Working with Subclips


In the next lesson, you will begin to capture source material you have shot with your digital camera. When you capture footage, the duration of each clip is up to you. You might capture everything from your camera in one very long clip. Or you might start and stop a few times to create several shorter clips.

When you start editing, working with one long clip may not be as convenient as working with shorter clips. Even though you can mark different clips from one master clip, as you did in the previous exercise, the marked clips in the sequence will all share the master clip's name, which could become confusing if you are using several marked portions from one master clip.

The solution to working with longer clips is to break up the master clip into subclips of specific shots you want to use. When you create a subclip of a master clip, you can determine just the length of the shot you want to work with and give it its own unique name. This subclip becomes a separate clip, with its own icon, that you can name and work with in the Browser. In fact, a subclip becomes its own master clip because it is the first use of that clip in the project.

Making a Subclip

Creating a subclip begins with marking In and Out points on a clip in the Viewer to identify the material you want to use. But this clip will stand alone, unlike sequence clips that always refer back to the full length of the master clip. Therefore, you might want to give yourself a little extra space, or handles, on either side of the portion you want to edit, to be able to make editing adjustments or add transitions in the future.

1.

In the Browser, click the Lesson 11 Project tab and close all open bins except the Relaxing Weekend bin.

2.

Double-click the couple at beach clip to open it in the Viewer. Play the clip.

This two-minute master clip has several shots you can use in a sequence. However, all the shots were so close together on tape that they were captured as one long clip. Let's subdivide each usable shot into its own separate subclip.

3.

Mark an In point at the head of the clip and an Out point on the last frame of the shot of the couple drinking a toast.

4.

Choose Modify > Make Subclip, or press Cmd-U.

Tip

If this menu option is not available, make sure the Viewer window is active or selected. You can press Cmd-1 to select the Viewer.

The Browser window becomes active, and a new icon appears under the master clip in the Relaxing Weekend bin. The subclip icon has jagged edges, as if it had been torn or cut from the original clip. It also shares the master clip's name for the moment, but the filename is highlighted, awaiting a name change.

5.

Rename the subclip toasting.

6.

Double-click this new subclip to open it in the Viewer, and play it.

The clip is only as long as the distance between the In and Out points you marked to create it.

7.

Open the couple at beach master clip, and mark In and Out points to identify the next shot, immediately after the toasting shot.

Tip

If the playhead is parked at the last Out point, press the right arrow key to move the playhead forward one frame, and mark a new In point there.

8.

Choose Modify > Make Subclip. In the Browser, enter tilt down patio as the new subclip name.

9.

To see the thumbnail images of these subclips, Ctrl-click the Duration column and choose Show Thumbnail from the shortcut menu.

In the Thumbnail column, the different images of the new subclips help to identify them further.

Note

The master clip's thumbnail changes to reflect the new In point.

Project Tasks

1.

Follow the guidelines in steps 35 in the preceding exercise to create subclips from every potential shot in the couple at beach master clip. Use the following naming suggestions:

  • walking down path ws

  • walking down path med

  • beach to chairs pan

Note

The Browser is automatically selected after a subclip is created so you can enter a new name. To mark the next subclip, you have to click in the Viewer window to make it active again. You can also use the keyboard shortcut Cmd-1 to select the Viewer from the Browser or another window. Look at the Window menu to see the shortcuts for the other interface windows.

2.

Open the nose riding clip from the Browser. Make one subclip out of the section where Jimbo walks to the nose, and another subclip where he falls behind a wave toward the end of the clip.

3.

Press Cmd-S to save the project.

Tip

If you use a subclip in a sequence and find you need more material to extend or adjust the clip, you can remove the subclip limits, taking it back to the master clip length. Select the clip in the Timeline and choose Modify > Remove Subclip Limits.




Apple Pro Training Series Final Cut Express HD
Apple Pro Training Series: Final Cut Express HD
ISBN: 0321335333
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2006
Pages: 174
Authors: Diana Weynand

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