Making Overwrite Edits

There are different types of edits you can make in Final Cut Express, and each type places a clip in a sequence a little differently. Some edits place clips over whatever is on a Timeline track, and some insert them between other clips in a track. In this lesson, you will work first with the Overwrite type of edit.

Overwrite editing places a clip in the Timeline over whatever is currently at the playhead position. The Timeline may be empty at that point, or there may be another clip present. Either way, the new clip simply overwrites whatever space or material is in the Timeline track at the playhead position, as in the following graphic.

While there are different kinds of edits to choose from, the method of making different edits is similar. You will use the Overwrite edit to explore the different ways to make an edit in Final Cut Express. By trying each approach, you will find the one that suits you the best.

Preparing to Edit

Before you begin making edits, you position the playhead wherever you want the new clip to be placed in the Timeline. The playhead position determines the In point or edit location within the sequence. You will also need to make sure the source tracks are patched to the correct destination tracks for the edit. In these exercises, you will be editing just video clips.

1.	In the Timeline, make sure the playhead is in the Home position at the beginning of the sequence. Note Although the playhead determines the location of the new clip in the sequence, the clip's duration marked in the Viewer determines how much of the clip is used.
2.	From the Additional Clips bin, double-click the yoga mat clip to open it in the Viewer. Look at the Viewer window tabs. This clip has a Video tab but no audio tab, meaning there is no audio attached to this clip.
3.	Look at the source control in the track area of the Timeline. After opening a clip in the Viewer, any audio or video source tracks are represented by source controls in the Timeline track area. Since the V1 track is the only video destination track in the Timeline, the v1 source track is automatcially patched to that track. Note The process of assigning tracks is also referred to as patching tracks.

Dragging to the Edit Overlay

In the previous lesson, you practiced marking clips. Once a clip is marked and the project is saved, those edit points remain with the clips. To practice making edits in this lesson, you will open marked clips and drop them into the Overwrite Edits sequence in the Timeline.

Once your clip is marked in the Viewer and the playhead is in position in the Timeline, you are ready to make your first edit. To do this, you will drag the image of the clip from the Viewer into the Canvas window. When the pointer enters the Canvas window, the Edit Overlay appears in the Canvas. The Edit Overlay is like an editing palette offering you different edit options.

1.	From the Overwrite Clips bin in the Browser, double-click the dumbbell cu clip to open it in the Viewer. Note All of the clips in this bin are already marked as they were in the previous lesson.
2.	In the Viewer, click the image area and drag right. A thumbnail of your clip appears under the mouse pointer.
3.	Drag the thumbnail image into the Canvas window, but don't release the mouse! The Edit Overlay appears in the Canvas window, displaying a palette of different edit types. In the Edit Overlay, the red Overwrite section has a brighter border around it, indicating that it is the current default edit option. It also has a lighter downward arrow as part of its icon. This is a visual clue that you will be laying over or covering anything in its place in the Timeline.
4.	Drop the dumbbell cu thumbnail image onto the Overwrite section in the Edit Overlay. The marked portion of the clip is placed in the Timeline starting where the playhead was located. The playhead repositions to the end of the clip, awaiting the next edit.
5.	Open the overhead dumbbells clip from the Browser. This clip has already been marked, and the playhead is positioned where you want this edit to go. So you are ready to proceed to make another Overwrite edit.
6.	In the Viewer, drag the thumbnail image to the Edit Overlay in the Canvas, and drop the image onto the Overwrite section.
7.	Repeat the process with the arm machine clip. Open the clip and drag its thumbnail image onto the Overwrite section in the Canvas Edit Overlay. Note If the Overwrite section is highlighted in the overlay, you can drop the clip anywhere in the Canvas image area to make an Overwrite edit.

Using the Keyboard Shortcut

You can also use a keyboard shortcut to make an Overwrite edit. This produces the same result as dragging to the overlay in the Canvas. The keyboard shortcut for Overwrite edit is F10. You will place the next edit at the end of the last one.

Tip

The Exposé function in Tiger (OS 10.4) uses the F10, F11, and F12 keys to change window layout on the Desktop. To use these keys for Final Cut Express editing functions, open your System Preferences window and select Dashboard and Exposé. Change the keyboard shortcuts from F10, F11, and F12, to F1, F2, and F3.

1.	Open the ab roller clip in the Viewer.
2.	View the marked portion of the clip by clicking the Play In to Out button to the left of the Viewer Play button.
3.	Press F10 to edit this clip into the sequence as an Overwrite edit. Note To use the Fn keys on a laptop computer, you need to press the Fn key on the lower left of the keyboard.
4.	Click in the Timeline and press Shift-Z to see the entire sequence fit in the window. Then press Home and the spacebar to view the new sequence.

Take a minute to view the edits you have put together in your sequence. Which approach to making Overwrite edits did you enjoy the most? They both get the same job done, so it really is a matter of personal preference. Another approach, dragging a clip directly to the Timeline, will be covered in the next lesson.

Project Tasks

1.	Edit the following marked clips into the sequence by using the F10 shortcut key or dragging to the Canvas Edit Overlay: skater ecu mountain bikers golfer hits ball Tip If you get an unwanted result, remember that Cmd-Z will undo the damage.
2.	In the Timeline, press Shift-Z if necessary to see the entire sequence. Press Home and then the spacebar to play the sequence.
3.	When you finish playing, press the End key to ensure that the playhead is on the last frame of the last edit, in preparation for the next edit you make.