2
Table Of Contents
- Motion User Manual
- Contents
- Motion 2 Documentation and Resources
- Getting To Know Motion
- Creating and Managing Projects
- Creating New Projects
- Managing Projects
- Editing Project Properties
- Browsing Media Files in Motion
- File Types Supported by Motion
- Adding Media to Your Project
- Managing Objects in Your Project
- Deleting Objects From a Project
- Exchanging Media in a Project
- Object Media Tab Parameters
- Using Media in the Library
- Organizing Layers and Objects in Motion
- The Background of Your Project
- Selecting Objects and Layers in the Layers Tab
- Reorganizing Objects in the Layers Tab
- Nesting Layers Inside Other Layers
- Grouping and Ungrouping Objects
- Showing and Hiding Layers and Objects
- Fixing the Size of a Layer
- Locking Layers and Objects
- Collapsing and Uncollapsing Layer Hierarchies
- Renaming Layers
- Searching for Layers and Objects
- Sorting Layers and Objects in the Media Tab
- Customizing and Creating New Templates
- Basic Compositing
- Using the Timeline
- Using Behaviors
- Keyframes and Curves
- Using Text
- Working With Particles
- The Anatomy of a Particle System
- Using Particle Systems
- Creating Graphics and Animations for Particle Systems
- Advanced Particle System Controls
- Animating Objects in Particle Systems
- Using Behaviors With Particle Systems
- Applying Filters to Particle Systems
- Particle System Examples
- Saving Custom Particle Effects to the Library
- Using the Replicator
- The Difference Between the Replicator and a Particle System
- The Anatomy of the Replicator
- Using the Replicator
- Advanced Replicator Controls
- Animating Replicator Parameters
- Using the Sequence Replicator Behavior
- Using Behaviors With Replicators
- Applying Filters to Replicators
- Saving Custom Replicators to the Library
- Using Filters
- About Filters
- Working With Filters
- An Introduction to Filters
- Working With Filters
- Enabling, Renaming, and Locking Filters
- Copying, Pasting, and Moving Filters
- Reordering Filters
- Changing Filter Timing
- Blur Filters
- A Fun Effect That Can Be Used With All the Blur Filters
- Border Filters
- Color Correction Filters
- Distortion Filters
- Glow Filters
- Keying Filters
- Matte Filters
- Sharpen Filters
- Stylize Filters
- Tiling Filters
- Working With Third-Party Filters
- Working With Generators
- Using Shapes and Masks
- Working With Audio
- Exporting Motion Projects
- Keyboard Shortcuts
- Video and File Formats
- Supported File Formats
- Standard Definition vs. High Definition Video Formats
- Popular Video Codecs for File Exchange
- What Is Field Order?
- Using Square or Nonsquare Pixels When Creating Graphics
- Differences in Color Between Computer and Video Graphics
- Using Fonts and Creating Line Art for Video
- Scaling Imported High-Resolution Graphics
- Creating Graphics for HD Projects
- Integration With Final Cut Pro
- Using Gestures
- Index
950 Appendix B Video and File Formats
Third-party codecs
There are several manufacturers of video-editing solutions, most of whom use different
variations of the M-JPEG codec. Many make software-only QuickTime codecs that you
can install in your System folder, enabling you to play back movies with little or no
rerendering. For more information, contact the manufacturer of the editing system.
Note: Most third-party codecs cannot have alpha channels.
What Is Field Order?
All video displays, whether analog or digital, work by breaking a single frame of video
into individual lines of horizontal resolution running across the screen. Standard
definition NTSC and PAL are both interlaced video formats, as opposed to high
definition video, or video displayed on a computer screen, which are progressive
scanned video formats. With progressive scanning, these lines are drawn one at a time,
from the top of the screen to the bottom.
Interlaced video, including NTSC and PAL, works differently. When you record footage
with your camcorder, each individual video frame is broken down into two fields, each
containing half of the total lines of resolution in the frame. The first field is recorded,
then the second, then both are laid down to tape, one after the other, so both fields
constitute one frame. When you play the tape back, a television monitor displays each
recorded frame in two passes, first drawing field 1, then drawing field 2.
Field order refers to the order in which video fields are recorded from your video
equipment to your hard disk. If you remember that video fields come one after another
in time, as if playing 60 “frames” per second, it becomes a little easier to understand.
There are two options for field order:
• Upper (Field 2 is dominant, so the second field is drawn first.)
• Lower (Field 1 is dominant, so the first field is drawn first.)
Generally, Upper is used by 640 x 480 systems, while Lower is most common in
professional 720 x 486 and DV 720 x 480 systems.
It’s important to render digital video with the field order used by your hardware. Since
motion continues from one field to the next, it’s crucial that each field plays in the
correct order. Since different capture cards handle interlacing differently, choosing the
correct field order ensures proper playback.
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