80 Freeze a Video Frame

Before You Begin

41 Take a Picture from a Clip

See Also

81 Preview Your Final Movie

Although a single frame is not typically considered a title or credit, there are times when you will want to use an actual picture or a frame from your movie for a title of some kind. Remember that you can display a single frame for a preset time duration during your movie's playback ( see 39 Set a Picture Clip's Duration ).

Using your imagination , you can come up with several ways to use a single frame as a title. Suppose you're shooting a wedding video. No matter how exciting Movie Maker's animation effects and titles are, the church 's street sign with the wedding party's names and dates makes a much more effective opening title for the audience.

TIP

Don't refrain from using Movie Maker's titles and credits even when you use single frames for the same purpose. An opening title might be more effective when an interesting frame from your video is used, but then you might want to scroll a few informational titles past the viewer after that opening frame.

1. Select Tools, Options
   
   A picture used as a title will probably need to display longer than the default picture duration. Select Options from the Tools menu to display the Options dialog box.
   
   
2. Set Picture's Duration
   
   Change the Picture Duration to the time you want the picture to display as a title.
   
   
3. Click OK
   
   Click the dialog box's OK button to apply the duration time to the next picture clip you place on the storyboard/timeline.
   
   
4. Select a Picture Clip
   
   Locate the picture clip you want to use as the title.
   
   

   NOTE

   

   Remember that picture clips appear at the top of your Contents pane. You might need to scroll the Contents pane up to see them.

5. Drag to Storyboard
   
   Drag the clip to your storyboard where you want the title to appear. If, for example, the clip is to represent your opening title, you would drag the clip to the left end of the storyboard/timeline.
   
   
6. Preview Clip
   
   

   TIP

   

   The title's Transparency option is useful for placing extra text over a picture clip that you use as a title clip.

   Click Play to ensure that the clip plays at the proper time duration and produces the effect that you expected.