Avid NewsCutter XP ® ® Effects Guide Release 2.
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Contents Using This Guide Who Should Use This Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 About This Guide. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Symbols and Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 If You Need Help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Related Information. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 2 Basics of Effects Editing Deconstructing Effects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 Applying Effects to a Sequence. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 Applying an Effect to a Single Transition or Segment . . . . . . . 39 Dragging an Effect from the Effect Palette . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 Double-Clicking an Effect Icon in the Effect Palette . . . . . 41 Applying an Effect to Multiple Transitions . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating a Rolling Clip That Freezes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 Creating a Variable Speed Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 Creating a Strobe Motion Effect. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 Creating Mosaic Effects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 Using the Effect Editor with the Mosaic Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 Creating a Mosaic Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Changing a Keyframe’s Parameters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110 Copying and Pasting Keyframe Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111 Deleting a Keyframe. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112 Manipulating Effects Directly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112 Defining Motion Paths . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112 Moving the Image Directly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Managing Effect Media Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143 Understanding Effect Media Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143 Revealing Effect Media Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144 Deleting Effect Media Files from a Bin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147 Chapter 4 Creating Layered and Nested Effects Creating Key Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Setting Up the Drawing Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181 Installing Fonts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182 Previewing Titles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183 Using Title and Action Guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183 Using Safe Colors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184 Selecting a Background . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting Line Attributes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200 Rounding Corners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201 Selecting a Line or Border Width . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201 Adding Arrowheads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203 Changing Arrowhead Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203 Creating Crawling Titles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Manipulating Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224 Basic Manipulation Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224 Layering Text and Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225 Grouping and Ungrouping Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226 Locking and Unlocking Objects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227 Aligning Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Editing a Title into a Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249 Setting Marks in Crawling Titles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250 Splicing or Overwriting a Title into a Sequence. . . . . . . . . . . . 250 Dragging a Marked Title into a Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253 Dragging an Unmarked Title into a Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255 Trimming the Duration of Crawling Titles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256 Removing Titles . . . . . .
Key Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283 Key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283 Secondary Key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284 Spill Suppression. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285 Matrix Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285 Mosaic Parameters . . . . . .
Left Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 307 Right Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 308 Top Box. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 309 Top Left to Bottom Right . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 310 Top Right to Bottom Left . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 310 Conceal Effects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Key Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 330 Chroma Key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331 Luma Key. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 332 Matte Key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 333 L-Conceal Effects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 334 Bottom Left . . . . . .
Top Left to Bottom Right . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 354 Top Right to Bottom Left . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 355 Top to Bottom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 356 Sawtooth Wipes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 357 Horizontal Sawtooth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 357 Horizontal Open Sawtooth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Top Left . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 379 Top Right . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 380 Top to Bottom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381 Vertical Centered . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 382 Title Effects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tables Table 2-1 Playback Capabilities of Motion Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 Table 3-1 Effect Editor Buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100 Table 3-2 Render Settings Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125 Table 5-1 Toolbar Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179 Table 5-2 Maximum Pages and Object Heights for Titles . . . . .
Using This Guide This guide is your introduction to the wealth of effects and design options available for use in your projects. This release of the Avid® NewsCutter® XP system includes the standard editing features used in creating professional broadcast output. You also have at your fingertips all the sophisticated effects capabilities of a high-end postproduction suite, combined with the versatility of a digital nonlinear editing system.
About This Guide This guide leads you through even the most complex procedures with task-oriented instructions. The information provided here builds on editing procedures described in the user’s guide for NewsCutter XP, while adding a complete explanation of all the tools and techniques required to create, apply, and adjust various effects and graphics, including useful tips, shortcuts, and custom options.
Symbols and Conventions Unless noted otherwise, the material in this document applies to the Windows® 2000 operating system. The NewsCutter XP documentation uses the following special symbols and conventions: 1. Numbered lists, when the order of the items is important. a. • Bulleted lists, when the order of the items is unimportant. - t Alphabetical lists, when the order of secondary items is important. Indented dashed lists, when the order of secondary items is unimportant.
If You Need Help If you’re having trouble using NewsCutter XP, you should: 1. Retry the action, carefully following the instructions given for that task in this guide. 2. Check the documentation that came with your hardware for maintenance or hardware-related issues. 3. Check the release notes supplied with your Avid application for information on accessing the Avid Web site and the Avid Knowledge Center. 4.
• Avid NewsCutter XP User’s Guide This guide provides complete information on all editing tasks, such as recording footage, viewing and marking footage, editing, trimming, importing, exporting, and generating final output. This guide also provides a glossary that defines and explains many industry terms. • Avid NewsCutter XP Quick Reference Card This folded card lists convenient keyboard shortcuts.
If You Have Documentation Comments Avid Technology continuously seeks to improve its documentation. We value your comments about this guide, the Help, the Online Publications CD-ROM, and other Avid-supplied documentation. Simply e-mail your documentation comments to Avid Technology at TechPubs@avid.com Please include the title of the document, its part number, revision, and the specific section you’re commenting on in all correspondence.
CHAPTER 1 Preparing to Work with Effects NewsCutter XP offers many effects that you can apply to your sequences. This chapter describes concepts you should understand before you begin creating and editing effects into sequences. • Effect Types • Effects Creation Tools • Using the Effect Palette • Playing Effects in a Sequence • Using Third-Party Plug-in Effects Effect Types Much overlapping occurs between the various types of effects you can create, as well as the methods used to create them.
• Transition effects (dissolves, wipes, and so forth) are applied at the cut point between two video clips that are on the same video track (that is, the same video layer). For more information on creating transition effects, see Chapter 2, “Basics of Effects Editing” and Chapter 3, “Customizing Effects with the Effect Editor.” • Segment effects are applied to an entire clip or group of clips.
Effects Creation Tools The following chart presents the basic tools used to create effects. Sources of effects: Motion Effect dialog box Title tool Effect Palette Apply transition and segment effects directly to tracks. Title and motion effects appear first as clips in the bin. Effects editing in default editing mode: Edit effect clips into the Timeline.
Displaying Effects On-the-Fly The Render On-the-Fly option allows you to preview non-real-time effects frame by frame, immediately after applying them. To display effects immediately during effects editing: t Choose Render On-the-Fly from the Clip menu. Interrupting Render On-the-Fly Using Render On-the-Fly can slow down your editing of a sequence. If you are compositing and then change the frame you are monitoring, the system automatically renders the single frame.
Using the Effect Palette The Effect Palette is a window that lists all the effects available on NewsCutter XP. Other effects that are available on your system depend on what third-party plug-ins you might have installed. You select transition and segment effects from the Effect Palette. The left side of the Effect Palette displays a scrollable list of effect categories that includes the following standard categories as well as categories for any third-party plug-ins you have installed.
Displaying the Effect Palette To display the Effect Palette: 1. Choose Effect Palette from the Tools menu. You can also display the Effect Palette by pressing Ctrl+8 on your keyboard. The Effect Palette opens. Blend effect choices Scrollable list of effect categories 2. Click an effect category on the left side of the Effect Palette to select it and display effects in that category on the right side.
Understanding the Color Coding Effect icons in the Effect Palette and in the Timeline might display color-coded dots. Effects preceded by a green dot indicate that the effect can be fast rendered. n The Submaster effect has a green dot in the Effect Palette. Other effects might show a green dot in the Timeline, based on the complexity of the sequence. Non-real-time effects have no dot in the Effect Palette. In the Timeline, the effect icon contains a blue dot until you render the effect.
Displaying Effect Templates Effect templates allow you to save the parameters of an effect to a bin and use them again to create or modify other effects. In addition to displaying all the standard effects, the Effect Palette allows you to view and access effect templates stored in open bins. The names of open bins containing effects appear in a list below the effect categories. To view the effect template: 1. Open the bin containing the effect templates. 2. Choose Effect Palette from the Tools menu.
Effect templates Effect category list Bin name containing effect templates For example, in the preceding illustration, the bin named Effects contains a series of effect templates using the Picture-in-Picture, Mask, and Superimpose effects. n The Effect Palette also displays other effect files, such as matte key clips and titles. Whenever you open or close a bin or whenever you drop an effect into a bin, NewsCutter XP automatically updates both lists.
You can also use Play Preview in the Effect Editor to preview effects before rendering by using their outline form. An effect’s outline is a wire-frame representation of the effect’s position, scale, and path of motion. See “Playing a Preview of an Effect” on page 122. Using Third-Party Plug-in Effects You can use third-party plug-in effects to add new effects to NewsCutter XP or to update existing effects. Third-party plug-in effects are compatible with the Avid Visual Extensions (AVX) standard.
CHAPTER 2 Basics of Effects Editing This chapter explains how to create basic transition and single-layer segment effects, including motion effects.
The sequence depicted in the following screen image contains a series of effects that cover all the basic techniques — from simple dissolves to nested layers — described throughout Chapters 2, 3, and 4 of this guide. n In the PDF version of this guide, available on the Avid NewsCutter XP Online Publications CD-ROM, you can double-click the following image to view the entire sequence.
Deconstructing an effects sequence Imported graphic used as a wipe: See “Working with Imported Graphics and Animation” on page 156. Title graphics imported as Matte Key effects: See “Working with Imported Graphics and Animation” on page 156. Effect template applied repeatedly to crop and position foreground images on V2: See “Applying an Effect Template” on page 119. Keyed titles are faded in and out: See “Using the Fade Effect Button” on page 48.
Applying Effects to a Sequence This section explains how to apply an effect to a sequence in the Timeline. You can apply an effect to: • One transition or segment on a single video layer See “Applying an Effect to a Single Transition or Segment” on page 39. • Multiple transitions or segments on a single video layer • Multiple transitions or segments on multiple video layers See “Applying an Effect to Multiple Transitions” on page 42 and “Applying an Effect to Multiple Segments” on page 44.
Dragging an Effect from the Effect Palette To apply an effect to a single transition or segment: For information about editing a sequence, see the Avid NewsCutter XP User’s Guide. 1. Create a sequence in the Timeline, using standard Avid editing procedures. 2. Choose Effect Palette from the Tools menu. For an explanation of the Effect Palette, see “Using the Effect Palette” on page 30. 3.
n If you apply a segment effect, one segment at a time is highlighted as you drag the effect within the Timeline. If the effect is a transition effect, one transition at a time is highlighted as you drag the effect within the Timeline. Some effects are both transition and segment effects; when you drag such an effect within the Timeline, both transitions and segments are highlighted. Double-Clicking an Effect Icon in the Effect Palette To apply an effect to a single segment: 1.
Applying an Effect to Multiple Transitions To apply an effect to multiple transitions: 1. If there is not already an effect on one of the transitions, add a transition effect. NewsCutter XP allows you to perform this procedure only if one of the transitions already has an effect on it. 2. Click the Effect Mode button in the Other tab of the Command palette to open the Effect Editor. 3. Click the transition effect described in step 1. 4.
6. Release the mouse button when you have lassoed all the transitions you want. The transitions that you selected are highlighted, and the position indicator moves to the first transition. 7. If the transitions where you want to apply the effect are not contiguous, Shift+click any transition to deselect it. 8. Open the Effect Palette, and double-click the icon for the effect that you want to apply to the transitions. The effect appears on the highlighted transitions in the Timeline.
If the sequence does not have enough incoming or outgoing media to apply the transition effect, a dialog box appears. For more information, see “Sizing the Effect to Fit the Media” on page 63. Applying an Effect to Multiple Segments You can apply an effect to multiple segments on the same video layer or on multiple video layers in a single step. The following procedure describes selecting multiple segments in the same video layer. You can also use this procedure to select segments on multiple layers.
3. Release the mouse button. NewsCutter XP highlights the segments you selected. 4. If the segments where you want to apply the effect are not contiguous, Shift+click a segment to deselect it. You can also Shift+click to add one or more segments. 5. Open the Effect Palette, and double-click the effect’s icon to apply the effect to the segments. NewsCutter XP applies the effect to the highlighted segments in the Timeline.
Deleting Effects in a Sequence You can delete transition effects from a sequence in the Timeline at any time. You can delete segment effects from a sequence in the Timeline at any time except when you are in Trim mode. Use the following procedures to either delete a single effect from a sequence or delete effects in multiple segments. Deleting a Single Effect To delete a single effect: 1. Move the position indicator to the Timeline segment containing the effect’s icon.
c If you delete a segment effect and the segment contains a transition effect, the transition effect will be deleted also, because the transition effect resides “on top of” the segment effect. If necessary, you will have to reapply the transition effect. 3. Delete the effect by doing one of the following: n t If the Effect Editor is not active, click the Remove Effect button in the Tool palette. t When the Effect Editor is active, select the effect and press the Delete key.
Deleting Multiple Transition Effects To delete multiple transition effects: 1. Shift+click each transition effect you want to delete. 2. Click the Remove Effect button, or press the Delete key. n You must be in Effect mode for this procedure to work. For more information on editing in Effect mode, see “Opening the Effect Editor” on page 91. Deleting Multiple Segment Effects To delete multiple segment effects: 1. Click either the Extract/Splice-in button or the Lift/Overwrite button below the Timeline. 2.
To fade one or more segment effects in a sequence: 1. Make a selection in the Timeline by doing one of the following: t To fade a single segment effect, move the position indicator to the segment. t To fade multiple segment effects, click either the Extract/Splice-in button or the Lift/Overwrite button below the Timeline; then Shift+click the segments. 2. Click the Fade Effect button in the FX tab in the Command palette. The Fade Effect dialog box appears. 3.
Types of Transition Effects Transition effects are included in all effect categories in the Effect Palette, except the Image effect category. For an explanation of the transition effects in each effect category, see Chapter 7. Applying a Dissolve Effect One of the most common transition effects is a dissolve. NewsCutter XP has three methods for applying the Dissolve effect: • Select the Dissolve effect from the Effect Palette.
n If the sequence does not have enough incoming or outgoing media to apply a transition effect, a dialog box appears. See “Sizing the Effect to Fit the Media” on page 63. Using the Quick Transition Button You can also click the Quick Transition button to create a transition.
To create a transition by using the Quick Transition button: 1. Move the position indicator to the transition in the Timeline. 2. Click the Quick Transition button in the Tool palette. The Quick Transition dialog box appears. The dialog box includes a graphical display of the outgoing media and incoming media, with the effect icon applied to the transition. For more information, see “Understanding the Graphical Display in the Quick Transition Dialog Box” on page 59. 3.
n When you choose a color transition with Quick Transition, the default color is black. You must enter Effect mode to choose another color. For more information, see “Using the Effect Editor” on page 98. 4. Select the transition duration by doing one of the following: t Type the duration in frames in the Duration text box. t Click either the left or the right edge of the Dissolve Effect icon and drag it to change the duration.
t Click inside the effect in the graphical display, and drag it to position the effect with respect to the cut point. t Click one of the alignment buttons below the graphical display. For more information on the graphical display options, see “Understanding the Graphical Display in the Quick Transition Dialog Box” on page 59. The system positions the effect, updates the graphical display to show the new position of the effect, and updates the value in the Start text box.
Using the Quick Transition Button to Apply Effects to Multiple Transitions You can select multiple transitions by marking IN and OUT points. Then apply an effect from the Quick Transition dialog box to all the selected transitions at once. To apply an effect to multiple transitions by using the Quick Transition button: 1. Mark IN and OUT points around the transitions to which you want to apply the effect. 2.
4. Click the Quick Transition button. The Quick Transition dialog box appears. Apply To All Transitions check box 5. Choose a transition effect from the Add pop-up menu. For an explanation of individual effects shown in the menu, see Chapter 7. n When you save a Dissolve effect template into a bin named Quick Transitions, the effect template appears in the Add pop-up menu. See “Using an Effect Template” on page 117.
n When you choose a color transition with Quick Transition, the default color is black. You must enter Effect mode to choose another color. For more information, see “Using the Effect Editor” on page 98. 6. Select the transition duration by doing one of the following: t Type the duration in frames in the Duration text box. t Click either the left or the right edge of the Dissolve Effect icon and drag it to change the duration.
t Click inside the effect in the graphical display and drag it to position the effect with respect to the cut point. t Click one of the alignment buttons below the graphical display. For more information on the graphical display options, see “Understanding the Graphical Display in the Quick Transition Dialog Box” on page 59. The system positions the effect, updates the graphical display to show the new position of the effect, and updates the value in the Start text box. 8.
Understanding the Graphical Display in the Quick Transition Dialog Box The graphical display of the transition effect that appears in the Quick Transition dialog box allows you to control the length and position of the effect with frame accuracy simply by dragging. You can also quickly reset the position of the effect by using the three alignment buttons. Features of the Graphical Display The following illustration shows the graphical display in the Quick Transition dialog box.
The system draws and scales the graphical display so that it always represents the relative size and position of the transition effect in relation to the media. For example, in the preceding illustration, the effect is 23 frames long while the outgoing handle is 17 frames long. The effect is therefore shown 35% longer than the outgoing handle. Adjusting the Effect by Dragging You can control the length or position of the transition effect by dragging in the graphical display.
To adjust the position of the effect: 1. Move the pointer inside the effect. The pointer changes to a hand. 2. Drag the effect to adjust its position with respect to the cut point. The graphical display updates to show the new effect position, and the Start text box updates to show the new number of frames before the cut point.
To reposition the effect with an alignment button: t Click one of the following buttons: • Ending at Cut, to have the effect end at the cut point • Centered on Cut, to center the effect on the cut point • Starting at Cut, to have the effect begin at the cut point Creating a Dissolve in Trim Mode You can create a Dissolve effect in Trim mode by using the Transition parameters displayed in the Effect Editor and in the Source/Record monitor.
3. Click the Transition Effect Alignment button, and select the effect’s position relative to the cut point from the pop-up menu. For an explanation of the Transition Effect Alignment pop-up menu selections, see “Transition Parameters” on page 297. Sizing the Effect to Fit the Media When you select a transition effect from the Effect Palette and not enough source media exists to apply the effect, the Insufficient Source dialog box appears.
n Although the graphical display in the Insufficient Source dialog box is similar to the graphical display in the Quick Transition dialog box, you cannot adjust an effect by dragging in the Insufficient Source dialog box. Trimming a Transition Effect NewsCutter XP lets you do the following: • Trim a transition effect, using the standard transition trim procedures. For more information, see the “Working in Trim Mode” chapter in the Avid NewsCutter XP User’s Guide.
NewsCutter XP creates motion effects using one of four different types — Duplicated Field, Both Fields, Interpolated Field, and VTR-Style. All types always require rendering. You choose motion effect types based on the quality you need for the final motion effect, the rendering time that each type requires, and the media with which you are working (some types are useful only when you are working with two-field media).
Table 2-1 Playback Capabilities of Motion Effects (Continued) Effect Playback Capability Preview Capability Variable Speed effects — fast motion and reverse Non-real-time motion (all types). (Use a value over 100 or a negative value in the % speed text box of the Motion Effect dialog box.
Color-coded dots appear on Motion Effect icons to indicate whether they require rendering. The following illustration shows several typical examples of Motion Effect icons in the Timeline. Rendered VTR-Style motion effect (no dot) Unrendered Both Fields motion effect Unrendered Interpolated Field motion effect (blue dot — plays as a Duplicated Field motion effect until rendered) If you use the ExpertRender™ feature, ExpertRender correctly identifies motion effects that require rendering.
• You need to render a motion effect so that it will play successfully in a complex sequence even if that effect would not normally require rendering. • You might need to render or rerender motion effects when you edit them into a sequence and perform trims or apply transition effects. If an effect that was previously rendered (no colored dot in the Timeline) or that previously played in real time changes in such a way that it requires rendering, it will appear with a blue dot in the Timeline.
NewsCutter XP writes a message in the Console window whenever it changes the type of a motion effect during rendering. You can check these messages to verify the changes that the system has made to your motion effects. Motion Effect icons in the Timeline also change to reflect the new motion effect type. Creating a Freeze Frame A Freeze Frame effect is a still image, based on a chosen frame from a clip, that continues to display for the duration that you choose.
4. Choose Two Field Freeze Frames, and then choose one of the following: • Using Duplicated Field — NewsCutter XP creates the effect using a single field. This option reduces the vertical resolution of the image by one-half, resulting in a lower quality image. If the footage contains motion, however, this option can be useful in eliminating any jitter in the image caused by motion between the two fields. • Using Both Fields — NewsCutter XP uses both fields to create the effect.
• Using Interpolated Field — NewsCutter XP creates a second field for the effect by combining scan line pairs from the first field in the original media. This might result in a slightly softer look to the freeze frame. The chosen option becomes the default until you choose another option. 5. Choose Freeze Frame from the Clip menu, and then do one of the following: t Choose a preconfigured duration. t Choose Other and type a custom duration in the dialog box; then click OK to enter the new duration.
To map the Freeze Frame command to a button or key: 1. Choose Freeze Frame from the Clip menu, choose Two Field Freeze Frames, and then choose one of the following: • Using Duplicated Field — NewsCutter XP creates the effect using a single field. This option reduces the vertical resolution of the image by one-half, resulting in a lower quality image. If the footage contains motion, however, this option can be useful in eliminating any jitter in the image caused by motion between the two fields.
Creating a Rolling Clip That Freezes One common use for freeze frames is to create a segment that plays normally and then freezes, either to superimpose text information or to add emphasis to the end of a sequence before fading. To create a rolling clip that freezes: 1. Edit the clip into the sequence. 2. Mark an IN point in the sequence at the frame where you want the freeze frame to occur. 3. Create the Freeze Frame effect from the source footage as described in “Creating a Freeze Frame” on page 69. 4.
To create a Variable Speed effect: 1. (Option) If you require a fixed duration for the clip based on a segment in the sequence, mark the segment in the Timeline with IN and OUT points. 2. (Option) If you want to use only part of the source clip for the motion effect, mark IN and OUT points in the Source/Record monitor. 3. Click the Motion Effect button on the Source/Record monitor. The Motion Effect dialog box appears. Variable Speed option 4. Select the Variable Speed option. 5.
t Type a frame rate in the FPS text box. To indicate reverse motion, enter a negative number for the play rate. t Type a percentage of the current play rate in the % Speed text box. To indicate reverse motion, enter a negative number for the percentage. t Select the Fit To Fill option to automatically set the Variable Speed parameters so that the duration of the motion effect will match the IN to OUT duration marked in the Source/Record monitor.
7. (Option) If a specific motion effect type is set as the Motion Effects Render Using option in the active Render setting, NewsCutter XP automatically selects that type in the Motion Effect dialog box, makes all other types unavailable, and displays the Ignore Render Setting check box. If you want to override the Render setting, click the Ignore Render Setting check box, and then select one of the four options described in step 6. 8.
Creating a Strobe Motion Effect Strobe motion results in a stuttering effect during playback of a clip. You determine the degree of the “stutter” when you create the effect. n You can also combine the Strobe Motion effect with the Variable Speed effect. For more information on the Variable Speed effect, see “Creating a Variable Speed Effect” on page 73. To create a Strobe Motion effect: 1.
3. Select the Strobe Motion option. 4. Specify the update rate in frames for the Strobe Motion effect. For example, a rate of 5 causes every fifth frame to be held for five frames before updating in the Strobe Motion effect. 5. (Option) If Original Preference is set as the Motion Effects Render Using option in the active Render setting, select one of the following four available options: n • Duplicated Field — NewsCutter XP creates the effect using one field.
7. Complete the effect by doing one of the following: n t Click Create to create the new clip and close the dialog box. If you have more than one bin open, another dialog box appears, asking you to select a bin for the effect. t Click Create and Render to render the clip — creating new media files — and close the dialog box. If you have more than one bin open, another dialog box appears, asking you to select a bin for the effect. You must render a Strobe Motion effect to play it back in real time.
Creating Mosaic Effects The Mosaic effect utilizes many of the tools and parameters common to other effects, but it also includes several features unique to this effect: • Feathering parameters • Mosaic parameters • Z-rotation tool • Reshape tool • Bring Forward and Send Backward buttons The Mosaic effect allows you to obscure part of an image, such as a face, by distorting the pixels into a tile pattern within a defined area. n The Mosaic effect is a non-real-time effect.
Acceleration parameter Reduce and Enlarge buttons Feathering parameters Selection tool Z-rotation tool Reshape tool Mosaic parameters Bring Forward and Send Backward buttons Rectangle tool Oval tool Play Loop button Play button You control the Mosaic effect by using the following parameters in the Effect Editor: • Acceleration – Adjusts the effect’s speed from one keyframe to the next when the mosaic object moves within a segment. • Feathering – Adds soft edges to a mosaic object.
The following buttons appear on the right side of the Effect Editor for the Mosaic effect. Button Description Reduce Decreases the magnification of objects in the Effect Preview monitor. Enlarge Increases the magnification of objects in the Effect Preview monitor. Selection tool Selects an object so you can change its parameters, move it, or delete it. With the Shift key pressed, selects multiple objects. Z-rotation tool Rotates an object around the Z axis.
Creating a Mosaic Effect To create a mosaic effect: 1. Choose Effect Palette from the Tools menu. 2. Click the Image category. 3. Click the Mosaic Effect icon, drag it to a segment in the sequence, and release the mouse button. 4. Click the Effect Mode button in the Other tab of the Command palette to enter Effect mode. The Effect Editor opens. 5. Click either the Rectangle tool or the Oval tool. 6. Click in the Source/Record monitor and drag to create an object.
Modifying a Mosaic Object To modify the attributes of a mosaic object: 1. Click the Selection tool, and select the object you want to change. 2. Use the sliders in the Feathering parameter category to adjust the appearance of the outline of the object: n n • The Hor (horizontal) slider extends the mosaic to the surrounding pixels along the X axis. • The Vert (vertical) slider extends the mosaic to the surrounding pixels along the Y axis.
4. Use the Z-rotation and Reshape tools to customize the shape of the mosaic object: • Z-rotation allows you to rotate the object around a Z axis by manipulating the resize handles. • Reshape allows you to create an irregular object by moving the resize handles individually. Left resize handle selected n The Bring Forward and Send Backward buttons apply to segments with two or more mosaic objects when the objects overlap. You use the buttons to define which object appears closer to the viewer. 5.
Stabilizing an Image The Region Stabilize effect eliminates unwanted motion in a video clip, such as motion from an unstable camera. Region Stabilize allows you to select an area of the image that you want to remain stationary and then uses the information to reposition each frame in the clip to keep the region steady. Stabilization exposes black around the edges of the repositioned frames. You can resize (and, if necessary, reposition) the rendered clip to remove the exposed edges.
4. Click the Effect Mode button in the Tool palette. A wire frame appears in the Effect Preview monitor to indicate the region of interest. This is the area you want to use in stabilizing the image. Wire frame marking the region of interest 5. Reposition and resize the wire frame by doing one of the following: t Use the sliders in the Region of Interest parameter category. t Click the wire frame and drag it in the Effect Preview monitor.
6. Select the type of stabilization from the Model pop-up menu: • Translational keeps the region of interest steady along both the horizontal and the vertical axes. • Horizontal constrains horizontal motion in the region of interest. Features in the region of interest can move vertically but not horizontally. • Vertical constrains vertical motion in the region of interest. Features in the region of interest can move horizontally but not vertically. 7. (Option) Select the Auto Zoom option.
Making Adjustments to the Region of Interest If the Region Stabilize effect does not perform as expected, it might be due to one of the following: • Large motion. If an object in your region of interest moves too far away from the region from one frame to the next, the rendered clip might display unexpected results. • Extraneous motion. Something in your region of interest might move over the course of the clip in a way that unpredictably affects the stabilization. • Insufficient texture.
CHAPTER 3 Customizing Effects with the Effect Editor After you have created an effect and have 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. This chapter explains how to use the Effect Editor to adjust effect parameters.
Opening the Effect Editor After you add an effect to a sequence, you must open the Effect Editor to change the effect’s parameters. Opening the Effect Editor transforms the Source/Record monitor into the Effect Preview monitor. To open the Effect Editor: 1. Move the position indicator to the effect’s icon in the Timeline. 2. Click the Effect Mode button in the Other tab of the Command palette. NewsCutter XP opens the Effect Editor and displays the values for the current effect.
n If the Effect Editor is blank, click an effect icon in the Timeline and then click in the Effect Editor. Customizing the Effect Display You can adjust the appearance and functionality of various aspects of the Effect display by resizing windows and images, by displaying tracking information, or by displaying guidelines for the placement of effects and titles, as described in this section.
Tracking information Length of effect Current position in effect Effect Preview monitor Effect’s position indicator (blue line) Effect’s position bar Keyframe Pop-up scale bar for expanding the position bar n If the effect you expect does not appear in the Effect Preview monitor, make sure that you have selected the Record Track Monitor button in the Track Selector panel.
Displaying the Safe Title and Safe Action Guidelines Many effects can utilize the outer edges of the viewing screen area. If you are editing material that will be viewed on screens with more limited viewing areas, such as standard televisions, you can use the Safe Title and Safe Action options to provide visual guidelines in the Effect Preview monitor that replicate the actual viewable area on a standard television screen.
Safe title area Safe action area To display the safe title and safe action areas in the Source/Record monitor: t Click the Grid button in the Tool palette of the Source/Record monitor. Moving an Enlarged Image in the Effect Preview Monitor You can use the Enlarge and Reduce buttons in the Effect Editor to zoom in or out on an image in the Effect Preview monitor.
n This feature applies only to an enlarged image in the Effect Preview monitor, not to a standard-size or reduced image. To move an enlarged image within the Effect Preview monitor: 1. Click within the boundaries of the Effect Preview monitor. 2. Press and hold Ctrl+Alt. The pointer changes to a hand. If the image is enlarged, the zoom ratio appears on the screen. Pointer Zoom ratio 3. Drag the hand in any direction to reposition the image within the Effect Preview monitor.
Changing Position in an Effect To change your position in an effect, do one of the following: t Drag the position indicator in the effect’s position bar. t Type the timecode in the same way you do when you are editing a sequence. For more information, see the “Viewing and Marking Footage” chapter of the Avid NewsCutter XP User’s Guide. The type of timecode you enter (master timecode or absolute timecode) depends on the tracking information you are displaying.
n Some effects cannot replace other effects. For example, some segment effects, such as the Mask effect, cannot replace transition effects. In addition, two-layer effects, such as wipes, cannot replace three-layer effects, such as matte keys. Using the Effect Editor The Effect Editor contains the buttons and parameter controls that you use to adjust effects. Effect Editor buttons control the effect adjustment process. Parameter controls allow you to set values that define the appearance of an effect.
Other Options button Triangular opener Reduce button Enlarge button Play Loop button Play button Render Effect button Transition Effect Duration box Grid button Transition Effect Alignment button Outline/Path button 99
Table 3-1 Effect Editor Buttons Button Location Description Triangular opener Left side of Effect Editor Click to display or hide the parameter category. A downward-pointing triangle displays the parameter category; a right-pointing triangle displays only the parameter name. Other Options Inside some parameter categories Click to access additional parameters for some effects, including access to the Windows Color dialog box for color selection.
Table 3-1 Effect Editor Buttons (Continued) Button Location Description Outline/Path Bottom of Effect Editor Click to display a wire-frame path to illustrate the movement of an effect from the first keyframe through the last keyframe. Grid Bottom of Effect Editor Click to display the safe title and safe action guidelines. Transition Effect Alignment Bottom of Effect Editor Click to open a pop-up menu with options for selecting the alignment of a transition effect relative to the cut point.
3. (Option) If you are not already in Effect mode, click the Effect Mode button in the Other tab of the Command palette. The name of the effect and its icon appear at the top of the Effect Editor and the parameters that pertain to the effect appear in the Effect Editor. The Effect Editor opens. Effect name Other Options button Effect icon Triangular opener Parameter category Slider used to adjust parameter Transition parameters This example shows the Grid effect parameters.
About Effect Parameters Effect parameters are values that define the appearance of an effect. For example, you can set parameters that control the size and position of a Picture-in-Picture effect. Not all effect parameters apply to all effects. Parameters that do not apply to an effect do not appear in the Effect Editor for that effect. To determine which parameters pertain to an effect, see the effect’s description in “2D Effects” on page 299.
n For reference information on all effect parameters, see “2D Effects Parameters” on page 269. Using Parameter Sliders Parameter sliders allow you to adjust effect parameters that have a range of possible values. For example, use the Level slider in the Foreground parameter category to adjust the degree of opacity of the foreground material on a scale from 0 to 100. To activate a parameter that has a slider: t Click the slider. When you activate a slider, it changes color.
Using Parameter Enable Buttons Some parameter categories contain parameter Enable buttons. These buttons control parameters that can either be on or off but cannot be adjusted over a range of values. For example, the Fixed Aspect parameter Enable button controls whether the aspect ratio of an image is maintained when you adjust one of its dimensions. To turn a parameter on or off by using a parameter Enable button: t Click the Enable button. Enable buttons change color when the parameter is active.
Adjusting a Color Parameter You can change a color parameter or select a key color by using the eyedropper or the Windows Color dialog box instead of the Hue, Sat (saturation), and Lum (luminance) sliders. Other Options button Eyedropper Color Preview window Using the Eyedropper To select a color by using the eyedropper: 1. Position the pointer over the Color Preview window to activate the eyedropper. 2.
Using the Windows Color Dialog Box The Windows Color dialog box is a standard application that ships with the Windows operating system. To open the Windows Color dialog box: t Click the Other Options button in a color parameter category. The Windows Color dialog box appears. Color|Solid box Currently selected color Color matrix Basic Colors palette Color slider Custom Colors palette Color selection text boxes To use the Windows Color dialog box: 1.
t Type numerical values for each color component in the color selection text boxes. The new color is displayed on the left side of the Color|Solid box. The right side of this box displays the solid color closest to the color you have specified. You can choose the displayed solid color by double-clicking the right side of the box. 3. When you are satisfied with the color, click Add to Custom Colors to add it to the Custom Colors palette. 4.
By default, NewsCutter XP always provides the starting and ending keyframes of an effect. These keyframes are selected by default, and thus any parameter changes are constant throughout the effect. By using techniques for adding, deleting, moving, selecting, and deselecting keyframes, you can begin to change the appearance and operation of the effect over time by applying parameter changes to specific keyframes. Adding a Keyframe You can create a keyframe at any point in the effect’s position bar.
To select multiple keyframes: t Shift+click the keyframe indicators that you want in the effect’s position bar. To select all keyframes in the effect’s position bar, do one of the following: t Press Ctrl+A. t Press and hold Ctrl+Alt, and click one keyframe indicator. Moving a Keyframe After you have created a keyframe, you can move it to another position in the effect’s position bar. n The starting and ending keyframes cannot be moved.
To change a keyframe’s parameters: 1. Click the keyframe indicator in the effect’s position bar. The keyframe indicator changes color when selected. 2. Adjust any of the applicable parameters in the Effect Editor. Copying and Pasting Keyframe Parameters You can copy and paste parameters from one keyframe and apply them to another keyframe. You can also copy keyframe parameters from one effect to another effect. To copy and paste keyframe parameters: 1.
Deleting a Keyframe You can delete any keyframe you create. You cannot delete the starting and ending keyframes NewsCutter XP creates. To delete a keyframe: 1. Click the keyframe indicator in the effect’s position bar. The keyframe indicator changes color when selected. 2. Do one of the following: t Press the Delete key. t Alt+click the Add Keyframe button.
When you create a motion path that moves beyond the viewing screen, you can use the Reduce button to view an outline of the image at a reduced scale. The reduced scale view shows the area outside the background image and allows you to extend the motion path into that area. The Enlarge button returns the screen to full view. To define a motion path for the foreground image, do one of the following: t Move the image directly and automatically add keyframes.
Wire frame outlining foreground image on track V2 Background image on track V1 Starting keyframe indicator Effect’s position bar Ending keyframe indicator If the wire frame is not displayed, click the Outline/Path button in the Effect Editor to activate the wire frame. 5. Drag the wire frame to the start point of the motion path you are creating. The starting keyframe indicator represents the start point. 6. Click the ending keyframe indicator to select it.
8. Drag the position indicator in the effect’s position bar to a new location. The wire frame moves with the position indicator; notice the path line does not change. 9. Click inside the wire frame and drag or stretch the wire frame to add a keyframe at the new location. A handle appears in the center of the wire frame, indicating the path position of the new keyframe. 10. Drag the wire frame to change the effect’s path.
Resizing a Foreground Image by Dragging Handles To resize the foreground image by dragging wire-frame handles: 1. Create a sequence with two video layers (foreground video on track V2, background video on track V1). For information about creating a sequence, see the “First Edits” chapter of the Avid NewsCutter XP User’s Guide. 2. Apply a multilayer effect to the foreground segment on track V2. 3. Select the foreground effect segment on track V2. 4. Open the Effect Editor.
5. Drag one of the handles to resize the image: t Drag the top center handle to adjust the image’s height. t Drag the right center handle to adjust the image’s width. t Drag the top right corner handle to change equally the image’s height and width. This option maintains the aspect ratio while resizing the image. Using an Effect Template The complete set of parameter values for an effect is called the effect template.
To save the parameters from an effect as an effect template: 1. Drag the effect icon from the Effect Editor to a bin. Effect icon Effect icons for open bins are also displayed in the Effect Palette. This creates a new effect template in the bin, containing the parameter setting information for the effect. The new effect template is identified in the bin by its effect icon. Renamed effect templates 2. To rename the template, click the template name and type a new name.
To save a segment effect with its source media: 1. Press and hold the Alt key and then drag the effect icon from the Effect Editor to a bin. 2. To rename the template, click the template name and type a new name. n Title effects are saved with source by default. If you press and hold the Alt key while dragging the icon, you will get a keyframe-only template. This template retains the movement of the title without the source.
To apply a specific parameter from an effect template: 1. Select an effect transition or segment in the Timeline. 2. Choose Effect Editor from the Tools menu. 3. Open the parameter category you want to change. For example, the following illustration shows the Position parameter category. 4. Click the effect template icon in the bin or in the Effect Palette, and drag it to the specific parameter category in the Effect Editor. The effect template is applied only to the effect parameter category you selected.
Tracking information Length of effect Current position in effect Effect Preview monitor Effect’s position indicator (blue line) Effect’s position bar Keyframe Pop-up scale bar for expanding the position bar Basic Playback To play an effect: 1. Drag the position indicator in the Timeline to the effect you want to play. 2. Click the Play button. To stop playing an effect: t Click the Play button again. t Press the space bar.
Playing an Effect in a Continuous Loop To play the effect in a continuous loop while the Effect Editor is open: 1. Drag the position indicator in the Timeline to the effect you want to play. 2. Click the Play Loop button in the Effect Editor. To stop playing an effect: t Click the Play Loop button again. t Press the space bar. Playing a Preview of an Effect You might want to play an effect or its outline to check its appearance and operation.
Rendering Effects You must render a non-real-time effect (any effect whose icon displays a blue dot in the Timeline) before NewsCutter XP can play it. In addition, you must render some or all effects that exceed the real-time playback capabilities of NewsCutter XP in order to view them during playback. Occasionally, you might also need to render an effect that displays a green dot in the Timeline, depending on the complexity of the sequence.
Creating a New Render Setting To create a new Render setting: 1. Click the Settings button in the Project window. The Settings scroll list appears. 2. Click Render. 3. Choose Duplicate from the Edit menu. 4. Name the setting: a. Click the custom name column (in between the setting name and the setting type identifier). b. Type a name. c. Press Enter. 5. Adjust the options for the setting as described in the following procedure.
3. Select the appropriate options based on the descriptions in Table 3-2, and then click OK. Table 3-2 Option Render Settings Options Suboption Render Completion Sound Description Sets a sound for NewsCutter XP to activate once the rendering process is complete. This is useful when you are rendering multiple effects. None Disables the rendering completion sound. This is the default. System Beep Sets the rendering completion sound to match the sound set for your operating system.
Table 3-2 Option Render Settings Options (Continued) Suboption Description Interpolated Field Creates a second field for the effect by combining scan line pairs from the first field in the original media. This option calculates the motion effect at the field level rather than the frame level. Because NewsCutter XP considers all fields and does not disturb the original order of fields, the smoothest effect results. Effects created using this option take the longest amount of time to render.
Table 3-2 Option Render Settings Options (Continued) Suboption Show Intermediate Results Description Displays results of rendering as it is completed. Although this option lets you see how the rendering is proceeding, it uses system resouces to provide this information. Rendering is faster when this option is not selected. Activating a Render Setting To activate a Render setting: 1. Click the Settings button in the Project window. The Settings scroll list appears. 2.
Interrupting Rendering To interrupt a rendering process: 1. Press Ctrl+period to interrupt the rendering. A message box appears. 2. Do one of the following: t Click Keep to save the material already rendered. t Click Discard to end the rendering process without saving the material already rendered.
Be aware of the following: • Render Ranges indicator lines do not display if Show Effect Contents is selected in the Timeline Settings dialog box. • The red line indicator used by the Render Ranges command is very similar to that used by the Dupe Detection command. To avoid confusion, do not use Dupe Detection and Render Ranges in the Timeline at the same time. • The All option of the Render Ranges display provides a simple visual indication of unrendered effects.
n To prevent this dialog box from displaying, press and hold the Alt key when you click the Render Effect button. NewsCutter XP will use the last drive selected. 3. Select a drive for the rendered media from the pop-up menu. The Effect Source Drive is the drive where the media files for the outgoing shot of a transition reside. 4. Click OK.
To render multiple effects at position: 1. Move the position indicator to the effects in the Timeline. 2. Select all tracks that contain effects you want to render. 3. Choose Render at Position from the Clip menu. The Render Effects dialog box appears. 4. Select a drive from the pop-up menu on which to store the rendered effects. The Effect Source Drive is the drive where the media files for the outgoing shot of a transition reside. 5. Click OK.
Rendering Effects Between IN and OUT Points When you have multiple effects to render for a whole sequence or a portion of a sequence, you can render them as a group by marking IN and OUT points. n Save your sequence before you use this feature. Depending on the number, type, and complexity of the effects, the batch process can take a long time. To render multiple effects by using IN and OUT points: 1. Select all tracks that contain effects you want to render. 2.
5. Click OK. If there is not enough room on the drive, NewsCutter XP displays a message box that gives you the following choices: • Stop — Stop the rendering process and return to the Render Effects dialog box, and then choose another drive before continuing. • Continue — Attempt to render the effects anyway, in case there might be enough room on the drive. NewsCutter XP renders all effects between the IN and OUT points.
The ExpertRender option helps to solve this problem by analyzing all the effects in selected material and determining which ones need to be rendered to achieve successful playback. You can then choose to render the effects identified by the system or to modify the system’s selections before submitting them for rendering. ExpertRender attempts to generate a minimum set of effects to render for successful playback.
3. Choose ExpertRender at Position or ExpertRender In/Out from the Clip menu. ExpertRender analyzes the selected effects and highlights the effects that require rendering in the Timeline. The following illustration, in which three effects are selected for rendering, shows how the system highlights both transition and segment effects. The Render Effects dialog box appears and indicates how many of the effects submitted to ExpertRender require rendering. 4. Do one of the following: t Click Cancel.
t Click OK. If there is not enough room on the drive, the system displays the following message box: You have two choices: t Click Stop to stop the rendering process and return to the Render Effects dialog box, and then choose another drive before continuing. t Click Continue to attempt to render the effects anyway, in case there might be enough room on the drive. The system renders the highlighted effects. n To display the estimated render time during rendering, press the T key on the keyboard.
4. When you are satisfied with your selections, click the Render Effect button in the Tool palette. The Render Effects dialog box appears. n To prevent this dialog box from appearing, press and hold the Alt key when you click the Render Effect button. The system will use the last drive selected. 5. Select a drive for the rendered media from the pop-up menu. The Effect Source Drive is the drive where the media files on the outgoing shot of a transition reside. 6. Click OK.
n To display the estimated render time during rendering, press the T key on the keyboard. Press the T key again to clear the display. Press the P key to view percent rendered. To cancel ExpertRender during the modification process, do one of the following: t Click outside the IN and OUT points in the Timeline to move the position indicator. t Double-click one of the Segment Mode buttons below the Timeline.
• If the material you submit to ExpertRender includes an effect in a segment that also contains nested effects, ExpertRender always renders the effect on the top (outside) track rather than the nested effect. For more information on nested effects, see Chapter 4. In certain circumstances, this might limit your workflow flexibility. For example, you might anticipate the need to readjust the parameters of the effect outside the nest and the effect would then require rerendering.
Example 1: Nested Effect with Dissolves In this example, two segment effects are applied to a segment using a nest, and Dissolve effects are applied to the beginning and end of the segment. In the Timeline, the Dissolve effects appear with green dots. Example 1: Timeline Color Effect on segment appears inside nest with an orange dot. Dissolve effects appear with green dots. Mask effect on segment appears with an orange dot.
Example 2: Titles with a Dissolve Effect In this example of a situation that is common when working with titles, a Dissolve effect is applied between two Title Effect clips. In the Timeline, the Dissolve effect appears with a green dot. Example 2: Timeline Before Rendering Dissolve effect appears with a green dot. Title Effect clips appear with orange dots. When this sequence is submitted to ExpertRender, the system recommends the two Title Effect clips for rendering.
Example 2: ExpertRender Results in the Render Effects Dialog Box In this case, ExpertRender makes a recommendation for rendering that is not ideal. This sequence will play back successfully if the Dissolve effect alone is rendered. Example 2: Timeline After Rendering of Dissolve Effect n Sequence plays successfully after the Dissolve effect is rendered.
Managing Effect Media Files NewsCutter XP allows you to view effect media files and select them for deletion. You can quickly find or delete an effect media file from a bin, or you can use the Media tool to view all the files that relate to your project and select those you want to delete. For complete information on NewsCutter XP media management features and on the use of the Media tool, see the “Managing Media Files” chapter in the Avid NewsCutter XP User’s Guide.
This prevents you from deleting media that might be necessary to play other versions of the sequence. If you want to remove media files from your drive to save space, you have to manually delete the files. Revealing Effect Media Files You can reveal the media files that are associated with effect clips (titles and matte keys), rendered effect clips (precompute clips), and motion effects so that they are visible in their folders on the desktop.
b. Select Rendered Effects and “Show reference clips,” and then click OK. Any rendered effect clips appear in the bin. Rendered effect (precompute) clips 2. Select an effect item in the bin. In this example, a Title Effect clip is selected. n You can reveal media files for only one item in a bin at a time.
3. Choose Reveal File from the File menu. The system searches all available drives, opens the folder in Windows Explorer, and highlights a related media file. 4. (Option) If more than one media file is associated with the clip, the system displays a message box prompting you to reveal the next file. Do one of the following: t Click OK to reveal the next file.
Deleting Effect Media Files from a Bin You can delete effect media files (for titles, matte key clips, and rendered effects) and motion effect media from a bin by using the Delete dialog box. To delete effect media files and motion effect media: 1. (Option) If you want to delete effect media for rendered effect clips (precompute clips), display those clips in the bin by doing the following: a. Choose Set Bin Display from the Bin menu. The Set Bin Display dialog box appears. b.
3. Press the Delete key. The Delete dialog box appears. 4. Select the appropriate check boxes for the material you want to delete, and then click OK. For example, to delete only effect media files, select “delete n associated media file(s)” beneath each of the appropriate effect clip types and deselect all other check boxes. Make sure that you select only those file types you want to delete.
CHAPTER 4 Creating Layered and Nested Effects This chapter describes how to apply multilayer effects to your sequence. Layered effects consist of two or more layers of video built up vertically in the Timeline that play back simultaneously with effects such as Picture-in-Picture, Superimpose, or Submaster applied to the tracks. Nested effects consist of one or more effect layers that are contained within another effect on the same video layer.
Creating Key Effects NewsCutter XP supports the following key effects: • Chroma Key — Replaces one part of the video image with another video image based on color • Luma Key — Replaces one part of the video image with another video image based on luminance (brightness) • Matte Key — Replaces one part of the video image with another video image or graphic based on the location of a high-contrast image known as a matte Using the Chroma Key Effect The Chroma Key effect is used most frequently with a fore
About the Chroma Key Effect The Chroma Key effect includes several standard digital video effect (DVE) parameters such as scaling, position, and crop in addition to key control parameters. Chroma Key effect example After Before Creating a Chroma Key Effect To create a Chroma Key effect: 1. Create a sequence with two video layers. 2. Edit the background image onto track V1. 3. Edit the foreground image onto track V2. 4. Choose Effect Palette from the Tools menu. 5. Click the Key category.
6. Drag the Chroma Key Effect icon from the Effect Palette to the clip on track V2. Chroma key footage on V2 Chroma Key effect applied to V2 Background footage on V1 The Chroma Key effect is added. Ultimatte® blue is the default key color. 7. Move the position indicator to the segment containing the effect in the Timeline, and click the Effect Mode button in the Other tab of the Command palette. The Effect Editor opens and displays parameters for adjusting the chroma key. 8. Click the Key category.
10. Fine-tune the key by enabling additional parameter categories and adjusting sliders as necessary. For more information, including descriptions of Secondary Key and Spill Suppression parameters, see “Key Parameters” on page 283. Creating a Luma Key Effect Use a Luma Key effect to replace portions of the foreground video with the background video based on brightness or luminance. To create a Luma Key effect: 1. Create a sequence with two video layers. 2. Edit the background image onto track V1. 3.
To create a Matte Key effect: 1. Create a sequence with three video layers. 2. Edit the background image onto track V1. 3. Edit the foreground image onto track V2. 4. Load a high-contrast image into the Source/Record monitor, and edit it onto track V3. The high-contrast image can be an imported graphic or a clip that you adjust within NewsCutter XP.
n For an example of a Matte Key effect, see “Matte Key” on page 333. Using the Color Effect to Prepare a High-Contrast Image This section describes how to enhance high-contrast images for use in creating Matte Key effects. To create a high-contrast image from available footage: 1. Apply the Color Effect to the clip, and open the Effect Editor. The Color Effect is in the Image category in the Effect Palette. 2. Drag the Clip slider under Luma Adjust to 255. 3.
Working with Imported Graphics and Animation This section describes two different approaches to editing with imported graphic images, depending upon whether: • The image was imported as a Matte Key clip with an alpha channel (a keyable graphic element for video overlay). • The image was imported as a master clip with no alpha channel (an opaque graphic element).
Editing with Imported Matte Key Clips When an imported clip includes an alpha channel for keying the graphic over video, it appears in the bin with a key effect icon. Both single-frame graphic images (such as a single JPEG file) and multiple-frame animation sequences (such as a JPEG file sequence) appear in the bin in the same form after import, and you use the same editing techniques for both. You can edit this type of clip into a sequence as a standard matte key overlay.
The graphic is keyed over the video on the lower tracks. In the following example, the graphic appears on track V3 above the main video sequence edited onto tracks V1 and V2. Matte Key graphic keyed over video 6. Adjust effect parameters in the Effect Editor, if necessary, using procedures described in “Using the Effect Editor” on page 98. n If the keyed portions of the images are the reverse of the intended effect, click Invert Key in the Foreground parameter category.
Editing with Imported Master Clips When an imported clip does not include an alpha channel for keying the graphic over video, its icon is the standard master clip icon. This is true for both single-image graphics and animation sequences. You can edit this type of clip into a sequence as an opaque image or animation (in other words, as a single layer) by using basic editing techniques described in this section. To edit an imported master clip into the sequence: 1.
6. Drag the clip to the Timeline to add the opaque graphic to the sequence. The opaque image appears in the sequence. In the Timeline, the graphic looks like a standard video clip edited into the sequence. 7. Play the sequence. Nesting Effects You can use NewsCutter XP to place effect tracks inside one another to better combine multiple images and digital video effects (DVEs).
You can edit up to four video track layers. Into each layer of video, you can nest (stack inside) up to four additional video tracks. You can also step into each video track indefinitely, constrained only by your system’s memory. n Nested effects must be rendered to play back correctly. You can use nesting when you want to create layered effects. In this case, the nested layers are treated as one element during the transition.
To expand a nested effect, do one of the following: t Click either the Extract/Splice-in button or the Lift/Overwrite button, and then double-click the nested effect to expand the effect within the Timeline. t With the Effect Editor open, double-click the nested effect. The nested tracks appear in the Timeline above the track you double-clicked. Editing and patching features are available for changing the content of the track’s effect.
2. Click either the Extract/Splice-in button or the Lift/Overwrite button, and then double-click the segment. The segment opens to reveal the nested tracks.
3. Edit new footage into the nested tracks, and apply additional effects as necessary. This example shows a series of clips edited onto nested track 1.2, with dissolves applied between the shots. The Picture-in-Picture effect applies to the entire nested dissolve sequence. 4. Double-click the main track for the nested effect (V2 in this example) to close the nested tracks again.
Nesting a Matte Key Effect A Matte Key effect uses three layers of video to create the effect. To nest a Matte Key effect: 1. Create a sequence with the background video on track V1. 2. Load a high-contrast image into the Source/Record monitor, and edit it onto track V2 as described in “Editing with Imported Master Clips” on page 159. For an example of a high-contrast image, see “Matte Key” on page 333. 3. Choose Effect Palette from the Tools menu. 4. Click the Key category. 5.
7. Double-click the Matte Key Effect icon in the segment. The Timeline expands to display three nested tracks (1.1, 1.2, and 1.3). By default, nested track 1.3 contains the same image segment as track V2. Nested track 1.2 is empty (foreground filler track). Nested track 1.1 (background video) is also empty. 8. Click the Extract/Splice-in button or the Lift/Overwrite button again to leave Segment mode. You can now edit the nested tracks. 9. Edit the foreground image onto nested track 1.1. 10.
11. Click the Record Track Monitor button for track V2 in the Track Selector panel. You should see tracks V1 and nested track 1.1 through the high-contrast image on track 1.3. For an example of a Matte Key effect, see “Matte Key” on page 333. Submaster Editing The Submaster effect is in the Image category of the Effect Palette. When you render this effect, NewsCutter XP creates a single media file from several clips or effects in a sequence.
The Submaster effect is useful when you want to play back bandwidth-limited sequences, such as sequences composed of several seconds of single-frame clips. It is much faster to use the Submaster effect than to use methods such as applying a graphic, Picture-in-Picture, Mask, or Resize effect. Normally, Submaster effects render at about the same rate as motion effects. n n You can nest up to four tracks inside a Submaster effect.
To apply the Submaster effect to a multilayered sequence: 1. Choose New Video Track from the Clip menu. 2. On the new video track (V3 in this example), use the Add Edit button in the Tool palette to create one add edit before and another after the group of clips to be submastered. 3. Choose Effect Palette from the Tools menu. 4. Click the Image category. 5. Drag the Submaster Effect icon to the space between the add edits you added on the new track (V3 in the example).
Using the Submaster Effect with a Series of Short Clips The Submaster effect is useful when you want to play back bandwidth-limited sequences, such as a sequence composed of a series of short clips (a few frames each). You can apply and render the Submaster effect above the clips to improve playback. To apply the Submaster effect to multiple clips: 1. Choose New Video Track from the Clip menu. 2.
n You can also use the Collapse feature to simplify the deletion of multilayer segment effects. After collapsing the effects, you can select the resulting segment and press the Delete key twice to delete the effect and all the layers. After the tracks are collapsed into a Submaster effect, NewsCutter XP recognizes a Submaster effect as a multilayer effect instead of a single-layer effect. This allows you to add chroma keys and other multilayer effects to the nested tracks within a Submaster effect.
The tracks are collapsed into a Submaster effect on a single track.
4. To open the nested tracks again, click either the Extract/Splice-in button or the Lift/Overwrite button, and double-click the Submaster effect. To collapse a sequence (alternative procedure): 1. Click either the Extract/Splice-in button or the Lift/Overwrite button. 2. Select the segments you want to collapse. 3. Click the Collapse button. Performing a Video Mixdown Video mixdown allows you to combine several tracks into a new master clip.
Video mixdown is similar to the Collapse feature; the difference is the end result. • With the Collapse feature, you collapse the tracks into a Submaster effect. After you collapse the tracks, you can still step in to the Submaster and work on the individual elements. • Video mixdown results in a new master clip made up of all the tracks you built on different layers. Those tracks become one clip; you cannot step into the sequence or separate the tracks to work on them. To perform a video mixdown: 1.
CHAPTER 5 Creating Titles and Graphic Objects The Title tool enables you to create titles that incorporate text, graphic objects, imported graphics, and video. This chapter explains how to create titles, including graphic objects. Throughout this chapter, the term “title” refers to both text and graphics.
Creating Titles The following is an overview of the tasks you perform to create a title: • Set up the drawing environment. After you open the Title tool, you choose whether to display a color background or a frame of video from your sequence. You can also use safe colors or safe title and action guidelines or apply a grid for the placement of objects. • Create a new title with the Title tool.
The Title tool opens. The Text tool is automatically selected, and the pointer changes to an I-beam, ready for entering text. Understanding the Title Tool The following illustration shows a title over a video background. Safe action area Safe title area Video background Title objects Toolbar The Title tool has several major components: • The safe title and safe action area guidelines. For more information, see “Using Title and Action Guidelines” on page 183.
• The title or graphic in the foreground that you create. For more information, see “Working with Text” on page 187 and “Creating Graphic Objects” on page 198. • The toolbar at the bottom of the screen. For more information, see “Understanding the Toolbar” on page 178. • Title-related menu items on the File, Edit, Object, and Alignment menus. These menu items are described throughout this chapter.
Table 5-1 briefly describes each section of the toolbar. Table 5-1 Toolbar Elements Button or Tool Description Selection tool Changes the pointer to an arrow and allows you to select text or objects for operations. See “Using the Selection Tool” on page 180. Text tool Changes the pointer to an I-beam and allows you to enter text. See “Working with Text” on page 187. Video Placement tool Changes the pointer to a hand and allows you to pan around the entire video clip within the Title tool.
Table 5-1 Toolbar Elements (Continued) Button or Tool Description Transparency Selection boxes Allow you to change the transparency levels of text and objects. See “Adjusting the Transparency” on page 217. Color and Transparency Blend tools Allow you to create a blend between two colors or two transparency values. See “Blending Two Colors in an Object” on page 213.
To select an object: t Click the Selection tool and click an object. Selection handles appear around the object. Selection handle for width To select multiple objects, do one of the following: t Shift+click with the Selection tool. t Click outside the objects, and drag to surround the objects with a lasso. To switch between the Selection tool and the Text tool: t n Press the Alt key, and click anywhere in the Title tool.
Installing Fonts You can apply any font installed on NewsCutter XP when creating titles in the Title tool. For more information on installing fonts, see your system documentation. When installing and using fonts, consider the following: • If you want to apply a special font that is not currently on your NewsCutter XP, you must install the font first before creating titles.
Previewing Titles Titles are always saved in anti-aliased format. NewsCutter XP uses anti-aliasing with an 8-bit alpha channel to create text and objects in titles. Anti-aliasing ensures that text, lines, and object edges appear smooth, regardless of size. You can preview a title to see the title drawn with anti-aliasing, just as NewsCutter XP would save it. To display anti-aliased titles: t Choose Preview from the Object menu.
To display the safe title area and safe action area guidelines: t Choose Safe Title Area/Global Grid from the Object menu. Using Safe Colors If you plan to use your title for television broadcast, you can choose the Safe Colors command from the Object menu. This command displays only low saturation colors for use in text, objects, and background. Colors with low saturation look best when combined with video. By default, Safe Colors is on.
Source/Record monitor, the Title tool opens with no video showing (the background appears black). The Video Background button is green while you create a title for display over a video background. Use the background video frame as a reference. It does not become part of the title you create. You can edit the title anywhere else in the current sequence or in another sequence. Updating the Video Background You can update the video background at any time while creating titles within the Title tool.
3. Use the Title Tool Color Picker, the eyedropper, or the Windows Color dialog box to select a color. For more information, see “Selecting Colors and Setting Transparency” on page 212. The default background color is black. n n When you create a title with a color background, it is opaque and it cannot be used to key over video. You cannot create crawling titles with a color background. You can create a separate color background as a title and then edit the crawling title over it in the sequence.
Bringing the Title Tool to the Foreground If the Title tool becomes obscured by another window, you can instruct NewsCutter XP to redisplay the tool. To bring the Title tool to the foreground: t Choose Title Tool from the Windows menu. Working with Text The Text tool is active when you open the Title tool, and you can begin entering text as soon as you click in the Title tool.
2. Click the position in the frame where you want to add text. An insertion point appears. 3. Type the text. To insert a line return, press Enter. n Text is word-wrapped automatically as you type. You can adjust the wrapping by changing the width of the text object. For more information, see “Resizing Text Objects” on page 189. 4. When you have finished typing, click the Selection tool in the toolbar to deselect the text object. n By default, text is left-justified.
c NewsCutter XP limits the size of text objects you can create in the Title tool. Avoid pasting large blocks of text (numerous pages in a word processor) into the Title tool. Instead, consider pasting smaller blocks of text into separate text objects. To copy and paste text into the Title tool: 1. Click the Text tool in the toolbar. The pointer changes to an I-beam. 2. Click the position in the frame where you want to add text. An insertion point appears. 3.
Repositioning Text Objects To reposition a text object: 1. Click the text object with the Selection tool. 2. Move the text by doing one or more of the following: t Click in the middle of the object, and drag it to a new position. t Use the arrow keys to move the object one pixel at a time. t Use commands in the Alignment menu to position the text. For more information, see “Aligning Objects” on page 228. Editing a Text String To edit an existing text string: 1. Click the Text tool. 2.
Formatting the Text The text formatting tools control the appearance of text.
While you type text, only the text color displays. Shadows, outlines, and other color attributes appear when you finish typing the text and click the Selection tool. n If you want to create text elements in the title with different appearances, create a separate text object for each set of attributes. Selecting Text for Formatting To select text for formating, do one of the following: t To select all of the text within a text object, click the object with the Selection tool.
Selecting a Font The Font Selection menu shows the current font for a text selection and allows you to change the font. When you first open the Title tool, the font listed is the preferred system font. If you select an existing text object, the Font Selection menu displays the font of the text object. Font Selection menu The Font Selection menu displays all fonts currently installed on NewsCutter XP. Changing the Font To change the font: 1. Click the Font Selection menu to display the pop-up menu. 2.
You can enter a point size either before or after you type text. Point Size text box Point Size pop-up menu Point Size button To change the point size, do one of the following: t Click the Point Size button, and choose a standard point size from the pop-up menu. t Double-click in the Point Size text box, and type a point size between 5 and 999; then press Enter. t Click in the text box and use the Up Arrow and Down Arrow keys to change the value incrementally.
To change the text style: t Select the text you want to change and click the Bold button or the Italic button, or select the appropriate command from the Object menu. You can work with Bold and Italic turned on at the same time to make text both bold and italic. Justifying the Text Below the Font Selection button are the buttons for text justification. Text justification controls the alignment of text in an existing text object and also when you type text in a new text object.
The text kerning controls are located beneath the text justification buttons. Kerning text box and Kerning Selection button You can kern the text for an entire text object, or you can manually kern individual character pairs or character strings. For example, if you mix italic and plain versions of a font in a title, you might want to adjust the spacing between characters. n You can adjust kerning for individual characters or selected groups of characters by using the arrow keys only.
Adjusting Kerning Manually To adjust kerning manually with the arrow keys: 1. Click the Text tool in the toolbar. 2. Click between a character pair, or select a group of characters to be kerned. 3. Press and hold the Alt key, and use the Left Arrow or the Right Arrow key to increase or decrease the kerning. Using the Predefined Kerning Sizes To adjust kerning with the predefined sizes in the menu: 1. Select the text. You can choose the kerning value before you type text. 2.
Adjusting Leading Use leading to adjust the line spacing between lines in a title object. Leading is measured in points, from baseline to baseline of the lines of text. The Title tool uses the leading that is built into the font as the default. Positive leading values add space; negative values decrease space. You might want to add leading for sans serif, tall, or boldface fonts, and for fonts with a strong vertical emphasis. Leading text box To set leading: 1. Click in the Leading text box. 2.
After creating graphic objects, you can change the following attributes: n • To round the corners of a box, adjust the width of lines and text borders, or add arrowheads to lines, see “Selecting Line Attributes” on page 200. • To change or blend colors in a graphic object, see “Adjusting the Color” on page 213. • To apply a drop or depth shadow, see “Working with Shadows” on page 218. • To add transparency to an object or an object’s shadow, see “Adjusting the Transparency” on page 217.
Drawing a Circle or Oval To draw a circle or an oval: 1. Click the Oval tool in the toolbar. The pointer changes to a crosshair. 2. Click in the Title tool, and drag to create an object. n Pressing the Shift key while you drag constrains the Oval tool to create a circle. Drawing a Line To draw a line: 1. Click the Line tool in the toolbar. The pointer changes to a crosshair. 2. Click in the Title tool, and drag to create a line.
If you do not select an object and you choose a line attribute, NewsCutter XP makes that the default for any new objects that you create. Rounding Corners To round box corners: 1. Select a box. 2. Click the Box Corner tool (the button on the left). The Corner Selection pop-up menu appears. Custom Radius option 3. Choose a rounding option from the pop-up menu, or choose the custom radius option to open a dialog box and enter a custom radius. 4.
To select a line or border width: Turns off border 1. Select an object (such as a line, shape, or text object). 2. Click the Border Width tool (the middle button), and choose a width from the pop-up menu. 3. Choose from the standard width selections, or choose the Custom Width option to open a dialog box and enter a custom width. Custom Width option 4. If you choose the Custom Width option, in the dialog box type a whole number (in pixels) to specify a custom width and click OK.
Adding Arrowheads Remove arrowhead To add arrowheads to a line: 1. Select a line. 2. Click the Arrowhead tool (the button on the right). Edit Arrowhead option The Arrowhead Selection pop-up menu appears. 3. Choose an arrowhead style from the pop-up menu, or choose the Edit Arrowhead option as described in the following section. Changing Arrowhead Size To change the arrowhead size: 1. Select a line. 2. Click the Arrowhead tool. 3. Choose the Edit Arrowhead option from the pop-up menu.
Creating Crawling Titles You can create text or graphics that crawl across the screen. You create the title in the Title tool and refine the motion during editing. n Crawling titles are non-real-time effects. You can step through the effect in a pop-up monitor, the Source/Record monitor, or the Effect Preview monitor, but you must render the effect to play it. Crawling titles scroll horizontally, moving from right to left or from left to right, as indicated in the following example.
Table 5-2 shows the maximum number of pages you can create for crawling titles. Table 5-2 Maximum Pages and Object Heights for Titles Objects Pages Height Graphic 17 (NTSC) 8 K pixels 14 (PAL) Text 67 (NTSC) 32 K pixels 57 (PAL) Page limitations are based on the overall size of the text object. Typing more text, increasing the size of the font, or adjusting kerning and leading all affect the number of pages in the object.
For more information on adding extra pages with Auto Size mode disabled, see “Adding Pages” on page 209. To switch Auto Size mode off or on: t Choose Auto Size Mode from the Object menu. A check mark indicates that Auto Size mode is enabled. Setting Up Text Formatting for Crawling Titles Before creating a crawling title, set up the text formatting defaults for such attributes as font, point size, leading, and kerning.
• Several options give you control over text and other objects in the Title tool. You can create objects and move or copy them to specific pages, insert pages, and delete pages. See “Copying or Moving Objects to Pages” on page 210, “Inserting Blank Pages” on page 210, and “Deleting Additional Pages” on page 211. Typing the Crawling Title Text To type crawling title text: 1. Do one of the following: t Choose New Title from the Clip menu. t Choose Title Tool from the Tools menu. The Title tool opens. 2.
Resizing the Width of a Crawling Title To resize a crawling title: 1. Click the title object with the Selection tool. 2. Click the object selection handle, and drag to resize the title until it appears as you want. n You can resize only the width of a text object. The height of a text object is automatically determined by the amount of text.
Going to a Page When you first create a crawling title, a page number text box appears in the lower right corner of the Title tool. The page number text box reflects your current position in the title. Page Number text box To go to a different page: 1. Click in the Page Number text box. 2. Type a page number for a specific page, or use the Up Arrow and Down Arrow keys to cycle through the page numbers. 3. Press Enter. The selected page appears.
n For more information on maximum page counts, see “Page Count Limits for Crawling Titles” on page 204. 3. Select text or graphic objects within the title and position them within the range of available pages, or create new elements. Copying or Moving Objects to Pages To copy or move an object to a title page: 1. Create a text block or any other title object. 2. Select the object, and choose Copy to Page or Move to Page from the Object menu. The Copy to Page or Move to Page dialog box appears. 3.
Deleting Additional Pages You cannot select individual pages to delete during the creation of a crawling title. However, if you add pages to the title with Auto Size mode deselected, you can remove excess pages at the end of the title after you complete the title. To delete additional pages: t Choose Auto Size Mode from the Object menu. Excess pages at the end of the title are removed. n If you choose Auto Size Mode from the Object menu, NewsCutter XP removes excess pages at the end of the title.
Selecting Colors and Setting Transparency You can select the color and transparency for text and graphic objects, and their 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 fill (Fill), shadow (Shad), and border (Bord) color, respectively. • The Transparency Level boxes control fill, shadow, and border transparency, respectively.
Adjusting the Color You can select a color to fill text or a graphic object, a color for the shadow of an object, or a color for the border of an object. To select a color: 1. Select a text or graphic object. If you do not select an object, the color will be applied to the next object you create. 2. Click and hold one of the Color Selection boxes in the toolbar: • Fill (Fill) applies the color to the selected object. • Shadow (Shad) applies the color to the selected object’s shadow.
To blend two colors: 1. Select text or another object. 2. Click the Color Selection box for either fill or border. The Color Blend Selection boxes appear. Color Blend Selection boxes Color Selection boxes Blend Direction box 3. Click one of the Color Blend Selection boxes. The Title Tool Color Picker opens, and the Blend Direction box appears. This box displays the blend and allows you to specify the direction of the blend (for example, from left to right). 4.
5. Click the other Color Blend Selection box, and choose the second color for your blend. Color blend tools apply a gradient blend to the selected object. 6. Click the Blend Direction box, and drag clockwise or counterclockwise to achieve the effect you want. As you rotate the pointer, the position of the two colors rotates. Release the mouse button to apply the blend to your selection.
Color selection bar Grayscale selection bar Eyedropper New Color window Original Color window Click to open the Windows Color dialog box. To choose a grayscale value, click in the grayscale selection bar. Shade selection palette To choose from the Title Tool Color Picker: 1. Drag the pointer along the color selection bar to the color you want. 2. While continuing to press and hold the mouse button, move the pointer down into the shade selection palette to choose a shade. 3.
Adjusting the Transparency After you select a color, you can select the color transparency. To select the color transparency: 1. Click and hold the appropriate Transparency Level box, depending on whether the transparency will apply to the fill color of an object (Fill) or will adjust a shadow (Shad) or outline (Bord) around the selected object. 2. In the pop-up control that appears, drag the slider to change the transparency value. The number in the Transparency Value box updates as you drag.
Blending Transparency You can blend the transparency of fills and borders by using a technique similar to blending colors. Use the Transparency Blend Selection boxes to set the blend values. Use the Blend Direction box to set the direction of the blend. Transparency blend tools apply a gradient transparency to the selected object. n For more information on creating a blend, see “Blending Two Colors in an Object” on page 213.
Text with depth shadow Text with drop shadow You can select the color, width, direction, and transparency for the shadow. You can also soften (blur) shadows or create a glow effect behind title text. You can place the shadow anywhere within the title without restriction. The following illustration shows the tools used to create and modify shadows.
Applying Shadows To apply shadows to objects: 1. Select text or an object. 2. Click the Drop and Depth Shadow button to switch between a drop or depth shadow. 3. Adjust the depth or direction of the shadow as follows: t Click the Shadow Depth and Direction button, and drag the shadow displayed to any position. t Press the Shift key; then click the shadow in the Shadow Depth and Direction button and drag to restrict shadow placement to 45-degree angles around the title.
Adjusting Shadow Softness You can set a value for the degree of softening or blurring that applies to the shadows you create in the Title tool. The value that you set applies immediately to any selected title. The value is also saved as the new default setting and applies to any new title objects you create in current and future Title tool sessions. To change the degree of softening that applies to objects in the Title tool, you must set a new value.
Adjusting Shadow Softness On-the-Fly You can adjust the shadow softness value of a title object on-the-fly either by entering different values in the Soft Shadow dialog box or by using the Up Arrow and Down Arrow keys. To adjust shadow softness on-the-fly by using the Soft Shadow dialog box: 1. Select one or more objects in the Title tool. 2. Choose Soften Shadow from the Object menu. The Soft Shadow dialog box appears. 3. Type a number in the Shadow Softness text box to represent a degree of softening. 4.
Viewing Shadow Softness The shadow display of the Shadow Depth and Direction button visually represents the current degree of softness. The following illustration shows this representation for a shadow softness setting of 10. To confirm the numerical value you have currently set for shadow softness: t Choose Soften Shadow from the Object menu, and check the number in the text box. Creating a Glow Effect You can use the shadow tools to create a glow or halo effect around a title object.
Manipulating Objects This section describes how to manipulate objects after you have created them. For a description of how to select objects, see “Using the Selection Tool” on page 180. Basic Manipulation Operations You can use commands from the Edit menu to manipulate objects. To perform basic operations: 1. Click an object — such as text, a square, a rectangle, a circle, or an oval — with the Selection tool. 2.
Layering Text and Objects You can use commands on the upper portion of the Object menu to layer text and objects to create complex graphics. The last object created occupies the top layer, but you can move objects forward or backward within the screen area. To adjust the layering of objects in a title: 1. Click an object with the Selection tool. 2. Choose one of the following commands from the Object menu: t Choose Bring to Front to bring an object to the top layer.
Grouping and Ungrouping Objects After creating a number of text and graphic objects, you can use commands in the Object menu to group the objects and treat them as a single object. Grouping commands Combining the objects into a group means that actions, such as moving or applying color, affect all objects in the group. To group objects: 1. Shift+click multiple objects with the Selection tool. 2. Choose Group from the Object menu. The selected objects are grouped together.
Locking and Unlocking Objects You can lock objects by using commands on the Object menu so that changes to default settings, such as the font setting or object position, do not affect the locked objects. Locking commands You might also want to lock objects so that you do not inadvertently change them while working on other objects. You can lock an individual object or multiple objects. To lock objects: 1. Click an object with the Selection tool. 2. Choose Lock from the Object menu.
To unlock objects: 1. Click a locked object with the Selection tool. 2. Choose Unlock from the Object menu. The system unlocks the object, and you can change it. Aligning Objects You can use the Alignment menu commands to align text and objects to each other and to the frame. Aligning to the frame refers to the safe title area. For information about the safe title area, see “Saving Titles and Title Styles” on page 230. To align objects to the frame: 1.
To align objects to each other: 1. Shift+click or lasso multiple objects with the Selection tool. 2. Choose an object alignment direction from the Alignment menu. Object alignment commands n For information on aligning objects to a grid, see “Using the Alignment Grid” on page 186. Distributing Objects You can use Alignment menu commands to distribute text and graphic objects evenly across the safe title area. For information about the safe title area, see “Using Title and Action Guidelines” on page 183.
t Choose Distribute First to Last to distribute the objects evenly between the position of the first object selected and the position of the last object selected. This option is especially useful for aligning objects diagonally or for roughly positioning a group of objects and then lining them up without spreading them out to the edges of the safe title area.
n c After editing a title into a sequence and adjusting effect parameters, you can also save a Title Effect template that contains only the effect information (without title media) for applying to other previously created titles. For more information, see “Saving an Effect Template” on page 117. Before exporting a sequence as an OMFI file, render all fast-saved titles and any unrendered crawling titles. Saving a Title and Exiting the Title Tool To save the title and exit the Title tool: 1.
2. Click Save. The Save Title dialog box appears. 3. Type a name to identify the title in the bin; then choose a bin, drive, and resolution from the pop-up menus. 4. Select or deselect the Fast Save (Unrendered) option, depending on your needs. For more information, see “Using the Fast Save Option” on page 234. 5. Click Save. The Title tool closes, and the new title is loaded into the Source/Record monitor. A 2-minute Title Effect clip that corresponds to the new title appears in the bin.
Saving Multiple Titles in a Session To save multiple titles: 1. Choose Save Title from the File menu. The Save Title dialog box appears. 2. Type a name to identify the title in the bin; then choose a bin, drive, and resolution from the pop-up menus. 3. Select or deselect the Fast Save (Unrendered) option, depending on your needs. For more information, see “Using the Fast Save Option” on page 234. 4. Click Save. The new Title Effect clip appears in the bin. 5. Create another title. 6.
n If you keep the same name for the title when you choose Save Title as, NewsCutter XP retains the first clip and creates a new one with the same name plus a two-digit extension that adds incremental numbering for each revised title. Using the Fast Save Option You can use the Fast Save (Unrendered) option to work more quickly when creating and saving multiple titles in a Title tool session. Fast Save skips the steps that create anti-aliased images from title objects.
Viewing Fast-Saved Titles in a Bin To quickly locate the unrendered fast-saved titles: 1. Open the bin containing the unrendered fast-saved titles. 2. Choose Select Unrendered Titles from the Bin menu. The fast-saved titles are highlighted in the bin. Rendering Fast-Saved Titles To render fast-saved titles: 1. Open the bin containing the unrendered fast-saved titles. 2. Choose Select Unrendered Titles from the Bin menu to select only the unrendered titles, or press Ctrl+A to select all items in the bin. 3.
Revising a Title in a Bin If you want to revise a title that has not been edited into a sequence, you can reopen the title in the Title tool directly from the bin. n For information on revising a title that has been edited into a sequence, see “Revising a Title in a Sequence” on page 260. To revise a Title effect in a bin: 1. Press the Ctrl key, and double-click the Title Effect icon in the bin. The title opens in the Title tool.
2. Rename the title or choose other options from the Bin, Drive, and Resolution pop-up menus. n n If you keep the same name for the title, NewsCutter XP retains the original Title Effect clip in the bin and creates a new clip with the same name plus a two-digit extension that increments for each revision. You cannot select the Fast Save (Unrendered) option when revising a title in a sequence. 3. Click Save to save the title and exit the Title tool.
• Shadow color, transparency, depth, direction, softness, and type • Border color, transparency, and width You can also assign a title style to one of the function keys on your keyboard. You can then recall that style simply by pressing the appropriate function key. Title styles save only the parameters that control the appearance of text or graphic objects in the Title tool. If you want to save the entire contents and layout of a title, including specific title objects themselves, use a title template.
4. Choose Save As. The Title Style Sheet dialog box appears. The following illustration shows an example. 5. Select the parameters that you want to include in the style. NewsCutter XP uses the values from the currently selected object or from the current defaults if no object is selected. 6. (Option) Type a function key number in the Function Key text box to assign the style to a function key. For example, typing 5 assigns the style to the F5 function key. 7.
Recalling a Title Style After you have saved your title style, you can recall the style and use the attributes as the defaults in subsequent Title tool sessions. You can recall a title style by using the Title Styles tear-off menu or, if you have assigned the style to a function key, by pressing the appropriate key. To recall title style attributes by using the Title Styles tear-off menu: 1. Click the Styles button to display the Title Styles tear-off menu.
The ToolTip that appears indicates the function key assignment along with the name of the style. Applying Title Styles to Text Objects To apply a title style directly to text objects: 1. Select one or more text objects. 2. Do one of the following: t Click the Styles button to display the Title Styles tear-off menu, and then choose a title style. t If the style is assigned to a function key, press the appropriate function key.
t To copy a style, select the style in the Project window and choose Duplicate from the Edit menu. t To rename a style, either change the name in the Project window or perform a Save As operation as described in “Saving and Recalling Title Styles” on page 237 and change the name in the Style Sheet text box. Creating and Using Title Templates Title templates let you create a standard format for text and graphics that you use regularly.
6. Click Save. The default setting saves the template in the Title_Templates folder, but you can save it elsewhere if you prefer. 7. Close the Title tool, and click Don’t Save in the dialog box. Using Title Templates To use a title template: 1. Do one of the following: t Choose New Title from the Clip menu t Choose Title Tool from the Tools menu. 2. Click the Templates button. 3. Choose Include Template from the pop-up menu. The Open dialog box appears. 4.
Exporting a Title as a Graphics File To export a title as a PICT graphics file: 1. Choose Export Title from the File menu. The Export Pict As dialog box appears. 2. Select the location where you want to export the file, type a file name, and click Save. The system saves the title.
CHAPTER 6 Editing with Titles Editing with titles involves placing title clips in a sequence and then adjusting parameters or revising the title in the Title tool. The following sections provide guidelines for editing with title media.
Workflow for Editing with Titles The following is an overview of the tasks you perform to edit a title into a sequence: • Edit the title into the sequence. You can load a title into the Source/Record monitor or drag the Title Effect icon from the bin to a segment in the Timeline. For more information, see “Editing a Title into a Sequence” on page 249. • Adjust the title’s parameters. With a title edited into a sequence, you can use the Effect Editor to alter the appearance or position of the title.
• Video displays a gray slide. • Video underrun error occurs. • Audio underrun error occurs. If you encounter any of these conditions, try one or both of the following: • Render the title or underlying effects. • Simplify the title by removing text or drop shadows or by selecting different colors. It is possible for you to create a title and background video so complex that you can neither play it in real time nor render it.
n By default, the bin display does not show rendered effects. You can view rendered effects in the bin by choosing Set Bin Display from the Bin menu and by selecting Rendered Effects and “Show reference clips” in the dialog box. Bin – Text view Rendered effect media object (precompute) Title clip For more information, see “Managing Effect Media Files” on page 143.
To display a frame from the title: t Select one or more title clips, and then press the Home key on the keyboard. Editing a Title into a Sequence After preparing the sequence with a second track for the title, use one of the following methods for editing the title into place: t Edit the title into the sequence, using standard editing methods: Mark edit points in the sequence and in the title clip, and then splice or overwrite the title into place.
Setting Marks in Crawling Titles By default, a crawling title clip begins with the visible title just off screen. The clip ends just after the last element disappears off screen. You can mark IN and OUT points in the Source/Record monitor to change the start and finish points; that is, you might want the title to begin with the screen full of text rather than start off screen. You can play and mark a title clip in the Source/Record monitor by using standard procedures.
4. Patch the title source to the video track in the sequence by clicking the V1 Source Track button in the Track Selector panel and dragging it to the V2 Record Track button. Source Track button Record Track button n You can use any three-point editing method to edit a title into a sequence. The following steps are just one editing method. For other methods, see the “First Edits” chapter in the Avid NewsCutter XP User’s Guide. 5. In the Source/Record monitor, mark an IN point.
6. In the Source/Record monitor, mark IN and OUT points. IN and OUT points 7. Make sure all other Record Track buttons are deselected in the Track Selector panel. 8. Click either the Extract/Splice-in button or the Lift/Overwrite button below the Timeline to edit the title into the sequence. This adds the title segment to the top video track.
Dragging a Marked Title into a Sequence To mark a portion of a title clip and then drag the marked clip directly into the Timeline: 1. Load the sequence into the Source/Record monitor. n Titles must be placed a track above the video that forms the background. If an upper track already exists with an open region for the title, you can ignore step 2. 2. (Option) Choose New Video Track from the Clip menu. The system adds the next video track for the sequence to the Timeline.
Title segment outline 8. When you find the position for the title on the correct track, release the mouse button. The title appears in place in the sequence.
Dragging an Unmarked Title into a Sequence If you are not concerned about the OUT point for your title, or if you plan on trimming the title later, you can quickly drag the unmarked title directly into the Timeline. To add a title to a sequence without adding marks: 1. Load the sequence into the Source/Record monitor. n Titles must be placed a track above the video that forms the background. If an upper track already exists with an open region for the title, you can ignore step 2. 2.
Title clip outline 6. When you find the position for the title on the correct track, release the mouse button. The title appears in place in the sequence. Trimming the Duration of Crawling Titles When you edit the title clip into a marked segment of a sequence, the clip plays back from beginning to end regardless of the duration of the segment. The entire crawl shrinks to fit within the duration of the marked segment in the sequence.
To trim the duration of a crawling title: 1. Enable the track containing the title and disable all other tracks by using the Track Selector panel. 2. Click the Trim Mode button in the Other tab of the Command palette to enter Trim mode. 3. Select either the head or the tail of the title segment for trimming. 4. Trim the title segment to the duration you want by using standard trim procedures described in the “First Edits” chapter in the Avid NewsCutter XP User’s Guide.
3. Click the Remove Effect button in the Tool palette. The system removes the title from the segment. The alpha channel media file remains. n The title remains in the bin. To remove the title from the bin, click the Title Effect icon for the clip in the bin and press the Delete key. Replacing Titles To replace a title in a sequence: 1. Click the Lift/Overwrite button below the Timeline. 2. Click the title segment currently in the sequence to select it. 3.
Adjusting Title Effect Parameters After editing a title into a sequence, you can open the Effect Editor and refine the title with keyframe control over effect parameters. To display the effect parameters for a title: 1. Click the Effect Mode button in the Other tab of the Command palette. The Effect Editor opens. 2. Click the title segment in the sequence to select it. The Effect Editor displays the parameter controls.
n • Use multiple keyframes to gradually change keyframeable parameters over time. For more information, see “Using Keyframes” on page 108. • Save effect templates of Title effect parameter adjustments to a bin for use in other sequences or projects as described in “Using an Effect Template” on page 117. For information on specific Title effect parameters, see “2D Effects Parameters” on page 269.
To save the title with the same name (numbered incrementally) and media parameters (bin, drive, and resolution): 1. Choose Save Title from the File menu. A message box appears. 2. Click Save. The Title tool closes, and the revised title clip replaces the previous clip in the sequence. The new clip also appears in the bin and the Source/Record monitor, with the name of the previous clip plus a two-digit extension that increments for each revised title. The previous title clip remains unchanged in the bin.
2. Rename the title or choose other options from the Bin, Drive, and Resolution pop-up menus. n When you save a new title, you must choose a resolution for the title that is compatible with the project. n You cannot select the Fast Save (Unrendered) option when revising a title in a sequence. 3. Click Save to save the title and exit the Title tool. The Title tool closes, and the revised title clip replaces the previous clip in the sequence.
Replacing Fill Tracks You can replace the fill track of titles with video or graphics. The moving video or graphic effect then appears inside the title itself, keyed over the background.
To replace the fill track: 1. Click either the Extract/Splice-in button or the Lift/Overwrite button, and then double-click the title segment to step into the effect. 2. Load the video you want to use as replacement filler into the Source/Record monitor. 3. Drag the Source Track button to the Record Track button in the Track Selector panel to patch the new source video to the title fill track.
4. Using standard editing methods, edit the video from the Source/Record monitor onto the fill track. Fill track replaced with video Rendering Titles The following are situations in which you might want to render titles: • If you want to layer multiple effects • If you encounter a message about audio or video underrun when playing a complex layered effect If you play a complex layered effect and encounter a message about audio or video underrun, you need to render any included titles.
Re-creating Title Media You can use the Re-create Title Media command to regenerate offline media or to change the resolution of the title. If you have batch recorded a sequence at a resolution different from the resolution at which the sequence was originally created, for example, you can use this command to re-create the titles at the new resolution. c n The Re-create Title Media command removes any nested edits made inside a title, replacing the edits with the new title’s graphic and alpha tracks.
6. Click OK to continue regenerating the title media files. The title media file is regenerated, and a precompute master clip appears in the bin. Troubleshooting Titles This section describes several errors that might occur when working with titles and includes recommendations for resolving the problems. Title Does Not Display over Video If the title does not display over video, check whether the resolution is compatible with the video.
4. Check the resolution for any of the master clips in the Video column when viewing the bin in Text view. To correct a title’s resolution to match the resolution used in the video clips in the sequence, use the procedure described in “Re-creating Title Media” on page 266.
CHAPTER 7 2D Effects Reference This chapter describes all 2D effects parameters and then summarizes all 2D effects in alphabetical order within each effect category. For information on effects editing, see Chapter 2. • 2D Effects Parameters • 2D Effects • Comparison of Similar Effects 2D Effects Parameters This section provides a general description of all 2D parameters, in alphabetical order.
• Crop • Foreground • Key Parameters • Matrix Parameters • Mosaic Parameters • Motion Effect Parameters • Plug-in Effect Parameters • Position • Region Stabilize Parameters • Scaling • Transition Parameters For an explanation of how to change a parameter, see “About Effect Parameters” on page 103. Global and Keyframeable Parameters The effects parameters are divided into two logical groups: • Global parameters: Changes apply to all keyframes.
Acceleration Parameter Type Global Description Adjusts the effect’s speed over time by having the effect ease in and ease out of every keyframe. This gives the effect a more natural appearance. The overall speed of an effect is determined by the duration of the effect, which is determined by the length of the clip in the sequence.
Use of Controls Other Options button Hue Opens the Windows Color dialog box for precise color selection. For more information, see “Using the Windows Color Dialog Box” on page 107. Identifies the background color. The Hue parameter is measured as values on a color wheel ranging from 0 to 255. The start (0) and ending (255) values are both red. Sat (saturation) Specifies the amount or intensity of the color. Values range from 0 to 255, where 0 is no chrominance and 255 is a fully saturated color.
Hue Identifies the border or blend color. The Hue parameter is measured as values on a color wheel ranging from 0 to 255. The start (0) and ending (255) values are both red. Sat (saturation) Specifies the intensity of the color. Values range from 0 to 255, where 0 is no chrominance and 255 is a fully saturated color. Lum (luminance) Specifies the brightness of the color. Values range from 0 to 255, where 0 is black and 255 is full brightness or white. Width Specifies the width of the border.
Luma Adjust Parameter Type Global Description Allows you to adjust the luminance characteristics of the image. Use of Controls Bright (brightness) Changes the brightness of the image. The parameter ranges from –100 to +100, where a value of 0 indicates no change. A value of –100 darkens the image; a value of +100 brightens the image. Cont (contrast) Controls the contrast of light and dark areas in the image. Values range from –100 to +100, where a value of 0 indicates the image is unchanged.
Brightness Example Original – Brightness 0 Brightness –50 Brightness +50 Contrast Example Original – Contrast 0 Contrast –50 Contrast +50 Luma Range Parameter Type Global Description Allows you to adjust the range of brightness from black to white. Fast menu: 16 to 235 The default for video images.
Fast menu: 0 to 255 Allows you to map normal video to alpha ranges. This is useful if you have a high-contrast image that you want to expand to the full dynamic range. For example, use this value when you want to convert video to alpha for Matte Key effects. you change the Luma Range to 0 to 255, the system attempts to go from n When 0 to 255 but will be clipped by the Low Clip and High Clip values in the Luma Clip parameter category.
Gamma Allows you to adjust the midtones in an image without affecting the extreme white or black values. Lowering the value darkens midtones and brings the image closer to black. Raising the value lightens the midtones and brings the image closer to white. For example, a person shot in front of a window in daylight may be very dark, almost in silhouette. You can use gamma correction to increase the midtones without changing the blacks or whites. Values range from –100 to +100 with 0 being no change.
Chroma Adjust Parameter Type Global Description Allows you to adjust the chrominance characteristics of the entire image. Use of Controls Hue Hue varies the tint of all colors in the image. The Hue parameter is measured as degrees on a color wheel from –180 to +180, where 0 does not change the hue. Changing the value of the Hue causes all colors in the image to rotate around the color spectrum.
Use of Controls Post (posterization) Posterization allows you to limit the number of colors in the image by controlling the number of luminance steps that are displayed. This gives the image a graphic appearance. The range of values is 0 to 25, where 0 displays all colors and 25 displays the least number of colors. Solar (solarization) Solarization allows you to make the lightest points in the image dark to achieve a partial inversion of the luminance.
Solarization Example Original image Solarization 100 Solarization 200 Color Gain Parameter Type Global Description Allows individual control of the Color Gain for each of the three color components: red, green, and blue. Use of Controls Red Changes the amount of red in the whole image. The parameter value is a percentage of the range from 0 to 200, where a value of 100 indicates that the color is unchanged. Green Changes the amount of green in the whole image.
Crop Parameter Type Keyframeable Description Removes material from the top, bottom, left, and right edges of the video. Use of Controls T (top) Removes video from the top of the inner or incoming video. Values range from 0 to 999; 0 is the top of the screen, 500 is the middle of the screen, and 999 is the bottom of the screen. B (bottom) Removes video from the bottom of the inner or incoming video.
Parameter Type Keyframeable Description Used, together with keyframes, to set the relative amount of the effect to be displayed over time. The additional options included with the Level slider vary, depending on the effect. Use of Controls Level Controls the opacity of the foreground image. A Level of 0 is 0 percent opacity (the foreground is transparent), a Level of 50 is 50 percent opacity, and a Level of 100 is 100 percent opacity (no transparency).
Show Alpha This option applies to key effects only (such as Chroma Key or Luma Key). Displays the grayscale alpha channel used to apply the key effect to the foreground and background source. This allows you to examine the problem areas of the key while making adjustments. Key Parameters Key parameters appear only in the Chroma Key and Luma Key effects. These parameters control the key color and allow you to fine-tune the edges of key effects and the appearance of the foreground elements.
Use of Controls Other Options button Opens the Windows Color dialog box for precise color selection. For more information, see “Using the Windows Color Dialog Box” on page 107. Hue Identifies the key color. The Hue parameter is measured as values on a color wheel ranging from 0 to 255. The start (0) and ending (255) values are both red. Sat (saturation) Specifies the amount or intensity of the color. Values range from 0 to 255, where 0 is no chrominance and 255 is a fully saturated color.
Description Selects a secondary background color to key out. For example, the floor in a bluescreen or greenscreen shot might be a slightly different shade from the background. You can choose the floor color as your secondary color and key it out. Available for the Chroma Key effect only. Use of Controls See “Key” on page 283. Spill Suppression Parameter Type Global Description Neutralizes the selected color for the Chroma Key effect without affecting the luminance.
Description Allow you to customize the grid used to define the position or progress of the Matrix effect over time. For example, the grid defines the number of squares used for the Grid and Speckle effects, or the number of horizontal bars used for the One-Way Row effect. Available for Matrix Wipes, Sawtooth Wipes, and some Shape Wipes. Use of Controls Grid Options button Grid Options button Other Options buttons Opens the Matrix Effect dialog box.
Other Options button Opens the Windows Color dialog box for precise color selection. For more information, see “Using the Windows Color Dialog Box” on page 107. Mosaic Parameters Mosaic parameters apply only to the Mosaic effect. These parameters control the way the area distorted by the effect blends with the background image. They also control the appearance of the distorted area. • Feathering • Mosaic Feathering Parameter Type Keyframeable Description Adds soft edges to a mosaic object.
Hor (horizontal) and Allow you to choose the dominant direction in which feathering of an object appears. Vert (vertical) Increasing the horizontal parameter extends feathering in both the positive and negative directions along the X axis (right to left and left to right on the screen). The range is 0 to 255 pixels. Increasing the vertical parameter extends feathering in both the positive and negative directions along the Y axis (upward and downward on the screen). The range is 0 to 255 pixels.
Hor (horizontal) and Allow you to choose the size and quantity of the mosaic tiles within the effect. Vert (vertical) Increasing the horizontal parameter extends the width of the tiles in both the positive and negative directions along the X axis (right to left and left to right on the screen). The range is 0 to 100, with a default value of 4. Increasing the vertical parameter extends the height of the tiles in both the positive and negative directions along the Y axis (upward and downward on the screen).
Parameter Type Global Description Allows you to create and customize a freeze frame clip based on the image currently displayed in the Source/Record monitor. Use of Menu Commands Freeze frame parameters are menu commands on the Clip menu. To create a freeze frame and access Freeze Frame parameters, choose Freeze Frame from the Clip menu, and then choose the appropriate submenu commands.
Variable Speed and Strobe Motion Parameters Variable Speed effect Strobe Motion effect Parameter Type Global Description Allow you to create and customize variable speed or slow motion clips based on all or part of the clip currently loaded in the Source/Record monitor. Use of Controls Variable Speed Variable Speed and Slow Motion parameters are available in the Motion Effect dialog box. To open the Motion Effect dialog box, click the Motion Effect button in the Tool palette.
% speed The percentage of speed at which the video will be played. Normal speed is 100%. Fit To Fill Sets the Variable Speed parameters, so the duration of the motion effect will match the IN to OUT duration marked in the sequence. Strobe Motion Update every __ frames Specifies the update rate in frames for the Strobe Motion effect. For example, entering a rate of 5 causes every fifth frame to be displayed in the Strobe Motion effect.
Interpolated Field NewsCutter XP creates a second field for the effect by combining scan line pairs from the first field in the original media. This option calculates the motion effect at the field level rather than the frame level. Because NewsCutter XP considers all fields and does not disturb the original order of fields, the smoothest effect results. Effects created using this option take the longest amount of time to render.
Position Parameter Type Keyframeable Description Sets the horizontal and vertical position of the effect. Use of Controls H Pos (horizontal position) Moves the video from side to side. Values range from –999 to +999. Negative values move the image to the left. Positive values move the image to the right. V Pos (vertical position) Moves the video up and down. Values range from –999 to +999. Negative values move the image to the top. Positive values move the image to the bottom.
Model Parameter Type Global Description Selects the type of stabilization. Available for the Region Stabilize effect only. For more information, see “Stabilizing an Image” on page 86. Options Translational Keeps the region of interest steady along both the horizontal and the vertical axes. Horizontal Constrains horizontal motion in the region of interest. Objects in the region of interest can move vertically but not horizontally. Vertical Constrains vertical motion in the region of interest.
Use of Controls T (top) Sets the corners of the region of interest. Values are relative to the center of the screen. L (left) B (bottom) R (right) n You can also change the size and position of the Region of Interest by dragging the wire frame in the Effect Preview monitor. See “Stabilizing an Image” on page 86. Auto Zoom Parameter Type Global Description Stabilization exposes black around the edges of the repositioned frames.
Use of Controls Wid (width) Controls the width of the image when the Fixed Aspect parameter is disabled. Values range from 0 to 400. Hgt (height) Controls the height of the image when the Fixed Aspect parameter is disabled. Values range from 0 to 400. Fixed Aspect Determines which position and size parameters display. Enabling the Fixed Aspect parameter prevents the aspect ratio from changing. The Wid and Hgt sliders move together.
Transition Effect Alignment The Transition Effect Alignment parameters specify the start of the transition effect relative to the cut point in the sequence. To set the alignment for a transition effect: t Click the Transition Effect Alignment button, and select a position from the Transition Effect Alignment pop-up menu: • Ending at Cut — The transition effect will start a number of frames before the cut defined by the duration, such that the effect completes at the cut point in the video.
2D Effects This section summarizes each 2D effect in alphabetical order within each effect category listed below. Parameters for each effect are listed here and are described in “2D Effects Parameters” on page 269.
• Fade from Color • Fade to Color • Picture-in-Picture • Superimpose Dip to Color Outgoing footage Middle of effect Incoming footage Effect Icon Effect Category Blend Apply to Transitions Parameters Foreground – level, reverse animation Background – hue, saturation, luminance Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Fades from the outgoing video to black, white, or any color and then fades up to the incoming video.
Dissolve Outgoing footage Middle of effect Incoming footage Effect Icon Effect Category Blend Apply to Transitions Parameters Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Blends images from the outgoing video with the incoming video over time.
Effect Icon Effect Category Blend Apply to Transitions Parameters Foreground – level, reverse animation Background – hue, saturation, luminance Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Fades from any color to the incoming video.
Parameters Foreground – level, reverse animation Background – hue, saturation, luminance Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Fades from the outgoing video to any color.
Description Creates a picture within a picture. Video from the higher layer, where the effect is applied, is displayed inside the video on the lower layer. When used on a transition, the incoming video appears inside the outgoing video.
Box Wipes Box Wipes reveal one video channel on top of another video channel, using predefined growing rectangular shapes. Box Wipes include: n • Bottom Box • Bottom Left to Top Right • Bottom Right to Top Left • Left Box • Right Box • Top Box • Top Left to Bottom Right • Top Right to Bottom Left For examples of similar effects, see “Comparison of Similar Effects” on page 384.
Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins as a box in the center of the bottom edge of the screen and wipes out the outgoing video as the box expands to fill the screen.
Bottom Right to Top Left Effect Icon Effect Category Box Wipe Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins as a box in the bottom right corner of the screen and wipes out the outgoing video as the box expands to fill the screen.
Effect Icon Effect Category Box Wipe Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins as a box in the center of the left edge of the screen and wipes out the outgoing video as the box expands to fill the screen.
Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins as a box in the center of the right edge of the screen and wipes out the outgoing video as the box expands to fill the screen.
Top Left to Bottom Right Effect Icon Effect Category Box Wipe Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins as a box in the top left corner of the screen and wipes out the outgoing video as the box expands to fill the screen.
Effect Icon Effect Category Box Wipe Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins as a box in the top right corner of the screen and wipes out the outgoing video as the box expands to fill the screen.
Bottom Left to Top Right Outgoing footage Middle of effect Incoming footage Effect Icon Effect Category Conceal Apply to Transitions, single-layer and multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video slides on top of the outgoing video from the bottom left to the top right of the s
Effect Icon Effect Category Conceal Apply to Transitions, single-layer and multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video slides on top of the outgoing video from the bottom right to the top left of the screen.
Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video slides on top of the outgoing video from the bottom to the top of the screen.
Right to Left Effect Icon Effect Category Conceal Apply to Transitions, single-layer and multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video slides on top of the outgoing video from the right edge to the left edge of the screen.
Effect Icon Effect Category Conceal Apply to Transitions, single-layer and multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video slides on top of the outgoing video from the top left to the bottom right of the screen.
Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video slides on top of the outgoing video from the top right to the bottom left of the screen.
Edge Wipes Edge Wipes reveal one video channel on top of another video channel by wiping an edge across the screen.
Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins at the left edge of the screen and moves to the right edge, wiping out the outgoing video.
Lower Left Diagonal Effect Icon Effect Category Edge Wipe Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Scaling – width, height, fixed aspect Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins in the bottom left corner of the screen and wipes out the outgoing video as a diagonal line moves from the bottom left corner to the top right corner of the screen.
Effect Icon Effect Category Edge Wipe Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Scaling – width, height, fixed aspect Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins in the bottom right corner of the screen and wipes out the outgoing video as a diagonal line moves from the bottom right corner to the top left corner of the screen.
Parameters Scaling – width, height, fixed aspect Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins in the top left corner of the screen and wipes out the outgoing video as a diagonal line moves from the top left corner to the bottom right corner of the screen.
Vertical Open Effect Icon Effect Category Edge Wipe Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins as a horizontal band in the center of the screen. This band expands up and down to fill the screen.
Effect Icon Effect Category Edge Wipe Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins at the top edge of the screen and expands downward to fill the screen. Image Effects Image effects are general effects that apply to a single stream of video.
Color Effect Effect Icon Effect Category Image Apply to Single-layer segments Parameters Luma Adjust – brightness, contrast, invert Chroma Adjust – hue, saturation, invert Luma Range – W point, B point, gamma Luma Clip – high, low Color Style – posterization, solarization Color Gain – red, green, blue Description The Color Effect modifies the luminance, chroma, style (posterized or solarized), and color gain of the segment.
Effect Icon Effect Category Image Apply to Single-layer segments Parameters None Description Video image is flipped vertically. Flip-Flop Original image Flip-Flop effect applied Effect Icon Effect Category Image Apply to Single-layer segments Parameters None Description Video image is flipped both horizontally and vertically.
Flop Original image Flop effect applied Effect Icon Effect Category Image Apply to Single-layer segments Parameters None Description Video image is flipped horizontally, which reverses the camera angle.
Description Masks out any area of the image that is not inside a rectangle defined by the Scaling, Fixed Aspect, and Position parameters of the effect. The effect’s background color masks the area surrounding the rectangle.
Effect Category Image Apply to Single-layer segments Parameters Region Stabilize Parameters – Model, Region of Interest, Auto Zoom Description Used to eliminate unwanted motion in a video clip. For more information, see “Stabilizing an Image” on page 86.
Submaster Effect Icon Effect Category Image Apply to The top video track under which are the video tracks that will be included in the Submaster effect Parameters None Description When rendered, the Submaster effect creates a single media file for all the video on the layers below the Submaster effect. This allows you to group several effects that reside on different video layers and render them as one effect; this is quicker than rendering each effect separately.
Chroma Key Background – video layer 1 Key image – video layer 2 Chroma Key effect Effect Icon Effect Category Key Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Key – hue, saturation, luminance, gain, softness Secondary Key – hue, saturation, luminance, gain, softness Spill Suppression – hue, saturation, luminance, gain, softness Foreground – level, swap sources, reverse animation, invert, show alpha Acceleration Scaling – height, width, fixed aspect Position – horizontal position, vertical p
Luma Key Key image Background image Luma Key effect Effect Icon Effect Category Key Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Key – hue, saturation, luminance, gain, softness Foreground – level, swap sources, reverse animation, invert, show alpha Acceleration Scaling – height, width, fixed aspect Position – horizontal position, vertical position Crop – top, bottom, left, right Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Replaces one part of the video im
Matte Key Video layer 1 — background Video layer 2 — foreground Matte Key effect Video layer 3 — high-contrast matte image Effect Icon Effect Category Key Apply to Multilayer segments Parameters Foreground – level, swap sources, reverse animation, invert key, show alpha Acceleration Scaling – height, width, fixed aspect Position – horizontal position, vertical position Crop – top, bottom, left, right Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description A three-layer track
L-Conceal Effects L-Conceal effects overlap one video channel over another using a predefined L-shaped path.
Description Incoming video slides up the left half of the screen from bottom to top and then fills the screen from left to right.
Top Left Effect Icon Effect Category L-Conceal Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video slides down the left half of the screen from top to bottom and then fills the screen from left to right.
Effect Icon Effect Category L-Conceal Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video slides down the right half of the screen from top to bottom and then fills the screen from right to left.
Grid Outgoing footage Middle of effect Incoming footage Effect Icon Effect Category Matrix Wipe Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Matrix Parameters (access through Other Options button) – matrix columns and rows Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins as blocks in a grid patter
One-Way Row Effect Icon Effect Category Matrix Wipe Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Matrix Parameters (access through Other Options button) – matrix columns and rows Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins as a block in the top left corner of the screen that wipes out the outgoi
Speckle Effect Icon Effect Category Matrix Wipe Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Matrix Parameters (access through Other Options button) – matrix columns and rows Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video appears in a random series of blocks that wipe out the outgoing video until the bloc
Effect Icon Effect Category Matrix Wipe Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Matrix Parameters (access through Other Options button) – matrix columns and rows Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video spirals over and wipes out the outgoing video by using blocks of screen space, starting in th
Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Matrix Parameters (access through Other Options button) – matrix columns and rows Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins as a single block in the top left corner of the screen that wipes out the outgoing video as the band expands horizontally across the screen from left to right.
Freeze Frame Effect Category Motion Apply to Current frame in the Source/Record monitor Parameters Motion Effect Parameters – duration, two-field media Description This effect repeats the current frame in the Source/Record monitor for the specified duration.
• Top Right Corner • Top to Bottom Bottom Left Corner Outgoing footage Middle of effect Incoming footage Effect Icon Effect Category Peel Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Outgoing video is peeled from the incoming video from the bottom left corner to the
Bottom Right Corner Effect Icon Effect Category Peel Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Outgoing video is peeled from the incoming video from the bottom right corner to the top left corner of the screen.
Effect Icon Effect Category Peel Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Outgoing video is peeled from the incoming video from the bottom edge to the top edge of the screen.
Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Outgoing video is peeled from the incoming video from the left edge to the right edge of the screen.
Top Left Corner Effect Icon Effect Category Peel Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Outgoing video is peeled from the incoming video from the top left corner to the bottom right corner of the screen.
Effect Icon Effect Category Peel Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Outgoing video is peeled from the incoming video from the top right corner to the bottom left corner of the screen.
Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video is peeled from the outgoing video from the top to the bottom of the screen. Push Effects Push effects move one video channel to fill the screen while the other video channel is pushed out of the screen.
Bottom Left to Top Right Outgoing footage Middle of effect Incoming footage Effect Icon Effect Category Push Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video pushes out the outgoing video from the bottom left corner to the top right corner of the screen.
Effect Icon Effect Category Push Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video pushes out the outgoing video from the bottom right corner to the top left corner of the screen. Border is on the incoming video.
Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video pushes out the outgoing video from the bottom to the top of the screen. Border is on the incoming video.
Right to Left Effect Icon Effect Category Push Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video pushes out the outgoing video from the right edge to the left edge of the screen. Border is on the incoming video.
Effect Icon Effect Category Push Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video pushes out the outgoing video from the top left corner to the bottom right corner of screen. Border is on the incoming video.
Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video pushes out the outgoing video from the top right corner to the bottom left corner of the screen. Border is on the incoming video.
Sawtooth Wipes Sawtooth Wipes are described in this section.
Horizontal Open Sawtooth Effect Icon Effect Category Sawtooth Wipe Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Foreground – level, reverse animation Matrix Parameters (access through Other Options button) – matrix columns and rows Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins as a vertical sawtooth in the center of the screen.
Effect Icon Effect Category Sawtooth Wipe Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Foreground – level, reverse animation Matrix Parameters (access through Other Options button) – matrix columns and rows Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins as a horizontal sawtooth in the center of the screen. The sawtooth expands up and down, revealing the incoming video.
Parameters Foreground – level, reverse animation Matrix Parameters (access through Other Options button) – matrix columns and rows Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description The sawtooth edge moves from the top of the screen down, covering the outgoing video and displaying the incoming video above the sawtooth. Shape Wipes Shape Wipes reveal one video channel on top of another video channel, using a growing or moving geometric shape.
4 Corners Outgoing footage Middle of effect Incoming footage Effect Icon Effect Category Shape Wipe Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins as blocks in four corners of the screen and wipes out the outgoing video as the blocks expand to fill th
Effect Icon Effect Category Shape Wipe Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Scaling – height, width, fixed aspect Position – horizontal position, vertical position Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins as a small box in the center of the screen and wipes out the outgoing video as it expands to fill the screen.
Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Scaling – height, width, fixed aspect Position – horizontal position, vertical position Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins as a small circle in the center of the screen and wipes out the outgoing video as it expands to fill the screen.
Diamond Effect Icon Effect Category Shape Wipe Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Scaling – height, width, fixed aspect Position – horizontal position, vertical position Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins as a small diamond in the center of the screen and wipes out the outgoing video as it expands to fill the screen.
Effect Icon Effect Category Shape Wipe Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, and softness Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Scaling – height, width, fixed aspect Position – horizontal position, vertical position Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins as a small ellipse in the center of the screen and wipes out the outgoing video as it expands to fill the screen.
Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Matrix Parameters (access through Other Options button) – matrix columns and rows Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Reversible Yes Description Horizontal bands expand toward the center of the screen to reveal the incoming video between alternate shrinking bands of the outgoing video.
Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Matrix Parameters (access through Other Options button) – matrix columns and rows Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins as horizontal bands on the screen that wipe out the outgoing video as the incoming bands expand vertically to fill the screen.
Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Matrix Parameters (access through Other Options button) – matrix columns and rows Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video begins as vertical bands on the screen that wipe out the outgoing video as the incoming bands expand horizontally to fill the screen.
Effect Icon Effect Category Spin Apply to Transitions Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Outgoing video is squeezed until it appears as a vertical line. The incoming video then expands from that vertical line until it fills the screen. Border appears only on the incoming video.
Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Outgoing video is squeezed until it appears as a horizontal line. The incoming video then expands from that horizontal line until it fills the screen.
n • Top to Bottom • Vertical Centered For examples of similar effects, see “Comparison of Similar Effects” on page 384.
Bottom Left Effect Icon Effect Category Squeeze Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video squeezes over the outgoing video, beginning as a rectangle in the bottom left corner of the screen and expanding to fill the screen.
Effect Icon Effect Category Squeeze Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video squeezes over the outgoing video, beginning as a rectangle in the bottom right corner of the screen and expanding to fill the screen.
Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video squeezes over the outgoing video, beginning at the bottom of the screen and filling to the top of the screen.
Horizontal Centered Effect Icon Effect Category Squeeze Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video starts as a vertical band squeezed in the center of the screen and expands horizontally to fill the screen.
Effect Icon Effect Category Squeeze Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video squeezes over the outgoing video, beginning as a rectangle in the center left edge of the screen and expanding to fill the screen.
Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video squeezes over the outgoing video, beginning at the left edge of the screen and filling to the right edge of the screen.
Right to Left Effect Icon Effect Category Squeeze Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video squeezes over the outgoing video, beginning at the right edge of the screen and filling to the left edge of screen.
Effect Icon Effect Category Squeeze Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video squeezes over the outgoing video, beginning as a rectangle in the center top edge of the screen and expanding to fill the screen.
Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video squeezes over the outgoing video, beginning as a rectangle in the top left corner of the screen and expanding to fill the screen.
Top to Bottom Effect Icon Effect Category Squeeze Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video squeezes over the outgoing video, beginning at the top edge of the screen and filling to the bottom edge of the screen.
Vertical Centered Effect Icon Effect Category Squeeze Apply to Transitions, multilayer segments Parameters Border – hue, saturation, luminance, width, softness Blend Color – hue, saturation, luminance Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Transition Parameters – transition effect alignment and duration Description Incoming video starts as a horizontal band squeezed in the center of the screen and expands vertically to fill the screen.
Title Effects Effect Icon Effect Category Title effects Apply to Multilayer segments Parameters Foreground – level, reverse animation Acceleration Scaling – height, width, fixed aspect Position – horizontal position, vertical position Crop – top, bottom, left, right Description Title effects are created in the Title tool and can incorporate text, graphic objects, imported graphics, and video.
Comparison of Similar Effects There are four effect categories that have a similar result: Box Wipe, Conceal, Push, and Squeeze. Examples of these effects are shown here to assist you in using these effects.
APPENDIX A Using AVX Plug-Ins You can use third-party plug-in effects compatible with the Avid Visual Extensions (AVX) standard to supplement NewsCutter XP by adding new effects or updating existing effects. AVX is a cross-platform software architecture that links effects modules with a host application such as NewsCutter XP. n If you are transferring from another system a project that includes sequences with AVX plug-in effects, you must install matching AVX plug-ins to see the effects.
After you install third-party plug-ins, the effects appear in the Effect Palette in their own category (usually the name of the plug-in vendor). Individual effects all have a plug effect icon. The plug icon also appears in the Timeline when you apply a third-party plug-in effect. 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. Effect templates also appear in a special section at the bottom of the Effect Palette.
To install AVX plug-ins manually: 1. Quit the NewsCutter XP application. c Do not add or remove plug-ins while NewsCutter XP is running. 2. Copy the plug-in files from the software vendor’s folder to the AVX_Plug-Ins folder located on your NewsCutter XP system. The default location for the AVX_Plug-Ins folder is: C:\Program Files\Avid\AVX_Plug-Ins However, the AVX_Plug-Ins folder might be in a different location on your system.
Locating the AVX_Plug-Ins Folder When the NewsCutter XP application is first installed, the installation program asks the administrator to choose a location for the AVX_Plug-Ins folder. The default path is: C:\Program Files\Avid\AVX_Plug-Ins If the administrator accepts the default location for the AVX_Plug-Ins folder, you can install AVX plug-ins here.
Directory entry. The path listed here is the path that contains the AVX_Plug-Ins folder. HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\ Avid Technology\AVX Plug-Ins n Remember that AVX plug-ins must be installed in the AVX_Plug-Ins folder itself, not elsewhere in the path that contains that folder. Upgrading AVX Plug-ins and Effects You can upgrade an AVX plug-in simply by uninstalling the old version of the plug-in and installing the new version in your AVX_Plug-Ins folder.
older version of the plug-in retain the values previously set by the user when NewsCutter XP upgrades existing effects. c After you upgrade a plug-in effect or transition, you should not reinstall the older version of the plug-in. NewsCutter XP cannot use an older version of a plug-in to process effects that have been created with a newer version.
Using AVX Plug-in Controls AVX plug-ins use a variety of different interfaces that give you control over the effects. Some plug-ins use custom interfaces that appear in their own dialog boxes. Others use some combination of controls that appear within the Effect Editor. These controls might include standard Avid controls familiar from Avid effects, custom controls designed by Avid for use by plug-in vendors, and custom controls designed by the plug-in vendors themselves.
Outline/Path button at the bottom of the Effect Editor. In some cases, you can then access additional controls by clicking buttons on the right side of the Effect Editor. The following Effect Editor parameters, which are not available in standard Avid effects, are available to some AVX plug-in effects: • The Treadmill is a slider that provides a window on a wide range of values and allows precise control over increments.
Plug-in Does Not Appear in the Effect Palette AVX plug-ins have a plug icon in the Effect Palette and in the Timeline. If the plug icon does not appear in the Effect Palette after installation, the plug-in might be in the wrong folder. For information on locating the AVX_Plug-Ins folder, see “Locating the AVX_Plug-Ins Folder” on page 388. Plug-in Does Not Load AVX plug-ins might not load correctly for a variety of reasons.
Blank Effect Icons in the Timeline AVX plug-ins have a plug icon in the Effect Palette and in the Timeline. If the effect icon in the Timeline is blank, NewsCutter XP could not find the plug-in. To identify a plug-in that is missing or misplaced: t Open the Console window (choose Console from the Tools menu), and look for the message “Can’t find effect.” The message identifies the plug-in that NewsCutter XP cannot locate.
Index ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ Numerics Aspect ratio See also Fixed Aspect option defined 297 Assigning multiple tracks in AVX plug-ins 390 AudioSuite plug-ins 386 Auto Size Mode command (Object menu) 206 Auto Size mode in Title tool 205 Auto Zoom 296 Avid Unity MediaManager 143 Avid Unity workgroup environment 143 Avid Visual Extensions See AVX AVX (Avid Visual Extensions) 35 AVX plug-ins assigning multiple tracks in 390 blank icons in Timeline 394 installing 386 locating AVX_Plug-Ins folder 388 messag
Bottom Right to Top Left 307 Left Box 308 Right Box 308 Top Box 309 Top Left to Bottom Right 310 Top Right to Bottom Left 311 Brightness See Luminance Bring Forward command (Object menu) 225 Bring to Front command (Object menu) 225 Buttons Add Edit (Tool palette) 169 Centered on Cut (Quick Transition dialog box) 62 Collapse (Command palette) 171 Crawling Title (Title tool) 180, 207 Drop and Depth Shadow (Title tool) 220 Effect Mode (Command palette) 42 Ending at Cut (Quick Transition dialog box) B Backgrou
Color parameters 106 Colors blending in Title tool 213 Commands See Menu commands Comparison of 2D effects 384 Compression tool 266 Conceal effects Bottom Left to Top Right 312 Bottom Right to Top Left 313 Bottom to Top 313 Left to Right 314 Right to Left 315 Top Left to Bottom Right 316 Top Right to Bottom Left 316 Top to Bottom 317 Console window AVX plug-in messages in 394 Copy command for title elements 188, 224 Crawling titles adding pages to 209 defined 204 formatting text in 211 going to a page in 20
Submaster effects 167, 169 title contents 260 titles into sequence 249 with imported master clips 159 with imported matte keys 157 EDL (edit decision list) with Submaster effects D Deleting effect media files 143, 147 motion effect media 147 Depth shadow in titles 220 Diamond Shape Wipe 364 Digidesign AudioSuite plug-ins 386 Dip to Color effect 300 Dissolve effects applying 50 described 301 duration of 50 Quick Transition button 63 Distribute commands (Alignment menu) 229 Drawing environment preparation in
saving 117 viewing 33 Effects 2D parameters for 269 2D types 269 applying single 40 applying to multiple segments 44 applying to multiple transitions 42, 51 applying to multiple transitions using Quick Transition button 55 changing position in 97 Chroma Key 150 color coding for 32 creation tools for 28 deconstructing 36 deleting multiple segments 48 deleting multiple transitions 48 deleting single 46 Freeze Frame 69 keys described Luma Key 153 Matte Key 153 Matte Key in nested layers 165 Mosaic Effect 80 mo
Flip-Flop effect 326 Flop effect 327 Fonts choosing 193 compatibility between systems 182 installing 182 setting point size 193 substituting 182 Foreground parameter 281 Formatting title text 191 Four Corners Shape Wipe 361 Freeze Frame command (Clip menu) 69 Freeze Frame effect See also Motion effects controlling with a single button or key 71 creating 69 described 343 parameters 289 Function keys mapping title styles to 239, 240 Grid button 94 Grid Matrix Wipe 338 Group command (Object menu) 226 Grouping
Top Left 336 Top Right 337 Leading of title text 198 Left Box Wipe 308 Left Centered Squeeze 376 Left to Right Conceal 314 Left to Right Peel 346 Left to Right Push 353 Left to Right Squeeze 376 Limitations to size of crawling titles 205 Lines attribute options 200 in titles 200 Locating AVX_Plug-Ins folder 388 Lock command (Object menu) 227 Locked objects hollow handles indicating 227 Locking title objects 227 Lower Left Diagonal Edge Wipe 320 Lower Right Diagonal Edge Wipe 321 Luma adjust with Color Effec
Snap to Grid (Alignment menu) 186 Soften Shadow (Object menu) 221 UnGroup (Object menu) 226 Unlock (Object menu) 228 Model parameter of Region Stabilize effect 295 Modifying results of ExpertRender 136 Mosaic Effect creating 83 described 80, 328 Mosaic parameter 288 Mosaic Visible option 288 parameters 81, 287 Motion Effect button (Source/Record monitor) Matrix Wipes Grid 338 One-Way Row 339 Speckle 340 Spiral 341 Zig-Zag 341 Matte Key effect creating 153 described 333 editing with 157 in nested layers 165
described 269 Feathering 81, 84 Foreground 281 listed 269 Matrix 285 Mosaic Effect 81, 84, 287, 287 Motion effect 289 Position 294 Scaling 296 Transition 297 Partial render 127 Paste command for title elements 188, 224 Peel effects Bottom Left Corner 344 Bottom Right Corner 345 Bottom to Top 346 Left to Right 346 Right to Left 347 Top Left Corner 348 Top Right Corner 349 Top to Bottom 349 Picture-in-Picture effect defined 303 foreground image movement 112 Play Preview button 122 Playback of effects from Eff
Left to Right 353 Right to Left 354 Top Left to Bottom Right 355 Top Right to Bottom Left 355 Top to Bottom 356 options 125 VTR-Style 126, 293 Rendered effects color coding for 168 viewing in bins 248 Rendering displaying render ranges 128 effects at position 130 effects between IN and OUT points 132 effects summarized 123 ExpertRender examples 139 interrupting 128 multiple effects 132 multiple effects with Submaster 168 saving partially completed renders 127 single effect 129 Submaster restriction 330 usi
Region Stabilize 329 Resize 329 Submaster 167, 330 Superimpose 304 Selecting a keyframe indicator 111 Selection tool defined 180 for grouping objects 226 for ungrouping objects 226 text options for titles 192 viewing attributes with 192 Send Backward command (Object menu) 225 Send to Back command (Object menu) 225 Sequences applying a Submaster effect to 168 applying effects to 40 deleting effects from 46 title editing in 249 Set Bin Display command (Bin menu) 144, 248 Settings render 123, 125 Shadow softne
Slow-motion effect See also Variable Speed motion effect creating 73 described 343 reversing 75 Snap to Grid command (Alignment menu) 186 Soft shadows 221, 222 Soften Shadow command (Object menu) 221 Softness parameter for borders 273 Solarization of Color Effect 279 Speckle Matrix Wipe 340 Spill Suppression parameters 285 Spin effects X Spin 369 Y Spin 369 Spiral Matrix Wipe 341 Squeeze effects Bottom Centered 371 Bottom Left 372 Bottom Right 373 Bottom to Top 373 Centered Zoom 374 Horizontal Centered 375
fading 258 fast saving 234, 235 re-creating media for 266 removing 257 rendering 265 rendering fast saves 235 replacing 258 replacing fill tracks 264 saving 231 saving multiple 233 speed of play 256 summarized 383 Title styles applying to title objects 241 managing from Project window 241 mapping to function keys 239, 240 recalling 240 saving 237 Title tool See also Titles Add Page option 209 adjusting color 213 adjusting shadow color 220 adjusting shadow softness 221, 222 adjusting shadow transparency 220
as background in Title tool 184 gain levels 284 in nested effects 160 Transition effects adjusting with graphical display in Quick Transition dialog box 59 alignment 297 alignment options 63 applying multiple 42 applying to multiple transitions 51 applying with Quick Transition button 51 Box Wipes 305 Conceals 312 defined 27 deleting 48 dissolves 50 duration 298 Edge Wipes 318 fades 302, 302 L-Conceals 334 Matrix Wipes 337 Peels 343 Push 350 to 356 Sawtooth 357 Shape Wipes 360 sizing to fit 63 Spins 368 Squ
Wipe effects Box Wipes 305 Edge Wipes 318 Matrix Wipes 337 Sawtooth Wipes 357 Shape Wipes 360 X X Spin effect 369 Y Y Spin effect 369 Z Zig-Zag Matrix Wipe 341 Zoom effect 374 Zoom in on an effect 113 Zoom out on an effect 113 Z-Rotation 85 410
