Edit to the Maxx - The Art of the Digital Cut - Part 8

by Steve Mullen

Published on Aug 31, 2006 10:00 AM
Add to My Yahoo!




  

  

Read Previous Columns:

  
 
 
Part 7 - Trimming Clips  
   
Edit to the Maxx is a semi-monthly introductory course in video editing, aimed at beginners. We use a free, downloadable software program. This column appears every other Wednesday.

More About Bins and SuperBins
To open a Bin into the same space as the current SuperBin you must single-click on the Bin’s picon. If you double-click a Bin’s picon, the Bin will open in its own window. There are times when you will want to do this. For example, if you want to drag a clip from one Bin to another Bin. (Later, I’ll show you an example of working with multiple Bins.)
When you were trimming clips in Lesson 7, you likely sensed the Bin you were working with was much too small. There are two ways to work with bigger Bins. The first way I’ll show you is ideal when you will be trimming clips and then placing them into a Timeline. This technique uses a slight modification to the Source/Record Editing Toolset.
For those who prefer to trim clips and organize them before starting to build a Sequence (e.g., Timeline), the second method eliminates the Timeline and Composer monitor allowing even more space for big Bins. I’ll show you this technique later in this Lesson.
Source/Record Editing Toolset Bins
After opening Free DV, the window arrangement should look like that below. This arrangement came from issuing the Toolset > Source/Record Editing command in the last Lesson.
 
Click on the SuperBin’s Text tab. Issue the Bin > Headings… command. Click the All / None button twice until nothing is selected. Then select Color, Duration, and Tracks. Now click OK.
You may have noticed that I removed headings, such as timecode, which provide information about the source tape. That’s because when you are editing you’ll be working with data files on your computer. Information about the source tape is no more relevant than knowing the platter, track, and sector where the data file is located on the computer’s hard disk.
Position and size the SuperBin as shown below. Now position the Project window above the SuperBin. You will also likely need to arrange the Timeline and Monitor windows so they fit to the right of the SuperBin and Project windows. (As you can see, the images below are not from my Thaipusam Project.) The arrangement is shown below.
 
Click on the SuperBin’s Script tab. Then resize the SuperBin window to fit in the same space. Confirm that you can see the clip duration. Type something, such as “comment” into the script box. Obviously, you can enter real comments. You can enter words or complete sentences. You can even paste in segments from your production’s script.
 
Click on the SuperBin’s Frame tab. Then resize the SuperBin window to fit in the same space. Issue the Bin > Align to Grid command. Next, issue the Bin > Fill Window command to distribute the picons.
 
Click on the SuperBin’s Brief tab. Then resize the SuperBin window to fit in the same space.
 
Again click on the SuperBin’s Text tab. Issue the Bin > Headings… command. Select Comments. Now click OK. You should see a Comments heading in the SuperBin.
 
Save this window arrangement by issuing the Toolset > Save Current command.
To return this toolset to the Avid default, issue the Toolset > Restore Current to Default command.
Now add comments to your clips—like those I have added.
 
Finding Specific Clips
Click on a Bin and issue the Bin > Custom Sift… command. Enter the text to search for and select Comments. I entered “red” into the box.
 
Now click Apply and OK. Only those clips with the matching text in the comment field will appear in the SuperBin as shown below.
 
If you examine the Custom Sift dialog box, you will see you can very create complex searches. It is this capability that makes Avid the editor of choice for complex productions.
To return to viewing all the clips in a Bin, click on a Bin and issue the Bin > Show Unsifted command.
 
To return to viewing only the matching clips in a Bin, click on a Bin and issue the Bin > Show Unsifted command.
I like to mark my clips using colors. I use red for “unlikely to be used” and green for “use” and yellow for “maybe."Other options include cyan for clips with no useable video, blue for clips with no useable audio, and orange for clips that will be used for video-only “cut-a-ways.” You apply colors by using the drop-down as shown below.
 
Can you search for a color? Click on a Bin and issue the Bin > Custom Sift… command. Enter the name (e.g., red) of the color to search for and choose Color rather than Comments.
Sort Clips
You can select a column of information by clicking on the column’s name. The column will be highlighted in blue. Then, click on a Bin and issue the Bin > Sort command.
 
After the command, the clips will be sorted in descending order as shown below.
 
Can you sort by color? Try it by typing the color’s name into the search box.
Working with Large Bins
If you prefer to trim clips and organize them before starting to build a Sequence, the following method eliminates the Timeline and Composer monitor allowing more space for a larger SuperBin.
Issue the Toolset > Basic command. You will see the arrangement below.
 
Close the Timeline window by clicking the [Close button] or
Click on the Project’s Bin tab.
Click on the SuperBin’s Frame tab.
Now arrange all the windows as shown below.
 
Save this window arrangement by issuing the Toolset > Save Current command.
To return this toolset to the Avid default, issue the Toolset > Restore Current to Default command.
To view or trim a clip, double-click the clip to open it in a Pop-up monitor.
 
Now position and resize the Pop-up monitor over the Composer window. (You’ll need do this each time when you open the first Pop-up monitor.)
 
By simply double-clicking a picon, you can open any clip in the Pop-up monitor.
 
This window arrangement is an ideal one when you need to see several Bins at once. To open a second Bin in its own window, double-click the Bin’s icon in the Project window.
 
To close a Bin, click the [Close button] or
Now, click on the SuperBin’s Script tab and resize the SuperBin to fit.
 
Click on the SuperBin’s Brief tab and resize the SuperBin to fit.
To save you some time, I’ll now show you how to use “Settings.” Click on the Project’s Settings tab. Next, double-click the Keyboard item. You will now see the keyboard short-cut keys used by Free DV.
 
Next, click on the SuperBin’s Text tab and resize the SuperBin to fit. Issue the Bin > Headings… command. Click the All / None button twice until nothing is selected. Then select Color, Duration, and Tracks. (If Comments appears in the list of headings, also select it.)
Now click OK.
Viewing the keyboard shortcuts was helpful, but not a great example of altering settings. Click on the Project’s Settings tab and double-click the General item.
 
Make two changes and then click OK.
·        Set the Starting TC to zero
·        Uncheck Setup because DV does not use 7.5IRE “setup”
In the next Lesson we will, at last, begin to edit using the Timeline.

*

Steve Mullen owns Digital Video Consulting located in Las Vegas. DVC has been supporting videographers for over a decade with seminars, consulting, training, and tutorials. A Contributing Editor for Video Systems for many years, he has also written for A/V Video, Camcorder, DV, Etown, millimeter, The Perfect Vision, Video Pro, and Video Review. Steve taught at Rutgers University and the University of the Arts, and most recently has published two eBooks: the Sony HDV Production Guide and the JVC ProHD Production Guide.