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Lesson 9. Applying Transitions > Evaluating the Project
Evaluating the Project
Not every project requires transitions. Some of the world’s greatest films were created with nothing more than a fade-in at the head and a fade-out at the tail. Part of your job as an editor is to determine whether transitions will improve your sequence and, if they will, to choose the appropriate ones. This decision could be based on the style of the show or series. For example, dramatic material, such as in Leverage, typically cuts from one shot to the next, and transitions aren’t required, whereas content cut to narration or music, such as the trailer for the program Accidental Quest for Enlightenment, might benefit from transitions to add to the serenity of the footage.
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2. | In the Canvas, notice the Quest sequence duration, and then play the sequence.
Tip In editing, the emphasis is often placed on the video portion of a sequence. However, if the sound in your sequence is jarring as you cut from one audio clip to the next, viewers will notice it immediately. To smooth these edit points, you can apply an audio cross fade. | |
3. | Play the sequence again and notice how the V1 clip names refer to the narration at each clip location.
Tip Another opportunity to use this naming convention is with music videos. You can name the video clips after the lyrics to see where you are in the song.
In the Timeline, notice that the sequence is referred to as Quest, which makes it easier to identify. The shorter name also allows room to add version numbers. Let’s duplicate this sequence and rename it. | |
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5. | In the Timeline, select the first clip and press Command-9. Although this footage was shot at the highest possible HD quality, the captured media files were recompressed using the Apple ProRes 422 (Proxy) format, which reduced the file sizes for the book’s DVD.
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6. | Click Cancel and press Command-0 to open the Sequence Settings window. Notice that the sequence settings match the clip settings.
Tip Since you’ll often use these two functions in tandem, a helpful way to remember their shortcuts is that the number keys 9 and 0 appear next to each other on the keyboard. | |
7. | Click the Timeline Options tab and notice that the Thumbnail Display is set to Name Plus Thumbnail. Click Cancel to close this window. When tracks are very short, they will not display thumbnails even if that is the current display option. Until you become more familiar with this new footage, it might be helpful to make the Timeline V1 track taller to enlarge the thumbnails. | |
8. | In the Timeline patch panel, drag the V1 boundary up. Because only one clip is on the V2 track, the show title, drag the V2 boundary down to reduce its height.
Tip To reduce the height of all the audio tracks, Option-drag an audio track boundary upward. Note You can also leave the video clips smaller to more easily read their names. Customizing your layout is about making decisions that improve your workflow. | |
9. | Look at the Timeline ruler above the above the AQE Title clip at the end of the sequence.
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10. | To make sure you see as many real-time effects as possible, click the RT pop-up menu in the Timeline, and from the shortcut menu, choose Unlimited RT. Click the RT pop-up menu again, and make sure you see a checkmark next to Dynamic in both of the places it appears.
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