DC Metro Final Cut Pros

Final Cut Pro – Selecting the Range of a Clip

Range Selection Tool

Wouldn’t it be great to apply a filter to only a portion of a clip – without having the cut the clip into a million pieces first?

Well, we can — using the Range Selection tool (keyboard shortcut GGG).

Using this tool, drag across the middle of a clip. Where ever you drag will be selected.

Then, apply an effect. The effect will only apply to the selected portion of the clip.

You can use this technique to apply effects, delete portions of a clip, or select something to copy and paste elsewhere.

Very cool.

Final Cut Pro – Selecting an Edit Point

Edit Selection Tool

And its called the Edit Selection tool (keyboard shortcut G).

Grab this tool and drag it around the edit points you want to select. As you do, only the edit points and not the clip, are selected.

As an added bonus as soon as you select your edit points, the Trim Edit window opens, allowing you to quickly trim your clips.

Note: Final Cut only allows selecting one edit point per track.

Final Cut Pro – The Secrets of the Right-Pointing Arrow

Right Pointing Arrow Secrets

Its not like its obvious or anything, but a great deal of the look of the Timeline is controlled from a itty-bitty, teeny-tiny, right-pointing arrow at the bottom of the Timeline.

Just to the right of the four column track height button.

Click the arrow and look at all the different choices you have. Each of these is a toggle. Select, or deselect, each one and watch what happens.

LiveType – Creating Text on a Curve

LiveType

All text in LiveType sits on a blue baseline.

A flat, blue baseline.

However, getting the blue baseline to curve is easy – IF you know where to click and what to do.

• Control-click the end dot of the baseline and select Curve In.
• About an inch away from the end of the blue baseline a small blue dot will appear.
• Grab the dot and drag it. As you do, the blue baseline will curve.

Ta-DAH!

LiveType – Invisible by Default

Background

By default, LiveType backgrounds are invisible. This means that when you build a text animation in LiveType, anything placed on the Timeline below the heavy gray line will not export or render in Final Cut — though it will be visible within LiveType.

This “visible but not visible” thing is enough to drive you nuts!

Here’s where you control it:

• Go to Edit > Project Properties
• Look down to find the Background section. When Render Background is NOT checked, everything below the heavy gray line will not export or display when the LiveType project is rendered in Final Cut Pro.
• When Render Background IS checked, everything below the heavy gray line will export and render in a Final Cut Pro project.

LiveType – Creating a 16:9 NTSC Clip in LiveType

LiveType is my favorite application for creating text that moves.

However, it does not have a default setting for 16:9 DV.

This is easy to fix.

• Go to Edit > Project Properties.
• Change the Presets pop-up menu to DV NTSC 3:2.
• Change the Pixel Aspect to 1.20.
• Click OK.

Done.

Final Cut Pro – A REALLY Faster Way to Edit

TIp Jar

You may know that fastest way to edit a clip from the Viewer to the Timeline using the keyboard is to press F10.

What you may not know is that pressing Shift+F10 not only edits the clip to the Timeline, but adds the default video and audio transition to the start of the clip.

This one keyboard shortcut can save you up to seven mouse clicks alone!