Getting Started Owner's manual

Chapter 6 Fine-Tuning Your Edit 107
Three-Point Editing Rules in Final Cut Express HD
Final Cut Express HD uses the following rules to determine what constitutes an edit
point:
If no edit points are specified:
• If no edit points have been set in the Viewer, the In and Out points used are the
beginning and end of the clip.
• If no edit points have been set in the Canvas or the Timeline, the playhead location
in the Canvas is used as the sequence In point.
If only one edit point has been specified:
• If only an In point is set for a source clip in the Viewer, Final Cut Express HD uses
the end of the clip as the Out point. Likewise, if only an Out point has been
specified in the Viewer, Final Cut Express HD uses the beginning of the clip as the In
point.
• If you’ve only set an Out point in the Canvas or the Timeline, Final Cut Express HD
assumes you want to backtime the edit, matching the Out point of the source clip
with the Out point specified in your sequence.
Exceptions to these rules:
There are two exceptions to the Final Cut Express HD three-point editing rule:
• Fit to fill edits: This type of edit requires four specified points, because
Final Cut Express HD adjusts the speed of the source clip, slowing it down or
speeding it up to fill the specified duration in the sequence.
• Replace edits: For this type of edit, any In or Out points you set in the Viewer are
ignored. If no In or Out points have been set in your sequence, Final Cut Express HD
uses the boundaries of the clip currently at the playhead’s location in the Canvas as
sequence In and Out points. The replace edit is used to replace all or part of a
single clip in your sequence.
Also, sequence In and Out points and destination tracks don’t always apply when you
drag a clip directly into the Timeline to perform an edit.
For more information on fit to fill and replace edits, see
Final Cut Express Help, Chapter 19, “Advanced Editing and Trimming Techniques.”