Adding Motion Effects to Text

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You have already used some basic motion effects to crop and reposition the color matte clips in this sequence. Another frequently used motion effect you can add to text is a drop shadow. In Final Cut Pro, this function is located in the Motion tab of the Viewer. You can also add motion keyframes to a text clip or graphic clip to create a motion path, just as you did in Lesson 12.

TIP

Always resize text in the Controls tab using the Size slider, not on the Motion tab using the Scale slider. Using Scale will make the text look pixilated.


Adding a Drop Shadow

Most of the text that appears on television programs has some type of drop shadow applied to it. Drop shadows are often used to make the text stand out from the background image, but you can also use them to create a style. As one of the Motion attributes in Final Cut Pro, drop shadow can also be applied to any video clip. In this exercise, you will add a drop shadow to the Text clip above DS intro.

1.

In the Adding Text Starting sequence, move the playhead over the DS intro clip, and double-click the Lower 3rd clip above it to open it in the Viewer. Click the Motion tab.

2.

To add a drop shadow, click the Drop Shadow check box to make it active.

The default drop shadow appears around the text in the Canvas.

3.

Click the Drop Shadow disclosure triangle to display the parameters, enter the following information, and press Tab. Then play the clip.

  • Offset: 2

  • Angle: 135

  • Color: Use the Select Color tool to sample the red on Danny's shoulder.

  • Softness: 10

  • Opacity: 72

NOTE

Depending on your computer, you may not see this effect play in real time. You can press Option-P to preview it, or render the clip.

As with any parameter, you can copy and paste the drop shadow to other clips.

4.

Ctrl-click the Lower 3rd clip above DS intro and choose Copy from the shortcut menu. Then Ctrl-click the Outline Text clip above PA team owner and choose Paste Attributes from the shortcut menu.

Under the Video Attributes column in this window, Drop Shadow is listed among the other Motion attributes.

5.

In the Paste Attributes window, click Drop Shadow, and click OK.

The attributes from the clip above DS intro are now applied to this clip. Remember the blue outline in this text was created in the Outline Text itself.

Animating Text and Motion Effects

As with filters and motion effects, you can also animate certain text parameters, such as scale, tracking, or even color. You can animate the tracking of the text and stretch the letters horizontally over time. Or you can animate the color to change at a specific time. You can also animate motion effects when they're applied to a text clip. For example, when a drop shadow is applied, you can animate the offset over time so it appears as though the sun or light source is changing behind the text.

However, some of the more basic uses of motion effects as applied to text are simply to change the position of the text in the image area, or to move the text onscreen or off. Of course, you can make it zoom in and swoop past the viewer as well. In this exercise, you will move the first two text clips onscreen.

1.

Move the playhead to the beginning of the first Text clip in the Timeline, and select the clip.

2.

To see outside the image area, click the Canvas Zoom pop-up menu and choose 25%. Press W to change to the Image+Wireframe mode.

3.

Hold down the Shift key as you drag the Text clip offscreen to the left until you no longer see the s in Presents.

4.

Press Ctrl-K to set a keyframe for this starting position.

5.

In the Timeline, press Shift-right arrow to move the playhead 1 second to the right.

6.

Hold down Shift as you drag the Text clip into the center of the screen.

A keyframe is automatically created for this new position.

TIP

If the text clip you are adjusting becomes deselected in the Timeline, just click to select it again, and the wireframe for that clip will appear in the Canvas.

7.

To bridge the gap between the Presents text and the Yamaha of Troy Text clip, drag the Yamaha of Troy Text clip In point to the left and snap it to the Presents Text clip Out point.

8.

Repeat the process of setting keyframes to animate the Yamaha of Troy text to come onscreen the same way Presents does.

TIP

You can also copy the Presents Text clip and paste the Basic Motion attributes to the Yamaha of Troy Text clip, which will paste the same keyframes you used in the first clip to the second clip. With the Scale Attributes Time check box enabled, you will stretch or contract the keyframes if the clip lengths differ; with it disabled, the motion timing remains the same as the original clip.

9.

When you've completed setting the keyframes, click the Canvas View pop-up, and choose Fit To Window. Play the clips.

Project Practice

Depending on the type of text and its purpose in a sequence, it might cut in and out or fade in and out to create a smoother transition. Smooth the text edits in this sequence by either adding transitions to the text clips or by setting opacity keyframes. You can refer to the Adding Text Finished sequence as a reference and turn on the clip overlays to see the opacity keyframes.

You can also add motion keyframes to the color matte bars to animate them moving into place before the credits roll and then moving offscreen toward the end of the edit.

NOTE

If you add a transition to fade out a text clip, you will first have to change the length of the text clip if you don't want it to appear over the entire background clip.


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    Apple Pro Training Series. Final Cut Pro 5
    Apple Pro Training Series: Final Cut Pro 5
    ISBN: 0321334817
    EAN: 2147483647
    Year: 2005
    Pages: 235
    Authors: Diana Weynand

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