advertisement
Avid
®
NewsCutter
®
Getting Started Guide
Release 1.5
for the Windows NT
®
Operating System
a tools for storytellers™
© 1998–1999 Avid Technology, Inc. All rights reserved.
Avid NewsCutter Getting Started Guide • Part 0130-04438-01 Rev. A • November1999
2
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Contents
Introduction
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Finding Information with the Help Topics Dialog Box
. . . . . . . 19
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
About NewsCutter
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Organizing Your Work with Projects and Bins
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
3
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Starting Your Project
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Understanding the Project Window
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Customizing Your Work Environment
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Recording
Selecting Settings for Recording
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Record Preparations Check List
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Recording and Logging at the Same Time
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Recording from an IN Point to an OUT Point
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Getting Ready to Edit
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Mapping Buttons to the Tool Palette
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Mapping Menu Options to the Tool Palette
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Mapping Buttons to the Keyboard
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Mapping Menu Items to the Keyboard
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Using Position Bars and Position Indicators
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
J-K-L Keys (Three-Button Play)
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Creating a First Cut
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Displaying More or Less Detail
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Using the Track Selector Panel
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
5
Chapter 7
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Splicing Versus Overwriting Audio and Video
. . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Splicing or Overwriting an Audio Clip
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Splicing or Overwriting Video into a Sequence
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Marking Clips for Storyboarding
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Using the Go to IN and Go to OUT Buttons
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Moving to the Head or Tail of a Shot
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Splicing a Shot into the Middle of a Sequence
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Refining the Edit
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Guidelines for Editing in Segment Mode
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Identifying Segment Mode Buttons
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Rearranging Footage with Extract/Splice-in
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Removing Footage with Extract/Splice-in
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Removing Footage with Lift/Overwrite
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Overwriting Shots into a Sequence
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Overwriting with the Three-Point Edit
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Performing a Basic Trim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
6
Chapter 8
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Adding Effects
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Creating Variable Speed and Strobe Motion Effects
. . . . . . . . 126
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
Applying Effects to a Sequence
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
Insufficient Footage for a Dissolve
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
Adding a Fade Within the Sequence
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
Adding a Picture-in-Picture Effect
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Dissolving the Picture-in-Picture On and Off
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
7
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Appendix A
Creating Titles
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Understanding the Title Tool Window
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Formatting Text in the Title Tool
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Selecting Objects in the Title Tool
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Choosing Colors and Setting Transparency
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Repositioning Text and Objects
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Editing the Title into the Sequence
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
Output
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
Preparing Tapes for Frame-Accurate Recording
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
Recording a Digital Cut to Tape
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
Using the NRCS Tool
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
Understanding the NRCS Tool Window
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
8
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
Making a Shortcut to a Directory
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
Removing a Shortcut to a Directory
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Marking Text as Presenter Instructions
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Marking Text as Closed Captioned
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Finding the Read Time of a Story
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
Building a Sequence from a Story
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186
Index
9
Figures
NewsCutter Hardware Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Project Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Bin Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Project Window — Bin View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Project Window — Settings View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Project Window — Info View. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Bin in Text View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Bin in Frame View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Bin in Script View. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Record Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Audio Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Video Input Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Command Palette Move Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Command Palette Play Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Command Palette Edit Tab. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Command Palette Trim Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Command Palette FX Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Command Palette Other Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Command Palette More Tab. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Default Tool Palette . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
NewsCutter Default Keyboard Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Record Monitor Position Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Source Monitor Position Bar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Position Indicator in Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Source Monitor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
10
Record Monitor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Pop-up Monitor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Timeline Track Selector Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Trim Mode Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Effect Palette . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
Effect Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Insufficient Source Dialog Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
Picture-in-Picture Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Picture-in-Picture Effect with Softness . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Title Tool Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Title Tool Color Picker. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
NRCS Settings Dialog Box — NRCS Tab . . . . . . . . . . 168
NRCS Settings Dialog Box — Avstar Tab. . . . . . . . . . 169
NRCS Tool — Login Dialog Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170
NRCS Tool Window (Edit Mode) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
NRCS Tool — Directory Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
NRCS Tool — Production Cue. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
NRCS Tool — Read Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184
NRCS Tool — Send NRCS Mail Dialog Box . . . . . . . 186
11
C HAPTER 1
Introduction
This chapter provides an overview of the NewsCutter system and the editing process. Understanding how the system organizes tapes, clips, sequences, and other media objects helps you to edit projects more effectively. This chapter contains the following sections:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
12
About NewsCutter
NewsCutter is a nonlinear editing workstation specifically designed for editing news stories. It offers flexibility and speed to create compelling, up-to-the-minute news stories. You can edit a story several different ways and choose the best one, or you can quickly create different versions of a lead story for three different broadcasts.
NewsCutter allows you to quickly add transition effects, motion effects, and 2D digital video effects (DVEs) for added impact, with just a few keystrokes — even after a story is laid out.
With a linear system, you must lay down the first shot, make sure it ends at the right point, cue the second shot, make sure it starts at the right point, and then make the edit. You build the sequence by making sure each transition is correct before moving to the next edit.
NewsCutter lets you assemble a sequence in any order — you do not need to edit the first shot first and the last shot last. The system’s strength is that it lets you make changes without reassembling all the edits after the change. You can update breaking stories quickly and easily, save them, and then try different versions.
The system maintains frame-accurate links between each alteration of the objects you work with and the original media files. This allows you to experiment with every edit you make through multiple generations.
When you play back your work, the system immediately accesses and plays the appropriate portions of the recorded video and audio.
You can start by editing a rough version of the entire sequence. You can see how long it runs and where it drags, adjust individual edits and transitions, replace or remove shots, and tighten or extend scenes.
Because the audio and video are stored on disk, they can be manipulated and used over and over again without duplication or degradation.
13
NewsCutter Hardware
The following hardware components make up NewsCutter, as shown in
n
Your components might differ slightly, depending on the options you purchased.
• A PC running the Windows NT
®
operating system
• Meridien
™
audio and video interface
• The User Interface (UI) and Playback monitors; recommended resolution 1024 x 768 with True Color or greater
• Keyboard and mouse
• Speakers
• Audio amplifier if you do not have powered speakers
• Decks or video source to input and output your work
• Storage disks, 9-GB or 18-GB MediaDrives, for storing your recorded video and audio
Speaker
Video Deck
UI Monitor
Playback Monitor
Keyboard
Mouse
Amplifier
V-LAN VLX i
VLX
44.1 kHz
48 kHz
AUDIO SYNC PULL DOWN
VIDEO SYNC POWER
Speaker
Slots
Act
Wide
Dualbus
Fans
Meridien
I/O box
NewsCutter
PC
MediaDock
Figure 1-1 NewsCutter Hardware Components
14
Starting Your System
Begin your edit session by turning on the components of your
NewsCutter system. If any part of your system fails to turn on, make sure its electrical cord is plugged snugly into an appropriate electrical outlet or power strip. See the Avid NewsCutter Setup Guide for information on setting up your system.
c
If you fail to follow the proper sequence for starting up your system, you could damage your computer and storage drives and
NewsCutter may not work properly.
Always turn on the devices as follows:
1. Fixed-storage drives: Turn on fixed-storage drives before starting the computer. Allow 10 to 15 seconds for the drives to spin up-tospeed before starting your computer.
2. Other peripheral hardware: Turn on all other peripheral units except the computer. This includes:
• Monitors and speakers
• Tape decks or video source
• Meridien I/O box
3. The computer: Turn on your computer according to your manufacturer’s instructions.
Once you have turned on your computer, the Avid splash screen appears and then your Windows NT desktop appears.
c
To avoid damage, do not disconnect or turn off external hard disk drives while your computer is on.
15
Starting NewsCutter
To start the NewsCutter application:
1. Click the Start button.
2. Point to Programs.
3. Point to the NewsCutter folder.
4. Click NewsCutter.
n
To start the application from a convenient location, Avid recommends that you create a shortcut and place it in a convenient location. For more information on making a shortcut, see your Windows NT documentation.
Electronic Licensing
To accept your NewsCutter product license electronically:
1. Read the License Agreement, and then click Accept or Decline at the bottom of the screen.
n
If you click Decline, the application will not start.
The agreement appears the first several times you start the application. After you have started NewsCutter several times, a new button appears at the bottom of the screen.
2. If you do not want to see the license agreement again, click Accept and Don’t Show Again.
A dialog box appears.
3. Enter the name of your organization in the dialog box, and click
OK.
The Open Project dialog box appears; from here you create a new user and a new project, as described in
“Creating a User” on page 34 .
16
How to Proceed
The following are a few tips for taking full advantage of the
NewsCutter documentation and other resources:
• Begin learning about basic procedures by using the default settings. As your confidence increases, begin to explore additional procedures and settings.
• Instead of using the standard menus to find the command you need in a window, try using shortcut menus. Using the right mouse button, click in a window to bring up a shortcut menu that shows the most frequently used commands for that window.
• Keep the Avid NewsCutter Quick Reference available during editing sessions.
• Make a habit of reading Avid’s newsletters, mailings, and other trade publications.
• Make use of additional training resources provided by Avid whenever possible, such as classes and instructional videotapes.
• Check the Avid Web site for listings of courses, schedules, and locations: www.avid.com/services/training/training.html
Using Help
This release supports Help for your NewsCutter system. The Help is automatically installed with the application.
n
You must have the NewsCutter application running in order to access the
Help. If you want to run the Help without having NewsCutter running, use
the Avid NewsCutter Online Publications CD-ROM and run the Help from there.
17
You can access Help in three ways:
• From the Help menu on the NewsCutter main menu, choose
NewsCutter Help.
• As context-sensitive Help: a. Make sure your NewsCutter system is active.
b. Position the mouse pointer in the window or dialog box for which you want help.
c. Press the F1 key on the keyboard.
A window appears, representing the tool or feature for which you want help.
• By opening What’s This? Help: a. Position the mouse pointer on a feature.
b. Right-click the mouse button.
c. Select What’s This? from the shortcut menu.
n
If no specific help for the window or dialog box exists, the Help Topics dialog box appears.
Procedures are displayed in yellow How To windows; background information and illustrations are displayed in white Reference windows.
The following sections explain how to use the Help system. For more information, see “Online Help,overview” in the Help index.
18
Finding Information with the Help Topics Dialog Box
You see the Help Topics dialog box when you open Help from the
Help menu. A topic is a single page of the Help system. The Help
Topics dialog box includes three different methods for finding topics.
•
•
•
Using the Contents Tab
The Contents tab provides a list of books that contain topics covering the entire Help system. Each book opens to display a list of topics.
To view the Contents, do one of the following:
• In NewsCutter, choose Avid NewsCutter Help from the Help menu. Click the Contents tab in the Help Topics dialog box.
• With a Help topic open, click the Contents button, which is located in the row of buttons along the top of the Help window.
To open a book and display a list of topics, select the book title and click Open, or double-click the book title.
To open a Help window, select the topic and click Display, or double-click the topic title.
19
Using the Index Tab
The Index tab provides an alphabetized list of entries, like the index of a printed book.
To find topics by using the Index tab:
1. From the Help menu, choose Avid NewsCutter Help and click the
Index tab, or click the Index button in a Help topic.
2. In the text box at the top, type a keyword for the topic that you want to find (for example, type audio to jump to index entries listed under audio).
3. Open the topic in the list:
• If your typing brings you to the topic you are seeking, click the
Display button, or double-click the index entry.
• If you do not immediately arrive at the topic, scroll through the list and double-click an entry that makes sense, or try an alternative keyword in the text box. When you find the subject you are looking for, click the Display button or double-click the entry to view the topic.
Using the Find Tab
The Find tab lets you search the entire Help system for words or phrases and then lists topics that include those words or phrases.
To search for topics by using the Find tab:
1. From the Help menu, choose Avid NewsCutter Help and click the
Find tab, or click the Find button in a Help topic.
2. In the text box, type the word or phrase you want to find.
A list shows topics that contain the words you searched for. As you type additional words, the list updates.
n
Do not type quotation marks or asterisks in the text box.
20
3. To change the way in which you search for a word or words, click the Options button and choose your preferences from the Find
Options dialog box.
4. Select a topic in the list, and then click the Display button or double-click the topic.
The topic is displayed, and the words you searched for are highlighted.
5. Choose a topic in the list (if any were found), and click the Display button.
n
Do not type quotation marks or asterisks in the text boxes.
Using Buttons in a Help Topic
Each Help topic contains buttons to help you navigate through the system and perform basic functions.
describes the Help topic buttons.
Table 1-1
Button
Contents
Index
Find
Back
Browse
(<< or >>)
Help Topic Buttons
Description
Opens the Contents tab.
Opens the Index tab.
Opens the Find tab.
Returns to the topic previously displayed in the window.
Opens the Print dialog box, from which you can print the current topic.
Click one of the two Browse buttons to cycle through a set sequence of topics (Reference windows only).
21
Table 1-1
Button
Options
Glossary
Help Topic Buttons (Continued)
Description
Provides the following features:
Annotate
Copy
Print Topic
Allows you to add a note to a topic.
Allows you to copy information from a Help topic into another document.
Allows you to print the current topic.
Font
Keep Help on Top
Allows you to change the font size of topics.
Provides the option of displaying the Help window on top of other applications. The default is On Top.
Use System
Colors
Allows you to change the colors for the display area of Help windows.
Opens a glossary of terms.
Printing Help Topics
You can print a single Help topic or a group of topics listed in the
Contents.
To print a Help topic:
1. Open or click the topic to make it active.
2. Click the Print button in the topic window.
3. Select the print options.
4. Click OK.
22
To print a Help topic from the Contents tab:
1. Select the topic you want to print.
2. Click the Print button at the bottom of the tab.
To print a book of related topics from the Contents tab:
1. Select the book you want to print.
2. Click the Print button.
If you select a book, all topics within that book, and all topics in other books contained in that book, will be printed. The system sends each topic as a separate print job to the printer, so this method can take a long time to print. You can more easily print large sections of user information from the Avid NewsCutter Online Publications CD-ROM.
You can print a pop-up window by clicking the right mouse button and selecting Print.
Adding a Note to a Help Topic
To add a note to a Help topic:
1. In the Help topic window, click Options.
2. Select Annotate. A dialog box appears.
3. In the dialog box, type your note. When you are done, click Save.
A paper-clip icon appears at the top of the topic. Click this icon to see, edit, or delete your note.
23
Using Online Documentation
The Avid NewsCutter Online Publications CD-ROM includes:
• Avid NewsCutter Setup Guide
• Avid NewsCutter Getting Started Guide (this book)
• Avid NewsCutter Help
• Avid Products Collaboration Guide
• AvidNet Transfer Tool User’s Guide
• AvidNet Transfer Tool Help
The books are PDF files. You can view them with the Adobe
Acrobat Reader, which you can install from the CD-ROM.
The online version of the books enables you to:
• Navigate through books by using bookmarks and hyperlinks.
• Speed up information retrieval by performing keyword searches.
• Annotate the books with your own notes.
• Zoom in on a page, enabling closer review of text and images.
• Print any or all pages.
• View the books with full-color graphics.
n
Avid gives you permission to print up to three complete copies of each book.
24
C HAPTER 2
About NewsCutter
This chapter explains the basic concepts and terminology with which you need to be familiar to edit video with NewsCutter. This chapter contains the following sections:
•
•
•
•
Organizing Your Work with Projects and Bins
•
•
25
Editing with NewsCutter
NewsCutter is a nonlinear editing workstation specifically designed for editing news stories. It offers flexibility and speed to create compelling, up-to-the-minute news stories. You can edit a story several different ways and choose the best one, or you can quickly create different versions of a lead story for three different broadcasts.
NewsCutter allows you to quickly add transition effects, motion effects, and 2D digital video effects (DVEs) for added impact, with just a few keystrokes — even after a story is laid out.
With a linear system, you must lay down the first shot, make sure it ends at the right point, cue the second shot, make sure it starts at the right point, and then make the edit. You build the sequence by making sure each transition is correct before moving to the next edit.
NewsCutter lets you assemble a sequence in any order — you do not need to edit the first shot first and the last shot last. The system’s strength is that it lets you make changes without reassembling all the edits after the change. You can update breaking stories quickly and easily, save them, and then try different versions.
The system maintains frame-accurate links between each alteration of the objects you work with and the original media files. This allows you to experiment with every edit you make through multiple generations.
When you play back your work, the system immediately accesses and plays the appropriate portions of the recorded video and audio.
You can start by editing a rough version of the entire sequence. You can see how long it runs and where it drags, adjust individual edits and transitions, replace or remove shots, and tighten or extend scenes.
Because the audio and video are stored on disk, they can be manipulated and used over and over again without duplication or degradation.
26
Basic Editing Steps
Creating a sequence can be as simple as stringing several shots together without sound for a voice-over, or it can be as complex as editing a series of shots together with sound bites, narration, music with dissolves, audio crossfades, and motion effects.
You create a sequence from raw footage in three simple stages:
1. Record the source video from tape or external feed onto an external drive. You can also record your raw footage while editing the story. This process is called Record to Timeline, as described in
“Recording to the Timeline” on page 58
.
2. Edit the sequence and fine-tune it by using various NewsCutter features and effects.
Use basic editing procedures to create a series of straight cuts.
NewsCutter offers both film-style splice and video insert edits.
Then trim the transitions between shots to create overlap cuts or to move transitions forward or backward in the sequence.
Add effects, such as dissolves, wipes, or digital video effects
(DVEs). Edit multiple tracks of audio. Create or import graphic images and key them over video. Add titles and credits. Use other advanced features to create a complex sequence.
3. Output or play back your material.
NewsCutter allows you to view your sequence, broadcast directly to air, and, if necessary, record a finished copy to tape without returning to your source video.
27
Understanding the Pieces
Avid Project
Understanding what the objects are that you will be working with will help you work more effectively:
• Project — The job that results in one or more sequences; the
Project window organizes all the clips, sequences, effects, bins, and media file pointers for a program or series of programs.
• Sequence — An edited composition that includes audio and video clips and rendered effects.
• Bin — The window in which you organize the material to be edited; bins reside in a project, and you may have multiple bins in a project.
• Source clip — The smallest media object that references your source footage.
• Master clip — An object that references the compressed media.
• Media file — Stored, compressed digital data representing the original video and audio.
• Source/Record mode — Two modes you switch between — the
Source monitor displays source clips; the Record monitor displays the assembled sequence.
• Timeline — The graphical representation of every edit made to a sequence, including effects and titles.
• Segment mode — Editing controls for moving, deleting, marking, and editing segments in the Timeline.
• Trim mode — Controls for fine-tuning edits and transitions with various trim procedures.
• Effect mode — Controls in the Timeline and the Effect Editor to apply, render, and edit effects into the sequence.
• IN and OUT points — Starting and ending points of an edit.
28
• Subclip — Part of a master clip; a subclip references the master clip.
• Motion effect — A file in the bin that references effect media files generated when you create motion effects.
• Group clip — A file in the bin that combines two or more clips based on marks or tracking information synchronization points.
• Title — A clip that references a title that you created.
• Digital cut — A copy struck directly from disk to tape.
Organizing Your Work with Projects and Bins
All work on NewsCutter is stored in a project in NTSC or PAL video format.
A project contains all the work for a single job. You can organize projects to suit your needs. A project could contain a specific show, one reporter’s work, or an ongoing series.
For example, you begin working on a sequence about a bombing in
Vermont and you create a project called Vermont Bombing. The name of the project appears in the Project window.
29
Project name
Figure 2-1 Project Window
Then, within the Vermont Bombing project, you can create multiple bins; for example, you could keep all your raw footage in one bin, a short sequence in another bin, and a more in-depth sequence in another bin. Use bins to store and organize master clips, subclips, sequences, and other media objects in a way that works best for your workflow. The bin contains information about each clip, such as name, start timecode, and end timecode.
Bin name
Figure 2-2 Bin Window
30
You can customize Bin views to suit your needs, such as showing more or less information about each media file. You can also sort clips by the information in any field, choosing to view only clips that meet specific criteria, such as a certain interview subject. You can view bins in Frame,
Text, or Script view. For more information about bin views, refer to
.
How Media Is Stored
When you record media, NewsCutter creates two types of files: media
files and master clips. Media files contain the recorded media. Master clips contain information about the source material and the location of the media files on disk.
NewsCutter creates a media file for each track of video and audio. If you record a section of video with two tracks of audio, NewsCutter creates three separate media files.
The system creates one master clip for each shot captured, regardless of the number of tracks in the shot. When you edit the recorded material, you access the media files through the master clip. You do not edit the media files directly.
When you create dissolves or motion effects, or when you import graphic or animation files, NewsCutter creates additional media files.
Media files require substantial storage space on your disk drives.
Master clips are stored on your internal hard drive and require very little storage space.
MediaDrives hold approximately 4 to 5 minutes of video per gigabyte.
Therefore, an 18-GB MediaDrive holds approximately 90 minutes of video.
31
The Attic Folder
NewsCutter saves copies of your current project and its bins at regular intervals and whenever you save or close a project or bin. These autosave files are stored in the Attic folder in the NewsCutter application folder. If at any time you lose work due to a power outage or system error, open the Attic folder and look for a project or bin of the same name with the file name extension .bak.xx, where xx is the version number. For example, the first backup file for the bin Rough Cut would be named Rough Cut.bak.1.avb. Later versions would be named Rough Cut.bak.2.avb, Rough Cut.bak.3.avb, and so on.
32
C HAPTER 3
Starting Your Project
This chapter gets you started with NewsCutter and presents the concept of projects and how you use them to organize your work. It contains the following sections:
•
•
•
•
•
Understanding the Project Window
•
•
•
•
Customizing Your Work Environment
33
Starting NewsCutter
To start the NewsCutter application:
1. Click the Start button.
2. Point to Programs.
3. Point to the NewsCutter folder.
4. Click NewsCutter.
n
To start the application from a convenient location, Avid recommends that you create a shortcut and place it in a convenient location. For more information on making a shortcut, see your Windows NT documentation.
Creating a User
Before you can start working in NewsCutter, you need to create a user.
Once you have started NewsCutter, the Open Project dialog box appears and you can create new users.
To create a new user:
1. Click New User in the Open Project dialog box.
The New User dialog box appears.
34
2. Type the name of the user you want to create and click OK.
The user name appears in the Avid Users list in the Open Project dialog box. You can create as many users as you need.
When you create a new user, NewsCutter creates a folder for the user and two files within the folder: a user profile file and a user settings file. The folder is stored in the Avid Users folder on your hard drive. If you want to delete a user, you must delete that person’s folder.
Creating a Project
When you start NewsCutter, the Open Project dialog box appears and from there you can open and create projects. It does not matter whether you create your project or your users first; they can be done in either order.
To create a new project:
1. Click New Project in the Open Project dialog box.
The New Project dialog box appears.
2. Type the name of the project you want to create.
NTSC is the default video format.
3. (PAL only) Select PAL 4:1:1 or PAL 4:2:0 from the Video Format menu.
35
4. Click OK.
The Project name appears in the Avid Projects list.
5. Click OK to open the Project window.
When you create a new project, NewsCutter creates a folder for the project and two files within the folder: a project file and a project settings file. The folder is stored in the Avid Projects folder on your hard drive. If you want to delete a project, you must delete its folder.
Opening an Existing Project
Every time you start NewsCutter, the Open Project dialog box appears; from there you open your existing project:
1. Click the name of the project you want to open in the Avid Projects list.
2. Click a user name in the list of Avid Users.
3. Click OK.
The Project window opens.
Understanding the Project Window
All your clips, sequences, bins, and subclips in NewsCutter are organized into projects. Once you create your project and open it, you will see the Project window.
36
Within the Project window, there are three buttons for displaying information. They include:
• Bins — Displays all the bins associated with this project; this is the
default view as shown in Figure 3-1 . The Bins display option is
described more fully in
“Working with Bins” on page 40
.
n
When you first create a project, there will not be any bins in it. You have to create the bins you need.
Figure 3-1 Project Window — Bin View
37
• Settings — Displays all the settings available for NewsCutter; the
Settings scroll list and the Fast menu let you change the settings view to see specific types of settings, for example, Title Styles. To view the Settings scroll list, click the Settings button. For more information, see “Settings” in the Help index.
Settings menu
Settings Fast menu
Figure 3-2 Project Window — Settings View
38
• Info — Provides access to system information; use the Fast menu at the bottom of the Project window to display the Profile,
Memory, or Hardware Info. To view the Info list, click the Info button.
Profile — Displays the video format of the project, either
NTSC or PAL
Memory — Displays the computer’s memory usage
Hardware — Displays the operating system version and disk usage
For more information on the Info display, see “Information
Display Menu” in the Help index.
Settings Fast menu
Figure 3-3 Project Window — Info View
39
Working with Bins
Within a project, a bin is a way of organizing clips, subclips, and sequences. The concept of a bin comes from the world of film. Editors would store reels of film in bins. Logically, bins are still where you store material for a project.
The names of the bins belonging to a project are displayed in the
Project window, as shown in
. The contents of a bin are displayed in the Bin window. Only one Bin window is displayed; to bring a different Bin window to the front, double-click the bin icon in the Project window.
n
If you want to keep the Bin window and Project window attached, select
Enable ‘Sticky’ Bins in the Bin Settings dialog box. When you select this option, NewsCutter remembers the position of the bins in the workspace.
Creating a Bin
Once you have created your project, you can create as many bins as you need to organize your work.
To create a bin:
1. With the Project window open, click the New Bin button.
A new bin with the project name is created in the Project window.
2. Type the name you want for the bin in the text field.
40
Open bin icon
Closed bin icon
New Bin button
Bin name text field
3. Double-click the bin icon, next to the bin name, to open the bin or to bring it to the front of the Bin window.
About Bin Views
There are three views for working with clips in a bin: Text view, Frame view, and Script view. You will probably use each of these views as you work with NewsCutter.
n
In the examples shown in the next three sections, footage has already been recorded and that is why it appears in the bins. When you first start
NewsCutter, you will not see anything in your bins until you begin recording footage.
41
Text View
Bin name
Column headings
Object icons
In Text view, clips are displayed in a text format using columns and rows, with icons representing the various objects. You can customize the view by adding, hiding, or rearranging column headings. To save the view, select Save As from the Bin View menu.
To choose column headings, select Headings from the Bin Fast menu
(or from the Bin menu on the main NewsCutter menu bar).
To enter Text view, click the Text View button (labeled T) in the lower left corner of the Bin window. (See
.)
Bin Fast menu
Frame view
Script view Text view Bin View menu
Figure 3-4 Bin in Text View
42
Frame View
Bin name
Frame of media object
In Frame view, each clip is represented by a single picture frame, with the name of the clip. You can step through the footage forward and backward in each frame, enlarge or reduce the frame, and rearrange frames in any order within the bin.
To enter Frame view, click the Frame View button (labeled F) in the lower left corner of the Bin window. (See
.)
Object icons
Frame View button
Figure 3-5 Bin in Frame View
43
Script View
Bin name
Frame of media object
Object icons
In Script view, the system combines the features of Text view with
Frame view and adds space for typing notes or script. The frames are displayed vertically on the left side of your screen with a text box to the right of each clip. Clip data is displayed above the text box.
To enter Script view, click the Script View button (labeled S) in the lower left corner of the Bin window. (See
.)
To add text, click in the text box and begin typing.
Text box
Script View button
Figure 3-6 Bin in Script View
44
Creating a Quick Effects Bin
NewsCutter contains a feature called Quick Effects, which allows you to save the parameters of an effect so that you can add the same effect many times in a sequence.
You save the parameters in a bin named Quick Effects. NewsCutter then provides access to the effects stored in the Quick Effects bin through the Quick Effects dialog box. n
If you want to use a Quick Effect in multiple projects, you must copy the bin to each project.
To create the Quick Effects bin and enable this feature:
1. With the Project window open, click the New Bin button.
A new bin with the project name is created in the Project window.
2. Type Quick Effects in the text field.
n
You must name the bin Quick Effects. Otherwise, NewsCutter will not recognize it as a Quick Effects bin.
To learn how to create Quick Effects, see “Creating Quick Effects” on page 134 .
About Trash
NewsCutter stores deleted bins in the Trash. The Trash icon is located in the Project window and appears only when you delete a bin. You can use the Trash to retrieve bins you deleted in error, or you can empty the Trash to create more disk space.
45
To empty the contents of the Trash:
1. Click the Trash icon to display its contents.
2. Click the Fast Menu button in the Bin window.
3. Choose Empty Trash.
Trash icon
Fast Menu button c
Clips, subclips, and effects that are in a bin appear in the Trash after you delete the bin. However, if you select a clip, subclip, or effect directly and press the Delete key, the item does not appear in the
Trash.
46
Customizing Your Work Environment
NewsCutter lets you customize your work environment so you can work more quickly and more efficiently. You can map buttons to the
Tool palette and the keyboard, and you can save an arrangement of windows in your NewsCutter workspace.
Mapping Keys and Buttons
NewsCutter lets you map buttons from the Command palette and menus options from the NewsCutter main menu to the Tool palette and keys on your keyboard. You can also remap buttons to other buttons. When you start NewsCutter, there are several assigned buttons in the Tool palette; the other blank spaces are available for mapping the buttons you use most frequently. You can also map menu items that you use frequently to the Tool palette.
If you are more comfortable working with the keyboard, you may want to map buttons to the keyboard where they are most accessible for you to reach. For instructions on mapping buttons from the
palette to the keyboard, see
“Mapping Buttons to the Keyboard” on page 73 .
The ability to map buttons, keys, and menu items lets you tailor
NewsCutter tools to your working style, making you more efficient. In addition, you can move these User settings between projects and systems, ensuring that you can set up your work environment quickly and easily. For information on moving User settings between projects and systems, see the Avid NewsCutter Help.
47
Setting Up Workspaces
A workspace is the arrangement and size of tool windows displayed on your NewsCutter system. For example, during recording you might want to have the Record tool and Video Input tool display in specific locations. During effects editing, you might want to have the
Effect Palette and Effect Editor appear in a particular location and size.
NewsCutter comes with four workspaces set up for the basic functions of record, edit, effects, and audio. You can use these workspaces as is, or you can modify them to your liking.
Customizing your workspace lets you be prepared when you want to start working on a particular NewsCutter functional area, such as recording or effects editing.
For instructions on using and modifying the default workspaces, see
“Using Workspaces” on page 75 .
48
C HAPTER 4
Recording
This chapter describes recording, the process of converting your analog video and audio to a digital format. This chapter includes the following sections:
•
Selecting Settings for Recording
•
•
•
•
Record Preparations Check List
•
•
Recording and Logging at the Same Time
•
•
49
Selecting Settings for Recording
A number of settings have a direct bearing on the recording process.
Before recording, review the following options for General Settings,
Deck Settings, and Digitize Settings.
• Drive Filtering Based on Resolution causes the system to dim all drives for which speed capabilities are unknown or untested. This setting is selected by default in the General Settings dialog box.
c
NewsCutter does not prevent you from using non-Avid drives, but their reliability cannot be ensured.
• Deck Preferences contains various options, including dropframe/non-drop-frame preference for NTSC decks, assemble edit for digital cut, stop key pauses deck, shuttle holds speed, and deck control.
• Deck Configuration Settings allow you to establish deck control parameters for a single deck or for multiple decks. You can manually configure the deck or use the Auto-configure option.
You can also add channels.
• Digitize Settings include essential options for recording and batch recording, including general parameters for capture of the source material, tape naming, and special conditions such as recording across timecode breaks or capturing a single video frame.
For more information on Record and Digitize settings, see the Avid
NewsCutter Help.
50
The Record Tool
The Record tool provides controls for recording your footage. To open the Record tool, choose Record Tool from the Tools menu.
Digitize indicator Trash
Digitize/
Log
Mode
Toggle
Source
Video
Input
Tool
Audio
Tool Splice-in Overwrite
Record
Enable Timecode
Channel Selection
Message bar
Name text box
Comment text box
Bin pop-up menu
One/Two
Disk Mode
Target drive pop-up menu
Deck controls
Deck Selection pop-up menu
Source Tape display
Voiceover
Audio Source menu
Subclip indicators
Drive time available
Logging controls
Tape name
Figure 4-1 Record Tool
The Record tool has the following features:
• Channel Selection buttons let you choose which audio tracks you want to record from the source tape, whether you want to record video, and whether you want to record timecode. If you click and hold a Video Track button or Audio Track button, a menu appears where you can select another track to which to patch.
51
• Bin pop-up menu lets you choose a target bin as the destination for the master clips created when you record on-the-fly. You can also choose a target bin containing the logged clips you will use to batch record your media.
• Digitize indicator flashes on and off while you are recording.
• Record button begins the recording process.
• Digitize/Log Mode button lets you switch between Record mode and Log mode.
• One/Two Disk Mode button lets you target a single or separate media drive volume for recording the audio and video for each clip.
• Target drive pop-up menu lets you choose the target drive volumes.
• Drive time available is displayed after you select a drive or drives for the recorded media.
• Trash button stops the recording process and deletes the recorded media.
• Message bar displays information on the current status of the tool.
• Subclip indicators displays a subclip IN mark, a subclip OUT mark, and a clip icon or number. It provides visual feedback when you create subclips on-the-fly while recording.
• Deck controls operate the deck.
• Source Tape display lets you choose the deck you want to play from or you can choose a satellite feed. It also lets you check and reset serial port connection to decks.
• Tape name shows the name of the source tape. If no tape is selected, NewsCutter automatically assigns the tape a name or prompts you for a name if you selected that option in the Digitize
Settings dialog box.
• Audio Source menu displays the menu of audio source options.
52
• Toggle Source lets you switch between sources. You choose satellite feed mode with this button.
• Name text box lets you add a name for the clip you are recording.
• Comment (Cmnt) text box lets you add comments about the clip.
• Video Input Tool
button opens the Video Input tool. See “The
• Audio Tool
button opens the Audio tool. See “The Audio Tool” on page 53.
• Splice-in button lets you record footage directly from tape into a sequence loaded in the Timeline in one step. When you use Splicein, everything else in the sequence is pushed forward to make room for the new clip.
• Overwrite button lets you record footage directly from tape into a sequence loaded in the Timeline in one step. When you use
Overwrite, it replaces what was on the track to which you are recording with the material you just recorded.
• Voiceover lets you record a voice-over while viewing your already recorded footage.
• Logging controls allow you to mark IN and OUT points in your footage before you begin recording.
The Audio Tool
The Audio tool controls parameters for incoming audio.
To open the Audio tool, choose Audio Tool from the Tools menu or click the Audio Tool button in the Record tool. Click the Output, Input, and Setup buttons to display the full screen of the Audio tool (as shown below).
53
Output button
Setup button
Peak
Hold menu
Input
Display
Output
Display
Setup
Display
Input button
In/Out toggle
Reset Peak
Channel
Selector pop-up menus
Digital VU scale
Meters Analog
VU scale
Figure 4-2 Audio Tool
The Audio tool has the following options:
• Input button opens the Input display.
• Input display shows a panel that contains a single slider control for raising or lowering global audio input.
• Output button opens the Output display.
• Output display shows a panel that contains controls for raising or lowering global audio output.
• Setup button opens the Setup display.
• Setup display shows a panel that contains information and controls for adjusting various audio hardware parameters.
• Reset Peak button resets the current maximum peak measurements. It also stops the playback of the internal calibration tone.
54
• In/Out toggle switches the meter displays for each channel between input levels from a source device and output levels to the speakers and record devices. The letter I indicates Input, and O indicates Output.
• Peak Hold pop-up menu allows you to choose options for customizing the meter displays and for setting and playing back the internal calibration tone.
• Digital VU scale to the left of the meters displays a fixed range of values from 0 to –90 decibels (dB), according to common digital peak meter standards.
• Analog VU scale to the right of the meters displays a fixed range of values that you can conform to the headroom parameters of your source audio.
• Meters dynamically track audio levels for each channel as follows:
Meters show green below the target reference level (the default reference level is –14 on the digital scale).
Meters show yellow for the normal headroom range, above the reference level to approximately –3 dB.
Meters show red for peaks approaching overload, between –
3 dB and 0 (zero) dB.
Thin green lines at the bottom indicate signals below the display range.
• Channel Selector pop-up menus let you map tracks in the sequence to output channels.
The Video Input Tool
The Video Input tool controls parameters for incoming video.
To open the Video Input tool, choose Video Input Tool from the Tools menu or click the Video Input Tool button in the Record tool.
55
Input pop-up menu
Internal Waveform
Monitor button
Vectorscope
Monitor button
Internal
Waveform monitor
Vectorscope monitor
Slider
Settings pop-up menu
100% Bars button
Preset buttons
Figure 4-3 Video Input Tool
Click the Internal Waveform Monitor button to bring up the Waveform monitor. Click the Vectorscope Monitor button to bring up the
Vectorscope monitor.
The Video Input tool has the following options:
• Input pop-up menu lets you choose Composite, Component, or S-
VHS video input source.
• Sliders let you change the value for each setting.
• Preset buttons are highlighted when the factory preset levels are displayed. When you click a lit Preset button, it turns gray and the slider returns to the most recent manual level setting.
• Settings pop-up menu lets you save the Site settings for an individual tape each time you calibrate bars.
• Internal Waveform Monitor button opens the Internal Waveform monitor.
56
• Internal Waveform monitor lets you adjust luminance values.
• Vectorscope Monitor button opens the Vectorscope monitor.
• Vectorscope monitor lets you adjust hue and saturation.
• 100% Bars button switches the 100% bars for calibration on and off.
Record Preparations Check List
1. Check your hardware configurations: power switches, cable connections, and remote switch on the source deck for deck control (see the Avid NewsCutter Setup Guide for hardware configurations).
2. In the Settings scroll list, make sure you have the options you want selected in the General Settings, Deck Preferences, Deck
Configuration, and Digitize Settings dialog boxes.
Check the settings for Handle Length in the Digitize Settings dialog box. A handle is extra media on either side of your IN and
OUT points that ensures you have enough extra footage to perform trims. The default setting is 2 seconds on each side. You want to keep the default or to increase it if you think you will need extra footage.
Select “Ask for name when a new tape is seen” in the Digitize
Settings dialog box if you want NewsCutter to prompt you for a tape name. Otherwise, NewsCutter automatically names the tape in sequential order.
3. Label each of your external disk drives with a meaningful name.
For information on naming drives, see “Naming Drives” in the
Help index.
4. Insert a tape into the deck and set up the Record tool for track selection, target bin, target drives, source tape, and source deck.
57
5. Use the Audio Input tool to set the audio input levels.
6. Use the Video Input tool to set the video input levels; save your video settings for future use.
Recording to the Timeline
You can record footage directly from tape into a sequence loaded in the Timeline in one step, without organizing and reviewing clips, marking edit points, or performing edits.
Before you begin recording, refer to the “Record Preparations Check
. n
Make sure Audio Input in the Record tool is set to Microphone or Microphone with Power, depending on the type of microphone you are using.
To record to the Timeline:
1. Load a sequence into the Record monitor by selecting New
Sequence from the Clip menu or by double-clicking an existing sequence icon in a bin.
2. Mark an IN point in the sequence or move the position indicator to the location where you want the edit to take place.
3. Mark the source material that you want to record by using the
Record tool logging controls.
4. (Option) You can mark an OUT point based on the following:
• If you are recording to the middle of a sequence in the
Timeline, mark both IN and OUT points for frame accuracy.
• If you are recording at the end of a sequence, you can mark just an IN point and then mark the OUT point later on-the-fly.
58
Overwrite
Splice-in
5. Click the Splice-in button or the Overwrite button in the Record tool to choose the type of edit.
Splice-in will move everything in the sequence down to make room for the new clip. Overwrite replaces what is there; thus the sequence is not lengthened.
6. Click the Record button to begin recording.
7. If you did not mark the OUT point in advance, click the Record button again when the footage reaches the frame where you want to stop recording.
n
If you already marked an OUT point, recording will stop automatically.
When recording ends, the clip appears in place in the sequence, and a master clip appears in the bin.
Recording and Logging at the Same Time
When you record without entering log information in a bin ahead of time, the system creates clips and associated media files while you record. Recording in this manner involves manually cueing source footage with an Avid-controlled deck, using the deck controls in the
Record tool.
Ways to record and log at the same time include:
•
•
Recording from an IN Point to an OUT Point
Recording On-the-Fly
This method is easier than setting marks, but it is more imprecise. It involves using the deck controls in the lower left corner of the Record
59
tool to cue, play, and stop the source footage manually while recording.
Use the recording on-the-fly method in any of the following circumstances:
• If you are eager to begin editing immediately and no adequate logs exist for importing into the system or setting marks
• If you are recording from a source deck that cannot be controlled by the Record tool or a V-LAN
®
VLXi
®
unit (through NewsCutter)
• If your source tape does not have timecode
• If you are recording from a digital source such as a compact disc or
DAT player
• If you are recording from a live source, such as a studio feed, or an in-house router
In some circumstances, the recorded material may exceed the logical file size allowed by NewsCutter. For example, the maximum size of a media file cannot exceed 2 gigabytes (GB). To make sure that recording does not stop if a file exceeds the limit, select “Digitize video to multiple files” in the Digitize Settings dialog box. Then if a file does exceed the limit, it will be split across multiple files and recording will continue.
Before you begin recording, refer to the “Record Preparations Check
. n
There is a slight delay of several frames after you manually select a spot both to start and to stop recording. Therefore, use this method when you do not need precise beginning and end points in your clip.
To record on-the-fly:
1. Select the video and audio tracks to which you want to record in the Record tool.
2. Make sure the Digitize/Log Mode button in the Record tool is set to DIG.
60
3. Use the deck controls in the bottom left corner of the Record tool to locate the position on the tape where you want to start recording.
4. Play the deck and when it gets up-to-speed, click the Record button. n
Make sure you have cleared any previous marks so that the deck does not begin cueing to the previous location.
5. While the system is recording, you can type a clip name in the
Name text box.
Press the Tab key after typing a clip name to enter comments about the clip.
6. Click the Pause button at any time to pause play. You can also abort the record procedure by clicking the Trash button in the
Record tool. The clip will be discarded.
7. To stop recording, click the Record button, or press the Esc key on the keyboard.
The system creates a new clip in the bin.
Recording from an IN Point to an OUT Point
This method lets you specify the exact timecode location to begin and end recording. You can also specify only an IN point or an OUT point, and enter the other mark on-the-fly.
Use this method in the following circumstances:
• If logs exist in written or printout form but not in the proper format for quick import into the system
• If the IN and OUT points are rough and need to be doublechecked for accuracy
61
• If you are familiar enough with the source material to estimate the timecode for the IN point, the OUT point, or both, quickly and accurately
Before you begin recording, refer to the “Record Preparations Check
.
To record by specifying an IN point and an OUT point:
1. Cue the tape to the start of the clip you want to record and mark an IN point.
2. Cue the tape and mark the OUT point now, or set the OUT point on-the-fly while you are recording.
3. Click the Record button in the Record tool.
The Record tool automatically rewinds the tape to the preroll point before the IN point of the clip, and the tape begins to play.
The Record button changes to bright red, the indicator next to the
Record button flashes, and the Message bar displays the message that recording has begun.
4. While the system is recording, you can type a clip name or enter comments about the clip.
Recording stops, and the system creates a new clip in the bin when the tape reaches the clip’s OUT point or you press the Record button again.
Batch Recording
Once you have imported a log or have manually logged a group of clips to a bin, you can automate the record process by using the batchrecording capabilities of NewsCutter. In order to batch record, source tapes must have timecode.
If your media was analog (not digital) when it was recorded, you will need to reset the color bars in the Video Input tool before you batch
62
record. For more information and procedures, see “Adjusting color bars” in the Help index.
You can also use the batch record process to rerecord existing clips. n
Before you batch record, make sure the source tapes have timecode.
Before you begin recording, refer to the “Record Preparations Check
.
To batch record clips:
1. Open the bin that stores the logged clips.
2. Select the clips to batch record.
3. Choose Batch Record from the Bin menu.
4. Select options in the Batch Record dialog box:
• If the bin contains some clips that are already recorded and you do not want to rerecord those clips, select the option
“Digitize only those items for which media is currently unavailable.”
• If your selections include a sequence for batch recording, the dialog box prompts you for handle length information.
5. Click OK.
If you have not loaded a tape, the system prompts you to insert the first tape.
6. Insert the tape into the tape deck, and click Mounted.
A message box appears.
7. Click OK to confirm the tape and deck entries and to begin the recording process.
The system records each clip from the tape, in start timecode order.
63
Rerecording a Sequence
Rerecording is the process of capturing previously recorded source footage based on existing clips and sequences. Rerecording uses the batch record process and does not require extra logging time because the clip information for such things as source tracks and timecodes already exists in the bin.
There are several situations in which you might want to rerecord:
• You can quickly rerecord selected clips if you make an error while recording the first time.
• You can rerecord clips if you accidentally delete media files.
• You can rerecord a sequence after you transfer it to another system.
c
Rerecording requires your original source footage. Do not delete the media files if the source footage is no longer available, unless you will not need the material again.
Before you begin recording, refer to the “Record Preparations Check
. n
To streamline the rerecording process, select “Ask for name when a new tape is seen” in the Digitize Settings dialog box during the original recording.
To rerecord a sequence or clips:
1. Choose Record Tool from the Tools menu.
2. Open or activate the bin that contains the sequence or clips.
3. Select the sequences or clips you want to rerecord.
4. Choose Batch Record from the Bin menu.
The Batch Record dialog box appears.
5. To preserve clips that already have existing media, select “Digitize only those items for which media is currently unavailable.”
64
6. Click the Handle Length text box, and type the number of additional frames you want to record at the heads and tails of the new master clips.
7. Click OK.
The system prompts you to insert the first tape.
8. Insert the tape into the tape deck if you have not already done so.
9. Click Mounted to indicate to the system that the correct tape is loaded and ready for recording.
A message box appears.
10. Click OK to confirm the tape and deck entries.
The system records each clip from the tape, in start timecode order. If another source tape is needed, the system prompts you for the tape.
You can stop the Batch Record process at any time by clicking the
Trash button in the Record tool.
65
C HAPTER 5
Getting Ready to Edit
This chapter describes the tools available to you for editing. It also describes methods for navigating within your clips or sequences and ways of marking your footage for inclusion in a sequence. It includes the following topics:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
66
Using the Command Palette
The Command palette, accessible from the Tools menu, provides a central location for all editing, playback, and navigational buttons.
These buttons allow you to perform a wide range of commands with a single click. The Button to Button Reassignment option allows you to map buttons to the Tool palette or to reconfigure the keyboard. The
Menu to Button Reassignment option allows you to map menu commands to various buttons and keys.
You can use the buttons directly from the Command palette without mapping them by selecting the Active Palette option at the bottom of the Command palette.
The Command palette groups buttons by function. Tabs are displayed for each function, and the buttons that perform those functions are displayed within each tab. The functions are Move, Play, Edit, Trim,
FX, Other, and More.
You should familiarize yourself with the buttons on the Command palette. The more familiar you are, the faster you can edit. Once you know which buttons or menu commands you use most often, you can map them to the Tool palette on the keyboard.
All available buttons are displayed in the Command palette. If you cannot find a particular button, open the Command palette from the
Tools menu and search for it there. For procedures on mapping buttons to the Tool palette, see
“Mapping Buttons to the Keyboard” on page 73
.
67
Figure 5-1 Command Palette Move Tab
Figure 5-2 Command Palette Play Tab
Figure 5-3 Command Palette Edit Tab
68
Figure 5-4 Command Palette Trim Tab
Figure 5-5 Command Palette FX Tab
Figure 5-6 Command Palette Other Tab
69
Figure 5-7 Command Palette More Tab
Using the Tool Palette
The Tool palette is located in the Timeline. You can also view the Tool palette by clicking the Fast Menu button under the Source monitor.
The default Tool palette, shown in the
, provides buttons for editing and navigating. It has blank buttons where you can map the buttons or menu commands you use most frequently. The default Tool palette displays the buttons without names.
Figure 5-8 Default Tool Palette
To turn on the display of button names:
1. Click the Settings button in the Project window.
The Settings scroll list appears.
2. Double-click Interface.
The User Interface Settings dialog box appears.
70
3. Select Show Labels in Tool Palette.
n
You can enable ToolTips here as well to help you become familiar with the
NewsCutter interface. ToolTips shows the name of each tool on the interface as you move the cursor over it.
4. Click OK.
5. Resize the Tool palette if necessary.
Mapping Buttons to the Tool Palette
You can map frequently used functions to the Tool palette for easy access. To map a button from the Command palette to the Tool palette:
1. Make sure the Source monitor is active; if it isn’t, click the Source/
Record Toggle button to activate it.
When the Source monitor is active, it displays “NewsCutter
Source” in the title bar.
2. Open the Timeline by choosing Timeline from the Tools menu.
3. Choose Command Palette from the Tools menu.
4. Click Button to Button Reassignment at the bottom of the
Command palette if it’s not already selected.
5. Find the button you want to remap, click the button, and drag it to the Tool palette, placing it where you want it.
You can place the button over an existing button, in which case you can’t access the original button, or you can place it over one of the blank buttons.
If you want to remove the button you mapped, you can drag another button over it or drag the blank button over it. The blank button can be found in the Other tab of the Command palette.
71
Mapping Menu Options to the Tool Palette
You can map frequently used functions to the Tool palette for easy access. To map a menu option to the Tool palette:
1. Open the Timeline by choosing Timeline from the Tools menu.
2. Choose Command Palette from the Tools menu.
3. Click Menu to Button Reassignment at the bottom of the
Command palette if it’s not already selected.
4. Click the button on the Tool palette where you want the menu option to appear.
5. Find the menu option you want to remap and click it.
The menu option appears in the Tool palette.
You can place the menu option over an existing button, in which case you can’t access the original button, or you can place it over one of the blank buttons.
If you want to remove the menu option you mapped, you can drag another menu option or button over it or drag the blank button over it. The blank button can be found in the Other tab of the
Command palette.
Using the Keyboard
The keyboard has many editing and navigational buttons. For faster editing, you can use the keyboard rather than the mouse. The default keyboard is configured as shown in
.
72
Step buttons Play/Step/Shuttle buttons
Play button
Stop button
Figure 5-9 NewsCutter Default Keyboard Settings
Mapping Buttons to the Keyboard
You can map buttons to the keyboard from the Command palette to help you work more quickly. You can map only to the light-colored
; the dark-colored keys are reserved for system functions such as Shift, Ctrl, Alt.
To map a button from the Command palette to the keyboard:
1. Choose Command Palette from the Tools menu.
2. Click Button to Button Reassignment at the bottom of the
Command palette.
3. Activate the Project window, and click the Settings button.
The Settings scroll list appears.
4. Double-click Keyboard.
The keyboard diagram appears.
5. Find the button you want to remap, click the button, and drag it to the keyboard, placing it on any of the light-colored keys.
73
You can place the button over an existing key, in which case you can’t access the original key, or you can place it over one of the blank keys.
If you want to remove the button you mapped, you can drag another button over it or drag the blank button over it. The blank button can be found in the Other tab of the Command palette.
Mapping Menu Items to the Keyboard
You can map menu options that you use frequently to the keyboard from the Command palette. You can map only to the light-colored
; the dark-colored keys are reserved for system functions such as Shift, Ctrl, Alt.
To map a menu option from the Command palette to the keyboard:
1. Choose Command Palette from the Tools menu.
2. Click Menu to Button Reassignment at the bottom of the
Command palette.
3. Activate the Project window, and click the Settings button.
The Settings scroll list appears.
4. Double-click Keyboard.
The keyboard diagram appears.
5. Click the key where you want the menu option to appear.
6. Find the menu option you want to remap and click it.
The menu option appears on the keyboard diagram.
You can place the menu option over an existing key, in which case you can’t access the original key, or you can place it over one of the blank keys.
If you want to remove the menu option you mapped, you can drag another menu option or button over it or drag the blank button
74
over it. The blank button can be found in the Other tab of the
Command palette.
Using Workspaces
Workspaces let you have the tools you need to perform a specific function, such as recording, available to you with the press of a key.
NewsCutter comes with four workspaces set up for the basic functions of record, edit, effects, and audio. These default workspaces are already mapped to the keyboard as follows:
Workspace
1 record
2 edit
3 effx (effects)
4 audio
Function Key
F9
F10
F11
F12
You can use these workspaces as is, or you can modify them to your liking. To use a workspace, press the function key on the keyboard for the workspace you want.
75
Modifying Workspaces
You can modify the default workspaces to make them more closely fit your style of working.
n
To take advantage of the workspace shortcut buttons, you must remember that
NewsCutter sorts the workspaces alphabetically. Therefore, the workspace button assignments may change if you add workspaces. To keep a designated order, name the workspaces with a number preceding the first letter (for example, 5 digital cut).
To modify an existing workspace:
1. Press the function key on the keyboard for the workspace you want to modify, for example, F9 for recording.
2. Make any changes — resize or reposition any windows.
3. Click the Settings button in the Project window.
The Settings scroll list appears.
4. Double-click the workspace you want to modify.
The Save Workspace dialog box appears.
5. Click OK.
The Workspace setting is modified.
n
When you change workspaces, you see the arrangement you set when you left the workspace. If you close a window before you leave a workspace, the next time you open the workspace, the window will be closed. For bins, you must select Enable ‘Sticky’ Bins in the Bin Settings dialog box to save the position of the bins in your workspace.
You may also create four additional workspaces. For information on creating workspaces, see “Workspace” in the Help index.
76
Controlling Playback
There are several ways to play, view, and cue clips:
• Instantly access frames or move through footage by using the
position indicator within the position bar under the Source or
Record monitor.
• Play, step (jog), or shuttle through footage using buttons.
• Play, step, or shuttle using keyboard equivalents.
• Step or shuttle using the mouse.
Using Position Bars and Position Indicators
You can quickly access frames within a clip loaded into a monitor or move through the footage by using the position indicators that appear in the position bars under the Source or Record monitor, and in the
Timeline when you are viewing a sequence.
• You can move the position indicator within the position bar under the Source or Record monitor by clicking anywhere in the position bar or by dragging the position indicator to the left or right. The speed with which you drag the position indicator determines the speed at which you move through the footage.
Record monitor position bar
Position indicator
Figure 5-10 Record Monitor Position Bar
77
Source monitor
position bar
Position indicator
Figure 5-11 Source Monitor Position Bar
• In the Timeline, the position indicator shows your position within the sequence. It is always in the same position as the position indicator in the Record monitor’s position bar and works in the same way: you can click anywhere in the Timeline to relocate the position indicator, or you can drag the position indicator through footage at varying speeds.
Position indicator in Timeline
Figure 5-12 Position Indicator in Timeline
• You can go directly to the beginning or end of a clip or sequence by clicking at the far left or far right of the clip or sequence.
Using Buttons
You can use the buttons that appear below the Source and Record monitors to play and step through your footage. You can also use the keyboard to manipulate footage.
Buttons can be remapped from the Command palette to the Tool palette and the keyboard in any configuration. See
78
to the Tool Palette” on page 71
The Play Button
The Play button is a toggle button. With a clip loaded in a monitor, the
Play button plays your footage at a normal speed. When a clip is playing, the arrow on the button is lit. Clicking the Play button while your clip is playing stops play. The space bar also stops play.
In the Record monitor, you can play only video and audio tracks that are currently monitored in the Track Selector panel.
Video Track Monitor button with Monitor icon
Audio Track Monitor button with Speaker icon
Track Selector panel
To play a clip:
1. Load a clip into the Source monitor or a sequence into the Record monitor by double-clicking a clip or sequence icon in a bin.
2. For sequences in the Record monitor, click the Video Track
Monitor or Audio Track Monitor button in the Track Selector
panel.
3. Go to the start of the clip or sequence by clicking at the start of the position bar under the monitor or by pressing the Home key.
4. To play the clip or sequence, click the Play button under the chosen monitor.
5. To stop playback, press the space bar or click the Play button again.
79
Step Buttons
You can also use the Step Forward and Step Backward buttons under the monitors to play the clip backward or forward in one-frame increments.
You can advance 10 frames forward or 10 frames backward by using the 10-step keys on the keyboard.
To step through footage:
1. Load a clip into the Source monitor or a sequence into the Record monitor.
2. Press the appropriate key to step 1 or 10 frames forward or backward.
J-K-L Keys (Three-Button Play)
The J-K-L keys on the keyboard allow you to play, step, and shuttle through footage at varying speeds. This feature, also referred to as
three-button or variable-speed play, allows you to use three fingers to manipulate the speed of playback for greater control.
To shuttle through the footage using the J-K-L keys on the keyboard:
1. Do one of the following:
• Load a clip into the Source monitor or a sequence into the
Record monitor.
• Select a clip in a bin in Frame view to play through the clip in the bin.
80
2. Use the following keys to shuttle at varying speeds:
• Press the L key to move forward through the footage at normal speed. Press once to increase the forward speed two times, twice to increase it four times, and three times to increase it eight times normal speed.
• Press the J key to move backward at the same shuttle speed increments.
• Press and hold the K and L keys together for slow forward.
• Press and hold the K and J keys together for slow backward.
3. To pause the shuttling, press the K key.
4. To stop shuttling, press the space bar.
Home, End, and Arrow Keys
You can also use the Home, End, and arrow keys on the keyboard to move through footage when a clip is loaded in a monitor.
• The Home key takes you to the beginning of a clip or sequence.
• The End key takes you to the end of a clip or sequence.
• The Left Arrow key moves the footage one frame backward.
• The Right Arrow key moves the footage one frame forward.
Using the Mouse
You can also use the mouse for one-handed control of playback. You can either step or shuttle by using the mouse.
81
Stepping with the Mouse
To step by using the mouse:
1. Load a clip into the Source monitor or a sequence into the Record monitor.
2. Activate the buttons in the Command palette by selecting Active
Palette at the bottom of the palette and then clicking the Mouse
Jog button in the Play tab of the Command palette.
You can map the Mouse Jog button to a button in the Tool palette
(see “Using the Tool Palette” on page 70 ).
3. Move the mouse to the right to step forward or to the left to step backward.
4. To quit stepping with the mouse, press the space bar.
Shuttling with the Mouse
Mouse Shuttle button
To shuttle by using the mouse:
1. Load a clip into the Source monitor or a sequence into the Record monitor.
2. Do one of the following:
• Activate the buttons in the Command palette by selecting
Active Palette at the bottom of the palette and then clicking the Mouse Shuttle button in the Play tab of the Command palette.
• You can map the Mouse Shuttle button to a button in the Tool palette (see
“Using the Tool Palette” on page 70
).
3. Move the mouse to the right to increase the shuttle speed or to the left to decrease the shuttle speed.
4. To stop shuttling with the mouse, press the space bar or doubleclick the mouse button.
You can also use the keyboard in conjunction with the mouse to control shuttling. For example, if you’re shuttling with the mouse and
82
you press the L key, the playback speeds up to the next normal play rate (30, 60, 120, 240 fps for NTSC; and 25, 50, 100, 200 fps for PAL).
You can continue to change the shuttle speed and direction with the mouse.
Marking IN and OUT Points
You can mark IN and OUT points for your clips in advance, which provides several advantages:
• You can quickly build a sequence by splicing the marked clips into place one after another.
• You can use the process of rough-cut or storyboard editing, which allows you to instantly splice several prepared clips into a sequence.
• You can play back and mark clips in the bin before loading a single clip, saving several steps.
Even if your marks are not accurate now, you can trim the edit points and fine-tune the sequence later without reediting the material.
Creating Subclips
When you mark footage with IN and OUT points, either you can save the entire clip along with the new marks, or you can create subclips to break up longer master clips into smaller segments of selected footage.
Subclips do not directly reference the original media. Subclips remain linked to the master clips from which they are created, and the master clips in turn reference the recorded media files located on your storage drives. As a result, none of the original footage is lost.
83
You can also create subclips while recording as described in “Subclips,creating on-the-fly” in the Help index.
You can create subclips directly from the marked section of material in the monitors by using one of the following methods:
• Alt key: Press and hold the Alt key, and then drag the picture from the monitor to the bin in which you want to store the subclip.
• Make Subclip button: Click the Make Subclip button located on the Edit tab of the Command palette to create the subclip and place it in the active bin by default. If you press the Alt key while you click the Make Subclip button, a dialog box allows you to choose the destination bin for the subclip.
The new subclip will be listed in the bin, preceded by a subclip icon and identified with a numbered .Sub extension, as shown in the following illustration.
A new subclip shown in Text view
For more information on trimming, see “Trim Edits” in the Help index.
84
C HAPTER 6
Creating a First Cut
This chapter describes how you begin to put your story together. It includes the following topics:
•
•
•
Using the Track Selector Panel
•
•
Splicing or Overwriting Video into a Sequence
•
Marking Clips for Storyboarding
•
Using the Go to IN and Go to OUT Buttons
•
Moving to the Head or Tail of a Shot
•
•
•
Splicing a Shot into the Middle of a Sequence
85
Viewing Your Clips
You can work with clips and sequences in several different ways, depending upon your needs and preferences. Each method has its own uses and advantages, as follows.
• Viewing in bins: Frame view shows you pictorial images of the clips in your bins; Text view shows you the clips listed by name;
Script view shows you pictorial images and provides a space for you to add text. See
“Working with Bins” on page 40
for more information on displaying clips in bins.
• Viewing in the Timeline: Use the Timeline to view individual tracks for either a sequence or a source clip. You can drag a clip or group of clips into the Timeline to create a sequence.
• Viewing in full-screen: You can use a second, full-screen monitor to view your footage in a larger screen format.
86
• Viewing in the Source monitor: You can load clips and sequences into the Source monitor (see
) to view and mark shots for use in a sequence that you build in the Record monitor. You load a clip into the Source monitor by double-clicking its icon in the bin.
Clip icon
Source/Record Toggle button
Figure 6-1 Source Monitor
87
• Viewing in the Record monitor: You can load a sequence into the
Record monitor (see
Figure 6-2 ) to view, mark, or modify an
existing sequence. You cannot load a clip into the Record monitor.
You load a sequence into the Record monitor by double-clicking its icon in the bin.
Sequence
icon
Source/Record Toggle button
Figure 6-2 Record Monitor
88
• Viewing in pop-up monitors: You can load clips into pop-up monitors (see
Figure 6-3 ) to view and mark one or several clips
simultaneously in smaller, movable windows. (Enable a pop-up monitor by pressing the Alt key while double-clicking the clip you want to open.) You can have multiple pop-up monitors open at one time.
Figure 6-3 Pop-up Monitor
Navigating in the Timeline
The Timeline window (see
Figure 6-4 ) provides various controls for
quickly moving through a sequence and adjusting your view of details displayed in the tracks while editing. You can make changes in the
Timeline format by using the Timeline Fast menu or by doubleclicking Timeline in the Settings scroll list in the Project window.
89
Track Selector panel
Timeline track
Position indicator
Timeline
Fast menu
Scale box
Scale bar
Extract/Splice-in
Segment mode
Lift/Overwrite
Segment mode
Figure 6-4 Timeline
Timeline scroll bar Scroll box
Using the Position Indicator
The position indicator, the vertical blue line in the Timeline, marks your place in the sequence. It also determines how some of your commands are interpreted. For example, when you perform an edit, the system takes the location of the position indicator as the IN point if you haven’t marked an IN point. The position indicator can also be used as an OUT point if you haven’t marked an OUT point.
When you move the position indicator in the Timeline, the smaller position indicator within the Record monitor’s position bar also moves.
90
Using the Scroll Bar
The scroll bar functions like any standard scroll bar. Click the arrows or drag the scroll box to scroll left or right.
Scroll bar
Scroll box
Using the A and S keys
The Go to Previous Edit and Go to Next Edit buttons in the Command palette allow you to quickly move forward and backward through the
Timeline. When you click the Go to Previous Edit button (A key on the default keyboard), the position indicator moves to the previous transition point in the sequence, ignoring tracks that are not active.
When you click the Go to Next Edit button (S key on the default keyboard), the position indicator moves to the next transition point in the sequence and is also based on the track selection.
Displaying More or Less Detail
The scale bar stretches and contracts the Timeline area centered around the position indicator, allowing you to either zoom in to focus on a specific area of your sequence or zoom out to see your whole sequence. This is especially useful when you have a lengthy sequence with many edits.
Scale bar
Scale box
The Timeline always expands or contracts proportionally on both sides of the position indicator.
91
As the Timeline expands, a shadow position indicator appears.
• To see more detail, click the scale box and drag it to the right.
As the Timeline expands, a second “shadow” position indicator appears next to the position indicator, showing the end of a single frame, and the two continue to move apart as you expand the
Timeline.
The position indicator and its shadow mark the beginning and end of each frame. The solid line is the mark or edit point. You can click either the line or the shadow to move exactly one frame forward or backward.
In addition, if the Timeline is maximized for full-screen viewing, the Timeline will split in half (or thirds) as it wraps through the sequence for you to see all the clips.
• To contract an expanded Timeline to see less detail but more of the sequence, click the scale box and drag it to the left.
Using the Track Selector Panel
The Track Selector panel (see Figure 6-5
) provides numerous controls for working effectively with multiple tracks. With this one resource, you can select, delete, monitor, enlarge, reduce, lock, patch, and move any video or audio track.
The Track Selector panel also provides a quick display of track information. You can see which tracks (on the source or the record side) are available, active, patched, monitored, or locked. The configuration shown below is just one example. The Track Selector panel might look very different, depending on the nature of the source material or the work under way in the sequence.
92
Source Track Monitor buttons
Source Track buttons
Sync Lock and Lock buttons
Record Track buttons
Record Track Monitor buttons
Timecode button
Figure 6-5 Timeline Track Selector Panel
The source side (left side) of the panel displays only those tracks available for the clip currently loaded and displayed in the Source monitor. For instance, a clip that has audio digitized for track A1 only does not display an A2 track in the Track Selector panel.
The record side of the panel displays only those tracks currently in use for the sequence. However, if you edit source material with a track selected that does not yet exist on the record side (A3 or V2, in the previous example), by default the track appears on the record side after the edit takes place.
A clip (or sequence) needs to be loaded in the Source and Record monitors to display both track panels.
93
Selecting Tracks
You can select tracks on either the record side or the source side as follows:
• You can edit selected tracks on the source side directly into the sequence, assuming you have selected parallel tracks on the record side.
• You cannot edit deselected tracks on the source side into the sequence, regardless of record track selections.
• You cannot edit deselected tracks on the record side, regardless of source track selections.
There are four methods for selecting tracks:
• Click any deactivated Track Selector button to select it. Click any activated Track Selector button to deselect it.
• Drag a lasso around multiple Track Selector buttons to select them at once. Make sure the cursor is displaying the lasso box.
• With the Timeline window active, choose Select All Tracks from the Edit menu or press Ctrl+A to select all tracks on the record side.
• With the Timeline window active, use the keys on the keyboard corresponding to each track to select and deselect tracks. To see the default Keyboard settings, double-click Keyboard in the
Settings scroll list of the Project window.
For example, you might select the source and record tracks for V1, A1, and A2 to edit video and audio from the source clip into the sequence.
Select only V1 source and record tracks to edit video without sound.
Or, select only A1 and A2 to edit the sound without the video.
n
Selected tracks change color.
94
Patching Tracks
When working with multiple tracks, you occasionally encounter a circumstance where you must edit source audio or video onto a track other than the parallel track displayed in the Track Selector panel. To edit the source material onto another record track above or below it, you must patch the source track to the targeted record track.
You can perform only one patch per edit, but there is no limit to the number of times you can patch from the same source track. Audio can patch only to audio, and video only to video.
To perform a patch, drag from a source track (audio or video) to the targeted record track (a white arrow appears during the patch).
The selected source track moves beside the record track to which it is patched as soon as you release the mouse. The patched track remains highlighted in preparation for your edit. You can proceed to select any other tracks required for the edit.
To undo a patch:
1. Click directly in the Record monitor.
2. Manually repatch to the previous track.
n
When you are patching from one video track to another, the Monitor icon moves to the track to which you patch. Be sure to return the icon to the topmost track when necessary to play back and output all video tracks.
Monitoring Tracks
You determine the monitoring of tracks by clicking the monitor column of either the source- or record-side tracks to activate or deactivate the Monitor icons.
95
Video Track Monitor button with Monitor icon
Audio Track Monitor button with black
Speaker icon
Audio Track Monitor button with hollow Speaker icon
The track monitor determines what you see and hear during playback.
You can turn track monitors off at any time to monitor only audio or only video during editing. When there are multiple tracks, all tracks below the monitored track are active during playback.
When you edit with multiple tracks, you can activate the monitor on a lower track to monitor only that track. This is especially useful when you have multiple layers of video effects and need to see one track without the additional layers.
n
If you reposition the Monitor icon, be sure to return it to the topmost track to view, render, or record all the tracks together. Unmonitored tracks are not included in playback.
Making the First Edit
As your first edit, lay down an audio clip, which can contain ambient sound, music, narration, or voice-over narration. First, you play the clip.
1. Double-click the audio clip, and play the clip in the Source monitor.
The clip displays as black because it is audio only.
2. Go to the head of the clip by pressing the Home key on your keyboard.
Now use digital audio scrub to find the specific frame you want to use in your sequence.
96
Using Digital Audio Scrub
Digital audio scrub is used to locate a specific frame of audio. Use it to locate the first frame of audio you want to include in your sequence.
1. Press the Caps Lock key to activate digital audio scrub.
Pressing and holding the Shift key while you play activates digital audio scrub temporarily.
n
Keeping digital audio scrub on continuously can slow the performance of
NewsCutter. When you are finished using audio scrub, you should take off the
Caps Lock, deactivating audio scrub.
2. Play the clip again, and click the Play button to stop at the approximate place where the music begins.
3. Press the Step (jog) keys (1, 2, 3, 4 on the keyboard) to locate the first frame you want, and click the Mark IN button.
When you use the Step keys, a frame of music or speech sounds scratchy or buzzlike. You might want to increase the volume of your speakers to hear the first frame of music.
4. Use the Step keys again to find the last frame of audio you want.
5. Click the Mark OUT button.
6. Press the Caps Lock key again to exit digital audio scrub.
Splicing Versus Overwriting Audio and Video
When you are editing audio or video into a sequence, you can use either Splice-in or Overwrite to perform the edit. Understanding the difference between the two will make it easier for you to put together your sequence to your satisfaction. They work the same way for either video or audio edits.
97
Splice-in button
Overwrite button
When you use Splice-in, everything from where you place your IN point forward shifts down to accommodate the clip you are splicing in. This lengthens your sequence and can cause other tracks to be out of sync.
When you use Overwrite, everything from where you place your IN point to the end of the clip you are overwriting is overwritten. This preserves the length of your sequence; you will overwrite whatever was already in the sequence for the duration of the new clip.
Splicing or Overwriting an Audio Clip
If no points are selected, the entire clip is edited into the Timeline.
Click the Splice-in button or the Overwrite button under the Source monitor to edit the clip into the Record monitor.
To edit the audio clip you marked in
“Using Digital Audio Scrub” on page 97 into your sequence:
1. Choose New Sequence from the Clip menu.
An untitled sequence appears in the bin, the Record monitor, and the Timeline.
2. Select the track into which you want to edit the audio by clicking the Track Selector button.
3. Activate the Source monitor by clicking the Source/Record Toggle button.
4. Press the Splice-in or Overwrite button under the Source monitor.
The clip is edited onto the track you selected. The first frame is the
IN point you marked in the clip; the last frame is the OUT point you marked in the clip.
The audio track appears in the Timeline. The sequence also appears in the Record monitor; it appears black because there is no video.
Now you are ready to add video to your sequence.
98
Splicing or Overwriting Video into a Sequence
You can start constructing your sequence by marking your clips and splicing or overwriting them into your sequence.
Play the whole clip through once first to get a sense of the material.
To splice or overwrite video into a sequence:
1. From one of your bins, double-click the clip with which you want to start your sequence.
Press and hold the Alt key while you double-click the clip to open the clip in a pop-up monitor.
2. Play through the clip, and decide where you want the clip to begin; mark an IN point.
You can use the Mark IN button under the monitor or press the E key on the keyboard.
n
All keys referred to here are from the default keyboard configuration. If you remap your keyboard, your keys may not match those included in these instructions.
Deselected
3. Mark an OUT point where you want the clip to end.
You can use the Mark OUT button under the monitor or press the
R key on the keyboard.
n
If you do not mark an IN point and an OUT point, the entire clip will be edited into the sequence.
4. Select only the track where you want this clip to be recorded.
For example, if you wanted only video, you would deselect the audio tracks. A track is gray when it is deselected; it changes color when it is selected.
5. Click the Splice-in or Overwrite button under the Source monitor, or press the V or B key on the keyboard.
99
When you want to bring an open bin or monitor to the foreground, you can click anywhere in it or choose its name from the Windows menu.
The clip is edited onto the track you selected in the Timeline and the monitor switches to the Record monitor where the clip is displayed. The position indicator rests on the first frame of black following the splice.
6. Do one of the following to move to the head of the sequence:
• Press the Home key on the keyboard.
• Click the beginning of the Timeline.
7. Click the Play button to play the clip in the sequence.
8. Continue adding clips to your sequence, following the steps above.
Marking Clips for Storyboarding
Another way of starting your sequence is to use storyboarding.
Storyboarding lets you set up a group of clips in order and then load them into the Record monitor all at once. You can use storyboarding to start your sequence or to add clips to an already existing sequence.
When you storyboard, you arrange clips in a bin in the order in which you want them to appear in the sequence. You then select the group of clips and drag them to the Timeline.
To add a group of clips to your sequence by using storyboarding:
1. Open the clips you are going to use by double-clicking their icons in the bin.
The clips appear in the Source monitor. Use the monitor menu next to the clip icon in the Source monitor to view each clip in turn.
2. Mark IN and OUT points in each clip.
If you are using the whole clip, you don’t need to mark IN and
OUT points.
100
Frame view
3. Display the bin where the clips are in Frame view; click the lower right corner of the bin and drag to enlarge the window.
4. Choose Fill Window from the Bin menu to arrange the clips in the bin.
5. Arrange the clips in the order in which you want them to appear in two or three rows, from left to right, and top to bottom, to form the storyboard.
Make sure you maintain the order of clips.
Now you are ready to load the marked clips into the sequence.
6. Select only the record track where you want the clips to go.
7. Select the storyboarded clips all at once: a. Position the mouse pointer in the bin in the blank area just to the left of the first clip. b. Lasso the clips by dragging the pointer to the right and down, making sure to select all the storyboarded clips.
101
A box forms as you move the mouse, starting next to the first clip and ending at the last pointer position. All the names are highlighted.
8. Click one of the clips (on the image, not the name), and drag the group into the Timeline. Release the mouse when a red arrow appears in the Record monitor.
The shots are edited into the sequence in the order you specified.
9. Move the position indicator to the head of the sequence.
10. Click the Play button under the Record monitor.
Using the Go to IN and Go to OUT Buttons
Go to
IN
Go to
OUT
NewsCutter provides a number of methods for snapping the position indicator to an IN or an OUT point.
To go to an IN point, do one of the following:
• Click the Go to IN button.
• Press the Q key on the default keyboard.
• Press and hold the Alt key, and click the Mark IN button under the
Record monitor.
To go to an OUT point, do one of the following:
• Click the Go to OUT button.
• Press the W key on the default keyboard.
• Press and hold the Alt key, and click the Mark OUT button under the Record monitor.
102
Moving to the Head or Tail of a Shot
Before splicing in a clip, make sure the position indicator is on the first frame of black after the last edit (head) or on the last frame of the previous clip (tail).
To move to the head of a shot:
1. Move the position indicator in the Timeline anywhere to the right of the transition where you want the edit to occur.
2. While pressing and holding the Ctrl key, click the mouse between the transition and the position indicator toward the head of the clip.
The position indicator snaps to the first frame of the shot.
To move to the tail of a shot:
1. Move the position indicator in the Timeline anywhere to the left of the transition where you want the edit to occur.
2. While pressing and holding the Alt and Ctrl keys, click the mouse between the position indicator and the transition toward the tail of the clip.
The position indicator snaps to the last frame of the shot.
Undoing an Edit
Use the Undo feature whenever you want to go back a step. You can undo or redo up to 32 previous actions listed in the Edit menu.
Choose Undo from the Edit menu, or press Ctrl+Z.
103
Redoing an Edit
Use the Redo feature whenever you want to get back to what you had before you did an Undo. You can redo up to 32 previous undo actions listed in the Edit menu.
Choose Redo from the Edit menu, or press Ctrl+R.
Splicing a Shot into the Middle of a Sequence
With nonlinear editing, you can splice a shot anywhere in your sequence.
To splice a clip at a transition point between two clips:
1. Double-click the clip you want to splice into the sequence.
The clip opens in the Source monitor.
2. Mark the IN and OUT points.
3. Make sure the track(s) you want to splice the clip into is selected.
4. Move the position indicator anywhere in the clip to the right of the transition where you want to splice the clip.
5. While pressing the Ctrl key, click the mouse between the transition and the position indicator.
6. Click the Splice-in button, or press the V key on the keyboard.
Wherever you splice a shot into the middle of a sequence, the rest of the sequence moves down. Splicing lengthens the material on the track.
7. Play the sequence so far to see what you have done.
104
C HAPTER 7
Refining the Edit
This chapter describes how to refine your story once you have completed your rough cut. Topics include:
•
•
Overwriting Shots into a Sequence
•
•
105
Editing in Segment Mode
Segment mode provides editing controls for moving, deleting, marking, and editing entire segments in the Timeline. A segment is a portion of the sequence that includes two or more transitions. There are two modes for editing segments or adding shots: Extract/Splice-in, indicated by a yellow arrow, and Lift/Overwrite, indicated by a red arrow.
Unlike traditional tape editing, Segment mode allows you to instantly reposition entire segments using visual controls as though you were physically “dragging” portions of your sequence around on a tape.
You can move shots separately or together, on one track or across tracks.
Guidelines for Editing in Segment Mode
Observe the following guidelines when editing in Segment mode:
• Transition effects on either side of a moved selection are deleted.
Transition effects inside the selection are preserved.
• You can track the audio while moving segments by pressing the
Caps Lock key to enable audio scrub.
• When you are finished, Segment mode continues to affect your editing unless you click the active Segment Mode button to deactivate it.
• Once you have selected one or more segments and entered
Segment mode, you can reposition the segments with the Segment
Mode pointer.
106
Identifying Segment Mode Buttons
Segment Mode buttons
Extract/Splice-in
Lift/Overwrite
In Chapter 6, you used the Splice-in or Overwrite button. The Splice-in and Overwrite buttons under the Source monitor take clips from the
Source monitor and put them into the Timeline. The Segment Mode buttons, Extract/Splice-in and Lift/Overwrite in the Timeline, move segments around within the Timeline. Although the button names are similar, you use them for different purposes.
Rearranging Footage with Extract/Splice-in
Extract/Splice-in is a great tool for changing the order of shots in a sequence.
To reverse the position of two shots in a sequence:
1. Click the yellow Segment Mode (Extract/Splice-in) button below the Timeline.
When the button is activated, its background changes to light gray.
2. Select only the track on which you want to rearrange clips.
3. Drag the selected clip to its new location and release the mouse.
4. Click the Extract/Splice-in button again to deactivate it.
5. Click the Timeline in front of the two shots, and play the sequence to see how it looks now.
If you don’t like the change, press Ctrl+Z or use the Undo command from the Edit menu to go back to the way the sequence was before you made your change.
107
Removing Footage with Extract/Splice-in
To remove a clip from the sequence and close up the sequence:
1. Click the yellow Segment Mode (Extract/Splice-in) button below the Timeline.
2. Click anywhere in the clip you want to remove, and then
Shift+click any other track you want to remove as well.
The clip is highlighted on all tracks you selected.
3. Press the Delete key on the keyboard.
The selected shot is eliminated, and the surrounding shots close the gap.
4. Click the Extract/Splice-in button again to deselect it.
Removing Footage with Lift/Overwrite
Lift/Overwrite is a useful tool if you want to remove a clip while preserving the position of the rest of the clips in the sequence. For example, if you wanted to replace a clip in the sequence but leave the audio untouched, Lift/Overwrite would create a gap where you could just drop in the replacement clip.
To remove a clip from the sequence:
1. Click the red Segment Mode (Lift/Overwrite) button below the
Timeline.
2. Click anywhere in the clip you want to remove, and then
Shift+click any other track you want to remove as well.
The clip is highlighted on all tracks you selected.
108
3. Press the Delete key on the keyboard.
The selected shot is eliminated, and the surrounding shots stay where they were. You now have a gap the length of the clip you just removed.
4. Click the Lift/Overwrite button again to deselect it.
Overwriting Shots into a Sequence
In addition to splicing, you can overwrite shots into a sequence. An overwrite edit replaces a section of a sequence with other source footage. An overwrite edit does not affect the length of the sequence.
To overwrite a clip into your sequence:
1. Make sure the Record monitor is active.
2. Move the position indicator in the Timeline to where you want the overwrite to begin.
3. Mark an IN point.
IN point
4. Open the clip you want to edit into the sequence.
5. Mark IN and OUT points in the clip.
6. Click the Overwrite button under the Source monitor, or press the
B key on the keyboard.
The shot overwrites the existing clip for the duration that you set with your IN and OUT points.
109
Rearranging Shots
You can rearrange shots by overwriting material, lifting material, or removing material. Overwriting material doesn’t change the length of the sequence. Lifting material leaves filler and does not affect the length of the sequence. Removing material shortens the length of the sequence.
Overwriting with the Three-Point Edit
The three-point edit is an excellent way to replace a shot in a sequence.
Use the Mark Clip button to select the shot in the sequence (or mark an
IN point and OUT point for a segment that is not a single shot), and mark either the IN or OUT point in the source clip. The system calculates the exact duration of the source clip to insert.
To overwrite a clip with a three-point edit:
1. Move the position indicator to the clip you want to replace.
2. Select only the record tracks you want to replace.
You could replace just the audio by deselecting the video tracks before you mark the clip, or you could replace just the video tracks by deselecting the audio tracks.
3. Click the Mark Clip button under the Record monitor, or press the
T key on the keyboard.
The IN and OUT points appear at the head and tail of the clip in the TC1 track in the Timeline; the marked segment changes to purple.
The IN and OUT points also appear in the Record monitor’s position bar.
4. Open the clip you want to edit into the sequence and mark an IN point where you want the edit to begin.
5. Clear any OUT marks.
110
6. Click the red Overwrite button, or press the B key on the keyboard to make the three-point edit.
The new clip replaces the existing shot.
n
The length of the clip you are editing in must be long enough to replace what you are overwriting.
7. Play the sequence to see how the new clip works.
Removing Footage with Lift
Lift retains the gap after lifting footage from the sequence. Use Lift if you want to maintain the rhythm of a sequence or the synchronization of the video and audio tracks.
If you have a shot that plays for too long, but you want the next shot to remain in sync with the audio, use Lift to shorten the clip. Using Lift maintains the same entrance point for the next shot. You can then go back and put something in its place.
To remove footage by using Lift:
1. Select only the track where you want to lift a clip.
2. Mark an IN point in the sequence where you want the lift to begin.
3. Mark an OUT point where you want the lift to end.
You must mark IN and OUT points in the sequence.
4. Click the Lift button in the Command palette, or press the Lift key
(Z key) on the keyboard to remove the segment.
The selected segment lifts out and leaves black filler in its place.
111
Basic Trim Procedures
Trimming allows you to adjust incoming and outgoing frames of your clip. There are three types of trims: Top and Tail, dual-roller, and single-roller.
Trim Using Top and Tail
Once you have recorded footage to the Timeline, use the Top and Tail buttons to perform quick trims. Trimming using Top and Tail is the fastest way to trim. To use Top and Tail, it is not necessary to enter
Trim mode.
To quickly trim footage from the beginning of a clip:
1. Move the position indicator to where you want the clip to start.
2. Press the Y key on the keyboard, or click the Top button.
The footage from the position indicator to the beginning of the clip is trimmed.
To quickly trim footage from the end of a clip:
1. Move the position indicator to where you want the clip to end.
2. Press the U key on the keyboard, or click the Tail button.
The footage from the position indicator to the end of the clip is trimmed.
112
Entering Trim Mode
You can enter Trim mode in several different ways, depending on the type of trim you expect to perform. Once in Trim mode, you can:
• Select additional tracks
• Switch between trim sides
• Perform and play back the trim
There are two methods for entering Trim mode:
• Clicking the Trim Mode button in the Other tab of the
Command palette.
The system enters Trim mode and selects the tracks nearest the position indicator for dual-roller trimming. This method is useful for selecting straight-cut transitions on one track or across video and audio tracks.
n
You can map the Trim Mode button to the Tool palette for easier access.
Transition selected for trimming
When you deselect one or more tracks in the Track Selector panel, by default only the transitions in the highlighted tracks are selected for trimming. If the transitions are not straight cuts
(overlap cuts or L-edits), the system highlights the topmost track nearest the position indicator.
113
Transition effect placement and duration
Outgoing video
A-side frame counter
• Using the Play Loop button in the Play tab of the Command palette.
This is useful if you like to trim quickly as you edit, going back and forth between Trim mode and other edit modes.
Once you are in Trim mode, the Record monitor changes to allow you to perform trim functions. The Trim Mode window is shown in
Pre- & Post-roll for Play Loop
Incoming video
B-side frame counter
Play Loop button Trim frame buttons
Figure 7-1 Trim Mode Window
114
Selecting Between Trim Sides
A-side B-side
Highlight indicates active sides
To select sides of a transition to trim:
• Click the outgoing (A-side) or incoming (B-side) monitor to define which side of the transition to trim. Notice that the pointer changes to a single-roller A-side, single-roller B-side, or doubleroller icon, depending on position.
The selected parts of the transition are highlighted, and the corresponding rollers appear in the Timeline. Also, one or both of the frame counter indicators below the monitors are highlighted to reflect the active trim sides: A-side, B-side, or both. The number indicates how many frames have been added or subtracted (–) from the transition.
Sync Locking Tracks
The sync lock feature allows you to maintain sync among several tracks while adding or removing frames in Trim mode. For example, if you insert an edit into one track that is sync locked to a second track, the system automatically inserts filler in the second track to maintain sync between the two.
The middle row of the Track Selector panel displays a Sync Lock icon for sync-locked tracks.
There are several unique aspects to sync locking:
• Sync locking is a Trim mode feature only. Edits performed in
Source/Record, Segment, or Effect mode will override synclocked tracks.
• Sync locking applies to single-roller trims only, because dual-roller trims do not break sync.
• You can sync lock any number of tracks in any combination. In other words, the tracks do not require matching timecode or
115
common sources and can include multiple video tracks as well as audio tracks.
• Sync locking affects entire tracks. This means that parallel segments in other sync-locked tracks are affected when you trim anywhere in the sequence.
Performing a Basic Trim
With your transitions and trim sides selected, you can perform a basic trim by using one of the following procedures:
• Use the Trim buttons to trim forward or backward by 1- or 10frame increments.
Trim Left
10 Frames
Trim Right
10 Frames
Trim Left
1 Frame
Trim Right
1 Frame
• Use the numeric keypad at the right side of the keyboard, as follows:
To move the transition a specific number of frames, type a plus sign (+) or minus sign (–) and the number of frames (from
1 to 99) you want to move forward or backward. Then press
Enter. If the number of frames is larger than 99, type an F after the number to indicate frame count. For example, to enter 200 frames, type 200F and press Enter.
To move the transition to an exact timecode, type a timecode number larger than 99, including frames. For example, type
102 to enter 1 second and 2 frames.
• Use controls in the Timeline by clicking a roller at the selected transition and dragging forward or backward in the sequence.
116
Click and drag the roller to perform your trim.
As you trim, all selected transitions in the Timeline move in unison.
The frame counter displays the frame count backward or forward for one or both trim sides, and the monitors display the new incoming or outgoing frames.
Dual-Roller Trimming
Use a dual-roller trim to adjust both sides of a transition simultaneously, adding frames to one shot while subtracting frames from the adjacent shot. The total duration of the sequence does not change.
To perform a dual-roller trim:
1. Select the record track you want to trim.
2. Move the position indicator near the transition you want to trim, and click the Trim Mode button.
The position indicator snaps to the transition.
3. Play the transition by clicking the Play Loop button.
The transition plays repeatedly.
4. To stop the playback loop, click the Play Loop button again.
5. If you’re trimming an audio track, press the Caps Lock key on the keyboard so you can hear the audio as you trim.
117
To use digital audio scrub, make sure the speaker icon for the record track you want to trim is hollow. Alt+click the Speaker icon to change it to hollow. Increase the speaker volume if necessary.
6. Perform your trim by using one of the following methods:
• Use the Trim buttons to trim forward or backward by 1- or 10frame increments.
• Use the numeric keypad at the right side of the keyboard to enter a plus sign (+) or minus sign (–) and the number of frames (from 1 to 99) you want to move forward or backward.
Then press Enter. To move the transition to an exact timecode, type a timecode number larger than 99, including frames.
• Use controls in the Timeline by clicking a roller at the selected transition and dragging forward or backward in the sequence.
7. Play the transition again by using the Play Loop button.
Single-Roller Trimming
A-side B-side
Frame counters
In single-roller trimming, you trim only one side. Since you are not compensating by adding to the other side, you shorten the sequence.
1. Select the record track you want to trim.
2. Enter Trim mode and click the frame counter on the side you want to trim.
The frame counter on the side you selected remains purple, while the other side is gray. Trimming the A-side shortens the outgoing clip; trimming the B-side shortens the incoming clip.
3. If you’re trimming an audio track, press the Caps Lock key on the keyboard so you can hear the audio as you trim.
To use digital audio scrub, make sure the Speaker icon for the record track you want to trim is hollow. Alt+click the Speaker icon to change it to hollow. Increase the speaker volume if necessary.
118
4. Perform your trim by using one of the following methods:
• Use the Trim buttons to trim forward or backward by 1- or 10frame increments.
• Use the numeric keypad at the right side of the keyboard to enter a plus sign (+) or minus sign (–) and the number of frames (from 1 to 99) you want to move forward or backward.
Then press Enter. To move the transition to an exact timecode, type a timecode number larger than 99, including frames.
• Use controls in the Timeline by clicking a roller at the selected transition and dragging forward or backward in the sequence.
5. Play the transition again by using the Play Loop button.
Exiting Trim Mode
You can exit Trim mode at any time in one of several ways:
• Click the Step buttons under the Trim monitor.
• Press the Esc key on the keyboard.
• Click a specific location in the Timecode (TC1) track at the bottom of the Timeline. The position indicator moves to that location.
Audio Editing
NewsCutter provides audio scrub features and waveform plots specifically designed for frame-accurate cueing, marking, and editing of audio. You can use these features at any time during editing or while making adjustments with the audio tools.
119
Adjusting Audio Level
You can make the audio in a clip louder or softer as needed. For example, to make the audio clip on A2 louder:
1. Select record track A2, and deselect track A1.
2. Move the position indicator anywhere on the audio clip you want to adjust.
3. Choose Audio Mix from the Tools menu.
4. In the A2 area, move the A2 Audio Level slider to level +6 by doing one of the following:
• Drag the slider to level +6.
• Click the Volume Level display box, and type 6 .
• Click the Volume Level display box, and press the Up Arrow or Down Arrow key on the keyboard to reach level +6.
Play Loop button
Volume Level display box
Volume Level display
120
5. Play a portion of the shot, or use the Play Loop button in the
Audio Mix tool.
6. If the volume is still too low, activate the Audio Mix tool by clicking in it, and move the slider up, trying level +10.
Continue to adjust the level until it sounds right.
Adjusting Audio Pan
You may have audio for a sequence that plays only out of the left speaker or only out of the right speaker. You can adjust the audio pan
(balance) so the sound plays equally from both speakers.
To adjust audio pan:
1. Clear any IN or OUT points from the sequence by clicking the
Clear Both Marks button in the Edit tab of the Command palette or by pressing the G key on the keyboard.
2. Select record tracks A1 and A2.
3. Choose Audio Mix from the Tools menu.
4. Click the Timeline’s position indicator at a point that has audio on track A1.
121
Pan Value display
To make the slider snap to MID, press the Alt key and click the Pan slider.
Pan slider
5. Drag the Pan slider to the middle of the scale until it reads MID.
6. Pull down the Pan Value display for track A2, and drag the Pan slider until it reads MID.
7. Play a portion of the sequence to check speaker balance.
8. Click the Close button to close the Audio Mix tool.
122
C HAPTER 8
Adding Effects
Adding an effect to a clip enhances your sequence by fading in or out of a scene or adding video or a graphic on top of a clip. The effects that are available for your NewsCutter system depend on the model and options that you purchased. This chapter explains effects editing in the following sections:
•
•
•
•
•
Applying Effects to a Sequence
•
•
•
•
•
Adding a Picture-in-Picture Effect
•
123
Effects Editing
NewsCutter offers many effects that you can apply to your sequences.
This chapter explains how to create motion effects and how to apply effects from the Effect Palette to transitions or segments (clips) in your sequence. After you have selected and applied the effect, you can adjust the effect parameters to meet your requirements.
Effects, with the exception of some motion effects, are not real-time, which means you must render them before you play them. You can preview effects that are not real-time before rendering. Rendering an effect creates a media file that plays with the sequence. When an effect is rendered, the system stores the effect and its media file as a precomputed master clip (often referred to as a precompute). The system uses the precompute to play the effect at its normal speed.
After you create an effect, you can save it as an effect template and reapply the template to other transitions or segments in your sequence. Some effects can be applied only to transitions, other effects can be applied only to segments, and some effects can be applied to both transitions and segments. In addition, some effects can be applied to a single video layer and others to multiple video layers.
You can also save certain effects, such as dissolves, in a Quick Effects bin and access the effect parameters later through the Quick Effects dialog box. With the Quick Effects bin, you apply the effects quickly and easily as many times as you want while you edit your story.
You access the majority of effects through the Effect Palette, but creating motion effects requires a slightly different procedure.
Therefore, motion effects editing, which is available for all models of
NewsCutter, is described in its own section.
124
Creating Motion Effects
A motion effect controls the rate at which NewsCutter plays the video channel and is applied to clips in the Source monitor. When you use a motion effect to slow down a clip, the effect is real-time. When you speed up a clip, however, you must render the effect. Motion effects include:
• Freeze Frame
• Variable Speed and Strobe Motion
Creating Freeze Frame Effects
When you create a Freeze Frame effect, NewsCutter creates a new clip in the Source monitor and in the current bin. The new clip has the same name as the original clip, but is followed by the letters FF. In addition, a Motion Effect icon appears next to the clip in the bin.
To create a Freeze Frame effect:
1. Load the frame that you want to freeze into the Source monitor.
2. Choose Freeze Frame from the Clip menu.
A pop-up menu appears.
3. Select or specify the Duration.
4. (Option) Select a Two-Field Freeze Frame parameter. For more information, see “Freeze Frame effect,two-field parameter” in the
Help index.
5. Click OK.
After NewsCutter creates the new Freeze Frame clip, you can edit the clip into your sequence.
125
Creating Variable Speed and Strobe Motion Effects
Motion Effect button
As with Freeze Frame effects, when you create Variable Speed and
Strobe Motion effects, NewsCutter creates a new clip in the Source monitor and in the current bin. The new clip has the same name as the original clip but is followed by the frame rate in parentheses. A
Motion Effect icon appears next to the clip in the bin.
To create a Variable Speed or Strobe Motion effect:
1. Load the clip into the Source monitor.
2. Mark the IN and OUT points.
3. From the Fast menu below the Source menu, click the Motion
Effect button.
4. Choose the appropriate options. For more information, see
“Motion effects,Variable Speed options” in the Help index.
5. Click Create and Render.
After NewsCutter renders the new clip, you can edit it into your sequence.
126
Displaying the Effect Palette
See
and
information on these options.
You select most effects from the Effect Palette in the Tools menu (see
Figure 8-1 ). The exceptions are motion effects and titles that you create
with the Title tool.
Figure 8-1 Effect Palette
The effects in the Effect Palette are grouped by effect category:
• Blend
• Box Wipe
• Conceal
• Edge Wipe
• Image
• Key
• L-Conceal
• Matrix Wipe
• Peel
• Push
• Sawtooth Wipe
127
• Shape Wipe
• Spin
• Squeeze
Each of these effect categories contains multiple effects.
Effect Types
There are two primary types of effects that are defined by where you use them in a sequence:
• Transition effects
• Segment effects (single-layer and multilayer)
Transition Effects
A transition is the point where two clips meet. You apply a transition effect to the cut point between two clips on the same video track. After you apply a transition effect, you can adjust its relative position and duration. Depending on the specific effect, other effect parameters may apply.
Transition effects are included in all effect categories in the Effect
Palette, except the Image effect category.
n
You can save transition effects as Quick Effects to speed up the editing
process. For more information, see “Creating Quick Effects” on page 134
.
128
Segment Effects
You apply a segment effect to an entire clip or a group of clips. There are two types of segment effects:
• A single-layer segment effect, such as a Mask effect, is applied to a segment on one video track.
• A multilayer segment effect, such as a Picture-in-Picture effect, is applied to the top layer of segments that contain two video tracks that will be played simultaneously.
Applying Effects to a Sequence
This section explains how to apply an effect to a sequence in the
Record monitor. You can apply an effect:
• To one transition or segment on a single video layer
• To multiple transitions or segments on a single video layer
• To multiple transitions or segments on multiple video layers
The effect type (transition or segment) determines where you can place the effect in the sequence. For an explanation of the types of effects, see “Effects,types of” in the Help index.
After you apply an effect, the next step is to adjust the effect’s parameters. To understand how to adjust the effect parameters, see
“Effect mode,adjusting parameters in” in the Help index.
Working in Effect Mode
After you have created an effect and applied it to a transition or segment in your sequence, you can adjust its appearance and operation by changing its effect parameters in the Effect Editor.
129
To open the Effect Editor, choose Effect Editor from the Tools menu.
Not all effect parameters apply to all effects. Parameters that do not apply to an effect do not appear in the Effect Editor. The Effect Editor
Effect icon
Reduce
Enlarge
Play Loop
Play
Transition Effect
Duration
Add
Keyframe
Render
Effect
Play
Preview
Grid
Outline/
Path
Transition
Effect
Alignment
Figure 8-2 Effect Editor
Adding Transition Effects
Transition effects are added between two clips. Effects you can use include Blend, Box Wipe, Conceal, Edge Wipe, Key, L-Conceal, Matrix
Wipe, Peel, Push, Sawtooth Wipe, Shape Wipe, Spin, and Squeeze.
130
Adding Fade In
To add a fade-in effect to a transition:
1. Select the record track where you want the fade in.
2. Move the position indicator to where you want the effect.
3. Click the Quick Effect button in the Tool palette.
The Quick Effect dialog box appears.
4. Create a dissolve (fade in): a. Choose Dissolve from the Add pop-up menu.
b. Type the duration of the dissolve in the Duration text box.
For example, typing 20 would create a 20-frame fade in.
c. Choose Starting at Cut from the Position pop-up menu.
5. Choose the disk drive on which the effect media file should be stored from the Target Disk pop-up menu.
The default disk drive is Effect Source Disk.
131
6. Click Add and Render to render the effect.
The system creates the media file of the video effect during the rendering process. It also places a Dissolve icon in the Timeline where you added the effect.
7. Play the effect. Press the space bar to stop playback.
Dissolving Between Shots
The most common effect is dissolving between two shots in the sequence.
To dissolve between shots:
1. Select the record track where you want the Dissolve effect to occur.
2. Move the position indicator to where you want the effect.
3. Click the Quick Effect button in the Tool palette.
The Quick Effect dialog box appears.
4. Create a Dissolve effect, centered on the cut: a. Choose Dissolve from the Add pop-up menu.
b. Type the duration of the dissolve in the Duration text box.
c. Choose Centered on Cut from the Position pop-up menu.
5. Choose the disk drive on which the effect media file should be stored.
6. Click Add and Render.
7. Play the effect. Press the space bar to stop playback.
You can continue to add Dissolve effects to transitions where you want them throughout the sequence. The last parameters that you set stay in the Quick Effect dialog box, so you can quickly create Dissolve effects with the same parameters. Alternately, save the parameters as a Quick
Effect. You can then access the effect parameters whenever you want.
See
“Creating Quick Effects” on page 134 for more information.
132
Insufficient Footage for a Dissolve
It can happen that when you attempt to apply a dissolve, you get an error message telling you there is not enough footage to create the dissolve (see
). It means there is no source footage, or
“handle,” left for the dissolve to use.
To fix the error, you can trim back each side of the dissolve, shorten the duration, or change the placement of the dissolve, for example, from
Centered on Cut to Starting at Cut. You can have NewsCutter make the adjustment for you by clicking Size to Fit in the Insufficient Source dialog box.
Figure 8-3 Insufficient Source Dialog Box
Creating Audio Dissolves
It is just as easy to add audio dissolves, and the procedure is the same as adding video dissolves. Be sure to select only the audio track and deselect other tracks.
133
Adding a Fade Within the Sequence
You can also create a fade to black within a sequence:
1. Select only the track where you want the fade to occur.
2. Move the position indicator to where you want the fade to black to occur.
3. Without moving the position indicator, mark both an IN point and an OUT point on that frame.
n
Do not use the Mark Clip button.
4. Click the Segment Mode (Lift/Overwrite) button below the
Timeline.
5. Press the Z key.
A single frame is lifted from the sequence, leaving one frame of black.
6. Deselect the Lift/Overwrite button.
7. Add a Dissolve effect, ending at the cut.
8. Select the disk drive and click Add and Render to add and render the Dissolve effect.
9. Play the effect.
Creating Quick Effects
If you plan to use a particular transition effect many times in a sequence, you can save it as a Quick Effect, which allows you to quickly add the effect to your sequence.
134
To create a Quick Effect:
1. Create a bin with the name Quick Effects in the current project. For
more information, see “Creating a Quick Effects Bin” on page 45
.
n
If you want to use a Quick Effect in multiple projects, you must copy the bin to each project.
2. Apply a transition effect to your sequence.
3. Use the Effect Editor to adjust the effect parameters.
4. Render the effect.
5. Drag the effect icon from the Effect Editor into the Quick Effects bin.
6. Rename the effect.
7. In the Timeline, move the position indicator to where you want the Quick Effect.
8. Click the Quick Effect button in the Tool palette.
The Quick Effect dialog box appears.
9. Choose the Quick Effect you created earlier from the Add pop-up menu.
10. Click Add and Render to render the effect.
Adding Keyframes
You can add keyframes to an effect, giving you more control over the effect’s parameters. At each keyframe, you can change parameters for things like position, opacity, or border softness. Adding keyframes lets you create a motion path for an effect by changing the effect’s position at each keyframe.
135
To add keyframes:
1. Apply an effect where you want one to occur.
2. Move the position indicator to the location within the Effect
Preview monitor position bar where you want the keyframe.
3. Click the Add Keyframe button under the Effect Preview monitor, or press the N key.
In a Picture-in-Picture effect, you can add an unlimited number of keyframes. In any other type of effect, you can add as many as four keyframes.
Adding a Picture-in-Picture Effect
You can add a Picture-in-Picture effect to create a window with one image, while another image plays in the background. When you use a
Picture-in-Picture effect, you must have video on tracks 1 and 2.
To create the Picture-in-Picture effect:
1. Select track V2 and its monitor.
2. Choose Effect Palette from the Tools menu.
The Blend effects, including Picture-in-Picture, are displayed in a list on the right side of the Effect Palette.
136
Effect icon
3. Move the position indicator to the clip where you want the
Picture-in-Picture effect.
4. Click the Picture-in-Picture Effect icon in the Effect Palette, and drag it to the clip.
The effect icon appears in the Timeline and the clip with the
Picture-in-Picture effect appears in a box in the middle of the
).
5. Render the effect or continue to modify the Picture-in-Picture effect as described in the sections that follow.
To render the effect, see
“Rendering an Effect” on page 142
.
137
Foreground image (V2)
Background filler (V1)
Figure 8-4 Picture-in-Picture Effect
Repositioning the Image
You can move Picture-in-Picture images anywhere on the screen.
To move a Picture-in-Picture image:
1. Click the Effect Mode button in the Other tab of the Command palette, or choose Effect Editor from the Tools menu to enter Effect mode.
Parameters for the Picture-in-Picture effect appear in the Effect
Editor.
2. In the Timeline, move the position indicator directly over the effect icon.
138
3. Make sure the track with the effect is selected.
4. If there aren’t drag handles on the Picture-in-Picture image, click the Outline/Path button, and then click the image.
Drag handles (the dots at the edges and in the middle of the box) appear, and a white hand appears when the mouse is over a handle.
5. Click in the image, and drag the image to where you want it to appear.
n
The center dot corresponds to the active keyframe, so when you reposition the image by using the center dot handle, you change the position of the image at the active keyframe.
6. Render the effect or continue to modify the Picture-in-Picture effect as described in the sections that follow.
To render the effect, see
“Rendering an Effect” on page 142
.
By adding additional keyframes and changing the position of the
Picture-in-Picture image at each keyframe, you can create a motion path for your effect. For more information on creating a motion path, see “Motion paths,defining” in the Help index.
Adjusting a Parameter
There are many parameters you can use to adjust the way an effect appears. For example, you can add a border, soften the edges, and adjust opacity.
To soften the edges of the Picture-in-Picture image so that it blends into the background image, adjust the softness:
1. Click the Soft slider in the Border parameter category in the Effect
Editor.
2. Drag the Soft slider to the right, or enter a numeric value by using the keypad.
139
You may need to play with the values to get the effect that you want.
Soft slider
3. Click the Play Preview button in the Effect Editor to view the effect.
4. Render the effect when you are finished adjusting parameters. See
“Rendering an Effect” on page 142 .
Figure 8-5 shows the same image as
but with the edges softened and the position slightly changed.
140
Figure 8-5 Picture-in-Picture Effect with Softness
Dissolving the Picture-in-Picture On and Off
You can create the effect of having the Picture-in-Picture dissolve on and off by adding keyframes. These let the system know where the dissolve should start and end.
To dissolve the Picture-in-Picture on and off:
1. In the Timeline, move the position indicator directly over the effect icon.
2. Click the Effect Mode button if you’re not already in Effect mode.
3. In the Record monitor, click the first keyframe so it is the only keyframe highlighted.
4. Drag the Level slider in the Effect Editor all the way to the left to display 0.
141
5. With the Record monitor active, type +1:00 on the numeric keypad and press Enter.
This moves the position indicator one second after the first keyframe.
6. Click the Add Keyframe button beneath the Effect Preview monitor.
7. Drag the Level slider all the way to the right to display 100.
8. Click the mouse button on the last keyframe.
9. Drag the Level slider all the way to the left to display 0.
10. With the Record monitor active, type -15 on the numeric keypad and press Enter.
This moves the position indicator 15 frames before the last keyframe.
11. Click the Add Keyframe button.
12. Drag the Level slider all the way to the left to display 100.
13. Render the effect. See
“Rendering an Effect” on page 142
.
First keyframe Last keyframe
Rendering an Effect
You must render a non-real-time effect before it can be played. When an effect is rendered, the system stores the effect and its media file as a precomputed master clip (often referred to as a precompute). The system uses the precompute to play the effect at its normal speed.
142
To render an effect:
1. Move the position indicator to the effect icon.
2. Select the track where the effect is located.
3. Click the Render Effect button in the Tool palette.
The Choose Volume dialog box appears.
4. Select a target disk drive from the pop-up menu and click OK.
The Effect Source Disk is the default disk for storing the rendered effect.
5. (Option) Press the T key to display the render time or the P key to see the render percentage time in the Render status box.
6. After the effect is rendered, close the Effect Palette.
7. To save your work, choose Save All Bins from the File menu.
143
C HAPTER 9
Creating Titles
You can create a new title with the Title tool and save the title in a bin, or add a new video track to the Timeline if you want the title to appear over video. This is described in the following sections:
•
•
Understanding the Title Tool Window
•
•
Formatting Text in the Title Tool
•
Selecting Objects in the Title Tool
•
Choosing Colors and Setting Transparency
•
•
•
•
Repositioning Text and Objects
•
•
•
•
Editing the Title into the Sequence
•
144
Working with Titles
You can create a new title with or without a sequence in the Timeline.
However, if you want to create a title with a video background, you can load a video clip into the Source monitor to use as a reference frame while you create the title. The video reference frame you select appears in the background of the Title tool while you create the title.
The reference frame makes it easier to position text and objects exactly where you want them and to select colors from the frame to use in the text and objects.
There are three basic ways to work with titles:
• Create a new title by choosing New Title from the Clip menu.
• Edit an existing title by pressing and holding the Ctrl key and double-clicking a Title Effect icon in a bin or by dragging the existing title from a bin into the open Title tool.
• Edit an existing title that is in a sequence.
The main difference between the three methods is that you can use
Save As for the first two, but you cannot use Save As for the third method.
Because NewsCutter automatically loads the new title into the Source monitor, you can immediately use standard editing procedures to edit the title into your sequence. If you create multiple titles in the same
Title tool session, the system loads the last title you create into the
Source monitor.
n
After you create a title with a particular video format (PAL or NTSC), if you want to create a title for a project using the other video format, you must exit and restart NewsCutter.
145
NewsCutter saves each title you create to a bin. You can load a title into the Source monitor at any time or drag the Title Effect icon from the bin to a segment in the Timeline. You can also drag a title from the bin onto an existing title in the Timeline; this replaces the existing title. n
The procedures described in this section use a video reference frame to create a title.
Understanding the Title Tool Window
It is helpful to understand the components of the Title tool so you know what options you have for working with text, graphic objects, color, and shadows.
To open the Title tool, choose New Title from the Clip menu. The Title tool window has several major components (see
):
• The toolbar at the bottom of the screen
• A video or color background
• The title that you create
• The safe title and safe action area guidelines
For more information, see “Safe Title/Action Area” in the Help index.
146
The following illustration shows a title over a video background:
Safe action area
Safe title area
Title
Toolbar
Figure 9-1 Title Tool Window
Adding Text
By default, the Text tool is active when you open the Title tool. Click in the Title tool at the position where you want to begin entering text.
Text tool
147
To use the Text tool at any other time, click the Text tool, click anywhere within the title frame, and begin typing. A blinking vertical bar indicates your cursor position in the frame.
The Text tool remains selected until you select another tool. n
If you press the Alt key and click anywhere in the Title tool, you switch between the Selection tool and the Text tool.
Formatting Text in the Title Tool
The text formatting tools control the appearance of text. If a text object is selected when you change an attribute, NewsCutter automatically applies the attribute to the object.
Text formatting tools
The text formatting tools allow you to change the following text characteristics:
• Font
• Bold and italic
• Point size
• Justification
• Kerning
• Leading
148
This section describes how to change these characteristics on a text string basis. You can also change these attributes on a character-bycharacter basis by editing the text string. For more information, see
“Text for titles,working with” in the Help index.
You can also modify the following text attributes on a text string basis:
• Color
• Transparency
• Drop and depth shadows
• Outlines surrounding text
While you type text, only the text color is apparent. Shadows, outlines, and other color attributes appear when you finish typing the text and click the Selection tool.
n
If you have multiple text elements in a title, and you want to give each element a different appearance, create separate text strings.
Selecting Objects in the Title Tool
The Selection tool lets you select objects, including text, which you can then move, assign color and transparency to, and align in the Title tool.
The Selection tool remains selected until you select another tool.
n
If you press the Alt key and click anywhere in the Title tool window, you switch between the Selection tool and the Text tool.
Selection tool
149
Choosing Colors and Setting Transparency
You can select the color and transparency for objects, shadows, and borders.
The following illustration shows the boxes associated with color and transparency.
Color and Transparency Blend tools
Color Selection boxes
Transparency Level boxes
• The Color Selection boxes control the fill (Fill), shadow (Shad), and border (Bord) colors.
• The Transparency Level boxes control the fill, shadow, and border transparency.
• The Color and Transparency Blend tools appear when you select a
Fill or Border Color Selection box.
If you select a Color Selection box, the top boxes show the two colors that are used to create the blend. The bottom box shows the blended color and allows you to control the direction of the blend or transparency by clicking and dragging in the direction you want the blend.
If you select a Transparency Level box, the top boxes show the two transparency values that are used to create the blend. The bottom box allows you to control the direction of the transparency blend.
150
Selecting a Color
To select a color from the Title Tool Color Picker, use the eyedropper to select a color from any open application on your computer, or use the
Color dialog box to select a color. All these features are available through the Title Tool Color Picker (see
Grayscale selection bar
Eyedropper
Color selection bar
New Color window
Original Color window
Color dialog box button
Shade selection palette
Figure 9-2 Title Tool Color Picker
The Title Tool Color Picker allows you to select an object fill, shadow, or border color. The box you use controls whether the color applies to an object, creates a colored shadow, or places a colored border around the selected object.
You can “tear-off” the color picker by clicking the color picker and dragging it where you want it.
Creating a New Title
Once you create and add a title to your sequence, you can reposition it, change the text color, adjust the font and point size, add a shadow or border, adjust levels and kerning, and make it bold or italic.
151
To create a new title:
1. In the Record monitor, move the position indicator to a clip in the sequence you want to use as a background.
You don’t have to use a video background; you can create your title over a color background.
2. Choose New Title from the Clip menu.
The Title tool opens.
3. Click the Text tool. If it is already selected in the toolbar, the cursor becomes an I-beam when you click in the Title tool.
4. Click in the Title tool where you want to position the text.
An insertion point appears.
5. Type your title.
6. Click the Selection tool in the toolbar.
Object selection handles surround the title.
7. Change the point size if you want the text to be larger or smaller.
8. Change the font if you want to.
9. Click B for bold if it’s not already selected and you want your title bold.
n
You might want to drag the right side of the text selection box to eliminate any unused space, especially if you want to use the Alignment menu commands. To drag the right side, click the middle handle on the right side of the text selection box and drag it to the left until it is closer to the text.
152
Working with Title Templates
A template is useful for setting up text and graphics that you use regularly in many titles. You can set up the position, font, and color and then save that as a template. When you want to use the template, you can just edit the text and your title is finished.
Templates pop-up menu
Creating a Title Template
To create a title template:
1. Choose New Title from the Clip menu to open the Title tool.
2. Create your text and/or graphic elements that you want to include in the template.
3. Click Templates in the toolbar.
4. Click Save Template.
The Save Template As dialog box appears.
5. Type the name you want for your template.
6. Choose Save.
The default is to save the template in the Title_Templates folder, but you can save it somewhere else if you need to.
7. Close the Title tool, selecting Don’t Save from the Save Title dialog box.
153
Using a Title Template
When you use a title template, you can edit the text, but you cannot change the colors, shadows, or graphics.
n
You can change the position of the template elements by selecting Moveable
Templates in the Templates menu.
To use a title template:
1. Choose New Title from the Clip menu to open the Title tool.
2. Click Templates in the toolbar.
3. Choose Include Template.
The Open dialog box appears.
4. Select the template you want to use.
5. Click Open.
The template text or graphics appears in your title.
6. Make any edits you need to the text.
7. Close the Title tool, selecting Save from the Save Title dialog box.
Editing a Title Template
You can make changes to a title template whenever you need to update it. Whenever you re-edit a title that uses the template, the title will be updated automatically to reflect the template changes.
To edit a title template:
1. Choose New Title from the Clip menu to open the Title tool.
2. Click Templates in the toolbar.
3. Choose Edit Template.
4. Select the template to edit.
154
5. Make your changes.
6. Choose Save Template.
The default is to save the template in the Title_Templates folder, but you can save it somewhere else if you need to.
7. Close the Title tool, selecting Don’t Save from the Save Title dialog box.
Removing a Title Template
You can remove a title template from a title if you no longer need it.
To remove a title template:
1. With the title open, click Templates in the toolbar.
2. Choose Remove Template.
Repositioning Text and Objects
You can move text and objects anywhere you want in the Title tool window. You can use the safe action area or safe title area grid to make sure your text falls within those areas. Refer to
for an illustration of the safe action area and safe title area grid.
1. With the Selection tool active, click the title or object and drag to reposition it.
2. Use the arrow keys to move the title more precisely.
155
Applying a Color
To apply a color to text or objects:
1. Select the text or object to which you want to apply color by using the Selection tool.
2. Click and hold the Fill Color Selection box.
The Title Tool Color Picker appears. From here you can pick a color from the color bar, use the eyedropper to select a color from the video, or open the Color dialog box and select a color from there. See
on
3. Click a color.
The color is applied to the title.
Applying a Shadow
There are two types of shadows you can use — drop and depth — depending on the effect you want to create.
To apply a shadow to text or objects:
1. Select the text or object to which you want to apply a shadow by using the Selection tool.
2. Click the Shadow text box.
3. Type a value in the Shadow Depth text box.
Drop is the default shadow.
4. Optionally, for a depth shadow, click the Drop and Depth Shadow button.
When you use a depth shadow, the icon changes to green.
5. Drag the shadow in the Shadow Depth and Direction button to the position you want.
156
You can also change the size by dragging the shadow further away from the white center.
6. Click the Shadow Color Selection box to open the Title Tool Color
Picker to add a color to the shadow.
See
“Selecting a Color” on page 151
for a description of the Title
Tool Color Picker.
Saving a Title
To save your title:
1. Choose Save Title from the File menu.
The Bin Parameters dialog box appears.
2. Type the title name in the name text box.
3. Choose the bin where you want the title to reside and a target disk to store your title.
4. Click OK.
5. Click the Close button in the Title tool.
The title appears in the Source monitor and in the bin where you chose to save it.
157
Editing the Title into the Sequence
After you have created a title with the Title tool, use one of the following two methods to edit the title into your sequence:
• Method 1: Add a new video track, load the title into the Source monitor, mark an IN point and an OUT point, and splice/ overwrite the title into the sequence.
• Method 2: In Segment mode, drag the Title Effect clip from the bin to an existing segment in the Timeline between the edit points.
You edit titles into a sequence by using the same editing procedures you use for video clips. The only difference is that if you want to key the title over video, you must add a new video track.
To add a title to track V2 of your sequence:
1. Select track V2 and deselect tracks V1, A1, and A2.
2. Patch the title source to the video track in the sequence by clicking the Source Track button for track V1 in the Track Selector panel and dragging it to the Record Track button for track V2.
3. With the title clip loaded in the Source monitor, mark an IN point at the beginning of the clip and an OUT point where you want the title to end.
If you want to use the whole clip, you don’t need to mark IN and
OUT points.
4. In the Timeline, move the position indicator to where you want the title.
5. Click the Overwrite button under the Source monitor.
This adds the title to track V2.
6. Render the title by moving the position indicator to the effect and clicking the Render Effect button in the Tool palette.
7. Play the sequence to see your title.
158
Editing an Existing Title
To edit an existing title:
1. In the bin, press and hold the Ctrl key and double-click the title clip to open it in the Title tool.
2. Make whatever edits you want.
3. Do one of the following:
• To overwrite the existing title, choose Save Title from the File menu.
The original title is overwritten and the new title is saved with the original title name.
• To save the existing title and create an additional one: a. Choose Save Title as from the File menu.
The Bin Parameters dialog box appears. See
“Saving a Title” on page 157 .
b. Choose a bin and a drive or leave the defaults.
c. Click OK.
A new title is created with a number appended to the original title name, for example, Title.01.
d. Click the Close button if you are finished working in the Title tool.
159
C HAPTER 10
Output
NewsCutter provides tools for generating output for individual tracks or entire sequences to various videotape or audiotape formats. You can also use VTR emulation for direct playback of sequences by using an edit controller in an analog editing suite. This is described in the following sections:
•
•
Preparing Tapes for Frame-Accurate Recording
•
•
Recording a Digital Cut to Tape
•
160
Preparing for Output
Preparing for video output involves the following procedures:
•
Render all non-real-time effects, as described in “Rendering an
• Calibrate and adjust video output levels (see “Video,calibrating
(basic)” in the Help index).
• Calibrate and adjust audio output levels (see “Audio output,preparing for” in the Help index).
• Decide whether you want to generate stereo or mono audio.
• Mix down multiple audio tracks if necessary. Systems equipped with a two-channel audio board can generate a maximum of two channels. For more information on mixing down audio tracks, see
“Audio tracks, mixing down” in the Help index.
• (Option) Select settings for direct two-channel audio output (see
“Two-channel audio,adjusting output in” in the Help index).
• Prepare the record tapes.
• (Option) Record reference bars and tone to tape.
Preparing Tapes for Frame-Accurate Recording
Frame-accurate recording involves using the Digital Cut tool to record your sequence onto a prestriped tape (a tape with prerecorded control track and timecode) or a partially striped tape.
Before you can record a frame-accurate digital cut, you must prepare the record tapes in advance by using one of the following options.
To perform insert edit recording, stripe the record tapes (record black and timecode for the entire duration of the tape) in advance
(prestriped tape).
161
To perform assemble edit recording, record black with timecode onto the tape. Include the necessary preroll prior to the IN point plus at least 10 seconds (partially striped tape).
n
Select “Allow assemble edit for digital cut” in the Deck Preferences dialog box.
Previewing a Digital Cut
You can preview a digital cut before recording it to tape to make sure your preparations and output settings are correct or for screening purposes.
To preview a digital cut:
1. Choose Digital Cut from the Clip menu.
The Digital Cut tool opens.
2. Deselect the Record to Tape option.
The With Countdown option is enabled.
3. Select the With Countdown option to preview the digital cut using the default computer-generated countdown containing the Avid logo.
4. Select the With Countdown and Custom Screen options to preview the digital cut using a customized countdown screen that you create.
See “Creating a Custom Countdown Display” in the Help index.
5. Select the audio and video tracks you want represented in the digital cut preview.
The display of tracks in the Digital Cut tool varies according to the tracks existing in the sequence.
Only those tracks beside and beneath the Speaker icon and the
Monitor icon are included in the digital cut.
162
6. Click the Play button in the Digital Cut tool.
The system plays the digital cut in the Record monitor.
7. To stop the playback at any time, press the space bar.
Recording a Digital Cut to Tape
The Digital Cut tool provides frame-accurate control when recording a sequence to tape and provides several options for managing the recording of your sequence. For example, you can:
• Record using either assemble or insert edits
• Record a selected portion of the sequence or selected tracks
• Record according to different timecode parameters
You can also preview the digital cut before recording it to tape.
To record a digital cut to tape:
1. Load a sequence into the Record monitor. (You cannot access digital cut options without a sequence loaded.)
2. Choose Digital Cut from the Clip menu.
The Digital Cut tool opens.
3. Use the deck controls in the Digital Cut tool to cue and control the record tape during digital cut recording.
4. Select Record to Tape.
5. (Option) Choose either Insert Edit or Assemble Edit from the popup menu.
This menu appears only if you selected “Allow assemble edit for digital cut” in the Deck Preferences dialog box. See “Enabling
Assemble-Edit Recording” in the Help index.
163
6. Select or deselect the Entire Sequence option, based upon the following:
• Select this option if you want the system to ignore any IN or
OUT points and play the entire sequence from start to finish.
• Deselect this option if you have established IN or OUT points for recording a portion of the sequence.
7. Choose an option from the Record to Tape pop-up menu as follows:
• Choose Sequence Time to start the recording at a timecode existing on tape that matches the start timecode of the sequence. To record several sequences to tape one after another, reset the start timecode on each sequence to match appropriate IN points on the tape.
• Choose Record Deck Time to ignore the timecode of the sequence and start the recording wherever the record deck is currently cued.
• Choose Mark In Time to ignore the sequence timecode.
Establish an IN point on the record tape by cueing and marking with the Deck Controller.
8. Select the audio and video tracks you want represented in the digital cut preview.
Only those tracks beside and beneath the Speaker icon and the
Monitor icon are included in the digital cut. The display of tracks in the Digital Cut tool varies according to the tracks existing in the sequence.
9. Select the audio and video tracks you want represented in the digital cut.
Only those tracks beside and beneath the Speaker icon and the
Monitor icon are included in the digital cut. The display of tracks in the Digital Cut tool varies according to the tracks existing in the sequence.
164
10. Select the Audio Out Mode.
n
Changing the Audio Out Mode in the Digital Cut tool also changes the audio out in the Audio Mix tool.
11. Press Play.
The system cues the record deck and then plays and records the digital cut. The playback appears in the Playback monitor.
12. To stop the recording at any time, press the space bar.
n
After assemble-edit recording, a freeze frame is usually added after the OUT point for one or more seconds, depending upon the record deck model. This provides several frames of overlap for the next IN point, before control track and timecode break up.
n
NewsCutter allows you to choose a different format when creating a digital cut to tape. For example, if your sequence is non-drop-frame and you choose to make the digital cut drop-frame, an error message will appear, indicating the mismatch. If you choose to continue, the duration of the digital cut will not match the duration of your sequence.
Enabling VTR Play Emulation
VTR play emulation allows you to control a sequence loaded in the
Record monitor from an edit controller for playback in the edit room along with other sources.
n
To use VTR play emulation, connect a supported controller to the PC by
using the serial adapter included with NewsCutter. See the Avid
NewsCutter Setup Guide.
165
VTR play emulation allows you to control the sequence with the edit controller as follows:
• You can shuttle, step (jog), play, cue, and mark points based on master sequence timecode for editing onto another master.
• Your control of the NewsCutter system is for play only. For example, you cannot apply IN and OUT points, arm tracks, or send record commands to the NewsCutter system itself.
• Smooth audio scrub is enabled by default, emulating analog audio scrub on a VTR.
To enable VTR play emulation:
1. Connect a supported controller (any controller that uses Sony
® serial control protocol) by using a 9-pin to serial cable.
2. Choose Serial (COM) Ports from the Tools menu to open the Serial
(COM) Ports tool.
3. Select the appropriate port (COM1 or COM2) from the VTR
Emulation pop-up menu.
4. Close the Serial (COM) Ports tool. The system saves the setting as a Site setting, effective for all projects.
5. Choose VTR Emulation from the Clip menu when you are ready to use the system for playback.
A check mark appears next to the command to indicate that the system is ready. A yellow outline appears around the Play button in the Record monitor to indicate that VTR emulation is active.
n
This command behaves like a Local/Remote switch on a playback device, with
VTR play emulation disabled (in Local mode) by default when you start the system.
166
A PPENDIX A
Using the NRCS Tool
You use the NRCS tool to connect to an Avstar server, access stories from the server, and edit them on your NewsCutter. When you open a story in the NRCS tool, you can make formatting and content changes to the story instead of opening an Avstar workstation to do the editing.
After you have made changes to the story, you can save the changes, which will be available to others using the same server. Using the
NRCS tool, you can send mail to other Avstar server users to communicate what changes you made.
Using the duration of the story, you can also build a sequence in
NewsCutter. Once you have the duration of the story in the Timeline, you can add footage to match the scripted story. After some quick video editing, the story is ready to go to air.
This appendix describes how to use the NRCS tool in the following sections:
•
•
Understanding the NRCS Tool Window
•
•
•
•
Finding the Read Time of a Story
167
•
Building a Sequence from a Story
•
•
n
Your Avstar user permissions define how many of these procedures you can perform. If you are unsure of your permissions, consult your system administrator.
Opening the NRCS Tool
The first time you open the NRCS tool, the NRCS Settings dialog box appears. You must configure the NRCS settings before you can connect to the Avstar server.
To configure the NRCS settings and connect to the server:
1. Choose NRCS Tool from the Tools menu.
The NRCS Settings dialog box appears (
Figure A-1 NRCS Settings Dialog Box — NRCS Tab
168
n
You can also access the NRCS Settings dialog box through the Settings scroll list of the Project window.
2. Type the name of the server and, if you want, a default user name.
3. (Option) Select “Logout when NRCS Tool is closed” if you want to terminate the connection to the server every time you close the
NRCS tool.
4. Click the Avstar tab to make additional changes to the NRCS
).
Figure A-2 NRCS Settings Dialog Box — Avstar Tab
5. Configure the Message-of-the-Day (MOTD) settings and Mail
Directory as follows:
• If you want the MOTD to have a different file name, type the new name in the Message-of-the-Day text box.
• Decide if you want to view the MOTD on every connection to the Avstar server, only the first connection to the Avstar server, or not at all, and then select the appropriate option.
• If you want the Mail Directory to have a different name, type the new name in the Mail Directory text box.
169
c
Consult your system administrator to ensure that the Mail Directory name is appropriate for use in your newsroom environment.
6. Click OK to accept the NRCS settings.
The NRCS Login dialog box appears (
).
Avstar server name
Figure A-3 NRCS Tool — Login Dialog Box
7. Type a login name if you did not set a default name in the NRCS
Settings dialog box.
8. Type the password.
9. Click OK.
The NRCS tool connects to the Avstar server. When the connection is established, the list of directories appears in the Directory panel.
170
Understanding the NRCS Tool Window
The NRCS tool window contains many parts, as shown in Figure A-4
.
Disconnect button
Send Mail button
Story Story form name
Formatting toolbar
Build
Sequence button
Save Story button
Edit
Mode button
WPM rate
Read time
Directory panel
Production
Cue text box
Story panel
Figure A-4 NRCS Tool Window (Edit Mode)
171
Use
to learn more about each element.
Table A-1 NRCS Tool Elements
Name Description
Disconnect button
Send Mail button
Directory panel
Story form
Story name
Formatting toolbar
Build Sequence button
Save Story button
Edit Mode button
Releases the connection to the Avstar server.
Opens a dialog box for sending mail to others.
Lists the contents of the news database you are accessing.
Contains summary information about the story in predefined headings. You can alter the information if it does not have a gray background. Appears in
Edit mode only.
Shows the directory path and name of the story.
Contains buttons used to change the appearance of story text.
Builds a sequence in NewsCutter by using the tape time of the story. If the story contains no tape time, the sequence defaults to 30 seconds.
Saves changes made to the story by either modifying the original story or creating a new story.
Provides access to editing functions.
172
Table A-1 NRCS Tool Elements (Continued)
Name Description
WPM rate
Read time
Story panel
Production Cue text box
Displays the rate at which the read time was calculated. This may change, depending on the presenter for the story. The default is 180 words per minute (wpm).
Displays the amount of time to read a story on air, based on the wpm rate.
Displays the text of a story and the story form of unscripted stories.
When the story is scripted, the panel contains production cues on the left and text on the right.
Displays production cues that have been scripted into a story.
Using the Directory Panel
In the Directory panel, you move through the directories on the Avstar server. In this panel, you perform the following functions:
• Open a story.
• Make a shortcut to a directory.
• Remove a shortcut to a directory.
• Delete a file.
173
Opening a Story
After establishing a connection to the Avstar server, the NRCS tool remains blank until you open a story.
To open a story:
1. Navigate through the directories, and find the file you want to open.
In the Directory panel (see
), all triangles point right when you first log in, which indicates closed directories. Triangles that point down indicate open directories. Directories or files within a directory are indented below that directory. Files without a triangle next to them are stories.
Closed directory
Open directory
Story
Figure A-5 NRCS Tool — Directory Panel
2. Double-click the story name.
The story’s text appears in the Story panel.
174
Making a Shortcut to a Directory
To save time accessing a directory you use often, create a shortcut to the directory:
1. Navigate to the directory.
2. Click the directory name so that it is highlighted.
3. Right-click the directory name.
A shortcut menu appears.
4. Choose Make Shortcut.
NewsCutter creates the shortcut, which is placed above the server name in the Directory panel.
Shortcut
Server name
Removing a Shortcut to a Directory
If you want to remove a shortcut to a directory:
1. Click the name of the shortcut you want to remove so that it is highlighted.
2. Right-click the directory name.
A shortcut menu appears.
3. Choose Remove Shortcut.
NewsCutter removes the shortcut.
175
Deleting a Story
The NRCS tool allows you to delete a story without having to go through the Avstar Workstation, if your Avstar User settings have the necessary permissions. See your system administrator if you are unsure of your settings.
To delete a story:
1. In the Directory panel, highlight the story you want to delete.
2. Right-click the story.
A shortcut menu appears.
3. Choose Delete File from the menu.
A message box appears.
4. Click Delete to complete the process, or click Cancel to abort the delete.
Editing a Story
You can perform basic editing functions on your stories by using the
NRCS tool, eliminating the need to do the work on the Avstar workstation and saving valuable time in the editing process. You can
176
edit stories without entering Edit mode, or you can do more complex editing by entering Edit mode.
Editing Text in View Mode
You can change the screen display of the entire text of a story without entering Edit mode. The shortcut menu that appears when you right-click in the Story panel allows you to change the font or to make the text bold, italic, or underlined.
To alter the appearance of the text in your story:
1. Right-click in the Story panel.
A shortcut menu appears.
2. Choose the appropriate menu item.
Entering Edit Mode
You enter Edit mode by clicking the Edit button. Edit mode allows you to do the following editing to your story:
• Format the text
• Rearrange text
• Mark text as Presenter Instructions
• Mark text as Closed Captioned
• Mark text as Normal
• Add a production cue
• Delete a production cue n
You can mark text as Machine Control instructions only in a Production Cue
text box. See “Adding a Production Cue” on page 180
.
177
Formatting Text
You use a combination of the formatting buttons and the shortcut menu to change the format of story text.
To format text:
1. Highlight the text you want to format.
2. (Option) Click a button in the Formatting toolbar to make the text bold, italic, or underlined.
Alternately, right-click the text and choose Bold, Italic, or
Underline from the shortcut menu.
3. (Option) Right-click the text and choose Font from the shortcut menu to alter the font and point size.
Rearranging Text in a Story
The shortcut menu provides commands for cutting, copying, pasting, and deleting text.
To rearrange the text in a story:
1. Highlight the text you want to cut, copy, or delete.
2. Right-click the text and choose the appropriate command.
3. (Option) To paste cut or copied text, position the cursor in the story where you want to paste the text.
Right-click and choose Paste from the shortcut menu.
178
Marking Text as Normal
If you have applied formatting to text, you can remove the formatting by marking the text as Normal.
To mark text as Normal:
1. Highlight the text from which you want to remove the formatting.
2. Click the Normal button in the Formatting toolbar.
Alternately, right-click the text, and choose Normal from the shortcut menu.
The text changes to black, indicating that the text contains no formatting.
Marking Text as Presenter Instructions
Presenter Instructions appear in red, allowing the presenter who reads the story on camera to differentiate the instructions from the actual script. Using this formatting option, you might tell the presenter that the following lines are a voice-over to accompany footage.
To mark text as Presenter Instructions:
1. Highlight the text you want to mark.
2. Click the Presenter Instructions button in the Formatting toolbar.
Alternately, right-click the text, and choose Presenter Instructions from the shortcut menu.
The text changes to red, indicating Presenter Instructions.
179
Marking Text as Closed Captioned
Your story can also contain text marked for Closed Captioning. Like
Presenter Instructions, the presenter does not read this text on camera.
Text marked as Closed Captioned is not included in the read time of a story. For more information, see
“Finding the Read Time of a Story” on page 183 .
To mark text as Closed Captioned:
1. Highlight the text you want to mark.
2. Click the Closed Captioned button in the Formatting toolbar.
Alternately, right-click the text, and choose Closed Captioned from the shortcut menu.
The text changes to light green, indicating that the text is Closed
Captioned.
Adding a Production Cue
Production cues are playback instructions for devices such as video machines, still stores, and character generators. When you insert production cues, they appear in the area to the left of the text in the
Story panel. In addition, a production cue marker appears in the story text to indicate where each production cue belongs in the story
(
180
Production
Cue text box
Production cue anchor
Figure A-6 NRCS Tool — Production Cue
To insert a production cue into your scripted story:
1. In the Story panel, move the cursor next to or within the text where you want to place the production cue.
2. Right-click and choose Insert Production Cue from the shortcut menu.
A blue production cue anchor appears within the Story panel, and a blank box appears in the left side of the Story panel.
3. Type the cue information in the text box.
4. (Option) Highlight the text and mark as Machine Control, bold, italic, or underlined by using the Formatting toolbar.
181
Deleting a Production Cue
If you want to delete a production cue, you must delete the cue anchor, not just the text within the Production Cue text box.
To delete a production cue:
1. Highlight the cue anchor in the Story panel.
2. Press the Delete key.
Alternately, right-click the anchor, and choose Delete from the shortcut menu.
Saving Changes to a Story
After you edit a story, you can save the changes by modifying the original story or by creating a new story. It is important to remember, however, that when you modify a story in the NRCS tool, the story also changes on the Avstar server. Therefore, you should use caution when saving a story because you cannot undo the changes once you have modified the story.
If more than one person accesses a story at the same time, only the first person to access the story will be able to save changes to the story. n
Your Avstar user permissions define whether you can save changes to a story.
If you are unsure of your permissions, consult your system administrator.
182
To save changes:
1. In Edit mode, click the Save button.
A message box appears.
2. Click Modify to save the changes to the original story, or click
New to save the changes to a new story.
n
If you click New, the NRCS tool creates a new story with the same name as the original story. You should rename the story in the NRCS tool and save it again to avoid confusion.
Finding the Read Time of a Story
One of the unique features of the NRCS tool is its ability to determine the read time of a story. This words per minute (wpm) count defaults to 180 wpm but can change according to your Avstar User settings. For example, if the presenter listed for the story has a reading rate of 150 wpm, the NRCS tool will calculate the read time based on that reading rate.
If you want to change the wpm count for the presenter or if you want to change the presenter for the story, you must make the changes through the Avstar workstation so that the NRCS tool can register the changes.
183
To calculate the read time of a story:
1. Move the cursor to the Story panel.
2. Right-click and choose Select All from the shortcut menu.
Alternately, highlight a portion of the text with the mouse.
The read time appears in the upper right corner of the NRCS tool. The wpm rate used in the calculation appears next to the read time
(
WPM rate
Read time
Figure A-7 NRCS Tool — Read Time n
The NRCS tool does not include Closed Captioned or Presenter Instructions text in the read time. Only text marked as Normal (including bold, italic, or underlined text) is calculated.
Building a Sequence from a Story
The NRCS tool allows you to use the duration of a story to build a sequence in NewsCutter. This feature makes it very easy to edit in shots and to create a sequence quickly according to the duration of the story.
n
You can build a sequence only from entire stories, not from portions of a story.
184
To build a sequence from a story, do one of the following:
• Highlight the story in the Directory panel, right-click, and choose
Build Sequence from Story.
• Click the Build Sequence button.
• Highlight the story in the Directory panel, and drag the story to an open bin.
If your story does not have tape time, NewsCutter will automatically assign the sequence a duration of 30 seconds. Otherwise, the duration of the sequence will match the tape time of the story.
Sending Mail
The NRCS tool contains a mail application that allows you to send mail to other Avstar users on the network. You can also send mail to external addresses if your system administrator has configured your system for this functionality.
To send mail from within the NRCS tool:
1. Click the Send Mail button.
The Send NRCS Mail dialog box appears (see
).
185
Figure A-8 NRCS Tool — Send NRCS Mail Dialog Box
2. Type an address in the To text box.
3. (Option) Type a subject in the Subject text box.
4. Type your message in the message area.
5. Click Send to send the message, or click Cancel to close the dialog box without sending the message.
Disconnecting from the Server
When you have finished using the NRCS tool, you should disconnect from the Avstar server. To release the connection, click the Disconnect button.
n
If you selected the “Logout when NRCS Tool is closed” option in the NRCS
Settings dialog box, simply close the NRCS tool. The NRCS tool will automatically disconnect from the server. n
You can also disconnect from the server by switching to a workspace that does not contain the NRCS tool.
186
Index
A
Adding keyframes
notes to Help topics
Picture-in-Picture effect
Production cues (NRCS tool)
transition effects
Analog VU scale (Audio tool)
Annotations, adding to Help topics
Arrow keys, navigating with
A-side (outgoing frames), in trims
Assemble edit preparing for
recording
setting preference for recording
Audio adjusting levels
adjusting pan
analog VU scale, displaying
balancing
clips, splicing-in
digital audio scrub, using
digital VU scale, displaying
dissolves, creating
editing, described
hardware, adjusting
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Z
input and output levels, switching between
(Audio tool)
input display, accessing
input, adjusting
internal calibration tone, setting
locating specific frame
making louder or softer
maximum peak measurements, resetting
meter displays, customizing
opening Audio tool
output display, accessing
output, adjusting
scrubbing
setting up
Setup display, accessing
source menu (Record tool)
tracking levels
tracks, mapping to output channels
tracks, monitoring
Audio Mix tool adjusting pan
adjusting volume levels
Audio tool
Analog VU scale
Channel Selector menu
Digital VU scale
Input button
input display
187
Meters display
opening from Record tool
Output button
output display
Peak Hold menu, described
Reset Peak button
Setup button
Setup display
switching between input and output levels
tracking audio levels in
Audio Track Monitor buttons (Track Selector panel)
Avid Projects folder
Avid Users folder
Avid, Web site address
Avstar server configuring (NRCS tool)
disconnecting from (NRCS tool)
setting up (NRCS tool)
B
Batch recording choosing target bin
described
settings
Bin pop-up menu (Record tool)
Bins adding text to (Script view)
choosing column headings
choosing target for recording
creating
creating for Quick Effects
defined
display views in
to
displaying in Project window
emptying trash from
enabling Sticky bins
organizing a project with
188 showing Frames
showing Scripts
Text view headings
Text view, described
viewing clips
working with
Black, fading to in a sequence
Blue bar See Position indicator
Borders adjusting softness with keyframes
choosing color (Title tool)
controlling transparency (Title tool)
B-side (incoming frames), in trims
Buttons
Add Keyframe
Audio Track Monitor (Track Selector panel)
Build Sequence (NRCS tool)
Digitize/Log mode (Record tool)
Disconnect (NRCS tool)
Edit mode (NRCS tool)
Extract/Splice-in
Frame view (Bin window)
Go to IN (Command palette)
Go to OUT (Command palette)
In/Out (Audio tool)
Input (Audio tool)
Internal Waveform monitor (Video Input tool)
Lift
Lift/Overwrite
mapping to keyboard
mapping to Tool palette
Mouse Shuttle (Command palette)
Mouse Step (Command palette)
One/Two Disk Mode (Record tool)
Output (Audio tool)
Overwrite
Overwrite (Record tool)
Play Loop (Command palette)
Quick Effect (Tool palette) 131
C
Record (Record tool)
remapping
Reset Peak (Audio tool)
Save Story (NRCS tool)
Script view (Bin window)
Send Mail (NRCS tool)
Setup (Audio tool)
Splice-in
Splice-in (Record tool)
Step
Subclip (Source monitor)
Text View (Bin window)
Tool palette
Trash (Record tool)
Trim Mode
using to control playback
Vectorscope Monitor (Video Input tool)
Video Track Monitor (Track Selector panel)
Voiceover (Record tool)
Calibration in Video Input tool
tone, setting and playing back (Audio tool)
tone, stopping playback
Channel Selection buttons (Record tool)
Channels adding to deck configuration
tracking audio levels of
Clips adding comments to in Record tool
applying segment effects to
applying transition effects to
controlling playback of
dissolving between
making first edit
moving through with arrow keys
189 moving to beginning
moving to end
moving to head or tail
naming (Record tool)
playing
rearranging, in Segment mode
,
recording, directly to the Timeline
shuttling through with the mouse
splicing
stepping through with step buttons
stepping through with the mouse
viewing in monitors
Closed Captioned, marking text as (NRCS tool)
Color applying to text or objects (Title tool)
blending (Title tool)
Color Selection box (Title tool)
selecting (Title tool)
Color Picker, Title Tool
Column headings, choosing for bins
Command palette
Active Palette, described
Active Palette, using
Button to Button Reassignment, described
Button to Button Reassignment, using
described
Edit tab
FX tab
Go to Next Edit button
Go to Previous Edit button
mapping buttons to keyboard
mapping buttons to Tool palette
mapping menu options to keyboard
mapping menu options to Tool palette
Menu to Button Reassignment, described
Menu to Button Reassignment, using
More tab
Mouse shuttle button
Move tab
Other tab
Play Loop button
Play tab
removing mapped buttons from keyboard
removing mapped menu options
tabs
Trim Mode button
Trim tab
Comments, adding during recording
Component video, choosing as input source
Composite video, choosing as input source
Contents (Help system), opening
Controlling playback
Creating audio dissolves
bins
new projects
new users
Strobe Motion effects
subclips
title templates
titles
D
Deck Configuration settings
Deck controls, setting (Record tool)
Decks adding channels
Auto-configure option
choosing (Record tool)
configuration settings
configuring multiple
configuring single
controlling (Record tool)
setting preferences for recording
Deleting
Production cues (NRCS tool)
recorded media
stories (NRCS tool)
Digital audio scrub
Digital cuts defined
preparing frame-accurate tapes
previewing
recording
using countdowns with
Digital video editing, described
Digital VU scale (Audio tool)
Digitize settings
Digitize/Log Mode button (Record tool)
Directory panel deleting stories
making shortcuts
opening a story
removing shortcuts
using
Disconnecting from the Avstar server (NRCS tool)
Dissolves choosing duration
choosing position
creating for audio
creating for video
fading to black
insufficient footage message
sizing to fit
using between shots
using with Picture-in-Picture effects
Drives finding drive time available (Record tool)
targeting single or separate during recording
Drop-frame, setting preference for recording
Dual-roller trim
190
E
Edit mode, entering (NRCS tool)
Editing described
existing titles
guidelines for (Segment mode)
making the first edit
redoing an edit
stories (NRCS tool)
three-point overwrite edits
title templates
titles into sequence
trim basics
undoing an edit
Effect Editor described
opening
Effect mode defined
working in
Effect Palette categories
opening
Effects accessing parameters
adding keyframes
applying to a sequence
Blend effect
border softness, adjusting with keyframes
Box Wipe effect
categories
choosing target drive
creating dissolves
creating Freeze Frame effects
creating motion effects
creating Strobe Motion effects
creating Variable Speed effects
dissolving between shots
Edge Wipe effect
191 editing, overview
fading to black
Key effect
L-Conceal effect
Mask effect
Matrix Wipe effect
opacity, adjusting with keyframes
Peel effect
Picture-in-Picture effect
position of, adjusting with keyframes
Push effect
Quick Effects, creating bin for
Quick Effects, described
rendering
resolving insufficient footage error
saving parameters in Quick Effects bin
Sawtooth Wipe effect
Segment effects
Shape Wipe effect
Sizing to Fit media available
Spin effect
Squeeze effect
transition effects, adding
transition effects, described
types of
Electronic license, accepting
Enabling
Sticky bins
VTR play emulation
End key
Extract, described for Segment mode
Extract/Splice-in button
Eyedropper (Title tool)
F
Fade to black, adding to a sequence
Fade-in effect, adding
Fill choosing color (Title tool)
controlling transparency (Title tool)
selecting color for objects
Find tab (Help system), opening
Fixed-storage drive, turning on
Folders
Avid Projects
Avid Users
settings
Font, changing (NRCS tool)
Footage insufficient source for effects
marking IN and OUT points
marking subclips
moving through with position indicator
rearranging
stepping through
viewing and playing
Formatting text in titles
Frame view button (Bin window)
in bins
Frame-accurate recording, preparing for
Frames capturing during recording
locating with digital audio scrub
showing in bins
title background in
trimming
Freeze Frame effects creating
optional parameters for
specifiying duration of
G
Go to IN button (Command palette)
Go to OUT button (Command palette)
192
H
Handle length setting
Hardware components
displaying in Project window
setting up for audio
starting
Help system accessing
adding notes to
annotating
buttons in
finding topics in
Help Topics dialog box
How To windows
navigating topics
opening context-sensitive Help
opening from Help menu
opening What’s This? Help
printing a topic
Reference windows
using
using the Contents tab
using the Find tab
using the Index tab
window types
Home key
Hue, adjusting
I
IN and OUT points defined
marking
recording from
In/Out buttons (Audio tool)
Index tab (Help system), opening 20
Input button (Audio tool)
Input pop-up menu (Video Input tool)
Insert edit preparing for
recording
Internal Waveform monitor (Video Input tool)
J
J-K-L keys (three-button play)
K
Keyboard default settings
mapping buttons
mapping menu options
navigating the Timeline
removing mapped buttons
removing mapped menu options
using the Arrow keys
using the End key
using the Home key
using to control playback
Keyframes adding
adjusting effect parameters
using in Picture-in-Picture effect
L
L-edits, trimming
Left Arrow key
License agreement, accepting
Lift button
Lift, described for Segment mode
Lift/Overwrite button
Locating audio frames
Logging and recording at once
controlling during record
Luminance, adjusting
193
M
Mail configuring directory for NRCS tool
sending (NRCS tool)
Mapping buttons to keyboard
buttons to Tool palette
keys and buttons, overview
menu options to keyboard
menu options to Tool palette
Marking
IN and OUT points
subclips
text as Closed Captioned (NRCS tool)
text as normal (NRCS tool)
text as Presenter Instructions (NRCS tool)
Master clips, defined
Media files defined
deleting
rerecording
Memory, displaying in Project window
Menu items, mapping
Message-of-the-Day options, configuring
(NRCS tool)
Meters (Audio tool)
Monitor icons
Monitors pop-up
Record
Source
viewing in
Motion effects creating Freeze Frame effects
creating Strobe Motion effects
creating Variable Speed effects
Motion path, monitoring with keyframes
Mouse buttons
Shuttle (Command palette)
Step (Command palette)
Multiple layer effects, defined
N
Naming clips in Record tool
NewsCutter electronic licensing
hardware
overview
starting the application
starting the system
tips for getting started
Non-drop-frame, setting preference for recording
Nonlinear editing, defined
Notes, adding to Help topics
NRCS tool adding production cues
building a sequence from a story
deleting a story
deleting production cues
disconnecting from the server
editing stories
elements of, described
entering Edit mode
finding read time of a story
formatting text
logging in
Logging out option
Mail Directory options
making shortcuts to directories
marking text as Closed Captioned
marking text as normal
marking text as Presenter Instructions
Message-of-the-Day options
opening
opening a story
overview
rearranging text
removing shortcuts to directories
sending mail
understanding the NRCS tool
using the Directory panel
WPM rate
NTSC format
194
O
Objects applying color to (Title tool)
applying shadows to (Title tool)
One/Two Disk Mode (Record tool)
Online Publications CD-ROM
Help system
using
Opacity, adjusting with keyframes
Opening
Audio tool from Record tool
existing project
NRCS tool
stories (NRCS tool)
Video Input tool
Video Input tool from Record tool
Output preparing for
recording a digital cut
Output button (Audio tool)
Overlap edits, trimming
Overwrite button
defined
described for Segment mode 106
from Record tool
recording directly to the Timeline with
using in Segment mode
using three-point edit
Overwriting shots
P
PAL format
Pan, adjusting for audio
Patching tracks
undoing
PDF files, opening from Online Publications
CD-ROM
Peak Hold pop-up menu (Audio tool)
Peripheral hardware, turning on
Picture tracks, monitoring
Picture-in-Picture effect adding
adjusting softness
dissolving on and off
Play Loop button (Command palette)
Playback controlling with buttons
controlling with position bars and indicator
controlling with the keyboard
increasing playback speed of
Playback monitor
Pop-up monitor, viewing in
Position bar
Position indicator in Record monitor
in Source monitor
in Timeline
shadow of in Timeline
snapping to IN point
snapping to OUT point
using in Timeline
using to move to head or tail of a shot
Precomputes overview
Preparing for Frame-accurate recording
for insert edit
for video output
to record
Presenter Instructions, marking text as (NRCS tool)
Previewing digital cuts
Printing Help topics
Production cues adding (NRCS tool)
deleting (NRCS tool)
Profile, displaying in Project window
Project window
Bin view
creating new bin from
enabling Sticky bins option
Info view
Settings view
understanding
Projects creating
defined
opening existing
organizing with bins
understanding Project window
using NTSC format
using PAL format
195
Q
Quick Effect button (Tool palette)
Quick Effects creating
creating bin for
overview
using Quick Effect dialog box
using to add Fade-in effect
using to dissolve between shots
R
Read time, finding (NRCS tool)
Real-time effects, overview of
Rearranging footage in sequences
Record button (Record tool)
Record monitor moving through footage
viewing clips
Record tool adding comments about clips
audio source menu
Audio Tool button
Bin pop-up menu
Channel Selection buttons
checking serial port connection
choosing deck
choosing satellite feed mode
deck controller, described
Digitize indicator
Digitize/Log mode button
drive time available display
illustration of
logging controls in
naming clips in
One/Two Disk Mode button
opening Audio tool from
opening Video Input tool from
Overwrite button
preparing to use
Record button
recording from IN to OUT point
recording on-the-fly
recording to the Timeline
196 rerecording footage
resetting serial port connection
Source Tape display
Splice-in button
status bar
subclip indicator
target drive menu
Toggle Source button
Video Input Tool button
Voiceover button
Recording and logging at once
assemble edits
batch
choosing target bins for
creating subclips on-the-fly during
digital cuts
Digitize settings for
directly to the Timeline
file size limit for
from compact disc player
from DAT player
from IN point to OUT point
insert edits
marking IN and OUT points before
on-the-fly
preparing for
preparing frame-accurate tapes
previewing digital cut before
selecting channels
selecting settings
selecting source tracks
status bar display
stopping during record process
switching between record mode and log mode
to multiple files
voice-overs
Redoing an edit
Removing footage, using Extract/Splice-in
title templates
Rendering choosing target drive
effects, described
overview
Repositioning title text
Rerecording described
setting handle length for
Reset Peak button (Audio tool)
Right Arrow key
S
Safe title and safe action area
Satellite feed, choosing in Record tool
Saturation, adjusting
Saving settings for video input
title templates
titles
Scale bar, in Timeline
Screen resolution, recommended
Script view button (Bin window)
Script view, in bins
Scroll bar (Timeline), using
Scrubbing audio
Segment effects accessing parameters
applying
creating a Picture-in-Picture effect
multilayer
single-layer
types of
Segment mode defined
Extract/Splice-in
,
197 guidelines for editing
Lift/Overwrite
overwriting shots into a sequence
rearranging clips
removing footage
using
Selecting all tracks
color for titles
tracks for recording
tracks in the Timeline
transitions for trimming
trim sides
Sending mail (NRCS tool)
Sequences adding shots to
applying effects
building from a story (NRCS tool)
controlling with a VTR
defined
editing a title into
fading to black in
moving through with arrow keys
moving to beginning
moving to end
playing
preparing for output
rearranging footage in
shuttling through with the mouse
splicing audio into
splicing clips into
splicing-in video
stepping through with Step buttons
stepping through with the mouse
storyboarding
using three-point overwrite edits
Serial ports checking connection in Record tool
Serial Ports tool and VTR play emulation
Settings
Bin
Deck
Digitize
for recording
General
Interface
Keyboard
NRCS tool
opening in Project window
Settings Fast menu, using
Settings pop-up menu (Video Input tool)
Setup display (Audio tool)
Shadows adjusting depth
adjusting direction
applying to text or objects (Title tool)
choosing color (Title tool)
controlling transparency (Title tool)
selecting color for objects
Shortcuts making (NRCS tool)
removing (NRCS tool)
Shots, dissolving between
Shuttling controlling playback speed during
through footage with the mouse
with J-K-L keys
Single-layer effects, defined
Single-roller trim
Softness, adjusting for Picture-in-Picture effect
Source clips, defined
Source monitor marking edit points in
playing clips in
viewing clips in
Source tape display (Record tool)
Source/Record mode, defined
Splice-in defined
198 described for Segment mode
from Record tool
recording directly to the Timeline with
Splice-in button
Splicing-in audio clips
shots into a sequence
video clips
Starting NewsCutter
Status bar (Record tool)
Step buttons
Stepping through footage with the mouse
with buttons
with the keyboard
Sticky bins, enabling
Storage drive, turning on
Stories building a sequence (NRCS tool)
deleting (NRCS tool)
editing (NRCS tool)
finding read time (NRCS tool)
Story panel, adding production cues (NRCS tool)
Storyboard editing adding group of clips to sequence
described
Strobe Motion effects creating
optional parameters
Subclip button (Source monitor)
Subclip indicator (Record tool)
Subclips creating
creating on-the-fly during recording
defined
using Make Subclip button
S-VHS video, choosing as input source
Switching between record mode and log mode
Sync locking tracks
T
Tail trimming
Tape Name display (Record tool)
Tapes naming
naming automatically
naming for rerecording
settings for naming
Target Drive pop-up menus (Record tool)
Templates creating for titles
editing for titles
removing
saving
using
Text applying color to (Title tool)
applying shadows to (Title tool)
copying (NRCS tool)
cutting (NRCS tool)
deleting (NRCS tool)
formatting (NRCS tool)
formatting (Title tool)
marking as Closed Captioned (NRCS tool)
marking as normal (NRCS tool)
marking as Presenter Instructions (NRCS tool)
pasting (NRCS tool)
rearranging (NRCS tool)
repositioning for titles
Text tool, working with (Title tool)
Text View button (Bin window)
Text view, showing in bins
Three-button play See J-K-L keys
Three-point edit, using to overwrite
Timecode recording across breaks
recording source tapes without
199
Timeline customizing
defined
expanding and contracting
making changes to format
monitoring tracks
moving through with A and S keys
patching tracks
recording directly to
recording to
segment editing of titles in
selecting tracks in
showing position in
showing shadow position indicator in
Track Selector panel
using position indicator in
using scale bar in
using the scroll bar in
viewing individual tracks in
zooming in and out of
Title tool
applying color to text and objects in
applying shadows to text or objects in
choosing colors in
Color Picker
creating templates in
described
editing existing titles with
editing title templates in
formatting text in
removing templates from titles with
repositioning text and objects in
saving titles from
setting transparency with
text formatting tools
understanding tools in
to
using templates in
using the Selection tool
working with text in
Titles
adding text to
applying shadows to
bold text
changing font
changing kerning
changing leading
changing point size
choosing colors
creating
,
creating templates for
editing existing
editing into a sequence
editing templates
eliminating unused space
italic text
justifying text
overview
removing templates from
repositioning
repositioning text
saving
selecting color for
selecting objects and text
setting transparency
using templates on
working with
working with templates
Toggle Source button (Record tool)
Tool palette displaying button names
displaying button names in
enabling ToolTips
mapping buttons
mapping keys
mapping menu options
removing mapped buttons
removing mapped menu options
using
ToolTips, enabling in Tool palette
200
Top and Tail trimming
Track Selector panel described
patching tracks
using
Tracking audio levels
Tracks mapping to output channels (Audio tool)
methods for selecting
monitoring
patching
selecting
selecting all
sync locking
viewing one track only
Transition effects accessing parameters
adding
adding fade-in
applying
creating Quick Effect
described
Transitions applying effects
L-edits
moving to in Timeline
overlap edits
selecting for trimming
trimming
trimming incoming frames
trimming outgoing frames
Transparency blending (Title tool)
setting (Title tool)
Trash button (Record tool)
Trash, emptying from bin
Trim buttons
Trim mode basic procedures
defined
dual-roller
entering
exiting
performing basic trim
Play Loop button
selecting single transitions
selecting trim sides
single-roller
sync locking tracks
Trim Mode button
Trimming basics
dual-roller
performing basic
selecting sides
single-roller
using Top and Tail
with sync lock
Turning on the system
Internal Waveform monitor
opening
opening from Record tool
Preset button
saving Site settings for
Vectorscope monitor
Video output, preparing for
Video Track Monitor buttons (Track Selector panel)
Video tracks, monitoring
View mode (NRCS tool), editing in
Viewing clips in bins
clips in monitors
clips in pop-up monitors
clips in Record monitor
source tape name (Record tool)
Voice-overs, recording
VTR Play Emulation defined
enabling
VU scale analog
digital
U
UI monitor
Undoing an edit
Users, creating
V
Variable Speed effects creating
optional parameters
Variable-speed play See J-K-L keys
Vectorscope Monitor button (Video Input tool)
Video Input tool choosing Component input
choosing Composite input
choosing S-VHS input
displaying factory presets
Input pop-up menu
201
W
Workspaces customizing
described
enabling Sticky bins
modifying default
setting up
using default
using Sticky bins
WPM rate, finding (NRCS tool)
Z
Zooming, focus in the Timeline
202
advertisement
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project