Trimming Down Timeline Clips from the Source Monitor

As you saw in the preceding sections, there are many ways to trim clips directly in your edited sequence. Even though you will choose certain techniques over others, it's good to be familiar with all the various methods, because you never know when a situation will arise where one method of trimming (or some other aspect of editing) is better suited for that particular situation than another. To be honest, I have not found the technique I'm about to discuss very effective. The only time I think it might come in handy is if you want to view the source footage to make a better determination of where and when to trim a shot from your rough cut. (If in the course of your editing you come across a situation where this technique is the best method to use, please let me know. You can e-mail me at [e-mail].)

To use the original digitized footage in the Source Monitor to trim a clip, do the following:

1. Double-click the clip you want to trim in your timeline. The selected clip should load into the Source Monitor with the first frame of the timeline clip visible in the monitor.

2. Use the controls under the Source Monitor to mark a new in point, out point, or both.

3. After you have made the corrections, click the Apply button above the Source Monitor to readjust the clip in the timeline, as shown in Figure 4.27.

   Figure 4.27. The Apply button appears after you have altered the duration of a segment in your timeline in the Source Monitor.

   

The clip that is loaded into the Source Monitor is not the original full-length source clip, but more of a subclip the portion of the clip that was edited into the timeline. Therefore, all your trims will change the duration of the clip in the timeline. Premiere automatically uses these new in and out points and changes the duration of the clip directly in the timeline. If the new duration will be less than the clip's original duration, an empty space is left in the timeline for the difference in its original duration. Select the Track Selection tool in the Timeline window to move the rest of the clips on that track and close any gaps left by any clip adjusted to have a shorter duration.