Handles...any shortcut?

Is there any shortcut that will pull handles 15 frames each way and then close the gap, to speed up the transition application in FCP 4.5? If not, can I somehow program one in the "favorites" or something? I'm on Mac OS X 10.3.4 using FCP HD 4.5, with 1.5 GB of RAM. I want to put transitions at most of my cuts in the timeline, and it takes FOREVER to do all of that handle-pulling! (I recently learned about the DV Start/Stop detect, and plan to try that on my next wedding as well.) Thanks!

Hmm...conceptually speaking I think you may be thinking about it the wrong way. "Handles" on transitions depend on whether you have the extra media captured on the outgoing and incoming clips, the extra media which would allow you to perform the transition. It doesn't matter whether that extra media is actually visible on your timeline or not.

However, if you need to extend the clips within the timeline, you can:

1. TTTT (All Tracks Forward), select from the desired edit point forward, type "+15" on the number pad to move everything forward one second, drag the clips' edges to close the gap; or

2. RR (Ripple), click on the side of the edit you wish to extend, type in "+15". Ripple will create no gap; it extends the clip selected while pushing everything forward in the timeline; or

3. Move the clip you want to extend up one video track. Extend it as desired. TTTT (All Tracks Forward) to adjust all other clips to snap to the new edge.


www.derekmok.com

Plan for them. Don't just drop in the full clip on the timeline...make sure you mark IN and OUT points at least 15 frames from the head and tail of your clips.

There is no such thing as "pulling handles."


www.shanerosseditor.com

Listen to THE EDIT BAY Podcast on iTunes
[itunes.apple.com]

sounds like you need to trim all your clips to allow transitions to be applied

no one-hit-wonder type shortcut exists for what you want,
but some editing shortcuts will make life a lot easier.

(actually... if your clips are SUBCLIPS, then there is a one-hit-wonder
select all, then modify menu > Remove subclip limits.
if your subclips went right to the end of the shot, then you still need to trim, of course, as you;d see the next shot in the trans)

invoke the ripple tool (RR)
select the OUTGOING side of your 1st cut.
the end of your 1st clip should be brown.

another way, simply select the 1st edit, (both sides of cut are brown)
now hit the U key to toggle which side of the edit is selected.

as i said, you want the end of your 1st clip to be selected.
now hit -15 enter on the keypad.
your shot will have it;s tail trimmed by 15 frames.

you could now toggle the selection around (U key) so that you could trim the 1st 15 frames of the start of the next shot,
but i would do this:

one the shot has been trimmed, hit the down arrow,
that'll take you to the next edit,
-15 enter
down arrow
-15 enter

so you go thru and trim al your tails,
then start at the beginning again and now trim all the heads
this time it'll be +15 enter.

here is another approach, MAYBE BETTER:
open slug into the viewer and set duration (top left) to 1.00.
edit it onto V2 directly above your second clip (F10 to overwrite edit)
if your timeline clips have audio as well as video,
also edit the slug onto A3+A4.

now hit the down arrow, to take you to the next clip.
edit the 1sec slug over that, too (F10)
down arrow,
F10
down arrow,
F10
keep going till every shot has the one second slug over it.
now select all the slugs, and hit -15 to move them all back 15frames,
now the slug is sitting evenly over every cut.
hold shift, and drag the slug down, eating into all the clips.
hit delete to get rid of all the slugs.
now youv'e trimmed heads and tails of all clips.

to close all gaps,
park playhead at start of timeline,
select all your clips,
drag them to the canvas
and drop in the overwrite with transition window.
they will all be written back to the timeline, AND have the default transition applied
there will be some left-over clips at the end of your timeline for you to tidy up.


cheers,
nick

Wow! This sounds like the best advice for what I'm trying to do. So I
need to make subclips with the "Mark, DV start/stop detect" before I do
any of these ideas, right?

Thanks a million!

Amy

Even better...start logging your tapes instead of capturing one big chunk. Yes, it's time-consuming, but it's the proper way of doing things.


www.derekmok.com

so have you got anything in your timeline yet?
i thought you'd already cut some shots in.

if all you do is make all your shots into subclips and put them all to a timeline in chrono order, with a dissolve,
there's not much editing going in!

yes you can simply make subs, then do what i described

but you might be better off opening the clips into the viewer and marking them with in/out points based on the part of the shot you like.


nick

What is "logging your tapes"? I always use the log & capture command to capture the footage. Yep, it is one big chunk that way.
Thanks,
Amy

You'll need to read the manual or do some tutorials on this one. Logging is a very, very basic Final Cut Pro procedure. I'm not going to write a step-by-step, but basically the idea is to go through the tapes and make a batch list which contains information on which shot is where in the timecodes of your tapes. The "one big chunk" approach is very much not recommended.


www.derekmok.com

"The "one big chunk" approach is very much not recommended."

not true.

many use this approach, including me, when the situation is right.


nick

>> "The "one big chunk" approach is very much not recommended."
> not true.
> many use this approach, including me, when the situation is right.

I'll have to argue with you on that one, Nick.

Too many people these days try to learn Final Cut Pro and don't ever learn how to log.

It's unacceptable to not know this method.

And even you wrote: "When the situation is right".

It's also a fact that slow-mo, file management and recapturing (including onlining) become much more problematic when you capture more than 15-20 minutes per clip. I know you've also recommended the method of Batch Exporting subclips to get around this kind of issue, but then the clips are no longer in "big chunks", are they? And no editor will argue that larger media files are better than smaller ones. Less time-consuming, perhaps, but not better. Even time savings are an unknown factor, because if your computer crashes or produces an unusable clip during Capture Now, you have nothing to show for an hour's work. Whereas if you log, you only lose however much time the failed clip takes.

The one-hour-clip approach really shouldn't be advocated as the rule. It is the exception.


www.derekmok.com

It is the exception for long form and narrative. It is the rule for events production like weddings and corporate meetings.

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