You can add text to your video production by adding it to the clips themselves or by placing it on its own track. What you can do with the text largely depends on where you have placed it.
Placed inside your clips, the text is limited to those clips. It appears with the clip and disappears as the clip disappears. It is also subject to the transitions on either side of the clip. This is a good way to add a caption to individual photos or create a title menu.
If you place the text on its own track, you have much more control of it. You can stretch or shrink it to any length of time you want, add separate motion, and place it anywhere inside your production.
Add Text Effect to a Video Clip or Photo
To add a text effect to a clip, you must first select the clip to which you would like to add text. After you have the photo selected, select Add Text Effect from the tasks pane. The Add Text Effect window comes up, giving you quite a few text styles from which to choose. Remember that you can edit these in any way you choose later. Choose the style you like and click OK. You are then given the option to add your text to the production or to place it on the internal track of the selected panel. Choose to place the text on the internal track of the selected panel. This adds it to your clip itself, making it part of the panel.
Tip
Remember that by selecting the Edit Internal Tracksor Entire Production icon, you have the capability to edit the text on the internal track of a photo or video clip. You have all the same text editing options as if you had placed it on the external track.
Add Text Effect to a Text Track
When you add text to its own track within your video production, it appears on the text track. You might not be able to see this track unless you stretch your Production Editor window up a little bit. Stretch it until you see the track labeled Text 1.
You can add text to your video production in three ways. First, simply click on the Add Text icon in the Preview taskbar. This immediately drops a text object into the spot you have currently selected in your production.
Second, select Add Text Effect from the tasks pane. The Add Text Effect window comes up, giving you quite a few text styles from which to choose. Remember that you can edit these later in any way you choose. Choose the style you like and click OK. You are then given the option to add your text to the production or to place it on the internal track of the selected panel. Select Add to production, dropping it into the text track.
The final method is to select the Show Effect Selector in the tasks pane to bring up the Effect Selector window. Click on the Text tab in the top of the Effect Selector to bring up the text styles. Choose a style and drag and drop it into the desired location on the text track.
Position the Text
If you have placed your text on its own track, you probably want to place it more precisely where you want it. You can select it and move it anywhere along the text track. By clicking and dragging on the edges you can shrink or stretch it to the desired length. You can also clip it to shorten it by clicking on the Clip icon.
Edit the Text Using the Taskbar
From the Preview window, you can position the text itself by dragging the bounding box to the desired location. Use the handles on the edges of the bounding box to change its shape.
Highlight the text to make changes to it. You can make basic changes by using the Text taskbar just above the Preview window. You can change the font, color, and alignment, among other things.
Edit the Text Using the Text Editor
If you want to make more changes than the taskbar allows, click on the Text Editor icon in the taskbar to bring up your text in the Text Editor Wizard. Here you have four tabs where you can do such things as set a box or shadow on your text or create a 3D effect. When you are finished making changes, click OK.
Edit the Text Using Advanced Settings
If this is still not enough (and sometimes it's not), click on the More Settings icon. It might not look like much, but when the Settings window comes up, you will see that you have all the same capabilities of the Text Editor, plus some. You can choose the following tabs:
Style Here you have all your style settings. Change the font, alignment, and paragraph settings.
Color Here you can change the color of the face, outline, and shadow of your text.
Frame Here you can change the settings and colors for a frame around your text.
3D Give your text or frame a 3D effect by adding a bevel and adjusting its settings.
Position These are the settings you can't find anywhere else. From here you can position your text precisely using a measured location, or more usefully, you can rotate it.
Motion In this window you can choose an entrance and exit style for the text object.
Tip
Remember that you can dock the Settings window to make the text-editing process easier. With the Settings window up, select, View, Dock Settings. This places the Settings window to the right of your Preview window.
Set the Motion for the Text
You can set the motion for your text by selecting your text object and clicking on the Motion icon in the Text taskbar. You are given several options for a grand entrance for your text.
BEFORE YOU BEGIN
SEE ALSO
Launch VideoWave and Change the Production Settings
About the VideoWave Interface
Add Video Files and Photos to VideoWave
Add Text to a Photo
Add Text to a Slideshow