the P key three times).

To use the Pen tool most efficiently, use these keyboard modifiers:

Press the Option key while the Selection tool is active to temporarily enable the Pen tool, then click a parameter in either a keyframe graph area or in the Timeline to add a keyframe at that point.
To remove the keyframe with the Pen Delete tool, hold down the Option key and click an existing keyframe.
Control-click a keyframe and choose Smooth from the shortcut menu to add Bezier handles to the keyframe. See "Smoothing Keyframes" on page 271 for information on Bezier handles.

Until you create at least one keyframe for a parameter (or setting) of a clip, changes you make to that parameter affect the entire duration of the clip. Once you set the first keyframe for a parameter, additional keyframes are generated automatically when you make any subsequent changes to that parameter anywhere else in that clip. You generally need to set at least two keyframes to make changes or effects that are useful or noticeable.

Note: For some parameters, you must click the disclosure triangle to view its keyframes in the keyframe graph area.

Tip: To better adjust and view the keyframes you're setting, you may want to zoom into the keyframe graph area (see "Zooming In to the Keyframe Graph" on page 261).

1 Open a clip into the Viewer, then click the Motion or Filters tab.
2 In the keyframe graph area, move the playhead to the position where you want to put a keyframe.
3 Click the keyframe button that corresponds to the parameter you are modifying.

Viewer: Learning from Compositing Fun Video Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 01:00 12:00 Basic Motion Scale 100 1000 Rotation -432 Center 0, 0 -432 Anchor Point 0, 0 Crop Distort Opacity 51 Opacity 100 Drop Shadow Motion Blur Time Remap Click the keyframe button for a setting to add a keyframe at the playhead's current location. The keyframe appears as a small diamond in the keyframe graph area.

Tip: Any motion effect, audio parameter, or filter parameter can be adjusted in the keyframe graph area of the Timeline.

For more information about adjusting keyframe graphs in the Timeline, see “Working With the Timeline Keyframe Editor” on page 286.

To set keyframes from the Viewer or Canvas:

- To add a keyframe to all of the selected clip's motion settings at once: In the Video tab of the Viewer or in the Canvas, click the Add Keyframe button.

Canvas: Conversation in Cafe 00:00 14:04 398 01:00 00:01 Add Keyframe button in the Canvas

- To set keyframes for a single parameter: Control-click the Add keyframe button, then select a parameter from the shortcut menu.

Keyframe All Scale Rotation Center Anchor Point Aspect Ratio Crop Distort Control-click the Add Keyframe button to choose a motion parameter from the shortcut menu.

To set a keyframe using the Pen tool, do one of the following:

Select the Pen tool in the Tool palette (or press P); then, in the appropriate tab of the Viewer, click a parameter's keyframe graph line (in the keyframe graph area) where you want to add the keyframe.
Hold down the Option key and click a parameter's keyframe graph line where you want to add the keyframe.

Tip: This is also useful for setting keyframes in the video opacity and audio level overlays of a clip in the Timeline.

Once you've added at least one keyframe to a parameter, new keyframes are automatically added whenever you move the playhead and make further adjustments. To better see what you are doing, you may want to add more space to the keyframe graph area before you set additional keyframes.

1 Drag the Motion tab from the Viewer to the Timeline.

The Motion tab is now a tab within the Timeline.

2 When you've finished making adjustments, do one of the following:

Drag the tab back to the Viewer.
Control-click the tab, then choose Close Tab from the shortcut menu.

The Motion tab reappears in the Viewer.

1 Move the playhead to another point in the clip where you want to set a keyframe.
2 Do one of the following:

- Adjust the appropriate setting control.

- Type a number in the appropriate number field.

- Click a parameter's keyframe button to add a keyframe with the current value of the parameter.

- Hold down the Option key and click a parameter's keyframe graph line where you want to add the keyframe.

This doesn't change the parameter's current value; it simply adds a keyframe with the same value. You can add as many keyframes as you want by clicking repeatedly with the Option key held down.

After you add keyframes to a parameter, you can adjust keyframes to produce the desired effect. You can modify individual keyframes, interpolated values between keyframes, or all keyframes at one time. You can also move and delete keyframes at any time.

Move the playhead to the keyframe you want to adjust, then drag the appropriate setting control to a new value.
Move the playhead to the keyframe you want to adjust, type a new value in the appropriate parameter's number field, then press Return.

- Move the pointer over the keyframe you want to modify (it becomes a crosshair), then drag the keyframe up or down.

To raise the keyframe's value, drag the keyframe up.
To lower the keyframe's value, drag the keyframe down.

Opacity Opacity 52 100 0 As you drag, a box shows the new value of the keyframe.

- Move the pointer over the section of the parameter's keyframe graph line (the pointer turns into the Adjust Line Segment pointer), then drag that area up or down to modify it.

Opacity Opacity 79 100 57 Drag the area up or down to adjust a section.

Note: The keyframes on either side of the adjusted section are changed simultaneously.

1 Press and hold down the Shift key, then move the pointer over a parameter's keyframe graph line (the pointer turns into the Adjust Line Segment pointer).
2 Drag the parameter's keyframe graph line up or down to change the value.

As you drag, a box displays the new values for the overlay.

Note: This method changes the values for that parameter over the course of your entire clip, keeping the relative shape of the keyframes and interpolated values intact.

- Move the pointer over the keyframe you want to move (the pointer turns into a crosshair), then drag the keyframe forward (right) or backward (left).

As you drag, a box shows the timecode duration of the change you're making.

To delete a keyframe, do one of the following:

Move the playhead to the keyframe you want to remove, then click the keyframe button for the corresponding setting.
Move the pointer over the keyframe you want to remove (the pointer turns into a crosshair), then drag the keyframe out of the keyframe graph area. When the pointer turns into a small trash can, release the mouse button.
Press and hold down the Option key, move the pointer over the keyframe you want to remove (the pointer turns into the Pen Delete tool), then click the keyframe.

Note: This is also a good way to delete keyframes directly in the opacity and level overlays of a clip in the Timeline.

■ Control-click the keyframe you want to remove, then choose Clear from the shortcut menu.

Opacity Opacity 79 100 Clear Smooth Control-click a keyframe, then choose Clear to delete it.

- Click the Reset button for the appropriate setting.

Opacity 100 Opacity 100 Click the Reset button to delete all keyframes for a setting.

As you work with keyframes, you'll need to move to different keyframes to check your motion effects.

To move the playhead from one keyframe to another:

- Click the left or right keyframe navigation button for the appropriate setting.

To move left one keyframe:

Press Option-K.

To move right one keyframe:

Press Shift-K.

Note: The keyframe navigation commands work only on tracks with Auto Select enabled.

For a more detailed view of the keyframes you're setting and adjusting, you can zoom in and out of the keyframe graph area in the Motion and Filter tabs in the Viewer.

- Drag the left or right thumb tab on the side of the Zoom slider. While zooming, the visible area of the keyframe graph stays centered.

Hold down the Shift key while you drag one of the thumb tabs to zoom in or out of your sequence from the selected end of the Zoom slider, while keeping the other thumb tab locked in place. This also moves the visible area of the keyframe graph in the direction you're dragging as you zoom.

Zoom slider Thumb tabs on either end of the slider

1 With the keyframe graph selected, do one of the following:

Place the playhead at the position in the keyframe graph area where you want the center of your zooming to occur.
Select one or more clips in the keyframe graph area that you want to be centered as you zoom in or out.

2 Do one of the following:

To zoom in, press Command-+ (plus).
To zoom out, press Command-- (minus).

1 Select the Zoom In or Zoom Out tool in the Tool palette.

Zoom In tool Zoom Out tool

2 Do one of the following:

Click the keyframe graph area.
Drag to select a region to zoom in or out on.

As you drag, the view automatically snaps to the specified percentages of zoom in the keyframe graph area.

- Click or drag repeatedly to increase the zoom factor.

When the keyframe graph is zoomed in or out to the maximum level possible, the + (plus) and – (minus) signs on the zoom tools disappear.

Opacity Opacity 65 100 With a zoom tool selected, click the keyframe graph (Zoom In tool shown here).

Note: To temporarily toggle the tool, press Option while the Zoom In or Zoom Out tool is selected.

Once you've zoomed in to the keyframe graph area, you can navigate to different parts of your clip using the Zoom slider.

- Drag the center of the Zoom slider to the left or to the right.

To change the duration of the keyframe graph ruler:

- Click or drag the Zoom control.

To zoom out and show more of your sequence, click to the right of the control.
To zoom in and show more detail, click the left side of this control.

Note: The current area of the keyframe graph area remains centered.

Zoom control

This example illustrates how you can use Final Cut Pro to dynamically adjust opacity over time to create sophisticated multilayered effects. You'll layer two clips and adjust a clip's opacity over time. The topmost clip fades in, superimposes the other clip for a few seconds, and then fades up (nearly obscuring the underlying image) before fading away completely.

1 Edit two clips of equal duration into your sequence, each on its own video track.

Note: The clip you want to appear in front should be placed on track V2; the other clip should be placed on track V1.

Timeline: Conversation in Cafe Conversation RT 01:00:09:08 00:00 01:00:03:00 01:00:06:00 01:00:09:00 V2 Master shot Debra MS Master shot Debra MS v1 V1 Master shot jacob CU Master shot jacob CU Layer the clips, with one clip on track V1 and the other superimposed on track V2. Music 2 Music 2 Music 2 Music 2

2 Open the clip on track V2 into the Viewer, then click the Motion tab.
3 Click the disclosure triangle for the Opacity parameter to reveal its overlay in the keyframe graph area.

4 To adjust the opacity of the entire clip, do one of the following:

Drag the Opacity slider to the left until the value in the number field reads 50.
Type 50 in the Opacity number field, then press Return.
Move the pointer over the Opacity value graph line in the keyframe graph area; when the pointer turns into the Adjust Line Segment pointer, drag down until the value in the number field reads 50.

Viewer: Master shot Debra MS from Conversation Video Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 0.00 01:00:00.00 Basic Motion Scale 100 Rotation 0 Center 0 0 Anchor Point 0 0 Crop Distort Opacity 50 Opacity Drop Shadow Motion Blur Time Remap 01:00:01:03

Conversation 00:00:09:08 59% 03:00:01:01 Converance: Conversation in Love 12.00:00:01

The image in the Canvas now shows both layers blended together.

5 In the current timecode field of the Viewer, enter 01:00:02:00 to move the playhead.

Entering the new timecode moves the playhead to this location.

▶ Motion Blur ▶ Time Remap 01:00:02:00

6 Click the opacity keyframe button to create a keyframe at the new position of the playhead.

Since it takes at least two keyframes to create a dynamic change to a parameter over time, you'll need to add another keyframe.

7 Move the playhead to 01:00:03;00 on the keyframe graph ruler, then create another keyframe.

Viewer: Master shot Debra MS from Conversation Video Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 00:00 01:00:06:00 Basic Motion Scale 100 Rotation 432 Center 0, 0 -432 Anchor Point 0, 0 Crop Distort Opacity Opacity 100 Opacity 50 Drop Shadow Motion Blur Time Remap A second keyframe is added to the Opacity value graph line. 01:00:03:00

8 In the keyframe graph area, move the pointer to the left of the two keyframes on the Opacity value graph line. When the pointer turns into the Adjust Line Segment pointer, drag down until the number field reads 0.

The shape you've given to the Opacity parameter's keyframe graph line makes the top layer completely invisible for the first 2 seconds of playback. Over the next 2 seconds it fades up until it reaches a total opacity of 50 percent, and looks like an even mix of both layers.

9 Move the playhead to 01:00:04:00, then add another opacity keyframe.
Since you can't move this keyframe without causing a ramp in the overlay segment, you need to add another keyframe.
10 Move the playhead again to 01:00:05:00, then add another keyframe.
11 Adjust the opacity setting of this last keyframe to 90 percent.

The shape of the Opacity parameter's keyframe graph line leaves the opacity of the top layer at 50 percent for 4 seconds, and then the topmost layer fades up to 100 percent, completely obscuring the clip on track V1.

12 To complete this sequence, fade the topmost layer out again by adding one last keyframe. Move the playhead to 01:00:06:00, add another keyframe, then change its value to 0.

Viewer: Master shot Debra MS from Conversation Video Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 00:00 01:00 06:00 Basic Motion Scale 100 Rotation 0 Center 0 0 Anchor Point 0 0 Crop Distort Opacity 0 Opacity 100 Drop Shadow Motion Blur Time Remup 01:00:06:00 Conversation 00:00:09:08 39% 01:00:06:00

Tip: You can also do the above steps using the opacity overlay in the Timeline. See the next example for more information.

There is a faster way to create the Opacity parameter keyframes you created in "Example: Using Keyframes to Make Opacity Changes." You do this by adjusting the clip's opacity over time using the opacity overlay in the Timeline.

1 In the Timeline, edit two clips of equal duration into your sequence.

Note: The clip you want to appear in front should be placed on track V2; the other clip should be placed on track V1.

Layer the clips, with one clip on track V1 and the other superimposed on track V2.

01:00:01:00 01:00:02:00 01:00:03:00 01:00:04:00 01:00:05:00 01:00:06:00 Master shot Debra MS Master shot Debra MS Master shot jacob CU Master shot jacob CU

2 Click the Clip Overlays control to display the opacity and level overlays of each clip in your sequence.
3 Move the pointer over the opacity overlay (located directly on top of the clip on track V2). When it turns into the Adjust Line Segment pointer, drag the entire overlay down so that it's at 50 percent.

0:00 01:00:01:00 01:00:02:00 01:00:03:00 01:00:04:00 01:00:05:00 01:00:06:00 Master shot Debra MS Master shot Jacob CU 50 Master shot Jacob CU A box displays the value of the opacity parameter as you adjust it.

Tip: If you're having problems getting the value of the overlay to be exactly 50, hold down the Command key while you're dragging to gear down the ratio between the movement of your mouse and the change of the opacity parameter, enabling you to adjust the overlay more precisely.

4 Now, use a shortcut to create all the keyframes you need on the overlay at once. Hold down the Option key while you move the pointer on top of the opacity overlay on the clip in track V2. When the pointer turns into the Pen tool, click the overlay to create five keyframes at 01:00:02:00, 01:00:03:00, 01:00:04:00, 01:00:05:00, and 01:00:06:00 in the Timeline.

Master shot Debra MS Master shot Jacob CU Master shot Jacob CU Create five keyframes at 1-second intervals.

Tip: If you're having trouble creating the keyframes at exactly the times you want, try zooming in to your clip in the Timeline using one of the zoom controls, or by pressing Command-+ (plus) to zoom in to the location of the playhead.

5 Release the Option key, then drag each of the opacity overlay segments between keyframes (or drag the keyframes themselves up or down to the values you want).

To adjust an overlay segment using the Selection tool, move the mouse so that it's directly over an overlay segment. When it turns into the Adjust Line Segment pointer, drag it up or down.
To adjust a keyframe using the Selection tool, move the pointer so that it's directly over a keyframe. When it turns into a crosshair pointer, drag the keyframe up or down.

Master shot Debra MS Master shot jacob CU Master shot Debra MS Master shot 0 CU With the Selection tool, drag a keyframe (or segment) to make adjustments.

The keyframes of some motion settings and filter controls (but not audio volume levels) can be smoothed. When you smooth a keyframe, one or more Bezier handles are "attached" to the keyframe. These handles define the Bezier curve applied to a parameter's interpolation from one keyframe to the next. This allows you to modify the acceleration and deceleration of the change from one keyframe's value to the next. The velocity doesn't cause the effect to happen faster or slower; the overall speed of an effect is determined solely by the distance from one keyframe to the next.

For example, if you space keyframes 2 seconds apart in the Rotate setting, the resulting rotation lasts 2 seconds. If you apply smoothing to one of the keyframes, the total duration of the rotation remains 2 seconds, but the rate at which the clip rotates to full speed and then slows down to a stop is different over the course of those 2 seconds. If you move the two keyframes closer together, the rotation happens faster; if you move the two keyframes farther apart, the rotation happens slower.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Smoothing Keyframes With Bezier Handles - 1
— Two keyframes with no smoothing
Bezier handle on one side of a smoothed — keyframe

When adjusting the Bezier handles that are attached to a smoothed clip, there are several kinds of curves you can create, which result in different velocity rates.

The steeper the curve of the Bezier handles in the parameter's keyframe graph line (or overlay), the faster the rate of change.
The shallower the curve of the parameter's keyframe graph line (or overlay), the slower the rate of change.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Understanding Bezier Handles and Curves - 1

The kinds of curves you can apply to a keyframe depend on that keyframe's location relative to other keyframes on the parameter's keyframe graph line.

The first and last keyframes of a group have one-sided Bezier handles. These keyframes begin and end any dynamic changes in a clip's parameters, and therefore accelerate into a change and decelerate out of it.

Bezier handle First keyframe Last keyframe Bezier handle

Keyframes that are in between other keyframes have two-sided Bezier handles. These handles are normally locked together, so that the curve of a parameter's keyframe graph line has a smooth transition into and out of the keyframe, with no sudden changes.

Two-sided Bezier handles for the smoothed keyframe between a beginning and end keyframe

By default, if you change one of these handles, there's an equal change to both sides of the handle.

Lengthening one of the handles automatically lengthens the other. Raising the height of the overlay curve on one side of the keyframe lowers it on the other, like a seesaw.

The link between these two handles can be suspended, however, to create different kinds of sudden changes in the curve. You do this by holding down the Command key while adjusting one of the handles.

Hold down the Command key to change the angle of a handle independently of the other handle.

Smoothing a keyframe, or adding Bezier handles to it, makes the change from one keyframe's value to the next more gradual by applying a curve instead of a straight line. The ability to apply smoothing to a parameter in Final Cut Pro depends on the kind of keyframes a parameter uses.

One-dimensional keyframes: Parameters that contain multiple values can't be represented by curved graph lines in the keyframe graph. Instead, all values of the parameter are represented by a single point on the graph. Examples of multi-dimensional parameters are: the Center and Anchor Point parameters (two values: x and y) and the Color parameter for the Drop Shadow (three values: R, G, and B). You cannot use Bezier handles to smooth these types of keyframes, because the graph line cannot display multiple parameter values (such as x and y) simultaneously. In the case of the Center or Anchor Point parameter, you can adjust these values on curves directly in the Canvas.
Two-dimensional keyframes: Parameters that contain a single value can be animated with two-dimensional keyframes in the keyframe graph area. Keyframes in these parameters' value graph lines can be smoothed, using Bezier handles to modify their rate of change. Examples of parameters with only a single value are: Scale, Rotation, Aspect Ratio, and Opacity.

■ Control-click the keyframe, then choose Smooth from the shortcut menu.

Clear Smooth Choose Smooth from the shortcut menu.

You can manipulate the velocity of change that takes place from one keyframe to the next by adjusting the Bezier handles on the curve.

- Drag the Bezier handle on the side of a keyframe.

- Hold down the Shift key as you drag a Bezier handle.

When you release the Shift key, the relative length of the two handles is locked to the new unequal lengths you set.

To change the angle between one side of a Bezier curve and the other:

- Hold down the Command key as you drag a Bezier handle.

When you release the Command key, the new relative angle of the two handles is locked to the angle you set.

Hold down the Command key to change the angle of a handle independently of the other handle.

- Hold down the Command and Shift keys as you drag a Bezier handle.

When you release both keys, the new relative angle and length of the two handles you set are locked.

Hold down the Command and Shift keys to change the length and angle of a handle independently of the other handle.

You can create motion for a clip by repositioning it, and then setting keyframes to change the clip's Center parameter over time. By setting enough keyframes, you can eventually create the motion path you want.

There is an easier way, however, which can produce more sophisticated results; you set up the motion in the Canvas using a motion path (in Image+Wireframe or Wireframe mode). Once you set the first center keyframe for a clip in its Motion tab, all subsequent changes made to that clip at different points in time introduce additional center keyframes. When you create two or more center keyframes, they appear in the Canvas along a line called the motion path.

The simplest motion path is a straight line defined by two center keyframes. Once the first keyframe is defined in the Motion tab, any time you move the Canvas or Timeline playhead to another time and then move that clip's wireframe somewhere else in the Canvas, another keyframe is created automatically.

For example, you define a center keyframe for a video clip at -160, 100. You then move the playhead 3 seconds later in your sequence, and drag the clip by its center point to 160, -100. The result is a diagonal motion path moving from the lower-left corner of the Canvas to the upper-right corner, shown below. When your sequence plays, the clip moves along this path, with its anchor point following the motion path exactly.

A simple motion path results from the movement of a clip from this first center keyframe... ... to this second center keyframe.

As you add additional keyframes, you can create more complex paths. For example, with the motion path above already defined, you can move the playhead to a time in between these two keyframes. With the playhead in between these two keyframes, moving the clip to -90, -90 adds a third keyframe to this motion path, shown next. In this way, you can create as many keyframes as you like, changing the shape of the motion path accordingly.

Tip: To move the playhead relative to these keyframes, you can view your clip's keyframes in the Motion tab of the Viewer. To view these keyframes underneath your clips in the Timeline, you can enable the Clip Keyframes control.

A third keyframe is added, between two existing keyframes, for additional movement. A fourth keyframe, between the three others, changes the motion path even more.

The simplest way to make changes to a clip's motion path is by manipulating it directly in the Canvas while in Image+Wireframe mode.

1 Open the clip you want to animate into the Viewer, then click the Motion tab.
2 In the Canvas, choose a wireframe mode from the View pop-up menu.
3 In the Viewer, Canvas, or Timeline, move the playhead to the point on the Timeline where you want that clip's motion to begin.

Note: When you open a clip from your sequence into the Viewer, all three playheads are locked together, so it doesn't matter which playhead you use.

4 Click the Selection tool in the Tool palette.
5 In the Canvas, drag the clip's center point and position the clip at the starting point of the motion path you want to create.

Starting point of motion path
Canvas: Opening Titles in Cafe Opening Titles 00:00:38:05 59% 01:00:00:00

6 Add a keyframe at the starting point.

For more information, see "Setting Keyframes" on page 256.

7 Move the playhead to the position where you want to add your next keyframe.
8 Drag the clip to the next position in the Canvas.

Canvas: Opening Titles in Cafe Opening Titles 00:01:16:10 59% 01:00:18:04

With the Selection tool still selected, drag the clip to the next position.

Final Cut Pro automatically adds a new keyframe, and creates the appropriate motion path in the Canvas. Repeat steps 7 and 8 to add as many keyframes as you need.

You can edit a motion path directly in the Canvas by adding, dragging, or deleting motion path keyframes. The playhead doesn't need to be over a keyframe for you to move or delete it, nor does the playhead location prohibit you from adding additional motion path keyframes using the Pen tool.

Select the Pen tool (press the P key), then click anywhere on a motion path to create a new keyframe.
With the Selection tool active, hold down the Option key to temporarily activate the Pen tool, then click anywhere on a motion path.

■ Using the Selection tool, drag a motion path keyframe anywhere in the Canvas.

Tip: You can drag a motion path keyframe outside the visible area of the Canvas to move the clip offscreen. Zoom out of the Canvas to shrink the viewable area and make this easier.

Select the Pen tool (press the P key), then Option-click an existing keyframe.
■ Control-click a keyframe, then choose Delete from the shortcut menu.

When you add a keyframe to a motion path, it's a Bezier point (also known as a corner point) by default. You can change corner points into curves by using the Pen Smooth tool to add Bezier handles to these points, smoothing the motion path that the anchor point of the clip follows. When you use Bezier handles to create curved motion paths in the Canvas, you won't need to use as many keyframes to define complex motion paths.

A motion path with keyframes as corner points Adding Bezier handles creates a curved motion path.

Bezier handles on motion paths in the Canvas work the same way as they do for keyframes in the Motion tab, except that they affect the spatial motion of the clip, rather than the velocity of the clip's change over time. (To change the acceleration or deceleration of a clip's motion between two keyframes, you need to create separate Bezier handles in the center overlay in the Motion tab.)

- Select the Pen Smooth tool (press the P key three times), then click a corner keyframe to make it curved.

The velocity of these keyframes is automatically set to Linear, meaning that there is a steady rate of speed as the clip moves from that keyframe to the next one on the motion path.

You can add Bezier handles to a keyframe in a motion path and change the acceleration at the same time. For more information, see “Controlling Speed Along a Motion Path” on page 278.

- Drag the Bezier handles on a keyframe.

If you want to create more complex motion paths, you can use modifier keys to adjust the Bezier handles on each side of a keyframe independently of the other.

- Drag a Bezier handle to change the shape of its curve.

- Hold down the Shift key as you drag a Bezier handle. Release the Shift key to lock the relative length of the two handles back together using the new unequal lengths you set.

Canvas: Opening Titles in Cafe Opening Titles 00:01:16:10 59% 01:00:38:02 100% 100% 100%

Press Shift, then drag to resize one side differently than another.

To change the angle between one side of a Bezier curve and the other:

- Hold down the Command key as you drag a Bezier handle. Release the Command key to lock the new relative angle of the two handles back together.

Canvas: Opening Titles in Cafe Opening Titles 00:01:16:10 59% 01:00:38:02 1

Press Command, then drag to resize one side differently than another.

To change the lengths and the angle of the selected Bezier handle independently of one another:

- Hold down the Command and Shift keys as you drag a Bezier handle.

Canvas: Opening Titles in Cafe Opening Titles 00:01:16:10 59% 01:00:38:02 1

Press Command and Shift, then drag to resize and change the angle of one side only.

To remove Bezier handles from a keyframe in a motion path, do one of the following:

■ Control-click a keyframe in the Viewer, then choose Make Corner Point from the shortcut menu.
- Select the Pen Smooth tool (press the P key three times), then click a curved keyframe.

The speed at which a clip travels along a motion path is determined by two factors:

- The spatial, or physical, distance between two keyframes in the Canvas.

The farther a clip has to travel in a given duration, the faster its apparent movement. The less distance a clip moves, given the same amount of time, the slower it appears to go.

- The duration, or distance in time, between two keyframes in the center overlay of a clip's Motion tab.

Two keyframes 1 second apart result in faster motion than two keyframes 4 seconds apart.

You can modify a clip's velocity, changing the quality of its movement. With no velocity adjustments, clips move at full speed and then come to a full stop. This can result in abrupt, artificial-looking motion. Final Cut Pro gives you the ability to change the velocity of a clip's motion over time, using velocity handles to modify the keyframes of a clip's motion path in the Canvas.

By adjusting a keyframe's velocity in the Canvas, inertia can be added to a clip's motion. Instead of taking off at full speed from a complete stop, you can adjust the first keyframe of a motion path so that the clip starts off slowly, and then speeds up over time. These speed changes are indicated by velocity tic marks along that clip's motion path.

Note: In the two examples below, the motion is at a single constant speed.

Canvas: Opening Titles in Cafe Opening Titles 00:00:48:01 59% 01:00:07:01 Tic marks closer together indicate faster motion.

Canvas: Opening Titles in Cafe Opening Titles 00:00:48:01 59% 01:00:01:02 Tic marks farther apart indicate slower motion.

To vary the acceleration of this clip along its motion path, you must first add Bezier handles to the keyframes you want to adjust (see "Creating Curved Motion Paths Using Bezier Handles" on page 275). A velocity handle appears as a small purple dot between the keyframe and the end of the Bezier handle. You can then modify the velocity handle attached to each Bezier handle for these keyframes.

Opening Titles 00:00:48:01 59% 01:00:22:23 Velocity handle Velocity handle

The velocity of a clip's motion from one keyframe to the next can be modified by dragging the velocity handle in and out along the Bezier handle.

To speed up a clip's motion at the beginning and slow it down as it nears the next keyframe:

- Drag the velocity handle in toward the selected keyframe.

Drag toward the keyframe to speed up the motion at the beginning, and then slow it down as it nears the next keyframe.

Canvas: Opening Titles in Cafe Opening Titles 00:00:48:01 59% 01:00:02:23

To slow down a clip's motion at the beginning and speed it up as it nears the next keyframe:

- Drag the velocity handle away from the selected keyframe.

Drag away from the keyframe to slow down the motion of the clip at the beginning, and then speed it up as it nears the next keyframe.

Canvas: Opening Titles in Cafe Opening Titles 00:00:48:01 59% 01:00:02:23 1

To add Bezier handles to a keyframe and change the acceleration:

- Control-click a keyframe, then choose an option from the shortcut menu, depending on the kind of acceleration you want.

Make corner point Ease In/Ease Out Linear Delete point Two commands in the shortcut menu let you manipulate acceleration on a motion path.

Ease In/Ease Out: Curved keyframes are created with the velocity handle set for motion to begin slowly, and then speed up over time, as the clip moves from that keyframe to the next one on the motion path.
Linear: Curved keyframes are created with the velocity handle set to provide a steady rate of speed as the clip moves from that keyframe to the next one on the motion path.

Note: Both commands create Bezier handles with the same controls.

Important: The velocity at which clips speed up into or slow down out of keyframed motion in the Canvas has no effect on the overall speed of the clip's motion.

If you're happy with the shape of a motion path, but you want to move it to a different position, you can move entire motion paths for one or more selected items directly in the Canvas.

1 In the Canvas, do one of the following:

Choose View > Image + Wireframe.
Choose View > Wireframe.

2 Press and hold down the Command and Shift keys, click the clip in the Canvas, then drag it to move the motion path.

Don't click a keyframe or you'll move the keyframe itself and not the entire motion path.

Canvas: Compositing Fun in Steve Lucky & the Rhumba Bums Compositing Fun 00:00:27:21 705 OFF 01:00:09:17 The pointer changes to a hand while you are dragging.

If there's a particular set of keyframed motion effects that you want to use over and over again, you can create a motion favorite. For example, if you're working on a documentary that always moves a lower third graphic with the name of the current speaker into the video frame along a particular motion path, you can save this motion path as a favorite so that you can apply it to all the lower third titles in your project without having to re-create the path from scratch every time.

1 Select a clip in the Timeline that has a series of motion effects keyframes that you want to use as a favorite.

This clip can have as many keyframes in as many motion parameters as you want.

2 Choose Effects > Make Favorite Motion (or press Control-F).

All motion parameter keyframes from that clip are saved as a motion favorite in the Favorites bin of the Effects tab of the Browser. By default, the motion favorite has the name of the clip the motion keyframes were copied from, but you can change this name.

1 Select the motion favorite in the Favorites bin of the Effects tab of the Browser.
2 Click the name of the motion favorite, type a new name, then press Return.

When you apply a motion favorite to a clip in your sequence, it's not like applying a filter. There is no special object (such as a filter) that is attached to your clip. Instead, applying a motion favorite applies all the motion keyframes in that favorite to the motion parameters of the clip. These keyframes can then be further modified at any time.

Select one or more clips in the Timeline, choose Effects > Motion Favorites, then choose the motion favorite you want to apply from the submenu.
In the Timeline, assign the video track containing the clip to which you want to apply the motion favorite as the destination track, then place the Timeline playhead over that clip. Choose Effects > Motion Favorites, then choose an item from the submenu.
In the Browser, drag a motion favorite from the Favorites bin of the Effects tab to a clip in your sequence.
In the Timeline, select a group of clips in your sequence, then drag a motion favorite from the Favorites bin of the Effects tab of the Browser to this group.

Since motion favorites apply keyframes to a clip's motion parameters, to remove the effect from your clip you need to reset the motion parameters that were modified in that clip's Motion tab. You can also remove unused motion favorites that you no longer want to appear in the Motion Favorites submenu.

1 In the Browser, open the Favorites bin of the Effects tab.
2 Select the motion effect item you want to remove.
3 Do one of the following:

Choose Edit > Clear.
Press Delete.

Once motion parameters have been applied to a clip in your sequence, you can use the Clip Keyframes control in the Timeline to display a keyframe graph area below each video and audio track to allow you to view and edit parameters that are applied to your clips.

- Click the Clip Keyframes control.

Clip Keyframes control

This area can be divided into four parts relating to motion, filter, and speed parameters applied to your clips.

Timeline: Conversation in Cafe Conversation RT 01:00:24:15 00:00 01:00:7:00 01:00:14:00 01:00:21:00 Master shot jacob CU (Variable) Video filter bar (the upper green bar) Video motion bar (the lower blue bar) Keyframe editor Speed indicator area Music 2 Music 2 Keyframe Editor Resize column allows you to change the height of the keyframe editor area.

Filter bar: If a clip has one or more video or audio filters applied, a green bar appears in this space for the duration of that clip. If keyframes are added to a filter in a given clip, those keyframes appear as green diamonds on this bar, where they can be edited or moved using the Selection tool.
Motion bar: If any of a clip's motion parameters are modified, a blue bar appears in this space for the duration of that clip. If keyframes are added to the motion settings for a given clip, those keyframes appear as blue diamonds on this bar, where they can be edited or moved using the Selection tool. Motion bars are available only for video tracks.

- Keyframe editor: The keyframe editor shows you motion or filter parameters' value graph lines and keyframes beneath clips with applied effects. These graph lines are identical to those found in the keyframe graph area of the Motion and Filters tabs in the Viewer. You can edit keyframes in the keyframe editor using the Selection and Pen tools. The keyframe editor can display the keyframe graph lines of only one parameter at a time.

Keyframe graph lines displayed in the keyframe editor are color-coded: Motion parameter graph lines are blue (matching the color of the blue motion bar), filter parameter graph lines are green (matching the color of the green filter bar), audio levels are pink, and pan levels are purple.

- Speed indicator area: Speed indicators show you the speed of clips in your sequence using tic marks. The spacing and color of these tic marks indicate the speed and playback direction of your clips. The speed indicators of clips in the Timeline update as you make variable speed adjustments to clips in your sequence, showing you exactly how you're altering a clip's timing. There are no user-adjustable controls in the speed indicator area. However, you can display the Time Graph parameter in the keyframe editor to make variable speed adjustments.

For more information about viewing speed indicators while making speed changes to clips in a sequence, see "Learning to Read Timeline Speed Indicators" on page 320.

Each of the four parts of the keyframe graph area can be displayed or hidden individually, so that you can customize the Timeline view for specific tasks. Additionally, these areas can be displayed or hidden in the video and audio tracks separately.

1 In the Timeline, Control-click the Clip Keyframes control.
2 Choose Audio or Video to select a keyframe graph area in either kind of track.
3 From the Audio or Video submenu, choose one of the following:

- Filters Bar, Motion Bar, Keyframe Editor, or Speed Indicators: A checkmark appears to the left of each of these areas when displayed. Choose an area to show or hide.

- Select All: Shows all four keyframe graph areas at once.

- Select None: Hides all four keyframe graph areas.

The keyframe graph areas of each track can be individually resized so that motion graphs displayed in the keyframe editor area are more detailed. The keyframe graph area is resized separately from individual tracks.

The filter and motion bars are useful for seeing at a glance the keyframes of one or more clip parameters in the Timeline. You can choose which parameter keyframes are visible in each bar, and you can use the Selection tool to slide these keyframes back and forth in time.

■ Control-click a motion bar, then choose the parameter whose keyframes you want to isolate:

Single parameter (for example, Scale, Rotation, Center, or Anchor Point): Displays keyframes for the selected parameter.
Show All: Displays all keyframes associated with the parameter.
Hide All: Hides all keyframes associated with the parameter.

01:00:06:00 01:00:12:00 Basic Motion Crop Distort Opacity Drop Shadow Motion Blur Time Remap Show All Hide All ✓ Scale ✓ Rotation ✓ Center ✓ Anchor Point Show All Hide All

- Use the Selection tool to drag a keyframe on a motion bar to another position on that bar.

To open a clip in the Viewer using a clip's motion bar in the Timeline:

■ Double-click a blue bar to open that clip in the Viewer with the Motion tab selected.

To open a clip in the Viewer using a clip's filter bar in the Timeline:

- Double-click a green bar to open that clip in the Viewer with the Filter tab selected.

The keyframe editor allows you to edit the keyframe graph lines belonging to a clip's filters and motion parameters directly in the Timeline. It's ideal for making adjustments that don't require more than one parameter to be displayed simultaneously, especially when you want to make the adjustment in relation to other elements in the Timeline, such as markers and superimposed clips.

1 Control-click the Clip Keyframes control in the Timeline, choose Video or Audio, then choose Keyframe Editor from the submenu.

Video Audio Select All Select None Filters Bar Keyframe Editor Speed Indicators Select All Select None

2 Control-click the keyframe editor area beneath the clip you want to work on, and choose the filter or motion parameter you want to display.

Gaussian Blur Basic Motion Crop Distort Opacity Drop Shadow Motion Blur Time Remap Scale Rotation CU shoes CU shoes

- Click in the Keyframe Editor Resize column and, with the resize pointer, drag up or down.

CU s Drag the resize pointer up or down in the Keyframe Editor Resize column. CU shoes

Making adjustments to keyframe graph lines in the Timeline keyframe editor is the same as working in the keyframe graph area of the Filters and Motion tabs in the Viewer. For more information on how to edit effects graphs, see "Setting Keyframes" on page 256. For more information on how to smooth keyframes in effects graphs, see "Smoothing Keyframes With Bezier Handles" on page 268.

If you frequently use a particular transition or filter with specific settings, you can save it as a favorite for easy access.

This chapter covers the following:

• Copying and Pasting Specific Clip Attributes (p. 287)
- Creating and Applying Favorite Filters and Transitions (p. 293)

Clip attributes are all the parameters applied to a clip—for example, motion parameters, audio and video filters and their parameters, speed parameters, and so on. Copying and pasting selected clip attributes is a quick way to add nearly any attribute to other clips in an edited sequence. You can copy motion paths, frame cropping, and animated filter effects from one video clip to another.

Suppose you have just applied three filters and a speed setting to one clip, and you decide that you want exactly the same effects to be applied to several other clips in the sequence. Instead of re-creating each setting clip by clip, you can simply copy the first clip, select the other clips, and paste only the specific settings you want into all of them simultaneously.

When you copy a clip from the Timeline, you also copy all of its attributes. Instead of pasting duplicates of the clip you copied with all of its attributes, you can:

Paste specific video or audio attributes that you want into other clips in your sequence.
Paste only the clip's video or audio content, with none of the attributes, so that the content of a clip is replaced. In other words, you can replace the clip but keep the parameters of the original clip.

Warning: Pasting attributes between clips that have different frame rates will give you erratic results.

You select which attributes to paste by using the Paste Attributes dialog.

Paste Attributes Attributes from Master shot Debra CU: ✓ Scale Attribute Times Video Attributes: Content Basic Motion Crop Distort ✓ Opacity Drop Shadow Motion Blur Filters ✓ Speed Clip Settings (capture) Audio Attributes: Content Levels Pan Filters Cancel OK

The following options are available in the Paste Attributes dialog:

- Scale Attribute Times: Relatively repositions the keyframes of the copied clip's attributes to fit the duration of longer or shorter clips you paste them into. For example, suppose you copied a 5-second clip with motion keyframes at the beginning, middle, and end. If you paste the motion attributes into a 10-second clip, the location of these three keyframes will be placed to fit at the beginning, the middle, and the end of the 10-second clip.

Content: Pastes the video content of the copied clip. This replaces existing video, but not any other attributes. The copied content must have enough source material to match the length of the clip it's pasted into.
Basic Motion: Applies the Motion parameter values and keyframes from the clip you copied: Scale, Rotation, Center, and Anchor Point.
Crop: Applies the Crop parameter values and keyframes from the clip you copied: Left, Right, Top, Bottom, and Edge Feather.
Distort: Applies the Distort parameter values and keyframes from the clip you copied: Upper Left, Upper Right, Lower Right, Lower Left, and Aspect Ratio.
Opacity: Applies the Opacity parameter values and keyframes from the clip you copied.
Drop Shadow: Applies the Drop Shadow parameter values and keyframes from the clip you copied: Offset, Angle, Color, Softness, and Opacity.
Motion Blur: Applies the Motion Blur parameter values and keyframes from the clip you copied: % Blur and Samples.

- Filters: Adds the parameter values and keyframes for all filters from the clip you copied. The pasted filters are added to any filters already existing in the clip to which you are copying. Existing filters are left unchanged.

For example, suppose that two clips, Clip A and Clip B, each have a Gaussian Blur filter applied. Clip A has a radius parameter value of 100, and Clip B has a radius parameter value of 13. If you copy Clip A, and then paste its Filter attributes onto Clip B, Clip B now has two Gaussian Blur filters applied. The first filter has a radius parameter of 13 (Clip B's original Blur filter), and the second filter has a radius parameter of 100 (the filter pasted from Clip A).

Speed: Applies the constant speed or time remapping parameters from the clip you copied.
Clip Settings (Capture): Pastes all the capture settings from the clip you copied (the capture settings are those in the Clip Settings tab in the Log and Capture window).

Note: This option only works if the clip receiving the pasted parameters is offline.

Content: Pastes the audio content of the copied clip. This replaces existing audio, but not any other attributes. The copied content must have enough source material to match the length of the clip it's pasted into.
Levels: Applies all audio level parameter values and keyframes from the clip you copied.
Pan: Applies all stereo pan parameter values and keyframes from the copied clip.
Filters: Adds all audio filter parameter values and keyframes from the clip you copied. This works identically to pasting video filters (see the description of how video filters are pasted above).

When you paste clip attributes into other clips, the following rules apply:

All parameters in the Motion tab of the clip you paste attributes into are replaced.
The speed parameters of the clip you paste into are replaced.
Filters are added in addition to any filters already in the clip you paste into. (Existing filters are left as is.)

Tip: If you plan to apply the same attributes again and again, at different times, you may find it convenient to put a copy of the clip (with the attributes you want) in a designated bin or project tab in the Browser. That way you can easily locate it and copy and paste from it.

1 In the Timeline, select a clip whose attributes you want to paste into another clip.
2 Do one of the following to copy the clip and its settings:

- Choose Edit > Copy.

- Press Command-C.

3 Select a clip or clips to paste the settings into.
4 Do one of the following:

- Choose Edit > Paste Attributes.

- Control-click the clip or clips you've selected in the Timeline, then choose Paste Attributes from the shortcut menu.

- Press Option-V.

5 In the Paste Attributes dialog, select the attributes you want to apply to the selected clip.
6 If the clip you're pasting the attributes into is longer than the clip you copied them from, you may also want to click the Scale Attribute Times checkbox to proportionally position all keyframes that you copied to fit the longer clip.

If you ever want to remove particular attributes from a clip, such as motion parameters, filters, and so on, you can remove the attributes by using the Remove Attributes command. This is a convenient way to clear a lot of keyframes or filters at once.

1 In the Timeline, select one or more clips whose attributes you want to remove.
2 Choose Edit > Remove Attributes.
3 In the Remove Attributes dialog, click the checkbox next to the attributes you want to remove, then click OK.

Remove Attributes Video Attributes: Basic Motion Crop Distort Opacity Drop Shadow Motion Blur Filters Speed Clip Settings (capture) Audio Attributes: Levels Pan Filters Speed Checkboxes are available for all attributes that the selected clip has applied to it. Cancel OK

Final Cut Pro remembers the last effect you applied so that you can immediately apply it again elsewhere in your sequence. If you are applying the same video filter, transition, or motion favorite over and over again, this can save you a lot of time.

Final Cut Pro remembers both the last effect of any category (video filter, transition, or motion favorite), as well as the last effect within each category.

- Choose Effects > Last - [Name of Effect].

To apply the most recently used video filter:

- Choose Effects, Video Filters > Last - [Name of Filter].

To apply the most recently used video transition:

- Choose Effects, Video Transitions > Last - [Name of Transition].

To apply the most recently used video filter or video transition:

- Choose Effects > Last - [Name of Motion Favorite].

When working with multiple layers of video or audio in the Timeline, if you want to apply a filter to a clip or region on one track, you may want the filter to apply to the clips below and above it as well. You can make this happen automatically by first enabling Auto Select on all the tracks to which you want the filter applied.

While you can also apply filters to multiple clips by selecting them and then dragging a filter from the Effects tab in the Browser, the Auto Select method has two advantages: You don't have to select any clips, and you have the option of applying a filter to an In and Out region instead of whole clips.

1 In the Timeline, enable Auto Select on all the tracks to which you want the filter to be applied.

Auto Select controls Master sequence RT 01:00:10:01 v2 v1 v1 a1 A1 a2 A2 A3 Master sh Master sh Music 1

2 Do either of the following:

If you want the filter to apply to whole clips: Position the playhead over those clips.
If you want the filter to apply to a specific region rather than whole clips: Set In and Out points to auto-select the region.

Important: Make sure that no clips are selected, as the Auto Select feature doesn't work if a clip is selected.

3 Choose the filter from the Effects menu.

Often you may find yourself using the same filter or transition several times in the same sequence. Rather than manually reapplying the same filter or keyframed parameters over and over again to multiple clips, you can save a filter or effect as a favorite and then apply it to multiple clips instantly.

You can also save animated motion parameters, called motion favorites, and apply them to clips whenever you need to do so. For more information about saving and using motion favorites, see “Creating and Applying Motion Favorites” on page 281.

Favorites can be used different ways, such as:

Using the same animated filter parameters again and again without re-creating parameter keyframes
Recalling transitions with different parameters or lengths

Many editors use particular durations for the transitions they add. You can create a series of favorites that are the same transition but with different durations. To keep track of these modified favorite transitions, you can rename each favorite to reflect its duration. For more information about transitions, see Volume II, Chapter 21, "Adding Transitions."

Favorite filters, transitions, and motion parameters are stored in the Favorites bin in the Effects tab of the Browser. You can also access these favorites by choosing the relevant Favorites submenu from the Effects menu. There are five Favorites submenus in the Effects menu, one for each effect category: Video Filters and Transitions, Audio Filters and Transitions, and Motion Favorites.

Within the Favorites bin in the Effects tab, you can organize your favorites into separate bins. These bins appear as submenu items in each Favorites submenu in the Effects menu.

The Favorites bin holds modified and frequently used transitions and filters. It can be organized with sub-bins, like the Browser.

Browser Effects Name Length Type Favorites Bin Soft Cut 00:00:00:05 Video Transition 2 second dissolve 00:00:02:00 Video Transition Cool Filters for Dancers Bin Video Transitions Bin Video Filters Bin Video Generators Bin Audio Transitions Bin Audio Filters Bin

Note: For more information about saving and using motion favorites, see "Creating and Applying Motion Favorites" on page 281.

The steps for creating favorite filters and transitions are essentially the same. You can create a favorite by dragging a filter or transition from the Timeline or from the Effects tab into the Favorites bin in the Effects tab. Although the steps below mostly describe how to create favorite transitions, the same steps can be used to make favorite filters.

1 Select the desired transition in the Effects tab of the Browser.
2 Choose Effects > Make Favorite Effect.

The transition is copied to the Favorites bin. If you want to rename this favorite transition, see "Organizing and Renaming Favorites" on page 296.

- Drag a transition you've modified from its sequence in the Timeline to the Favorites bin in the Effects tab of the Browser.

You can drag a modified transition from a sequence in the Timeline to the Favorites bin.

Browser Effects Name Length Type Forites Soft Cut 00:00:00:05 Bin 2 second dissolve 00:00:02:00 Video Transition Cool Filters for Dancers Bin Video Transitions Bin Video Filters Bin Video Generators Bin Audio Transitions Bin Audio Filters Bin

■ If you want to modify the transition first:

a Double-click a transition in a sequence in the Timeline to open it in the Transition Editor.
b Make any desired changes to the transition.
c Drag the transition's drag hand from the Transition Editor to the Favorites bin in the Effects tab in the Browser, or choose Effects > Make Favorite Effect.

Drag hand in the Transition Editor 12:00

1 Choose Window > Effects (or press Command-5) to make sure the Effects tab is open.
2 Double-click a sequence or Browser clip with one or more video or audio filters applied. The clip opens in the Viewer.
3 Click the Filters tab in the Viewer.
4 Make any desired adjustments to the keyframes or values of the filter parameters.
5 Select one or more filters in the filter list by doing one of the following:

Click the name bar of a filter.
Shift-click two filter name bars to select a range of filters.
Command-click multiple filter name bars to select specific filters in the filter list.
Click the filter category bar (Video Filters or Audio Filters) to select all filters in that category.

6 Do one of the following:

Choose Effect > Make Favorite Effect (or press Option-F).
Drag the selected filters to the Favorites bin in the Effects tab.
Each selected filter appears in the Favorites bin in the Effects tab.

To save filters as favorites, drag the selected filters from the Filter tab in the Viewer... ...to the Favorites bin in the Effects tab. You can also put favorite filters in a sub-bin.

When you create a favorite, you may want to rename it, particularly if you modified it, to help keep track of your transitions and filters.

1 Select the transition or filter in the Effects tab in the Browser.
2 Click it again to highlight its name field.
3 Enter a new name, then press Return.

Browser Effects Name Length Type Favorites Bin five frame soft cut 00:00:01:00 Video Transition Video Transitions Bin Video Filters Bin Video Generators Bin Audio Transitions Bin Audio Filters Bin Enter the new name for your favorite transition.

1 Select your project's tab in the Browser.
2 Create a new bin and give it an appropriate name.
For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 1, "Organizing Footage in the Browser."
3 Drag the Effects tab out of the Browser so it opens in its own window.
4 Drag your new bin to the Favorites bin in the Effects window.
5 Drag any transitions or filters to the new bin.
The bin now appears as an item in the Favorites submenu of the Effects menu.

Tip: You can save your filter, transition, and motion favorites directly in your project by dragging them from the Favorites bin in the Effects tab to a bin in your project tab. This allows you to save favorites from project to project, and to easily transfer your favorites to other Final Cut Pro editing systems.

You can apply filters and transitions from the Favorites bin in the Effects tab just as you would apply any other filter or transition. Transitions can be applied to edit points between sequence clips, and one or more filters can be simultaneously applied to one or more clips in your sequence. For more information about applying filters to clips, see "Applying a Filter to a Clip" on page 186 and "Applying Multiple Filters to Clips" on page 190. For more information about applying transitions to edit points, see Volume II, Chapter 21, "Adding Transitions."

Tip: You can open the Favorites bin independently of the Effects tab by choosing Window > Favorites (or pressing Command-6).

This chapter covers the following:

• Comparing Two Frames in the Frame Viewer (p. 299)
• Viewing Your Composition in the QuickView Tab (p. 303)

Sometimes you need to compare frames from the same sequence for color correction, filter adjustments, or lining up horizons or objects in frames. You can use the Frame Viewer to visually compare multiple frames from the same sequence. This is particularly useful when performing a color comparison of multiple clips in the same setting where the lighting attributes may have changed. The Frame Viewer is actually a tab in the Tool Bench window. In Final Cut Pro, you can open as many Frame Viewer tabs in as many Tool Bench windows as necessary.

In addition to comparing adjacent clips in a sequence for color correction, you can use the Frame Viewer tab for other tasks:

Performing a before-and-after filter adjustment. Using the Frame Viewer's split screen, you can compare a frame from your clip with and without a filter applied, side by side.
Lining up horizons or the lines of a table or desk, especially when enlarging a shot in postproduction.

You can set a Frame Viewer tab to display the current frame, adjacent edit points, or the In and Out points in the Canvas and Timeline. You can also compare two frames within a single Frame Viewer tab using the split-screen buttons. You can split the screen either vertically or horizontally, or create a rectangular region showing the split as a picture-in-picture. You can configure the Frame Viewer to display those individual frames that are most useful for making comparisons in your project.

The default view of the Frame Viewer tab consists of the previous edit from the selected sequence and the current frame at the position of the playhead split horizontally, with the current frame on the right.

As you play a sequence, the Frame Viewer continues to show the last displayed frame. When playback is paused, the contents of the Frame Viewer are updated relative to the new position of the playhead.

If you've arranged multiple Frame Viewers to accomplish a specific task, you can save your custom configuration by choosing Window > Arrange > Save Window Layout. For more information about saving window layouts, see Volume I, Chapter 10, "Customizing the Interface."

- Choose Tools > Frame Viewer (or press Option-7).

The Frame Viewer appears as a tab in the Tool Bench. Frame boundary indicator Indicates the timecode of the frame selected in the Frame Viewer pop-up menu below Frame boundary indicators Frame boundary indicator Frame Viewer pop-up menu Current Frame Current Frame V-Split Swap H-Split Frame Viewer pop-up menu Split screen buttons

You can customize the contents of the Frame Viewer tab using the following controls:

- Frame Viewer pop-up menus: Two pop-up menus near the bottom control which two frames are displayed in the Frame Viewer.

2nd Edit Back Previous Edit Current Frame Current w/o Filters Next Edit 2nd Edit Forward In Point Out Point Name

None: This option is only available for the Frame Viewer pop-up menu on the right. If you don't want to use the split-screen feature in the Frame Viewer, select this setting. When this setting is selected, only the frame corresponding to the green square indicators is displayed.
2nd Edit Back: Displays the frame of the Out point two edits back.
Previous Edit: Displays the frame of the Out point one edit back.
Current Frame: Displays the frame corresponding to the position of the playhead in the Timeline.
Current w/o Filters: Same as Current Frame, without filters applied to the clip.

Note: If you have several layers composited together, the composite mode between layers is still calculated. However, all filters are disabled on all clips.

Next Edit: Displays the frame of the In point one edit forward.
2nd Edit Forward: Displays the frame of the In point two edits forward.
In Point: Displays the frame corresponding to the currently defined In point of the Timeline.
Out Point: Displays the frame corresponding to the currently defined Out point of the Timeline.
Frame boundary indicators: Next to the pop-up menu is a green or blue square indicator. These squares are also located above the Frame Viewer window and indicate the timecode of the frames displayed from the sequence. There are also four blue and four green square indicators at the corners of the split-screen window that correspond to the frames selected in the Frame View pop-up menus. The edges of the split screen can be manipulated by selecting one of the square indicators and dragging it to a new position.
Split screen buttons: These buttons allow you to quickly alternate between vertically split and horizontally split screens.

- V-Split: Splits the screen vertically. (Click twice to switch sides.)

- Swap: Alternates the position of the split. Click Swap when the screen is not split vertically or horizontally.

- H-Split: Splits the screen horizontally. (Click twice to switch sides.)

The following section describes how to view and adjust split screen displays in the Frame Viewer.

Choose a frame to display from the Frame Viewer pop-up menu next to the green square or blue square indicator.
You can also choose Current Frame from the Frame Viewer pop-up menu to view the frame at the position of the playhead.

- Choose an edit point in both Frame Viewer pop-up menus.

Note: Clicking the V-Split, Swap, or H-Split buttons puts the Frame Viewer into split-screen mode with Current w/o Filters selected in the left pop-up menu and Current Frame selected in the right pop-up menu.

- Choose None from the Frame Viewer pop-up menu next to the blue square indicator.

The edit point represented by the green square indicator is shown.

Resize the split screen by dragging the green or blue square indicator to a new position.
■ Move the split screen by clicking inside one of the Frame Viewer split-screen regions and dragging it to a different location.

Tool Bench Frame Viewer Viewing: 01:00:26:23 Viewing: 01:00:32:21 Previous Edit Current Frame V-Split Swap H-Split

To move the split screen, drag a split-screen region to another location.

- Click one of the split-screen buttons to display alternate views.

The QuickView tab provides an alternate way to view your composition outside the Canvas as you work. It takes advantage of the ability of Final Cut Pro to cache frames of your sequence to RAM as you play it. This is useful for fast previews of complex composites and effects. It's also a good way to see how your final composite looks if you are zoomed in to the Canvas while making adjustments. For example, if you were zoomed in to the Canvas to build a complex keyframed motion path, you could still view the composition in its entirety in the QuickView tab to see how it looks.

Tip: You can add, delete, or modify a clip's motion and filter parameters in the Viewer and see the results update automatically in the QuickView tab, even while it continues to play back. Unlike other windows in Final Cut Pro, the QuickView tab continues to play until you explicitly stop it. For example, you could adjust a color correction filter while you watch a clip play back.

Note: The QuickView tab is for viewing purposes only. You cannot drag clips to this tab to perform an edit. The QuickView tab also has no effect on rendering or output from Final Cut Pro.

To open the QuickView tab:

- Choose Tools > QuickView (or press Option-8).

This section describes the controls in the QuickView tab (which appears in the Tool Bench window).

Tool Bench QuickView Resolution: Full View: Canvas View pop-up menu QuickView window Scrubber bar Playback indicator Play button Range: 2.5 secs Range slider

Resolution pop-up menu: Choose Full, Half, or Quarter as your viewing resolution in the QuickView window. This setting is for display purposes only and does not affect the resolution of your rendered program. At lower resolutions, the preview area plays back faster and you're able to cache a greater area of the Timeline into RAM.
• View pop-up menu: This pop-up menu lets you choose the window to cache video from.

- Auto: QuickView caches video from the Viewer or the Canvas, whichever window is currently active.

- Viewer or Canvas: QuickView caches video from the selected window.

- None: This disables the QuickView window so no playback is displayed.

Play button: Click to begin playback in the QuickView window. You can also press the Space bar to start and stop QuickView playback.
Range slider: Use this slider to define the duration of your sequence that is cached by QuickView, from 2 to 10 seconds.

Note: If both In and Out points are defined in the Timeline, this slider doesn't appear.

- Scrubber bar and playback indicator: In the QuickView window, the width of the scrubber bar represents the total duration of video that is to be cached.

QuickView playback relies, in part, on the amount of memory allocated to Final Cut Pro. Based on this allocation, Final Cut Pro caches into RAM as much of the sequence between the In and Out points set in the Timeline as possible for accelerated playback.

01:00 01:00 01:00 06:00 01:00 09:00 01:00 12:00 01:00 15:00 01:00 18:00 Text Coffee Horse Text Debra sidewalking Side master shot jacob MS Debra sidewalking Jacob reaction to Music 1 Music 1 Music 1

If an In point is set in the Timeline but no Out point is set:

Final Cut Pro caches video from the In point through the duration specified by the Range slider for playback in the QuickView window.

01:00:03:00 01:00:06:00 01:00:09:00 01:00:12:00 01:00:15:00 01:00:18:00 Text Text Cotton Noise Side master shot jacob MS Debra sidewalking Jacob reaction to Music 1 Music 1 Music 1

If neither In nor Out point is set in the Timeline:

Final Cut Pro uses the position of the playhead, caching half of the duration specified by the Range slider before the position of the playhead, and half after the playhead, for display in the QuickView window.

Video is cached to RAM as it's played. Once the duration of the sequence that you've specified for QuickView playback has played all the way through, subsequent loops play much faster since they're being played back directly from RAM.

You can adjust a clip's speed parameters to create fast- or slow-motion effects. With time remapping, you can create variable speed effects.

This chapter covers the following:

• Speed Basics (p. 307)
- Constant and Variable Speed Settings (p. 311)
• Making Constant Speed Changes (p. 314)
• Making Variable Speed Changes (p. 315)

The default speed of all clips is 100 percent, but you can change a clip's speed setting at any time.

Slow motion: Speed is under 100 percent.
Fast motion: Speed is over 100 percent.
Variable speed: Speed changes over time, using the time remapping feature.

You may have different reasons for changing the speed settings. You may want to solve editorial problems in your sequence. In that case, you can do a fit-to-fill edit, making a clip longer to fill more time or shorter if an action takes longer than you'd like. You can use variable speed changes to create ramping speed changes from slow to fast motion, and from forward to reverse. This allows you to make specific frames in a clip occur at particular cues in your sequence. The rest of the frames in the clip are automatically played faster or slower to compensate.

A change in a clip's speed can affect the duration of the clip. If you choose 50 percent speed, your clip is twice the duration; if you change speed to 200 percent, the clip becomes half as long. For example, if you set a 10-second clip to play back at 50 percent, Final Cut Pro duplicates frames in the clip so that the clip becomes 20 seconds long and plays back more slowly. If you increase the clip's speed to 200 percent, Final Cut Pro skips frames and makes the clip 5 seconds long, and it plays back considerably faster.

Timeline: Dream sequence in Dining Dream sequence V1 V1 V2 A1 A2 A3 Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS 10-second clip

Timeline, Dream sequence in Cafe Dream sequence RT: 01:00:20:00 00:00 01:00:06:00 01:00:12:00 01:00:18:00 v1 v1 s1 A1 A2 A2 A3 Nancy at table MS (50%) Nancy Nancy at table MS (50%) Nancy Nancy at table MS (50%) Nancy Same clip with speed changed to 50 percent (now 20 seconds long)

Note: Speed settings you apply are not applied to that clip's source media on disk, and can be changed at any time.

A fit to fill edit changes the speed of a clip in the Viewer so that its duration matches the duration between the sequence In and Out points. Because a fit to fill edit changes the speed of the edited clip, you may have to render it before it will play back. Also, any audio items associated with this clip will change pitch, moving either higher or lower.

Fit to fill is the only edit type in Final Cut Pro that requires four edit points, instead of three. You need to set In and Out points for your clip in the Viewer, as well as In and Out points in the Canvas or Timeline, for the destination in your edited sequence. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 10, "Three-Point Editing."

For example, suppose you want to replace a 5-second shot of a lizard with a 3-second shot of a desert landscape. In this case, you can use the fit to fill edit to make the landscape shot fit.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Performing a Fit to Fill Edit - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["Before edit"] --> B["D"]
    B --> C["A"]
    C --> D["B"]
    D --> E["C"]
    F["After edit"] --> G["A"]
    G --> H["D"]
    H --> I["C"]

You can also use the fit to fill edit with multiple clips. When you do so, each successive clip selected in the Browser replaces each successive clip in your sequence using a fit to fill edit, starting with the clip at the current position of the Timeline playhead. If you've selected more clips in the Browser than you have clips in your sequence, you'll see an "Insufficient content for edit" error message.

Note: When you use the fit to fill edit, the speed setting applied to the edited clip changes so that the clip fits the newly specified duration. These speed settings can be modified or removed at any time.

1 Do one of the following:

In the Canvas or Timeline, set sequence In and Out points to define the part of your sequence you want to fill.
Position the playhead over a clip you want to replace using a fit to fill edit. If no In and Out points are set in the sequence, Final Cut Pro uses the clip boundaries as sequence In and Out points.

2 Make sure that the correct destination tracks are set in the Timeline.
3 Open a clip in the Viewer.
4 Set In and Out points to define the portion of your source clip that you want to edit into your sequence to fill the duration set in step 1.

View: Lola rolls eyes CU in Cafe Video Stereo (x1x2) Filters Motion 00:00:10:00 59% 04:19:30:05 Dining sequence 00:00:05:04 59% 01:00:33:05 Set In and Out points in the source clip. Set In and Out points in the sequence.

Drag the clip from the Viewer to the Fit to Fill section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas.
Click the Fit to Fill button in the Canvas.
Press Shift-F11.

Fit to Fill section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas

Fit to Fill button

The material in the Viewer overwrites any material already between the sequence In and Out points you specified. The speed of the source clip is changed to compensate for the difference in duration.

Before a fit to fill edit After a fit to fill edit The speed of the clip changes to fit the specified area of the sequence.

You can make two kinds of speed changes to a clip—constant and variable. Additional options allow you to control the timing and improve the look of clips when you apply speed settings.

Applying a constant speed change to a clip alters the entire clip's playback speed by the same percentage. For example, applying a speed setting of 25 percent to a clip makes the entire clip play in slow motion. Constant speed changes are useful when altering a clip's timing to fit a larger or smaller gap in your sequence, or when trying to achieve a consistent speed change across an entire clip (making a car seem faster or slower, for example).

Constant speed changes also alter the duration of a clip. If a constant speed change causes the duration of a clip in a sequence to become longer or shorter, all clips coming after it ripple forward or back according to the ripple editing rules in Final Cut Pro. For more information about rippling clips in a sequence, see Volume II, Chapter 18, "Performing Slip, Slide, Ripple, and Roll Edits."

All constant speed changes between 1 and 200 percent can be played in real time, even with frame blending turned on. For more information on applying constant speed settings, see “Making Constant Speed Changes” on page 314.

Applying variable speed to a clip (also referred to as time remapping) allows you to dynamically alter the speed of a clip over time, in forward or reverse motion. Variable speed allows you to create sophisticated motion effects in which subjects appear to smoothly shift across a variety of different speeds, with hard or gradual transitions between each change.

Variable speed also allows you to create a smooth transition when going from normal speed to fast or slow motion. These types of effects can be seen in many music videos and broadcast commercials, and can be created directly within your edited sequences without having to resort to an external compositing application.

The best way to understand the essence of time remapping in Final Cut Pro is to ask yourself the following questions:

At what point in time do I want this media frame to occur?
• What media file frame do I want this clip to start or end on?

For more information on applying variable speed settings, see "Making Variable Speed Changes" on page 315.

There are three main differences between constant and variable speed changes.

First, while a constant speed change applies a single percentage to the entire clip, a variable speed change can have as many percentage speed changes throughout a single clip as you want. Unlike clips with constant speed changes applied, which may require rendering at higher speeds, variable speed clips can play back in real time regardless of how fast the clip plays back.
The second difference is that while a constant speed change automatically affects the duration of the affected clip, a variable speed change leaves the duration of the clip alone. You can manually shorten or extend the duration of a clip with variable speed applied using the Final Cut Pro trimming tools (just as you would with any other clip), but no change you make involving a variable speed setting changes the duration of the affected clip.

Note: After applying a variable speed effect to a clip, you can still modify the duration of the clip by entering a new value into the Duration field of the Speed dialog. Changing the duration of a variable speed clip in this way changes the Out point of the clip, but has no effect on the keyframes and duration of that clip's variable speed motion graph.

- Last, variable speed settings applied to a video clip item are not applied to the audio items linked to it. After making a variable speed change to a clip, audio and video sync is lost.

Duplicating frames to create slow motion can result in a strobing, jittery effect. To minimize this, you can turn on frame blending in the Speed dialog. When slow motion is created, frame blending uses the two frames that appear to either side of duplicate frames and creates new in-between frames that are a composite of both. By inserting blended frames in place of frames that have simply been duplicated, slow-motion clips appear to play back more smoothly. Speed changes can still play back in real time with the Frame Blending option turned on.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Frame Blending and Reverse Speed - 1

natural_image

A smooth, gradient-colored sphere against a cloudy sky background (no text or symbols)

Original

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Frame Blending and Reverse Speed - 2

natural_image

Two glossy spheres floating against a cloudy sky background (no text or symbols)

Blended frame

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Frame Blending and Reverse Speed - 3

natural_image

Abstract 3D rendering of a blue sphere above a cloudy sky with a faint shadow on the ground (no text or symbols)

Original

Note: While clips using frame blending can play in real time at preview quality, frame blending on a field-per-field basis is much more processor-intensive, and is only performed when the clip is either rendered or played via a third-party video interface with real-time hardware processing that's capable of field blending.

You can make a clip play backward by turning on the Reverse option. Alternatively, you can enter a negative speed setting.

Note: Frame blending and reverse speed can be applied to both constant and variable speed clips.

While using frame blending is an excellent way to smooth out the apparent motion of a slow-motion clip, extremely slow speeds such as those below 20 percent can still result in strobing. To further minimize this effect, you can use the Motion Blur effect in the Motion tab.

Slide the Samples setting to the right until you achieve the amount of blur you need to cover the strobing of your clip (the higher the Samples setting, the longer rendering takes) and then adjust the % Blur setting until you strike a good compromise between the sharpness of the clip and the smoothness of the motion.

Note: Motion Blur is not a real-time effect, and in fact can be quite render-intensive at its higher settings. For this reason, you may find it best to adjust the speed and duration of your clip with Motion Blur turned off, enabling it only for the final render. To turn off Motion Blur without individually removing it from every clip, you can deselect the Motion Blur checkbox in the Render Control tab of Sequence Settings. For more information on using the Render Control tab, see "Changing Settings in the Render Control Tab" on page 557.

The simplest speed change you can make to a clip is a constant speed change. You do this using the Speed dialog.

To change the playback speed of a clip by a constant amount:

1 Select a clip in the Timeline, or move the playhead over a clip in the Timeline.
2 Do one of the following:

Choose Modify > Speed.
Control-click the clip, then choose Speed from the shortcut menu.
Press Command-J.

3 Select speed options for the effect you want to create, then click OK.

Speed Constant Speed Duration: 00:00:20:00 Speed: 50 percent Reverse Frame Blending Changing the clip's speed or duration automatically changes the other value. Cancel OK

Speed pop-up menu: Leave this set to Constant Speed. For more information on creating variable speed, see the following section, "Making Variable Speed Changes."
Duration and Speed fields: You can modify the clip's marked duration or speed percentage. Unmodified clips have a clip speed of 100 percent. These fields work in parallel; changes to one of these settings are automatically reflected in the other.
Reverse: Check this box to make the clip play in reverse, using any speed specified by the above controls.
Frame Blending: Check this box to smooth the apparent motion of a clip playing back at slow or fast speeds.

Note: You can also change these parameters in the Time Remap section of the clip's Motion tab in the Viewer.

The clip's duration in your sequence changes, getting longer or shorter depending on the new speed you selected.

Time remapping allows you to make variable speed changes in clips. You can move any frame in a clip's media file so that it plays at some other time in a clip. Adjacent frames automatically shift position in time, causing speeding up and slowing down to compensate for the moved frame or frames.

Variable speed changes are made by assigning a frame in a clip's media file to a new time in the clip. All the other frames are repeated or skipped accordingly to compensate, which causes fast or slow motion. This is known as time remapping, because you are changing when during a clip the frames play back.

Time remapping parameters can be keyframed. When you add a time remapping keyframe, you choose which frame from a clip's media file is shown at a particular time in the clip. You can add keyframes directly in the keyframe editor in the Timeline or the Motion tab in the Viewer. You can also use the Time Remap tool to intuitively drag a clip's media file frame to a new time in the clip.

The goal with time remapping is to make a particular frame from your media file occur at a specific point in the Timeline. For example, suppose you have a clip at the beginning of a sequence in which a diver hits the water at frame 90 of the clip's media file. Suppose you have a musical cue at frame 300 in the sequence. You can use time remapping to move frame 90 of the clip's media file to frame 300 of the sequence clip. To compensate, Final Cut Pro must slow down the media frames to make 90 frames last for the duration of 300. You need only to remap a single frame in time, and Final Cut Pro adjusts the rest of the clip's speed accordingly.

Under most circumstances, a clip plays back frames from its media file in chronological order. If you have a 300-frame clip, it begins by playing frame 1 of the media file, then frame 2, 3, and so on, until frame 300. Time remapping allows you to adjust when frames of a clip's media file are played back by changing their chronological order, skipping some frames (fast motion), or repeating others (slow motion).

It may help you to think of the process of time remapping as frame remapping, since what you are doing is mapping the frames of a clip's media file (input frames) to different times in the clip (output frames). You need to set only a few keyframes, and Final Cut Pro interpolates the rest automatically, creating smooth speed changes over time.

For example, consider the following examples when using a 300-frame clip:

Instead of playing frames 1–300 from the clip's media file, you can set time remapping keyframes so that frames 300–1 play instead. This would appear as reversed playback.
You can repeat frame 1 from the clip's media file for the entire 300-frame duration of the clip. This would appear as a freeze frame.
You can set keyframes so that frame 1 from the clip's media file plays at frame 1, 150, and 300 of the clip. During playback, Final Cut Pro interpolates which media file frames to play in between the time remapping keyframes, creating smooth speed changes.

To better understand how time remapping works, apply a variable speed adjustment to a clip and then look at the Time Remap parameters in the clip's Motion tab or in the keyframe editor in the Timeline.

1 Select a clip in the Timeline.
2 Choose Modify > Speed (or press Command-J).
3 Choose Variable Speed from the pop-up menu, then click OK.

Two time remap keyframes are added; one to the first and one to the last frame of your clip. Each keyframe has bezier handles, which cause the clip to ramp from slow to normal speed at the beginning, and then from normal to slow at the end.

For information about viewing time remapping parameters, see "Viewing Time Remapping Parameters Applied to Your Clips" on page 318.

Time remapping allows you to adjust two parameters: which media file frame is played back (the y axis) and when during the clip the frame is played back (the x axis).

The y axis represents the frame numbers of a clip's media file. For example, if a clip's media file contains 300 frames, the y axis ranges from 0 (the first media file frame) to 299 (the last media file frame).

Note: This is true regardless of the In and Out points you set for the clip. Even if the clip has an In point at frame 100 and an Out point at frame 200, the y axis of the clip starts at frame 0 of the media file and goes to frame 299.

When you choose a value for the keyframe on the y axis, you are choosing a frame from the clip's original media file. When you drag a time remapping keyframe up and down on the y axis, a tooltip appears that displays which media file frame you are assigning to that point in time in your clip. As you move the keyframe up, you choose a later frame in your clip's media file, and when you move the keyframe down, you choose an earlier media file frame. The top of the y axis represents the last frame of your clip's media file, and the bottom represents the first frame.

The x axis represents a clip's playback time. Frames are always played back at the frame rate of the clip. You can set a keyframe at any point on the x axis to specify which media file frame you want to see at that moment in the clip.

For example, suppose you want frame 100 from a clip's media file to appear 2 seconds into the clip. In this case, you set a time remap keyframe at 02:00 on the clip. Then you vertically adjust this keyframe to the value 100.

There are four places in Final Cut Pro where you can make variable speed adjustments:

Timeline: One of the simplest ways to make variable speed changes is to use the Time Remap tool in the Tool palette to make adjustments to clips directly in the Timeline. As you work with this tool, an outline of your clip appears that shows you which source frame in the clip is being remapped to what time. Optionally, you can choose to display speed indicators and a keyframe graph underneath that clip's track in the Timeline, to help you see what you're doing. For more information on using the Time Remap tool, see "Using the Time Remap Tool" on page 323.
Time graph: You can also add, subtract, smooth, and adjust time remap keyframes using the time graph parameter in the keyframe editor in the Timeline. For more information on creating variable speed effects using the time graph, see "Time Remapping Using the Time Graph" on page 329.
Motion bar: Time remap keyframes appear on the motion bar, and these keyframes can be dragged backward and forward in time using the Selection tool. When you use this feature in combination with the Timeline speed indicators, you can make sophisticated speed adjustments very simply.
Motion tab in the Viewer: The speed settings you've applied to a clip also appear in the Time Remap parameters of a clip's Motion tab in the Viewer.

Four graphical displays in the Timeline show you speed settings applied to your clips. Before learning how to make speed changes, it's important for you to understand the information these displays give you. All of them update as you make adjustments, so you can see exactly how a speed change you make affects the clip being adjusted.

Timeline: Dream sequence in Dining Dream sequence RT 01:00:07:04 00:00 01:00:15:00 Time: 01:00:07:04 Old Source Frame: 00:00:03:12 New Source Frame: 00:00:03:12 Speed Left: 66% Speed Right: 68% Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS Keyframe editor Speed indicator area Motion bar (blue)

- Speed indicator area: Speed indicators show you the speed of clips in your sequence using tic marks. The spacing and color of these tic marks indicate the speed and playback direction of your clips. The speed indicators of clips in the Timeline update in real time as you make variable speed adjustments to clips in your sequence, showing you exactly how you're altering a clip's timing.

Note: You cannot adjust speed in the speed indicator area.

Motion bar: By default, the motion bar displays all motion parameter keyframes applied to a clip. You can change this so that only time remap keyframes are displayed. For more information on customizing the motion bar, see "Working With the Filter and Motion Bars" on page 285.
Keyframe editor: The keyframe editor shows you a keyframe graph you can use to view different motion settings and filters applied to clips in your sequence. The same parameters can be viewed in the keyframe graph area of the Filter and Motion tabs in the Viewer. The keyframe editor can display only one motion or filter parameter's keyframe graph line at a time. Like the speed indicators, a clip's keyframe graph line updates as you make variable speed adjustments to clips in your sequence. For more information, see "Working With the Timeline Keyframe Editor" on page 286.
Speed tooltips: When you use the Time Remap tool, a tooltip shows you information about the speed change you're about to make. For more information on using the Time Remap tool, see "Using the Time Remap Tool" on page 323.

For more information on using the motion bar and keyframe editor, see "Working With the Filter and Motion Bars" on page 285 and "Working With the Timeline Keyframe Editor" on page 286.

The Timeline includes speed indicators to show you the speed of clips in your sequence using tic marks.

Note: To illustrate the examples in this section, all screenshots in the Timeline are presented with both the motion bar and speed indicators visible.

Timeline: Dream sequence in Cafe Dream sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:15:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:15:00 v1 V1 Nancy at table MS (100%) Nanc Motion bar (blue) Speed indicators a1 A1 Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS a2 A2 Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS A3 Clip Keyframes control

- Click the Clip Keyframes control in the lower-left corner of the Timeline.

■ Control-click the Clip Keyframes control, choose Video from the shortcut menu, then choose Motion Bar from the submenu.

To view the speed indicators in the Timeline keyframe graph area:

■ Control-click the Clip Keyframes control, choose Video from the shortcut menu, then choose Speed Indicators from the submenu.

Timeline speed indicators show you the relative playback speed of clips in your sequence. For example, suppose you have a 10-second clip in your sequence. At normal, 100-percent speed, the Timeline speed indicators are evenly spaced, indicating that your clip is playing forward at a constant speed.

Timeline: Dream sequence in Cafe RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Nancy at table MS At normal speed, the speed indicators are evenly spaced. a1 A1 Nancy at table MS a2 A2 Nancy at table MS A3

If you make a constant or variable speed change to slow down a clip (setting the clip's speed to 50 percent, for example), the speed indicators are spaced farther apart as the clip grows longer, indicating slower playback. If you speed up a clip (changing the speed to 200 percent, for example), the speed indicators move closer together as the clip becomes shorter, indicating faster playback.

Timeline: Dream sequence in Cafz Dream sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:30:00 v1 V1 Nancy at table MS (50%) Nan Nancy at table MS (50%) Nan Nancy at table MS (50%) Nan Slow speed Fast speed

If you make a clip play backward by selecting the Reverse checkbox in the Speed dialog, the speed indicators turn red to show that playback is going backward in time.

Timeline: Dream sequence in Dining Dream sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:05:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:15:00 v1 v1 Nancy at table MS (-100%) Nancy a1 A1 Nancy at table MS (-100%) Nancy a2 A2 Nancy at table MS (-100%) Nancy A3

When you make variable speed changes, the duration of the affected clip stays the same. The Timeline speed indicators display all speed changes—fast forward, slow motion, and reverse—happening within the clip. In particular, since variable speed changes can also transition smoothly from one speed to another, the spacing of the speed indicators indicates the acceleration of the speed change.

For example, in a clip with a simple variable speed change accelerating from slow motion to fast forward over the full duration of the clip, the speed indicators start off farther apart from one another, and then gradually move closer together as the speed of the clip accelerates faster and faster, until the end of the clip is reached.

Nancy at table MS (Variable) Nancy at table MS (Variable) Variable indicators —

If parts of a clip are set to 100-percent speed, but other parts are set to fast-forward or slow motion, the speed indicators at 100 percent appear highlighted so you can differentiate them.

01:00:09:00 Mixed speed indicators — Highlighted speed indicators show 100-percent speed.

You can use the Time Remap tool in two ways:

Slide a frame from somewhere else in the clip to the current position of the Time Remap tool. In this case, the Time Remap tool does not move. Instead, you move a frame from elsewhere in the clip to the position of the Time Remap tool.
Slide the frame beneath the Time Remap tool to a new position in the Timeline. This method allows you to move the frame you want to a precise location in the Timeline.

In both cases, the resulting clip changes speed before and after the selected frame to compensate for its new placement in time.

Tip: To make the most effective use of the Time Remap tool, it's a good idea to make the motion bar and speed indicators in the Timeline visible, so you can see how the changes you're making are affecting the selected clip. For more information on making these visible, see "Working With the Filter and Motion Bars" on page 285 and "Working With the Timeline Keyframe Editor" on page 286. You should also watch the frame in the Canvas, the playhead position in the Timeline, and the tooltips that appear.

Clicking a clip with the Time Remap tool moves the playhead to the frame at the position of the pointer, and dragging slides a frame from elsewhere in that clip to the current position of the playhead. Using this method, you can remap any frame from your clip's media file to the current position of the playhead. This is the default behavior of the Time Remap tool.

Note: For simplicity, the clip in the following example is described as having timecode starting at 00:00:00:00, and the Timeline starts at 01:00:00:00. In reality, the source frame you select corresponds to the timecode value of the clip's media file.

For example, clicking a clip at 01:00:02:00 in the Timeline with the Time Remap tool places the playhead at that frame in the Timeline. Dragging to the left, you move frame 00:00:06:00 in your clip from 01:00:06:00 in the Timeline to 01:00:02:00, which is the current position of the playhead.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Sliding a Frame From Another Time to the Current Playhead Position - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["100% speed"] --> B["Squeezed"]
    B --> C["Stretched, slower"]
    style A fill:#ccc,stroke:#333
    style B fill:#fff,stroke:#333
    style C fill:#fff,stroke:#333

Frame 00:00:06:00 from the clip's media file has been remapped to frame 00:00:02:00. A new keyframe is placed at the position of the playhead, with the right half of your clip being slowed down and the left half being sped up.

1 Select the Time Remap tool in the Tool palette (or press the S key three times).

Time Remap tool

2 Move the Time Remap tool over the clip you want to adjust in the Timeline.

Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS An indicator line appears over the clip showing you which frame you're about to select.

Tip: By holding down the Shift key before clicking a clip with the Time Remap tool, you can scrub though the clip—watching it in the Canvas as you find the specific frame where you want to start remapping. As you scrub through the clip, an outline of the entire range of frames in that clip appears. If you’ve already applied other time remapping keyframes, this outline moves left and right to provide you with a reference to see which frame in the clip you’re selecting.

3 Click the clip to choose the point in time at which you want to start time remapping. The playhead jumps to the position you clicked.

4 With the mouse button still held down, drag left or right to begin moving a frame from another part of the clip to the current playhead position in the Timeline.

While you drag, the Timeline speed indicators change to show you the modified speed to the left and right of the new time remap keyframe at the playhead, and a tooltip appears with the following information:

Tooltip Time: 01:00:05:11 Old Source Frame: 00:00:08:15 New Source Frame: 00:00:09:14 Speed Left: 158% Speed Right: 30% Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS

• Time: The current position of the playhead in the Timeline.
- Old Source Frame: The timecode number of the clip's media file frame when you clicked the clip with the Time Remap tool.
- New Source Frame: The timecode number of the clip's media file that will be placed at the position of the playhead. While you drag, this frame is also shown in the Canvas.
- Speed Left: The playback speed, in percent, of the section of your clip defined by the first time remap keyframe immediately to the left of the current position of the playhead.
- Speed Right: The playback speed, as a percentage, of the section of your clip defined by the first time remap keyframe immediately to the right of the current position of the playhead.

Two keyboard modifiers can be used to help you make precise variable speed changes to a clip using the Time Remap tool:

To gear down while using the Time Remap tool, hold down the Command key.
To snap your time adjustments to 10-percent increments, hold down the Shift key after you start dragging.

5 When you've dragged far enough to create the desired speed effect, release the mouse button.

The Timeline speed indicators show the clip's new speed settings.

Option-clicking a clip with the Time Remap tool enables you to grab the frame at that point in the Timeline and move it to another time within that clip.

For example, suppose you click a 10-second clip at frame 00:00:03:00 and drag that frame to 01:00:06:00 in the Timeline. A time remap keyframe appears at frame 00:00:06:00 of your clip.

01:00:02:00 01:00:04:00 01:00:06:00 01:00:08:00 01:00:10:00 Nancy at table MS (Variable) Nancy at table MS (Variable)

Frame 00:00:03:00 from the clip's media file has been remapped to frame 00:00:06:00 in the clip. A new keyframe is placed at 00:00:06:00, with the left half of your clip being slowed down and the right half being sped up.

1 Select the Time Remap tool in the Tool palette (or press the S key three times).
2 Move the pointer over the clip you want to adjust in the Timeline.

Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS An indicator line appears over the clip showing you which frame you're about to select.

Tip: By holding down the Shift key before clicking a clip with the Time Remap tool, you can scrub though the clip—watching it in the Canvas as you find the specific frame you want to remap.

Canvas: Dream sequence in Dining 00:00:10:00 5% 01:00:05:08

Timeline: Dream sequence in Dining RT 01:00:05:08 00:00 01:00:03:00 01:00:06:00 01:00:09:00 v1 v1 Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS a1 A1 Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS a2 A2 Nancy at table MS Nancy at table MS A3

To scrub through a clip in the Canvas, hold down the Shift key, then click a clip with the Time Remap tool.

3 When you've found the source frame in the clip that you want to remap to another time, hold down the Option key and drag the chosen frame to another time in the clip.

While you drag, a new keyframe is created that is visible in the motion bar at the position of the source frame being dragged. The Timeline speed indicators also change to show you the modified speed to the left and right of this keyframe, and a tooltip appears with the following information:

Source Frame: The timecode number of the frame you grabbed with the Time Remap tool.
Old Time: The Timeline timecode number where the source frame was originally positioned.
New Time: The new Timeline timecode number to which you're moving the source frame. This number changes as you drag the Time Remap tool to the left and right.
Speed Left: The playback speed, in percent, of the section of your clip defined by the first time remap keyframe immediately to the left of the currently remapped source frame.
Speed Right: The playback speed, in percent, of the section of your clip defined by the first time remap keyframe immediately to the right of the currently remapped source frame.

Tip: To gear down while using the Time Remap tool, hold down the Command key.

4 When you've moved the selected frame far enough to place the source frame at a new time in the Timeline, release the mouse button.

The Timeline speed indicators show the clip's new speed settings.

Once you've created one or more time remap keyframes, you can readjust them in the motion bar.

To readjust time remap keyframes in the motion bar:

1 Control-click the Clip Keyframes control in the Timeline, then choose Video from the shortcut menu and Motion Bar from the submenu.

v1 V1 A1 Audio Video Filters Bar ✓ Motion Bar Keyframe Editor ✓ Speed Indicators Show All Hide All Click here to display the motion bar.

2 Control-click the motion bar, choose Time Remap from the shortcut menu, then choose Time Graph from the submenu to make Time Graph keyframes visible.

01:00:02:00 Basic Motion Crop Distort Opacity Drop Shadow Motion Blur Time Remap Show All Hide All ✓ Time Graph Show All Hide All Click here to make the Time Graph keyframes visible.

3 Select the Selection tool in the Tool palette, then drag a keyframe left or right in the motion bar to change its position in time.

As you adjust individual keyframes, the Timeline speed indicators change to show you the modified speed to the left and right of the currently chosen time.

0:00:01:00:02:00 01:00:04:00 01:00:06:00 01:00:08:00 01:00:10:00 Nancy at table MS (Variable) Nancy at table MS (Variable) Speed indicators

While the Time Remap tool allows you to make speed adjustments to clips quickly, you can also make time remapping changes using the time graph in either the keyframe editor of the Timeline or the keyframe graph area of the Motion tab in the Viewer. In particular, editing the time graph is the only way to modify keyframe velocity, easing the transition from one speed keyframe to another using smoothed keyframes with Bezier handles.

The following illustrations show how changes to the time graph affect the speed of a clip in the Timeline. In each graph, the vertical axis represents media time, where each tic mark up is a successive frame of your video clip. The horizontal axis represents the Timeline, where each tic mark is a frame forward in the Timeline.

- Linear time (100% speed): This is represented by a straight, upward-sloping diagonal line, in which one frame of a video clip plays during one frame of the Timeline. This is real time.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Time Remapping Using the Time Graph - 1

line

| Sequence time | Source time | | ------------- | ----------- | | 0 | 0 | | 1 | 1 | | 2 | 2 | | 3 | 3 | | 4 | 4 | | 5 | 5 | | 6 | 6 | | 7 | 7 | | 8 | 8 | | 9 | 9 | | 10 | 10 |

- Slow motion (less than 100% speed): Slow motion is represented by a line with a more gradual slope, in which one frame of a video clip may play over perhaps three frames of the Timeline.

Slow motion Source time Sequence time

- Fast-forward (greater than 100% speed): Fast-forward speed can be seen as a steeper line, in which several frames of a video clip play in the space of one frame of the Timeline.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Time Remapping Using the Time Graph - 3

line

| Sequence time | Source time | | ------------- | ----------- | | 0 | 0 | | 1 | 1 | | 2 | 2 | | 3 | 3 | | 4 | 4 | | 5 | 5 | | 6 | 6 | | 7 | 7 | | 8 | 8 | | 9 | 9 | | 10 | 10 |

- Freeze frame (0% speed): So far, all these graphs have illustrated forward-playing clips, represented by a line that slopes upward. A freeze frame, represented by a flat line, may also be created with the time graph.

Source time Freeze frame Sequence time

- Reverse speed (less than 0% speed, or negative speed): When a clip plays in reverse, previous frames of the video clip are mapped to successive frames of the Timeline. Reverse speed is represented by a line that slopes downward.

Source time Reverse speed Sequence time

- Acceleration/deceleration: Finally, the most powerful feature of the time graph is the ability to adjust the transition in a clip from one speed to another, at whatever velocity you require. Gradual changes from one speed to another are represented by curves. For example, a gradual transition from slow motion to fast forward might look like this:

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Time Remapping Using the Time Graph - 6

line

| Sequence time | Source time | | ------------- | ----------- | | 0 | 0 | | 1 | 0.5 | | 2 | 1.0 | | 3 | 1.5 | | 4 | 2.0 | | 5 | 2.5 | | 6 | 3.0 | | 7 | 3.5 | | 8 | 4.0 | | 9 | 4.5 | | 10 | 5.0 |

When you put all this together, you can start to understand what is happening in more complex time graphs. For example, in the following graph, you can see that the clip begins by playing in slow forward motion, gradually speeds up, and then goes in reverse briefly before going back into slow forward motion just before the end of the clip. Each speed transition is smoothed out by a Bezier keyframe.

Nancy at table MS (Variable) Nancy at table MS (Variable) Slow Fast Reverse Slow

For more information on using Bezier handles to smooth keyframes, see "Smoothing Keyframes With Bezier Handles" on page 268. For more information on working in the keyframe editor of the Timeline, see "Working With the Timeline Keyframe Editor" on page 286.

Tip: The keyframe editor area of the Timeline can be resized vertically, allowing you to have a more detailed view of the keyframe graph you're editing. For more information, see "Working With the Timeline Keyframe Editor" on page 286.

You can also make adjustments to a clip's speed using the time graph in the Time Remap parameters in the Motion tab of the Viewer. For more information about settings in the Motion tab, see "Adjusting Parameters in the Motion Tab" on page 218.

Viewer: Nancy at table MS from Dream sequence Video Stereo (a1a2) Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 00:00 01:00:07:00 Distort Opacity Drop Shadow Motion Blur Time Remap Setting Variable Speed Duration 00:00:10:00 Speed % 100.00 Source Duration 00:00:10:00 Reverse Frame Blending Time Graph Output Time 01:00:03:16 Source Frame 00:00:00:11 Velocity % 25 01:00:03:16 Time Graph Output parameters

Setting: This pop-up menu allows you to choose between constant and variable speed.
Duration: The total duration of the clip in the Timeline, accounting for constant speed changes. This field always shows clip time mode (as opposed to source time) and View Native Speed is always deselected.
Speed %: The percentage at which the clip plays back, if a constant speed change has been applied. If the clip is set to variable speed, the word "Variable" appears in this field.
Source Duration: The total duration of the clip, including unused areas at the beginning and end of the clip. This field shows clip time mode (as opposed to source time) and View Native Speed is always selected.
Reverse: When selected, indicates that the clip is set to play backward.
Frame Blending: When selected, indicates that frame blending is turned on to smooth out the apparent motion of clips moving in slow motion.

Time: A timecode value showing the clip's current playhead position in the Timeline or Viewer. If the clip is in a sequence, the current Timeline timecode is shown. If the clip is a Browser clip, the clip's current timecode is shown.
Source Frame: The timecode value of the clip frame that's mapped to the current time. This field always shows time with View Native Speed selected.
Velocity %: Indicates the rate at which a clip is changing from one playback speed to another when time remap keyframes with Bezier smoothing are applied to a variable-speed clip.

Tip: Like any other motion parameters, time remapping parameters can be saved as motion favorites. For more information, see "Creating Favorite Filters and Transitions" on page 294.

To see timecode affected by speed adjustments to the current clip, select View Native Speed. The word native indicates that you are seeing the source timecode numbers as they exist in the media file without any interpretation from Final Cut Pro. For more information about timecode display options, see Volume II, Chapter 25, "Working With Timecode."

If View Native Speed is deselected, the timecode is affected by any speed settings applied to the current clip. For example, if your clip has been slowed down by 50 percent, the timecode numbers increment at 50-percent speed as well.

Note: Timecode numbers appear in italics when View Native Speed is selected.

1 Open a clip in the Viewer.
2 Choose Modify > Speed or press Command-J.
3 Type 25 in the Speed field, then click OK.
The clip now plays back frames from the media file at 25-percent speed. The source timecode plays back just as slowly.
4 In the Viewer, move through the clip one frame at a time using the left and right arrow keys.

Note that the timecode numbers change once every four frames. This is because the speed-adjusted clip holds each video frame for a duration of four frames, and the native timecode numbers are displayed. The video frames and the timecode numbers change only every fourth frame when viewed in the speed-adjusted clip.

5 Control-click the current timecode field, then deselect View Native Speed from the shortcut menu.

Note: When View Native Speed is deselected, the timecode field is no longer italicized.

6 In the Viewer, move through the clip one frame at a time using the left and right arrow keys.

Final Cut Pro now increments the timecode at the frame rate of the clip, ignoring any speed adjustments. This timecode is not accurate to the timecode of the media file, but it allows you to see the timecode counter increment each time you advance a frame.

If you want to see the actual source timecode of each frame of the media file, leave View Native Speed selected.

You can use still images and photographs in your movie to previsualize scenes, create motion graphics, and provide visual continuity when no video is available.

This chapter covers the following:

• Using Still Images and Graphics in Your Sequences (p. 335)
- Creating Freeze Frame Stills From a Video Clip (p. 336)
• Considerations Before Creating and Importing Stills (p. 337)
- Changing the Duration of Still Images (p. 347)
• Example: Adding Camera Motion to Still Images (p. 348)

Note: For information about importing graphics files, see Volume I, Chapter 22, "Importing Media Files Into Your Project."

Still images are commonly used in motion graphics sequences, custom titles created in another application, and illustrative graphics such as charts and diagrams. They are also used as placeholder graphics during editing (before a finished shot is delivered to your editing system) and as background images for multilayer compositing. For more information about working with multiple layers of video and graphics, see Chapter 18, "Compositing and Layering," on page 355.

You can also apply traditional camera-stand (or motion-camera) moves to a still image (as is often done in documentaries) by setting motion parameter keyframes.

You can add still images to your sequence during any phase of postproduction.

Final Cut Pro makes it easy to grab a freeze frame whenever you need to, whether you are viewing a clip in the Viewer or working on a sequence in the Timeline. No additional media is created on your hard disk; freeze frames are simply clips that reference a single frame of a media file.

1 Make sure the frame you want for a freeze frame is displayed in the Viewer or the Canvas.
2 Do one of the following:

- Choose Modify > Make Freeze Frame.

- Press Shift-N.

A freeze frame clip appears in the Viewer. This clip is automatically named after the sequence or clip that it came from, plus the timecode from which the frame originated.

Note: If you open another clip in the Viewer, the freeze frame clip that was previously in the Viewer is gone.

3 To add the freeze frame to your sequence, do one of the following:

Drag the freeze frame from the Viewer to the Canvas or the Timeline.
Drag the frame to the Browser to create a master clip for use throughout the course of your project.

As with imported stills, the duration of the freeze frame image is determined by the Still/Freeze Duration preference. If you'd like to change this duration, see "Changing the Duration of Still Images" on page 347.

Note: Freeze frame clips refer to media files the same way other clips do. If the media file is modified, moved, or deleted, the still image clip becomes offline, and you need to reconnect it.

1 Position the playhead on the frame you want to export, then choose File > Export > Using QuickTime Conversion.
2 In the Save dialog that appears, enter a name and choose a location for the image.
3 Choose Still Image from the Format pop-up menu, then click Save.

For more details, see Volume IV, Chapter 20, "Exporting Still Images and Image Sequences."

Standard definition video is almost always interlaced, so still images created from standard definition video are interlaced, too. A single frame of interlaced video consists of two fields that were originally captured at different moments in time. If there is a lot of motion in the video content of a frame (such as a ball quickly moving past the camera), the two fields contain very different visual information. When the entire frame is displayed, objects in motion have a comblike appearance because the object appears in two places at once.

During normal video playback, interlacing is usually not very noticeable because the fields are scanned so quickly. However, on still images, interlacing artifacts cause some still images to flicker or strobe on an interlaced display (such as an NTSC or PAL monitor). To eliminate interlacing artifacts, you can apply a deinterlacing filter in Final Cut Pro before you export a still image. (A deinterlacing filter simply removes half the lines and interpolates the missing lines by using the remaining lines.) You can also export the image without applying the filter, and then apply a deinterlacing filter in a separate graphics application.

Important: Final Cut Pro often displays the Viewer and Canvas deinterlaced to make the image clearer while you are editing. To make sure you catch any potential interlacing artifacts in still images, always watch your video on a monitor that matches your final screening format. For example, if you plan to output your movie to an NTSC video format, you should monitor your sequence on an external NTSC monitor. For more information about external monitoring, see Volume I, Chapter 16, "External Video Monitoring."

Before you start creating graphics and importing still images for video, there are a few things to be aware of if you are concerned about achieving the best possible quality in your final product. These include:

The correct frame size
Differences in color between computer and video graphics (this includes the maximum white sequence setting)
Bit depth per pixel (number of bits used per pixel for each color channel)
Flattening multilayer images
Alpha channels
Selecting fonts
Creating line art for video

When you're preparing to import graphics into Final Cut Pro, it's important to be aware of the implications of frame size, sequence size, and pixel aspect ratio. Ultimately, the frame size of your output format determines the size of the graphic you create in your graphics application. For example, if you are working with NTSC DV video, your graphic needs to have the same dimensions: 720 x 480. If you are working with 720p HD video, your graphic needs to be 1280 x 720 to match your sequence.

If you import a graphic or still image with a frame size that doesn't match the frame size of your edited sequence, you have two choices.

You can resize the image, enlarging or reducing it to fit the frame size of your image.
You can leave the image as is, in which case you'll be able to see only a small part of it if the image is too big, or the image will be surrounded by black if it's too small.

If you've imported a high-resolution image that's significantly larger than the frame size of your project, Final Cut Pro allows you to take advantage of the image's increased resolution to create sophisticated motion effects.

3000 x 2000 720 x 480 Relative frame sizes of the same image at 720 x 480 and 3000 x 2000 when imported into Final Cut Pro

Important: If you try to enlarge an image that was originally shot on video, or a graphic that is smaller than the frame size of your sequence, you'll find that scaling it up past a certain point creates noticeable artifacts that you may not want.

There is a myth in video graphic design: Since some older computer displays used 72 pixels per inch, all video created on a computer must be at this resolution. This is not true or necessary. The dimensions of a video image are dependent only on the number of horizontal and vertical pixels used in the image. Pixel dimensions alone determine the resolution of a video image. You can easily test this yourself by creating two 720 x 480 images in a still graphics program, setting one image to a resolution of 300 dpi (dots per inch) and the other to 72 dpi. Import both images into Final Cut Pro and compare the two. They are absolutely identical. This is because video editing software does not use the dpi setting of a graphic image.

Even though the dpi setting for your graphics is irrelevant for working with video, keep in mind that many people may still adhere to a policy that graphics for video must be 72 dpi. To avoid confusion with other graphic designers, you can just as well leave your video graphics at 72 dpi. Just know that there is nothing special about this setting.

Final Cut Pro can import graphics with a bit depth up to 16 bits per pixel per color channel, although 8 bits per color channel is the bit depth most commonly used. The more bits used to represent color in an image, the more accurately the color is represented. This is important when you are trying to preserve color detail in motion picture or still image film.

If you want your imported graphic to fit entirely into your image frame, you can select the clip once it's edited into the Timeline, and use the Scale to Sequence command to set the scale of the graphic so that it fits as neatly as possible into your frame size.

1 Select a clip in your sequence to rescale.
2 Choose Modify > Scale to Sequence.

If the aspect ratio of your imported graphic doesn't match that of your edited sequence, the image will end up with either horizontal or vertical black borders.

- If your graphic is taller than it is wide, there are gray borders to the right and left of the image in the Viewer and Canvas. The borders are not part of the image.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - To scale a graphic: - 1

natural_image

Screenshot of a video editing interface showing a brick wall texture with no visible text or symbols on the brick itself.

Gray borders appear on the sides because this image is taller than it is wide. These borders are not part of the image, but extra space shown in the Viewer.

- If your graphic is wider than it is tall, there are gray borders at the top and bottom of the image in the Viewer and Canvas. The borders are not part of the image.

When creating graphics for standard definition video, you need to consider the fact that the digital video pixels are considered to be non-square (taller than wide—NTSC, or wider than tall—PAL) compared to your computer graphics program that uses square pixels. Non-square pixels are also referred to as rectangular pixels.

Note: Some computer graphics programs support non-square pixels, making it simpler to create graphics for standard definition video formats like NTSC and PAL. For high definition video formats, you can simply create square pixel graphics, which means designing graphics with the exact same image dimensions as your HD format.

Reconciling the difference between non-square pixels and square pixels can cause a lot of confusion for beginning video graphic designers, but the best rules of thumb are to:

Use a graphics application that supports non-square pixels, such as Adobe Photoshop. In this case, you create your graphics with the proper dimensions and pixel aspect ratio throughout the entire postproduction process.
Keep your destination video frame size in mind and follow the table on page 341 when designing graphics in your graphics application.

Note: There is no accepted standard for the exact aspect ratio of non-square standard definition video pixels. Different manufacturers may assume different pixel aspect ratios when designing their software. Fortunately, these differences tend to be very small, so in many cases you may not notice a difference between a pixel aspect ratio of, say, 0.9 and 0.89.

Since every non-square video frame size has an equivalent square frame size that will look correct in SD video, it's easy to create your graphics with a usable frame size. The steps below tell you how.

See "Pixel Aspect Ratios in SD Video Signals Versus Computer Displays" on page 342 for more background information on this topic.

Graphics for projects that will be output to high definition video, or for video that will be played only on computers and doesn't use any captured SD video footage, simply need a frame size that matches the sequence frame size. No alterations are needed.

1 In your graphics application, create a frame size that's the square pixel equivalent of the video frame size of your sequence.

Use the chart below to determine the frame size you need. For example, if you're working in DV-PAL (which has a frame size of 720 x 576) your graphic should have a frame size of 768 x 576 to look correct on an SD video monitor.

If you are using this format	The video sequence frame size is	Use graphics with this frame size
601-NTSC 4:3	720 x 486	720 x 547
601-NTSC 16:9 Anamorphic	720 x 486	853 x 486
DV-NTSC 4:3	720 x 480	720 x 540
DV-NTSC 16:9 Anamorphic	720 x 480	853 x 480
601/DV-PAL 4:3	720 x 576	768 x 576
601/DV-PAL 16:9 Anamorphic	720 x 576	1024 x 576
720p high definition	1280 x 720	1280 x 720
1080i/p high definition	1920 x 1080	1920 x 1080

Important: Final Cut Pro uses slightly different square-pixel image dimensions than other video and still image applications. For the most accurate results, you can avoid creating and converting square-pixel images by using a graphics application that supports non-square pixel aspect ratios. These applications allow you to create and preview your graphics at their native resolution.

2 Create your graphic.

Save your image from the graphics program into your media folder on disk.
In your graphics program, first save your image at the original dimensions with a name such as MyGraphic_original (this is a working copy that you can always use to make further changes). Then, rescale the graphic from the square frame size you created it with to the non-square equivalent shown in the table in the first step. This makes the image look distorted in your graphics application, but it will look right when you output it to video. Save this resized graphic to the folder in which you store your media.

If your imported image dimensions match any of the standard definition digital video formats supported by Final Cut Pro (such as DV NTSC, PAL, or widescreen), Final Cut Pro automatically assigns the appropriate pixel aspect ratio associated with those dimensions. If you want to change the pixel aspect ratio, you can change its pixel aspect ratio property in the Browser column or in the clip's Item Properties window, as described in Volume II, Chapter 5, "Working With Projects, Clips, and Sequences."

Standard definition (SD) video images use pixels with a non-square (rectangular) aspect ratio, while computer displays represent images using a grid of pixels with a square aspect ratio.

720 X 486 Broadcast (720 X 480 DV) 640 X 480

SD NTSC pixels are taller than computer pixels and SD PAL pixels are wider than computer pixels. As a result, a 720 x 480 pixel image looks different (taller) on an NTSC video monitor than it does on a computer display. For example, if you capture a clip of video with a globe in the picture, export a frame, and look at this frame in a graphics application, you'll see something like this:

NTSC square vs. non-square pixels example
APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Pixel Aspect Ratios in SD Video Signals Versus Computer Displays - 2

natural_image

Gray-scale globe illustration showing Americas, Europe, and parts of Asia (no text or labels)

Looks right on a video monitor

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Pixel Aspect Ratios in SD Video Signals Versus Computer Displays - 3

natural_image

Gray-scale illustration of the Americas showing continents (no text or labels)

Looks wrong on a computer monitor

The Viewer and the Canvas let you display non-square pixel video correctly on the computer's screen. This option is in the View pop-up menu in both windows.

Note: High definition video uses only square pixels, so it doesn't show this discrepancy.

You should be aware that the range of colors that can be displayed on a broadcast video monitor is much smaller than that which can be displayed on your computer. For this reason, colors that appear bright and clean on NTSC or PAL video can seem duller when viewed on your computer.

If you output graphics images with colors that go outside the “legal” range for video, they will appear oversaturated, and may “bleed” into other parts of the image. This distortion can be easily avoided by controlling the palette of colors you use in your graphics program. As you create the graphics you’ll be outputting to video, resist the temptation to use the brightest and most saturated shades of color available in your paint program. When you’re finished with your image, use a video colors filter (if your program has one) to make sure that all the colors in your image are in the legal broadcast range for video.

When you edit a graphics clip into a sequence, if the "Process maximum white as" pop-up menu in the Video Processing tab of the Sequence Settings window is set to White, the brightest white in that graphic will appear at 100 percent when viewed on the Waveform Monitor in Final Cut Pro. If your sequence is set to Super-White, the brightest white in that graphic will appear at 109 percent when viewed on the Final Cut Pro Waveform Monitor.

For the best visual quality, make the "Process maximum white as" setting based on the category below that best describes your situation:

The Super-White setting should be used if you're matching the brightness of imported graphics (or Final Cut Pro generators) to video that was shot and captured with the super-white luminance levels that many consumer camcorders use.
If your captured video clips were all shot with carefully controlled video equipment, guaranteeing a maximum white level of 100 IRE in the recorded video signal, you should have "Process maximum white as" set to White so that the white levels of your graphics match properly.

Multilayer graphics can be useful for compositing and complex graphics, but most of the time you only need a single still image clip. If your original image file is a Photoshop file, make sure you flatten it before you save it as media for importing into Final Cut Pro.

You may want to save two versions of the Photoshop file: the original file that retains the independent layers (this is a working copy you keep so you can go back to make independent layer adjustments) and a separate flattened image created by choosing File > Save As or File > Export in your graphics application.

If you want to work with layered Photoshop files, see "Working With Layered Photoshop Files" on page 368.

Alpha channels are an implicit fourth channel in some graphic file formats that are used to only reveal certain parts of your still image. Alpha channels are useful when compositing a still image above another still or video clip in the Timeline. Make sure you save your still image file including the alpha channel if you want to use it for compositing. For more information about working with alpha channels, see "Using Video and Graphics Clips With Alpha Channels" on page 371.

When creating line art or selecting a font to use for a broadcast video image, you should avoid creating horizontal single-pixel lines, or using fonts that are too thin. Because video is interlaced, horizontal lines that have a height of a single pixel will flicker as the field in which they appear alternates on and off. This causes a distracting shimmering in your graphics, with the shimmering becoming more pronounced the closer thin areas in your image are to horizontal. For more information, see "Installing and Choosing Fonts" on page 496.

Flickering horizontal lines can be mitigated by adding a bit of blur or anti-aliasing to your image, causing the lines to subtly spread out over more than one line. However, the best thing to do is to avoid single-pixel lines altogether when creating graphics for broadcast.

Whenever you edit a still image clip into a sequence, Final Cut Pro compares and automatically adjusts the following properties of image and sequence:

Horizontal and vertical dimensions: If the still image dimensions are larger than the sequence dimensions, the still image is scaled to fit in both dimensions (without distorting the image). This means that you always see the entire still image within the frame of the sequence.
If the graphic has smaller dimensions than the sequence, the graphic is not scaled. This is because scaling images beyond 100 percent reduces the quality (pixels would be magnified, which would create blocky artifacts in the image). Final Cut Pro avoids automatically scaling clips beyond 100 percent.
Pixel aspect ratio: If the still image pixel aspect ratio is different from the sequence pixel aspect ratio, Final Cut Pro adjusts the still image clip's Aspect Ratio parameter (located in the Distort parameter of the clip's motion parameters). This compensates for mismatched pixel aspect ratios between the still image and the sequence. The result is that the clip does not appear distorted simply because it has a different pixel aspect ratio. Without this automatic compensation, you would have to manually calculate how much to compensate for mismatched pixel aspect ratios. For more information, see "Controls in the Motion Tab" on page 220.

To scale an image within a sequence to exactly fit the sequence dimensions:

1 Select one or more clips in the sequence.

Tip: You can also place the playhead over a clip in the Timeline without selecting any clips.

2 Choose Modify > Scale to Sequence.

Each selected clip's scale parameter is set to the appropriate amount so that both horizontal and vertical image dimensions fit within the sequence dimensions. The images are not squeezed or stretched, but may appear letterboxed or pillarboxed if the aspect ratios of the image and the sequence don't match.

Note: The Scale to Sequence command also works on video clips.

If the frame size of your graphic doesn't match the frame size of your edited sequence and you want to correct this, you can do so easily.

If you want to zoom in and out on an image, such as a scanned map or photograph, you should use an image with higher resolution than the sequence. The more high resolution it is, the less likely you will need to scale more than 100 percent to show details. Scaling video and still images more than 100 percent creates

artifacts: Individual pixels become noticeable, causing a "stair-stepping" artifact on high-contrast diagonal lines.

Note: You can add the illusion of camera motion to still images, as is often done in documentaries, by subtly keyframing the Scale setting (for zooming) as well as movement of the image within the frame (center, anchor, and rotation parameters). See

"Example: Adding Camera Motion to Still Images" on page 348 for details.

1 Edit the image into the sequence in the Timeline.

2 Double-click the clip in the Timeline to open it in the Viewer.

3 Click the Motion tab in the Viewer.

4 Edit the percentage in the Scale field, or use the Scale slider until you find a size you like.

Once an image is edited into your sequence, it has a default duration of 10 seconds. However, you may want the image to play for a longer or shorter duration. There are also a few ways to change the duration of a clip.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > User Preferences, then click the General tab.
2 Enter a new value in the Still/Freeze Duration field.

Note: This setting only affects graphics imported after you change this setting. Previously imported graphics still retain the same In and Out points.

In the Browser, double-click the Duration column for a clip, then enter a new duration.

Browser SWING Footage Effects Name Duration In Out Backgrounds 00:00:10,00 00:01:00,02 00:01 Brick Wall Curtain 00:00:10,00 00:01:00,02 00:01 Plastic 00:00:10,00 00:01:00,02 00:01 Wood 00:00:10,00 00:01:00,02 00:01 Band Blue Screen Dancers Interviews Enter a new duration in the Duration column for the image.

- Double-click a clip in the Browser to open it in the Viewer, then enter a value in the Clip Duration field.

Viewer: Brick Wall in SWING Footage Video Filters Motion 00:00:08:00 50% Off 00:00:00:00 Enter a new duration here.

- Select a clip in the Browser, then choose Edit > Item Properties. Click the Timing tab, then enter a value in the Duration field. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 5, "Working With Projects, Clips, and Sequences."

You've probably seen documentaries that show a graceful camera pan or tilt across a still image, sometimes slowly zooming in or out. These kinds of effects are traditionally done with a motion control camera, which is a device that consists of a static camera and a mobile, programmable photo table. The photo table can be programmed to move slowly past the camera in several directions and rotate around a pivot point. These sorts of camera moves bring life to otherwise static images, greatly enhancing movies that must rely on archival photographs and documents to create a meaningful visual narrative.

Final Cut Pro can achieve similar effects by animating the motion parameters of a high-resolution still image.

Important: To create moving graphics with acceptable quality, the horizontal and vertical dimensions of your still image must be greater than the frame size of the sequence that contains it. If you need to set the scale parameter of your image over 100% to achieve a particular effect, your still image wasn't created with high enough resolution.

Follow these steps to learn how to create a motion control camera effect with a still image in Final Cut Pro.

Note: For more information about learning to use keyframes, see Chapter 13, "Adjusting Parameters for Keyframed Effects," on page 249.

There are two key things to be aware of before you import the image:

- Frame size: The still dimensions need to be significantly larger than the frame size dimensions of your sequence, so that the still can move about the frame without displaying any edges.

Canvas 720 x 480 4000 X 3000

For example, a DV-NTSC (4:3 aspect ratio) sequence has a frame size of 720 x 480 pixels, so any stills used for this effect in a DV-NTSC (4:3) sequence should be larger than 720 x 480. The longer you want the pan to last and the more detail you want to show, the larger the still dimensions should be. Check the size of your sequence frame and the size of the imported still by looking at the Frame Size column in the Browser. A good rule of thumb is to make your still image with twice the horizontal and vertical dimensions. Using exact multiples makes it easier to make precise, predictable adjustments to your image within the Canvas.

If the final destination of your sequence will be standard definition (SD) video, then any scanned images, digital photographs, and HD video images with higher resolution work well. Stills from SD video aren't recommended because you'd have to increase the size of the still by scaling it up, which would degrade the image quality considerably and create artifacts in the picture.

If you're creating graphics for motion-control camera effects in an HD sequence, the image dimensions will have be quite high. For example, doubling 1920 x 1080 results in a graphic that is 3840 x 2160. Depending on the speed of your processor, the real-time effects playback may be limited for these high-resolution effects.

- Flatten layers: If the still image you want to use is a layered Photoshop file, do not import it as a layered Photoshop file because it will appear as a sequence on multiple tracks. Instead, flatten and save the image in your graphics application before you import it into Final Cut Pro. Make sure you save the flattened image as a copy in case you want to make changes to the original layered graphics file.

Note: Store any imported image stills on your scratch disk so that all your media files (video, audio, and stills) are located in one place. This makes it much easier to locate and move or copy all the project media at once.

It appears as a clip in the Timeline.

1 Double-click the clip in the Timeline to open it in the Viewer.
2 Click the Motion tab in the Viewer, then make sure the Basic Motion disclosure triangle is open to reveal parameters such as Scale, Rotation, and Center.
3 In the Motion tab of the Viewer, enter 100 in the Scale field.

Viewer: CoffeeBeans.tif from Master sequence Video Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 00:00 01:00:06:00 Basic Motion Scale 100 Rotation 432 Center 0 0 -43 Anchor Point 0 0 Crop Distort Opacity Drop Shadow Motion Blur Time Remap Set the Scale parameter to 100. 01:00:00:22

To see the image size and position as it will appear within the frame during playback, you need to make a couple of adjustments. (Otherwise you may, for example, see the frame background where you didn't mean to show it.) You also need to turn on the wireframe view to position the image visually.

a In the Canvas, choose Image + Wireframe from the View pop-up menu.

Image Wireframe Show Overlays Show Title Safe Show Timecode Overlays Show Excess Luma RGB Alpha Alpha+RGB Black White Checkerboard 1 Checkerboard 2

b Choose Fit All from the Zoom pop-up menu.

Fit to Window Fit All 800% 400% 200% 100% 50% 25% 12% ✓ Show As Sq. Pixels

Note: If your final movie will be shown on a television monitor, it's a good idea to turn on the Title Safe boundaries as well so that you can see what will actually be visible on the television monitor. (Choose Show Title Safe from the View pop-up menu.)

The Center parameter determines where the image appears (or doesn't appear) onscreen. You'll create the image movement by setting a starting and ending Center location with keyframes. To generate the movement path for you, Final Cut Pro interpolates the position of the image between these two points

1 Move the playhead to the time when you want the image pan to start.
2 Move the position of the image in the Canvas to the starting position of the pan.

Canvas: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence 00:00:12:09 16% 01:00:00:00 Starting position

3 Control-click the Keyframe button in the Canvas, then choose Center from the shortcut menu.

Keyframe All Scale Rotation Center Anchor Point Aspect Ratio Crop Distort

A keyframe appears in the Motion tab, next to the Center parameter.

Viewer: CoffeeBeans.tif from Master sequence Video Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 00:00 01:00:00 Basic Motion - Scale 100 432 Rotation 0 -432 Center 0 -282.15 Anchor Point 0 0 Crop - Distort - Opacity - Drop Shadow - Motion Blur - Time Remap - 01:00:00:00 Center parameter keyframe

4 Move the playhead to the time when you want the pan to end.

5 Move the image in the Canvas to the ending position.

You don't need to add a keyframe this time because, once a single keyframe has been added to a parameter, new keyframes are automatically added each time you move the clip to a new position.

You should see a line in the Canvas indicating the interpolated motion path between the starting and ending keyframes.

Canvas: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence 00:00:12:09 16% 01:00:01:14 Ending keyframe

6 To see the effect, remove the wireframe in the Canvas by choosing Image from the View pop-up menu, move the playhead to the beginning of the clip, then play the sequence.

While you may see only a rough approximation of the final camera move effect, you can still see it without rendering. To see it at higher resolution, render it and then play it.

Tip: If the image looks "blocky" after rendering, choose High from the RT pop-up menu and render the clip again. If any frames drop during playback, try choosing Unlimited RT from the RT pop-up menu in the Timeline.

To create a more realistic camera move, you may also want to smooth the motion at the beginning and the end of the motion path, so that the camera starts slowly, reaches full speed, and then slows down as it reaches the second keyframe.

1 Choose Mark > Previous > Keyframe until the playhead is over the starting keyframe of your clip. (You can also press Option-K.)

If you navigate too far past the starting keyframe, you can navigate back by choosing Mark > Next > Keyframe (or pressing Shift-K).

2 In the Canvas, control-click the starting keyframe and choose Ease In/Ease Out from the shortcut menu.

The keyframe now has a velocity handle.

3 Drag the velocity handle away from the starting keyframe to adjust the acceleration at the beginning of the motion path.

This causes the clip to start moving slowly and then ramp up to full speed.

4 Choose Mark > Next > Keyframe (or press Shift-K) to navigate to the ending keyframe of your motion path.
5 In the Canvas, Control-click the ending keyframe and choose Ease In/Ease Out from the shortcut menu.
6 Drag the velocity handle of the ending keyframe toward the keyframe.

This causes the clip to decelerate as it approaches the ending keyframe of the motion path.

Canvas: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence 00:00:12:09 59% 01:00:01:14 Drag the velocity handle toward the ending keyframe. Ending keyframe

For more information about velocity handles and creating smooth motion curves, see "Controlling Speed Along a Motion Path" on page 278.

Compositing is the process of stacking and blending multiple video or graphics clips over one another in a sequence to create multilayered motion graphics and special effects shots.

This chapter covers the following:

• Compositing Strategies and Modes (p. 355)
• Working With Layered Photoshop Files (p. 368)
• Using Video and Graphics Clips With Alpha Channels (p. 371)

Compositing involves stacking two or more video or graphics clips in a sequence on multiple video tracks. You can have up to 99 layers, or tracks, of clips in Final Cut Pro. Once you've layered a group of clips in the Timeline, you can also adjust the transparency, or opacity levels, of the clips. Both tasks affect your final compositing result. The more layers you have, the more creative you can get. (This can also cause problems, however, and leave you with a potentially more confusing image in your program.) The key is to achieve a balanced effect.

Timeline: Title sequence in Cafe Title sequence RT 01:00:09:16 00:00 01:00:05:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:15:00 V4 V3 V2 v1 V1 Text Text Master shot Debra MS Master shot Debra MS Master shot jacob CU Master shot jacob CU a1 A1

Audio items linked to video items you've layered in the Timeline are also stacked, one on top of another. You can have up to 99 tracks of audio in addition to the 99 tracks of video in a sequence in the Timeline, for a total of up to 198 tracks in a single sequence. Layered audio is mixed together by Final Cut Pro according to the volume settings that you've adjusted. For more information about editing audio, see "Setting Proper Audio Levels" on page 58.

For information about mixing audio, see Chapter 5, "Overview of the Audio Mixer," on page 67, and Chapter 7, "Mixing Audio in the Timeline and Viewer," on page 109.

As an editor, you'll find Final Cut Pro compositing support useful for doing things such as creating montages and abstract images, and also for creating layers to be exported for higher end animation in Motion or compositing, effects, and rendering in Shake. This chapter discusses compositing techniques and provides information on working with imported graphics and movie clips that have layers or alpha channels.

Some of the most common effects operations you'll use to create broadcast design sequences include compositing graphics and video clips together. Final Cut Pro allows you to superimpose up to 99 layers of video together and gives you other options for creating visual effects:

You can adjust the relative levels of opacity, or transparency, of each clip to control how clips combine. For example, you can put a semi-transparent image of a flag flying in the wind over the video image of a national monument.
You can also import QuickTime files with preset alpha channels, which Final Cut Pro uses to automatically define their levels of transparency. Final Cut Pro can then use this alpha channel information to combine these clips with background imagery in a sequence, such as placing a title graphic over a video clip to create an interesting title sequence.

There are several ways you can layer clips in the Timeline.

Create a new track in a sequence, then edit clips into the new track.
You can add one or more tracks to a sequence, depending on the effect you are creating. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 8, "Working With Tracks in the Timeline."
Drag a clip into an empty area of the Timeline, so a track is created for the new clip. You can drag a source clip to the unused space above (or below) the current tracks to create a new track for that clip. If you drag a clip above the tracks already in the Timeline, you'll create a new video track. If you drag a clip below the tracks in the Timeline, a new audio track is created. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 8, "Working With Tracks in the Timeline."

• Perform a superimpose edit.

You can use a superimpose edit to quickly stack a source clip on top of any clips already edited into your sequence in the Timeline in preparation for compositing. If there isn't an available track in your sequence, Final Cut Pro creates a new one for the source clip. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 10, "Three-Point Editing."

When you layer clips, the clip in the topmost track in the Timeline is the one that appears during playback in the Canvas. However, this is true only if:

None of the clips is set to be transparent (by changing the opacity parameter)
• None of the clips has an alpha channel

If you change the opacity level of one or more layered clips so they have some transparency, the clips blend and you see both images combined.

When you're compositing, you may need to move a clip vertically from one track to another, but keep its location in time in a sequence from changing. You might do this to:

Move a video clip on top of another one so that it appears in front
Move a clip to another track to make room for another one being edited in

To do this, simply press and hold the Shift key while you drag a clip up or down. For more information about moving clips to another track without accidentally moving them forward or backward in time, see Volume II, Chapter 12, "Arranging Clips in the Timeline."

Every visual clip in a project has a level of transparency, or opacity parameter, that you can change in Final Cut Pro. When you adjust the opacity setting of one or more clips, they blend to create a single image. You can then use the resulting image as the background of a title sequence or as a montage in your program.

Canvas. Title sequence in Cafe. Title sequence 00:00:16:22 59% 01:00:00:00

Opacity is used to blend two clips, one of dancers and the other of a piano player.

There are two ways you can adjust a clip's opacity:

Drag the opacity overlay of a clip in the Timeline.
Open the clip in the Viewer and specify the Opacity parameter's value in the Motion tab.

The Opacity parameter in the Motion tab and the opacity overlay displayed in the Timeline are identical. A change made to one is mirrored in the other.

When you blend multiple clips together using the Opacity parameter, it's important to be aware of the color range, the amount of movement, and the overall amount of contrast and texture in the images with which you're working. Balancing all of these qualities is what separates a good-looking composite from a confused jumble of images and motion.

1 In the Timeline, click the Clip Overlays control.

Timeline: Title sequence in Cafe Title sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:05:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:15:00 Master shot Debra MS Master shot Debra MS v2 v1 V1 Master shot jacob CU Master shot jacob CU a1 A1 The opacity overlay can be dragged up or down to adjust it. Clip Overlays control

2 Drag the opacity overlay up or down to adjust the setting.

To adjust the opacity of a clip with greater accuracy, press and hold down the Command key while you change the height of the opacity overlay.

Note: The overlay appears as a black line if the clip is not selected and as a white line if the clip is selected.

Timeline: Title sequence in Cafe Title sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:05:00 01:00 0:00 01:00:15:00 V2 v1 V1 Master shot Debra MS Master shot Debra MS 72 Master shot jacob CU Master shot jacob CU The pointer changes to the Adjust Line Segment pointer when it's directly over the overlay. The actual percentage appears in this box. a1 A1

- Double-click the sequence clip you want to adjust to open it into the Viewer, then click the Motion tab.

Note: When compositing clips in a sequence, make sure that you open clips from the sequence to adjust their motion parameters, including opacity. If you do a match frame edit or inadvertently open a clip from the Browser, you won't be working on the clip as it appears in your sequence. As a result, the clip in your sequence is unchanged.

- If clip keyframes are turned on and you've already adjusted the opacity overlay (or any other motion setting) for a clip in the Timeline, double-click the motion bar under that clip.

This opens the clip into the Viewer with the Motion tab automatically selected.

Viewer: Master shot Debra MS from Title sequence Video Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 00.00 01.00:15.0 Basic Motion Scale 100 Rotation 432 -432 Center 0, 0 Anchor Point 0, 0 Crop Distort Opacity 100 Opacity slider, with arrows on either end 0 Time Remap 01:00:10:00 Number field for the opacity percentage Opacity parameter's keyframe graph line

Drag the Opacity slider to the right or left.
Click the arrows at the right and left of the Opacity slider.
Type a percentage in the number field.
Adjust the Opacity parameter's keyframe graph line.

The pointer changes to the Resize pointer; a box shows the percentage of opacity as you drag the overlay.

The opacity overlay in the Timeline can also be keyframed, enabling you to dynamically change these parameters over time. For information on keyframing, see "Animating Motion Effects Using Keyframes" on page 249.

Final Cut Pro composite modes are settings that determine how the colors of one clip visually interact with those of another clip layered beneath it in a sequence. When you edit a clip into your sequence, it defaults to the Normal composite mode, meaning that it is a solid layer and is not affected by any layers underneath it.

Once applied, different composite modes produce different visual results in your clips. Most combine the affected clip with selected parts of the clip beneath it. Some affect lighter parts of the clip differently than darker parts, and others create negative effects or change the color range of the affected clip, depending on how the layers interact. For example, if you apply opacity settings to a clip using the Normal composite mode, all parts of that clip become equally transparent. You can change this by selecting your clip in the Timeline and choosing a new composite mode.

Canvas: Title sequence in Cafe Title sequence 00:00:16:22 59% 01:00:00:00

Normal composite mode, with the opacity of the top clip (the dancers) at 50 percent

Important: Final Cut Pro composite modes work in conjunction with a clip's Opacity parameter. The composite mode you select determines how the color values of one clip interact with those in the clip beneath it. Additional changes made to a clip's opacity can lighten or intensify this effect.

Applying different composite modes to layered clips in a sequence is easy. The main thing to remember is that composite modes affect the interaction between one layered clip and whichever clip is underneath it in the sequence. Clips that are above a layered clip using a composite mode are unaffected.

To apply a composite mode to a clip in your sequence:

1 With two layered clips edited into your sequence, select the topmost clip in the Timeline.
2 Choose Modify > Composite Mode, then choose a composite mode.

See "Composite Modes in Final Cut Pro" on page 363 for information on the different modes.

3 Move the playhead over these two clips to see the interaction between the two clips in the Canvas.

Canvas: Title sequence in Cafe Title sequence 00:00:16:22 59% 01:00:00:00

In this example, the Screen composite mode is on the upper of two clips; no opacity is on either clip.

You can quickly view or change a clip's composite mode while working in the Timeline. This provides a fast alternative to choosing a different composite mode from the Modify menu.

1 Control-click a clip in the Timeline, then choose Composite Mode from the shortcut menu.

2 Choose a new mode from the submenu.

Normal: Displays the clip without any changes. This is the default of any new clip you edit into your sequence.
Add: Combines the color values of the selected clip with those of the clip beneath it in the Timeline, not exceeding absolute white. The resulting image is lighter. Where the added values are greater than one, absolute white is displayed. In this example, the black of the layered image of confetti is rendered totally transparent, and the confetti itself appears lighter.

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Close-up of two people's legs wearing matching pants and red shoes, standing on a blue background (no text or symbols visible)

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Abstract pattern of scattered blue and green geometric shapes on a dark background (no text or symbols)

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Close-up of two people's legs wearing red and black striped sneakers, walking on a blue floor with confetti falling (no text or symbols visible)

- Subtract: Subtracts the color values of the selected clip from those of the clip beneath it in the Timeline, not going below absolute black. The resulting image is darker. Where the subtracted values are zero, absolute black is displayed. In this example, the black of the layered image of confetti is rendered totally transparent, and the confetti appears darker.

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Close-up of two people's legs wearing striped pants and red shoes against a blue background (no text or symbols visible)

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Microscopic view of scattered blue crystalline particles on a dark background (no text or symbols)

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Close-up of two people's legs wearing red and striped sneakers, with confetti falling on the floor (no text or symbols visible)

- Difference: Subtracts the color values of the underlying clip from the selected clip, displaying the absolute color values. In this example, the images of the sheet music and the hands at the piano invert one another to varying degrees depending on the colors and brightness where both images interact.

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Close-up of a hand pressing on a piano keyboard, no visible text or symbols

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Close-up of a musical notation board with treble clef, notes, and a p symbol (no readable text or symbols beyond basic markings)

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Illustration of a hand playing a piano with musical notes and strings (no text or symbols)

- Multiply: Compares the color values for each pixel of the selected clip with those of the clip beneath it in the Timeline, and multiplies them together. If the image is already dark, there is little or no effect. If the image is light, Multiply darkens it. In this example, the white area of the layered image of brick is rendered totally transparent, and the brick merges with the floor. Note that shadows are preserved, and the layered image is lightened and darkened to match the image.

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Two side-by-side photos showing people in formal attire standing on wooden floors, one with a plus sign and the other with a blank grid (no text or symbols)

Multiply is useful for knocking out the absolute white values in an image and leaving all other values of the image alone, and the effect is similar to a luma key on white. Another good example is to take a scanned image of a page from a book, and use the Multiply composite mode to knock out the white, leaving only the text itself superimposed over the other layers of your sequence.

- Screen: Compares the color values for each pixel of the selected clip with those of the clip beneath it in the Timeline, and multiplies the inverse of each. If the image is already light, there is little or no effect. If the image is dark, Screen lightens it. In the example below, the darkest parts of the layered image are rendered transparent, and the lighter parts become translucent over the image of the musicians.

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Two-panel image showing a man playing saxophone and a man speaking into a microphone against a sunset sky (no text or symbols)

Screen can be used to knock out the absolute black of a layer and leave everything else in the clip alone, and the effect is similar to a luminance key on black. Another good use of the Screen composite mode is to composite stock footage of an explosion or fire to a background image. Everything that was an even black pops out, leaving only the explosion superimposed over the other layers of your sequence.

- Overlay: Wherever the color value is more than 128, Screen is applied. Wherever the color value is less than 128, Multiply is applied. In this example, the layered image is rendered semitransparent, with its opacity in different parts of the frame varying based on the brightness of the foreground and background images.

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Two-panel image showing a hand playing piano keys and a musical notation board with p and notes (no text or symbols)

- Hard Light: Darkens or lightens the colors of the selected clip, depending on the color values for that clip. The effect is similar to shining a hard spotlight on the clip. In this example, the lighter parts of the layered image of the swirl become the most transparent, brightening the parts of the background image of the drums that show through.

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Three-panel image showing a drum with chopsticks, a blue spiral pattern, and a blue brush on a surface (no text or symbols)

- Soft Light: Darkens or lightens the colors of the selected clip, depending on the color values for that clip. The effect is similar to shining a diffused spotlight on the clip. In this example, the lighter areas of the layered image of circles lighten the background image of dancers, while the darker areas darken it.

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Three-panel image showing a couple dancing in blue, with a plus sign and a blank blue background; no text or symbols present.

- Darken: Compares the color values for each pixel of the selected clip with those of the clip beneath it in the Timeline, and selects the darker of the two. In this example, the lightest parts of the layered image of sheet music become transparent, while the darker parts darken the background image of the singer.

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- Lighten: Compares the color values for each pixel of the selected clip with those of the clip beneath it in the Timeline, and selects the lighter of the two. In this example, the darkest parts of the layered image become transparent, while the lighter parts lighten the background image of the singer.

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- Travel Matte - Alpha or Luma: Applies a matte to the selected clip, which is an effect that uses information in one layer of video to affect another layer. In this case, the selected clip uses information from the clip immediately beneath it in the Timeline. The matte makes the area outside the matte transparent so the second layer underneath the clip is displayed.

Travel mattes always involve three tracks. The foreground clip is on the upper track. The matte track goes on the middle track, and the background clip (or clips, if transparent) goes on the bottommost track. The Travel Matte composite mode is then applied to the foreground clip on top of this stack. Travel mattes can be enabled in two ways:

Alpha: Ignores RGB values, using the alpha channel of the matte layer to create transparency information for the selected clip.
Luma: Averages the RGB values of the matte layer to gray. The resulting grayscale image is used to create transparency information for the selected clip, with white equal to 100 percent transparent and black equal to 100 percent solid.

Note: When the travel matte is on track V1, Final Cut Pro uses black as the default background.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Composite Modes in Final Cut Pro - 17

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Three-panel image showing a piano keyboard, a musical note, and a violin performing on stage (no text or symbols)

Travel mattes are useful when you want to use one clip to selectively hide or reveal part of another. For example:

To show parts of a video layer selectively revealed by a round spotlight shape
To partially reveal video images playing through a title or logo graphic
To use an imported graphic to obscure, or mask, part of a layer you don't want to show

Because travel mattes use information in one layer to affect another, if the alpha channel, black, or white elements of that layer move, then the resulting matte also moves. This movement can be a result of:

• Using a video or animation clip as your matte layer
- Moving that layer around with keyframed motion parameters

For more information, see "Creating Keyframed Motion Paths in the Canvas" on page 272.

1 Place the clip you want to appear in the background of your composite on track V1 in the Timeline.
2 Place the clip you want to use as your matte layer on track V2, above the background clip.
- When using the Travel Matte - Alpha mode: Make sure that the clip has a properly formatted alpha track (see "Using Video and Graphics Clips With Alpha Channels" on page 371).
- When using the Travel Matte - Luma mode: Make sure that the black-and-white areas of your clip are appropriately set—black for transparent areas, white for solid areas.

The matte clip goes above the background clip

00:00 01:00:02:00 01:00:04:00 01:00:06:00 Oval Brick Wall.tif Oval Brick Wall.tif

3 Place the main clip that you want masked on track V3, directly above the matte layer.

The main clip to be masked goes above the matte clip. Guitar Player Guitar Player Oval Oval Brick Wall.tif Brick Wall.tif

4 Select the main clip on track V3.
5 Choose Modify > Composite Mode, then choose Travel Matte - Alpha or Travel Matte - Luma, depending on the clip you're using as your matte layer on track V2.

Alpha: Uses the clip's alpha channel, if one exists, as the mask.
Luma: Uses the luminance, or grayscale image, of the clip as the mask.

Note: The matte clip's RGB information won't be seen.

To view the affected area of the sequence, you must select one of the clips and render it (see Chapter 24, "Rendering," on page 533).

You can create multilayered graphics in Adobe Photoshop for use in a composited Final Cut Pro sequence. This allows you to create a complex arrangement of separate graphics elements and import them as a group, with their position and layer ordering intact. Once you import layered Photoshop files, they appear as a sequence, with each individual layer stacked. At this point, it's easy to manipulate each layer individually to create sophisticated composites.

Once imported, you can automatically open a layered Photoshop file in Photoshop to make further changes by:

Choosing View > Clip in Editor
Control-clicking the file in the Browser or Timeline, then choosing Open in Editor from the shortcut menu

You can make changes to any of the layers and save the file. When you return to Final Cut Pro, those changes are updated in the corresponding multilayered sequence in your project.

Tip: While compositing, you may need to make changes to different types of clips that you're using. You can select separate editing applications for three types of files: still images, video, and audio. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

Final Cut Pro lets you import multilayered Photoshop files. Files created in any version of Photoshop can be imported, but only Photoshop 3.0 features (such as opacity, composite modes, layer order, and layer name) are supported for import.

If you're working on a motion graphics sequence, you can lay out all the graphic elements you want to animate in Photoshop as separate layers of painted and scanned graphics. After you import the file, all your graphics are in place so you can quickly and easily animate and add motion effects in Final Cut Pro.

When you import a layered Photoshop file into Final Cut Pro, the file becomes a sequence in your project. All the layers of the source Photoshop file are composited together with a sequence frame size identical to the imported Photoshop file's frame size.

An imported Photoshop file becomes a sequence in the Browser.

Browser Cafe Name Media Start Media End Cafe scene Master sequence 01:00:00:00 01:01:04:15 Music Title sequence 01:00:00:00 01:00:16:21 graphic.psd 01:00:00:00 01:00:12:11

If you want to import a layered Photoshop file as a single clip, you must flatten the image in Photoshop, and then import the file into Final Cut Pro.

The sequence Final Cut Pro creates has the same number of layers as there are in the imported file. The background layer appears in track V1 and each consecutive layer is in the same order as the original Photoshop file. If you change the order of the video tracks, the layering order changes. If the background in the Photoshop file is transparent, then the background of the new sequence is transparent as well and defaults to black.

A Photoshop file is a sequence with its own tab in the Timeline.

Timeline: graphic.psd in Cafe RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:04:00 01:00:08:00 01:00:12:00 Coffee by Jake Coffee by Jake Layer 4 Layer 4 Layer 3 Layer 3 v3 v2 v1 v1

The background layer becomes a clip in track V1, with other layers on the tracks above.

Layer opacity settings, layer modes, and visibility are preserved, but layer masks are not. If a Photoshop layer mode has no corresponding compositing mode in Final Cut Pro, that layer mode is ignored.

Final Cut Pro keeps track of each imported Photoshop layer according to its position relative to the bottom layer. While editing a layered Photoshop file that's already been imported into Final Cut Pro, it's not a good idea, under any circumstances, to:

- Add additional layers

If you add a layer, any layer pushed above the topmost layer that was imported into your Final Cut Pro project is ignored when you go back to Final Cut Pro.

- Delete layers

Deleting previously imported layers can have even more unexpected results. If you must add or remove a layer from a previously imported Photoshop file, do this in Photoshop, and then reimport the file into Final Cut Pro. For additional information about importing layered Photoshop files, see Volume I, Chapter 22, "Importing Media Files Into Your Project."

Ordinary video clips have three channels of information for red, green, and blue. An alpha channel contains additional information that defines areas of transparency in the clip or image. If you import a QuickTime movie or a still image from another application, or one that's been created by a 3D animation program, it may have an alpha channel in addition to its color channels. An alpha channel is a grayscale channel where levels of white and black determine varying degrees of transparency applied to the color channels during compositing.

When you import a QuickTime movie or an image file, its alpha channel is recognized immediately. When you edit the movie or image file into a sequence, Final Cut Pro uses the alpha channel to composite it against any clips appearing in video tracks underneath it.

Note: Alpha channels work the same in video and still graphics media files.

Final Cut Pro recognizes three kinds of alpha channels. A fourth state indicates there's no alpha channel available; you can choose "None/Ignore" to ignore an existing alpha channel. The kind of alpha channel that Final Cut Pro determines a clip is using appears in a pop-up menu in the Item Properties window for the clip. There is also an option to reverse the available alpha channel.

Straight: Typically generated by a 3D animation or compositing program, straight alpha channels contain only the pixels rendered for an image with no background (although the background appears black). Because of this, movies with translucent effects, such as volumetric lighting or lens flares, appear distorted unless they're composited with something in the background. Movies or images with a straight alpha channel are easy to composite and always have very clean edges when composited in a multilayered sequence.
Black: Most other alpha channels, especially channels that are hand drawn in Photoshop, are premultiplied. This means that, unlike a movie with a straight alpha channel that contains only the pixels of the foreground image, movies with alpha channels premultiplied against black always look right, even if they have translucent lighting effects. This is because the entire image is pre composited against black. It's important that graphics with premultiplied alpha channels be correctly identified. If a graphics file with a premultiplied black alpha channel is incorrectly identified as having a straight alpha channel, a black fringe appears around the edges of your imported image. If this happens, you can simply change the way the alpha channel is used in the clip's Item Properties window.
White: Works the same as the black alpha channel, except that the clip is pre composited against white.
None/Ignore: If a clip has no alpha channel, or if you want to disable the alpha channel of a clip so that it's no longer used, you can use the None/Ignore setting.

You can edit clips that have alpha channels into your sequence as you would any other clip, but you must make sure that a clip with an alpha channel is on a higher numbered video track than any clips that are supposed to be beneath it.

For example, suppose you have a title graphic that was created in Photoshop, so it has an alpha channel already set up. When you import it into Final Cut Pro, the alpha channel is recognized automatically. To create your title sequence, you edit the title graphic and a background image into your sequence, so that the background image is on track V1 and the title graphic is on track V2.

Some clips and images you import may have alpha channels. Ordinary video clips have three channels of information for the red, green, and blue channels respectively. An alpha channel contains additional information that defines areas of transparency in the movie.

When you import a QuickTime movie or an image file, its alpha channel is immediately recognized by Final Cut Pro. After you edit this clip into a sequence, Final Cut Pro uses the alpha channel for compositing against background layers. You can turn off alpha channels if you decide not to use them.

Foreground graphic Alpha channel + Background graphic = Final composite

Important: When you import a clip with an alpha channel that contains no data, the clip appears white. To display the clip properly, change the alpha channel for the clip to None (see "Changing a Clip's Alpha Channel Type," next).

There are several reasons why you might want to change a clip's recognized type of alpha channel in Final Cut Pro:

Sometimes Final Cut Pro misinterprets the alpha channel when it imports a clip, which can result in "fringing" around the edges of solid objects. For example, if a clip with a black alpha channel is incorrectly identified as having a straight alpha channel, a black fringe appears around the edges of the imported image.
Some editing and compositing applications output alpha channels that are the reverse of what Final Cut Pro uses. When this happens, what's supposed to be transparent is solid, and what's supposed to be solid is transparent.

In all these cases, you can change or reverse the alpha channel setting.

Select a clip in the Browser, then choose Edit > Item Properties > Format.
Control-click a clip in the Browser, then choose Format from the Item Properties submenu of the shortcut menu.
Select your clip, then press Command-9.

The Item Properties window appears.

1 Select a clip in the Timeline, Browser, or Viewer.
2 Do one of the following:

Choose Modify > Alpha Type, then choose a new alpha channel type from the submenu.
Control-click the Alpha column in the Browser, then choose a new alpha channel type from the shortcut menu.

1 Select a clip in the Timeline, Browser, or Viewer.
2 Do one of the following:

Choose Modify > Reverse Alpha.
Control-click the Reverse Alpha column in the Browser, then choose No or Yes from the shortcut menu.

If the Reverse Alpha menu item is checked, its alpha channel is being reversed. If it's unchecked, then the alpha channel is left alone.

Alpha channels are simply grayscale images or frames, where levels of white and black determine varying degrees of transparency. If you look at a clip with an alpha channel in the Viewer with the alpha option in the View pop-up menu checked, you'll see that the solid areas of the image are represented by 100 percent white, and that transparent areas of the image are represented by 100 percent black. Lighter to darker shades of gray indicate lesser to greater areas of transparency.

Other editorial applications may use white and black differently than Final Cut Pro. If you're exchanging media with other editors and broadcast graphics designers, let them know how you need clips with alpha channels to be set up for use in Final Cut Pro.

White areas are solid. Dark areas are transparent.

Several options in the View pop-up menus of the Viewer and Canvas allow you to display the alpha channel and the background that's displayed beneath a clip with an alpha channel in different ways. These options can make it easier to see how the alpha channels of various clips affect your sequence.

Image Image+Wireframe Wireframe Show Overlays Show Title Safe Show Timecode Overlays Show Excess Luma RGB Alpha Alpha+RGB Black White Checkerboard 1 Checkerboard 2 Alpha channel display options Background display options

When compositing, it's sometimes helpful to have a quick look at the alpha channel of your clip. The alpha channel defines areas of transparency and can change if various filters are applied. There are three different ways to view alpha channels:

RGB
Alpha
Alpha+RGB

Looking at the clip in the Canvas with Alpha or Alpha+RGB enabled shows you exactly which areas of your frame have transparency.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Displaying alpha channels - 1

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Illustration of a purple teapot with steam rising from its side, accompanied by a blue teapot and cube-shaped objects (no text or symbols)

RGB view

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Displaying alpha channels - 2

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Abstract white silhouette of a stylized animal head on black background (no text or symbols)

Alpha view

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Displaying alpha channels - 3

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Illustration of a red steaming cup and teapot with sugar cubes (no text or symbols)

Alpha+RGB view

When working with clips that have an alpha channel, you can choose different backgrounds to make it easier to see which areas of your picture are transparent. There are four backgrounds to choose from:

Black
White
Checkerboard 1
Checkerboard 2

Note: You can also choose View > Background, and then choose Red, Green, or Blue from the submenu to use one of these solid colors as the background.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Displaying backgrounds - 1

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Illustration of a purple teapot with steam rising from its side, placed on a transparent canvas (no text or symbols)

- Translucent clips or generated text may be more visible if you choose a background that emphasizes them, such as Checkerboard 1 or 2.

In an Edit Decision List (EDL), a Super or Key track is the equivalent of a single superimposed video track in Final Cut Pro. EDLs can recognize only one Key track, so V2 is the only video track other than V1 that appears in an exported EDL. Transitions in V2 are not allowed in EDLs and are ignored. If you want to use a transition in V2, use keyframes in the opacity overlay to dissolve V2 up and down. (See Volume IV, Chapter 10, "Importing and Exporting EDLs.")

The opacity overlay in the Timeline appears as the "Key Level" in your exported EDL. Opacity keyframes, if they exist, are translated into values for the Key Level and are calculated in the EDL in relation to the timecode of the master tape. These numbers are for use by a video switcher. Some online systems can translate these for automatic use by some switchers, but more commonly they are used only as notes for the editor to use in an online session. These values and their locations appear as notes in the EDL.

When you're working in the Viewer, it can sometimes be helpful to have a quick look at the alpha channel of your clip. The alpha channel defines areas of transparency, and can change if various filters are applied. For example, if a blue screen clip is added to the Viewer, and a blue screen filter is applied to it, you can check to see what the alpha channel looks like by itself by choosing View > Channels > Alpha.

There are several channel viewing options in the View menu:

- RGB: This is the default color option; it shows the three color channels that make up the actual video image, so the image appears as it would when output to tape.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Viewing RGB and Alpha Channels in the Viewer - 1

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Illustration of a steaming cup and teapot on a black background, with no visible text or symbols.

- Alpha: This option represents the alpha channel as black against white, where absolute black represents 100 percent transparency, levels of gray represent varying degrees of transparency, and absolute white represents nontransparent areas of the picture.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Viewing RGB and Alpha Channels in the Viewer - 2

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Silhouette of a person standing on a black surface, displayed within a video editing interface (no text or symbols on the character itself)

- Alpha+RGB: This option lets you see a representation of the alpha channel overlaid on top of the RGB channels that constitute the actual image of the video clip. The alpha channel is overlaid in red, with solid red representing nontransparent areas.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Viewing RGB and Alpha Channels in the Viewer - 3

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Illustration of a red steaming cup and teapot on a transparent background (no text or symbols)

The RGB and Alpha options in the View menu are most effective when used with different backgrounds (described in the next section).

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Viewing RGB and Alpha Channels in the Viewer - 4

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Illustration of a purple teapot with a steaming cup and cubes, displayed in a video editing interface (no text or symbols on the main image)

When working with clips that have an alpha channel, you can choose different backgrounds that make it easier to see which areas of your picture are transparent. Translucent clips or generated text may be easier to see if you choose a background that emphasizes them, such as Checkerboard 1 or 2. If you're compositing colored images, a contrasting color would work better.

When a clip is rendered for export to tape, the background is always set to black. If it is rendered for export as a QuickTime movie, the background will still appear to be black, even if the alpha channel is exported along with it.

There are several backgrounds to choose from.

Black
White
Checkerboard 1
Checkerboard 2
Red
Green
Blue

Note: Red, Green, and Blue backgrounds are available from the submenu only when choosing View > Background.

To choose a background for viewing a clip, do one of the following:

Choose View > Background, then choose a background from the submenu.
Choose the background from the View pop-up menu in the Viewer.

In the process of finessing effects in a sequence or experimenting with multilayer effects in sequences, it can be helpful to compare how the sequence plays with and without certain clips. In Final Cut Pro, you can exclude (rather than delete) a clip from playback.

Temporarily excluding a clip from playback and output is called disabling the clip. By temporarily disabling specific clips, you can focus on one clip to the exclusion of clips above or below it, or see how another clip would work in its place without removing it.

It's helpful to disable a clip that you don't want to delete, in case you change your mind and want to use it again later. Or, you may want to disable just the video or audio of a clip, so that you can keep it available without including it in playback or output. This is somewhat like muting channels in an audio mixer, except that you exclude playback of clips instead of entire tracks.

If, instead of disabling an entire track, you only want to disable a single clip temporarily, you can do so. While a single clip is disabled, it will not be:

Played back
Rendered
Output to tape with the rest of the sequence

1 Select the clip or clips using one of the selection tools.
2 Do one of the following:

- Choose Modify > Clip Enable so it's no longer selected.

- Control-click one of the selected clips and choose Clip Enable from the shortcut menu.

A disabled clip is dimmed in the Timeline, and its Clip Enable menu item is deselected.

1 Do one of the following:

Turn the Linked Selection option off, then select one or more audio or video items in the Timeline using one of the selection tools.
If linked selection is on, hold down the Option key to turn it off temporarily, then select one or more audio or video items using one of the selection tools.

2 Do one of the following:

Choose Modify > Clip Enable so it's no longer selected.
Control-click one of the selected clips and choose Clip Enable from the shortcut menu.

Individually disabled audio or video items also appear dimmed in the Timeline, although their corresponding linked items are not dimmed.

When working with multiple tracks you may find it helpful to quickly demo one clip within a sequence to the exclusion of the clips above and below it on other tracks. This helps you focus very closely on how one clip is working in a sequence. This feature, called solo item, works by disabling all unselected clips in the Timeline that appear in other tracks at the position of the playhead. In other words, any clips that overlap the "solo" clip in time are excluded from playback.

1 In the Timeline, position the playhead on the clip you want to solo.
2 Select the clip that you want to solo.
3 Do one of the following:

Choose Sequence > Solo Selected Item(s).
Press Control-S.

All clips in other tracks that overlap the soloed clip are disabled.

4 Position the playhead and play the sequence.

Overlapping clip items on other tracks are disabled.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:18:18 Clip A Clip B Clip C V3 Clip D Solo Clip Clip F v2 Clip F Clip G Clip H v1 v1 a1 A1 a2 A2 Soloed clip item

- Choose Sequence > Solo Selected Item(s) again.

This chapter covers the following:

Ways to Layer and Isolate Elements in Clips (p. 385)
• Using Keying to Isolate Foreground Elements (p. 388)
• Using Mattes to Add or Modify Alpha Channels (p. 404)
• Using Masks to Replace or Modify Alpha Channels (p. 407)

People have been layering visual elements together since the dawn of the movie industry. Although digital techniques have increased the potential number of layers from two or three to two or three thousand (and even more), the same basic principles are used. The names vary from one industry to the next, but as film and video merge on a single digital horizon, the terms are becoming more interchangeable.

Matte, or hold matte, originated with film and photography. It traditionally refers to any opaque material that, when held in front of a camera lens, prevents certain areas of the film from being exposed during shooting. Then, the camera can be rewound, and a matte of the opposite shape can be used to prevent exposure on the already exposed part of the film while the other portion is exposed. The result is two different images shot at different times combined together in one frame.

The same principle can be used in digital applications. In the case of cameras, the mattes are hand-made, physical objects, but on a computer they can be drawn and applied digitally.

In Final Cut Pro, a matte is a customizable, polygonal shape used to make part of a clip transparent. By outlining part of an image with a matte, you can turn everything outside or inside the shape transparent. Final Cut Pro allows you to create four- and eight-point mattes.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - What Are Mattes and How Can You Use Them? - 1

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Person in a beige coat and hat saluting, captured in a studio photo frame (no visible text or symbols)

A four-point matte outlining the image of the woman

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - What Are Mattes and How Can You Use Them? - 2

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Person in a beige coat saluting against a black background, displayed within a software interface (no readable text or symbols on the image itself)

The resulting image, with the background transparent

Keying refers to the process of turning an area of consistent color or brightness in a video clip transparent to isolate a foreground subject. The actual keying process results in the creation of a matte (explained earlier), which is then automatically applied to composite an image with a background. In television and in movies, keying is used in a variety of ways to composite actors in front of graphics and other video clips for a variety of effects.

For example, a weather reporter on television often stands in front of a weather map. The reporter is actually standing in front of a large blue or green screen, but the color is made transparent (keyed out), and a map is inserted behind the person, instead. Generating a matte signal using a color signal is referred to as chroma keying, while generating a matte signal using a black-and-white signal is called luma keying.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - What Is Keying and How Can You Use It? - 1

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Three-panel image showing a person posing in front of a green screen, with latitude/longitude lines and a red 'L' marker (no text or symbols on the figures themselves)

A mask is an image that is used to create areas of transparency in another image. For example, the luminance in one clip can be used to create transparency in another clip. You can also assign the alpha channel of one clip to a completely different clip. (For more information about alpha channels, see "Alpha Channels and Key, Matte, and Mask Filters," which follows. Using additional mask filters, you can further modify the resulting regions of transparency—widening, narrowing, or feathering them as needed. Clips used to create masks can be in motion, creating a moving area of transparency.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - What Are Masks and How Are They Used? - 1

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Collage of three performance scenes: musical score sheet, empty oval, and violin instrument (no visible text or symbols)

Key, matte, and mask filters all create or modify the alpha channel of the clip to which they're applied. A clip's alpha channel defines areas of transparency within that clip.

Keying filters generally create new alpha channel information, and are useful in situations where the foreground subject is moving or has a complex or changing shape. For more information about keying, see “Using Keying to Isolate Foreground Elements” on page 388.

Matte filters can create alpha channel information, but they can also be used to add to or subtract from alpha channel information that has already been applied to the clip. Matte filters are useful when you want to simply isolate a region of the frame, or when you're cutting out a static foreground object with a relatively simple shape. For more information about using mattes, see "Using Mattes to Add or Modify Alpha Channels" on page 404.

Masks are most useful when you're copying an alpha channel (static or in motion) from one clip to another, although masks can also change the quality of a clip's alpha channel, letting you feather out edges, for example. For more information about using masks, see "Using Masks to Replace or Modify Alpha Channels" on page 407.

There are two different methods used for keying: chroma keying and luma keying. Chroma keying is a method of keying on a particular hue of color. Although any color can be keyed on, the colors most frequently used for chroma keying are blue and green. Specific hues of blue and green with particular levels of saturation have been developed that provide the best results, and different companies have created commercially available paints, fabrics, and papers that use these colors.

The color you use—blue or green—depends largely on the color of your foreground subject. If you're trying to create a key around a blue car, you probably want to use green as your background. Another advantage of using green, when possible, is that video formats generally preserve more information in the green component of the signal, resulting in slightly better keys.

Luma keying is based on a particular range of luminance. Black is usually used, but you can also key on white. While keying out a white or black background may be more convenient in certain circumstances, it may be harder to correctly isolate your foreground subject because of shadows and highlights, which may have black or white values close to the luma range you're keying out.

Regardless of the keying method you use, it's important to start out with clips that key well. The decisions you make before and during your shoot affect how well your footage keys. Make sure that you:

Choose a video format with a minimum amount of compression that is ideal for shooting and keying
• Light the background screen and foreground subject properly

Ideal video clips for keying can be captured from uncompressed or minimally compressed video formats, such as Beta SP or Digital Betacam footage digitized with an uncompressed video capture interface, or DVCPRO-50 footage captured digitally with no additional compression added. Compression discards color information from a clip and can add artifacts around high-contrast edges in the picture (such as the edges surrounding the image to be keyed). If you use compressed video to create keying effects, you'll frequently lose details around the edges of the keyed image, including hair, translucent cloth, reflections, and smoke.

If you must apply compression during capture, you can still pull good keys from clips with as much as a 2:1 compression ratio, but ideal source footage should be uncompressed. DV footage, which is compressed with a 5:1 ratio as it's recorded, is less than ideal. This is because of compression artifacts that, while invisible during ordinary playback, become apparent around the edges of your foreground subject when you start to key. However, this doesn't mean that you can't key with DV footage.

With a high-quality DV camera and good lighting, it's possible to pull a reasonable key using DV clips, but you cannot expect the kind of subtleties around the edges of a keyed subject that you can get with uncompressed or minimally compressed footage. For example, while you may be able to preserve smoke, reflections, or wisps of hair when keying uncompressed footage, with equivalent DV footage this probably won't be possible. On the other hand, if your foreground subject has slicked back hair and a crisp suit, and if there are no translucent areas to worry about, you may be able to pull a perfectly acceptable key.

The lighting you use when shooting blue or green screen footage plays a crucial role in determining whether or not you'll be able to key out the background easily.

Blue or green background: Should be evenly lit, with no exceptionally bright areas (hot spots) or shadows. Whatever material you use for the background screen should be smooth, with no bumps or wrinkles.
Video signal: Should have a minimum of film or video grain, since the “noisiness” grain introduces can make it more difficult to pull a good key. Video can get grainy in low-light situations, so the lighting on your background screen should be bright enough that you don’t have to turn up the gain of your videocamera.
Lighting of foreground subject: Should have close to a 1:1 ratio to the lighting of the background screen. This avoids overexposing or underexposing the background screen when the foreground subject is correctly lit.

Once your background blue or green screen is properly lit, you should concentrate on lighting the foreground subject to match the scene into which you're going to composite it. It's especially important to make sure that the contrast between the shadows and highlights of your subject's lighting is correct. While you can use the Final Cut Pro color correction filters to easily adjust the color and overall brightness of your subject, contrast is not so easy to change. This is not to say that you need to light your foreground subject flatly. Just make sure that the direction, quality, and contrast of the lighting you use works for the scene your subject will inhabit.

- Distance between foreground subject and background screen: It's a good idea to have some distance between the foreground subject and the background screen, to reduce the amount of colored light bouncing off the background blue or green screen and "spilling" on the foreground subject. In general, position your subject 5 to 10 feet away from the background screen.

Since the Waveform Monitor shows you all variances in brightness in the video frame from the left to the right of the screen, you can use it to reveal hot spots in your background screen that may be difficult to see with the naked eye. If you connect your PowerBook to a DV videocamera with FireWire while you're on the set, you can see the brightness level across the entire blue or green screen background on the Waveform Monitor's graph. (You can also use an analog-to-DV converter to connect to the analog output of a camera with a different format.) Hot spots appear as spikes on the Waveform Monitor, and shadows appear as spikes, while shadowed areas appear as dips.

Video Scopes Tool Bench 00:00:10:00 00:00:00:00 00:00:10:00 Waveform View Viewer Waveform Monitor White Spike Shadowed dip

With this information, you can adjust your lighting until it appears even in the graph in the Waveform Monitor, ensuring the best possible background for keying. Once your lighting is adjusted, you can perform an additional test by capturing a clip, and then using the Chroma Keyer filter to see how well it keys.

While you can use one of several different filters for keying, you often use more than one filter, depending on the qualities of the video clip. In general, the process of compositing two shots together by keying consists of seven main steps, using several different types of filters. For more details, see "Example: Using the Chroma Keyer Filter" on page 398.

Apply the Color Smoothing filter to the clip that you want to key the background out of. This filter improves the quality of chroma keys and reduces the diagonal "stair-step" look that occurs in video clips with areas of high-contrast color.

Use 4:1:1 Color Smoothing with NTSC or PAL DV-25 video sources. (The exception is PAL mini-DV/DVCAM, which uses 4:2:0 color sampling.) Use 4:2:2 Color Smoothing for DVCPRO50 and 8- and 10-bit uncompressed video.

As you add additional keying filters, make sure that the Color Smoothing filter remains the first one listed in the video section of the Filters tab.

Now you can apply the Chroma Keyer filter to the clip. Choose a color or level of brightness to key on, and then make adjustments to select the range of color or brightness that most effectively keys out the background, without eliminating the details of your foreground subject, such as hair, fingers, or the edges of clothing. You can also use the Thin/Spread slider to adjust the fringing that appears around your foreground subject, but don't use it too aggressively.

Tip: While the Chroma Keyer filter is the fastest and easiest to use, you may find that the Blue and Green Screen filter, in conjunction with the Matte Choker filter, can perform a closer key on certain clips that have more subtle detail around the edges of the foreground subject. For more information on the controls of the Blue and Green Screen filter, see "Key Filters" on page 208.

After keying out as much of the background as you can without touching the foreground subject, apply the Matte Choker filter to eliminate any faintly remaining blue or green fringing or pixels surrounding the edge of your foreground subject. Using the Matte Choker filter to eliminate this fringing works similarly to using the Thin/Spread slider in the Chroma Keyer. You may find that, for some clips, the Matte Choker filter works better than using more aggressive settings in the Chroma Keyer, giving you a better chance of preserving as much fine detail around the edges of your foreground subject as possible. Adjust the Edge Thin slider to the right to remove faint areas of the key color around your foreground subject and to smooth out the rough edges of your key.

A second Matte Choker filter can also be applied to fill holes in the foreground subject that appear as a result of aggressive settings applied to key out the background. By adjusting the Edge Thin slider to the right, you can fill in semitranslucent areas in your foreground subject, without changing the background areas you've already keyed out. For more information about the Matte Choker filter controls, see "Matte Filters" on page 210.

When keying, additional filters you add usually affect the overall results of previously applied filters, so after applying the Matte Choker, you'll probably want to readjust the Chroma Keyer filter's settings to take into account the effect the Matte Choker is having. Changes you make to the Chroma Keyer filter's settings affect what the Matte Choker does, so go back and forth between the Chroma Keyer and Matte Choker filters until you find a balance of settings that effectively removes the background without eating into your foreground subject.

If you have some slight color spill from the background around the edge of your foreground subject, you can use the Enhance control of the Chroma Keyer to desaturate the color spill so that it's not noticeable.

If you have other regions of color spill that appear within your foreground subject—showing through a sheer dress, for instance—you may want to use the Spill Suppressor - Blue or Spill Suppressor - Green filter to selectively desaturate just the key color so that it's not noticeable. The spill suppressor filters may affect the overall color of the foreground subject, however, so you may need to use a color correction filter to compensate for this effect.

If there are “unkeyable elements” other than your foreground subject that you want to eliminate from the frame, such as props, lighting fixtures, or other undesirable objects, you can use one of the Garbage Matte filters to remove those elements. For more information on using Garbage Matte filters, see “Using Mattes to Add or Modify Alpha Channels” on page 404.

Even if you shot your background and foreground clips to match one another, it's unlikely the lighting you used matches perfectly. For this reason, it's usually necessary to color correct either the foreground subject or the background to make sure the two match. For more information on color correction in Final Cut Pro, see Chapter 20, "Color Correcting Clips," on page 411.

Tip: When shooting video you intend to composite together using keying filters, it's important to make sure that the direction of the lighting matches in both the foreground and background shots. You can color correct for color temperature, relative brightness levels, and contrast, but lighting direction cannot be altered.

Finally, you should spend some time working on the appearance of the background layer. Editing a foreground clip in front of a background clip is just the beginning. There are numerous details you must now consider to make the shot look convincing. For example, the foreground and background of video you shoot in the field are seldom both in focus, so the shot may look more realistic if you put the background out of focus with a blur filter.

You may also need to consider other strategies for making the background look suitably distant, such as adding a translucent gradient layer to create haze over a landscape, or adjusting the appearance of the sky. Adding other keyed foreground elements can also make your shot look more interesting and add depth to the shot you're creating.

Despite its name, the Chroma Keyer actually uses a combination of chroma and luma keying to achieve a good key. Using the Chroma Keyer, you can create a key using any range of color you want, including (but not limited to) the usual blue and green. You can also fine-tune your composite by adjusting the color value, saturation, and luminance ranges used to define your key, together or separately. For example, if you only want to perform a luma key, you can disable color and saturation. Even when performing a color key, you'll get superior results by manipulating the Color Range and Saturation controls separately.

The Chroma Keyer filter is available in the Key bin, within the Video Filters bin in the Effects tab of the Browser. When you add this filter to a clip, a Chroma Keyer tab appears in the Viewer.

The Chroma Keyer has a set of visual controls, as well as standard numeric interface controls. The visual controls are those you'll probably use most often, but you can toggle between the two.

In the Filters tab, click the Visual button next to the Chroma Keyer filter.

The visual controls appear in the Chroma Keyer tab:

Viewer: Blue Screen Shot from Sex Solos Video Filters Motion Chroma Keyer Numeric 01:00:20:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:17:25 Copy Filter controls Visual interface of the Chroma Keyer Sat Luma Edge Thin Softening Enhance

Note: The visual controls also include several Copy Filter controls. For detailed information on these controls, see "Copy Filter Controls" on page 440.

To use the standard numeric controls, do one of the following:

In the Chroma Keyer tab, click the Numeric button.

In the Chroma Keyer tab, click this button to use the standard numeric controls.

Video Filters Motion Numeric 01:01 2 1 1 2 01

- Click the Filters tab.

Viewer: Blue Screen Shot from Sex Solos Video Filters Motion Chroma Keyer Numeric 01:00:20:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:17:25 Enable/Disable checkbox Color Range control Reset button Select Color button Saturation control View Final/Matte/Source button Luma Invert Selection button Luminance control Edge Thin Sliders for further adjustments Softening Enhance

Enable/Disable checkbox: Make sure there's a checkmark in this checkbox for the controls you want to use. This lets you add or remove color, saturation, or luminance from the criteria used to define a key.
Reset button: Click to restore the Color Range, Saturation, and Luminance controls to their default values. Shift-click the button to reset all three controls at once.
• Color Range control: Allows you to fine-tune the range of color that you want to key on.

Top handles Color gradient Bottom handles

Top handles: Let you select a larger or smaller range of colors that are keyed, based on the original colors you selected with the Select Color tool (the eyedropper). These handles correspond to the Width control in the Key on Chroma area of the filter's numeric controls.
Color gradient: Drag left or right within the color gradient to shift the overall hue of the color range you've set with the top set of handles. This corresponds to the Center On control in the Key on Chroma area of the filter's numeric controls.
Bottom handles: Allow you to define the tolerance of your key. These handles correspond to the Softness control in the Key on Chroma area of the filter's numeric controls. Use these handles to gently eliminate additional fringing from your key while attempting to preserve fine detail around the edges of your foreground subject.
Sat control: Allows you to adjust the degree and range of saturation that contributes to defining your key. The top and bottom handles work the same as those in the Color Range control. Drag left or right within the gradient to move all four handles simultaneously.
Luma control: Lets you adjust the degree and range of luminance that contributes to defining your key. The top and bottom handles work the same as those in the Color Range control. Drag left or right within the gradient to move all four handles simultaneously.

Select Color button View Final/Matte/Source button Invert Selection button

Select Color button (the eyedropper): When you click this button, the pointer turns into an eyedropper you can use to select a color from a clip in the Video tab of the Viewer or in the Canvas.
Clicking this button, and then Shift-clicking with the eyedropper in the Viewer or Canvas, allows you to select another region of the background screen that wasn't keyed out by your first use of this control. This broadens the range of colors to be keyed out and enlarges the keyed-out area. You can do this repeatedly to broaden the range of keyed-out color to include shadows or highlights on the background screen, if necessary.
• View Final/Matte/Source button (the key): This button has three states:

- The default state (a gold key against a gray background) lets you see the end result, the effect happening within the keyed area.

- The second state (a black key against a white background) displays the key itself as a grayscale image, so you can fine-tune it without being distracted by the image.

- The third state (a gold key against a blue background) shows only the original video image.

- Invert Selection button: Click this button to invert the key you've defined. For example, suppose you've set up a key based on the color of a green car and turned the desaturation all the way down so that the car is grayscale and the background is color. Clicking the Invert Selection button makes the background grayscale, and the car appears in color.

Edge Thin Softening Enhance Three sliders at the bottom of the Chroma Keyer let you make further adjustments.

Edge Thin slider: Drag this slider to make the size of the currently defined key larger or smaller. This can help you remove unwanted edging around your subject.
Softening slider: Use this slider to blur the edges of your key to make it blend better with the background image. This can come in handy to soften the jagged edges that sometimes develop when chroma keying material captured with the DV codec.
Enhance slider: Adjust this slider to selectively eliminate any spill of the key color that may be visible in the semitranslucent areas of your key, such as edges and holes.

The following example illustrates a typical use of the Chroma Keyer filter.

1 Edit the green screen clip you want to key into the Timeline.

If you wish, you can use a superimpose edit to place the green screen clip over a clip you want to use as the background.

Tip: If you edit the clip into track V2 of the Timeline, you'll have room to insert another clip as the new composited background.
2 Apply the Chroma Keyer filter to the green screen clip you just edited in.

For more information, see "Applying a Filter to a Clip" on page 186.

3 In the Timeline, double-click the green screen clip to open it in the Viewer; then, in the Viewer, click the Chroma Keyer tab.

Note: In this example, you won't use the numeric controls that appear in the Filters tab.

4 Click the Select Color button to pick a color in the clip to key, move the pointer to the Canvas (it turns into an eyedropper), then click the desired key color. Choose a color that's fairly close to the edge of your foreground subject, so that the area near the subject is the first area of color you key out.

The color range you select with the eyedropper becomes transparent in the clip.

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Woman in red dress posing against green backdrop, no visible text or symbols

Before clicking with the eyedropper tool

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Woman in red dress posing with raised fist against green background (no text or symbols visible)

After selecting the first key color (not all of the green is keyed out)

5 Next, you want to expand the keyed area to include regions of the background that weren't immediately eliminated by the first key. Click the Select Color button, and in the Canvas, Shift-click another region of the background you want to key out to enlarge the region of transparency.

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Woman in red dress posing with raised fist against a green forest background (no text or symbols visible)

Selecting another range of color with the eyedropper tool

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Woman in red dress posing with raised fist against a green forest background (no text or symbols visible)

After selecting an additional range of color

You can perform this step as many times as you need to. The goal is to eliminate as much of the background as you can without affecting the foreground subject. If you start encroaching on the outline of your foreground element, you've gone too far and should undo. It is not necessary to remove all the background fringe around your foreground subject with this step; you should focus only on eliminating the major areas of the background screen.

Tip: As you key out more and more of the background, you may find it helpful to use a different background in the Canvas. The Checkerboard 1 and 2 backgrounds may make it easier to see fringing areas of your picture that aren't yet keyed out. You can also use other background shades and colors to compare the key effect against a lighter background.
6 You can remove more of the key color from the background and eliminate more fringing from the foreground layer without affecting the foreground subject by adjusting the Color Range, Saturation, and Luminance controls.

The top handles adjust the overall range of hue, saturation, or luminance keyed out, while the bottom handles blur the difference between the range of color that's keyed and the range of color that isn't.

Note: You should remove the majority of the green screen using the top handles, but stop at the point where there's still some fringing around the areas of fine detail in the foreground subject. This is the point where you should start using the bottom handles to expand the keyed area more softly. It is not important, at this point, to completely eliminate this fringing, only to make sure that it's soft and translucent, rather than pixelated and solid.

00:30 Modified copy.tif from Chroma Keyer Example Video Filters Chroma Keyer Motion Numeric 0:40:00 01:00:44:00 01:00:48:00 01:00:46.27 Chroma Keyer Example Chroma Keyer Example 00:02:00:04 Open 01:00:46.27 Set Luma Edge Thin + Softening + Enhance

7 Depending on how the edges of your foreground subject look, you may want to make adjustments using the Edge Thin slider. The Edge Thin slider allows you to shrink the alpha channel created by the Chroma Keyer to begin to eliminate the light fringing that remains around the edges of the foreground subject.

Viewer: 00:10 Modified copy of from Chroma Keyer Example Video Filters Chroma Keyer Motion Numeric 01:00:52.00 01:00:56.00 01:01 01:00:56.20 01:00:56.20 Sat Luma Edge Thin Softening Enhance Before adjusting the Edge Thin slider

Viewer 00:10 Modified copy of from Chroma Keyer Example Video / Filters Chroma Keyer Motion Chroma Keyer Example Numeric 01:01:07:02 01:01:04:02 01:01:08:02 01:01:07:02 Sat Luma Edge Thin + Softening + Enhance After moving the Edge Thin slider to the right

8 An optional step at this point is to use the Softening slider to blur the edges of the foreground subject. This is especially helpful if the edges of your foreground subject look rough, due to compression artifacts that appear as blocky edges around your foreground subject. Don't overdo this step, as it's easy to lose details in the subject you're trying to preserve with this control.

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9 If you still see light fringing at this point, or if you were forced to use settings so extreme in the Chroma Keyer that some of your foreground subject was eaten away around the edges, you can apply the Matte Choker filter. After you apply the Matte Choker filter, adjust the Edge Thin and Edge Feather sliders. This is the point where you should work to eliminate all the background fringing.

Moving the Edge Thin slider to the right further shrinks the alpha channel around the foreground subject, eliminating still more fringing. Moving the Edge Thin slider to the left expands the alpha channel, allowing you to replace areas of the foreground subject that were lost. The Edge Feather slider allows you to blur the edges even further, if necessary.

10 If you're satisfied with your key, but there is some color from the background that is spilling onto the edges of your foreground subject, you can go back to the Chroma Keyer tab in the Viewer and adjust the Enhance slider to desaturate this spill so that it's not noticeable. Don't move the Enhance slider too far, or you may get undesirable coloration in the edge of your subject.

11 If there's still more colored spill on your foreground subject that the Enhance slider didn't eliminate, you can apply the Spill Suppressor filter.

The Spill Suppressor filter desaturates color spill that may appear anywhere on the foreground subject, not just on the edges. For example, a little of the background color may show through translucent areas of the foreground subject, such as wispy hair or sheer clothing. Once you've applied the Spill Suppressor filter on your keyed clip, adjust the Amount slider to determine how much to desaturate the spill color in the foreground image.

12 To eliminate any unwanted elements that didn't get keyed out, such as rigging and lights around your subject, or the edge of the blue or green screen itself, use the Crop parameter in the Motion Settings tab of the foreground clip to cut those elements out of the picture. If the area you need to crop is irregular, you can apply a Garbage Matte filter, instead.

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Woman in red dress posing with raised arm against black background (no text or symbols visible)

The image is cropped on both sides to remove extraneous elements.

13 Finally, you're ready to insert the background image. Make sure that the clip you're editing into your sequence to use as the background image appears in a video track below the foreground clip being keyed.

Canvas: Chroma Keyer Example in Keying Examples Chroma Keyer Example 00:02:00:04 70% 01:01:49:16 The background image now appears. Timeline: Chroma Keyer Example in Keying Examples Chroma Keyer Example RT 01:01:49:16 46:18 01:01:46:20 01:01:46 0030 Modified copy.tif Deck.JPG The background image is placed below the foreground clip that was keyed.

14 To really make the foreground and background look as if they were shot together, it may be necessary to perform additional compositing steps such as blurring the background to make it look out of focus, color correcting the foreground subject to have the same color temperature, or using motion effects to move the foreground subject. Even with a successful key, these are the details that make a composite look like a finished shot.

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Woman in red dress posing against a blue background with grid lines (no text or symbols visible)

You can use the matte filters to create a new alpha channel or add to or subtract from a clip's existing alpha channel. Matte filters work equally well with clips that already have an alpha channel, as well as with clips that have alpha channels created using a keying filter, such as the Chroma Keyer.

There are three matte filters used most often in conjunction with the Chroma Keyer.

Eight-Point Garbage Matte: Use to create an eight-point polygonal matte. This is useful for cropping out unwanted elements surrounding a foreground element with a complex shape.
Four-Point Garbage Matte: Use to create a simple four-point polygonal matte. This simplifies the process when the shape you want to remove can be encompassed in four points.
Matte Choker: This filter eliminates any faintly remaining blue or green fringing or pixels surrounding the edge of your foreground subject. Instead of simply shrinking the size of the blue-screened clip's alpha channel, however, which might result in the accidental elimination of part of your foreground subject, the Matte Choker selectively shrinks only those parts of the layer's alpha channel that have a marginal degree of transparency, such as barely keyed-out blue or green fringing.

Note: Instead of relying solely on the feathering and edge thinning controls of the Chroma Keyer filter, you should allow some fringing when you adjust the Chroma Keyer's settings, so that you can more precisely eliminate it with the Matte Choker.

The following example illustrates how to use the Four-Point Garbage Matte filter to eliminate the outside edges of a clip being keyed.

1 Apply the Four-Point Garbage Matte to the clip being keyed. Open this clip into the Viewer, then click the Filters tab.
Tip: It may be easier to see what you're doing if you disable the Chroma Keyer, Matte Choker, and Spill Suppressor filters first.
2 In the Four-Point Garbage Matte filter, click the Point 1 crosshair control.

Corners Point 1 1024, Click the Point 1 crosshair control to start changing the matte. Point 2 1024, Point 3 1024, Point 4 -1024,

3 Move the pointer to the Canvas (it turns into a crosshair pointer), then click to change the location of the matte corner defined by Point 1.

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Person in a beige coat and hat looking upward, captured in a studio photo frame (no visible text or symbols)

Before changing the location of the first point

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Person in a beige coat saluting, captured in a studio photo frame (no visible text or symbols on the main subject)

After changing the location of the first point

4 Repeat steps 2 and 3 for the Point 2, Point 3, and Point 4 crosshair controls, until you've created a box that crops out everything outside the blue screen surrounding the actor.
5 To round the four corners of the matte, adjust the Smoothing slider, if necessary.

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Person in a beige military-style uniform saluting against a green background, displayed within a software interface (no text or symbols on the image itself)

The matte, with rounded corners

6 You can also adjust the Choke and Feather sliders.

The Choke slider adjusts the overall size of the matte, without changing the shape; the Feather slider blurs the edges of the matte.

Canvas: Carbage Matte Example in Keying Examples Garbage Matte Example 00:02-46:28 70% 01:02-45:02 The finished matte image

The parameters of the Garbage Matte filters can be keyframed, just like any other filter. This can come in handy if you need to use one of the Garbage Matte filters to crop out the outside edge of a green screen in a shot where the camera is panning.

In the following example, two sets of keyframes are created to compensate for a simple pan in the clip being keyed.

1 With the playhead on the first frame of the clip being matted, apply and adjust the Four-Point Garbage Matte filter.
2 Once you've created the proper shape for the first frame of the clip, click the keyframe buttons for the Point 1, Point 2, Point 3, and Point 4 crosshair controls.

Corner Point 1 + -140.31, -217.95 Point 2 + 97.8, -216.69 Point 3 + 267.87, 243.15 Point 4 + -306.14, 239.37 Edges Create keyframes for all four points.

3 Move the playhead to the last frame of the clip, and readjust the Point 1, Point 2, Point 3, and Point 4 crosshair controls to fit the new position of the green screen.

View Mode Preview Comers Point 1 -490, -475 Point 2 588, -771.56 Point 3 748, 778.67 Point 4 -412, 782.22 The four points are adjusted again.

Keyframes are created automatically when you make these adjustments. The change of the matte's shape and position is calculated for each frame in between the two sets of keyframes you've created. If the motion of the camera movement is consistent, the position of the matte should follow the position of the background screen. If the motion of the camera is inconsistent, you can create more keyframes to adjust the shape and position of the four matte points as necessary.

The mask filters allow you to replace, contract, or expand a clip's alpha channel. If a clip has no alpha channel, a new one can be assigned to it using a still image or an alpha channel copied from another clip.

There are several mask filters you can use to modify alpha channels in a clip:

Image Mask: Uses the luminance or alpha channel in one clip to create an alpha channel in another. The clip used to create the alpha channel can be a still image or a QuickTime movie. Using the Image Mask filter, you can create complex alpha channels; for example, you can put the kind of rough border used in art photography around a video clip. The alpha channel created with the Image Mask filter can be inverted, if necessary.
Mask Feather: Lets you selectively feather the edge of just the alpha channel of a clip, making it softer, without blurring the image channels of the clip. The Mask Feather filter works with other filters that generate alpha channel information, allowing you to feather the edge of a mask created with the Mask Shape filter, for example.
Mask Shape: Allows you to create an alpha channel in a clip that consists of a simple shape—a diamond, oval, rectangle, or round rectangle. The solid part of the clip that remains after applying the Mask Shape filter appears inside the shape that's been created. The vertical and horizontal scale of the shape can be altered, as can the mask's center. The Mask Shape filter can also be inverted, to reveal areas of the clip outside the shape.
Soft Edges: Allows you to feather the edges of a clip. You can extend the softening of the left, right, top, and bottom edges of the clip into the clip by different amounts. The feathering appears as a gradient that always extends to the edge of the clip. The Soft Edges filter overrides all other alpha channel information created by any other filters appearing before it.

In the following example, a still image is used to create an alpha channel in another clip.

1 Apply the Image Mask filter to the clip being keyed, by opening this clip into the Viewer, then clicking the Filters tab.

Viewer: Border if in Sample Project 00:00:10:00 00:00:00:01

In this example, a grayscale TIF file, called "Border.tif," that has a white center surrounded by a rough black border, is used.

2 Drag the Border.tif clip to the clip control of the Image Mask filter.

Viewer: CU shoes in Sample Project Name Parameters Nav 23:09 02:04:26:09 Video Filters Image Mask Mask Border.tif Drag the clip to the clip control in this filter. Channel Luminance Invert

3 Choose Luminance from the Channel pop-up menu.

Note: When using a clip's luminance to define transparency, white is used for 100 percent solid, and black is used for 100 percent transparent.

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Interior view of a stage with two people in white shoes and dark red boots, captured under a video editing interface (no readable text or symbols)

The clip now has a border that matches the Border.tif clip.

You can further modify this new alpha channel, blurring it with the Mask Feather filter, for example.

4 Apply the Mask Feather filter to the clip you want to blur.
5 Open this clip into the Viewer, then click the Filters tab.
6 Move the Mask Feather filter so it appears below any other filters that may be creating or modifying the clip's alpha channel (such as the Image Mask filter that's already been applied).

Viewer: CU shoes in Sample Project Video Stereo (a1a2) Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 23:09 02:04:26:09 Video Filters Image Mask Mask Channel Luminance Invert

7 Adjust the Softening slider to soften the edge of the clip's alpha channel.

The clip's image remains untouched.

This chapter covers the following:

• What Is Color Correction? (p. 411)
• Measuring and Evaluating Video (p. 418)
• The Color Correction Process (p. 434)
• The Color Corrector and Color Corrector 3-Way Filters (p. 439)

To better understand how color correction works, you can view full-color screen shots in the onscreen version of the Final Cut Pro 5 User Manual (to view the onscreen user manual, choose Help > Final Cut Pro User Manual).

In any postproduction workflow, color correction is generally one of the last steps in finishing an edited program. Final Cut Pro color correction tools give you precise control over the look of every clip in your project by letting you adjust the color balance, black levels, mids, and white levels of individual clips.

There are a number of reasons why you may want to color correct your footage:

- Make sure that key elements in your program look the way they should: Every scene of your program has key elements that are the main focus of the viewer. In a narrative or documentary video, the focus is probably on the people in the shot. In a commercial, the key element is probably a product shot, such as the label of a bottle or the color of a car. Regardless of what these key elements are, chances are you or your audience will have certain expectations of what they should look like. You can use color correction to make the colors reproduced by video match what was originally shot.

With people shots, one of the guiding principles of color correction is to make sure that their flesh tones on tape look the same as in real life. Regardless of race, the hues of human flesh tones, when recorded to videotape and measured on a Vectorscope, fall along a fairly narrow range (although the saturation and brightness vary). Final Cut Pro color correction tools allow you to make whatever adjustments are necessary to ensure that the flesh tones of people in your final edited piece look the way they did in reality.

- Balance all the shots in a scene to match: Most edited programs incorporate footage from a variety of sources, shot in multiple locations over the course of many days, weeks, or months of production. Even with the most skilled lighting and camera crews, differences in color and exposure are bound to occur, sometimes within clips meant to be combined into a single scene. When edited together, these changes in color and lighting can make individual shots stand out, so the editing appears to be uneven. With careful color correction, all the different clips that make up a scene can be balanced to match one another so that they all look as if they're happening at the same time and in the same place, with the same lighting.

- Correct errors in color balance and exposure: Accidents can happen in any shoot. For example, you may have forgotten to white balance your video camera before shooting an interview in an office lit with fluorescent lights, resulting in footage with a greenish tinge. Final Cut Pro color correction filters give you an exceptional degree of control over the color balance and exposure of your clips, allowing you to fix these kinds of mistakes. In many cases, such accidents can be minimized, if not eliminated, through the careful application of color correction filters.

- Achieve a "look": The process of color correction is not simply one of making all the video in your piece match some objective model of black, white, and color tones. Color, like sound, is a property that, when subtly mixed, can result in an additional level of dramatic control over your program.

With color correction, you have control over whether your video has rich, saturated colors, or a more muted look. You can make your shots look warmer by pushing their tones into the reds, or make them look cooler by bringing them into the blues. You can decrease the contrast of your clips, pulling details out of the shadows, or increase your contrast for a harsher look. Such subtle modifications can alter the audience's perception of the scene being played, changing the mood of your program. Once you pick a look for your piece, or even for an individual scene, you can use color correction to make sure that all of the shots in the appropriate scenes match, so that they cut together smoothly.

- Create contrast or special effects: Color correction can also be used to create contrast between two scenes for a more jarring effect. Imagine cutting from a lush, green jungle scene to a harsh desert landscape that's much more in the reds and yellows. Using color correction, you can subtly accentuate these differences. You can also create more extreme effects, such as manipulating colors and exposure to achieve a day-for-night look. You can even selectively target a narrow range of colors to alter or replace only those color values, turning a red car blue, for example.

It's important to remember that the process of determining the overall look of your video begins when your scenes are lit and shot during production. To have the maximum amount of control over your clips in postproduction, you need to start out with footage that has been exposed with your end goals in mind right from the beginning. Color correction in postproduction is no substitute for good lighting.

Optimistically, the process of color correction can be seen as extending and enhancing the vision of the producer, director, and cinematographer or videographer as it was originally conceived. Often, the cinematographer or videographer gets personally involved during the color correction process to ensure that the look he or she was trying to achieve is perfected.

At other times, the director or producer may change his or her mind regarding how the finished piece should look. In these cases, color correction might be used to alter the overall look of the piece (for example, making footage that was shot to look cool look warmer, instead). While this degree of control is possible, it's still important to start out with clean, properly exposed footage.

In many productions, a chip chart is placed next to the slate at the beginning of every shot. This chart can be used during postproduction to unambiguously correct each shot so that the color balance of your images can be perfectly corrected. This then gives the colorist a good neutral starting point for the color correction process.

Chip charts are especially useful during multi-camera shoots with consumer grade camcorders. The white balance settings on such cameras often won't precisely match, even if manually adjusted. This can make cutting back and forth within a scene problematic because you'll be cutting from one color temperature to another. If, however, you shoot a chip chart along with the slate at the beginning of each shot for each camera, you can use this to color correct the footage from every camera used in the shoot, so that all your shots match.

Example of a clip chart used for color calibration. Chip charts can be obtained at a professional video store.

The way you manage color in your program depends on whether your source video was transferred from film or shot on tape. There are several ways to color correct a project. The one that works for you depends on how you're finishing your program, as well as your project's postproduction budget.

If you shot your project on film but you're editing on video, you must first use a machine, called a telecine, to take the images from your negatives and convert them to the videotape format of your choice prior to editing. Any colorist running this first telecine session will be performing some level of color correction as the video is transferred, to ensure that the editor has the most appropriate picture to work with.

The goals of color correction at this stage depend on the length of the project.

Short projects, commercials, spots, and very short videos may get a detailed color correction pass right away. The colorist will first calibrate the telecine's own color corrector to balance the whites, blacks, and color perfectly. Then the colorist, in consultation with the cinematographer, director, or producer, will work shot by shot to determine the look of each clip according to the needs of the project. As a result, the editor will be working with footage that has already been corrected.
Long-form projects such as feature-length films and longer television programs probably won't get a detailed color correction pass right away. Instead, the footage that is run through the telecine will be balanced to have the best blacks, whites, and color possible, and left at that.

In both cases, the transferred tapes are then edited the same as any other project. Once editing has been finished and the picture is locked, a list of selected shots called a cut list or pull list is created that details exactly which shots were used during the edit. (The shots used during editorial are matched with the original shots using edge-coding numbers that are transferred along with the video.)

Using the cut list, the postproduction supervisor has the option of pulling only the film negative that was actually used. Since this is usually a minority of the footage that was shot, the colorist now has the time to perform a more detailed color correction pass only on the selected footage. This is accomplished during a second telecine pass.

Although this might seem redundant, performing color correction directly from the film negative has distinct advantages. Since film has greater latitude from black to white than video has, a colorist working straight off the telecine has greater control of color and exposure than one working only with videotape.

After the second color correction pass, the color-corrected selects are reassembled to match the original edit, and the project is mastered to tape.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Telecine Color Correction - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["Initial correction pass"] --> B["Edit"]
    B --> C["Color correction pass of cut list"]
    C --> D["Reassemble color-corrected clips"]

In addition to color correction, a colorist working with a telecine has many other options available, depending on what kinds of issues may have come up during the edit.

Using a telecine to pull the image straight off the film negative, the colorist can reposition the image to include parts of the film image that fall outside the action safe area of video.
With the telecine, the image can also be enlarged optically up to 50 percent without distortion.
The ability to reframe shots in the telecine allows the director or producer to make significant changes to a scene, turning a medium shot into a close-up for dramatic effect, or moving the entire frame up to crop out a microphone that's dipped inadvertently into the shot.

With projects shot on videotape, the color correction process tends to be a little simpler. There is not usually much attention paid to fine-tuning the video being digitized for an offline edit. Once you begin your online edit on an NLE (nonlinear editor), each tape is calibrated to match the color bars at the head of the tape whenever you're recapturing your footage at its highest quality for final output, to ensure that the colors are correct. If you're doing your online edit in a tape suite, the online editor takes care of this step.

Once the edit has been locked and the final master tape created, the tape can be taken to an online suite capable of tape-to-tape color correction. The master tape is run through a color corrector, and the colorist uses the tape's master timecode to set up color correction settings for every shot of every scene. Once this setup is complete, the entire tape is run through the color corrector and rerecorded to another tape.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Tape-to-Tape Color Correction - 1

flowchart

graph LR
    A["Online edit"] --> B["Color correction pass in online suite"]
    B --> C["Output new master tape"]

With as much control as they afford, telecine sessions tend to be expensive, especially for longer projects. Tape-to-tape color correction can also be expensive, but in both cases you're paying to work with a professional colorist who has years of experience. Color correction requires a practiced eye and careful attention to detail, because it is this final step that really differentiates the look of no-budget video programs from professional broadcast TV.

With Final Cut Pro, you have professional color correction tools at your disposal. Controls that allow automatic adjustments of blacks and whites give even the beginner a basic starting point from which to proceed. With patience and practice, you can learn to work with these tools to achieve sophisticated color correction right on your desktop. With a fast enough computer or a third-party capture card with real-time processing, Final Cut Pro color correction filters can even operate in real time, eliminating the need to render every color-corrected clip.

There are several tools for measuring the color, blacks, and whites of your clips.

Range-checking: Range-checking options available in the View menu allow you to quickly spot illegal luma and chroma levels in your clips, so you can fix them prior to tape output.
Tool Bench window with Video Scopes tab: The Tool Bench window and Video Scopes tab provide constant access to the same Waveform Monitor and Vectorscope available in the Log and Capture window. These tools can help you spot differences between clips, so you can make precise adjustments.
Video scopes: The Histogram and Parade scopes give you detailed information to use when comparing two clips for color correction.

Before you can effectively perform color correction using the Final Cut Pro color correction features, you need to understand the basics of what makes up the image of a video clip.

A video clip's image can be divided into two components, luma (luminance) and chroma (chrominance). Together, these two components make up the picture that you see when you play back your video. As you begin to learn how to use Final Cut Pro scopes and color correction filters together to manipulate the look of your clips, it is important to understand exactly what these components are.

Luma (also referred to as luminance) describes the image intensity of a video clip, from absolute black, through the distribution of gray tones, all the way up to the brightest white. Luma is completely separate from the color of your clip. In fact, if you viewed the luma of a video clip by itself, you would see a grayscale image completely devoid of color.

Luma is measured by Final Cut Pro as a digital percentage from 0 to 100, where 0 represents absolute black and 100 represents absolute white. Final Cut Pro also allows you to see super-white levels (levels from 101 to 109 percent) if they exist in your clip. While super-white video levels are not considered to be broadcast safe, many consumer camcorders record video at these levels anyway.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Luma (Luminance) - 1

bar_stacked

| Color | Luminance | |---------|-----------| | Black | 0% | | White | 100% | | Superwhite | 109% |

Note: In analog video, luma is measured in IRE. On the IRE scale, NTSC black is 7.5 IRE, but the level of black in PAL or NTSC in Japan is 0. These IRE measurements are irrelevant in Final Cut Pro because it deals only with the digital signal that exists in your computer as a straight percentage from 0 to 100 for NTSC and PAL. For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 23, "Using Color Bars for Video Calibration."

Chroma (also referred to as chrominance) describes all the different color values in your clips, ranging from the absence of color to the maximum levels of color that can be represented. Chroma has two properties, hue and saturation.

- Hue describes the actual color itself, whether it's red or green or yellow. Hue is measured as an angle on a color wheel.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Chrominance (Chroma) - 1

pie

| Category | Value (°) | |---|---| | Red | -13 | | 0° | | | Magenta | 29 | | Blue | 103 | | Cyan | 167 | | Green | -151 | | Yellow | -77 |

- Saturation describes the intensity of that color, whether it's a bright red or a pale red. An image that is completely desaturated has no color at all and is a grayscale image. Saturation is also measured on a color wheel, but as the distance from the center of the wheel to the edge.

Balance R Mg YI B G Cy

As you look at the color wheel, notice that it is a mix of the red, green, and blue primary colors that make up video. In between these are the yellow, cyan, and magenta secondary colors, which are equal mixes of the primary colors. These colors are most intense at the outer rim of the wheel and gradually desaturate to pure white at the center, indicating the absence of color.

In the Final Cut Pro color correction filters, most of the controls that you use to correct your clips are divided into controls over blacks, mids, and whites. Each of these represents different overlapping ranges of luma values in your image.

Blacks

Blacks make up the minimum range of luma in your clip. If you looked on a smooth gradient from black to white, controls that affect the blacks will affect your picture in the leftmost three-fourths of the gradient, from black to gray. The effect that controls have over the blacks of an image start to diminish at approximately 75 percent luma, shown above. This excludes the brightest parts of your image.

Mids

Mids make up most of the gray tones of an image. On the same gradient, controls that affect the mids will affect the middle three-fourths of the gradient, excluding the deeply white and black parts. The effect that controls have over the mids of an image start to diminish at 25 and 75 percent luma, shown above. This excludes both the brightest and darkest parts of your image.

Whites

Whites make up the maximum range of luma in your clip. On this gradient, controls that affect the whites affect the rightmost three-fourths of the gradient, from gray to white. The effect that controls have over the whites of an image start to diminish at approximately 25 percent luma, shown above. This excludes the darkest parts of your image.

When you use controls that affect only one of these ranges, all changes made to the hue, saturation, and luma levels of your picture happen exclusively in the area that falls within that particular range of luminance. This allows you to perform very targeted color correction only where it's needed, such as subtly manipulating the hue of the highlights without touching the shadows, or vice versa.

Broadcast facilities have limits on the maximum values of luma and chroma that are allowable for broadcast. If a video exceeds these limits, distortion can appear in the form of colors bleeding into one another, the whites and blacks of your program washing out, or the picture signal bleeding into the audio and causing audible distortion. In all these cases, exceeding standard signal levels can result in unacceptable transmission quality.

For this reason, as you are performing color correction on clips in your edited sequence, you need to make sure that the luma and chroma levels of your video stay within the parameters referred to as broadcast legal, or acceptable for broadcast. It is easy to inadvertently push the levels of clips in your sequence too high, so it's important to use Final Cut Pro scopes and range-checking options to make sure that the luma and chroma levels you set stay legal.

Note: If your program has been accepted for broadcast, you can usually get a set of guidelines specifying the broadcaster's criteria for a legal video signal. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting has a frequently cited set of guidelines for defining what levels of luma and chroma are acceptable for broadcast. You will probably be in the clear with most broadcasters if your program adheres to these guidelines, since they are fairly conservative. Other broadcast companies publish their own guidelines.

When using Final Cut Pro color correction filters to adjust the color, blacks, and whites of clips in your sequence, it is essential to always use a properly calibrated broadcast video monitor to view your adjustments as you're making them. Only an NTSC or PAL broadcast monitor allows you to see the color and brightness of your video as it truly looks. The image on your computer display, in comparison, does not show the color, blacks, or whites of your video clips as they will appear during broadcast. For this reason, the color of video on your computer display should never be used as a reference when performing color correction.

The video monitor you use should be a professional broadcast monitor, rather than a consumer television set. Television sets have special filters that are meant to make video coming in off the airwaves look more attractive. These filters can cause your video to look more vivid than it really is, fooling you into making incorrect color correction adjustments.

Important: Make sure to always calibrate your broadcast video monitor to color bars as described in Volume I, Chapter 23, "Using Color Bars for Video Calibration." Otherwise, you may be incorrectly modifying the color, blacks, and whites of your clips to compensate for an incorrectly adjusted monitor.

The Final Cut Pro range-checking options (in the Range Check submenu of the View menu) allow you to enable zebra striping in the Viewer and Canvas to immediately warn you of areas of your clip's image that may stray outside the broadcast legal range. Zebra stripes appear as animated diagonal "marching lines" that are superimposed over illegal areas or areas that are very near the broadcast legal limits in your picture. Additional icons are displayed to warn you about luma or chroma levels that fall outside the legal range for broadcast.

Canvas: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence 00:02:00:14 59% 01:00:33:05 Warning icon Red zebra stripes indicate luma above 100%. Green zebra stripes indicate luma from 90% to 100%.

Turning on one of the range-checking options gives you immediate feedback if your clips have luma or chroma values that are too high for broadcast. These values may be due to the way the footage was shot or to filter adjustments that you are making.

- Choose View > Range Check, then choose one of the options from the submenu.

The Viewer and Canvas now display zebra stripes whenever illegal levels appear in your clips.

Excess Luma: If you choose this option, red zebra stripes appear in all areas of the frame with luminance above 100 percent, and green zebra stripes appear in areas of the frame with luminance from 90–100 percent. A yellow exclamation point icon indicates luma that's too "hot." A green checkmark indicates that all luma in the picture is legal. An in-range icon appears (a green checkmark with an arrow pointed upward) to indicate when luma from 90–100 percent is present with no luma over 100 percent.
Excess Chroma: When this option is enabled, red zebra stripes appear in areas of the frame with illegal chroma values. A yellow exclamation point icon indicates chroma that's too "hot." A green checkmark indicates that all chroma in the picture is legal.
Both: With this option enabled, red zebra stripes indicate both areas of the frame with luminance above 100 percent, and areas of the frame with illegal chroma values. If zebra stripes appear, a yellow exclamation point icon also appears, indicating that there are levels that are too hot.

Tip: The Excess Chroma and Both options are especially useful when using one of the color correction filters. They warn you if you're raising the chroma of a clip to levels that are unacceptable for broadcast.

There are two screen layouts that are especially convenient for color correction in Final Cut Pro.

Color Correction: This layout arranges the Viewer, Canvas, and one Tool Bench window displaying a Video Scopes tab along the top of your computer screen. The Browser and Timeline are arranged beneath. This is a good layout for examining one clip in your sequence at a time in the Canvas, while viewing an analysis of that frame in the Video Scopes tab and making color correction adjustments in the Viewer.
Multiple Edits: This layout arranges four windows along the top of your computer screen—the Viewer, a Tool Bench window showing a Frame Viewer tab, the Canvas, and another Tool Bench window showing another Frame Viewer tab with a Video Scopes tab in the background. The Browser and Timeline are arranged beneath. This is a good layout to compare several adjacent clips in a sequence side by side as you work to match them together.

You may also find it useful to create a custom layout of your own, depending on how you like to work. You can create as many Tool Bench windows as you like, each with different sets of Frame Viewer and Video Scopes tabs showing different edit points in your sequence.

For more information on using and saving screen layouts in Final Cut Pro, see Volume I, Chapter 10, "Customizing the Interface."

For more information on using the Video Scopes tabs, see “Comparing Two Frames in the Frame Viewer” on page 299.

The video scopes in Final Cut Pro—the Waveform Monitor, Vectorscope, and Parade scope—work similarly to the same standard scopes that you'd find in any online or color correction suite. In addition, a Histogram is available to give you an instant look at the distribution of luminance levels in your clips.

By comparing one clip's luma and chroma values to another with the Final Cut Pro scopes, you can unambiguously spot, at a glance, all of the hues, saturation, and luminance levels that differentiate one clip from another. This lets you make more informed decisions about adjusting Final Cut Pro color correction filters to more closely match one clip with another.

Final Cut Pro video scopes are the most important tools you have for objectively analyzing the color and contrast of any given clip. When you understand how to read the different scopes included with Final Cut Pro, you'll be able to more clearly see and compare the different levels of luminance and chrominance in an image. Using these scopes, you can also get a faster and much more precise idea of these levels than by simply looking your clips.

Note: The scopes displayed in the Tool Bench analyze only the frame that's at the position of the playhead when it's paused.

1 Do one of the following:

Choose Tools > Video Scopes.
Press Option-9.

Tool Bench Layout: All View: Viewer Vector scope Histogram Waveform Monitor RGB Parade Date: 01/23/2023 White Black Red Green Blue

The Tool Bench appears with the Video Scopes tab.

2 Choose the type of scopes you want to view from the Layout menu.

For more information, see the next section, "Options in the Video Scopes Tab of the Tool Bench."

Note: To open and use the Waveform Monitor and Vectorscope during log and capture, see Volume I, Chapter 23, "Using Color Bars for Video Calibration."

3 Choose the video frame you want to analyze from the View pop-up menu.

For more information, see the next section, "Options in the Video Scopes Tab of the Tool Bench."

- Layout: Use this pop-up menu to choose one of eight different combinations of single or multiple scopes for display in the Video Scopes tab. If you choose a single scope from the list, it takes up the entire space of the Video Scopes tab, making it easier to see. If you choose one of the multiple scope layouts, then all displayed scopes appear at a reduced size so that they fit into the Video Scopes tab at the same time.

Video Scopes All Waveform Vectorscope Histogram Parade WV + Hist WV + Parade Luminance

- View: Use the options in the View menu to select which frame is being analyzed by the Video Scopes tab. Choose Current Frame to analyze the current frame at the position of the playhead in the Canvas. Other options allow you to select various edit points that are adjacent to the playhead in the currently selected sequence. You can also choose the frame at the position of the playhead in the Viewer. Choosing None disables the scopes altogether.

One way to use this feature is to pair up separate windows with Video Scopes tabs and Frame Viewer tabs, with each pair of windows set to display different edit points in your sequence for purposes of comparison.

None 2nd Edit Back Previous Edit Current Frame Current w/o FX Next Edit 2nd Edit Forward In Point Out Point Viewer

Various options in the video scopes are designed to help you better focus on the visual information you're looking for. You can choose to see one or more options.

- Control-click anywhere in a video scope, then choose an option from the shortcut menu that appears.

Options that are enabled, or displayed, have a checkmark next to them.

The shortcut menu in the Waveform Monitor

Green or White: The waveforms displayed within all the scopes can be green or white, depending on which color you find easier to look at. Final Cut Pro defaults to white, which is the preferred display, because it doesn't bias the eye toward any particular color. In the Parade scope, these options are Pale and Bright; see below.
Pale or Bright: In the Parade scope, because the waveforms are tinted different colors, the scopes can be pale or bright.
Saturation: This option is available in the Waveform Monitor only and lets you enable or disable the display of saturation. With saturation disabled, the waveforms display only the luma of the selected video signal, and appear to be a series of lines or dots. This can be useful if you're interested solely in the relative luma of different parts of the video frame. With saturation enabled, these lines expand vertically to appear as "fuzzy" bars (if color bars are being displayed) or as a much thicker series of waveforms. The thickness of the waveform represents the amount of saturation in the chroma of your video clip.

Note: The color bar targets displayed in the Waveform Monitor change automatically, depending on whether or not saturation is enabled.

Include Black: This option is available in the Histogram only. Turning this option on scales the Histogram's height to include the blacks in the picture. Turning this option off scales the height, ignoring the blacks. You may want to turn this option on if there's a lot of black in the clip you're viewing, to help you get a clearer profile of all the whites and blacks in the clip. You may turn this option off if you're performing compositing tasks, such as placing a small image against a black background, in which case it's unnecessary to view the excess black information because you know it's there.
Magnify: This option is available in the Vectorscope only. Turning this option on zooms in on the inner 55 percent of the Vectorscope's display, letting you see more detail in images with low saturation.
Targets: This option displays the ideal targets you use to calibrate a video signal generated by color bars. These targets can be disabled, if necessary.
High, Medium, Low, or Off: You can set the scale brightness of the video scopes to High, Medium, or Low, depending on which option makes the most comfortable contrast against the video waveforms displayed. Choose Off to turn the scales off completely.

The Waveform Monitor shows you the relative levels of brightness and saturation in the clip currently being examined. These values are displayed from left to right, mirroring the relative distribution of these levels from the left to the right of the image in the frame. Spikes or drops in the displayed waveforms make it easy to see where the hot spots or dark areas are in your picture.

Video Filters Motion 00:00:10:00 70% Off 00:00:00:00 Video Scopes Layout: Waveform View: Viewer Waveform Monitor This dip in the waveform matches the position of the dog.

With the Waveform Monitor set to display saturation, you can also compare the relative saturation levels of two clips by comparing the thickness of their displayed waveforms. Modifying the saturation of one clip to match that of another is simple; just adjust the Saturation control of one of the color correction filters in one of the clips to compensate.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Learning to Read the Waveform Monitor - 2

The Vectorscope shows you the overall distribution of color in your image against a circular scale. The video image is represented by a series of connected points that all fall somewhere within this scale. The angle around the scale represents the hue displayed, with targets indicating the primary colors of red, green, and blue and the secondary colors of yellow, cyan, and magenta. The distance from the center of the scale to the outer ring represents the saturation of the color being displayed. The center of the scale represents zero saturation, while the outer ring represents maximum saturation.

Video Stereo (x1.x2) Filters Motion 70% Diff 05:29:59:10 00:01:06:16 Video Scopes Tool Bench Layout: Vectorscope View: Viewer Vectorscope Red of clothing Blue of background

The Vectorscope is useful for seeing, at a glance, the hue and intensity of the various colors in your image. Once you learn to identify the colors in your clips on the graph in the Vectorscope, you will be better able to match two images as closely as possible because you can see where they vary. For example, the image above has points of intense red and areas of vivid blue, which you can spot immediately on the Vectorscope. The underwater image below contains predominantly blues, which present an entirely different profile on the Vectorscope. While this is an extreme comparison, by looking at various images and studying how the Vectorscope changes you'll learn how to spot the information you're looking for.

Viewer: AA050290.JPG is Untitled Project 1 Video Filters Motion 00:00:10:00 84% Off 00:01:06:00 Video Scopes Layout Vectorscope View Viewer Vectorscope Distribution of blues NTM

The color targets of the Vectorscope scale match the colors in the Color Balance controls of the Final Cut Pro color correction filters. If the hues of two shots you're trying to match don't match, the direction and distance of their offset on the Vectorscope scale gives you an indication of which direction to move the balance control indicator to correct for this.

The Vectorscope is also helpful for identifying and correcting the flesh tones of actors in a shot. When recorded to videotape and measured on a Vectorscope, the hues of human flesh tones, regardless of race, fall along a fairly narrow range (although the saturation and brightness will vary). This range is identified by a special target line that indicates the average hue of flesh tones. When there's an actor in a shot, you'll know whether or not the flesh tones are reproducing accurately by checking to see if there's an area of color that falls loosely around the Flesh Tone line.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Learning to Read the Vectorscope - 3
Flesh tones are clustered about the Flesh Tone line.
As in the previous image, flesh tones appear around the Flesh Tone line.

If the flesh tones of your actors are noticeably off, the offset between the most likely nearby area of color on the Vectorscope and the flesh tone target will give you an idea of how much to change the hue to make the correction.

The Histogram display shows you the relative strength of all luminance values in the video frame at a glance, from black to super-white (assuming the video codec you're using supports Y^_BC_R processing). It's really a bar graph of sorts, where each pixel on the scale from left to right represents a percentage of luma, from 0 to 110. The height of the bar at each step on the scale represents the number of pixels in the image at that percentage of luminance, relative to all the other values. For example, if you have an image with a lot of blacks, you would expect to see a spike in the Histogram display near the luma range of 10 to 20 percent.

The height of the spike represents the number of pixels in the image at this percentage (15%) of luma. The red area of the histogram indicates pixels in the super-white range. The position of the spike represents 15% luminance.

The Histogram can be very useful for quickly comparing the luma of two clips so you can adjust their blacks, mids, and whites to match more closely. For example, if you were matching an insert (or close-up) clip to the clip shown above, the overall luma levels may have shifted because of a cloud or change in exposure. You can easily see such differences on the Histogram and correct for them. For comparison, the image below has a lot of whites, so the Histogram shows a cluster of values at the high end of the scale, with a spike at 95 percent.

Video Scopes Tool Bench 00:00:10:00 00:00:00:00 Video Filters Motion 18.3% OFF 00:00:00:00 Histogram View Viewer Histogram The spike is at 95%.

The shape of the Histogram is also good for determining the amount of contrast in an image. A low-contrast image has a concentrated clump of values nearer to the center of the graph. By comparison, a high-contrast image has a wider distribution of values across the entire width of the Histogram.

Tool Bench Video Scopes Layout: Histogram View: Viewer Histogram

Low-contrast image

Tool Bench Video Scopes Layout: Histogram View: Viewer Histogram

High-contrast image

The Parade scope is actually a modified Waveform Monitor. Instead of displaying the overall saturation levels for the entire image, the Parade scope separates the red, green, and blue components of the image, and shows them as three separate waveforms side by side. The waveforms are tinted red, green, and blue so you can easily identify them.

Video Stereo (x1.x2) Filters Motion 70% Off 05:29:34:13 00:01:06:16 Video Scopes Tool Bench Layout: Parade View: Viewer RGB Parado White 95° 80° 60° 40° 20° 10° 5° High blue levels Red Green Blue

The Parade scope is very useful for comparing the relative levels of reds, greens, and blues between two clips. If one clip has more blue than another, the difference shows up as an elevated blue waveform in the one, and a depressed blue waveform in the other. In the previous screenshot, the overall image contains quite a bit of blue. By comparison, the shot of the couple dancing below has substantially less blue and far higher levels of red, which can be seen immediately in the Parade scope.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Learning to Read the Parade Scope - 2

natural_image

Stage performance photo of two dancers in red and maroon costumes, surrounded by spectators (no visible text or symbols)

Tool Bench Video Scopes Layout: Parade View: Viewer RGB Parado White Black Red Green Blue

This image contains much less blue than the previous image.

The more technically minded may be interested in knowing that the scopes in Final Cut Pro (with the exception of the Histogram) work by sampling 16 lines of video from the Viewer or Canvas. If you're using a codec capable of Y'C_B C_R processing, the scopes display the Y'C_B C_R information for the currently displayed clip. Otherwise, the scopes display an RGB conversion of your image's information.

These 16 lines are evenly distributed from the top of the video image to the bottom, within the action safe area of standard definition video. This means that they sample approximately every 27th line of video. This is sufficient to catch video elements whose height equals 5 to 10 percent of the total size of your image.

As mentioned earlier, color correction has several goals. To outline the process of color correction, this section focuses on two of those goals:

Making the actors or key elements of your scene look the way they should
• Determining the overall look that you want for the scenes making up your movie

Every video project is comprised of a series of scenes. While scenes may differ in color and tone—one scene taking place at night, the next one happening in the midday sun—every shot within a given scene should match. The goal is to make sure that the transitions from shot to shot within a scene are smooth. If one shot is brighter or redder than the one next to it, the result can be similar to a jump cut, distracting the viewer and making your project look unprofessional.

The overall process of color correcting different shots in a scene to match one another involves five steps.

If you're color correcting a scene consisting of a single shot, then your job is pretty easy. All you need to do is find the settings that work best for that one shot. Most scenes, however, cut between a variety of different shots using close-ups, medium shots, and wide shots. In every scene, there is usually a single wide shot that encompasses the entire scene, called a master shot. Traditionally, this is the first shot that is taken for a scene and used as the basis for that scene. After the master shot, you'll typically use a series of medium shots and close-ups. These other shots are called coverage, because they're often used to cover different edits made in the scene.

When you color correct a scene, you begin with the master shot, since that's usually the establishing shot of your scene. Using the master shot as the basis, you can then make the colors of the coverage shots match those of the master.

Primary color correction refers to two basic steps that you take using one of the Final Cut Pro color correction filters. After you apply the Color Corrector or Color Corrector 3-way filter, you'll perform two steps:

Adjust the blacks and whites to maximize the contrast of your clip.
Essentially, you're mapping the blackest black in your clip to 0 and the whitest white to 100. By doing this first, you widen the luminance range that an underexposed image covers, or bring down overly bright (or super-white) areas of overexposed video into the range considered to be broadcast safe.
Use the appropriate Color Balance controls of the color correction filter to make adjustments to the balance of reds, greens, and blues in your shot.

As you make these adjustments, you'll want to view your clip on your broadcast video monitor as well as check the clip's luma and chroma levels in the Video Scopes tab to make more informed modifications.

It's important to remember that you don't have to do everything with a single application of a color correction filter. For example, if you can't get the colors in both the dimly lit areas and the highlights of your clip right with a single filter, focus only on the dimly lit area. You can then adjust the highlights with a second application of a color correction filter.

The way this works is that each color correction filter has a set of Limit Effect controls that you can use to isolate a region of your clip based on color, luminance, saturation, or any combination of the three. The Limit Effect controls work much like a chroma or luma keyer, except that instead of keying the color out, they limit the effect of the color correction filter to just that area. This way, you can target the green grass, the highlights in the trees, and the red lipstick of an actor in the scene with three separate filters, giving you an extremely fine level of control over your image.

After you've finished adding all the color correction filters necessary, you may find yourself with some additional issues to resolve. Perhaps you can't correct certain areas of your clip without introducing unwanted color into the shadows or highlights. In this case, you can use an additional filter, the Desaturate Highlights or Desaturate Lows filter, to correct this quickly and easily. In another example, you may have discovered that the combination of filters you're using forces the chroma or luma to extend into levels illegal for broadcast. In this situation, you can use the Broadcast Safe filter to bring down the offending parts of the picture to acceptable levels.

Once you've finished defining the look of the master shot in your scene, you can move on to the rest of the shots. It's easy to copy the settings of the color correction filters you're using to other pieces of the same master shot that you may have used in the same scene. For example, if you cut back to the master shot five times in your scene, you can simply copy the filters from the first piece of the master shot you corrected to all other instances used in your sequence.

As you move into the coverage shots used in the scene, you'll probably repeat steps 2 through 4 for each shot. You can compare each new shot with the master shot that you corrected, switching back and forth rapidly to compare the look of one clip with that of the other. By comparing the clips' values on the video scopes, you'll see how you need to adjust the color correction filters you apply to make their color, blacks, and whites match as closely as possible.

Remember, once you finish correcting one segment of a given clip, you can apply those same settings to all other segments in that scene from that same clip. If you apply multiple color correction filters to one clip, you can also apply them all to other clips.

There are two pieces of information that you have available to work with while performing color correction: the readouts displayed in the Video Scopes tab, and the visual image as displayed on your NTSC or PAL broadcast video monitor. Each has advantages and disadvantages; you'll want to use both equally to determine what needs to be done.

The Final Cut Pro scopes are very good for showing you quantitative information about the relative distribution of luminance, the balance of different colors, the amount of saturation, and the range of color that exists in your clip. This information can help you decide how to adjust the controls of the color correction filter being used, and let you spot details that you may not have noticed in the picture.

Useful though the scopes are, in the end it's still important to carefully look at the clip you're working on and compare it visually to previous clips you're trying to match. The Multiple Edits screen layout is ideal for comparing adjacent clips in your sequence to one another on your computer screen for a relative comparison.

Another extremely useful procedure when correcting one clip to match another is the ability to quickly flip back and forth between multiple edit points in the Canvas. This allows you to compare the clip being color-corrected to the clip being used for reference on your external broadcast monitor. Since your external broadcast monitor is showing you the most accurate representation of your clips, this is an important process. By rapidly flipping back and forth between the corrected clip and the reference clip, you can easily spot the true differences between the clips.

Keyboard Shortcuts to Move Quickly Between Clips

Key command	Function
	Temporarily moves the playhead to the Out point of the clip two edits back
	Temporarily moves the playhead to the Out point of the clip one edit back
	Temporarily moves the playhead to the In point of the clip one edit forward
	Temporarily moves the playhead to the In point of the clip two edits forward
	Temporarily moves the playhead to the currently defined sequence In point
	Temporarily moves the playhead to the currently defined sequence Out point
	Moves the playhead back two edits
	Moves the playhead back one edit (same as using the Up Arrow key)
	Moves the playhead forward one edit (same as using the Down Arrow key)
	Moves the playhead forward two edits

There are four filters you can use to adjust the blacks, whites, and color balance of your clips.

Color Corrector: The Color Corrector filter is a basic filter for performing simple color correction. While not as fully featured as the Color Corrector 3-way filter, it's more likely to be supported by real-time hardware.
Color Corrector 3-way: The Color Corrector 3-way filter gives you more precise color control with separate adjustments to the color balance of the blacks, mids, and whites of your image.
Desaturate Highlights and Desaturate Lows: Sometimes, the application of one of the color correction filters can result in unwanted color in the highlights and blacks of your image. These two filters (which are actually the same filter with two different default settings), let you eliminate these unwanted colors.
Broadcast Safe: The Broadcast Safe filter gives you a fast method for dealing with clips that have luma and chroma levels that exceed the broadcast limits for video. This single filter allows you to address illegal values in the luminance and chrominance of your clips at the same time.

The two main color correction filters in Final Cut Pro that you'll use to perform primary color correction are the Color Corrector filter and the Color Corrector 3-way filter. Each has different requirements for real-time processing; the one you use will probably depend on the video hardware you have installed.

All the Final Cut Pro color correction filters are located in the Color Correction bin, within the Video Filters bin in the Effects tab in the Browser. They can be applied the same way as any other filter. For more information, see Chapter 11, "Video Filters," on page 185.

Once applied, color correction filters appear in the Filters tab of a clip that's opened in the Viewer, along with any other filters you may have added. One color correction tab appears in the Viewer for each color correction filter you apply. Additional tabs are numbered sequentially depending on their arrangement in the Filters tab.

Viewer: 2 Couples Better in ALL YOUR BASE Name Parameters Nav 11:04 02: Video Filters ✓ Color Corrector Visual ✓ ✓ Color Corrector - 2 Visual ✓ ✓ Color Corrector - 3 Visual ✓ A color correction tab appears for each color correction filter you apply.

As with all other filters, clicking the disclosure triangle next to a filter's name reveals a list of controls that allow you to make various adjustments. Unlike other filters, the Color Corrector and Color Corrector 3-way filters have two sets of controls—numeric and visual.

In the Filters tab, click the Visual button next to the Color Corrector filter.

Viewer: 2 Couples Better in ALL YOUR BASE Name Parameters Nav 02:14:26:04 Video Filters ✓ Color Corrector Visual Display Mode Final Level Controls Highlights 255 Click this to view that filter's visual controls tab.

To use the standard numeric controls, do one of the following:

In the Color Corrector tab, click the Numeric button.
- Click the Filters tab.

For more information about adding, adjusting, and removing filters, see Chapter 11, "Video Filters," on page 185.

The Color Corrector and Color Corrector 3-way filters employ a graphical interface designed specifically for the task of color correction. The controls will be recognized immediately by professional colorists who have experience with online color correction equipment. The same basic controls are used in both filters.

There are several basic controls in the top-left corner of both filters.

Keyframe controls Numeric button Numeric Enable Filter checkbox

Numeric button (appears when viewing the visual controls): Click this button to view the numeric controls for that filter in the Filters tab.
Visual button (appears when viewing the numeric controls): Click this button to view the visual controls for that filter in the color correction tab.
Keyframe controls: A set of three keyframe controls allows you to keyframe all of the settings in a color correction filter at once. To keyframe individual settings of a color correction filter, you need to use the filter's numeric controls.

There are two ways to keyframe color correction changes over time. Using a filter's visual controls, you can place single keyframes that include the settings of every parameter of the color correction filter. If you set one keyframe, move the playhead ahead several seconds, and make further adjustments to the visual controls of the color correction filter, Final Cut Pro automatically interpolates the change from one keyframe's settings to another to make the smoothest transition possible.

For more precise control, you can keyframe individual color corrector parameters directly in the Filters tab of the Viewer. For more information about keyframing filters, see "Animating Motion Effects Using Keyframes" on page 249.

- Enable Filter checkbox: Select this checkbox to enable or disable the entire filter. This can be useful if you want to compare your clip before and after the color correction filter has been applied. When working in the visual controls, you can turn the control on and off by pressing Control-1.

The Copy Filter controls give you an easy way to copy color correction filters and filter settings into other clips in your sequence.

Video Stereo (a1a2) Filter Numeric Copy From 1st Clip Forward Copy To 2nd Clip Forward Drag Filter Copy From 1st Clip Back Copy From 2nd Clip Back

- Copy From 2nd Clip Back: Copies the settings from the color correction filter of the same type that's applied two clips behind the currently selected clip, and pastes those settings into the current color correction filter. The new values replace any values or keyframes that were already applied in the current filter.

If the filter being copied from is keyframed, the values from the last keyframe are applied to the current clip. If the second clip behind the currently selected one has no color correction filter, this control is dimmed.

- Copy From 1st Clip Back: Copies the settings from the color correction filter of the same type that's applied to the clip immediately behind the currently selected clip, and pastes those settings into the current color correction filter. The new values replace any values or keyframes that were already applied in the current filter.

If the filter being copied from is keyframed, the values from the last keyframe are applied to the current clip. If the first clip behind the currently selected one has no color correction filter, this control is dimmed.

Drag Filter: Allows you to drag a copy of the current color correction filter with all of its settings, and drop it onto another clip in your sequence. Click this button, then drag the filter to another clip.
Copy To 1st Clip Forward: Copies the settings of the current color correction filter into the next clip in your sequence. If the current color correction filter is keyframed, the values from the last keyframe are copied. If there is no color correction filter in the next clip, one is applied automatically.
Copy To 2nd Clip Forward: Copies the settings of the current color correction filter into the second clip forward in your sequence. If the current color correction filter is keyframed, the values from the last keyframe are copied. If there is no color correction filter in the second clip forward, one is applied automatically.

The Copy Filter functions are also available using menu commands and keyboard shortcuts. For additional information about using these controls, see the next section.

The Copy Filter controls are designed to help you color correct sequences that have shot-reverse-shot editing. For example, suppose you want to cut from a wide shot of two actors to a medium shot of them from a different angle, and then back to the wide shot. Assume you also already applied a color correction filter to the first shot. A render bar appears above that clip.

This render bar indicates that the first clip has a filter applied to it.

Since the third shot in this sequence is another segment of the media used in the first shot, it needs the same color correction settings. Use the Copy To 2nd Clip Forward button to apply the same color correction filter with all its settings directly to the third shot in the sequence, skipping over the second shot. Once you've done that, the third shot displays a render bar, indicating that the filter has been applied.

A render bar over the third clip indicates that the filter was applied.

Another way to use these controls is to select all the clips in the scene you're working on, and then apply the color correction filter to all of them. Once you've done that, it's easy to use the Copy Filter controls to copy any color correction settings that you change from prior clips in the sequence to current ones, and vice versa. For clips with multiple filters, the Copy Filter controls operate by the following rules:

If the current clip has multiple filters and you're copying from a clip with multiple filters, Final Cut Pro copies from a filter with the same index number as the current one being adjusted, if possible. For example, if the previous clip has three filters, and the current clip has three filters, clicking the Copy From 1st Clip Back button in the Color Corrector-3 tab copies the settings from the third color correction filter in the previous clip.

If the previous clip doesn't have the same number of filters, the Copy From buttons copy settings from the first available color correction filter that matches the type of the current one. If there are no color correction filters in the previous clips, these buttons are dimmed.

Viewer: Drums 2 from Drumming Current clip Copy From 1st Clip Back button Balance Mg YI Hue Previous clip Viewer: Drummer CU from Drumming Video Color Corrector Color Corrector - 2 Color Corrected Filters Name Parameters Name 00:00 01:00:03:00 Video Filters ✓ Color Corrector Visual ✓ ✓ Color Corrector - 2 Visual ✓ ✓ Color Corrector - 3 Visual ✓

If the current clip has multiple filters and you're copying to a clip with multiple filters, Final Cut Pro copies the current filter's settings to a filter with the same index number in the next clip as that of the current filter. For example, if the current clip has three filters, and the next clip has three filters, using the Copy To 1st Clip Forward button in the Color Corrector - 2 tab copies that filter's settings into the second color correction filter in the next clip.

If the clip you're copying to doesn't have any color correction filters, the Copy To buttons create a new filter with these settings. If there are no clips following the current one, these buttons are dimmed.

Some Copy Filter controls have equivalents in the Copy Filters submenu of the Modify menu.

From 2nd Clip Back
From 1st Clip Back
To 1st Clip Forward
To 2nd Clip Forward

The Copy Filter controls have keyboard equivalents, described here. Using the Option key with these shortcuts modifies their operation.

Key command	Function
control + 2	Copies the settings from a single filter two clips back to the current one (Copy From 2nd Clip Back)
control + 3	Copies the settings from a single filter one clip back to the current one (Copy From 1st Clip Back)
control + 4	Copies the settings from the current filter to the first clip forward (Copy To 1st Clip Forward)
control + 5	Copies the settings from the current filter to the second clip forward (Copy To 2nd Clip Forward)
control + option + 2	Copies all filters from two clips back to the current one
control + option + 3	Copies all filters from one clip back to the current one
control + option + 4	Copies all filters from the current clip to the first clip forward
control + option + 5	Copies all filters from the current clip to the second clip forward

Color Balance controls are color wheels that allow you to change the mix of red, green, and blue that fall within the area of a specific range of luminance in your clip. The Color Balance controls act like virtual trackballs; you can drag anywhere within a control to move the color balance indicator. The Color Corrector filter has one Color Balance control that affects the whites of a clip, and a Hue control. The Color Corrector 3-way filter has three Color Balance controls: One affects the blacks of a clip, the second affects the mids, and the third affects the whites.

The angle of distribution of red, green, and blue in all the Color Balance controls corresponds to the angles of those colors in the Vectorscope. The direction in which you move the balance control indicator is matched by the mix of colors moving in the same direction in the Vectorscope.

If you hold down the Shift key while dragging a color balance control indicator, the angle of the control indicator is constrained, restricting the indicator's movement out toward the edge of the control, or in toward the center. This lets you change the intensity of your color mix without changing the distribution of hues.

Balance R Mg YI B Balance control indicator path constrained by the Shift key G Cy

Unlike other controls in Final Cut Pro, holding down the Command key while manipulating a Color Balance control doesn't "gear down" the control (allowing you to make more subtle adjustments); rather, it gears up the control, causing it to respond more quickly and resulting in greater changes.

The Color Corrector filter controls are deceptively easy considering the amount of power they give you over the look of your clips. The main controls are at the top of the visual interface tab—Color Balance controls and Level and Saturation controls—and are described next. For information about the controls in the Limit Effects area, see “Limit Effect Controls in the Color Corrector and Color Corrector 3-Way Filters” on page 476.

Note: The Color Corrector filter is more likely to be supported by real-time hardware than the Color Corrector 3-way filter.

Viewer: Lucia.psd from ARE BELONG TO US Video Filters Color Corrector Motion Numeric 01:00:16:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:21:27 Balance control Balance Reset button Whites Select Auto-balance Color button Hue controls Hue Reset button Limit Effect Sat Luma Edge Thin Softening

The Color Corrector filter has one Color Balance control that lets you manipulate the whites in a clip, and a Hue control. You rarely use the Balance and Hue controls simultaneously in a single color correction operation.

Balance control: The Balance control affects the color balance in the whites of your clip. Drag within the color wheel to move the balance control indicator and change the mix of red, green, and blue in the whites of your clip.
Whites Select Auto-balance Color button (the eyedropper): Clicking the Whites auto-balance button turns the pointer into an eyedropper when it's moved into the Video tab of the Viewer or into the Canvas. Click the tip of the eyedropper into what is supposed to be the whitest area of your image, such as a highlight on a white shirt. The color value of the pixel you selected is analyzed, and the Balance control is automatically adjusted to turn that pixel into white. For example, clicking a pixel that's slightly yellow nudges the trackball toward blue, to turn that yellow into a neutral white.

When using the Whites auto-balance control, don't select an area that's overexposed, such as a light source or a shiny highlight. This won't give you the desired result. Instead, select a properly exposed area of your picture that's white, such as a well-lit shirt sleeve or white wall.

Note: When color correcting a clip, using this control is usually the second step you take, after first using the Auto Contrast controls and the Whites, Mids, and Blacks sliders (described in the next section) to maximize the contrast of your image.

Balance Reset button: Click this button to reset the Balance control to its default settings and restore your clip to its original color mix. Holding down the Shift key while clicking this button resets the Whites, Mids, Blacks, and Saturation controls to their default settings.
Hue control: Rotate the Hue control to change the overall hue of the affected clip.
Hue Reset button: Click this button to reset the Hue control to its default settings and restore your clip to its original hue. Holding down the Shift key while clicking this button resets the Level and Saturation controls (described in one of the next sections) to their default settings.

Using the Auto Contrast controls and the Whites, Mids, and Blacks sliders to maximize the contrast of your image is usually the first step you take when color correcting a clip.

Level sliders Whites Mids Blacks Sat Saturation control Auto White Level button Auto Contrast button Auto Black Level button

Auto White Level button: Click this button to analyze your clip and find the maximum level of white in the frame. The Whites slider is then adjusted to move the maximum white level to 100 percent as viewed on the Histogram.
Auto Black Level button: Click this button to analyze your clip and find the maximum level of black in the frame. The Blacks slider is then adjusted to move the maximum black level of your clip to 0 percent as viewed on the Histogram.
Auto Contrast button: Click this button to perform the functions of both the Auto White Level and Auto Black Level buttons simultaneously.

The Level sliders allow you to adjust the Whites, Mids, and Blacks levels of your clip to adjust the contrast of your image. The first step when color correcting one clip to match another is to adjust its overall luminance levels to match those of the other. Only after doing this are you able to adjust the colors appropriately and achieve the desired results. The Saturation slider lets you increase or decrease the intensity of the color in your image.

Whites slider: Drag this slider to adjust the maximum level of white in the affected clip. To move the slider in increments, click the small arrows to the right or left of the slider. Moving the slider to the left lowers the maximum white level (letting you bring the whites in overexposed clips down to a more acceptable level, for example).
Mids slider: Drag this slider to adjust the average distribution of values in between white and black in the affected clip. To move the slider in increments, click the small arrows to the right or left of the slider. You can use this slider to adjust the midtones of your image, increasing or decreasing the apparent contrast of your image without washing out the whites or blacks. For example, you could manipulate the Mids slider to bring out detail in shadowed areas of your clip.
Blacks slider: Drag this slider to adjust the minimum level of black in the affected clip, deepening or reducing the level of absolute black in your image. To move the slider in increments, click the small arrows to the right or left of the slider.
Sat slider: This slider (Sat is short for saturation) raises or lowers the overall saturation, or intensity of color, in the affected clip. Drag the slider all the way to the left to desaturate the color from the clip completely. This results in a grayscale image. Drag the slider to the right to increase the saturation of color in the affected clip. To move the slider in increments, click the small arrows to the right or left of the slider.

Note: Be very careful when raising the saturation of a clip using the Sat slider. It is very easy to raise the saturation too high, resulting in saturation values that are illegal for broadcast. Never adjust the saturation of clips based on how they appear on your computer display. NTSC and PAL video never look as vivid on a computer display as they do on a properly calibrated broadcast video monitor, and it's often tempting to overcompensate when basing your adjustments on a computer display. It's a good idea to enable the Excess Chroma option (in the Range Check submenu of the View menu) to warn you when you're boosting the saturation too much. For more information, see "The Importance of Using a Properly Calibrated Broadcast Monitor" on page 421 and "Displaying Excess Luma and Chroma Levels in the Viewer and Canvas" on page 422.

The Hue Matching controls allow you to adjust the hue of the current clip to match a similar color in an adjacent clip of your sequence. A common example is when matching the flesh tones of an actor in two different shots with different lighting.

For more information on using the Hue Matching controls in the Color Corrector and Color Corrector 3-way filters, see "Hue Matching Controls in the Color Corrector and Color Corrector 3-Way Filters" on page 471.

The following example shows you how to use the Color Corrector filter to adjust a clip that's incorrectly color balanced and underexposed. This example shows a simple use of color correction for a clip of a white cat on a white bedspread. The camera was incorrectly white balanced during the shoot, and the shot is also underexposed. Using the Color Corrector filter, you can fix both these problems.

This example shows how to color correct this underexposed clip of a white cat.

1 Move the playhead in the Timeline over the clip you're working on so that you can see your changes output to video as you work.
2 Select a clip to correct in the Timeline, then apply the Color Corrector filter.
For more information on applying filters, see Chapter 11, "Video Filters," on page 185.
3 Open the selected clip in the Viewer by double-clicking it, or selecting it and pressing Return.
4 Click the Color Corrector tab at the top of the Viewer to access the Color Corrector visual controls.

Viewer: Lucia.psd from ARE BELONG TO US Video Filters Motion Color Corrector Numeric 01:00:16:00 01:00:20:00 01:00 01:00:21:27 Click the Color Corrector tab to view its visual controls.

5 Choose Window > Arrange > Color Correction.

This displays the Video Scopes tab in the Tool Bench. While color correcting, it's helpful to have the Video Scopes tab open to get a more detailed analysis of your video as you work.

6 In the Layout pop-up menu of the Video Scopes tab, choose All to make sure that all the scopes are available.

Choose All so that all video scopes are available for you to use.

Now you're ready to begin adjusting the image.

7 Click the Auto Contrast button to maximize the range from white to black in your clip.

Auto Contrast button

The Whites and Blacks sliders automatically adjust themselves to achieve the best numeric distribution based on the luminance levels shown in the Histogram. This gives you a starting point from which to proceed.

8 Since the image is underexposed, adjust the Mids slider to bring more detail out of the shadows.

Moving the Mids slider to the right moves the distribution of midtones farther to the right, as you can see on the Histogram. Lightening this shot using the Mids slider, as opposed to readjusting the whites, allows you to preserve the maximum amount of available detail in the image. Otherwise, boosting the whites might result in the lighter areas of your clip being blown out.

Histogram display reflects change in mids. Video Scopes Frame Viewer View: Viewer Tool Batch Zoom VertexScope Histogram Waveform Monitor Waveform Monitor reflects change in mids.

Now it's time to address the color. In the example, the white cat is tinted green because the video camera was color balanced incorrectly.

9 To compensate for this tint, click the Select Auto-balance Color button (the eyedropper).

Click the eyedropper near the Balance control.

Note: When this button is selected, your pointer turns into an eyedropper when you move it into the Canvas.

10 Click the eyedropper in an area of the picture that's supposed to be pure white.

Click the eyedropper on a white area of the image, such as the bedspread.

The Color Corrector filter automatically adjusts the Balance control to compensate for whatever tint exists in that area of the picture. In this example, click a highlight of the white bedspread.

Remember, don't select an area that's overexposed, like a light source or a shiny highlight. This does not give you the desired result. Instead, select a properly exposed area of your picture that's white, like a well-lit shirt sleeve or white wall. You may have to try several different spots to get the result you want; don't hesitate to undo this operation and try again if you're not satisfied with the results of your initial selection.

Since the picture was tinted into the blues, when you click the eyedropper on part of the white bedspread, the balance control indicator moves into a mixture of red and yellow to turn the whites of the image into true white.

The balance control indicator moves to correct the whites.

Viewer: Lucia blue.pct in ccx Filters Motion Color Corrector Numeric 00:00:00:00 00:02:00:00 Balance R Mg Y1 B G Cy Hue Whites + Mids + Blacks + Sat + Limit Effect...

You can see the correction in the Canvas.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Example: Using the Color Corrector Filter - 9

natural_image

Black-and-white photo of a fluffy cat sleeping on a bed, no visible text or symbols

Before color correction

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Example: Using the Color Corrector Filter - 10

natural_image

Video editing interface showing a fluffy cat on a couch with playback controls (no readable text or symbols)

After color correction

Note: When using the Whites Select Auto-balance Color button, it's important to recognize that the color temperature of the light illuminating the white area you select will affect the hue of the compensation that is made. For example, if the picture is lit with a combination of daylight and tungsten sources, selecting a part of the picture illuminated by daylight will result in compensating the overall color temperature of the image by adding more reds, while selecting a part of the picture illuminated by tungsten will compensate by adding more blues. In such a case, you need to simply pick the best possible compromise that looks right to you.

In general, using the auto-balance button will get you close to where you need to be quickly and easily. However, to achieve the look you really want, you need to make further adjustments to the Balance control by hand.

11 Click anywhere in the Balance control and drag to move the balance control indicator relative to its previous position.

Since you already used the auto-balance control to add more reds to compensate for the blues that you didn't want, this will be your starting point as you work to achieve the particular effect you want for this scene. For example, you could drag the balance control indicator farther into the direction of magenta in order to make the image look a bit warmer and more inviting while preserving the corrected color balance.

Because you're not worrying about matching this image to any other shots right now, you can select whatever look you want. Whether you go warmer, cooler, or even into other more surreal balances of color is purely a creative choice at this point. If you're going for a realistic look, it's important to restrain yourself and stick to making subtle changes.

Once you've achieved the color balance you want, it's time to adjust the saturation of your clip to complete the look you want.

12 Drag the Sat slider to increase or decrease the saturation.

Be careful when you do this. A common mistake beginners make is to automatically oversaturate shots to make them look “better.” While a highly saturated look is sometimes appropriate, less saturation may actually improve the look of your footage. This is especially true if you have a camcorder with artificially vivid color. In this case, it may be appropriate to desaturate the image somewhat to keep it from looking too “hot.”

Note: As always, be careful to make adjustments to saturation only while looking at a properly calibrated broadcast monitor. It can be very tempting to oversaturate the colors of your clip based on the way video looks on a computer display. It's a good idea to enable the Excess Chroma option (in the Range Check submenu of the View menu) to keep yourself from inadvertently setting illegal chroma levels by boosting the saturation too high.

The Color Corrector 3-way filter gives you more subtle control over the color of your clips than the Color Corrector filter. The controls are deceptively easy considering the amount of power they give you over the look of your clips. The main controls are at the top of the visual interface tab—three Color Balance controls and Level and Saturation controls—and are described below. For information about the controls in the Limit Effects area, see “Limit Effect Controls in the Color Corrector and Color Corrector 3-Way Filters” on page 476.

View: from Lucia.psd Video Filters Motion Color Corrector 3-way Numeric 01:00:04:00 01:00:08:00 01:00:01:26 Blacks Reset button Mids Whites Auto-balance Color button Black Select G Cy G Cy G Cy Color Balance controls Sat Limit Effect Sat Luma Edge Thin Softening

Blacks Balance control: Drag in the Blacks Balance control to move the balance control indicator and change the mix of red, green, and blue in the blacks of your clip.
Blacks Select Auto-balance Color button (the eyedropper): Clicking the Blacks auto-balance button turns the pointer into an eyedropper when it's moved into the Video tab of the Viewer or the Canvas. Click the tip of the eyedropper in what is supposed to be the blackest area of your image, such as the innermost shadow in a dark area of the picture. The color value of the pixel you selected is analyzed, and the Blacks Balance control is automatically adjusted to turn that pixel into true black.

Note: When color correcting a clip, this control is usually the second step you take, after first using the Auto Contrast controls and the Blacks, Mids, and Whites sliders (described in the next section) to maximize the contrast of your image.

- Blacks Reset button: Click this button to reset the Blacks Balance control to its default settings and restore your clip to the original color mix. Holding down the Shift key while clicking this button resets the Blacks, Mids, Whites, and Saturation controls to their default settings.

- Mids Balance control: Drag in the Mids Balance control to move the balance control indicator and change the mix of red, green, and blue in the mids of your clip.

Note: The areas of your picture affected by the Mids Balance control overlap the areas affected by the Blacks and the Whites Balance controls, so adjustments to the mids affect adjustments you may have already made to the blacks and whites. This overlapping ensures that you have the maximum amount of control necessary to accurately manipulate the color of your clips.

- Mids Select Auto-balance Color button (the eyedropper): Clicking the Mids auto-balance button turns the pointer into an eyedropper when it's moved into the Video tab of the Viewer or the Canvas. Click the tip of the eyedropper in what is supposed to be an area of neutral gray. The color value of the pixel you selected is analyzed, and the Mids Balance control is automatically adjusted to turn that pixel into a neutral gray.

Note: This neutral gray corresponds to the neutral gray chip on a production color chart. If a chip chart was shot along with the slate of your clip, you can click the Mids eyedropper on this part of the chart to get an accurate reading.

- Mids Reset button: Click this button to reset the Mids Balance control to its default settings and restore your clip to the original color mix. Holding down the Shift key while clicking this button resets all Blacks, Mids, Whites, and Sat controls to their default settings.

- Whites Balance control: Drag in the Whites Balance control to move the balance control indicator and change the mix of red, green, and blue in the whites of your clip.

- Whites Select Auto-balance Color button (the eyedropper): Clicking the Whites auto-balance button turns the pointer into an eyedropper when it's moved into the Video tab of the Viewer or the Canvas. Click the tip of the eyedropper in what is supposed to be the whitest area of your image, such as a highlight on a white shirt. The color value of the pixel you selected is analyzed, and the Whites Balance control is automatically adjusted to turn that pixel into white. For example, clicking a pixel that's slightly yellow nudges the trackball toward blue, to turn that yellow into a neutral white.

- Whites Reset button: Click this button to reset the Whites Balance control to its default settings and restore your clip to the original color mix. Holding down the Shift key while clicking this button resets all Blacks, Mids, Whites, and Sat controls to their default settings.

Additional keyboard shortcuts are available to make it easy to use a trackball to adjust the Color Balance controls in the Color Corrector and Color Corrector 3-way filters. These keyboard shortcuts work only while the mouse button (or trackball button) is pressed, and are designed to work with the drag lock button of your trackball.

Tip: By pressing the drag lock button of your trackball, the trackball button remains pressed and continuous adjustments can be made to the Color Balance controls.

While the drag lock mode of your trackball is enabled:

- Press Tab to move from one Color Balance control to the next.

If your trackball has multiple programmable buttons, you can map three other keyboard shortcuts to them to go directly to specific Color Balance controls.

• Control-Option-8: Selects the Blacks Balance control.
• Control-Option-9: Selects the Mids Balance control.
• Control-Option-0: Selects the Whites Balance control.

Using the Auto Contrast controls and the Whites, Mids, and Blacks sliders to maximize the contrast of your image is usually the first step you take when color correcting a clip.

Auto Black Level button Auto Level Mat Auto White Level button Auto Contrast button

Auto White Level button: Click this button to analyze your clip and find the maximum level of white in the frame. The Whites slider is then adjusted to move the maximum white level to 100 percent as viewed on the Histogram.
Auto Black Level button: Click this button to analyze your clip and find the maximum level of black in the frame. The Blacks slider is then adjusted to move the maximum black level of your clip to 0 percent as viewed on the Histogram.
Auto Contrast button: Click this button to perform the functions of both the Auto White Level and Auto Black Level buttons simultaneously.

Blacks R Mg Y1 B G Cy Mids R Mg Y1 B G Cy Whites R Mg Y1 B G Cy Mids slider Auto Match Saturation control Auto-balance Color button Reset Match Color button Whites slider

Blacks slider: Drag this slider to adjust the minimum level of black in the affected clip, deepening or reducing the level of absolute black in your image. To move the slider in increments, click the small arrows to the right or left of the slider.
Mids slider: Drag this slider to adjust the average distribution of values in between white and black in the affected clip. To move the slider in increments, click the small arrows to the right or left of the slider. You can use this slider to adjust the midtones of your image, increasing or decreasing the apparent contrast of your image without washing out the whites or blacks. For example, you could manipulate the Mids slider to bring out detail in the shadowed areas of your clip.
Whites slider: Drag this slider to adjust the maximum level of white in the affected clip. To move the slider in increments, click the small arrows to the right or left of the slider. Moving the slider to the left lowers the maximum white level (letting you bring the whites in overexposed clips down to a more acceptable level, for example).
Sat slider: This slider (Sat is short for saturation) raises or lowers the overall saturation, or intensity of color, in the affected clip. Drag the slider all the way to the left to desaturate it completely. This results in a grayscale image. Drag the slider to the right to increase the saturation of color in the affected clip. To move the slider in increments, click the small arrows to the right or left of the slider.

Note: Be very careful when raising the saturation of a clip using this control. It is very easy to raise the saturation too high, resulting in saturation values that are illegal for broadcast. Never adjust the saturation of clips based on how they appear on your computer display. NTSC and PAL video never look as vivid on a computer display as they do on a properly calibrated broadcast video monitor, and it's often tempting to overcompensate when basing your adjustments on a computer display. It's a good idea to enable the Excess Chroma option (in the Range Check submenu of the View menu) to warn you when you're boosting the saturation too much. For more information, see "The Importance of Using a Properly Calibrated Broadcast Monitor" on page 421 and "Displaying Excess Luma and Chroma Levels in the Viewer and Canvas" on page 422.

While the Color Corrector filter lets you adjust the overall color balance of a clip, the Color Corrector 3-way filter gives you even more control by allowing you to adjust the color balance of the shadows, midtones, and highlights individually. All three of these affected parts of your picture overlap, allowing you to make extremely involved changes to your picture. For additional information, see "Blacks, Mids, and Whites" on page 420.

The following example shows you how to use the Color Corrector 3-way filter to adjust a clip that was both underexposed and shot with an incorrect white balance, giving it an orange tinge.

This example shows how to adjust the overall color balance of this clip.

Video Filters Color Correcter 3-way Motion 00:00:20:00 70% Off 00:01:10:18 00:01:10:18 Video Scopes Layout All Tool Bench View Viewer VectorScope Histogram Waveform Monitor RGB Paraps

1 Move the playhead in the Timeline over the clip you're working on so that you can see your changes output to video as you work.

With an external broadcast monitor connected to your computer, and View > External Video set to All Frames, whichever frame is at the current position of the playhead in the Canvas will be output to video.

2 Select a clip to correct in the Timeline, then apply the Color Corrector 3-way filter.

For more information on applying filters, see Chapter 11, "Video Filters," on page 185.

3 Open the selected clip in the Viewer by double-clicking it, or by selecting it and pressing Return.

4 Click the Color Corrector 3-way tab at the top of the Viewer to access the Color Corrector 3-way filter visual controls.

Viewer: from Driving.psd Video Filters Motion Color Corrector 3-way Numeric 01:00:04:00 01:00:08:00 01:00:03:25 Click the Color Corrector 3-way tab to view its visual controls.

5 Choose Window > Arrange > Color Correction.

This displays the Video Scopes tab in the Tool Bench. While color correcting, it's helpful to have the Video Scopes tab open to get a more detailed analysis of your video as you work.

6 In the Layout pop-up menu of the Video Scopes tab, choose All to make sure that all the scopes are available.

Choose All so that all video scopes are available for you to use.

You are now ready to begin adjusting the image.

7 Click the Auto Contrast button to maximize the range from white to black in your clip.

Auto Auto Contrast button

The Blacks and Whites sliders automatically adjust themselves to achieve the best numeric distribution based on the luminance levels shown in the Histogram. This gives you a starting point from which to proceed.

If your image was incorrectly exposed, you would now adjust the Blacks, Mids, and Whites sliders as necessary. As with all level controls, moving a slider to the right redistributes the affected values farther to the right, making the affected parts of the image appear brighter. Moving a slider to the left redistributes the affected values farther to the left, making the affected parts of the image appear darker.

In this example, the image is underexposed, so move the Mids slider to the right to bring more detail out of the image.

Mids R Mg YI B G Cy Auto Level Match Hue Move the Mids slider to the right...

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natural_image

Person wearing sunglasses inside a car, captured in a photo editing interface (no visible text or symbols on the image itself)

— ... so more detail comes out in the image.

Tip: One of the key differences between film and video is that video preserves much more information in the shadows of an underexposed image than film does. You might be surprised at how much detail you can bring out of the shadows of an underexposed video clip. On the other hand, video doesn't preserve any information in overexposed highlights, whereas overexposed negative film does. The picture in an overexposed film shot can be corrected during the telecine process, so that you have the maximum amount of information available to you when color correcting the transferred video.

Note: Unlike negative film, reversal film preserves details in dark areas, much like video.

Now it's time to address the color. In the example, the image is too warm because the video camera was color-balanced incorrectly for tungsten instead of daylight. Although this is obvious by looking at the shot, you can see just how far off the color balance is by comparing the cluster of color falling above and to the right of the flesh tone indicator in the Vectorscope of the Video Scopes tab.

8 To begin to compensate for this, click the Whites Select Auto-balance Color button (the eyedropper).

Click the eyedropper near the Whites control.

Note: When this button is selected, your pointer turns into an eyedropper when you move it into the Canvas.

9 Click the eyedropper in an area of the picture that's supposed to be white. Depending on the image, you may not necessarily want to select the purest white in the image. You want to find an area of the image where you can see the tint, even if faintly.

Don't select an area that's overexposed, such as a light source or a shiny highlight. This does not give you the appropriate result. Instead, select a properly exposed area of your picture that's white, such as a well-lit shirt sleeve or white wall.

Click the eyedropper on the white background in the rear window.

The Color Corrector 3-way filter moves the Whites Balance control to compensate for whatever tint is affecting the highlights and bright areas of your picture.

Since the clip was tinted toward the reds, when you click the eyedropper on the white piece of scenery outside the window, the Whites balance control indicator moves into a mixture of blue and cyan and turns the whites of the image into true white.

Whites R Mg YI B G Cy The Whites balance control indicator moves to correct the whites.

You can see the correction in the Canvas.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Example: Using the Color Corrector 3-Way Filter - 10

natural_image

Person wearing sunglasses inside a car, captured in a studio setting (no visible text or symbols)

Before

3-Way Corrector Example 00:02:00:04 01:00:55:08

After

Note: When using the auto-balance control, it's important to recognize that the color temperature of the light illuminating the white area you select will affect the hue of the compensation that is made. If the picture is lit with a combination of daylight and tungsten sources, selecting a part of the picture illuminated by daylight will result in compensating the overall color temperature of the image by adding more reds, while selecting a part of the picture illuminated by tungsten will compensate by adding more blues. In such a case, you need to simply pick the best possible compromise that looks right to you.

Next, you'll focus on the blacks in your image, making further adjustments for more accurate colors.

10 Click the Blacks Select Auto-balance Color button.

Click the eyedropper near the Blacks control.

11 Click the eyedropper in an area of the picture that's supposed to be unsaturated black. Again, depending on the image, it may be more useful to pick a spot that's not pure black, but is a bit lighter so that it might show through some of the tint that's affecting that part of the image.

Click the eyedropper on the black of the headrest.

The Color Corrector 3-way filter adjusts the Blacks Balance control to compensate for whatever tint exists in the shadows of your picture. In this example, cyan is added to the blacks as well, to compensate for the reds that exist in the shadows of the image.

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Person wearing sunglasses inside a car, captured in a photo editing interface (no visible text or symbols on the image itself)

Before

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Person wearing sunglasses inside a car, captured in a studio environment with no visible text or symbols.

After

An optional step (usually if the clip you're color correcting has a chip chart that was shot along with the slate for that take) is to use the Mids auto-balance control.

12 Click the Mids Select Auto-balance Color button, then click the eyedropper in an area of the chip chart that's supposed to be neutral gray.

The Color Corrector 3-way filter adjusts the Mids Balance control to compensate for whatever tint exists in the vast midrange of your picture.

If you don't have a chip chart to reference and are unsure of the neutrality of a gray in the background, don't worry about performing this step. You'll generally get good results from simply using both the Whites and Blacks auto-balance controls by themselves.

After you've used the auto-balance controls to achieve a properly balanced image, it's time to fine-tune it. To really get the look you want, you need to adjust the various Color Balance controls by hand. When adjusting the Color Balance controls, you always want to start by first correcting the whites, and then correcting the blacks. You've already performed these two steps using the auto-balance controls. Adjusting the mids now will allow you to make the most accurate correction, with the greatest degree of control.

13 Drag anywhere within one of the Color Balance controls to move the balance control indicator relative to its previous position. Since you already used the auto-balance controls in the whites and blacks, these positions will be your starting points if you make any further adjustments.

In this example, drag the Mids Balance control more into a mix of cyan and blue to give the image a cooler look, particularly in the actor's face and the roof of the car.

Blacks R Mg Y1 B G Cy Adjust the Mids Balance control to add more blue.

A before-and-after comparison of this change illustrates the effect:

Canvas. 3-Way Corrector Example in New Color Correction Examples 3-Way Corrector Example 00:02:00:04 70% 01:01:06:07 www Canvas.3-Way Corrector Example

Before

3-Way Corrector Example 00:02:00:04 01:01:26:10

After

While making these adjustments, it's a good idea to use the flesh tone target in the Vectorscope to show you how accurately the color of the actor's face is represented. As you can see in the Vectorscope's analysis of the before image, the cluster of colors about the flesh tone indicator were still a little off. Moving the Color Balance control of the Mids corrected for this.

Video Scopes Layout: Vectorscope View: Current Frame Vectorscope 100 80 60 40 20 0 5 4 3 2 1 0 -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 -7 -8 -9 -10 NTA

Tool Bench Video Scopes Layout: Vectorscope View: Current Frame Vectorscope 100 80 60 40 20 0 5 4 3 2 1 0 9.5 NT10

Once you've achieved the color balance you want, it's time to adjust the saturation of your clip to complete the look you want.

14 Drag the sliders to increase or decrease the saturation.

Be careful when you do this. A common mistake beginners make is to automatically oversaturate shots to make them look "better." While a highly saturated look is sometimes appropriate, less saturation may actually improve the look of your footage. This is especially true if you have a camcorder with artificially vivid color.

In this example, even with all the correction we've applied, the image is still a little oversaturated. This is especially apparent in the red third of the Parade Scope, in the Video Scopes tab.

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Before adjusting the saturation
After adjusting the saturation

Note: As always, be careful to make adjustments to saturation only while looking at a properly calibrated broadcast monitor. It can be very tempting to mistakenly oversaturate the colors of your clip based on the way video looks on a computer display. It's a good idea to turn on the Excess Chroma option (in the Range Check submenu of the View menu) to keep yourself from inadvertently setting illegal chroma levels by boosting the saturation too high.

Now that you've examined the specifics of using the Final Cut Pro color correction filters, you are ready to use these filters to make a series of three shots in a scene match one another. In the three shots shown in this example, two shots are taken from the same clip, and one is an insert shot taken from a completely different clip.

1 Apply the desired color correction filter to all the shots in the sequence.

00:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:40:00 01:00:50:00 01:01:00:02 Correct Sequence 1a.tif Correct Sequence 1b.tif Correct Sequence 1c.tif Color Corrector

This makes it easy to use the Copy Filter controls to apply settings from one filter to another as you make your adjustments.

2 Choose Windows > Arrange > Multiple Edits to select the Multiple Edits layout.

This is a useful layout for comparing multiple clips in a scene.

Multiple Edits layout New CC Examples 1.000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000 Name 3 Shot Sequence 3 Way Correct Example Desk.JPG Run Match Source Media Preview Edit Previous Edit Next Edit Next Edit Blue Mode 3 Shot Sequence V2 v1 V1 A1 A2 Correct Sequence To.If Correct Sequence Ib.If Correct Sequence To.If

3 Choose Open from the Playhead Sync pop-up menu in the Viewer or Canvas (choosing an option from the pop-up menu in either window sets both to the same playhead sync mode).

This way, whichever clip is at the position of the playhead is automatically opened in the Viewer. If all three clips have color correction filters applied to them and a Color Corrector or Color Corrector 3-way tab is selected in the Viewer, the Viewer always displays the color correction filter for the clip at the current position of the playhead.

Note: For more information about the Playhead Sync pop-up menu, see Volume I, Chapter 6, "Viewer Basics." You can also see Volume I, Chapter 7, "Canvas Basics."

4 In the Timeline, move the playhead to the first clip of the scene (for this example, the master shot) to open it in the Viewer. (With the Playhead Sync pop-up menu set to Open, the clip automatically opens in the Viewer.) Then click the Color Correction tab in the Viewer to open the visual controls for that clip's color correction filter.

Note: Make sure that the playhead in the Timeline is on top of the first filter so that you can see your adjustments output to your broadcast monitor as you make your corrections.

Move the playhead so it's in the first clip. Correct Sequence 1a.tif Correct Sequence 1b.tif Correct Sequence 1c.tif

5 Perform your color correction. In this case, you'll want to add a mix of blue and cyan to cool down the shot of the woman on the balcony to match the tone of the shot around the corner.

Whites R Mg YI B Adjust the Mids Balance control to add more magenta. G Cy 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 Viewer: Correct Sequence 1a-11 from Three Shot Sequence Video Filters Color Corridor 3-way Motion 00:00:20:00 70% Open E3 00:01:15:24 00:00:20:00

Since the third shot in the sequence comes from the same clip as the first shot, you'll want to use exactly the same color correction settings to ensure continuity.

6 Apply the filter settings from the current clip to the third shot of the sequence using the Copy To 2nd Clip Forward filter button (Control-5) or the Drag Filter button.

Video Filters Motion Numeric Copy To 2nd Clip Forward Drag Filter

Move the playhead so it's in the second clip.

01:01:15;02 01:01:30;02 01:01:45;02 01:02:00:04 01:02:15; Correct Sequence 1a.tif Correct Sequence 1b.tif Correct Sequence 1c.tif

There are three approaches you can take to compare the colors of the first and second shots:

Press Control–Up Arrow to flip back and forth between this clip and the first one to see the differences in color and luminance levels in the Canvas. As you do this, the image on your external video monitor updates to show these two images. By flipping back and forth quickly, you can spot differences in hue and contrast.
With Final Cut Pro set to the Multiple Edits layout, compare both clips side by side on your computer screen. The previous clip appears in the Frame Viewer 2 tab to the left, while the current clip appears in the Canvas. Although this won't give you as accurate a view of your clip as will looking at it on an external video monitor, it will give you a good basis for comparing the relative differences between both clips.
Put Frame Viewer 2 into split-screen mode. Clicking the V-Split or H-Split button splits the Frame Viewer in half, by default showing the previous edit on the left or top, and the current frame at the position of the playhead to the right or bottom. This allows you to closely compare elements in both clips literally one on top of another. The split screen can be freely adjusted horizontally, vertically, or as a rectangular picture-in-picture which can be moved anywhere within the frame.

Video Scopes Frame Viewer Viewing: 00:02:38,05 Viewing: 00:02:45,01 Split-screen mode Previous Edit Current Frame V-Split Swap H-Split

Tip: To view the contents of a Frame Viewer tab on an external video monitor, select the Frame Viewer tab you want to view and press Shift-F12.

For more information on using the Frame Viewer, see "Comparing Two Frames in the Frame Viewer" on page 299.

As you compare adjacent clips in your sequence, remember to pay attention to the video scopes. With Final Cut Pro set to the Multiple Edits view, you can select the Video Scopes tab in the far right Tool Bench window.

The Multiple Edits layout lets you easily compare clips.

New Color Correction Examples Name 0-Way Correct Example Hue Match Source Media Three Shot Sequence 01:02:50:15 00:02:50:04 00:01:30:26 00:04:29:23 01:02:50:04 01:02:50:04 01:03:50:04 01:03:50:04 Correct Sequence To.If Correct Sequence To.If Correct Sequence To.If

Note: The Video Scopes tab can be set to display the same choice of edit points as the Frame Viewer tab. If you have a large enough monitor, you can create a custom layout with multiple video scopes, each corresponding to a Frame Viewer showing the same edit point.

Using the video scopes, you can quickly pinpoint specific differences between these shots that may be difficult to figure out visually. For example, the Histogram and Waveform Monitor show that the second shot is a little darker than the first. Pay particular attention to the spike in the middle of the Histogram. By comparing the difference between the size and location of each spike, you can adjust the levels sliders to compensate.

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histogram

| Frame | Frequency | |-------|---------| | 10 | 0 | | 20 | 0 | | 30 | 0 | | 40 | 0 | | 50 | 1 | | 60 | 1 | | 70 | 1 | | 80 | 1 | | 90 | 1 | | 100 | 1 |

First clip

Second clip

Using information from the Video Scopes tab, you can adjust the Whites and the Mids sliders to make the two spikes of the Histogram match more closely, so you get comparable luminance levels. Moving one invariably results in some movement in the other, but keep making your adjustments until their position approximates the Histogram from the master shot.

8 With this accomplished, focus on the Parade scope. It shows that the second clip has far more blue and green than the first.

Video Scopes Frame Viewer Layout Parade View Current Frame RGB Parade Blu 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Black

First clip

Tool Bench Video Scopes Frame Viewer Layout Parls View Current Frame RGB Parls Back

Second clip

Adding progressively more cyan to the mids brings the hues of the two shots closer to one another. As you adjust the Mids Balance control, continue comparing the previous shot and the current shot as outlined in step 7. Continue to make adjustments until the shots match as closely as you need them to.

Note: Remember that your goal, in this case, is to balance all the shots in the scene so that as the sequence plays, no one shot stands out from any of the others.

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Three-panel video editing interface showing a person on a balcony staircase, with no visible text or symbols in the frames themselves.

The Hue Matching controls provide a way to adjust the color balance of the current clip, based on a specific hue, to match a similar hue in another clip. A common example of when you might use the Hue Matching controls is to match the flesh tones of an actor in two different shots that have different lighting.

The Hue Matching controls do not affect the contrast of your image. Adjusting the Whites, Blacks, and Mids levels controls to maximize the contrast in your image is still going to be the first step in your color correction process, even when using Hue Matching.

Note: The Hue Matching controls are intended to match similar colors to one another. They cannot be used to match completely opposite colors.

Color corrections made using the Hue Matching controls affect a clip's entire image, not just the particular subject you're matching. The resulting change to the background of your clip may be inappropriate, even if the foreground subject is properly adjusted. In these cases, using the Limit Effect controls may allow you to restrict the correction to where it's needed, leaving the rest of the image alone. For more information on using the Limit Effect controls, see "Limit Effect Controls in the Color Corrector and Color Corrector 3-Way Filters" on page 476.

The Hue Matching controls work well as a starting point to help you quickly match the overall color balance of two shots; however, you'll probably want to further adjust the end result by hand to achieve the exact effect you're looking for. The Hue Matching controls of the Color Corrector and Color Corrector 3-way filters work identically.

Auto Level Match Hue Controls in the Color Corrector 3-way filter Match Hue controls in the Color Corrector filter Auto Level controls in the Color Corrector filter

- Select Auto-balance Color button (the eyedropper): Clicking the Select Auto-balance Color button turns the pointer into an eyedropper when it's moved into the Video tab of either the Canvas or a Frame Viewer tab in a Tool Bench window. With the current clip open in the Viewer, open the clip you want to match it to in the Canvas or in an available Frame Viewer tab.

Click the eyedropper in the color of an adjacent clip in your sequence that you're trying to match to the current clip. Once selected, the match color is displayed in the Match Color indicator.

Once you've selected a match color, you can click the auto-balance buttons for the whites, mids, or blacks, and then click the eyedropper in a color in the current clip that's supposed to be the same as the match color. Final Cut Pro automatically adjusts the Whites, Mids, or Blacks Balance control in an attempt to rebalance the clip to match the color you selected with the match color.

Match Color indicator: Displays the currently selected match color. Whichever color is displayed by the match color indicator affects how the Whites, Blacks, and Mids auto-Balance controls make their corrections.
Reset Match Color button: Resets the Match Color to white, the default behavior of the Whites color balance control.

Note: With a Match Color selected, the functionality of the Whites, Blacks, and Mids balance controls is unaffected. Only the functionality of the auto-balance controls is affected by the Hue Matching controls.

This example shows how to use the Hue Matching controls of the Color Corrector 3-way filter to match the flesh tones of an actor in two different shots. In the first shot, the actor is outside, and the color of the shot is correctly balanced for daylight, and has a cool blue look. In the second shot, the actor has walked inside, where the color is incorrectly balanced for tungsten, causing it to be excessively warm, emphasizing the reds.

The Hue Matching controls let you match hues in two different shots.

1 Choose Window > Arrange > Multiple Edits to select the Multiple Edits layout. This layout makes it easiest to use the Hue Matching controls.
2 Since you're matching the colors of clip 2 to those in clip 1, apply the Color Corrector 3-way filter to clip 2.
3 Open clip 2 in the Viewer, and click the Color Corrector 3-way tab.

As with any color correction, the first step is to adjust the contrast of clip 2 to match that of clip 1 as well as possible. In this case, raising the Mids level control brings out more detail in the actor's face and matches the contrast of clip 1 more accurately.

Video Filters Motion 00:00:20:00 70% 00:01:05:27 Hue Match 00:01:30:24 70% 01:00:22:23 Canvas: Hue Match in New Color Correction Examples

4 Once the contrast has been adjusted the way you want it, click the Select Auto-balance Color button (the eyedropper).

Level Match Hue

5 Move the pointer into the Frame Viewer 2 tab where clip 1 is showing. When the pointer becomes an eyedropper, click a highlight in the actor's face in clip 1.

Click a highlight.

The Match Color indicator fills with this color to let you know it's been selected, and either the Whites, Mids, or Blacks auto-balance controls highlight to let you know which auto-balance control you should use in the next step.

Auto Level Match Hue

When selecting a match color, the level of the color you select affects how well the match works. When matching flesh tones, choosing a highlight generally gives the best results, but in certain circumstances you may achieve better results choosing a midtone or shadow.

Note: When selecting a highlight, make sure that the highlight you select is not overexposed (for example, a reflection or excessive shine), but rather represents the lightest area of the actor's face that accurately represents the skin tone.

6 Now, in the Color Corrector 3-way tab in the Viewer, click the highlighted Whites auto-balance button.

Click the Whites auto-balance button.

Whites R Mg YI B G Cy 0

Which auto-balance control highlights as the recommended next step depends on what you selected as your match color. If you selected a highlight as in this example, the Whites auto-balance control is highlighted, letting you know that it's the appropriate control to use. If you selected a shadow, however, the Blacks auto-balance control is highlighted.

Note: In general, it's always a good idea to start by picking a match color that will highlight either the Whites and Blacks auto-balance controls, and make this adjustment first. Adjust the Mids afterward, if it's necessary to achieve the look you want.

7 With the Whites auto-balance button selected, move the pointer into the Canvas where clip 2 is showing. When the pointer becomes an eyedropper, click a highlight in the actor's face in clip 2 that matches, as closely as possible, the highlight you selected in clip 1.

Note: For best results, it's extremely important to select an area of color in the clip being corrected that accurately matches the level of the area of color you selected as the match color.

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Close-up portrait of a person's face with a small arrow pointing to the nose area (no text or symbols visible)

Click a highlight in clip 2 that nearly matches the same highlight you chose in clip 1.

8 The Whites Balance control changes, dipping into the blues to compensate for the overly warm lighting. The color balance of clip 2 now approximates that of clip 1 much more closely.

Vision: Color Match 20.27 Hue Match Canvas: Hue Match in New CC Examples 00:00:20:00 70% 00:01:10:21 00:01:30:26 70% 01:00:21:27 The color balance of both shots is now similar.

If you've achieved the results you wanted, you can stop. Often, however, use of the Hue Matching controls is simply the first step taken, and other adjustments will be made afterward.

Tip: Holding down the Shift key while moving the balance control you're working with will lock the angle along which the balance control moves, allowing you to keep the exact hue of your adjustment the same.

The Limit Effect controls are a group of controls in the Color Corrector and Color Corrector 3-way filters that let you key a specific color and apply color correction to only the areas of the picture that you've keyed on.

For example, suppose you have a scene with people wearing different-colored shirts. After the shoot, you decide you want to change the color of one of the actor's shirts that's now yellow. Assuming there is nothing else in the picture with the same values of yellow, you can use the Limit Effect controls to selectively make this change.

You can use the color value, saturation, and luminance of your clip together or separately to perform a key using the Limit Effect controls. For example, if you want to modify only the bright areas of your picture, you can disable both color and saturation, and perform only a luminance key.

Enable/Disable checkbox Reset button Saturation control Edge Thin + Softening Top handle Bottom handle Limit Effect Color Range control Luminance control Sat Luma

Enable/Disable checkbox: Make sure there's a checkmark in this checkbox for the Limit Effect controls you want to use. This lets you add or remove color, saturation, or luminance from the criteria used to define a key.
Reset button: Click to restore the Color Range, Saturation, and Luminance controls to their default values. Shift-click the button to reset all three controls at once.
• Color Range control: Allows you to fine-tune the range of color that you want to key on.
Top handles: Let you select a larger or smaller range of colors that are keyed, based on the original colors you selected with the Select Color tool (the eyedropper). These handles correspond to the Chroma Width control in the numeric filter controls.
Color gradient: Drag left or right within the color gradient to shift the overall hue of the color range you've set with the top set of handles. This corresponds to the Chroma Center control in the numeric filter controls.
Bottom handles: Allow you to define the tolerance of your key. These handles correspond to the Chroma Softness control in the numeric filter controls.
Sat control: Allows you to adjust the degree and range of saturation that contributes to defining your key. The top and bottom handles work the same as those in the Color Range control. Drag left or right within the gradient to move all four handles simultaneously.
Luma control: Allows you to adjust the degree and range of luminance that contributes to defining your key. The top and bottom handles work the same as those in the Color Range control. Drag left or right within the gradient to move all four handles simultaneously.
Edge Thin slider: Allows you to modify the keyed area by shrinking or expanding it. Using Edge Thin, you can control a noisy key, filling in small gaps and adjusting the edge of the key to include borderline values that are otherwise difficult to get at using the other controls.
Softening slider: Allows you to soften the edges of the key, creating gentler transitions between affected and unaffected parts of the image.

Select Color button View Final/Matte/Source button Invert Selection button

Select Color button (the eyedropper): When you click this button, the pointer turns into an eyedropper you can use to select a color from a clip in the Video tab of the Viewer or in the Canvas. Shift-clicking this button allows you to select another region of the background screen that wasn't keyed out by your first use of this control, thereby broadening the range of colors to be keyed out and enlarging the keyed-out area. You can do this repeatedly to broaden the range of keyed-out color to include shadows or highlights on the background screen, if necessary.
• View Final/Matte/Source button (the key): This button has three states:
The default state (a gold key against a gray background) allows you to see the end result—the effect happening within the keyed area.
The second state (a black key against a white background) displays the key itself as a grayscale image, so you can fine-tune it without being distracted by the image.
The third state (a gold key against a blue background) shows only the original video image.
Invert Selection button: Click this button to invert the key you've defined. For example, if you've set up a key based on the color of a green car and turned the desaturation all the way down so that the car is grayscale and the background is color, clicking the Invert Selection button makes the background turn grayscale, and the car appears in color.

You can use the Limit Effect controls to layer multiple color correction filters onto a single clip, selectively balancing specific areas of your picture based on their color, saturation, and luminance levels. Color correction filters work serially, the same as any other filters. This means that if two color correction filters are applied to a single clip, the second color correction filter works on the modified output of the first filter, rather than on the original color values of the image.

For example, if you add a filter that adjusts the color in a group of flowers but causes the green grass in the background to look too red, a second color correction filter using the Limit Effect controls will target the greenish/red color of the grass as it has been modified, rather than the original green values.

This example shows you how to use the Limit Effect controls of the Color Corrector filter to selectively change the color of a man's pants from red to blue, without changing the color of anything else in the frame.

This example shows how to adjust the color of the man's pants only.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Example: Using the Limit Effect Controls to Change a Specific Color - 1

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Two dancers performing a dance move on a stage with spectators and spotlights (no visible text or symbols)

1 With the color correction filter already applied, click the Select Color button (the eyedropper) to activate the Select Color tool.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Example: Using the Limit Effect Controls to Change a Specific Color - 2

Click the Select Color button.

2 In the Canvas, click the eyedropper on the man's red pants to select a primary key color.

Try to pick a color value that lies somewhere between the brightest and darkest areas to which you're trying to limit the effect.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Example: Using the Limit Effect Controls to Change a Specific Color - 3

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Close-up of a person's legs and feet wearing red pants, with a white key symbol pointing to the foot (no text or symbols present)

Click a color on the pants to get a good starting value of red.

Limit Effect The Limit Effect controls change to include the selected color range. Sat Luma Edge Thin Softening

Now, you'll make a hue adjustment so that you can see the area you're trying to isolate.

3 To make the pants pink, rotate the Hue control toward magenta.

You can also use the View Final/Matte/Source button (the key) to view the key itself as a grayscale image while you make changes. Adjusting the Limit Effect controls while viewing the color-correcting effect is more interactive.

Rotate the Hue control toward the color you want the pants to be. Balance M0 Y1 R G Cy Hue Video 00:00:28:24 70% Diff Blue 02:15:51:28 White Mids Blacks Sat Limit Effect Set Lums Edge Thin Softening Color of affected area is changed by the rotation of the Hue control.

4 To fine-tune the effect, move the top two handles of the Color Range control outward to include more of the yellow area of the picture.

You can also widen the bottom handles to increase the tolerance of the selected color range and include a greater range of color at the edge of the primary key color.

Drag the top handles out to widen the range of hues to key on. Limit Effect Sat Edge Thin Softening Luma Drag the bottom handles out to increase the tolerance of key color.

If you need to readjust the range of hues between these handles, drag in the color gradient and move the range of hues left or right in relation to the Color Range handles. Now that you've selected the main key color range, you can make adjustments to the luminance to increase the amount of the picture that is affected by the key.

5 Move the top handles in the Luma control to select a primary luminance range to affect, then adjust the bottom handles to affect the tolerance.

Viewer: Clapping in Lost Penguin Balance Mg Hue 00:00:28,24 70% OFF 02:15:51,28 02:15:37,06 02:15:47,06 02:15:51,28 Widen the range of luminance. Video 00:00:28,24 02:15:51,28 Key color range is increased. Set Lums Edge Thin + Softening

6 Finally, make similar adjustments to the Sat control to further increase the range. You can even include the edges of the yellow shirt.

Viewer: Clapping in Lost Penguin Balance Mg YI N G Cy Hot White: Mids: Blacks: Sat: Limit Effect Set Lime Edge Thin: Softening Widen the range of saturation. Key color range is further increased.

Note: As you work, changes made to one control may change the effectiveness of the others. For example, a different saturation range may work better if adjustments are also made to the Luma control.

This example shows you how to use the Limit Effect controls of a color correction filter to create the effect of a red bicycle against a grayscale background.

This example shows how to adjust the background to gray.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Example: Using the Limit Effect Controls to Isolate a Specific Color Against Grayscale - 1

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Video player interface showing a red bicycle parked on a bench with potted plants nearby (no text or symbols visible)

1 With the color correction filter already applied, use the Limit Effect controls to isolate the reds of the bicycle, then move the Sat slider all the way to the left.

Red Bicycle in Lost Penguin Color Corrector Numeric 00:00:00:00 00:00:00:00 Balance R Mg Y1 B G Cy Hue White + - Mids + - Black + - Sat Limit Effect Set Lume Edge Thin + Softening Video Filters Motion 00:00:00:00 OFF 00:00:00:00 The reds of the bicycle are desaturated, but the background is left alone. Move the Sat slider to the left.

2 Click the Invert Selection button to reverse the key created by the Limit Effect controls.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Example: Using the Limit Effect Controls to Isolate a Specific Color Against Grayscale - 3

Invert Selection button

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Example: Using the Limit Effect Controls to Isolate a Specific Color Against Grayscale - 4

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Black-and-white photo of a red bicycle parked beside potted plants, no visible text or symbols

The bicycle remains red and the background turns into various shades of gray.

Sometimes, the use of one of the Final Cut Pro color correction filters results in unwanted colors appearing in either the highlights or shadows of your image. The Desaturate Highlights and Desaturate Lows filters allow you to target a range of the brightest and darkest areas of your image and desaturate them, which helps to keep the highlights and shadows of your image free from coloration.

The Desaturate Highlights and Desaturate Lows filters are actually the same filter, but with different default settings. If you need to desaturate the highlights and the lows, you need to apply either filter only once, and then select both options.

Viewer: Divers in Lost Penguin Video Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav 00:00 00:01 Video Filters ✓ Desaturate Lows Highlight Desaturation Enable ✓ Apply Above 70 Softness 15 Amount of Desaturation 100 Lows Desaturation Enable ✓ Apply Below 15 Softness 15 Amount of Desaturation 100 Show Stats Highlight Desaturation controls Lows Desaturation controls

Enable: Allows you to enable or disable the Highlight Desaturation controls.
Begin At: Allows you to set the percentage of luminance and above to desaturate.
Softness: Adjusts the transition between the affected and unaffected areas of the picture.
Amount of Desaturation: Determines how much to desaturate the selected highlights.

Enable: Allows you to enable or disable the Lows Desaturation controls.
Begin At: Allows you to set the percentage of luminance and below to desaturate.
Softness: Adjusts the transition between the affected and unaffected areas of the picture.
Amount of Desaturation: Determines how much to desaturate the selected lows. A 100-hundred percent desaturation results in complete grayscale.

In this example, the use of a color correction filter to bring color detail out of the blues of a diving clip has resulted in some unwanted reds in the bright highlights of the image. To eliminate these unwanted reds without losing the other colors of the diver and the background, you'll use the Desaturate Highlights filter.

Viewer: Divers from Scuba Certification Video Video Filters Color Connector 3-way Motion 00:02:10:01 70% Off 00:02:06:07 Unwanted reds in the bubbles Unwanted reds in the edge highlights

1 Move the Begin At slider to the left to gradually include more of the brightest areas of the picture in the range of what is to be desaturated.

Move the Apply Above slider to the left to include more bright areas. Move the Softness slider to the right to ease the transition. You can see the effects of the filter in the Canvas.

2 Move the Softness slider to the right to ease the transition between the areas of the picture being desaturated and the areas that are unaffected.

Depending on the range of values you're choosing to desaturate, raising the softness can keep this effect from looking artificial.

The Broadcast Safe filter gives you a fast way to deal with clips that have luminance and chrominance levels which exceed the broadcast limits for NTSC and PAL video. This filter automatically uses the proper settings for NTSC or PAL, based on the sequence settings that are being used. The default settings work for most situations.

- Mode: The Mode pop-up menu lets you quickly set the maximum allowable chroma levels. The normal setting of 120 should work in most situations; however, more conservative settings are available.

Parameters Custom-Use Controls Below [may be unsafe] In house [133-UNSAFE] Normal [120] Conservative [115] Very Conservative [110] Extremely Conservative [100] Options in the Mode pop-up menu

If you choose Custom from the Mode pop-up menu, you can use the sliders in the Luminance Limiting and Saturation Limiting areas to adjust your settings. With all other options, the sliders have no effect.

Enable: Click here to enable or disable the Luminance Limiting controls. Deselecting this checkbox doesn't prevent any of the luminance controls from being moved; it just disables their effects.
Clamp Above: Adjust the slider or enter a value to define the maximum allowable percentage of luminance, above which values will be clamped. This defaults to 109.
Max Output: All values in between Start (Threshold) and Clamp Above will be compressed so that no values are clipped.
Start (Threshold): Adjust the slider or enter a value where the luma of your clip will begin to be compressed, up to the value defined by Clamp Above.

Enable: Click here to enable or disable the Saturation Limiting controls. Deselecting this checkbox does not prevent any of the saturation controls from being moved; it simply disables their effects.
Clamp Above: Adjust the slider or enter a value to define the maximum allowable percentage of saturation, above which values will be clamped. This defaults to 133, which should be acceptable for most broadcasters.
Max Output: All values in between Start (Threshold) and Clamp Above will be compressed so that no values are clipped.
Start (Threshold): Adjust the slider or enter a value where the saturation of your clip will begin to be compressed, up to the value defined by Clamp Above.
Reduce Chroma/Luma: Adjust the slider or enter a value to define the amount by which the chroma will be reduced, when necessary.

This chapter covers the following:

• What Is a Generator Clip? (p. 489)
• Different Ways to Use Generators in Your Sequence (p. 490)
• Graphical Video and Audio Generators Available in Final Cut Pro (p. 491)
- Creating and Adding Generated Clips to Sequences (p. 493)

Note: For details about creating titles using text generators, see Chapter 22, "Creating Titles," on page 495.

Generators behave the same as other clips, but their content is actually generated internally in Final Cut Pro. Therefore, generators never reference media files on the scratch disk, so they can never be offline as can clips that reference media. Because generators are generated by Final Cut Pro, their aspect ratio, dimensions, resolution, and codec are determined by the sequence they are edited into (unlike video and audio clips in which these characteristics are based on the media files they reference).

Note: Generators are actually coded in the Final Cut Pro FXScript language, so you can modify or create your own generators using the FXScript language. For more information about FXScript, see the Apple Developer website.

In creating composites and other effects, you may find some of the Final Cut Pro generators helpful. They allow you to very quickly add certain types of built-in clips by simply choosing items from a menu. For example, by choosing a generator you can:

Add clips that have certain shapes to use as design elements, or as layers when creating track matte effects
Create colored and gradient background layer clips for composites
Add a placeholder or black gap between two clips, called a slug
Add standard SMPTE color bars and tone to use as a reference (for duplication or broadcast purposes) or as an effect
Create shape layers and use them to create track matte effects

Some generators, such as the Slug, Matte, and Particle Noise generators, fill the entire frame size of your sequence. Others, like the text filters, are created with an alpha channel that allows your text to be quickly superimposed against an image, or against black. (See Chapter 22, "Creating Titles," on page 495 for information about Text generators.)

Generators can have filters and motion settings applied to them. For example, you can use a Color Matte in conjunction with a Garbage Matte or Mask Shape filter to quickly create a clip consisting of a shape against a transparent background. The transparent background exists because an alpha channel has been added to the Color Matte filter. For more information on using Matte and Mask filters, see Chapter 19, "Keying, Mattes, and Masks," on page 385.

The parameters of some generators can be keyframed to change their appearance over time. You keyframe generators the same way you keyframe motion settings and filters. For more information about how to keyframe effects in Final Cut Pro, see “Animating Motion Effects Using Keyframes” on page 249.

Not sure what each generator does or how to use it? See the table below.

Generator	Result	Usage information
Bars and Tone (NTSC)	Generates reference video color bar and tone for NTSC systems.	For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 23, “Using Color Bars for Video Calibration.”
Bars and Tone (PAL)	Generates reference video color bar and tone for PAL systems.	For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 23, “Using Color Bars for Video Calibration.”
Bars and Tone HD• 1080i50• 1080i60• 720p	Generates reference video color bar and tone for HD video formats.	For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 23, “Using Color Bars for Video Calibration.”
Color (Matte > Color)	Generates a frame of solid color.	The Color control allows you to specify the color.You can create colored backgrounds behind other layered clips in a sequence.Color mattes can be used as containers for special effect filters that create visual images. In conjunction with filters such as the Mask Shape, they can be used to create different shapes as design elements or as track matte layers.Other interesting effects can be obtained by limiting these generators to shades of gray and using them with the track matte composite mode, or with filters that perform luma key operations.
Custom Gradient (Render > Custom Gradient)	Generates a gradient layer that you can customize.	A pop-up menu allows you to specify a linear or radial gradient.The Start control allows you to set the point in the frame where the gradient begins.The Gradient Direction angle defines the gradient's direction, and a slider controls the gradient's width.Two color controls let you define the start and end colors of the generated gradient.The Dither and Gaussian checkboxes allow you to modify the quality of the gradient you create.
Gradient (Render > Gradient)	Generates a predefined gradient based on a direction you choose from the Gradient Type pop-up menu.	You can adjust the start and end colors of the gradient using color controls.The Dither and Gaussian checkboxes allow you to modify the quality of the gradient you create.
Highlight (Render > Highlight)	Generates a simulated specular highlight band.	The Center point control determines the location of the highlight, and the Highlight Angle control defines its angle. You can adjust the width and softness of the highlight with two sliders, and the highlight and background colors with color controls.The Dither and Gaussian checkboxes allow you to modify the quality of the gradient you create.
Noise (Render > Noise)	Generates random pixel noise, similar to static.	The random noise can be adjusted to appear in varying levels across every channel of the clip, including the alpha, red, green, and blue channels, using the appropriate slider controls.You can animate the noise with the Random checkbox and create color static with the Color checkbox.A Noise generator, when superimposed over a video image with a very low opacity level, can be used to simulate grain, similar to a film image or clip shot with a video camera whose gain is turned all the way up.
Particle Noise (Render > Particle Noise)	One of the more graphical generators in Final Cut Pro. The Particle Noise generator, unlike the Noise generator, creates random patterns of different shapes. By adjusting its controls, you can create all kinds of effects.	You can adjust the Size slider to set how large the shapes are.The Shape pop-up menu allows you to choose what shape to use (circle, square, diamond, or random).The Soft slider lets you blur the edges around these shapes, and the Density slider lets you adjust how many are on the screen, evenly distributing them across the frame.The color controls allow you to specify the color of the shapes, and a Random Color checkbox gives you the option to make them all different.The Time Lapse slider lets you adjust the apparent frame rate of the particle animation.
Shapes	Generates a circle, oval, rectangle, or square, depending on what you choose.	· You can change the size or dimensions, softness of the edges, and color of each shape.
Slug	Generates a video clip consisting of a black image with an empty pair of audio tracks.	· Slug is used primarily as a placeholder in areas of your edit where you want to keep a gap between two clips.

All the Final Cut Pro generators can be accessed either from the Effects tab of the Browser, or from the various submenus of the Generator pop-up menu in the Viewer. This pop-up menu is available when the Video or Audio tab is displayed in the Viewer. When you choose a generator, it appears in the Video tab of the Viewer.

Note: With the exception of the Bars and Tone generators, generators always adopt the frame size of the sequences they're edited into.

- Click the Video or Audio tab in the Viewer, then choose a generator from the Generator pop-up menu.

Gradient Favorites Bars and Tone (NTSC) Bars and Tone (PAL) Matte Render Shapes Slug Text Title 3D Title Crawl Custom Gradient Gradient Highlight Noise Particle Noise Clapping Some generators have submenus with additional choices.

- In the Browser, double-click a video generator.

2 Click the Controls tab to view that generator's parameters, and adjust the controls to suit your purposes.

Click the Controls tab to show the parameters of the generator.

Viewer: Highlight Name Parameters Nav 00:00 00:02 Center + 0, 0 Highlight Angle 90 360 Highlight Width 4 10 -360 Highlight Soft 4 10 Highlight Color ▶ □ □ Background Color ▶ □ □ Drther □ Gaussian □

All generators have certain parameters that can be used to customize their effects. See "Graphical Video and Audio Generators Available in Final Cut Pro" on page 491 for more information. The most basic controls, such as Keyframe and Reset buttons, are the same as those for other effects discussed in "Viewing and Adjusting a Filter's Parameters" on page 192.

3 When you've finished adjusting the parameters, click the Video or Audio tab.

From the Viewer, you can now edit the currently open generator into your sequence, the same as any other clip.

This chapter covers the following:

• How You Can Use Titles in Your Project (p. 495)
• Installing and Choosing Fonts (p. 496)
• Making Sure Titles Fit on TV Screens (p. 497)
• Text Generators Available in Final Cut Pro (p. 498)
- Creating and Adding a Title Clip (p. 500)
• Other Options for Creating and Adding Titles (p. 503)

Movie titles play a critical role in movies, providing important bookends (such as opening titles and closing credits) and conveying time and dates within the movie. Titles, especially in the lower third of the screen, are also used in documentaries and informational video to convey details about subjects or products onscreen. You can also add notes and placeholders within your sequence while you edit. Subtitles can be a critical element for movies originating in a different language.

You can create titles and credits within Final Cut Pro with Text generators. Generators are synthesized clips generated by Final Cut Pro. Generators don't reference any media on your scratch disk. When you place a Text generator on a track directly above another clip, the clip on the lower track appears as the text background, sparing you the need to perform any compositing to create that effect.

Note: After you add a text generator to your sequence, it must be rendered.

If there are special fonts you want to install to use in Final Cut Pro, you need to install the TrueType version of those fonts because Final Cut Pro text generators use TrueType fonts. (Most professionally created fonts come in both PostScript and TrueType versions.) For information on installing fonts, see Mac Help.

DV was designed for real-world images that blend together, and it is not optimized for rigid lines of text. In interlaced video, one-pixel lines flicker unacceptably as the field on which they appear alternates on and off. This results in “buzzing” text that is difficult to read.

Apply the tips below to achieve better-looking title fonts for video:

Avoid fonts that are thin or smaller than 25 point.
Use only sans serif fonts, such as:
Arial
Futura
Gill Sans
Helvetica
Impact
Use the bold font style.
Do not use white or black as a font color.
Reduce opacity of the text clip to 90%.

If you plan to show your work on a TV screen or monitor at any time, you'll want to avoid the possibility of having your titles disappear off the edge of the frame. To do this, turn on the title safe boundary before you create the title, and restrict any text you add to the space within that boundary.

Note: Because few video projectors use masking, title safe boundaries may not be important for movies displayed with video projectors.

The title safe boundary is 20 percent smaller than the overall size of the frame, whether you're using NTSC or PAL. Though different manufacturers use different amounts of overscan, the title safe boundary is guaranteed to be the minimum displayed area of your image on television.

To display the title safe boundaries, do one of the following:

Choose View > Show Title Safe, so a checkmark appears next to it.
Choose Show Title Safe from the View pop-up menu in the Viewer, so a checkmark appears next to it.
To hide the boundaries, do one of the following:
Choose View > Show Title Safe to remove the checkmark.
Choose Show Title Safe from the View pop-up menu in the Viewer to remove the checkmark.

The table below describes each Text generator and includes tips about settings for each generator.

Text generator	Result	Tips for making settings
Crawl	Generates a single line of text that moves horizontally across the screen. You type the text you want to animate in a text entry field. Carriage returns are ignored and all text appears on a single line, like a ticker tape display.	·You can adjust the overall spacing of the text with the Spacing slider, and the location of the text as it crawls across the screen with the Location slider. The Direction pop-up menu allows you to set the direction in which the text moves.·By keyframing the spacing and location parameters, you can animate the width of your text as well as its horizontal position over time. If no location keyframes are set, then the In and Out points of the generator clip determine the duration of the movement from one edge of the screen to the other. The longer the clip, the slower the movement of the crawl.
Lower 3rd	Generates text in the lower third of the screen. This generator is often used to identify a person or location.	·This generator provides two independent text lines placed in the lower third of the screen. It does not allow carriage returns.·The tracking, size, and opacity settings can be keyframed to create interesting effects.·Select the Auto Kerning checkbox to kern your text automatically so that the spacing between the individual letters of your text is correct.
Outline Text	Generates static text with an outline. This generator allows carriage returns.	·Text graphic and line graphic clip controls allow you to fill the text or the outline with the image of a clip you apply, rather than a solid color.·You can also modify the size, softness, color, and opacity of the background independently of the text. You can use the back graphic clip control to apply the image from any clip to the background.
Scrolling Text	Generates text that scrolls up the screen, like credits at the end of a movie. The Scrolling Text generator allows carriage returns.	·The Indent slider works only with left- or right-aligned text and moves the entire scrolling column to the left or right.·The Gap Width slider works only with center-aligned text, and lets you define a space between two pieces of text on a single line that are separated by an asterisk (). For example, if the first line of your scrolling text is “Sally GreyDirector” then moving the slider farther to the right produces results like this: “Sally Grey Director”. This is useful if you want to create center-aligned, two-column scrolls.·The Fade Size slider narrows the vertical display area of your scrolling text in the frame, fading the text in and out at the bottom and the top.·The In and Out points of the edited generator clip determine the duration of the scroll from the bottom to the top of the screen (or vice versa). The longer the clip, the slower the movement of the scroll.
Text	Creates a static element of text. This generator allows carriage returns.	·The font, size, style, alignment, and color of the generated text can be modified. These controls modify the entire text element at once. Tracking, Leading, and Aspect sliders allow you to control the layout of the generated text and can be keyframed to create interesting effects.·Select the Auto Kerning checkbox to kern your text automatically so that the spacing between the individual letters of your text is correct. Use the Use Subpixel control to render your text with subpixel accuracy.
Typewriter	Generates text that appears as if typed onto the screen, one character at a time. This generator allows carriage returns.	·The Location slider moves the text element up and down in the frame, and the indent slider moves it from side to side.·The Pause slider increases or decreases the amount of time it takes for each character to appear onscreen.

When you're creating a title clip for a sequence, you can create a basic title or specify more options, including the font, size, alignment, and more advanced specifics such as auto kerning. Once you create the title clip, you add it the same way you would edit any clip into your sequence.

Note: Generated text clips always adopt the frame size of the sequences they're edited into.

1 Select a text generator by doing one of the following:

- Click the Video or Audio tab in the Viewer, then choose a text generator from the Generator pop-up menu.

- In the Effects tab of the Browser, double-click a text generator.

For more information, see "Text Generators Available in Final Cut Pro" on page 498 for detailed descriptions of the choices.

2 In the Viewer, click the Controls tab.

3 In the Text field, type the text that will appear in your movie.

Viewer: Text Video Controls Filters Motion Name Parameters Nav Text Koffee House Mayhem Font Skia Size 55 Style Bold Alignment Center Font Color Origin 0 0 Tracking 1 Leading 0 Aspect 1 Auto Kerning Use Subpixel 00:01:14:13 Reset button Enter title text in this field. Number field for the font size Font size slider, with arrows on either end Parameter controls for the Text generator

4 If you wish, specify additional settings.

Note: Different text generators have different controls.

• Text: Enter your title text in this field.
- Font: Choose a font from the Font pop-up menu.
- Size: Change the font size by entering a value or dragging the slider to the left or right.
- Alignment: Choose the alignment of your title on the screen from this pop-up menu. Your choices are Left, Center, and Right.
- Font Color: Choose the color of your font by doing one of the following:

Disclosure triangle: Click to display sliders and number fields corresponding to the hue, saturation, and brightness of the range of colors available.
Eyedropper button: Click this button, then click an image in the Viewer or the Canvas to pick up that color.

• Color picker: Click to choose a color using the standard color picker.

- Hue, Saturation, and Brightness controls (H, S, and B): Hue determines which color is chosen; saturation determines how vivid the color is. If saturation is 0, the resulting color is always white. Brightness determines how bright or dark the color is. If brightness is 0, the resulting color is black; if brightness is 100, the color is the lightest possible value.

- Origin: Origin refers to the center of the text. The definition of the Origin determines where the text appears within the screen. You can position the text by clicking the Point Select (+) button, and then manually adjusting the Origin (shown as a tiny + indicator) within the Canvas or Viewer. Or, you can enter horizontal and vertical values in the Origin number fields.

It's often easiest to make large adjustments manually with the Point Select button and then fine-tune the position by making numerical changes to the horizontal and vertical fields. The most visual way to position the text is to tear off the Viewer tab, click Point Select, and then drag the text to position it in the Viewer.

Note: Once you release the mouse button, you have to click the Point Select button again if you want to make further manual adjustments.

Tracking: Use the slider to adjust the space between letters, or enter a value in the number field.
Leading: Use the slider to adjust the space between lines of text, or enter a value in the number field.
Aspect: Use the slider to adjust the proportion of height versus width of your selected font, or enter a value in the number field.
Auto Kerning: Select the Auto Kerning checkbox to kern your text automatically so that the spacing between the individual letters of your text is correct.
Use Subpixel: Use the Use Subpixel control to render your text with subpixel accuracy.

Once you've created your text generator clip, you can add it to your sequence. For more specific information, see Volume II, Chapter 6, "The Fundamentals of Adding Clips to a Sequence."

1 In your sequence in the Timeline, set your destination track.
If you place the title clip on a track that's above another track, the lower clip appears as the background to the title.
2 Set the In and Out points.
3 Click the Video tab in the Viewer, then drag the title clip from the Viewer to the Canvas or Timeline.

Koffee House Mayhem

If a title you have in mind is something you can't create with the available text generators, you can use other methods to create titles and incorporate them into your sequence:

Using Photoshop files or stills for titles: If a title you really want is best created in another application such as Photoshop, you can create it there and add it to your sequence as a still image. An easy way to bring an image file into your sequence is to simply drag it from your desktop to a project tab or bin in the Browser. See Chapter 17, "Working With Still Images and Photographs," on page 335 for a number of useful things to consider when importing still images and photographs into your movie.
Using LiveType titles: You can create many different kinds of titles in LiveType and import them directly into Final Cut Pro. For more information, see "Using LiveType to Create Titles for Your Project," next.
Using titles created in Motion: Motion allows you to create complex text animations, and supports LiveFonts.

When you want to create more dynamic and unique titles, LiveType makes it easy for you. It provides dozens of fonts and hundreds of objects and textures that are not available in the Final Cut Pro Text generators.

What's more, you can create your own animated fonts using the LiveType FontMaker utility, building characters using virtually any graphical object—from 3D animations and images created in Photoshop to video clips—and applying effects to them, just as you would to words.

Because you can directly import LiveType project files into Final Cut Pro, there is no need to render a QuickTime movie of your LiveType title each time you want to use it in Final Cut Pro.

Note: To open LiveType projects directly in Final Cut Pro, LiveType 1.2 or later must be installed on the Final Cut Pro system you are using.

To add a title you created in LiveType, you import the LiveType project in exactly the same way you would import most media items. A LiveType project file within Final Cut Pro is simply referred to as a LiveType clip or a LiveType movie.

To import a LiveType project into Final Cut Pro, do one of the following:

Choose File > Import or Command-I and navigate to the LiveType project you want to import into Final Cut Pro.
From the Finder, drag a LiveType project file into the Final Cut Pro Browser. The LiveType project file appears as a clip in the Final Cut Pro Browser.

Note: If necessary, you can later reconnect the LiveType project file on disk just as you would any other Final Cut Pro clip.

In Final Cut Pro, imported LiveType and Motion project clips behave the same as any other clips. They can be organized within the Browser, opened in the Viewer, edited into sequences, trimmed, copied, and pasted. LiveType and Motion clips also maintain normal master and affiliate clip relationships.

LiveType and Motion titles can be played back in Final Cut Pro the same as other media files. However, when edited into sequences, a LiveType or Motion clip appears with a red render bar in the Timeline, so you will have to render those portions of your sequence.

Although you can perform normal editing tasks with a LiveType clip, the LiveType title contents cannot be adjusted directly within Final Cut Pro. LiveType title settings can be changed only in the LiveType application. Final Cut Pro provides a quick and easy way to open LiveType clips directly in the LiveType application to make changes to your title.

1 In the Final Cut Pro Browser or within a sequence, Control-click the LiveType clip in which you want to adjust title settings, then choose Open in Editor from the shortcut menu.

The LiveType project file is automatically opened in the LiveType application.

2 In LiveType, make any necessary changes to the LiveType title.
3 Save and close the LiveType project file.
4 Return to Final Cut Pro.

Final Cut Pro automatically relinks any LiveType clips that reference the LiveType project you just changed. In Final Cut Pro, you can immediately see the changes to the LiveType title. Using this method, you do not need to reconnect the LiveType project file each time you alter it outside Final Cut Pro.

Note: The Creator column in the Final Cut Pro Browser indicates what application is launched when you choose Open in Editor from a clip's shortcut menu. For LiveType clips, the creator is automatically set to LiveType.

Learn how to maximize the real-time playback capabilities of Final Cut Pro and render effects that cannot be played back in real time.

Chapter 23

Using RT Extreme

Chapter 24

Rendering

RT Extreme is the real-time effects architecture that allows you to play back multiple video layers, video and audio filters, motion, and other effects in real time, without needing to render them first.

This chapter covers the following:

Introduction to Real-Time Processing Using RT Extreme (p. 509)
• Using Real-Time Controls in Final Cut Pro (p. 519)
• Real-Time Audio Mixing in Final Cut Pro (p. 529)
Choosing Real-Time Playback Versus Rendering (p. 531)
• Using a Third-Party Video Effects Accelerator Card (p. 532)

Real-time processing refers to your computer's ability to process and display video and audio information at the frame rate of your sequence, instead of requiring additional render time (in which Final Cut Pro calculates each frame before displaying it). This is sometimes referred to as native processing, because no additional hardware is necessary other than a qualified Macintosh computer.

RT Extreme is capable of processing many effects at the same time at full, broadcast quality. For example, with a fast enough computer, you can apply color correction filters, superimpose titles, and add transitions, then play the results in real time. This frees you from having to render these effects while you edit, and allows you to see changes that you make to your effects immediately.

RT Extreme supports features such as dynamic real-time, multiclip, and native MPEG-2-based video playback. Real-time effects are displayed in the Canvas, the Viewer, Digital Cinema Desktop, or on an external video output such as a DV output via FireWire or a third-party video interface.

Note: Not all codecs are supported by RT Extreme, but the most commonly used ones are. Most of the effects that come with Final Cut Pro are capable of playing back in real time. For more information, see "Supported RT Extreme Playback Codecs" on page 517.

Each filter, motion parameter, or effect that you apply to a clip makes greater or lesser demands on the processing capabilities of your computer or on the video card you're using to handle real-time effects playback. Once the total processing demands of all applied effects exceed the capabilities of your system, you have several options to improve real-time performance:

Reduce the playback quality options in the Real-Time (RT) pop-up menu in the Timeline, or in the Playback Control tab of System Settings.
Play your sequence using the Unlimited RT mode instead of the Safe RT mode.
Choose the Play Base Layer Only option in the RT pop-up menu.
Render any necessary clips before you can play them back.
Turn off external video monitoring.

If your computer can't play back a particular sequence because too many effects or video streams are playing simultaneously, you can reduce the playback quality of your sequence to free up more processing power. While you edit, you can use reduced playback quality, and then choose full-quality for final output to tape.

You can reduce playback quality in two ways:

Playback video quality: This controls the visual quality of your video frames. The lower the quality, the more real-time effects your computer is capable of calculating.
Playback frame rate: This controls how many frames Final Cut Pro can process in real time. The lower the playback frame rate, the fewer frames Final Cut Pro has to calculate per second, so more real-time effects can be achieved.

Note: Playback frame rate does not alter the actual editing timebase (frame rate) of your sequence. This setting only affects playback.

To maximize performance during playback, you can choose to have Final Cut Pro automatically adjust the video quality, frame rate, or both, during playback. This is called dynamic real-time playback.

Dynamic real-time playback continually adjusts video quality and frame rate on a frame-by-frame basis. When there are fewer demands on the CPU, Final Cut Pro uses higher video quality or a higher frame rate. When the Timeline reaches a clip with more effects, Final Cut Pro reduces the video quality or the frame rate, which reduces the processing requirements of the clip. Since Final Cut Pro automatically adjusts the playback quality as necessary, you always get the highest quality playback possible without having to stop your sequence to make quality adjustments.

Playback video quality and frame rate can be controlled independently. For example, if you need to see every frame during playback, you can set your sequence playback frame rate to Full and video quality to Dynamic. In this case, your sequence video quality may be reduced during playback, but every frame will play. On the other hand, if you are doing detailed compositing work that depends on high quality video display, you can set your sequence playback video quality to High and your sequence frame rate to Dynamic.

If neither frame rate nor video quality is critical (for example, if you are editing a multiclip sequence), you can choose Dynamic for both playback video quality and frame rate.

The Safe RT mode guarantees that effects are played back at the quality and frame rate you specify, and that no frames are dropped during playback. If Final Cut Pro anticipates that your computer won't be able to perform all the effects calculations in real time, the render status of that portion of the Timeline becomes red, which means you have to render before you can play back.

Red video render bars indicate rendering is required. Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:10:00 01:00:20:00 01:00:30:00 Debra enters cafe Text Debra sidew Side master shot ja Debr Cross Jacob Debra enters cafe Master shot De Music 1 Music 2 Music 1 Music 2 A1 A2 A3

Safe RT is useful when you are outputting your final movie to tape, because it ensures maximum quality. In many cases, you may have to render before output to tape. By default, the Edit to Tape and Print to Video commands use full quality.

If you'd rather lower the playback quality of your video to increase the number of real-time effects that can be played back, you can select the Unlimited RT mode. In this mode, Final Cut Pro attempts to play as many frames as possible, even when the effects in your sequence exceed the processing power of your computer. Real-time effects that can play back without dropping frames still appear with green, dark green, or yellow render bars as appropriate. However, when the number of effects exceed your computer's processing power, an orange render bar appears, indicating that real-time playback will occur, but that frames might be dropped during playback in this part of your sequence.

Orange video render bars indicate Unlimited RT playback. Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:10 01:00:20:00 01:00:30:00 Debra enters cafe Text v2 v1 V1 Debra sidew Side master shot ja Debr Cross Jacob Debra enters cafe Master shot De Music 1 Music 2 Music 1 Music 2 A1 A2 A3

Playback performance using Unlimited RT varies greatly depending on the effects in your sequence, the codec and data rate of your media, and the capabilities of your system. Some segments of your sequence may play back without dropping any frames, while other sections may rarely update frames. For example, an embedded LiveType clip may update frames infrequently.

This mode is useful when you are editing or doing effects because it allows you to play your sequence without rendering. For example, you can use Unlimited RT to play portions of a sequence that might otherwise not play, such as an embedded LiveType project, a standard definition clip scaled within a high definition sequence, or multiple video layers composited together.

You can improve real-time performance by using the Play Base Layer Only feature.

When this option is selected, Final Cut Pro ignores effects processing altogether in areas of your sequence where the applied video effects require rendering for real-time playback (indicated by a red render bar). Motion effects or video filters are ignored and the clip's original media is played.

If you have multiple tracks of video, the video clip item on the lowest-numbered visible video track plays back—all other layered video items are ignored.

For more information on the Real-Time Effects (RT) pop-up menu, see "Settings and Options in the RT Pop-Up Menu and Playback Control Tab" on page 523.

If you enable external video monitoring (such as DV output via FireWire), this adds additional load to your computer's processor. The Safe RT mode takes into account whether or not external video monitoring is enabled. When external video monitoring is enabled, you usually get less real-time performance than when external video monitoring is disabled. For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 16, "External Video Monitoring."

Many aspects of computer system contribute to the playback of real-time effects:

CPU speed: The faster your computer CPU is, the more real-time effects Final Cut Pro can perform.
Multiple processors: Computers with more than one processor have significant real-time performance advantages over single-processor computers.
Level 2 and Level 3 processor cache: The sizes of a computer processor's level 2 and 3 caches affect its real-time capabilities. The larger these caches are, the more real-time performance is available.
RAM: The more RAM you have available in your computer, the more potential real-time performance your computer has.
Memory bus speed: Computers with a faster memory bus allow better real-time performance.
Fast hard disks: Faster hard disks improve real-time playback performance, especially with multiple video tracks and multiclip playback.
Fast graphics card: OpenGL, a simple set of computer graphics subroutines that can be built directly into a video graphics card, is used to accelerate real-time display in the Viewer and Canvas.

Video transitions and filters that can play back in real time appear in boldface type in the Effects tab in the Browser and in the Effects menu. The following effects can play back in real-time:

Superimpositions and multiclip playback: Simultaneously superimposed video clip items in the Timeline with different opacity settings can be played back in real time. Multiclip playback can also be played back in real time, depending on the number of angles in the clip. Your disk speed and the processor speed of your computer together determine how many simultaneous video streams can play back in real time
Still frames: Still frames and imported graphics can also play back in real time. The number of still images that play back in real time depends on the size of the Still Cache set in the Memory & Cache tab of the System Settings window.

System Settings Scratch Disks Search Folders Memory & Cache Playback Control External Editors Effect Handling Memory Usage Application 100 % (816MB) Still Cache 10 % (67MB) Thumbnail Cache Disk: 8192 K RAM: 512 K Cancel OK You can adjust the Still Cache slider or enter a value to change the number of still images that play back.

The size of the still cache is limited by the total amount of unused physical RAM installed in your computer. The higher the still cache, the more stills that can be played back in real time in the currently selected sequence. If another sequence is opened, the contents of the still cache are automatically replaced with stills from the new sequence.

- Transitions, filters, and motion effects: Most of the built-in transitions and filters can be used in real time. With the Unlimited RT setting selected in the Real-Time Effects (RT) pop-up menu of the Timeline, almost any effect or clip requiring processing can play back in real time.

RT Extreme is not capable of playing back all video codecs. The CPU speed and amount of RAM installed in your computer affect which codecs can play back in real time. The following codecs are supported for real-time playback:

• DV, DVCAM, DVCPRO (25), and DVCPRO 50
- IMX
- OfflineRT (this is a Final Cut Pro preset that uses the Photo-JPEG codec)
• 8- and 10-bit Uncompressed 4:2:2 video formats

The following high definition codecs have higher system requirements:

• DVCPRO HD, HDV, and Apple Intermediate Codec

To see a complete list of real-time codecs supported by your system:

- Choose System Settings > Effect Handling.

Video does not appear the same on a computer display as it does on a video monitor (such as an NTSC, PAL, or high definition monitor). Whenever you watch your video on a computer display (such as video in the Canvas, the Viewer, or via the Digital Cinema Desktop), Final Cut Pro compensates for these visual differences so your video looks more like it will appear on a video monitor. This compensation requires extra processing, such as deinterlacing and gamma correction, which adds to the workload of your computer's CPU.

Gamma correction is necessary for proper color and brightness rendition of video during playback. Gamma correction compensates for the fact that video display devices (such as televisions) inherently alter the middle tones of an image in a nonlinear fashion. For example, televisions inherently reduce the brightness of the video signal in a predictable way, resulting in images whose midtones are darker than expected.

To compensate for this darkening on the television, camcorders record images using an opposing brightness curve. However, when the video from your camcorder is shown on your computer display, you often see the image brighter than expected, because the image was intended for playback on a video monitor. Gamma correction must be applied to the video so it appears as intended.

When a video signal is displayed on a monitor, the amount of brightness by which a pixel is altered depends on the original strength of the incoming signal. A gamma curve describes how the brightness of an incoming video signal (shown on the x axis) is translated to the brightness of the displayed signal.

In most displays, the darkest and brightest parts of a signal remain relatively unchanged from the incoming signal to the displayed signal, so the gamma curve is linear at those points. The incoming midrange (gray) values are darkened in varying amounts on the display, so the graph shows a curve.

If your computer's graphics card supports gamma correction, Final Cut Pro uses the card automatically for accurate gamma correction. If your computer has an older graphics card that does not support gamma correction, you have you two options:

Accurate: High-quality gamma correction. This option is the most accurate, but also requires the most CPU power.
Approximate: Lower-quality gamma correction. This option leaves more processing power available for real-time effects, but results in less accurate color and brightness rendition.

Tip: If your real-time performance is limited, try changing the gamma correction setting to Approximate (if available).

To choose a gamma-correction option in the current sequence:

1 Open a sequence in the Timeline.
2 Choose Final Cut Pro > System Settings, then click the Playback Control tab.
3 Choose Accurate or Approximate from the Gamma Correction pop-up menu.

Real-time playback and status are controlled and displayed in several different areas of the application:

Timeline and audio clip item render bars: Render bars tell you which parts of your sequence play back in real time, and at what quality. Some render bar colors (such as red) indicate that real-time playback is not possible.
Filter and transition names in bold: Video transitions and filters in Final Cut Pro that are capable of real-time playback appear in bold in the Effects tab and menu.
Real-Time Effects (RT) pop-up menu in the Timeline: This pop-up menu gives you a way to control the playback quality of video and effects in your sequences, allowing you to choose whether you want higher playback quality or increased real-time playback capabilities.

Note: These options can also be changed in the Playback Control tab of System Settings. However, several options can only be changed in the Playback Control tab, not in the RT pop-up menu.

- Real-time effects options in Sequence Settings: Additional options in the Render Control tab of Sequence Settings allow you to turn on or off specific, render-intensive options to increase your computer's ability to process real-time effects. For example, you can choose to turn off video filter processing altogether.

There are two render status bars in the Timeline above the ruler. The upper one is for video and the lower for audio. These render bars indicate various levels of real-time playback, including which sections of the sequence will play in real time and which ones require rendering to play back smoothly.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:07:00 01:00:14:00 01:00:21:00 Render bars appear near the top of the Timeline. V1 Don at table salad WS Wrap Wipe Dining room serving salad WS Dining room se Don at table ss Din A1 Dining room serving salad WS Dining room se Don at table ss Din A2 a1 A3 Don at table salad WS Don at table salad WS Don at table salad WS

Note: Even though they may also indicate real-time playback status, these bars are usually referred to as render bars. In other words, the presence of a colored bar in the Timeline indicates that a clip requires some kind of processing. Historically, the name render bars was used because, in the past, all effects had to be rendered and there was no option for real-time processing.

Tip: If you position the pointer over a colored render bar, a tooltip appears with information about the real-time or render status of that section of your sequence.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:08:00 01:00 Video: Preview Audio: Needs Render Dining room Don at table salad WS Wrap A1 A2 a1 A3 Dining room serving salad WS Dining room serving salad WS Don at table salad WS Don at table salad WS

Final Cut Pro shows all video transitions and filters that can play back in real time in bold in both the Effects tab in the Browser and the Effects menu. A real-time effect appears in boldface type based on:

The video format used by the currently selected sequence
The processing capabilities of your computer such as CPU speed, and amount of installed RAM
The playback video quality and frame rate select in the RT pop-up menu
The external video option you have selected in the A/V Devices tab of the Audio/Video Settings window, and whether or not it is enabled
The capabilities of the currently selected video effects accelerator card (if you are using one for real-time video processing)

Note: Video formats that have higher system requirements for real-time playback result in fewer effects displayed in bold.

Browser Effects Name Type Length Image Control Bin Brightness and Contrast (Bezier) Video Filter Color Balance Video Filter Desaturate Video Filter Gamma Correction Video Filter Levels Video Filter Proc Amp Video Filter Sepia Video Filter Tint Video Filter Key Bin Matte Bin Perspective Bin QuickTime Bin Sharpen Bin Stylize Bin Real-time effects appear in bold.

Real-time playback options, such as Unlimited RT and the quality of playback, can be adjusted in two locations:

- The Playback Control tab of Systems Settings: The Playback Control tab shows you all real-time settings available, although some may not apply to certain sequences. Changes you make here are applied system-wide, so they remain the same for all currently open sequences and projects. These settings are identical to the ones located in the RT pop-up menu in the Timeline.

- The RT (real-time) pop-up menu in the Timeline: This menu only shows you options available for the current sequence. For example, if your sequence has a timebase of 23.98 fps, and a your external video output is set to a 29.97 fps device, the RT pop-up menu displays pull-down options. However, if you disable the external video output, pull-down options do not appear.

You can adjust real-time playback settings in the RT pop-up menu instead of the Playback Control tab of the System Settings window. Since the settings are identical in both locations, it is often more convenient to use the RT pop-up menu to adjust settings directly from the Timeline.

Real-Time Effects pop-up menu Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:04:00 01:00:08:00 01:00:00:00 Dining room Don at table salad WS Wrap V1 A1 A2 a1 A3 Dining room serving salad WS Dining room serving salad WS Don at table salad WS Don at table salad WS

With very few exceptions, you can set the exact same values in either location. Usually, it is simpler to choose your settings from the RT (real-time) pop-up menu in the Timeline. Additional real-time playback settings can be chosen in the Render Control tab of Sequence Settings.

The following section describes the settings and options in both the RT pop-up menu and the Playback Control tab of the System Settings window. Some settings, such as pull-down options, are not always available in the RT pop-up menu.

Settings in the Real-Time Effects (RT) pop-up menu ✓ Safe RT Unlimited RT Play Base Layer Only ✓ Scrub High Quality Playback Video Quality ✓ Dynamic High Medium Low Playback Frame Rate ✓ Dynamic Full Half Quarter Pulldown Pattern ✓ 2:2:2:4 Multiclip Playback Record To Tape Use Playback Settings ✓ Full Quality

- RT pop-up menu:

- Safe RT: Selecting this option guarantees that effects are played back at the quality and frame rate specified for Playback Video Quality and Frame Rate, and that no frames are dropped during playback. If Final Cut Pro anticipates that your computer won't be able to perform all the effects calculations in real time, the render status of that portion of the Timeline becomes red, which means you have to render before you can play back. If you enable external video monitoring, this adds additional load to your computer's processor and the Safe RT option takes this into account. This means that less effects will be processed in real time.

Note: Even though the Safe RT option guarantees no frames will be dropped due to CPU limitations, frames may still be dropped if your scratch disk cannot maintain the necessary data rate during playback. This can be a problem if you have multiple video streams playing from a relatively slow hard disk. In this case, the Timeline may show a green render bar, indicating that the CPU can handle the effects load, but you may still drop frames due to slow disk performance. To solve this issue, you can limit the acceptable real-time data rate of media playback in the General tab of User Preferences. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

- Unlimited RT: Selecting this option tells Final Cut Pro to play as many frames as possible when your effects exceed the processing power of your computer. Final Cut Pro does this by spending time to process some frames in real time while skipping others completely. Unrestricted real-time playback allows you to play more effects, but increases the likelihood that your sequence will drop frames during playback. This mode is useful for getting a real-time preview of complex effects compositions. Embedded projects such as Motion and LiveType can also be played back in this mode.

Tip: Turning on Unlimited RT is the only way to enable third-party FXScript filters and transitions to play in real time, if they're capable of doing so.

- Play Base Layer Only (if render needed): If this option is selected, Final Cut Pro ignores effects processing altogether in areas of your sequence where the applied video effects require rendering for playback (indicated by a red render bar). Motion effects or video filters are ignored and the clip's original media file is shown without any processing. If you have multiple tracks of composited video, only the video clip item on the lowest-numbered visible video track plays back—all other layered video items are ignored.

This option also affects audio playback. When playing over an unrendered portion of a sequence, no effects are played back. The number of audio tracks that play depends on whether or not you have selected the Play Base Layer Only option.

- If selected: The first two tracks of audio play back.

- If unselected: The number of audio tracks that play back is determined by the number of real-time audio tracks you have set in the General tab of the User Preferences window.

- Beep When Playing Unrendered Audio: This option is only available in the Playback Control tab of the System Settings window. When this option is enabled, audio clip items that require rendering are played back as audible beeps. This is the audio equivalent to the “Unrendered” screen you see when your video requires rendering. If the Play Base Layer Only option is enabled, the beeps are not heard.

- Scrub High Quality: When this option is enabled, video displayed in the Canvas is shown at full quality when you scrub or when the video is stopped. If you deselect this option, the video quality during scrubbing is determined by the current Playback Video Quality setting. Deselecting this option allows you to improve responsiveness during scrubbing, especially when using CPU-intensive codecs such as HDV, or options such as multiclip playback.

Playback Video Quality: Some codecs, such as DV, allow you to choose from several resolutions during playback. Most codecs support three levels of quality (high, medium, and low), while others support only high and low qualities. Selecting a higher playback quality will reduce the number of simultaneous real-time effects you can play.
Dynamic: This option allows Final Cut Pro to automatically change between High, Medium, and Low quality as necessary to maintain real-time playback. In this case, the quality of the video resolution can change frame by frame.
High: Guarantees full-frame, full-resolution video playback. Video interlacing is preserved.
Medium: Displays every other pixel and every other line (this is known as quarter frame resolution). Because only half the lines are shown, the video is displayed non-interlaced. Media is decompressed using a full quality decompression algorithm.
Low: Quarter frame resolution just like medium resolution. However, your media is decompressed and displayed with a low-quality decompression algorithm which requires significantly less processing power.
Playback Frame Rate
Dynamic: This option varies the displayed frame rate as necessary to achieve the highest quality playback with the most effects. When more processing power is required, Final Cut Pro can reduce the frame rate to spend more time calculating fewer frames. When little or no effects are applied, Final Cut Pro can return to playback at the full frame rate.
Full: Your sequence plays back at the frame rate (editing timebase) assigned in Sequence Settings.
Half: Your sequence plays back at half its assigned frame rate. For example, if the frame rate of your sequence is 24 fps, the playback frame rate is 12 fps.
Quarter: Your sequence plays back at a quarter of its assigned frame rate. If the frame rate of your sequence is 24 fps, the playback frame rate is 6 fps.
Multiclip Playback: This allows you to watch all multiclip angles play at once in the Viewer while you switch or cut in real time. When this option is enabled, and you choose Open from the Playhead Sync pop-up menu, multiclips in your sequence are automatically opened in the Viewer and all angles play back at the same time while the active angle plays in the Canvas. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 16, "Working With Multiclips."
Pulldown Pattern: If your sequence has a frame rate (timebase) of 23.98 or 24 fps and you want to output to an NTSC or PAL device via FireWire, you can choose one of five pull-down insertion patterns. Pull-down insertion is a method of converting film or other progressively scanned material to an interlaced format running at a different frame rate. For more information, see the Cinema Tools documentation. These options are available only when your sequence has a frame rate (timebase) of 23.98 or 24 fps.

The following three pull-down patterns are available when your sequence has an editing timebase of 23.98 fps and you choose 29.97 fps external video output.

- 2:3:2:3: This pull-down is the most commonly supported pull-down pattern for NTSC devices, and is ideal for recording devices such as a standard definition television, an MPEG-2 encoding device, or a high-end finishing system. This pattern is the most processor-intensive method of introducing pull-down, but outputs NTSC video with the least noticeable temporal artifacts. For this reason, 2:3:2:3 pull-down is generally considered to have the most acceptable quality of motion. This pull-down pattern is also referred to as 3:2 pull-down.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Playback Settings - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["A"] --> B["B"]
    B --> C["C"]
    C --> D["D"]
    D --> E["Interlaced frames"]
    style A fill:#ccc,stroke:#333
    style B fill:#ccc,stroke:#333
    style C fill:#ccc,stroke:#333
    style D fill:#ccc,stroke:#333
    subgraph 24 fps
        direction LR
        A --> B --> C --> D
    end
    subgraph 2:3:2:3 pulldown
        direction LR
        A --> B --> C --> D
    end

- 2:3:3:2: This option is best for recording or displaying video on DV devices that support the 2:3:3:2 pull-down pattern. On DV devices, this pattern also requires less processing to output than 2:3:2:3 pull-down because the 2:3:3:2 pull-down requires recompression or regeneration of fewer frames. In the 2:3:2:3 pattern, two of the five frames in the pattern are regenerated, but in 2:3:3:2, only one of the five frames needs regeneration. Video output using 2:3:3:2 pull-down can be recorded with any NTSC camcorder or deck, but the perceived motion quality is lower than when using 2:3:2:3 pull-down. This pull-down pattern is also referred to as advanced pull-down pattern.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Playback Settings - 2

flowchart

graph TD
    A["A"] --> B["B"]
    B --> C["C"]
    C --> D["D"]
    D --> E["24 fps"]
    E --> F["Interlaced frames"]
    F --> G["2:3:3:2 pulldown"]

- 2:2:2:4: This is a good choice if you are editing 23.98 fps video and want to preview video with as many real-time effects as possible on an NTSC monitor. Because it requires less processing, the 2:2:2:4 pull-down pattern is also useful if you need to output pull-down video from an older, slower computer (or a computer with a heavy processing load) that drops frames when you try to output 2:3:2:3 or 2:3:3:2 pull-down video. Keep in mind, however, that this pull-down pattern is for rough draft video only. While you can record video output with 2:2:2:4 pull-down using any NTSC camcorder or deck, there will be more noticeable temporal artifacts (stuttering of frames) than with the other pull-down options.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Playback Settings - 3

flowchart

graph TD
    A["A"] --> B["B"]
    B --> C["C"]
    C --> D["D"]
    D --> E["24 fps"]
    E --> F["2:2:2:4 pulldown"]
    F --> G["Repeated frame"]

The following two patterns are available when your sequence has an editing timebase of 24 fps and you choose a 25 fps external video output.

- 24@25 Pulldown: In this pattern, 12 progressive frames are displayed, followed by 13 re-interlaced frames. For 25fps output, this pattern has the best perceived motion quality.

One second 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 Interlaced frames

- 24@25 Repeat: In this pattern, 24 progressive frames are displayed and the 24th is repeated to create the 25th frame. This leads to a noticeable stutter every second, but requires less processing.

One second 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 Repeated frame

- Gamma Correction: This pop-up menu is only available in the Playback Control tab (not the RT pop-up menu) on older systems with graphics cards that don't support gamma correction. If your computer's graphics card does not support gamma correction, you have two options:

Accurate: High-quality gamma correction. This option is the most accurate, but also requires the most CPU power.
Approximate: Lower-quality gamma correction. This option leaves more processing power available for real-time effects, but results in less accurate color and brightness rendition.

For more information, see "Choosing Gamma Correction Options in Final Cut Pro" on page 518.

When using the Print to Video and Edit to Tape commands, you can control the quality of video being output to tape independent of the real-time playback quality in the Canvas and Timeline.

Full Quality: When this is selected, video is always output to tape at the highest quality. Areas of your sequence that won't play back at full resolution in real time will need to be rendered prior to output.
Use Playback Settings: Final Cut Pro uses the selected real-time effects playback settings when outputting your sequence to tape. If, as a result, your sequence will output at less than full quality, you are warned of this prior to output. Outputting to tape at draft quality is useful for quickly creating sample tapes of your program when you don't have the time to render all necessary effects first.

By default, Final Cut Pro outputs to tape at full quality. Depending on how many effects you have applied, you may have to render portions of your sequence before you output. However, if you simply want to output a rough draft of your sequence, you can output with reduced quality settings. Final Cut Pro always warns you before you output video at reduced quality to tape.

- Choose Use Playback Settings from the Record to Tape section of the RT pop-up menu.

If you do not choose Use Playback Settings, Final Cut Pro always outputs at full quality.

For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 15, "Printing to Video and Outputting From the Timeline."

Final Cut Pro can mix and play back multiple audio tracks in a sequence in real time, even while you make adjustments to levels, stereo pan, and audio filters. The number of tracks that can be played back while being mixed and filtered depends on your computer's capabilities and settings, including:

Your computer's processor speed
The seek time and sustained transfer rate of your hard disk
The amount of RAM available to Final Cut Pro
The Audio Playback Quality setting in the General tab of User Preferences

Note: For information on this setting, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

Different filters and transitions affect real-time playback in varying degrees. If Final Cut Pro can't mix all the tracks in a sequence in real time, you hear a series of beeps indicating that part or all of your sequence must be rendered before being output as a final mix.

Tip: You can turn these beeps off by disabling the Beep When Playing Unrendered Audio option in the Playback Control tab of System Settings.

The number of tracks Final Cut Pro attempts to mix in real time is determined by the Real-time Audio Mixing setting in the General tab of the User Preferences window. The number of real-time tracks you can play back is largely dependent upon your hardware, so performance will vary from system to system. Increasing the number of tracks in this setting doesn't mean they'll all play.

Important: If the number of tracks is set too high, you may have dropped frames during playback.

1 Add a video clip with a typical data rate for your working environment to your sequence.
2 Add 16 or more audio clips at the same point in time as your video clip.
3 Choose Final Cut Pro > User Preferences, then click the General tab.
4 In the Real-time Audio Mixing field, enter the number of tracks in the sequence.
5 Make sure the checkbox labeled "Report dropped frames during playback" is selected.
6 Click OK.

7 Play back the sequence.

If your system cannot support the number of tracks in the sequence, you see a "dropped frames" warning.

8 If you have dropped frames, reduce the number of tracks in the sequence and play it back again. Repeat this step until the sequence plays without dropped frames.

9 Set the number of real-time tracks in the General tab of the User Preferences window to the number that played back without dropped frames.

You can optimize real-time audio performance in the following ways:

- Render video effects prior to mixing: Playing real-time video effects reduces the number of audio tracks that can be mixed in real time. While mixing the audio in your program, you can maximize real-time mixing performance by first rendering all video effects in your sequence, including all transitions, layered video, and filters. Video and audio render files are maintained separately, and changes made to the audio levels in your sequence do not affect the video effects that have already been rendered. For more information on rendering the video effects in a sequence, see Chapter 24, "Rendering," on page 533.

- Render audio filters: Even though many audio filters play in real time, unrendered filters can reduce the number of tracks you can mix in real time. The number of audio tracks you can play without rendering depends on how many filters are applied and how many audio tracks you're trying to mix at once.

To increase the number of audio tracks that can be mixed in real time in sequences with audio filters applied, you can perform item-level rendering on individual audio items in the Timeline. By rendering audio items with filters individually, volume and panning levels can continue to be mixed in real time, and you can make level changes without rerendering. For more information, see "More About Audio Render Options" on page 543 and "Rendering Audio Items in a Sequence" on page 546.

- Use the Mixdown command to prevent dropped frames: If you have a complex audio mix with numerous clips, keyframes, filters, and transitions, the mix may start to affect the playback of your sequence. Also, if the Audio Playback Quality setting in the General tab of the User Preferences window is set to High, you may get dropped frames in your audio. You can use the Mixdown command in the Sequence menu (available by choosing Sequence > Render Only > Mixdown) to render all the audio tracks in a sequence, along with their accompanying transitions and filters, into a single render file. For more information, see “Using the Mixdown Command” on page 546.

Here are some practical examples of using real time versus rendering during the course of editing your movie:

To monitor video or output to tape with perfect playback of all effects in a sequence (no dropped frames and full-resolution video):

1 In the RT pop-up menu, choose Safe RT mode so there's a checkmark next to it.

The quality of the video is then safe from the sometimes quality-detrimental effects of Unlimited RT.

2 In the Playback Video Quality section of the RT pop-up menu, choose High so there's a checkmark next to it.

This option may force you to render your effects (indicated by a red render bar in the Timeline).

3 In the Record to Tape section of the RT pop-up menu, choose Full Quality so there's a checkmark next to it.

This second option is usually acceptable when you want to output a rough cut to tape to present it to other people. Use this method when you want to get an idea of what your video looks like, even if it's not displayed perfectly.

To monitor video or output to tape regardless of the quality of effects (frames may drop occasionally):

1 In the RT pop-up menu, choose Unlimited RT so there's a checkmark next to it.

2 In the Playback Video Quality section of the RT pop-up menu, choose Dynamic so there's a checkmark next to it.

3 For Playback Frame Rate, select Dynamic.

4 In the Record to Tape section of the RT pop-up menu, choose Use Playback Settings so there's a checkmark next to it.

5 Choose File > Print to Video or enable your external video output and record directly to tape from the Timeline.

For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 15, "Printing to Video and Outputting From the Timeline."

Instead of using RT Extreme, you may want to use a supported third-party video effects accelerator card. A video effects accelerator card is a video interface card that supports real-time effects processing, and can take the place of the built-in RT Extreme effects architecture of Final Cut Pro.

All codecs capable of real-time effects playback appear in the Effect Handling tab of the System Settings window. The Effect Handling tab allows you to choose whether Final Cut Pro uses RT Extreme or a supported video effects accelerator card for processing real-time effects. For example, you could choose to have RT Extreme handle media using the Photo-JPEG codec while using a video effects accelerator card to handle DV-NTSC footage.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > System Settings, then click the Effect Handling tab.

Note: The codecs you see may differ from those shown here.

2 In the pop-up menu corresponding to the codec you want to adjust, choose an effects handling method:

None: Choosing None disables real-time effects handling for the selected codec.
Final Cut Pro: This option uses RT Extreme, the built-in real-time processing engine of Final Cut Pro.
Other: If a video effects accelerator card is installed that is capable of real-time effects processing of a particular codec, it appears in this pop-up menu. Choose this option to have the video effects accelerator card handle real-time effects processing for a particular codec.

This chapter covers the following:

• What Is Rendering? (p. 533)
- Render Indicators in Final Cut Pro (p. 535)
• The Rendering Process (p. 539)
• Changing Render Settings (p. 549)
• Managing Your Render Files (p. 559)
- Tips for Avoiding Unnecessary Rendering (p. 563)

Rendering is the process of creating temporary video and audio render files for portions of your sequence that Final Cut Pro cannot play in real time. When you render a portion of your sequence, Final Cut Pro substitutes those portions with the render files, as indicated by render status bars above the ruler in the Timeline. If you change the parameters of your effects, you need to rerender.

Since rendering takes time away from the editing process, the goal is to render as little as possible. For more information about real-time playback, see Chapter 23, "Using RT Extreme," on page 509.

Any time Final Cut Pro must perform more calculations than your computer can handle in real time, you need to render. Final Cut Pro processes your video and audio when you apply filters, motion parameters, and speed, or when you mix clips with size, codec, or frame rates that don't match your sequence. For example, placing a clip whose media file uses a DV codec into a Photo-JPEG sequence requires rendering before you can play back the sequence.

You don't have to render the following:

Sequences that contain clips with matching settings, such as image dimensions, frame rate (editing timebase), audio sample rate, and so on.
Sequences without any effects, transitions, and customizable parameters (motion, speed, and so on). Such sequences can be played and output without rendering. You can also turn off options such as effects rendering and frame blending for speed effects to minimize the need to render.
Sequences with video effects that are within your computer's real-time playback capabilities.
Multiple mixed audio tracks that are within your computer's real-time playback limit at the selected audio playback quality.
Audio effects that are within your real-time playback limit at the selected audio playback quality.

Any processing beyond the practical limits of your computer requires rendering:

Video clips or sequences with transitions and effects that exceed your computer's real-time playback capabilities.
Video clips or sequences with transitions and effects that require rendering to output at broadcast quality.
High-quality final output. Real-time effects that play back at preview quality must ultimately be rendered for high-quality video output.
Video clips with frame rates that don't match those of your sequence setting. For more information about viewing and changing a sequence's settings, see Volume IV, Chapter 26, "Sequence Settings and Presets."
Video clips using codecs that can't play in real time.
Multiple mixed audio tracks and audio tracks with effects that exceed your real-time playback limit.

Note: You can set the Real-time Audio Mixing option in the General tab of the User Preferences window to reflect the number of audio tracks that can be mixed in real time on your system. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

- Applied audio effects that require too much processing power.

Final Cut Pro shows you which parts of your sequence need to be rendered by using render bars in the Timeline and, in some cases, on individual audio clip items.

There are two render status bars in the Timeline above the ruler: The upper one is for video and the lower for audio.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:13:16 00:00 01:00:07:00 01:00:14:00 01:00:21:00 V1 Don at table salad WS Wrap Wipe A1 Dining room serving salad WS Dining room serving salad WS a1 A3 Don at table salad WS Don at table salad WS

Render bars in the Timeline; the upper bar is for video, the lower bar is for audio.

As you create a sequence, indicators show which sections of the sequence require rendering to play back in real time at the selected render quality.

The color of the video render bar above the Timeline ruler indicates whether the items below need to be rendered.

Bar color	Timeline playback state
Dark gray	No rendering is required.
Blue-gray	The material has already been rendered.
Dark green	Indicates a real-time effect that's capable of playback and output to video at full quality with no rendering required.
Green	The media does not need rendering and will play on the computer screen in real time, but not at full quality.
Yellow	The effect you see during real-time playback is an approximation of the effect you've specified. Effects indicated by yellow render bars may ignore some filter controls (for example, Edge Softness) in order to show you a real-time preview. To get the true final effect, you must render these clips. The final effect is displayed when play is stopped or when scrubbing.For example, you may have added a wipe transition and set the angle to 37 degrees. Depending on your selected effects quality, Final Cut Pro may only be able to display the wipe angle at 45 degrees in real time, so you see an approximation during real-time playback. You can still see the effect as you specified it (the 37-degree angle) by placing the playhead over a frame of the effect in the Canvas or Timeline, or rendering the effect before playing it back.
Dark yellow	Indicates that an effect has been rendered at a lower frame rate or quality than the currently selected Frame Rate and Resolution in the Render Control tab of Sequence Settings. Render files are preserved even if these settings are changed back to 100 percent.
Orange	Effects that exceed your computer's real-time playback capabilities, but are enabled anyway because Unlimited RT is selected in the Real-Time Effects (RT) pop-up menu of the Timeline. Unlimited real-time playback lets you play more effects, but increases the chances that your sequence will drop frames during playback. This mode is useful for getting a real-time preview of complex effects compositions.
Red	The real-time capabilities of Final Cut Pro have been exceeded and the material must be rendered before playback or output to tape.

The color of the audio render bar above the Timeline ruler indicates whether the items below need to be rendered.

Color	Real-time playback state
Dark gray	No rendering is required.
Blue-gray	Sections of a sequence have been rendered using the Mixdown command.
Red	Sections of the Timeline contain audio items that cannot play in real time and that require rendering. Sections of sequences needing to be rendered play audible beeps.

Several other indicators show you the playback status of clips in your sequences:

- "Unrendered" message in the Viewer or Canvas: When video material that requires rendering is playing in the Viewer or Canvas, and the Play Base Layer Only option in the Real-Time Effects (RT) pop-up menu in the Timeline is not selected, a blue background with the word "Unrendered" appears, indicating that the video can't play in real time.

Canvas: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence 00:01:59:23 59% 01:00:11:23 Unrendered When this message appears, video won't play back in real time.

Beeps in the Viewer or Canvas: When audio material that requires rendering is played in the Viewer or Canvas, a steady beep indicates that the material can't play in real time. You can turn off the beeps in the Playback Control tab of the System Settings window.
Item render bars: Audio clip items in the Timeline that require sample rate conversion also display individual render bars (for example, audio clip items that were captured at 44.1 kHz but have been edited into a sequence set to 48 kHz).

Note: For more information on audio rendering and item render status bars, see the next section, "Item Render Status Bars."

An audio clip item in the Timeline may display an individual render bar within the clip itself; this indicates that the audio clip requires resampling, or sample rate conversion, to match the current sequence audio settings. A green bar indicates that an audio clip item is being resampled in real time, while a blue-gray render bar indicates that an audio clip item has been individually rendered so that real-time audio resampling is no longer necessary. Once an individual audio clip item is rendered, the clip item refers to the render file instead of the original media file.

Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:07:00 01:00:14:00 01:00:21:00 v1 V1 Dining room serving Nancy at table CU Don at table sa Nancy at table MS a1 A1 Dining room serving Nancy at table CU Don at table sa Nancy at table MS a2 A2 Blue-gray indicates that this audio item has been rendered. Green indicates that this audio item requires rendering.

The color of the render bar in each audio clip indicates whether that item needs sample rate conversion. An audio item's real-time playback state is not indicated.

Color	Render state
Green	Indicates audio items that require sample rate conversion.
Blue-gray	Indicates audio items that have been individually rendered and require sample rate conversion.

There are two advantages to item-level (audio clip item) rendering:

Reduces the CPU demands for audio, leaving more processing power for other effects.
When you move the audio clip item to other tracks or locations in the Timeline, the clip item does not lose its connection to the render file. This means you don't have to rerender the audio clip each time you move it.

When you render effects in a sequence, they're rendered in the following order:

The top-layer video track (the highest-numbered track) is rendered first and then composited onto the track below.
Within each track, effects are rendered as follows: speed, filters, motion, motion blur, opacity, and transitions.

You can change the order of rendering by using nested sequences. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 23, "Sequence to Sequence Editing."

The amount of time it takes items in the Timeline to render depends on the type and number of effects that are applied. When you render, a status window appears and provides you with the following information:

Percent: The percentage of rendering that has been completed, based on the number of frames left to render.
Estimated Time: The estimated time remaining to render. This value appears above the progress bar and appears in seconds, minutes, hours, and so on.

Writing Video... Estimated Time: About 2 minutes 4% Cancel

Final Cut Pro bases its estimate on how long the last frame took to render, and how many frames remain to be rendered. Because different sections of your sequence may have different effects applied, this estimate may change over time, as it's constantly updated to reflect the clip currently being rendered.

Render files for a sequence are generated cumulatively, with subsequent render files added to those that have already been created. Because of this, you can choose to render a sequence in its entirety, or only the parts of your sequence that are immediately necessary. Then, as you need to render other parts of the same sequence, you can simply widen the scope of what's rendered, selectively rendering additional clips without needing to rerender what's already been done.

There are several ways to selectively render specific parts of your sequences.

- Select the items you want to render manually: The easiest way to control what is rendered is to select the sequences or clips you want to render using the Selection tool. For example, you can select any number of sequences in the Browser, and then render them all at once by choosing Sequence > Render All > Both.

You can also select clips in an open sequence, individually or in groups, and render only those clips by choosing a command in the Render Selection submenu. You can select items in the Timeline to render with the Selection tool, or the Group Selection tool, or by setting In and Out points in the Timeline. This is a good way to save time by isolating a section of a sequence you're working on for rendering. For more information on selecting items in the Timeline, see Volume II, Chapter 11, "Finding and Selecting Content in the Timeline."

- Render audio and video clip items separately: Since audio clip items in a sequence with audio filters applied are rendered on a per-item basis, you can choose to render only the audio effects in your sequence to free up processing resources to enable real-time mixing across more audio tracks, or for real-time video effects that would otherwise require rendering.

Note: For more information about item-level rendering for audio clips, see "More About Audio Render Options" on page 543.

- Render items according to their Timeline playback state: Final Cut Pro has several render categories (or Timeline playback states), indicated by the color of the render status bar above the ruler in the Timeline. You can specifically choose which categories to render.

For example, while you're editing, you may only want to render clips with effects that can't play back in real time. In this case, you can select the option to render sections with the "Needs Render" status in the Render, Render All, or Render Only submenus of the Sequence menu. This limits the scope of the Render command to clips that can't play in real time, while clips with real-time effects applied are not rendered.

Later, when you need to output your project to tape, you can select additional render categories to render using the Render All command. This allows you to render all items with effects at the highest quality, prior to output.

Note: Final Cut Pro automatically renders all effects that cannot be played back at full quality in real-time prior to output using the Print to Video or Edit to Tape commands, so long as Full Quality is selected in the Real-Time (RT) pop-up menu in the Timeline. If Use Playback Settings is selected instead, no automatic render will take place prior to output.

Three submenus contain commands to control which effects are rendered in one or more selected sequences or clips. Which render commands you should use depends on the scope of the rendering operation you wish to perform.

Each of these rendering commands relies upon the settings in the Render Control tab in the Sequence Settings window to control the quality and speed of the render cache files created. Rendering effects with a Frame Rate or Resolution lower than 100 percent quality, or with Filters, Frame Blending, and Motion Blur deselected, creates low-resolution render files; these are useful for fast previews of your effects, but unsuitable for final output of your program to tape.

If you've selected one or more items in the Timeline, or defined a region of the Timeline using In and Out points, these rendering commands operate only on the selected regions. If nothing is selected and no In or Out points have been defined, the entire Timeline is rendered.

Sequence Render Selection Render All Render Only Settings... Lift Ripple Delete Close Gap Solo Selected Item(s) Nest Item(s)... Add Edit Extend Edit Add Video Transition Add Audio Transition Transition Alignment Trim Edit Insert Tracks... Delete Tracks... Both Video Needs Render Rendered Proxy Proxy Preview Full Unlimited Audio For Playback Item Level

Both: Renders both the video and audio of the selected region of the sequence. Several menu items representing each video and audio Timeline playback state appear underneath. Selecting and deselecting specific render states allow you to control which clips are rendered (selected menu items appear checked). For example, you can set up the Render command to render only the effects in your sequence that won't play in real time, skipping all the real-time effects to save you time.
Video: Renders only the video items in the selected region of the sequence. Six menu items appear underneath, corresponding to each of the Timeline playback states. Only clips with one of the selected Timeline playback states (appearing checked) are rendered.

- Audio: Renders only the audio items in the selected region of the sequence. Select one or both of the options that appear below to choose which audio items will be rendered; audio items appearing with red render bars, and/or item-level rendering for clips that need to be resampled or that have filters applied.

The commands in the Render All submenu render all the clips corresponding to the selected Timeline playback states in a sequence, regardless of whether or not you've selected a region of the Timeline.

Sequence Render ▶ Render All ▶ Render Only ▶ Settings... ⚙0 Lift Ripple Delete ⬇ Close Gap ^G Solo Selected Item(s) ^S Nest Item(s)... ℃ Add Edit ^V Extend Edit e Add Video Transition ⚙T Add Audio Transition ℭT Transition Alignment ▶ Trim Edit ⚙7 Insert Tracks... Delete Tracks... Both ℘R Video ✓ Needs Render ✓ Rendered Proxy ✓ Proxy ✓ Preview Full ✓ Unlimited Audio ✓ For Playback Item Level

Both: Renders both the video and audio of the sequence. Several menu items representing each video and audio Timeline playback state appear underneath. Selecting and deselecting specific render states allow you to control which clips are rendered (selected menu items appear checked). For example, you can set up the Render All command to render all the effects in your sequence that won't output to video at broadcast quality, to make sure that your sequence outputs at the highest quality possible.
Video: Renders only the video items in the sequence. Six menu items appear underneath, corresponding to each of the Timeline playback states. Only clips with one of the selected Timeline playback states (appearing checked) are rendered.
Audio: Renders only the audio items in the sequence. Select one or both of the options that appear below to choose which audio items will be rendered; audio items appearing with red render bars, and/or item level rendering for clips that need to be resampled or that have filters applied.

The commands in the Render Only submenu operate either on a selected region of the Timeline, or on the entire sequence if no selection is made. Render commands corresponding to each Timeline playback state appear in this submenu. In addition to the Timeline playback states that appear in the Render Selection and Render All submenus, another command appears here, Mixdown.

Sequence Render ▶ Render All ▶ Render Only ▶ Settings... %0 Lift Ripple Delete ◊ ◊ Close Gap ^G Solo Selected Item(s) ^S Nest Item(s)... ^C Add Edit ^V Extend Edit e Add Video Transition %T Add Audio Transition ^T Transition Alignment ▶ Trim Edit %7 Insert Tracks... Delete Tracks... Needs Render Rendered Proxy Proxy ⌘¶P Preview ^R Full Unlimited For Playback Item Level Mixdown ⌘¶R

Choosing a command renders all items in the selected region of the Timeline that appear with that Timeline playback state. For example, you can render only the real-time preview clips appearing in your sequence, leaving all the other clips in that sequence alone.

Two of the audio rendering operations create render files in very specific ways.

Item Level rendering options: Renders the audio items that need to be resampled to match the sample rate of the sequence, as well as audio items with filters applied to them, as item level render files. Audio mixing is still done in real time, and mixing performance improves since audio resampling and audio effects no longer consume real-time processing resources.
Mixdown: Renders all the audio in a sequence to a single group of render files, one for each audio output assigned to the selected sequence. This can improve playback performance by eliminating the need for Final Cut Pro to do any real-time mixing or audio effects playback. The Mixdown command is a nondestructive operation and doesn't change any of the audio clips in the sequence.

When using either the Item Level option in the Render Selection and Render All submenus, or the Mixdown command in the Render Only submenu, audio is rendered at the highest quality regardless of the setting chosen in the Audio Playback Quality pop-up menu in the General tab of the User Preferences window.

You can use any of the above commands to render all effects or a subset of effects in one or more sequences.

1 Do one of the following:

In the Browser, select one or more sequences.
Open a single sequence in the Timeline.

3 Choose the combination of Timeline playback states you want to render from the Sequence > Render All submenu.

4 Choose a render command from the Sequence > Render All submenu.

5 If your project has not yet been saved, Final Cut Pro prompts you to save your project. A status window appears showing the rendering progress. Click Cancel to stop rendering. All rendered frames are written to disk, even if rendering is canceled.

If you've added a transition or an effect to a clip and want to render just that part of the sequence, use the Render Selection command.

In the Timeline, select one or more clips or transitions.
In the Timeline or Canvas, set In and Out points for the area that you want to render.

In and Out points for the section to be rendered Timeline: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence RT 01:00:16:04 00:00 01:00:14:00 01:00:21:00 v1 V1 Don at table salad WS Additive Dissolve a1 A1 Dining room serving salad W Cr Dining room Cr Don at table Din a2 A2 Dining room serving salad W Cr Dining room Cr Don at table Din A3

Note: If you don't select anything, the Render Selection command does not appear in the Sequence menu.

2 If necessary, choose Sequence > Settings, then select the Render Control tab in the Sequence Settings window to specify quality settings for rendered effects, as well as to choose which effects are and are not rendered.
3 Choose the combination of Timeline playback states you want to render from the Render Selection submenu in the Sequence menu.
4 Choose a render command from the Sequence > Render Selection submenu.
5 If your project has not yet been saved, Final Cut Pro prompts you to save your project. A status window appears showing the rendering progress. Click Cancel to stop rendering. Note: All frames that have already been rendered remain written to disk, even if rendering is canceled.

The following commands allow you to render audio items when required for real-time playback. Audio filters and sample rate conversion are rendered together.

1 Select one or more clips with transitions and filters in the Timeline.
2 Choose Sequence > Render Selection > Audio.

1 Select or open a sequence in the Timeline.
2 Choose Sequence > Render All > Audio.

Note: Item render files are preserved even when an item is trimmed shorter, moved, or copied and pasted, or when either individual audio items or the tracks they're edited into are disabled and reenabled.

Sometimes, you may have so many audio items edited into a sequence or so many filters applied that rendering the items in your sequence doesn't ensure real-time playback. In this case, use the Mixdown command in the Sequence menu to render all audio in a sequence prior to playback or output to tape.

1 Select a sequence in the Timeline.
2 With the Timeline or Canvas active, do one of the following:

Choose Sequence > Render Only > Mixdown.
Press Option-Command-R.

A rendered audio file is written to disk so that the sequence can now play back the render file instead of all the individual audio tracks.

Note: This command has no effect on how your clips are edited. All audio clips remain on their own tracks in the sequence just as they were before. The Mixdown command only consolidates the audio for playback in an audio render file.

Once you've applied mixdown audio to a sequence, the menu item is dimmed and a checkmark appears next to it to show that the audio in the sequence has been rendered as a preview file. If you move any audio clips afterward, the preview file is discarded, and the Mixdown command again becomes available in the Sequence menu.

Normally, Final Cut Pro attempts to calculate all the effects applied to the frame at the current playhead position. Sometimes, especially with effects-intensive sequences, you will want to disable these calculations temporarily while you make changes to edits in a sequence or to the settings of a motion effect or filter. When rendering is disabled, all clips that require rendering (indicated by red render bars in the Timeline) do not appear in the Viewer or Canvas. This way, you can work in the Timeline or in the Controls, Filters, or Motion tab of the Viewer without waiting for individual frames at the position of the playhead to render for display. Clips with real-time effects applied will still appear.

■ Press the Caps Lock key.

The Viewer and Canvas both go black. A message appears at the top of both windows saying "The Caps Lock key is on; rendering is disabled." Press the Caps Lock key again to enable rendering.

Canvas: Dining sequence in Dining Dining sequence 00:00:08:10 59% 01:00:01:14 The Caps Lock key is on: rendering is disabled.

This message appears in the Viewer (and Canvas) when rendering is disabled.

The Auto Render option allows you to take advantage of idle computer time when you're not editing—such as during a coffee break or lunch—to render open sequences in the Timeline.

- Choose Final Cut Pro > User Preferences and click the General tab.

Three options determine what parts of your opened sequences are rendered and when:

Start Render After: This number, in minutes, specifies the amount of idle time that must pass before Final Cut Pro starts to automatically render any open sequences.
Which Sequences: Choose Open Sequences from this pop-up menu to render all open sequences in the Timeline. Choose Current Only to render the currently selected sequence tab in the Timeline. Choose Open Except Current to render all open sequences except for the currently selected sequence tab in the Timeline.
Render Real Time Segments: Selecting this option ensures that all sections of your sequence that use real-time effects are also rendered. Deselecting this option saves time by ignoring sections of your sequence that are already capable of playing back in real time.

When the number of minutes specified in the Start Render After field has elapsed with no user activity, a progress dialog appears indicating the following sequence of events:

1 If Autosave is selected, the project is automatically saved prior to rendering.

2 All selected regions of the currently open sequence are rendered.

3 All red sections of the Timeline are rendered.

4 All audio with effects is rendered.

5 All yellow and orange sections of the Timeline are rendered.

6 If the Render Real Time Segments option has been selected, all green sections of the Timeline are rendered.

7 If the Which Sequences pop-up menu is set to Open Sequences, steps 2 through 6 are followed for each open sequence. The project is autosaved after each render.

Each sequence has rendering options you can change in the following locations:

Video Processing tab in Sequence Settings: This tab allows you to choose color space, bit depth, maximum white level conversion, and scaling options for your sequence. You can also adjust these settings in each sequence preset, using the Sequence Preset Editor in the Audio/Video Settings window.
Render Control tab in Sequence Settings: This tab allows you to choose render quality settings, such as video quality and frame rate of rendered files. This allows you to choose shorter rendering time with lower image quality, or vice versa.
These same settings are also available in the Render Control tab in User Preferences but in this case they only affect default settings for newly created sequences.

The Video Processing tab determines how clips' media files are processed within your sequence. This affects color space conversions as well as the quality of motion parameter animation.

Video and graphics files can represent color information several ways. Traditionally, computer-generated video uses RGB pixels, while digital video from decks and camcorders uses Y^_BC_R (also known as YUV, or component video) pixels. These two color spaces represent color information very differently.

In the RGB color model, colors are represented by red, green, and blue values in varying amounts. When all three values are the same, the result is grayscale pixels. For example, if all three color channels are 0, the pixel is black. If all three color channels are 255 (the maximum value), the pixel is white.

In the Y^_BC_R color model, a black-and-white channel called Y^ , or luma, is derived from the RGB color channels in a camcorder imaging chip. This Y^ channel represents the brightness and detail of an image, and was originally created so that black-and-white televisions could still receive useful information when color television was invented. Two additional color channels, C_B and C_R (sometimes referred to as color difference channels with names such as R-Y and B-Y, or U and V), are used to represent the color information.

Note: In digital video, the color channels are typically sampled less often than the luma channel, reducing the video data without noticeable loss to the image. The ratio of sampling between the Y' , C_B , and C_R channels is often notated as 4:2:2, 4:1:1, and so on, depending on the sampling rates used. For more information about how color is represented in various video formats, see Volume IV, Appendix A, "Video Formats."

Each pixel uses a certain number of bits to store the intensity of a color channel. For example, a typical RGB media file may use 8 bits for each of the red, green, and blue channels. Using 8 bits allows for 256 intensity values per color channel.

The more bits used per color sample, the more subtle variations of color are possible. For example, if you use 10 bits per color sample instead of 8, there are 1024 possible intensity values per color channel instead of 256.

When using the Y'C_B C_R color space, Final Cut Pro supports either 8- or 10-bit video media files for capture and output, as well as for rendering video filters and transitions. To determine which color space and bit depth your video interface supports, see the documentation that came with the interface. For more information on which filters support 10-bit resolution, see "Video Filters Available in Final Cut Pro" on page 203. For more information on which transitions support 10-bit resolution, see Volume II, Chapter 22, "Refining Transitions Using the Transition Editor."

Most DV video formats use 8-bit color samples, while some professional video formats such as D-5 use 10 bits per color. Many third-party video interfaces and codecs support 10-bit video capture, processing, and output, which improves color quality significantly. This is especially true for subtle color gradations.

When rendering effects such as transitions or filters, 8-bit precision is faster, but yields lower quality when using clips captured at 10-bit resolution. Rendering effects at full 10-bit precision results in higher quality video, but slower rendering times and slightly larger render files.

Most effects and compositing are the result of adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing pixel intensity values. Final Cut Pro supports high-resolution video processing of Y^_BC_R sequences by performing calculations in 32-bit floating point number space. Compared to 8- and 10-bit integer calculations, 32-bit floating point numbers have an extremely high level of precision, which helps to avoid rounding errors that can accumulate as you add more layers to a composite, or add multiple filters to a clip.

In most cases, you should choose to render your sequence using 32-bit floating point space (high-precision YUV) for final rendering before output or export.

Each color space has a certain range, or gamut, of colors that can be represented. Some colors represented in the Y'C_B C_R color space cannot be represented in RGB, and are said to be out of gamut. If the color space of your media files doesn't match the color space of your sequence, Final Cut Pro maps the media file color values to the color space of the sequence. In some cases, colors get "clipped" to the nearest value during conversion. This can cause very saturated colors to become less intense and is referred to as chroma clamping.

Final Cut Pro supports native Y^_BC_R color space rendering. Since most video formats use Y^_BC_R , this allows you to edit without worrying about color space conversions to RGB.

Most digital camcorders record 8-bit video from 16 (black) to 235 (maximum white), while RGB files use the entire range from 0 to 255. Normally, when converting from RGB to Y'C_B C_R, the maximum RGB white value (255) is mapped to the maximum Y'C_B C_R value (235). However, this is not always the correct way to convert the pixel values. This is because many digital camcorders use 235 as a broadcast-safe maximum white level, but allow even brighter pixel values up to 254. This allows you to set your camera exposure to keep your levels generally around 235, while allowing additional headroom for extreme highlights such as shiny objects. In these cases, 235 in Y'C_B C_R corresponds to 100 IRE, which is the broadcast safe limit for white values. Anything brighter is considered to be super-white, meaning that although the pixel value is allowed in the video signal, it is not considered legal for traditional NTSC and PAL broadcast.

If you work exclusively with Y'C_B C_R video footage, you don't need to worry about this issue. However, if you incorporate any RGB media files in a sequence that uses a Y'C_B C_R codec, you need to choose how the RGB values are mapped to the Y'C_B C_R color space.

In Final Cut Pro, you can choose whether RGB values are mapped to 235 (white—or 100 IRE) or super-white (above 100 IRE). If your Y'C_B C_R footage contains super-white values, and you include RGB footage in your sequence, you should choose the super-white option in the Video Processing tab. If the maximum white value of your video footage never exceeds 100 IRE, then you should choose white.

When super-white Y^_BC_R values are converted to RGB, any values above 235 are mapped to 255. Any variation in luma above 235 is therefore clamped, or clipped, resulting in solid patches of white where there was once detail in the bright parts of the image. When these RGB values are converted back to Y^_BC_R , all white values of 255 are mapped to a single value (usually 235, which is white in Y^_BC_R ). The newly converted white values are less than the white values originally captured, causing areas of the picture that had super-white values to darken slightly, and to appear flat where there was once detail in the highlights. This is known as luma clamping.

You can avoid this by editing your Y^_BC_R footage natively in the Y^_BC_R color space. For example, the Apple DV codec is capable of processing in Y^_BC_R color space, eliminating clamping and preserving super-white video levels in rendered and unrendered material.

For more information about white and super-white levels, see "About Maximum White Levels" on page 551.

Many compositing operations in Final Cut Pro work the same way in Y^_BC_R as they do in RGB. However, in some cases, slightly different results may occur. This is because the Y^_BC_R and RGB color spaces are not identical, and some compositing operations that generate highly saturated colors may show different clamping behavior in Y^_BC_R then they do in RGB.

For example, using the Add composite mode to combine 75 percent cyan and 75 percent white will "clamp" to white in RGB, but to a bright cyan color in Y^_BC_R . For this reason, it's important to verify the results of the composite by doing a test render in the color space you will do the final render in.

High definition video formats such as DVCPRO HD often use colors defined by ITU-R BT. 709, or Rec-709. Standard definition formats use a color space defined by ITU-R BT. 601, or Rec-601 for short.

Final Cut Pro automatically handles both color standards, and accurately converts from one standard to another when you mix formats. For example, if you edit a standard definition DV clip into a sequence that uses a DVCPRO HD preset, the standard definition media is properly converted from Rec-601 to Rec-709. High definition video used in a standard definition sequence is also converted properly from Rec-709 to Rec-601.

Important: While using the Super-White setting will match the super-white levels recorded by some consumer camcorders, the output will not be broadcast legal because the luminance levels will be too high according to the CCIR 601 standard for video. In this case, if you have to output a tape for broadcast, you will need to correct the white levels in your edited sequence either with filters or by using external hardware such as a proc amp.

If Y^_BC_R rendering is supported by the codec used in a sequence, Final Cut Pro generates color bars with a PLUGE (Picture Lineup Generation Equipment) area that includes a super-black (4 IRE in NTSC, 2 IRE in PAL) signal for calibration. If any image processing (such as motion effects or filters) is applied to the Bars and Tone generator, the super-black portion of the PLUGE bar becomes black.

- Always Render in RGB: Forces codecs that normally process color using the Y'C_B C_R (YUV) color space to process using the RGB color space instead. If selected, this option may cause subtle changes in color in your rendered material. If the video codec you're using doesn't support Y'C_B C_R rendering, this option is unavailable. Use this option if you want to accomplish a specific compositing task and you think color clamping in the RGB color space might give you a preferred result over using the straight Y'C_B C_R color space. For example, if you're mixing After Effects filters, which process only in RGB color space, with Final Cut Pro filters, which process in Y'C_B C_R color space, choosing this option ensures a consistent look.

Render in 8-bit YUV: Enables 8-bit rendering using the Y'C_B C_R color space. This option is appropriate for footage captured from DV-25 source material, such as DV and DVCAM tape, or for third-party video interfaces that capture 8-bit video in the Y'C_B C_R color space using an appropriate Y'C_B C_R-compatible codec. However, if you are doing any compositing or adding filters, you may want to use high-precision processing instead.
Render 10-bit material in high-precision YUV: Enables 32-bit floating point rendering using the Y^_BC_R color space. This is appropriate for footage captured from third-party video interfaces that capture 10-bit video in the Y^_BC_R color space using an appropriate Y^_BC_R -compatible codec.

Third-party video interfaces capable of 10-bit, Y'C_B C_R video let you capture media files with much finer color detail, as well as greater latitude from blacks to whites, than do 8-bit sources. Final Cut Pro can capture and output from such a card using this higher level of quality, and selecting this option enables certain effects such as transitions and filters to be rendered at this quality.

- Render all YUV material in high-precision YUV: Enables 32-bit floating point processing even when using 8-bit media files. In certain situations, such as when applying multiple filters to a single clip, a higher bit depth will improve the quality of the final render file even though the original clip has only 8 bits of color information. The trade-off is that 32-bit rendering is slower than 8-bit rendering, so you're essentially trading speed for quality.

Selecting this option does not add quality to clips captured at 8-bit resolution when output back to video; it simply improves the quality of rendered effects that support 10-bit precision.

Final Cut Pro can process maximum white in one of two ways, depending on your capture source. Many DV camcorders record video with whites that are brighter than 100 IRE, the level allowed by the CCIR 601 engineering standard for video. White levels brighter than 100 IRE are called super-white.

When you use clips created in RGB color space (for example, imported graphics files, Final Cut Pro generator clips such as the Text Generator, or QuickTime movie files that use codecs in RGB color space), Final Cut Pro sets the maximum white values in these imported clips to the white level specified by this pop-up menu. In this way, you can make sure that the white levels of your graphics or generator clips match those of your captured video.

This pop-up menu allows you to match RGB brightness to Y'C_B C_R clips using super-white. It is available only if "Always Render in RGB" is not selected. The menu has two options:

White: The maximum brightness of imported graphics or generators using the RGB color space will be set to a digital level of 100 percent. If the exposure of your video was carefully controlled during your shoot and you're sure that the brightness of your imported video clips is no more than 100 IRE, you should use this setting. As a result, the brightest whites in your graphics or generators will be at 100 percent when viewed in the Final Cut Pro Waveform Monitor. If you use the White setting, the luma values of the graphics in your project will be broadcast legal, so it's the recommended mode for video destined for on-air broadcast.
Super-White: The maximum brightness of imported graphics or generators using RGB color space will be set to a digital level of 109 percent. This allows you to match the super-white levels of clips from some DV camcorders with the maximum white levels of your graphics or generator clips. As a result, the brightest white in your graphics or generators will be mapped to 109 percent when viewed in the Final Cut Pro Waveform Monitor. Using the Super-White option is important if you're trying to achieve a consistent look between RGB clips in your project and video clips with super-white levels.

Important: While using the Super-White setting will match the super-white levels recorded by some consumer camcorders, the output will not be broadcast-legal because the luma levels will be too high according to the ITU-R BT. 601 standard for video. In this case, if you have to output a tape for broadcast, you will need to correct the white levels in your edited sequence, either by applying filters or by using external hardware such as a proc amp.

Normal: This option uses standard scaling and transformation algorithms, and yields medium-quality results compared to the other options.
Best: This option performs very high-quality motion transformations on your clips. Use this option for final rendering for output or export.
Fastest: This option performs fast, low-quality motion transformations on your clips. This improves rendering time, so it is useful when you are sketching out motion effects. In Final Cut Pro HD 4.5 and earlier, this was the only option available.

You can change video processing settings in individual sequences using the Video Processing tab in your sequence settings.

1 Choose Sequence > Settings, then click the Video Processing tab.
2 Select the appropriate options, then click OK.
For a detailed description of options in the Video Processing tab, see "About Settings in the Video Processing Tab" on page 553.
3 Click an option to choose a color space and bit depth for your sequence.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings, then click the Sequence Preset tab.
2 Double-click on a sequence preset in the list of presets.
The Sequence Preset Editor window opens.
3 Click the Video Processing tab, then choose the appropriate settings.

Each sequence has its own group of render and playback settings, located in the Render Control tab of the Sequence Settings window. These settings allow you to enable and disable processor-intensive effects in Final Cut Pro, such as filters and motion blur. This is useful if you want to apply filters and speed changes to clips, but temporarily ignore them to avoid rendering while you edit.

The Render Control tabs in the User Preferences and Sequence Settings windows have identical settings. Changes made to the Render Control tab in User Preferences only affect the default settings for new sequences, while changes to the Render Control tab in Sequence Settings affect individual sequences.

Sequence Settings Name: Dream sequence General Video Processing Timeline Options Render Control Audio Outputs Render & Playback Filters Frame Blending For Speed Motion Blur Render Frame Rate: 100% of Sequence Editing Timebase Resolution: 100% of Sequence Frame Size Load Sequence Preset... Cancel OK The same settings are also available in the Render Control tab in the User Preferences window.

Filters: Selecting this option allows filters to be processed when rendering or during playback. If this option is deselected, all filters are ignored.
Frame Blending For Speed: This option only affects clips with speed settings applied. If this option is selected, frame blending is processed when rendering or during playback. If this option is not selected, frame blending is ignored for all clips in your sequences.
Motion Blur: If this option is selected, motion blur is processed when rendering or during playback. If this option is not selected, motion blur is ignored for all clips in your sequences.

Frame Rate: You can use this pop-up menu to reduce the frame rate of rendered effects, dramatically speeding up rendering at the expense of lowering playback quality. For example, if you're editing at 29.97 fps, and you choose 50 percent in the Frame Rate pop-up menu, rendered effects in your sequence will play back at 15 frames per second.
Resolution: Choose a percentage from this pop-up menu to reduce the resolution of rendered effects, speeding up rendering at the expense of lowering playback quality. For example, if you're editing with a frame size of 720 x 480, choosing 50 percent lowers the resolution of rendered effects to a non-interlaced 360 x 240. Rendered effects play back at full frame size despite having lower resolution; however, they look less sharp and are non-interlaced.

Important: These options don't affect real-time playback. To change the frame rate and resolution of video playback, use the RT pop-up menu instead. For more information, see "Settings and Options in the RT Pop-Up Menu and Playback Control Tab" on page 523.

Tip: Many of these settings can also be assigned to keyboard shortcuts or buttons on the button bar using the Keyboard Layout window, if you need to make frequent changes. For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 10, "Customizing the Interface."

If you change the render control options for new or existing sequences, you will affect real-time playback, rendering, video output, and export quality to QuickTime movie files.

To change the default Render Control options for all new sequences:

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > User Preferences
2 Click the Render Control tab.
3 Select the settings you want, then click OK.

The selected settings in the Render Control tab of the User Preferences window are applied to all new sequences you create.

To change the Render Control settings in an existing sequence:

1 Open the sequence settings for a particular sequence by doing one of the following:

Control-click a sequence in the Browser, then choose Settings from the shortcut menu.
Select a sequence in the Browser or Timeline, then choose Sequence > Settings.

2 Click the Render Control tab.
3 Select the settings you want, then click OK.

The new settings are applied to the selected sequence.

Rendering produces render files that are actual media files stored on your hard disk, the same as your captured media. Video and audio render files are saved to the disks you specify in the Scratch Disk tab of the System Settings window. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

When you're working on multiple projects or a highly complex project, render files can accumulate very quickly. It's important to manage your render files to maximize your disk space.

Note: If you run out of disk space during the rendering process, a dialog appears, giving you the option to delete old render files and free up disk space.

Final Cut Pro stores video render files in a folder named Render Files. By default, this folder is located in a folder called Final Cut Pro Documents, which is located on the specified scratch disk. The Final Cut Pro Documents folder contains separate folders for video render files, audio render files, captured media, and caches for waveforms and thumbnails.

Inside the Render Files folder, Final Cut Pro creates a folder for each project with render files.

Important: Do not delete render files when you're working in the Finder. Instead, use the Render Manager in Final Cut Pro to delete render files.

The Render Manager allows you to manage the render files associated with the sequences in your projects. Render files are created whenever you render transitions, effects, or multilayer composites in a sequence. They are stored in the scratch disk location specified in the Scratch Disks tab of the System Settings window. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

You use the Render Manager to delete unwanted render files to free up disk space. Periodically, you may find it useful to remove the following:

Render files from deleted or old projects
Unnecessary render files for existing projects

The Render Manager finds render files from both open and closed projects. You can use the modification dates for files displayed in the Render Manager to help you determine which files you no longer need. If you delete render files for projects you're still working on, you may need to rerender sections of your sequences.

Note: The Render Manager doesn't search disks that aren't specified as scratch disks.

In the Render Manager, render files are organized into folders by project and sequence; filenames show whether files are video or audio render files. The Last Modified date column shows the last time a render file was saved.

Items in the Render Manager are displayed in three groups: audio, audio mixdown (sequence level audio render files), and video.

The Render Manager dialog appears. All projects that reference render files on the current render scratch disk are displayed. This includes all items in a sequence or project.

- Disclosure triangle: Click to show items within a project or sequence.

Projects: Click the triangle next to a project to display all sequences in the project that contain render files on the current render scratch disk.
Sequences: Click the triangle next to a sequence to display the render files for each render quality level.
Type: The type of item (bin or render file).
Size: The amount of disk space used by render files.
Last Modified: The date the render files were last updated.

Clicking an item that includes other items, such as a project, automatically includes all those items within it.
Clicking a sequence selects all the render quality files for the sequence.

A checkmark appears next to each item you want to delete. The total amount of disk space that will be made available is displayed at the bottom of the window.

All files tagged for removal (checked) are deleted from the scratch disk.

Important: Deleted render files cannot be restored with the Undo command.

When you make changes to effects, composited media, and other edits that have already been rendered, the render file for the affected item is no longer valid.

- If the project has been saved with the render file, the render file is deleted when whichever of the following happens later:

- The project is saved again.

- The change falls off the "Undo queue" (the series of changes that can be reversed with the Undo command in the Edit menu).

- If the project has not been saved since the render file was created, the render file is deleted when the new change falls off the Undo queue.

Note: You can keep your important render files by nesting sequences (see the next section).

You can preserve render files for a sequence or for audio clips within a sequence by nesting that sequence within another sequence. Nesting is particularly useful for protecting the render files for effects-intensive clips you plan to trim frequently.

If a change is made to a parent sequence that's been nested, it needs to be rerendered before the nested sequence plays in real time. Modifications include any compositing, speed changes, or changes in filters, transitions, or other effects.

For detailed information, see Volume II, Chapter 23, "Sequence to Sequence Editing."

When you disable a video or audio track in the Timeline, any render files associated with that track are lost. If this happens, you can restore that track's render files by using the Undo command.

You can do several things to avoid rendering.

Edit the majority of your project using cuts only; only add transitions, effects, or filters that can play back in real time or that are absolutely necessary in making decisions about your first cut. Avoiding unnecessary effects and time-consuming rendering can help you focus on your program's overall pacing and structure. Once your first cut is done, you can focus on applying effects like color correction and titles without being distracted.
Use the Unlimited RT mode and dynamic real-time playback. For more information, see Chapter 23, "Using RT Extreme," on page 509.
If you use effects that need to be rendered, you can get a good idea of how the clip looks by simply scrubbing through the clip in the Timeline or Canvas to view the effect one frame at a time.

You can also choose Mark > Play > Every Frame (or press Option-) to play through a clip one frame at a time, not in real time, and get a slow-motion preview of how the effect will look.

- When you change the In and Out points of a clip with filters applied, you may need to rerender the adjusted areas. To avoid constantly rerendering, you can place a clip with its applied filters into a sequence, and then edit that sequence into other sequences. This is sometimes called nesting a sequence. Because you modify the sequence In and Out points instead of the clip within the sequence, the render file for the clip is maintained. For detailed information about nesting clips using the Nest Items command, see Volume II, Chapter 23, "Sequence to Sequence Editing."

- Disable filters that require rendering when you don't need to view the effects in order to make decisions.

- Disable the rendering and playback of filters, frame blending, and motion blur individually, or collectively in the Render Control tab of Sequence Settings. These options can be reselected at any time.

- Temporarily disable rendering of non-real-time clips. This allows you to make changes to effects-intensive sequences without having to wait for frames at the position of the playhead to render for display in the Viewer or Canvas. For more information, see "Temporarily Disabling Rendering" on page 547.

- For cuts-only sequences you're editing, it's helpful if all the clips you use match the sequence's frame rate, frame size, aspect ratio, and compression settings. While you can freely mix source clips using different settings within the same sequence, doing so may decrease the available number of real-time effects you can apply.

If an imported QuickTime file's frame rate doesn't match the sequence or its frame size is larger, it will have to be rendered before it will play back in real time.

Here are some tips for reducing the amount of time it takes to render your sequence:

Lower the frame rate and resolution of effects that are rendered in the Render Control tab of the Sequence Settings window. This lowers the playback quality of those effects, but allows them to render substantially faster.
Disable certain render-intensive effects in your sequence, including filters, frame blending, and motion blur. Using the options in the Render Control tab of the Sequence Settings window, you can turn on and off all such effects in your sequence without having to enable and disable each effect individually.
Test-render short sections to evaluate an effect, rather than the entire clip or sequence. You can always begin rendering a clip, and then stop the render midway. Final Cut Pro preserves what was rendered, so you can see how it looks without having to rerender the entire clip.
Render sequences while you take a break or do other work by turning on Auto Rendering in the General tab of the User Preferences window.

In this case, rendering time isn't actually reduced, but you can make efficient use of your time by turning your attention to other things as the computer renders your media. For more information about the Auto Rendering option in the General tab of the User Preferences window, see Volume IV, Chapter 22, "Choosing Settings and Preferences."

DATE CAMERA 4:24:48:20 SCENE TAKE ROLL

Apple Computer, Inc.

Apple, the Apple logo, DVD Studio Pro, Final Cut, Final Cut Pro, FireWire, iDVD, iMovie, Mac, Macintosh, Mac OS, PowerBook, Power Mac, QuickTime, Soundtrack, and Xserve are trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries.

Cinema Tools, Finder, LiveType, OfflineRT, Pixlet, and Xsan are trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc.

AppleCare is a service mark of Apple Computer, Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. .Mac is a service mark of Apple Computer, Inc.

Adobe and Photoshop are trademarks or registered trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated in the U.S. and/or other countries.

13 What Is Media Management?
15 Reasons to Use Media Management
15 What You Need to Know to Manage Your Media
16 Media Management Steps in Final Cut Pro
17 Strategies for Media Management

19 Backing Up and Restoring Projects
20 Using the Revert Project Command
20 Using the Autosave Feature
22 Restoring Autosaved Projects
23 Opening a Project File After Your Computer Is Unexpectedly Powered Off
24 Archiving Completed Projects
24 Creating an Archive of a Finished Project
25 Updating Projects From Previous Versions of Final Cut Pro
25 Before Updating Projects
26 Updating Projects
27 Updating Projects From Final Cut Pro HD 4.5 or Earlier
27 Updating Projects From Final Cut Pro 3.0 so That Clips Have Master-Affiliate Relationships
28 Updating Projects or Sequences From Final Cut Pro 1.2.1

29 About Clips, Media Files, and Sequences
33 About Icons and Project Elements in the Browser
34 Clip Properties

41 Using Master and Affiliate Clips
42 How Master Clips Connect to Media Files

42 Identifying Master Clips
43 Creating Master and Affiliate Clips
45 Breaking the Relationship Between an Affiliated Clip and Its Master
46 Independent Clips
48 Finding a Clip's Master Clip
48 Master-Affiliate Relationships With Subclips, Merged Clips, and Freeze Frames
49 Master-Affiliate Clip Properties
49 Master Clip Properties
50 Affiliate Clip Properties
50 Media File Properties

Chapter 5 51 Offline and Online Editing
51 About Offline/Online Editing
54 Offline/Online Editing Workflows
55 Using the OfflineRT Format in Final Cut Pro
60 Online Editing on Non-Final Cut Pro Editing Systems
61 Trading Project Files Using Email or the Internet

Chapter 6 63 Reconnecting Clips and Offline Media
64 About the Connections Between Clips and Media Files
65 How the Connection Between Clips and Media Files Can Be Broken
66 Making Clips Offline
68 Reconnecting Clips to Media Files
74 When Final Cut Pro Reconnects Your Clips

Chapter 7 77 Overview of the Media Manager
78 What Can You Do With the Media Manager?
79 Selecting Items to Process With the Media Manager
80 Settings and Options in the Media Manager Window
87 How the Media Manager Processes Selected Items
90 Limiting How Much Media Is Copied or Deleted

Chapter 8 93 Examples of How to Use the Media Manager

94 Using the Media Manager

97 Example: Removing Unused Media From a Sequence

98 Example: Duplicating a Sequence and Its Corresponding Media Files

99 Example: Duplicating a Portion of a Sequence and Its Media Files

100 Example: Copying Several Sequences With New Settings, but Without Media Files

101 Example: Recompressing Media Files for an Entire Project for Editing on a PowerBook

103 Example: Removing Portions of Media Files After Creating Subclips

104 Example: Consolidating Media Files Into One Folder

106 Example: Consolidating Your Project and Media Files for Archiving

109 Diagnostic Tools for Clips

109 Different Tools for Diagnosing Clips

110 About the Analyze Movie Command

111 Using the Analyze Movie Command

112 Information Reported by the Analyze Movie Command

113 Finding and Marking Long Frames

113 Using the Mark Long Frames Command

115 Detecting Audio Peaks

119 Importing and Exporting EDLs

119 What Is an EDL?

120 Learning to Read an EDL

121 Elements of an EDL

124 Exporting EDLs

125 Settings and Options in the EDL Export Dialog

131 Reviewing an EDL

131 Using EDL Access for RT-11 Disks

132 Importing Edit Decision Lists (EDLs)

132 Limitations of Importing EDLs

132 Importing EDLs in Final Cut Pro

133 Settings and Options in the EDL Import Dialog

134 How Clips From an EDL Are Named

134 Master Clips Created From EDLs

135 Recapturing Clips From an Imported EDL

135 Creating Better EDLs

135 Limitations of EDLs

136 EDL Considerations Before Capturing

139 EDL Considerations During Editing

142 Transition Wipe Codes for EDL Export

145 Exporting Audio for Mixing in Other Applications

145 Ways You Can Finish Your Audio

146 Organizing Your Audio Clips for Multi-Track Export

147 Exporting Audio Tracks to Individual Audio Files

148 Preparing to Export Audio Tracks as Audio Files

151 Exporting Audio Tracks as Individual Audio Files

152 Exporting Audio Output Groups to AIFF(s)

154 Automatic Filenaming During Export to AIFF(s)

154 Exporting a Downmix

155 Preparing to Export Audio to AIFF(s)

155 Using the Export Audio to AIFF(s) Command

157 Exporting Multichannel QuickTime Files

158 Exporting OMF Audio Files

159 Limitations of OMF Exporting in Final Cut Pro

159 Exporting Sequence Audio to an OMF File

161 Exporting Audio Clip Information to an EDL

163 About XML

167 Overview of the Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format

170 Exporting XML in Final Cut Pro

171 Importing XML Into Final Cut Pro

175 Choosing a Videotape Format and Equipment for Output

177 Output Requirements

178 Methods for Output to Tape in Final Cut Pro

179 Setting Up Your Editing System to Output to Tape

185 Overview of Tape Editing Methods

187 About Assemble Editing to Tape

187 About Insert Editing to Tape

188 Requirements for Assemble or Insert Editing to Tape

189 About the Edit to Tape Window

189 Video Tab

193 Mastering Settings Tab

196 Device Settings Tab

197 Using the Edit to Tape Window

197 Performing an Assemble Edit to Tape

199 Performing an Insert Edit When Editing to Tape

204 Using Edit to Tape to Output Multichannel Audio

207 Different Ways You Can Output Video From the Timeline

208 Printing to Video

208 Automatically Recording With Print to Video

209 Using the Print to Video Command

211 Recording From the Timeline

213 Outputting to VHS Tape

Chapter 16 215 Exporting Sequences for DVD
215 The DVD Creation Process
220 Adding Chapter and Compression Markers to Your Sequence
222 About the DVD Authoring Applications
224 Creating DVD-Compliant Sources for DVD Studio Pro
227 What Is QuickTime?
228 The QuickTime Suite of Software Applications
228 QuickTime for Media Authoring
228 The QuickTime Movie File Format
231 How Final Cut Pro Uses QuickTime for Import, Export, and Capture
232 Formats Supported by QuickTime
236 How Do You Export the Files You Need?
239 About the Export QuickTime Movie Command
240 Choosing the Type of QuickTime Movie to Export
241 Exporting a QuickTime Movie File
245 About the Export Using QuickTime Conversion Command
246 Types of QuickTime-Compatible File Formats
247 Exporting a QuickTime Movie File for Web Distribution
256 Exporting a DV Stream
257 Exporting an AVI File
261 Determining the Image Format for Still Image Export
262 Exporting a Single Still Image
264 Exporting Image Sequences
267 Overview of the Batch Exporting Process
268 Selecting Items in the Browser to Batch Export
270 Selecting Batch Export Settings
275 Doing a Batch Export
276 Opening Batch Exported Files in the Viewer
277 Redoing Batch Exports

281 Choosing Settings and Preferences

281 Changing User Preferences

282 General Tab

287 Editing Tab

292 Labels Tab

293 Timeline Options Tab

293 Render Control Tab

293 Audio Outputs Tab

293 Locating and Trashing the Preferences File

294 Changing System Settings

294 Scratch Disks Tab

295 Search Folders Tab

296 Memory & Cache Tab

297 Playback Control Tab

298 External Editors Tab

300 Effect Handling Tab

301 Audio/Video Settings and Easy Setups

301 The Audio/Video Settings Window

301 Learning About Audio/Video Presets

303 Viewing a Summary of the Current Presets

303 Changing Your Easy Setup and Presets

304 Selecting a Different Easy Setup

304 Changing Audio/Video Presets

305 Choosing Individual Presets

306 Viewing Settings in a Preset

307 Creating a New Preset

308 Editing a Preset

309 Deleting Presets

309 Creating Custom Easy Setups

310 Moving, Deleting, and Restoring an Easy Setup

312 Example: Creating a Custom Preset and Easy Setup

313 Installing Third-Party Easy Setups and Presets

315 Capture Settings and Presets

315 About Capture Preset Settings

321 Creating a Preset to Capture Audio Only

323 Device Control Settings and Presets

323 About Device Control Presets

324 Viewing Settings for a Device Control Preset

324 Settings in the Device Control Preset Editor
328 About Device Control Protocols
329 Device Control Protocols Supported by Final Cut Pro
329 Using FireWire Device Control
330 Using Serial Device Control
331 Using a Non-Controllable Device
332 Calibrating Timecode Capture With Serial Device Control
334 Troubleshooting Your Device Control Setup

335 Sequence Settings and Presets

335 What Are Sequence Settings?

336 About Sequence Settings and Presets

340 Timeline Display, Render, and Audio Output Options

344 Changing Sequence Settings

349 Video Formats
349 Characteristics of Video Formats
351 Storage Medium
351 Tape Size, Cassette Shape, and Tape Coating
352 Video Standards
353 Type of Video Signal
354 Aspect Ratio of the Video Frame
355 Frame Dimensions, Number of Lines, and Resolution
357 Pixel Aspect Ratio
358 Frame Rate
358 Scanning Method
361 Color Recording Method
361 Video Sampling Rate and Color Sampling Ratio
364 Video Compression
366 Video Formats Supported by Final Cut Pro
366 DV Formats
366 24p Video
367 High Definition Video Formats
369 Data Rate Comparisons
369 Types of Video Signals and Connectors
370 Composite
370 S-Video
371 Component YUV (Y'C_B C_R) and Component RGB
371 FireWire (Also Called IEEE 1394a or i.LINK)
372 FireWire 800 (Also Called IEEE 1394b)

372 SDI (Serial Digital Interface)
372 HD-SDI (High Definition Serial Digital Interface)
372 SDTI (Serial Digital Transport Interface)
373 SCART
373 A Brief History of Film, Television, and Audio Formats

377 What Is Frame Rate?

379 Understanding Flicker and Perceived Frame Rate

380 Frame Rate Limits: How Many Frames per Second Is Best?

381 Choosing a Frame Rate

383 What Is Timecode?

383 About Drop Frame and Non-Drop Frame Timecode

386 Timecode on Tape

387 Comparison of Various Timecode Formats

391 About Anamorphic 16:9 Media

395 Recording Anamorphic Video

396 Capturing Anamorphic Media

397 Viewing and Editing Anamorphic Media

399 Rendering Items That Contain Anamorphic Media

400 Exporting Anamorphic Video to a QuickTime Movie

401 Resources for Solving Problems

402 Solutions to Common Problems

408 Contacting AppleCare Support

409

445

Final Cut Pro features project and media management tools that help you keep track of your footage from the first phase of postproduction to the final cut.

Chapter 1 Media Management

Chapter 2 Backing Up and Restoring Projects

Chapter 3 Elements of a Final Cut Pro Project

Chapter 4 Working With Master and Affiliate Clips

Chapter 5 Offline and Online Editing

Chapter 6 Reconnecting Clips and Offline Media

Chapter 7 Overview of the Media Manager

Chapter 8 Examples of How to Use the Media Manager

Chapter 9 Diagnostic Tools for Clips

Successful editing requires two things: storytelling skills and effective media management. You should pick a media management strategy before you begin your project.

This chapter covers the following:

• What Is Media Management? (p. 13)
- Reasons to Use Media Management (p. 15)
• What You Need to Know to Manage Your Media (p. 15)
• Media Management Steps in Final Cut Pro (p. 16)
• Strategies for Media Management (p. 17)

Media management is a term used for several related tasks throughout postproduction. In general, any task that relates to processing your media is considered to be media management, such as capturing, compressing, copying, moving, or deleting media files. However, media management also refers to keeping track of your media files via clip properties such as log notes, comments, scene number, shot/take number, and so on.

The flexibility and power of media management in Final Cut Pro stems from one simple fact: A clip and its media file are treated independently. In Final Cut Pro, a more accurate description of media management would be clip and media management. What makes the separation of clips and media files so powerful? Here are a few examples:

Reconnecting clips to new media files: You can create new media files for your project at any time, and reconnect the clips in your project to the new media files.
Direct access to your media files: You can directly access your QuickTime media files in the Finder at any time. You can also easily create clips by dragging media files directly into your project via the Browser. In fact, you can even edit by dragging media files from the Finder directly into the Timeline or Canvas.
Logging clip information without media: You can modify clip properties such as log notes, comments, labels, and even In and Out points without the associated media files. This means you can organize your clips and sequences even though your current editing system may not have the media files.
Trading projects without media files: A Final Cut Pro project file contains clips and sequences, but not media files. Because a project file is so small, you can email or post your project file online. Anyone who has the corresponding media files can open the project file and reconnect the clips to the local media files.

Making a movie is a tremendous logistical undertaking. It's the execution of the details that ultimately determines the quality of the finished product. What does it matter how good the lead actress's performance was in the third take of scene two if you can't find it among a thousand other shots? And what use is a week of fine-tune editing, frame by frame, if the final sequence is improperly assembled by the negative cutter because of a faulty edit decision list that you provided?

Final Cut Pro has incredibly versatile media management options, allowing you to customize your workflow to fit the needs of your project.

Computers are very effective for sorting and organizing information, much more so than scraps of paper and handwritten notes. This isn't to say you should dispense with these basic tools—most editors still use them prolifically. However, mastering management over your media, clips, and notes in Final Cut Pro is critical for an efficient editing workflow.

Browser: A virtual media database for sorting, categorizing, and commenting clips.
Find command: Allows you to quickly search a sequence or project for any clip based on any criterion.
Media Manager: A powerful clip and media file processor for duplicating, removing, and recompressing media files, as well as clips and sequences in your project.
Recapturing and reconnecting: You can recapture or reconnect clips to new media files at any time you want. The connection between clips and media files is easy to change, making Final Cut Pro one of the most flexible media editing systems available.
Finder (in Mac OS X): You can sort, view, and archive media files directly in the Finder (or QuickTime Player) because Final Cut Pro works directly with QuickTime media files.

To effectively keep track of or manage your media, you must have a good understanding of the following:

The distinction between a clip and a media file, as well as the relationship between the two
The relationship between master and affiliate clips in a Final Cut Pro project
How timecode works, providing a bridge between footage on tape or film to media files on hard disk to clips in your project
How to effectively sort and search large amounts of data, such as clips in the Browser or in a sequence
• How to name files concisely and descriptively
The fundamental nature of your media: frame size, aspect ratio, frame rate, codec, color bit depth, color space, and audio sample rate and bit depth.

Logging, capturing, making subclips, and processing your media are all steps in managing your media files. Because clips are separate from media files in Final Cut Pro, you can be easily assign them to different media files throughout the course of a project. This allows you to switch between low- and high-resolution versions of your media files, and transfer projects to other Final Cut Pro systems without media files and quickly reconnect them. You can also delete unused media files to save hard disk space, or recapture media files using clips in your project.

Here is one practical example of how media management occurs throughout a project:

Media files are captured from tape to hard disk. A clip which represents that media file is simultaneously created in your project.

As you edit, you refine your sequence, using fewer and fewer of your media files, but those files still take up valuable hard disk space. Once you finish your sequence, you can remove media files (or portions of media files) you no longer need. Final Cut Pro defines unused media as any media file not used by a sequence in your project. Final Cut Pro can easily tell you which clips in your project are not used in any sequences, and thus which media files are likely irrelevant to your project. You can use the Media Manager to delete the unused media from your hard disk.

Suppose you cleaned up your hard disk by having Final Cut Pro delete a lot of media files, but you realized that there were a few clips that you had intended to include in your sequence but hadn't yet done so. At this point, these clips' media files are offline (in this case, deleted from the hard disk). You can't reconnect these clips to media files because the media files no longer exist. You need to capture the original footage to your hard disk again. Final Cut Pro can easily do this. The clip, which still stores the tape reel number and timecode In and Out points of the original footage on tape, holds the information for finding and recapturing the media from tape.

Clips represent media files even when the media files aren't there. This means that the structure of an entire edited sequence can be saved separately from its media files. At any time, you can always tell Final Cut Pro to recapture all of a sequence's media files, and the movie is automatically re-created. This applies equally to a single clip whose media file you accidentally deleted to an entire sequence of clips that has been copied to a different Final Cut Pro editing system. Even though the clips are offline (the clips' media files are missing) on the new system, the clips contain the vital timecode and reel number information to recapture all the media from tape to hard disk, making it simple to re-create the sequence.

When you are finished with your edit, you can use the Media Manager to duplicate your finished sequence using full-resolution settings. Each clip in this sequence has full-resolution settings, which you can use to recapture all the necessary media to create the final cut at full resolution. Once recapturing is complete, you can apply any necessary color correction, titles, transitions, and so on, and then output to tape.

It's a good idea to pick a strategy for media management before you begin your project. Some important things to consider as part of your strategy are:

This affects recapturing in Final Cut Pro or any other editing system. Reel numbers must be correct so that Final Cut Pro asks for the proper tape when you recapture media. Some Edit Decision List (EDL) formats have strict rules for reel names, so be conservative with your reel names if there is even a slight chance you will export an EDL for your project. For more information about reel name limitations in EDLs, see "Reel Name Restrictions in EDLs" on page 136.

Clips can get their names several ways. If you log clips individually, a clip name is derived from a combination of the description, shot/take, scene, and angle properties of a clip. However, if you create clips by importing a batch list, EDL, or Final Cut Pro XML, you may name the clips independently of these other properties. In either case, choose a fairly concise but descriptive name.

If you are working on a narrative, scene name and take number may be sufficient because the shooting script provides the information you need to order your shots. However, unplanned footage for news or documentaries requires more descriptive names.

Try to avoid special characters in clip names. This is especially important if you happen to use the Media Manager to create new media files based on clip names.

Remember that clips in Final Cut Pro have many properties besides the Name field to add descriptive information. Log notes, comments, the Mark Good property, labels, and markers within clips can be used to describe your clips more accurately.

Avoid special characters for filenames. If you are logging clips in the Log and Capture window, the name of your clip determines the name of the file, so this means you should avoid special characters in clip names too. Don't change media filenames directly in the Finder, or your clips will go offline.

You can capture and edit your media at full resolution, or you can use an offline/online workflow where you capture and edit at low-resolution, and then recapture at full resolution for your final edit.

If you are working on the same project on multiple editing systems, you need multiple copies of your media files. All systems can have identical copies of full-resolution media, or some can have low-resolution media (such as PowerBooks) while others use full-resolution files. Project files can be transferred from one system to another and clips are reconnected to local media files.

Storage area networks allow you to connect multiple computers to a centralized media storage device, so everyone is working with exactly the same media files instead of multiple copies. You can build a SAN using Xserve RAIDs, Apple Xsan software, and a fibre channel card installed in each computer.

If you plan to do final color correction, effects, and broadcast specifications on a non-Final Cut Pro system, consider how you will deliver your sequence and media. You need to pick a project interchange format that the online editing system recognizes. For example, many Avid and ProTools systems recognize AAF and OMF files; other postproduction tools recognize the Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format; and linear tape-to-tape edit suites use EDL files. Media can be delivered on tape for recapturing into a nonlinear system, or for editing onto the master tape in a tape-to-tape suite. In many cases it is faster to recapture tapes than to transcode digital files from a Final Cut Pro-compatible codec to a format the online system recognizes.

Routine backups are a critical part of the editing process. If necessary, you can go back to earlier versions of a project.

This chapter covers the following:

• Backing Up and Restoring Projects (p. 19)
• Archiving Completed Projects (p. 24)
- Updating Projects From Previous Versions of Final Cut Pro (p. 25)

Final Cut Pro has several methods for backing up, reverting, and restoring projects. If you have made changes you don't want to keep, or if your project file becomes corrupt in some way, you can use these features to quickly get back to an earlier version of your project.

Sometimes you may make a series of trial changes to a project. What if you don't like those changes and want to start over with your project the way it was the last time you saved it? You can use the Revert Project command to immediately return to the previously saved state of a project.

1 Click a project's tab in the Browser or Timeline to make it active.
2 Choose File > Revert Project.
3 In the dialog that appears, click OK.

Autosave routinely saves copies of your project while you work. If something goes wrong with the current version of your project, you can restore an autosaved version to quickly pick up where you left off.

By default, autosave files are stored in the following location: [Home]/Documents/Final Cut Pro Documents/Autosave Vault.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > User Preferences, then click the General tab.
2 Select the Autosave Vault checkbox.
3 Enter the following options:

Save a copy every: the frequency (in minutes) that you want to autosave projects.
Keep at most: the number of copies of a project autosaved before Final Cut Pro deletes the oldest one.
Maximum of: the number of open project files simultaneously autosaved. For example, if this field is set to 25, and you have 26 project files open simultaneously, only the first 25 projects are autosaved.

4 Click OK.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > System Settings, then click the Scratch Disks tab.
2 Click Set next to the Autosave Vault option.
3 Navigate to a folder to store autosaved files, then click Choose.
4 Click OK to accept the changes to System Settings.

A folder called Autosave Vault is created at the selected location. All autosaved copies for a given project are stored in their own project folder within the Autosave Vault folder.

If you have more than one hard disk, you can routinely save your normal project file on one disk and specify an Autosave Vault folder on the other disk. This way, if you have trouble with one hard disk, you will still have project files on the other.

Warning: The Autosave Vault folder is not locked. If you inadvertently delete this folder from the Finder, Final Cut Pro automatically re-creates it. However, any autosave files in the deleted folder cannot be re-created.

Once autosave is selected, new autosaved versions of your project are created according to the time specified in the "Save a copy every N minutes" field. If no changes have been made to your project since the last autosave file was created, Final Cut Pro doesn't autosave the project again until you make further changes. For example, if you have five projects open and make changes to only two of them, Final Cut Pro only creates autosave files for the two projects you changed.

Autosave files use the following naming scheme:

ProjectName_MM-DD-YY_HHMM

where ProjectName is the first 17 characters of your project.

Final Cut Pro uses a "first-in, first-out" strategy for keeping autosave files. When Final Cut Pro reaches the limit for the number of copies created or projects saved, the oldest autosave file is placed in the Trash (unless the oldest project is currently open) and a new autosave file is created. If you're working on several projects and you know that one is about to be deleted (you've reached the number specified in the "Maximum of N projects" field), you may want to make a backup copy of the earliest autosaved project folder and its contents for future use.

The autosave feature will never delete projects or folders automatically. Instead, files that exceed the maximum numbers of copies and projects you set in the Autosave Vault options (in the General tab of the User Preferences window) are placed in the Trash, but the Trash is not emptied. That is left for you to do, in case you later change your mind about what files you want to keep.

If you're working on your project and decide you want to go back to an earlier autosaved version, you can use the Restore Project command. Restore Project allows you to choose from all of the available autosaved versions of the currently active project, based on the time and date they were created.

For example, suppose your client saw the newest cut of a project and didn't like it. If you know that the client liked a version created on the morning of July 31, 2004, you can use the Restore Project command to open the autosave file that was created closest to that time. This way you can restore the project to a version that you know your client liked.

Important: If you restore a project, your project inherits the autosave name "MyProject_MM-DD-YY_HHMM." Final Cut Pro then creates a new autosave process, placing the project files in a folder with the name of the autosave file, instead of the original project name. If you want to maintain the same set of autosave files between the old project and the restored project, you must use the Save As command and rename the project with its original name.

1 Click a project's tab in the Browser or Timeline to make it active.
2 Choose File > Restore Project.
3 In the dialog that appears, choose the autosave file you want to use, then click Restore. The number of items in the pop-up menu for a project depends on the settings in the Autosave Vault options in the General tab of the User Preferences window and corresponds to the current number of autosave versions of the project in the Autosave Vault folder.

Choose the desired project file in the list.

Restore Project Restore Project 'Cafe.fcp' From: Today, 2:12 AM Today, 1:53 AM Today, 1:51 AM Today, 1:39 AM Today, 12:14 AM Cancel Restore

4 When a message appears asking if you want to restore the file, click OK.

The current project in the Browser is replaced with the autosaved version of the project you selected. However, the project is not saved automatically. Make sure you save the project by choosing File > Save or by pressing Command-S.

If your computer is abruptly shut down, you can open the most recently autosaved project file after you restart your computer.

In this situation, you have several options:

Open the project file and restore the latest autosaved version.
Open the latest autosaved version of the project directly from the Finder. In this case, Final Cut Pro treats the opened autosaved project as a completely separate project, leaving your original project file unchanged. If you choose this approach, you should move or copy the autosaved project file to the location where you normally store your project files and rename it without the additional time and date suffixes added by the autosave process.

After living and breathing a project for months or years, it may be hard to imagine you'll ever want to look at it or touch it again... but you never know for sure. You might get a surprise distribution offer, but with the caveat that you shorten the project by 5 minutes. If that happens, will you be able to resurrect the project from its individual media and sequence components? Did you save everything you needed?

When you archive your project, you need to ask yourself, "How long will I need this project?" This is a hard question to answer with certainty, so most people err on the side of caution. It's almost always better to back up more than less.

For long-term archiving, you should save both the project file and the original media (such as the actual videotapes). As long as there is an accurate timecode relationship between the clips in your project and the timecode on your videotapes (or film), you can open your project and recapture your media at any time.

Depending on the duration of your original footage, the captured media files that you used for your project are not necessarily worth archiving long-term, simply because they are extraneous copies of your original videotapes. Also, backing up to inexpensive formats, such as DVD-R, can be fairly time consuming. As long as you archive your project file and you have the original videotapes available to recapture clips from, your project is sufficiently archived.

Project files: These are typically quite small, and many versions of a project file can be archived on a Zip disk, CD-ROM, or similar storage media.
Media files captured from tape or other timecoded sources: These require a lot of disk space, so it can be impractical to back up these files. As long as your tapes have timecode, you can simply store the original tapes along with the backed-up project file. If you need to revisit your project later, you can use the timecode information in the clips of your project file to recapture media from tape.
Media files without timecode and files created on a computer: Graphics files, such as still images, and motion graphics that originated on a computer should be permanently archived on a hard disk, DVD-ROM, or similar storage media. You should also save the original project files from the applications that you used to create these media files. For example, if you created a motion graphics logo in Motion, you should back up the Motion project file, as well as any non-timecoded media files associated with that project. Non-timecoded video sources, such as video from VHS tape or audio from an Audio CD, should also be backed up, because you can't accurately recapture this media later.

You can open and use projects created with earlier versions of Final Cut Pro and Final Cut Express. In some cases, you need to specify how Final Cut Pro handles the color space, clip relationships, and motion transformation quality in these files.

Before updating projects from earlier versions of Final Cut Pro and Final Cut Express, consider these things:

Third-party effects scripts, or scripts that you've already written or customized, may need to be modified to take full advantage of the use of Y^_BC_R color space in Final Cut Pro.
All Final Cut Pro effects take advantage of the Y'C_B C_R color space. If you used any of the effects listed below in projects created with Final Cut Pro 1.2.5 or earlier, the effects may look slightly different when you recreate the project's render files.
• Video Transitions: Map/Luminance Map, Wipe/Gradient Wipe
Video Filters: Blur/Gaussian Blur, Channel/Invert, Image Control/Brightness and Contrast, Gamma Correction, Levels, Proc Amp, Sepia, Tint, Key/Blue and Green Screen, Color Key, Difference Matte
• Video Generators: Matte/Color
Third-party After Effects filters and QuickTime transitions and filters do not take advantage of the Y^_BC_R color space. They always render in RGB space.

You can open and use projects created with earlier versions of Final Cut Pro and Final Cut Express, but you need to specify how you want Final Cut Pro to handle the color space in these files.

1 Open a project created using an earlier version of Final Cut Pro. A message tells you that the file's format is outdated and asks if you want to update the format. Click Yes.

The file format of this project is from an earlier version. Would you like to update this project file? Note: Once saved, this file cannot be opened by previous versions. To avoid overwriting the original project file, you can choose Save Project As from the File menu when project updating is complete. No Yes Click here to update your project.

2 If a dialog appears with options for improved color fidelity, click the appropriate checkboxes, then click OK.

Note: These options are available for codecs that support Y^_BC_R color space.

Update sequences for improved color fidelity: This sets the maximum white value to Super-White in the Video Processing tab of the Sequence Settings and Sequence Preset Editor windows. All future rendering in the sequence is done in Y'C_B C_R in super-white.
Note: If you check this option, the "Always Render in RGB" option in the Sequence Settings or Sequence Preset Editor window is not selected. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 24, "Rendering."
Remove existing render files: This deletes all render files on the scratch disk for the sequences in this project. If you keep existing render files, the rendered media may have color or intensity shifts. You should keep existing render files if the quality difference is not a problem for your projects or if you need to get a project done fast and don't want to rerender files. If you keep existing render files and want consistent-looking media, you'll have to rerender the files because sequences in previously rendered media may have color or intensity shifts.

Note: You cannot restore deleted render files with the Undo command.

Choosing these options will not rerender any material immediately. You need to open any affected sequences and render them manually.

When updating projects from Final Cut Pro HD 4.5 or earlier, Final Cut Pro gives you the following options:

Scaling quality: Projects created in Final Cut Pro HD 4.5 and earlier used the Fastest option. If you want higher quality motion transformations, you can choose Normal or Best.
For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 24, "Rendering." You can also change this setting later in the Video Processing tab of each sequence in your project.
Remove existing render files: You have the option to delete render files when your motion transformations are updated. If you change the quality, it is a good idea to remove the existing render files to prevent mismatched scaling qualities in your sequences.

Important: Deleting the render files cannot be undone.

Final Cut Pro also has improved color accuracy when rendering Rec 709 (high definition color space media). If you open an old project containing any rendered high definition sequences, or if you have any SD sequences containing HD source media, a dialog asks if you want to open the project and permanently delete the existing render files. If you want to preserve the existing render files, do not open the project in Final Cut Pro. Deleting the render files cannot be undone.

Note: If your project only refers to SD footage (Rec 601), this dialog does not appear.

Clips in projects created with Final Cut Pro 4 and later have master-affiliate clip relationships that did not exist in earlier versions of Final Cut Pro. When an older project is imported into Final Cut Pro, this relationship is not automatically created, but you can manually update your project so that every sequence clip becomes affiliated with an appropriate master clip in the Browser. For more information about creating master clips, see “Creating Master and Affiliate Clips” on page 43.

■ After you open and update the project, choose Tools > Create Master Clips.

Master clips are created for every clip in every sequence, and placed in a bin called "Master Clips for [Project Name]." When multiple clips refer to the same media file, only one master clip is created for those clips.

Older versions of Final Cut Pro and the Apple DV-NTSC and DV-PAL codecs converted Y'C_B C_R video to RGB video whenever rendering was required. The conversion sometimes resulted in subtle but noticeable shifts in color or intensity. Starting with version 1.2.5, Final Cut Pro handled color space differently; however, old projects may still have links to older render files that exhibit the color and intensity shifts.

If you upgrade a project or sequence created in Final Cut Pro 1.2.1 and the codec used for the sequence (such as Animation or Targa) is not found by the system, the codec in the Sequence Settings is listed as "Unknown" and "Always Render in RGB" is selected in the Video Processing tab. If you want to render the sequence in Y'C_B C_R (YUV) color space, you need to change this manually.

1 Choose Sequence > Settings, then click the General tab.
2 In the QuickTime Video Settings section, choose DV-NTSC or DV-PAL (whichever you are using) from the compressor pop-up menu.
3 Click the Video Processing tab, then select the YUV rendering option you want to use for your sequence.

Unless you are doing high end video processing, you will probably want to select Render in 8-bit YUV.

For more information about rendering in RGB and Y'C_B C_R color spaces, see Volume III, Chapter 24, "Rendering."

When you are organizing your project and media files, it can be helpful to have a detailed understanding of each element in a Final Cut Pro project, such as clip types and properties, bins, sequences, and so on.

This chapter covers the following:

About Clips, Media Files, and Sequences (p. 29)
About Icons and Project Elements in the Browser (p. 33)
Clip Properties (p. 34)

Understanding the details of Final Cut Pro project elements can help you transfer clip and project information in and out of Final Cut Pro during logging, capturing, media management, and project interchange.

A QuickTime media file contains a number of tracks, typically one video track and one or more audio tracks. When you capture or import a media file into Final Cut Pro, a clip in the Browser is created which refers to the media file on disk. A clip has one or more clip items, each of which corresponds to a track in the QuickTime media file. When you open a Browser clip in the Viewer, each of these tracks appears as a separate tab, such as video, audio channel 1, channel 2, and so on. Clips that refer exclusively to audio files are called audio clips, and they are identified by a unique icon in the Browser.

Other common media file types you can use in Final Cut Pro are AIFF and WAVE files (for audio) and graphics file formats supported by QuickTime, such as JPEG, Photoshop, and TIFF.

Important: Media files are not clips, so you should avoid referring to your media files on your scratch disk as clips.

Different types of clips are distinguished by the type of media files they refer to. For example, an audio clip is simply a clip that represents an audio-only file on disk.

However, some clips, such as subclips, are distinguished not by the type of media files they refer to, but how they refer to them. For example, the definition of a subclip is any clip that refers to less than the total length of a media file. It doesn't matter whether a subclip is a video clip, audio clip, or merged clip.

Here is a list of clip types available in Final Cut Pro:

Clip: Usually refers to a video file that may also include audio
Audio clip: Refers to an audio file. This may be a QuickTime media file that only contains audio tracks, or an audio-only file such as an AIFF or WAVE file.
Still image clip: Refers to a single frame of a media file, created using the Make Freeze Frame command in the Modify menu.
Graphics clip: Refers to a graphics file, such as a JPEG, Photoshop (flattened), or TIFF file.
Generator clip: Refers to a Final Cut Pro generator, which creates media such as shapes, colors, and bars and tone automatically. Generators do not have associated media files.
Subclip: Refers to a portion of a media file
Merged clip: Refers to a video file and one or more audio files
Multiclip: Groups multiple clips together as angles for real-time switching and cutting

A subclip artificially limits the duration of a clip, to allow you to work with smaller sections of a media file. These subclip limits can be removed at any time so you can work with the whole clip. For example, if an original media file is 10 minutes long, the Final Cut Pro Browser clip is also 10 minutes long. You can make a 1-minute subclip starting at 00:02:00:00 and ending at 00:03:00:00 and work with the subclip as if the media is only 1 minute long.

A merged clip refers to more than one media file at once: one video file and multiple audio files (up to 24 separate audio files). You can create merged clips if you record picture and sound to separate devices during production, and therefore have separate video and audio media files that actually comprise a single clip. You make a merged clip by selecting a video clip and several audio clips together and choosing the Merge Clips command from the Modify menu.

Important: A merged clip is considered offline even if only one of its media files cannot be found. Reconnect and recapturing merged clips may take several passes, one for each file.

A multiclip allows you to sync multiple clips together as angles within a single clip. The main reason to use a multiclip is to sync multiple camera angles together so you can cut between them in real time in the Timeline. However, you can sync any footage you want together in a multiclip, not just different camera angles. For instance, when making a music video, you could sync three different performances of the band playing and cut between them on the beat.

In addition to the clip types described above, clips can be further characterized by the following:

Relationships to other clips: master, affiliate, and independent clips
Connection status to media files: Offline and online clips
Location in a project: Browser and sequence clips

These clip characteristics can describe any type of clip. For example, clips, subclips, merged clips, and multiclips can all be offline clips.

A master clip is the first instance of a clip imported or captured in Final Cut Pro. Master clips exist exclusively in the Browser, and they are used to manage multiple instances of the same footage used throughout your project. This is how it works: Each time you edit a clip into a sequence, Final Cut Pro creates a new instance of that clip. This new sequence clip is not completely unique and self-sufficient, but actually gets most of its properties from the master clip it came from. This clip is called an affiliate clip because it shares properties with its master clip. Because master and affiliate clips share a single set of properties, changing a property in one place changes it everywhere. For instance, if you want to change a clip name, it doesn't matter whether you change the name in the master clip or any of its affiliate clips. Since they all share the same Name property, all the clips now have the new name.

Most properties are shared between master and affiliate clips, but there are a few exceptions. The properties of affiliate clips that aren't shared (such as In and Out points) make them useful for editing, while the shared properties (such as Name and Source) maintain a relationship with the master clip for easier media management. For example, In and Out points can be different in every affiliate clip so that trimming one clip doesn't affect the duration of all the other affiliated ones.

The following properties are not shared between master and affiliate clips:

Comment A–B
In point
Out point
Duration
Description
Film Safe
Composite mode
Reverse Alpha
Thumbnail

An independent clip is a sequence clip that has no master clip, so it doesn't share properties with any other clips. You can make a sequence clip independent at any time, although you usually shouldn't unless you have a specific reason to do so. Independent clips are not updated by a master clip, so you can't manage your media as efficiently.

An offline clip is any clip whose media file cannot be located, or whose Source property is empty. When you first log clips, they are offline clips because they have no associated media files. If the modification date of a clip's media file changes in the Finder, or if you delete a clip's media file, the clip becomes an offline clip until you reconnect it.

A Browser clip is any clip which appears in the Browser. These are typically master clips, although they can also be affiliate clips.

A sequence clip is one or more clip items in a sequence. These are typically affiliate clips whose master clips reside in the Browser. In some cases, sequence clips are independent, meaning they have no master clips or other affiliated clips. You can distinguish a sequence clip from a Browser clip when you open it in the Viewer. The row of dots (sprocket holes) that appear in the scrubber bar of the Viewer indicate that the clip is a sequence clip.

A sequence contains one or more video and audio tracks, which are empty when first created. When you edit a clip into a sequence, you copy the clip's individual clip items to tracks in the sequence. For example, if you drag a clip that contains one video and two audio clip items to the Timeline, a video clip item is placed in a video track in the Timeline, and two audio clip items are placed in two audio tracks. In a sequence, you can move any clip item to any track, allowing you to edit and arrange the contents of your media files however you want. Clip items in a sequence (sometimes referred to as sequence clips) are usually affiliate clips, and are often distinguished from clips in the Browser (Browser clips), which are usually master clips.

Icons appear next to the name of each project element in the Browser. The following table explains what kind of Final Cut Pro project elements each icon represents.

Icon	Name	Description
	Clip	A clip represents a media file. A clip is created when a media file is captured or imported into Final Cut Pro. This icon is also used for merged clips (clips created by merging audio and video clip items together).
	Audio clip	A clip that refers to an audio media file such as an AIFF, WAVE, or a QuickTime media file that contains only audio tracks.
	Multiclip	A clip that contains multiple clips grouped together as angles. You can switch and cut between each angle in real time.
	Offline clip	A clip whose media file cannot be located on disk, or whose media file has not yet been captured.
	Subclip	A kind of clip that refers only to a portion of a media file instead of the whole thing. Subclips conveniently create the illusion that your media file is shorter than it really is, so you can work with a shorter portion of your media file. You can remove these artificial media start and end point limits from your subclip at any time, at which point the subclip is simply considered a clip again, because it refers to the entire length of the media file.
	Marker	An object that represents a single frame, or a duration of time, in a clip (or sequence). Markers can be used as reminders and notes in your clips and sequences. For example, you can mark sections that need color correction, potential edit points, important moments of action in a scene, beats of music, and so on.Because markers simply denote portions of a clip (instead of the whole clip), they can easily be converted into subclips. Markers are shown hierarchally within the clip they belong to.
	Still Image or Freeze Frame	A clip that refers to a graphic media file on disk, or to a single frame in a video media file.
	Video generator	A clip that generates its appearance without a media file, used for commonly needed movie elements such as slug (solid black), color mattes, gradients, and titles.
	Sequence	A container for clips edited together in chronological order.
	Bin	A container, similar to a folder, used to organize clips, sequences, and even other bins.
	Bin opened in its own windowLocked bin	A bin that's been opened as a window separate from its project.The contents of a locked bin cannot be changed. In Final Cut Pro, the only locked bins are the ones in the Effects tab, which contain the installed effects. The one exception in the Effects tab is the Favorites bin, which is not locked so you can store your favorite effects and transitions there.
	Video filter	Effects filter that can be applied to a video clip.
	Video transition	Transition effect that can be applied between two consecutive clips in a video track.
	Audio filter	Effects filter that can be applied to an audio clip.
	Audio transition	Transition effect that can be applied between two consecutive clips in an audio track.

A clip has many properties, or characteristics, some of which you can customize, and some of which are automatically inherited from the media file that a clip references. Some properties may be left blank while others are always defined. Some properties, such as comments, log notes, and labels, are stored only within the clip object that resides in your Final Cut Pro project file. Other properties, such as the frame dimensions and data rate, reside in the media file itself, since they describe characteristics inherent to the media.

Clips imported from Cinema Tools have additional film properties used for matching your clips back to original film negatives. These properties can only be modified in the Cinema Tools database that they refer to. For more information, see the documentation that came with Cinema Tools.

You can view and modify clip properties in the following locations:

Browser columns
Item Properties dialog (choose Edit > Item Properties)
Modify Timecode dialog (choose Modify >Timecode)

Name of property	Description
Name	Name of the clip.During logging, the name property is usually created automatically from a combination of the Description, Scene, Shot/Take, and Angle properties, which are entered in the Log and Capture window.You can change a clip's name in the Browser or Item Properties window at any time. However, changing the name of a clip doesn't change the name of the clip's media file on the hard disk, so be careful when doing this as it may complicate media management later on in your project.
Alpha	Shows how a clip's alpha channel is handled—None/Ignore, Straight, Black, or White.Graphics or animation files created outside Final Cut Pro may have an alpha channel. Although Final Cut Pro usually discerns the correct alpha channel type when you import media files, you can change the type if necessary.
Anamorphic	A checkmark in this property indicates that the media file's pixel data was intended to be displayed, anamorphically (stretched wide). You can set this property to force a clip with a 4:3 aspect ratio to be widescreen 16:9.For clips, this property is originally based on the capture preset used; for sequences, it's based on the sequence settings. You can change this property at any time.
Angle	The camera angle number (or letter) of a clip from a multicamera shoot. When ordering clips during multiclip creation, Final Cut Pro uses the value in this property when available.
Aud Format	The bit depth of each audio sample (typically 16- or 24-bit integer).
Aud Rate	The audio sample rate of a sequence or a clip's media file.
Audio	Indicates the number of mono and stereo audio clip items for a clip and its corresponding media file. To change this property, the clip must be offline and you must use the Clip Settings command in the Modify menu.
Aux TC 1-2	Aux 1 and Aux 2 are additional timecode tracks that can be created in a QuickTime media file for any clip in your project. These properties can be useful for synchronizing clips to related media files without altering the source timecode of your files.For example, when synchronizing video clips captured from Digital Betacam with audio clips captured from DAT, the source timecode of each clip reflects timecode that was captured from each tape. You can create an Aux timecode track for your audio clips to reflect the source timecode of the corresponding video clips. By using an Aux timecode track, you don't affect the original source timecode which is important if you ever need to recapture your clips from tape.Changes made to the Aux TC 1 and 2 tracks are written to the timecode tracks in the media file on disk. For offline clips, these properties can be modified in the Browser or Item Properties dialog. However, when clips are connected to media files, you can only add, delete, or modify Aux timecode using the Modify Timecode command.
Capture	Displays the capture state of a clip in the Batch Capture queue: Not Yet, OK (captured already), Queued, or Aborted.
Comment A-B	Comment information that is not shared across each master and affiliate clip (as opposed to Master Comments 1–4, which are stored in the master clip and shared with all affiliates).
Composite	Shows the composite mode of a clip, such as Normal, Add, or Travel Matte. This controls how the pixel values in a clip combine with the pixel values in clips in underlying video layers, or how the clip visually interacts with the clip on the track immediately below it. For more information on composite modes, see Volume III, Chapter 18, “Compositing and Layering.”
Compressor	Displays the codec used to compress a clip's media file. For clips, this property is based on the content stored in the clip's media file; for sequences, it's based on the codec specified in the sequence's compressor setting.Different codecs have different ways of compressing video and audio clips to reduce storage requirements. When a clip is edited into a sequence, the clip's media file must use the same codec as the sequence, otherwise Final Cut Pro must convert from the media file codec to the sequence codec, which usually is so processor intensive that it requires rendering.
Creator	Shows the name of the application that created the clip's media file.
Data Rate	Shows how much data a clip's media file requires per second of playback. This value is displayed in megabytes per second.The data rate of a media file is determined by its video frame rate, dimensions, compressor, color sampling method, and audio sample rate and bit depth. Generally, the higher the data rate, the higher the quality of the media file. If the data rate of a clip's media file exceeds the capabilities of your hard disk, Final Cut Pro warns you if frames are being dropped during playback.
Description	Displays descriptive text about a clip (from the Description field in the Logging tab of the Log and Capture window). This is typically entered when logging, but you can also add to it or change it in the Browser or Item Properties window.
Duration	Shows the duration between a clip's In and Out points. Speed adjustments to a clip affect a clip's duration.
Film Safe	Intended for telecined clips being used in a program that will be matched back to a film negative. When a clip is marked film safe, the Media Manager trims on four or five frame boundaries (according to the timecode) to ensure that full film frames are preserved during the negative cut.
Frame Size	Displays the video image dimensions in pixels. For clips, this property is based on the dimensions of the clip's media file or capture preset selected during logging. For sequences, frame size is based on the sequence settings (or sequence preset chosen).
Good	Identifies clips that are marked Good (indicating shots you want to use) in the Logging tab of the Log and Capture window. Clips are typically marked Good during logging, but you can also mark a clip in the Browser or Item Properties window.
In	Timecode of the In point of a clip. The In point specifies the beginning of a section of a clip or sequence used in editing.
Label	You can assign labels to clips, bins, and sequences to categorize them. Each label has an associated color, so clips, bins, and sequences with labels are colored by their assigned label color.Items in the Browser actually have two label properties: Label (described here) and Label 2. Only the Label property described here influences the color of an item.
Label 2	You can assign a second label to clips, bins, and sequences to further categorize them. The Label 2 property does not have an associated color, but it does have the advantage that it is completely customizable.You can type any text you want in the Label 2 field of a clip, bin, or sequence. If you Control-click on the Label 2 field, a summary of every unique Label 2 text in your project appears here, allowing you to conveniently and consistently assign text to a clip's Label 2 property.
Last Modified	Indicates the date and time a clip's media file was modified, or the last time a sequence was edited. In the case of clips, this information is read directly from the modification date property of the clip's media file, so you can also see this information in the Finder by selecting the file and then choosing File > Get Info.
Length	Shows the total length of a clip, regardless of clip In and Out points. This is different from the duration of a clip, which is the number of frames between a clip's In and Out points. In most instances, clip length is the same as its media file length, but there are some cases where this is not true. For example, a still image clip refers to a media file with a single frame, but the clip length has a default duration of 2 minutes. Speed adjustments to a clip affect a clip's length.
Log Note	This field is used for notes about your footage made during logging. This text can be entered from the Logging tab of the Log and Capture window, but you can also add to it or change it in the Browser or Item Properties window.
Master	This property is checked if a clip is a master clip. You cannot modify this property.
Master Comment 1-4	Comments can be added to clips, bins, or sequences at any time. The Master comments are stored in a master clip and shared among all its affiliates, so changing this property in any of the affiliated clips' updates all of them simultaneously.The name of each Master comment can be customized to represent a particular property. For example, you can rename "Master Comments 1" to "Director's Notes" or "Color Correction Status".To customize Master Comment names, do one of the following:Choose Edit > Project Properties.Control-click on a Master Comment heading in the Browser and choose Edit Heading from the shortcut menu.Custom Master Comment names are stored on a per project basis. You can change the Master comments text in the Browser columns or Item Properties window.
Media Start	The timecode address that refers to the first frame of the media file, and thus the first frame captured from a source tape. This timecode value is different than the In point of the clip.Media properties are based on the media file, while In and Out points are adjustable points used for the purposes of editing clips into the Timeline.The Media Start and End properties can only be changed in Final Cut Pro if a clip is offline and the file path in the clip's Source property is empty. If a clip's Source property has a file path, you cannot modify the Media Start or End properties.
Media End	The timecode address that refers to the last frame of the media file, and thus the Out point set during capturing from tape in the Log and Capture window. This timecode value represents the very last frame of a clip's media file, not the Out point of the clip.For more information, see “Media Start,” above.
Offline	A checkmark indicates a clip is offline, meaning no media file exists in the location of the clip's Source file path, or the clip's Source file path is empty. A clip is offline if its media file can't be located, or if media has not yet been captured for the clip (thus the clip does not yet have a file path to point to a media file on disk).
Out	Timecode of the Out point for a clip. The Out point specifies the end of a section of a clip or sequence used in editing.
Pixel Aspect	Displays the pixel aspect ratio of a clip's media file.Computer graphics formats use square pixels, while many SD and HD video formats uses non-square pixel aspect ratios, such as:Standard definition (SD) NTSCStandard definition (SD) PALHDV and DVCPRO HD
Reel	Identifies the reel (tape) name a media file was captured from. This is typically entered when logging in the Log and Capture window, but you can also change it in the Browser or Item Properties window.Because the reel property is stored in the media file, changing this property from within Final Cut Pro modifies this value in the media file.
Reverse Alpha	This property can be toggled to Yes or No, but only has an effect if a clip's media file actually contains an alpha channel. Selecting Yes displays a checkmark, indicating the alpha channel is inverted. This is evident when layering this clip on top of others in a sequence or when viewed independently in the Viewer. Final Cut Pro interprets black alpha channel values as transparent and white values as opaque.The Reverse Alpha property is not shared among affiliated clips, so each clip has its own individual Reverse Alpha property.
Scene	This property is used to identify the scene number of a clip. You can enter this when logging a tape in the Log and Capture window or in the Browser or Item Properties window.
Shot/Take	This property is used to identify the shot or take number of a clip. You can enter this when logging a tape in the Log and Capture window or in the Browser or Item Properties window.
Size	Shows the clip's media file size on the hard disk in megabytes (MB).
Source	Shows the file path of the clip's media file on disk. For example: Scratch Disk:Capture Scratch:Dining:Interview Clip.movThis property is the critical connection between a clip and its media file. If a media file changes location or name, or if its modification date changes, the clip will no longer be able to locate it based on its Source property's file path, causing the clip to become offline.A clip's Source property may contain a file path (even if the file cannot be located) or it may be empty (as is the case with a newly logged clip, or a clip made offline using the Make Offline command).You can reveal a clip's media file by selecting it and choosing View >Reveal in Finder.
TC	Displays which timecode track in the media file is currently being used to display timecode for the clip in the Browser, Item Properties window, the timecode fields of the Viewer, and the timecode overlays in the Viewer and Canvas. For example, if a media file has three timecode tracks, the choices would be:• Source• Aux 1• Aux 2"Source" merely indicates the primary timecode track of the media file, and is almost always the timecode from the original source tapes. Since most media files have only one timecode track, "Source" is often the other choice. However, if you have added an auxiliary timecode track to a media file (for example, with the Modify Timecode command), you can choose to view the timecode values stored in this track instead.You can adjust the TC value in the Browser, Item Properties window, or by control-clicking in the Timecode Duration or Current Timecode field.
Thumbnail	Displays a small, representative frame from the clip's media file. By default, the thumbnail is the first frame of the clip, but you can drag to "scrub" through the clip to choose a more appropriate representative frame, known as a poster frame.For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 5, "Browser Basics."
Tracks	The total number of video and audio tracks in a clip or sequence.
Type	Type of clip: Clip, subclip, multiclip, still.Also: Sequence, bin, or effect.
Vid Rate	Shows the frame rate (timebase) in frames per second (fps). For clips, this property is the frame rate of the media file on disk. For sequences, the frame rate is set in the sequence's editing timebase field. If a sequence contains clips, the sequence's frame rate (editing timebase) cannot be changed (unless all clips are first removed).

This chapter covers the following:

• Using Master and Affiliate Clips (p. 41)
• Master-Affiliate Clip Properties (p. 49)

As you edit, the distinction between master and affiliate clips is usually not very important. However, when you need to recapture or reconnect your media, master and affiliate clips can save you a lot of time. Although master-affiliate clip relationships add a level of complexity to media management in Final Cut Pro, it also provides unprecedented flexibility.

To make media management simpler, each media file in your project should be represented by a single master clip. Each time you edit a master clip into a sequence, an affiliate is created which refers to its media file via its master clip. If the media file is deleted, and all of the affiliate clips become offline, you can simply reconnect the master clip and all the clips that refer to that media file are reconnected. Without the master-affiliate clip relationship, you would have to reconnect each clip that referred to the media file individually. The same is true when you recapture media files. By recapturing the media file for a master clip, all the affiliate clips also refer to the newly captured media immediately.

When several clips are independent, they may all refer to the same media file, but they refer to it independently. For example, if you recaptured a new media file for an independent clip, other clips in your project would still refer to the original media file. To reconnect all the clips to the new media file, you would have to reconnect each one individually. Recapturing media for several independent clips can lead to multiple versions of the same media file on your scratch disk, one for each independent clip. Master and affiliate clips avoid the problem of independent clip media management because all clips in a project that reference a particular media file are handled by one master clip.

The vital connection between a master clip and its media file is the clip property called Source. A clip refers to a media file via this property, which contains a directory path. A directory path describes where a file is located within the file and folder hierarchy of the file system. For example, the hard disk is the top level of the hierarchy, as all files and folders are contained within the hard disk. For example, the location of one of your media files might be described like this:

/Scratch Disk/Capture Scratch/My Project/My Media File

You can find a clip's media file in the Finder by selecting the clip and choosing View > Reveal in Finder.

Master clips can exist only in the Browser; a sequence cannot contain a master clip. The only way to identify a master clip is to view its Master Clip property, either in the Browser or in the Item Properties window.

1 Select the item.
2 Choose Edit > Item Properties > Logging Info.
If the Master Clip property is checked, the clip is a master clip.

Besides capturing and importing clips into a project, there are several other ways to create new master clips:

Create a new subclip, merged clip, multiclip, or freeze frame clip: When each of these is created, they are master clips. When you edit with these clips, affiliate clips are created from the master clip.
Import an EDL: This creates a sequence of affiliate clips and a bin containing the sequence clips' master clips. This makes media management much easier than if all the sequence clips were independent.
Use the Duplicate as New Master Clip command: This allows you to duplicate a master clip in the Browser as a new, unrelated master clip. The new master clip is unaffiliated with the original master clip.

Important: If you have several master clips that refer to exactly the same media, make sure you edit only with one of the master clips unless you have a reason to use a different one. Keeping more than one master clip that refers to the same media files creates multiple master-affiliate relationships in your sequences that can be potentially confusing during media management, recapturing, and reconnecting.

- Use the Make Master Clip command: This command (Modify > Make Master Clip) is available if you select an affiliate clip in the Browser. It turns an affiliate clip into its own master clip.

You can intentionally duplicate a master clip to create a new, independent master clip, which will then have its own affiliates. However, you should do this sparingly since the main intention of a master clip is to have only one clip per project that represents a media file on disk.

■ Control-click any clip in the Browser, then choose Duplicate as New Master Clip from the shortcut menu.
- Select a clip in the Browser, then choose Modify > Duplicate as New Master Clip.
The clip is duplicated, and the new clip is an unrelated master clip.

As you edit in Final Cut Pro, you create affiliate clips in a sequence from master clips in the Browser. Dragging a master clip to a sequence creates an affiliate clip in the sequence.

The following operations establish a relationship between a new clip and a master clip in the Browser:

Editing a clip into a sequence: Whenever you edit a clip into a sequence, an affiliate clip is created from the master clip.
Dragging a sequence clip to the Browser: This creates a new Browser clip. Assuming the dragged clip is an affiliate clip, the new Browser clip is also an affiliate clip.
Duplicating a clip: Whenever you copy or duplicate a clip in the Browser or in a sequence, an affiliate clip is created. (The exception to this is when you use the Duplicate as New Master Clip command.)
Copying and pasting a clip: Copying and pasting a clip, either in the Browser or in a sequence, creates a new affiliate clip.

Select an affiliate clip in the Browser, then choose Modify > Make Master Clip.
■ Control-click an affiliate clip in the Browser, then choose Make Master Clip from the shortcut menu.

The selected clip becomes a master clip.

1 Press Option while dragging a clip from the Timeline into the Browser, then press Command.

2 When you see a pointer with M+ next to it, a new master clip is being created; you can release the keys.

Duplicating or copying and pasting an affiliate clip simply creates another affiliate clip that shares its properties with a single Master clip. Therefore, the same rules described in "Creating Affiliate Clips From Master Clips" on page 44 apply when making affiliate clips from other affiliate clips.

Once the relationship between master and affiliate clips is broken, the affiliate clip becomes independent. Not only are all of its properties independent, such as name, log notes, and so on, but the independent clip now refers to its media file directly, instead of by way of a master clip. Changes to the original master clip no longer have any effect on the independent clip.

Important: Since breaking the master-affiliate clip relationship can lead to more complex media management, you should only break the relationship when absolutely necessary.

The relationship between a master clip and its affiliate clips can be broken at any time by performing one of the following operations:

Delete a master clip: When a master clip is deleted, you are warned that all affiliate clips are going to lose their master clip. If you click OK, all of the master clips' affiliate clips become independent from each other. Affiliate clips in the Browser become master clips, while affiliate clips in sequences become independent clips.
Copy clips or sequences between projects: If you have two projects open at the same time, and you copy a clip or sequence from project A to project B, all clips in the sequence pasted into project B become independent; pasted clips not in sequences become master clips.
Edit a clip from an independently opened media file into a sequence: If you open a media file directly into the Viewer using the Open command (instead of importing it into your project, which automatically creates a master clip), the media file appears in its own Viewer window as an independent clip. Editing it from this Viewer window into a sequence in your project results in the creation of an independent clip in that sequence.

To break the relationship between a Browser affiliate clip and its master clip:

1 Select one or more affiliate clips in the Browser.
2 Choose Modify > Make Master Clip.

The affiliated clips in the Browser now have master clip status and are unrelated to their original master clips.

Note: You can verify that a clip is a master clip by checking that its Master Clip property is checked.

Independent clips do not share properties with any other clips. They are neither master clips or affiliate clips. Copying an independent clip creates another independent clip. This can lead to complicated media management because each clip has its own relationship to its media file. This means you have to reconnect each clip to its media file individually, instead of reconnecting a single master clip which also reconnects all of its affiliates. Recapturing media for independent clips, even if they originally referred to the same media file, may create many redundant media files because the independent clips are unaware of the fact that they all refer to the same media.

Independent clips never share properties with other clips, no matter how many times you copy them. They are always located in sequences. Master clips share properties with affiliate clips, and are always located in the Browser.

In the Timeline, Control-click on an affiliate clip, then choose Make Independent Clip from the shortcut menu.

The affiliate clip is now an independent clip. Any changes you make to this clip will not affect the master clip, and the relationship to this clip's media file is now managed independently of other clips in the project.

If you have a sequence of independent clips, you can create new master clips for them in the Browser. This turns each independent clip into an affiliate clip of its new master clip. There are several reasons why you may have a sequence of independent clips:

You imported a project from Final Cut Pro 3 or earlier. In this case, all the clips in your project will be independent.
You pasted a sequence from a different project into your current project. In this case, the clips in the pasted sequence are all independent.
You imported a Final Cut Pro XML interchange file without master clip information.

Important: In general, it's a good idea to avoid using sequences with independent clips because it makes future media management more complicated and inefficient.

To create a master clip from an independent clip in a sequence:

- Drag a clip from the sequence to the Browser to create a copy of it.

The clip in the Browser automatically becomes a master clip, and the sequence clip you dragged becomes an affiliate of the master clip.

1 Do one of the following to define the scope of the Create Master Clips operation:

To create master clips corresponding to every clip in your project, make sure nothing is selected in the Browser or the Timeline.
If you want to limit the creation of master clips to a specific group of clips or sequences, select them.

2 Choose Tools > Create Master Clips.

Every independent clip in your project becomes associated with a master clip in one of two ways:

If a master clip linked to the same media already exists: Independent clips that are linked to the same source media on disk become affiliates of these preexisting master clips.
If no preexisting master clip matches an independent clip in your project: A new master clip is created for each independent clip that doesn't match a preexisting master clip. All newly created master clips are placed in a new folder named "Master clips for [project name]."

If independent clips affiliated with master clips have conflicting shared properties, you are warned. For example, if two independent clips linked to the same source media file on disk have different names or Master Comment 1 information, a dialog appears giving you three choices:

Cancel: Cancels the operation. No changes are made to clip affiliations in your project.
Continue: Creates a new master clip for each independent clip that has different properties, so that all existing property information is kept intact.

- Group: Creates a single master clip for all the independent clips. This may cause some properties of the independent clips to be removed. For example, suppose one independent clip has the name "Dog" and the other is named "Cat." After both clips become affiliated with a single master clip, they both share the name of the master clip. If the master clip is named "Dog," then both newly affiliated clips are now called "Dog" as well.

For an independent clip to become affiliated with a preexisting master clip when using the Create Master Clips command, the following criteria must be met:

The master clip must contain all tracks that are used by the independent clip.
The master clip must contain all of the frames used by the independent clip.

Essentially, all media used by the independent clip must exist in the master clip. Otherwise, it's perfectly acceptable for a master clip to have more tracks or a longer duration than an affiliated clip.

Using the Reveal Master Clip command, you can identify the master clip of any clip in the Browser.

1 In the Browser or Timeline, select an affiliate clip. If the Timeline is active but no clip is selected, the clip at the position of the playhead acts as the selected clip.
2 Choose View > Reveal Master Clip.

The master clip is automatically selected in the Browser.

If the master clip that's found is in a bin:

If the Browser is in column view: All necessary bins are opened hierarchically via their disclosure triangles to reveal the highlighted master clip.
If the Browser is in icon view: The bin containing that clip is opened into its own Browser window, and the master clip is highlighted.

When you create subclips, merged clips, or freeze frame clips, they are automatically created as master clips. In all cases, newly created subclips, merged clips, and freeze frame clips have no master-affiliate relationship to the original clip(s) used when creating them.

For example, if you drag a group of audio and video clip items from a sequence into the Browser, a new master merged clip is created. When you create instances of the merged clip as you edit, affiliate merged clips are created.

Most clip properties reside in a master clip, and all the affiliate clips simply use the properties stored in their master clip. Other properties are stored in a clip's media file. For a detailed description of each of these properties, see "Clip Properties" on page 34.

The following clip properties are stored in a master clip, and these are shared between the master and all its affiliate clips. If you change one of these properties, it changes in all affiliate clips.

Reel
Media Start
Media End
Aux 1–2 Reel
Aux TC 1–2
• TC
Source
Name
Offline Status
Capture Status
Scene
Shot/Take
Log Note
Label
Label 2
Good
Anamorphic

• Master Comments 1–4

Note: The Reel name, Media Start, and Media End properties are also stored directly in a clip's media file, so even if you delete the clip, these properties can be restored by importing the media file into Final Cut Pro. The Aux Reel and timecode information is also stored in a clip's media file.

The following clip properties are unique to each affiliate clip, and unique to the master clip as well. These properties are not shared. Most of these properties are properties for editing and trimming, such as In and Out points, so that each affiliate clip can have a unique duration in a sequence, while still referring to the same media file via its master clip.

Comment A–B
In point
Out point
Duration
Description
Pixel Aspect Ratio
Film Safe
Composite mode
Reverse Alpha
Thumbnail

Some clip properties are derived from the media file itself. If the media file is deleted, some of these properties are retained in the offline clip, while others become empty. Master clips reference these properties directly from the media file. Affiliate clips reference these properties via the master clip, so they are also considered to be shared properties. However, clip properties derived from the media file can only be modified in the media file, or by recapturing with different capture settings.

Reel
Media Start
Media End
Aux 1–2 Reel
Aux TC 1–2
Frame Size
Compressor
Data Rate
Vid Rate
Alpha
Aud Format
Aud Rate
Last Modified
Size

This chapter covers the following:

• About Offline/Online Editing (p. 51)
• Offline/Online Editing Workflows (p. 54)
• Using the OfflineRT Format in Final Cut Pro (p. 55)
• Online Editing on Non-Final Cut Pro Editing Systems (p. 60)
- Trading Project Files Using Email or the Internet (p. 61)

The offline/online workflow allows you to use temporary, low-quality copies of your footage to edit with, and then finish your project with full-resolution media. Lower-resolution media files require less hard disk space and less computing power to process transitions and effects. This means you can edit on an inexpensive computer or a portable PowerBook system, and then finish at full-resolution on another system. Once the creative cutting is complete, the online editing phase (also referred to as the finishing phase) focuses on image quality, color correction, proper broadcast video levels, and so on.

The two phases—offline and online editing—are connected via an Edit Decision List (EDL), or other project interchange file, which is used to transfer all of your editing choices from the finished low-quality session to the final high-quality session.

Editing with low-resolution copies of your media files allows you to fit more media on your scratch disks and improve playback and real-time effects performance (especially when using slower hard disks, such as in PowerBooks). This phase can last from a few days to several years, depending on the scope of the project, the amount of footage, and so on.

When the edit is complete, you can export all of your edit decisions for use on another editing system. Older editing systems use a relatively simple text format called an EDL, while newer interchange formats, such as OMF, AAF, and the Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format describe many more details of your original sequence.

Online editing starts with a project interchange file, or EDL, which describes which media you need to recapture at full-resolution. Online editing actually has very little to do with editing in the traditional sense. Timing, storytelling, and fine-tuning your edits should be complete in the offline editing phase. Online editing focuses on image quality, color correction, maintaining broadcast video specifications, detailed effects work, titles, audio levels, and so on. Compared to the offline editing phase, an online edit session goes very quickly (anywhere from a day to a week), and generally requires more expensive equipment.

Important: Accurate timecode and reel names are critical for keeping track of where footage is located on each tape, so you can recapture footage at any resolution. Make sure you log clips and label tapes carefully.

The offline/online workflow tends to focus on video, but how is audio handled? Audio has much lower data requirements than video, so audio is almost always captured at its native sampling rate and bit depth, even for offline editing. This means the audio is ready for a final audio mix without recapturing.

During the offline editing phase, audio clips are synchronized with video, placed in the sequence, and basic level adjustments are made. Once editing is finished and the picture is locked, audio is mixed in the audio mixing and sweetening phase. You can mix your audio in Final Cut Pro, or transfer your audio files and audio edit decisions to an audio postproduction application.

The audio mixing phase is analogous to the video online edit session: The goal is to produce a continuous, natural-sounding mix by setting proper levels, setting panning (locating sounds in different speakers, either for stereo or surround sound), and using any necessary audio filters. When the audio mix is complete, you bring it to the online edit session for an audio layback into the finished sequence (or directly onto the finished master tape). For more information about audio mixing in Final Cut Pro, see Volume III, Chapter 1, "Overview of Audio Mixing."

To transfer your sequence audio to an audio postproduction application, you need to export two things:

Audio clip information: In and Out points, location in sequence, and audio levels. Some people may simply call this an audio Edit Decision List. The audio media itself is not included.
Audio media files: There are the actual media files referred to by clips in your sequence.

You can export your audio edit decisions to project interchange formats such as OMF, AAF, or the Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format. Some audio applications can also recognize EDLs.

Audio media files can be exported as AIFF, WAVE, Sound Designer II (SD2), or any other QuickTime-supported audio file format.

Important: Using the OMF and AAF formats, you can export both sequence information and media files in a single file. Although this file can be quite large, it can be convenient to have all the audio data you need in one self-contained file. Both an EDL and a file in Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format contain only sequence information, not audio media. This means that in addition to the project interchange file, you need to transfer your audio media to the facility doing your mix.

The interchange format you choose depends on which formats your audio application recognizes. For more information, see Chapter 11, "Exporting Audio for Mixing in Other Applications," on page 145.

The offline/online editing process in Final Cut Pro consists of the following steps:

You can log and capture your footage directly to low-resolution, offline-quality media files. Alternatively, you can log and capture your footage at full resolution, and then use the Media Manager to create low-resolution media files for offline editing. The latter method is useful if you want to have both full-resolution and low-resolution media for two different systems simultaneously.

You edit just as you would with any other footage. Because you are using low-resolution footage, you can fit much more footage on your hard disk, and use a portable PowerBook editing system.

When you finish editing your low-resolution sequence, you use the Media Manager to create a copy with full-resolution settings. For this step, you choose the Create Offline option in the Media pop-up menu.

Important: It is important to understand the difference between clips and media files when performing this step. This option only creates a new sequence with new sequence clips at full-resolution, but no new media files are created. Once you have a sequence with full-resolution settings, you can recapture your media files at full-resolution. Also, the word "offline" in the Create Offline option actually refers to creating clips whose media files are offline, and doesn't actually relate to the offline/online editing process. For more information, see "Clips Described By Their Properties" on page 31.

You can restrict your new sequence clips so that only the media necessary to create your finished edit is required, instead of the entire length of the original media files. This saves time and disk space when you recapture.

If you are doing online editing on a non-Final Cut Pro editing system, you need to export your sequence to a project interchange format such as an EDL, AAF, or the Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format. Third-party plug-ins are available for converting Final Cut Pro projects directly to other nonlinear editing system formats.

At this stage, you also export your audio to an audio interchange format, such as OMF, or separate audio files for audio mixing in a separate application.

You bring your finished, full-resolution sequence to a Final Cut Pro editing system capable of recapturing your media at full resolution, and then capture your footage.

Once you have full-resolution footage, you can accurately color correct and add final titles and effects. At the end of this process, you render your effects in preparation for output. Your final audio mix is created in Final Cut Pro or imported from a separate audio application.

You output or export your final sequence as you would with any other project.

The OfflineRT Format uses video settings optimized for low-resolution editing and maximum real-time effects in Final Cut Pro. Final Cut Pro includes two basic varieties of OfflineRT settings, one for standard definition and one for high-definition formats:

If you're capturing NTSC or PAL video, the frame size is 320 x 240 (4:3), the codec used is Photo JPEG, and the compression quality is 35 percent.
If you're using one of the sequence presets to transcode high-definition video, the frame size is 384 x 216 (16:9), the codec used is Photo JPEG, and the compression quality is 35 percent.

In both cases, the video frames are stored progressively. The frame rate of the OfflineRT format should always match the frame rate of your original video, or it will be impossible to accurately recapture your original footage for online editing.

These factors greatly reduce the data rate of the video, although they also lower the quality. You should only use this format for offline editing, with the intention of recapturing your video at full resolution for your online edit.

Before you capture, you need to choose an appropriate OfflineRT format for offline-quality editing in Final Cut Pro.

- Choose an OfflineRT Easy Setup that corresponds to the standard or your original footage (NTSC or PAL) and frame rate.

OfflineRT Easy Setups are named with the following conventions:

• Video standard: NTSC or PAL
- Frame rate: The frame rate is included in the name of an OfflineRT Easy Setup when nonstandard frame rates are used, such as 23.98 fps for NTSC video.
- Anamorphic: Choose an anamorphic Easy Setup if you shot your original footage with an anamorphic lens or the anamorphic (16:9) setting selected on your camcorder.

For information about choosing an Easy Setup, see Volume I, Chapter 13, "Connecting DV Video Equipment and Specifying Initial Settings."

Once you've selected the appropriate Easy Setup, you can capture OfflineRT clips using your camcorder or deck. For more information about capturing, see Volume I, Chapter 19, "Capturing Your Footage to Disk."

When your system is set up correctly, you can log and capture using device control as usual. During capturing, video is transcoded from its original format to the OfflineRT format and written to your scratch disk.

Alternatively, you can capture your footage at full resolution and then transcode, or recompress it, to the appropriate OfflineRT format using the Media Manager. For more information, see "Example: Recompressing Media Files for an Entire Project for Editing on a PowerBook" on page 101.

You edit your OfflineRT sequence just as you would if your footage was captured at full resolution.

Even though your OfflineRT sequence is set to small image dimensions, as you edit, you can import and use your full-resolution still graphics in your low-resolution project. Therefore, it's not necessary to create your graphics with two different dimensions for offline and online editing.

When you edit graphics into your sequence that are larger than that sequence's frame size, Final Cut Pro automatically resizes them to fit. For example, while working at offline resolution, your sequence frame size is 320 x 240. If you edit in a still graphic that was created with a frame size of 720 x 480, Final Cut Pro sets the Scale property of this graphic (shown in the Motion tab of the Viewer) to 50 percent to fit the sequence's 320 x 240 frame size. Generators used in your sequence always inherit the dimensions of the sequence they are in.

When you create your full-resolution sequence for online editing, the dimensions of your graphics and generators are automatically set to the proper dimensions.

Once you've finished editing your project, you use the "Create offline" option in the Media Manager to create a duplicate of your edited sequence using an online-quality sequence preset. The Media Manager is convenient because it not only creates a duplicate sequence with new settings, but every clip in the sequence is also set to the the new settings.

Note: The Media Manager adjusts the dimensions and scale of any graphics or Final Cut Pro generators you used to match the new sequence settings.

To create a duplicate of your sequence with online-quality settings:

1 In the Browser, select your sequence.
2 Choose File > Media Manager.
3 Choose "Create offline" from the Media pop-up menu, then choose an online-quality sequence preset from the "Set sequences to" pop-up menu.

Note: If you want to limit the amount of media your online-quality sequence references to media necessary for the sequence itself, make sure the "Delete unused media" checkbox is selected. In this case, you may also want to select the Use Handles option in case you need an extra second or two to add transitions or trim your sequence during the online edit.

4 When you're ready, click OK.
5 In the Save dialog that appears, enter a name and choose a location for the project that contains the duplicated, online-quality sequence; then click Save.

You can now transfer the project containing your new sequence to a Final Cut Pro system capable of recapturing your footage at full resolution. The sequence clips are considered offline because they are not yet connected to full-resolution media. In this case, the term offline refers to the fact that the clips are disconnected from media files.

For more information on using the Media Manager, see Chapter 7, "Overview of the Media Manager," on page 77.

The format you choose in the "Set sequences to" pop-up menu depends on the format of your original footage and the video hardware in your online editing system. For example, if the format of your footage is DV, you choose a corresponding DV sequence preset in the "Set sequences to" pop-up menu. If the format of your footage is a non-DV format, such as Digital Betacam or HDCAM, you need to choose an uncompressed sequence preset that corresponds to your third-party video interface.

Third-party interfaces usually come with pre-made sequence presets you can install and choose in Final Cut Pro. If your editing system doesn't have the appropriate third-party presets installed, you need to install them on your system. Alternatively, you can transfer your original sequence to the online editing system (which should contain the appropriate sequence presets) and create your final sequence for recapturing directly on that system.

Once you create a sequence with online-quality settings, you can bring it to an online editing system along with your original tapes and any graphic, video, and audio files necessary to recreate your sequence.

1 Open the project file you created that contains your duplicated sequence with online-quality settings.
2 Select the sequence in the Browser.
3 To recapture all of the offline clips in the sequence, do one of the following:

Choose File > Batch Capture.
Control-click on the sequence and choose Batch Capture from the shortcut menu.
Press Control-C.

For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 19, "Capturing Your Footage to Disk."

An online edit session focuses on the quality of your video. A fully-equipped online edit suite includes a video waveform monitor, a vectorscope, and a broadcast-quality monitor to make sure your video looks as good as possible.

Once all effects are added, color correction is completed, and the final audio mix is added, you render sections of the Timeline where necessary and then output to tape. For more information about output to tape, see Chapter 13, "Preparing to Output to Tape," on page 175.

Alternatively, you can export to an MPEG-2 file for DVD, a QuickTime movie file for web output, or an image sequence for transfer to film. For more information about these output methods, see the corresponding sections in Chapter 16, "Exporting Sequences for DVD," on page 215, Chapter 18, "Exporting QuickTime Movies," on page 239, and Chapter 20, "Exporting Still Images and Image Sequences," on page 261.

The offline/online editing workflow is the same regardless of the type of editing systems you use for each phase. The critical step is generating a project interchange file that correctly translates your edit decisions from one system to another. Transferring from an offline Final Cut Pro system to an online Final Cut Pro system is easy because both systems recognize the native Final Cut Pro project file format. However, there are situations when you want to use a non-Final Cut Pro system for online editing, usually to take advantage of the unique features of that system.

Transferring your sequence to a non-Final Cut Pro system requires an intermediate project interchange format. Some examples of non-Final Cut Pro online editing systems include:

- Tape-based linear editing suites: These are traditional online suites, complete with high-quality monitors, a waveform monitor and a vectorscope, several playback decks and a record deck, a video switcher with effects, and a computer-based edit controller. These systems usually only recognize EDLs, which are the oldest and most limited project interchange format.

- Other nonlinear editing systems: These are systems similar to Final Cut Pro, such as Avid, Media 100, and Premier Pro. These systems each recognize their own native formats, and some also recognize the AAF format. The Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format can be used in conjunction with third-party plug-ins to export Final Cut Pro sequences to the native formats of other nonlinear editing systems.

Note: Some systems recognize OMF project files, but Final Cut Pro can export only audio information in the OMF format, so this is not an option for transferring video editing information to another system. In Final Cut Pro, OMF is used only for audio interchange.

Because the connection between clips and media files is so flexible in Final Cut Pro, you can easily transfer and open projects between different Final Cut Pro editing systems. For example, you can work with low-resolution copies of your media on a PowerBook, and then transfer your project to another editing system containing full-resolution copies of your media. Since a project file is small, it's easy to transfer it via email, a website, Zip disk, CD-R, or directly from a PowerBook hard disk to a desktop system.

You use the Media Manager to create a copy of your project without media, reducing transfer time significantly. Keep in mind that recipients of your project need the same media files on their systems (even if they are at a different resolution); otherwise, they will only see offline media indicators when they open the project.

The example below shows how to make a copy of your sequence(s) with different sequence settings (image dimensions, codec, and so on) to send to a remote collaborator. You do not actually create any new media.

1 Select a sequence in the Browser.
2 Choose File > Media Manager.
3 Choose "Create offline" from the Media pop-up menu.
4 From the Set sequences to pop-up menu, choose the sequence preset that matches the media on the editing system you are sending to.
5 Click OK.
6 Choose a destination and name for the new project file, then click OK.
7 Attach the new project to an email, or upload it to an accessible FTP or web server.

Some network servers may not recognize the native Final Cut Pro file format. To ensure that the file is properly transferred, you can create and send a compressed zip archive of your project instead.

To create a cross-platform-compatible zip archive of your project(s):

1 In the Finder, select the Final Cut Pro project file(s).
2 Control-click the project file and choose Create Archive Of from the shortcut menu.

If you create a single archive zip file, the archive file will be named after the file you originally selected (for example, My Movie.fcp becomes My Movie.fcp.zip). If you select multiple files, the archive file will be named Archive.zip. You can change the name after the archive file is created, but keep the three-letter.zip extension at the end of the file name. This will help network servers properly handle the file.

The recipient downloads, unarchives, and opens the project, then reconnects the sequence to local copies of the media files, which should match the settings you chose.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - To use the Media Manager to deliver your project to another Final Cut Pro editing system: - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["PowerBook Editing System"] -->|File transfer| B["Project"]
    B -->|Create offline in Media Manager| C["Project"]
    C -->|File transfer| D["Desktop Editing System"]
    D -->|High-resolution media files| E["Final Desktop"]
    A -->|Low-resolution media files| A
    C -->|Create offline in Media Manager| B
    D -->|High-resolution media files| D

Even if you aren't sure what settings the other person's media files are set to, you can send the recipient your original project without using the Media Manager. When the recipient gets the project, he or she can perform the same "Create offline" media management operation explained above to create a project compatible with his or her local media files.

Whenever a clip's media file is modified outside of Final Cut Pro, the connection between the clip and the media file breaks. You can easily reconnect clips and media files whenever you need to.

This chapter covers the following:

About the Connections Between Clips and Media Files (p. 64)
• How the Connection Between Clips and Media Files Can Be Broken (p. 65)
• Making Clips Offline (p. 66)
• Reconnecting Clips to Media Files (p. 68)
When Final Cut Pro Reconnects Your Clips (p. 74)

Final Cut Pro is very flexible about the connection between clips and their media files. It is fairly easy to make a clip go offline by accidentally moving or modifying a media file in the Finder, but it is also very easy to reconnect clips to media files.

A clip connects to a media file via the clip's Source property, which contains the location of the media file as a file path. If a clip cannot locate its media file, the media file is considered offline, and the clip is called an offline clip. An offline clip has a red slash through its icon in the Browser:

These are offline clips.

Each time you move from Final Cut Pro to another application and then back again, Final Cut Pro checks that the modification date of each clip's media file has not changed, and that they are in the expected file path. If a media file has been modified, Final Cut Pro warns you that the media file has gone offline, and asks if you'd like to reconnect the clip. You can choose to do this immediately, or you can do it later. If you don't successfully reconnect clips to their media files, the clips remain offline.

There are several reasons the connection between the clips in your project and your media files on disk can break, causing the corresponding clips in your project to go offline:

You modified your media files in any way that changes the modification date in the Finder.
You moved your media files to another folder.
You renamed your media files.
You created an offline project file with the Media Manager.
You deleted your media files on disk. In this case, you have no option but to recapture the media files.

When a clip in your project goes offline, any sequence render files associated with that clip also go offline, and the Offline Files dialog appears (see "When Final Cut Pro Reconnects Your Clips" on page 74).

When you play back offline clips, a Media Offline message is displayed until these clips are either reconnected or recaptured.

Media Offline Don at table salad WS 5

This type of message appears when you play an offline clip.

You can deliberately make clips in your project offline. This breaks the connection between a clip in your project and its media file on disk by removing the file path in the clip's Source property. Since the file path in a clip's Source property is shared among affiliated clips, removing this file path makes all affiliated clips offline at the same time. This is useful if you want to delete all of your media files in preparation for recapturing at a higher data rate (for online editing).

In addition to breaking the connection between clips and media files, you can choose to delete the media files or keep them on your scratch disk. This is useful if you want to delete all of your media files in preparation for recapturing at a higher data rate, or simply to get rid of media files you no longer need because you are refining your project.

1 In the Browser or Timeline, select the clips or sequences you want to make offline.
2 Do one of the following:

- Choose Modify > Make Offline.

- Control-click a selected item and choose Make Offline from the shortcut menu.

3 Select an option in the Make Offline dialog, then click OK.

Make Offline After making selected clips offline... Action For Media Files: Leave Them on the Disk Move Them to the Trash Delete Them from the Disk Click an option. Cancel OK

Leave Them on the Disk: Select this option to disconnect clips from their media files but leave the original media files on your disk. Clips are disconnected because the file path in each clip's Source property is cleared, so the clips no longer have a file location to look for media files.
Move Them to the Trash: Select this option to disconnect clips from their media files and move the media files to the Trash. This is different from choosing to delete the files because you must still empty the Trash to delete the files. This option lets you consider whether you really want to permanently delete your media files (emptying the Trash is not undoable). If you decide to keep the files, you must drag them out of the Trash and use the Reconnect Media command, because the file path in each clip's Source property is cleared.

- Delete Them from the Disk: Select this option to disconnect clips from their media and immediately delete the media files from the disk. This action is not undoable. If you need the media files again, you have to recapture them.

4 If you choose to move or delete the files, a message tells you this action cannot be undone. To continue, click OK.

Final Cut Pro considers any clip without a media file to be offline. However, the status of the clip's Source property determines whether Final Cut Pro continues to search for a clip's media file each time a project is opened.

If a clip's Source property contains a file path and the media file cannot be found, Final Cut Pro considers this clip's media file to be missing, and Final Cut Pro warns you about the missing media file each time you open the project.

If a clip's Source property is empty, the clip is considered offline, but Final Cut Pro does not search for the clip's media file (since there is no path to search for). In this case, you are not warned about missing media each time you open the project. For example, if you simply log a clip, it does not yet have a media file associated with it, and therefore its Source property is empty. In this case, Final Cut Pro doesn't warn you each time you open the project that the clip is missing its media file.

Final Cut Pro keeps track of which clips have missing media files until you explicitly request otherwise. You can change the status of a clip from "missing" to simply offline by clearing the clip's Source property. You can do this several ways:

Select the Forget option in the Offline Files dialog that appears when Final Cut Pro detects that some clips' media files are not in the expected location.
Select one or more clips and choose Modify > Make Offline.

Clips in your project don't have to be offline for you to use the Reconnect Media command. You can reconnect media files to clips in your project at any time, since all you are doing is changing the file path stored in the clip's Source property.

Reconnecting the links between clips and media files is the most obvious reason for doing this, but there are other reasons to use the Reconnect Media command:

To reconnect clips in your project to higher-resolution versions of the media files in preparation for online editing
To reconnect clips in your project to lower-resolution versions of the media files for mobile editing, or to fit more media on a relatively small hard disk. This is usually known as offline editing.

Note: The terms offline clip and offline editing are not related.

- To reconnect clips after you modify, move, or delete media files in the Finder and return to Final Cut Pro.

The Reconnect Files dialog has the following features:

This displays a list of clips organized by clip status:

Online Files: This refers to clips that are currently referencing the appropriate media files. You may want to reconnect these clips if you want your clips to reference a different folder with the same media, or media captured with different settings.
Offline Files (with a specified path): This refers to clips that contain a file path in the Source property, but Final Cut Pro cannot locate the media file at the specified location.
Offline Files (with an unspecified path): This refers to clips that have an empty Source property. In this case, Final Cut Pro cannot locate the media file because no location is specified. You need to manually reconnect these clips to their media files, if possible, using the Locate button.
Render Files: This refers to sequence render files that Final Cut Pro cannot locate in the Render Files folder of your current scratch disk.
Offline, Online, and Render buttons: You can choose to limit which items are displayed in the Files to Connect list by clicking the offline, online, or render buttons. One or more of these buttons may be disabled if none of the selected clips or sequences has the corresponding clip status. For example, if you only selected online clips, the offline and render buttons are disabled.

This area allows you to choose which folders are searched when Final Cut Pro looks for media files.

Skip File: Click this button to remove the current clip highlighted in the Files to Reconnect list. When this clip is removed, the next clip in the list is highlighted for reconnection.
Search Single Location checkbox: When you select this option, only the directory path in the Search Single Location pop-up menu is searched, as well as any subfolders of that directory path.

Selecting this option can greatly improve the speed of the search for media files, especially when you have a lot of media files on your scratch disks or when you are using a storage area network (SAN) such as an Xsan configuration. The fewer files and subfolders a directory contains, the faster Final Cut Pro can search for corresponding media files.

If this checkbox is not selected, Final Cut Pro searches all folders and volumes in the Search Folders pop-up menu.

- Search Folders pop-up menu: When the Search Single Location checkbox is deselected, Final Cut Pro searches all of the directories and volumes shown in this pop-up menu in the order they appear. The menu is divided into three sections, and a fourth option to add additional search folders.

- Directories from the Search Folders tab in System Settings: These are folders set in the Search Folders tab in the System Settings window, and they appear in the same order. For more information about setting and removing search folders, see "Search Folders Tab" on page 295. Additional items can be temporarily added to this list by selecting the Add Search Location option (at the bottom of this pop-up menu).

- Current scratch disk folders: These are the disks assigned in the Scratch Disks tab in the System Settings window. For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 13, "Connecting DV Video Equipment and Specifying Initial Settings."

- Currently mounted volumes: These are the current volumes mounted on your system.

- Add Search Location: Select this option to add a folder to the end of the search folders list. These items are added to the list in the Search Folders tab of the System Settings window.

Final Cut Pro searches folders in the order they appear in the Search Folders pop-up menu. To make searching for media files efficient, Final Cut Pro searches designated folders before searching entire volumes. This way, if a media file is located in a specified search folder, Final Cut Pro never has to perform a more time-consuming search through an entire volume. This can be especially helpful when searching for media stored an a storage area network, such as an Xsan storage system.

In general, a directory that contains less files and subfolders is faster to search than a folder higher in the directory hierarchy. However, due to the way HFS directories are cataloged and optimized, searching an entire HFS volume may be more efficient than searching a folder near the root level of that volume. Broad, partial-volume searches are usually the most time consuming searches. When you assign search folders, always select folders as specifically as possible.

- Locate: Click this button to manually navigate to a media file for the clip highlighted in the Files to Connect list. This is useful if you are reconnecting a clip to a media file whose name does not match, or when you know the location of a media file and you want to navigate to it quickly.

In the window that opens, you can choose a media file to reconnect to, or you can choose a folder and Final Cut Pro will search that folder for any media files that match the name of the clip.

- Search: Click this button to start searching for media files that match the highlighted clip. When you click this button, the Reconnect dialog opens with the matching media file selected (if found). Media files are searched for in folders based on the order they appear in the Search Folders pop-up menu. If the Search Single Location option is selected, only the folder shown in selected.

As you match clips to corresponding media files, they appear in this list.

Amount located: This is the number of clips currently matched to media files.
Amount with conflicts: This is the number of clips that you have assigned to media files in which some aspect of each clip does not match its assigned media file. For example, if you assign a media file containing three audio tracks to a clip that expects only one audio track, this clip is considered to have a conflict.

The Reconnect Files dialog has many options, depending on the types of clips you are reconnecting and the number of volumes and folders you want to search for missing media files. The task below suggest one possible workflow.

1 Select the clips you want to reconnect.

If you have a lot of offline clips and you want to make sure you reconnect them all, press Command-A to select all clips in the Browser, and make sure you select the "Offline" option in step 3.

Select the files you want to reconnect.

2 Do one of the following:

- Choose File >Reconnect Media. - Control-click a clip or sequence, then choose Reconnect Media from the shortcut menu.

The Reconnect Files dialog appears.

The first item in the Files to Connect list is highlighted. The currently highlighted clip is the clip whose media file Final Cut Pro attempts to match.

3 To remove the currently highlighted clip from the Files To Connect area, click Skip File. You may want to skip a clip if you cannot locate its media file, but you want to continue reconnecting other clips in the list.

4 Do one of the following:

Choose a directory path from the Search Folders pop-up menu, then select the Search Single Location option to limit where Final Cut Pro searches for clips' media files.
Deselect the Search Single Location option so that all folders in the Search Folders pop-up menu are searched.

5 Do one of the following:

Click Search to have Final Cut Pro search for media files automatically.
Click Locate to manually navigate to the location of the media file.

If you click Search, Final Cut Pro searches for the media file that corresponds to the clip highlighted in the Files To Connect area. When Final Cut Pro discovers a potential match, the Reconnect dialog appears. If Final Cut Pro cannot find a clip's media file, you hear an alert sound. In this case, you may want to use the Locate button to manually search for a clip's media file instead.

Several options can help you find your clip.

Show pop-up menu: If this option is set to All Files, you can select any file type in the selected folder on your hard disk, whether or not it can be connected to a clip in Final Cut Pro. To limit the kind of files you can select in this list, choose a file type from the pop-up menu.
Matched Name Only: Choose this option so Final Cut Pro restricts your selections to media files whose names match the file name in the clip's Source property. If you are reconnecting to a media file whose name is different than the previous media file the clip was connected to, or if the clip name does not match the media filename, you can deselect this option.

Note: If no media file exists that matches the filename in the clip's Source property, Final Cut Pro searches for a media file whose name matches the clip name.

- Search: Shows the path of the media file referenced to the current clip being reconnected. If more than one match is found, you can use this pop-up menu to choose which file you want.

- Reconnect All Files in Relative Path: Select this checkbox if you want Final Cut Pro to automatically reconnect all remaining clips whose media files are located in this folder. When you are reconnecting a lot of clips, this can speed up the reconnection process considerably.

6 When the correct media file is selected, click Choose to add the media file to the Files Located area in the Reconnect dialog.

If certain attributes of the selected media file don't match the clip you are reconnecting the File Attribute Mismatch dialog appears.

File Attribute Mismatch Some attributes of one or more of the files you have chosen do not match the attributes of the original. This may cause problems within the sequences that are dependent on them. The attributes that differed are as follows: - Number of audio or video tracks Would you like to try to connect them again? Continue Try Again

Final Cut Pro warns you if the following file attributes don't match the properties of the clip you are reconnecting:

• Media Start and Media End timecode
• Number of video or audio tracks
- Reel name
- Frame rate

7 Click Try Again to search for a different media file to connect to the clip. Otherwise, click Continue to reconnect the media file to the current clip, even though certain attributes don't match.

Clips connected to media files with mismatched attributes appear in the File Located area in italics, and the total number of clip-media file mismatches is displayed next to "Amount with conflicts."

All media files located appear in a list in the Files Located area of the Reconnect dialog.

8 Using the Search or Locate button, continue to associate clips to media files until you are ready to reconnect them.

9 Click Connect to connect all clips in the Files Located area to their media files.

You can click Connect at any time, even if there are still clips listed in the Files to Connect list.

In certain circumstances, Final Cut Pro checks to make sure all of the media files that correspond to clips in your project have not been modified, and that none of the media files are missing. Final Cut Pro checks for offline clips in the following situations:

- When you open a project file: If Final Cut Pro detects missing media files that weren't missing the last time you saved this project, the Offline Files window appears.

- When you switch from any application to Final Cut Pro: If you switch from your project in Final Cut Pro to the Finder (or any other application) and modify your media files, Final Cut Pro detects these media file modifications when you switch back. In this case, the Offline Files window appears when you switch back to Final Cut Pro.

The Offline Files dialog appears each time you open a project whose clips' media files have been modified in any way. This dialog may also appear when you switch to another application and then return to Final Cut Pro. If any media files are modified, moved, or deleted during this time, you see the Offline Files dialog.

Offline Files Some files went offline. Some of the media your project references have either changed, moved, or gone away. You can either reconnect these files, or continue with them being offline. Forget Files: □ Movie Files 4 Offline □ Render Files 0 Offline You can select which media files to disregard. Reconnect... Continue

The Offline Files dialog shows a summary of how many media files are missing, and what kind they are.

Forget Files: When you select one or more types of media in this list, Final Cut Pro removes (or "forgets") the file path in each clip's Source property. Once the Source property is empty, Final Cut Pro no longer warns you that these clips are offline.
Media Files: Select this checkbox to clear the Source property of each offline clip. You can always reconnect your clips to media files later.
Render Files: Select this checkbox to tell Final Cut Pro to forget all missing render files in your sequences. If you do not select this option, Final Cut Pro continues to warn you that sequence render files are missing each time you open the project.
Reconnect: Click this button to open the Reconnect dialog. This allows you to reconnect the clips to their media files. For more information, see "Using the Reconnect Files Dialog" on page 71.
Continue: Click this to leave all specified clips offline. The file paths in the Source properties of all clips selected in the Forget Files list are cleared. Any unselected clips and render files continue to be considered "missing", and Final Cut Pro warns you that these clips' media files cannot be found each time you open the project.

This chapter covers the following:

• What Can You Do With the Media Manager? (p. 78)
- Selecting Items to Process With the Media Manager (p. 79)
- Settings and Options in the Media Manager Window (p. 80)
• How the Media Manager Processes Selected Items (p. 87)
- Limiting How Much Media Is Copied or Deleted (p. 90)

The Media Manager has a lot of options, which makes it both powerful and complex. If you are new to media management in Final Cut Pro, you may find it easier to learn by trying some of the examples in Chapter 8, "Examples of How to Use the Media Manager," on page 93.

When learning how to manage your media in Final Cut Pro, it's also important to understand the distinctions between master and affiliate clips, media files, subclips, and so on. For more information, see Chapter 3, "Elements of a Final Cut Pro Project," on page 29.

The Media Manager can duplicate an existing project, or individual items in the project, as well as the corresponding media files, or portions of those media files. Final Cut Pro treats media files and clips independently, so some Media Manager options determine how clips are modified, duplicated, or reconnected, while other options determine how media files are processed. Most of the tasks you do in the Media Manager could be performed manually, but it could be very time-consuming. It's much more efficient to let the Media Manager do this work for you.

You can use the Media Manager for the following media management tasks:

- Copy entire projects or items within projects

You can create a new project file that contains whichever items you select in your original project file, as well as copy all of the corresponding media files.

- Move all media files to a single folder on your scratch disk

It's fairly common to capture media files to more than one folder (or more than one scratch disk) during the course of a project. You can use the Move option in the Media Manager to consolidate all of your project's media files to a single folder on a single scratch disk, as well as to automatically reconnect all of the clips to their media files in the new location.

- Delete unused portions of media from your hard disk

You can break your media files into smaller files by using the "Delete unused media from selected items" option. This option analyzes what portions of each media file are used by your current selection, and then creates new media files that contain only the necessary media. You can use this option with the Copy or Recompress options, so only a limited amount of new media is created. If you use this option with the Move or Use Existing options, smaller media files are created and the original files are deleted.

Note: This is a good way to free up disk space or create smaller media files from subclips that originally refer to one large media file.

- Recompress media files with different image dimensions and compression settings The Recompress option in the Media Manager allows you to create copies of your media files compressed with a different codec or frame size. For example, you can recompress your DV media files with the OfflineRT settings in order to reduce their size for editing on a PowerBook. This is a common method for creating media files for offline editing in Final Cut Pro.

- Create a copy of a sequence for recapturing clips at full resolution (online editing)

You can use the "Create offline" option in the Media Manager to duplicate a sequence with different video and audio settings. This option doesn't actually create any new media files, so the resulting sequence and its clips are offline (meaning the clips have no media files to refer to). You can then recapture the sequence's media files at full resolution for the final edit. This option is typically used in preparation for online editing.

If two editors both have copies of the media files, but each uses different settings (for example, DV on one system and OfflineRT on another), you can use this feature to quickly exchange sequences back and forth via email or the Internet. In this situation, only a project file containing a sequence needs to be transferred, since both editors have their own copies of the media files. Once an editor receives a project, the clips can be reconnected to local media files.

For more information, see Chapter 5, "Offline and Online Editing," on page 51.

Before you can use the Media Manager, you need to select which clips, bins, sequences, or clip items in sequences you want to process. The items you select (and the master-affiliate clip relationships of those items) determines which clips and media files are processed.

Here are some examples of what you can select to process with the Media Manager:

One or more clips in the Browser: These may be master clips, affiliate clips, or a combination of both.
One or more sequences: When you select a sequence in the Browser, the Media Manager operation affects only that sequence's clips and their corresponding media files. If the Timeline is the active window and no clips are selected in it, then the currently selected sequence tab is the one that is operated upon.
One or more clip items in a sequence: If a sequence is open in the Timeline and the Timeline is active, you can use one of the selection tools to select particular clip items. Clip items are individual parts of a clip placed in tracks of a sequence (for example, a video clip item and two audio clip items from a DV clip). The Media Manager operations are then restricted to only the selected clip items within the currently active sequence.
One or more bins: When you select a bin, the Media Manager processes all the clips and sequences contained in that bin.
An entire project: You can select the entire project by making the Browser the active window, selecting the tab for your project, and then pressing Command-A to select all items in the Browser. If the Browser is the active window and no items are selected, the Media Manager processes every item in the project, just as if you had selected all the items.

- Any combination of the above: The Media Manager can handle a diverse range of selections, such as a bin and several sequences, a sequence and multiple clips in the Browser, noncontiguous clip items in a sequence, and so on.

Important: Media files that do not have a source timecode track or reel name are never trimmed shorter, transcoded, or made offline. This is because a media file without a reel name and timecode may not come from a source that would allow you to recapture the media, so Final Cut Pro errs on the side of safety so that you don't accidentally lose any of this media file.

The Media Manager has a number of options, many of which affect one another. Some options become unavailable for some operations, and in other cases, some options become permanently enabled. When certain options are grayed out, it's usually to ensure that clips outside your selection don't lose the media they need when you process your media files.

- Select items in the Browser or in a sequence, and then do one of the following:

Choose File > Media Manager.
Control-click a clip or sequence in the Browser or Timeline, then choose Media Manager from the shortcut menu that appears.

The Summary area at the top describes what operation is about to be performed and shows how much hard disk space the resulting media requires.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Summary Area - 1

bar

Summary: Create a new project containing the items you have selected. Include active Multiclip angles only. Delete unused media from the duplicated items. Copy media files referenced by the duplicated items, including render files. Original: 1.2 GB Modified: 974.7 MB 759.9 MB on Macintosh HD (00:04:17:10 of Media) Move the pointer over a bar to view the disk space for the specified items.

Original: This bar shows the total disk space used by the media files associated with your current selection. This bar may be segmented if the media referenced by the selected items is found on multiple disks.
Modified: This bar displays the total disk space that will be used by the same items after the Media Manager processes the media files. If you're recompressing or deleting unused media, the Modified bar is often shorter, so you can see how much disk space the operation will save.

When you move the pointer over each section of the bar graph, a description appears that displays the size, location, and duration of the media represented by that section. Different colored segments represent different types of media, with media files represented by green segments and render files represented by blue.

This area is where you choose what you want to do to the media files on disk that are referenced by your selection—copy, move, recompress at a specified sequence preset, process only existing media, or create offline clips (creates a copy of clips or sequences with no associated media). You can also choose to include render files, delete unused media, and add handles.

The choices in this pop-up menu represent the main Media Manager tasks. All other options in the Media Manager follow from the choice you make here.

Copy: This option copies all the selected items' media files to the folder or disk specified in the Media Destination path.
Move: This option moves selected items' media files to the location specified in the Media Destination path.
Recompress: This is nearly the same as the Copy option, but it allows you to recompress the selected items' media files using a codec different from the one they were captured with and place them at a specified location. You choose the recompression settings used from the "Recompress media using" pop-up menu, which lists all sequence presets in Final Cut Pro. If no preset suits your needs, you can choose Custom and specify your own settings in the Sequence Preset Editor window that appears. These settings cannot be saved as a sequence preset; they are used only for the immediate operation.

Note: The "Recompress media using" pop-up menu is available only when the Recompress option is chosen.

When using the Recompress option, clips' motion attributes are changed to match the new dimensions of the sequence preset you chose. Only QuickTime movies are recompressed; other types of files (such as Photoshop and AIFF files) are simply copied.

Note: The Recompress option may fail with clips using codecs that rely upon temporal compression, such as Sorenson and Cinepak. To recompress these files in these codecs, you may want to use the Batch Export feature instead.

Important: You cannot use the Recompress option to convert NTSC media to PAL, PAL media to NTSC, or any other frame rate conversion. If you try, the frame size will change to the new size, but the frame rate will remain the same as in the original media.

- Use Existing: This option allows you to use the currently existing media that's linked to the selected items. If you delete unused media using this option, the unused media is actually deleted from your original media files, with or without handles, as specified.

Important: Be extremely careful when choosing the "Use existing" option; the Media Manager deletes each media file as soon as it finishes processing it. Canceling this operation may restore the media file currently being processed, but media files that have already been processed cannot be restored.

- Create Offline: This option is very different from the others because no media files are created or processed, and your selection is always copied to a new project. This option is used to make a copy of a sequence with different settings, not to copy actual media. The main reason for this option is to copy a sequence with low-resolution settings to a sequence with full-resolution settings which you can then use to recapture full-resolution media. This prepares you for an online editing session.

Note: If the duplicated sequence has a different frame size than the original, the sequence clips' motion attributes are adjusted proportionally so they match the new frame size.

You can choose the new settings for the copied sequence in the "Set sequences to" pop-up menu, which lists all sequence presets in Final Cut Pro, as well as an option to use "Current Sequence Settings." You can also choose Custom to specify your own settings in the Sequence Preset Editor window that appears. These settings cannot be saved as a sequence preset; they are used only for the immediate operation.

Note: This pop-up menu appears only when the "Create offline" option is chosen. It replaces the "Recompress media using" pop-up menu.

Select this checkbox to include render files when using the Copy or Move operation. This option is not available with the Recompress, "Use existing", or "Create offline" operations.

• Available with: Copy or Move
• Always enabled with: "Use existing"
- Always disabled with: Recompress or "Create offline"

When you choose the “Duplicate selected items and place into a new project” option, a bin of master clips is created for all of the clips used in the new project. This means the new project has master-affiliate relationships, not just independent clips.

The “Include master clips outside selection” option determines how much media is retained in the master clips of the new project.

When this option is selected, the master clips in the new project are based on the master clips in your current project. This means that the following media is retained when new master clips and media files are created:
The media defined by the items you selected before opening the Media Manager window
The media defined by the In and Out points of your original master clips
When this option is deselected, the master clips in the new project are based only on the media used by the items you selected before opening the Media Manager window.

Selecting this option allows you to retain not only the media for clips in your sequences, but also media defined by your original master clip In and Out points. When combined with the "Include Affiliate Clips Outside Selection" option, you can retain media for all clips affiliated with your original selection, even if you did not explicitly select all of the affiliated items.

• Available with: Copy, Recompress, or "Create offline"
- Always enabled with: Move or "Use existing"

This option allows you to delete (or not include) any media files, or portions of media files, that aren't referenced by your selected items.

Note: The name of this checkbox changes depending on whether you are creating a duplicate project.

When you delete portions of media files, Final Cut Pro actually creates new media files, one for each segment of the original media file defined by the clips or subclips you selected. The new media files are named according to the option chosen in the "Base media file names on" pop-up menu, and the resulting clips in your project are properly connected to these new media files. You can use this option when you are removing unused media files toward the end of your project, or when you want to break up a long media file that you have broken into several subclips.

The main purpose of deleting media from your hard disk is to save space or to transfer a consolidated version of your project to another system. However, deleting media from your media files can be risky, because you may decide later that you want a few extra frames to trim an edit, or you may have deleted portions of a media file that was actually used by a clip in another sequence. To avoid deleting too much media, the "Deleted unused media" option has several related suboptions—Use Handles and "Include affiliate clips outside selection"—which further refine exactly what media is deleted. These options are described below.

Note: This option works only on QuickTime files that have timecode tracks and reel names. If you have AIFF and WAVE files in your selection, they are copied in their entirety.

Important: You must be extremely careful when using this option with the "Use existing" option in the Media pop-up menu. Once media is deleted, it cannot be restored, and this operation cannot be undone.

This option modifies the “Delete unused media” option described above so that less media is deleted from a media file. Handles are additional footage at the beginning and end of a clip that you keep just in case you need a few extra frames for trimming, or you need extra footage beyond your planned In and Out points to create a transition, such as a dissolve, to another shot.

• Available only with: Delete unused media

Note: This option works only on QuickTime files that have timecode tracks and reel names. If you have AIFF and Wave files in your selection, they are copied in their entirety.

This option allows you to retain media used by all clips affiliated with your currently selected items, not just media for the selected items. Whenever you choose a Media Manager option that can potentially delete media, this option is automatically enabled.

Important: Because clips are affiliated by way of a master clip, you need to make sure you also select the "Include master clips outside selection" option to retain affiliated clips' media.

When you select this option, the following additional media is included by the operation:

A selected clip's master clip media marked by an In point and Out point (or Media Start and End points if no In or Out point is set)
Media between affiliated clips' In and Out points. For example, if a clip in Sequence A refers to the first 10 seconds of a media file, and an affiliate clip in Sequence B refers to the last 10 seconds of the same media file, none of the media file is deleted.
Media referenced by any affiliate clips in other sequences, even if those sequences weren't originally selected

For example, if you have two affiliated clips, one in Sequence A and one in Sequence B, they both refer to the same media file via their common master clip in the Browser. If you select Sequence A to copy media using the Media Manager, only the media referred to by the clip in Sequence A is copied. However, if you select the "Include master clips outside selection" option and the "Include affiliate clips outside selection" option, the media referred to by the affiliate clip in Sequence B is also copied, even though you selected Sequence A for processing. Any media between the master clip's In and Out points is also retained.

For more information on using this option, see "Limiting How Much Media Is Copied or Deleted" on page 90.

• Available with: Copy, Recompress, or "Create offline"
- Always enabled with: Move or "Use existing"

This pop-up menu determines how clips are named when they're segmented as a result of the "Delete unused media" option. The following media filenaming options are available:

Existing file names: Filenames of clips created by the Media Manager are based on the source media files on disk. The first new media file created is named the same as the original media file, and additional media files are named with a numerical suffix. For example, if three new media files were created, they would be named "Media File," "Media File-1", and "Media File-2."
Clip names: Filenames of clips created by the Media Manager are based on the names you've given the clips in your project.

If you have created subclips from a long media file (such as an entire tape captured to one media file), you may have given the subclips meaningful names. In this case, you would want to name newly created media files based on the clip names.

The two options in this area determine if you will create a new project and how to handle multiclip angles.

Project: ✓ Duplicate selected items and place into a new project. ✓ Include nonactive multiclip angles.

- Duplicate selected items and place into a new project: This option determines whether the specified processing will be made in a duplicate project file, or in the selected items of the project that is currently open. When you toggle this option, the phrasing of many of the Media Manager options changes from “...duplicated items” to “...selected items”, and the accessibility to some checkboxes also changes.

Creating a new project is often helpful even if only to verify which media files were processed and how they were processed. This is especially true when you are processing only a few items within a complex project with lots of clips and sequences. Creating a new project that refers only to the processed media files helps to isolate the results of the Media Manager operation.

- Include nonactive multiclip angles: The Media Manager has an option to reduce multiclips to their active angle, so only the media associated with the active angle is processed. With multiclip sequences that use a lot of angles, using this option can significantly reduce the amount of media processed. By default, this option is selected, so the media for all multiclip angles is processed. For more information about multiclips, see Volume II, Chapter 16, "Working With Multiclips."

This area displays the location where media files are placed after copying, moving, or recompressing. Click the Browse button to choose a different location for the media files.

This shows the location where moved or copied media files will be stored. Media Destination: [none selected] Browse... Click here to select a location for storing media files.

The way clips and media are handled in the Media Manager varies greatly depending on the master-affiliate relationships between clips you originally selected, the types of clips you selected, and the options you choose in the Media Manager.

Operations in the Media Manager are done in the following order:

1 If you're duplicating the selected items, you're prompted for a name and location for the new project file.
2 If you're removing unused media from existing media files, items outside the current selection are scanned to see if they use the same media files. (Final Cut Pro looks at all sequences and clips in all projects that are currently open.)
If any items are found, a message asks if you want to add these additional items to the current selection, make them offline, or cancel the operation altogether.
3 The destination disk is checked to see if there is enough free disk space, based on the options you've selected.
If there isn't enough free disk space, a message asks you to specify a new destination or cancel the operation.
4 If items outside your selection are found and you chose to make them offline in step 2 above, they are taken offline.
5 Media files are copied or moved to the selected destination.

If the "Delete unused media" option is selected, unused media is not included. If multiple clips correspond to the same media file and they don't overlap, each used segment of the original media file will be written as a separate file and be named accordingly.

For example, suppose that you originally captured a ten-minute clip and used four sections of this clip's media file in your project; two of them overlap and the other two don't. In this case, three media files are created, one from the two overlapping clips, and two more for the remaining two clips.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Processing Steps in the Media Manager - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["Before"] --> B["Clip"]
    B --> C["After"]
    C --> D["Clip"]
    C --> E["Clip-1"]
    C --> F["Clip-2"]

Note: The names of newly segmented media files are based on the option chosen in the "Base media file names on" pop-up menu, using either the existing media filenames or the names of the clips in your project.

6 If the "Include master clips outside selection" option is selected, the master clips created in your new project are defined by both the media used by your selected items, as well as from the In and Out points of the master clips in your current project. Otherwise, new master clips are created based only on the media used by your selected items.
7 If the "Include affiliate clips outside selection" option is selected along with the "Include master clips outside selection" option, media used by any clips affiliated with your selection is preserved. For more information on what media will be preserved, see "Limiting How Much Media Is Copied or Deleted" on page 90.
8 If you chose to include render files, they're copied or moved to the selected media destination.
9 If you chose to create a new project, one is created and any selected clips or sequences are copied to it. A bin of master clips is also created for any clips in your project.
10 If you chose the Copy, Move, or Recompress options in the Media Manager, all items in your original or newly created project are reconnected to the new or moved media files on disk. If you selected the "Use existing" option, all items in your original or newly created project are reconnected to the original media files, not copies.

Important: Media Manager operations use only the source timecode track, ignoring the Aux 1 and Aux 2 timecode tracks. Aux 1 and 2 timecode tracks are preserved, however, and remain in the media files that remain after the Media Manager operation is complete.

Even if you don't maintain proper master-affiliate relationships in your project by using independent clips, the Media Manager carefully analyzes your media management operation before it begins processing. For example, suppose you have a sequence called Sequence A that contains several independent clips. Also suppose that there are several master clips in the Browser that reference the same media files as the independent sequence clips. If you tell the Media Manager to remove unused media from the independent sequence clips, Final Cut Pro first scans the other clips in your project to make sure no others would be affected by deleting media.

In this case, Final Cut Pro discovers that the master clips also refer to the same media files as the independent clips in Sequence A, and a dialog appears warning you that additional clips outside your selection refer to the same media files. You are given the option to add the master clips to your selection before the Media Manager processes the media files. If you include the master clips in the selection, then no media is removed from the files, because the master clips refer to all of the media in a media file. However, if you choose to continue with the Media Manager operation without including the master clips in the selection, the media files are trimmed based on the length of the independent clips in Sequence A. This is fine for the clips in Sequence A, but the master clips will no longer have the appropriate media.

When you create a subclip, you create a new master clip. A subclip is not related to the original clip it came from. However, both the original clip and the subclip refer to the same media file. Internally, a subclip is aware of the true Media Start and Media End points of a media file, but it provides artificial subclip limits to make the clip seem shorter, making it easier to work with in the Viewer and during editing.

When the Media Manager encounters a subclip, it treats the subclip like any other clip, using the artificial Media Start and End times instead of the actual Media Start and End times. This means you can use the "Delete unused media from selected items" option when processing a subclip to create a smaller media file that is only the length of the subclip.

Note: In some cases, you may want to delete the original master clip that your subclips were created from to ensure Final Cut Pro doesn't attempt to preserve the entire media file referenced by the original master clip.

When the Media Manager encounters a clip with a speed adjustment, all media necessary to achieve the speed effect is preserved. For example, a clip with a speed adjustment that makes the clip faster could have a duration of 10 seconds, but it could use 100 seconds of media.

When you select clips to process with the Media Manager, keep in mind that those items may be affiliated with other clips in your project. Specifically, a master clip, which refers to a media file on your scratch disk, may have many affiliate clips located in different sequences. When you process your media files in the Media Manager, some options allow you to choose how much media is processed: only the portion referred to by a single affiliated clip, or the portion of media referred to by the selected clip, its master clip, and all other affiliated clips.

Consider the following scenario: There is a 10-minute media file called "Crowd Shot" on your hard disk. A master clip in the Browser refers to the entire length of the Crowd Shot media file, and In and Out points are set somewhere in the middle of the clip. Throughout the course of editing, you drag the Crowd Shot master clip to two different sequences (Sequence A and Sequence B) and use different portions of the media file in each case. This creates two clips affiliated with the master, one in each sequence. Since each affiliate clip has different In and Out points, each one refers to a different portion of the same media file:

The affiliate clip in Sequence A refers to the first 10 seconds of the Crowd Shot media file.
The affiliate clip in Sequence B uses the last 10 seconds of the same media file.
The master clip in the Browser has In and Out points set at 10 seconds and 20 seconds, respectively.

If you want to use the Media Manager to create a copy of Sequence A along with only enough media to recreate Sequence A (and thus ignoring any other sequences or master clips that might reference the same media file), you would do the following:

5 Deselect "Include master clips outside the selection." This option ignores additional media referred to by the master clip.

The resulting media file contains only the first 10 seconds of the original media file, which is sufficient for recreating Sequence A, but not for recreating the original master clip or the clip in Sequence B.

Clip in Sequence A Before Clip in Sequence B After

If you want to create a copy of sequence A along with enough media for the clip in Sequence A and enough media to preserve the media In and Out points marked in the master clip, you would do the following:

Clip in Sequence A In Out Clip in Sequence B Before After

If you want to create a copy of Sequence A along with enough media for the clip in Sequence A, Sequence B, and the media referred to by the master clip's In and Out points, you would do the following:

1 Select Sequence A in the Browser, then choose File > Media Manager.
2 Choose Copy from the Media pop-up menu.
3 Select "Duplicate selected items and place into new project."
4 Select "Delete unused media from selected items."
5 Select "Include master clips outside the selection." This option preserves the media referred to by the master clip's In and Out points, so the master clip is preserved as well as the clip in Sequence A.
6 Select "Include affiliate clips outside selection." This option preserves the media referred to by all clips affiliated with the master clip, which means preserving the media referred to by the clip in Sequence B.

Clip in Sequence A In Out Clip in Sequence B Before After

• Using the Media Manager (p. 94)
• Example: Removing Unused Media From a Sequence (p. 97)
• Example: Duplicating a Sequence and Its Corresponding Media Files (p. 98)
• Example: Duplicating a Portion of a Sequence and Its Media Files (p. 99)
- Example: Copying Several Sequences With New Settings, but Without Media Files (p. 100)
• Example: Recompressing Media Files for an Entire Project for Editing on a PowerBook (p. 101)
• Example: Removing Portions of Media Files After Creating Subclips (p. 103)
• Example: Consolidating Media Files Into One Folder (p. 104)
• Example: Consolidating Your Project and Media Files for Archiving (p. 106)

There are three main steps to working with the Media Manager:

Select items in your project.
Choose a Media Manager operation and its options.
Start the media management process.

Before you can use the Media Manager, you must select items that you want the Media Manager to process. You can select an entire project, one or more bins, individual or multiple sequences, clip items within a sequence, or clips in the Browser. Whatever you want to do, the Media Manager needs to know what to process before it can do anything. See the examples later in this chapter for some ideas on how to use the Media Manager.

Once you've selected items in your project, open the Media Manager window and choose options for processing your media. You can select whether clips, sequences, and so on are duplicated into a new project, and how media is processed (moved, copied, recompressed, deleted, and so on). Some options are unavailable, or permanently selected, depending on what other options are selected. You can also specify a destination for your new media files to be stored.

After specifying your options, click OK in the Media Manager window. Final Cut Pro displays a warning message before it performs any operation that cannot be undone. A progress bar shows you the status of the operations as they're performed.

1 Select the items in your project that you want to process.

- To operate on your entire project: Select your project's tab in the Browser, then press Command-A to select every clip, sequence, and bin in your project.

Note: If no items are selected in the Browser and the Browser is the active window, Final Cut Pro processes all the items in the current tab. This may be a bin or an entire project.

- To operate on one or more sequences: In the Browser, select the sequences you want to process. If the Timeline is the active window, the sequence tab that is currently selected is the one operated upon.

- To operate on one or more clips: Select one or more clips in the Browser.

- To operate on one or more clip items in a sequence: Clip items are individual clip items placed on tracks in a sequence. You can use one of the selection tools to select a range of clip items to operate on.

2 Do one of the following:

Choose File > Media Manager.
Control-click one of the selected items, then choose Media Manager from the shortcut menu.

If one of the items you selected contains no media (for example, if an empty sequence is part of your selection), a message gives you the option to continue or stop. If you choose to continue, the items that don't contain any media will be ignored.

Selection Error The following item(s) do not contain the media required by Media Manager. Rough Cut V1 – no media in sequence Continue Abort A message appears if your selection does not contain media.

3 In the Media Manager window, choose a method for processing media files from the Media pop-up menu.

Media: Copy Move Recompress Use existing Create offline

4 Select whether or not you want to create a duplicate project that contains copies of the selected clips, bins, and sequences.
5 Select available options to include more or less media related to your selection, and whether or not you want to delete portions of existing media files.

For detailed information, see "Settings and Options in the Media Manager Window" on page 80.

Important: If you chose the "Use existing" option from the Media pop-up menu, be absolutely sure that you want to perform this operation before you click OK. Once this operation begins, media files may be deleted immediately. Canceling this operation once it starts won't restore them and the operation cannot be undone.

6 Click Browse to choose a destination for your newly moved or copied media files.
7 In the Choose a Folder dialog, select a location, then click Choose.

Note: The Browse button is dimmed and the above dialog does not appear if you chose "Use existing" or "Create offline" from the Media pop-up menu in the Media Manager window. This is because no new media files will be created or moved to a new location.

8 When you're ready to continue, click OK.

If you chose to create a duplicate project, Final Cut Pro prompts you to choose a name and destination for your new project file.

9 Navigate to where you want to store the items, enter a name for the file if desired, then click Save.

Final Cut Pro scans your selected clips and sequences.

10 If you are presented with requests for additional information, make the appropriate selections:

- Additional Items Found dialog: When you use the Media Manager to do a potentially destructive operation, Final Cut Pro checks all currently opened projects to see if there are any other clips that reference the same media. If so, the Additional Items Found dialog appears.

Add: Click this button if you want to tell the Media Manager to consider additional portions of media files referenced by other currently open projects.
Continue: Click this button to continue the Media Manager operation without taking into consideration the additional portions of media found. This may make some clips offline in projects outside the current one.
Abort: Click this button to stop the Media Manager operation (for example, if you want to change your original selection).
Confirm Media Modifications dialog: If the Media Manager is going to permanently change or delete media files, a final message appears to let you decide if you really want to process your media files.

Confirm Media Modifications WARNING: This operation will permanently modify existing media files. This is not undoable, and any open projects referencing these media files will be saved. Abort Continue Decide what you want to do, then click a button.

A progress bar displays the state of completion of your Media Manager operation. For information on the order of operations, see "How the Media Manager Processes Selected Items" on page 87.

Processing Files... Copying Music 1 Estimated Time: About 2 minutes 5% Cancel

Important: Do not switch to the Finder when the Media Manager is in the middle of processing operations. If you do, a Relink dialog may appear when you return to Final Cut Pro. To continue, click OK and don't relink.

If an error occurs during the selected operation, the process stops and an error message appears.

A common Media Manager operation is to remove parts of media files that are not used in the sequence. For example, in a 30-minute sequence, the sequence clips refer to 30 minutes of media files. However, the total media referred to by these clips' master clips can be much more. For example, a master clip may refer to a 5-minute media file, but when you edit it into a sequence, the affiliate clips' In and Out points define a sequence clip that refers to only 1 minute of the media file. Just for that one clip, there are 4 minutes of the media file that are unused by the sequence clip. With the Media Manager, you can easily delete the portions of media unused by the sequence clips.

Important: This process preserves media files used by any sequence or clip in all currently open projects. For example, if two projects refer to the same media file, and they are both open at the same time, the Media Manager preserves the media file based on its usage in both projects.

1 In the Browser, select the desired sequence.

Select the sequence you want to remove footage from.

Note: If the clips in your sequence are affiliated with clips in other sequences, and your master clips have no In or Out points set (or Out points set near their Media End points), there may not be very much media deleted.

In this example, a sequence is copied to a new project, along with its corresponding media files. The new sequence clips refer to the new media files, while the original sequence still refers to the original media files.

For example, you may have captured an hour's worth of media from tape, but used only 45 minutes of it in the sequence. You can duplicate the sequence and create copies of the media files referenced by the sequence, but without the unused 15 minutes of footage.

1 In the Browser, select the sequence you want to duplicate.

2 In the Media Manager, choose the following options, then click OK.

The Media Manager lets you copy selected clip items in your sequence along with their media files. This way, you can experiment with a section of your program without touching the original sequence or its corresponding media files.

1 In the Timeline, select the part of the sequence you want to duplicate.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Example: Duplicating a Portion of a Sequence and Its Media Files - 1

There are several situations in which you might want to create an offline copy of one or more sequences:

When you're preparing to recapture media files using a different capture preset.
When you're working with a remote editor who already has the media files and you need to email the offline sequences without the media files.

1 In the Browser, select the sequences you want to copy.

Select the sequences you want to copy. Two Weeks Effects Name Media Start Media End Cafe footage Cafe sequence 01:00:00:00 01:01:04:15 Dining footage Dining scene Dining sequence 01:00:00:00 01:02:00:13 Intro sequence 01:00:00:00 01:01:49:17 Music Rough Cut V1 01:00:00:00 01:00:00:00 Rough Cut V2 01:00:00:00 01:00:00:00 Teaser sequence 01:00:00:00 01:01:35:19

Note: Selecting "Include master clips outside selection" and "Include affiliate clips outside selection" creates master clips that preserve the most media for recapturing. During rough editing, you generally want to retain the largest possible media files, so it's a good idea to keep these options selected. If you are creating sequences for final editing or capturing at high resolution, you may want to deselect these options.

If you need to fit a lot of media files on a relatively small hard disk, such as a PowerBook hard disk, you can recompress all your media files. This is the phase of the offline/online workflow when you create the low-resolution, offline quality media files for rough editing.

This example uses the OfflineRT sequence preset, which uses the Photo JPEG codec.

1 In the Browser, select all items in the project.

Press Command-A or use the Selection tool to select everything in your project. Two Weeks Effects Name Media Start Cafe footage Cafe sequence Dining footage Dining sequence Intro sequence Music Rough Cut V1 Rough Cut V2 Subclips Teaser sequence 01:00:00:00 01:00:00:00 01:00:00:00 01:00:00:00 01:00:00:00

2 In the Media Manager, choose the following options, then click OK.

A common logging and capturing workflow involves capturing each tape to a single media file, breaking the master clip into subclips, and then using the Media Manager to create individual media files for each subclip. In this example, the Media Manager creates a media file for every subclip in your project. Portions of your media that are not referenced by subclips are not turned into new media files, and thus unnecessary media can be eliminated by this process.

1 In the Browser, delete the original master clip that your subclips were derived from.

Note: When you create a subclip, it becomes its own master clip. A subclip does not refer back to the original clip it came from, but both the original clip and the new subclip refer to the same media file.

Because the Media Manager tries to preserve media referenced by clips in your project, it is necessary to delete the original master clip (which refers to the entire length of the media file) so only the subclip media will be preserved.

2 Rename your subclips with descriptive names.

When the Media Manager creates new media files, they will be named after these subclip names.

3 Select all of the subclips that you created from the master clip you just deleted.

Important: The media for any subclips you don't select will be lost. To be safe, you can move all the subclips whose media you want to retain in one bin, and the subclips you don't want to preserve in a different bin. Then select the bin of subclips you want to preserve.

4 Control-click one of the selected subclips, then choose Media Manager from the shortcut menu that appears.

The Media Manager creates a new media file for each selected subclip and reconnects each subclip to the new media file. The original media file is deleted, so any subclips not selected become offline.

Sometimes the media files for a project are stored in several folders on one or more scratch disks. This happens if you selected a different scratch disk each time you captured media files, or when the name of the project file changes (this often happens when you save often to different filenames). The Media Manager makes it easy for you to consolidate all the media files for a project into one folder, without making any clips go offline.

In this example, you move all of the media files associated with one project to a single folder.

1 If you want to save your media files to a new folder on your hard disk, create that folder in the Finder.

2 In the Browser, select all items in the project.

Press Command-A or use the Selection tool to select everything in your project.

3 Make sure the Browser window is active. In the Media Manager, choose the following options, then click OK.

Files moved by the Media Manager are placed in a folder named after the project name, which are placed in a folder called Media. The clips in your project are reconnected to the media files in their new location.

Note: You could achieve the same results by moving files into a single folder in the Finder, but you then you would have to reconnect all of your clips to their media files manually. Using the Media Manager makes this process more efficient, because all of your clips are reconnected automatically after the media files are moved.

Many people like to archive their finished project files along with the corresponding media files. In this example, you copy all the content to an archive folder, which you can then back up on a DVD-R or other high-capacity media. After this process, you have an additional copy of your project and its corresponding media files. The original project file and media files are still intact.

If you want to reduce the required disk space, you can limit your selection to individual sequences and tell the Media Manager to copy only the parts of media files used by the sequences. In the example below, all the media is copied.

1 If you want to save your media files to a new folder on your hard disk, create that folder in the Finder.
2 In the Browser, select all items in the project.

Press Command-A or use the Selection tool to select everything in your project.

Browser Two Weeks Effects Name Media Start Cafe footage Cafe sequence 01:00:00:00 Dining footage Dining sequence 01:00:00:00 Intro sequence 01:00:00:00 Music Rough Cut V1 01:00:00:00 Rough Cut V2 01:00:00:00 Subclips Teaser sequence 01:00:00:00

3 Make sure the Browser window is still active. In the Media Manager, choose the following options, then click OK.

4 In the dialog that appears, enter a project name, check that the destination folder is correct, then click OK.

A copy of the project is placed in your specified archive folder. Copies of the project's media files are placed in a folder named "Media".

5 To preserve media referenced by any affiliate subclips, select "Include master clips outside selection" and "Include affiliate clips outside selection."

These options may increase the amount of media copied. If you are trying to reduce the amount of media you back up, deselect these options.

If you need detailed information about a clip's media file, you can use the diagnostic tools in Final Cut Pro to analyze your media.

This chapter covers the following:

• Different Tools for Diagnosing Clips (p. 109)
- About the Analyze Movie Command (p. 110)
• Finding and Marking Long Frames (p. 113)
• Detecting Audio Peaks (p. 115)

Final Cut Pro has the following diagnostic tools for analyzing media files:

- Analyze Movie Clip or File: These two commands allow you to examine the properties of media files on disk, including the data rate, frame rate, frame size, and video and audio compressors used. Both commands are identical, but each one accesses media files differently. The Analyze Clip command works with media files referenced by clips in your project. The Analyze File command allows you to analyze a media file that isn't referenced by a clip in your project.

Mark Long Frames: The frame rate of a media file determines the duration of each frame. Long frames are frames that have a longer duration than expected based on a media file's frame rate, and they are often the result of a problem during capture. The Mark Long Frames command analyzes one or more clips in the Browser or Viewer, and places markers to indicate any long frames that are detected. You may use this command if you have any doubt about the integrity of your clips' media files. You can clear long frame markers later using the Clear Long Frame Markers command. See "Finding and Marking Long Frames" on page 113.
Mark Audio Peaks: Clipping occurs in captured audio if any part of the recorded signal goes above 0 dBFS. Since 0 dBFS is the maximum digital level possible, all levels that would peak above this are set (clipped) to 0 dBFS, because there is no higher value possible. Excessive 0 dBFS peaks usually indicate that the audio was recorded at unsuitable levels. The Mark Audio Peaks command analyzes one or more clips and places markers to indicate 0 dBFS peaks that are detected. You can clear audio peak markers later using the Clear Peak Marks command. See “Detecting Audio Peaks” on page 115.

The Analyze Movie command is an extremely useful tool. With it, you can:

Troubleshoot your media files: You can check the properties of your clips' media files, including the frame rate and data rate, and check whether the media files have any dropped frames.
Find the parameters of QuickTime media files: Editing is much easier when the media file settings match the sequence settings. When you have a media file whose settings you don't know, you can use the Analyze Movie command to determine the media files' settings, and therefore what sequence settings you need to edit with that media file into a sequence in Final Cut Pro. You can even create a sequence preset to match these parameters to use for editing the clips.

The Analyze Movie command displays track and media properties of a QuickTime media file in a Movie Analysis window. For details, see the next section, "Information Reported by the Analyze Movie Command." The contents of this window can't be printed from Final Cut Pro, but you can copy and paste the contents into any text-based application, such as a word processor or SimpleText.

1 Choose Tools > Analyze Movie > File.
2 Choose a QuickTime file on your disk that you want to analyze, then click Choose.

1 Do one of the following:

Select one or more video or audio clips in the Browser.
Open a video clip in the Viewer.

2 Choose Tools > Analyze Movie > Clip.
3 A Movie Analysis window appears, showing video, audio, and timecode track information.

If more than one clip is selected, multiple Movie Analysis windows are opened, one for each clip.

The Analyze Movie command provides the following information.

Filename: The name of your QuickTime file on disk.
• Duration: The total duration of the file.
• Average Data Rate: The average data rate of all tracks in the file.

Track Number and Size: The track number of the video track (although uncommon, it is possible for a QuickTime file to have more than one video track) and its size.
• Duration: The duration of the video track.
• Frame Size: The frame size of the video track.
• Color Depth: The color depth of the video track.
Codec: The compression codec used by the video track.
• Frame Rate: The frame rate of the video track.
• Average Data Rate: The average data rate of the video track alone.

Track Number and Size: The track number of the audio track (multichannel QuickTime files may have more than one audio track) and its size on disk.
• Duration: The duration of the audio track.
• Average Data Rate: The average data rate of the audio track alone.
Format: The bit rate of the audio track and whether it's stereo or mono.
• Sample: The sampling rate of the audio track in kilohertz (kHz).

Track Name: The track name of the timecode track. (Some QuickTime files may have more than one timecode track.)
Timecode: The starting timecode value for this clip.
Reel: The reel name for this clip.

Long frames are frames with nonstandard frame durations that can occur within a clip as a result of a problem during capture. You might have long frames in your program for several reasons. Regardless of why there are long (dropped) frames, you need to know where they are so you can either prevent them or work around them.

A still image in a movie that's been made to be deliberately longer than one frame is also a long frame. Long frames of this type may occur in movies created with one of the many QuickTime authoring programs. For example, if you use QuickTime Player to insert a still image with a duration of more than one frame into a movie, that frame is considered a long frame.

The Mark Long Frames command in the Tools menu identifies long frames within clips in your program. Each selected clip is scanned, and Final Cut Pro places markers to indicate the location of any long frames that are detected. Each marker is labeled "Long Frame _," where _ starts at 1 and increases, depending on how many long frames are present. If the long frame is the result of a still image in an authored QuickTime movie, that marker will also include the duration of the long frame.

Important: If you have long frames in your program, it's important that you find the problem and solve it. This will prevent further headaches down the line, such as lost audio/video sync and incorrect timecode. For more information on how to troubleshoot your system if you experience dropped frames, see "Problems During Playback" on page 402.

1 Do one of the following:

Select one or more clips in the Browser.
From the Timeline or Browser, open the clip you want to check.

2 Choose Tools > Long Frames > Mark.

A status window appears with a progress bar showing how much of the process is complete.

3 If a marker already exists for a long frame, a message appears asking if you want to overwrite the existing marker. Click OK or No.

Markers are placed at each long frame. Long frame markers have an internal label, or tag, so that Final Cut Pro can distinguish them from other markers. If you selected a clip in the Browser, markers appear for the clip and are labeled "Long Frame N," where N starts at 1 and increases, depending on how many long frames are detected. These markers also appear in the Viewer, when the clip is opened there. If you selected a clip in the Timeline, markers appear in the Timeline.

A long frame marker for a clip selected in the Browser

You can clear any markers previously added, if you like.

1 Select one or more clips in the Browser or Timeline.
2 Choose Tools > Long Frames > Clear.

When you capture audio, clipping occurs if any part of the audio signal goes over 0 decibels full-scale (dBFS). Because 0 dBFS is the maximum digital level possible, all levels that would have been above 0 dBFS are set (clipped) at 0 dBFS. Due to the nature of digital audio recording, such clipped audio typically results in a crackly, brittle sound. Excessive peaks indicate that your audio was recorded at unsuitable levels.

If your program has peaks in the audio, you can either recapture the audio at a better level, or edit the audio appropriately to avoid them. You can use the Mark Audio Peaks command to identify audio peaks in your clips. It's then up to you to decide whether to not use those sections of audio or rerecord them. For information about recording at proper levels, see Volume III, Chapter 4, "Audio Levels, Meters, and Output Channels."

Note: Final Cut Pro analyzes levels taking your clips' audio volume levels into consideration. For example, if you set a clip's audio level to +12 dB, audio peaks may be detected. However, if you reset the audio level adjustment to 0 dB, there may no longer be audio peaks detected.

1 To detect peaks in a clip, do one of the following:

Select one or more clips in the Browser.
Open a sequence clip from the Timeline.

2 Choose Mark > Audio Peaks > Mark.

A status window appears with a progress bar showing how much of the process is complete. Markers are placed at each peak.

- If you selected a clip in the Browser, markers appear for the clip and are labeled "Audio Peak N," where N starts at 1 and increases, depending on how many audio peaks are detected. These markers also appear in the Viewer, when the clip is opened there.

Browser Cafe Effects Name Media Start Media End Cafe scene Master sequence 01:00:00:00 01:01:04:15 Music Music 1 00:00:00:00 00:09:54:09 Music 2 00:00:00:00 00:14:16:02 Music 4 00:00:00:00 00:00:32:28 Audio peak markers for a clip selected in the Browser

- If you selected clips in the Timeline, markers appear in both the Timeline and Canvas.

For a clip in a sequence, markers appear here in the Timeline.

You can clear audio peak markers that were previously added, if you like.

1 Select one or more clips in the Browser or Timeline.
2 Choose Mark > Audio Peaks > Clear.

Learn how to move projects and media files between editing systems and other media applications.

Chapter 10

Importing and Exporting EDLs

Chapter 11

Exporting Audio for Mixing in Other Applications

Chapter 12

Importing and Exporting Final Cut Pro XML

This chapter includes:

• What Is an EDL? (p. 119)
• Learning to Read an EDL (p. 120)
- Exporting EDLs (p. 124)
- Importing Edit Decision Lists (EDLs) (p. 132)
- Creating Better EDLs (p. 135)
• Transition Wipe Codes for EDL Export (p. 142)

In the days of linear tape editing, EDLs were used to save and restore the timecode information for each edit performed on a computer-controlled editing system. Since timecode editing systems were expensive, many editors would perform offline edits with window dubs (low-quality copies of original footage with timecode visually superimposed, or burned, directly onto the image) and then create an EDL by hand for delivery to a computer-controlled editing system for the online edit.

You should export your sequence to an EDL when you are transferring it to an older, tape-to-tape system, or a system that doesn't recognize more recent interchange formats (such as OMF, AAF, or the Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format). Because EDLs are relatively simple, they are still the lowest-common-denominator file format for exchanging edit information between editing systems.

An EDL contains the same basic clip information as a Final Cut Pro sequence, but the presentation is very different. Because EDLs originated with linear, tape-to-tape editing systems, so each event is described in terms of a source tape and a record (or master) tape.

Note: This section describes components of an EDL using the CMX 3600 EDL format. Other formats may vary slightly.

In an EDL, each clip in your sequence is represented by a line of text called an event, which has a unique event number. A clip in an EDL is defined by a source reel name and two pairs of timecode In and Out points. The first pair of timecode numbers describes the source tape (or clip) In and Out points. The second pair describes the timecode location where that clip should be placed onto a master tape (or Timeline).

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:02:37:05 00:00 01:00:50:00 01:01:40:00 01:02:30:00 v1 V1 Debra Master shot Debr a1 A1 Debra enters cafe W Debra sidewal Jacob reac Master shot jacob a2 A2 Debra enters cafe W Debra sidewal Jacob reac Master shot jacob A3 Event 1 Event 2 Event 3 Event 4 Event 5

Drop frame mode of master tape EDL title TITLE: MASTER SEQUENCE FCM: NON-DROP FRAME FCM: DROP FRAME 001 002 AA/V C 002 002 AA/V C 003 001 AA/V C 004 002 V C 005 001 AA C Event number Reel name Tracks Transition Source In and Out Record In and Out

Tip: To better understand how an EDL describes edit information from your sequence, try exporting a simple sequence with just a few cuts to an EDL, and then compare your Final Cut Pro sequence to the EDL.

The elements of an EDL are described in the following sections.

The first line of an EDL contains the title of the sequence. In NTSC sequences, the second line displays whether the sequence timecode is drop frame or non-drop frame.

An event number uniquely identifies each event in the EDL. An EDL event requires two lines if more than one source is used. For example, a dissolve requires one line for the outgoing shot and a second line for the incoming shot.

001	004	V	C	04:31:13:04	04:31:22:23	01:00:00:00	01:00:10:00
001	014	V	D	030	14:27:03:03	14:27:25:22	01:00:10:10

A reel name describes which source tape (or reel) the clip comes from. Final Cut Pro assumes that clips without reel names come from non-tape sources, such as color bars, black, or other generators. Final Cut Pro automatically designates these auxiliary sources with the reel name AX.

Important: Make sure all clips with timecode sources have reel names before exporting an EDL, or you won't be able to easily recreate your sequence when you open the EDL on another editing system.

Each edit uses one or more tracks in the sequence. In the case of tape-to-tape editing, this field determines which tracks are enabled on the record deck during this event.

• V: Video
• A: Audio (Some EDL formats label this 1 or 2.)
- A2: Audio 2
• AA: Both channels of audio

Video track V1 is the only video track exported. Clips on video track V2 appear as key effect (K) over the V1. Video tracks V3 and above are ignored during EDL export.

An EDL can represent several kinds of video edits, or transitions. A cut requires a single source, while all other types of edits require two sources, and thus two lines in an EDL.

• C: Cut. This is the simplest kind of edit.
- D : Dissolve. This transition begins with one source and dissolves to a second source.
- W: A wipe. This is followed by a wipe code that indicates the type of standard wipe.
- K: A key edit. Clips on Video track 2 can be used as the foreground (fill) layer in a standard video key.

A dissolve from a Final Cut Pro sequence is shown below in EDL format.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:34:05 01:00:34:00 01:00:34:16 01:00:35:08 01:00:35:16 V2 v1 V1 Debra enters cafe WS Cross Dissolve Debra sidewalking a1 A1 Debra enters cafe WS Debra sidewalking a2 A2 Debra enters cafe WS Debra sidewalking A3

001	002	V	C	02:10:42:13	02:11:16:18	01:00:00:00	01:00:34:05
001	002	V	D	024	02:18:32:07	02:18:56:19	01:00:34:05

The duration of a transition (in frames) follows the transition type. For example, D 024 indicates a 24-frame dissolve.

In each line of an EDL, the first pair of timecode numbers are the source In and Out points. The second pair are the record In and Out points, which correspond to the clip's location in the Timeline.

Edits that use transitions such as dissolves or wipes require two lines. The first line represents the source before the transition, and the second line is the source after the transition.

On tape-to-tape edit systems, the tapes containing the two shots are loaded in two video decks—VTR A and VTR B. To perform a dissolve or wipe, the edit controller plays both decks simultaneously and uses a hardware video switcher to create the transition effect as it's recording on the final master tape. However, when both shots in a dissolve, wipe, or key are on the same reel, it is impossible to perform the effect in a tape-based editing suite. This is because the tape cannot be in both places at the same time. For a workaround for this problem, see "Reel Conflicts" on page 128.

Split edits, where the video and audio have separate In and Out points, require three lines.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:31:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:31:00 01:00:36:00 01:00:39: v1 V1 Debra enters cafe WS Debra sidewalking a1 A1 Debra enters cafe WS Debra sidewalking a2 A2 Debra enters cafe WS Debra sidewalking A3

SPLIT:VIDEO DELAY=00:00:02:00
004	002	AA	C	02:18:30:07 02:18:56:19 01:00:32:05 01:00:58:17
004	002	V	C	02:18:32:07 02:18:56:19 01:00:34:05 01:00:58:17

The first line indicates which track is delayed and by how much, the second line indicates the track (audio or video) that plays through the entire edit duration, and the third line contains the delayed track.

An EDL can store notes, indicated by a line starting with an asterisk (*), between event lines. Notes can be used to clarify events for the editor receiving the EDL, and can include information that the EDL cannot store directly. For example, an EDL can't directly store audio levels of a clip, but the audio level can at least be stored in the EDL as a note. In the EDL Export dialog, you can choose to export one of the Master Comments 1–4 or Comments A–B.

001 002 AA/V C 02:10:42:13 02:11:16:18 01:00:00:00 01:00:34:05

* FROM CLIP NAME: DEBRA ENTERS CAFE WS
* OPACITY LEVEL AT 02:10:45:20 IS 0.00% (REEL 002)
* OPACITY LEVEL AT 02:10:49:12 IS 100.00% (REEL 002)
* CLIP FILTER: COLOR CORRECTOR 3-WAY
* AUDIO LEVEL AT 02:10:43:07 IS -INF DB (REEL 002 A1)
* AUDIO LEVEL AT 02:10:51:16 IS +0.00 DB (REEL 002 A1)

You can export an EDL from any selected sequence. You can only export one sequence to an EDL at a time.

1 Select a sequence in the Browser or open the sequence in the Timeline.
2 Choose File > Export > EDL.
3 Select your settings, then click OK.

For more information, see "Settings and Options in the EDL Export Dialog" on page 125.

4 Choose a location and enter a name for the file, then click Save.

Note: If you selected the B-Reel Edits option from the "Reel conflicts" section, another dialog may appear where you can choose a location and enter a name for a second EDL for the B-Reel list.

If your sequence exceeds the maximum number of events for the format you specified, Final Cut Pro creates additional EDL files.

If an error message appears: You may not be able to export an EDL in the specified format. Try changing the options and exporting again. You may also need to simplify your sequence further and try again.

Tip: You should also output your original sequence to tape, DVD, or QuickTime movie. Bring this tape to your online session along with your EDL as a reference. The online editor can use the original sequence to double-check edits and recreate effects that the EDL left out.

This section describes the options in the EDL Export dialog.

The title entered here appears on the first line of the EDL and is limited to 60–77 characters, depending on the EDL format. By default, the title entered here is the name of the exported sequence.

Note: Changing the EDL title does not change the filename of the exported EDL.

This menu allows you to choose which format your EDL is exported to. There are several EDL file formats, each named after a particular manufacturer and model of a linear, tape-to-tape editing system. Final Cut Pro supports the following EDL formats:

CMX 340
CMX 3600
Sony 5000
Sony 9100
GVG 4 Plus

CMX 3600 is one of the most common EDL formats, so you should use this one unless you have a specific reason to choose another. Check with the person receiving your EDL to determine what format will work best.

This menu allows you to choose the order in which your sequence clips are sorted in the exported EDL.

Master, Audio Merged: Clips appear in the order in which they occur in the sequence. Audio clips that start and end together are merged into one event line where possible. This sorting method allows you to recreate your sequence in order of clips in the Timeline.
Source, Audio Merged: Clips are ordered based on their arrangement in the original source tapes. Event number 1 has the earliest starting timecode on the lowest-numbered reel. This sorting method allows you to recreate your sequence one reel at a time, regardless of clip order in the Timeline.

This option allows you to select whether or not your EDL includes keying events when you have clips on track V2.

An EDL can only include edits that are possible with a tape-based editing system. Since video tape formats typically have only one video track, you can choose only one video track in your Final Cut Pro sequence.

When you select the “Target Video Track Only” option, Final Cut Pro uses the current destination video track in the Timeline to determine which video track is exported to your EDL, and no key events are created in the EDL. For example, you can export only the clips on video track V3 by setting it to the current destination track in the Timeline. For more information about setting destination tracks, see Volume II, Chapter 8, “Working With Tracks in the Timeline.”

This option is useful for exporting separate EDLs, one at a time, for each video track above V1.

When this option is deselected, Final Cut Pro includes keying (K) events. Video track V1 is treated as the background layer and track V2 as the foreground layer of the key effect.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:00:00 00:00 01:00:15:00 01:00:30:00 01:00:4 V2 Text Text v1 V1 Debra enters cafe WS Debra sidewalking a1 A1 Debra enters cafe WS Debra sidewalking a2 A2 Debra enters cafe WS Debra sidewalking A3

The following event refers to the first text generator clip in the sequence shown above.

001	002	V	K	B	02:10:42:13	02:10:52:13	01:00:00:00	01:00:10:00
001	GEN	V	K	000	00:00:55:00	00:00:55:00	01:00:00:00	01:00:00:00

This option does not affect audio track export.

Check this box to ignore all transitions in your sequence so the EDL contains cuts only. This keeps your EDL as simple as possible, so transitions won't complicate your online session. The online editor can create the necessary transitions.

If you create a transition between two clips from the same reel in your sequence, Final Cut Pro considers this to be a reel conflict, because the resulting EDL event would be impossible to perform in a tape-based editing system. This is because in a linear editing suite, a transition requires two video sources, but you can't put the same tape in two decks at the same time.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:00:34:05 01:00:34:00 01:00:34:16 01:00:35:08 01:00:35:09 V2 v1 V1 Debra enters cafe WS Cross Dissolve Debra sidewalking a1 A1 Debra enters cafe WS Debra sidewalking a2 A2 Debra enters cafe WS Debra sidewalking A3

Reel conflicts can be addressed in several ways, depending on the abilities of the tape-to-tape editing suite you are using:

- B-Reel Edits: In a linear editing suite, transition events that require two different shots on the same reel can be performed by first copying the second shot of each transition to a new tape, called a B-reel. Final Cut Pro can automatically create a B-reel EDL, which you can use to assemble a tape with any necessary shots. The B-reel tape is automatically assigned its own reel name, and shots in the EDL for your main sequence are replaced with corresponding shots on the B-reel.

TITLE: MASTER SEQUENCE BREEL1

001	002	AA/V	C	02:18:32:07	02:18:56:19	01:00:00:00
01:00:24:12

TITLE: MASTER SEQUENCE

001 002	V	C	02:10:42:13	02:11:16:18	01:00:00:00
01:00:34:05
001 BREEL1	V	D	024 02:18:32:07	02:18:56:19	01:00:34:05
01:00:58:17

* FROM CLIP NAME: DEBRA ENTERS CAFE WS
* TO CLIP NAME: DEBRA SIDEWALKING

- Pre-read Edits: Some high-end digital video decks can actually perform transitions by using the master tape as one of the sources. A digital VTR with the ability to pre-read video off the tape before recording is required. Pre-read is a technical feature that allows a deck to read the signal off tape, send it to a device for processing, and then record the processed signal back onto the same tape in the same location. In this case, the record deck actually becomes the source deck, or one of two source decks in the case of performing transitions.

Pre-read transitions always begin with the master deck and then dissolve to a source deck. For example, a pre-read dissolve is performed in an online edit suite by making a cut to the master tape signal, then dissolving to another source deck.

In the example below, the first event is a cut to Reel 002. The second event is a cut to the master tape itself, which then dissolves to Reel 002.

TITLE: MASTER SEQUENCE

001	002	V	C	02:10:42:13	02:11:17:18	01:00:00:00
01:00:35:05

002	PREREAD	V	C	01:00:00:00	01:00:34:05	01:00:00:00
01:00:34:05
002	002	V	D	024	02:18:32:07	02:18:56:19
01:00:58:17

* FROM CLIP NAME: DEBRA ENTERS CAFE WS

* TO CLIP NAME: DEBRA SIDEWALKING

Important: Check with your online editor before you select this option.

- Generic Edits: This option allows transitions from two places on the same source tape. You should use this option when exporting your EDL for use in another nonlinear editing system, or if specifically requested by your online editor. Some online editors may prefer to receive generic transition EDLs and modify them manually.

TITLE: MASTER SEQUENCE

001 002	V	C	02:10:42:13	02:11:16:18	01:00:00:00
01:00:34:05
001 002	V	D	024 02:18:32:07	02:18:56:19	01:00:34:05
01:00:58:17

* FROM CLIP NAME: DEBRA ENTERS CAFE WS

* TO CLIP NAME: DEBRA SIDEWALKING

EDL notes are useful for including details about your Final Cut Pro sequence, even though the information can't be used directly by the editing system that imports the EDL.

File or Clip Names: This pop-up menu allows you to include either the file or clip names as a note beneath each edit.
Comments pop-up menu: Choose one of the comments columns in the Browser (Master Comments 1–4 or Comments A–B) to include in the EDL. This is a useful way for offline editors to provide notes about shots to the online editor.
Filters: Includes names of video and audio filters applied to a clip.
Video Levels: Opacity levels of each clip, if they are not 100%. Opacity keyframes are also included, displayed by clip timecode and percentage level. Bezier curve information is ignored.
Audio Levels: Audio level changes of a clip, along with keyframe timecode and relative gain adjustment (in decibels). The audio channel (A1, A2, and so on) is specified next to each audio level note.
• Transitions: Includes notes about the transitions used in your edit.

These settings allow you to set the starting timecode number for the master tape. This overrides the Starting Timecode field in the Timeline Options of Sequence Settings.

Start Time: The timecode for the first edit on the master tape. This number defaults to the starting timecode of the sequence, but you can set it to any number you want.
Drop Frame: Defines whether the timecode on the master tape being edited to has drop frame or non-drop frame timecode. This appears as the first element under the title in the EDL and defaults to the type of timecode of the sequence you're exporting.

Note: This option is only relevant for sequences that have a timebase (frame rate) of 29.97 fps.

You can choose which audio channels in your sequence are edited to the audio tracks of the master tape. Some EDL formats support two audio channels, while others support four. Each track in your sequence can be mapped to any audio channel in the EDL format. For example, you can map sequence audio tracks 2, 6, 10, and 14 to audio track 2 in the EDL. The resulting master tape created from this EDL will have audio clips from sequence tracks 2, 6, 10, and 14 edited onto track 2.

After you've exported an EDL, you should open the text file to compare it to your original sequence. You can open most EDL formats directly in a text editing application.

Important: It's best to avoid making changes to the contents of an EDL file. If you do make changes to the EDL, make sure you don't change the formatting (such as accidentally adding or deleting whitespace characters like space, tab, or return characters); otherwise, the resulting EDL may not be interpreted properly. Also, make sure you always save the file in a plain-text format (.txt), not Rich-Text Format (.rtf).

You can open an EDL in Final Cut Pro to review it. This is different from importing an EDL, which actually translates the EDL into a new sequence.

1 Choose File > Open.
2 Locate the EDL file, select it, then click Open.

Many older linear editing systems (such as CMX and GVG) store EDLs on 720K double-density floppy disks that are formatted with a file system known as RT-11 ^1 . If you are transferring your EDL to one of these editing systems, you need to transfer your EDL file to this kind of floppy disk.

EDL Access™ is an application that you can use to format, read, and write to RT-11 formatted disks. EDL Access is included on the Final Cut Pro installer disc. You can use EDL Access to copy an EDL file to or from an RT-11 formatted disk using a third-party USB floppy disk drive.

Note: Editing systems manufactured by Sony Corporation use the DOS file format. For these editing systems, you can copy the EDL file directly to a DOS-formatted disk.

Importing EDLs into Final Cut Pro is becoming less common as more full-featured project interchange formats are supported. However, if you are reediting a project from an older, linear editing system, or you are having trouble exchanging sequence information using other project interchange formats, you can use an EDL to transfer basic edit information into Final Cut Pro.

Not everything that can be done in another editing application shows up in an EDL imported into Final Cut Pro. If you export an EDL from another editing application, the following elements are excluded:

Filters
Motion parameters and keyframes
Only one video track (although key events may be included)
Any audio tracks above the first four tracks
• Non-SMPTE standard video transitions

While the above items aren't directly part of an exported EDL, you can export them as notes for reference.

You can import an EDL into Final Cut Pro to re-create an edit from another nonlinear system or re-create an older sequence originally cut on a tape-to-tape linear system. An imported EDL becomes an offline sequence in your project, accompanied by a bin containing master clips which correspond to all the clips in that sequence. This bin is named "Master clips for [sequence name]." To recreate the sequence, you can batch capture the master clips or select the sequence and batch capture all of its sequence clips.

Important: If you name hard disks and folders with double-byte (or 16-bit) characters (such as characters used for the Japanese language), Final Cut Pro may not be able to either import or export EDLs. To avoid this problem, import from or export to disks and folders with names that do not contain double-byte characters.

1 Choose File > Import > EDL.
2 Specify your import options, then click OK.

Import Options Select Preset: DV NTSC 48 kHz Use this preset when editing with DV NTSC material with audio set to 48kHz (16bit for DV). Import For Recapture Handle Size 00:00:01:00 Make File Names Unique Cancel OK Select the options you want.

3 Locate and select the EDL, then click Open.

When you import an EDL, a sequence is created in your current project tab, along with a bin that contains master clips for the clips in the sequence.

Note: When you import a Sony 5000 EDL, the title of the created sequence is "Untitled".

If you're having a problem importing an EDL file, check the format of the text file. Final Cut Pro does not support importing RTF text files. If you have an RTF file you need to import, open it in a text editing application like TextEdit, and save it as a plain text document.

This section describes the options in the EDL Import dialog.

Select Preset: This determines the settings of the newly created sequence and the clips within that sequence. Usually, you should choose a sequence preset that corresponds to the format of your source tapes that you plan to recapture from.
Import For: Choose an option from the pop-up menu.

- Recapture: Choose this option if you're importing an EDL from a tape-to-tape linear editing system or a non-QuickTime standard nonlinear editing system. This makes the recaptured clip names unique and adds handles before and after the clips during capture. You can change the handle size.

- Reconnect: Choose this option if you already have the media files on disk and simply want to link the sequence to them. This is useful if you've imported an EDL and also transferred QuickTime media files to your editing system. This option keeps clip names in the same order to make relinking easier. You cannot create handles if you are reconnecting media, since no new media is being created.

- Custom: Choose this option to specify handle size and unique clip names.

- Handle Size: Specify the number of additional frames you want to capture on either side of each clip. You should always add handles when recapturing media from an imported EDL because it gives you more flexibility for trimming edit points, adding dissolves, and so on.

Note: You cannot set handles when you choose Reconnect since the media files are already on your disk and are not being captured.

- Make File Names Unique: Select this option if you are recapturing clips so no two media files have the same name. Deselect this option if you are reconnecting to media files that are already on disk.

Clips imported from an EDL are named in one of two ways. If the EDL was exported from a nonlinear system, the name is exported like this:

* FROM CLIP NAME: CLIP NAME HERE

where CLIP NAME HERE is the name of your clip. Final Cut Pro can recognize clip names exported from the following nonlinear editing systems: Final Cut Pro, Media 100, and Avid.

Important: Avid EDLs that use 24 audio tracks are not supported.

In all other cases, Final Cut Pro uses the reel name as the clip name. Dissolves and wipes are mapped to the appropriate transitions following the basic SMPTE set. Key edits are imported as well.

Final Cut Pro places markers in the imported sequence where errors occur.

When an EDL is imported, a new bin is created in the Browser named "Master Clips for [sequence name]." This bin contains master clips corresponding to each piece of media used by the sequence created from the EDL. Therefore, all the clips in the sequence are affiliate clips, not independent. For more information about master, affiliate, and independent clips, see Chapter 4, "Working With Master and Affiliate Clips," on page 41.

Unless you already have the corresponding media files on your hard disk, the offline clips in the new sequence must be recaptured. To do this, you select the sequence or the master clips and then batch capture. For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 19, "Capturing Your Footage to Disk."

Note: You need all the original source tapes associated with the EDL before starting the capture process.

Timeline: Master sequence in Cafe Master sequence RT 01:02:37:05 00:00 01:00:50:00 01:01:40:00 01:02:30:00 v1 V1 Debra Debra Debra Debra Master shot Debr a1 A1 Debra enters cafe W Debra sidewal Jacob reag Master shot jacob a2 A2 Debra enters cafe W Debra sidewal Jacob reag Master shot jacob A3

If you plan to export an EDL during your project, read the following clip and media management guidelines before you start editing.

Today's nonlinear editing systems store much more information about clips and sequences than older tape-to-tape systems. When you export a sequence as an EDL, only the most basic edit information is retained. To assure that your sequence is exported accurately, it's a good idea to keep the sequence simple.

For the best EDL results, avoid using the following elements in your sequence:

Nested sequences
• Clips on video tracks above V2
• Video and audio filters
Motion and filter parameters and keyframes
• Non-SMPTE standard transitions

Note: An EDL can represent only a single sequence, not an entire project.

Tip: If you need to modify a sequence to prepare it for EDL export, duplicate the sequence and work on the copy instead. This way you can always get back to the original sequence if necessary.

In the duplicated sequence, remove motion settings, filters, and nonstandard transitions. Move all clips to video track V1. You can use video track V2 for superimposed (key) effects, such as titles.

Important: If you name disks and folders with double-byte characters, Final Cut Pro may not be able to export or import EDLs. To avoid this problem, export to or import from disks and folders with names that do not contain double-byte characters.

Before capturing your media files, make sure you:

Calibrate the timecode via your device control connection.
Label your source tapes with unique reel names.

The accuracy of your captured timecode is extremely important when exporting an EDL. If timecode of your clips is inaccurate, online edits won't match the original offline cuts. This can be fixed by the online editor, but you'll lose valuable time.

Make sure you calibrate your incoming timecode so it matches the captured video stream accurately. For information on calibrating timecode, see "Calibrating Timecode Capture With Serial Device Control" on page 332.

If you plan on exporting an EDL, there are restrictions on the reel names you can use. The restrictions depend on what EDL format you're using:

System	Reel name length	Reel name characters
CMX 340	1–253 characters	Numbers only
CMX 3600	8 characters	Uppercase alphabetical characters and numbers
GVG and GVG 4 Plus	6 characters	Uppercase alphabetical characters and numbers
Sony 5000	1–998 characters	Numbers only
Sony 9100	6 characters	Uppercase alphabetical characters; numbers; underscore (_)

When you export an EDL, Final Cut Pro will automatically change reel names that aren't compatible with the selected EDL format.

Every tape that you capture from should have a unique reel name written on the label. It's crucial to enter the correct reel name in the Log and Capture window while logging new clips to make sure Final Cut Pro requests the right tape during the batch capture process.

With professional video equipment you can often record tapes with user-programmable timecode. User-programmable timecode means that a videographer in the field can enter a starting timecode number from hour 01 to hour 23, which corresponds to the reels 01–23. This reduces the chance of error when logging because the reel number corresponds to the starting hour of the timecode on the tape. (Professionals rarely shoot with tapes longer than one hour at a time, so there is seldom more than one hour on a tape.) This system is only effective if you have less than twenty-four source tapes.

Creating your own reel names is especially important when using the mini-DV format. mini-DV equipment generally can't record with user-programmable timecode. As a result, each mini-DV tape you shoot starts at 00:00:00:00. Also, if you have a timecode break on your tape, the timecode may reset itself to 00:00:00:00. In this case, you should use a new reel name for each section following a timecode break on the same tape. For example, if the first half of the tape goes from 00:00:00:00 to 00:30:00:00 and the second half of the tape also goes from 00:00:00:00 to 00:30:00:00, you should give each section of tape a unique reel name.

1 Begin by labeling the tape with a simple reel name, such as 003.
2 For every timecode break on the tape, log a unique reel name, such as 003a, 003b, and so on, as if each section were a unique tape.

Logging Clip Settings Capture Settings Log Bin: Cafe scene Reel: 003 Name: Enter a reel name here. Prompt

While batch capturing, when a message appears asking for the next reel (such as reel 003b), you must manually cue the tape to the appropriate position before proceeding with the capture.

If you entered the wrong reel name when you logged a clip, you can change the reel name in the Browser or in the Item Properties window.

1 Select a clip, then Control-click in the Reel column.

All reel names used in the current project appear as choices in the menu.

Note: To change the reel name for several clips at once, select multiple clips in the Browser.

2 Choose the correct reel name from the shortcut menu.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - To change a clip's reel name in the Browser: - 1

All selected clips are assigned the new reel name you choose. This information is changed both in the clips and in the original media files stored on disk.

Important: If you change EDL formats, your reel names may no longer be correct for the EDL format you selected. Final Cut Pro automatically replaces any incorrect reel assignment and inserts a note in the EDL indicating the old and new reel names.

When you export an EDL, the timecode used is determined by each clip's TC property. Ordinarily, this is the Source timecode track originally logged and captured with your media files. If you're using Auxiliary timecode tracks with your clips and you want to export an EDL using the Aux 1 or Aux 2 timecode track, simply change the TC property of the clips to Aux 1 or Aux 2.

For more information about adding or modifying timecode tracks to clips and media files, see Volume II, Chapter 25, "Working With Timecode."

The following sequence frame rates are supported for EDL export:

Sequence timebase(frame rate)	Timecode rate used in EDL
29.97 fps	30 fps
30 fps
25 fps	25 fps
23.98 fps	24 fps
24 fps	24 fps
	24 @ 25 fps

Note: Final Cut Pro always uses the timecode assigned in the sequence's settings.

While you edit, keep the following guidelines in mind to ensure successful EDL export:

Limit the number of edits in your sequence.
Only use transitions in track V1.
Join through edits wherever they appear.
Limit the number of audio tracks you use.
Don't rely on audio mix levels.
Avoid nested sequences and nonstandard video transitions.
Be careful when using still frames and speed settings.

Different EDL formats allow for different numbers of edits in your sequence. If your sequence has more than the allowed number of edits for the selected EDL format, Final Cut Pro automatically creates additional EDLs, depending on the number of total events.

The following are the maximum number of edits, or events, allowed in various EDL formats.

• CMX 340, CMX 3600, and Sony 5000: 999
• Sony 9100 and GVG 4 Plus: 9999

A superimposed video track, or any track other than V1, is called a key track in an EDL. Only one key track can be in an EDL, so information for V1 and V2 tracks only appears in an exported EDL. Transitions in V2 are not allowed in EDLs and are ignored. As an alternative, you can use opacity keyframes in V2 and export Video Level notes in your EDL.

Opacity keyframes in the Timeline are translated into values and locations and are listed as the Key Level in notes in the exported EDL. These values are based on the timecode of the master tape and are used by a video switcher. Some online systems can translate these values for automatic use by some switchers, but more commonly the values are only used as notes for the editor to use in an online session.

A through edit is defined as two adjacent clips from the same continuous piece of a media file. The timecode numbers of the first clip's Out point and the second clip's In point are one frame apart. Unless you have a specific reason for keeping these two clips separate, you should join the through edit to create a single clip. This reduces the number of events in your EDL and simplifies the process of re-creating your edit with another editing system. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 13, "Cutting Clips and Adjusting Durations."

You can use the Final Cut Pro duplicate frames indicators to keep track of whether you use a clip more than once within a single edited sequence. Duplicated frames are marked by a colored bar appearing at the bottom of the clip's video item in the Timeline.

If you have warning in advance, you can reedit your sequence to eliminate the duplicates, if necessary. This is most important for film editing, where duplicating frames is a much more involved process than with video.

Note: If a duplicated instance of a clip has variable speed applied to it, no duplicate frames indicator appears.

You can adjust the parameters that determine when duplicate frames indicators appear in the Editing tab of User Preferences. For more information, see "Editing Tab" on page 287.

Final Cut Pro supports up to 99 tracks of audio in a sequence. However, EDLs only support two or four tracks of audio, depending upon the EDL and video format you use.

EDL format	Number of audio tracks
CMX 340	2
CMX 3600	4
Sony 5000	2
Sony 9100	4
GVG 4 Plus	4

If your sequence has more than four tracks, you may have to export separate EDLs. A simple way to do this is to copy your sequence and delete everything except the audio tracks that weren't included in the first EDL. Then export an EDL just for the remaining audio tracks.

Mixed audio levels, represented by audio overlays in the Timeline, can be exported as notes in the EDL for the online editor to use as reference. However, most editing systems can't translate these notes into an automated mix.

Nested sequences, or sequences within a sequence, should not be used if you are exporting an EDL. To prevent confusion, you can create a duplicate of your edited sequence and simplify sections where there are nested sequences.

To replace a nested sequence with its clip content for EDL export:

1 Duplicate your edited sequence.
By working with the copy, you can still get back to your original sequence if necessary.
2 Double-click the duplicated edited sequence to open it in the Timeline.
3 Option-double-click the nested sequence in the Timeline so that it opens in the Viewer.
The Viewer now contains the nested sequence and the Timeline contains the edited sequence.
4 In the Timeline, move the playhead to the first frame of the nested sequence.
5 Press Command-F10.
This is the default keyboard shortcut for the Overwrite Sequence Content command (as opposed to F10, which performs an overwrite into the Timeline using a nested sequence).
6 Export this sequence as an EDL.

Final Cut Pro has many kinds of transitions, but EDLs can recognize only a subset of these (primarily the cross dissolve and various wipes). If you use other transitions, Final Cut Pro automatically replaces them with the closest transition type. For more information, see the next section, "Transition Wipe Codes for EDL Export."

If you use still frames, give all of your stills distinct reel names. It's good to identify the source clips that are taken from graphic stills.

Keep speed settings to even percentages for optimal results. For example, use 50% speed rather than 57% speed. If you plan to export your EDL for a tape-based online edit, this may be important. Some video decks work well at a certain range of speeds for either slow or fast motion. Ask your online editor for a list of acceptable speeds. Variable speed adjustments are not supported by most tape-to-tape systems.

In an EDL, each type of wipe transition shape has a unique code. This code is used to tell a video switcher which shape to use for any given edit. Since many of the transitions in Final Cut Pro have no equivalent in a given EDL format, all nonstandard transitions are automatically mapped to the closest approximate SMPTE standard wipe pattern during the EDL export process.

Note: EDLs were originally developed for older tape-to-tape editing systems with fairly limited capabilities. Therefore, they are equipped to describe only a narrow variety of transitions. Although today's nonlinear editing systems have introduced a much wider variety of transitions, the EDL format continues to reflect the simplicity of older systems.

Final Cut Pro transition	EDL wipe number equivalent
Cross Zoom	17
Cube Spin	18
Spin3D	19
Spinback3D	20
Swing	21
Zoom	22
Additive Dissolve	0
Cross Dissolve	0
Dip to Color Dissolve	0
Dither Dissolve	0
Non-Additive Dissolve	0
Ripple Dissolve	0
Cross Iris	12
Diamond Iris	18
Oval Iris	19
Point Iris	12
Rectangle Iris	17
Star Iris	18
Channel Map	0
Luminance Map	0
Page Peel	0
Band Slide	23
Center Split Slide	12
Multi Spin Slide	1
Push Slide	1
Spin Slide	1
Split Slide	3
Swap Slide	2
Cross Stretch	1
Squeeze	3
Squeeze and Stretch	3
Stretch	3
Band Wipe	23
Center Wipe	4
Checker Wipe	23
Checkerboard Wipe	1
Clock Wipe	13
Edge Wipe	2
Gradient Wipe	0
Inset Wipe	4–11
Jaws Wipe	120
Random Edge Wipe	1
V Wipe	115
Venetian Blind Wipe	123

If you plan to send your audio to an audio postproduction facility for finishing, you can export audio tracks to the Open Media Framework (OMF) interchange format, or export tracks as individual AIFF files.

This chapter covers the following:

Ways You Can Finish Your Audio (p. 145)
Organizing Your Audio Clips for Multi-Track Export (p. 146)
Exporting Audio Tracks to Individual Audio Files (p. 147)
Exporting Audio Output Groups to AIFF(s) (p. 152)
Exporting OMF Audio Files (p. 158)
Exporting Audio Clip Information to an EDL (p. 161)

How do you plan to finish mixing your audio? This is an extremely important question, because it affects what you'll do to the audio in your edited sequence. Essentially, you have two choices:

Completing your final mix using Final Cut Pro
Exporting your audio for sweetening at an audio postproduction facility

Although Final Cut Pro is a capable audio editing environment, having your audio done at a specialized postproduction facility means you'll have a professional audio editor and mixer working on your soundtrack.

Another reason to use a postproduction facility is to have your audio worked on in a room where acoustics have been especially designed for mixing. Additionally, excellent monitoring speakers and high-quality audio equipment will allow your editor to hear everything that's in the audio, so you can be confident that the frequencies and levels being adjusted in your audio are accurate.

If you decide to use an outside facility, make sure that you leave the audio in your edited sequence alone, other than editing the audio clips you want for continuity and catching any obvious editorial fixes, such as mispronounced words. Don't add any filters and don't overedit your audio (that's the audio editor's job). You'll export your edited audio tracks so that the audio facility can import them into their system for further work. Any filtering, mixing, and fine editing can be done by them.

Most editors focus on the picture and dialogue tracks of their edits and lay in scratch tracks of music, effects, and Foley for reference. They then export audio clip information from the Timeline along with the corresponding media files. This allows a mixing engineer, music editor, and sound designer to "sweeten" the movie soundtrack.

There are several ways to deliver your sequence's audio tracks for audio postproduction work:

• Each sequence track as an individual audio file
• Each channel output of your sequence exported as an individual AIFF file
- A multichannel audio QuickTime file
- A self-contained OMF composition (sequence) and embedded audio media
- An EDL (Edit Decision List) and original audio source tapes
• An AC-3 audio file for DVD

Note: For information on how to export audio for DVD, see Chapter 16, "Exporting Sequences for DVD," on page 215.

For each of the audio export methods, it's important to organize your sequence's audio tracks in logical groupings. Put dialogue clips in one set of tracks, sound effects in another, music in another, and so on. These groups are sometimes referred to as stems. Here's a typical way to organize your tracks:

Dialogue: This includes most of the audio that was captured along with your video. Whether you split each character's lines out on a separate dialogue track is up to you and your audio editor.
Voiceover: Narration should be on its own track, separate from dialogue.
Sound effects: This includes material from sound effects libraries as well as effects clips you've recorded yourself.
Foley effects: If you've added Foley effects, create tracks just for that purpose.
Ambience: Ambient tracks include background tones and atmospheric sound effects, and possibly also room tone.
Music: Stereo music requires two audio tracks, although you may need four tracks if you need to cross fade from one piece of music to another.

If you have a lot of source audio in your sequence that wasn't captured with timecode, or if you need to export your audio to a video system that doesn't support OMF import, you can export each audio track to its own audio file. These files can then be imported into a multitrack audio application. The disadvantage of this method is that it doesn't preserve your edit points because all of the audio clips on each track your become one audio file. Your audio editor then has to manually edit each track to get back to the original clips. You also cannot include handles (additional media on either side of a clip) on your audio clips this way.

Before following the steps below, make a duplicate of your sequence and use that duplicate for the export process. This leaves your original edited sequence untouched.

Individual audio clips in a typical sequence Music 1 Music 1 Individual audio clips have been consolidated into single large clips with the duration of the sequence

Before you export your sequence's audio tracks to audio files, you should follow the steps below.

Since you may make significant alterations to your sequence, it's better to duplicate it and work on the copy. If you make any drastic errors, you can always return to your original sequence.

Insert a one-frame sync beep at the beginning and end of each audio track in your sequence. These beeps help audio editors synchronize picture to exported audio tracks, much as a slate does during initial picture and sound editing. The beep before a movie begins is also known as a two-pop because the beep occurs just 2 seconds before the first frame of the movie appears. You may notice that when you see a movie countdown, the last beep coincides with the number 2 in the10 second countdown.

1 Double-click a sequence in the Browser to open it in the Timeline.

If there is no space at the beginning of your sequence, you need to make room for your two-pop.

2 In the Timeline, choose Edit > Select All (or press Command-A), then type +200.

All of the clip items in your sequence move forward by two seconds, making room for the two-pop.

3 Choose Bars and Tone from the Generator pop-up menu in the Viewer.

Bars and Tone (HD 720p60) Favorites Bars and Tone (HD 1080i50) Bars and Tone (HD 1080i60) Bars and Tone (HD 720p60) Bars and Tone (NTSC) Bars and Tone (PAL) Matte Others Render Shapes Slug Text Title 3D Title Crawl Choose the Bars and Tone setting for NTSC or PAL, depending on your video equipment.

4 Press I to mark an In point, press the Right Arrow key on the keyboard to move forward one frame, then press O to mark an Out point.

In and Out points for the single-frame clip p

5 Drag this clip from the Viewer to the first frame of your sequence in the Timeline.

6 Option-click the video portion of the one-frame clip to select that part only.

Select the video only, then press Delete. Bars and To

7 Press Delete to delete the video portion of this clip.

01:00:00:06 01:00:00:06 Bars and To Only the audio portion remains as your sync beep.

Note: Instead of deleting the video portion of the two-pop, you can also replace it with a more appropriate video generator, such as a circle shape generator.

8 Cut the stereo beep and paste it 2 seconds beyond the beginning and end of each audio track you will export.

01:00:00:06 01:00:00:08 01:00:00:10 01:00:00:12 01:00:00:15 01:00:00:17 01:00:00:20 Debra sidewalking Bars and To Bars and To Debra sidewalking Debra sidewalking Music 1 Music 1 This shows the sync beep at the beginning of an audio track.

When you export audio files, there is no automatic way to include "handles," or extra audio at the beginning and end of each audio clip. If you want extra audio before and after the In and Out points of each audio clip, you need to manually change the In and Out points of each audio clip in your sequence.

Note: When you add handles, be careful not to move the placement of your clips in your sequence. In some cases, you may need to move your audio clips on two adjacent tracks to create an overlapping checkerboard pattern of audio clips that include handles.

To remove any dynamic mixing, remove all audio filters from your audio clips, flatten the audio overlays to 0 decibels (dB), and remove any stereo panning you may have introduced.

1 Select every audio clip in your sequence by activating the Timeline and pressing Command-A.
All video clips are selected too, but you don't need to worry about your video clips since you are only using this sequence to export audio.
2 Control-click one of the selected clips in the Timeline, and choose Remove Attributes from the shortcut menu.
3 In the Remove Attributes window, select Levels, Pan, and Filters, then click OK.

When you export an audio track in your sequence, the new audio file becomes a continuous audio file the length of the sequence. All the clips in that track are merged into a single, continuous media file.

1 Option-click the Track Visibility control next to the audio track you want to export.

Note: If the Track Visibility control for more than one track is enabled, the tracks are mixed together during export. Option-clicking the Track Visibility control for a track disables playback for all other audio tracks.

2 Choose File > Export > Using QuickTime Conversion.
3 In the Save dialog, choose a location and enter a name for the file.
4 Choose AIFF or WAVE from the Format pop-up menu.

AIFF is the standard audio on Macintosh. If you're delivering audio files to Windows users, you may want to use the WAVE format.

5 Click Options.

6 In the Sound Settings dialog, choose the format, number of channels, sample rate, quality, and sample size (bit depth), then click OK.

Sound Settings Format: Linear PCM Channels: Mono Rate: 44.100 kHz Show Advanced Settings Sample Rate Converter Settings: Quality: Best Linear PCM Settings: Sample size: 16 bits Little Endian Floating Point Unsigned Choose Linear PCM. Choose Mono. Enter a sample rate or choose one from this pop-up menu. Choose the quality you want Choose a bit depth. Cancel OK

Important: Avoid audio compression unless you are specifically required to use it for multimedia projects or the web.

7 When you're ready to export, click Save.

The name of the exported audio file defaults to the name of the sequence. If you are exporting multiple audio tracks this way, you need to manually name each audio file with the corresponding track number before you save it.

The Export Audio to AIFF(s) command exports an AIFF audio file for each output channel in your sequence. The number of audio files exported is based on the number of audio output channels in the sequence. You can set the number of audio outputs in the Audio Outputs tab of Sequence Settings. Dual mono channels are exported to two mono audio files, and a stereo channel is exported to a single stereo audio file.

Note: You can also export your audio to a multichannel QuickTime file. The same audio grouping rules apply.

In your sequence, you can assign as many tracks as you want to the same audio output channel. For example, you can assign tracks 1–4 to audio output channel 1 (mono). The resulting exported audio file for output channel 1 would contain a mix of audio from tracks 1–4. You can use audio output channels to group and mix multiple audio tracks together during export. For example, you could assign tracks 1–4 to output channel 1, tracks 5–8 to output channel 2, and tracks 9–10 to stereo output channels 3 and 4. This is useful for exporting stem mixes for use in a final audio mix elsewhere.

Here's a typical example illustrating how you might export multichannel audio from an edited sequence. Suppose you've set up a sequence to have three stereo audio outputs and 12 audio tracks.

The Audio Outputs tab of the Sequence Settings window would look like this:

Sequence Settings Name: Master sequence General Video Processing Timeline Options Render Control Audio Outputs Load Audio Output Preset... Outputs 6 1 2 3 4 5 6 Downmix (dB): 0 0 0 Grouping: Stereo Stereo Dual Mono Dual Mono Stereo Stereo Dual Mono Load Sequence Preset... Cancel OK

And the sequence would look something like this:

Each of the 12 audio tracks can be assigned to one of the three pairs of output channels. More than one track can be assigned to the same output channel, in which case the audio from those tracks is mixed to a single audio file during export.

One of the primary uses of the Export Audio to AIFF(s) option is to maintain the separation between audio tracks during export. In the above example, the entire edited sequence may have already been mixed to a final stereo audio file, but you can also export each track grouping to a separate AIFF file, so that foreign distributors can redbud the dialogue into another language separately, without affecting the music, background audio, and sound effects.

In this situation, using the Export Audio to AIFF(s) option creates three separate stereo AIFF files. Each file corresponds to an audio output pair in your sequence and contains the combined audio from all the audio tracks in your sequence assigned to that pair, mixed together using the levels you set. All three of these files are exactly the same duration. These three AIFF files can then be delivered, along with your program's video, to any audio postproduction facility for remixing and mastering, if necessary.

Each exported file is named according to the audio output it corresponds to. Stereo audio output pairs are exported as a single stereo AIFF file. Mono audio output pairs are exported as individual mono AIFF files. If you export audio from a sequence named "Final Mix" that has two pairs of stereo and two mono audio outputs, you end up with the following four files:

• Final Mix_1-2.aif (stereo AIFF)
• Final Mix_3-4.aif (stereo AIFF)
- Final Mix_5.aif (mono AIFF)
- Final Mix_6.aif (mono AIFF)

You can also use the Export Audio to AIFF(s) option to export a stereo downmix of your sequence audio as a single stereo AIFF file. Choosing Stereo Mix from the Config pop-up menu results in all output channels being downmixed to a single stereo pair. This is useful if you need to create a stereo mix of your program, even though it's set up for multichannel output.

When the Config pop-up menu is set to Stereo Mix:

All audio tracks in your sequence assigned to stereo outputs are exported with odd-numbered outputs mixed down to the left channel and even-numbered outputs mixed down to the right channel.
Audio tracks assigned to mono outputs are exported equally to both left and right channels, "centering" their stereo image.

During downmixing, the level of each audio track is adjusted by the dB value specified by each pair's Downmix pop-up menu, located in the Audio Outputs tab of the Sequence Settings window. For more information on setting the downmix parameter of audio tracks, see Volume III, Chapter 4, "Audio Levels, Meters, and Output Channels."

If your edited sequence has only a single pair of audio outputs, then the Export Audio to AIFF(s) option will output a single stereo (or two mono) AIFF file. If you want to output multiple AIFF files, here are some things to keep in mind.

Create audio outputs for your sequence: The Export Audio to AIFF(s) option exports as many AIFF files as you have audio outputs assigned in your sequence, one stereo file for each stereo output, and two mono files for each mono pair output. This is true even if you have empty audio tracks, or audio output channels that are not used by any tracks. For more information on modifying audio outputs for a sequence, see Volume III, Chapter 4, "Audio Levels, Meters, and Output Channels."
Assign each track in your sequence to an audio output channel: By default, a new sequence uses the default stereo audio output preset. If you want to export multiple AIFF files from a sequence with more than two audio outputs, you need to first create additional audio outputs in your sequence, and then assign tracks to those outputs. For more information on assigning audio tracks in a sequence to an audio output channel, see Volume III, Chapter 5, "Overview of the Audio Mixer."
Organize your audio clips by track: If you're planning to export multiple stereo AIFF files, it's a good idea to organize the audio clips you use in your edited sequence according to their content (dialogue, sound effects, and so on). This makes your project easier to mix, and your output assignments more logical.

Follow these steps to export AIFF files for each audio output channel in your sequence.

1 Select a sequence in the Browser or open the sequence in the Timeline.
2 Choose File > Export > Audio to AIFF(s).
3 In the Save dialog, choose a location and enter a name for the file.

Tip: If you're exporting multiple audio files, it's a good idea to create a folder and choose it as the location to save to.

4 Choose a sample rate, sample bit depth, and channel configuration from the pop-up menus.

- Rate: Lower sample rates take less bandwidth but have lower quality. Make sure your sample rate is compatible with the audio facility you'll be handing the files off to. Usually, you should use the sample rate specified in your sequence settings, which should ideally be the sample rate of the original audio media files.

- 96 kHz: This is a high-resolution sample rate that can be easily converted to 48 kHz.

- 88.2 kHz: This is a high-resolution sample rate that can be easily converted to 44.1 kHz audio files.

- 48 kHz: DV formats and many professional video formats use this sample rate.

- 44.1 kHz: This is the sample rate of music CDs and some DAT tapes.

- 32 kHz: This corresponds to a consumer sample rate option on DV camcorders. Unless you have a special reason, avoid this sample rate for audio export.

- Depth: Choose the bit depth used for each sample.

- 16-bit: This is the bit depth of DV, DVCAM, and DVCPRO, as well as of music CDs. If all of your original audio media is 16-bit, and you aren't routing multiple audio tracks to the same audio output, choose this option.

- 24-bit: A high-resolution bit depth compatible with many third-party capture cards and external audio interfaces. Choose this option to preserve the highest possible quality when exporting your files, especially when some of your audio files are 24-bit, or when you are mixing multiple audio channels together by routing them to the same output channel.

- Configuration: Choose whether to export a single stereo AIFF file or multiple AIFF files.

- Channel Grouped: Exports multiple stereo or mono AIFF files based on your sequence's audio output groupings.

- Stereo Mixed: Outputs a single stereo AIFF file based on your sequence's stereo downmix settings.

5 When you're ready to export, click Save.

Note: All audio that requires rendering is automatically rendered with a render quality of High, regardless of the render quality setting.

Final Cut Pro supports capture, import, and export of multichannel audio QuickTime files. To export your sequence to a QuickTime file, you can use the Export QuickTime Movie command. The rules for audio grouping are the same when exporting a QuickTime movie as when exporting individual AIFF files: stereo output pairs are exported as stereo QuickTime audio tracks, and mono output pairs are exported as two individual mono QuickTime audio tracks.

1 Select a sequence in the Browser or open the sequence in the Timeline.
2 Choose File > Export > QuickTime Movie.
3 In the Save dialog, choose a location and enter a name for the file.
4 Choose a sequence preset from the Setting pop-up menu.

If you want to set a particular audio sample rate or bit depth, you can also choose the current settings of the selected sequence, or you can choose the Custom Settings option.

5 Choose Audio Only from the Include pop-up menu.

If you want to export a complete QuickTime movie that contains video as well as multichannel audio, choose Audio and Video.

6 Select Make Movie Self-Contained.

The number of audio tracks created in the resulting QuickTime movie depends on the following factors:

The number of audio outputs set in the Audio Outputs tab of the Sequence Settings window
The option selected in the Configuration pop-up menu in the General tab of the Sequence Settings window:
Default: If the Downmix control is enabled in the Audio Mixer, a QuickTime movie with stereo audio is created. If the Downmix control is disabled, a QuickTime movie is created with multiple audio tracks corresponding to the audio output channels of your sequence.
Channel Grouped: Exports multiple stereo or mono QuickTime tracks based on your sequence's audio output groupings.
Stereo Mixed: Outputs a single stereo QuickTime track using your sequence's stereo downmix settings.

For more information, see "QuickTime Audio Settings for Sequences" on page 338.

OMF—or Open Media Framework—is a cross-platform file format for exchanging video and audio sequence information between different editing systems. Avid originally developed the OMF file format and many editing applications have incorporated some level of OMF import and export compatibility. Today, OMF is most often used for exchanging audio sequence, track, and clip information from video editing systems to audio postproduction applications. OMF can store far more information than traditional EDLs, especially when it comes to audio interchange.

When you export your sequence audio as an OMF file, the resulting OMF file contains a description of your audio edits (the clip In and Out points in the Timeline) along with the audio media files. You should use the OMF Export command if you plan to deliver your audio to an editor using an OMF-compatible digital audio workstation (DAW). Most audio facilities are able to use OMF files.

Using OMF for audio export has several important advantages:

Exported OMF files preserve your audio clips and audio media files (with or without handles) embedded in a single file. This allows you to open up the audio from your sequence in another audio editing application and still have access to individual clips.
You can export as many tracks of audio as you have in your sequence. EDL export limits you to a maximum of four tracks of audio at a time.

Using OMF files, editors can send edited and synchronized audio tracks to an audio postproduction facility, maintaining the original tracks, clip In and Out points, and cross fades. Audio handles can be added so that the audio editor can still trim and crossfade the audio as necessary.

Before you export an OMF file, consider the following limitations:

- If you have cross fades in your edit, they are exported as linear cross fades, regardless of what kind of cross fades you use in your edited sequence. Your audio editor can reset these to their desired type within the audio software.

How well your cross fades import into another application depends on the tool your audio editor uses. Since some OMF importing tools do not handle cross fade objects correctly, you have the option to leave these out when exporting your sequence as an OMF file.

OMF Export does not include disabled audio tracks (tracks with the audibility control turned off). Any individually disabled audio clips will also be ignored.
Speed and Reverse effects that have been applied to audio clips will be permanently applied to the exported audio media files.
Nested sequences will be mixed together and exported as a single audio media file.
Level, pan, and audio filter information cannot be exported in OMF files.

When you need to transfer your sequence audio to another audio postproduction application, you can use the Export Audio to OMF command.

1 Select a sequence in the Browser or open the sequence in the Timeline.
2 In the Timeline, make sure the track Visibility control is turned on next to each audio track you want to export.

Make sure just the desired audio tracks are audible (green). Disabled tracks are not exported

3 Choose File > Export > Audio to OMF.

4 In the OMF Audio Export dialog, choose the desired options, then click OK.

OMF Audio Export Rate: 48 kHz Depth: 16-bit Handle Length: 00:00:01:00 ✓ Include Crossfade Transitions Cancel OK Select the desired options, then click OK.

Sample Rate: Choose an option that suits what you're using the audio for. All of the audio you export has the same sample rate. If you use audio with different sample rates, it's converted.
Sample Depth: Choose 16- or 24-bit. The highest-quality setting is 24-bit, but choose this option only if some of your audio media actually uses 24-bit files, or if your audio editor requests this format.

Note: When exporting to OMF, Final Cut Pro uses the highest quality setting regardless of what you choose in the Audio Playback Quality pop-up menu in the General tab of the User Preferences window.

- Handle Length: Enter a value in timecode format to add handles to the audio clips. Handles give your audio editor the flexibility needed to fix edits. Handles of 1 to 3 seconds are typical, but it's best to check with your audio editor.

Handles are included only when there is additional audio media outside the clip In and Out points. When there is not enough media to create the full handle duration, Final Cut Pro includes as much of a handle as possible.

- Include Crossfade Transitions: Since some OMF importing tools do not handle cross fade transitions correctly, and many sound editors prefer to create cross fades themselves, you have the option to leave these out when exporting your sequence as an OMF file by disabling this checkbox. When this option is disabled, extra source media is substituted for the duration of the cross fade being left out. How much extra source media will be substituted depends on whether the cross fade was edited before, on, or after the edit point. Extra source media included as a result of this option will be in addition to extra source media added by the Handle Length option.

5 Choose a location and enter a name for the file.

6 When you're ready to export, click Save.

OMF files that you create cannot be larger than 2 GB. In most cases, this should not present a problem since this will accommodate approximately 7 hours of mono audio media (depending on the bit depth and sample rate of your audio). If your sequence exceeds this limit, you will see an error message before exporting begins.

Some audio postproduction software can import EDLs just like video editing applications. Importing an EDL creates audio clips (or regions) in the audio application's timeline, which you can then use to recapture your audio from original source tapes. This is similar to a video online edit session, in which all clips are recaptured at the highest quality possible. Since the engineers are recapturing all of the audio directly from the source tapes using workstations with dedicated high-end audio hardware, you can be assured of the highest possible quality.

EDLs can only store information for up to four audio channels, and the clips must be originally captured using timecode. If some of your audio doesn't have timecode (for example, if you imported a track from a CD), you must first transfer your music and sound effects to a timecoded video or audio format, then edit the timecoded clips into your sequence. If your program has more than four audio tracks, you need to export multiple EDLs and have them collated by your audio editor.

For detailed information on exporting EDLs, "Exporting EDLs" on page 124.

If you captured media files from non-timecoded sources such as VHS tape, DAT tapes, reel-to-reel tape recorders, or imported audio CDs, the resulting EDL won't be useful for recapturing because the EDL does not contain relevant timecode information that references back to the original sources. The solution is to copy all of your non-timecoded audio to formats that support timecode. You should do this before you begin editing your movie.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Copying Audio to Timecoded Tapes for Logging, Capturing, and EDL Export - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["CD"] --> B["Cassette"]
    B --> C["DAT without timecode"]
    D["DV tape"] --> E["Media with timecode"]
    F["DAT with timecode"] --> E

Once you've copied all of your non-timecoded audio material onto timecoded formats, you can log and capture your audio the same way you'd log and capture video, knowing that all of your audio edits can now be described in an exported EDL. You treat the new timecoded tapes as your original audio source material for the duration of the project.

Using the Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format, the possibilities for exchanging project data are virtually unlimited. You can generate Final Cut Pro project files on any platform, using any software you want.

This chapter covers the following:

About XML (p. 163)
• Overview of the Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format (p. 167)
Exporting XML in Final Cut Pro (p. 170)
Importing XML Into Final Cut Pro (p. 171)

Note: For complete documentation about the Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format, visit the Apple Applications page at the Apple Developer Connection website at developer.apple.com/appleapplications.

By default, Final Cut Pro saves every element of a project, such as clips, bins, and sequences, in a project file. Although this project file is compact and efficient, you usually can't open it in third-party applications. What if you want to transfer all of your log notes to a spreadsheet application, or an entire sequence along with all of your color correction settings to another nonlinear editing application? The Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format was created so that every detail of your project file can be transferred to a system that doesn't recognize native Final Cut Pro projects.

XML, or eXtensible Markup Language, is a markup language. Markup languages clarify the content in a document by tagging the elements of the document. A well-known markup language is HTML, the standard language for writing web pages. The benefit of working with XML is that it is an open standard. The structure and rules for working with XML documents are well documented by the World Wide Web Consortium (http://www.w3c.org). XML is also quite simple and human-readable: You can view an XML file in any text editing application and even edit its content. Because XML is an open standard, anyone with sufficient understanding can process an XML document into other formats, such as plain text, HTML, or even other XML formats.

Tagging content gives the content of a document structure and specific meaning. Each tag defines an element of the document. For example, compare the following excerpts from a text file before and after tags have been added:

Coffee house wide shot
17
300
Good

<clip>
    <name>Coffee house wide shot</name>
    <reel>17</reel>
    <duration>300</duration>
    <good>TRUE</good>
</clip>

In the original text file, you have to make assumptions about the meaning of the numbers 17 and 300. In the tagged document, the tags clarifies that 17 is actually the reel name of a clip, and 300 is the clip duration (in frames).

In XML, elements can contain other elements. In the example above, the element encompasses all of the other elements.

Most markup languages have a limited set of tags and rules about how the elements can be ordered hierarchically. For example, an HTML document can have a

element (this is a paragraph element) but if you wanted to add a element, this would not be recognized by HTML-aware applications without altering the entire HTML standard.

XML was designed to be extensible—you can define any tags and hierarchical rules that fit the data you are working with. For example, an XML file that contains store inventory data might have elements such as , , , and . An XML file that contains video editing information would have very different elements, such as , , , , and so on.

XML is a strict markup language, which means all tags must be closed. For example, if your XML document contains a tag, there must be a corresponding tag to close the element. Unclosed tags create errors.

Some elements contain identifying information called attributes. In XML, an element's attribute looks like this:

<font color="red">
...
</font>

In the example above, the font element has an attribute called color, which is set to "red". Alternatively, you could choose to structure your XML format without attributes, such as

<font>
    <color>red</color>
    ...
</font>

Just as XML tags are extensible, so are attributes. When you define the rules of your XML file, you can allow elements to have any attributes you want. For example, in the Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format, every clip can have an "id" attribute so each clip can be uniquely identified and referenced:

<clip id="coffee house 1">
    ...
</clip>
<clip id="coffee house 2">
    ...
</clip>

Whitespace in a document includes multiple spaces, tab characters, carriage returns, newline characters, and so on. An XML parser reads and processes XML tags in a document, but ignores extra whitespace. To an XML parser, there is no difference between

<clip><name>Coffee house wide shot</name><reel>17</reel></clip>

and

<clip>
    <name>Coffee house wide shot</name>
    <reel>17</reel>
</clip>

Whitespace is permitted so you can make your XML file more readable without affecting the fundamental structure or meaning.

Before you can create an XML document, you need to define the rules of your document: Which elements (tags) can exist, which elements contain other elements, which elements are optional or required, what attributes does each element have, and so on. You define the rules of an XML document in a Document Type Definition, or DTD. Every markup language has a DTD, so that parsers know how to verify the structure of documents. Without a DTD, it is impossible for the parser to validate an XML document. Every XML document requires a DTD.

If you are working with a predefined language, such as HTML or the Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format, the DTD has already been created for you. All you need to do is follow the rules of the DTD to create valid Final Cut Pro XML.

XML documents can be used to represent almost any kind of information. Unlike languages such as HTML, XML has no predefined elements. XML is not one format, but rather XML is used to create specific XML-based markup languages. Just because an application supports XML does not mean that it can recognize any kind of XML document. For example, a database application may use an XML format with elements like , , and , while a graphics application might store information in elements such as , , and . Even though both documents are XML, they are incompatible because their Document Type Definitions are completely different.

The Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format was designed to describe every element in a Final Cut Pro project in a human-readable, XML-based format. Final Cut Pro can import and export this format, opening a world of possibilities limited only by your ability to generate and process XML documents.

Because Final Cut Pro supports XML, you are no longer limited to creating clips, bins, and sequences within Final Cut Pro. This means you can create your own Final Cut Pro projects outside of Final Cut Pro, using any software or platform you want, as long as you generate a valid Final Cut Pro XML file. Even if you don't want to create Final Cut Pro XML from scratch, you can practice working with Final Cut Pro XML by exporting a clip or sequence to an XML file, opening it in a text editing application, making minor modifications, and then importing the modified XML file back into Final Cut Pro.

For example, if you have 100 clips that all have "Koffee House" in the name, and you want to change the names to "Coffee House," you can export the clips to Final Cut Pro XML, open the XML file in a text-editing application, find "Koffee" and replace with "Coffee," and then import the resulting XML file back into Final Cut Pro.

Another example is when working with text generators or overlaid graphics. Suppose you have a sequence with hundreds of subtitle text generators, and you want to subtly change the color or position of each subtitle. Manually moving each subtitle in Final Cut Pro would be extremely time-consuming. Instead, you can export the sequence as XML and then find and replace all of the positional parameters or color settings at once.

These examples are only the beginning. You can also change clip In and Out points, change the order of clips in sequences, or modify effect parameters. The more you experiment, the more potential you will discover for modifying Final Cut Pro elements using XML.

This section describes some of the main elements of the Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format. Here is an example of a simple Final Cut Pro XML interchange file. The code below represents a Browser clip whose media file is offline.

<?xml version="2.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<!DOCTYPE xmeml>
<xmeml version="1">
<clip>
    <name>Coffee house wide shot</name>
    <duration>362</duration>
    <rate>
    <ntsc>TRUE</ntsc>
    <timebase>30</timebase>
    </rate>
</clip>
</xmeml>

An explanation of the sample code above follows.

Every Final Cut Pro XML interchange file requires the first three elements:

<?xml> element: This defines the document as an XML file. The example above shows an <?xml> element with two attributes: version and encoding.
<!DOCTYPE> element: Every XML document requires a Document Type Definition, or DTD. The DTD for a Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format is called xmeml.
element: This is the root element of every Final Cut Pro XML interchange file. Every document should end with a closing tag.

The element defines a Browser clip in Final Cut Pro. The element above contains the following elements:

element: This is the name of the clip.
element: This is the duration of the clip.
element: This is the frame rate of the clip. The element contains a element which determines the clip's frame rate, and an element which determines whether the clip frame rate is actually 29.97 fps or 30 fps.

For a complete list of Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format elements, see the documentation for the Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format at developer.apple.com/appleapplications.

Final Cut Pro always exports verbose XML, which means that every element and subelement is included. However, when you import XML, Final Cut Pro accepts sparse XML, which means that you only need to provide a limited number of required elements. This means you can create fairly terse XML and Final Cut Pro fills in missing information with default information.

You can use the sample XML code on page 168 to create an XML file and import it into a Final Cut Pro project.

1 Launch a text editing application such as TextEdit.
Note: This example assumes you are using TextEdit, the built-in text editing application that comes with Mac OS X. TextEdit is located in the /Applications folder on your hard disk.
2 If a new window doesn't already exist, choose File > New (or press Command-N).
3 Type or copy and paste the sample XML code on page 168 into the new TextEdit window.
Errors in XML code will result in errors during import. Make sure you type carefully and check your work.

4 Choose Format > Make Plain Text (or press Command-Shift-T).

This ensures that your file is saved as a plain text file, not a Rich Text Format (RTF) file. The file extension should become .txt.

5 Choose File > Save.

6 In the Save window, navigate to the Desktop.

7 Name the file "example.xml", then click OK.

If you receive a message about appending .txt to the end of the file name, click Don't Append.

8 Launch Final Cut Pro.

9 Close any open projects, then choose File > New Project (or press Shift-Command-N).

10 Choose File > Import > XML, navigate to "example.xml," and click Choose.

The Import XML window appears.

11 Choose the current project name in the Destination pop-up menu.

12 Leave all other settings as they are currently set, then click OK.

A new offline clip named "Coffee house wide shot" appears in the Browser.

if you receive an error message, you should reopen your XML file in TextEdit to make sure you entered the sample code correctly. Simple typos, such as mismatched beginning and ending tags, can cause the error "XML translation was aborted due to a critical error." Also, make sure your file is a plain-text file, not an RTF file.

You can export clips, bins, sequences, or even an entire Final Cut Pro project as an XML file.

1 In Final Cut Pro, select the clips, bins, or sequences you want to export as XML.
2 Choose File > Export > XML.

The Export XML dialog appears. A summary of the selected elements to be exported is shown next to the Source field.

3 Choose a version of the XML Interchange Format you want to export.

In most cases, you should choose the most recent version. You should only choose an older version of the Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format if:

You need to create an XML file that is backward compatible with an older version of Final Cut Pro.
You have XML processing code or a third-party application that only recognizes an older version of the Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format.

4 Select the Include Master Clips Outside Selection option if you want the master clips for a sequence to be exported within the XML file.

The Include Master Clips Outside Selection option is useful when you select a sequence or sequence clips for export. For more information about master clips, see Chapter 4, "Working With Master and Affiliate Clips," on page 41.

5 Click OK.
6 Choose a name and destination for the XML file, then click Save.

Note: Some applications may require an .xml extension at the end of the filename, so you may want to add this just in case.

You can generate Final Cut Pro XML interchange files with your own applications and then import them into Final Cut Pro. When you import XML into Final Cut Pro, clips, bins, and sequences are automatically generated within Final Cut Pro. You can import your clips into a currently open project or into a new project.

1 In Final Cut Pro, choose File > Import > XML.
2 Navigate to the XML file on your hard disk, then click Choose.
3 In the Import XML dialog, select the options and settings appropriate to your XML file.
The XML import options are described in detail in the Final Cut Pro XML developer documentation. For more information, visit the Apple Applications page at the Apple Developer Connection website at developer.apple.com/appleapplications.
4 Click OK.

The Importing XML Data progress bar appears as Final Cut Pro processes the XML and generates clips, bins, or sequences from the XML file.

Learn how to output your completed movie to videotape or DVD, or export to any QuickTime-compatible video format.

Chapter 13 Preparing to Output to Tape

Chapter 14 Assemble and Insert Editing Using Edit to Tape

Chapter 15 Printing To Video and Output From the Timeline

Chapter 16 Exporting Sequences for DVD

Chapter 17 Learning About QuickTime

Chapter 18 Exporting QuickTime Movies

Chapter 19 Exporting QuickTime-Compatible Files

Chapter 20 Exporting Still Images and Image Sequences

Chapter 21 Batch Exporting Clips and Sequences

Tape is still the most common means of acquisition, output, and transfer for professional projects.

Final Cut Pro allows you to output sequences or clips to tape at any phase of your project.

This chapter covers the following:

Choosing a Videotape Format and Equipment for Output (p. 175)
• Output Requirements (p. 177)
• Methods for Output to Tape in Final Cut Pro (p. 178)
Setting Up Your Editing System to Output to Tape (p. 179)

The tape format you choose for output affects the capture settings of your clips, your sequence settings, and the equipment you need. Before you begin your project, try to anticipate the format of your final master tape, as well as the format of any work-in-progress tapes you may distribute to other people on your team.

The most common output formats include:

- DV: The DV format family includes DV, DVCAM, DVCPRO, DVCPRO 50, and DVCPRO HD. DV formats are compressed video formats designed with nonlinear video editing in mind. Final Cut Pro allows you to edit and output native DV signals, because a DV file on your scratch disk is virtually identical to the same DV information on tape. When you output DV from your computer, video and audio are combined into a DV stream, sent to a VTR or camcorder via FireWire, and then recorded on tape.

- Uncompressed digital and professional analog video formats: These are formats such as Betacam SP (analog), Digital Betacam, D-5, or HDCAM. VTRs for these formats support several different video interface connections, such as component analog (Betacam SP), SDI (Digital Betacam, D-5), and HD-SDI (HDCAM). Final Cut Pro requires a third-party video interface to connect your computer to the input connections of the VTR. Unlike DV, which uses the same native file format on tape and disk, the codecs used by Final Cut Pro to store uncompressed video are not the same as the native signals recorded on these tape formats.

For example, if you are outputting to Digital Betacam, you should be editing with a video codec that supports uncompressed video and is compatible with your third-party video interface. When you output to tape, the video interface converts the uncompressed video codec to a standard SDI signal, which enters the VTR via an SDI input and is recorded to a Digital Betacam tape.

An uncompressed video editing system requires fast hard disks, a third-party video interface to convert the media file format on disk to the input connection on the VTR (for example, SDI), and a third-party device control adapter (such as a USB-to-serial port adapter) for communication between Final Cut Pro and the VTR.

- Analog composite video output: Formats like VHS and 3/4" U-matic are still the lowest common denominator for video distribution, even though these formats are being replaced by DVD, DV, and QuickTime movie files (two of these aren't even tape formats at all!). These formats are mostly used for work-in-progress copies of your movie.

Choosing an output video format determines your equipment requirements. For example, if you are editing DV and outputting to DV, your computer's built-in FireWire port can transfer video to your camcorder or deck. On the other hand, if you are editing uncompressed video, your media files and sequence settings must use a video codec compatible with a third-party video interface which is then connected to your VTR.

• Media files captured with a DV capture preset
- Sequence settings that match your DV capture settings
- A DV camcorder or deck with a FireWire port for transferring video, audio, and device control data

• Media files captured with a high-resolution, uncompressed codec
- Sequence settings that match your clips' capture settings (unless you want to render your entire sequence before you output)
- A third-party video interface capable of SDI output and digital audio output
- A serial port adapter for connecting 9-pin device control to the output VTR
• A Digital Betacam deck

• Media files captured with a high-resolution, uncompressed codec
- Sequence settings that match your clips' capture settings
- A third-party video interface with component analog outputs (Y'C_B C_R) and professional analog audio output
- A serial port adapter for connecting 9-pin device control to the output VTR
- A BetacamSP deck

Output to analog tape is becoming less common, but still necessary in many situations. When you output to professional analog formats such as BetacamSP, the equipment requirements are similar to what's needed for professional digital output.

You can output your video and audio to VHS several ways.

Output to a tape format compatible with your sequence, then make a copy to a VHS tape.
Connect your VHS deck to an analog composite output of your video interface or a device that can automatically convert to analog composite video.

There are three main ways you can output your video from Final Cut Pro to tape:

Edit to Tape
Print to Video

• Recording to tape directly from the Timeline

The Edit to Tape command supports both assemble and insert editing, which are two forms of traditional videotape editing (these are not related to overwrite or insert editing in the Timeline). The Edit to Tape command requires device control to remotely start and stop the VTR. For more information about assemble and insert editing, see Chapter 14, "Assemble and Insert Editing Using Edit to Tape," on page 185.

Edit to Tape is the only command that supports insert editing. Use this option when you are creating a master tape from a Final Cut Pro online system, when you want to replace a single shot on a preexisting master tape, or when you want to replace specific tracks (such as several audio tracks) on tape.

In most cases, the Print to Video command doesn't use device control, so it is useful when your deck can't be controlled remotely (such as a VHS deck). You can't specify timecode In and Out points for recording on the tape, so you can't use this method for output to a precise location on your tape. You also can't choose which audio or video tracks are recorded on tape—they are all recorded.

Note: Some camcorders and VTRs can be triggered to record automatically as soon as you begin the Print to Video operation. You need to connect a FireWire (for DV) or RS-422 device control cable between your computer and video deck to use this option.

The Print to Video command allows you to begin recording wherever the tape is currently cued, and without timecode accuracy. You also can't set a precise Out point on the tape, so there is almost always a break in the video signal on tape at the Out point after recording. To avoid your movie cutting off abruptly as soon as it ends, you should include some black after your program, either by adding slug to the end of your sequence or by including some trailing black, which is an option available in the Print to Video dialog.

If you don't require a precise In or Out point on the tape, then Print to Video is generally the best option. You can even use Print to Video with a completely blank tape, since it doesn't require timecode or video signal information from the tape before it begins recording. Unless you need to output your video to a specific timecode number on tape, or replace a shot on a tape that already has video on it, Print to Video should suit your needs.

This method allows you to record whatever signal is currently playing on your editing system, regardless of the quality. Simply connect the video output of your computer (FireWire or third-party video interface) to a VTR or camcorder, enable external video monitoring in Final Cut Pro, and press the record button. Whatever happens in the Timeline is recorded to tape. This is useful for recording rough cuts directly from the Timeline or when you want to record any real-time adjustments you make in the Viewer, Canvas, or Timeline.

This method is convenient for quick output at any time, but may display low-quality video and unrendered sections of the Timeline. The quality of video output is based on the real-time settings of the your editing system and the current Timeline, so high-quality video is not guaranteed. Use this method to quickly create work-in-progress tapes when you aren't concerned about output at the highest quality.

Before you output to tape, you need to set up your video devices and Final Cut Pro settings and preferences. Some steps are only relevant to particular methods.

Step 1: Connect your video deck or camcorder

Step 2: Choose video and audio outputs in the A/V Devices tab of the Audio/Video settings

Step 3: Select playback settings in System Settings or in the RT pop-up menu in the Timeline

Step 4: Select render settings in Sequence Settings

Step 5: Set preferences related to tape output

Step 6: Cue the videotape (Print To Video)

Step 7: Black and code your videotape (Edit to Tape)

Step 8: Calibrate the timecode between your VTR and computer (Edit to Tape)

Step 9: Choose device control and edit preview settings (Edit to Tape)

Make sure your VTR or camcorder is connected to your computer and turned on. For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 13, "Connecting DV Video Equipment and Specifying Initial Settings."

Make sure your camcorder or deck is set to VCR (sometimes labeled VTR) mode. Final Cut Pro cannot record to video equipment that is in Camera mode. If your video device has multiple inputs (for example TV, Line 1, and Line 2), make sure the input that's connected to your computer is the one that is selected.

Make sure that the A/V devices settings of your Easy Setup match the configuration of your external video and audio equipment.

- Choose Edit > Easy Setup.

If none of your Easy Setups matches your video and audio configuration, you can choose the correct settings in the A/V Devices tab of the Audio/Video Settings window. For example, if you are outputting via FireWire, choose an available FireWire output such as Apple FireWire NTSC or PAL in the Video pop-up menu in the Playback Output section of the A/V Devices tab.

This setting sends video out from the appropriate video output, whether it's the FireWire port or a third-party video interface. You can also choose an audio interface for output. For more information on configuring custom external video settings, see Volume I, Chapter 16, "External Video Monitoring." For information on external audio settings, see Volume III, Chapter 2, "Setting Up Audio Equipment."

When you want to output your program to video, you can choose whether to render the effects that won't output at full quality in real time, or output them at the reduced quality you've selected in order to avoid rendering.

Playback settings can be adjusted in the Playback Control tab of System Settings, or in the RT pop-up menu in the Timeline. For output to tape, you can choose from the following options in the Record pop-up menu:

Full Quality: When this is selected, video is always output to tape at the highest quality. Areas of your sequence that won't play back at full resolution in real time will need to be rendered prior to output.
Use Playback Settings: Final Cut Pro uses the selected real-time effects playback settings when outputting your sequence to tape. If, as a result, your sequence will output at less than full quality, you are warned of this prior to output. Outputting to tape at low quality is useful for quickly creating sample tapes of your program when you don't have the time to render all necessary effects first.

Note: Final Cut Pro always warns you before outputting video to tape at reduced quality when you use the Edit to Tape command.

The currently selected render quality is used to render any transitions, filters, or motion parameters in your edited sequence, as well as any added leader or trailer elements. For more information on render quality settings, see Volume III, Chapter 24, "Rendering."

Note: Render settings can be adjusted in the Render Control tab of the current sequence.

If you like, turn on two preferences relating to tape and playback operations.

- Abort ETT/PTV on dropped frames: If you select this option, a message appears when any frames are dropped during playback when outputting, and Final Cut Pro immediately stops the operation. You can choose to redo the entire output, or you can attempt a match frame edit to output the remaining video from where the dropped frame occurred.

Playback drops are almost always caused by a hardware setup problem. When properly configured, Final Cut Pro should not drop frames. For information on what you can do if Final Cut Pro reports dropped frames, see "Problems During Playback" on page 402.

- Report dropped frames during playback: If you select this option, a message appears when any frames are dropped when outputting so you can correct the problem. Playback drops are almost always caused by a hardware setup problem. When properly configured, Final Cut Pro should not drop frames. For information on what you can do if Final Cut Pro reports dropped frames, see "Problems During Playback" on page 402.

When you use the Print to Video command, or when you output directly from the Timeline, make sure you cue the videotape to where you want to start recording.

1 Use the camcorder or deck controls to cue the videotape to the point where you want to start recording.
2 If you're outputting to a tape that has previously recorded material on it, make sure that the write-protection tab is in the write, or unlocked, position.

Note: If you're using a consumer mini-DV device and you fast-forward past prerecorded material (so there's some blank tape between it and what you'll output), the DV timecode resets to 00:00:00:00.

You must calibrate the timecode signal of your device before editing. This is particularly important when you are using RS-422 device control, because video and timecode information are coming into Final Cut Pro via independent connections. For more information, see "Calibrating Timecode Capture With Serial Device Control" on page 332.

If necessary, specify device control and input ("capture") settings in the Device Settings tab of the Edit to Tape window. You can change both of these settings by choosing an Easy Setup that's appropriate for your video equipment.

1 In the Edit to Tape window, click the Device Settings tab.
2 Change your device control and edit preview settings.

For more information, see "Device Settings Tab" on page 196.

If you plan to do insert editing and your tape is blank, your tape needs to have a signal already recorded on it. You can prepare a tape for insert editing by blacking the tape, which means recording control track, timecode, and a black video signal. You can also perform insert edits on any tape with an existing control track. Having timecode on the tape is also necessary to set In and Out points for the edit.

Most blacked tapes start at 00:58:00:00 to allow 2 minutes of header elements before your program. The movie itself usually starts at 01:00:00:00. This is set in the Initialize Tape dialog. You will see it only if your deck has a settable timecode generator. You may want to black several tapes in advance so they are available when needed.

Note: Most consumer DV camcorders are limited to start recording at 00:00:00:00.

If you plan to do a series of insert edits to output your whole program onto tape, you must use a tape that's blacked from beginning to end. If you're assemble-editing a long program to a new tape, you don't have to black the entire tape, but it's a good idea to black at least 30 seconds of the tape so there is enough timecode so you can set an In point as well as allow for pre-roll before the In point.

1 Insert a videotape into your camcorder or deck.
2 Choose File > Edit to Tape.
3 In the Edit to Tape window, click the Black and Code button.

Edit to Tape Video Mastering Settings Device Settings 00:00:00:00 Mastering 00:00:00:00 Click this button to black your tape.

4 If your video equipment supports timecode generation, make sure your deck is set to accept an external timecode signal.

Note: Timecode is sent via an RS-422 serial port. This is not supported for DV FireWire.

5 Enter the starting timecode in the dialog, then click OK.

This defines the starting timecode number that appears on your tape.

6 In the Black and Code dialog, choose an option from the Settings pop-up menu, then click OK.

Current settings are based on the sequence preset in your current Easy Setup. If you select Custom, the Sequence Preset Editor appears and you can choose custom settings. For more information, see "About Sequence Settings and Presets" on page 336.

7 When a message appears saying your tape will be erased and rewritten with black frames and timecode, click OK.

The tape rewinds to the beginning and the entire tape is blacked. If your video equipment supports timecode generation, timecode is also recorded, starting from the timecode specified. To cancel the black and code process, press the Esc key.

Black and Code Tape Now Black and Coding tape (click ESC key to abort) This message indicates the black and code progress has started.

The Edit to Tape window provides precision control over output to tape. Both assemble and insert editing modes are supported, and remote control of your video device is required.

This chapter covers the following:

• Overview of Tape Editing Methods (p. 185)
- About the Edit to Tape Window (p. 189)
• Using the Edit to Tape Window (p. 197)

Assemble and insert editing are terms that originate from linear, tape-to-tape editing systems. Originally, videotape was edited physically by cutting and splicing on at the boundaries of magnetic tracks on tape. This was not only cumbersome, but difficult to do precisely because video tracks are incredibly small and can only be seen when magnetic ink is applied to the tape. The invention of electronic editing allowed editors to edit by copying selected portions of source tapes to a new master tape.

Three methods of electronic editing exist, each with increasing precision and quality:

- Hard (or crash) recording: This method begins laying video signal on tape as soon as the record button is pressed, without waiting for a pre-roll period in which the VTR motor can get up to speed. Crash records cause breaks in the video signal. If you have ever recorded a television show with a consumer VCR, you have performed a crash record simply by pressing the record button. The recording ends abruptly when you press stop, which causes a break in the video signal. Both "In" and "Out" points of a crash edit cause noticeable breaks in the video signal on tape.

Note: Crash recording onto a tape is a manual process. The Edit to Tape window only works when device control is connected and timecode is present on the videotape, so you can't create crash edits in this window. You can, however, create crash edits on tape by pressing the record button directly on your camcorder or deck, and recording the video output of Final Cut Pro using either the Print to Video command or the direct video output of the Timeline.

- Assemble edits: Assemble edits use a pre-roll time before the edit In point to let the VTR motor get up to speed and continue recording a consistent signal once the edit begins. The result is a smooth edit at the In point. All tracks on the tape, including video, audio, timecode, and control tracks, are replaced. The Out point of an assemble edit ends abruptly, similar to a crash edit, because there is a discrepancy between the timing of the newly recorded signal and the one that already existed on the tape (if the tape wasn't blank).

- Insert edits: Insert edits only replace selected tracks, such as the video track, or two audio channels. The control track on the tape is never replaced, which keeps the tape playing at the proper speed while the other tracks are replaced. Both In and Out edit points are smooth. Professional tape-to-tape editing systems use pre-blacked video tapes and use insert editing exclusively.

An assemble edit records all video, audio, timecode, and control track information on to tape starting at the In point of the edit. Whatever signal was on the tape previously is replaced. By definition, this means there must already be some signal recorded on the tape (even if it's only 10 or 15 seconds at the head of the tape) so you can set an In point.

When an assemble edit stops, there is a signal break at the Out point between the new signal and the previous signal already on tape. Thus, the In point of an assemble edit maintains a smooth control track signal, but the Out point always has a break. Since you can always cover up the last Out point break with the In point of a new edit, assemble editing gets its name from the fact that it is used for quickly assembling footage together in a linear fashion. However, you cannot replace a shot in the middle of the tape without creating a signal break at the Out point.

An insert edit allows you to individually replace video, audio, and timecode tracks on a tape, using In and Out points. Insert editing is frame accurate and never creates breaks in the control track. For example, you could record new music to audio track 1 while keeping the existing video track and audio track 2 intact. This requires a precision, professional deck. (For more information, see "About the Control and Timecode Tracks" on page 188.)

Note: This term is not at all related to making an insert edit in the Timeline; insert editing is a tape-to-tape editing term that predates nonlinear editing systems.

To perform an insert edit, your tape needs to have a signal already recorded on it. You can prepare a tape for insert editing by blacking the tape, which means recording control track, timecode, and a black video signal. You can also perform insert edits on any tape with an existing, unbroken control track. Having timecode on the tape is also necessary to set In and Out points for the edit. For more information about blacking a tape using Final Cut Pro, see “Preparing Your Videotape With Black and Timecode” on page 183.

Important: DV devices (often referred to as miniDV) do not support insert editing because the tracks are too narrow to be precisely replaced. DVCAM and DVCPRO formats support insert editing because they use wider tracks.

Most professional videotape formats have one video track, two or more audio tracks, a timecode track, and a control track.

Unlike the other tracks on a tape, the control track serves a purely practical function: to make sure the tape plays at exactly the same speed it was recorded so the signal is output correctly. A control track is a series of electronic pulses on your videotape that the VTR follows during playback, speeding up or slowing down the capstan (motor) as necessary for consistent playback. These pulses are almost like electronic sprocket holes that regulate videotape playback speed.

Insert editing allows you to replace individual video, audio, or even timecode tracks, leaving the other tracks intact. The control track is never replaced during insert editing. When you perform an insert edit, the VTR uses the control track to play back the tape at the proper speed while recording new video or audio tracks.

When the control track is broken, you may see the video signal jump or look unstable for a few seconds. This happens because the VTR relies on a consistent control track to control the speed of the deck's motor. Missing or inconsistent control track causes the motor to change speed drastically, which means the video signal isn't read at the proper speed of the tape, and so the image is not scanned properly. Control track breaks may not always be noticeable, but they are unacceptable in a professional environment.

Timecode is also recorded onto a separate track on non-DV tape formats. Timecode allows your computer to control your camcorder or deck and import or export frame-accurate video clips. When you're using the Print to Video command, abrupt breaks can cause subtle gaps in the timecode track. Although these happen less often than control track breaks, they can cause problems in a professional environment.

Before you can edit to tape:

Your video equipment must support either FireWire or serial RS-422 remote device control.
Your deck must support recording; you cannot perform edits on play-only decks.
Your camcorder or deck must support insert editing, if you wish to do that type of editing.

For details about the capabilities of your video equipment, check the documentation that came with it. For more information about equipment requirements for output to tape, see "Output Requirements" on page 177.

In most window layouts in Final Cut Pro, the Edit to Tape window appears in the same location as the Canvas. The Edit to Tape window has three tabs:

Video: This tab allows you set tape In and Out points, specify tracks for insert editing, and perform the edit to tape.
Mastering Settings: This tab allows you to adjust settings for elements before and after your movie, such as black, color bars, a slate, and a countdown.
Device Settings: You can choose a device control preset that matches your VTR and a capture preset that determines how your video is displayed in the Edit to Tape window. These settings are set automatically whenever you choose an Easy Setup.

The Video tab allows you control and record on to the tape in your camcorder or deck. You can cue the tape and set In and Out points using the transport controls. Edit buttons and track selection controls allow you to determine exactly how your edit to tape is performed.

Tabs Mode pop-up menu Timecode Duration field Video Mastering Settings Device Settings 00:00:00:00 00:57:59:16 Black and Code button Current Timecode field Insert Master sequence Assembly Edit Overlay (with a dragged clip shown) Preview Insert, assemble, and preview buttons Device status Destination track controls (for insert edits) 00:58:00:02 VTR OK Not Set

Mode: Choose an option—Mastering or Editing.
Mastering: This is the default mode. The mastering mode is useful if you want to output an entire movie with leading elements such as color bars, slate, and countdown. In mastering mode, you can only set an In point on the tape, because the Out point is calculated based on the duration of the elements you choose in the Mastering tab.
Editing: In Editing mode, only the selected clip or sequence is recorded to tape. You cannot add leader or trailer elements. You can use this mode when replacing a shot that's already on tape with frame accuracy, and you can also use three-point editing between your clip or sequence and the tape. For example, you can set In and Out points on the tape and only set an In point in your sequence.
Black and Code: Automatically records a black signal on a videotape, with silent audio and continuous control and timecode tracks, from the beginning to the end of the videotape.
Timecode Duration: Displays the duration between the In and Out points set on the tape.
Current Timecode: Displays the current timecode position of the tape. If you enter a timecode, the tape will move to that position.
Edit Overlay: Appears when you drag a clip or sequence to the Edit to Tape window. You can choose to perform an assemble or insert edit, or preview an insert edit.
Edit buttons: Click to do an insert or assemble edit or preview your insert edit.
Device status: Shows the status of the connected video equipment.

Navigation and Marking Controls
Shuttle control Go to In Point Not Set VTR OK Jog control Go to Out Point Not Set Timecode for the In point Mark In Mark Out Timecode for the Out point

Shuttle control: Drag the tab to the right to fast-forward and to the left to rewind the tape. The speed depends on the distance of the tab from the center. When the tab is green, playback speed is normal. Keyboard shortcuts are the J, K, and L keys.
Jog control: Use this to move forward or backward a few frames at a time on the tape. This is useful for visually locating a specific frame. You can also press the Forward Arrow or Back Arrow.
Mark In: Click this button, or press I, to set the frame on your tape where recording will start.
Mark Out: Click this button, or press O, to set the frame on your tape where recording will stop.
Go to In Point: Click this button, or press Shift-I, to move the tape to the In point you set.
Go to Out Point: Click this button, or press Shift-O, to move the tape to the Out point you set.

These controls allow you to specify which tracks on tape are edited to when performing an insert edit. In addition to video and timecode, up to eight audio tracks can be output to supported video and audio decks.

Click here to enable or disable timecode.

01:59:56:11

Choose your audio tracks from this pop-up menu.

Click here to enable or disable video.

Note: When you perform an assemble edit, all tracks on your recording deck are simultaneously record-enabled and the destination track controls are disabled.

- Timecode Insert: When this control is selected, the timecode of the clip or sequence to be output is edited to tape along with its audio and video. The timecode edited to tape is taken from the section of the clip or sequence being output. Turn on this option only if you want to overwrite the timecode already on the destination tape. This feature works with devices that support serial device control protocols such as RS-422, as well as some DVCPRO HD devices

Important: When insert editing video and audio into an existing program on tape, you generally want to disable Timecode Insert in order to leave the existing timecode unchanged.

- Video Insert: When this control is selected, the video track on tape is replaced by the video output from your computer. Turning off this control prevents the video of your clip or sequence from overwriting the video already on your destination tape.

- Audio Insert: This pop-up menu allows you to individually record-enable audio tracks on tape when insert editing. The number of audio tracks available in this pop-up menu is determined by the Audio Mapping option in the currently selected device control preset. Unavailable audio channels are dimmed. For more information about Audio Mapping options, see “Choosing Audio Mapping for Multichannel Audio Output” on page 204.

To record-enable an audio track, choose it from this pop-up menu and a checkmark appears next to it. Choose it a second time to remove the checkmark and disable the track.

Eight audio channel indicators in the Audio Insert pop-up menu indicate which audio tracks are record-enabled on your VTR. The color of an audio channel indicator indicates its state.

A1 A2 A3 A4 A5 A6 A7 A8 A1 + A2 on All on All off Music 3

Yellow: The audio track is record-enabled on the connected VTR.
Gray: The audio track is record-disabled on the connected VTR.

Transport controls let you navigate the videotape.

Rewind Play In to Out Stop Play Fast Forward Play Around Current

Rewind: Click this button, or press J, to rewind the videotape.
Play In to Out: Rewinds the tape to the current In point you set and then plays forward from that point to the Out point you set. If there is no Out point, the tape plays to the end.
Stop: Click this button, or press K or the spacebar, to stop the videotape.
Play: Click this button, or press L, to play the tape.
Play Around Current Frame: This is based on the preview pre-roll and preview post-roll settings in the Editing tab of the User Preferences window. The tape plays from the playhead position at the pre-roll setting and continues through the amount of time specified by the post-roll setting.
Fast Forward: Moves the videotape forward. You can also press the L key repeatedly to go through a range of speeds.

You can add leader and trailer elements during both the Edit to Tape and Print to Video operations:

Edit to Tape: Choose Mastering mode and choose elements in the Mastering Settings tab of the Edit to Tape window.
Print to Video: Leader and trailer elements can be selected directly in the Print to Video dialog.

For more information about using leader and trailer elements, see "Adding Standard Leader and Trailer Elements" on page 195.

All selected elements are output to tape in the order listed. Make sure to deselect elements you don't need. All element durations are specified in whole seconds.

Note: Some of these items may require rendering before you can start recording.

- Color Bars: Adds color bars and a 1 kilohertz (kHz) reference tone, preset to -12 decibels (dB). Color bars at the beginning of your tape allow the recipients to calibrate their equipment to match the color levels and values that your system used when outputting your program. The reference tone lets the recipients properly adjust audio levels during playback.

For more information on creating a mix with proper levels, see Volume III, Chapter 4, "Audio Levels, Meters, and Output Channels."

Black: Adds the specified number of seconds of black between the color bars and slate, or at the beginning of the clip or sequence if you aren't adding color bars.
Slate: Adds a slate with information about your movie. Choose the slate source from the pop-up menu. The slate can be the clip or sequence name, text you type in a field, or a specified text, PICT, or QuickTime file on disk. A slate should contain information such as:

• The title of your program
- Relevant production credits indicating ownership of the content (such as the producer, director, editor, and postproduction facility)
- The total run time (TRT) of your program
- The starting timecode number. This is useful if you're using a high-end video deck to do an insert edit of your program onto a tape with pre-striped timecode. In this case, also indicate whether drop frame (DF) or non-drop frame (NDF) timecode is used.
- The date on which the tape is output

Black: Adds the specified number of seconds of black between the slate and countdown.
Countdown: Adds a countdown before your movie. You can use the 10-second built-in SMPTE standard countdown or choose a custom countdown. Countdowns are generally used when you deliver a tape to a television or cable station for broadcast, or for an audio postproduction facility doing your final audio mix.

Note: If you choose a custom QuickTime file as your countdown, its duration should conform to SMPTE specifications.

These are options for the clip or sequence you are outputting to tape.

Print: You can choose to output the entire clip or sequence or just the part specified between the In and Out points.
Loop: Repeats the selected media for the specified number of times. A value of 1 plays the selected media once; a value of 2 plays the selected media twice, and so on.
Black: Adds black after each loop of your sequence or clip.

- Trailer: Adds a black trailer at the end of your sequence or clip or at the end of the last loop of your clip or sequence. It's good practice to put a 30-second black trailer at the end of your tape so viewers don't see noise as soon as your movie ends. It's also helpful to add a few seconds of black at the end of each edit when you are assemble editing. This provides timecode and control track after the last frame of your output sequence to set a new In point for a new edit.

The Duration Calculator displays the total duration of the program you are outputting, including all of the selected leader and trailer elements and their durations. Make sure there is sufficient time on your tape before proceeding.

Media: Displays the duration of your source media to be output, not including leader and trailer elements. The duration shown here depends on whether the sequence or clip you are outputting has In or Out points set, and the choice you made in the Print pop-up menu.
Total: Displays the total duration of the program you are outputting, including additional time created by looping and the duration of all selected leader and trailer elements.

If you're outputting your clip or sequence for delivery to a postproduction house, tape duplication facility, or television station, there are accepted conventions for how leader elements are placed on tape. Here is one common way to lay out elements, although some facilities have different standards. When in doubt, ask ahead for what is preferred.

Master tape timecode	Leader element	Duration
00:58:00:00	Black	30 seconds
00:58:30:00	Color bars and tone	60 seconds
00:59:30:00	Black	10 seconds
00:59:40:00	Slate (for broadcast or audio post facility)Black (for dubbing)	10 seconds
00:59:50:00	Countdown with 2-pop	10 seconds
01:00:00:00	Program start	Duration depends on movie

After all leader elements have played, your program should start at hour 01:00:00:00, unless you are given specific instructions otherwise.

Note: If you're blacking tapes in advance, start the timecode at 00:58:00:00 so you can start the leader elements at 00:58:30:00.

The Device Settings tab is a convenient location for choosing a device control preset that's compatible with your output deck. You can also choose a device control preset automatically by choosing a different Easy Setup.

Edit to Tape Video Mastering Settings Device Settings Device Control: FireWire NTSC Capture/Input: DV NTSC 48 kHz If necessary, choose device control and capture settings from the pop-up menus.

Device Control: Choose a device control preset that matches your particular video equipment. For more information, see Chapter 25, "Device Control Settings and Presets," on page 323.
Capture/Input: This pop-up menu is exclusively used when you show video in the Edit to Tape window during the preview of an insert edit. This allows you to see what the edit will look like on tape, including the video before the tape In point and video after the tape Out point, without actually committing the edit to tape. During the pre-roll and post-roll of the preview, you see video from tape displayed in Final Cut Pro. Between the tape In and Out points, you see the video output from Final Cut Pro. To successfully see video from the tape before and after the edit, you need to choose corresponding input settings. Since preview editing involves temporary video input, capture presets are used.

For more information about capture presets, see Chapter 24, "Capture Settings and Presets," on page 315.

Note: Despite the name of this pop-up menu, you are not actually capturing footage. When you preview an insert edit to tape, you're viewing what's already on tape during the pre-roll and post-roll periods of the edit. The only way to preview your edits with material before and after your edit is to view, or "capture," material that's on the tape.

The following section describes how to perform an assemble or insert edit using the Edit to Tape window.

Assemble editing begins recording the signal on tape at the predetermined timecode In point. For details, see "About Assemble Editing to Tape" on page 187.

Note: If you are outputting to DVCPRO HD via FireWire, the timecode recorded to the tape can start from the existing tape timecode or you can choose to create new timecode on the tape based on the sequence timecode. If you choose this option, the timecode written to tape is the same as the sequence timecode.

Important: Make sure you've read and followed the instructions in Volume I, Chapter 11, "Overview of Setting Up."

1 Choose File > Edit to Tape.

Edit to Tape Video Mastering Settings Device Settings 00 00 00.00 Editing 00 00 00.00 Preview Disabled The preview option is disabled if you are using DV equipment. Not Set VTR On Not Set

In most layouts, the Edit to Tape window appears on top of the Canvas.

2 Choose Editing or Mastering mode from the pop-up menu in the top center of the window.

For more information about the Editing and Mastering modes, see "Video Tab" on page 189.

Edit to Tape Video Mastering Settings Device Settings 00:00:00:00 Mastering Editing 00:00:29:22 Choose a mode from this pop-up menu.

3 Select a clip or sequence in the Browser.

4 If you haven't already done so, set In and Out points for your clip or sequence in the Viewer, if you don't want to output the entire clip or sequence.

Viewer: Jacob reaction to customer CU in Cafe 00:00:03:03 59% 01:03:33:14

If desired, set In and Out points for the part you want to record.

5 In the Edit to Tape window, cue the tape where you want to start your initial edit, then press I, click the Mark In button, or type a value and press Return.

Note: You do not need to set an Out point for an assemble edit.

6 If you are including leader elements using Mastering mode, click the Mastering Settings tab, then select the elements you want to include before and after your sequence or clip.

For an explanation of the leader and trailer options, see "Adding Standard Leader and Trailer Elements" on page 195.

7 To perform the assemble edit, do one of the following:

Drag your clip or sequence from the Viewer or Browser to the Assemble section of the Edit Overlay.
Open your clip or sequence in the Viewer, then click the Assemble Edit button.
Drag the clip or sequence to the Assemble Edit button.

Edit to Tape Video Mastering Settings Device Settings 00:00:00:00 Mastering Insert Master sequence Assemble Preview Drag the clip or sequence here to do an assemble edit. Or click the Assemble Edit button.

Transitions and effects that require rendering, along with any added elements, are rendered automatically prior to output. A dialog shows you the rendering progress of your sequence or clip. You can also choose to output unrendered real-time effects at a lower quality, saving time by avoiding rendering. Options for choosing the quality of rendered effects during Print to Video and Edit to Tape operations can be set in the Render Control tab of the sequence settings and in the Real-Time (RT) pop-up menu in the Timeline. For more information on setting these options, see "Render Control Tab" on page 340.

Writing Video... Estimated Time: About 5 seconds 44% Cancel

Note: All audio that requires rendering is automatically rendered with a render quality of High, regardless of the render quality setting.

A feedback window appears when the edit is done.

8 To cancel an edit in progress, press Esc or click Cancel.

An insert edit allows you to edit individual video or audio tracks to tape, setting frame-accurate In and Out points. Insert editing requires tapes that already have a prerecorded signal, such as blacked tapes. For details, see "About Insert Editing to Tape" on page 187.

Important: Make sure you've read and followed the instructions in Volume I, Chapter 11, "Overview of Setting Up."

Note: Some tape formats and VTRs, such as consumer mini-DV devices, do not support insert editing. If your VTR or tape format is limited to assemble editing (such as a DV deck or camcorder), then the insert editing controls in the Edit to Tape window are dimmed.

1 Choose File > Edit to Tape.

Edit to Tape Video Mastering Settings Device Settings 00 00 00 00 Editing 00 00 00 00 Preview Disabled The preview option is disabled if you are using DV equipment. Not Set 1.VTR OK Not Set

In most layouts, the Edit to Tape window appears on top of the Canvas.

2 Choose Editing or Mastering mode from the pop-up menu in the top center of the window.

Edit to Tape Video Mastering Settings Device Settings 00:00:00:00 Mastering Editing 00:00:29:22 Choose a mode from this pop-up menu.

For more information about the Editing and Mastering modes, see "Video Tab" on page 189.

3 Select a clip or sequence in the Browser.
4 If you haven't already done so, set In and Out points for your clip or sequence in the Viewer, if you don't want to output the entire clip or sequence.

Viewer | Jacob reaction to customer C1 in Cafe Video Stereo (0x12) Filters Motion 00:00:03:03 59% 01:03:31:14 Set In and Out points for the part you want to record.

Use three-point editing to set your In and Out points. For more information on three-point editing, see Volume II, Chapter 10, "Three-Point Editing."

5 Set In and Out points on your tape where you want your clip or sequence recorded.

If you're in Mastering mode: Use the transport controls in the Edit to Tape window to cue the tape where you want to start your initial edit. Then press I or click the Mark In button to set the In point. (You don't set an Out point in this mode, because you may include trailer elements that extend the edit duration.)

00:00:30:00 Mark In button Timecode for the In point on the tape

If you're in Editing mode: Use the transport controls in the Edit to Tape window to cue the tape and set an In point, an Out point, or both, depending on the type of three-point edit you're doing.

To set an In point: Cue the tape where you want to start your initial edit, or type a value. Then press I or click the Mark In button.
To set an Out point: Cue the tape where you want your clip or sequence to end, or type a value. Then press O or click the Mark Out button.

Timecode for the In point on the tape 00:00:30:00 Mark In button VTR OK 00:01:30:00 Mark Out button Timecode for the Out point on the tape

6 Select the destination video and audio tracks to be edited to in the Edit to Tape window.

When performing an insert edit, you can selectively record-enable the video, audio, and timecode tracks on tape. Destination tracks that are disabled in the Edit to Tape window are not overwritten on the destination tape.

Click here to enable or disable timecode. 01:59:56:11 Choose your audio tracks from this pop-up menu. Click here to enable or disable video.

7 If you are including leader elements using Mastering mode, click the Mastering Settings tab, then select the elements you want to include before and after your sequence or clip.

For an explanation of the leader and trailer options, see "Adding Standard Leader and Trailer Elements" on page 195.

8 To preview how your edit will appear on tape, drag your clip or sequence to the Preview section of the Edit Overlay in the Edit to Tape window, or click the Preview Edit button.

Video 01:00:00:00 Mastering Settings Device Settings Editing 02:22:21:03 Preview Disabled Insert Assemble Preview Drag the clip or sequence here to preview your insert edit. Or click the Preview Edit button.

Previewing lets you see how your insert edit will appear on tape before you actually record it. This is especially useful for seeing how an edit in the middle of existing footage on tape will appear.

To cancel the preview, press Esc.

9 To edit your sequence or clip to tape, drag it from the Browser or Viewer to the Insert section of the Edit Overlay in the Edit to Tape window or click the Insert Edit button.

Drag the clip or sequence here to do an insert edit. Or click the Insert Edit button.

Transitions and effects that require rendering, along with any leader and trailer elements, are rendered automatically prior to output. A dialog shows you the rendering progress of your sequence or clip. You can also choose to output unrendered real-time effects at a lower quality, saving time by avoiding rendering. Options for choosing the quality of rendered effects can be set in the Render Control tab of the Sequence Settings, and in the Real-Time (RT) pop-up menu in the Timeline. For more information on setting these options, see "Render Control Tab" on page 340.

10 In the dialog that appears, click OK to start recording.

Ready for playback, start video recorder and click OK to begin. Cancel OK

The videotape cues to the pre-roll point before the In point, plays until the In point is reached, and then begins recording. To cancel an edit in progress, press Esc or click Cancel.

Final Cut Pro is capable of outputting up to eight tracks of audio when performing an insert edit to tape. The number of audio tracks that can be recorded to when using the Edit to Tape command depends on the number of audio tracks your video or audio recording deck supports. You also need to have enough discrete outputs on your audio interface to connect to each audio input on your deck. Assemble editing records all audio tracks at once.

When you perform an insert edit using the Edit to Tape window, you can choose which audio tracks on your VTR are record-enabled, and which ones remain disabled. For example, suppose you want to replace music on audio channel 2 of your tape with music from your sequence, but you don't want to replace dialogue already recorded on channel 1 of your tape. In this situation, you can perform an insert edit, enabling audio channel 2 and disabling audio channel 1.

Final Cut Pro uses the remote device control to communicate to the deck which audio tracks to record-enable for insert editing. This allows you to control which audio tracks are recorded to when you edit your sequence to tape.

Note: You can also record-enable audio tracks directly on the front panel of your VTR.

Each device control preset has an audio mapping that determines which track numbers in the Audio Insert pop-up menu correspond to which audio tracks on your VTR, as well as how many audio tracks are available on the VTR. In general, you should select an audio mapping that corresponds to the number of audio tracks your VTR supports.

Audio Insert pop-up menu 01:59:56:11

The following chart shows several popular video and audio recording decks, and the appropriate audio mapping for each.

Recording device	Audio inputs available	Audio mapping
Sony UVW-1800	2 analog inputs	2 channels
Sony DVW-500	4 analog or digital inputs	4 channels
Tascam DA-98	8 analog or digital inputs	8 channels

Note: Some devices, such as the Tascam DA-98, allow you to adjust their internal audio track routing. This can affect which buttons in the Audio Insert pop-up menu correspond to the audio tracks on your deck. If you are not getting the results you expect when editing multiple audio channels to tape, check the documentation that came with your video or audio deck.

In Final Cut Pro, you can specify an audio mapping by selecting or creating a device control preset and setting the Audio Mapping pop-up menu in the Device Control Preset Editor to the appropriate configuration for your recording device.

Important: The Audio Mapping pop-up menu does not automatically detect the number of audio tracks to which your video or audio recording device is capable of recording. You need to manually choose a device control preset based on your recording device's capabilities.

1 Choose the third-party video or audio interface you want to use for audio output in the A/V Devices tab of the Audio/Video Settings window, then configure its options.

For more information on selecting an audio interface in the A/V Devices tab, see Volume III, Chapter 2, "Setting Up Audio Equipment."

2 Make sure that the audio outputs of your video or audio interface are physically connected to the audio inputs of your video or audio recording device with the proper cables.
3 Configure the Audio Outputs tab (found in the Sequence Settings window) of the sequence you want to edit to tape with the number of audio channels you want to output.

For more information on configuring the audio outputs of sequences, see Volume III, Chapter 4, "Audio Levels, Meters, and Output Channels."

4 Assign each audio track in your sequence to the proper output channel.
5 Choose a device control preset that contains an audio mapping with the same number of audio channels as the video or audio deck you are going to output to.

You can output your sequence to videotape using the Print to Video command, or simply record from the Timeline.

This chapter covers the following:

Different Ways You Can Output Video From the Timeline (p. 207)
Printing to Video (p. 208)
• Recording From the Timeline (p. 211)
• Outputting to VHS Tape (p. 213)

When you're ready to send your clip or edited sequence to videotape, you have two options. You can use the Print to Video command or you can record directly from the Timeline. Recording from the Timeline is the easiest option, but printing to video gives you more control over the process and allows you to include additional elements.

- Print to Video: The Print to Video command lets you send an entire edited sequence or clip to videotape. You can also output a section of a sequence or clip by setting In and Out points. You can include elements on the tape such as color bars and tone, a countdown, a slate, and a black trailer, along with your sequence or clip. You can also loop your footage if you want to output your program multiple times on the same tape.

Tip: You can use the Print to Video command even if your video equipment does not have device control.

- Record from the Timeline: You can use this method at any time to record the video output of Final Cut Pro to tape, providing a "what you see is what you get" recording of your sequence. In this case, Final Cut Pro does not control your VTR in any way.

If you need to output your clip or sequence to tape more precisely using device control, you can edit directly onto videotape. For more information, see Chapter 14, "Assemble and Insert Editing Using Edit to Tape," on page 185.

Unlike the Edit to Tape command, the Print to Video command doesn't allow you to set In or Out points on your tape. Instead, you manually press record whenever you want to begin recording on tape. This is considered a crash record.

You can automatically add leader and trailer elements, such as color bars and tone, a countdown, a slate, and a black trailer, to your movie. You can also loop your movie as many times as you want, if you want to output your movie multiple times on the same tape.

Tip: You can use the Print to Video command to output to any external video monitor, regardless of whether a deck is connected. This can be useful if you want to use Final Cut Pro to output a looping clip or sequence to an external monitor for a tradeshow demo or video installation.

If you set up your VTR for remote device control (via RS-422 or FireWire), Final Cut Pro can automatically trigger recording on your VTR when you use the Print to Video command. This is particularly useful for camcorders that do not have an independent VTR Record button.

You can set up a device control preset so that Final Cut Pro automatically puts your DV camcorder or deck in Record mode before printing to video. For more information, see "About Device Control Presets" on page 323.

To automatically start a camcorder or deck recording during Print to Video:

1 Choose File > Print to Video.
2 Select the Automatically Start Recording checkbox in the Print to Video window.
3 Click OK to begin recording to tape.

Note: The Automatically Start Recording checkbox is the same as the Auto Record and PTV checkbox shown in a device control preset.

Make sure you've read and followed the instructions in Chapter 13, "Preparing to Output to Tape," on page 175 before you use the Print to Video command. Make sure everything is working properly before you start recording.

■ Move the playhead to the position in the Timeline where you want output to begin, then press the Space bar to play back your clip or sequence.

If you have an external monitor connected to your video device, the clip or sequence will play on it, as well as on your computer's monitor.

1 Select the desired sequence or clip in the Browser, or open your sequence and make the Canvas or Timeline active.
2 To output part of a sequence or clip to video, set In and Out points to designate the part you want to record to videotape.

For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 7, "Setting Edit Points for Clips and Sequences."

3 Choose File > Print to Video.
4 Select elements you want to print along with your sequence or clip.

All selected elements are sent to tape in the order listed. Make sure elements you don't need are not selected. Some of these items may require rendering before you can start recording. For a complete explanation of the options available, see "Mastering Settings Tab" on page 193.

Important: Make sure there is sufficient time on your tape by using the Duration Calculator before proceeding.

5 When you've finished setting options, click OK.

Transitions and effects that require rendering, along with any added elements, are rendered automatically prior to output. You can also choose to output unrendered real-time effects at lower quality, saving time by avoiding rendering. Options for choosing the quality of rendered effects when using the Print to Video command can be set in the Render Control tab of the Sequence Settings window. For more information on setting options in the Render Control tab, see "Render Control Tab" on page 340.

Note: All audio that requires rendering is automatically rendered with a render quality of High, regardless of the render quality setting.

6 When a message tells you to start recording, press the Record button on your camcorder or deck. Wait a few seconds for your video device to reach a smooth recording speed, then click OK to begin recording.
7 When playback is finished, press the Stop button on your camcorder or deck.

The last frame of your clip or edited sequence is held as a freeze frame until you stop your recording device.

The easiest way to output to tape is to enable external video output in Final Cut Pro, play back your sequence in the Timeline, then press Record on your connected camcorder or deck. If you want to show black before and after your program, you have to add Slug generators to the beginning and end of your sequence, or move all the sequence clips to the right to leave a gap before the beginning of your sequence.

Important: Make sure you've read and followed the instructions in "Setting Up Your Editing System to Output to Tape" on page 179.

1 If you want to add elements before or after your program (such as showing black), add them directly to the Timeline.

Many of these elements are available from the Generator pop-up menu. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 21, "Using Built-in Generated Clips."

2 If necessary, render any unrendered effects by doing one of the following:

Choose Sequence > Render All > Both.
Choose Sequence > Render Selection > Both.
Press Command-R.

For more information on additional rendering options, see Volume III, Chapter 24, "Rendering."

All audio that requires rendering is automatically rendered with a render quality of High, regardless of the render quality setting. Unrendered audio sections are output as a series of beeps.

Tip: You can turn off the beeps by deselecting "Beep when playing back underendered audio" in the Playback Control tab of the System Settings window.

3 In the Timeline, move the playhead to where you want to start recording in your sequence.

Move the playhead where you want to start recording. Timeline: Cafe sequence in Cafe RT 01:00:02:14 00:00 01:00:08:00 01:00:16:00 01:00:24:00 v1 V1 Slug Debr Side master sh a1 A1 Slug Slug Debra sidewalking Side master shot jacob MS Debra sidew Jacob reaction a2 A2 Slug Debra sidewalking Side master shot jacob MS Debra sidew Jacob reaction A3 Music 1 Music 1

The first frame will be recorded immediately after you press Record on your camcorder or deck. To avoid an awkward freeze frame at the beginning of your sequence, you may want to move the playhead to an initial frame of black.

4 If you want to loop your sequence, choose View > Loop Playback so there's a checkmark next to it.

When looping is enabled, your sequence will loop endlessly without stopping. There may be a slight pause after each loop. If you need a smooth loop, use the Print to Video command with looping enabled instead.

5 Press Record on your camcorder or deck to start recording, then wait a few seconds.

This allows your camcorder or deck to reach a smooth recording speed. Otherwise, you could end up with unwanted video artifacts at the beginning of your tape.

6 Choose Mark > Play, then choose an option from the submenu to control how your sequence plays back.

In to Out: Plays back the sequence from the In point to the Out point. If you haven't set an In or Out point, the sequence plays from the beginning to the end.
To Out: Plays from the current position of the playhead on the Timeline to either the defined Out point or the end of the sequence.
Around: Plays a specified amount of time before and after the position of the playhead, based on the preview pre-roll and post-roll settings in the Editing tab of the User Preferences window.

For more information about these settings, see "Default Timing Options" on page 288.

Every Frame: Plays back every frame of the sequence, whether or not rendering is required. If there are transitions or effects in your sequence that haven't been rendered, your sequence will not play back in real time, but every frame will be recorded on tape.
Forward: Plays from the current position of the playhead forward to the end of the sequence in the Timeline.
Reverse: Plays from the current position of the playhead back to the beginning of the sequence in the Timeline.

7 Press the Stop button on your camcorder or deck when the sequence is finished playing in the Timeline.

Important: The last frame in your sequence will be held as a freeze frame when playback stops. This may be awkward if this frame is not black. To avoid this, add a Slug generator to place black at the end of your sequence.

Although the VHS tape format is starting to be replaced by DVDs, it is still a ubiquitous output format for work-in-progress tapes and distribution copies. There are several ways to output to VHS tape from Final Cut Pro. Because VHS is not a digital format, and decks rarely support device control protocols, there are no capture or sequence settings in Final Cut Pro that correspond to the VHS format.

One way to output to VHS is to simply output to whatever tape format corresponds to your sequence and then make a dub from that tape to a VHS tape. The other option is to output your digital signal to an interface that supports composite video output, such as the AJA lo. In this scenario, the digital signal is output from the computer to the video interface, which then converts the signal to composite analog video. The composite analog signal can then be recorded on a VHS tape. An alternative to this method is to use a video deck instead of a video interface to convert the digital signal from your computer to composite analog video. For example, some DV and professional decks have the ability to convert an incoming signal from your computer to composite analog video. This mode is referred to as electronics-to-electronics (or E-to-E) mode, or passthrough mode.

Note: Other decks can only output to multiple video formats when a tape is playing back, which means you have to record the signal to tape first, and then dub to VHS.

Making a DVD of your movie is a great way to show and distribute it. Video DVDs contain high-quality media and can be played in most set-top DVD players, as well as most computers with DVD playback capability.

This chapter covers the following:

• The DVD Creation Process (p. 215)
- Adding Chapter and Compression Markers to Your Sequence (p. 220)
- About the DVD Authoring Applications (p. 222)
- Creating DVD-Compliant Sources for DVD Studio Pro (p. 224)

Whether you choose to create a simple DVD with a single menu and movie or an elaborate title with multiple menus that include scene selections and several movies and slideshows, iDVD and DVD Studio Pro provide the tools you need to easily create the DVD.

Note: You can also archive your projects and media files on a DVD. For that purpose, you do not need a DVD authoring application. For more information, see Chapter 2, "Backing Up and Restoring Projects," on page 19.

There are essentially four phases to creating a DVD:

- Create and edit your source material. In addition to the main Final Cut Pro movie, you can create still graphics or short movies for use as menu backgrounds. It is important to understand that all edits, special effects, audio fades and mixes, and scene transitions must be added to the video and audio in Final Cut Pro before exporting them for use in the DVD authoring application.

- Encode your video and audio to DVD-Video compliant formats. Video DVDs require that all video and audio comply to a specification that defines the acceptable formats, bit rates, and all other attributes of the video and audio on the disc. Both iDVD and DVD Studio Pro will automatically convert any movies that are not compliant. This means that you can export a standard QuickTime movie from Final Cut Pro and import it into your DVD authoring application and all encoding and conversions will be handled for you automatically.

If you author your DVD with DVD Studio Pro, you can encode your movies externally, for example by using Compressor, so that you can have more control over the process. This becomes important when authoring complex DVD titles, since maximizing use of disc space can become critical. (Creating a DVD often becomes a balancing act between creating the highest quality assets and getting them to fit on a DVD disc.)

- Author your DVD title. This is where you take the movies, still images, and other graphics and create the menus, tracks, and slideshows of your DVD. Both iDVD and DVD Studio Pro include a variety of templates and tools to simplify this process and make it easy to create professional-looking DVDs with minimal effort.

- Build and burn your DVD. Once you have authored your DVD, you will build (or compile) the files that then get burned to the DVD disc. Both iDVD and DVD Studio Pro make this a one-button process.

There is much more to consider when creating your DVD. For detailed information on preparing video and audio sources and planning your DVD, see the documentation that came with DVD Studio Pro or iDVD.

All DVD video must be MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 encoded, using specific frame dimensions, frame rates, and bit rates. Larger frame dimensions and higher bit rates result in better video, but at the cost of larger files.

The most important thing you can do when preparing your material for use on DVD is to use the highest quality settings available. Any flaws in your material will be revealed on DVD much more quickly than in other media; if you use high-quality source materials, you'll get high-quality results.

Here are some guidelines to help you maintain high quality.

Capture and edit your video material at the same frame dimensions that you will use on the DVD (typically 720 x 480 at 29.97 frames per second [fps] for NTSC or 720 x 576 at 25 fps for PAL). DVDs also support 16:9 video that is anamorphically recorded. This means the video uses the same frame dimensions as standard 4:3 video, and appears horizontally squeezed when viewed on a 4:3 monitor.
When saving video material to a QuickTime movie file, either specify no compression (which requires a lot of disk space) or use a high-quality compression codec like Animation or Photo JPEG (set to maximum quality). This provides the MPEG encoder (including those internally used by iDVD and DVD Studio Pro and external encoders such as Compressor) the best quality video to start with. Recompressing already highly compressed video results in a noticeable increase in visible compression artifacts.
Add compression and chapter markers in Final Cut Pro to help control the encode quality and make creating chapter selection menus easier. MPEG encoders, such as Compressor, can use these markers to customize the MPEG encoding process, directing the encoder to concentrate on those areas of the video that are the hardest to encode. See “About the MPEG Format,” next, and “Adding Chapter and Compression Markers to Your Sequence” on page 220 for more information.

MPEG-2 is an internationally accepted compression standard developed by the Motion Picture Experts Group (MPEG). MPEG-2 allows you to create broadcast-quality video files and was designed to support high-resolution, high bit-rate video. It is the video compression format used for high-quality video titles on DVD and home satellite dish systems. All DVD players contain the hardware required for MPEG-2 playback.

MPEG encoding is based on eliminating redundant video information, not only within a frame, but over a period of time. In a shot where there is little motion, such as an interview, most of the video content does not change from frame to frame, and MPEG encoding can compress the video by a huge amount, with little or no perceptible quality loss. In shots with lots of action or a moving camera, MPEG encoding will not be able to compress the video as much without sacrificing quality. Choosing encoder settings that provide acceptable results at each extreme can be challenging.

MPEG encoders create I-frames, also known as keyframes or reference frames, that store complete image frames. In between these frames are P- and B-frames that only store information relating to what has changed since the last I-frame. In most cases, the encoder adds an I-frame every half-second. Any sudden transitions that occur between the I-frames can lead to encoding artifacts in the video. See “More About Compression Markers” on page 221 for information on adding I-frames to reduce these artifacts.

Each DVD track can have up to eight audio streams. Each audio stream is independent of the others—only one can play at a time. Each stream can have from one to seven channels (as with 6.1 surround sound). Having multiple audio streams allows you to include alternative language versions of the program, as well as special features such as a spoken commentary.

Important: Do not confuse the way audio tracks in a Final Cut Pro sequence work with how audio streams in a DVD Studio Pro track work. A DVD player cannot mix multiple streams together. If you want to have music playing underneath the dialogue, you must mix the two in the audio exported from Final Cut Pro so that one audio stream contains both the music and the dialog.

Video DVDs support several audio formats:

AIFF (uncompressed): Provides the highest quality mono or stereo audio, but requires the most disc space. May cause problems with DVD tracks that contain multiple audio streams. QuickTime, Compressor, iDVD, and DVD Studio Pro all are able to create suitable uncompressed AIFF audio streams.
Dolby Digital AC-3: Provides high-quality compressed audio. Supports from one to six channels (5.1 surround sound), including standard stereo. Compressor includes an AC-3 encoder.
DTS: Provides high-quality compressed audio. Generally only used for surround sound audio streams. Requires a third-party encoder and decoder.
MPEG-1 Layer 2: Provides good quality compressed audio. Generally only used for mono or stereo audio streams. Compressor includes an MPEG-1 layer 2 encoder.

When recording and editing audio, use a 48 kilohertz (kHz) sample rate and no compression. This ensures the best quality whether you use the uncompressed audio on the DVD or decide to use a supported compressed audio format.

Important: When creating DVDs, your audio must have either a 48 kHz or 96 kHz sample rate. If you use the 44.1 kHz sample rate found on standard audio CDs, DVD Studio Pro and iDVD will convert your audio to the correct sample rate. Additionally, DVDs do not support MP3 encoded audio. DVD Studio Pro and iDVD will convert any MP3 audio to DVD-compliant uncompressed audio.

Surround sound audio is usually comprised of six independent audio channels: front left, front right, front center, rear left, rear right, and low frequency effects (LFE, also known as the subwoofer).

Mixing audio for use as surround sound is best left to specialized audio facilities that have the required equipment and experience. Nothing can ruin a movie quite like badly done surround sound audio. If you are using an audio postproduction facility for your final audio mix, you can use the Export Audio to OMF command to export all of the audio from your edited sequence. For more information, see "Exporting Sequence Audio to an OMF File" on page 159.

If you decide to mix your own surround sound audio, you can export suitable audio files from Final Cut Pro that an AC-3 encoder can use to create a surround sound audio stream. One method is to export four audio files: one for the front right and left, one for the center (usually dialog), one for the rear right and left, and one for the LFE (usually a mix of all of the audio channels, with the AC-3 encoder filtering out and including only the low frequencies).

Once you have your edited sequence or program finished, you can add markers to the sequence for use on DVD. Markers are reference points you can place within clips or sequences that identify specific frames. There are two kinds of markers you can add that directly relate to authoring a DVD—chapter markers and compression markers.

Chapter markers allow DVD authoring applications to create a navigable chapter list for your exported QuickTime movie. Chapter markers force MPEG keyframes (known as I-frames) at their location, since the DVD specification requires an I-frame at each chapter point.
Compression markers identify areas of abrupt change and include two types: those that are automatically inserted by Final Cut Pro at all edit points, and those you manually place in the clip or sequence. Like chapter markers, compression markers force I-frames at their location, although in this case it is for better quality encoding, and they are not used to create a chapter list.

Note: When you export a QuickTime movie, you have an option to export various kinds of markers, including compression, chapter, or DVD Studio Pro markers. When you choose to export DVD Studio Pro markers, Final Cut Pro actually exports chapter markers and all compression markers. This includes compression markers you set manually, as well as ones created automatically by Final Cut Pro at edit and transition points.

For details on adding and deleting markers, see Volume II, Chapter 4, "Using Markers."

You can add chapter markers so that DVD authoring applications can create a navigable chapter list for your exported QuickTime movie. Chapter markers also appear in QuickTime Player as a chapter list for jumping to specific parts of the movie using a pop-up menu.

A chapter marker is distinguished by the text appearing in the Comment field of its Edit Marker window. For details on adding and deleting markers, see Volume II, Chapter 4, "Using Markers."

When a movie or sequence with at least one chapter marker is exported, the exported QuickTime movie has a text track, in addition to the video, audio, and timecode tracks. This text track is automatically set up as a QuickTime chapter track. How this track is used depends on the application you use to open the exported QuickTime movie.

In QuickTime Player: A chapter track is visible from QuickTime Player as a pop-up menu in the movie window. Choosing a chapter from this menu automatically moves the playhead to that frame of the movie.
In DVD authoring applications: Chapter markers are used by DVD authoring applications, such as DVD Studio Pro and iDVD, to provide chapter navigation on a DVD.

When you add chapter markers for use by a DVD authoring application, they are subject to the following limitations:

No chapter marker should appear closer than 1 second to the beginning or end of your edited sequence.
A chapter marker should be at least 1 second away from any other chapter marker.
A maximum of 99 chapter markers can be placed within a single program.
When exporting from a sequence, only sequence markers are exported; markers in clips are ignored.
When exporting a clip from the Browser, the clip's markers are exported.

Compression markers identify areas of abrupt change in your sequence, such as a cut from a black room to a bright grassy plain. Compression markers are automatically inserted by Final Cut Pro at all edit points. You can also place compression markers where you want; these are forced compression markers. When a movie or sequence is exported with compression markers, the exported QuickTime movie has an extra text track, in addition to the video, audio, and timecode tracks.

Some video compression applications, including Compressor, are capable of using information in the compression track of your movie to optimize the placement of I-frames during the process of MPEG-2 compression to achieve maximum playback quality. By correctly identifying cuts, transitions, and gaps in your sequence, you can avoid compression artifacts in these areas of your final movie on DVD. See “About the MPEG Format” on page 218 for more information about I-frames.

In most cases, the compression markers that are placed automatically by Final Cut Pro will suffice. However, in areas of abrupt visual change that take place inside a clip with no edit point to give it away, a user-placed compression marker can help to compress that section more smoothly. For example, suppose you have a shot that contains an extremely fast 180-degree pan from a jungle scene to the beach behind the camera. This rapid change has no cut point for Final Cut Pro to detect automatically. But if you manually place compression markers at frames in this clip occurring immediately before and after the pan, compression applications such as Compressor will know to place I-frames at those points in the compressed video to minimize any compression artifacts.

A compression marker is distinguished by the text appearing in the Comment field of its Edit Marker window. For details on adding and deleting markers, see Volume II, Chapter 4, "Using Markers."

Compression markers will export differently depending on whether you're exporting a sequence or a clip.

If you're exporting a clip: You must place compression markers in the clip for a compression track to be created.
If you're exporting an edited sequence: Final Cut Pro exports compression markers for each cut, transition, and gap that appears in your sequence, in addition to any compression markers that you added manually to the sequence. Compression markers added to individual clips are ignored.

Whether you intend to use iDVD or DVD Studio Pro will affect how you export your movies from Final Cut Pro. When you are using DVD Studio Pro, Compressor can become an important part of the process.

iDVD only imports standard QuickTime movies as video sources. This means that if you intend to use iDVD as your DVD authoring application, you only need to export a QuickTime movie from Final Cut Pro. iDVD automatically encodes the video and audio sources to be DVD-compliant. The video is encoded as MPEG-2 at a quality controlled by a preference setting and the video length. The audio is encoded as uncompressed AIFF.

For more information, see "Exporting a QuickTime Movie for DVD Use" on page 224. See the iDVD documentation for information on importing the movie and adding it to your DVD.

DVD Studio Pro can import either standard QuickTime movies or DVD-compliant sources. When you import standard QuickTime movies, they are automatically encoded to be DVD-compliant. The video is encoded as MPEG-2 at a quality determined by a set of preference settings, allowing you more control over the quality than when using iDVD. The audio is encoded as uncompressed AIFF. For details on exporting a QuickTime movie for use in DVD Studio Pro, see "Using iDVD" on page 222.

For the most control over your source quality, you can use external applications, such as Compressor, to encode your video and audio into DVD-compliant sources. This makes it possible to import specialized video and audio, such as MPEG-1 video and compressed Dolby Digital AC-3 audio.

For information on exporting a QuickTime movie, see "Exporting a QuickTime Movie for DVD Use" on page 224. See the DVD Studio Pro documentation for details on supported video and audio formats and information on importing your movies.

Compressor is a high-speed video and audio encoding application that comes with Final Cut Pro, DVD Studio Pro, and Motion.

Compressor can work as a standalone application to compress your movie before you import it into DVD Studio Pro, or it can be integrated into the workflow of Final Cut Pro. This integration makes transcoding faster and more convenient, and also saves hard disk space by eliminating the need to export the media files before processing them. It also leverages the video processing technology of Final Cut Pro to do much of the work (therefore maximizing the quality of images that are encoded), and avoids degradation that can occur from multiple compression and decompression steps.

To use Compressor, you import your sources into a batch (which is done automatically when you launch Compressor from within Final Cut Pro), choose one or more presets that select the encoder to use and specify its settings, choose a destination and output filename, and submit the batch for encoding.

Compressor also includes a preview window with a split screen feature that makes it easy to compare the source video with the encoded video. It also contains a timeline that shows marker types and positions, and allows you to add to or edit the markers and choose the exact sections of video to encode.

The process of exporting your movie is the same, whether you plan to use iDVD or DVD Studio Pro for creating a DVD.

To export a QuickTime movie for use in iDVD or DVD Studio Pro:

1 In Final Cut Pro, choose File > Export > QuickTime Movie.
2 Configure the Save dialog as desired.

In most cases, you will leave the Setting pop-up menu at Current Settings and include both audio and video. If you have created any markers, choose DVD Studio Pro Markers in the Markers pop-up menu. iDVD can use either self-contained or reference movies, allowing you to decide whether to make the movie self-contained based on other requirements (disk space and so on).

For more information, including detailed information on settings, see Chapter 19, "Exporting QuickTime-Compatible Files," on page 245.

3 When you're ready, click Save.

There are several approaches you can take to create DVD-compliant sources that you can import into DVD Studio Pro.

Important: The MPEG encoders included with iDVD, DVD Studio Pro, Compressor, and QuickTime all use the same core encoding software—each encoder creates the same high-quality results. The differences between these encoders are the amount of control they give you over the encoder settings.

Launching Compressor from within Final Cut Pro makes it easy to use Compressor to encode your sequences, and does not require you to render them first.

- Choose File > Export > Using Compressor.

Compressor launches and your Final Cut Pro sequence automatically loads into its Batch window. You then choose a preset that contains the encoding settings you want to use, choose a destination for the encoding files, and click the Submit button.

For detailed information, including how to create your own presets, see the documentation that came with Compressor.

This approach is similar to launching Compressor within Final Cut Pro, but requires you to render the sequence first. An advantage of this approach is that you can create encoding batches within Compressor, allowing your computer to compress multiple movies automatically.

To use Compressor as a standalone application, you must first export your sequence from Final Cut Pro as a QuickTime movie. You can then add the QuickTime movie as a source to a Compressor batch. An easy way to do this is to, in Finder, drag the movie to the Compressor icon.

This approach is simpler than using Compressor since it provides access to a limited set of encoding settings. While it does not provide the flexibility that you get with Compressor, for many projects, it will generate high-quality MPEG-2 video.

Note: An MPEG-2 encoder doesn't come with the standard QuickTime installation of Final Cut Pro. If you have DVD Studio Pro or Compressor installed, an MPEG-2 encoder will appear in the list of QuickTime codecs when you export. You can also install and use a third-party MPEG-2 encoder.

1 Choose File > Export > Using QuickTime Conversion.
2 In the Save dialog, specify the following:

Save As: Enter a new name for the file, if desired.
Where: Choose a location to save the file.
Format: Choose MPEG2. (The filename extension will automatically change to .m2v.)
Options: Click here to specify additional video and quality options. For details on the settings, see Chapter 19, "Exporting QuickTime-Compatible Files," on page 245.
Use: Choose an NTSC or PAL setting.

Final Cut Pro uses QuickTime technology as a foundation for media file storage and as an import and export engine for opening multiple video, audio, and graphics file formats.

This chapter covers the following:

• What Is QuickTime? (p. 227)
• How Final Cut Pro Uses QuickTime for Import, Export, and Capture (p. 231)

QuickTime is Apple's multiplatform, multimedia technology for handling video, sound, animation, graphics, text, interactivity, and music. As a cross-platform technology, QuickTime can deliver content on Mac OS and Windows computers. Many applications, including Final Cut Pro, use the powerful architecture of QuickTime to view, create, import, and export media.

QuickTime supports most major video, audio, and graphics file formats. It works with local disk-based media, media accessed over a network, and streams of real-time data. QuickTime supports a wide variety of video and audio codecs and can be extended with third-party codecs.

QuickTime technology is comprised of:

A suite of applications (most notably, QuickTime Player)
• An environment for media authoring
A movie file format

When someone mentions QuickTime, people often think of the free media player developed by Apple. However, QuickTime is much more than just that. QuickTime comprises a suite of applications that allow you to play, edit, and manipulate your media. The QuickTime software includes:

QuickTime Player: Apple's free easy-to-use application for playing, interacting with, or viewing video, audio, virtual reality (VR), or graphics files that are compatible with QuickTime.
QuickTime Pro An enhanced version of QuickTime Player that provides an abundance of media authoring capabilities. With it, you can create movies, play movies full screen, save files from the Internet, edit audio and video, add special effects, create slideshows, and convert and save video, audio, and images to more than a hundred standard file formats.

Additional QuickTime video streaming software is also available. Some of this software is available as free downloads or already installed with Mac OS X; other components are available for a fee. For details, go to Apple's QuickTime website:

http://www.apple.com/quicktime.

Using an application like QuickTime Player Pro, or Final Cut Pro, you can import, edit, and export every file format that QuickTime supports. This allows you to create movies for the web, DVD, or for output to videotape. You can also create movies including video, audio, text, still images, and interactive layers.

The QuickTime movie file format, often abbreviated to QuickTime file, is a special file format that contains multiple tracks for storing different kinds of media. Don't confuse this special movie file format with other files that are simply QuickTime-compatible formats. Examples of QuickTime-compatible file formats include AIFF, MP3, MPEG, WAVE, JPEG, and TIFF, just to name a few. A QuickTime movie file uses a .mov file extension.

Important: Because QuickTime recognizes so many media file formats, you may notice that a lot of media files in the Finder have a QuickTime icon, or the QuickTime Player application may launch when you double-click the icons. To be accurate, these files are called QuickTime-compatible files, but they are not necessarily QuickTime movie files. For example, an AIFF file is a QuickTime-compatible audio file format; it is not a QuickTime movie file.

QuickTime movie files store media data in separate tracks. You create a QuickTime movie file by adding tracks that point to the media you want to use. The media may be embedded in the file itself or in a reference movie in another file. This track architecture is powerful and flexible, allowing you to store and synchronize multiple pieces of video and audio media in a single file.

There are many types of tracks allowed in a QuickTime movie file. Here are a few examples of what might be included in a QuickTime movie file used by Final Cut Pro:

An audio track: This track contains audio media data of a certain duration, encoded with a particular audio codec, sample rate and bit depth. The track may be mono or contain two (stereo) or more interleaved channels of audio samples.
A video track: This track contains video media data (a number of video frames) of a certain duration (determined by the track's frame rate), with particular horizontal and vertical dimensions, and encoded with a particular video codec.
A single still image: This track contains media for a single still image. The image data has particular horizontal and vertical dimensions and is compressed with a particular codec.
A timecode track: A track that contains a number count and frame rate that corresponds to the video frames in a video track. This track can be captured from a video tape or created later in Final Cut Pro.
A text track: This track contains text information that changes at specified times. A text track could contain subtitles, or marker notes about a video or audio track.

Because the QuickTime file format is so flexible, practically any kind of media can be stored in a track of its kind. However, in order to play back media stored in a track, the QuickTime framework installed on your computer must be able to recognize the type of compression (codec) used to encode the data.

Compression is necessary for video and audio storage on computers because the data rates would otherwise be prohibitively high. And no matter how large computer storage devices become, compression is still desirable because it means faster transfer time and storing more information with less data.

The QuickTime framework libraries support a remarkable number of video and audio codec (compressor/decompressor) algorithms. The QuickTime frameworks are extensible, so if a company invents a codec, the company can provide a QuickTime codec to support it. Thus, if the media in a QuickTime file is not playing back because the format or codec of the media is not recognized, you may be able to download and install it.

The QuickTime framework supports codecs that are commonly used today as well as codecs that were once popular. When you go to export a QuickTime movie file, the long list of available codecs demonstrates how extensive QuickTime codec support is. At the same time, this list can be potentially daunting. Look for the codec you need and ignore the rest.

A file's format specifies the unique way data is stored and organized in a file, regardless of what the content of that data represents. A codec is an algorithm that transforms image or sound data into a more compact, albeit temporarily unintelligible form for the purpose of compression (reducing data size for transmission or storage). The codec must be reversed in order to see the original content of the media data.

A file format determines consistent guidelines for where information is stored and found in a file. For example, a Microsoft Word file will always store the name of the creator in a particular location in the file's structure. On the other hand, a codec is specific to media-intensive data, such as video or audio, and is used simply to reduce the data size.

The distinction between file formats and codecs is often confused by shared naming conventions. For example, MPEG-2 defines both a file format (a structure for organizing video and audio data within media tracks) and a codec (an algorithm for encoding and decoding video and audio data for the purposes of compression).

The following codec and file format examples may help to clarify the distinction.

TIFF: This refers to a graphics file format. TIFF files may or may not use a codec, or type of compression called LZW compression.
JPEG: This is a type of compression that can be used on any still images or individual video frames. Images encoded with JPEG compression can be stored in the JPEG file format. QuickTime can open files in the JPEG file format as well as decode images compressed with the JPEG codec.
QuickTime: This refers to the QuickTime movie file format, which can contain multiple media tracks, each containing data encoding with a number of possible codecs. QuickTime is not a codec, but rather has the ability to present images and sound stored with a number of codecs.
AIFF and WAVE: These are audio file formats that contain uncompressed audio data.

- DV: There are several DV codecs available for NTSC, PAL, and other varieties such as DVCPRO HD. A DV camcorder uses a DV codec to turn full-resolution image data into compressed media, which is then stored on tape. The raw data stream from tape can be captured to your hard disk in a file format called a DV stream. Applications such as iMovie can capture and edit DV stream files, while applications like Final Cut Pro capture media into tracks within a QuickTime media file, allowing for more flexibility such as adding and manipulating timecode tracks.

Each track in a QuickTime movie file has its own playback rate and duration definition. Usually, the rate and duration of each track are the same, or related, because the various tracks (such as audio and video) are intended to play back in sync.

Because each track has its own independent definitions of time, you can just as easily assign a video track a frame rate of 29.97 fps and the timecode track to be 23.98 fps. One example of how this is useful is when you are editing film (24 fps) transferred to NTSC video (29.97 fps).

In Final Cut Pro, many options and settings in the dialogs you view during capture, import, and export are accessed directly from the QuickTime framework installed with Mac OS X. If you are using a third-party video interface, the manufacturer usually provides QuickTime components that add the proper codec support for the interface.

There are various resources for learning more about QuickTime, the technology, and architecture.

Apple's QuickTime website: http://www.apple.com/quicktime
Apple's QuickTime Developer website: http://developer.apple.com/quicktime

QuickTime supports a lot of media formats and codecs, with many more coming all the time. Some examples of formats and codecs supported by QuickTime follow.

File formats are the overarching structure used to store data. Different movie file formats place video and audio media in different parts of the file, as well as the associated metadata. The most commonly used media file formats supported by QuickTime are described below.

AVI, or Audio Video Interleave, is a PC-compatible standard for digital video. This file type is no longer officially supported by Microsoft, but it's still frequently used. The AVI format supports fewer codecs than QuickTime for video and audio and is mainly useful for Windows delivery of video for multimedia use.

DV Stream files multiplex audio and video together digitally on a DV videotape. These files are primarily for use with iMovie. Final Cut Pro converts DV streams to QuickTime movies with independent video and audio tracks during capture.

MPEG-2 is a video standard used for modern digital video format, including digital television broadcast and DVD.

MPEG-4 is an open standard video format intended for cross-platform, Internet and multimedia delivery of video and audio content.

This is a general purpose media format that can contain multiple video, audio, text, and other tracks. This is the native file format used by Final Cut Pro for capturing and export.

A video codec is an algorithm for encoding video images in space (within a frame) and time (across multiple frames) to compress the data requirements while still producing an acceptable image. Not all codecs are supported by all file formats.

This isn't really a codec, but a way of storing QuickTime movies with no compression at all. Since applying compression generally results in video artifacts, no compression guarantees the highest quality. Unfortunately, it also guarantees enormous file sizes, and they will not play back in real time on most systems.

Uncompressed movies can have an alpha channel. Alpha channels define levels of transparency in your movie and are useful if you're delivering an effects shot for use in someone else's composition. For more information on alpha channels, see Volume III, Chapter 18, "Compositing and Layering."

The Animation codec was developed for computer-generated imagery, which often has large areas of uniform color and little, if any, noise. It is a lossless codec, which means it doesn't degrade quality or add artifacts to your video when it applies compression. For more information, see "Video Compression" on page 364.

Video footage, which generally has more grain, noise, and variations of texture and color than animated material, may not be compressed as much with the Animation codec as with other methods. Because some lossless compression is better than none, this codec is used more frequently than Uncompressed.

Note: Animation movies will not play back in real time on most systems. Animation movies can also have an alpha channel.

QuickTime supports a wide range of DV codecs, including DV NTSC and DV PAL, DVCPRO 50, and DVCPRO HD. This allows you to natively capture, edit, and playback footage from DV camcorders without first transcoding to another format.

There are two Apple M-JPEG codecs, M-JPEG A and M-JPEG B. These are variable data rate codecs similar to the ones used by video capture cards. If you need to deliver more heavily compressed material to keep files small, consider these codecs. M-JPEG is a "lossy" codec (meaning visual information is permanently removed from the video frames) and will result in artifacts in your video. The severity of these artifacts depends on the data rate you choose.

Several video interface cards on the market can play back either M-JPEG A or M-JPEG B in real time without rerendering the material, or, at most, doing minimal rerendering. This makes file interchange very fast. Before you use either M-JPEG A or B, consult the manufacturer of the capture card you're using to find out which one you should use.

Note: Apple M-JPEG movies cannot have alpha channels.

JPEG is similar to M-JPEG, except that the compression artifacts can be less severe at similar data rates. JPEG movies may play back in real time on your system, depending on your system's capabilities and the data rate of the movie.

Note: JPEG movies cannot have alpha channels.

There are several manufacturers of video-editing solutions, most of whom use different variations of the M-JPEG codec. Many make software-only QuickTime codecs that you can install on your system, enabling you to play back movies with little or no rendering. For more information, contact the manufacturer of the editing system.

Note: Most third-party codecs cannot have alpha channels.

BMP: Standard bit-mapped graphics format used on Windows computers.
FlashPix: A format for storing digital images, especially digital photographs, developed by Eastman Kodak Company.
GIF: Graphic Interchange Format. A common bit-mapped graphics file format used on the web.
JPEG/JFIF: Joint Photographics Experts Group. A "lossy" compression file format used for images. JFIF is JPEG File Interchange Format.
MacPaint (PNTG): A monochrome file format used on early versions of the Macintosh operating system.
Photo JPEG: An extremely popular file format because it can create highly compressed yet good-looking graphics files. You can choose grayscale or color as well as the amount of compression.
Photoshop (PSD): You can import files created or saved in the Photoshop format, along with multilayered Photoshop files. (For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 18, "Compositing and Layering."
PICS: A file format used on Macintosh for animation sequences. The format is no longer used, in favor of QuickTime.
PICT: A common image format used on Mac OS computers. PICT files can use any of the standard QuickTime codecs for compression in color or grayscale.
PNG: Portable Network Graphics. A file format for bitmapped graphic images designed as the successor to GIF.
QuickTime Image File (QTIF): A QuickTime container file that contains an image using a supported QuickTime codec.
SGI: Silicon Graphics Image file format.
TARGA (TGA): The Targa file format. An uncompressed file format that stores images with millions of colors. Targa files are supported by nearly every platform and media application.
TIFF: Common on Mac OS and Windows computers. TIFF files allow color depths from dithered black and white to millions of colors and one form of compression.

Note: Almost all of these file formats can contain an alpha channel.

AAC or .mp4: Advanced audio coding. This format is a continuation of the MP3 audio format, improving quality while reducing file size. This audio format is commonly used in MPEG-4 multimedia files, and can support features such as surround sound.
AIFF/AIFC: Audio Interchange File Format. An audio format for Macintosh computers commonly used for storing uncompressed, CD-quality sound (similar to WAVE files for Windows-based PCs).
Audio CD Data (.cdda): Compact Disc Digital Audio. Audio files stored on CD.
MP3: Short for MPEG-1, layer 3 audio. This is a very popular format for online music distribution.
Sound Designer II: Sound Designer II, sometimes seen abbreviated as SD2. A monophonic and stereophonic audio file format, originally developed by Digidesign for Macintosh computers.
System 7 Sound: An older sound format developed by Apple.
uLaw: File format developed by Sun that provides logarithmic encoding for a larger dynamic range than normal 8-bit samples. Approximately equivalent to 12-bit samples, but suffers from more noise than linear encodings.
WAVE: The format for storing sound in files developed jointly by Microsoft and IBM.

For a complete list of all QuickTime-compatible file formats, see the documentation that came with QuickTime Pro or visit Apple's QuickTime website at http://www.apple.com/quicktime.

There are two commands in Final Cut Pro that you use to output QuickTime content.

Export QuickTime Movie: This command allows you to export your Final Cut Pro sequence as QuickTime movie, choosing from available sequence presets and including markers for use in other applications (such as DVD Studio Pro).
Export Using QuickTime Conversion: Choose this to export QuickTime-compatible file types from your clips or sequences:
A broadcast-quality, full resolution, uncompressed QuickTime file
A still image
• A numbered image sequence
A highly compressed QuickTime file for multimedia or web use
Audio only

If you want to export a file that uses the same settings as those of your clip or sequence, the Export QuickTime Movie command might be what you need for a quick output. For more information, see the next section, "The Export QuickTime Movie Command."

The Export Using QuickTime Conversion command gives you more flexibility, particularly in terms of the type of compression and file formats supported. For more information, see "The Export Using QuickTime Conversion Command" on page 237.

The Export QuickTime Movie command creates a new QuickTime movie file. Generally, you use the Export to QuickTime movie option to export your Final Cut Pro clip or sequences with their current settings or another video format commonly supported by Final Cut Pro.

This command allows you to choose settings based on sequence presets in Final Cut Pro. You can also choose to use the existing settings of the clip or sequence you are exporting, or create customized settings in a custom Sequence Preset Editor. If you are exporting using the existing settings, you can choose whether or not to recompress the frames.

If you want to export your movie in a completely different format, such as a QuickTime movie file with a video codec used for the web, you should use the Export Using QuickTime Conversion command instead. If you are exporting with the same settings as your sequence, or if you want to convert to some other video format commonly supported by Final Cut Pro, you should use the Export QuickTime Movie command.

Unlike the Export QuickTime Movie command, which only exports to a QuickTime movie file, the Export Using QuickTime Conversion command allows you to export to almost any file format QuickTime supports, using any video and audio codec supported by that format. Everything is customizable: image dimensions, frame rate, audio sample rate, video codec, audio codec, and so on.

Note: Because QuickTime has extensive support for most codecs and file formats, there may be a lot of options for some formats.

While the Export Using QuickTime Conversion command may seem advantageous, there are times when the Export QuickTime Movie command may be better. For example, Export Using QuickTime Conversion always recompresses your media, even if you select the same codec. The Export QuickTime Movie command has an option for not recompressing frames, reducing unnecessary artifacts when exporting to the same video codec.

You can export your sequence to a QuickTime movie using any of the available sequence presets. Markers can also be included for use in other applications such as DVD Studio Pro and Soundtrack.

This chapter covers the following:

About the Export QuickTime Movie Command (p. 239)
Choosing the Type of QuickTime Movie to Export (p. 240)
Exporting a QuickTime Movie File (p. 241)

With Final Cut Pro, you can export sequences or clips as QuickTime movie files using the Export QuickTime Movie command. This command is unique for several reasons:

It allows you to choose video and audio settings from the installed sequence presets, as opposed to the unlimited options available from the Export Using QuickTime Conversion command.
You can quickly export QuickTime reference movie files instead of self-contained media files, significantly reducing the size of the exported file.
If the sequence settings of the selected clip or sequence match your export settings, you can choose not to recompress any of the media during export. This avoids generational loss due to recompression, and makes the export process faster.

Note: The Export Using QuickTime Conversion command always recompresses your media when it exports, even if your export settings match the settings of your selected clip or sequence.

Important: Final Cut Pro does not require QuickTime Pro to export and save QuickTime movies. However, you must have QuickTime Pro Pro installed on your computer to export and save movies when using QuickTime Player.

You can create two kinds of QuickTime movies with the Export QuickTime Movie command—a self-contained movie or a reference movie.

Self-contained movie: A self-contained movie contains the video and audio media—all of the data used to create your movie is within a single file. This single file can be safely and easily copied to another computer without worrying that you need other files to play it back.
Reference movie: A reference movie is a very small file that contains pointers, or references, to all of the captured clips used in your sequence. The actual media is located in the original media files. If you rendered your transitions and effects before creating the reference movie, then there are pointers to your render files as well. Otherwise, all of your transitions and effects are rendered using the current level of compression, and then embedded inside the resulting reference movie, increasing its size. All audio tracks, mixing levels, cross fades, and audio filters are rendered and the resulting stereo or mono audio tracks are embedded in the reference movie.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Choosing the Type of QuickTime Movie to Export - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["MOVIE"] --> B["Original media files"]
    C["MOVIE"] --> B
    D["MOVIE"] --> B
    E["MOVIE"] --> B

Exporting a reference movie saves time, since you don't have to wait for every frame of your edited sequence to be duplicated. It also saves hard disk space, since pointers to other files require little space. Reference movies are particularly useful when outputting your sequence for compression using a third-party compression utility.

However, reference movies are not very useful as a means of delivering video files to other people. If you give someone a reference movie, you must also give them the original video files associated with that movie, which can be complicated since you may not know where all the referenced media is stored on disk.

In general, exporting reference movies increases the risk that the movie may not play back. Reference movies are best used when you have short-term uses for the exported movie file, and you only plan to use them on the system you exported them to.

If you choose to export a self-contained movie, you have the option to not recompress the media in your clip or sequence. If you deselect the Recompress All Frames option and choose Current Settings from the Setting pop-up menu, Final Cut Pro simply copies frames from existing media files into the new file with no recompression. This is a convenient way to export your media without subjecting it to recompression artifacts. However, any media that must be created from scratch, such as a transition between two media files, must be recompressed.

Important: The option to turn off recompression is unique to the Export QuickTime Movie command and the Batch Export command. If you choose the Export Using QuickTime Conversion command, every frame is always recompressed.

You can use the Export QuickTime Movie command whenever you want to export a sequence or media file to a QuickTime movie file.

1 Choose Sequence > Settings, then click the Render Control tab.
2 Select the appropriate rendering options for the output quality you want.
For more information on these settings, see "Render Control Tab" on page 340.
3 Select a clip or sequence in the Browser or open a sequence in the Timeline.
4 Choose File > Export > QuickTime Movie.

The settings shown here come from built-in presets. If you want to customize these settings, you can do so in the Sequence Preset Editor.

Current Settings: This uses the current sequence or clip settings of the item you selected for export.
Other sequence presets: Choose a new sequence preset to recompress your clip or sequence to another format and codec. For example, you may want to export a DV sequence to an uncompressed codec for online editing.
Custom: Choose this to choose custom export settings using the Sequence Preset Editor window.

Important: An audio track in a QuickTime movie file takes up disk space even if it is empty. If your QuickTime movie doesn't need an audio track, choose Video Only.

Note: All audio that requires rendering is automatically rendered with a render quality of High, regardless of the render quality setting. Even QuickTime movies that you output that don't have the "Recompress all frames" checkbox enabled will have the highest quality audio.

8 Choose which markers you want to export as text tracks inside the movie file.

The markers exported depend on whether you selected a sequence or a clip for export. If you selected a sequence, only sequence markers are exported. If you selected a clip, only markers from that clip are exported. For more information about using markers in Final Cut Pro, see Volume II, Chapter 4, "Using Markers."

None: No markers will be exported, and your exported movie file will contain only video, audio, and timecode tracks.
DVD Studio Pro Markers: All chapter and compression markers in the selected clip or sequence will export to separate QuickTime text tracks embedded within the exported movie file.
Compression Markers: Only the compression markers in the selected clip or sequence will be exported to a QuickTime text track embedded within the exported movie file.
Chapter Markers: Only the chapter markers in the selected clip or sequence will export to a QuickTime text track embedded within the exported movie file.
Audio Scoring Markers: Only the scoring markers in the selected clip or sequence will export to a QuickTime text track embedded within the exported movie file.
All Markers: You can export every marker in a clip or sequence as a separate text track in an exported QuickTime movie. The exported text track will display each marker's name at the frame where that marker was created.

9 To export a QuickTime movie with all video, audio, and rendered media in a self-contained file, select the Make Movie Self-Contained option.

Leave this option unselected to export a reference movie, which is a small movie that contains pointers to audio and render files located elsewhere. For more information, see "Choosing the Type of QuickTime Movie to Export" on page 240.

10 To recompress every frame of your clip or sequence, select the Recompress All Frames option.

Note: This option is available only if the Make Movie Self-Contained checkbox is checked.

11 When you're ready to export, click Save.

Writing Audio and Video... Writing Audio and Video... Estimated Time: About 2 minutes 22% Cancel A dialog shows you the progress of the export.

To cancel your export, press Esc or click Cancel.

When you need to export video, audio, or still image files for use in other applications, you can use the Export Using QuickTime Conversion command to create any file format supported by QuickTime.

This chapter covers the following:

About the Export Using QuickTime Conversion Command (p. 245)
Types of QuickTime-Compatible File Formats (p. 246)
Exporting a QuickTime Movie File for Web Distribution (p. 247)
Exporting a DV Stream (p. 256)
Exporting an AVI File (p. 257)

A QuickTime-compatible file may be any kind of media file that QuickTime supports, such as an AIFF or WAVE audio file, a graphics file or sequence of still images such as TIFF or JPEG, an AVI or MPEG-4 movie file, or even a QuickTime movie file.

Important: Like the Export QuickTime Movie command, the Export Using QuickTime Conversion command allows you to export QuickTime movie files, but in slightly different ways. If you use this command to export a QuickTime movie, be aware that this command always recompresses all video frames, even if your export settings use the same codec as your selected sequence. For information about that feature, see Volume IV, Chapter 18, "Exporting QuickTime Movies."

QuickTime is Apple's multiplatform, multimedia technology for handling video, sound, animation, graphics, text, interactivity, and music. For more information, see Volume IV, Chapter 17, "Learning About QuickTime."

With the Export Using QuickTime Conversion command, you can choose to export almost any file format that QuickTime supports, along with a wide variety of codecs and custom parameters that each format supports. Because there are so many file formats and specific settings, this chapter does not provide an exhaustive description of every file format and its associated settings.

QuickTime movie file: See "Exporting a QuickTime Movie File for Web Distribution" on page 247. If you want to export a movie that has the same settings as your sequence or clip, see Chapter 18, "Exporting QuickTime Movies," on page 239.
DV Stream file: DV Stream files encode synchronized audio and video together digitally as on a DV videotape. These files are primarily for use with iMovie. See "Exporting a DV Stream" on page 256.
AVI file: AVI movies are a PC-compatible standard for digital video. See "Exporting an AVI File" on page 257. AVI stands for Audio Video Interleave.
FLC: An animation format, originally developed by AutoDesk. This format uses a lossless compression technique which maintains the original quality.

MPEG2: A file format and flexible codec developed for digital television and DVDs. You can also create MPEG-2 files using Compressor. For more information, see the documentation that came with the software.
MPEG-4: A global multimedia standard, delivering professional-quality audio and video streams over a wide range of bandwidths, from cell phone to broadband and beyond.
3G: Lets you export a file that is compatible with 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) and 3GPP2 (3rd Generation Partnership Project 2) devices. Also supports AMC, a popular mobile multimedia format used by KDDI subscribers in Japan, that includes MPEG-4 video, QCELP audio, and STML text. These are the standards for high-quality multimedia on wireless devices, based on the foundation of MPEG-4.

Still Image: This choice allows you to select one of many still image file formats. See Chapter 20, "Exporting Still Images and Image Sequences," on page 261.
Image Sequence: This choice allows you to select a still image file format and export each frame of your video as a separate file in the format you choose. See "Exporting Image Sequences" on page 264.

For information on exporting any of these formats, see Chapter 11, "Exporting Audio for Mixing in Other Applications," on page 145.

AIFF: This is the default audio format used on Macintosh computers. Each data byte is stored with the most significant byte (MSB) stored first. This is known as big endian.
WAVE: This is the standard audio format used on Windows computers. Each data byte is stored with the least significant byte (LSB) first. This is known as little endian.
Law: This is an audio format developed for Sun computers.
System 7 Sound: This is a sound format used on older Macintosh computers.

If you need to create a self-contained movie file with the same settings as the original media file, you should probably use the Export QuickTime Movie command (Chapter 18, "Exporting QuickTime Movies," on page 239). However, if you want to export a compressed QuickTime movie file for the web or some other means of distribution, you should use the Export Using QuickTime Conversion command.

1 Choose Sequence > Settings, then click the Render Control tab.
2 Select the appropriate rendering options for the output quality you want.
For more information on these settings, see "Render Control Tab" on page 340.
3 Select a clip or sequence in the Browser or open the sequence in the Timeline.
4 Choose File > Export > Using QuickTime Conversion.
5 Choose a location and enter a name for the file.
6 Choose QuickTime Movie from the Format pop-up menu.

Settings are shown by their data rate, primary type of audio in the source clip or sequence, and type of motion in the source clip or sequence.

See the appropriate section for detailed information on settings.

Video settings: See "QuickTime Movie Video Settings" on page 249.
Sound settings: See "QuickTime Movie Sound Settings" on page 253.
Internet streaming settings: See "Prepare for Internet Streaming" on page 255.

9 When you've finished selecting your options, click OK.
10 When you're ready to export, click Save.

A dialog shows you the progress of the export. To cancel your export, press Esc or click Cancel.

Note: Whenever you use the Export Using QuickTime Conversion command, all audio that requires rendering is automatically rendered with a render quality of High, regardless of the render quality setting.

You can choose the following settings for the video portion of your exported QuickTime movie.

Movie Settings ✓ Video Settings... Filter... Size... Compression: MPEG-4 Video Quality: Best Key frame rate: 90 Bitrate: 656.234 kbits/sec Width: 320 Height: 240 Allow Transcoding

Settings: Click this to adjust the compression used to export your video track.
Filter: Click this to add and adjust additional video filters.
Size: Click here to set a size for the movie.

Depending on the codec you choose from the Compression type pop-up menu, various options may be available, as explained below.

Standard Video Compression Settings Compression Type: Animation Motion Frame Rate: 24 fps Key Frames: ○ Automatic ● Every 24 frames ○ All □ Frame Reordering Data Rate Data Rate: ○ Automatic ○ Restrict to kbits/sec Optimized for: Download Compressor Depth: Millions of Colors+ Quality Least Low Medium High Best Preview Cancel OK

- Compression Type: Select a codec from this pop-up menu to compress the video. All the standard Final Cut Pro and third-party video codecs installed on your system are available.

Frame Rate: Define the frame rate of your exported movie. This doesn't need to match the frame rate of the clip or sequence you're exporting. However, the file quality is improved if your new frame rate is evenly divided into the original one.
Key Frames: These options are available if your selected codec uses temporal compression. Increasing the number of frames between keyframes increases the amount of compression and makes the final file size smaller.

Depending on the codec you use, the movie file's quality, especially for clips and sequences with a lot of motion, may decrease if there are too few keyframes specified. A setting of one keyframe every ten frames is a good starting point.

• Automatic: QuickTime adds temporal compression keyframes when necessary.
- Every N frames: Temporal compression keyframes are created every N frames. Since keyframes require more data to store than the in-between frames, a higher value here results in a movie with a lower data rate.
- All: A keyframe is added on every frame. This increases the data rate of the movie significantly.

- Data Rate:

Automatic: QuickTime adjusts the data rate of your QuickTime movie automatically.
Restrict to: With some codecs, you can manually restrict the data rate of your compressed QuickTime movie file. The codec uses a combination of spatial and temporal compression to try to reach your target rate. Be aware of your frame size and frame rate so you don't set a data rate that is too low for the codec to reach.

Depth: Choose a color depth. Some codecs allow you to choose between color or grayscale, while others allow you to specify the number of colors (which corresponds to a bit-depth) such as 4, 16, 256, or millions of colors (2-, 4-, and 24-bit, respectively). You can also specify an alpha channel for some codecs by choosing “Millions of Colors+.”
Quality: Adjust the slider for the level of spatial compression you want. Some codecs may not allow you to choose this setting.

Depending on the codec you choose, various other options may be available, such as scan mode (interlaced versus progressive) and aspect ratio. There may also be an Options button you can click to set additional codec-specific options.

A preview image of the current frame of your clip or sequence is displayed here. When you adjust some compressor options, the preview image is updated so you can see how certain settings will affect your image.

QuickTime filters apply to your entire exported clip or sequence. This is different from applying a filter within Final Cut Pro, where a filter is applied only to selected clips or parts of a clip.

Movie Settings Click a disclosure triangle to see more filters. Select a filter in this list. None Adjustments Alpha Gain Brightness ... ColorSync HSL Balance RGB Balance Blur Filters Sharpen Red: 0 50 100 150 200 Green: 0 50 100 150 200 Blue: 0 50 100 150 200 Load... Save... Cancel OK Adjust settings for the filter in this area. Cancel OK

Load: Click here to use a filter you've saved, such as one used in an earlier project.
Save: Click here to save a filter's settings, if you might use them again.

You can use the current frame size of your clip or sequence or specify a custom size.

Choose the size for your movie. Use current size Use custom size Width: 128 Height: 96 If you're using a custom size, enter it here. Cancel OK

Tip: It's a good idea to keep the frame width and height divisible by four if you're using MPEG-based codecs or Sorenson.

Click Settings to choose an audio format, number of channels, sample rate, and additional settings. Depending on the format you choose from the Format pop-up menu, additional settings may be available.

Sound Settings... Format: AAC Sample rate: 32.000 kHz Channels: Stereo (L R) Bit rate: 96 kbps

Important: If there is no audio in your clip or sequence, deselect the Sound Settings checkbox. Otherwise, blank audio tracks are created in your QuickTime movie file, which require additional space.

Sound Settings Format: Linear PCM Channels: Stereo (L R) Rate: 48.000 kHz Show Advanced Settings Linear PCM Settings: Sample size: 32 bits Little Endian Floating Point Unsigned Cancel OK

Format: To reduce file size and download bandwidth, select a codec to compress the audio tracks. If you're outputting full-resolution audio, choose Linear PCM.
Channels: Select Mono, Stereo (L R), or 2 Discrete Channels. If you're delivering material for the Internet, you may want to choose Mono because it cuts your audio file size in half.
Rate: Choose a standard sample rate from the pop-up menu or enter a value to specify the output rate for the audio. Lower sample rates take less bandwidth but have lower quality.
8-22.225 kHz: These lower sample rates are used mainly for multimedia and web movies to reduce file size.
32 kHz: A lower-quality sample rate often used on consumer DV camcorders. This option isn't particularly useful for exporting unless you specifically need to make a file that is compatible with a 32 kHz device.
• 44.1 kHz: This is the sample rate of music CDs.
48 kHz: Most digital video formats use this sample rate.
96 kHz: This sample rate is used mostly by high-end digital audio workstations.
Show Advanced Settings: Click here to set additional options, if the selected audio format supports this. Not all audio format options are explained below.
Sample Rate Converter Settings: If your sequence or clip sample rate doesn't match your export sample rate, this pop-up menu appears. You can choose from several qualities.

These options are only available when you choose Linear PCM in the Audio format pop-up menu.

- Sample size: Choose a bit depth for your audio samples. For most situations, 16-bit audio is the minimum bit depth you should choose, but sometimes 8-bit audio is useful when creating small, low-quality movies for the web. If you choose 32-bit, you have the option of using integer or floating point values. You can also choose 64-bit, but only if the floating point option is selected.

Little endian: This refers to way audio data bytes are ordered. Little endian byte ordering is used when creating PC-compatible WAVE files. Big endian order is used when creating AIFF files.
Floating point: This option affects how the bits of each sample are used to represent audio amplitudes. Floating point is available with 32-bit audio, and required when using 64-bit audio.
Unsigned: This option is automatically enabled when exporting 8-bit WAVE files.

If you're outputting QuickTime files for streaming over the Internet, there are three format options.

Prepare for Internet Streaming ✓ Fast Start Fast Start - Compressed Header Hinted Streaming

Fast Start: The QuickTime movie is downloaded like any other graphic or media file. Once enough of the movie has downloaded, the movie begins to play automatically.
Fast Start - Compressed Header: This works the same way as a Fast Start movie, except that the header information is compressed, so the movie takes up less disk space. The person downloading the file must have QuickTime 3.0 or later.
Hinted Streaming: If the movie will be hosted with QuickTime Streaming Server software, it begins playing within a few seconds after access. "Hinting" a QuickTime movie is the process of defining how it's divided into streamable pieces and storing that information as a special track within your QuickTime file.

If you're not sure you want this option or don't want to do this now, you can do this later by importing your QuickTime file into QuickTime Player Pro and applying hinting there.

If you select Hinted Streaming, click Settings to specify additional export settings.

- Make Movie Self-Contained: Check this box to export a QuickTime movie with all video, audio, and render material contained in one file. Leave this box unselected to export a reference movie, which is a small movie that contains pointers to audio and render files located elsewhere. For more information, see “Choosing the Type of QuickTime Movie to Export” on page 240.

- Optimize Hints for Server: Check this box to analyze your movie and create hinting information that can be used to stream your movie on the Internet using QuickTime Streaming Server.

- Track Hinter Settings: Click this to specify options for encoding and packets.

RTP Payload Encodings: Choose the type of encoding to use.
Packet Size Limit: Enter a value or choose an option from the pop-up menu to specify the largest file size for a packet.
Packet Duration Limit: Enter a value or choose a size from the pop-up menu to specify the longest duration for a packet.

- Options: Click here to specify the sample description. In the QuickTime Settings dialog, enter a value in the Interval field to specify the time interval for the sample. Then specify the number of packets to send and how often to send them.

A DV Stream file is just like the DV video and audio data recorded on DV tape. This file format is used with applications such as iMovie. DV Stream files are not the same as QuickTime movie files with separate, extensible tracks. Use this option to make iMovie-compatible DV Stream files.

1 Select a clip or sequence in the Browser or open the sequence in the Timeline.
2 Choose File > Export > Using QuickTime Conversion.
3 Choose a location and enter a name for the file.
4 Choose DV Stream from the Format pop-up menu.
5 Choose a setting from the Use pop-up menu, based on the video standard and audio sample rate of the selected clip or sequence.

Format: DV Stream Use: ✓ Default Settings DV NTSC 32 kHz DV NTSC 44.1 kHz DV NTSC 48 kHz DV PAL 32 kHz DV PAL 44.1 kHz DV PAL 48 kHz New F Options... Cancel Save

6 To customize settings, click Options.

DV Export Settings DV Format: DV Video Format: NTSC PAL Scan Mode: Interlaced Aspect Ratio: 16:9 Audio Format: Locked Rate: 48.000 kHz Cancel OK

DV Format: Choose a DV format, such as DVCPRO 50, here.
Video Format: Choose the video standard, scan mode, and aspect ratio for the exported file.

• Audio Format: Choose your options.

Locked: Conforms the audio tracks to the "locked audio" standard where the audio and video sample clocks are synchronized.
Rate: Choose a sample rate for the exported file from this pop-up menu.

Note: DVCPRO and DVCPRO 50 always use locked audio with a sample rate of 48 kHz. With these formats, these options are not adjustable.

7 When you're ready to export, click Save.

A dialog shows you the progress of the export. To cancel your export, press Esc or click Cancel.

AVI is a PC-compatible movie file format for digital video. This file type is no longer officially supported by Microsoft, but it's still frequently used. The AVI format is similar to a QuickTime movie file, but it supports fewer track types and codecs. It is useful mainly for delivery of movie files to Windows computers or the Internet.

1 Select a clip or sequence in the Browser or open the sequence in the Timeline.
2 Choose File > Export > Using QuickTime Conversion.
3 Choose a location and enter a name for the file.
4 Choose AVI from the Format pop-up menu.
5 Choose a setting from the Use menu.

Each setting in this list is a predefined group of codecs and settings. If your needs are more specific, skip ahead to step 6.

Save Save As: Cafe sequence.avi Final Cut Pro Exports Desktop Documents Library Movies Music Pictures Public Sites Final Cut Pro Documents Audio Render Files Autosave Vault Capture Scratch Final Cut Pro Exports Projects Render Files Thumbnail Cache Files Waveform Cache Files Format: AVI Use: ✓ Default Settings 1x CD-ROM 2x CD-ROM Animation New F Options... Cancel Save

6 To customize settings, click Options.
7 Click the checkbox next to Video and Sound to include these in your exported file.

If there is no audio in your clip or sequence, make sure the Sound checkbox is not selected. Otherwise, the blank audio tracks will take up space in your output file.

8 Click Settings in the Video section to adjust compression settings used for the video tracks.

The video compression settings here are similar to the QuickTime movie file compression settings, although fewer codecs are supported. For more details, see Chapter 18, "Exporting QuickTime Movies," on page 239.

9 Click Settings in the Audio section to adjust compression settings used for the audio tracks.

The audio compression settings here are similar to the QuickTime Movie Sound Settings, although different codecs and settings are supported.

10 When you're ready to export, click Save.

A dialog shows you the progress of the export. To cancel your export, press Esc or click Cancel.

At many points during your project, you may need to export still images of your video for graphics, posters, the press, email, or the web.

This chapter covers the following:

• Determining the Image Format for Still Image Export (p. 261)
- Exporting a Single Still Image (p. 262)
- Exporting Image Sequences (p. 264)

Final Cut Pro uses the built-in QuickTime technology in Mac OS X to export still images. Because QuickTime supports a wide variety of graphic (still image) formats, nearly any graphic format you need to export is supported.

If you're exporting images for a website, JPEG is a good option because it compresses images to a small size but maintains fairly high quality. If you want to export images without compression, you can export TIFF or Photoshop files.

Note: If you need to export a sequence as a numbered image sequence (a collection of still images), you'll go through a slightly different process than simply exporting a single still image.

Exported still images are 72 dpi. This number cannot be changed during export, and is irrelevant for video and computer use. If you are exporting for print and you need to adjust the dpi setting, you can do so in a graphics application such as Adobe Photoshop.

Exported still images are always exported using 8 bits per pixel per color channel. For example, an RGB TIFF or Photoshop file uses a total of 24 bits (3 channels x 8 bits per channel) per pixel. If an alpha channel is included, the exported file uses 32 bits per pixel (4 channels x 8 bits per channel).

Exporting a still image from Final Cut Pro is easy. First, you create the still image and then export it to the graphics file format you need.

1 In the Canvas or Viewer, position the playhead at the frame you want to export.

Canvas: Cafe sequence in Cafe Cafe sequence 00:01:04:16 59% 01:00:43:10 Move the playhead to the frame you want to export.

2 Choose File > Export > Using QuickTime Conversion.
3 Choose a location and enter a name for the file.
4 Choose Still Image from the Format pop-up menu.

5 Choose a file format from the Use pop-up menu.

Disregard the frame rate (frames per second or fps) when exporting single still images.

Format: Still Image Options... Use: ✓ Default Settings BMP, 25 fps BMP, 29.97 fps New F JPEG, 25 fps JPEG, 29.97 fps Picture, 25 fps Picture, 29.97 fps Targa, 25 fps Targa, 29.97 fps Cancel Save Choose a setting from the pop-up menu.

Some graphics file formats do not appear in the Use pop-up menu. If the file format you need does not appear in the list, see step 6.

6 To select custom settings, click Options, and in the Export Image Sequence Settings dialog, choose your settings, then click OK.

Custom settings allow you to choose any graphics file format supported by QuickTime. You can also make particular adjustments to the compression method or color depth. In most cases, the default values are fine, but if you need particular settings, you can adjust the settings here. Each graphics file format has a unique set of adjustable parameters.

Export Image Sequence Settings Format: JPEG Choose a format. Frames per second: 25 Insert space before number Options... Cancel OK This setting is not relevant when exporting still images. Click here to set additional options, if available.

Format: Choose the graphics file format you want to use from the pop-up menu. Some file formats have additional options for controlling the quality of the compression, the color depth, and so on.
Frames per second: This setting doesn't apply for still images.
Options: Click here to set options for the particular graphics file format you are exporting.

7 When you're ready to export, click Save.

You can export numbered image sequences in various formats using the Export Using QuickTime Conversion command. If you want to export just a part of a clip or a sequence, you can do so by setting In and Out points before exporting.

1 Select a clip or sequence in the Browser or open a sequence in the Timeline.
2 Do one of the following:

To export the entire clip or sequence, clear all In and Out points.
To export part of the sequence or clip, set In and Out points.

For more information about In and Out points, see Volume II, Chapter 7, "Setting Edit Points for Clips and Sequences."

3 Choose File > Export > Using QuickTime Conversion.
4 Choose a location and enter a name for the file.

Note: You may want to create a new folder for the sequence of numbered image files.

5 Choose Image Sequence from the Format pop-up menu.
6 Choose a setting from the Use pop-up menu.

Format: Image Sequence Options... Use: ✓ Default Settings BMP, 25 fps BMP, 29.97 fps JPEG, 25 fps JPEG, 29.97 fps Picture, 25 fps Picture, 29.97 fps Targa, 25 fps Targa, 29.97 fps New F Cancel Save Choose an export setting from the pop-up menu.

If none of the options you need is listed in the Use pop-up menu, you can select custom settings.

7 Click Options, and in the Export Image Sequence Settings window, choose your settings, then click OK.

Export Image Sequence Settings Format: PICT Frames per second: 25 Insert space before number Options... Cancel OK Choose a format type from this pop-up menu. Enter the desired frame rate, or choose an option from the pop-up menu. Click here to set additional options, if available.

Format: Choose the image format you want to use from the pop-up menu.
Frames per second: Enter a value or choose an option from the pop-up menu for the frame rate for the images.
Options: Click here to set additional options, such as alternate bit depth or compression settings, if they are available for the selected format.

8 When you're ready to export, click Save.

A dialog shows you the progress of the export. To cancel your export, press Esc or click Cancel.

Each file of the image sequence is named in the form of "Filename 001.ext," where "Filename" is the name you gave, the number (001) is the number of the frame, and ".ext" is the filename extension indicating the format.

This chapter covers the following:

• Overview of the Batch Exporting Process (p. 267)
- Selecting Items in the Browser to Batch Export (p. 268)
- Selecting Batch Export Settings (p. 270)
• Doing a Batch Export (p. 275)
- Opening Batch Exported Files in the Viewer (p. 276)
• Redoing Batch Exports (p. 277)

The Batch Export command lets you export multiple clips and sequences at one time. This is particularly useful when you have a lot of clips or sequences to export at once, or if you need to export the same sequence to multiple formats and settings. Items to be exported are shown in the Export Queue window and organized into bins, each with its own export settings. You can set up several bins with different settings so you can export different types of files. For example, you can set up a batch export to do the following:

Export a sequence to several QuickTime movie files, each with different dimensions and codec qualities.
Export an image sequence.
Export an audio-only export.

Follow these steps to do a batch export. Steps are described in detail on the following pages.

Step 1: Select the clips, sequence, or bin you want to batch export.

Step 2: Select export settings in the Batch Export window.

Step 3: Batch export the desired items.

You can select as many clips, sequences, and bins as you want to batch export.

To place clips, sequences, and bins in the Batch Export queue:

1 In the Browser, select clips, bins, and sequences you want to export.

2 Choose File > Batch Export.

The Export Queue window appears with the selected items. A bin named "Batch N" is automatically created with your selections, where N is the bin's number.

3 To change the name of a bin in the Export Queue, click the bin's name once to select it, wait a moment, then click the name a second time. Type a new name.

If you want, enter a new name for the bin.

Export Queue Export Queue Name Type Status Base Output Filename Leng Dining shots to recompress Bin Don at table salad WS Clip Queued 00:01 Don eats fish plate CU Clip Queued 00:02 Grandfather clock face CU Clip Queued 00:03 Batch 2 Bin Debra enters cafe WS Clip Queued 00:04 Jacob reaction to customer CU Clip Queued 00:05 Master shot Debra CU Clip Queued 00:06 Export Settings... View Exported

4 To create a new bin, do one of the following:

Choose File > New > Bin.
Press Command-B.

Each bin in the Export Queue has its own export settings. You may want to reorganize items into different bins to keep items with the same settings in the same bin.

5 To add additional items:

Drag items from the Browser to a bin in the Batch Export window.
Select additional items, then choose Batch Export again.

To select batch export settings, see the next section, "Selecting Batch Export Settings."

If you don't want to select settings now, you can close the Export Queue window. To select export settings later, choose Window > Export Queue.

Important: Items in the Export Queue disappear after you quit Final Cut Pro. If you quit before you batch export, you'll have to add the items to the Export Queue again.

Items in the Export Queue window do not have individual export settings. Instead, each bin in the Export Queue has export settings. When you place a clip or sequence into a bin in the Export Queue, that item is exported using the settings assigned to the bin.

You can place the same clip or sequence in as many Export Queue bins as you like. This allows you to export the same clip or sequence to multiple file formats or with different settings.

You can specify export settings for a bin by selecting a bin and clicking the Settings button or by selecting options in individual columns in the Export Queue window.

To use the Settings button, see the next section, "Choosing Export Settings With the Settings Button."
This is convenient since you can select all settings from one main window.
To choose settings from columns in the Export Queue window, see "Selecting Batch Export Settings From Columns" on page 273. This is useful when you want to change just a few settings.

To select settings for batch export items using the Settings button:

1 Select the bin in the Export Queue window, then click the Settings button.

Export Queue Name Type Status Base Output Filename Leng Select the desired bin. Cafe shots to recompress Bin Dining shots to recompress Bin Then click Settings. Export Settings... View Exported

In the Batch window, you can select settings for all items in the bin.

Cafe shots to recompress Destination: Render Files Set Destination... Format: QuickTime Movie Settings: Item Settings Options... Naming: Set Naming Options... Include: Audio and Video Recompress All Frames Make Self-Contained Use Item In/Out Cancel OK

2 Click Set Destination, then choose a location to save the exported file.
3 Choose a QuickTime-compatible file format from the Format pop-up menu.

Dining shots to recompress Destination: Render Files Set Destination... Format: QuickTime Movie 3G Settings: AIFF FLC QuickTime (Custom) AU Naming: AVI Wave DV Stream Still Image Image Sequence MPEG-4 Include: Use Item In/Out Cancel OK Select the desired format.

These are the same file format choices available when using the Export Using QuickTime Conversion command and the Export QuickTime Movie command.

Tip: If you choose the QuickTime movie file format, the settings available are the same as when you use the Export QuickTime Movie command. This allows you to select whether video, audio, or both tracks are exported, whether frames are recompressed, and whether or not the resulting movie file is self-contained.

If you choose any other option, the options available are the same as when you use the Export Using QuickTime Conversion command. For more information, see Chapter 19, "Exporting QuickTime-Compatible Files," on page 245 and Chapter 18, "Exporting QuickTime Movies," on page 239.

4 Choose preset settings from the Settings pop-up menu.

The preset settings you see depend on the format you've selected.

Note: If you are exporting a QuickTime movie, the preset settings are the current sequence presets available in Final Cut Pro. This is the same as when you are using the Export QuickTime Movie command, except the choice Item Settings replaces Current Settings, and no custom settings choice is available.

If you want to export a QuickTime movie using all available QuickTime customization settings, make sure you select QuickTime (custom) from the Format pop-up menu.

5 To set additional settings, click Options (if available), then click OK.

Some formats let you choose additional options, such as bit rate. The Options button is dimmed if no options are available. Many of these options are described in "QuickTime Movie Video Settings" on page 249 and "QuickTime Movie Sound Settings" on page 253.

6 Click Set Naming Options, choose the type of file extensions you want, then click OK.

Set Naming Options Example File Name: BaseName.type ✓ Strip Existing Extension ☐ Add Custom Extension ✓ Add File Type Extension To add a custom extension, enter it here. OK Click the checkbox next to the extensions you want to add to the exported files.

Strip Existing Extension: Specifies whether an existing extension is removed from the base filename when the export filename is created. This is useful if you're adding your own extension.
Add Custom Extension: Type a custom extension to be applied to the filename.
Add File Type Extension: Specifies whether the default extension for the specific export file type is automatically appended to the filename.

Typical extensions are:

.mov: QuickTime movie files
.pct: PICT files
.tif: TIFF files
.wav: WAVE files
.aif: AIFF files

7 If you chose QuickTime Movie from the Format pop-up menu, choose the tracks you want to export from the Include pop-up menu—Audio and Video, Audio Only, or Video Only.

An empty audio track can still take up disk space. If your exported file doesn't need an audio track, choose Video Only.

8 If you chose QuickTime Movie from the Format pop-up menu, the Recompress All Frames and Make Self-Contained options are available. You can select these options if you want. For more information about these options, see "Choosing the Type of QuickTime Movie to Export" on page 240.

Select the options you want. —— □ Recompress All Frames □ Make Self-Contained □ Use Item In/Out

9 Select the "Use Item In/Out" option to export only the media between the current In and Out points. If this is not selected, all of the media in the clip or the entire sequence is exported.
10 Click OK.

After you select your settings, you're ready to export. For more information, see "Doing a Batch Export" on page 275.

The columns in the Export Queue window display details about each bin. You can change export settings directly from these columns.

■ Control-click in a column for a bin, then choose a setting from the shortcut menu.

If the message "No shortcut" appears, the information in that column cannot be changed from the Export Queue window.

Name: Displays the name of the item. The Name column always appears on the left.
Type: Displays the type of item—clip, subclip, merged clip, sequence, bin, or effect.
Status: Displays the current export status for the item. If there's an error during export, a message explaining the problem appears.
Queued: An item is ready for export. This appears when an item is first added to the batch queue.
Done: An item was successfully exported. These items are ignored if you start another batch export process.
Canceled: The export process was canceled.
Error: This appears when a problem prevented the item from exporting successfully.

- Base Output Filename: Lets you specify new filenames for clips and sequences. If nothing is specified in this column, the item name is used as the output filename. Naming options specified in the Export Settings dialog are also applied to the filename specified here.

Length: Displays the total length of the clip or sequence, regardless of In or Out points.
Destination: The path to the folder on disk where the exported files will be saved. The Render Files folder is used by default. To change the folder, double-click in this column. In the dialog, choose a location to save the file.
Format: Displays the file format used for exporting.
Settings: Displays the preset setting name for the export settings of this export bin. You can control-click to choose a preset setting here or choose options from the shortcut menu.
Use In/Out: Make sure there is a checkmark in this column to export the sequence or clip using the current In and Out points. If this column is not checked, all of the media in the clip or the entire sequence is exported.
Strip Existing Extension: Specifies whether an existing extension is removed from the base filename when the export filename is created. This is useful if you're adding your own extension.
Add Custom Extension: Type a custom extension to be applied to the filename.
Add File Type Extension: Specifies whether the default extension for the specific export file type is automatically appended to the filename.

The following three options are only available when the exported file format is a QuickTime movie:

Include: Specifies which tracks should be included in the exported media file—Audio and Video, Audio only, or Video only.
Recompress All Frames: This is the same option that is available when you use the Export QuickTime Movie command. For more information, see Chapter 18, "Exporting QuickTime Movies," on page 239.
Make Movie Self-Contained: This is the same option that is available when you use the Export QuickTime Movie command. For more information, see Chapter 18, "Exporting QuickTime Movies," on page 239.

After you select your settings, you're ready to export. For more information, see the next section, "Doing a Batch Export."

After you've selected the clips and sequences you want to export and organized them into bins with your desired settings, you export the items as a batch.

1 In the Export Queue, select the bins you want to export.

If you want to export all items in the Export Queue, deselect all items.

Export Queue Name Type Status Base Output Filename Leng Cafe shots to recompress Bin Dining shots to recompress Then click Export. Export Settings... View Exported

2 Click Export.

A dialog shows you the progress of the export. To cancel your export, press Esc or click Cancel. To re-export these items, see "Redoing Batch Exports" on page 277.

Once items have been exported, the message changes to "Done" in the Status column for each exported item. To view exported items, see "Opening Batch Exported Files in the Viewer," next.

Export Queue Export Queue Name Type Status Base Output Filename Cafe shots to recompress Bin Debra enters cafe WS Clip Done Jacob reaction to customer CU Clip Done Master shot Debra CU Clip Done Dining shots to recompress Bin The status of an item changes to Done when it is successfully exported. Export Settings... View Exported

After your sequences and clips have been exported, you can open them in the Viewer.

In the Export Queue window, select an item, then click View Exported.

The status of the selected item must be "Done."

Export Queue Export Queue Name Type Status Base Output Filename Cafe shots to recompress Bin Debra enters cafe WS Clip Done Jacob reaction to customer CL Clip Done Master shot Debra CU Clip Done Dining shots to recompress Bin Then click View Exported. Export Settings... View Exported

Each item appears in a separate Viewer window.

1 In the Export Queue window, select an item that has been successfully batch exported, then click View Exported.

The item appears in a new Viewer window.

2 Drag the item from the new Viewer window to the Browser.

A clip connected to the batch export media file is created in the Browser.

If items in the Export Queue were canceled or stopped because of errors, they can be easily requeued.

An item's status can be changed at any time, from Queued to Done or from Error to Queued. For example, an item that was canceled before it finished exporting can be set back to Queued and exported again.

■ Control-click in the Status column of the item you want to change, then choose a status in the shortcut menu.

Export Queue Export Queue Name Type Status Base Output Filename Cafe shots to recompress Bin Done Debra enters cafe WS Clip Done Jacob reaction to customer CU Clip Done Master shot Debra CU Clip Done Dining shots to recompress Bin Queued Done Available... Done Done Done Done Done Done Done Done Done Done Done Done Done Done Done Done Done Done Done Done Done Done Done Done Done Done

Learn how to customize Final Cut Pro for the particular needs of your project and editing environment.

Chapter 22 Choosing Settings and Preferences

Chapter 23 Audio/Video Settings and Easy Setups

Chapter 24 Capture Settings and Presets

Chapter 25 Device Control Settings and Presets

Chapter 26 Sequence Settings and Presets

This chapter covers the following:

• Changing User Preferences (p. 281)
• Changing System Settings (p. 294)

A preference modifies how a particular Final Cut Pro feature behaves. Most preferences can be turned on or off at any time, while others accept a value, such as the number of Undo levels or the name of a label.

The following section describes Final Cut Pro User Preferences in detail.

- Choose Final Cut Pro > User Preferences (or press Option-Q).

The User Preferences window is divided into several tabs.

Note: The Timeline Options, Render Control, and Audio Outputs tabs contain the default preferences used when you create new sequences.

General Tab (p. 282): Settings in this tab control a variety of features, such as warning dialogs during capture, the number of undos allowed, and Autosaving and Auto Rendering.
Editing Tab (p. 287): This tab contains preferences useful while editing, such as trimming and audio keyframing controls.
Labels Tab (p. 292): In this tab, you can change the names associated with the different colored labels that are available within Final Cut Pro.
Timeline Options Tab (p. 293): These are the default display options used when a new sequence is created. This is where you can change the default number of video and audio tracks for new sequences. For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 9, "Timeline Basics."
Render Control Tab (p. 293): This tab allows you to choose the render quality of new sequences you create. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 24, "Rendering."
Audio Outputs Tab (p. 293): This is where you can choose the default audio output preset used for new sequences. If none of the audio output presets matches your audio configuration, you can create your own custom preset in this window. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 4, "Audio Levels, Meters, and Output Channels."

Important: Once a sequence has been created, you change its settings by choosing Sequence > Settings, not User Preferences. User Preferences establishes the default preferences for new sequences, not sequences that already exist.

This tab contains fundamental preferences relating to application launch, creation of new projects and sequences, and automatically scheduled events such as Autosave and Auto Render.

- Levels of Undo: Enter a value to specify the number of actions that can be undone. The maximum number of Undo levels you can specify is 99. The default is 10. For information on undoing an action, see Volume I, Chapter 4, "Overview of the Final Cut Pro Interface."

- List Recent Clips: This value determines how many clip names appear in the Recent Clips pop-up menu in the Viewer. This pop-up menu shows a list of clips that you opened from the Browser, in the order they were opened (with the most recently opened clip at the top of the list). The default is 10 clips, and the maximum is 20. For more information on using the Viewer's Recent Clips pop-up menu, see Volume I, Chapter 6, "Viewer Basics."

Real-time Audio Mixing: Enter a number in this field to specify how many audio tracks can be mixed in real time. The default is 8 tracks, and the maximum is 99. The maximum number of tracks that can be mixed without having to be rendered is affected by your computer's processing capabilities, the number and types of filters used in your sequence, the data transfer rate of your hard disk, and the amount of memory available to Final Cut Pro.
Audio Playback Quality: This pop-up menu affects the quality of sample rate conversions (when your audio clips have a different sample rate than the sequence that contains them) and transitions between rendered and nonrendered sections in the Timeline.
Low (faster): This choice yields the best real-time audio performance, but the lowest sample rate conversion quality. When the playhead moves from rendered to nonrendered audio segments in the Timeline, there may be an audible click or distracting shift in levels. For basic editing, this is usually the best choice.
Medium or High: When you start to do detailed mixing of your audio tracks, you may want to raise the audio mixing quality to Medium or High. Higher quality sample rate conversions sound better, but require more processing power and thus limit the number of simultaneous tracks you can work with in real time. Also, shifts between rendered and nonrendered audio segments sound smoother.

Important: Final Cut Pro always uses the highest quality setting (regardless of what is chosen in the Audio Playback Quality pop-up menu) when rendering, mixing down audio, editing to tape, printing to video, or exporting audio and OMF files.

Sample rate conversion occurs when you use clips with audio sample rates that differ from the sample rate in your sequence's settings. If the sample rate of your media files matches the sample rate of the sequence, this pop-up menu has no effect.

Transitions between rendered and nonrendered portions of audio clips are also affected by the quality chosen in the Audio Playback Quality pop-up menu. For example, if you choose Low Quality and you play a partially rendered clip that contains a reverb, then you won't hear the tail of the reverb when the playhead crosses the boundary from a rendered to nonrendered section of the Timeline. However, if you choose Medium or High quality, you hear the reverb even when crossing the render boundary.

- Limit real-time video to N MB/s: Final Cut Pro uses this number to limit how many video streams can play back from your scratch disk in real time. This is useful when multiple editing systems are sharing the same media (such as a storage area network, or SAN), or when you have a scratch disk with a limited data rate, such as a PowerBook hard disk.

For example, suppose you try to play a sequence with six simultaneous video tracks containing DV media, and Final Cut Pro warns you that frames were dropped during playback. If you then try to play a sequence with five simultaneous video tracks and no frames are dropped, you know that your scratch disk can handle no more than five simultaneous DV video streams. Since DV has a data rate of 3.6 MB/sec., you can select the "Limit real-time video to" option and enter 18 MB/sec. (5 x 3.6 MB/sec.) in the number field. Now, if a sequence requires a sustained data rate of more than 18 MB/sec. for playback, Final Cut Pro shows a red render bar over this portion of the sequence.

Note: Final Cut Pro always allows a single video stream to play, even if the data rate limit you set is below the data rate of a single video stream. For example, if you set the data rate limit to 1 MB/sec., Final Cut Pro would still play back a single DV video stream, even though its data rate is 3.6 MB/sec.

- Show Tooltips: Select this option to automatically display descriptions of interface elements and their corresponding keyboard shortcuts, called tooltips. Tooltips appear in small yellow boxes when you move the pointer over a control and pause briefly (without clicking the control). When you move the pointer away from the control, the tooltip disappears.

The tooltip (interface element and keyboard shortcut) that appears when you place the pointer over the Play button in the Viewer. Play

Bring all windows to the front on activation: When this option is selected and Final Cut Pro is in the background, clicking one Final Cut Pro window brings all Final Cut Pro windows to the front at once.
Open last project on application launch: This option determines whether Final Cut Pro launches with a new, untitled project, or the last project or projects that were open when you last quit the application.

- Autosave Vault: The Autosave option saves a copy of each open project at regular intervals. For more information, see "Using the Autosave Feature" on page 20.

Prompt for settings on New Project: When this option is selected, the Project Properties dialog appears when you create a new project. For more information about setting project properties, see Volume II, Chapter 5, "Working With Projects, Clips, and Sequences."
Prompt for settings on New Sequence: When this option is selected, a dialog appears asking you to choose a sequence preset whenever you create a new sequence. This can be useful if you regularly work with several different video formats. If you always edit the same video format, you'll probably want to deselect this option.

- Sync audio capture to video source if present: Select this option in the following scenarios:

You have an audio interface that has a video genlock input, and the genlock input is receiving a proper video signal.
You are capturing audio media that you intend to synchronize with video, such as sound recorded on a separate audio recorder during a film or video production.

For more information on genlocking a device-controllable audio deck, see Volume I, Chapter 15, "Connecting Professional and Non-DV Equipment."

Report dropped frames during playback: If you select this option, a message appears if any frames are dropped during playback from the Viewer, Canvas, and Timeline, or when outputting using Edit to Tape or Print to Video. When Final Cut Pro drops frames, it is usually because there is a hardware or setup problem, such as scratch disks that are too slow compared to the media data rate. For information on what you can do if Final Cut Pro reports dropped frames, see “Problems During Playback” on page 402.
Abort ETT/PTV on dropped frames: If this option is selected, a message appears if any frames are dropped during playback from the Viewer, Canvas, and Timeline when outputting using Edit to Tape or Print to Video. Playback drops are almost always caused by a hardware setup problem. For information on what you can do if Final Cut Pro reports dropped frames, see "Problems During Playback" on page 402.
Abort capture on dropped frames: When this option is selected, capture stops immediately when a dropped frame is detected. All media captured before the dropped frame has frame-accurate timecode and is preserved. The resulting media file is saved and a clip for that media file is placed in the Browser.
On timecode break: This pop-up menu gives you several ways to avoid capturing media with timecode breaks.
Make New Clip: With this choice, Final Cut Pro creates a new media file (and connected clip) each time a timecode break is encountered. This is a good setting if you are batch capturing an entire tape at once.
Abort Capture: If this option is selected, capture is stopped whenever a timecode break is detected. All media captured before the timecode break has frame-accurate timecode and is preserved. The resulting media file is saved and a clip for that media file is placed in the Browser.
Warn After Capture: If this option is selected, only one media file is captured, even if there are timecode breaks. Timecode breaks are reported after capture, so you can be aware that the media file may not contain trustworthy timecode. It is unwise to use media files with timecode breaks unless you have no choice, because you can't accurately recapture the media files.

For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 19, "Capturing Your Footage to Disk."

- Browser Text Size: This pop-up menu allows you to choose how small or large text appears in the Browser and Timeline. You can also adjust these settings by choosing View > Text Size or control-clicking in the Browser and choosing Text Size from the shortcut menu.

- Auto Render: The Auto Render option allows you to take advantage of idle computer time when you're not editing—such as during a coffee break or lunch—to render open sequences in the Timeline.

For more information, Volume III, Chapter 24, "Rendering."

The preferences in this tab affect editing behaviors in Final Cut Pro.

- Still/Freeze Duration: This value determines the duration for imported graphics and freeze frames you create in Final Cut Pro (when you choose Modify > Make Freeze Frame in the Canvas or Viewer). The default duration is 10 seconds. In and Out points are set around the middle of a clip, providing equal handles for trimming on either side of the clip.

You can increase the length of a Freeze Frame by opening it in the Viewer and entering a higher value in the Timecode Duration field.

Note: In Final Cut Pro, duration is the amount of time between a clip's In and Out points, while length refers to the time between Media Start and End. The default length of a still image or freeze frame clip is 2 minutes, while its duration is determined by the still/freeze frame duration. However, if you set the still/freeze duration to be greater than 2 minutes, new still image or freeze frames are created at this length without handles.

One reason you may want to change this value is if you're going to import an image sequence. For example, if you set the Still/Freeze Duration to 00:00:00:01 (one frame), you can import an entire folder of numbered images and then place them in a sequence.

Preview Pre-roll: This value is used by the Play Around Current control and the Trim Edit window to determine how much time before the playhead should be played.
Preview Post-roll: This value is used by the Play Around Current control and the Trim Edit window to determine how much time after the playhead should be played.
For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 6, "Viewer Basics." The setting is also applicable in the Trim Edit window; see Volume II, Chapter 20, "Trimming Clips Using the Trim Edit Window."

- Handle Size: This preference adds frames to the beginning and end of the clip regions which are used for comparison, to determine whether or not to display duplicate frames indicators. This can be used to take into account the extra frames that must be used for physically cutting and cementing pieces of negative that are necessary for film match-back, to prevent you from accidentally including frames that can't really be used. By default, this is set to 0.

In the following example, the sequence contains ten duplicate frames. Below, the handle size setting is set to zero frames, so no additional frames are shown.

Timeline: Sequence 1 in Dining Sequence 1 RT 01:00:00:00 Clip A Clip A V2 v1 V1 a1 A1 a2 A2 These ten frames are used twice, so they are shown as duplicate frames.

When the handle size setting is set to ten frames, five additional frames on either side of the duplicate frames are displayed.

Ten duplicate frames. Sequence 1 RT 01:00:00:00 01:00:00:12 01:00:01:00 01:00:01:12 Clip A Clip A a1 A1 a2 A2 Five additional frames beyond the duplicate frames are shown here... ...and here.

- Threshold: This allows you to set a minimum number of frames that must be duplicated before a duplicate frame's indicator will appear. By default, this is set to 0 so that all instances of duplicated frames are indicated. You can set it as high as 99 frames (3 to 4 seconds, depending on the frame rate), in which case there would have to be a minimum of 99 consecutive duplicated frames before a duplicate frames indicator would appear. For more information on duplicate frames indicators, see "Keep Track of Duplicate Frames" on page 140 and Volume II, Chapter 21, "Adding Transitions."

The example below shows a sequence that contains two instances of clip A, and ten of the frames from Clip A are used twice.

Dynamic Trimming: Select Dynamic Trimming to allow edit points in the Trim Edit window to automatically follow the position of the playhead. For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 9, "Timeline Basics." The setting is also applicable for trimming; see Volume II, Chapter 19, "Learning About Trimming Clips."
Trim with Sequence Audio: When this option is selected, you hear all sequence audio tracks while using the JKL keys on either side of the Trim Edit window.
Trim with Edit Selection Audio (Mute Others): When this option is selected, all audio tracks except the ones currently selected in the Timeline are muted when you use the JKL keys to play either side of the Trim Edit window.
Multi-Frame Trim Size: This value determines how many frames are trimmed when using the Trim Back and Trim Forward buttons in the Trim Edit window or the Timeline in the equivalent shortcut keys. The maximum number of frames allowed is 99. For more information, see Volume II, Chapter 20, "Trimming Clips Using the Trim Edit Window."

- Warn if visibility change deletes render file: Making an entire track invisible automatically deletes any render files associated with that track. Make sure you select this option to see a warning before this occurs.

Note: As an alternative to hiding a track and losing its render files, you can make individual items invisible, which preserves these render files. To find out how to disable individual clip items, see Volume III, Chapter 18, "Compositing and Layering."

- Record Audio Keyframes: When this option is selected, keyframes are recorded whenever audio level or panning controls are adjusted. The pop-up menu defines how detailed keyframe automation is when recorded using the Audio Mixer or audio filter controls.

Note: The Record Audio Keyframes button also controls this option. By default, this button appears in the button bar of the Audio Mixer (Tool Bench) window.

You can choose the resolution of keyframe recording (in other words, how often audio level and panning keyframes are added to a clip while you adjust a fader in the Audio Mixer). For more information about recording audio keyframes, see Volume III, Chapter 6, "Using the Audio Mixer."

All: Records the maximum number of keyframes possible while you move a channel strip's fader or panning slider. The end result is a precise re-creation of the levels you set using the Audio Mixer. The drawback to this option is that you might end up with an extremely dense cluster of keyframes in the audio level overlays of the affected clips that can be difficult to edit later.
Reduced: Reduces the number of recorded keyframes that are created when you move a channel strip's fader or panning slider. The resulting level or panning overlay in the Timeline or Viewer is an accurate reproduction of the levels you set, but is easier to edit using the Selection or Pen tool.
Peaks Only: Records only a minimum number of keyframes necessary to approximate the levels you recorded when moving a channel strip's fader or panning slider. Keyframes recorded using the Peaks Only option reflect only the highest and lowest levels that were recorded. This is primarily useful when you want to record a minimum number of keyframes to edit later in the Timeline or Viewer.
Pen tools can edit locked item overlays: If this option is selected, you can modify audio level and video opacity keyframes in clips on locked tracks in the Timeline.

This tab allows you to customize the label name associated with the label colors in Final Cut Pro. These preferences affect any project you open; they are not saved on a per project basis. For example, if you change the name associated with the orange label to "Landscape shots", any clip assigned to the orange label has this label name, regardless of what project the clip is in. If you want to label a clip with a name that won't change, you can use the clip's Label 2 property instead. For more information about working with labels, see Volume II, Chapter 1, "Organizing Footage in the Browser."

This tab is used to set default options for new sequences. This is where you set the default number of video and audio tracks for new sequences. Once a sequence is created, you can change display options by choosing Sequence > Settings or by using the Timeline display controls in the lower left of the Timeline. For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 9, "Timeline Basics."

This tab is used to set default render options for new sequences. You can choose the default frame rate and resolution settings used when you render items in new sequences, and decide what kinds of effects are displayed (such as filters and speed settings). Once a sequence is created, you can change its render control options by choosing Sequence > Settings and clicking the Render Control tab. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 24, "Rendering."

This tab is used to choose the default audio output preset for new sequences. An audio output preset defines the number of dual mono or stereo pairs of audio outputs for your sequence. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 4, "Audio Levels, Meters, and Output Channels."

If you are having trouble with Final Cut Pro, one common troubleshooting technique is to quit the application, delete the preferences file, and then relaunch. By default, preferences are stored in the following location:

[Home]/Library/Preferences/Final Cut Pro User Data/Final Cut Pro N Preferences.fcset where N is the version number of the application.

If you want to bring your preferences to another editing system, you can copy or send this preferences file to the same location on the new system.

Settings apply to capture, sequence, rendering, real time, output, hardware, and format configurations in Final Cut Pro. Once you set up for a particular video format and device, these settings are adjusted relatively infrequently. There are several places you can modify settings in Final Cut Pro:

System Settings: The System Settings window covers a wide variety of settings, mainly related to the computer setup you are using and how Final Cut Pro interacts with it. System settings affect the fundamental components of your Final Cut Pro system, such as scratch disk assignment, memory usage, and real-time playback options via software or third-party hardware. For more information, continue reading this section.
Audio/Video Settings and Easy Setups: For more information, see Chapter 23, "Audio/Video Settings and Easy Setups," on page 301.
Sequence Settings: For more information, see Chapter 26, "Sequence Settings and Presets," on page 335 and Volume I, Chapter 9, "Timeline Basics."

- Choose Final Cut Pro > System Settings.

The System Settings window is divided into several tabs:

Scratch Disks Tab (p. 294)
• Search Folders Tab (p. 295)
• Memory & Cache Tab (p. 296)
Playback Control Tab (p. 297)
• External Editors Tab (p. 298)
• Effect Handling Tab (p. 300)

You use the Scratch Disks tab to choose where you want to capture video and audio media files, and where to store the render, cache, and Autosave files that Final Cut Pro creates. You can also specify other settings related to the size of captured and exported files and the minimum space allowed on scratch disks. You can specify a maximum of 12 scratch disks.

For more information about scratch disks, see Volume I, Chapter 13, "Connecting DV Video Equipment and Specifying Initial Settings."

When reconnecting clips to media files, Final Cut Pro uses the folders assigned in this tab to search for media. The folders listed here appear in the Search Folders pop-up menu in the Reconnect Files dialog, allowing you to limit your media search to specific media drives and folders. This is helpful when you have a large number of disks that contain footage for multiple projects, or when you are using a SAN (storage area network).

Tip: Searching a SAN or subdirectories of an HFS+ volume can be more time-consuming than searching an entire HFS+ volume, so you can speed up the search processes performed when reconnecting media by limiting which folders Final Cut Pro searches on your SAN.

System Settings Scratch Disks Search Folders Memory & Cache Playback Control External Editors Effect Handling Clear Set... Macintosh HD:Users:Shared:Media:DV_NTSC Clear Set... Macintosh HD:Users:Shared:Media Clear Set... Cancel OK

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > System Settings, then click the Search Folders tab.
2 Do one of the following:

Click the last Set button to add a new search folder.
Click Set next to an existing search folder to replace it.

The Choose a Folder dialog appears.

3 Navigate to the search folder you want to use in the Reconnect Files dialog, then click Choose.
4 Click OK.

The current list of search folders appears in the Search Folders pop-up menu in the Reconnect Files dialog.

For more information, see Chapter 6, "Reconnecting Clips and Offline Media," on page 63.

To remove a search folder:

- Click Clear next to the search folder you want to remove from the list.

When a search folder is moved or deleted, Final Cut Pro displays the message "Unknown' is offline." When a mounted volume is missing, Final Cut Pro displays the message "Volume name' is offline."

The settings in this tab affect memory usage in Final Cut Pro.

System Settings Scratch Disks Search Folders Memory & Cache Playback Control External Editors Effect Handling Memory Usage Application 100 % (2560MB) Still Cache 10 % (241MB) Thumbnail Cache Disk: 8192 K RAM: 512 K Cancel OK

Use these fields to decide how much of the RAM available in your computer to use when running Final Cut Pro. Your computer's available RAM is defined as the amount of RAM not used by Mac OS X and other currently running applications. By limiting the amount of RAM Final Cut Pro uses, you can maintain the performance of Final Cut Pro by preventing Mac OS X from using virtual memory unnecessarily. This is especially important when multiple applications are open at the same time.

- Application: This specifies what percentage of available RAM Final Cut Pro should use. The total amount of allocated RAM appears to the right. The minimum amount of RAM you can allocate to Final Cut Pro is 125 MB. If the amount of available RAM is lower than 125 MB, this slider is dimmed.

- Still Cache: This specifies the amount of RAM used to hold still images for real-time playback. The still cache that is allocated is a percentage of the excess RAM allocated to Final Cut Pro, so adjusting the Application slider also adjusts the amount of RAM available to the still cache. The more RAM allocated to the still cache, the more still frames can be played back in real time in the currently selected sequence. If another sequence is opened, the contents of the still cache are replaced with stills from the new sequence. If there is no excess RAM available, this slider is dimmed.

The thumbnail cache stores the clip thumbnails displayed in the Timeline and the Browser. When you choose to display thumbnails, the thumbnail cache improves the responsiveness of the Timeline and Browser. There are two settings you can modify:

Disk
RAM

Enter numbers in these fields to specify the sizes of the thumbnail caches. You may want to have large thumbnail caches if you're working with a large number of clips and want to display thumbnails or if you are using the Browser's large icon view.

If you often scrub thumbnails in the Browser's large icon view, you can optimize their playback quality by increasing the thumbnail RAM cache. To set a location for the thumbnail cache, see Volume I, Chapter 13, "Connecting DV Video Equipment and Specifying Initial Settings."

Note: The thumbnail RAM cache uses part of the RAM available to other parts of Final Cut Pro, so it shouldn't be made too large.

Playback Control settings affect all sequences and projects currently open. These settings also appear in the Real-Time Effects pop-up menu in the Timeline. Using these settings, you can balance visual playback quality and maximize the available effects that can be played back in real time. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 23, "Using RT Extreme."

Final Cut Pro allows you to directly open clips' media files in other applications. This tab allows you to assign media file types, such as still images or audio, to external applications for editing and processing outside Final Cut Pro.

- Control-click a clip in the Browser or Canvas, then choose Open in Editor from the shortcut menu.

- Select a clip in the Browser or Timeline, then choose View > Clip in Editor.

Final Cut Pro automatically opens the application associated with the type of media file that you defined in the External Editors tab of the System Settings window.

When you return to Final Cut Pro, the clip is automatically reconnected to the updated media file.

In some cases, a clip's Creator property determines what application will open it, such as LiveType or Motion clips. However, for generic media types such as audio and video, you can assign any application you want. For example, you could set Peak DV as your audio file editor so you could quickly make permanent changes directly to the source audio files on disk (such as using a noise reduction filter available in that application to clean up a particularly noisy clip). In this way you could apply effects or special sound-sweetening filters before continuing work on your edit.

Note: If appears next to an entry in the list, that type of clip is opened in the same application that would open if you double-clicked the corresponding media file in the Finder. To override the Finder default, you must specify an application to open for each type of media clip.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > System Settings, then click the External Editors tab.
2 Click Set next to the clip type for which you want to assign an external editor.
3 In the Open dialog that appears, navigate to the location of the application you want to use, then click Open.

The pathname appears next to the file type in the External Editors tab.

System Settings Scratch Disks Search Folders Memory & Cache Playback Control External Editors Effect Handling Still Image Files Clear Set... Macintosh HD:Applications:Adobe Photoshop CS.app Video Files Clear Set... Macintosh HD:Applications:QuickTime Player.app Audio Files Clear Set... The path is shown for the application set to open audio files.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > System Settings, then click the External Editors tab.
2 Click Clear next to the clip type from which you want to remove an external editor. The path changes to .

The Effect Handling tab allows you to assign real-time effects processing to third-party video effects accelerator card or to Final Cut Pro (native software processing). Each codec that appears here can be assigned to a different video effects accelerator card or to Final Cut Pro. For more details, see Volume III, Chapter 23, "Using RT Extreme."

Audio/Video settings allow you to customize your Final Cut Pro system to work with particular video formats and equipment. You can also choose Easy Setups to quickly set up your system with a single click.

This chapter covers the following:

• The Audio/Video Settings Window (p. 301)
- Changing Your Easy Setup and Presets (p. 303)

The Audio/Video Settings window establishes the video format you are working with. You use this window to configure your editing system by choosing a video and audio format for capturing and editing, remote device control settings, and which video and audio devices you use for output and external monitoring.

To open the Audio/Video Settings window:

- Choose Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings.

You usually only need to change Audio/Video settings when you install a new video interface, connect a new VTR, or change the format you are capturing and editing. For example, if you connect a PAL DV camcorder for capture and output, Final Cut Pro needs to be set up with the appropriate capture and sequence settings such as the horizontal and vertical dimensions of the video frame (720 x 576), the video and audio devices you are using to capture from, the video codec (DV - PAL), and so on. Since it can be time consuming to change each individual setting in the Audio/Video Settings window, Final Cut Pro comes with several kinds of presets that are preconfigured to work with common video formats and devices.

There are several kinds of presets, each accessible from the corresponding tab in the Audio/Video settings window:

Capture Presets: These determine the dimensions, frame rate, codec, and interfaces used when capturing media files to disk. This group of settings is used during capture and usually matches the format of your source tapes. Different capture presets allow you to quickly set up Final Cut Pro to capture a wide range of video formats. For details, see Chapter 24, "Capture Settings and Presets," on page 315.
Device Control Presets: These settings establish how a camcorder, VTR, or other video or audio device communicates with Final Cut Pro via remote control protocols and timecode. You choose a device control preset whenever you connect a video or audio device for logging, capturing, or output. For more information, see Chapter 25, "Device Control Settings and Presets," on page 323.
Sequence Presets: These determine the video and audio formats of a sequence, such as image dimensions, frame rate, codec, color space, sampling rate, and bit depth. Unlike a capture preset, which determines the format of captured (incoming) media files, a sequence preset determines the format used during editing, which affects real-time performance and your output format. New sequences automatically use the settings specified in the currently selected sequence preset, but you can change a sequence's settings after it has been created by choosing Sequence > Settings.

Important: When your media files' settings and sequence settings don't match, you usually see a red render bar in the Timeline, indicating that all the media needs to be converted to the sequence settings before real-time playback or output. In most cases, you'll want to use matching capture and sequence presets so Final Cut Pro doesn't need to render media files just to play back.

For more information, see Chapter 26, "Sequence Settings and Presets," on page 335.

- A/V Devices: This tab allows you to choose which video and audio interfaces you use for external monitoring during editing and for output to tape. These settings determine if and how you monitor external video and audio.

Note: Unlike the other tabs, the A/V Devices tab does not have a list of presets to choose from. However, they are included with every Easy Setup.

For details, see Volume I, Chapter 16, "External Video Monitoring."

The Summary tab in the Audio/Video Settings window shows the currently selected capture, sequence, and device control presets, as well as settings in the A/V Devices tab.

You can check this tab to see how your editing system is currently set up, make quick changes to your editing system configuration by selecting a different preset, or create an Easy Setup containing a custom combination of presets. For more information about Easy Setups, see "Creating Custom Easy Setups" on page 309.

An Easy Setup contains a capture, sequence, and device control preset and external video and audio settings from the A/V Devices tab. You can quickly set up your editing system to work with different video formats by choosing an Easy Setup. This is faster than choosing capture, device control, and sequence presets individually.

Final Cut Pro comes with Easy Setups for the most commonly used video formats and devices, such as DV, uncompressed standard definition video, DVCPRO HD, and offline (low-resolution) editing. If your editing configuration doesn't match any of the current Easy Setups or presets, you can always create your own Easy Setup. If you buy a third-party video interface, Easy Setups that support the interface are often included.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > Easy Setup.
2 Select the Show All option to see a complete list of all currently installed Easy Setups. If this option is deselected, an abbreviated list of commonly used Easy Setups is shown.

Note: Easy Setups installed in the proper folders on local network computers also appear in this list. In this way, two or more Final Cut Pro editing systems can share Easy Setups over a network.

3 Choose an Easy Setup from the Setup For pop-up menu, then click Setup.

The corresponding capture, sequence, and device control presets are loaded, as well as A/V devices settings. If your VTR is not currently connected, you may see a warning because Final Cut Pro does not detect the external video or audio device that the A/V device settings expect. If you see this warning, make sure your device is connected and turned on, then click Check Again. If you want to troubleshoot the connection to the device later, you can ignore the warning by clicking Continue. For more information about Easy Setups, see “Changing Your Easy Setup and Presets” on page 303.

You can easily set up your Final Cut Pro editing system by choosing an Easy Setup that matches your video format and equipment. However, if none of the predefined Easy Setups matches your capture, editing, or output scenario, you have several options:

Change individual presets or the external A/V devices settings: You can choose presets and an external video setting that work for your media and project. The newly selected presets or external video and audio settings applies to all new projects and sequences.
Edit an existing preset: Final Cut Pro comes with predefined presets, some of which are locked and cannot be modified. However, you can create a new preset by duplicating an existing one and editing it. For more information, see “Creating a New Preset” on page 307.
Create a custom Easy Setup: If you regularly use a specific set of presets and external A/V device settings that aren't contained in one of the predefined Easy Setups, you can create your own Easy Setup. For information, see "Creating Custom Easy Setups" on page 309.

If a preset doesn't suit your needs, you can choose another one in the Summary tab of the Audio/Video Settings window. The preset you choose then applies to all new projects and sequences. For example, if you're currently using the DV-NTSC Easy Setup, the following presets are used:

• Sequence Preset: DV NTSC 48 kHz
• Capture Preset: DV NTSC 48 kHz
• Device Control Preset: FireWire NTSC
- Playback Output Video: Apple FireWire NTSC (720 x 480)
- Playback Output Audio: FireWire DV

But suppose you switch to a video deck that doesn't support remote device control. In this case, you need to change the device control preset to Non-Controllable Device; the two other presets and the external video setting remain as is.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings.
2 In the Summary tab, choose a preset from the appropriate pop-up menu, then click OK.
If you're unsure which preset to choose, you can view a preset's settings. For more information, see the next section, "Viewing Settings in a Preset" on page 306.

If none of the existing presets matches your needs, you can create a custom preset. For more information, see "Creating a New Preset" on page 307.

When you choose a different preset, the current Easy Setup changes to Custom Setup in the Setup For pop-up menu. However, if you happen to select presets and an external video setting that match that of another Easy Setup, Final Cut Pro shows that you have that Easy Setup selected.

Note: The Final Cut Pro preferences file stores which presets are currently selected. If your preferences file is deleted, you need to reconfigure your system by choosing an Easy Setup or a custom combination of presets.

Below each pop-up menu in the Summary tab of the Audio/Video Settings window, there is a brief overview of what each preset is used for. If you're not sure which preset to choose, you can view detailed information in the individual preset tabs.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings, then click the appropriate preset tab.
2 Click a preset to see a summary of its settings.

If you click in the far left column, you may change the current preset.

Note: The presets you see may differ from those shown here.

A locked icon to the right of a preset indicates that it cannot be edited or deleted. These are presets that came with Final Cut Pro.

If none of the existing presets is exactly what you need or want, you can create a new one by duplicating an existing preset and modifying the duplicated preset's settings.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings.
2 Click the tab for the type of preset you want to create.
3 Click a preset you want to use as starting point for creating a new preset, then click Duplicate.

4 In the Preset Editor window, enter a name and description for the new preset, select the settings you need, then click OK.

Sequence Preset Editor Name: Dining Project Preset Description: Use this preset when editing with DV NTSC material with audio set to 44.1 kHz. The information you enter here becomes the summary.

For detailed information about settings and options for a particular kind of preset, see one of the following:

"About Sequence Settings and Presets" on page 336
"About Capture Preset Settings" on page 315
"About Device Control Presets" on page 323

The newly created preset becomes the currently selected preset and appears in the appropriate preset pop-up menu in the Summary tab of the Audio/Video Settings window.

Audio/Video Settings Summary Sequence Presets Capture Presets Device Control Presets A/V Devices Sequence Preset: Dining Project Preset Use this preset when editing with DV NTSC material with audio set to 44.1 kHz. The new preset appears in the pop-up menu.

You can edit any preset that is not locked.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings, then click the tab for the type of preset you want to edit.
2 Click the preset you want to modify, then click Edit.

If the preset is locked, a message appears saying a copy will be made for editing.

3 In the Preset Editor window, modify settings as needed, then click OK.

For detailed information about settings and options for a particular kind of preset, see one of the following:

"About Sequence Settings and Presets" on page 336
"About Capture Preset Settings" on page 315
"About Device Control Presets" on page 323

You may decide to delete a preset that you've created. Before you delete it, make sure you aren't using it in current projects and won't need it for future projects.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings.
2 Click the appropriate preset tab.
3 Select the preset you want to delete, then click Delete.

If the preset has a checkmark next to it designating it as the current preset, you cannot delete it. You need to choose another preset as the current preset. To do this, click the left column next to the preset you want to make the current one.
If a preset has a locked icon in the right column, it is locked and cannot be deleted.

If you use a particular group of presets regularly, you can create and save your own Easy Setup. Whenever you need those settings, you can load your Easy Setup instead of manually selecting specific settings or choosing particular presets.

Note: By default, the Easy Setup files you create are stored in the following location: /Library/Application Support/Final Cut Pro System Support/Custom Settings

The presets stored in the Easy Setups in this folder are displayed as unlocked items in each preset tab in the Audio/Video Settings window.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings.
2 In the Summary tab, choose the desired presets.

For more information, see "Choosing Individual Presets" on page 305. If you want to create a custom preset, see "Creating a New Preset" on page 307.

3 Choose video and audio playback settings.

For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 16, "External Video Monitoring."

4 Click Create Easy Setup.
5 If you want Final Cut Pro to check for device control every time you start the application, click the checkbox labeled "Enable verification of device control in first start dialog."
6 Enter a name and description for your new Easy Setup, then click Create.
7 Enter a filename and location if you don't want to use the defaults.

Save Save As: Dining setup.fcpre Where: Custom Settings Cancel Save

Note: By default, the Easy Setup files you create are stored in the following location: /Library/Application Support/Final Cut Pro System Support/Custom Settings

8 Click Save.

Your new Easy Setup is automatically selected and appears in the Setup For pop-up menu.

Easy Setups that come with Final Cut Pro are located within the application itself, as well as a specific folder on your hard disk:

/Library/Application Support/Final Cut Pro System Support/Custom Settings

Easy Setups stored within the application itself are locked, so you cannot modify or delete them.

Important: If you decide to make an Easy Setup unavailable, make sure you aren't using it in any current projects and won't need it for future projects. Once you remove or delete an Easy Setup, sequences that use it will not play properly.

To move an Easy Setup to another Final Cut Pro editing system:

- Copy the Easy Setup file from its stored location on your hard disk to another disk or storage medium.

1 Quit Final Cut Pro.

2 Drag the Final Cut Pro preferences file to the Trash.

This file is in the following location: [Home]/Library/Preferences/Final Cut Pro User Data

3 Locate the custom Easy Setup file you want to delete.

Files are located by default at: /Library/Application Support/Final Cut Pro System Support/Custom Settings

4 Drag the Easy Setup file to the Trash.

1 Quit Final Cut Pro.

2 Drag the desired Easy Setup file out of the following folder: /Library/Application Support/Final Cut Pro System Support/Custom Settings You can leave this file on your hard disk for future use or you can drag it to the Trash.

3 Drag the Final Cut Pro Preferences file to the Trash.

This file is located in the following path: [Home]/Library/Preferences/Final Cut Pro User Data

If you don't delete this preferences file, the Easy Setup will still appear in the Easy Setup window and the Choose Setup window (for an initial setup).

4 Launch Final Cut Pro.

5 Choose your initial setup.

The Easy Setup you made available no longer appears in the list.

For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 13, "Connecting DV Video Equipment and Specifying Initial Settings."

■ Reinstall the software.

Tip: Easy Setups stored on any computers in your network are available in your local Final Cut Pro application. This makes it easy for a single editing system to share its Easy Setups with all other Final Cut Pro editing systems on the network.

The following example shows how to create a custom Easy Setup for capturing DV NTSC video from a Betacam SP deck using a USB-to-serial adapter for serial device control and a DV converter box. You can use the existing sequence and capture presets and external video setting, but you need to create a new device control preset.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings.
2 In the Summary tab, choose DV NTSC 48kHz from the Sequence Preset pop-up menu.
3 Choose DV NTSC 48kHz from the Capture Preset pop-up menu.
4 Choose Apple FireWire NTSC (720 x 480) from the Video Playback pop-up menu.
5 Click the Device Control Presets tab to create a new preset for serial device control.

a Click Duplicate to create a new preset using the current device control preset.
b In the Device Control Preset Editor, change the name to "Betacam SP Serial Device Control."
c Change the description to "Use this preset when controlling your Betacam SP deck using RS-422 serial device control."

Device Control Preset Editor Name: Beta SP Serial Device Control Description: Use this preset when controlling your Betacam SP deck using RS-422 serial device control. Protocol: Sony RS-422 Audio Mapping: 4 Channels Time Source: LTC + VITC

d Choose Sony RS-422 from the Protocol pop-up menu.
e In the Audio Mapping pop-up menu, choose the number of audio channels your deck accepts when recording.
f Choose LTC+VITC from the Time Source pop-up menu.
g Click OK.

Eventually, you'll need to calibrate the timecode offset for your hardware setup and enter it in this custom device control preset to ensure frame-accurate video capture. For more information, see "Calibrating Timecode Capture With Serial Device Control" on page 332.

6 Click the Summary tab.

The Device Control Preset pop-up menu is now set to the newly created preset, Betacam SP Serial Device Control.

Device Control Preset: Betacam SP Serial Device Control Use this preset when controlling a Betacam SP deck with RS-422 serial device control.

7 Click Create Easy Setup.
8 Enter a name and description for your new Easy Setup, then click Create.

Easy Setup Name: Betacam SP Setup Description: Use this preset when controlling a Betacam SP deck with RS-422 serial device control. Enable verification of device control in first start dialog Cancel Create...

9 Enter a filename and location if you don't want to use the defaults, then click Save.

Final Cut Pro places several preset files on your hard disk during installation. If you remove any of these presets from their original location, you can use them again by simply placing them back in the correct folder. If you deleted these presets, you can reinstall them by reinstalling the Final Cut Pro software from the Final Cut Pro installer disc. Third-party hardware and software manufacturers may also create presets for you to use with Final Cut Pro.

To install third-party preset files or use preset files that you've moved:

- Drag the desired preset files to the following folder:

/Library/Application Support/Final Cut Pro System Support/Custom Settings

The next time you launch Final Cut Pro, the presets will be available in the Audio/Video Settings window.

Each time Final Cut Pro is opened, it searches any computers on your local area network for Easy Setups and plug-ins. If any Easy Setups are found, they appear in the Setup For pop-up menu in the Easy Setup dialog.

This chapter covers the following:

About Capture Preset Settings (p. 315)
Creating a Preset to Capture Audio Only (p. 321)

Important: If you're using a third-party video interface, see the documentation that came with the interface for information on how to set up an appropriate capture preset. Incorrect capture settings can result in dropped frames and other problems.

Capture settings include frame size, aspect ratio, an anamorphic option, and QuickTime video and audio settings. Final Cut Pro captures media to QuickTime media files. The following section describes the settings available in the Capture Preset Editor.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings, then click the Capture Presets tab.
2 Click the preset you want to modify, then click Edit.

Name: The name of the capture preset appears in the Audio/Video Settings window in two places: the Capture Preset pop-up menu in the Summary tab, and the list of presets in the Capture Presets tab.
Description: This is a brief description, or summary, of what the preset is to be used for.
Frame Size: These are the horizontal and vertical pixel dimensions of the video frame you are capturing. You can choose a frame size from the Aspect Ratio pop-up menu. To use a different frame size, choose Custom, then enter frame size in the Width and Height fields.
Anamorphic: Select this option if you're capturing anamorphic 16:9 media from a 4:3 video format.
Capture Card Supports Simultaneous Play Through and Capture: Select this option if your video interface card can display video on an external video monitor while the Log and Capture window is open for video capture. This allows you to externally monitor your video while it is being captured, judging its quality after it has gone through the capture card. For more information, see the documentation that came with your card.

- Remove Advanced Pulldown and/or Duplicate Frames During Capture From FireWire Sources: Some camcorders, such as the Panasonic DVX100 or Varicam, can record alternate frame rates within a standard frame rate. For example, the DVX100 can record 23.98 fps video within 29.97 fps by adding an advanced 2:3:3:2 pulldown. The Varicam can record multiple frame rates, such as 23.98 fps (720p24) by adding redundant frames within a 59.94 fps (720p60) video signal. When this option is selected, Final Cut Pro removes the redundant fields or frames during capture. If this option is not selected, all the redundant frames are captured. You can remove redundant frames later by choosing Tools > Remove Advanced Pulldown.

For more information about working with multiple frame rate video formats in Final Cut Pro, see Working With High Definition and Broadcast Formats (choose HD and Broadcast Formats from the Help menu.)

- High-Quality Video Play Through: Select this option to display DV-format video at higher quality in the Log and Capture window.

Final Cut Pro uses the built-in QuickTime architecture of Mac OS X to compress incoming video during capture.

QuickTime Video Settings Digitizer: DV Video Input: DCR-TRV17 Compressor: DV/DVCPRO - NTSC Quality: 100 % FPS: 29.97 Limit Data Rate 0 K Advanced...

Choose from the following options:

Digitizer: Choose the video interface you want to use for capture. If you're using FireWire but don't have a FireWire device attached, this is set to [Missing] DV Video.
Input: Choose the video input you want to use on the video interface. Many third-party interfaces have multiple video inputs, including analog composite, S-Video, component YUV (also called Y'C_B C_R), or SDI. FireWire DV video has only one option, so when FireWire is selected as the digitizer, the input pop-up menu is disabled.
Compressor: Choose one of the codecs that comes from the manufacturer of your video interface. If you're using FireWire, choose a DV codec that corresponds to the international standard (NTSC or PAL) or HD standard of your DV tape.
Quality: Enter a percentage or adjust the slider to set the image quality of the codec according to the documentation that came with your video interface. Lesser image quality yields lower data rates, while higher image quality yields higher data rates. (The quality levels will vary depending on the selected codec.) Many codecs, such as the DV codecs, are designed to work at the highest quality setting. Unless you have a good reason, it's best to leave this slider in its default location.

- FPS (Frames per second): Choose a value to specify the number of frames captured per second. For a list of common frame rates, see Appendix A, "Video Formats," on page 349.

Note: The capture preset frame rate should match both the frame rate of your source tapes and the editing timebase you plan to use in your edited sequences. One exception to this rule is when capturing 25 fps video for use in a 24 fps sequence. This is a common film workflow used in Europe. For more information, see the documentation that came with Cinema Tools.

- Limit Data Rate: If you're using an analog-to-digital video interface to capture, click to select this option, then enter a numerical value in the field to define the data rate for captured clips in kilobytes (KB) per second. You may want to look at capture presets included with your video interface to get an idea of how this value is set.

The data rate you specify determines the quality of your video. Here are several sample data rates:

Offline M-JPEG: 1 MB/sec.
• DV-format video: 3.6 MB/sec.
• Medium quality M-JPEG: 6 MB/sec.
• High quality 2:1 M-JPEG: 12 MB/sec.

The maximum data rate depends on the maximum throughput of your video interface as well as the maximum sustained transfer speed of your hard disk. For more information, see the documentation that came with your video interface or hard disk.

Note: DV has a fixed data rate and it is captured digitally via FireWire, so this option doesn't apply to DV clips.

- Advanced: Click this button to set additional QuickTime video settings, if necessary for your video hardware. For detailed information, see "QuickTime Audio Settings for Capture Presets" on page 320.

If you're not sure of the maximum data rate possible for your hard disk and video interface, capture a video clip from tape with a data rate of 3 MB/sec.

If no dropped frames are reported, increase the data rate to 4 MB/sec., then recapture the clip.
If no dropped frames are reported, recapture the same clip, raising the data rate by 1 MB/sec. each time, until the clip you capture reports dropped frames.

When a message appears saying frames were dropped, you've reached the maximum data rate for your equipment.

The QuickTime Video Settings in the Capture Preset Editor and Sequence Preset Editor are a subset of all the possible QuickTime Video settings. In most cases, these settings should be sufficient. However, some video interfaces and codecs have specific video settings not shown in one of the Preset Editor windows. Clicking on the Advanced button gives you complete access to all QuickTime video options for Source (input) and Compression settings.

Note: Some of these settings, such as codec and quality, are identical to the settings found in the Capture and Sequence Preset Editor windows. For example, if you choose DV/DVCPRO - NTSC from the Compressor pop-up menu, the same codec is chosen when you click the Advanced tab.

The settings available in the Compression tab depend on the codec chosen from the Compressor pop-up menu.

Click Compression. Video Adjustments Compression Source Compression type: DVCPRO HD 720p60 Motion Frames per second: 23.98 Key frame every frames Limit data rate to KBytes/sec Compressor Quality Least Low Medium High Best Preview: Waveform Capture from: DCR-TRV17 Compress with: DVCPRO HD 720p60 Cancel OK

Compression type: This pop-up menu has the same codec choices as the Compressor pop-up menu in the QuickTime Video Settings section of the Preset Editor window.
Frames per second: Choose a value to specify the number of frames captured per second. This value is the same as the FPS field in the QuickTime Video Settings section of the Preset Editor window.
Key frame every N frames: Even though QuickTime supports temporal compression using keyframes and in-between frames, you should not select this option when capturing.

- Limit data rate to N KBytes/sec.: Some codecs allow you to enter a target data rate for your compressed QuickTime file. The codec may use a combination of spatial (per frame) and temporal (across multiple frames) compression to try to reach your target data rate. Be aware of your frame size and frame rate so you don't set an impossible goal and get disappointing quality in the visual image. This is identical to the Limit Data Rate field in the QuickTime Video Settings section of the Preset Editor window.

Depth: This option is not available for all codecs. Choose a color bit depth for captured video. Third-party codecs may have several options. For more information, see the documentation that came with your video interface.
Quality: This is identical to the quality slider in the QuickTime Video Settings section of the Preset Editor window. Adjust the slider to determine the image quality for your video. Lesser image quality yields lower data rates, while higher image quality yields higher data rates.

Note: For DV, make sure this slider is set to Best.

- Options: This button is not available for all codecs. When available, you can click this button to make further codec adjustments.

There may be additional settings available for specific codecs.

The settings available in the Source tab depend on the video interface connected to your computer. You can choose from a list of available inputs on video interfaces connected to your computer.

Final Cut Pro uses the built-in QuickTime architecture of Mac OS X to capture incoming audio.

QuickTime Audio Settings Device: DV Audio Input: First 2 channels Format: 48.000 kHz 16-bit 2-chan

- Device: Choose the audio interface you want to use during capture. Audio interface choices may include:

None
• Built-in Audio (the stereo mini or S/PDIF optical connector)
• DV Audio (via FireWire)
• Audio inputs on a video interface (if you have one installed)
An audio interface (USB, FireWire, or PCI—if you have one installed)

If you choose None, the Input and Format pop-up menus are not available. If you're using FireWire but don't have a FireWire device attached, this option is set to "[Missing] DV Audio."

- Input: Choose a hardware input from the currently selected audio device.

Note: For example, if you selected Built-in Audio, you can choose Microphone or Line In. (On some computers, the S/PDIF optical connector is also an option.)

- Format: Choose an audio configuration from the list. Audio configurations in this list are a combination of sample rate, bit depth, and number of channels. The items in this pop-up menu depend on the audio device you select.

Rate: Choose a standard audio sample rate that matches the sample rate of your source tapes.
Bit depth: Choose an audio bit depth that corresponds to your source tapes. In most cases, this should be a minimum of 16 bits.
Number of channels: Choose a configuration that has enough channels to support the number of channels you want to capture.

For example, the Built-in Audio interface typically only supports two channels with a sample rate of 44.1 kHz and a bit depth of 16. However, a PCI or FireWire interface may support several configurations, such as 22 channels at 48 kHz/16 bit, or 11 channels at 96 kHz/24 bit, and so on.

Note: If the sample rate of the audio on your tape does not match your capture preset, Final Cut Pro performs a high-quality, real-time sample rate conversion.

However, you should avoid mismatching your tape and capture preset sample rate whenever possible.

DV video devices can record up to four tracks of audio, depending on the sample rate and bit depth chosen on the camcorder. You can choose which two audio channels to capture from the Input pop-up menu. For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 20, "Capturing Audio."

You can configure Final Cut Pro to capture audio from a device-controllable audio player (such as a DAT player) with timecode. This is mainly useful when capturing audio that was acquired via dual system recording, with picture and sound recorded simultaneously to two different devices. You may also need an audio-only capture preset for bringing in audio that you want to use for narration, sound effects, or ambient tracks.

Note: For more information on connecting a device-controllable audio deck to your computer, see Volume I, Chapter 15, "Connecting Professional and Non-DV Equipment."

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings, then click the Capture Presets tab.
2 Select a preset, then click Duplicate.

Final Cut Pro automatically duplicates the selected preset and opens a new Capture Preset Editor window.

3 In the Capture Preset Editor, adjust the following settings, then click OK.

a If you're synchronizing your audio deck to your computer by genlocking it to a video capture interface, choose your video capture interface from the Digitizer pop-up menu in the QuickTime Video Settings section. Otherwise, you can choose None.
b In the QuickTime Audio Settings section, choose an audio interface from the Device pop-up menu. The audio capture interface can be identical to your video capture interface, or you can use a different device.
c Choose the input on your audio interface you used to connect your audio deck from the Input pop-up menu. (Some video and audio capture interfaces have more than one set of audio inputs to choose from.)
d Choose an audio configuration (sample rate, bit depth, and number of channels) from the Format pop-up menu.

If you are doing a digital transfer from your audio device to your computer, you should choose the sample rate of your audio source. If you are digitizing audio from analog inputs on your audio interface, choose a sample rate that matches the majority of the media files in your project, or the sample rate of your sequence.

For detailed information about other settings in the Capture Preset Editor, see "About Capture Preset Settings" on page 315.

A device control preset communicates transport commands and timecode between Final Cut Pro and supported camcorders and VTRs.

This chapter covers the following:

• About Device Control Presets (p. 323)
- About Device Control Protocols (p. 328)
- Troubleshooting Your Device Control Setup (p. 334)

A device control preset is a group of settings (protocol, connection port, frame rate and timecode information) that define how Final Cut Pro controls a device such as a camcorder, VTR, or audio player. Remote control communication between Final Cut Pro and your video deck allows you to log tapes, automatically batch capture multiple clips, and output video to specific portions of a tape. The remote device control connection is also the interface for sending and receiving timecode information between a computer and a video device.

In most cases, creating your own device control preset isn't necessary. You can usually choose a device control preset whose name matches your equipment. However, if you want precise control over each detail of how your device and Final Cut Pro communicate, you can adjust each device control setting and create your own custom presets.

Settings in a device control preset are used during logging, capturing, and output to tape.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings, then click the Device Control Presets tab.
2 Click the preset you want to modify, then click Edit.

The following section describes the settings in the Device Control Preset Editor.

Name: Enter a name for the preset. This name will appear in the list of available device control presets, available in several places in the application, such as the Log and Capture window and whenever you create an Easy Setup.
Description: Enter a brief description, or summary, of what the preset is to be used for. Use this as a convenient reminder of which decks you use the preset for. This can be particularly helpful if you are setting up a system for multiple editors and assistant editors.
Protocol: Choose the protocol your camcorder or deck uses. You can choose from the most commonly implemented remote control protocols in the video industry. The two most common are FireWire (for DV devices) and RS-422 (for almost all other professional equipment). RS-422 uses a serial data connection.

A device control protocol defines the rules and syntax for how two devices communicate with each other. The two connected devices must negotiate and agree upon the speed of communication (often measured in bits per second or baud, much like a modem), the length of each binary word, and how different commands—such as play, rewind, and fast-forward—are coded. Once the two devices have successfully established communication via a remote control protocol, navigational commands, timecode, and so on can be transferred between the device and Final Cut Pro.

- If you're using FireWire: Choose Apple FireWire or Apple FireWire Basic, depending on your connected device. The Basic version is a simplified device control protocol for camcorders and decks that aren't fully compatible with Apple FireWire. Choosing the Basic protocol will not affect the video or audio quality of your captured media.

- If you're using serial device control: Choose an option based on the equipment you're using. To find out which device control protocols are supported, see the documentation that came with the equipment. For more information on serial device control, see "Using Serial Device Control" on page 330.

- Audio Mapping: This pop-up menu determines how many audio tracks are available in the Audio Insert pop-up menu in the Edit to Tape window. You should choose a track mapping that corresponds to the number of tracks available on your audio or video deck. The options available depend on the device control protocol you've selected.

If you're using FireWire: When using one of the FireWire device control presets, the Audio Mapping pop-up menu is not available. All DV devices support two audio tracks at 16-bit resolution, and many support up to four tracks at 12-bit resolution.
If you're using RS-422: Many third-party video or audio recording devices are capable of insert editing more than two tracks of audio when using RS-422 device control. The Audio Mapping pop-up menu does not automatically detect the number of audio tracks your video or audio recording device is capable of recording to, so you need to manually choose an audio mapping for your deck. Check the documentation that came with your video or audio recording device for information on the number of audio inputs it supports

For more information about when to use audio mapping, see "Choosing Audio

Mapping for Multichannel Audio Output" on page 204.

- Time Source: Some tape formats can have more than one kind of timecode track. You can choose which track you want Final Cut Pro to read timecode from, and in the case of LTC and VITC, you can let Final Cut Pro read either one depending on what's available:

- LTC: Because LTC is audio, it can be interpreted by a timecode reader even when the tape is fast-forwarding, but it can't be read when the tape is paused or moving extremely slowly.

- VITC: VITC can be read at very slow speeds, but it breaks up when fast-forwarding or rewinding.

- LTC+VITC: This setting is best if your tape has both VITC and LTC. If you choose this setting, Final Cut Pro looks at both timecodes so that accurate timecode can be read no matter what speed the tape is playing (LTC is used for normal and high speed playback; VITC is used for slow motion and pause).

- Timer: A clock-based counter. This option is useful for decks that support device control but not timecode, such as some VHS decks.

- DV Time: Choose this when capturing or outputting to a DV device.

- Port: Choose the port to which your device control cable is connected. If you're using DV timecode, this option is not available, because FireWire is used automatically. If you're using serial device control rather than DV device control, choose the port that you have connected your serial device control. This may be your built-in modem port, or a USB-to-serial adapter connected to a USB port.

- Frame Rate: Choose the timecode frame rate of the video you'll be capturing, such as 29.97 fps for NTSC, 25 fps for PAL, 59.94 fps for DVCPRO HD 720p, and so on.

- Default Timecode: This option affects the timecode mode (drop frame or non-drop frame) of fields in the Log and Capture window when no device is connected, or before a tape begins playing. Once a tape is playing, Final Cut Pro determines the timecode mode from the tape, not this pop-up menu.

The timecode mode chosen here is useful when you log clips without a tape in your VTR. Before you press play on the deck, Final Cut Pro doesn't know what the timecode mode is on the tape, so it uses the default timecode.

When no device is connected, you can change the timecode mode of the In and Out point and Timecode Duration fields by Control-clicking these fields in the Log and Capture window and choosing a default timecode mode.

- Use Deck Search Mechanism: Select this option to use a deck's internal search mechanism to cue a tape to a specific timecode value, if available. Decks with serial device control may have this option. Do not select this option if your deck has problems moving the playhead to a specified timecode value during capture. For more information, see the documentation that came with your video equipment. This option is not available for DV devices.

Capture Offset: 0 Handle Size: 00:00:00:00 Playback Offset: 00:00:00:00 Pre-roll: 3 seconds Post-roll: 3 seconds Auto Record and PTV after: 3 seconds Cancel OK

- Capture Offset: Because timecode and video are often captured by Final Cut Pro via two separate channels (device control connection and video input, respectively), there may be a small, but consistent, offset between when a video frame and a timecode number are captured to a media file. You must calibrate your timecode by determining its frame offset from the video and entering it in this field. For more information, see “Determining and Entering the Timecode Offset” on page 332.

Note: This is not an issue when you capture DV video via FireWire, since both timecode and video data are transferred via the same FireWire cable.

Handle Size: This setting only has an affect when you batch capture clips. The value in this field tells Final Cut Pro to automatically capture additional footage, or handles, at the head and tail of each batch-captured clip. For more information about batch capturing, Volume I, Chapter 19, "Capturing Your Footage to Disk."
Playback Offset: This option allows you to compensate for latency between Final Cut Pro device control (the number in the Current Timecode field) and your video interface output, since some video interface take some time to process the video signal. This is only an issue when using separate connections for device control and video output, such as serial RS-422 device control and a PCI video card.

Enter a number to compensate for delays between the start of playback and the start of recording on your deck when editing to tape. This is normally set to 0. Enter a positive number to start playback before recording begins; enter a negative number to start playback after recording begins.

Note: If the first frame is duplicated over several frames when you're editing to tape, enter the number of duplicated frames in this field to eliminate the problem.

- Pre-roll and Post-roll: Because VTRs and audio players are mechanical devices, it takes a few seconds for the device's motor to stabilize and reach a steady speed after starting from a stopped or paused position. The pre-roll time sets how far in advance your camcorder or deck starts playing back your source tape before capture or output. In most cases, the 3 second default is sufficient. Both pre- and post-roll values are used when you click the Play Around Current Frame button in the Log and Capture window, and when you preview an insert edit in the Edit to Tape window before committing the edit to tape.

- Auto Record and PTV after: Check this box to have Final Cut Pro automatically put your DV camcorder or deck in Record mode when using the Print to Video command. Specify the number of seconds you want Final Cut Pro to wait before going into Record mode and printing to video (after you click OK in the Print to Video dialog). If this option is not selected, when you print to tape, you're prompted to insert a tape and manually press record on the VTR. This checkbox is also available in the Print to Video dialog.

To establish remote device control between a VTR or camcorder and a computer, you need to connect a remote control cable between the device and your computer. You also need to tell Final Cut Pro what communication protocol your device understands. The most common methods of device control and timecode capture are:

FireWire with DV timecode
Serial RS-232 or RS-422 with SMPTE timecode

The following is a list of the device control protocols you can use in Final Cut Pro. Not all protocols are compatible with all features. See the documentation that came with your camcorder or deck for more information on the device control specification it uses, or visit the Final Cut Pro website at http://www.apple.com/finalcutpro.

• Apple FireWire or Apple FireWire Basic
- DVCPRO HD FireWire
- HDV 1080i50 FireWire
- HDV FireWire NTSC
- Sony RS-422
- Sony RS-232: (SVO-2100) 9.6K; (SVO-2100) 19.2K; (UVW-1400) 9.6K; (UVW-1400) 19.2K
- Sony VISCA
- Sony LANC (via Addenda RS-4/L)
• Panasonic RS-232 and RS-422
- JVC RS-232

Note: RS-422 uses serial cables that are different from RS-232 cables. For more information on cables and their availability, see the information that came with your device. You can buy these cables at specialty video equipment or electronics retailers.

FireWire (also called IEEE 1394 or i.LINK) is a standard supported by many professional and consumer-level camcorders and decks. FireWire transmits device control data, timecode, video, and audio signals over a single cable. Using FireWire, you can capture video directly from DV camcorders with a built-in FireWire port and from older analog-only equipment using a DV converter.

Final Cut Pro also outputs video, audio, and timecode to your camcorder or deck through the FireWire connection so you can record sequences to tape. All DV-format tapes record DV timecode. Final Cut Pro uses this timecode when capturing footage from tape.

Video devices vary greatly in their adherence to FireWire specifications for device control. For this reason, there are several versions of the FireWire protocol you can use for device control and capture in Final Cut Pro:

• Apple FireWire: This is the default.
- Apple FireWire Basic: This is a simplified device control protocol for camcorders and decks that aren't compatible with the complete Apple FireWire protocol. Using this protocol doesn't affect the quality of captured video or audio.
- DVCPRO HD FireWire: This protocol is used with Panasonic DVCPRO HD devices.

For more information about changing the FireWire protocol that Final Cut Pro uses, see "Editing a Preset" on page 308 and "About Device Control Presets" on page 323.

After you connect a DV camcorder to your computer, switch it to VCR mode. You can record to a camcorder from Final Cut Pro in Camera mode, but to do so, you need to turn off device control in Final Cut Pro, which limits your control during output.

Nearly all professional VTRs support serial device control. Serial device control sends and receives timecode and transport control data. A 9-pin serial connector is usually used for serial device control. Each pin can carry a separate signal, although typically only four pins are used (two for transmitting data, and two for receiving data).

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Using Serial Device Control - 1

natural_image

Technical line drawing of a U88 connector with internal ports and connectors (no text or symbols)

RS-422 connector

Professional video and audio decks may use one of two serial interfaces:

RS-232: Found on older, more inexpensive equipment. RS-232 is functionally similar to RS-422, but it's not used as frequently.
RS-422: This interface tolerates greater cable lengths than RS-232. It's more widely used by facilities where video decks are in a different room than the editing bay.

Final Cut Pro can use two kinds of timecode sent over a remote serial connection:

LTC: LTC (longitudinal timecode) is recorded as an audio signal on a dedicated timecode track.
VITC: VITC (vertical interval timecode) is recorded as part of the video signal, using several video lines that are normally masked by consumer televisions. Lines 16 and 18 of the vertical blanking portion of the video signal are commonly used.

Final Cut Pro can also automatically switch between LTC and VITC if they are both available:

- LTC + VITC : If you choose this setting, Final Cut Pro looks at both timecodes so that accurate timecode can be read no matter what speed the tape is playing (LTC is used for normal and high-speed playback; VITC is used for slow motion and pause).

For more information about LTC and VITC timecode, see "Timecode on Tape" on page 386.

To take advantage of the Edit to Tape feature (described in Chapter 14, "Assemble and Insert Editing Using Edit to Tape," on page 185), your video device must support insert editing. These VTRs can use timecode In and Out points, along with defined video and audio tracks, and perform a frame-accurate edit.

If you have a camcorder or deck without device control, you can still capture and edit clips in Final Cut Pro. You need to start and stop your camcorder or deck manually when you use the Log and Capture and Print to Video commands.

Once you capture a clip manually, you have virtually no chance of recapturing exactly the same media with the same In and Out points. If you think you may need to reedit a project that includes manually captured media files, back up the media files along with your project file.

Unless you are capturing a DV video format via FireWire, the timecode and video signals are sent separately from the video deck to the computer. Because the signals are separate, they can possibly arrive at different times, which causes the wrong timecode number to be recorded with captured video frames. You can calibrate your timecode and video capture setup by entering the number of frames by which the timecode signals are offset from the video into the Capture Offset field.

Note: Remember that timecode is captured via the device control connection (the RS-422 connection in most cases), while video is captured via your video capture interface. In the case of DV formats, FireWire is used conveniently for both.

You need to calibrate the video and timecode signal every time you change decks or cables. If you regularly switch decks, it's a good idea to create different device control presets, with different Capture Offsets, for each deck you use. Since each deck will always have the same Capture Offset, a set of precalibrated presets lets you quickly change decks without having to go though the whole recalibration procedure again.

For more information on setting up your hardware for device control, see Volume I, Chapter 15, "Connecting Professional and Non-DV Equipment." For more information on setting up device control presets, see "About Device Control Presets" on page 323.

You can easily determine if there is a difference between the timecode and video signals by capturing test footage that has timecode "burned in" to the video picture information. By comparing the numbers in the timecode track to the timecode numbers in the video picture, you can determine the offset between them.

If there is an offset, you can calibrate your timecode and video capture setup by entering the number of frames by which the timecode signals are offset from the video in the Capture Offset field of the current device control preset.

- Create a window-burn (or window dub) test tape for timecode offset testing. You can do this by transferring a tape with timecode to another tape of the same format, making sure you connect an output that can display timecode information visually.

- Connect the monitor out (or super out) output of your VTR to the input of your video interface. A monitor output is a dedicated output for displaying VTR status information such as a timecode counter superimposed (or “burned-in”) over the video information. Some VTRs don’t have a separate monitor output, but instead have an option for turning on the deck status display and timecode information on the main output. Enable this option.

2 Capture a clip of video from a tape with LTC (Longitudinal TimeCode) or VITC (Vertical Interval TimeCode) timecode on it.

For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 19, "Capturing Your Footage to Disk."

3 Compare the timecode value recorded in the captured media file (in the Current Timecode field) with the burned-in timecode on the video frame.

Current Timecode field TCR 04:27:27:11 Burned-in timecode

If both timecode values match, then there is no offset, so no adjustment is necessary. If the timecode values do not match, there's an offset and you'll need to compensate for this to capture your video properly.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings, then click the Device Control Presets tab.
2 Make sure your current method of device control is checked, then click Edit.

If you're using a locked preset, a new copy of the preset is created.

3 Enter a new name and description for this device control preset indicating which camcorder or deck it is calibrated for.

4 Enter a number of frames in the Capture Offset field, then click OK.

Enter a negative number if the clip's timecode track has higher numbers than the burned-in timecode. For example, if the clip's Media Start timecode is 01:00:00:04, and the first video frame has a burned-in timecode number of 01:00:00:00, enter -4 in the Capture Offset field.

After entering the timecode offset, it's a good idea to capture a few more clips and compare the timecode track numbers with the burned-in timecode to determine if the timecode offset you entered is correct.

Before you start the logging and capture process, make sure that your device control hardware is properly set up.

1 Do one of the following:

If you're using DV device control: Make sure your FireWire cables are properly connected.
If you're using serial device control: If Final Cut Pro is unable to communicate with your camcorder or deck, make sure you have the correct cable for the type of device control you're using—RS-232 or RS-422. Also make sure that your serial port adapter (USB-to-serial adapter or internal modem port-to-serial port adapter) is properly connected and you installed the proper software drivers. For more information on setting up device control hardware, see Volume I, Chapter 15, "Connecting Professional and Non-DV Equipment."

2 Choose a device control preset in the Audio/Video Settings window that matches your setup.

For more information, see "Using Serial Device Control" on page 330 and "Choosing Individual Presets" on page 305.

Important: If you're capturing your video and audio using FireWire, you should also capture timecode via FireWire (in other words, via DV device control). FireWire is the most convenient and accurate way for capturing timecode from a DV device.

This chapter covers the following:

• What Are Sequence Settings? (p. 335)
- About Sequence Settings and Presets (p. 336)
• Timeline Display, Render, and Audio Output Options (p. 340)
• Changing Sequence Settings (p. 344)

A sequence preset is a group of settings that is used when you create a new sequence. These settings include frame size, pixel aspect ratio, a 16:9 anamorphic option, editing timebase (frame rate), and QuickTime video and audio settings (such as codec, audio sample rate, and so on).

When you create a sequence, its settings are initially determined by:

The currently selected sequence preset in the Audio/Video Settings window
The Timeline Options, Render Control, and Audio Outputs tabs in User Preferences

After you create a sequence, you can adjust its individual settings by selecting the sequence and choosing Sequence > Settings.

A sequence preset has two tabs: the General and Video Processing tabs.

Note: Default Timeline, render control, and audio outputs options are available in User Preferences, or after a sequence has been created by choosing Sequence > Settings.

1 Choose Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings, then click the Sequence Presets tab.
2 Click the preset you want to modify, then click Edit.

Name: Enter a name for the preset. This name appears in the Audio/Video Settings window in two places: the Sequence Preset pop-up menu in the Summary tab, and the list of presets in the Sequence Presets tab.
Description: Enter a brief description, or summary, of what the preset is to be used for.
Frame Size: Choose the horizontal and vertical image dimensions from the Aspect Ratio pop-up menu. To use a different frame size, choose Custom, then enter a nonconstrained frame size in the Width and Height fields.

Note: Even if you'll be outputting at a smaller frame size for multimedia use, it's best to edit your video at its full size, then scale it down later.

Pixel Aspect Ratio: Choose a pixel aspect ratio that matches the format you are working with. The pixel aspect ratio determines the shape of each pixel, which affects the overall dimensions and aspect ratio of your video image.
Square: For multimedia and uncompressed high definition video.
NTSC - CCIR 601 / DV: For standard definition NTSC formats such as Digital Betacam, DV, or DVD.
PAL - CCIR 601: For standard definition PAL formats.
HD (960x720): For 720p HD video, such as DVCPRO HD and HDV.
HD (1280x1080): For 1080i60 HD video, such as DVCPRO HD and HDV.
HD (1440x1080): For 1080i50 HD video, such as DVCPRO HD and HDV.
Anamorphic 16:9: Select this checkbox only if you're editing standard definition anamorphic 16:9 media. This setting only affects the way video is displayed on your monitor and does not actually rescale your media. For more information on anamorphic 16:9 video, see Appendix C, "Working With Anamorphic 16:9 Media," on page 391.
Field Dominance: Choose the field dominance of your captured video. Most video is Upper (Odd) or Lower (Even) depending on the video capture interface you're using. For progressive (non-interlaced) video, set the field dominance to None. For DV NTSC and DV PAL, always set this to Lower (Even). For more information, see "About Field Dominance" on page 360.
Editing Timebase (frame rate): Choose the frame rate of your sequence. For a list of common frame rates, see "Choosing a Frame Rate" on page 381.
Important: A sequence's timebase can be changed only if no clips have been edited into it. If there are clips in the sequence, they must be removed before you can change the timebase.
Timecode Rate: This pop-up menu is available in the Sequence Preset Editor window, but not when you choose Sequence > Settings for an existing sequence. Use this pop-up menu to choose the timecode rate of your sequence. For most sequences, the timecode rate should match—or be directly related to—the sequence's editing timebase (frame rate). For example, a 23.98 fps sequence would normally use 24 fps timecode. Unless you have a specific reason, choose Same as Editing Timebase. If you need to change the timecode rate of an existing sequence, select the sequence and choose Modify > Timecode, then adjust the rate and format of your sequence's timecode. One of the main reasons for doing this is when editing a 24 fps sequence while using 25 fps timecode.
Note: Some timecode rates are not available with some editing timebases.

Final Cut Pro uses the built-in QuickTime architecture of Mac OS X to decompress, render, and output video from your sequence. Since capturing is also handled by QuickTime, QuickTime video settings are explained in more detail in "QuickTime Video Settings for Capture Presets" on page 317.

Compressor: Choose a codec that matches the format of your media files. Any media file in your sequence that doesn't use the codec specified here will have to be rendered.
Quality: Enter a percentage or adjust the slider to set the image quality of the codec. Some third-party video interfaces may recommend specific quality settings.
Advanced: Click this button to set additional QuickTime video settings, if necessary for your video hardware. For detailed information, see "Advanced QuickTime Video Settings for Capture Presets" on page 319.

Final Cut Pro uses the built-in QuickTime architecture of Mac OS X for playback and export of your sequence audio. When you export your sequence, these audio settings are used by default.

Audio Device Options Channels: 2 Bit Depth: 16 Sample Rate (Hz): 44100.00 Cancel OK

Sample Rate: Lower sample rates take less bandwidth but have lower quality. Make sure your sample rate is compatible with the audio facility to which you'll be handing off the files. Usually, you use the sample rate specified in your sequence settings, which should ideally be the sample rate of the original audio media files.
96 kHz: This is a high-resolution sample rate that can be easily converted to 48 kHz.
88.2 kHz: This is a high-resolution sample rate that can be easily converted to 44.1 kHz audio files.
48 kHz: DV formats and many professional video formats use this sample rate.
44.1 kHz: This is the sample rate of music CDs and some DAT tapes.
32 kHz: This corresponds to a consumer sample rate option on DV camcorders. Unless you have a special reason to use it, avoid this sample rate for audio export.

- Depth: Choose the bit depth used for each sample.

- 8-bit: This bit depth is useful for highly compressed movies created for the web. Unless you have a specific need for 8-bit audio, you should avoid this option because the quality is fairly low.

- 24-bit: A high-resolution bit depth compatible with many third-party video and audio interfaces. Choose this option to preserve the highest possible quality when exporting your files, especially when some of your audio files are 24-bit, or when you are mixing multiple audio channels together by routing them to the same output channel.

- Configuration: This pop-up menu works in combination with the Downmix control in the Audio mixer to determine how the Export QuickTime Movie command groups your sequence audio outputs during export.

- Default: If the Downmix control is enabled in the Audio Mixer, a QuickTime movie with stereo audio is created. If the Downmix control is disabled, a QuickTime movie is created with multiple audio tracks corresponding to the audio output channels of your sequence.

You can override the status of the Downmix control by using the following two controls instead:

- Channel Grouped: Exports multiple stereo or mono tracks based on your sequence's audio output groupings.

- Stereo Mixed: Outputs a single stereo file based on your sequence's stereo downmix settings.

You can change color space and motion transformation rendering options in the Video Processing tab of Sequence Settings. For new sequences, you can change default settings in the Video Processing tab of the appropriate sequence preset. For detailed information about the settings in the Video Processing tab, see Volume III, Chapter 24, "Rendering."

When you create a new sequence, the timeline display, render, and audio output settings that are used come from the corresponding tabs in the User Preferences window. Once a sequence is created, you can change its options by selecting the sequence and choosing Sequence > Settings.

New sequences are created using the settings in the Timeline Options tab of the User Preferences window. Once a sequence is created, you can change Timeline display options in several places. For more information about Timeline display settings, see Volume I, Chapter 9, "Timeline Basics."

New sequences are created with the settings in the Render Control tab of the User Preferences window. Once a sequence is created, you can change render control options by selecting the sequence, and then choosing Sequence > Settings.

These settings allow you to enable and disable different processor-intensive effects in Final Cut Pro, such as filters, motion blending, and motion blur. This is useful if you want to speed up processing by not rendering all effects during playback, but you don't want to remove or individually disable these effects in the sequences of your project. These settings affect real-time playback, rendering, video output, and QuickTime output.

Sequence Settings Name: Intro sequence General Video Processing Timeline Options Render Control Audio Outputs Render & Playback Filters Frame Blending For Speed Motion Blur Render Frame Rate: 100% of Sequence Editing Timebase Resolution: 100% of Sequence Frame Size Load Sequence Preset... Cancel OK Render and playback settings Additional render settings

Filters: If this option is not selected, all filters are ignored during playback, improving real-time performance.
Frame Blending for Speed: If this option is selected, clips with speed adjustments are processed with frame blending. Frame blending makes slow-motion video smoother by synthesizing in-between frames. This requires more processing power, so you can turn it off when you are working on a rough cut.
Motion Blur: If this option is not selected, motion blur is ignored for all clips in your sequence.

Frame Rate: You can use this pop-up menu to reduce the frame rate of rendered segments of a sequence, dramatically speeding up rendering but lowering playback quality. For example, if you're editing at 29.97 fps, and you choose 50 percent in the Frame Rate pop-up menu, rendered effects in your sequence play back at 15 frames per second.
Resolution: Choose a percentage from this pop-up menu to reduce the resolution of rendered effects, speeding up rendering but lowering playback quality. For example, if you're editing with a frame size of 720 x 480, choosing 50 percent lowers the resolution of rendered effects to a noninterlaced 360 x 240. Rendered effects are still full-frame, but they have lower resolution.

Tip: You can control many of these settings by assigning keyboard shortcuts or adding buttons to the button bar using the Keyboard Layout window. For more information on using the Keyboard Layout window, see Volume I, Chapter 10, "Customizing the Interface."

The settings in this tab allow you to define the number of audio output channels available for your sequence, using whatever video or audio interface is connected to your computer.

New sequences are created with the audio output preset chosen in the User Preferences window. Once a sequence is created, you can choose a different audio output preset by selecting the sequence, choosing Sequence > Settings, then click in the Audio Outputs tab.

By default, a stereo preset is selected, which works with the built-in audio output in your computer, as well as with most DV camcorders and third-party video capture interfaces. If you have a more sophisticated audio interface chosen in the A/V Devices tab of the Audio/Video Settings window, you can create a new preset to route audio to these additional audio output channels. For more information on choosing an external audio interface in the Audio/Video Settings window, see Volume III, Chapter 4, "Audio Levels, Meters, and Output Channels."

Sequence Settings Name: Intro sequence General Video Processing Timeline Options Render Control Audio Outputs Load Audio Output Preset... Settings in the Audio Outputs tab Outputs 6 1 2 3 4 5 6 Downmix (dB) 0 -3 -3 0 Grouping: Stereo Dual Mono Stereo Dual Mono Stereo Dual Mono Load Sequence Preset... Cancel OK

The Audio Outputs tab has the following settings:

Outputs pop-up menu: This pop-up menu allows you to specify the number of audio outputs available on your external audio interface. This menu defaults to two output channels for simple stereo output. Additional output channels can be added in pairs. You can specify as many as 12 pairs of audio outputs, or 24 total outputs.
Channel Settings boxes: Each pair of outputs has its own settings box, each with its own set of controls. Adding pairs of outputs adds additional settings boxes.

- Channel number: This number defines which output channel the controls affect.

- Downmix pop-up menu: Commands in this menu determine the amount, in dB, by which an output channel should be attenuated (lowered) or boosted (raised) when audio is downmixed to stereo—either for output to video or as a QuickTime movie or audio file, or when the downmix box in the Audio Mixer tab is checked. When downmixing, audio output channels can be modified from +10 dB to -10 dB, or turned off altogether. For more information about setting proper downmix levels, see Volume III, Chapter 4, "Audio Levels, Meters, and Output Channels."

- Stereo Grouping buttons: These buttons define whether a given pair of audio output channels is stereo or mono. Sequence tracks assigned to stereo pairs of outputs have pan enabled. A single downmix pop-up menu sets the downmix level for both channels in the pair, which defaults to 0 dB. Sequence tracks assigned to dual mono pairs of outputs have no stereo output, and the panning slider for that track is disabled. Two downmix pop-up menus appear, one for each channel, which default to -3 dB. For more information about how to set proper downmix levels, see Volume III, Chapter 4, "Audio Levels, Meters, and Output Channels."

Note: When you move a Final Cut Pro project file to another system along with its sequences, those sequences retain the audio output setting with which they were originally created, regardless of the number of audio output channels available on that system.

You can change individual settings for a sequence, such as image height or codec, or you can change all the settings at once by loading a sequence preset (which is simply a set of predefined sequence settings).

1 Select a sequence in the Browser or in the Timeline.
2 Do one of the following:

Choose Sequence > Settings.
Control-click the sequence's icon, then choose Settings from the shortcut menu.
Press Command-0 (zero).

3 In the Sequence Settings window, click a tab, change its settings, then click OK.

1 Select a sequence in the Browser.
2 Do one of the following:

Choose Sequence > Settings.
Control-click the sequence's icon, then choose Settings from the shortcut menu.
Press Command-0 (zero).

3 Click the Load Sequence Preset button.

Select Sequence Preset Select: DVCPRO HD - 720p24 Use this preset when editing with 720p DVCPRO HD 23.98 fps material with audio set to 48KHz (16bit for DV). Cancel OK

4 Choose a new preset from the pop-up menu in the Select Sequence Preset dialog, then click OK.

Important: Final Cut Pro does not allow you to change the editing timebase of a sequence once it contains clips. If you load a sequence preset with a different editing timebase, the editing timebase remains unchanged.

Find specific information on video formats, frame rate and timecode, and solutions to common user problems in this section.

Appendix A Video Formats

Appendix B Frame Rate and Timecode

Appendix C Working With Anamorphic 16:9 Media

Appendix D Solving Common Problems

Glossary

Index

This appendix covers the following:

• Characteristics of Video Formats (p. 349)
• Video Formats Supported by Final Cut Pro (p. 366)
- Types of Video Signals and Connectors (p. 369)
• A Brief History of Film, Television, and Audio Formats (p. 373)

All video formats achieve the same basic goal: they store black-and-white or color information as electronic lines that make up a video frame. The number of video frames recorded per second varies depending on the video standard the format supports (for example, NTSC formats are recorded at 29.97 fps; PAL formats are recorded at 25 fps).

Video formats can be characterized by the following factors:

The medium used to store the video information. This is primarily videotape, but can also be optical disc, solid-state memory, or a hard disk.
The size (1/2", 3/4", 8 mm) of the tape and the shape of the cassette shell.
The video standard supported, such as NTSC, PAL, ATSC (HDTV 1080i or 720p), and so on.
The type of electronic signal recorded on tape. In other words, the way luma (black-and-white) and chroma (color) information are combined and recorded.
The aspect ratio of the video frame.
The dimensions of the video frame: the number of pixels per line, and the number of lines per frame.
The aspect ratio of the pixels: This is a subtle factor that is explained in more detail below.
The frame rate: the number of frames recorded per second.
The scanning method: interlaced fields (2 fields per frame) or progressive (one complete frame at a time).
• Color recording method: RGB, component (YUV), S-Video (Y/C), or composite.
Color sampling: For component digital formats, the ratio of color samples to black-and-white (or luma) samples (for example, 4:4:4, 4:2:2, and 4:1:1).
Sampling rate: the number of samples per second of each video line. This is just like the sampling rate for audio, except the signals sampled are video lines, where each sample represents light intensity instead of sound intensity.
Bit depth: the number of bits used to store each video sample, which determines the ability of the format to capture each sample's (or pixel's) light intensity precisely, and how well subtle differences in intensity can be stored.
Compressor (or codec): A video compressor attempts to reduce the amount of digital data required to store each frame without compromising the quality of the image.

Video—especially digital video—can be stored on more than just videotape. The characteristics of the storage medium determine playback and recording capabilities. For example, magnetic and optical disc media (CD, DVD, hard disk) are capable of nonlinear reading and writing, while videotape is inherently linear. Videotape is still a very efficient means of storing large amounts of digital data in a small space, but other types of media are quickly gaining ground.

The width of a video tape is directly related to how much information can be stored. In analog formats, wider tape usually yields higher quality, but other factors can help reduce tape size with minimal loss of quality. For example, Both BetacamSP and VHS both use 1/2"-wide tape, but BetacamSP uses a high-quality component video recording method that keeps luma and chroma information separate, while VHS uses a composite method that mixes these signals into one, causing interference between the two. The physical formulation of these two kinds of tape are also different, which accounts for some of the quality difference.

The size of the cassette itself can be varied as well. For example, the BetacamSP format comes in both small and large sizes. The small tapes are used for camcorders, while the large format is used in studio VTRs.

Aspects of the physical composition of magnetic tape, such as density of magnetic particles, limits the data rate and track size that can be recorded on the tape. The magnetic coating on a video tape is formulated to work with particular camcorder and VTRs. If you choose the wrong tape coating, the tape can actually clog the video record heads of your video equipment, leading to video signal dropouts during recording and playback. Always read the documentation that comes with your video equipment before purchasing a particular brand of video tape stock.

For the last 50 years, there have been two major signal types recorded on video tape: NTSC and PAL. With the emergence of new, high definition video formats, NTSC and PAL formats are now referred to as standard definition video formats.

NTSC, or National Television Systems Committee, is the television and video standard used in most of the Americas, Taiwan, Japan, and Korea. PAL, or Phase Alternating Line, is the television and video standard used in most of Europe, Brazil, Algeria, and China. There are several variations of both NTSC and PAL used in different parts of the world, but these variations are not described here.

Standard	Lines per frame	Frame rates	Scanning method
NTSC	525	29.97	Interlaced
PAL	625	25	Interlaced

SECAM is a video standard based on PAL. It is used in France, Poland, Haiti, and Vietnam. SECAM is mostly a broadcast format, not a recording format, so postproduction work is usually done in PAL and later converted to SECAM.

Note: SECAM is not supported by Final Cut Pro.

Standard definition formats have an aspect ratio of 4:3 (1.33:1).

In the late 1990s, high definition video formats were standardized in the United States by the ATSC (Advanced Television Standards Committee). These high definition video formats are the next generation of broadcast and recording video formats. Unlike standard definition formats, which are restricted to fixed frame rates and number of lines per frame, HD video provides several options per format. While the increased flexibility is convenient, it also makes format interchange more complicated. Simply saying “high definition video” is not enough; you need to define the frame size, frame rate, and scanning method of your HD format.

Standard	Frame size	Frame rates	Scanning method
720p	1280 x 720	23.98, 29.97, 59.9424, 30, 6025	Progressive
1080p	1920 x 1080	23.98, 29.9724, 3025	Progressive
1080i	1920 x 1080	25 (50i), 29.97 (59.94i),30 (60i)	Interlaced

There are an increasing number of HD tape formats available. Most HD formats only support a subset of the options shown in the table above, and most camcorders and video decks do not support every combination.

Video signals are separated into several channels for recording and transmission. There are different methods of color channel separation, depending on the video format and historical origins. For example, broadcast video devices were originally designed for black-and-white video, and color was added later. This is still evident in today's video formats that break image information into separate black-and-white and color information. On the other hand, video and image processing on computers is more flexible and developed later, so a three-color RGB model was adopted instead of a luma-chroma model.

The luma (black-and-white channel) and chroma (color channels) information can be recorded and transmitted several different ways in a video signal.

RGB (Red, Green, Blue): This is the native format for most computer graphics and video files. This signal is also used inside traditional color CRTs and flat-panel displays. Red, green, and blue signals can be combined to make any color, as well as grayscale images from black (no signal on any channel) to white (full signal on every channel). RGB signals do not have a separate luma channel, because black-and-white signals can be represented by equal amounts of R, G, and B signals.
Component YUV or Y^_BC_R : This three-channel signal has a luma (Y') signal and two color difference channels ( C_B and C_R ) ^1 . Component video was invented in the 1950s as a way of making color television signals compatible with existing black-and-white televisions. Black-and-white televisions could use the luma signal while color televisions could convert Y^, C_B , and C_R back to RGB for display.

The luma signal is derived by combining R, G, and B signals in similar proportions to the way human vision is sensitive to those three colors. Therefore, the luma signal approximates the same detail we see for various colors in the spectrum, which happens to be most sensitive to detail in the green channel. The color difference channels are so named because they are derived from RGB by subtracting signals from the luma channel for each of the color channels (for example, R-Y or B-Y).

- S-Video (Y/C): An S-Video signal is also considered a component video signal because the luma and chroma signals are separate. However, the C signal is derived by combining the C_B and C_R component signals together, which reduces the quality of the color channel compared to Y' C_B C_R .

- Composite: The luma (Y') and chroma (C) signals are combined into a single, composite video signal for broadcast. The chroma signal is placed on a color subcarrier frequency related to the main luma frequency. This method of superimposing color information on top of the black-and-white information indicates that this format originated in the early days of color television, when black-and-white TV compatibility was critical for widespread adoption.

Black-and-white televisions are unaware of the color subcarrier, and so only the luma (Y') channel is shown. Color televisions reverse the composite process, recreating the Y'C_B C_R component signal and then the RGB signal for display. Because the chroma and luma channels are combined, they do not separate perfectly, causing artifacts in the resulting image.

The ratio of horizontal to vertical dimensions of a film or video frame is called the aspect ratio. Aspect ratio is independent of absolute image size or resolution.

Standard definition 1.33:1 (4 x 3)

High definition 1.78:1 (16 x 9)

Standard cinema 1.85:1

Widescreen cinema 2.35:1

Aspect ratio can be expressed as absolute dimensions (4 x 3), a ratio (4:3), a fraction (4/3), or as the decimal equivalent of a ratio (1.33:1 or, simply 1.33).

Video aspect ratios are often written as ratios, such as 4:3 for standard definition video or 16:9 for high definition video.
Film aspect ratios are often written as decimal equivalents, such as 1.33, 1.85, and 2.40. The higher the decimal number, the wider the image. An aspect ratio of 2.40 is wider than 1.85, and 1.85 is wider than 1.33.
Digital video resolutions are usually written as absolute pixel dimensions, such as 720 x 480, 1280 x 720, 1920 x 1080, and so on.

Below is a list of commonly used aspect ratios, mostly from the film and television industry, plus a few others for comparison:

Aspect ratio	Medium
1.33 (4:3)	Television
1.37	Camera footage (prior to projection)
1.66	Standard European film masked in projector
1.78 (16:9)	High definition television
1.85	Standard North American film projector
2.40 (used to be 2.35)	Widescreen (anamorphic) film projector

A video frame is composed of lines. In digital video, each line is sampled to create a number of pixels (samples) per line. The more lines per frame, the higher the image resolution. The more pixels per line, the higher the resolution of each line.

NTSC uses 525 lines, while PAL uses 625. In analog video, many lines are not actually used for picture information, so the total numbers relevant for the picture are somewhat smaller: 486 lines for NTSC and 576 lines for PAL. High definition formats defined by the ATSC have either 1080 lines or 720 lines per frame.

In digital video formats, each line is sampled a number of times. In an attempt to create a single digital VTR that could digitize and record both NTSC or PAL signals, the ITU-R 601 specification uses 720 samples per line for both NTSC and PAL. Therefore, a digital NTSC video frame is 720 pixels x 486 lines, and a PAL video frame is 720 pixels x 576 lines.

High definition video with 1080 lines uses 1920 pixels per line (1920 x 1080). 720-line HD video uses 1280 pixels (1280 x 720). Both of these formats have an aspect ratio of 16:9.

Common video frame sizes are shown in the table below.

Width	Height	Pixel aspect ratio	Screen aspect ratio	Description
320	240	1:1	4:3	Used for web distribution or offline video editing
640	480	1:1	4:3	An early standard for analog-to-digital video editing, and an ATSC video specification
720^1	480	Height greater than width	4:3	NTSC DV and DVD image dimensions
720^1	486	Height greater than width	4:3	NTSC standard definition video dimensions used for professional digital formats such as Digital Betacam, D-1, D-5, as well as DVD and DV.
720^1	576	Width greater than height	4:3	PAL standard definition video dimensions used for all digital formats such as Digital Betacam, D-1, D-5, as well as DVD and DV.
1280	720	1:1	16:9	A high definition video format, capable of higher frame rates in exchange for smaller image dimensions
1920	1280	1:1	16:9	A high definition video format with very high resolution, comparable to the resolution of a film projection print

^1 In most video devices, only 704 or 708 pixels are actually used for picture information.

Another issue that comes up is the subtle difference between NTSC SD formats that use 486 lines per frame (Digital Betacam, D-1, D-5) and formats that use 480 lines per frame (DV, DVCPRO, DVD). Why is there this subtle difference? The reason is simple: 480 is divisible by 16, and 486 isn't. Divisibility by 16 is important for any MPEG-like compression codec, because each frame is broken into 16 x 16 pixel blocks (known as macroblocks) during compression. All of the video formats that use 480 lines per frame are DV or MPEG-based compressions, all of which use similar approaches to compression.

The only time this should be a concern is if you are converting between a 486-line format like Digital Betacam and a 480-line format like DVD. However, the absence of 6 lines is hardly noticeable on an analog television, especially at the top and bottom, which is usually masked anyway.

A pixel usually refers to a physical picture element on a video display that emanates light. But a pixel is also a term for a sample of light intensity—a piece of data for storing luma or chroma values. When stored on tape or on hard disk, the intensity of a pixel has no inherent shape, height, or width; it is merely a data value. For example, one pixel may have a value of 255, while another may be 150. The value of each pixel determines the intensity of a corresponding point on a video display. In an ideal world, all pixels would be captured and displayed as squares (equal height and width), but this is not always the case.

The ITU-R 601 specification makes it possible to transmit either NTSC or PAL information in a single signal. To achieve this goal, both NTSC and PAL video lines are sampled 720 times. This results in either a 720 x 486 frame (NTSC) or a 720 x 576 frame (PAL). In both NTSC and PAL, the frame displayed has an aspect ratio 4:3, and yet neither 720 x 486 or 720 x 576 creates a 4:3 aspect ratio! The solution to this problem is to display the pixels (the samples of light intensity) taller-than-wide, or wider-than-tall, so that they fit into a 4:3 frame. This results in the concept of “rectangular pixels”—pixels that must be stretched or squeezed to fit in the 4:3 frame. To further confuse matters, most standard definition video devices actually use 704 or 708 pixels for picture information, not all 720.

None of this was obvious in the days of linear editing, when video was simply copied from one tape to another, because the video equipment always compensated automatically. However, as people began using computers to work with video, digital video captured to the computer looked distorted (squashed vertically or stretched horizontally) because the computer displayed the pixels as squares, without compensation.

Some video formats use rectangular pixels to reduce the amount of information stored on tape. For example, DVCPRO HD effectively records 1280 pixels per line (when using the 720p format), but to save space on tape, the intensity of every 1.5 pixels is averaged together and only 960 pixels are recorded. These pixels are not representing a square area, but a wider, rectangular portion of each video line. This results in a 2/3 reduction in the amount of information recorded on tape.

Video and image editing programs like Final Cut Pro and Photoshop must compensate for these rectangular pixels so they appear correctly on a computer display. However, there are several different pixel aspect ratios in use, and there is unfortunately no single accepted standard in the industry. The exact aspect ratio used may vary slightly from one software application to another, as well as among different third-party video interfaces.

These days, the biggest challenge comes when exchanging graphics between applications that use different pixel aspect ratios, or when using an application that does not support rectangular pixels with one that does. The key to a simple workflow is to use applications that can work at the native, nonsquare pixel image dimensions and compensate on the computer display. Fortunately, major video and graphics applications such as Photoshop, After Effects, Final Cut Pro, and DVD Studio Pro can work with graphics and video at native resolutions. This way, you are always working with the exact pixel dimensions that you will eventually output to video tape or DVD.

The frame rate of any motion picture, whether film or video, defines how often pictures are taken per second. The higher the frame rate, the more accurately you capture moments in time and reduce flicker during playback. To achieve double the perceived frame rate (flicker), film projectors actually double or triple the shutter speed, even though the same frame is repeated two or three times, respectively. This is because a faster flicker creates more convincing motion. Video uses a similar, although more complicated, technique called interlacing. For more information about interlacing, see the next section, "Scanning Method." For more details about frame rate, see Appendix B, "Frame Rate and Timecode," on page 377.

A video frame is made of horizontal lines that are scanned from one side of a display to the other. Progressive video scanning happens when each line of a video frame is scanned one after another. Interlaced scanning fills the entire frame with only half the lines, which requires half the time, thus doubling the perceived frame rate and reducing flicker.

Frame rates lower than 40 fps cause noticeable flicker. When NTSC and PAL were invented, faster frame rates were not practical to implement. Interlaced scanning was devised to create a perceived frame rate of 60 fps (NTSC) or 50 fps (PAL). Interlaced video scans the display twice, using two fields, to complete a single frame. A single field contains only the odd lines (1, 3, 5, 7, and so on) or the even lines (2, 4, 6, 8, and so on) of the frame. If you could stop the video scanning process to observe a single video field, you would see that every other line is missing, like venetian blinds or a comb.

Because the fields are changing at twice the frame rate, there is less perceived flicker than if each frame was scanned progressively. For example, with NTSC, a field of odd lines is scanned in 1/60th of a second and a field of even lines follows in the next 1/60th of a second, resulting in a complete frame every 1/30th of a second.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - About Interlaced Scanning - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["Field 1"] --> C["Frame"]
    B["Field 2"] --> C["Frame"]

Progressive scanning is much simpler than interlaced scanning: each line is scanned consecutively until a complete frame is drawn. Computer monitors and many recent high definition televisions use progressive scanning.

Here are some significant facts about interlaced and progressive scanning methods:

Interlacing provides twice the perceived frame rate with only half the recording or transmission requirements.
Progressive scanning is preferred when interlacing artifacts (such as thin flickering horizontal lines) would be unacceptable. Progressive images are often considered more film-like because there are no flickering interlacing artifacts.
Computer displays are almost always scanned progressively.
NTSC and PAL televisions always use interlaced scanning.
Many high definition video cameras can record progressive frames.
Video destined for computer-only use, such as web video, should always be made progressive.

Field dominance is an issue when recording and playing back interlaced video material. With progressive video, there is only one way to play back a video frame: Start at line 1 and scan until you reach the last line. With interlaced video, the video player must choose whether to scan the odd lines first, or the even lines. In other words, each time a frame is displayed, which field should be played first, field 1 or 2? This is totally dependent on which field was recorded first.

Each field is a snapshot in time, so if field 1 is recorded earlier in time than field 2, field 1 must be played back before field 2. If the wrong field order is chosen, each frame's fields plays backward in time, even though each frame as a whole still moves forward. The effect is a very noticeable stutter happening 60 (NTSC) or 50 (PAL) times a second.

Each piece of video equipment and each video format has a preferred field dominance. This prevents you from editing two field 2s back to back, and makes sure that each field is played back in the right order.

In Final Cut Pro, the field dominance of clips must match the sequence field dominance. Otherwise, the fields stutter during playback because each pair of fields plays back in the wrong order. For example, DV NTSC and DV PAL always have a field dominance of Lower (Even). If you're working in a sequence and you see that imported clips are flickering, check to make sure the field dominance of those additional clips matches the field dominance of your edited sequence.

Important: You need to change the Field Dominance setting of your projects and sequences only if you change your video hardware setup.

In Final Cut Pro, there are two options for field dominance:

• Upper (field 2 is dominant, so the second field is drawn first)
- Lower (field 1 is dominant, so the first field is drawn first)

Generally, Upper is used by 640 x 480 systems, while Lower is most common in professional 720 x 486 and DV 720 x 480 systems.

The color recording method of a video format may be either RGB, component (Y^_BC_R) , S-Video (Y/C), or composite. The more discrete channels a format has, the higher the quality of the image, but the more data required to store and transmit that information.

Color recording method	Video formats
Composite	1", 3/4" U-matic, 1/2", VHS, D-2, D-3.
S-Video (Y/C)	Hi8, S-VHS.
Component (Y'CBCR)	BetacamSP, Digital Betacam, DVD, DV, D-1, D-5.
RGB	Computer video and graphics files; this format is rare for tape formats.

Today, almost all digital video formats are component Y^_BC_R , as well as analog formats such as BetacamSP. Computers typically store image data using RGB, although many component (Y^_BC_R) formats can now be natively processed on the computer (such as DV).

The video sampling rate of a digital video format determines how often the light intensity of each video line is sampled.

Sampling Rate	Description
14.3 MHz	Early NTSC digital video recorders sampled video at exactly four times the frequency of the color subcarrier signal (3.58 MHz x 4). This is the origin of the 4 in color sampling ratios such as 4:2:2.
13.5 MHz	This is the sampling rate for the luma (Y) channel for standard definition digital video. This sampling rate was chosen to work with both NTSC and PAL digital video. The 4 in the 4:2:2 is now represented by this sampling rate.
6.75 MHz	This is the sampling rate for the color difference channels in 4:2:2 video. This is half of 13.5 MHz.

Color sampling ratio refers to the ratio of luma (Y) samples to each color difference sample ( C_B and C_R ). For example, 4:2:2 color sampling means that for every four pixels of luma information stored, only two C_R samples and two C_B samples are stored. By reducing the number of chroma samples, less information is recorded. This is usually acceptable because the luma signal contains more of the detail our eyes see, so the chroma signal doesn't need to be stored as accurately.

Sampling ratio	Description
4:4:4	Each R, G, and B channel, or each Y', CB and CR channel, is sampled, and no samples are skipped. There are almost no tape formats that record with this color sampling ratio.
4:4:4:4	Full sampling rate for each color channel, plus a fourth alpha channel.
4:2:2	Every other chroma sample is skipped, so the color resolution is halved. For example, the first pixel in a line contains Y', CB and CR samples. The next pixel contains only a Y' sample. This pattern repeats. Most professional video formats use 4:2:2 color sampling.
4:2:2:4	4:2:2 sampling rate for each color channel, plus an alpha channel at the full sampling rate.
4:1:1	Only one of every four chroma samples is recorded, so the color resolution is quartered. The first pixel in a line contains Y', CB and CR samples. The next three pixels only contain Y' samples. This pattern repeats.
4:2:0	This ratio has a different meaning than the others. This does not mean that there are 2 CR samples and 0 CB samples. Instead, on one line, there are two CR samples for every four Y' samples., but no CB samples. On the next line, there are two CB samples for every four Y' samples, but no CR samples. This pattern repeats. Therefore, each line contains only CR or CB samples, but not both.

The following table shows a list of color sampling used in various digital video formats:

Sampling ratio	Video formats
4:4:4	HDCAM SR(Few video formats record this format because so much data is required.)
4:2:2	Digital Betacam, D-1, D-5, DVCPRO HD, DVCPRO 50
3:1:1	HDCAM
4:1:1	NTSC DV, DVCAM, and DVCPRO; PAL DVCPRO
4:2:0	PAL DV, DVCAM, HDV

The number of bits used per sample determines how accurately the sample is stored, and how much intensity variation is possible within the signal. For example, a video signal with a bit depth of only 1 bit can have either a value of 0 or 1, resulting in only black or white pixels. 2 bits per sample results in four possible values: 00, 01, 10, or 11, or any of four shades of gray (or some other color) per sample.

Most digital video formats use a minimum of 8 bits per color channel, or 256 gradations of intensity. RGB images are traditionally described by the total bits used per pixel (8 bits per channel x 3 channels = 24 bits). 32-bit RGB images refer to 24-bit color plus 8 more bits for an alpha channel. Images with higher bit depth are becoming more common, using 16 bits per color channel, or 48 bits per RGB pixel.

Video signal bit depth is usually described per channel. For example, DV and DVCPRO HD use 8 bits per color component (in other words, 8 bits for Y', 8 bits for C_R , and 8 bits for C_B ). Other formats, such as D-5, use 10 bits per component. This provides 1024 possible gradations instead of 256, which means much more subtle variations in intensity can be recorded. Some formats, such as Digital Betacam, record internally at 8-bit but can accept and output 10-bit video.

Internally, Final Cut Pro can do pixel calculations using 32-bit floating point precision, which allows for very accurate calculations without rounding errors. This leads to much more accurate color reproduction when applying filters and combining layers of video. This is especially important when you are going to show your movie on film or broadcast-quality video monitors. In Final Cut Pro, the Video Processing tab in the Sequence Settings window allows you to choose the rendering bit depth for a sequence. For more information, see Volume III, Chapter 24, "Rendering."

Once a video signal is digital, it requires a large amount of storage space and transmission bandwidth. To reduce the amount of data, several strategies are employed to compress the information without negatively affecting the quality of the image. Some methods are lossless, meaning that no data is lost, but most are lossy, meaning that information is thrown away that can't be retrieved.

Some simple methods of data compression are:

Throw away pixels at regular intervals: This essentially scales the image, or makes it more blocky.
Average several pixel values together: This involves taking several adjacent pixel values and averaging them together, resulting in a single rectangular pixel that approximates the value of several. For more information, see "Pixel Aspect Ratio" on page 357.
Throw away color channel information at regular intervals: This results in color sampling ratios like 4:2:2 and 4:1:1. Ideally, throwing away this color information is not noticeable to the viewer, but may be a problem if you are trying to do detailed color correction or chroma-keying that requires a lot of color information to start with.

Once these basic methods have been employed, much more intensive algorithms can be employed to reduce the amount of transmitted and stored image data.

Mathematical algorithms can be used to encode and decode each video frame. These codecs (enCode, Decode) must be installed in the VTR or software you are using to play back your video. For example, QuickTime supports many different video codecs for video export and playback.

The simplest encoding algorithm, called run-length encoding, represents strings of redundant values as a single value and a multiplier. For example, consider the following bit values:

0000000000000000000001111111111111100000000000000000000

Using run-length encoding on the bit values above can reduce the amount of information to:

0 × 24, 1 × 16, 0 × 24

Or in binary:

0 [11000], 1 [10000], 0 [11000]

In the example above, the original 64 bits can be transmitted using only 18 bits.

Run-length encoding is lossless, because all the information is retained after decoding. This technique is particularly useful for computer graphics applications, because there are often large fields of identical colors.

Note: If each bit in the original image were to alternate between 0 and 1, run-length encoding would not only be ineffective, it could actually make the overall data rate higher! Each codec is designed to anticipate and compress different kinds of data patterns. For example, a codec designed for audio compression is not useful for video compression, which has very different data patterns.

Most video codecs are necessarily lossy, because it is usually impractical to store and transmit uncompressed video signals. Even though most codecs lose some information in the video signal, the goal is to make this information loss visually imperceptible. When codec algorithms are developed, they are fine-tuned based on analyses of human vision and perception. For example, if the human eye cannot differentiate between lots of subtle variation in the red channel, a codec may throw away some of that information and viewers may never notice.

Many formats, including JPEG and all varieties of DV, use a fairly complicated algorithm called DCT encoding. Another method, called wavelet compression, is starting to be used for popular codecs, such as the Apple Pixlet Video codec. DVDs, modern digital television, and formats such as HDV and IMX use MPEG-2 compression, which not only encodes single frames (intraframe, or spatial compression), but encodes multiple frames at once (interframe, or temporal compression) by throwing away data that is visually redundant over time.

Video that has no compression applied can be unwieldy, so it is only used for the highest quality video work, such as special effects and color correction at the last stage of a project. Most professional projects have an offline phase that uses compressed video and then an online, finishing phase that uses uncompressed video recaptured at full resolution. Uncompressed video requires expensive VTRs and large, high-speed hard disks.

Final Cut Pro supports any video format that uses an installed QuickTime codec.

QuickTime natively supports codecs used by a number of video devices, such as DV, DVCPRO 50, DVCPRO HD, HDV, and IMX. With these formats, the distinction between file format and tape format is blurred, and transferring from tape to hard disk or other media is essentially a file transfer, allowing you to edit footage natively.

When you work with videotape formats such as Digital Betacam, D-5, Betacam SP, and so on, you need a third-party video interface to connect to the SDI or analog component video connectors on the deck. In this case, the video interface must convert the incoming or outgoing video signal to or from a QuickTime codec. Many video interfaces come with codecs for high-quality compressed and uncompressed editing.

You can easily capture and output any DV format video via the FireWire port on your computer. Video, audio, timecode, and device control data are all transferred via a single FireWire cable. FireWire (also referred to as IEEE 1394 or i.LINK) is a high-speed technology for connecting and transmitting data to and from various external devices, such as video and audio interfaces, hard disks, and digital cameras. FireWire is supported by many professional and consumer-level DV camcorders and decks.

Digital format	Maker	Color sampling	Compression ratio	Recorded bit rate
DV (25)	Multiple manufacturers	4:1:14:2:0 (PAL)	5:1	25 Mbps
DVCAM	Sony	4:1:14:2:0 (PAL)	5:1	25 Mbps
DVCPRO (D-7)	Panasonic	4:1:1 (NTSC)	5:1	25 Mbps
DVCPRO 50	Panasonic	4:2:2	3.3:1	50 Mbps
DVCPRO HD	Panasonic	4:2:2	6.7:1	100 Mbps

Formats that capture complete (progressive) video frames at 24 frames per second have received a lot of attention lately. This is because 24p video uses the same frame rate as film, and it scans images progressively. For example, a 24 fps,1920 x 1080, progressively scanned video format closely matches the resolution of a 35mm film theater distribution print. For the first time since the invention of television, moviemakers can choose video instead of film without sacrificing significant resolution loss or having to cope with frame-rate conversions.

Final Cut Pro supports capture, editing, and output of high definition video. If you use DVCPRO HD, you can capture, edit, and output just as you can with any other DV format. For other high definition formats, you need an appropriate third-party capture interface and hard disks with sufficient speed and capacity.

Most high definition formats can record both progressive and interlaced video.

Interlaced scanning: Odd lines are drawn onscreen (called field 1), followed by the even lines (field 2) to complete a single frame.
Progressive scanning: Every line is scanned until a complete frame is drawn. There are no fields.
24psF scanning: Each frame is captured on the CCD progressively, but stored in two interlaced fields on tape.

Some HD equipment uses a hybrid method to store progressively captured camera images within an interlaced structure on tape. This format is called progressive segmented frame (psF), and it is used for recording 24p video within the recording conventions of an interlaced format. While this could be called1080p24, it's technically 1080psF because each progressive frame is stored on tape as two interlaced fields that were actually captured from the camera CCD at the same time.

Because of the high data rate generated by high definition video cameras, most HD formats compress the image data to fit on tape.

DVCPRO HD; also generally referred to as DV-100 (in reference to its bit-rate of 100 Mbps).
• D-9 HD, an extension of the Digital S format. (Digital S is designated SMPTE D9.)
• D-5 HD, an extension of the D-5 format.
HDCAM and HDCAM-SR (an extension of the HDCAM format).

Format	Maker	Color sampling	Compression ratio	Bit depth	Recorded bit rate
D-5 HD	Panasonic	4:2:2	4:1	8 bit	235 Mbps
			5:1	10 bit
D-6	Phillips, Toshiba	4:4:4	none	10 bit	1.2 Gbps
HDCAM	Sony	3:1:1	4.4:1	8 bit (internal)	143 Mbps
				10 bit (in/out)
HDCAM SR	Sony	4:2:2	2.7:1	10 bit	440 Mbps
		4:4:4	4.2:1
DVCPRO HD	Panasonic	4:2:2	6.7:1	8 bit	100 Mbps
HDV	Multiple manufacturers	4:2:2	19 MB/sec.1(720p)	8 bit	19 Mbps
			25 MB/sec.(1080i)		25 Mbps
RGB video• 1080i30• 720p60	n/a(computer graphics)	4:4:4	None	8 bits per color channel	1.39 Gbps
					1.24 Gbps

^1 HDV uses MPEG-2 compression, which has varying compression ratios. MPEG compression ratios are often expressed as a bit rate.

High definition requires extremely high data rates (around 1.4 Gbps). There are no camcorder formats currently available for recording uncompressed HD video. High-capacity, general-purpose digital tape formats like D-6 can be used in combination with camera heads and digital telecine machines capable of outputting uncompressed RGB and component HD video data. High-speed disk arrays can also be used to record uncompressed HD video.

The following table is useful when preparing to capture video to a particular codec on your hard disk.

Format	Typical data rate
OfflineRT (using Photo JPEG)	Varies between 300-500 KB/sec.
25:1 compressed M-JPEG	1 MB/sec.
DV-25	3.6 MB/sec.
DVCPRO50	7.2 MB/sec.
2:1 compressed M-JPEG	12 MB/sec.
Uncompressed standard definition video	24 MB/sec.
Uncompressed 8-bit 1080i 29.97 fps high definition video	121.5 MB/sec.
Uncompressed 10-bit 1080i 29.97 fps high definition video	182.3 MB/sec.

When you capture and output, the type of video signal you use to connect your equipment is a critical factor that goes into determining the quality of your video. Video camcorders, decks, and monitors can use different types of signal types, depending on the environment they are intended for. Consumer equipment usually has limited video signal choices; professional gear gives you the greatest range of options.

Here are the most common video signals used on today's video devices:

Composite
S-Video (Y/C)
Component YUV (Y'C B C R )
Component RGB
FireWire (IEEE 1394 or i.LINK)
• SDI
HD-SDI
SCART

Composite is the lowest common denominator of video signals. A composite signal runs all color and brightness information on a single cable which creates analog "artifacts," negatively affecting the quality of the signal. Nearly all video devices have a composite input and output. This format uses a single RCA or BNC connector.

In professional editing environments, composite video signals are most commonly used for troubleshooting, for menu outputs, and for low-quality preview monitoring. For consumer and home use, composite signals are often used to connected VCRs or DVD players to televisions.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Composite - 1

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Composite - 2

RCA connector

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Composite - 3

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Composite - 4

BNC connector

S-Video, also known as Y/C, is a higher quality video signal used by high-end consumer video equipment. The image looks sharper and has better color than composite video because S-Video keeps the color and brightness information separate on two cables. Most low-cost analog-to-digital video interfaces have S-Video as their highest quality video connector.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - S-Video - 1

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - S-Video - 2

S-Video connector

Professional video equipment, such as Betacam SP decks, has component YUV video inputs and outputs. Component YUV separates color and brightness information into three signals, which keeps the color quality more accurate than other systems.

Component YUV is as good as analog video gets. High-end consumer equipment, such as DVD players and televisions, has increasingly begun to support component YUV.

Note: Another form of component video, component RGB, is not as widespread on professional gear as component YUV.

Both component YUV and RGB signals use from three to five connectors. You can use three BNC connectors, plus a fourth (typically labeled "genlock" or "house sync") for sending a timing signal. Or, sync can be embedded in the Y or G part of the signal (using three connectors), a separate composite sync (using four connectors), or separate H and V drive signals (using five connectors). See your equipment's documentation for more information.

Y or green R or red B or blue Component YUV RGB On some equipment, you can switch between RGB and YUV modes.

This is the consumer and professional standard for DV-format digital video. FireWire is an inexpensive and easy way to capture and output high-quality digital video using a variety of camcorders and decks, capable of data rates as high as 400 Mbps. Standard FireWire cables can be up to 4.5 meters long.

There are two kinds of FireWire connectors: a 4-pin connector (typically found on video equipment such as camcorders or decks) and a 6-pin connector (used for computer equipment). However, some newer video equipment uses the 6-pin connector and some video interfaces use the 4-pin connector. See your equipment's documentation for more information.

FireWire 400 (6-pin) FireWire 400 (4-pin)

This is the next generation of FireWire after IEEE 1394a, a higher bandwidth version capable of data transfer speeds of up to 800 Mbps. FireWire 800 is also capable of supporting longer cable distances, up to 100 meters.

In addition to the standard 9-pin-to-9-pin FireWire 800 cables, 9-pin-to-4-pin and 9-pin-to-6-pin FireWire 400 to FireWire 800 cables are also available to connect older devices to a FireWire 800 interface.

FireWire 800 (9-pin)

SDI is the standard for high-end, uncompressed digital video formats, such as D1, D5, and Digital Betacam. If you want to capture digital video from these formats at the highest possible quality, you need a video interface with an SDI input and output, as well as a high-performance disk array (a set of disk drives grouped together to read and write in parallel) to accommodate the high data rates you'll work with. Many devices can send both video and audio data through a single SDI connection.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - SDI (Serial Digital Interface) - 1

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - SDI (Serial Digital Interface) - 2

BNC connector

HD-SDI is a higher bandwidth version of SDI designed for the extremely high data rates required by uncompressed high definition video. Like SDI, HD-SDI is capable of sending both video and audio through a single connection. The following decks have HD-SDI interfaces: DVCPRO HD, D-5 HD, and HDCAM.

This interface is based on SDI, allowing native video formats to be streamed in real time within an SDI video stream. SDTI does not define a specific video signal format, but instead uses the structure of SDI generically to carry any kind of data. This allows video facilities to use their existing SDI patchbays and routers to transfer other native video formats, or transfer any kind of data. For example, some DV decks can transfer DV via SDTI, which means native DV can be transferred long distances over existing coaxial cable instead of the usual FireWire connection. Other formats can also be packetized within an SDTI transport stream, such as HDCAM and MPEG transport streams.

Consumer PAL equipment sometimes has a special connector called a SCART connector. A SCART connector has multiple pins that run composite, component RGB, and stereo audio in one bundle. SCART input or output can be broken up into individual connections using special adapters available from video and home electronics stores.

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - SCART - 1

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - SCART - 2

SCART connector

The timeline below helps to illustrate the constantly evolving list of media formats as well as developmental peaks and valleys.

Year	Event
1826	First photograph is taken.
1877	Thomas Edison makes the first sound recording of “Mary had a little lamb.”
1888	Heinrich Hertz shows that electricity can travel through space and that radio waves are physically identical to light.
1889	35mm film is invented by splitting Eastman Kodak 70mm in half (1.33 aspect ratio).
1895	Marconi develops radio transmitter and receiver.
1895	Lumière brothers demonstrate combination camera/projector (16 fps).
1918	First color motion picture appears.
1920	Commercial radio broadcasts begin.
1923	16mm film is introduced.
1927	First major motion picture with sound is released (1.37 aspect ratio), ending the silent movie era.
1932	BBC begins official monochrome, 30-line video broadcast.
1934	RCA experiments with 343-line, 30 fps television format, removing flicker by introducing interlacing.
1936	BBC begins broadcasting a high definition, monochrome, 405-line, 25 fps interlaced signal tied to European 50Hz electrical frequency.
1939	NBC begins regularly scheduled broadcasts of electronic television, 441 lines and 30 fps.
1941	National Television Systems Committee (NTSC) standardizes U.S. commercial television format, 525 lines, 30 fps tied to U.S. 60Hz electrical frequency.
1945	FCC allocates 13 channels for television broadcasting and moves existing radio channels to 88–108MHz.
1946	ENIAC, the first electronic computer, using 18,000 vacuum tubes, is unveiled.
1948	Long-playing (LP) phonograph records are introduced.
1948	Hollywood switches to nonflammable film.
1948	Ampex introduces its first professional audio tape recorder.
1948	The transistor is invented.
1951	The first commercially available computer, UNIVAC I, goes on sale.
1952	The FCC provides UHF channels 14 through 83.
1953	Second NTSC adopts RCA color-TV standard, 525 lines, 29.97 fps, interlaced.
1953	First CinemaScope, anamorphic film is released with 2.66 aspect ratio (1.33 x 2).
1955	Stereo tape recording is introduced by EMI Stereosonic Tapes.
1956	Ampex introduces its first video recorder using 2-inch reel-to-reel tape.
1961	Stereo radio broadcasts begin.
1963	Philips introduces audio cassette tapes.
1967	BBC TWO becomes the first British color broadcast network, using the PAL system, 625 lines, 25 fps interlaced.
1967	France introduces SECAM, 625 lines, 25 fps, interlaced.
1967	The Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) standardizes timecode.
1968	The computer mouse is invented.
1970	3/4-inch U-Matic video format is introduced.
1970	Computer floppy disk is introduced.
1971	First permanent IMAX film system is installed.
1972	FCC establishes rules for cable TV.
1972	The first computer editing system, the CMX-300, is introduced.
1975	JVC introduces the Video Home System (VHS).
1977	First pre-assembled personal computer, the Apple II, is introduced.
1982	Sony, Fujitsu, and Philips introduce audio compact discs (CDs).
1984	Apple introduces the Macintosh computer.
1986	Betacam SP is introduced.
1987	The first commercial digital videotape format, D-1, is introduced.
1990	General Instrument proposes an all-digital HDTV system in the U.S.
1991	Japan adopts Hi-Vision/MUSE as the national HDTV standard, 16:9 aspect ratio,1,125 scanning lines, 30 fps, interlaced.
1993	Digital Betacam is introduced.
1996	DV format is introduced.
1997	DVD format is introduced.
1997	Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC) digital television standards are adopted by FCC, including 18 formats, 6 of which are HDTV.
1999	Final Cut Pro 1.0 is introduced.
2000	DVCPRO HD equipment begins shipping.
2000	First IMX VTRs begins shipping.
2003	First HDV camcorder is introduced.

This appendix covers the following:

• What Is Frame Rate? (p. 377)
• Understanding Flicker and Perceived Frame Rate (p. 379)
• Frame Rate Limits: How Many Frames per Second Is Best? (p. 380)
- Choosing a Frame Rate (p. 381)
• What Is Timecode? (p. 383)
- About Drop Frame and Non-Drop Frame Timecode (p. 383)
• The Difference Between Frame Rate and Timecode (p. 385)
• Timecode on Tape (p. 386)
• Comparison of Various Timecode Formats (p. 387)

Think of a motion picture camera as a relentless still camera, taking many still photographs every second. Movies create the illusion of motion by showing still images in rapid succession. The number of images photographed per second is referred to as the frame rate of the movie, and is measured in frames per second (fps). Frame rate describes both the speed of recording and the speed of playback. The more frames recorded per second, the more accurately motion is documented onto the recording medium.

Recording and playback speed are usually the same, though they do not have to be. For example, if you film a rubber ball bouncing on a sidewalk at 24 frames per second, your movie will have 24 unique photographs of the position of the ball. However, if you film at 100 frames per second, there are nearly four times as many photographs of the ball's position during the same period of time. The more frames per second, the more precisely the exact position of the ball is documented.

Note: If you play back frames at a speed different than the original recording speed, you can create temporal effects such as time lapse and slow motion.

Early television systems selected frame rates based on local electrical standards to avoid electrical interference with the picture. NTSC in North America uses 30 fps (now adjusted to 29.97 fps for color NTSC) based on 60 Hz electrical power. PAL, used primarily in Europe, uses 25 fps based on 50 Hz electrical mains.

Because film cameras are relatively simple compared to video cameras, they allow shooting and playing back with a wide range of frame rates (although the standard projection speed is 24 fps). Video formats are much less flexible, partly because of their electronic complexity and partly because a television is designed to play video at only one frame rate. However, as video technology evolves, some digital camcorders now offer several frame rate choices while maintaining compatibility with existing NTSC and PAL video systems.

60 fps One second 24 fps

Movie screens are not constantly illuminated, although when you watch a movie in the theater, it appears that this is the case. A film projector's shutter actually blocks the light to the screen when each frame advances, but your eyes momentarily retain the image until the shutter opens again (thanks to persistence of vision).

When you close your eyes, there is a brief moment when you can still see what you were looking at it, especially if what you were looking it is quite bright compared to the surrounding environment. This persistence of vision is so brief that you may not be consciously aware of it, but it is this phenomenon that allows us to believe that rapidly changing still images are moving continuously.

However, the higher the frame rate, the more film you need, the faster the projector must operate, or the more electronic bandwidth you need (in the case of video). Early audience perception tests with movies demonstrated that increasing the rate of flicker increased the perception of smooth motion, even if the images themselves were not changing during every single flicker. The perceived frame rate (or flicker rate) can be increased by opening and closing the projector's shutter two or three times for each film frame, creating a less noticeable flicker on screen. Therefore, even though movies are universally shown at 24 fps, the projector's shutter may open and close at 48 fps, or perhaps higher.

Early television systems used a different approach for the same result: increased flicker without increasing the necessary electronic bandwidth. Interlaced scanning fills a television frame with only half the video lines of a frame (this is known as a field), and then fills in the remaining lines (the other field). A field effectively fills the television screen with an image, even though it is only half-resolution, and it does so in half the time it would take to draw the full frame. The result is a perceived frame rate which is double the actual frame rate. For NTSC, the frame rate is 29.97 fps, but the perceived frame rate (the field rate) is 59.94 fps. This causes less flicker. PAL, which has a lower frame rate of 25 fps (or 50 fields per second) has a slightly more noticeable flicker.

When recording an object in motion, there are practical reasons to limit the camera frame rate:

The limit of human perception: There is no reason to show more frames per second than the viewer can perceive. The exact limit of human motion perception is still up for scientific debate, but it is generally agreed that there is an upper threshold after which people can't appreciate the difference.
Media cost and size: Film and video tape stock cost money. Higher frame rates require more footage, and are more expensive to shoot. Editing and media management becomes more difficult as the amount of raw media increases.

Despite the increased cost and effort, there are cases where shooting higher frame rates is useful. Slow motion effects are created by recording hundreds of frames per second and then playing the same frames back at a slower rate. For example, a bullet shattering a light bulb may take only a fraction of second, seeming almost instantaneous to anyone watching. If a camera records the light bulb a thousand times per second and then a projector plays the frames back at 24 fps, the movie on screen will take almost 40 times as long (1000 fps / 24 fps = 41.6 seconds). The higher the frame rate, the more temporal (time) resolution your footage has, which means it can be slowed down to show detailed moments that would otherwise be a blur. Shooting at high frame rates also requires more light, because there is less time to expose each frame.

Slow frame rates are used for time-lapse photography, in which a scene is recorded relatively slowly, perhaps one frame every second, hour, or day. This is useful when you are trying to capture gradually changing events, such as growing plants, the movement of clouds, or the rising and setting of the sun. When played back at standard frame rates, events occur rapidly on screen and otherwise undetectable patterns emerge.

Stop-motion photography, traditional drawn animation, and computer rendering take a similar approach. The point here is that the rate of creating a frame does not necessarily correspond to the rate of playback. This is one of the most exciting propositions of motion pictures and their ability to manipulate time: You can create images at whatever rate suits you and play them back at a totally different speed.

Film is especially flexible in that it can be photographed and played back with a diverse range of speeds. Some examples are:

• 1 frame per hour: Extreme time lapse photography.
- 1 frame per minute: Time lapse photography and stop motion animation.
• 18 frames per second: Early motion picture films.
- 24 frames per second: Worldwide standard for movie theater film projectors.
- 48 frames per second: Slow motion photography (because it takes twice as long to play back in a 24 fps projector, the motion is twice as slow).
- 300+ frames per second: High speed cameras for very slow motion photography (often used for miniatures to make models seem larger on screen).
- 2500+ frames per second: Very high speed cameras for special effects such as pyrotechnic photography and explosions.

Movies on film are almost exclusively projected at 24 fps. Television, however, does not have an internationally accepted frame rate. In Europe and many other countries, PAL and SECAM use 25 fps, while NTSC video in North America and Japan uses 29.97 fps. Other common frame rates are usually multiples of these.

Note: Converting video formats from one frame rate to another is technically challenging, and there are often unwanted visual side effects. This is especially true when the frame rates do not evenly divide. For example, converting 30 fps to 60 fps is fairly easy to do, but converting 29.97 fps to 25 fps is much more difficult. Making sure audio stays in sync throughout the conversion is yet another challenge.

Some digital video formats actually support several frame rates within a single format, allowing variable frame rate video recording and film (24 fps) compatibility.

Frame rate	Media	Description
24	Film; high definition video	This is the universally accepted film frame rate. Movie theaters worldwide almost always use this frame rate. Many high definition formats can record and play back video at this rate, though 23.98 is usually chosen instead (see below).
23.98(23.976)	Film; high definition video with NTSC compatibility; NTSC	This is 24 fps slowed down by 99.9% (1000/1001) to easily transfer film to NTSC video. Many high definition video formats (and some SD formats) can record at this speed, and it is usually preferred over true 24 fps because of NTSC compatibility.
25	PAL; high definition video	The European video standard. Film is sometimes shot at 25 fps when destined for editing or distribution on PAL video.
29.97	NTSC; high definition video	This has been the color NTSC video standard since 1953. This number is sometimes inaccurately referred to as 30 fps.
30	High definition video; early black-and-white NTSC video	Some high definition cameras can record at 30 fps, as opposed to 29.97 fps. Before color was added to NTSC video signals, the frame rate was truly 30 fps. However, this format is almost never used today.
50	PAL; high definition video	This refers to the interlaced field rate (double the frame rate) of PAL. Some 1080i high definition cameras can record at this frame rate.
59.94	High definition video with NTSC compatibility	High definition cameras can record at this frame rate, which is compatible with NTSC video. It is also the interlaced field rate of NTSC video. This number is sometimes referred to as 60 fps, but it is best to use 59.94 fps unless you really mean 60.
60	High definition video	High definition equipment can often play and record at this frame rate, but 59.94 fps is much more common because of NTSC compatibility.

Important: Many people round 29.97 fps to 30 fps, but this can lead to confusion during postproduction. Today, it is still very rare to use a frame rate of 30 fps, but very common to use 29.97 fps. When in doubt, ask people to clarify whether they really mean 30 fps, or if they are simply rounding 29.97 fps for convenience.

Timecode is a signal recorded with your video that uniquely identifies every frame of your tape using a time stamp in hours, minutes, seconds, and frames. Timecode uses the following format:

SMPTE timecode

01:32:15:28 Hours Minutes Seconds Frames

Timecode was invented in the late 1960s so that computer video editing systems could automatically find specific frames on tape and record editing decisions that could then be performed over and over again. The Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) standardized several electronic timecode formats for video in 1967.

Note: Other types of address code, such as Keycode and ink numbers are used for editing film. For more information, see the documentation that came with Cinema Tools.

NTSC video (black-and-white) originally had a frame rate of 30 fps, so the timecode counted at 30 fps. However, NTSC color video (the only kind of NTSC video in use today), has a frame rate of 29.97 fps. This subtle difference between 30 fps and 29.97 fps seems practically negligible and, in many cases, ignoring this discrepancy is fine. But not always. What editors needed, especially in expensive broadcast markets, was timecode that accurately reflected the exact duration of a program on tape.

There are two types of 30 fps timecode for use with NTSC video: non-drop frame and drop frame. Non-drop frame timecode is simple: for every frame of video, there is a corresponding timecode number. The timecode increments without any compensation. In almost all cases, timecode is non-drop frame. In fact, drop frame timecode only matters in the case of NTSC video.

Drop frame timecode compensates for the fact that the NTSC format has a frame rate of 29.97 fps, which is .03 fps slower than the nearest whole number frame rate of 30 fps. Timecode can only be represented by whole numbers, so timecode numbers are periodically skipped in drop frame timecode. This way, the timecode number always matches the seconds and minutes of video that have played. NTSC can use either drop frame or non-drop frame timecode.

Important: No video frames are dropped when you use drop frame timecode. Only the associated timecode numbers are skipped.

You can think of dropframe timecode like leap years on the calendar. In the case of leap year, an extra day is added every 4 years except when the year is divisible by 400. This compensates for the fact that the way we measure our days and the way we measure our years does not align exactly. Even though the difference is slight, an unacceptable error accumulates over time unless regular adjustments are made to the count.

NTSC video has a frame rate of 29.97 fps, but the timecode counts at 30 fps. To better understand this subtle distinction, remember that the main purpose of timecode is to uniquely label and address each video frame, not to tell time (another name for timecode is address code).

Consider what it would be like if frames were labeled a different way, without any reference to time. For example, if each frame had a unique address coded with five letters of the alphabet, starting at AAAAA, AAAAB, AAAAC, and so on until ZZZZZ, editors would refer to shots and scenes by their individual five-letter codes. A director requesting a particular shot could look in the log notes and tell the editor to find frame ABAAA on a particular tape.

On tape or disk, each frame lasts1/29.97th of a second. Since there is an address affixed to each frame, the timecode moves at the same rate as the video (29.97 fps).

Now, instead of using a five-letter code to uniquely tag each frame, consider using an address code in the format 00:00:00:00. Remember that these numbers don't reflect time, they are simply unique identifiers. The first frame of NTSC video will be labeled 00:00:00:00. The 29th frame will be labeled 00:00:00:29 and the 30th frame will be labeled 00:00:01:00. Again, just because a frame is labeled 00:00:01:00 does not mean that one second has passed. The frame could just as easily been named AAABD, in which case there would be no temptation to read the label as a time value. Only the frame rate of the video can determine how much time has passed by the 30th frame. In the case of NTSC video, 0.999 seconds have passed by frame 30. By frame 1800, 60.06 seconds have past.

Frame Count	Timecode labels (30 fps)	Time passed (29.97 fps)	Error between timecode number and real time
0	0	0	0
1	1/ 30th second	1/29.97th second	Negligible
30	= 30/30ths of a second = 1 second	= 30/29.97ths of a second = 1.001 seconds	0.001 seconds
60	= 60/30ths of a second = 2 seconds	= 60/29.97ths of a second = 2.002 seconds	0.002 seconds
1800	1800/30ths of a second= 60 seconds= 1 minute	=1800/29.97thsof a second= 60.06 seconds= 1.001 minutes	0.001 minutes0.06 seconds1.8 frames
18,000	= 8000/30thsof a second= 60 seconds= 10 minutes	= 18000/29.97thsof second= 600.6 seconds= 10.01 minutes	0.01 minutes0.6 seconds17.9 frames
108,000	= 108000/30thsof a second= 3600 seconds= 1 hour	=108000/29.97thsof a second= 3603.6 seconds= 1.001 hours	0.001 hours3.6 seconds107.89 frames

If you edit an hour-long program on NTSC video, the 30 fps timecode will indicate the last frame of the program is frame 108,000, labeled as timecode 01:00:00:00 (non-drop frame). However, the table above shows that because the video actually runs at 29.97 fps (each frame is slightly longer than if it were running at 30 fps), one hour has actually passed at frame 107,892 (3.6 seconds earlier than the 30 fps timecode shows). What editors wanted, particularly in television environments, was a method of frame addressing that accurately reflected how much time had passed.

Drop frame timecode was invented to compensate for the discrepancy between 29.97 and 30 fps. Every minute except each tenth minute, two timecode numbers are dropped from the timecode count. This drop frame mode of 30 fps timecode remains accurate compared to the actual time passed, with a strange side effect that two numbers each minute vanish from the count.

The frame rate of your film or video describes how rapidly frames are photographed or played back. It refers to physical speed of image capture and play back. Timecode is merely a method of labeling frames with unique identifiers to easily find them again later. It is a convenient way of giving each frame a name that can be referred to later without having to verbally describe and visually search for it. Even though frame rate and timecode are independent, people commonly confuse the two, which can lead to frustrating problems in postproduction. Before you start a project, be certain that you understand the difference between these two terms.

There are several kinds of timecode recorded on videotape, each stored in a different part of the video signal. LTC timecode is stored as an audio signal, while VITC is stored in a line of each video frame.

- LTC (longitudinal timecode) is typically recorded as an audio signal on a dedicated timecode track. You can add or change LTC timecode on your original tapes even after they've been recorded because it's recorded on its own independent track. LTC is also used with professional audio formats, such as DAT and other multitrack audio recorders. Because LTC is audio, it can be interpreted by a timecode reader even when the tape is fast-forwarding, but it can't be read when the tape is paused or moving extremely slowly.

- VITC (vertical interval timecode) is recorded as part of the video signal, using several video lines that are normally masked by consumer televisions. You can see VITC as a series of white dots at the top of the video frame if you view the video on a professional monitor in underscan mode. Because VITC timecode is part of the video signal, it can only be changed on your original tapes if you also replace the video itself, which is rarely worthwhile. The VITC part of the video signal is not captured as part of a Final Cut Pro clip's video frame, but the VITC timecode can be captured directly from the device control connection. Because VITC is part of the video signal, which most decks can show in slow motion or even pause, VITC can be read at very slow speeds, but it breaks up when fast-forwarding or rewinding.

Most timecode readers can automatically switch between LTC and VITC if they are both available. In Final Cut Pro, you can choose this setting in your device control preset:

- LTC+VITC: If you choose this setting, Final Cut Pro looks at both timecodes so that accurate timecode can be read no matter what speed the tape is playing (LTC is used for normal and high-speed playback; VITC is used for slow motion and pause).

LTC timecode is most easily read when a deck is in fast-forward, and VITC is most easily read when a deck is in slow motion. Most professional video decks can read both signals and automatically send timecode from the one that's clearest at any moment. The LTC and VITC timecode signals on most tapes are almost always identical.

Important: Video decks capable of reading both LTC and VITC timecode usually have a switch that lets you select whether a deck outputs one or the other, or both. Unless the VITC and LTC signals on your tape don't match for some reason, leave this switch set to both.

Unlike DV and professional video formats, analog tape formats don't always have timecode written onto them. If you're using S-VHS or Hi-8, you need to make sure you're using a device-controllable deck and, if your tapes don't already have timecode on them, that you post-stripe timecode onto them. For information on how to do this, see the documentation that came with your video deck.

This table compares 24, 25, 30 fps drop frame and non-drop frame timecode. 35 and 16mm feet and frame counts are also shown. Note how the drop frame timecode numbers jump by 2 frames starting between frame count 1799 and 1800.

Frame count	24 frames per 1:00	25 frames per 1:00	30 frames per 1:00	30 frames per 1:00	16 frames per foot	40 frames per foot
1770	00:01:13:18	00:01:10:20	00:00:59:00	00:00:59:00	0110+10	0282+38
1771	00:01:13:19	00:01:10:21	00:00:59:01	00:00:59:01	0110+11	0282+39
1772	00:01:13:20	00:01:10:22	00:00:59:02	00:00:59:02	0110+12	0283+00
1773	00:01:13:21	00:01:10:23	00:00:59:03	00:00:59:03	0110+13	0283+01
1774	00:01:13:22	00:01:10:24	00:00:59:04	00:00:59:04	0110+14	0283+02
1775	00:01:13:23	00:01:11:00	00:00:59:05	00:00:59:05	0110+15	0283+03
1776	00:01:14:00	00:01:11:01	00:00:59:06	00:00:59:06	0111+00	0285+00
1777	00:01:14:01	00:01:11:02	00:00:59:07	00:00:59:07	0111+01	0285+01
1778	00:01:14:02	00:01:11:03	00:00:59:08	00:00:59:08	0111+02	0285+02
1779	00:01:14:03	00:01:11:04	00:00:59:09	00:00:59:09	0111+03	0285+03
1780	00:01:14:04	00:01:11:05	00:00:59:10	00:00:59:10	0111+04	0285+04
1781	00:01:14:05	00:01:11:06	00:00:59:11	00:00:59:11	0111+05	0285+05
1782	00:01:14:06	00:01:11:07	00:00:59:12	00:00:59:12	0111+06	0285+06
1783	00:01:14:07	00:01:11:08	00:00:59:13	00:00:59:13	0111+07	0285+07
1784	00:01:14:08	00:01:11:09	00:00:59:14	00:00:59:14	0111+08	0285+08
1785	00:01:14:09	00:01:11:10	00:00:59:15	00:00:59:15	0111+09	0285+09
1786	00:01:14:10	00:01:11:11	00:00:59:16	00:00:59:16	0111+10	0285+10
1787	00:01:14:11	00:01:11:12	00:00:59:17	00:00:59:17	0111+11	0285+11
1788	00:01:14:12	00:01:11:13	00:00:59:18	00:00:59:18	0111+12	0285+12
1789	00:01:14:13	00:01:11:14	00:00:59:19	00:00:59:19	0111+13	0285+13
1790	00:01:14:14	00:01:11:15	00:00:59:20	00:00:59:20	0111+14	0285+14
1791	00:01:14:15	00:01:11:16	00:00:59:21	00:00:59:21	0111+15	0285+15
1792	00:01:14:16	00:01:11:17	00:00:59:22	00:00:59:22	0112+00	0285+16
1793	00:01:14:17	00:01:11:18	00:00:59:23	00:00:59:23	0112+01	0285+17
1794	00:01:14:18	00:01:11:19	00:00:59:24	00:00:59:24	0112+02	0285+18
1795	00:01:14:19	00:01:11:20	00:00:59:25	00:00:59:25	0112+03	0285+19
1796	00:01:14:20	00:01:11:21	00:00:59:26	00:00:59:26	0112+04	0285+20
1797	00:01:14:21	00:01:11:22	00:00:59:27	00:00:59:27	0112+05	0285+21
1798	00:01:14:22	00:01:11:23	00:00:59:28	00:00:59:28	0112+06	0285+22
1799	00:01:14:23	00:01:11:24	00:00:59:29	00:00:59:29	0112+07	0285+23
1800	00:01:15:00	00:01:12:00	00:01:00:00	00:01:00:02	0112+08	0287+20
1801	00:01:15:01	00:01:12:01	00:01:00:01	00:01:00:03	0112+09	0287+21
1802	00:01:15:02	00:01:12:02	00:01:00:02	00:01:00:04	0112+10	0287+22
1803	00:01:15:03	00:01:12:03	00:01:00:03	00:01:00:05	0112+11	0287+23
1804	00:01:15:04	00:01:12:04	00:01:00:04	00:01:00:06	0112+12	0287+24
1805	00:01:15:05	00:01:12:05	00:01:00:05	00:01:00:07	0112+13	0287+25
1806	00:01:15:06	00:01:12:06	00:01:00:06	00:01:00:08	0112+14	0287+26
1807	00:01:15:07	00:01:12:07	00:01:00:07	00:01:00:09	0112+15	0287+27
1808	00:01:15:08	00:01:12:08	00:01:00:08	00:01:00:10	0113+00	0287+28
1809	00:01:15:09	00:01:12:09	00:01:00:09	00:01:00:11	0113+01	0287+29
1810	00:01:15:10	00:01:12:10	00:01:00:10	00:01:00:12	0113+02	0287+30
1811	00:01:15:11	00:01:12:11	00:01:00:11	00:01:00:13	0113+03	0287+31
1812	00:01:15:12	00:01:12:12	00:01:00:12	00:01:00:14	0113+04	0287+32
1813	00:01:15:13	00:01:12:13	00:01:00:13	00:01:00:15	0113+05	0287+33
1814	00:01:15:14	00:01:12:14	00:01:00:14	00:01:00:16	0113+06	0287+34
1815	00:01:15:15	00:01:12:15	00:01:00:15	00:01:00:17	0113+07	0287+35
1816	00:01:15:16	00:01:12:16	00:01:00:16	00:01:00:18	0113+08	0287+36
1817	00:01:15:17	00:01:12:17	00:01:00:17	00:01:00:19	0113+09	0287+37
1818	00:01:15:18	00:01:12:18	00:01:00:18	00:01:00:20	0113+10	0287+38
1819	00:01:15:19	00:01:12:19	00:01:00:19	00:01:00:21	0113+11	0287+39
1820	00:01:15:20	00:01:12:20	00:01:00:20	00:01:00:22	0113+12	0288+00
1821	00:01:15:21	00:01:12:21	00:01:00:21	00:01:00:23	0113+13	0288+01
1822	00:01:15:22	00:01:12:22	00:01:00:22	00:01:00:24	0113+14	0288+02
1823	00:01:15:23	00:01:12:23	00:01:00:23	00:01:00:25	0113+15	0288+03
1824	00:01:16:00	00:01:12:24	00:01:00:24	00:01:00:26	0114+00	0290+00
1825	00:01:16:01	00:01:13:00	00:01:00:25	00:01:00:27	0114+01	0290+01
1826	00:01:16:02	00:01:13:01	00:01:00:26	00:01:00:28	0114+02	0290+02
1827	00:01:16:03	00:01:13:02	00:01:00:27	00:01:00:29	0114+03	0290+03
1828	00:01:16:04	00:01:13:03	00:01:00:28	00:01:01:00	0114+04	0290+04
1829	00:01:16:05	00:01:13:04	00:01:00:29	00:01:01:01	0114+05	0290+05
1830	00:01:16:06	00:01:13:05	00:01:01:00	00:01:01:02	0114+06	0290+06
1831	00:01:16:07	00:01:13:06	00:01:01:01	00:01:01:03	0114+07	0290+07
1832	00:01:16:08	00:01:13:07	00:01:01:02	00:01:01:04	0114+08	0290+08
1833	00:01:16:09	00:01:13:08	00:01:01:03	00:01:01:05	0114+09	0290+09
1834	00:01:16:10	00:01:13:09	00:01:01:04	00:01:01:06	0114+10	0290+10
1835	00:01:16:11	00:01:13:10	00:01:01:05	00:01:01:07	0114+11	0290+11
1836	00:01:16:12	00:01:13:11	00:01:01:06	00:01:01:08	0114+12	0290+12

This appendix covers the following:

• About Anamorphic 16:9 Media (p. 391)
• Recording Anamorphic Video (p. 395)
• Capturing Anamorphic Media (p. 396)
• Viewing and Editing Anamorphic Media (p. 397)
- Rendering Items That Contain Anamorphic Media (p. 399)
- Exporting Anamorphic Video to a QuickTime Movie (p. 400)

In Final Cut Pro, you can capture, edit, and export anamorphic 16:9 media. Before you shoot or capture this type of video, find out more about how Final Cut Pro handles this format to help you determine what settings and options you need to use.

In the film industry, anamorphic lenses are often used to squeeze a widescreen image onto a standard 35 mm frame. During projection, the process is reversed: The squeezed image on the 4:3 film frame is stretched by a second anamorphic lens, resulting in a 2.40:1 aspect ratio on screen.

Video can also be recorded anamorphically. Using a standard definition camcorder, the recorded video frame is still 720 x 480 pixels, but the active area of the 16:9 frame is vertically stretched to fill all 480 lines.

Lola rolls eyes CU in Dining 00:01:25:01 70% 04:19:07:05

This picture is slightly distorted after being stretched vertically.

The advantage of this is that producers can shoot widescreen material using inexpensive equipment. The disadvantage of shooting anamorphic video is that everything in the anamorphic frame looks thin and distorted on a normal monitor unless the image is adjusted.

Note: As high definition video becomes more affordable, more moviemakers will likely shoot 16:9 video directly instead of using an anamorphic process with standard definition video.

To view this type of material, the display device needs to squeeze the image vertically by 25%, canceling out the stretch performed during recording. This puts 480 lines into a smaller vertical space (360 lines), reducing the appearance of scan lines. If the source material is film, which has no inherent line count, the vertical stretch is accomplished optically, giving an increase in vertical resolution.

This squeezing can be done by Final Cut Pro or by an appropriate video monitor. If your video monitor has a 16:9 button (many high-end broadcast video monitors do), you can also use this. Pressing this button rescales the video vertically as it is displayed on the monitor, giving it the proper widescreen dimensions.

Remember that 16:9 anamorphic video is supposed to look stretched on a typical 4:3 monitor. Although it may look odd, it is the correct behavior. When recording, editing, and outputting to tape, an anamorphic image should never be permanently rescaled. Instead, leave the video at its native resolution to retain the full video resolution of the image for future use, either for display on a widescreen monitor, or for transferring to film.

When 16:9 video is displayed on a standard definition 4:3 monitor, you'll see black bars at the top and bottom of the picture. The result is known as letterboxing.

Viewer: Lola rolls, eyes CU in Dining Video Stereo (x162) Filters Motion 00:01:25:01 59% 04:19:07:05 Lola rolls eyes CU in Dining

This picture is letterboxed.

If the original, unmodified 16:9 anamorphic image has 480 active lines (NTSC DV, for example), then the letterboxed version of this image will only be 360 lines tall, comprising 75 percent of the total viewable area of the monitor. As a result, 25 percent of the displayed video frame is black.

If you permanently letterbox your footage going from standard definition anamorphic to standard definition letterboxed, you lose the maximum resolution available in the original, anamorphic source footage. You should only letterbox your video when you are finished editing and want to deliver a tape that will look right on consumer equipment. DVDs can support anamorphic video, so you can retain the native resolution of your footage when transferring to DVD without letterboxing.

There are three main reasons to shoot 16:9, or anamorphic, video.

Even if you end up letterboxing your output for standard definition televisions, viewers tend to associate the widescreen look with a cinematic feel. Using the widescreen format also allows videomakers more room for creativity in their shot composition.

Film and video have different aspect ratios: movie theaters generally project 35mm film with an aspect ratio of 1.85:1, while standard definition video is 4:3. Those who shoot 4:3 video have to crop the top and bottom of the image to fit the video image in the film frame, losing resolution and quality.

Videomakers shooting 16:9 can make higher resolution transfers by virtue of not having to crop as many pixels (16:9 is still a bit narrower than the American film standard 1.85:1).

APPLE FINAL CUT PRO 5 - Keep Higher Resolution and Quality When Transferring to Film - 1

flowchart

graph TD
    A["Television 4:3"] --> B["Widescreen TV 16:9"]
    B --> C["35mm Film 1.85:1"]
    C --> D["70mm Film 2.0:1"]
    D --> E["A comparison of aspect ratios"]
    F["Lines of video lost when cropping a 4:3 video to fit in a 1.85:1 frame"] --> G

Videomakers who want to be able to upconvert their standard definition footage should shoot using 16:9 anamorphic video.

Anamorphic video can be acquired in one of three ways:

Using an anamorphic lens: An anamorphic lens is a wide angle lens that optically distorts the 16:9 image to fit into a 4:3 frame before sending it into your camcorder's CCD (charged coupling device). Because this is done optically, the result is clean and clear and takes advantage of the full resolution of the DV frame. This method is recommended by some for users looking for the best possible quality.
Using the 16:9 Wide button found on most camcorders: While easy and inexpensive, some feel that this method yields lower resolution. The camcorder crops the top and bottom of the screen, then stretches this smaller widescreen image vertically to fit the full 4:3 aspect ratio, producing the necessary anamorphic distortion before recording the image to tape.

On the other hand, this method is more convenient, since many camcorders embed information in the video signal that indicates whether or not it was recorded in 16:9 mode. Final Cut Pro can read this information and automatically capture and output the video in the correct mode.

- Using a camera capable of recording anamorphically using a 16:9 CCD: A CCD (charged coupling device) is the element of a videocamera that actually takes the image after it comes through the lens and turns it into an electronic image. Some camcorders have CCDs with a 16:9 aspect ratio, so that they actually capture full-resolution 16:9 video prior to squeezing the image anamorphically for recording.

If you use an anamorphic lens, the camera does not need to be in a special mode when recording. In the camera's viewfinder, the image appears stretched vertically; you should be aware that the recorded clips will only look correct on an NTSC or PAL monitor with a 16:9 setting, or in Final Cut Pro with the anamorphic option selected.

If you're using your camera's built-in 16:9 mode, the image in the viewfinder should appear letterboxed, but the output of the camera may only view properly on an NTSC or PAL monitor with a manual or automatic 16:9 setting.

When you capture video, Final Cut Pro uses the settings in the currently selected capture preset. If your footage was shot anamorphically, you can select the Anamorphic 16:9 option. For more information, see "General Settings for Capture Presets" on page 316.

Capture Preset Editor Name: DV NTSC 48 kHz Anamorphic Description: Use this preset when capturing DV NTSC Anamorphic material with audio set to 48 kHz (16 bit for DV). Frame Size: Width Height Aspect Ratio NTSC DV (3:2) Anamorphic 16:9 Make sure this checkbox is selected if you're capturing 16:9 media.

You typically don't need to worry about the Anamorphic option in the capture preset. Some cameras can embed metadata regarding the selected aspect ratio directly in the video signal. When a user presses the 16:9 Wide button on these cameras, the DV stream recorded to tape includes this information. Final Cut Pro automatically detects this and marks the resulting clip as Anamorphic 16:9. This happens regardless of whether or not the Anamorphic 16:9 option is checked in the Capture Preset Editor.

Those using an anamorphic lens to achieve the 16:9 look are actually recording their footage at a 4:3 aspect ratio. As a result, it is not automatically identified as 16:9 material by Final Cut Pro. If you are using an anamorphic lens, turning on the Anamorphic 16:9 option in the Capture Preset Editor marks all subsequently captured clips as Anamorphic 16:9, regardless of whether or not they are actually supposed to be. Make sure you deselect this box when recording regular, non-anamorphic 4:3 material.

Before you capture video, make sure you choose an Easy Setup or capture preset that includes the anamorphic option.

Final Cut Pro has the ability to properly display anamorphically captured material at the correct 16:9 aspect ratio directly on your computer display without rendering.

Generators and transitions such as the oval and star iris are correctly shaped, and all motion effects automatically take the 16:9 aspect ratio into account.

When you edit anamorphic 16:9 media, the following apply:

All non-16:9 media added to a 16:9 sequence is adjusted to match the pixel aspect ratio.
In the Viewer and Canvas, the default setting is "Show as Sq. Pixels" in the Zoom pop-up menu. This properly adjusts anamorphic 16:9 content for viewing on the computer's display.
Final Cut Pro sets the anamorphic bit in each DV frame rendered or played back.

When you use anamorphic media in a sequence, the Anamorphic option needs to be enabled in its sequence settings so the media can be viewed properly. There are two ways you can do this:

Choose a sequence preset that has the Anamorphic option turned on, then create a sequence.
Create a sequence, then turn the Anamorphic option on for that sequence.

This should be done before adding any 16:9 clips to a 16:9 sequence. If a 16:9 clip is edited into a 4:3 sequence (the Anamorphic setting is turned off), the clip is scaled to fit in the 4:3 frame, which requires rendering. If the sequence is then changed to 16:9 without first removing the edited clip, the scale attributes applied to the clip still remain.

1 Open the sequence in the Timeline.
2 Choose Sequence > Settings.
3 Select the Anamorphic 16:9 checkbox, then click OK.

Sequence Preset Editor Name: DV NTSC 48 kHz Anamorphic Description: Use this preset when editing with DV NTSC Anamorphic material with audio set to 48 kHz (16 bit for DV). General Video Processing Frame Size: Width Height Aspect Ratio 720 x 480 NTSC DV (3:2) Pixel Aspect Ratio: NTSC - CCIR 601 / DV (... Anamorphic 16:9 Field Dominance: Lower (Even) Check this box to turn on the anamorphic setting.

If you've captured anamorphic media but didn't use a capture preset that had the Anamorphic option turned on, you can change the anamorphic clip property in the clip's item properties or in the Browser. Make sure you enable the Anamorphic property for all clips before you begin editing.

Important: QuickTime media files do not have an embedded anamorphic metadata flag, only clips do. If you import anamorphic media, you need to manually enable the anamorphic property for the clips created in the Browser.

If you've already added a clip to a sequence, the clip settings default to the current sequence settings. To change the clip's settings, you must then change the sequence settings. For more information, see "Specifying Sequence Settings for Anamorphic Media" on page 397.

1 Open the clip from the Browser, then choose Edit > Item Properties > Format.
2 Make sure the Anamorphic row has a checkmark in it to indicate it's turned on.

If your media is anamorphic, make sure there's a check mark in this row.

Data Rate 3.6 MB/sec 3.6 M Pixel Aspect NTSC - CCIR 601 NTSC Anamorphic ✓ ✓ Alpha None/Ignore None/ Reverse Alpha

The Anamorphic column in the Browser also lets you select this option for clips and sequences.

Browser Dining Effects Name Anamorphic Vid Rate Frame CU Nancy at table ✓ 23.98 fps 720 x Dining footage Dining scene Dining sequence ✓ 23.98 fps 720 x Intro sequence ✓ 23.98 fps 720 x Music Rough Cut V1 ✓ 23.98 fps 720 x Rough Cut V2 ✓ 23.98 fps 720 x Teaser sequence ✓ 23.98 fps 720 x A checkmark in this column denotes anamorphic media.

There are several things to keep in mind before you render sequences that contain anamorphic 16:9 media:

When adding anamorphic 16:9 clips to an anamorphic 16:9 sequence, no rendering is necessary.
Any clips with the Anamorphic setting turned on in the Item Properties window will be appropriately rendered in that format.
If you're using a sequence preset that has the Anamorphic option selected, all clips in the sequence will be rendered in that format.
If non-16:9 media is added to a 16:9 sequence or vice versa, the new content is scaled to maintain the proper pixel aspect ratio and may need to be rendered prior to final output.

When outputting an edited sequence to tape using anamorphic video, you have two choices, depending on what kind of equipment you want to play back from:

Output as is, with the video appearing squeezed on a 4:3 monitor: This is the preferable option if you're planning on playing back your video on hardware that will compensate for the proper aspect ratio, or if you're planning on transferring to film. High-end broadcast monitors can rescale for 16:9 at the push of a button. Some specialty widescreen monitors, popular with home theater enthusiasts, will do this as well. Some DVD players can letterbox or stretch anamorphic video on playback, so you can keep your video in native 16:9 mode.
Letterbox your video if you're unsure how it will be viewed: If you're unsure who is going to be viewing the tape and you want to guarantee undistorted playback on a standard 4:3 monitor, you can manually letterbox your video. This will require rendering your entire edited sequence, so allocate some time for this process.

1 Create a new 4:3 sequence, and open it in the Timeline.
2 Make sure that the Anamorphic 16:9 checkbox is not selected in the General tab of its Sequence Settings window.
3 Drag your edited 16:9 sequence's icon from the Browser to the Overwrite section of the Edit Overlay in the Canvas to edit it into the empty 4:3 sequence.
The 16:9 sequence is automatically letterboxed to fit in the 4:3 sequence.
4 Render the 4:3 sequence, then output to tape.

Instead of outputting to tape, you may want to export your sequence as a QuickTime movie for multimedia or web distribution using a widescreen frame. For examples of widescreen QuickTime movies, see some of the movie trailers at

http://www.apple.com/trailers.

To export a 4:3 sequence to a QuickTime movie with a widescreen aspect ratio:

1 Create a new sequence with the aspect ratio you want to use.

This process gives you the opportunity to crop off the top and bottom of a 4:3 frame to fit into a wider aspect ratio, such as 16:9, 1.85:1, and 2.40:1.

2 Nest the sequence that you want to crop into this new sequence.

For more information about nesting sequences, see Volume II, Chapter 23, "Sequence to Sequence Editing."

The nested sequence is scaled to fit within the new sequence's dimensions.

3 Select the nested sequence in the Timeline and Option-double click it to open it in the Viewer.

4 Click the Motion tab, and set the Scale to 100.

The nested sequence now appears cropped within the Canvas because it has a larger frame size or aspect ratio than that of the export sequence you've created. You can reposition the nested sequence by using the Center motion parameter. For more information on positioning a clip within the Canvas, see Volume III, Chapter 12, "Changing Motion Parameters."

5 Choose File > Export > QuickTime Movie or File > Export > QuickTime Conversion to export the sequence you've just created. Make sure that the exported frame size is the same as the current size of the sequence.

For more information, see Chapter 18, "Exporting QuickTime Movies," on page 239 and Chapter 19, "Exporting QuickTime-Compatible Files," on page 245.

Tip: If you use a custom frame size, make sure that both horizontal and vertical pixel dimensions are divisible by 4. This reduces the chance of artifacts for most codecs.

This appendix covers the following:

• Resources for Solving Problems (p. 401)
- Solutions to Common Problems (p. 402)
- Contacting AppleCare Support (p. 408)

If you run into problems while working with Final Cut Pro, there are several resources you can use to find a solution.

This appendix: This appendix includes information about some of the most frequent issues users encounter. Problems are grouped by category.
Late-breaking news: A late-breaking news page in the Final Cut Pro help menu provides last-minute information that didn't make it into the manual. Be sure to consult this help page as soon as you install or upgrade Final Cut Pro.
AppleCare Knowledge Base: AppleCare Support maintains a database of common support issues that is updated and expanded to include new issues as they arise. This is an excellent, free resource for Final Cut Pro users. To access the AppleCare Knowledge Base, go to the AppleCare support page at http://www.apple.com/support.
AppleCare Support: There are a variety of support options available to Final Cut Pro customers. For more information, see the Apple Software Service & Support Guide that came with your Final Cut Pro documentation.

The following section describes common problems and solutions in Final Cut Pro.

Your camcorder or deck is not recognized.

Make sure your device control cable or FireWire cable is properly connected and plugged in all the way.
Verify that the camcorder is set to VCR mode.
Make sure the appropriate protocol for your device is selected in the device control preset. (See "Viewing a Summary of the Current Presets" on page 303.)
Quit Final Cut Pro, shut down your computer, turn your camcorder or deck off and on, then restart your computer.

You can't control certain functions of your camcorder or deck.

Make sure your device control cable is properly connected.
Make sure the appropriate protocol for your device is selected in the device control preset you're using. (See "Viewing a Summary of the Current Presets" on page 303.) If you're using FireWire, try changing the protocol to Apple FireWire Basic.
If your deck has a Local/Remote switch, make sure it's set to Remote.

Video is not visible on an external NTSC or PAL monitor.

Make sure your cables are properly connected from the DV device to your computer and from the DV device to the NTSC or PAL monitor.
If you're viewing your video on a camcorder that's connected to your computer's FireWire port, make sure the camcorder is set to VCR mode.
Close the Log and Capture window if it's open.
Make sure you choose View > External Video, then choose All Frames or Single Frames.
Make sure you've selected the appropriate setting in the A/V Devices tab of the Audio/Video Settings window. (See "Learning About Audio/Video Presets" on page 301.)
If you're outputting to a DV device, make sure that the clip you're viewing is a DV compressed clip. Choose Edit > Item Properties and make sure the Compressor setting is the DV-NTSC or DV-PAL codec.

Your external NTSC or PAL monitor is displaying an orange frame with the message "Video card not supported for RT Effects, it may have insufficient video memory or be an unsupported type."

- Make sure the monitor displaying the Viewer and Canvas is connected to a video graphics card that's compatible with Final Cut Pro.

Many audio sync issues stem from dropped frames on capture or output. Nearly all dropped frames are caused by either incorrectly configured hardware or incorrect preference settings. The leading causes of dropped frames are the following:

If you're using external speakers connected to a camcorder, deck, or third-party capture card, and external video is set to All Frames, the video displayed on your computer's monitor (from the Viewer or Canvas) will not be in sync with the audio. The audio will instead be in sync with the video that is displayed on the NTSC or PAL monitor that's connected to the same output device.
If your clip or sequence is zoomed while open in the Viewer or displayed in the Canvas, this can cause frames to be dropped. Choose Fit to Window from the View pop-up menu in the Canvas or Viewer.
The computer display is set to a low refresh rate. The refresh rate in the Displays pane of System Preferences should always be set to 75 hertz (Hz) or greater. (This is not applicable to flat-panel displays.)
The Canvas and Viewer windows are overlapped by other windows; they should not be.
Reduce the number of tracks in the Real-time Audio Mixing field in the General tab of the User Preferences window. If more audio tracks are specified to be mixed in real time than your computer can handle, this can cause dropped frames. Reducing the number of tracks will result in your having to render your sequence, but will result in improved playback.
Incorrect versions of Mac OS X and QuickTime can be another cause of dropped frames. Check the Final Cut Pro website for the version of system software you should use.
The hard disk drive you're capturing to is inadequate for capturing video. This could be caused by slow hard drives, incompatible drivers, or configuration issues. For more information, see Volume I, Chapter 14, "Determining Your Hard Disk Storage Options."

- Another source of dropped frames on capture or playback may be fragmented hard disks. In general, it's preferable to capture to disks that are specifically reserved for video. To avoid fragmentation, you should avoid filling up your disks with numerous files unrelated to the projects you're working on.

If you're editing a long project where some clips are captured, others are deleted, and then more are captured, and so on, even the cleanest storage volume may become fragmented. You can diagnose this with a hard disk utility. Should your capture disks be seriously fragmented to the point of impeding performance, you have three options:

- Quit Final Cut Pro, back up your project file, and delete all the clips from the affected volumes. (Delete only media that can be recaptured; do not delete graphics, audio, or project files.) Upon reopening your Final Cut Pro project, you will find that all your video clips are now offline. Simply recapture them and performance should improve.

- Copy all the files from the fragmented volume to a blank volume with enough space. Copying files defragments them on the volume to which they are copied. Then delete the files from the original, fragmented volume; now you're ready to capture more clips to it. Upon reopening your project, Final Cut Pro will automatically begin the process of reconnecting your media.

- A more time-intensive solution is to back up your project file, then use disk-defragmenting software to defragment your volume.

- You can also try deselecting "Mirror on desktop during Playback" in the A/V Devices tab in the Audio/Video Settings window.

- Another potential cause of dropped frames during output is having too many sequences open simultaneously in the Timeline. Especially with complex sequences with numerous edits, having more than one sequence open at the same time can affect playback performance. To resolve this, close all sequences except the one you want to output to video.

- Another cause of dropped frames is playing sequences with numerous short edits. Projects with a large number of short edits (for example, a video made up of several hundred ten-frame clips) can sometimes overwhelm a hard disk's ability to jump from one clip to another. In this case there are two things you can try:

- Write out one single file. When rendering out using the Export QuickTime Movie command, disable the Recompress All Frames feature to save unnecessary rendering time.

- Another solution, particularly in the case of long sequences, is to split a single long sequence into multiple short sequences, outputting them to tape one at a time.

After editing to tape, you don't see the material you edited when you play back the tape.

- The Edit to Tape command requires that the sequence or clip you're outputting be opened in the Viewer before you click the Insert or Assemble edit buttons in the Edit to Tape window. For more information, see Chapter 14, "Assemble and Insert Editing Using Edit to Tape," on page 185.

An error message appears during capture reporting a "Break in the Timecode."

- When capturing clips for your program from source tapes that were shot in the field, or from old source tapes that have been played to the point of wearing the media, timecode breaks may appear, disrupting the computer's ability to read a continuous stream of timecode. A few timecode breaks are normal on any source tape, but these timecode breaks should be avoided during capture whenever possible, as they can cause audio/video sync problems and incorrect timecode in your captured clip. Incorrect timecode can in turn cause inaccurate EDL export, and incorrect recapture of the clips containing the breaks.

If you're logging your source tapes manually in preparation for capture, it's a good idea to avoid logging clips along with the breaks that appear between shots, as these are spots where timecode breaks frequently occur. If a timecode break appears in the middle of a shot, it may be because the tape is worn, or because the media simply failed on that frame.

To avoid capturing timecode breaks in any circumstances, make sure that the "On timecode break" option in the General tab of the User Preferences window is set to either Make New Clip or Abort Capture. For more information on the "On timecode break" option, see "General Tab" on page 282.

- If you are experiencing excessive timecode breaks during capture, try cleaning the heads on your camcorder or deck. Dirty heads can cause timecode breaks that don't actually exist on the tape.

An error message says "Servo Can't Lock."

- The tape transport mechanism in the camcorder or deck may not be able to synchronize as expected and may require more time to synchronize to where the computer thinks it is. Try increasing the pre-roll time in your device control preset. (See Chapter 25, "Device Control Settings and Presets," on page 323.)

- If your device is connected via FireWire, try changing the protocol from Apple FireWire to Apple FireWire Basic in your device control preset. (See Chapter 25, "Device Control Settings and Presets," on page 323.)

- Older Power Mac G4 computers cannot process and properly play back DV in real time when playback quality is set to High. As a result, these computers display DV video at a lower resolution in order to maintain the full frame rate of playback for DV clips. This lower resolution results in a softer image, but no information is lost. You can see this when the picture is stopped. Final Cut Pro can use a high-quality still frame when it doesn't have to maintain playback, so the picture snaps back into focus.

To view your DV media at full quality while playing at 25 or 29.97 frames per second (fps), you'll need to connect the FireWire output of your computer to a camcorder or deck. The camcorder or deck will decompress the DV stream using dedicated hardware, resulting in smooth playback of your DV media on an attached NTSC or PAL monitor.

Note: You'll see the same fuzzy effect with DV clips that are exported into other applications as well. As long as the clip is compressed with DV, slower computers will lower the resolution during playback, but the source media on disk still contains all of the information, at the highest quality.

- Make sure cables from the video device are properly connected to your computer.

- Check your QuickTime video settings in the Capture Presets tab in the Audio/Video Settings window. For details on QuickTime source and compression settings, see Chapter 24, "Capture Settings and Presets," on page 315.

- Make sure you are not editing with media which uses keyframe compression, such as Sorenson or Cinepak.

- Make sure you selected the correct protocol in the Device Control Presets tab of the Audio/Video Settings window. If you're using FireWire, try using the Apple FireWire Basic protocol.

- The amount of memory available to Final Cut Pro can make a big difference in performance, especially with long projects. More RAM is also needed for software-based real-time effects and long projects. You may not have enough RAM allocated to Final Cut Pro. This can be changed in the Memory & Cache tab of the System Settings window.

You don't hear audio through your camcorder speakers.

Make sure your cables are properly connected.
If you are scrubbing audio in the Audio tab of the Viewer, increase the volume of the computer's audio output.

Make sure the speaker's cables are properly connected.
Make sure your audio cables are properly connected.
If you're monitoring your audio from your computer, make sure that Mute is off, and that the computer's volume is adjusted to a reasonable level.
Make sure the Preview option is selected in the Clip Settings tab of the Log and Capture window, and that the appropriate audio output is selected in the Sound pane of Mac OS X System Preferences.
Check your QuickTime audio settings in the Capture Presets tab in the Audio/Video Settings window. For details on audio sample and source settings, see Chapter 24, "Capture Settings and Presets," on page 315.

- During capture, make sure that you always set the Final Cut Pro sample rate to that of your recorded source material. Mismatched sample rates can result in pops and crackles in the audio, incorrect audio/video sync, and generally diminished sound quality. These rates are:

32 kHz if you're capturing media from a DV camcorder that was set to 12-bit recording
44.1 kHz if you're capturing digital audio from certain DAT or CD players.
48 kHz if you're capturing from most digital video formats.

You're having problems playing a reference movie.

- If you encounter playback problems with a reference movie, export the media as a self-contained movie (which includes all its media files), and not as a QuickTime reference movie.

To do this, make sure there is a checkmark in the Make Movie Self-Contained checkbox in the Export dialog. For more information, see "Exporting a QuickTime Movie File" on page 241.

You cannot import an EDL or batch capture list.

- Final Cut Pro does not support the import of RTF files. To import information from an RTF file, you should first open the file in a text editing application such as TextEdit and save it as a "plain text" document. The plain text version can then be imported into Final Cut Pro.

Included in your Final Cut Pro package is documentation about the support options available from Apple. Several levels of support are available, depending on your needs.

Whatever your issue, it's a good idea to have the following information immediately available. The more of this information you have ready to give to the support agents, the faster they will be able to address your issue.

The Support ID number that came with Final Cut Pro. This number is different from the software serial number that is used to activate your copy of Final Cut Pro.
The version of Mac OS X you have installed. This information is available by choosing About This Mac from the Apple menu.
The version of Final Cut Pro you have installed, including updates if applicable. The version number can be viewed by choosing Final Cut Pro > About Final Cut Pro.
The model of computer you are using.
How much RAM is installed in your computer, and how much is available to Final Cut Pro. You can find out how much RAM is installed by choosing About This Mac from the Apple menu in the Finder. The amount of RAM available to Final Cut Pro can be found in the Application field in the Memory & Cache tab of the System Settings window.
What other third-party hardware is connected to or installed in the computer, and who are the manufacturers. Include hard disks, video graphics cards, interfaces, and so on.
Any third-party plug-ins or other software installed along with Final Cut Pro.

AppleCare Support can be reached online at http://www.info.apple.com/usen/finalcutpro.

2:2:2:4 pull-down An efficient but low-quality pull-down method, primarily useful for previewing the output of real-time effects on an NTSC monitor. See also pull-down insertion, pull-down pattern.

2:3:2:3 pull-down The most commonly supported pull-down pattern for NTSC devices. This option is ideal for recording to an NTSC device such as standard definition television, an MPEG-2 encoding device, or a high-end finishing system. See also pull-down insertion, pull-down pattern.

2:3:3:2 pull-down The pull-down pattern used by DV devices that support advanced pull-down. See also pull-down insertion, pull-down pattern.

24@25 pull-down A pull-down pattern used in Final Cut Pro when 24 fps media is sent to a 25 fps video output. In this pattern, 12 progressive frames are displayed, followed by 13 re-interlaced frames.

24@25 repeat A pull-down pattern used in Final Cut Pro when 24 fps media is sent to a 25 fps video output. In this pattern, 24 progressive frames are played and the 25th frame is the 24th frame repeated.

3:2 pull-down See 2:3:2:3 pull-down.

4:3 The aspect ratio for broadcast video. The ratio of the width to the height of the visible area of the video frame, also called the picture aspect ratio, is 4:3, or 1.33.

8-bit precision For video, a bit depth at which color is sampled. 8-bit color is common with DV and other standard definition digital formats. Some high definition acquisition formats are also recorded with 8-bit precision.

10-bit resolution For video, a bit depth at which color is sampled. Certain standard and high definition video capture interfaces are capable of uncompressed, 10-bit capture.

16-bit resolution A standard bit depth for digital audio recording and playback.

16:9 A widescreen aspect ratio for video. The ratio of the width to the height of the visible area of the video frame, also called the picture aspect ratio, is 16:9, or 1.78. The 16:9 aspect ratio is used for high definition video.

16 mm A film format for film and television presentations, which has a 4:3 aspect ratio.

24-bit resolution A bit depth used for high-quality audio playback.

32-bit floating point resolution An extremely high resolution bit depth used for lossless computation of audio or video data.

35 mm A standard motion picture film format. This may be cropped during projection to create widescreen aspect ratios such as 1.66 or 1.85, or filmed and projected anamorphically for an aspect ratio of 2.40.

65 mm A film format for shooting widescreen presentations. This format is usually printed with a soundtrack onto 70 mm film.

70 mm A film format for widescreen projections, which has a 2.2:1 aspect ratio.

180-degree rule When a new camera angle is more than 180 degrees different from the previous camera angle, a shot with two people will appear to reverse positions onscreen. When editing a scene with two people talking, it's important not to cut to a shot that crosses the 180-degree line that connects them.

action safe area 90% of the image area. Most of the time, anything in your video image that's outside of this area won't be displayed on a television screen, so any important material needs to be framed within the action safe area. Compare with title safe area. See overscan.

Adjust Line Segment pointer A cross-shaped pointer that appears in the Timeline and Viewer when you move the pointer over a line that can be adjusted, such as a line segment between keyframes. The pointer has small arrows pointing up and down, indicating the directions in which a line can be moved.

advanced pull-down See 2:3:3:2 pull-down.

AIFF (Audio Interchange File Format) A cross-platform file format supported by a large number of digital video and audio editing applications. You can reduce the file size of AIFF files with compressors, although this reduces the quality. AIFF audio can use a variety of bit depths, but the three most commonly used are 8-, 16-, and 24-bit.

alpha channel An image channel in addition to the R, G, and B color channels that is used to store transparency information for compositing. Alpha channels are often 8-bit, but some applications support 16-bit alpha channels. In Final Cut Pro, black represents 100 percent transparency, and white represents 100 percent opacity. Only certain formats, such as Targa, TIFF, PICT, and the QuickTime Animation codec, support alpha channels.

alignment When working with transitions, refers to whether the transition starts before the edit point, is centered at the edit point, or ends after the edit point.

ambience A type of sound. Ambient audio includes background room noise, traffic noise, and atmospheric sound effects.

analog A signal that consists of a constantly varying voltage level, called a waveform, that represents video and audio information. Analog signals must be digitized, or captured, for use by Final Cut Pro. VHS and Betacam SP are both analog tape formats. Compare with digital.

anamorphic Visuals that are shot in a widescreen format and then squeezed into a 4:3 frame size. This can be done by using a video camera's electronics or, optically, by using an anamorphic lens.

anchor item When you first link multiple audio clip items to a video item in the Timeline, that video item is considered the “anchor” item to which the sync of all other linked audio items is compared. If you’re linking a group of audio items without a video item, the topmost audio item that appears in the Timeline acts as the anchor item.

anchor point In the Motion tab, the point that is used to center changes to a clip's geometry when using motion effects. Any changes to the size, position, and rotation of a clip happen relative to this anchor point. A clip's anchor point does not have to be at its center.

Angle control A control used to rotate a clip around its center axis without changing its shape. Located in the Motion tab of the Viewer. In the Angle control, the black hand indicates the current angle of the clip, and the small red hand indicates how many total rotations forward or backward have been specified.

A-only edit An edit of the audio files or video files of the base track only.

A-roll edit An edit of clips that contain audio data from the base track or a narration.

aspect ratio A film or video frame's width-to-height ratio on any viewing screen. The most common aspect ratio is 4:3, used for regular television screens. An aspect ratio of 16:9 is increasingly used for high definition video.

assemble edit mode In linear systems, assemble edit mode lays down new video, audio, and control tracks all at once. It usually requires anywhere from 3 to 5 seconds of pre-roll before you edit to tape. In Final Cut Pro, assemble edit mode is a function that writes the sequence or clip to tape at the designated In point, or at the current point. Assemble edit mode usually breaks the timecode and control track at the end of the edit.

attenuate To lower an audio signal's level.

audio channel indicator An icon in the Edit to Tape window that indicates which audio tracks are being output.

audio clip A media clip containing audio tracks.

audio meter A meter that lets you monitor audio output levels from your computer. You use the audio meters in Final Cut Pro when you capture, mix, and outputting your program.

Audio Mixer A tab in the Tool Bench window. The Audio Mixer is the primary tool in Final Cut Pro for mixing multiple channels of a program's audio in real time.

audio track A track in the Timeline into which you can edit audio clip items.

Audio Units The standard real-time audio filter format for audio applications running on Mac OS X.

Auto Render A feature that allows Final Cut Pro to render open sequences whenever a specified number of idle minutes have passed.

average loudness The average audio level in decibels. Determines the apparent volume of an audio signal to a listener.

averaging meter A meter that displays the average audio level. Unlike peak meters, which always show the exact level of an audio signal including every peak, averaging meters have weighted ballistics so that they give a more readily apparent representation of the average loudness of an audio signal.

AVI (Audio-Video Interleaved) Microsoft's older standard format for digital video.

axis The pitch, roll, and yaw of a camera shot determines its axis. In an edited sequence, the axis can be used to determine visual continuity from shot to shot.

back light A light source that comes from behind and above the subject. It outlines the subject and differentiates it from the background. Also called a rim light.

batch capture A process in which previously logged clips' media is captured from a VTR or camcorder to your hard disk. The timecode in each clip is used to automatically cue source tapes, using remote device control, to the location of each clip.

batch compression A process in which multiple clips or sequences are automatically compressed to new media files, without manually overseeing each one.

batch list A tab-delimited text file that contains information about offline clips that you want to capture and use in your project. Batch lists can be exported from or imported into your Final Cut Pro project file. After you import a batch capture list into Final Cut Pro, your project contains a series of offline clips, one for each entry in the batch capture list. You then need to recapture or reconnect the clips to their media.

batch recapture A process in which you recapture, at a higher resolution, the parts of logged clips that you actually use in your sequences. Helps to conserve disk space.

Betacam SP A high-end, standard definition component analog video format. Supports four tracks of analog audio.

Betacam SX A standard definition, 8-bit digital videotape recorder format with 10:1 video compression using MPEG-2 compression, and 4:2:2 color sampling. Supports four tracks of audio with 16-bit, 48 kHz audio sampling.

Bezier curve In its simplest form, a line defined by two end points and two associated control points, or "handles". Pulling the control points adjust the line into a curve. Named after Pierre Bezier, who discovered the mathematical formula for these curves. In Final Cut Pro, Bezier curves are used to adjust keyframed effects and to create curves in motion paths.

Bezier handles Controls that let you modify the curve of a line segment between a handle and the next point on either side of it. The farther a handle is dragged from its vertex point, the more it bends or curves the line segment. Used for smoothing keyframes.

bin A container (or folder) inside of the Browser that can contain clips, sequences, transitions, effects, and generators. You use bins to organize these elements, sort them, add comments, rename items, and so on.

black level An analog video signal's voltage level for the color black, represented by IRE units. Absolute black, or setup, is represented by 7.5 IRE for NTSC in the United States and 0 IRE for NTSC in Japan and for PAL.

blue or green screening A special effects technique that allows you to derive an alpha channel or matte from the blue or green background of a video clip in order to make it transparent for purposes of compositing against other clips. Blue-screen technology is what makes weather forecasters appear to be standing against an animated map, when in reality they're standing in front of a blue wall. Also known as chroma keying. See also keying.

boosting The act of raising an audio level.

boundary Refers to either the In or Out point of a clip in the Timeline.

broadcast Refers to signals intended for delivery on television, as well as network delivery to a wide audience. Broadcasters may have strict guidelines for the signal quality of programs for air. Broadcast quality is a phrase often used when referring to these guidelines.

broadcast legal Broadcast facilities have limits on the maximum values of luma and chroma that are allowable for broadcast. If a video exceeds these limits, distortion can appear, resulting in unacceptable transmission quality. You can use the Final Cut Pro video scopes and range-checking options to make sure that the luma and chroma levels you set stay legal.

B-roll A term used to describe alternate footage shot to intercut with the primary shots used in a program. B-roll is frequently used for cutaway shots.

Browser The central storage area in Final Cut Pro, where you organize all of the source material used in your project. The Browser lists all elements—video and audio clips, graphics clips, and sequences—in a project. Each project is represented by a tab that contains that project's file. You can further organize your media clips within a project using bins, which are similar to folders.

calibrate To adjust a feature for accuracy.

Canvas In Final Cut Pro, the Canvas is the equivalent of a record monitor in a tape-to-tape editing system. It works with the Timeline, displaying the frame at the position of the playhead in the Timeline and showing what your edited sequence looks like when it is played. Changes you make to a sequence in the Timeline are seen when you play back that sequence in the Canvas. If you modify clips in the Canvas, the changes are stored with the clips in the Timeline. You can also use the Canvas to perform edits.

capture To move NTSC or PAL video or audio from tape to a digital format for use by Final Cut Pro. An older term for capturing is digitizing. Captured video clips appear on the specified scratch disk as a series of QuickTime movie files. See also digitize.

center point Defines a clip's location in the X/Y coordinate space in the Motion tab of the Canvas.

CG Abbreviation for Character Generator. A specialized hardware device used for creating titles.

channel 1 Typically the left audio channel in a stereo recording.

channel 2 Typically the right audio channel in a stereo recording.

channels When used to describe video, can refer to color channels or alpha channels. Color and transparency information for video and graphics clips is divided into individual channels. Each individual color channel represents one of the three individual primary colors that mix together to represent the final image. Each channel has a bit depth; most graphics and video files are 8 bits per channel, meaning that there are 256 levels of color or transparency for each channel.

chip chart A grayscale chart that is placed next to the slate at the beginning of every shot. During postproduction, the color chart can be used to correct each shot so that the whites, blacks, and colors can be perfectly reproduced during editing.

chroma The color information contained in a video signal, consisting of hue (phase angle), which represents the color itself, and saturation (amplitude of the color subcarrier), which represents the intensity of the color.

chroma keying See blue or green screening.

clip An item in a Final Cut Pro project representing video, audio, or graphics media files on disk.

clipping Distortion occurring during the playback or recording of digital audio because of a signal that exceeds the maximum sample value of 0 dBFS.

CMYK Abbreviation for Cyan Magenta Yellow Black. The color space commonly used for images that are printed with four-color ink on offset presses.

codec Short for compressor/decompressor, or encode/decode. A software component used to translate video or audio from its analog uncompressed form to the digital compressed form in which it is stored on a computer's hard disk. DV, Photo, JPEG, and Sorenson Video are common QuickTime video codecs. Also referred to as a compressor.

color balance Refers to the mixes of red, green, and blue in a clip. In Final Cut Pro, you can adjust the color balance of the highlights (bright areas), midtones, or shadows (dark areas) of your clip using the Color Corrector 3-way filter.

color bars A standard color test signal displayed as columns, often accompanied by a reference audio tone. Color bars are used to adjust the video signal of the incoming source tape to maintain proper color from tape to computer and through to output. Color bars are also output to a master tape so that accurate duplicates (dubs) of the tape can be made.

color correction A process in which the color of clips used in an edited program is evened out so that all shots in a given scene match. Color correction is generally one of the last steps in finishing an edited program. The color correction tools in Final Cut Pro give you precise control over the look of every clip in your project by adjusting the color balance, black levels, mids, and white levels of individual clips.

color depth The possible range of colors that can be used in a movie or image. There are generally four choices with computer graphics—8-bit (grayscale), 16-bit, and 24-bit (millions of colors). Higher color depths provide a wider range of colors but require more space for a given image size. Broadcast video is generally 24-bit, with 8 bits of color information per channel. See also channels.

colorist A professional who performs color correction. The colorist, in consultation with the cinematographer, director, or producer, works shot by shot to determine the look of each clip according to the needs of the project.

component video A type of analog video signal in which the luma and chroma signals are recorded separately for better video quality. Professional video equipment, such as a Betacam SP deck, uses component Y^_RC_B (also called component YUV) video inputs and outputs. Another form of component video, component RGB, is not as widespread on video gear as component Y^_BC_R .

composite video An analog video signal that combines all chroma and luma information into a single waveform running through a single cable. This can result in analog “artifacts,” affecting the quality of the video signal. Nearly all video equipment has composite inputs and outputs.

compositing A process in which two or more images are combined into a single frame. This term can also describe the process of creating various video effects.

compression The process by which video, graphics, and audio files are reduced in size. "Lossy" compression refers to a process of reducing video file sizes through the removal of redundant or less noticeable image data. Lossless compression reduces file sizes by mathematically consolidating redundant image data without discarding it. See also codec.

contrast The difference between the lightest and darkest values in an image. High-contrast images have a large range of values from the darkest shadow to the lightest highlight. Low-contrast images have a more narrow range of values, resulting in a "flatter" look.

coverage A series of medium shots and close-ups, taken after the master shot, all of which cover the same material in the script. Used when shooting a scene with continuity. These shots are called coverage because they're often used to cover different edits made in the scene.

crop To mask a specified amount from the total frame size of an image. You can crop the top, left, right, and bottom of an image independently.

cut An edit in which one clip immediately follows another, with no transition effect. This is the simplest type of edit.

cutaway shot A shot that is related to the current subject and occurs in the same time frame. For example, an interviewer's reaction to what is being said in an interview is a cutaway shot. Often, a cutaway shot is used to eliminate an unwanted visual section of another shot. The audio usually remains continuous, helping to make the cutaway less noticeable.

data rate The speed at which data can be transferred, often described in megabytes per second (MB/sec.) or megabits per second (Mbps). The higher a video file's data rate, the higher quality it will be, but the more system resources (processor speed, hard disk space, and performance) it will require. Some codecs allow you to specify a maximum data rate for a movie during capture.

DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) A digital editing and recording device or software application used for editing multitrack audio for music or audio postproduction.

decibel (dB) Unit of measurement for sound levels; a logarithmic scale used to describe the loudness of sound as perceived by the human ear. (1 dB corresponds to approximately the smallest volume change that the average human ear can perceive.) For digital audio, dBFS is the standard decibel unit of sound level measurement. See also digital full scale.

decompression The process of creating a viewable image for playback from a compressed video, graphics, or audio file. Compare with compression.

desaturate To remove color from an image. 100 percent desaturation results in a grayscale image.

destination track The track a particular source item is edited into in the Timeline, as defined by the Source and Destination controls in the Timeline patch panel.

destination track controls Source and Destination controls in Timeline tracks that allow you to specify which tracks source clip items are edited into in the Timeline.

device control Technology that allows Final Cut Pro to control an external hardware device, such as a video deck or camera. Three protocols are used most frequently to control video devices: serial device control via the RS-422 and RS-232 protocols, and FireWire for DV camcorders and decks.

dialogue The recorded audio of one or more people speaking in a video clip. The designated dialogue track in an editing project is likely to include most of the location audio that was captured along with the video.

digital A description of data that is stored or transmitted as a sequence of 1s and 0s. Most commonly, refers to binary data represented using electronic or electromagnetic signals. QuickTime movie files are digital. Compare with analog.

Digital-8 A standard definition consumer digital video format that records a DV video signal onto Hi-8-style tapes.

Digital Betacam A standard definition 10-bit digital videotape recorder format with 2:1 video data compression and 4:2:2 color sampling. Supports four tracks of audio with 20-bit, 48 kHz audio sampling.

digital full scale The full audio signal range that can be recorded digitally without distortion.

Digital-S See D9.

digital video Video that can be captured, manipulated, and stored using a digital format, such as QuickTime. A digital video camcorder, for example, is a video camera that records images digitally on a medium such as tape. Because the signal is digital, it can be easily transferred to your computer.

digitize To convert an analog video signal into a digital video format. A method of capturing video. See also capture.

disabled track A track that has had its Track visibility control disabled. Disabled tracks will not output to tape or be rendered into a QuickTime file for output.

disclosure triangle A small triangle you click to show or hide details in the interface.

distort To change the shape of a clip by moving a corner point independently of the other corner points. Also, to squeeze a clip horizontally or vertically to change the ratio of its width to its height (the aspect ratio).

D1 A standard definition digital videotape recorder format that records an 8-bit uncompressed component video signal with 4:2:2 color sampling. Recorded using 19 mm tape. Supports four tracks of audio.

D2 A standard definition digital videotape recorder format that records an 8-bit uncompressed composite video signal with 4Fsc color sampling. Recorded using 19 mm tape. Supports four tracks of audio.

D3 A standard definition digital videotape recorder format that records an 8-bit uncompressed composite video signal with 4Fsc color sampling. Recorded using 1/2 inch tape. Supports four tracks of audio.

D5 A standard definition digital videotape recorder format that records a 10-bit uncompressed component video signal with 4:2:2 color sampling. Recorded using 1/2 inch tape. Supports four tracks of audio.

D9 Also known as Digital-S. A standard definition digital videotape recorder format that records an 8-bit, 2:1 DCT compressed component video signal with 4:2:2 color sampling. Recorded using 1/2 inch tape. Supports four tracks of audio.

downmixing Also referred to as mixing down, the process used to combine multiple audio channels to a single stereo (or dual mono) pair.

drop frame timecode NTSC timecode that skips ahead in time by two frame numbers each minute, except every tenth minute, so that the timecode agrees with the actual elapsed clock time. (Timecode numbers are skipped, but actual video frames are not skipped.) This skipping corrects for NTSC's actual frame rate of 29.97 fps. It corrects for an inaccuracy of 3 seconds and 18 frames per hour in comparison to actual elapsed time when non-drop frame timecode is used. To avoid confusion, dropframe timecode should be avoided in film-based productions. Compare with non-drop frame timecode.

drop shadow An effect that creates an artificial shadow behind an image. Typically used with graphics and text.

dual system recording A recording process in which video is captured on one recording device and audio is recorded on another. Dual system audio must be synchronized onto the source videotapes prior to capture, or synced up in Final Cut Pro.

duplicate frames indicator Colored bar that appears at the bottom of a clip's video item in the Timeline, indicating that frames are duplicated elsewhere in the sequence. Useful for editing film where duplicate frames can cause complications during the final negative cut.

duration The length of time between a clip's In and Out points.

DV A standard definition digital videotape recorder format that records an 8-bit, 5:1 compressed component video signal with 4:1:1 color sampling (PAL uses 4:2:0). Recorded using 1/4 inch tape. Supports two tracks of audio with 16-bit, 48 kHz audio sampling, or four tracks of audio with 12-bit, 32 kHz audio sampling.

DVCAM A standard definition digital videotape recorder format that records an 8-bit, 5:1 compressed component video signal with 4:1:1 color sampling (PAL uses 4:2:0). Recorded using 1/4 inch tape. Supports two tracks of audio with 16-bit, 48 kHz audio sampling, or four tracks of audio with 12-bit, 32 kHz audio sampling.

DVCPRO A standard definition digital videotape recorder format that records an 8-bit, 5:1 compressed component video signal using 4:1:1 color sampling (PAL uses 4:2:0). Recorded using 1/4 inch tape. Supports two tracks of audio with 16-bit, 48 kHz audio sampling.

DVCPRO 50 A standard definition digital videotape recorder format that records an 8-bit, 3.3:1 compressed component video signal with 4:2:2 color sampling. Recorded using 1/4 inch tape. Supports four tracks of audio with 16-bit, 48 kHz audio sampling.

DVCPRO HD A high definition video format that records an 8-bit compressed component video signal with 4:2:2 color sampling. Both 720p and 1080i are supported. Includes up to eight tracks of audio with 16-bit, 48 kHz audio sampling. Recorded using 1/4 inch tape. The total data rate is 100 Mbps.

DVD A disc that is the size of a CD, but that uses higher density storage methods to significantly increase its capacity. Although usually used for video distribution, DVD-ROM discs can also be used to store computer data.

dynamic range The difference, in decibels, between the loudest and softest parts of a recording.

EDL (Edit Decision List) A text file that uses the source timecode of clips to sequentially list all of the edits that make up a sequence. EDLs are used to move a project from one editing application to another, or to coordinate the assembly of a program in a tape-based online editing facility.

editing The process of combining and arranging audio, video, effects, transitions, and graphics in a sequence to produce a program.

edit point (1) Defines what part of a clip you want to use in an edited sequence. Edit points include In points, which specify the beginning of a section of a clip or sequence, and Out points, which specify the end of a section of a clip or sequence. (2) The point in the Timeline in an edited sequence where the Out point of one clip meets the In point of the next clip. This edit point can be selected for various operations.

Edit to Tape In Final Cut Pro, the Edit to Tape command lets you perform frame-accurate insert and assemble edits to tape.

effects A general term used to describe all of the Final Cut Pro capabilities that go beyond cuts-only editing. See filters, generators, and transitions.

exposure The amount of light in video or film images. Exposure affects the overall brightness of the image as well as its perceived contrast.

extend edit An edit in which the edit point is moved to the position of the playhead in the Timeline. It allows you to move an edit point between two clips quickly. An extend edit overwrites any clips that come between the selected edit point and the playhead. It does not affect the overall duration of a sequence.

eyeline match During the intercutting of shots, refers to cutting from a clip of a person looking at something to a clip containing the object that is being looked at.

faders In the Audio Mixer, vertical sliders used to adjust the audio levels of clips at the position of the playhead. Using the fader, you can adjust the audio level of a clip on a smooth logarithmic scale ranging from +12 dB to - dB (otherwise known as silence.)

favorite A customized effect that is used frequently. You can create favorites from most of the effects in Final Cut Pro.

field Half of an interlaced video frame consisting of the odd or the even scan lines. Alternating video fields are drawn every 1/60th of a second in NTSC video to create the perceived 30 fps video. There are two fields for every frame, an upper field and a lower field.

filters Effects you can apply to video or audio clip items. Filters affect the visual or aural quality of the clip to which they're applied. For example, a video filter might change the colors of your image, while an audio filter might add some reverberance, making actors sound as if they're in a huge space. In addition to using the filters that come with Final Cut Pro, you can use third-party filters.

finishing The process of reassembling the clips used in the final edit of a program at their highest quality. Finishing may involve recapturing offline resolution clips at full resolution, rerendering effects, then outputting the final program to tape. Finishing may also involve extra steps that were not taken in the offline edit, such as color correction.

finishing on tape The process of using the EDL from an offline edit to reassemble a sequence from the original source tapes in an online tape-to-tape editing suite.

FireWire The trademarked Apple name for the IEEE 1394 standard. A fast and versatile interface used to connect DV camcorders to computers. FireWire is well suited to applications that move large amounts of data, and can also be used to connect hard disks, scanners, and other kinds of computer peripherals.

fit to fill edit An edit in which a clip's speed is adjusted to fit a specified duration in a sequence.

flesh tone A special marker in the Final Cut Pro Vectorscope that indicates an area of appropriate range for all shades of skin color. When calibrating a tape's color in preparation for capture or when using one of the color corrector tapes, the flesh tone marker can be used as a guide for adjusting the hue in order to make sure the skin tones look correct.

frame A single still image. Film and video are made up of a series of these images. While a film frame is a single photographic image, an interlaced video frame contains two fields.

frame blending A process of visually averaging frames together over time to create smoother motion. This is often useful when playing back clips in slow motion, to smooth otherwise jerky motion.

frequency The number of times a sound or signal vibrates each second, measured in cycles per second, or hertz (Hz). Audio recordings are made up of a vast collection of waveforms, using many different frequencies of sound. Each frequency in a recording is associated with an audio pitch. For example, the note generated by each key of a piano is at a specific frequency.

gain The amount an audio or video signal is boosted. In video, this increases the white level; in audio, this increases the volume.

gamma A curve that describes how the middle tones of an image appear. Gamma is a nonlinear function often confused with "brightness" or "contrast." Changing the value of the gamma affects middle tones while leaving the whites and blacks of the image unaltered. Gamma adjustment is often used to compensate for differences between Macintosh and Windows video graphics cards and displays.

ganged The behavior of the playheads in the Viewer and Canvas when they're locked together, so that they move as one.

gaps Locations in a sequence where there is no media on any track. When output to video, gaps in an edited sequence appear as black sections.

gear down To slow down a mouse operation and make it more precise by holding down the Command key while dragging an item or control. This can be helpful when dragging clips if, for example, the Timeline is zoomed out so that clips look small. It's also useful to gear down if you want to make very small changes to an edit point, a keyframe parameter, or a volume level.

generators Clips that are synthesized by Final Cut Pro. Generators can be used as different kinds of backgrounds, titles, and elements for visual design.

handles Extra footage beyond a clip's In and Out points. Handles are useful if you want to add a few more frames to account for dissolves or additional trimming.

HDCAM A high definition digital videotape recorder format that records an 8-bit, 7:1:1 DCT compressed component video signal with 3:1:1 color sampling. Recorded using 1/2 inch tape. Supports four tracks of audio.

HDV An MPEG-2–based high definition video format that records on a DV cassette tape. HDV supports both 720p and 1080i, and uses interframe (or long-GOP MPEG-2) compression. Depending on the format, HDV has a data rate of 19 Mbps or 25 Mbps.

head clip The clip that begins a sequence.

headroom The available range in decibels (dB) that falls in between the reference level that is used to denote the average loudness of a mix and 0 dBFS. If you mix your project with the reference level set to -12 dBFS, you have 12 dB of headroom available before the signal is clipped. If the audio in a sequence has a wide dynamic range, you set the reference level low enough to create enough headroom so that no part of the signal goes above 0 dBFS.

Hi-8 An analog videotape format. Introduced as a higher quality version of 8 mm.

Histogram A video scope in Final Cut Pro that displays the relative strength of all luma values in a video frame, from black to super-white. It is useful for comparing two clips in order to match their brightness values more closely.

hue An attribute of color perception, also known as color phase. Red, blue, yellow, and green are all different hues.

image sequence A movie exported as a series of numbered image files, stored in a folder. Each image file contains one frame of video. The Targa and TIFF file formats are commonly used to export image sequences for file interchange among different film compositing workstations.

importing The process of bringing files of various types into a project in Final Cut Pro. Imported files can be created in another application, captured from another device, or brought in from another Final Cut Pro project.

IMX A standard definition, all-I-frame MPEG-2 format stored on tape, optical disc, or disk drive. Some IMX decks can play back and convert formats such as Digital Betacam, Betacam SX, and Betacam SP to IMX. The data rate of IMX can be set to 30-, 40-, or 50 Mbps.

incoming clip The clip to which a transition segues. For example, if Clip A dissolves to Clip B, Clip B is the incoming clip.

In point The edit point that specifies the first frame of a clip to be edited into a sequence.

insert edit An edit in which a clip item is added to a track in the Timeline at a specified point, moving clips (or parts of clips) after that point to the right. An insert edit does not replace existing material.

interlaced video A scanning method that divides a video frame into two fields, each consisting of alternating odd and even lines, which are scanned at different times.

IRE (Institute of Radio Engineers) Also refers to an analog video signal unit of measurement for luma, established by the Institute of Radio Engineers.

ITU Abbreviation for International Telecommunications Union.

J-cut See split edit.

jog To move forward or backward through video or audio one frame at a time.

jog control A control at the bottom of the Viewer, Canvas, and Log and Capture window that allows you to move forward or backward through audio or video as slowly as one frame at a time. Useful for carefully locating a specific frame.

JPEG A popular image file format that lets you create highly compressed graphics files. The amount of compression used can be varied. Less compression results in a higher quality image.

jump cut A cut in which an abrupt visual change occurs between two shots, with no continuity from one to the other.

keyframe A special-purpose control that denotes a change in value in a filter or motion parameter. When two keyframes with different values are set in Final Cut Pro, a transition from one value to another is calculated, resulting in a dynamic change to that parameter. For example, two center point keyframes with different values will result in animated motion for that clip.

keying A technique used to eliminate specific background areas of video in order to isolate and composite specific foreground elements against a different background. See also blue or green screening and luma key.

keyframe graph Located in the Control and Filters tabs of the Viewer, displays all keyframes and parameter values of a clip's motion and filter attributes.

labels Terms such as "Best Take" and "Interview" that appear in the Label column of the Browser. You can assign labels to clips and media to help distinguish and sort them. Each label has an associated color that is also applied to clips.

layout Refers to the size and location of windows in Final Cut Pro. Final Cut Pro comes with a selection of predefined layouts, and you can create and save custom layouts. Choose a layout that maximizes your screen space in the best way for your source material, editing focus, screen resolution, and monitor type.

L-cut See split edit.

lift edit An edit in which one or more items is deleted and a gap appears where the deleted items existed. Does not affect other clips in the sequence.

linear editing A video editing style in which a program is edited together by copying shots from the original source tapes to a master tape, one by one. Because the assembly is linear, any changes in duration made to an earlier point of the tape require reassembling the movie from that point forward. Compare with nonlinear editing.

link To connect video and audio clip items in the Timeline so that when one item is selected, moved, or trimmed, all other items linked to it are affected.

linked clip A clip item that is connected to one or more other clip items, so that when you select it you also select the associated clips. You link clip items to keep them in sync with one another.

linked selection An option in the Timeline that, when enabled, selects all clip items linked to the item you select. When linked selection is turned off, linked items are not selected and edited as if they are linked, but the items remain linked together.

link indicators In the Timeline, lines under clip names that indicate that the clips are linked.

Linking button A button in the upper-right corner of the Timeline that turns the linked selection option on and off.

Lock Track control The lock icon, near the beginning of tracks in the Timeline, that you click to lock and unlock tracks. See locked track.

locked track A track whose contents cannot be moved or changed. In the Timeline, a locked track is distinguished by cross-hatched lines across the track. You can lock or unlock tracks at any time by clicking the Lock Track control in the Timeline.

log and capture In Final Cut Pro, the process of logging the clips you want to capture, and then using device control to automatically capture them in the Log and Capture window.

Log and Capture window In Final Cut Pro, the window used to enter information about clips from source tapes, and to capture media files so you can edit them.

logging The process of entering detailed information about the clips that you want to use from your source tapes, in preparation for capturing them from videotape.

logging bin In Final Cut Pro, the specified bin where all clips that are logged or captured using the Log and Capture window are stored.

looping A playback mode in which clips and sequences go back to the beginning whenever the playhead reaches the end of the media. The Loop Playback command is in the View menu.

LTC Stands for longitudinal timecode. A method of writing timecode to a dedicated timecode or audio track of an audio or video recorder. Compare with VITC.

luma Short for luminance. A value describing the brightness of a video image. A luma channel is a grayscale image showing the range of brightness across the whole clip.

luma key A filter used to key out pixels of a certain luma value (or a range of luma values), creating a matte based on the brightest or darkest area of an image. Keying out luma values works best when your clip has a large discrepancy in exposure between the areas that you want to key out and the foreground images you want to preserve, such as a white title on a black background. See keying and matte.

luminance See luma.

markers In Final Cut Pro, points of reference in clips and sequences. Markers can be placed directly in clips, or they can be placed in sequences in the Timeline ruler.

mask An image or clip used to define areas of transparency in another clip. Similar to an alpha channel.

master clip A clip in the Browser which controls the relationship to a media file for all other affiliated clips in your project.

Mastering mode In Final Cut Pro, a mode in the Edit to Tape window that lets you output additional elements such as color bars and tone, a slate, and a countdown when you output your program to tape.

master shot A wide-angle shot that encompasses the entire scene. Traditionally, this is the first shot that is taken for a scene, and is the shot used as the basis for that scene when editing.

master tape The final tape that contains a finished program at its highest quality. Master tapes should be suitable for duplication, broadcast, and archiving.

match frame Match framing allows you to quickly open a master or affiliate clip at the same frame as the current position of the playhead. When the Canvas is active, the Match Frame command opens a sequence clip's master clip at the exact same frame currently beneath the playhead, and with the same In and Out points set. When the Viewer is active, the Match Frame command moves the Canvas playhead to an occurrence of the current frame showing in the Viewer (if one exists).

match-on-action A cut from one shot to another with similar action in the frame; for example, cutting from a shot of a woman opening the door outside an apartment to a shot from the interior of the apartment of the door opening and the woman walking in.

matte Sometimes referred to as a holdout matte. An effect that uses information in one layer of video to affect another layer. Mattes are useful when you want to use one clip to selectively hide or reveal part of another; for example, to reveal parts of a video layer by a round spotlight shape. Matte filters can be used by themselves to mask out areas of a clip, or to create alpha channel information for a clip in order to make a transparent border around the clip that can be composited against other layers.

media A generic term for elements such as movies, sounds, and pictures.

merged clip A clip that refers to more than one source media file on disk. Usually, a merged clip refers to a video file and multiple audio files.

mids Short for midtones. The values in an image between absolute white and absolute black.

mini-DV cassette A small cassette used for the DV digital videotape format.

mixer automation The process of using the Audio Mixer or a control surface to record audio level and pan keyframes.

mixing The process of adjusting the volume levels of all audio clips in an edited sequence, including the production audio, music, sound effects, voiceovers, and additional background ambience, to turn all of these sounds into a harmonious whole.

mono Short for monophonic. A type of sound in which each audio channel is handled discretely, or are taken from a tape and mixed together into a single track, using equal amounts of audio channels 1 and 2. Compare with stereo, stereo pair.

montage A sequence in which a series of different shots are arranged to create a certain mood or theme, or to denote the passage of time.

motion blur An effect that blurs any clip with keyframed motion applied to it, similar to blurred motion recorded by a camera.

motion path Lines displayed in the Canvas showing the direction a clip will travel based on positional keyframes applied to the clip.

MPEG (Moving Picture Experts Group) Acronym for Moving Picture Experts Group. A group of compression standards for video and audio, which includes MPEG-1, MPEG-2, and MPEG-4.

nested sequence A sequence that is edited into another sequence.

NLE Short for nonlinear editor. See nonlinear editing.

noise floor The background noise generated by audio equipment during recording, which inadvertently becomes a part of the recording.

non-drop frame timecode Timecode in which frames are numbered sequentially without dropping any frames from the count. When discussing NTSC video, the video frame rate is actually 29.97 fps, and non-drop frame timecode is off by 3 seconds and 18 frames per hour in comparison to actual elapsed time. Compare with drop frame timecode.

non-interlaced video The standard representation of images on a computer. Also referred to as progressive scan. The monitor displays the image by drawing lines, one after another, from top to bottom.

nonlinear editing A video editing method in which edits within a program can be changed at any time without having to re-create the entire program. When you use a nonlinear editing application to edit a program, all footage used is stored on a hard disk rather than on tape. This allows random access to all video, audio, and images as you edit. Compare with linear editing.

NTSC format The video standard defined by the National Television Standards Committee, the organization that originally defined North American broadcast standards. NTSC video has a specifically limited color gamut, is interlaced, has a frame size of 720 x 486 pixels (720 x 480 for DV), and a frame rate of 29.97 fps. Compare with PAL format.

NTSC legal The range of color that can be broadcast free of distortion according to the NTSC standards.

offline Clips whose media files are currently unavailable to your project. They appear in the Browser with a red slash through them. Clips may be offline because media files haven't been captured yet or because they've been modified in some way. To view these clips properly in your project you must recapture them or reconnect them to their corresponding media files.

offline editing The process of editing a program at a lower resolution to save on equipment costs or to conserve hard disk space. When the edit is finished, the material can be recaptured at a higher quality, or an EDL can be generated for re-creating the edit on another system.

opacity The level of a clip's transparency.

ordered timecode break A nearly imperceptible gap in the timecode track of a tape that breaks the continuous flow of timecode but doesn't result in the timecode being reset to 00:00:00:00. See also timecode.

outgoing clip The clip a transition segues from. For example, if Clip A dissolves to Clip B, Clip A is the outgoing clip.

out-of-sync indicator In the Timeline, the symbol that appears at the beginning of a clip when a video item moves out of sync with its linked audio items, or vice versa.

Out point The edit point that specifies the last frame of a clip for use in a sequence.

output Sending video or audio signals out of your Final Cut Pro editing system to display on a monitor or record on tape.

overscan The part of the video frame that cannot be seen on a TV or video monitor. Broadcast video is an overscan medium, meaning that the recorded frame size is larger than the viewable areas on a video monitor. The overscan part of the picture is usually hidden behind the plastic bezel on the edge of a television set. While you are editing, you can use the action safe area to indicate the approximate portion of a frame that is hidden because of overscanning.

overwrite edit An edit in which the clip being edited into a sequence replaces frames that are already in the sequence.

P2 (Professional Plug-in) A compact solid-state memory card designed for professional and broadcast media gathering. Since they have no moving parts, these cards are compact and sturdy as well as resistant to heat and cold. P2 cards typically store DVCPRO or DVCPRO 50.

PAL format Acronym for Phase Alternating Line, a 25 fps (625 lines per frame) interlaced video format used by many European countries. PAL has a frame size of 720 x 546. Compare with NTSC format.

Parade scope A waveform monitor mode that shows the video signal as separate red, green, and blue waveforms. Useful for comparing the relative levels of reds, greens, and blues between two clips, or within a single clip.

peak (1) Short, loud bursts of sound that last a fraction of a second. In spoken dialogue, letters like P, T, and K at the beginnings of words can result in little peaks if the person speaking is close to the microphone. (2) Occurrences of clipped audio appearing in Final Cut Pro as 0 dBFS peaks. Excessive peaks tend to indicate that the audio was recorded at unsuitable levels. A command in the Tools menu, Mark Audio Peaks, lets you identify 0 dBFS audio peaks in clips or sequences.

peak meter A digital audio meter that displays the absolute level of an audio signal as it plays. So named because every peak in the signal can be accurately seen.

phase (1) In audio, the timing relationship between two identical, or similar, audio signals. (2) In video, the timing relationship between the composite video chroma signal and the chroma subcarrier signal which determines the hue.

PICT A still-image file format developed by Apple Computer. PICT files can contain both vector images and bitmap images, as well as text and an alpha channel. PICT is a common image format on Mac OS X computers.

pixel One dot in a video or still image. A typical medium-resolution computer screen is 1024 pixels wide and 768 pixels high. Digital video movies for the web are often 320 pixels wide and 240 pixels high.

pixel aspect ratio The width-to-height ratio for the pixels that compose an image. Pixels on computer screens and in high definition video signals are square (1:1 ratio). Pixels in standard definition digital video signals are non-square.

playhead A navigational element in the Viewer and Canvas scrubber bar and in the Timeline. It corresponds to the frame displayed in the Canvas and the Viewer. You drag the playhead to navigate through a sequence.

postproduction The phase of film or video editing in which all of the production elements are organized, assembled, and output for the distribution phase.

preset A saved group of settings, such as capture, device control, and sequence settings. Presets determine properties such as frame rate, editing timebase, and capture interfaces. Presets are usually defined for particular video formats and workflows, and can be grouped together into Easy Setups.

Print to Video A command in Final Cut Pro that lets you send clips or sequence to your video or audio outputs for recording on tape.

proc amp Short for processing amplifier. A specific piece of equipment that allows you to adjust video levels on output.

program The movie you may create in Final Cut Pro. May consist of multiple sequences or one or more clips.

project In Final Cut Pro, the file that holds all of the elements of your movie, such as clips, bins, and sequences. Media files are stored separately from a project file.

pull-down insertion The process of adding fields and frames to convert 23.98 or 24 fps video to NTSC or PAL (29.97 or 25 fps, respectively).

pull-down pattern A method of inserting frames and fields into a video stream to output 23.98 or 24 fps video to an NTSC or PAL device. See also 3:2 pull-down, 2:3:3:2 pull-down, 2:2:2:4 pull-down, 24@25 pull-down, and 24@25 repeat.

QuickTime Cross-platform multimedia technology from Apple. Widely used for editing, compositing, CD-ROM, web video, import and export, and more.

QuickTime Streaming The streaming media addition to the QuickTime architecture. Used for viewing QuickTime content in real time on the web.

QuickView tab Provides an alternate way of viewing effects in a sequence outside of the Canvas as you work. It takes advantage of the ability of Final Cut Pro to cache frames of your sequence as you play it. This is useful for fast previews of complex composites and effects. It's also a good way to see how your final composite looks if you are zoomed in to the Canvas while making adjustments.

RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disks) A method of providing nonlinear editors with many gigabytes (GB) of high-performance data storage by formatting a group of hard disks to act in parallel as a single drive volume. There are different ways of creating a RAID, but for digital video editing the most common is referred to as a Level 0 RAID. The performance of a group of hard disks striped together as an array is much higher than that of the individual drives.

RAM (Random Access Memory) A computer's memory capacity, measured in megabytes (MB), which determines the amount of data the computer can process and temporarily store at any moment.

range checking Options that enable zebra striping to immediately warn you of areas of a clip's image that may stray outside of the broadcast legal range.

razor blade edit An edit in which a single clip is cut into two clips.

raw data Uncompressed data.

real-time effects Effects that can be applied to clips in an edited sequence and played back in real time, without requiring rendering first. In Final Cut Pro, the real-time effects architecture is known as RT Extreme.

recapture To capture a clip's media file again. Usually done to eliminate unused material in order to capture only the media files necessary to create your finished program at full resolution.

record monitor In a linear editing suite, a monitor that displays the edited master tape. A record monitor corresponds to the Canvas in Final Cut Pro.

redigitize To digitize clips again. Also referred to as recapturing.

reel Identifies the source tape from which a clip was captured. You specify a clip's reel number in the Logging tab of the Log and Capture window. This is typically entered when logging, but you can also change it in the Browser or Item Properties window.

render To process video and audio with any applied filters or transitions, and store the result on disk as a render file. Effects that aren't real-time must be rendered to play back properly. Once rendered, your sequence can be played in real time.

render files Files that Final Cut Pro generates when you render transitions and effects. Render files are saved to the specified scratch disk.

render status bars Two slim horizontal bars, at the top of the Timeline, that indicate which parts of the sequence need to be rendered. The top bar is for video and the bottom for audio. Different colors indicate the render or real-time playback status of a given section of the Timeline.

replace edit A specialized form of overwrite edit which aligns the frame at the playhead of the Viewer clip to the frame at the playhead of the sequence clip, replacing only the content of the sequence clip, even if no In or Out points are set. This is useful for replacing clips based on a matching a common visual event in the frame, such as a slate closing or an actor's movement.

reset timecode break A break that results in a tape's timecode being reset to 00:00:00:00. See also timecode.

resize edit An edit in which the duration of a clip in the Timeline is changed by moving its In or Out point.

Resize pointer A cross-shaped pointer with small arrows pointing left and right that indicate the directions in which an edit point can be moved. The Resize pointer appears when you move the pointer to the boundary of a clip item or transition in the Timeline.

reverse shot A typical example of a reverse shot is a cut to the second person in a conversation; for example, an interviewer asking the next question after the interviewee has finished speaking.

RGB Abbreviation for Red, Green, and Blue. A color space commonly used on computers in which each color is described by the strength of its red, green, and blue components. This color space directly translates to the red, green, and blue phosphors used in computer monitors. The RGB color space has a very large gamut, meaning it can reproduce a very wide range of colors. This range is typically larger than the range that can be reproduced for broadcast.

ripple edit An edit in which the start and end times of a range of clips on a track are adjusted when the duration of an earlier clip is altered.

roll edit An edit that affects two clips that share an edit point. For example, if Clip A cuts to Clip B, a roll edit simultaneously adjusts the Out point of Clip A and the In point of Clip B by the same amount. The overall duration of the sequence stays the same.

room tone The low level of background noise that exists in any recording. In order to edit out unwanted sections of audio without creating obvious gaps of silence, it's common practice to record a certain amount of extra room tone during a shoot. You can edit in the room tone whenever you need to cover a gap that was cut in the location audio.

rotation In the Motion tab of the Viewer, the rotation value determines how many times a clip circles around its center axis, without changing shape.

rotoscoping The process of manipulating or painting on individual frames. Usually used to describe the act of tracing, frame by frame, a foreground element to be isolated from the background of the frame.

rough edit The first editing pass. The rough cut is an early version of a movie that pulls together its basic elements. Often, a rough edit is performed prior to adding transitions, filters, and other effects.

ruler (1) The measurement bar along the top of the Timeline, which represents the total duration of an edited sequence. Also displays the timecode corresponding to the location of clips in the Timeline. You can move the playhead in the ruler in order to navigate through clips in a sequence. (2) In the Transition Editor, a ruler displays a close-up view of the frames surrounding the transition in the sequence. (3) In the Audio tab of the Viewer, a ruler above the waveform display area shows the range of the currently displayed clip.

sampling The process of measuring an analog signal and converting it into a digital value. For example, the sampling rate of an audio stream specifies how many samples are captured. Higher sample rates yield higher-quality audio.

SAN (storage area network) A network that connects computer systems to a shared storage area. The shared storage is typically a group of disk arrays (RAIDS) grouped together and managed via software (such as Xsan).

saturation A measurement of chroma, or the intensity of color in the video signal.

scale In the Motion tab of the Viewer, an adjustable value that changes the overall size of a clip. The proportion of the image may or may not be maintained.

scene A series of shots that take place at the same time in the same location. A series of scenes make up a program.

scratch disk The disk or disk space you allocate in Final Cut Pro for digital video capture and editing, as well as for the storage of a project's render files.

script A set of instructions that performs a specific function, similar to programming. FXScript allows you to create custom scripts for use in Final Cut Pro. You can use FXscript to create custom filters, transitions, and generators.

scrub To move through a clip or sequence with the aid of the playhead. Scrubbing is used to find a particular point or frame.

scrubber bar The bar at the bottom of the Viewer and the Canvas. You can speed up or slow down playback in forward or reverse by moving the playhead along the scrubber bar.

Scrub Video tool A tool used to change the thumbnail of a clip displayed when the Browser is in icon view.

SECAM (Sequential Couleur Avec Memoire) The French television standard for playback. Similar to PAL, the playback rate is 25 fps and the frame size is 720 x 576.

sequence An arranged series of video, audio, and graphics clips, edit information, and effects edited together to create a program. A sequence can contain your entire edited program or be limited to a single scene. Sequences can also be edited into other sequences, referred to as nested sequences.

sequence clip A clip that has been edited into a sequence. A sequence clip is typically an affiliate clip whose master clip is located in the Browser. Compare to master clip.

Selection tool In Final Cut Pro, the default arrow-shaped pointer, which allows you to select items in the interface. For example, you use it to select a clip or edit point. You can choose the Selection tool by pressing the A key.

SGI An uncompressed image file format popular on the IRIX operating system on SGI workstations. Stores images with millions of colors+. Can contain an alpha channel.

shortcut menu A menu you access by holding down the mouse button and the Control key, or by pressing the right mouse button.

shot A segment of uninterrupted captured video. A shot is the smallest unit of a program.

shuffle edit An edit in which a clip is moved from one position in an edited sequence to another by insertion. All clips between these two positions are moved to the left or right to fill the space left by the clip you moved. The shuffled clips don't change their duration, so the overall duration of your sequence is not affected.

shuttle To drag the slider on the shuttle control to the right to fast-forward and to the left to rewind. Playback speed varies depending on the distance of the slider from the center of the control.

shuttle control The slider control located at the bottom of the Viewer and the Canvas. This control is useful for continuous playback at different speeds, in fast and slow motion. It also shifts the pitch of audio as it plays at varying speeds.

signal-to-noise ratio The ratio between the average loudness of the subject and the background noise in a recording. Background noise can be many things—tape hiss, the rustle of clothes, or the rumble of traffic. It's important that the signal-to-noise ratio of your recorded clips be fairly high, so that actors' voices are comprehensible and clear.

slate A small board shot at the beginning of a scene, which identifies the scene with basic production information such as the take, date, and scene number. The slate may also contain a chip chart to aid in color correcting the scene. A clapper provides an audiovisual cue for synchronization of dual system recordings.

slide edit An edit in which an entire clip is moved, along with the edit points on its left and right. The duration of the clip being moved stays the same, but the clips to the left and to the right of it change in length to accommodate the new position of the clip. The overall duration of the sequence and of these three clips remains the same.

slider In Final Cut Pro, an interface element that can be dragged forward or backward in order to make an adjustment. Sliders can be found in the Motion tab of the Viewer, as well as in filters and generators applied to a clip.

slip edit An edit in which the location of both In and Out points of a sequence clip are changed at the same time, without changing the location or duration of the clip. This is referred to as slipping because you slip a pair of In and Out points inside the available footage.

slug A generator in Final Cut Pro used to create black video in a sequence. A slug can be used to represent a video clip that has not yet been placed.

SMPTE (Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers) The organization responsible for establishing various broadcast video standards. Established the SMPTE standard timecode for video playback.

snapping A setting in the Timeline that affects the movement of the playhead. When snapping is enabled, the playhead "snaps," or moves directly, to markers or edit points when it is moved close to them.

Snapping button A button icon in the upper-right corner of the Timeline that you click to turn snapping on and off.

SOT (sound on tape) Audio recorded on analog or digital video formats (audio and video).

soundtrack The audio that accompanies a program's video.

sound bite Typically a short excerpt from an interview clip, as used on news shows.

sound effects Specific audio material, such as the sound of a door closing or a dog barking, from effects libraries or from clips you recorded. Sound effects can be used to replace sounds in the location audio of a program, or to add sound that wasn't originally recorded.

sound recordist The individual on a film or video crew responsible for setting up the audio recording equipment, and for setting the levels and managing the audio recording during a shoot.

source media files The original QuickTime files captured to disk. The clips you use in Final Cut Pro are pointers that represent your media files, but changes made to clips within Final Cut Pro do not affect the media files on disk.

source monitor In a linear editing suite, a monitor that displays source tapes before recording them to the master tape. In Final Cut Pro, the Viewer acts as the source monitor.

source tape The video and audio tapes that were originally recorded during a shoot. Media files are captured from the source tapes, edited, and ultimately output to a final master tape.

special effects Visual effects applied to clips and sequences, such as motion effects, layering, and filters.

speed indicators Display the speed of clips in a sequence using tic marks. The spacing and color of these tic marks indicate the speed and playback direction of the clips.

split edit An edit in which the video or audio items of a clip ends up being longer than the other; for example, the sound is longer than the video at the head of the clip, so it is heard before the video appears. Also referred to as an L-cut or J-cut.

splits A method of delivering an audio mix of programs destined for foreign language distribution, typically using a multitrack audio recorder. Separate mixes for dialogue, music, and sound effects are recorded to separate pairs of audio tracks to make redubbing the dialogue and remixing it back together easier.

static region An area in a sequence in the Timeline that you lock so that it is visible even when you scroll to see other tracks. It can contain audio tracks, video tracks, or both. When you create a static region you get three regions in the Timeline: a top, scrollable region for the other video tracks, a middle static region, and a bottom scrollable region for the other audio tracks. You can't scroll up or down in the static region, but you can resize it to accommodate more or fewer tracks.

stereo, stereo pair Short for stereophonic, in which audio contains two different channels. Stereo pairs are linked and are always edited together. Audio level changes are automatically made to both channels at the same time. A pair of audio items may have their stereo pairing enabled or disabled at any time. Compare with mono.

Storyboard A series of pictures that summarizes the content, action, and flow of a proposed project. When using the Browser in icon view, clips can be arranged visually, like a storyboard. When dragged as a group into the Timeline, the clips will be edited together in the order in which they appear in the Timeline, from left to right and from top to bottom.

straight cut A cut in which both the video and audio clip items are cut at the same time.

streaming The delivery of media over a computer network.

subclip A clip that represents a portion of a clip's media file.

superimpose edit An edit in which a source clip item is placed into a track above a clip item that's already in the Timeline at the position of the playhead. If no In or Out points are set in the Timeline and Canvas, the previously edited clip's In and Out points are used to define the duration of the incoming clip. Superimpose edits are used to overlay titles and text onto video, as well as to create other compositing effects.

super-black Black that is darker than the levels allowed by the CCIR 601 engineering standard for video. The CCIR 601 standard for black is 7.5 IRE in the United States, and 0 IRE for PAL and for NTSC in Japan. For example, in the United States, 0 IRE would be considered super-black.

Super 8 A film format for widescreen presentations, with a 4:3 aspect ratio.

Super 16 A film format for widescreen presentations, with a 15:9 (1.66) aspect ratio. Super 16 is frequently used when shooting a project intended to be blown up to 35 mm.

super-white White that is brighter than 100 IRE, the maximum level allowed by the CCIR 601 engineering standard for video.

S-Video A high-quality video signal for high-end consumer video equipment. The image looks sharper and has better color than composite video because S-Video sends the color and brightness information separately, keeping the signals cleaner. Most low-cost analog-to-digital video interfaces use S-Video as their highest quality video signal. Also known as Y/C.

swap edit See shuffle edit.

sweetening The process of creating a high-quality sound mix by polishing sound levels, rerecording bad sections of dialogue, and recording and adding narration, music, and sound effects.

sync The relationship between the image of a sound being made in a video clip (for example, a person talking) and the corresponding sound in an audio clip. Maintaining audio sync is critical when editing dialogue.

tabs In Final Cut Pro, tabs delineate projects in the Browser, sequences in the Canvas and Timeline, and functions within the Viewer. You click a tab to open a project or go to a specified function window, such as Video, Audio, Filters, or Motion. Tabs can also be dragged out of the main window to create a separate window.

tail clip The last clip in a sequence, or the clip on the rightmost side when looking at an edit point between two clips.

tape-to-tape editing suite An editing facility that uses automated switching equipment to assemble a finished program from the original source tapes using the instructions contained in an EDL.

TARGA An uncompressed image file format that stores images with using "millions of colors+" for the color depth. TARGA files are supported by nearly every platform and media application. The "+" indicates an alpha channel.

telecine A machine that converts the images on film negatives to a videotape format. A telecine is necessary if you shot your project on film and you want to edit it on video.

three-point editing An editing technique in which three out of four In and Out points are set in a Browser clip and a sequence. When the edit is performed, the fourth edit point is calculated automatically by Final Cut Pro.

thumbnail The first frame of a clip, shown as a tiny picture for reference. In Final Cut Pro, the thumbnail is, by default, the first frame of a clip. You can change the frame, known as the poster frame, used as that clip's thumbnail by using the Scrub Video tool.

thumb tabs (1) Small tabs between the audio and video scroll bars in the Timeline that define separate groups of audio or video tracks with their own scroll bars. For example, if you have more audio tracks than video tracks, you can use the thumb tabs between your audio and video scroll bars to allocate more space to your audio tracks. (2) Small tabs on either side of the Zoom slider that you drag to zoom in or out of a sequence.

TIFF (Tagged Image File Format) A widely used bitmapped graphics file format, developed by Aldus and Microsoft, that handles monochrome, grayscale, 8- and 24-bit color. Can have alpha channels.

timecode A signal recorded with your video that uniquely identifies each frame on tape. The SMPTE format for timecode is hours: minutes: seconds: frames.

timecode gap An area of tape with no timecode at all. Timecode gaps usually signify the end of all recorded material on a tape, but timecode gaps may occur due to user error, such as fast-forwarding too far past a section of previously recorded material and recording additional footage. Video occurring after a timecode gap begins with a timecode value of 00:00:00:00. See also reset timecode break.

Timeline A window in Final Cut Pro that displays a chronological view of an open sequence. Each sequence has its own tab in the Timeline. You can use the Timeline to edit and arrange a sequence. The order of the tracks in the Timeline determines the layering order when you combine multiple tracks of video. Changes you make to a sequence in the Timeline are seen when you play back that sequence in the Canvas. If you modify clips in the Canvas, those changes can be seen in the Timeline. Note that the Canvas and Timeline only display sequences that are currently open.

Timeline patch panel The section at the left of the Timeline containing the Audio, Source and Destination, Track Visibility, Lock Track, and Auto Select controls.

time remapping The process of moving a frame in a clip to another time relative to the Timeline. All frames in that clip from the beginning of the clip to that keyframe are either sped up or slowed down to accommodate the new duration that's been specified.

title safe area Part of the video image that is guaranteed to be visible on all televisions. The title safe area is the inner 80 percent of the screen. To prevent text in your video from being hidden by the edge of a TV set, you should restrict any titles or text to the title safe area. Compare with action safe area.

Tool Bench A window in Final Cut Pro that contains interface elements that you can use to supplement information displayed in the Viewer and Canvas. The Tool Bench can contain up to five tabs—Audio Mixer, Frame Viewer, QuickView, Video Scopes, and Voice Over.

Tool palette A window in Final Cut Pro that contains tools for selecting, editing, zooming, cropping, and distorting items in the Timeline. All tools in the Tool palette can also be selected using keyboard shortcuts.

track header The area in the patch panel that contains controls for each track.

tracks Layers in the Timeline that contain audio or video clip items in a sequence. Also refers to the separate audio and video tracks on tape or within media files. Final Cut Pro allows up to 99 video and 99 audio tracks to be used in a single sequence.

track strips In the Audio Mixer, each audio track in the currently selected sequence is represented by a track strip, complete with solo and mute buttons, a stereo panning slider, and a volume fader.

Track Visibility control A control at the very beginning of each track that you click to enable or disable a track. Disabled tracks don't play in the Canvas or on an external monitor, nor will they be rendered or output to tape. When a track is disabled, it appears darkened in the Timeline, but its contents remain in your sequence and you can still edit them.

Transition Editor A specialized editor that appears in the Viewer when you double-click a transition in the Timeline. You can use it to make detailed changes to a transition's timing and effects parameters.

transitions Effects that are applied to edit points to smooth out a change from clip to clip. In Final Cut Pro, you can choose from a variety of video transitions, such as a dissolves or wipes, or you can add an audio cross fade between audio clips.

trimming (1) Precisely adjusting and defining the In and Out points of a clip. (2) Modifying an edit point in the Timeline by moving it earlier or later. (3) Fine-tuning an edited sequence by making small adjustments to many edits.

Trim Edit window A window in Final Cut Pro that displays both sides of an edit point. For example, if Clip A cuts to Clip B, the Out point of the Clip A is shown on the left and the In point of Clip B is shown on the right. You can use this window to adjust the edit point between two clips very precisely, frame by frame.

two shot A scene that includes two people in the frame.

underscan To display the entire video frame on a video monitor, so that no part of the frame is masked. Computers display underscan video. Some broadcast monitors have a setting that can enable an overscan video signal to display as underscan. Compare with overscan.

U-Matic An 3/4" analog tape format once popular for broadcast.

variable speed Speed that varies dynamically, in forward or reverse motion, in a single clip.

VCR Abbreviation for videocassette recorder. Generally refers to consumer equipment used for recording video from various sources. Sometimes referred to as VTR.

VDU (Video Disk Unit) This is a FireWire disk recorder that uses a 40 GB hard disk drive as its recording media. The drive attaches directly to professional quality DVCAM camcorders through FireWire, and is capable of recording up to 3 hours of video/audio signals in parallel with tape recording.

View buttons Use to switch among three different views of the Audio Mixer. Each view has its own set of hidden and displayed track strips.

Vectorscope A window in Final Cut Pro that graphically displays the color components of a video signal, precisely showing the range of colors in a video signal and measuring their intensity and hue. It is a specialized oscilloscope that can be used to calibrate the color in video signals being captured from videotape, as well as to compare two clips for purposes of color correction.

velocity The acceleration or deceleration of a clip's motion.

velocity handle A control you use to change the velocity of a clip's motion over time. Dragging the velocity handle toward the selected keyframe slows down the clip's motion at the beginning and speeds it up as it nears the next keyframe. Dragging away from the selected keyframe speeds up the clip's motion at the beginning and slows it down as it nears the next keyframe.

VHS (Video Home System) An analog videocassette recorder system designed for consumer use.

Viewer A window in Final Cut Pro that you can use to watch individual source clips and set In and Out points in preparation for editing them into your sequence. You can also customize transitions, modify filters, and view and edit various effects. Clips from the current sequence in the Timeline can be opened in the Viewer to refine edits, adjust parameters for effects, and adjust audio volume.

videographer The person responsible for lighting and camera on a video shoot.

video scopes Tools you can use to evaluate the color and brightness values of video clips in the Viewer, Canvas, or Timeline. Video scopes display an analysis of the video frame located at the current playhead position.

Video Scopes tab A tab in the Tool Bench that contains the Waveform Monitor, Vectorscope, Parade scope, and Histogram.

video switcher A device with multiple video inputs that allow you to cut or transition between several sources. Video switchers are commonly used in tape-to-tape editing suites.

video track A track in the Timeline into which you can edit video clip items.

VITC Stands for vertical interval timecode. Timecode that is written into the video signal on the source tapes as they're being recorded. You can view this timecode as a series of changing, flickering white dots and line segments in one of the scan lines above the active picture on a monitor in underscan or pulse-cross modes. When viewed normally, the line containing the timecode is off the top of the screen. Because it's part of the video signal, VITC timecode can't be changed on your original tapes without also replacing the video signal. Compare with LTC.

Voice Over tool Allows you to record audio in Final Cut Pro while simultaneously playing back a specified section of a sequence from the Timeline. Audio can be recorded using any Mac OS X Core Audio-compatible device, such as a USB audio capture device, PCI audio card, or the built-in microphone on a DV camcorder.

VTR Abbreviation for videotape recorder. Generally refers to professional equipment used for recording video from various sources.

VU meter Short for Volume Unit meter. An analog meter for monitoring audio levels.

WAVE The primary audio file format used by Windows-compatible computers. WAVE files can be either 8- or 16-bit, and use sample rates from 8 to 48 kHz.

Waveform Monitor A window in Final Cut Pro that displays the relative levels of brightness and saturation in the clip currently being examined. Spikes or drops in the displayed waveforms make it easy to see where the hot spots or dark areas are in your picture.

white balance To make adjustments to a video signal being recorded in order to reproduce white as true white. For example, if the white in a shot is too yellow because of incandescent lighting, white balancing adds enough blue to make the white appear neutral.

white level An analog video signal's amplitude for the lightest white in a picture, represented by IRE units.

widescreen Any movie presentation that has an aspect ratio wider than 4:3. In movie theaters, 1.85 is considered standard and 2.40 is considered widescreen. For video, 4:3 is considered standard and 16:9 (which is almost the same aspect ratio as 1.85) is considered widescreen. See 16:9.

window burn Visual timecode or keycode information superimposed onto video frames. It usually appears on a strip at the bottom or top of the frame, providing timecode information to the editor without obscuring important details of the picture.

wipe A transition in which a geometric or grayscale gradient is used to transition between two different clips.

wipe pattern One of several standard SMPTE wipe transitions recognized by EDLs. Because the EDL format continues to reflect the simplicity of older systems, many Final Cut Pro transitions have no equivalent in a given EDL format. Therefore, during the EDL export process, these new transitions are automatically mapped to the closest approximate SMPTE standard wipe pattern.

Wireframe A view of the outline of a clip's video frame. Clips in the Viewer and Canvas can be viewed in Wireframe mode.

x Refers to the x coordinate in Cartesian geometry. The x coordinate describes horizontal placement in motion effects.

xmeml Abbreviation for eXtensible Media Editing Markup Language. The custom set of markup tags used by the Final Cut Pro XML Interchange Format.

XML Abbreviation for Extensible Markup Language. XML is a method of storing information in an easily accessible yet customizable file format. XML files are plain-ASCII text files used by Final Cut Pro for data exchange among different applications and operating systems.

Xsan Software for clustering multiple hard disk RAIDs together into a storage area network (SAN). Multiple computer systems can read and write to the shared storage area simultaneously, allowing several editors to work in parallel using the same media files.

y Refers to the y coordinate in Cartesian geometry. The y coordinate describes vertical placement in motion effects.

Y^_BC_R The color space in which many digital video formats store data. Three components are stored for each pixel—one for luma (Y) and two for color information ( C_B for the blue difference signal and C_R for the red difference signal). Also referred to as YUV.

YUV See Y^_BC_R .

zebra stripes Animated diagonal "marching lines" that are superimposed over areas of an image that are very near or exceed the broadcast-legal limits. Zebra stripes are enabled when you use the Final Cut Pro range-checking options.

zoom level The level at which the Viewer, Canvas, or Timeline is magnified. You can adjust the level of precision of your editing by setting the zoom level. For example, by zooming in on the Timeline, you can make changes to a clip's individual frames. Conversely, you can zoom all the way out to see the entire project and work on very large sections at once.

Zoom slider The slider control that appears at the bottom of the Timeline. The Zoom slider allows you to navigate throughout the total duration of the currently displayed sequence; you can use the thumb tabs on the left and right of the slider to zoom in to and out of a sequence for a more detailed view.

% of Blur setting III-222

1/4" tip-ring connectors III-31

1/4" tip-ring-sleeve connectors III-31

1/8" mini connectors III-30

2:2:2:4 pull-down III-527, IV-409

2:3:2:3 pull-down III-526, IV-409

2:3:3:2 pull-down III-526, IV-409

3/4" U-matic IV-176

3:2 pull-down III-526, IV-409

3D simulation transitions II-392

3G format IV-246

3GPP and 3GPP2 devices IV-246

3-point editing. See three-point editing

4:3 aspect ratio IV-409

4:3 monitors IV-399

4:3 video IV-394, IV-396

8-bit precision IV-409

9-pin connectors I-194, I-206

10-bit resolution IV-409

16:9 button IV-392

16:9 video. See anamorphic video

16:9 Wide button IV-395, IV-396

16-bit resolution IV-409

16 mm film IV-410

24@25 pull-down III-527, IV-409, IV-430

24@25 Repeat III-527, IV-409

24 @ 25 timecode II-449, II-451

24-bit resolution IV-410

24psF scanning method IV-367

24p video formats IV-366

32-bit floating point processing III-72, III-550, III-554

32-bit resolution IV-410

35 mm film IV-410

60 @ 30 timecode II-441, II-451

65 mm film IV-410

70 mm film IV-410

0 dB and 0 dBFS measurements III-54, III-72, III-85

180-degree rule IV-410

1394 protocol. See FireWire

A/V Devices tab I-213–I-215, III-32–III-34, IV-302

A/V sync. See audio-video sync

A2 tracks IV-121

AAC format IV-236

AAF format

EDLs and IV-119

exporting for online editing IV-52

AA tracks IV-121

"Abort capture on dropped frames" setting IV-286

Abort Capture option I-280

Aborted Clips option I-265

"Abort ETT/PTV on dropped frames" setting IV-286

absolute black 1-332

absolute frame counts II-441

absolute timecode values II-355

absolute volume adjustments III-113

AC-3 format IV-219

AC-3 surround sound I-201

accelerating speeds in time graph III-331

acoustics III-23

See also audio

acquisition media formats I-225

action safe area IV-410

action safe boundaries I-83

active angles II-275

Active Angle submenu II-277

active windows I-44

adapters I-195

background clips III-225

background modes III-237

background noise II-290, II-313, III-18, III-19, III-179

backgrounds 1-84

backgrounds, clips III-380

background screens, keying and III-388–III-390

background tones IV-146

backing up items 1-276

backing up projects II-76–II-77

archiving IV-24

autosave feature IV-20–IV-23

consolidating files IV-106

Revert Project command and IV-20

back lights IV-412

backtiming clips II-112, II-113, II-169, II-172–II-173

Balance control III-445

balanced audio signals III-28

balanced XLR connectors I-205

Balance Reset button III-446

bands

equalization and III-152

frequency ranges III-39

Band Slide transition II-394, IV-142

Band Wipe transition II-395, IV-143

bars and tone III-60

Bars and Tone generator III-35, III-491

Base Output Filename option IV-273

base tracks II-125

Basic 3D filter III-212

Basic Border filter III-204

Basic Motion parameter III-220

bass frequencies III-39, III-153

Batch Capture command IV-59

Batch Capture dialog I-255, I-264–I-266, I-267

batch capturing

additional items found 1-269

batch capture list IV-408

batch lists I-299–I-304

described I-226, IV-412

EDL considerations IV-137

preparing for I-263

process I-262–I-269

selected clips only I-266–I-268

settings I-264–I-266

space requirements I-266

stopping and restarting I-268

workflows I-262

batch compression IV-412

Batch Export command IV-267–IV-269

batch exports IV-267–IV-276

changing item status IV-277

opening IV-276

performing IV-275

redoing IV-277

selecting items for IV-268–IV-269

settings IV-268, IV-270–IV-274

batch lists I-299–I-304, IV-412

creating I-299–I-302

described I-299

vs. EDLs I-300

exporting I-302

importing I-227, I-300, I-303

batch recapturing IV-412

baud rates IV-325

beats in music III-180

beeps

rendering audio and III-537

sound cues III-142

unrendered audio and III-524, III-529

Beep When Playing Unrendered Audio

option III-524, III-529

bels III-40

Best Take label II-212

Betacam SP equipment I-199

Betacam SP format IV-176, IV-177, IV-413

color bars and I-322

connecting equipment I-198

equipment setup I-195

Betacam SX format IV-413

Bevel filter III-204

Bezier curves III-269, III-271–III-272, III-275–III-277,

IV-130, IV-413

Bezier handles III-268–III-272, IV-413

adding to keyframes III-276

adjusting curves III-276–III-277

removing from keyframes III-277

bin icon IV-33

bins II-15–II-22, III-293, III-296

adding items to IV-269

adding to projects II-16

batch exports IV-268–IV-269

batch export settings IV-270

Browser tab for II-19

capturing clips in I-266

changing name of IV-269

closing II-19

creating II-16, IV-268, IV-269

deleting from projects I-58

described I-31, IV-413

export settings IV-270

imported folders I-306

logging bins I-245–I-246, I-256, I-265, IV-425

moving items between II-21

multiclip elements in II-260

opened in separate window IV-33

opening II-17, II-18

renaming I-58

searching II-28–II-30

selecting IV-275

selecting items for Media Manager IV-79

sorting II-27–II-28

bit depth

audio capture I-293, IV-321

audio interfaces III-24

capture presets IV-320

consumer audio I-205

digital audio III-48

exported audio IV-156

imported audio files I-313

imported graphics III-339

imported video files I-311

settings III-33

still images IV-262

video bit depth III-550

video formats IV-350, IV-363

bit depth settings II-90

bitmap files IV-235

bits per second IV-325

black

black alpha channel III-372

blacks, mids, and whites ranges III-420

ignoring in Histogram III-427

black, fading to or from II-383

black and code IV-183–IV-184

Black and Code button IV-184, IV-190

Black and Code dialog IV-184

black, between color bars and slate IV-194

blackburst generators I-206, I-297, II-46

blacked tapes IV-183

blacking tapes 1-258

black levels IV-413

Black Level slider I-327

blacks

absolute I-332

analog video levels 1-325

calibrating I-323

DV black levels I-330

setup levels I-325

Blacks Balance control III-453

Black setting IV-194

Blacks Reset button III-453

Blacks Select Auto-balance Color button III-453

Blacks slider III-446, III-447, III-456

black trailers IV-195

Blink filter III-214

"blue only" button I-332, I-333

Blue Screen filter III-208, III-391

blue screening IV-413

blur filters III-203

blurring

drop shadows III-221

around keyed subjects III-398

Motion Blur parameter III-221

BMP extension I-306

BMP files IV-235

BNC connectors I-194, IV-370, IV-371

boosting audio IV-343, IV-413

boot disks I-183

border filters III-204

boundaries of clips IV-413

Box Slide transition II-394

"Break in the Timecode" message IV-405

breakout boxes I-165, I-193, I-202, III-24

B-reel edits IV-128

brightness I-331, I-332

measuring in analog video I-325

measuring in digital video I-323

brightness (color)

filters III-207

font color III-501

HSB controls III-501

brightness (sound) III-27, III-152

Brightness and Contrast filter III-207

Brightness slider I-327

broadcast levels IV-413

dynamic range III-58

guidelines III-421

illegal III-421–III-423

legal III-418, III-421–III-423

range-checking options III-422–III-423

reference tones III-60

broadcast monitors I-210, I-332–I-334

calibrating III-421

graphics III-343

using III-421

broadcast quality IV-413

broadcast safe colors I-329, I-334

Broadcast Safe filter III-205, III-435, III-437, III-486–III-487

broadcast video formats I-22

B-roll IV-414

B-roll label II-212

Browser

bins in II-17

changing clip properties II-80–II-82

changing project properties II-75

changing reel names IV-138

clip properties in IV-34–IV-40

closing projects I-34, I-35

columns in I-59–I-66, IV-34–IV-40

copying items in I-57–I-58

creating projects I-32

creating sequences in I-55

customizing appearance of I-60–I-65

deleting items in 1-58

described IV-414

displaying items in I-61

dragging audio clips to II-301

exporting sequences as batch lists I-302

icons in IV-33–IV-34

icon view I-66-I-70

illustrated I-44

importing items in I-305–I-310

list view I-62–I-66

logging in I-227, I-228

markers in II-57

master-affiliate clips in IV-44

media management and IV-15

modifying timecode in II-448

moving and resizing window I-139

multiclips in Il-266

navigating in I-57

opening clips in II-295

opening projects in I-34

organizing clips in II-142–II-143

overview I-53

poster frames 1-69

renaming items in 1-58

resizing text labels I-139

saving a custom layout in I-70

saving projects I-33

screen text size IV-287

searching for items in II-31–II-34

selecting items for Batch Export IV-268

selecting items for Media Manager IV-79

sequences in II-98–II-100

sorting items in II-27–II-28, II-99

tabs for bins II-19

tabs in 1-49

timecode columns II-446

tooltips in I-59

using a custom layout in I-70

viewing items in I-54

working with I-55–I-58

built-in analog audio I-201

built-in audio III-24, III-33

built-in audio cards IV-320

built-in digital audio I-201

Bumpmap filter III-206

button bars I-46, I-153–I-156, II-274

Button List window I-154

cables I-185, I-186, III-28–III-29, IV-329

cache files I-113, IV-297

caching

QuickView window and III-304

real-time playback and III-515

render cache files III-560

calculating hard disk space I-182

calibration

analog video I-330

broadcast monitors I-331

capture offset I-207

color bars I-322

described I-321, IV-414

timecode IV-136, IV-182, IV-332, IV-332–IV-334

vectorscopes I-325

video level measurements I-323

waveform monitors I-325

camcorder audio quality III-49

camcorders

16:9 CCDs IV-395

16:9 Wide button IV-395, IV-396

audio channels and I-292

audio quality I-313

Camera mode IV-330

capturing video with I-270

connecting I-164

connecting video monitor through I-209

device control I-277, IV-328–IV-329

DV camcorders IV-329

external monitors and I-211

FireWire and IV-329, IV-330

manual use of IV-331

Print to Video command IV-210

problems with IV-402, IV-406, IV-407

recording from Timeline IV-211–IV-213

resetting timecode to zero 1-257

settings IV-180

smooth recording speed IV-212

timecode breaks and I-279

VCR mode IV-330

video formats and I-24

camera angles I-250

camera angles. See angles

Camera mode IV-180, IV-330

camera motion, adding III-348–III-352

camera-stand techniques III-335

Canceled option IV-273

Canvas IV-403, IV-414

audio levels in III-76

closing sequences in II-87

compared to Timeline I-111

compared to Viewer 1-97

controls in I-77–I-79, I-92–I-95

creating motion effects in III-236–III-247

described I-87

displaying items in II-406

dragging audio clips to II-301

edit buttons II-151

editing controls I-90, I-91

editing in II-149–II-152

Edit Overlay I-91

edit points in II-108–II-117, II-243–II-246

illustrated I-44

keyframed motion paths in III-272–III-280

markers in II-54–II-56

match frame operations II-433

moving and resizing window I-139

navigating in I-97

opening sequences in I-88, II-86

overview I-89–I-90

Playhead Sync pop-up menu I-84, I-96

playing clips in I-98–I-100

setting keyframes in III-257

split edits in II-238

switching to Timeline or Viewer II-429

synchronizing playhead with Viewer II-434–II-437

tabs I-49, I-88

timecode overlays I-106

Timeline and I-109

two-up display in II-406

"Unrendered" message III-537

using timecode in I-105–I-108

View pop-up menu I-83, I-96

wireframe handles III-240–III-247

wireframe modes III-236–III-238

zoom controls III-239–III-240

Zoom pop-up menu 1-96

Canvas Edit Overlay II-424

capstans IV-188

Capture Batch button I-234, I-265

capture buttons I-229

capture cards. See video cards

Capture Clip button I-234, I-245, I-270

Capture Now button I-234, I-272–I-275, I-296

Capture Offset field IV-327

Capture option IV-196

Capture pop-up menu I-265

Capture Preset Editor IV-315, IV-319, IV-322

Capture Preset pop-up menu I-266

capture presets IV-315–IV-322

advanced settings IV-319

anamorphic video IV-396

batch capturing I-263

capturing audio only IV-321–IV-322

described IV-302, IV-315

DV audio channels and I-292

general settings IV-316

QuickTime settings IV-317–IV-320

selecting I-234, I-266

third-party video cards and IV-315

Capture Presets tab IV-316

Capture property IV-36

Capture Settings tab I-234, I-255

Capture Status property IV-49

capturing process

aborting I-280, IV-286

audio I-285-I-297

audio/video files captured separately I-173

audio and video levels 1-256

audio choices III-65

audio levels III-58

batch capturing I-262–I-269

calibrating capture offset I-207

calibrating timecode IV-332

capture cards IV-316

Capture Clip button I-270

capture settings IV-183

capturing anamorphic media IV-391–IV-396

capturing audio IV-321–IV-322, IV-407

capturing entire tapes I-271–I-275

capturing video I-261–I-283

capturing while logging 1-256

changing settings I-255

copying capture settings III-289

data rates I-180

described I-19, I-225, IV-414

device control and I-270

EDL considerations IV-136

exporting EDLs and IV-138

frame rates and I-268

hard disk requirements I-182

high-resolution media files IV-54

vs. importing I-306

Log and Capture window settings I-229–I-234

low-resolution media files IV-54

manual video capture I-176, I-276–I-277

media management and IV-16

Media Manager and I-283

multiple video decks I-178

OfflineRT format IV-56

preparing for 1-235

presets I-234, IV-302

problems with IV-407

recapturing clips 1-278

resolution and 1-276

selecting tracks for I-253–I-255

subclips and I-273

synchronized audio and video 1-296

techniques I-226–I-228, I-262–I-277

timecode breaks and I-279–I-282

using non-controllable devices I-176, I-276–I-277

video DVDs and IV-217

cards. See video cards

Cartesian geometry III-223

cassette shapes for videotape IV-351

CCDs (charged coupling devices) IV-395

CD audio I-315

.cdda extension I-305, I-315, IV-236

CD players I-205

CD-RW drives I-181

center handles III-238

center points

clips III-220

layers III-223

center points of clips IV-414

Center Split Slide transition II-394, IV-142

Center Wipe transition II-395, IV-143

CG (Character Generator) IV-414

Channel Blur filter III-204

Channel Compositor transition II-393

Channel Grouped option IV-157, IV-339

Channel Map transition II-393, IV-142

Channel number display IV-343

Channel Offset filter III-204

channels IV-130, IV-414

alpha channels I-316, III-371, IV-233

assigning audio tracks to IV-155

audio. See audio channels

audio alert messages III-34

bit depth and IV-363

capture presets IV-321

capturing multiple channels IV-321

channel 1 IV-414

channel 2 IV-414

channel filters III-204

channel strips III-70

configuring audio export IV-156

DV devices and I-292

graphic alpha channels III-344

meters 1-289

mono and stereo audio I-254

multichannel audio IV-204

multichannel audio capture I-205, I-253, I-287

number of III-33

selecting for capture I-288

shortcut menu III-69

stereo III-44

Channels option IV-253

chapter markers II-55, II-60, II-62, IV-217, IV-220,

IV-220–IV-221, IV-243

chapter tracks IV-221

Character Generator (CG) IV-414

checkerboard backgrounds I-84

Checkerboard Wipe transition II-395, IV-143

Checker Wipe transition II-395, IV-143

chip chart III-414, IV-414

Choke slider III-406

chroma (chrominance) IV-353, IV-362, IV-414

chroma. See chrominance

chroma gain I-331

Chroma Keyer filter

chroma keying process III-388

controls III-195

described III-208

examples of using III-391–III-392, III-398–III-402

lighting background screens III-390

numeric controls III-395

settings III-396–III-398

transparency effects III-186

visual controls III-394, III-396–III-398

Chroma Keyer tab III-393

chroma keying III-386

chroma keying. See blue screening, green screening

Chroma Key transition II-394

chroma levels I-321, I-332

chrominance

broadcast legal levels III-421–III-423

described III-419

saturation display III-426

cinematic effects IV-394

Cinema Tools II-251, III-525

Cinema Tools clips IV-34

Clamp Above slider III-487

clamped color conversions III-552

clamping I-323

cleaning audio noise III-18

Clear Long Frame Markers command IV-110

Clear Long Marks command IV-114

Clear Peak Marks command IV-110, IV-116

Clear Split command II-242

click sounds

eliminating III-129

subframe keyframes and III-176

"Clip Collision" message II-338, II-359, II-199, II-355

clip control III-199

Clip Enable command III-382

clip icon IV-33

clip indicators in audio meters III-56

clip items

copying into sequences 1-29

described II-78, II-123, IV-32

illustrated II-94

linked I-119

linked items II-146

selecting for Media Manager IV-79

in sequence clips II-78

clip keyframes I-117

Clip Keyframes area II-134, III-283–III-284

Clip Keyframes control I-117, I-127, I-128, III-164,

III-200, III-273, III-283, III-320

Clip Name option IV-130

Clip Overlays control I-117, I-125, I-128, II-305, III-97,

III-109, III-359

clipped audio I-292, I-294

clipped peaks III-52

detection III-57

indicators III-56, III-74

clipped color conversions III-552

clipping distortion IV-415

clipping indicators I-289, III-74

clips

adding to sequences II-93, II-96–II-98

affiliate clips 1-57

affiliate clips. See affiliate clips

alpha channels and III-371–III-378

analyzing IV-111–IV-113

anamorphic media and IV-398

anchor points III-220

arranging in storyboard II-99–II-100, II-142–II-143

attributes III-287–III-291

audio. See audio clips

backgrounds III-380

backtiming II-112, II-169, II-172–II-173

batch capturing I-262–I-269, I-300

batch exporting IV-267–IV-276

batch lists 1-299

blending III-357, III-358–III-378

boundaries II-217

capturing audio I-285–I-297

capturing process I-226–I-228

changing settings after logging I-254

clip names I-239, I-241, I-249–I-251, I-263

color-coding II-212

compared to media files IV-15

composite modes III-361, III-362

compositing, uses for III-356

compression markers and IV-222

conflicting properties IV-47

connections to media files IV-64

controls I-78–I-79, I-93–I-94

copying I-57, II-202–II-205, II-413, II-414–II-417

copying and pasting attributes III-201, III-222,

III-287–III-290

copying portions of IV-99

copying to other projects IV-45

cropping III-243

currently selected clips II-176

cutting II-213–II-215

deleting from projects I-58

described I-28, IV-415

deselecting II-183

disabling audio/video tracks in III-382–III-383

displaying in Transition Editor II-404

distorting shape III-242

dragging to Timeline II-131, II-141–II-147

duplicate frames I-131

duplicate names I-263

duration II-106, II-217, II-354–II-355, II-408–II-409, III-347

DV video and fuzziness IV-406

editing III-373

editing into sequences II-169–II-170

editing multiple clips II-142–II-143

in EDLs IV-120, IV-126

exporting audio from IV-236

exporting to QuickTime IV-237

filenames I-241, I-263, I-273

filters III-186–III-201, IV-130

frame rates I-268

ganging playhead options II-436

generator clips I-72, III-489–III-494

handles I-248, I-266, II-101, II-378

head clips IV-422

heads and tails II-378

hiding portions of III-367

In and Out points I-80, I-95, I-232, I-247, II-98,

II-101–II-106, II-115, II-116, II-169, II-169–II-174

independent clips I-309, II-41, II-430

independent clips. See independent clips

jogging through I-102

keyframe effects and III-251–III-267

keyframes I-80, I-95

keyframes in III-123–III-124

labels I-119

labels for II-23–II-26

layering in the Timeline III-357

linked clip items II-146

linked clips I-119, II-180, II-220

links to source media IV-65–IV-67

listing recently used I-86

LiveType clips III-505

logging IV-137

logging process I-226–I-228, I-237, I-249–I-251,

I-256-I-257

looping playback I-103

making invisible III-382

managing. See media management

manipulating in the Canvas III-236–III-247

markers I-80, I-95, I-252, II-54, II-55, II-57, II-59

marking while logging I-251–I-252

master clips 1-57

master clips. See master clips

matching audio for I-80, I-95

matching video for I-80, I-95

media files and I-35–I-37, I-276

media files for II-28, II-83

merged clips I-35, I-278

merged clips. See merged clips

modifying timecode in II-446–II-449

motion paths for III-272

motion path speed III-278–III-280

motion settings III-218–III-220

moving II-66, II-196–II-199, II-355, II-356, III-223–

III-224, III-241, III-357

moving between III-437

moving playhead 1-93

multiclip layouts III-225

multiclips. See multiclips

names IV-17, IV-86, IV-130, IV-134

naming conventions II-251

in nested sequences II-420–II-421

notes about I-250

offline IV-64

offline clips I-36, II-79

opacity III-263–III-267, III-356, III-358–III-360

opening I-72–I-73, I-98, II-301, II-354, II-428

opening in external editors IV-298

opening using Timeline motion bars III-285

organizing II-15–II-26, II-142–II-143

outgoing and incoming II-346, II-362, II-367, II-368, II-400

pan III-117–III-120, III-132–III-134

parameters III-251–III-267

playback speed III-308–III-310, III-314

playing I-77, I-92, I-98–I-104

playing in reverse III-313, III-314

properties II-80–II-85, IV-34–IV-40

recapturing I-265, I-278, I-283, IV-135

recently accessed IV-283

reconnecting to files 1-36

redoing changes in I-52, II-96

reel names I-246

in reference movies IV-240

relationships IV-44

removing attributes III-291

removing from sequences II-206–II-208

renaming I-58

renaming in XML Interchange Format IV-167

replacing II-161–II-162

replacing sections of II-165–II-166

rerendering IV-243

resizing name labels I-139

resyncing II-228–II-232

ripple edits II-338

rotating III-241

scaling III-240, III-242

scrubbing I-67, I-100

searching for II-28–II-34

selecting II-175–II-188, II-190, II-348–II-350

selecting for Media Manager IV-79, IV-94

selecting in Browser I-55

selecting multiple clips II-182

selecting tracks to capture I-253–I-255

sequence clips I-122, II-354, II-427–II-430, IV-433

shown in Timeline III-382

shuttling through I-101–I-102

sliding II-321–II-324

sliding frames to new times III-326

slipping II-372

snapping to points II-195–II-196

sorting II-27–II-28, II-99

source tapes I-36

speed I-119

speed adjustments IV-89

speed settings III-307–III-333

start and end timecode II-83

subclips I-35, I-273–I-275, I-278

subclips. See subclips

synced clip items I-108

synthesized. See generator clips

tail clips IV-437

thumbnail display I-124

timecode I-107

timecode breaks in I-280, I-281

timecode display II-441

timecode tracks IV-138

in Timeline II-94

title clips III-500

transferring projects to other systems IV-16

transitions II-377–II-384

trimming II-190, II-348–II-355, II-406–II-409

types of II-77–II-80, IV-29–IV-31

undoing changes in I-52, II-96

unused II-32

varying speeds I-101–I-102

XML elements for IV-168

Clip Settings tab I-233, I-253, I-287

clip time II-75, II-443, II-445

clock-based counters IV-326

Clock Wipe transition II-395, IV-143

Close Project command 1-34

closing gaps II-209–II-210

closing items

projects I-34

sequences I-88, I-111

CMX 340 format IV-136, IV-140

CMX 3600 format IV-120, IV-136, IV-140

CMYK color space IV-415

codecs II-90

D-1 format IV-356, IV-418

D-2 format IV-418

D-3 format IV-418

D-5 format IV-176, IV-356, IV-418

D-5 HD format IV-368

D5-HD format I-22

D-9 format IV-418

D-9 HD format IV-368

Darken compositing mode III-366

Data Rate option IV-251

Data Rate property IV-37, IV-50

data rates

analog video equipment IV-318

capture presets IV-318, IV-320

comparison chart IV-369

described IV-416

scratch disks IV-284

target rates for compression IV-251

data transfer rates I-180

DAT devices I-164, I-205, I-294, I-313

dates in filenames 1-39

DAT format I-23

DAWs (digital audio workstations) IV-158, IV-416

daylight III-461

DB9 connectors I-194, I-206

dBFS measurements III-41, III-53

dBm measurements III-41

dBu measurements III-41

dBv measurements III-41

DCT encoding IV-365

deacceleration in time graph III-331

"dead" rooms III-27

decibels III-38, III-40, III-58–III-60

decks. See video decks

decompression process IV-417

Default Film Standard pop-up menu II-75, II-441

default keyboard shortcuts I-144, I-145

Default Timecode pop-up menu 1-244

De-Interlace filter III-214

deinterlacing filters III-214, III-337

delay time in echoes III-158

Delete Point tool II-133

Delete Tracks dialog II-126

deleting items

angles II-270

clips II-203, II-206–II-208

control surfaces III-101

customized keyboard shortcuts I-150

Easy Setups IV-310–IV-311

favorite filters III-173

favorite transitions II-391

filters III-202

filters from clips III-166

found items II-34

handles IV-85

In and Out points II-120

layers in Photoshop files III-370

limiting, in Media Manager IV-90

logging information I-250

markers II-60, II-61

master clips IV-45

Media Manager settings IV-84, IV-87–IV-88

offline media files IV-67

preferences file IV-293, IV-311

presets IV-309

render cache files I-113

render files III-561, IV-26

scratch disks I-174

sequences II-86

shortcut buttons I-155

split edits II-242

static regions II-139

in Timeline II-206–II-208

tracks from sequences II-126

transitions II-385

unused media II-42, IV-78

unused portions of clips IV-103

volume keyframes III-112

DePopper audio filter III-18, III-157

Depth setting for capture IV-320

Desaturate Highlights filter III-205, III-435, III-437,

III-483–III-485

Desaturate image filter III-207

Desaturate Lows filter III-205, III-435, III-437, III-483–

III-485

desaturating colors III-392, IV-417

Description field I-250, IV-316, IV-324, IV-336

Description property IV-32, IV-37, IV-50

deselecting items II-183

Destination controls I-113

disconnecting II-129–II-130, II-147

in Timeline II-127–II-131

Destination option IV-274

destination track controls IV-191–IV-192, IV-417

destination tracks II-127–II-131, IV-417

assigning II-128

changing assignments II-129

disconnecting II-129–II-130

drag operations and II-146–II-147

selecting in Timeline II-131

source clips and II-131

superimpose edits and II-131

destructive editing processes II-43

device control

audio capture I-294–I-295

audio settings 1-286

batch capturing and I-262

camcorders I-277, IV-328–IV-329

capturing video I-270

capturing video without I-277

checking for IV-310

connectors I-194

consumer devices I-198

described IV-417

editing to tape and IV-183, IV-196

establishing I-206

FireWire IV-329-IV-330

Log and Capture window controls I-231

multiple decks and I-178

non-DV devices I-199

Print to Video command and IV-207

protocols for IV-329

serial devices IV-330–IV-331, IV-334

settings IV-183

status messages I-177

verifying setup of IV-334

video capture without I-176, I-276–I-277

video deck 1-277

video decks IV-323–IV-329

Device Control pop-up menu I-295

Device Control Preset Editor I-244, IV-324–IV-327

device control presets I-207, I-234, I-244, IV-323–IV-327

audio mapping IV-205

described IV-302, IV-323

serial devices IV-330

troubleshooting IV-334

Device Control Presets tab I-207, IV-324

device control protocols IV-325

devices

external monitors and IV-209

mini-DV devices. See mini-DV devices

non-controllable IV-331

presets IV-302

protocols supported IV-329

settings IV-180, IV-183, IV-196

status of IV-190

devices. See equipment

Device setting for capture presets IV-320

Device Settings tab IV-189, IV-196

device status indicators I-230

dialogue IV-146, IV-417

audibility III-19

from different takes III-179

editing III-22, III-177

off-camera III-178

in postproduction III-17

stereo and III-96

tips for cutting III-176–III-179

tracks III-181

dialogue scenes II-238

dialogue stems III-181

Diamond Iris transition IV-142

Diamond transition II-393

Difference compositing mode III-363

Difference Matte filter III-209

Diffuse filter III-213

Digital-8 format IV-417

digital audio

See also audio

connecting equipment I-205

overview III-46–III-49

tape I-294

digital audio clocks III-24

digital audio meters III-53

digital audio workstations (DAWs) IV-158

Digital Betacam format IV-59, IV-176, IV-356, IV-417

connecting equipment I-199

equipment setup I-195

Final Cut Pro support I-22

Digital Cinema Desktop feature I-216–I-218

Digital Cinema Desktop option I-214

Digital Cinema Desktop Preview command I-210

digital data IV-417

digital full scale audio measurement III-53

digital full scale range IV-417

digital media I-187–I-188

digital multitrack format I-23

digital multitrack recorders 1-294

Digital S. See D-9 format

Digital SD video pixels III-340

digital-to-analog converters III-24

digital-to-DV converters I-200

digital video

described IV-417, IV-419

frame rates IV-382

digital video. See DV formats

digital video. See video

Digitizer setting for capture presets IV-317

digitizing process IV-418

dimensions, image II-90

dimensions of graphics III-345

dimensions of video frames I-24, IV-350, IV-355

Dip to Color Dissolve transition IV-142

Dip to Color transition II-393

directories for media files 1-35

directory paths IV-42, IV-72

disabled audio tracks IV-159

disabled tracks I-113, III-562

disabling clips III-381

disclosure triangles IV-418

discrete audio II-296

disk arrays I-187–I-188

disks. See hard disks, scratch disks

disks. See hard drives

disk space. See hard disk space

Displace filter III-206

dissolves IV-122

dissolve transitions II-375, II-393

distort filters III-206

distort handles III-238

distorting clips III-242, IV-418

distortion, audio III-19, III-42

distortion in audio 1-293

Distort parameter III-220

Distort tool III-238

distribution in moviemaking process I-16

Dither Dissolve transition II-393, IV-142

dividers in Timeline II-138

Dock I-51

documentary-style projects I-241

Document Type Definitions (DTDs) IV-166, IV-168

Dolby Digital AC-3 format IV-219

Dolby Digital sound III-20, III-58

DOS file format IV-131

dots per inch (dpi) measurements III-339

double-byte characters IV-132, IV-136

double-sided logarithmic sliders III-196

downconverting HD video I-212

Downmix control III-73

downmix control IV-157, IV-339

downmixes

described IV-418

exporting IV-154, IV-156

outputting all channels as stereo III-73

to stereo mixes III-64

Downmix pop-up menu IV-343

dpi measurements III-339

dragging files to Timeline I-309

dragging items

clips in Timeline II-197

"gearing down" II-199

Option-dragging II-202

sequences II-88

Drag hand II-294, II-301

Drag handle II-399

drag hand tool II-144

drag-to-Timeline editing

adding tracks II-146–II-147

described II-97

overview II-141–II-143

drives. See hard disks, scratch disks

Drop Frame option I-124, IV-130

drop frame timecode II-440, IV-121, IV-130, IV-383–

IV-389, IV-418

in batch lists I-301

indicator I-104

overview I-26, I-124

selecting I-244

dropouts IV-351

dropped frames

Ease In/Ease Out command III-280

Easy Setups II-89

anamorphic video IV-396

copying IV-311

customizing IV-304, IV-309

described I-161

editing IV-304

External Video settings IV-180

making unavailable IV-310, IV-311

Offline RT Easy Setups IV-56

presets and IV-304

removing IV-310–IV-311

restoring original IV-311

selecting I-235

selecting different presets in IV-305

third-party IV-313

video formats and 1-24

working with IV-303–IV-304

Echo filter III-157

edge code II-440

Edge Feather parameter III-220

Edge Feather slider III-233

Edge Thin slider III-477

Edge Wipe transition II-395, IV-143

edging around keyed subjects III-398, III-402

edit buttons I-91, II-151, IV-190

Edit Decision Lists. See EDLs

editing

anamorphic media IV-397–IV-398

assemble editing. See assemble editing

asymmetrical edits II-335, II-336–II-338

audio in Timeline II-304–II-308

audio in Viewer II-295–II-297, II-301–II-303

audio-video sync II-233–II-234

audio waveform displays and II-291

backtiming clips II-169, II-172

canceling edits IV-199, IV-203

in Canvas II-149–II-152

changing simple edits to split edits II-240

clip properties II-81

clips into sequences II-169–II-170

clips with transitions II-388

in color spaces III-552

controls in Canvas I-90–I-91

copying clips from other sequences II-414–II-417

cut edits ll-213

described IV-420

drag-to-Timeline editing II-97, II-141–II-147

Easy Setups IV-304

edit buttons II-151

editorial process I-19

Edit Overlay I-91

edit points 1-94

EDL considerations IV-124, IV-139–IV-141

extend edits II-352–II-353

fit to fill edits II-153, III-308–III-310

"gearing down" II-199

In and Out points II-101–II-106, II-169

insert editing. See insert editing

insert edits II-143, II-152, II-154–II-155, II-415

insert with transition edits II-152, II-155–II-156, II-379

keyboard shortcuts II-152, II-274, II-425

lift edits II-206–II-208

linear editing I-21, IV-18, IV-424

marker information II-60, II-64

master clips IV-43

match cuts II-339

match frame editing IV-426

media management and IV-16

montages II-247

Multiclip Playback mode II-281–II-283

multiclips II-250, II-274, II-282

multiple clips II-142–II-143

non-Final Cut Pro systems IV-60

nonlinear and nondestructive I-21

nonlinear editing IV-18, IV-427

offline/online editing IV-18, IV-51–IV-53, IV-428

overwrite editing IV-428

overwrite edits II-143–II-145, II-153, II-157–II-159, II-416

overwrite with transition edits II-153, II-158–II-159, II-379

performing II-243–II-246

preferences IV-287

presets IV-308

preview editing IV-187

previewing edits IV-202

razor blade edits IV-431

replace editing IV-431

replace edits II-153, II-160–II-166

resize editing IV-431

resize edits II-354–II-355, II-401, II-407

ripple editing IV-432

ripple edits II-207–II-208, II-330–II-333, II-370, II-408–II-409

roll editing IV-432

roll edits II-338–II-343, II-370, II-401, II-408

rough cut I-19

rough edit II-93–II-95

rough editing IV-432

sequence clips II-429

sequences II-425

short edits IV-404

shuffle edits II-200–II-201, IV-434

slide edits II-321–II-324, IV-434

slip edits II-120, II-312, II-325–II-329, IV-434

split edits II-237–II-240, II-243–II-246, II-290, II-316–II-317, II-336, IV-436

stereo vs. dual mono audio III-66

straight edits II-213

streamlining EDL exports IV-139–IV-141

subclips and II-41

superimpose edits II-131, II-153, II-166–II-168, III-357, IV-436

swap edits IV-437

swap edits. See shuffle edits

switching and cutting between angles II-275–II-281

system components I-163

three-point editing II-97, IV-437

through edits I-126, II-216, IV-139

with timecode II-355

timecode in media files II-446–II-450

transferring projects IV-61

trim edits II-302–II-303, II-345–II-346, II-351–II-352, II-357

types noted in EDLs IV-122

types of edits II-149–II-153

undoing and redoing actions II-96

video latency and I-220

to videotape IV-197–IV-203

videotape editing methods IV-185–IV-188

without In and Out points Il-174

XML interchange files IV-167

Editing mode IV-190, IV-201

editing systems IV-131

Editing tab II-373, IV-287

editing timebase IV-335, IV-337, IV-345

Edit Marker dialog II-60, II-64, II-68

Edit Overlay I-89, I-91, II-151, IV-190

edit points III-301

AIFF files and IV-147

described IV-420

edit points, moving to 1-94

edit points. See In and Out points

Edit Selection tool II-179, II-349

Edit to Tape operations III-528

aborting IV-182

assemble editing IV-197–IV-199

described IV-420

device control and IV-183, IV-196

external monitors and I-213–I-215

insert editing IV-187, IV-200–IV-203

mastering settings IV-193

output options I-215

outputting multichannel audio IV-204–IV-205

overview IV-178

preview editing IV-187

problems with IV-405

requirements IV-188

steps in IV-197–IV-203

troubleshooting IV-405

Edit to Tape window I-77, I-92, IV-189–IV-193

EDL Access application IV-131

EDL Export dialog IV-123, IV-125–IV-130

EDL Import dialog IV-133–IV-134

EDL Notes setting IV-130

EDLs (Edit Decision Lists)

audio clip information IV-161

audio tracks and IV-140

clip names IV-134

described I-300, IV-119, IV-419

editing considerations IV-139–IV-141

effects and IV-125

elements of IV-121–IV-123

errors during export IV-125

exporting IV-124–IV-125, IV-125–IV-130

exporting audio information to IV-161

exporting for online editing IV-52

exporting sequences as IV-124–IV-125

export transition codes IV-142–IV-143

Final Cut Pro support I-22

formats IV-125, IV-139

importing IV-132–IV-135

improving IV-139–IV-141

incorrect timecode in IV-405

Key Level and III-378

Key tracks and III-378

limitations IV-132, IV-135

master clips and IV-43, IV-134

master tape settings IV-130

multiclips and II-250

multiple IV-161

nested sequences and II-418, IV-141

notes in IV-123, IV-130

opening IV-131

problems importing IV-408

reading information in IV-120

recapturing clips from IV-135

reel conflicts IV-128

reel names and 1-240

reel names in IV-17

reviewing IV-131

RT-11 disk access IV-131

speed settings and IV-141

still frames and IV-141

streamlining exports IV-141

superimposed video and III-378

timecode and IV-161

titles IV-121, IV-125

transitions IV-127, IV-139, IV-141

transitions in ll-384

V1 tracks and III-378

V2 tracks and III-378

vs. batch capture lists 1-300

EDL Title setting IV-125

Effect Handling tab III-532, IV-300

effects

animating with keyframes III-217, III-249–III-282

creating favorites III-293

described I-20, IV-420

EDLs and IV-125

motion effects III-244–III-247

multiclips II-284

online editing and IV-60

real-time effects I-120, IV-431

rendering and III-534, III-546, III-563

settings 1-76

sound effects III-179

switching angles with II-285

transitions II-381, II-382, II-405

effects filters III-157

Effects menu II-381–II-382

effects stems III-181

Effects tab II-284, II-381, II-382, II-405, III-161, III-293–

III-294, III-438, III-516

Eight-Point Garbage Matte filter III-210, III-404

electronics-to-electronics mode IV-213

elements (leader and trailer) IV-194, IV-195

elements (XML) IV-164, IV-168

emailing project files IV-61

embedded flags. See markers

Emboss filter III-213

emptying Trash IV-66

empty tracks II-126

encoding options IV-255

ending points for filters III-190, III-194

equalization (EQ)

advantages III-176

filters III-18, III-152–III-154

equipment

analog video calibration 1-325

for color calibration I-330–I-331

connecting video devices I-194–I-200

consumer devices I-198

Easy Setups and I-161

editing system components I-163

non-controllable devices 1-277

non-DV devices I-199

SCSI devices I-186–I-188

setup I-18, I-159

synchronizing I-206

warnings I-215

error messages

exporting EDLs IV-125

"No shortcut" IV-273

error messages. See alert messages

Error option IV-273

E stems III-181

E-to-E mode IV-213

event numbers in EDLs IV-120, IV-121

events in EDLs IV-120

Every Frame option IV-213

Excess Chroma option III-423, III-447, III-457

Excess Luma option III-423

Excess Luma overlay 1-83

expanding multiclips II-250, II-286

expansion filters III-155

Explode transition II-394

Export Audio to AIFF(s) command IV-152, IV-155

Export Image Sequence Settings window IV-265

exporting items

anamorphic video to QuickTime IV-400

audio clip information to EDLs IV-161

audio in OMF format IV-159–IV-160

audio only IV-236

audio tracks as AIFF files IV-147–IV-156

AVI QuickTime files IV-257–IV-259

avoiding recompression IV-241

batch capture lists 1-302

batch exports IV-267–IV-276

clips with compression markers IV-222

DVD-compliant sources IV-224–IV-225

for DVD Studio Pro IV-223

DV Stream files IV-256–IV-257

EDLs IV-124–IV-125, IV-141, IV-142–IV-143

frames as still images III-336

image sequences IV-264–IV-265

markers as text tracks II-69

multiclips II-250

multiple AIFF files IV-155

nested sequences and II-418

problems with still images III-337

QuickTime audio formats IV-247

QuickTime-compatible movies IV-245–IV-247

QuickTime movies IV-236–IV-237, IV-239–IV-243, IV-245–IV-255

QuickTime movies for iDVD IV-222

QuickTime movies with MPEG-2 codec IV-225

reference movies IV-240

screen layouts I-143

sequences IV-222

sequences as batch lists I-302

sequences as EDLs IV-124–IV-125

sequences as QuickTime movies IV-241–IV-243

sequences for DVD IV-215

still images IV-261–IV-263

XML files IV-170

Export Queue window IV-267, IV-268, IV-270–IV-277

Export QuickTime Movie command IV-236, IV-237, IV-239–IV-243, IV-339

Export Using QuickTime Conversion

command I-314, IV-236, IV-237, IV-245–IV-247, IV-262, IV-264

Export XML dialog IV-170

exposure III-412, IV-420

extend editing IV-420

extend edits II-352–II-353

extensions IV-272, IV-274

external audio monitoring systems III-23

external audio speakers I-164

external editing applications III-368

clearing IV-299

opening a clip in IV-298

specifying IV-299

External Editors tab IV-298

external hard disks I-184

external monitors

connecting I-160, I-164

Digital Cinema Desktop feature I-216-I-218

DV/FireWire devices and I-211

Edit to Tape operations I-213–I-215

playback operations I-213–I-215

previewing video on I-211–I-212

troubleshooting I-221

updating output I-222

video latency I-220

video quality I-221

external sync I-207, I-297

External Sync inputs I-197, I-205

external video IV-179–IV-184

external video monitors II-283

Extract filter III-210

eyedropper III-198, III-397, III-453, III-478

eyeline matches IV-420

Fade In, Fade Out transition II-393

fade-ins II-376, II-393

fade-outs II-376, II-393

fader banks III-103

faders IV-420

adjusting III-83–III-86

in control surfaces III-99, III-102, III-105

described III-71

Master fader III-73, III-86

fade-to-black transitions II-383

Fast Forward button IV-193

fast-forward in time graph III-330

fast motion III-307

Fast Start - Compressed Header option IV-255

Fast Start option IV-255

favorites IV-420

audio filters III-173

audio transitions II-390

creating III-293–III-294

deleting II-391

Favorites bin III-293

motion effects III-281–III-282

organizing III-296

renaming III-296

transitions III-296

Favorites bin II-391, III-293, III-296, III-297

Feather slider III-406

feedback in reverberation III-158

feet + frames timecode II-441

FF (frame counter) II-439

Fibre Channel arrays I-188

field dominance IV-337, IV-360

field dominance settings II-90

fields

frame rates and IV-379

of video images IV-420

File Attribute Mismatch dialog IV-73

file formats II-90

gain I-292–I-294, I-331, IV-421

adjusting frequency ranges III-154

reducing III-155

voiceover III-142

gain control I-289

gamma IV-421

gamma correction III-207, III-517, III-528

Gamma Correction filter III-207

gamut III-551

ganged playheads IV-422

ganging playheads I-85, II-434–II-437

Gang playhead sync option II-435, II-436

gaps II-209–II-211, IV-422

closing with ripple edits II-207

creating with lift edits II-206–II-207

editing clips into II-171–II-172

matching In and Out points II-115

gaps, audio III-177

gaps in timecode. See timecode breaks

Garbage Matte filters

alpha channels and III-186

Eight-Point Garbage Matte filter III-210, III-404

example of using III-404–III-407

Four-Point Garbage Matte filter III-404

irregular cropping and III-402

keyframing III-406

unkeyable elements and III-392

Gaussian Blur filter III-203

"gearing down" II-199, II-348

gearing down IV-422

general preferences II-73

General tab II-73, IV-282

generator clips

creating III-493

keyframe controls III-253

Generator pop-up menu I-74, I-86

generators

adding to a sequence III-489–III-494

creating clips III-493

described I-72, IV-422

dragging to clip controls III-199

fonts and III-496–III-499

graphical generators III-491–III-493

included with Final Cut Pro III-498–III-499

selecting I-86

settings I-77

text generators III-495, III-498–III-499

titling generators III-498–III-499

Y'CbCr color space and IV-25

generic edits in EDLs IV-129

genlocking devices IV-286, IV-322, IV-371

audio devices I-205, I-294

genlock connectors I-207

professional equipment I-207

video interfaces I-197

GIF files IV-235

GIF format I-306

Glossary IV-409–IV-443

Good option I-241, I-250

Good property IV-37, IV-49

good shots, marking 1-250

Good Take label II-212

Go to In Point button IV-191

Go to Next Edit button II-365

Go to Out Point button IV-191

Go to Previous Edit button Il-365

Gradient generator III-492

Gradient Wipe transition II-394, II-395, IV-143

graphical generators III-491–III-493

graphics

Handle Length options IV-160

handles I-248, I-266

audio clips IV-150, IV-160

Bezier handles III-269, III-276, IV-413

clip handles II-101, II-378, II-400

deleting IV-85

described IV-160, IV-422

device control presets IV-327

drag handles II-399

duplicate frame detection and IV-288

options for IV-160

velocity handles III-279, III-280

voiceover clips III-150

wireframes III-238, III-240–III-247

Handle Size field IV-134, IV-288, IV-327

hard disks

batch capture space requirements I-266

calculating space needs I-182

data transfer rates I-180–I-187

deleting items from IV-84

digital media storage I-188

EDLs and IV-136

fragmentation IV-404

heat buildup I-184

Media Manager summary IV-81

multiple disks I-179

naming I-39

problems with IV-403

removable media I-181

seek time I-181, I-185

selecting I-183

space required for projects I-181–I-183

spindle speed I-181, I-185

sustained transfer speed I-185

types of I-184–I-188

hard disk space

deleting items and IV-84

Media Manager summary IV-81

hard drives

managing render files III-559

real-time playback and III-515

speed of III-523

Hard Light compositing mode III-365

hard recording method IV-186, IV-208

hardware

jam syncing timecode 1-259

Jaws Wipe transition II-396, IV-143

Jaz drives I-181

J-cuts IV-423

kerning III-502

keyboard layouts I-144–I-152

clearing and restoring keyboard shortcuts I-150

exporting and importing I-151–I-152

languages and I-152

Keyboard Layout window I-145-I-146

keyboard shortcuts

assigning to keyboard layout I-146–I-149

audio details II-300

button bars I-46, I-153–I-156

buttons I-153-I-156

color-coding tracks II-212

color correction III-455

Copy Filter controls III-443

customizing II-274

customizing keyboard layout for I-45, I-144–I-152

described I-45

Digital Cinema Desktop feature I-218

editing II-152, II-425

Edit Selection tool shortcuts II-349

"gearing down" II-199, II-348

logging functions I-257

marking controls I-80, I-95

motion effects III-220

moving between clips III-437

multiclips II-274

Option key uses II-202

pen tools III-121–III-122, III-255

playback controls I-77, I-92

saving as text files I-151

selection tools II-180

shuttling through clips I-101

slide edits II-324

split edits II-240

switching to Canvas or Timeline II-429

Time Remap tool III-324

transport controls I-77, I-92

Trim Edit window II-369

variable speed settings III-325

volume controls III-113

zoom controls III-261

zooming I-116, I-133, I-136–I-137

zooming in and out of waveforms II-298

key button III-478

key edits IV-122

key events IV-126

key filters. See keying filters

keyframe buttons III-193, III-253

keyframe controls 1-80, 1-95

keyframe editor I-128, III-164, III-284, III-286, III-319

Key frame every N frames option IV-319

keyframe graphs

creating more space in Ill-258

described III-194

ruler III-194

in Timeline III-283–III-285

time scale in III-263

zoom controls III-261–III-262

keyframe navigation buttons III-193, III-253

keyframe overlays I-125

keyframes II-178, II-305, IV-220

adding III-76, III-111, III-256–III-258

adding to clips 1-80

adjusting III-111, III-171, III-258

animating motion effects with III-249–III-267

audio filters III-169–III-172

audio levels and IV-291

Bezier handles and III-268–III-272, III-276, III-277, III-280

clip keyframes I-117

Clip Keyframes area III-283–III-284

clip parameters and III-251–III-267

clip settings III-123–III-124

color correction and III-439

controlling pan III-87–III-96, III-124, III-132–III-134

controls III-169, III-253–III-262, III-439

control surfaces and III-106

creating III-121

curved keyframes III-280

deleting III-98, III-121, III-126, III-172, III-260, III-275

described III-217, III-249, III-250–III-251, IV-424

determining number to use III-251–III-252

EDLs and IV-135

eliminating clicks III-129

examples of using III-263–III-267

favorite motion effects III-281

filter keyframes III-164

Garbage Matte filters and III-406–III-407

generator clips and III-490

graphs IV-424

keyframe editor. See keyframe editor

keyframe graph ruler III-254

keyframe graphs III-254, III-258, III-261–III-263

looping playback while recording III-94

mixer automation and III-90

mixing levels III-127

modifying III-96–III-97

motion bars and III-285

motion effects and III-217

motion paths and III-272–III-280

moving III-125, III-171, III-259, III-285

MPEG encoders and IV-218

navigating between III-124, III-171, III-260

one-dimensional keyframes III-271

opacity IV-139

origin of III-249

overlays I-125

overlays and III-125, III-171, III-259

parameter settings III-170

recording III-71, III-75, III-90–III-93, III-170

remap keyframes III-316, III-318

setting for clips I-80, I-95

setting for sequences I-80, I-95

settings III-253–III-262

showing or hiding III-193

smoothing with Bezier handles III-268–III-272

still image camera motion effects III-350

subframe keyframes III-128–III-131, III-176

temporal compression and IV-250

time remap keyframes III-328

tools III-255

two-dimensional keyframes III-271

uses for III-249

variable speed changes and III-315

velocity III-278–III-280

in Viewer III-122–III-126

viewing in Timeline I-127

volume levels and III-111, III-114, III-124, III-127–

III-129

Key Frames option IV-250

keying III-385–III-409, IV-424

background issues III-389–III-390

blue or green background III-388, III-389

chroma keying III-388

compression and III-388

described III-385, III-386

lighting and III-389–III-390

luma keying III-388

overview of the process III-391–III-392

using the Chroma Keyer filter III-393–III-395, III-398–III-402

using the Waveform Monitor III-390

video formats and III-388

keying filters III-208–III-209, III-387

key levels IV-139

Key tracks III-378

key tracks IV-139

Label 2 property II-24, IV-37, IV-49

Label property II-24, IV-37, IV-49

labels IV-292, IV-424

audio levels III-60

audiotape III-60

audio tracks I-124

clips II-23–II-26

color-coding II-23, II-212

customizing II-26

defaults II-23

names II-23–II-28

preferences II-24–II-26

reels I-239

sorting clips by II-26

tapes I-240

in Timeline I-119

Labels tab II-26, IV-292

languages I-152

Last Modified property IV-38, IV-50

latency I-218, I-220

layered clips

composite mode settings and III-361

motion settings III-225

positioning III-223

layer masks III-370

layers

M+ pointer IV-44

Mackie control surface III-99

Mac OS, version of IV-403, IV-408

Mac OS X

Core Audio I-201

showing and positioning the Dock I-51

Mac OS X Core Audio III-24, III-61

MacPaint format I-306, IV-235

macroblocks IV-356

Macromedia Flash format I-305

magnetic tape characteristics IV-351

magnifying view. See zoom controls

magnifying views. See zoom controls

Make File Names Unique option IV-134

Make Independent Clip command IV-46

Make Master Clip command IV-43, IV-44

Make Movie Self-Contained option I-318, IV-240, IV-255, IV-274

Make Multiclip dialog II-249, II-253

Make Multiclip Sequence dialog II-249, II-258–II-260

Make New Clip option I-280, I-281

Make Offline command IV-66

Make Subclip command II-37

map transitions II-393

Mark Audio Peaks command I-294, III-57, IV-110, IV-115

Mark Clip button I-80

marker icon IV-33

marker list for logged clips 1-252

markers

adding to clips or sequences II-57, II-59

adding while logging I-251–I-252

audio scoring markers IV-243

chapter markers II-55, II-60, IV-217, IV-220,

IV-220–IV-221, IV-243

clip markers II-54

comments in II-60

compression markers II-55, II-60, IV-217, IV-220,

IV-221, IV-243

controls for I-80, I-95

deleting II-60, II-61

described II-53–II-56, IV-425

displaying II-56

editing into sequences II-69

exporting II-60

extending duration of II-67–II-68

finding items by II-189

moving II-64–II-65

moving clips with II-66

moving frame to II-63

moving playhead to I-94, II-62, II-63

music scoring markers III-18

QuickTime movie files and II-54

renaming II-57, II-60, II-64

scoring markers II-56, II-60

sequence markers II-54, III-18, IV-243

setting for clips I-80, I-95

setting for sequences I-80, I-95

in subclips I-273–I-275

timecode and II-65

in Timeline 1-94

turning into subclips II-39

types of II-55

viewing in Browser II-69

working with I-273–I-275, II-53–II-54

Mark In and Mark Out buttons I-248, II-105, II-114,

II-367, II-368

Mark In button IV-191, IV-201

marking clips as in sync II-233

marking controls IV-191

Canvas I-80, I-95

device control I-232

Log and Capture window I-232

Logging tab I-251–I-252

Viewer I-74, I-80

Mark in Sync command II-234, II-290

Mark Long Frames command IV-110, IV-113

Mark Out button IV-191, IV-201

Mark Selection command II-117

Mark Split command II-239

markup languages, XML as IV-164

Mask Feather filter III-210, III-408–III-409

masks III-407–III-409, IV-425

alpha channels and III-387, III-407

described III-387

examples of using III-408

Image Mask filter III-407

masking portions of clips III-367

Mask Shape filter III-407

Soft Edges filter III-407

Mask Shape filter III-186, III-210, III-407

Master, Audio Merged option IV-126

Master area (Audio Mixer) III-68, III-73

Master audio meters III-55, III-74

Master Clip property IV-42

master clips I-57, III-186

affiliate clips and IV-15, IV-41–IV-42, IV-44

breaking relationships IV-45

copied clips and II-417

copied sequences and II-88

creating IV-43, IV-46–IV-48

creating from pasted sequences II-89

deleting IV-45

described II-78, IV-31, IV-426

duplicating IV-43

editing IV-43

freeze frame clips as IV-48

identifying IV-42

importing EDLs and IV-134

independent clips and IV-48

locating IV-48

match frame commands II-287

Media Manager settings IV-85, IV-90

merged clips as IV-48

multiclips and II-286

properties II-84, IV-49

sequence clips and II-430–II-433

Source property IV-42

subclips and II-35, II-38

subclips as IV-48

updating older projects and IV-27

Master Comment properties IV-38, IV-49

Master fader controls III-73, III-86

Master Gain control 1-289

Mastering mode IV-190, IV-198, IV-201, IV-202, IV-426

Mastering Settings tab IV-189, IV-193

Master mute button III-73

Master property IV-38

master shots III-434, IV-426

master tapes III-60, IV-120, IV-130, IV-426

Match Color indicator III-472

match cuts (matching on action) II-339

Match Frame button I-80

match frame editing IV-426

match frame operations

multiclips II-287

opening media files II-432

replace edits II-164

sequence clips II-431, II-433

match frames I-80, I-95

matching criteria for searches II-30

match-on-action IV-426

Match option II-30

Match pop-up menu II-30

Matrix Wipe transition II-394

Matte Choker filter III-208, III-211, III-391, III-404

Matte generator III-490

mattes III-404–III-407, IV-426

alpha channels and III-387, III-404

described III-385

filters III-210–III-211

Garbage Matte filters III-404

Matte Choker filter III-404

media

described IV-426

importing I-305–I-315

labeling II-23–II-26

logging I-256–I-257

managing I-227

organizing II-15–II-26

playing at varying speeds I-101–I-102

source media IV-435

Media 100 systems IV-61

Media Alignment settings II-253, II-259

Media area (Media Manager) IV-81

Media Destination area (Media Manager) IV-87

media elements IV-194

Media End column in Browser I-301

Media End header I-301

Media End points. See Media Start and Media End points

Media End property IV-39, IV-49, IV-50

media files

analyzing IV-110

archiving IV-106

audio media files IV-53

automatic filenaming I-273

capturing I-19, I-225

capturing audio only 1-287

clips and I-35–I-37

compared to clips IV-15

connections to clips IV-64

consolidating into one location IV-104

copying IV-98, IV-99

creating for subclips II-42, IV-103

described I-27

dragging to Timeline 1-309

duplicate names 1-263

file formats vs. codecs IV-230

filenames 1-37

finding files for clips II-28, II-83

found during batch capture 1-269

importing into Final Cut Pro I-305-I-310

locations I-35

logging I-225

managing I-283

master clips and IV-41

media management and IV-41

Media Manager operations and IV-81, IV-95

modifying timecode in II-446–II-450

multichannel audio files I-291

multiclips II-251, II-288

names II-252, IV-17

network sharing IV-18

offline IV-64

opening IV-45

optimizing I-312

organizing I-310

properties IV-50

QuickTime media files IV-29

recapturing process and I-278

recompressing IV-101

reconnecting IV-68–IV-74, IV-79

reconnecting clips to II-79

reconnecting to clips 1-36

search folder settings IV-295

for sequence clips II-432

shooting ratio I-181

source tapes 1-36

subclips and II-38

timecode tracks II-447

"Media limit" message II-358

media management

Name field IV-316, IV-324, IV-336

Name option IV-273

Name property IV-31, IV-35, IV-49

names

angles II-269

audio filenames IV-154

audio tracks II-307

automatic filenaming 1-273

clip names I-239, I-241

clips II-251, IV-17, IV-35, IV-316, IV-324

exported items IV-273

files IV-15

finding items by II-189

markers II-60, II-64

master clips IV-49

matching when reconnecting files IV-73

media files II-251, II-252

Media Manager settings IV-86

multiclips II-266

problems reading in Browser I-139

reel names 1-240

reels II-251, II-252, IV-17

screen layouts I-143

sequence presets IV-336

transitions II-391

names of audio tracks III-69, III-70

narration. See voiceover

narratives I-241

National Television Systems Committee (NTSC) I-24

National Television Systems Committee format. See NTSC format

native processing III-509

native speed, viewing III-333

native speed option II-75, II-442

navigation

in Browser I-57

in Canvas I-97–I-103

controls for IV-190–IV-191

in Edit to Tape window IV-190–IV-193

Log and Capture window controls I-231

with markers I-251

shortcuts I-57

with timecode values I-132

in Timeline I-112–I-117, I-131–I-138

in Viewer I-97–I-103

nearfield monitors III-27

nested sequences

anamorphic video in IV-400

audio export and IV-159

audio items II-419

avoiding II-423–II-426

creating II-419–II-421

described II-80, II-89, II-413, IV-427

duration changes II-422

EDLs and IV-135, IV-141

opening II-354

preserving render files III-562

pros and cons II-418

Nest Items dialog II-420–II-421

networks

media management and IV-18

searching for plug-ins and Easy Setups IV-313

sharing project files IV-61

neutral grays III-454, III-462

New Bin button I-245

New Merged Clip dialog II-48

New Offline Clip command 1-228

New Project command I-33

Next Frame button II-366

NLE. See nonlinear editing

noise, background III-179

noise floor III-42, IV-427

noise gates III-155

Noise generator III-492

noise reduction filters III-156–III-157

nominal levels of sound III-42

Non-Additive Dissolve transition II-393, IV-142

noncontiguous clips II-183

non-controllable devices I-277, I-296, IV-331

nondestructive editing I-21

nondestructive filters III-152

non-drop frame timecode I-26, I-104, I-244, II-440,

IV-121, IV-383–IV-389, IV-427

non-DV format devices I-195, I-199

None option for external video I-214

non-interlaced video IV-337, IV-427

offline/online editing

audio in IV-52

copying sequences for IV-100

creating low-resolution copies IV-101

described IV-428

final refinements IV-60

linear tape editing process IV-119

Media Manager settings IV-83

non-Final Cut Pro systems IV-60

Offline RT format IV-55–IV-60

output IV-60

overview IV-51–IV-53

reconnecting media files IV-68

transferring projects IV-61

workflow IV-54

offline/online editing workflow 1-23

offline angles II-268

Offline Clip icon IV-33

offline clips II-79, II-288, IV-428

audio clips I-315

breaking links to IV-65–IV-67

capturing I-265

described I-36, IV-64, IV-428

finding IV-72

illustrated IV-65

logging and I-300

media management and IV-16

moving and 1-37

offline/online workflows IV-18

reconnecting IV-68–IV-74

renaming files and I-58

Offline Files window IV-74–IV-75

Offline Items in Logging Bin option I-265

offline media files

described IV-64

ignoring IV-75

missing files and IV-67

recapturing at full resolution IV-59

XML notations for IV-168

Offline property IV-39

OfflineRT codec III-517

OfflineRT format I-180, I-182

data rates IV-369

editing IV-55–IV-60

OfflineRT sequence preset IV-101

Offline Status property IV-49

Off option for external video I-222

offset, capture I-207

offset of audio-recording devices III-138

offsets in multiclips II-259

OMF Audio Export dialog IV-160

OMF Export command IV-158

OMF format I-22, II-250, II-418, III-20

EDLs and IV-119

exporting IV-52

limitations of IV-159

size limits IV-160

video information in IV-61

Omit search option II-30

Omit Transitions setting IV-127

online editing

described IV-52

final refinements IV-60

finishing process IV-421

Media Manager settings IV-83

non-Final Cut Pro systems IV-60

output IV-60

recapturing full-resolution media IV-59

recapturing sequences for IV-79

sequence presets for IV-59

transferring projects IV-61

online editing suites

components I-163

setup I-160

online editing workflow I-23

onscreen help I-10, I-47

"On timecode break" pop-up menu I-280

On Timecode Break settings IV-286

opacity IV-428

adjusting in Timeline III-359–III-378

composite modes and III-361

copying settings III-288

examples of adjusting III-266–III-267

opacity keyframes IV-139

opacity overlay III-266–III-267

opacity overlays I-125

Opacity parameter III-221

Opacity slider III-221, III-360

Open command I-34, IV-45

opening

Compressor IV-224

external editors IV-298

media files IV-45

Media Manager IV-80

QuickTime Encoder IV-225

opening items

audio clips II-295

bins II-17

clips II-354

customized shortcut button bars I-156

multiple sequences II-414

nested sequences II-354

reopening last project II-74

saved screen layouts I-144

sequence clips II-428

sequences II-86

transitions II-405

Open Media Framework format. See OMF format

Open playhead sync option II-435

open standards, XML as IV-164

operating systems I-38

optical disks 1-225

optimization, media files I-312

Optimize Hints for Server option IV-255

Option key III-122

Option key shortcuts

copying items II-202

moving and selecting II-202

split edits II-241

Options button I-214

Options option IV-255, IV-265

ordered timecode breaks I-279, IV-428

origin point for text III-502

outgoing clips II-346, II-362, II-367, II-400, IV-428

Outline Text generator III-498

out-of-gamut color III-551

out-of-phase sounds III-38

out-of-sync indicators II-221–II-222, IV-428

Out point inclusive rule II-102

Out point property IV-39, IV-50

Out points. See In and Out points

output channels III-61, III-87

Output Channel shortcut menu III-69

output formats

avoiding rendering II-89

multiclip exports II-250

output frames III-315

output ports I-160

audio III-24

MIDI connections III-101

output in postproduction process 1-20

output process

anamorphic video IV-399

Edit to Tape command IV-178

media management and IV-17

online editing workflow and IV-60

output described IV-428

playback settings IV-181

Print to Video command IV-178

recording from Timeline IV-179

output requirements

Betacam SP output IV-177

Digital Betacam IV-177

DV output IV-177

VHS output IV-177

Outputs pop-up menu IV-343

Out Shift indicator II-367

Oval Iris transition IV-142

Oval transition II-393

overlapping items in Timeline II-221

overlapping timecode II-259, II-265–II-266

Overlay compositing mode III-365

overlays

adjusting III-112, III-125, III-171, III-259

audio II-305, III-120

Canvas Edit Overlay Il-424

described 1-83

displaying II-181, II-305

Edit Overlay I-91

ends of clips II-104

level overlays II-292, III-116

for multiclips II-269

pan overlays II-292, III-120

timecode overlays I-83, II-445

overlays, audio IV-150

oversaturated color I-326

oversaturation III-452, III-457

overscan area IV-428

overtones III-39

overwrite editing IV-428

overwrite edits 1-90

angles in multiclips II-272

avoiding nested sequences II-425

as default II-151

described II-153

keyboard shortcuts II-152

performing II-143–II-145, II-157–II-158

in sequences II-416

in Timeline II-143

overwrite with transition edits I-90, II-152, II-153,

II-158–II-159, II-379

P2 (Professional Plug-in) IV-429

Packet Duration Limit option IV-255

packets IV-255

Packet Size Limit option IV-255

Page Peel transition II-393, IV-142

paired track names II-307

PAL codec IV-231, IV-233

PAL format IV-352

24 @ 25 PAL format II-449, II-451

color bar standards I-322

contrast levels 1-334

described I-24, IV-429

equipment IV-373

fps IV-378

frame rates IV-382

non-drop frame timecode II-441

OfflineRT format and IV-55

recompressing IV-82

PAL formats III-341

PAL monitors IV-402

pan IV-159

adjusting III-21

adjusting for clips III-87–III-89, III-119–III-120

audio tracks III-71

changing in Timeline III-117

controlling with keyframes III-87–III-96, III-122–

III-126, III-132–III-134

control surfaces and III-99

copying settings III-289

overlays III-120

recording keyframes III-90–III-93

recording pan automation III-75

setting in Viewer III-118–III-120

tips for working with III-96

Panasonic P2 cards I-311

Panasonic RS-232 protocol IV-329

Panasonic RS-422 protocol IV-329

Pan attribute III-120

pan controls III-65, III-99

Pan Keyframe button II-294, III-123

Pan keyframe navigation buttons II-294, III-123

pan keyframes IV-150

deleting III-98

modifying III-96

recording III-90

recording with control surfaces III-106

pan overlay II-292, II-294, III-120

Pan slider II-293

Pan sliders III-71, III-118–III-120

Parade scope III-417, III-424, III-432–III-433, IV-429

parallel (Ultra) ATA disks I-185

parameter controls III-193

parameters. See motion parameters, threshold

parameter, etc.

parent sequences II-418, II-423

partial reveals III-367

Particle Noise generator III-490, III-492

partitions

multiple I-179

naming I-39

passive speakers III-26

passthrough mode IV-213

Paste Attributes dialog III-120, III-163, III-201, III-222,

III-228, III-287–III-290

Paste command I-57

pasting clip attributes III-287–III-290

pasting clips

in sequences II-416

in Timeline II-202–II-205

patching tracks I-113

patch panel IV-438

paths

master and affiliate clips and IV-42

motion IV-427

reconnecting media files IV-69

paths, motion. See motion paths

paths to media files I-35

PCI audio interface cards I-202

PCI card audio interfaces III-24

PCI cards

Fibre Channel I-188

FireWire cards I-186

PCI video interface cards I-165, I-192, I-193

.pct extension IV-272

PDF format I-316

peak audio meters III-52, III-55

peak meters IV-429

peaks IV-292, IV-429

detection III-57

keyframing III-90

labeling tapes III-60

loudest sounds III-22

overview III-51

Peaks Only setting IV-292

Pen Delete tool III-255

Pen Smooth tool III-255, III-276

Pen tool II-133

pen tools III-111, III-255, III-257, IV-292

"Pen tools can edit locked item overlays"

option II-133

perceived frame rates IV-379

percentages in transitions II-401

performance

audio mixing and real-time effects III-530

fragmentation and IV-404

maximizing real-time playback III-515

mixdown audio and III-543

problems with IV-407

real-time effects and III-510

performance, waveforms and II-304

persistence of vision IV-379

perspective filters III-212

phase, sound waves and III-38

phase (hue) IV-429

Phase Alternating Line format (PAL) I-24

Phase Alternating Line format. See PAL format

phase cancellation III-28, III-38

Photo JPEG codec III-517, IV-101, IV-369

Photo JPEG format I-180, I-182, IV-55, IV-235

Photoshop files I-306, I-316, III-369

adding and deleting layers III-370

compositing and III-368

flattening III-344

importing III-369

as titles III-503

Photoshop format IV-235, IV-261

photo tables III-348

PICS format I-306, IV-235

PICT files III-244

PICT format I-306, I-316, IV-235, IV-272, IV-429

picture aspect ratios IV-409

Picture Viewer application IV-228

pillarboxing I-217

pitch III-39

Pixel Aspect property IV-39

pixel aspect ratio III-338–III-343, III-345, IV-50, IV-337,

IV-350, IV-357, IV-429

Pixel Aspect Ratio property IV-50

Pixel Aspect Ratio setting IV-337

pixels

described IV-429

graphics creation and III-338

non-square III-340–III-343

per line in video frames IV-355

pixel aspect ratio I-311

square III-340–III-343

square and non-square 1-82

pixels per inch measurements III-339

plain media bars I-125

plain text files IV-169

planning in postproduction process I-18

platform-compatible files IV-62

Play Around Current Frame button II-108, IV-193

Play Around Edit Loop button II-365

playback

disabling clips III-381

dropped frames and IV-286

external monitors and I-213–I-215

frame rates III-510

keyboard controls 1-77, 1-92

Log and Capture window I-230

looping I-103, III-166, IV-212, IV-425

maximizing real-time playback III-515

options IV-212

playing clips in reverse III-313, III-314

problems during IV-113–IV-114, IV-402–IV-406, IV-408

quality I-83

QuickView tab III-304–III-305

real-time effects quality III-510

real-time effects settings III-521–III-528

real-time playback I-312

render bars III-519

reverse playback I-98

settings IV-297, IV-341

speed III-222, III-307–III-314

stopping I-98

testing IV-209

video quality III-510

voiceover controls III-140

x axis and III-317

Playback Control tab I-220, III-521, IV-297

playback drops. See dropped frames

playback indicators III-304

Playback Offset field IV-327

playback settings IV-181

Playback Video Quality option III-525

Play Base Layer Only feature III-514, III-524

Play button II-366, IV-192

Play command IV-212

playhead IV-429

in Canvas I-89, I-93–I-94

described I-78, I-93

extending marker duration to II-67

jumping I-132

keyboard shortcuts III-437

locked in Timeline and Canvas I-131

moving I-94, I-105–I-106, I-132

moving in Timeline IV-213

moving markers with II-65

moving to In and Out points II-118

moving to markers II-62, II-63

moving to Out point IV-212

navigating between keyframes III-124

navigating in Timeline I-131–I-138

playing around current frame II-108

playing clips around current position of I-99

play time before and after IV-212

positioning I-92, I-132

positioning in Timeline IV-212

selected items and II-176

synchronizing in windows II-282, II-434–II-437

in Timeline I-110, I-116

in Viewer I-74, I-78–I-79

playhead sync options II-282

Playhead Sync pop-up menu I-74, I-84–I-85, I-90,

I-96, II-434, II-436–II-437

playing clips

around current playhead position I-99

disabling tracks II-133–II-134

between In and Out points I-99

keyboard shortcuts II-369

looping playback I-103

Multiclip Playback mode II-281–II-283

multiclips II-250

native speed II-442

navigating through clips I-98–I-100

playing every frame I-100

in reverse I-98

reviewing edit points II-108

setting In and Out points Il-106

in Trim Edit window II-365, II-366, II-372

Play In to Out button II-365, IV-192

play through capture presets IV-317

Playthru Device option I-242

PLUGE bars I-332

plug-ins IV-408

PNG format I-306, IV-235

PNTG format I-306, IV-235

point controls III-197

pointers, reference movies IV-240

Point Iris transition IV-142

point-to-point connections I-188

Pond Ripple filter III-206

pop sounds III-129, III-176

Port setting IV-326

poster frames 1-64, 1-69

Posterize filter III-213

postproduction IV-429

audio mixing III-17

described I-16

managing color during III-414–III-417

in moviemaking process I-16

workflow I-16–I-20

post-roll settings IV-212, IV-288, IV-328

power failures, reopening projects after IV-23

Power Mac G4 computers IV-406

preferences

audio/video (A/V) sync and IV-286

audio output IV-293

deleting Preferences file IV-293

editing IV-287

effects III-532, IV-300

general II-73

labels II-24–II-26, IV-292

memory and cache IV-296–IV-297

playback control IV-297

render IV-287, IV-293

scratch disks I-161, I-171–I-173, I-179, IV-294

search paths IV-295

sound volume of systems III-35

Timeline I-124, IV-293

user preferences IV-281–IV-293

Preferences file

deleting IV-293, IV-311

presets in IV-305

Premier Pro systems IV-61

premixes (stem mixes) III-19

preproduction in moviemaking process I-15

Pre-read Edits setting IV-129

pre-roll frames I-281

pre-roll header for voiceover III-148

pre-roll settings IV-212, IV-288, IV-328

Preset Editor window IV-307, IV-308

presets IV-323–IV-327, IV-430

QCELP audio IV-246

Q setting III-154

QTIF format IV-235

Quality setting IV-251, IV-317, IV-320, IV-338

quantization III-46

quantization errors III-49

Queued option IV-273

QuickTime

applications suite IV-228

audio formats IV-53

batch exports IV-270–IV-276

codec support IV-229

compatible movie formats IV-232

exporting anamorphic media to IV-400

exporting still images IV-261

filters IV-252

Final Cut Pro and IV-231–IV-237

output types IV-232–IV-236

overview IV-227–IV-231

QuickTime-compatible formats IV-228

sound settings IV-253–IV-254

websites IV-231

QuickTime Encoder IV-225

QuickTime format IV-53, IV-217, IV-228, IV-230

QuickTime Image File (QTIF) IV-235

QuickTime Image Files I-306

QuickTime movie file format. See QuickTime format

QuickTime movie files

alpha channels and III-356, III-371, III-374

analyzing IV-110, IV-111, IV-112

audio files I-313

Batch Export settings IV-272

contents of IV-29

converting numbered image sequences

into I-317-I-318

described IV-228

exporting IV-236–IV-237, IV-239–IV-243, IV-245–IV-257

exporting for DV streaming IV-256–IV-257

exporting for iDVD IV-222

exporting in AVI format IV-257–IV-259

exporting sequences as IV-239–IV-243

exporting with MPEG-2 coded IV-225

extension for IV-272

Final Cut Pro support I-22

hinted IV-255

importing I-305

importing into DVD Studio Pro IV-223

Internet streaming IV-255

markers in II-54, II-56, II-69, IV-220

multichannel audio files I-291

reference movies I-310, I-318

rendering III-563

save options I-318

sound settings IV-253–IV-254

time in IV-231

tracks and images in IV-229

types of IV-232

video settings IV-249–IV-252

QuickTime Player II-60

chapter tracks IV-221

described IV-228

QuickTime Pro I-317–I-318, IV-228

QuickTime settings IV-249–IV-255

audio IV-253–IV-254, IV-320–IV-321

capture presets IV-315–IV-321

video IV-249–IV-252, IV-317–IV-318

QuickTime Streaming Server software IV-255

QuickTime transitions II-393–II-394

QuickTime video sequence presets IV-338

QuickView tab III-303–III-305, IV-430

controls III-303–III-305

playback in III-304–III-305

uses for III-303

Radial Blur filter III-203

Radial transition II-394

RAIDs (Redundant Array of Independent

Disks) I-187, IV-430

RAM (random access memory)

playback and III-304–III-305

real-time playback and III-515

still cache and III-516

voiceover requirements III-139

RAM settings IV-296, IV-430

Random Edge Wipe transition II-396, IV-143

range-checking options III-417, III-422–III-423, IV-431

Range Selection tool II-179, II-184, III-189

rarification, sound waves and III-37

Rate option IV-254, IV-257, IV-321

Rate option for timecode II-448

Ratio slider III-155, III-156

raw data IV-431

raw previewing mode I-218

Razor Blade All tool II-215

razor blade edits IV-431

Razor Blade tool II-214

RCA connectors I-201, III-31, IV-370

readability of fonts III-496

real-time audio

filter adjustments III-166

mixing III-60, III-529–III-530

real-time audio mixing III-529, IV-283, IV-403

Real-time Audio Mixing field III-529

real-time editing II-278, II-281–II-283

real-time effects I-186, IV-431

codecs III-517

display quality III-517

dynamic real-time playback III-511

external video monitoring III-515

in Final Cut Pro III-516

identifying transitions and filters for III-520

maximizing real-time playback III-515

options in Final Cut Pro III-519

overview III-509–III-518

playback settings III-523–III-527

Play Base Layer Only feature III-514

processing requirements III-510

record settings III-528

render bars III-519

RT pop-up menu III-523–III-524

Safe RT mode III-512

settings III-521–III-528

unlimited real-time playback III-513

Unlimited RT mode III-524

video output III-528

Real Time Effects (RT) pop-up menu III-523–III-524

Real-Time Effects (RT) pop-up menu I-120

real-time level automation III-75

real-time playback I-312

real-time playback quality II-283

Rec-601 color standard III-552

Rec 709 (high definition color space media) IV-27

Rec-709 color standard III-552

Recapture option for EDL import IV-133

recapturing clips

with Media Manager I-283

overwriting files 1-265

process I-278

recapturing items

clips IV-431

clips from imported EDLs IV-135

recapturing process

effective media management and IV-15

full-resolution IV-55, IV-57

media management and IV-16

multiclips II-288

online editing and IV-79

timecode modifications and II-446

Recent Clips pop-up menu I-74, I-86, IV-283

Recompress All Frames option IV-241, IV-243, IV-274

recompressing media files

avoiding IV-241

choosing codec and format IV-242

in Media Manager IV-82

Media Manager options IV-78

Media Manager process IV-101

OfflineRT format and IV-56

QuickTime conversion and IV-237

Reconnect Files dialog IV-71

reconnecting clips II-288

reconnecting media IV-68–IV-74

effective media management and IV-15

search paths IV-295

Reconnect Media command IV-68–IV-74

Reconnect option for EDL import IV-133

Reconnect window IV-72

Record Audio Keyframes button III-68, III-71, III-92

Record Audio Keyframes checkbox IV-291

Record Audio Keyframes option III-75

recording process

device control presets IV-328

output to VHS tape IV-213

Print to Video command IV-207, IV-208–IV-210

real-time effects and III-528

recording anamorphic video IV-395

recording from Timeline IV-208, IV-211–IV-213

recording to videotape IV-185–IV-205, IV-207–IV-210

setting up for IV-208–IV-210

voiceover controls III-140

voiceover settings III-143, III-148–III-150

record monitors I-97, IV-431

record tapes in EDLs IV-120

Rectangle Iris transition IV-142

Rectangle transition II-393

rectangular pixels IV-357

rectangular pixels. See non-square pixels

redigitizing process IV-431

Redo command II-96

Redundant Array of Independent Disks

(RAIDs) I-187, IV-430

Reel/Roll option II-448

reel conflicts IV-128

Reel name property IV-39

Reel property IV-49, IV-50

reels

changing name in Browser IV-138

described IV-431

duplicate timecode and I-258

entering names 1-246

identifying in EDLs IV-121

information about I-245

labeling I-239

names I-240, I-282, II-251, II-252

names of IV-17, IV-137–IV-138, IV-141

numbers I-258, IV-136

reel conflicts IV-128

timecode and II-448

timecode breaks and I-282

reference frames IV-218

reference input connectors I-207

reference levels III-58

reference movies I-310, I-318, IV-240–IV-243, IV-255, IV-408

reference tones I-292, III-60

Refresh A/V Devices command I-221

relative timecode values II-355

relative volume adjustments III-113

Release time control III-155, III-156

Relink dialog IV-97

remap keyframes III-316, III-318

removable media I-181, I-310

removable media drives I-181

Remove Attributes dialog III-98, III-291

Remove Subclip Limits command II-38

removing. See deleting items

removing items. See deleting items

renaming favorites III-296

renaming items

bins 1-58

clips 1-58

files 1-58

sequences 1-58

renaming markers II-64

Render All command III-542

render bar II-410

render bars III-535–III-536, III-537–III-538, IV-431

audio items I-121

colors I-121

imported QuickTime files and I-311

render cache files III-560

Render command III-541

Render Control tab III-549, III-557–III-558, IV-293, IV-340

Rendered Frames option I-214

render files II-90, II-410

creating III-533

deleting III-561, IV-26

deleting cache files I-113

described IV-431

generating III-539

invisible tracks and III-562, IV-291

location of III-559

low-resolution III-541

managing III-559–III-562

Media Manager settings IV-83

preserving III-562

reconnecting files IV-69

render cache files III-560

space requirements I-182

Undo command and III-561

updating projects and IV-26

Render Files folder III-559

Render Filters in Multiclip Display option II-283, II-284

rendering

anamorphic media IV-399

audio III-115, III-543, III-546

audio and video separately III-540

audio filters III-530, III-537–III-538

audio mixing and III-530

Auto Rendering feature III-548, III-564

avoiding III-563

color space and III-551

commands III-541–III-543

cuts-only sequences III-563

described III-533, IV-431

disabling III-547

effects III-546

indicators III-536–III-538

manually III-540

order of III-539

preferences IV-287, IV-293

printing to video and IV-181, IV-199, IV-203, IV-210, IV-211

quality levels for IV-181

quality of audio exports IV-156

reasons for III-534

reducing time for III-564

reference movies and IV-240

render files. See render files

Render Manager. See Render Manager

sequences III-539–III-540, III-544–III-545

settings III-549–III-553, III-556, III-557–III-558,

IV-340–IV-341

testing III-564

tips III-563

unrendered effects IV-211

Video Processing tab settings III-553

rendering process

audio mixdown II-421

avoiding II-90

described II-410

file formats and I-22

nested sequences and II-418

render files II-90, II-410

single frames I-222

transitions II-410–II-411

Render Manager III-560–III-561

Render Only command III-543

render status bar I-121

render status bars III-519

replace editing IV-431

replace edits 1-90

described II-153

In and Out points and II-160–II-161

keyboard shortcuts II-152

performing II-160–II-166

resynchronizing audio/video clips Il-163

rules for II-160–II-161

Replace Find Results option II-30

Replicate filter III-213

Report Dropped Frames setting IV-286

resampling

rendering audio III-543

render status and III-538

Reset button II-294, II-403, III-123, III-160

Reset Match Color button III-472

reset timecode breaks I-279, I-282, IV-431

Reset Time Display checkbox II-75

resetting filters III-193

resize editing IV-431

resize edits II-354–II-355, II-401, II-407

Resize pointer II-351, IV-432

Resize Window pointer I-141

resizing items

Browser columns 1-62

windows I-139

resizing items. See scaling items

resizing tracks in Timeline II-135–II-136

resolution

capturing clips and I-276, I-283

display monitors I-143

graphics clips and III-338–III-340

images and III-338–III-340

QuickView settings III-304

rendered effects IV-341

rendering and III-558

still images IV-262

Resolution option IV-341

restarting batch capture 1-268

Restore Project command II-76, IV-22–IV-23

Restore Window Layout command I-144

restoring projects II-76–II-77

Results option II-30

resynchronizing items

angles in multiclips II-272

merged clips II-51

replace edits II-163

Reveal in Finder command II-28

Reveal Master Clip command II-287, II-432, IV-48

reverberation III-27, III-157

Reverb filter III-157

Reverse Alpha command III-375

Reverse Alpha property IV-32, IV-39, IV-50

reverse effects IV-159

Reverse option IV-213

reverse play 1-98

reverse playback III-313, III-314, III-322, III-332

reverse shots IV-432

Reverse Transition button II-403

Revert Project command II-76, IV-20

Rewind button IV-192

RGB Balance filter III-205

RGB channels III-379–III-380

RGB color space I-84, I-310, I-323, II-90, IV-353

Component RGB IV-371

compositing and III-552

recording methods and IV-361

rendering Y'CbCr into III-552

settings III-554

updating projects and IV-25, IV-432

working in III-549, III-552

RGB mode III-237, III-379

ribbon cables I-185

Rich Text Format files 1-304

right output channel III-124

rim lights (back lights) IV-412

ripple deletes. See ripple edits

Ripple Dissolve transition II-393, IV-142

ripple editing IV-432

ripple edits

adjusting clip length with II-408–II-409

asymmetrical trimming II-336–II-338

clips with transitions II-388

closing gaps II-207–II-208

indicators in Trim Edit window II-364

performing II-207–II-208, II-332–II-333, II-370

rippling multiple tracks II-336

sync relationships and II-334

tips II-338

Ripple filter III-206

Ripple tool II-329

rippling clips. See insert edits, ripple edits

roll editing IV-432

roll edits

changing transition location II-408

clips with transitions II-388

indicators in Trim Edit window II-364

performing II-338–II-343, II-370

rolling multiple tracks II-342

tips II-343

transition bar and II-401

Roll tool II-338, II-340

room noise III-136

room shape, audio and III-27

room tone II-290, II-313–II-316, III-177, IV-146, IV-432

Rotate filter III-212

rotation

controls III-197

motion parameters III-220

rotating clips III-238, III-241

rotation handles III-238

rotation value IV-432

rotoscoping IV-432

rough cuts I-19

rough editing IV-432

rough edits

drag-to-Timeline editing II-141

steps in II-93–II-94

RS-232 connectors I-194, I-206

RS-232 device control IV-328, IV-329, IV-330

RS-422 connectors I-194, I-206

RS-422 device control IV-182, IV-188, IV-325, IV-328,

IV-329, IV-330

RT-11 disks IV-131

RT Extreme

capabilities III-509

codecs III-517

display quality III-517

external video monitoring III-515

Play Base Layer Only feature III-514

record settings III-528

Safe RT mode III-512

settings III-521–III-528

unlimited real-time playback III-513

video output III-528

RTF files I-304, IV-408

RT pop-up menu I-120, III-522, III-523–III-524, IV-181

RTP Payload Encodings option IV-255

ruler IV-432

positioning playhead with I-132

in Timeline I-115

in Transition Editor II-400

in Viewer II-294

rulers III-194, III-254

run-length encoding IV-365

S/PDIF digital audio I-201, I-205

S/PDIF optical connector IV-320

Safe RT mode III-512, III-515, III-523

sample clocks 1-297

sample rate conversion IV-284

Sample Rate options IV-160

sample rates II-90, IV-160, IV-254, IV-257

audio interfaces III-24

audio-only capturing IV-322

capture presets IV-321

consumer audio I-205

conversion IV-284

converting I-314

digital audio III-47

DVD audio IV-219

exported audio IV-156

imported video I-311

mismatched IV-407

overview I-313–I-315

sample rate conversion III-538

sampling, described IV-433

sampling ratio IV-362

sequence presets IV-338

settings III-33

video formats IV-350, IV-361

voiceover III-142

samples per line in video frames IV-355

SAN (storage area networks) IV-18, IV-433

SATA disks I-185

Sat control III-477

Sat slider III-447, III-456

saturation I-331, IV-433

adjusting III-447

adjustments to III-456

broadcast safe controls III-487

Chroma Keyer filter III-397

comparing in Waveform Monitor III-428

controlling III-477

described III-419

enabling or disabling III-426

font color III-501

oversaturation III-452, III-457

saturation controls III-447, III-456–III-457

Saturation slider I-328, III-456

Save All command 1-33

Save Normally option I-318

Save option IV-252

Save Project command 1-33

Save Window Layout command I-143

saving items IV-20–IV-23, IV-285

autosave feature II-77

favorite transitions II-390

files II-77

keyboard shortcut layouts I-144, I-151

projects I-33, II-73

QuickTime movies I-318

screen layouts I-142

shortcut button bars I-156

track layouts II-137

saving render files III-562

Scale Attribute Times option III-163, III-288

scale handles III-238

Scale slider III-220

Scale to Sequence command III-339, III-346

scale value IV-433

scaling items

clips III-240

graphics III-339, III-342

images and clips to match sequences III-345

scaling Timeline to fit window I-137

scanned images I-320

scanning methods

high definition video formats IV-367

video formats IV-350, IV-358

SCART connector IV-373

scene numbers I-250

Scene property IV-39, IV-49

scenes IV-433

scoring markers II-56, II-60, II-62, III-18, IV-243

scratch disks

consolidating project files IV-104

data rates IV-284

described IV-433

free space 1-230

heat buildup I-184

managing render files III-559

performance and III-515

preferences I-171–I-174, I-179, IV-294

preparing for batch capture 1-263

removable media I-181

removing I-174

selecting I-234, I-235

separating audio and video I-173

setup I-161

speed of III-523

types of I-184–I-188

Scratch Disks dialog 1-272

scratch disk speed II-283

Scratch Disks tab I-171–I-174, I-179, IV-294

Screen compositing mode III-364

screen layouts I-48, I-51, I-141–I-144, III-423

screen text size IV-287

scripts IV-25, IV-433

logging process and I-259

in moviemaking process I-15

scrolling

through audio clips II-299

through tracks II-137–II-139

in Timeline II-137–II-139

in Viewer Il-268

Scrolling Text generator III-499

scrolling through clips III-262

scrolling through sequences I-137

scrubber bar I-74, I-78, I-89, I-93, I-100, II-294, II-297,

II-365, III-304, IV-433

scrubbing IV-297, IV-433

audio scrubbing II-300

in clips I-67, I-100

in sequences in Timeline I-132

in thumbnails 1-65

turning off II-300

Scrub tool II-273

Scrub Video tool I-67, IV-433

SCSI cables I-186

SCSI disk drives I-186–I-187

SCSI interface cards I-186

SD (standard definition) video III-340, III-342, III-349

SD2 format IV-53, IV-236

SD format IV-27, IV-356

SDI format I-330, IV-372

SDI inputs I-210

SDI-to-Composite converters I-210

SDTI (Serial Digital Transport Interface) IV-372

SD video

connectors I-194

Final Cut Pro support I-22

non-square pixels 1-82

previewing on external monitors I-211

Search command II-29

Search Folders tab IV-295

searching for items. See finding items

Search option II-29

SECAM format I-24, IV-352, IV-433

seek time I-181, I-185

Select All command II-188

Select All Tracks Backward tool II-180

Select All Tracks Forward tool II-180

Select Auto-balance Color button III-472

Select Color button III-478

Selected Items in Logging Bin option I-265

selecting items

all clips in sequence II-188

all clips on tracks II-185

Auto Select controls II-191–II-193

clips in Timeline II-180–II-183

current selections in Timeline II-175–II-177

deselecting II-183

forward or backward in tracks II-186

linked items II-227

Option key shortcuts II-202

for trim edits II-348–II-350

selecting items in Browser 1-55

Selection tool I-67, II-179, III-238, IV-433

selection tools II-178, II-181, II-190, II-348

Select Preset option IV-133

Select Track Backward tool II-180, II-186

Select Track Forward tool II-180, II-186, II-210

Select Track tool II-180, II-185, II-186

self-contained movies I-318, IV-240–IV-243, IV-255

self-powered speakers III-26, III-32

Sepia filter III-207

sequence clips I-122, II-218, III-186

described II-78, IV-32, IV-433

duration II-218

In and Out points II-429

independent clips II-430, II-433

master clips for II-430–II-433

match frame operations II-431, II-433

media files for II-432

offline IV-59

opening II-295, II-354, II-428

sprocket holes II-428

switching to Canvas or Timeline II-429

in Viewer II-427–II-430

sequence icon IV-33

sequence markers III-18, IV-243

Sequence Preset Editor II-450, III-549–III-553, III-556,

IV-237, IV-319

sequence presets

audio IV-338, IV-342

described IV-302, IV-335

general settings IV-336–IV-337

loading IV-344

new sequences and IV-285

prompting for II-73, II-85

rendering IV-340

settings IV-336–IV-345

timecode rates in II-450

Timeline options IV-340

Sequence Presets tab II-450, IV-336

sequences

See also audio

sound beds III-17

sound cues III-142

sound effects III-17, III-18, III-179

sound effects tracks III-181

sound waves III-38

sound. See audio

sound bytes IV-435

Sound Designer II format I-305, I-313, IV-53, IV-236

sound effects IV-146, IV-435

Sound On Tape (SOT) IV-435

sound recordists IV-435

Sound Settings dialog IV-152

soundtracks IV-435

Source, Audio Merged option IV-126

source capture presets IV-319

source clips I-113, I-276, II-113

Source control I-113

Source controls

disconnecting II-129–II-130, II-147

resetting II-131

in Timeline II-127

source frames

sliding to new times III-326

variable speed settings and III-325

source media IV-435

breaking links to IV-65–IV-67

Media Manager operations and IV-95

reconnecting clips to IV-68–IV-74

Source Media File command II-433

source media files II-37, II-433

tabbed windows I-49–I-50

tabs, described IV-437

tagging elements with XML IV-164

tail clips IV-437

tail slates II-254

tails of clips II-378

tape-based linear editing suites IV-60

tape coatings IV-351

tape size IV-351

tape-to-tape color correction III-416

tape-to-tape editing IV-185, IV-437

"Tape Trouble" message I-178

Targa codec IV-28

TARGA format I-306

Targa format IV-235, IV-437

Target Video Track Only setting IV-126

TC property IV-40, IV-49, IV-138

TC Rate item property II-448

technical support I-11

telecines IV-437

telecine transfers III-414–III-416

television I-209

television broadcast dynamic range III-58

television sets III-421, III-517

television speakers III-58

temperature, color III-461

temporal compression IV-320

terminators I-186

text

font choices III-345

fonts III-496, III-501

spacing III-502

titling III-495

tracking III-502

text files 1-300

text generators IV-167

overview III-495

types of III-498

text labels in Browser and Timeline I-139

text size in Browser IV-287

text tracks IV-221, IV-229

TGA format I-306, I-316, IV-235

third-party audio interfaces III-24

third-party capture cards IV-59

third-party interfaces

audio interfaces I-204

settings I-214

uses for I-191

video interfaces I-195

three-point editing IV-437

described II-97

Edit Overlay and II-151

examples II-169–II-174

In and Out points II-108, II-169

overview II-149–II-152

performing edits II-153–II-168

sequence In and Out points II-114

types of II-152–II-153

Threshold parameter III-155, III-156

Threshold setting IV-290

through edit indicators I-126, II-216

through edits I-126, IV-139

in multiclips II-278

removing II-216

Thumbnail Cache setting IV-297

Thumbnail property IV-32, IV-40, IV-50

thumbnails IV-438

cache for IV-297

clip display I-124

displaying I-64

hiding I-65

poster frames 1-69

scrubbing through I-65, IV-297

thumb tabs I-115, IV-438

.tif extension IV-272

TIFF format I-306, I-316, IV-228, IV-230, IV-235,

IV-261, IV-272, IV-438

time

available capture time I-230

listing for batch captures I-266

timebase (video rate) II-448, II-449

timecode I-25–I-26, IV-383–IV-389

24 @ 25 timecode II-451

60 fps timecode II-451

60 @ 30 timecode II-441

absolute and relative values II-355

accuracy of IV-136

analyzing in media files IV-111

audio I-108, I-294

audio from non-timecoded sources IV-161

auxiliary timecode II-47

batch capturing and I-262

in batch lists I-301

blacking video IV-184

breaks IV-137, IV-405

Browser columns for II-446

calibrating IV-136, IV-182, IV-327, IV-332–IV-334

capturing IV-328–IV-329

capturing footage without I-276

clip duration and II-106

clip time vs. source time II-443

compared to frame rates II-440, IV-385

compared to video rates II-448

comparison chart IV-387

consumer mini-DV devices IV-182

custom hour numbers I-240

default mode in presets IV-326

described I-25, II-439, IV-383, IV-438

determining type of IV-383

device control presets IV-326

display options II-440–II-445

dragging values to other fields I-106

drop frame and non-drop frame I-26, I-124, I-244

drop frame timecode II-440, IV-130, IV-383–

IV-389, IV-418

duplicate timecode II-439

duplicate timecode numbers I-257–I-259

DVCPRO HD format and IV-197

edit to tape operations IV-191

EDLs and IV-120, IV-136, IV-138, IV-161

ending timecode II-83

entering I-52

feet + frames timecode II-441

format of IV-383

gaps I-282

In and Out point settings II-106

incoming clips II-368

leader and trailer elements IV-195

longitudinal timecode IV-326, IV-386

LTC IV-386

marker duration and II-67

Media Manager operations and IV-88

merged clips and II-46, II-449

modifying II-446–II-450

moving clips with II-196–II-199, II-356

moving markers with II-65

moving playhead III-193

multiclip sequences and II-253, II-257

multiple camera shoots II-249

navigating with I-105–I-106, I-132

non-drop frame timecode II-440, IV-383–IV-389, IV-427

NTSC footage and I-228

offset IV-332, IV-332–IV-334

overlapping II-259, II-265–II-266

overlays I-83, I-106, I-107, II-445

precision editing II-355

problems with IV-405, IV-406

QuickTime files IV-231

rates in sequence presets IV-337

recapturing process and II-446

searching for items by II-188–II-189

serial connection IV-331

sliding clips with II-324

slipping clips with II-328

source timecode II-440

speed settings and III-333

starting timecode II-83, II-259, II-262–II-264

start time I-124, IV-130

sync color coding I-106, I-108

synchronized audio and video capture 1-297

synchronizing merged clips with II-46

synchronizing multiclips with Il-255, Il-261

timecode breaks I-270, I-279–I-282

timecode burn-ins I-301

timecode gaps IV-438

timecode tracks II-442, IV-113, IV-188, IV-229

transferring audio to timecoded media 1-296

trim edits and II-357

in Trim Edit window Il-367

understanding IV-15

user-programmable IV-137

vertical interval timecode IV-326, IV-386

video I-108

on videotape IV-386

window burns II-445, II-452

timecode breaks

accounting for I-263

avoiding I-279

capturing process and I-279–I-282

capturing techniques I-270

recapture process and I-283

timecode gaps I-282

types of I-281

Timecode Duration field I-74, I-90, I-104, I-230, IV-190

Timecode field II-448

Timecode Generator filter II-452

Timecode Insert control IV-191

Timecode Rate pop-up IV-337

Timecode Reader filter II-452

Timecode Synchronization pop-up menu II-259

Time Display option II-75

Time Display pop-up menu Il-444

Time Graph III-318, III-329, III-331

Time Graph Output parameter Ill-333

time lapse IV-378

time-lapse photography IV-380

Timeline

Audio Controls button I-118, I-119

audio editing II-304–II-308

audio levels III-21, III-109–III-113, III-128–III-129

audio waveforms I-125

automating audio levels III-128

Auto Select controls I-114, II-191–II-193

Canvas and I-109

changing pan in III-117

clips in II-94, II-295

color-coding and II-212

copying and pasting clips II-202–II-205

currently selected items II-175–II-177

customizing display II-134–II-139

cutting clips in II-213–II-215

deleting items in II-206–II-208

described I-109, IV-438

deselecting items in II-183

displaying the keyframe area III-286

display options I-122–I-131

dragging audio clips to II-301

dragging files to 1-309

drag-to-Timeline editing II-141–II-143

drop frame timecode I-124

duplicate frames indicators I-130–I-131

duration of clips in II-217

editing in II-274

editing multiclips in II-274

filter bars I-127, III-164, III-199, III-283, III-285

filters III-164

finding items in II-188–II-189

illustrated I-44

In and Out point settings II-108–II-117

jumping to locations in I-132

keyframe area III-283

keyframe editor I-128, III-164, III-284, III-286

keyframe graphs III-283–III-285

keyframes III-97, III-111

labels for clips II-212

layering clips in III-357

linked clips II-220

Linked Selection button II-227

linking items in II-225–II-226

locking tracks in II-132–II-133

looping audio tracks III-94–III-95

markers in I-94, II-54–II-55

match frame operations II-433

merged clips in II-50

motion bars I-127, III-285

moving and resizing window I-139

moving clips within II-66, II-196–II-199

mute control I-118

navigating in I-112–I-117, I-131–I-138

navigating with timecode II-355

opacity levels III-359–III-378

opening sequences in I-111

overview I-112–I-122

playback options IV-212

playhead in I-84, I-116, I-138

positioning playhead in IV-212

preferences IV-293

recording from IV-208, IV-211–IV-213

recording to tape directly IV-179

render bars III-519, III-535

replacing clips from In point Il-161

resizing text labels I-139

resizing tracks II-135–II-136

ripple edits II-330, II-332–II-333

roll edits II-340–II-341

ruler I-115

screen text size IV-287

scrolling in I-137–I-138, II-137–II-139

scrubbing sequences in I-132

selecting clips in II-180–II-188, II-190, II-349–II-350

selecting edit points II-349–II-350

sequence clips I-122

sequences in II-86, II-87

setting destination tracks II-128

settings II-89–II-91

showing clips in III-382

slide edits II-321–II-324

slipping clips II-325–II-329

snapping in II-195–II-196

solo control I-118

Source and Destination controls II-127–II-131

speed indicator area III-319

speed indicators I-119, I-128, III-164, III-284, III-320–III-323

speed settings III-318–III-319

starting timecode number I-124

static regions for tracks II-137–II-139

switching to Canvas or Viewer II-429

synchronizing playhead with Viewer II-434–II-437 tabs I-49

Track Height control II-136

transitions in II-377, II-378, II-386–II-388, II-404, II-405

transparency effects III-358–III-378

trimming clips in II-346, II-351–II-352

unused area I-115

variable speed settings III-318

working with Canvas and I-111

zoom controls I-116

zooming view of I-116, I-133–I-134, II-299, II-306

Timeline Options tab I-123–I-128, II-449, IV-293, IV-340

Time Mode pop-up menu II-75

Time Remap attribute III-316

Time Remap parameter III-222, III-332

time remapping IV-438

adjusting keyframes in the motion bar III-328

compared to constant speed III-312

described III-311

Motion tab settings III-332

parameter III-222, III-332

Time Remap tool III-323–III-327

tools III-318–III-333

understanding III-307, III-315–III-318

using the Time Graph III-329–III-331

Time Remap tool III-323–III-327

Timer option IV-326

time scales in keyframe graphs III-263

times in filenames 1-39

Time Source setting IV-326

timing information IV-195

timing signals 1-297

Tint filter III-207

tip-ring connectors III-31

tip-ring-sleeve connectors III-31

titles

EDLs IV-121, IV-125

fitting on screen III-497

LiveType III-504

online editing and IV-60

overview III-495

text generators III-498–III-499

title clips III-500

title safe areas IV-438

title safe boundaries I-83, III-231–III-232, III-350,

III-497

To II-144

Tool Bench I-140, IV-439

color and brightness tools III-417

fader resolution and III-71

Video Scopes tab in III-424–III-427

Voice Over tab in III-139

Tool palette I-44, II-178–II-188, IV-439

tools

uLaw format I-305, IV-236, IV-247

Ultra 160 SCSI disks I-186

Ultra2 LVD SCSI disks I-186

Ultra 320 SCSI disks I-186

Ultra ATA disk drives I-185

Ultra DMA disks I-185

Ultra EIDE disks I-185

U-Matic format IV-440

"Unable to locate the external video device"

warning I-215

unbalanced audio cables III-29

Uncompressed 4:2:2 formats III-517

uncompressed AIFF format IV-219

uncompressed digital video

data rates I-180

described I-165

previewing on external monitors I-212

transfer rates I-182

uncompressed high definition tape formats IV-368

uncompressed standard definition video

format IV-369

uncompressed video IV-176, IV-233, IV-365

underscan video IV-440

Undo command I-51, II-73, II-96, III-561

Undo function IV-282

unknown codecs IV-28

Unlimited RT mode III-513, III-524, III-563

unlinking linked items II-226

"unrendered" message III-537

Unsharp Mask filter III-212

unused clips II-32

unused media II-29, II-42

deleting IV-78

described IV-16

Media Manager settings IV-84

removing with Media Manager IV-97

Up button in Log Bin controls 1-245

Update button for markers I-252

Update button for multiclips II-260

updating external output I-222

updating older projects IV-25–IV-28

updating software I-11

USB audio interface I-203

USB hubs I-195, I-206

USB-to-serial adapters I-195, I-206

USB video interface I-194

Use Deck Search Mechanism option IV-327

used media II-29

Use In/Out option IV-274

Use Item In/Out option IV-273

Use Logged Clip Settings option I-265

Use Overlapping Timecode option II-259, II-265–

II-266

User Preferences window II-73, IV-281–IV-293,

IV-340

user-programmable timecode IV-137

Use Starting Timecode option II-259, II-262–II-264

V1 tracks IV-139

V2 tracks IV-139

validating XML documents IV-166

variable speed IV-440

variable speed settings

adjusting keyframes in the motion bar III-328

compared to constant III-312

described III-311

in the Motion tab III-332

Time Remap parameters III-222, III-332

Time Remap tool III-323–III-327

tools III-318–III-333

understanding III-307, III-315–III-318

using the Time Graph III-329–III-331

VCR mode IV-180, IV-330

VCRs (videocassette recorders) IV-440

VDUs (Video Disk Units) I-312, IV-440

Vectorscope III-424, III-427, III-429–III-430, IV-440

vectorscopes I-160, I-321, I-323, I-325–I-329, I-331

velocity IV-440

velocity. See speed of clips

velocity handles III-279, III-280, IV-440

Venetian Blind Wipe transition II-396, IV-143

ventilation I-188

verbose XML IV-169

versions of projects, reopening IV-23

vertical interval timecode (VITC) IV-326, IV-331,

IV-386

vertical ranges of clips II-190

vertical scroll bars I-115

VHS systems

described IV-440

output IV-176

printing to VHS tape IV-213

requirements IV-177

video

analog I-24

aspect ratio 1-24

basics III-418–III-421

bit depth III-550

calibration I-321

capture presets IV-317–IV-318

capturing synchronized audio I-296

color bars I-321

display quality I-221

dual audio recordings and Il-236

file formats I-305

fonts and III-345

formats II-90, III-388

frame rates 1-25

image dimensions 1-24

importing I-305, I-310–I-312

interlaced IV-423

latency I-220

letterbox video IV-393, IV-399

levels 1-325

line art and III-345

linking items II-224–II-226

matching for clips I-80, I-95

matching for sequences I-80, I-95

M-JPEG I-180

monitoring during logging process 1-242

non-interlaced IV-427

See also audio

adjusting III-21

adjusting computer's volume III-35

adjusting for clips II-293, III-113, III-115–III-116

audio clips III-19

changing in Timeline III-128–III-129

speaker settings III-35

V-split button III-301

V tracks IV-121, IV-139

VTR mode IV-180

VTRs (video tape recorders)

analog I-198

connecting I-164, I-196

external monitors and I-211

non-DV devices I-200

timecode window I-300

VTRs (videotape recorders) IV-441

VU meters IV-441

V Wipe transition II-396, IV-143

Warn After Capture option I-280

warnings

audio output channels III-34

device control status I-177

disabling I-215

external A/V devices not found III-34

non-optimized media I-312

timecode breaks I-280

warnings. See alert messages

Wave filter III-206

WAVE format I-305, I-313, IV-53, IV-151, IV-228,

IV-230, IV-272, IV-441

waveform displays I-75, I-125

Waveform Monitor III-390, III-424, III-426, III-427–

III-428, IV-441

waveform monitors I-160, I-323, I-325–I-328

waveforms

audio levels and III-51

in audio tracks II-304

color III-426

displaying III-110

dynamic range III-43

navigating through II-297–II-306

scrolling through II-299

waveform display II-134, II-291, II-292, II-294

wavelet compression IV-365

.wav extension IV-272

website for FXScript effects language III-186

websites

x and y coordinates IV-442

x axis for keyframes III-317

x coordinates III-197, III-219, III-223–III-224

XLR connectors I-194, I-202, I-205, III-31

xmeml (XML DTD) IV-168, IV-442

XML

described IV-442

overview IV-163–IV-166

XML Interchange Format II-250, IV-61, IV-119,

IV-163–IV-171

importing I-228

support for 1-22

XML parsers IV-166

Xsan software IV-442

Y/C delay I-331

Y/C signals IV-353

Y'CbCr color space (YUV) I-310, I-323, I-326, II-90,

III-549, III-551–III-555

described IV-442

updating older projects IV-25, IV-26, IV-28

YUV color space IV-442

Y'CbCr format (YUV) IV-361, IV-371, IV-371

Y'CbCr signals (YUV) IV-353

y axis, frame numbers and III-316

YCbCr color space (YUV)

compositing and III-552

rendering in RGB III-552

settings III-553–III-555, III-556–III-558

working in III-549–III-552

y coordinates III-197, III-219, IV-442

YUV. See Y'CbCr color space

YUV. See Y'CbCr color space (YUV)

zebra stripes III-422–III-423, IV-443

Zigzag Wipe transition II-396

zip archives IV-61

Zip drives I-181

Zoom Blur filter III-203

Zoom control I-134

zoom controls

for audio clips II-297–II-299

in Canvas III-239

keyboard shortcuts I-116

keyframe graphs III-195, III-261–III-262

in Timeline I-116, I-134, II-297–II-299, II-306

in Transition Editor II-400, II-404

waveform display area II-297–II-299

Zoom In and Out tools I-134, I-136

Zoom In and Zoom Out tools II-306

zoom levels IV-443

Zoom pop-up menu

in Canvas I-96

in Viewer I-74, I-81, I-90

Zoom slider I-117, I-133, I-137, II-298, III-195, III-261,

IV-443

Zoom transition II-392, II-394, IV-142

✓ Expander/Nois...

Threshold(dB)

Attack Time

Release Time