Tip #1386: Drop Zone Secret
… for Apple Final Cut Pro X
Tip #1386: Drop Zone Secret
Larry Jordan – LarryJordan.com
When adding clips to a drop zone, where you click the skimmer determines the In.
I discovered this tip while researching a recent PowerUP webinar introducing Apple Motion 5.5.
One of the Motion effects I created for this webinar involved combining multiple drop zones into a single “quad split,” where four different images were combined into one.
NOTE: The benefit of creating this as a Motion template is how easily it can be reused, rather than create each effect uniquely in Final Cut.
What I didn’t know till this week was that when you add a video clip to a drop zone, where you click the skimmer (Shortcut: S) in the Browser clip determines the In of the video.
In the past, Final Cut would use the actual start of the video clip. Now, with the Skimmer setting the In, you can use any segment of a clip that you prefer.
Very cool – and a huge time-saver.
I’m pretty sure this has been the case for quite a while. I have a particular animation I’ve been using for years and I also discovered the I could control what frame would be the In/start point by choosing where I clicked on the sequence.
Steve:
You are probably right – I’ve just never paid enough attention before.
Larry